Effect of Overpopulation Research Paper Example

Effect of Overpopulation Research Paper Example Effect of Overpopulation Paper Effect of Overpopulation Paper When the population takes up all the places, part of the population will be left out. These people may become homeless due to limited housing. More schools, hospitals and transportation are needed. Limited land in Hong Kong cannot be developing continuously. Also, overpopulation will bring up the housing price. In order to adapt to the high rent, people are living under stress. This may lead to the increase of crimes. For example, if a man cannot afford to pay the rent, he may became a thief and steal his neighbors things to get money for the rent. Therefore, it raises the social problems such as homelessness, stress and crime. Furthermore, in the environmental view, overpopulation causes limited spaces in Hong Kong. In order to fit in the huge population, the government needs to develop the rural area into a modern city which causes environmental damage. For example, the government has to remove mountains and drain seas, cut down the trees and build up tall buildings to make more living places. These activities affect the environment and endanger many valuable animals such as the Chinese White Dolphin who hen have no place to live. Moreover, due to the cutting down of trees and suffering from the serious traffic congestion, the air quality is poor. These affect the citizens health and cause diseases. Therefore, most Hong Kong people have a weak respiratory system. A Hong Kong study showed higher levels of bronchial hyperactivity (BAR) in children living in a more polluted area. As a result, air pollution affects Hong Kong peoples health seriously. Apart from the social and environmental problems, overpopulation also brings the economic problem of unemployment. Nowadays, the high quality of education is more competitive in this global market. Each year, large amounts of students are joined into the working society. The employers have more choices to choose their ideal employees. However, the demand of jobs is larger than the job market can supply. It comes up with unemployment. Students who have no special talent or educational background may not be able to get the jobs. For example, I have a friend who only finished the high school level. He was unemployed for three years due to his low educational level. Even though he got a job, he was working for a very low salary. Thus, the unemployed cannot afford the daily expense and the economy in Hong Kong will be affected. In conclusion, overpopulation affects Hong Kong in many different ways: socially, environmentally and economically. These will cause serious problems. Since the population is increasing continuously and the land is limited, we need to solve the population overflow as soon as possible. One of the solutions is birth control. The government should create more plans to deal with the problems.

Definite and Indefinite Articles (The, A and An)

Definite and Indefinite Articles (The, A and An) Definite and Indefinite Articles (The, A and An) If English isn’t your first language, knowing when to use an article before a noun can be confusing. It can also be tricky to know which article to use. To help explain, in this post we’re looking at the definite (i.e., â€Å"the†) and indefinite (i.e., â€Å"a† and â€Å"an†) articles. The Definite Article (The) As the name â€Å"definite† suggests, we use the definite article (â€Å"the†) when referring to a particular person or object. This could be because: There is only one of something (e.g., â€Å"the President of the U.S.A.†) We’re using a superlative (e.g., â€Å"the cutest puppy†) â€Å"The† is also useful when referring to something the reader or listener is already familiar with. This might be because we’ve already mentioned or implied what it is: I read a book last week, but the story wasnt great. In this example, we use â€Å"the† in the second part of the sentence because it clearly refers back to the book mentioned in the first part. Many books. But which one is the book?(Photo: BookBabe) Similarly, we can use â€Å"the† when the context makes it clear what we’re discussing. For instance, if we say we’re â€Å"going to the gym,† this obviously implies a specific gym (i.e., the local one), not just any of the many gyms that might be available. We also use â€Å"the† when referring abstractly to every example of something with a singular noun. For instance, while we could use the plural â€Å"cats† in the sentence: Cats are furry animals. We could also say the same thing using the singular noun â€Å"cat† if we add â€Å"the† in front: The cat is a furry animal. In this case, â€Å"the cat† refers to the species â€Å"cat† in general, not to a specific cat. Cats: delightfully furry.(Photo: Patrizia08) Indefinite Articles (A and An) Also aptly named, indefinite articles are used for referring to something when it is one of many possible examples or one of a generic type. In the example above, for instance, saying that we read â€Å"a book† shows that it was one of many possible books we could have read. Likewise, if we were to say we needed â€Å"a plumber,† we’d be asking for any plumber who is available, not one specific plumber. Or toilet magician, as we like to call them.(Photo: Wonderlane/flickr) Whether to use â€Å"a† or â€Å"an,† meanwhile, depends on the sound at the beginning of the next word: If it starts with a consonant sound, use â€Å"a† (e.g., â€Å"a puppy†). If it begins with a vowel sound, you should use â€Å"an† (e.g., â€Å"an egg†). This isn’t always a matter of spelling, since some words that start with a consonant begin with a vowel sound (e.g., â€Å"an hour†), and some words that start with a vowel actually begin with a consonant sound (e.g., â€Å"a universal truth†). No Article Required Finally, keep in mind that some nouns don’t require an article in some situations. This is known as the â€Å"zero article.† Common examples include: Mass nouns and plural nouns used abstractly (e.g., â€Å"Wine is delicious†) Most proper nouns (e.g., â€Å"David is writing a blogpost†) Some forms of transport or delivery (e.g., â€Å"It was sent by mail†) Most countries and languages (e.g., â€Å"I went to China†) The zero article can be confusing, since it depends on how a word is used. For instance, while we might say we saw something â€Å"on television† (no article) when referring to television as a medium, we’d say â€Å"turn on the television† if referring to the TV set in our living room. Whats on the television?Looks like a typewriter.(Photo: The Photographer/wikimedia) Likewise, place names can be tricky, since some require â€Å"the† (e.g., â€Å"the University of Chicago†) and others don’t (e.g., â€Å"Colombia University†). Ultimately, knowing when articles are required is a matter of practice. The important thing is, therefore, to check when you’re not sure (getting your work proofread is also a good idea).

Solar energy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Solar energy - Essay Example Solar power is the transferring of sunlight into electrical energy, either directly by means of photovoltaic, or indirectly by means of concentrated solar power (CSP). CSP structures utilize â€Å"lenses or mirrors and tracking systems to focus a large area of sunlight into a small beam. PV converts light into electric current using the photoelectric effect† (Chiras, 2009). Thermal mass is any substance that can be utilized to accumulate heat from the Sun. General thermal mass substances consist of ‘stone, cement and water’. In the past, they have been utilized in dry weathers or mild humid areas to keep buildings stay cool by soaking up solar energy throughout the daytime.Agriculture seeks to optimize the storage of solar energy for the yield of plants. Methods â€Å"such as timed planting cycles, tailored row orientation, staggered heights between rows and the mixing of plant varieties can improve crop yields† (Bradford, 2008). Solar sanitization can be u tilized to make salty water drinkable. The initial recorded case of this was taken place in 16th century. â€Å"A large-scale solar distillation project was first constructed in 1872 in the Chilean mining town of Las Salinas. The plant, which had solar collection area of 4,700 m2, could produce up to 22,700 L per day and operated for 40 years† (Chiras, 2009).. Solar water disinfection involves placing plastic polyethylene terephthalate bottles, filed with water, in sunlight for couple of hours. Duration of time differ according to climate and type of weather.... Thermal mass is any substance that can be utilized to accumulate heat from the Sun. General thermal mass substances consist of ‘stone, cement and water’. In the past, they have been utilized in dry weathers or mild humid areas to keep buildings stay cool by soaking up solar energy throughout the daytime. Agriculture seeks to optimize the storage of solar energy for the yield of plants. Methods â€Å"such as timed planting cycles, tailored row orientation, staggered heights between rows and the mixing of plant varieties can improve crop yields† (Bradford, 2008). Solar sanitization can be utilized to make salty water drinkable. The initial recorded case of this was taken place in 16th century. â€Å"A large-scale solar distillation project was first constructed in 1872 in the Chilean mining town of Las Salinas. The plant, which had solar collection area of 4,700 m2, could produce up to 22,700 L per day and operated for 40 years† (Chiras, 2009).. Solar water d isinfection involves placing plastic polyethylene terephthalate bottles, filed with water, in sunlight for couple of hours. Duration of time differ according to climate and type of weather from at least ‘five hours to two days’ in completely cloudy situation. It is a suggestion from the World Health Organization (WHO) as a practical way for domestic water handling as well as protected storage. More than three million people in developing nations apply this technique for their everyday drinking water. Advantages and Disadvantages Solar Energy is uncontaminated, renewable and sustainable, facilitating to safeguard the atmosphere. It does not contaminate the air by the discharge of ‘carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxide, sulphur dioxide or mercury’ into the air

Comparison between xbox one and playstation 4 Research Paper

Comparison between xbox one and playstation 4 - Research Paper Example Facing tough competitions from the rapid industrial challenges, it was vital that industry develop a new way of providing entertainment and also to maintain the tradition of playing video games. It has been viewed that today large companies like Microsoft and Sony are developing updated video games adapting new technological aspects and are also competing with one another to become the leader in the video game market. THESIS STATEMENT The paper aims to provide a detailed descriptive analysis, highlighting the major features of two video games consoles i.e. Xbox One and PS4 that would be launched soon for the public. DISCUSSION Xbox One. Xbox One is a forthcoming video game console that has been developed and manufactured by well-known multinational software company Microsoft. It is believed that the product would be released on November 22, 2013 across North America, some European countries, Australia and New Zealand and on 2014 in the rest of the world. Many critics regards this dev ice as an all-in-one entertainment system and is predicted to provide tough competitions to Sony’s well known PlayStation series (Cunningham, â€Å"Xbox One launches in 13 countries on November 22†). PlayStation 4. ... to launch on November 29 in some of the major countries in the European region (O'Brien, â€Å"PlayStation 4 hitting shelves on November 15th in the US for $399, November 29th in Europe and Latin America†). COMPARISION With the rapid globalization and technological development, it is not only automobile and service sectors that are facing tough challenges from competitors but video game manufacturer like Sony and Microsoft are also facing tough challenges with the increase in competitors in the global market. In this aspect, it has also become tough for consumers to decide which product to choose from a range of available products in the market. Below is a comparison of the two most controversial video game console that would be launched very shortly. The two consoles Xbox and PS4 are considered similar in their hardware specification, especially when it comes to the control processing unit (CPU) and Graphics processing unit (GPU). Both the company uses Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. chip for their consoles, using system on chip (SoC) as a combination component for the CPU and GPU. The processor used in these consoles is an x86 64-bit chip with 8 'Jaguar' cores which provides an estimated clock speed of 1.65GHz. Although, PS4 and Xbox One has the same AMD Radeon GPU, however, the PS4 is much powerful with an 1152 cores compared to Xbox One. Additionally, it has been identified PS4 has a higher peak shader which is 1.84 TFLOPS in comparison to that of Xbox One which is 1.23 TFLOPS (Shimpi, â€Å"The Xbox One: Hardware Analysis & Comparison to PlayStation 4†). Again, it has been viewed that both the console has 8GB of RAM. However, in this aspect Xbox One has 32MB of eSRAM that can be used as a cache memory. It is worth mentioning that when it comes to storage both the

Hammurabis Code Essay Example for Free

Hammurabis Code Essay I am going to discuss the source of Hammurabi’s Code from our book, Sources of World Societies. During this time, there were a lot of different social classes, and the rich were definitely favored more than the poor. The Code contemplates the whole population as falling into three classes, the amelu, the muskinu and the ardu. The amelu was a patrician, the man of family, whose birth, marriage and death were registered, of ancestral estates and full civil rights . In the book, Sources of World Societies, Hammurabi’s code was not the first known law code, but it is the earliest one to survive largely intact . The code deals with the family, commercial activities, and agricultural life. The laws stated in the book dealt with medical practices, explaining the phrase an â€Å"eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth,† the most common law, meaning that a person who has injured another person receives the same injury in compensation. The example used for that is Law 196, â€Å"If a man put out the eye of another man, his eye shall be put out . Hammurabi’s Code was very to the point, meaning that there was most likely a law for everything possible in a wrongdoing. For example, Law 218 states, â€Å"If a physician performed a major operation on a freeman with a bronze lancet and has caused the freeman’s death, or he opened up the eye-socket of a freeman and has destroyed the freeman’s eye, they shall cut off his hand . † I understand that the physician did mess up a crucial surgery, but I do think it’s a little outrageous to cut off his whole hand! Perhaps it would be better if he just got punished for the mistake. I do think it’s unfair that if he messed up a slave’s surgery, he received shekels of silver. Law 217 states, â€Å"If it was a freeman’s slave, the owner of the slave shall give two shekels of silver to the physician . † How messed up is that? Slaves were killed for almost every minor offense. Hammurabi’s Code consisted of around 282 Laws. Hammurabi’s Code was established around 1780 B. C . Hammurabi was the ruler who chiefly established the greatness of Babylon, the worlds first metropolis . Hammurabi had many accomplishments other than the law code. He unified Mesopotamia under Babylonian rule, and established the supremacy of the Babylonian god Marduk . Hammurabi’s Code was arranged in orderly groups, so that all men might read and know what was required of them. The code was carved upon a black stone monument, eight feet high, and clearly intended to be reared in public view. This noted stone was found in the year 1901, in a city of the Persian mountains. It begins and ends with addresses to the gods . The Code clearly stated the rules of marriage, having children, and what they were able to do with their children. For example, if a married couple got a divorce, and the woman was a â€Å"bad wife,† the Code allowed him to send her away while he got to keep the children and her dowry, or he could degrade her to the position of a slave in his own house . Women seemed to be treated poorly during this time, and men seemed to always be in charge. For example, Law 110 states, â€Å"If a sister of a god open a tavern, or enter a tavern to drink, then shall this woman be burned to death . Honestly, this one kind of shocked me a bit. Women go to taverns all the time, and if it was this day and age, it would be considered a huge crime if a woman got put to death from going to a tavern. The most common penalty was a fine, but many resulted in death. For instance, Law 2 states, â€Å"If any one bring an accusation against a man, and the accused go to the river and leap into the river, if he sink in the river his accuser shall take possession of his house. But if the river prove that the accused is not guilty, and he escape unhurt, then he who had brought the accusation shall be put to death, while he who leaped into the river shall take possession of the house that had belonged to his accuser . † This law actually makes a lot of sense. If a man is wrongly accused, then the accuser should get punished. Why should the accuser go without getting a penalty, but he should just get a fine, and not be put to death. It does seem a little weird that their letting the river determine their fate. It seemed like they had a lot of beliefs in nature, and let nature decide their fate. I have read these Code laws over and over multiple times and a few of them has made me chuckle a bit. I just think to myself, what were these people thinking?! Law 25 says, â€Å"If fire break out in a house, and some one who comes to put it out cast his eye upon the property of the owner of the house, and take the property of the master of the house, he shall be thrown into that self-same fire . † This law confused me a bit, does it mean that if the person coming to put out the fire looks at the property of where the fire is at, he must be thrown into the fire? If so, that definitely doesn’t make any sense. Law 132 states, â€Å"If the finger is pointed at a mans wife about another man, but she is not caught sleeping with the other man, she shall jump into the river for her husband . † I understand that cheating a a very wrong thing to do, but if she was not caught why should she have to jump into the river? What is she going to learn about doing such a thing. Jumping in the river probably was a big penalty back then. In conclusion, after I looked and went over Hammurabi’s Code, I have learned quite a bit about how life was lived back then. Just thinking that all of our ancestors had to go through that, and how many lives were lost for doing certain crimes that we would consider minor offenses nowadays. If our ancestors lived in the world we lived in today, they would probably think it’s so easy, when we think it’s super hard. The laws were taken very seriously and hardly went unseen. We think these laws are very outrageous and uncalled for, when in reality, they probably weren’t that big of a deal back then. I chose this source because it seemed really interesting to get to know about how the law was made back in 1800 B. C. E. It is important to understand this period of history to see how laws were even made or thought of. Every law that we have is most likely a revised version of one of Hammurabi’s Code Laws. Hammurabi’s Code informed me that early World History is very different than what it is today. This is my first time ever hearing about Hammurabi’s Code, and even learning about 1800 B. C. E. I have really enjoyed learning more about this topic.

Creating Madness in The Yellow Wallpaper -- Yellow Wallpaper essays

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   As summer progresses in the story "The Yellow Wallpaper," John's treatment of the narrator as though she were a helpless docile child becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy; she sheds the skin of her adult self and gives birth to her inner child via the wallpaper. From the moment she implies she is sick, his behavior becomes more and more parental and authoritarian. Under this guise he slowly disintegrates any resemblance of an adult wife he had. At the end he's victorious because he does beget a child. Simultaneously, he's a loser because the behavior of this childlike being mirrors his own attitude toward his wife: she's defiant and assertive and runs right over him. The tables have reversed. In the beginning of the story, John laughs at her feelings about the queerness of the estate he has rented for the next three months. He acts as if her imagination has gone wild. Clearly he does not see her as his equal but as an undeveloped being who would entertain such nonsense. John "has no patience with faith" and "he scoffs openly at any talk of things not to be felt and seen" (Gilman 178). John does not have the patience to deal with a lesser being's outlook. It takes a great deal of patience for a parent to deal with the inner workings of a child's imaginative mind.    John and his brother-in-law, both physicians, refuse to believe she is really sick. Instead they assume she has "a slight hysterical tendency" (178). In their eyes depression is not an illness but a symptom of being a female. John has "forbidden her to 'work'" (179). Very often parents don't believe children when they say they are sick. Adults think that children blow things out of proportion in order to get their parents' attention. His prescription for... ...his infantile creation "had to creep over him" (191) as she escapes from the womb of the wallpaper.    Works Cited Gilman, Charlotte P. "The Yellow Wallpaper." An Introduction to Literature. Ed. Sylvan Barnett, Morton Berman, and William Burton 10th ed. New York: Harper Collins, 1993. 178-91. Golden, Catharine. "The Writing of 'The Yellow Wallpaper': A Double Palimset." Studies in Short Fiction 17 (1989): 193-201. Hume, Beverly A. "Gilman's Interminable Grotesque: The Narrator of 'The Yellow Wallpaper.'" Studies in Short Fiction 28 (1991): 477-83. Johnson, Gregg. "Gilman's Gothic Allegory: Rape and Re-demption in 'The Yellow Wallpaper.'" Studies in Short Fiction 26 (1989): 521-30. King, Jeanette, and Pam Morris. "On Not Reading Between The Lines: Models of Reading in 'The Yellow Wallpaper.'" Studies in Short Fiction 26 (1989): 23-32.   

Lago in Act 1 Scenes

Thus, by carrying out the role as a villain, he highlights the animalistic traits evident within people of the Venetian society. Although Iago is a white man who holds a fairly high status within Venetian society, he is crude and uncouth, often swearing and making references to the devil.By using he imagery of being â€Å"plague[ed] with flies†, he makes reference to the devil, which is extremely inappropriate for a man held win such high regard. Furthermore, through this example, he associates himself with darkness and evil despite being a white man-who are supposedly considered pure and heathen. Also, by using the symbolism of â€Å"an old black ram†, he again associates himself with darkness and the devil. The â€Å"old black ram† symbolises the devil, which has the connotations of being evil, dark, and terrible.Hence, making the distinction between light and darkness nclear and confusing, bringing to light the idea that darkness might be evident in light, and vice versa. Because Othello has defied his position in society as a black man by proving himself through his talents and his honourable actions, he is still discriminated by Iago, who voices out his disdain for him openly. He uses the symbolism of a â€Å"Barbary horse† to represent Othello.This is extremely demeaning to Othello, a man of royal lineage who has carried himself off with only the utmost integrity and honour. This shows hat although he has many merits and is regal in his actions and demeanour, he is still associated with the stereotype that all blacks are barbarians. Furthermore, the sibilance within â€Å"the gross clasps ofa lascivious Moor† highlights the sinister and libidinous traits that Blacks are stereotypically known to possess.This forms a disgusting impression of Othello, by simply Judging him according to his skin colour. Thus, through lagds characterisation of Othello through his ethnicity, he forms a racist impression of Othello and thus, is able to highlight the significance of one's thnicity and how difficult, if not impossible, this boundary is to surpass. By agitating Brabantio, Iago makes a fool of the high ranking senator, and this brings forth the idea that people in position of power might not be worthy of it.The run-on lines evident between â€Å"Sir, sir, sir-† and â€Å"But thou must need to be sure† shows how little Brabantio thinks of using his â€Å"spirit† and his â€Å"place† to punish Iago and Roderigo. This emphasizes the fact that people of power can carelessly make use of it to their own benefit. In Brabantio's case, he threatens to punish them as they have disturbed his rest.The triviality of their offence is mismatched with the threat that Brabantio has faced them with, showing that he has taken advantage of his power and thus, might not be worthy of it. Also, the run-on lines evident between â€Å"For thus does not think before acting. This is not appropriate for some one holding such a high position as he is expected to give thought before carrying out his actions, or the resultant effect of his carelessness might have great impact on society.Hence, Iago shows the inadequacy of Brabantio and through this, questions the significance of people's merits when being placed in power. Thus, through his mischief, Iago incites people to display their raw, animalistic traits, and displays his own as well. This results in the surfacing of problems within Venetian society that eventually accumulates to result in various tragedies. Hence, Iago is significant in masterminding the eventual tragedy, and the beginnings of this are evident in act 1 scene 1 and 2.

School Life: What I Learned

As I look back, there are multiple reason I am who I am today, but when I think about it changing to a public school my junior year really had a huge impact on my life and who I am today. It has made me independent and trust of myself, become more involved in school and learned how to balance my time. Also, switch schools, I have experienced a huge diversity of people. My first two years of high school, I attended St.Pius X, there I had gone to school ith all the same people I had known my whole life. Pius was a very small school and very easy to adapt to. After my sophomore year, I just knew something wasn’t right with me. I felt very sheltered and I felt like I wasn’t my own person, I felt myself being like everyone else. Knowing myself and what I wanted in life, I knew St. Pius was no longer the school for me. My Junior year, I switched to North Kansas City, knowing few people going in. Going through something like that, I had no friends and no one to trust myself.I had no fear going in. Being able to start completely over with no friends and no one to trust or go to I developed so much confidence in myself and knew I would adapt quickly. Still to this day, even with the close relationships I have made with people, I am still very independent. I make sure no matter what goes on in my life to take care of all of my responsibilities and this quality will come in handy in college with everything I will experience and will continue to stay successful. To help myself adapt to the change, I became as involved as I possibly could.I joined clubs, did volunteer work and also played three sports all while maintaining a job. Being this involved I was nervous I would become overwhelmed and thought it would be easy to loose my focus with academics but I knew that I couldn’t let that happen. My grades really improved and I was able to manage all of my activities and always get my school work done. This will definitely benefit me in college because I k now that I will be as involved as possible and that i will still maintain the motivation to get ll my work done and take care of every single of my responsibilities I develop in college. North Kansas City is not only a bigger school that I am used to, but also a very diverse school. We represent people from about thirty six different countries. I have developed close relationships with people from places I have never even heard of. At North Kansas City high school there are so many opportunities, every individual person seems like they have found comfort there. I know I have found many things to be involved in.When I get in college I know there will be people all over the world and for most it will be a huge culture shock. Being surrounded by people with different backgrounds and all walks of life and my experience with going to one of the most diverse schools in the country will help me understand people and where they are all coming from. As much as I miss my old friends and old l ife, in the end I am so happy with the change. The self trusting, time management skills and experience to a very diverse school is what is best for me in the future, not only in college but in my career after college as well.

Bullovh Hall essays

Bullovh Hall essays Seeing the Bulloch hall for first time, more than a historic building I felt it as something bright and pure and radiating. Just a glance at it turns our memories to about two hundred year back when the only way to escape cold winter was a warm fireplace and transportation was hand?oared boats and wagons. This same hall was the girlhood home of Mitte Bulloch, mother of the 26th president Theodore Roosevelt and grandmother of First Lady, Eleanor Roosevelt. Major James Stephen Bulloch, one of Roswell's first settlers and the grandson of Governor of Archibald Bulloch built the Bulloch hall in 1840. More than calling it a hall it should be called the Bulloch home, because it shows all the characters of a comfortable home. The entrance of this hall draws our attention to the long hallway lying across the house connecting all rooms and stairs. The first room from the hallway is the parlor which has an old, royal piano and a huge fireplace (the house altogether has 11 fireplaces). There are big huge windows in the parlor that lets the sunrays come through. The next was the dinning room, which was decorated by silverware from that period. The most wonderful thing that we see throughout this house is its furniture. The dinning table is a big one with a formal dinner set laid out there. A warming room right adjacent to the dinning room is the last room on the right of the hallway. On the left side of the hallway is the nursery room, which has a rocking chair and a riding pony from that time. On the other side of the master bedroom is the library, which is facing the grassy pastures before the house giving the reader a sense of relief and a good environment to read. The hallway then takes us upstairs to the family bedroom. Mitte's room is next to the family bedroom with lot of her personal items still preserved. There is a small sewing room whose floor is more inlaid compared to other rooms on that floor, probably to keep child...

Decimal Degrees Versus Minutes, Seconds

Decimal Degrees Versus Minutes, Seconds When you hear about metric measurements, usually you are bombarded with terms denoting length, height or volume, depending on your industry. Outside of formal schooling, you almost never hear about the geographical side of measurement - specifically, those ever-present invisible lines of latitude and longitude. This article will explore how some metrics are shown in geographical terms, who uses traditional Degrees/Minutes/Seconds, and what the future may hold.   A Brief History of U.S. Metrics Originating in France in the 1790s, the metric system (officially known as SI, short for Le Systeme International dUnites) grew in popularity due to increasing global commerce. Through trade with Europe, the U.S. awareness of metrics trickled into existence, eventually prompting Congress to permit its use in 1866. It was legal but voluntary. The first official legislation concerning metric conversion was passed by Congress in 1974, adding metrics to our elementary and secondary education curriculum. One year later (in 1975), Congress passed the Metric Conversion Act, declaring that the U.S. federal government should use metrics as its preferred measurement system, as evidenced by a box sitting in my cubicle whose labeling instructions tell of letters that must be 3.81cm (1.5 inches) high. The nutritional information on any package of food is also a good example, showing grams (instead of ounces) of fat, carbs, vitamins, etc. Ever since its beginnings, the U.S. government has striven to promote and stabilize metrication, with limited results: mostly those in the sciences, military, engineering, manufacturing and other technical fields use the metric system. The general public, however, continues to show comparatively overwhelming disinterest in adopting grams, litres, and meters over the traditional ounces, quarts, and feet. The United States is the only remaining industrialized country whose general population does not use metrics as its primary measurement system. Metrics and Geography Despite the average American laypersons apathy for metrics, those of us who use geographic coordinates on a daily basis see plenty of evidence that decimals are out in full force. On any given day Ill see a few handfuls of engineering site surveys (and sometimes other data) come across my desk, 98% of which have a decimal somewhere in the latitude or longitude. As technology has developed over the years, allowing more accurate measurements, the number of ways that we geography people get to read those coordinates has increased. The three most popular types of Lat/Lon displays are: Traditional degrees/minutes/seconds (D/M/S), usually with decimal secondsDegrees with decimal minutes, no secondsDecimal degrees, no minutes, no seconds Doing the Math No matter how you choose to display them, any converted coordinates will get you to the same point, basically - its simply a matter of preference. If you are one of those people who grew up learning only D/M/S like me, you might break into a cold sweat the first time you see the second or third decimal variations (bulleted above), if only from the memory of your high school algebra classes. But fear not, for there are a boatload of conversion programs and websites that will do the math for you. A majority of these sites convert between D/M/S and decimal degrees, leaving out the less popular but still available decimal minutes. There are other sites for those who dont mind/enjoy algebra, or who are naturally intrepid souls and simply wish to brave the longhand algebraic equations. If you are ready to break out the Texas Instruments calculator and go for it, you might try the Montana Natural Resource Information System, which shows conversion equation examples, but also has an automatic converter.   Finally Rubbing Off? Within the past few years, more and more Americans seem to be warming up to the concept and have begun using decimals in their everyday lives. Certainly, the growing number of metric labels on many foods, drinks, health care, cleaners and other various products are clear indicators that the average American consumer should probably start learning to accept decimal numbers. This goes for geography as well. GPS unit sales to the nonmilitary population are on the rise and most (if not all) GPS units display a location using decimals. One can expect hiking, boating, driving, or any other type of navigational information to be in this same format, no matter the scale, map projection, or elevation. As the rest of the world moves forward with metric standards, the United States government will most likely feel more pressure (especially from Europe) to go totally metric for global trading purposes. Once the population finally accepts that change is coming, decimal numbers will be even more abundant and it will filter down through every aspect of American industry. Don't Panic For those hikers, boaters, drivers, orienteering students, land surveyors and others who may be used to using only D/M/S, dont worry. The conversions are out there, and its easier than you think to get results from them. Latitude and longitude lines certainly arent going anywhere - well always have those to rely on - so for now, get ready and warm up that calculator! Len Morse earned a B.S. in Geography from Towson State University and has been with the FAA for approximately 14.61 years.

The Effects of Equal Employment oppertunity legislation Research Paper

The Effects of Equal Employment oppertunity legislation - Research Paper Example The Act intended to eliminate discrimination in all areas of life overcoming the past unequal orthodox social set up. For the enforcement of these laws Congress established the enforcement authority EEOC (Equal Employment Opportunities Commission). The laws currently enforced by the EEOC include Title VII of the Civil Right Act 1964, the amendment which appears in volume 42 of the US code. It prohibits employment discrimination based on color, race, religion, sex and national origin. Other laws related to the EEO legislation are Equal Pay Act of 1963, Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, Americans with disabilities act of 1990, Civil Rights Act of 1991, Rehabilitation Act of 1973. The laws cover all areas of possible discriminations like age, disability, national origin, race, religion, sex, and also ensure the prevention of sexual harassment and retaliation. The laws also insist to implement equal payment system with out any discrimination (Federal Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Laws). All these legislations brought about drastic changes in US labor market. The enforcement of these la ws has altered the social context of hiring, firing and promoting. It covers all areas of employee – employer relationship from advertising, open position through termination or retirement. The law insists that the disabled also must be given opportunities based on their education and other skills. The EEO legislation has proved how the diversity qualities like age, race, religion, sex etc. can be utilized by an organization as their support of business objectives. Teams or organizations with greater diversity enjoy the availability of a richer set of ideas, perspectives and approaches to deal a business issue. Many employers today get benefited by the talented segments of work force in the competitive global economy. Diversity provides the possibility for greater innovation and

Discuss the military strategy of the North from 1861 to the end of Essay

Discuss the military strategy of the North from 1861 to the end of 1862. How successful was this strategy - Essay Example Even though this strategy led to numerous casualties, it was instrumental in grounding the Southern forces. The North strategy was good to an extent that it diminished any possibility of foreign intervention, particularly from the Great Britain (Bradford, 2010). Finally, it is important to look at how successful the North strategy was. To a greater extent, historians and military strategists agree that the strategy applied by the North from 1861 to the end of 1862 was successful. Martin (2003) argues that this view is informed by the outcomes of the strategy. It is considered successful because it made the Southerners to lose morale because they were constantly exhausting their efforts by being prepared to fight without actually doing so. This strategy saw the North destroying vital transportation routes of the Southerners, a strategy that was effective in ensuring that they won the war (Bradford,