The Process And Principles Of Money Laundering Finance Essay - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 12 Words: 3696 Downloads: 8 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Finance Essay Type Research paper Did you like this example? Introduction Money laundering can defined as process of transforming illegal money earned to become legal money which is come from legal activities. According to Shijia Gao et al (2009) in HM Treasury 2004, Money Laundering is a term usually used to describe the ways in which criminals process illegal or dirty money derived from the proceeds of any illegal (e.g. the proceeds of a drug-dealing, human trafficking, fraud, embezzlement, insider trading, bribery, theft or tax evasion) through a succession of a transfers and deals until the source of illegally acquired funds is obscured and the money take on the appearance of legitimate or clean funds or assets. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "The Process And Principles Of Money Laundering Finance Essay" essay for you Create order In order to have a deep understanding on money laundering, we must understand in term of capital flight and smurfing. According to financial dictionary, capital flight means rapid withdrawal of capital (capital flight) from a country as a result of loss of confidence in its government. It is also means how much the money move to another point to another, driven by possible gains or concerns about government policies. Another term is smurfing that are related directly to smurf which are person who help move the funds from one institution to another or from one country to another. A smurfing operation will involve a major coordinator called papa smurf who will direct is smurfs to make deposits of drug profits at a large number of banks, usually ally at numbers just below local reporting requirements, like drug-smuggling airplanes that fly below radar screens. Usually, money laundering activities occurs in places that extensive banks secrecy laws, weak financial regulatory regimes, l ake enforcement, and corruption. In order to make money laundering, there are three stages that a launderer always do such as placement, layering, and integration. Placement According to Ricardo Baba (2007), its a phase placement of currency into a financial services institution. Its could be a bank, a brokerage house, and so on. Placement also can define as a proceeds from illegal activities into the financial system in such manner as to avoid detection by financial institutions and government authorities by referring to Shijia Gao et al (2009) in IFAC (2002). Usually, there are several places or technique that a money launderer can use to place their money such as bank institution, insurance institution, real property or lottery business, casinos or other gambling venues, Shell Company or front company, and offshore corporation or offshore financial centre. It can be explained as below: Bank institution Bank institution used by a launderer because of bank secrecy which is most applied in many countries. It is also because bank institution have offer several of services such as deposit, loan, acceptance, discount, foreign exchange, settlement and so on. Thus, it helps launderer to transfer funds across international borders with a convenient and prompt. An example case of money laundering using bank institution can be shown as below: In January 2011, Johor Baharu- The session court was found and discharged a police officer of money laundering involved RM3.8 million between 2002 and 2005. Judge Salawati Djambari made a decision after found the prosecution was failed to prove a prima facie against Supt. Azmi Osman, 55. Azmi, who is suspended from his job, was accused of receiving RM2.08 million through a money-laundering operation in current account at a Malayan Banking Berhad, Jalan Haji Kassim Mentakab between 6 Feb and Dec 20, 2002. In the second charge, he was accused of receiving RM679 850 in the same account between Jan 15 and Oct 2. He was also accused of receiving RM941 930 in another current account at Lot M1-22, Level 3, Johor Baharu City Square, 106-108 Jalan Wong Ah Fook between Jan 13 and Nov 17, 2004 and subsequently RM250 000 in the same account on April 5, 2005 Source: The Malaysian Insider News Insurance Institution This intuition can help to disguise the origin and the nature of illegal proceeds and gains obtained from its buying, altering and surrendering insurance policies and filing insurance claims in order to advert the tracing of the authorities. An example of case can be explained as follow: A drug trafficker purchased a life insurance policy with a value of US$80,000. The policy was purchased through an agent of a large life insurance company using a cashiers cheque. The investigation showed that the client had made it known that the funds used to finance the policy were the proceeds of drug trafficking. In light of fact, the agent charged significantly higher commission. Three months following this transaction, the investigation showed that the drug dealer cashed in this policy. Source: Ping He (2010) in FATF 2005 Real Property or Lottery A lucky lottery buyer won 14.3 millions dollars in the Mass Millionaire Projects of Massachusetts. Before he cashed the prize wining lotteries, he sold half of them to a company, whose owner was the head of criminal group in Boston Don Shan, a notorious gang. Purchasing those lotteries was exactly a money laundering scheme, which was discovered by the police when they traced the dirty money gained by this group. Just at this time the gang head was about to cash the lotteries he bought, a joint suspension order was given by the court and the State Lottery Administrative Committee to freeze the wining lotteries, when the case just broken. It is a new channel for a money launderer to keep their money to become legal such as buying a land using illegal money. An example of case can be shown as follows: Source: Ping He (2010) in Weimin, 2005b Casinos or other gambling venues In casinos, chips are bought with cash, then after a period time during which gambling may or not take place; the chips are traded in a check from the casinos, perhaps in the name of third party. Thus, the chips can be transform back into cash and become legal money. Shell company or front company According to Ping He (2010), Shell Company refers to the company that does not have funds or enough funds required by law, do not have organizational structure or fixed premises for the production and operation. Front company established by the criminals indicates the company with a legal personality, legal business activities, legal operation income, while whose establishment is for the purpose of the laundering the proceeds of crime instead of making profits. These companies used by criminals as a source of illicit the money with a full of control of the company. The example case can be shown as below: Harry embezzled a sizeable amount of mon ey from a company for which he had used to work. As time passed, he had managed to spend a sizeable amount but had begun to consider which locations- other than his home- he would use to hide the money, as it was a small village in Europe and hid the money in the banking system, using his company as a cover, by claiming the cash was part of his regular income. To avoid difficult face to face questions from the bank employees, he deposited approximately US$14,000- the majority in old bills- into the banks night safe. As the night safe was emptied the following day, Harrys deposited immediately raised suspicions. How could a car service attract so much income in one day? The financial intelligence unit (FIU) disseminated a report to the police after being informed by the bank. The polices involvement into the money, Harry mixed the illicit money with the business income by establishing the car service station which was served as a front company. Source: Ping He (2010) in FIUs in action- 100 cases from Egmont Group. Case 15 (Weimin, 2005a, p. 173) Offshore corporation or offshore financial centre Over a period of three years, Mr X repatriated the funds to Country Y for his use and benefit. He was assisted by lawyers and accountants using false transactions and offshore corporations. Mr Y, formerly a lawyer, facilitated Mr Xs repatriation scheme by managing Mr Xs offshore corporation and banks accounts in several important financial centre. Mr Y drafted documents that purported to be loan agreements between offshore shell corporation and a Mr X nominee in Country Y. These loan agreements served as a basis for the transfer of millions from banks accounts in several different countries to the Mr Xs home country. Offshore corporation or offshore financial centre is an institution that has less strict regulations through a legal method. According to Weimin (2005), corporations which are registered in these areas, whose investors are not required to go the areas personally, and whose businesses can be directly operated anywh ere throughout the world are called offshore corporations. It can attract a money launderer to go on these places. An example cases can be shown as below: Source: Ping He (2010) in FATF, 2003-2004 Layering It is a second stage in money laundering process. According to Shijia Gao et al (2009), layering is the process of generating a series or layer of transactions to distance the proceeds from their illegal source and obscure the audit trail. It is also known as a main wash-stage, the launderer try to conceal or disguise the source of funds, by making money around the world in order to hide the origin of the money. Usually there are several techniques most famous used in layering stage such as electronic transfer funds, offshore banks, shell corporations, trusts, walking account, and intermediaries. It can be explained as follows: Electronic Fund Transfers (EFT). According to Australian Analysts Transaction Reports (2008), Electronic Fund Transfers help in layering process by moving money using EFT into and out of domestic and offshore banks account of fictitious individuals and shell companies. Moreover, sometimes information on daily money transactions is limited f or authorities making them difficult to recognize or distinguish between the clean money and dirty money. The example can be shown as below: In order to launder a large sum of money, one criminal syndicate decided to break up the whole capital into parts, and Ralph, a laundering expert in this syndicate, planned to take advantage of payment of smart card. First, Ralph established in country B online entertainment company which could obtain its service fee through smart card. Then, Ralph instigated his laundering employees throughout Country B to pay US$700 to US$800 to buy the same of smart card whose maximum amount of smart card. These deposits for consuming are US$820 from the local distributor of smart card. These buyers enjoyed the service offered by the online entertainment company and paid the bill online or promptly, which was repeated once in three times a week per capita until the capital was totally transformed into the service income of the company. After having receiv ed the service fee paid by its employees, the company successfully turned the criminal proceeds into legal income. Source: Ping He (2010) in Shaping (2003) Offshore banks. Offshore banks become places for layering process because they allow an establishment account for non-residents and corporations. It is also have a lower law and regulation for an establishment of account. Furthermore, offshore banks are very popular for a tax evaders and officials corrupt. It becomes easier because according to Australian Analyst Transaction (2008), some offshore centers combine loose anti-money laundering procedures with strict bank secrecy rules. Criminal can easily maintain and transfer fund from banks in these centers because the detail of client are generally denied to third parties, including most law enforcement agencies. An example can be shown as below: Banana Banks in the United Apple allows for an establishment account for non-residents. Larry Launder, a non-resident of the United Apple, has a numerous accounts with Banana Banks in the name of different individuals and companies. Larry is a resident of the Republic Watermelon. Fund s from illegal activities of Republic Watermelon are placed into Larry accounts with Banana Banks using different placement techniques. Once the funds are placed, Larry Launder instructs Banana Bank to various transfers and payments, thereby distancing funds from their origins. Source: Australian Transaction Report and Analysis Centre: Layering Techniques (2008) Shell corporations Shell corporations usually a company that establishment under a legal corporate laws but does not actually conduct a business which is used it to engage in fictitious transactions or hold accounts and assets to disguise the actual ownership of these accounts and assets. An example can be shown as below: Larry Launder sets up Apricot Trading Co. under the laws of the United Apple. Apricot Trading Co. opens bank accounts with several of banks. Smurf working for Larry Launder transfers illegal funds to the Apricot Trading Co. accounts. Apricot Trading Co. transfers these funds to other accounts or invests them in securities. Source: Australian Transaction Report and Analysis Centre: Layering Techniques (2008) Trusts Trusts are legal arrangement for holding funds or assets for a specified case which is assets or funds are managed by a trustee for benefit of specified beneficiaries. It can help in layering process because they enable to create a fake papers trail and transactions. Moreover, secrecy and anonymity rules help to conceal the identity of the true owner or beneficiary of true assets. An example can be as below: Larry Launder establishes a business trust by appointing a corporate trustee and drawing a deed of trust, which names Apricot Trading Co. as a beneficiary. Larry Launder transfer funds to the corporate trustee and under a deed of trust, Apricot Trading Co. are empowered to directly use and invest funds. Source: Australian Transaction Report and Analysis Centre: Layering Techniques (2008) Walking accounts Walking accounts also known as capital flight. According to Australian report transactions (2008), Walking account is an account for which account holder has provided standing instructions that all funds be transferred immediately on receipt to another to one or more other accounts. By setting up a series of walking account, criminal automatically create several layers as soon as many funds transfer occurs. It usually using by criminals because it is difficult to detect and money move very fast around the world. An example can be shown as below: Using Shell corporations, Larry Launder sets up three accounts with three different banks. He provides instructions to transfer all funds immediately on receipt to one or more of the other accounts. Smurfs deposits cash into the first account. Without the need for further account, the funds are layered by being transferred to the third account. Source: Australian Transfer Report and Analysis Centre: Layering Techniques (2008) Intermediaries According to Australian report transactions (2008), Lawyers, accountants, and other professional may be used as intermediaries between the illegal funds and criminal. Professionals engage in transactions on behalf of criminal client who remains anonymous. These transactions may include the use of shell corporations, fictitious records paper trails. Money launderer likes to use intermediaries because they lend credibility and decrease suspicion. In addition, these professional generally have confidentiality obligations of their clients so their risk of money launderer getting caught is low. An example can be shown as below: Larry Launder transfers funds to special account for client funds maintain by the law firm Shady Hustler. Shady Hustler establishes a shell corporation, Apricot Trading Co., which opens various banks account. Shady Hustler now transfers Larry funds into these accounts. Source: Australian Transaction Report and Analysis Centre: Layering Techniques (2008) Cash smuggling In November 1991, the money laundering case by smuggling cash in human body was reported by John F. Kennedy International airport customs authority. A female Ghana immigrant, under interrogation of customs officers, acknowledged carrying $9,000 in cash just under the customs declarations point of $10,000. Nevertheless, customs officers found $24,000 small bank notes packed in some sheets in her luggage, $224,000 in 100 cash rolls hided in shampoo bottles, and $53,000 in small bags in her stomach, which was detected by X-ray test. Cash smuggling is an attempt to bring out the money outside a country with an illegal ways. According to Ping He (2010), cash smuggling is a method of money laundering in which the proceeds of crime are stealthily moved cross border, and then deposited in banking institution, paid for real estate or invested to establish companies. An example case of cash smuggling can be shown as below: Source: Ping He (2010) in Dupuis- Danon (2006) International Trade International trade can help to disguise illegal money because the origin of the money illegal money can be healed. Moreover, they can easily transfer the illegal money back into a country using the trade transaction to justify payment through financial system. An example of case can be shown as below: A Brazilian company signs a contract to export soybeans to a German company who prepays the Brazilian company for the shipment. The Brazilian company immediately transfers the funds to a third party that is unrelated to the transaction. The soybeans that were purchased by the German company are never shipped. In this case, the German company transferred the funds to the Brazilian company as an advance for a shipment of soybeans. Suspicious were raised when it was found that export of soybeans were inconsistent with the scale of the companys operations. Source: Ping He (2010) in FATF, 2006 Integration Integration is a last stage is money laundering process. Usually, there are several ways used in integration stage which can be explained as below: Credit and debit cards Credit and debit card used for entering the illegal funds to engage in financial systems. According to Australian Transfer Reports (2008), By maintaining an account in offshore jurisdiction through which payment are made, the criminal limit the financial trail that leads to their country residence. An example can be shown as below: Larry Launder transfers illegal funds into an offshore banks account. He also signs up for debit card and credit cards in the banks. He used the debit card and credit card to make payment for purchases and transactions around the world. Source: Australian Transaction Report and Analysis Centre: Integration and Techniques (2008) Consultants According to Australian Transfer Report (2008), Consultants is an arrangement that can cover a wide range of non-quantifiable services and often used to integrate illegal funds into legitimate financial systems. They usually employs by the criminal to do a legal work which is involve in purchasing assets and selling an assets, and manage the payment for the criminal behalf. An example can be shown as below: Larry Launder sets up a shell corporation and related bank account in an offshore jurisdiction. The shell corporation hires a consultant. The consultant performs services and makes payments for Shell Corporation. The consultant is paid by the shell corporation. Source: Australian Transaction Report and Analysis Center: Integration and Techniques (2008) Corporate Financing Corporate financing has offered a various ways to transfer funds between companies. It is because corporate financing usually combined a number of other techniques, including the use of offshore banks, consultants, complex financial agreements, electronic fund transfer, Shell Corporation, and actual business. Thus, it allows money launderer to integrate very large amounts of money into legitimate financial system. An example can be shown as below: Larry Launder sets up a shell corporation and related bank account in an offshore jurisdiction. He also sets up a legitimate business in his country of residence. Using illegal money in an offshore account, Shell Corporation makes a business loan to, or equity investment in, the legitimate business. Source: Australian Transaction Report and Analysis Center: Integration and Techniques (2008) Asset sales and purchases Larry Launder sets up a shell corporation and related bank account in an offshore jurisdiction. He also owns or controls a legitimate business or real estate in his country residence. The shell corporation purchases the business or real estate at an inflated price. The earning from these transactions is treated as legitimate profits. An asset sales and purchases make a criminal earn legal funds or profits by purchasing or selling their assets. An example can be shown as below: Source: Australian Transaction Report and Analysis Center: Integration and Techniques (2008) Business recycle According to Australian Transfer Report (2008), Legitimate businesses that also serve as a conduit for money laundering are referred as a front business. Cash-intensive retail business is some of the most traditional methods of money laundering. This technique combines the different stages of the money laundering process. The principal requirement when using businesses as a front is that they have a high cash sales and turnover. This way it become easy for criminal to merge illegal funds and difficult to for authorities to spot the scheme. An example can be shown as below: Larry Launders owns or controls a legitimate, cash intensive car wash business. Larry deposits illegal funds into business. These funds are treated as revenue from legitimate businesses. Source: Australian Transaction Report and Analysis Center: Integration and Techniques (2008) Export or import transactions Larry Launder sets up an import company in foreign country as well as an export company in his home residence. They exports goods to the foreign import company. The import company remits illegal funds to pay for the goods on an over invoices basis. This methods help moves illegal funds between countries by trading export goods to the foreign trading company on an invoice basis and the earning or profits of the transactions will consider as legal profits. An example can be shown as below: Source: Australian Transaction Report and Analysis Center: Integration and Techniques (2008) Recommendation A good understanding on money laundering is very important for everyone in this world. It is because money laundering can destroy moral to generation and it also can cause a big of danger such as terrorist financing which is finally cause war. It is because good sense in money laundering also helps to prevent and punish people who are involved in money laundering by reporting to the authorities to take an action. Various techniques to prevent and identify money laundering from happening should be done in order to avoid the consequences of money laundering from happening. Every country should apply the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) in order to prevent the use of financial system for money laundering. Conclusion Money laundering is one criminal activities which is can be categorize as a white collar crime that involved in transforming illegal money to legal money. There are three stages that involved in money laundering process such as placement, layering, and integration. These three stages are playing an important role in money laundering which is every stages have their own technique to wash the dirty money. Thus, when all the stages has completed, the money or fund became a legal money.

Charles Dickens Great Expectations - 2277 Words

Although Charles Dickens’ classic novel Great Expectations was published in 1861, modern-day playwrights, authors, and directors go to great lengths to preserve its timelessness. Many of these writers feel that the best way to keep the novel relevant to society is to alter the original novel to make it culturally relevant or acceptable. The idea of cultural studies in regards to literature and literary criticism began in the 1950s and â€Å"involves viewing and analyzing practically any recorded phenomenon, present or past, as a social text† (Richter 1325). One movement in particular that sought to revive Great Expectations as a social text and therefore retain its social relevance is the movement of Postmodernism. Postmodernism is simply described as a separation from reality and emphasizes the self as coming from within. Although there have been many comic, play, and film adaptations of Great Expectations, there are two directors who take very different cultural viewp oints for their film adaptations. David Lean’s Great Expectations was released in England in 1946. Lean’s modern adaptation catered to a post-World War II audience. Because of this audience, Lean’s adaptation incorporates elements of a fairytale imagery and gothic horror. Another director, Alfonso Cuarà ³n, also modernized Great Expectations to maintain the novel’s cultural relevance. Cuarà ³n’s adaptation was released in America in 1998. This adaptation appeals to a â€Å"Generation X† audience, incorporating themes suchShow MoreRelatedGreat Expectations By Charles Dickens1113 Words   |  5 Pagesadventures that the male characters go on. This seems to be relevant in a lot of movies and books like the story Great Expectations by Charles Dickens. 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Imagine two students, one depressed and one not, w Essay Example For Students

Imagine two students, one depressed and one not, w Essay ho have both done well on a paper. Using the dimensions of attribution compare the depressed student?s attributions to that of the non-depressed student and explain how their attributions correspond to theImagine two students, one depressed and one not, who have both done well on a paper. Using the dimensions of attribution compare the depressed students attributions to that of the non-depressed student and explain how their attributions correspond to their degree of depression. As naive psychologists (Hogg ; Vaughan, 2002), we make assessments about our environment and come to conclusions about events and behaviour we experience. These attributions we make effect how we feel about situations and our expectations about future events (modelling paper). In the context of failure and success, a non-depressed person will generally attribute success to their own efforts (internal) and attribute failure to circumstantial dimensions (external). This correspondence bias serves to maintain and protect self-esteem in a healthy person (Hogg ; Vaughan, 2002). A depressed person will make the opposite attributions. Making internal attributions in the event of failure and external attributions in the event of success allows the person to maintain negative perceptions of themselves and the world and allows the continuation of low self-expectations. (Pyszczynski ; Greenberg, 1985)The non-depressed student, in the role of actor, is likely to make internal attributions for th eir success on a paper e.g. their grade is due to their intelligence and/or effort made in that subject. This is an example of a self-serving bias, more specifically, a self-enhancing bias (Hogg ; Vaughan, 2002). The non-depressed student is not likely to consider any external factors toward their success as valid as this will enable them to maintain self-esteem and ego (Hogg ; Vaughan, 2002) . The depressed student is typically going to make opposite attributions to the non-depressed student. In the role of actor, the depressed student will attribute their success to external causes e.g. they were lucky or the paper was particularly easy (Albery et al., 2004) The depressed student will focus on external explanations for their success when behaviour is inconsistent with the perceivers expectations e.g. when they do well on a paper, but expect to do poorly. (CITE!)Weiner claimed we use 3 causal dimensions of locus, stability and controllability, when making an attribution (Hogg Vaug han, 2002). Locus concerns whether the cause is perceived as being internal or external to the actor; stability refers to whether the causes are temporary or permanent in nature; and controllability concerns whether the cause is perceived as being controllable or uncontrollable (Albery et al., 2004). Using Weiners attribution model of motivation (1986, 1995), the non-depressed student will view their success as an internal, stable and controllable attribution, as they believe their grade is due to their own intelligence and effort, which is a permanent factor in their environment and can be repeated. The depressed student will see their success as an external, unstable, uncontrollable attribution. They believe their grade is due to an easy paper, or luck, which is a temporary factor and may not be repeated. (Albery et al., 2004; Hogg Vaughan, 2002)The non-depressed student will engage in a self-enhancing bias in order to maintain and enhance their self-esteem, the self-enhancing bi as is essentially ego serving (Hogg Vaughan, 2002). The internal attributions made by the non-depressed student will make them feel pleased with themselves, proud of their success and generally happy as their ego and self-esteem have been improved. The depressed student will make external attributions for their success as it will encourage negative affect (Pyszczynski Greenberg, 1985). The external attributions allow the student to discard their success as an anomaly in their perceived negative environment and will promote their negative self-image and low self-esteem (Hogg Vaughan, 2002; Pyszczynski Greenberg, 1985). .ucec2a63468677918fa080f20b6a8543c , .ucec2a63468677918fa080f20b6a8543c .postImageUrl , .ucec2a63468677918fa080f20b6a8543c .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .ucec2a63468677918fa080f20b6a8543c , .ucec2a63468677918fa080f20b6a8543c:hover , .ucec2a63468677918fa080f20b6a8543c:visited , .ucec2a63468677918fa080f20b6a8543c:active { border:0!important; } .ucec2a63468677918fa080f20b6a8543c .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .ucec2a63468677918fa080f20b6a8543c { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .ucec2a63468677918fa080f20b6a8543c:active , .ucec2a63468677918fa080f20b6a8543c:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .ucec2a63468677918fa080f20b6a8543c .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .ucec2a63468677918fa080f20b6a8543c .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .ucec2a63468677918fa080f20b6a8543c .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .ucec2a63468677918fa080f20b6a8543c .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .ucec2a63468677918fa080f20b6a8543c:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .ucec2a63468677918fa080f20b6a8543c .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .ucec2a63468677918fa080f20b6a8543c .ucec2a63468677918fa080f20b6a8543c-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .ucec2a63468677918fa080f20b6a8543c:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Mr. Ayala Essay The non-depressed student, as in most people not suffering from low self-esteem, will expect to succeed. This expectation, coupled with the outcome of success leads the student to believe that their success is to do with their effort, ignoring any possible or probable external causes (Hogg Vaughan, 2002). This again, maintains self-esteem and ego. The depressed student, in sync with their negative self-perceptions, will expect failure, so

Macbeth Essay Essays (1533 words) - Characters In Hamlet, Fiction

Macbeth Essay Person's thoughts will differ from their actions, be it the fear of being the same or different from others, the consequences of their actions, or the opinions that others may form about them. People live their lives like drones, always conforming to the rules, afraid to brake away from the norm and do what they know or even feel to be the right thing to do simply because they might cause a ripple in the smooth little lake in which their boat is afloat. Within the Playwright Hamlet, by William Shakespeare, Hamlet suffers from such dilemma. Hamlet refuses to act on what he knows to be accurate, always reassuring himself of his lack of action. Hamlet also acts in a manner which some may wish to call lunacy. This is due to the loss in which he has suffered, as well as he is just pretending to fool the people who he is plotting against. Hamlet's father, King Hamlet, was the greatest king Denmark had ever seen. Respected and revered by all with the exception of his brother, Claudius. Claudius had envied his older brother since boyhood, the king living the life that Claudius had always wanted. A wife, a son, and a kingdom were all the holdings possessed by King Hamlet, holdings and possessions that Claudius would soon make his, by the killing of his brother. Though Hamlet feels that his mother's marriage to Claudius was to soon after the death of King Hamlet, he does not suspect Claudius killed king Hamlet until told of a sighting of a ghost by some guards while on watch. Hamlet tells Polonious that he will stand watch that night with them to see if they can see the ghost again. That night Hamlet stands watch with Polonious and the ghost appears before them. The ghost tells Hamlet that he is his father, and of how he was killed. Hamlet is told that while his father lay under the shade of a tree Claudius came to him an d poured poison in his ear and caused his death instantaneously not allowing him time to repent of his sins, therefore condemning him to be trapped between the two paranormal worlds. The ghost then tells Hamlet to avenge his death. Though hamlet agrees to kill Claudius he does not kill him forthright. Hamlet hesitates and seems to invalidate every possible moment or opportunity that arises to take the life of Claudius. His reason for his hesitation is not known and one can only guess at what they may be. It could be that he doesn't believe the ghost. He could be afraid of hurting his mother by killing her second husband, or the fact that he is his uncle. What ever the reason is, he doses hesitate, and by doing so causes more pain and suffering for more people than if he would have killed Claudius forthright. The first example noted of such hesitation by Hamlet within the play if found within act three scene three where Hamlet contemplates the extermination of Claudius while he seems to be at prayer. ? Now might I do it pat, now he's praying. And (P70-71) Within this paragraph Hamlet will eventually state that he cannot kill Claudius due to the fact that to kill him at prayer would only send him to heaven and not eternally damn him to the bowels of hell. Hamlet thinks that if he killed Claudius while he was at prayer and he was sent to heaven that it would be unfair to his father who is eternally trapped between the present and the afterlife. That is at least the reason that is given by Hamlet directly from the text. Though by the reading the entire book you will see a patter of actions and lack of actions that seem to signify that he only acts insane so to disorientate the other people within the story. Yet knowing that his father was murdered, who murdered him, and what Hamlet was asked to do to seek vengeance he feels that he has to constantly reassure himself of his lack of action was right so that he doesn't feel like he is failing his father. Hamlet is mad

Enslavement essays

Enslavement essays In the three packets we read Zinn, Mannix and Cowely, Takkaki they all refer to the Middle Passage and the brutality of enslavement. Specifically my interests were how the slaves white and black were treated. The women were treated with no respect at all. They were beaten and raped for no legitimate reason by their masters. "Beatings and whippings were common. Servant women were raped. One observer testified: "I have seen an Overseer beat a Servant with a cane about the head till the blood has followed, for a fault that is not worth the speaking of...." The Maryland court records showed many servant suicides. In 1671, Governor Berkeley of Virginia reported that in previous years four of five servants died of disease after their arrival. Many were poor children, gathered up by the hundreds on the streets of English cities and sent to Virginia to work(44 Zinn). In class as we watched the movie clip from Amistad it brought such a reality to my mind of how cruel and despicable the p eople were. It makes me cringe when I see the people beating, raping, and taking away these peoples freedom. During the Middle Passage men were ripped from their families and women were prey for the sailors and no slaves wanted to be alive on these ships. The many acts of violence they have committed by murdering whole crews and destroying ships when they had it in their power to do so have made these rigors wholly chargeable on their own bloody and malicious disposition which calls for the same confinement as if they were wolves or wild boars. For wolves or wild boars a modern reader might substitue men who would rather die than be enslaved (Cowely 89). The slaves were treated so horribly they got on the ship shackled by their ankles and wrists, they had to sleep on the wood unplanned floors, elbows were skinned to the bare bones, and occasionally they were fed. The repulsive men who put these poor African American men and w ...

Self Healing Plastics essays

Self Healing Plastics essays In June of 2001, the United States Air Force Office of Scientific Research and researchers at the University of Illinois (UI) at Urbana-Champaign, funded by a UI Critical Research Initiatives grant, reported significant progress in the development of a self-healing plastic. AFOSRs Aerospace Materials Science Directorate was the first major funding agency to step forward and award the UI research team a three-year grant in 1999. Without this grant, could not have assembled the required number of people needed to work on this project. This breakthrough substance consists of a microencapsulated healing agent and a special catalyst that are embedded in a structural matrix. The material was designed to increase the reliability and longevity of thermosetting polymers used in applications ranging from microelectronics to aerospace. This new material was inspired by biological systems in which damage triggers an automatic healing process. This new material is being designed to heal itself whenever cracked or broken. The initial results were published in the journal Nature 1 and received extensive national media coverage. The upside to this research for the Air Force is based upon the fact that there are many polymer based composites in aircraft, and they frequently experience structural damage in the form of micro cracks. The cracks are very hard to detect because they form deep within the aircraft and are almost impossible to repair. Therefore with this potential new material the repair process becomes transparent since it begins as soon as a micro crack forms. The hopeful end result is lengthened service life for many new and old aircraft, as well as spacecraft. Usually once a crack has formed inside of a typical polymeric material the structural integrity is greatly reduced. However in this new material once a crack forms, the microcapsules in the structural matrix rupture, and instantly release ...

Security and Risk Managment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Security and Risk Managment - Essay Example To add to this statement, a number of long speeches are delivered by the politicians in this regard alarming the people of various countries. In the UK, the government has, and is taking a number of measures to control the international terrorist activities. With management principles creeping into every aspect of the government’s strategies, these measures to control the activities of the terrorists are no exception. It is interesting to note that the government has adopted four core strategies for dealing with the management and control of risk. This essay aims at understanding these strategies used by the UK government in trying to deal with these possible risks. These four core strategies are then analysed and the relevance to the management of dealing with business risks is also discussed. In order to understand the government’s strategy, it is essential to completely understand the threat prevailing in the country, in terms of terrorist activities. Initially, there were a number of terrorist activities in the Northern Ireland. However, the current threat is from radicalized individuals who form the unrepresentative version of Islamist faith and indulge in terrorist activities. The Muslim community on the whole has created value for the entire United Kingdom in terms of knowledge, investments, etc.., Hence it does not pose threat to the UK. However, the terrorist groups have remained a serious threat to the country and its people for a few years now. These terrorists are based locally as well as internationally. These terrorist groups have wide networks and penetrate the societies by training the youth and teenagers to indulge in violence. They aim at mass destruction and their attitude is the same with all age groups. In short, they aim at the general, innocen t public. Hence they are a major threat to the UK people. There is a high risk involved in the lives of the people living in the UK due to the terrorist activities and this risk

One ought to never do wrong Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

One ought to never do wrong - Essay Example Socrates argued that if a person does harm unintentionally and is willing to learn, then, he or she can be assisted through education. However, if harm is accused by malice, then punishment should be inevitable. Socrates argues that anyone who acts unjust is a dishonor to himself. Socrates touches on the issue of avenging where he argues that returning evil in retaliation is not meaningful as it does not lead to any gains, rather, it leaves a more humiliated soul (Ahbel-Rappe and Kamtekar 15). This implies that one should be guided by morals of not harming or injuring anyone. Respecting ones beliefs is emphasized by Socrates. He insists that one must do what he or she thinks is right. The right ‘thing’ must prevail regardless of what people think or desire. In a nutshell, Socrates advices that a morally upright person is not supposed to forsake his principles just because he has been

High school student drop out Essay Example for Free

High school student drop out Essay The increasingly high rate of school dropout is worrying all the stakeholders in the education sector including parents, teachers and the government. This is because these people are aware of the challenges that will face students who drop out of school. Although leaders have called on communities, families and schools to make efforts to ensure that students remain at school, the rate at which the students drop out of school is still high. It is therefore important that we analyze the problem with a view of understanding it better, so that we may know how to resolve it once and for all. see more:research paper about tardiness The number of students who complete school in the US has been steadily declining over the years. In fact, over the last decades, this figure has only increased in seven states. In ten states, the percentage of students who did not complete school was 8% or higher, which reflects a disturbing trend. US is currently ranked tenth among the countries in the world which have the highest school completion rates. When a country that is considered to be the superpower is ranked tenth on school completion rates, this shows that there is a major underlying problem. Factors that contribute to the high school student drop out rate. Family cohesion and background. This is one of the major reasons why students drop out of school. Students who come from families where there is violence, abusive homes or poor parental relations have higher chances of dropping out of school, compared to those who come from stable homes. This is due to the fact that such children are more likely to have stress and depression because of the problems that they have. They are also likely to start abusing drugs at an early age, which may contribute to their dropping out of school. Statistics also show that children who come from single parent families are also more likely to drop out of school than those who have both parents. This situation is linked to low self esteem as well as problems that children who come from single parent families face. Early pregnancy. Early pregnancy is a major challenge for young girls, and is a contributor to their dropping out of school. This situation is compounded by situations where the young girls families are not financially stable, or cases where the boy responsible for the pregnancy is either unwilling or unable to support the girl. Many young girls who face this situation usually take breaks to give birth, but fail to return to school due to various reasons. The girls who are not financially well off are forced to drop out of school to take care of their children, while others fear going back to school due to stigmatization. School violence. This is a factor that is increasingly contributing to the dropping out of school by students. School violence has increased in the recent past, and takes various forms. It might take the form of serious security breaches that involve use of deadly weapons, like was witnessed in the 1999 Columbine high school massacre (Rosenberg 2008). It may also take the form of bullying and harassment of students by fellow classmates. Both these forms of violence have the potential to create fear to actual victims, and may discourage them from attending school. In these cases, there is genuine fear for their lives and they may drop out of school. Employment. Poverty or general unemployment of members of the family may make students drop out of school. This is because the students may be forced to work in order to support their family. In these cases, the students may not have adequate time to study due to the responsibilities that they have. Employment opportunities may not only be available to the students who are not well off financially. Some students come from financially stable families but look for employment opportunities so that they might save money. These students are also likely to drop out of school since it is difficult to work and study at the same time. Psychological or personal characteristics. There are certain characteristics that students may possess, which may make them drop out of school at an early age. These may be either physical or psychological characteristics. Psychological characteristics may include low self esteem, mental illnesses, depression and stress, among other problems. In case students have these problems and they are either not addressed early enough, or these students lack learning facilities that accommodate their unique needs, they are highly likely to drop out of school. According to Kenneth (35-39), students may also face physical disabilities that hinder the learning process. Such include blindness, deafness or other physical disabilities. If such students also lack facilities that can handle their needs, they are also likely to drop out of school. Substance abuse. According to David and Wayne (4-8), students who engage in substance abuse have very high chances of dropping out of school. Students who abuse alcohol or other hard drugs such as cannabis, heroin, cocaine or other drugs are likely to drop out of school. This is due to the disciplinary problems that they are likely to face in school as well as the fact that such drugs hinder the learning capabilities. Such students are unlikely to perform well in school, and this has the effect of demotivating them. They are also more likely to face stress and depression, and all these factors work to increase their chances of dropping out of school. Perceived loss of value of school diplomas. The modern business environment has become very competitive, and this is attributed to globalization. Success in the modern world is increasingly based on merit and job performance. Employers are nowadays looking for very high academic qualification when recruiting employees. In this regards, high school diplomas are generally perceived to have lost value, and students need to pursue further education so that they might get employment opportunities in this competitive business environment. Some students therefore opt to drop out of school and pursue other interests due to this perception. Such interests include drama, movies, modeling or the music industry. However, what most students are not aware of is that one has to have basic education in order to be successful in these fields. High school education acts as a platform for pursuing further education and building a career. Limited number of counselors. Statistics point to the fact that the average number of students who are served by a single counselor is 500. In high school, the average number of students served by a single counselor is 285. These counsellors have many tasks to accomplish and have very little time to interact with students. According to Jill (311-317), students who are about to drop out of school may therefore not find someone to talk to and get advice regarding the situation. This is also compounded by the fact that most of these students have poor relations with their parents, since teenagers and parents usually have communication problems. Students therefore opt to drop out of school due to lack of advice on the consequences of making this decision. Solutions to these problems. Counseling. Most students may reverse their decision to drop out of school if they are advised on the consequences of making this decision by someone that they trust. In most of these cases, counselors are the best people to advice the students since there are young counsellors who understand the problems that these students go through. The government should ensure that there are enough counselors to serve all students. Sometimes students may be depressed and they only need someone to share their problems with. When they are unable to find someone, they take drastic steps like dropping out of schools. Counselors will advise students that education is very important for success in life. Safety. The government and all education stakeholders should also ensure that the school environment is safe for all people. There should be adequate controls that prevent and deal with security breaches, either involving deadly weapons or bullying. Some problems like bullying may appear to be petty and they are ignored in most academic institutions. However they are serious problems that should not be ignored, since they have high psychological impacts on the victims. When students can feel safe in the school environment, they will look forward to going to school to learn. After all, these students spend most of their time in schools, and once they feel that they are unsafe, they are likely to drop out of school. Family problems. According to Gail (211-216), it is evident that family problems is a major factor that contributes to dropping out of school. It is a very sensitive issue considering that there is a limitation to which strangers may involve themselves in family matters. It is however imperative that problems such as violence and abuse are reported to the authorities, and these will be addressed through the relevant laws. These problems cannot be condoned, since once students are not comfortable in their own homes, it will be difficult for them to concentrate in class and learn. Other family issues such as parental and child conflict should be addressed through dialog, either between the school administration and the individual families, or through counseling by qualified professionals. This dialog will enable the underlying problems to be identified and solved, so that the children may stay in school. Early pregnancy. This problem is best solved by preventing the issue, rather than addressing it after it has occurred. The young people should be told about the consequences of early sex, especially unsafe sex. These students should be made to understand that in addition to the risk of pregnancy, there is also a risk of contracting STIs such as HIV/AIDS. However, one a girl becomes pregnant, she should be allowed to stay in school until the time to give birth, after which she is given a break. She should resume school after giving birth, as this is very important. Counselors and parents should play a crucial role in guiding girls who are undergoing this experience. The government should also set up funds to help girls who are pregnant and do not have the resources to take care of the baby, and go back to school. Facilities for the handicapped. The government has a crucial role of ensuring that there are learning facilities that will take care of the needs of students who face either physical or mental disabilities. There should also be enough teachers who have been trained on how to take care of the needs of these students. This will ensure that these students learn just like their peers, and that they have equal opportunities in life. Value of diplomas. The stakeholders in the educational sector have a crucial role to play in publicizing the value of the high school diplomas. There should be regular talks between these stakeholders and the students regarding the issue. Students should be made to understand that although the modern world has become very competitive, it is imperative that they obtain at least the high school diploma. The reason is that the diploma acts as a platform in acquiring further employment opportunities and joining a profession. Employment. The government should enforce the laws that bar the employment of young people who are below the legal age. It should also hold regular forums with employers regarding employment of young people with a view of regulating the hours that they work. The employers should also be made to insist that young employees pursue education, since this will be the platform for promotions and advancement in the careers. This will enable that the young people who work have enough time to study. Conclusion and recommendation. The stakeholders in the education sector should join hands in ensuring the the drop out rate drastically reduces, and that each child knows the value of education. The solutions to the problems that have been discussed above should be implemented, so that this objective may be achieved. Above all, students should be made to understand that the high school diploma is a platform for opportunities in life.

Soccer is my Hobby Essay -- Art

Soccer is my Hobby Why soccer is my hobby. Everybody has different hobbies that he or she would like to do for fun or relaxation. They can be either physical activities like jogging, football, swimming, skateboarding†¦ or mental activities like reading, watching movies, playing computers†¦ and depend on each personality. For me, soccer is my hobby because it’s part of my life and I cannot live without it. Living in country like Vietnam, soccer is the king of sport. That is why it is not surprising that my childhood has grown up with the soccer’s ball until today. My mom told me that I liked kicking the ball around and had so much fun with it when I was only about two years old. Since then, playing soccer is my favorite’s sport and it is my hobby whenever I have free time. It is interesting and amazing, especially the feeling when I score a goal or my teammates do it. That feeling fulfills in me like I have just archived something very important. Playing soccer also helps me to relax and be confident when I have stress and frustration. For instant, after doing assignment or studying all day long, I feel tired and exhausted. However, having fun with the ball such as kicking it against the wall or trying to do some tricks, all of my tiresome and exhaustion die out. Moreover, soccer is not only about passing and kicking the ball but also required a lot of thought, and some basic skills. So I often practice it and obviously, I feel healthy and stronger. Besides that, so...

Living in the Country

Living in the country has always been considered the healthiest and most relaxing choice one can make. The beauty of the land, open and friendly neighbours, genuine relationships, the tranquil pace of country life are some of the most attractive images that come to people?s minds when they feel tired of the pressures of city life. However, the dreams of moving away to a distant and quiet farm house are many times abandoned, especially by young people, when they come to think about the lack of opportunities that there are in the country. In fact, many young people feel they can not grow as professionals if they choose a quiet life style in the country, due to the poor quality of education and the lack of employment opportunities. The poor quality of education in the countryside can be perceived when one travels along rural roads and sees a few scattered primary schools, hidden among the mountains or in the woods. Children attend those schools only if it is not raining, and they travel long distances on horseback, or even on foot to reach the institution. Since the number of students is not enough to employ an English teacher, a Music teacher, a Sports teacher or a Computing teacher, those subjects are not taught, so children have no additional lessons. Finally, another factor that makes education reach very low quality standards is the fact that in many places there is no electricity, so it is imposible to imagine children from rural areas connected to the Internet, or having the possibility of watching a video or listening to music. To conclude, children from rural areas are not expected to develop their full potential due to the poor quality standard of education. Once young students finish primary school, and some priviledged adolescents can complete secundary education, they have to think about university or work. University is left only to the priviledged students who can afford to move to the city to continue their studies. The rest of the young population have to think about getting a job. And here comes another drawback of living in the country: as regards employment opportunities, there is a narrow range of jobs available for young people, and they are usually badly paid. Young people have to select among venturing into neighbouring towns, working at one of the relatively few jobs available nearby, or working on their own business. Since they have not been properly prepared at school, and employment opportunities are scarce, the joung rural population have relatively few opportunities to grow economically. Many people put forward many good reasons to live in the country and they are right. First, living in the country is safer than living in big cities, since there are less crimes. Second, it is also healthier because there is no pollution and no loud noises. Third, the pace of living in the country is quieter so sountry people’s lifespans are longer. Finally, many people argue that roads and means of communication have improved a lot in the last decades, so today living far away from the city is not so hard. However, for young people who are still trying to find their way to grow professionaly in order to gain economic stability, the city offers much more educational and economic opportunities than the stillness of the countryside.

Mgt3202 (Change and Organization Development)

Issues (Change and Organizational Development) As  organizations evolve and come to be seen as dynamic, coping systems, the concept of how they change and methods by which they manage change has continued to be refined. (Rafe Harwood, ND) The organizational change can be structural change, technology, people or task. Managing a process of change in an organization can be a highly complex task and is often essential for effective organizational development (OD).The forces to boost the change in an organization are the Nature of the Workforce, Technology, Economic Shocks, Competition, Social Trends, and World Politics. Organizational Change entails thoughtful planning and sensitive implementation, and above all, consultation with, and involvement of, the people affected by the changes. (businessballs. com, 2012) * The observations made and any problems or issues reported by the people interviewed. Mr. NG KIAN BOON mentioned that his company, MITSUGOLD SDN. BHD. as experienced in chan ging organizational structure in terms of downsizing, he emphasize downsizing of his company is not shutting down the entire business or not because of not making profit within the organization, but to concentrate on the core and essential part of the business, and also to reduce the operating cost as they outsourcing to a real estate agency to help them do product promotion, marketing, and in house sales. He said that operational costs like computer, stationery, advertisement cost, space rental, utility bills and wages can be reduced when apply outsourcing.Moreover, real life example was given by him in his company, one of the tactful and experienced salesperson who already worked in MITSUGOLD SDN. BHD for more than 20 years ago since the company was established as a small size property developer. The woman is very used to do the sales work and she couldn’t do anything else except promoting project. As the world are changing more towards on high technology, most of the prese ntation are conducted by Microsoft PowerPoint and more visualize software as a presentation tools to give the potential buyer a clearer image of the product (eg.Residential unit) to attract them rather than the traditional ways of sales technique like verbally explained to them. As there is natural resistance over the organization change, MITSUGOLD SDN BHD will offer those employees a remuneration allowance to those does not want to change or couldn’t cope with the change. Whereas for those employees are willing to change, they will be offered a new job in other department or even promotion of the position, and also the training program. * The different perspectives on the situation which can be generated using Organization Behavior Theories and insights. The evaluation of the options for different potential recommendations & The chosen recommendationsReferences: Rafe Harwood, Organizational Change in Today's Economy, Rafe Harwood, year (Nil), online (accessed on 30th Oct 2012) available at: http://www. unfortu. net/~rafe/links/change. htm Businessballs. com, change management, Businessballs. com, 2012, online (accessed on 30th Oct 2012), available at: http://www. businessballs. com/changemanagement. htm http://managementhelp. org/organizationalchange/index. htm

How Income Taxes Affect Economic Growth

How Income Taxes Affect Economic Growth One of the most commonly discussed issues in economics is how tax rates relate to economic growth. Advocates of tax cuts claim that a reduction in the tax rate will lead to increased economic growth and prosperity. Others claim that if we reduce taxes, almost all of the benefits will go to the rich, as those are the ones who pay the most taxes. What does economic theory suggest about the relationship between economic growth and taxation? Income Taxes and Extreme Cases In studying economic policies, it is always useful to study extreme cases. Extreme cases are situations such as What if we had a 100% income tax rate?, or What if we raised the minimum wage to $50.00 an hour?. While wholly unrealistic, they do give very stark examples of what direction key economic variables will move when we change a government policy. First, suppose that we lived in a society without taxation. Well worry about how the government finances its programs later on, but for now, well assume that they have enough money to finance all the programs we have today. If there are no taxes, then the government does not earn any income from taxation and citizens do not spend any time worrying about how to evade taxes. If someone has a wage of $10.00 an hour, then they get to keep that $10.00. If such a society were possible, we can see that people would be quite productive as any income they earn, they keep. Now consider the opposing case. Taxes are now set to be 100% of income. Any cent you earn goes to the government. It may seem that the government would earn a lot of money this way, but thats not likely to happen. If you dont get to keep anything out of what you earn, why would you go to work? Most people would rather spend their time doing something they enjoy. Simply, put, you wouldnt spend any time working for a company if you didnt get anything out of it. Society as a whole wouldnt be very productive if everybody spent a large portion of their time trying to evade taxes. The government would earn very little income from taxation, as very few people would go to work if they did not earn an income from it. While these are extreme cases, they do illustrate the effect of taxes and they are useful guides of what happens at other tax rates. A 99% tax rate is awfully like a 100% tax rate, and if you ignore collection costs, having a 2% tax rate is not much different from having no taxes at all. Go back to the person earning $10.00 an hour. Do you think hell spend more time at work or less if his take-home pay is $8.00 rather than $2.00? Its a pretty safe bet that at $2.00 hes going to spend less time at work and much more time trying to earn a living away from the prying eyes of the government. Taxes and Other Ways of Financing Government In the case where the government can finance spending outside of taxation, we see the following: Productivity declines as the tax rate increases, as people choose to work less. The higher the tax rate, the more time people spend evading taxes and the less time they spend on the more productive activity. So the lower the tax rate, the higher the value of all the goods and services produced.Government tax revenue does not necessarily increase as the tax rate increases. The government will earn more tax income at 1% rate than at 0%, but they will not earn more at 100% than they will at 10%, due to the disincentives high tax rates cause. Thus there is a peak tax rate where government revenue is highest. The relationship between income tax rates and government revenue can be graphed on something called a Laffer Curve. Of course, government programs are not self-financing. Well examine the effect of government spending in the next section. Even an ardent supporter of unrestricted capitalism realizes that there are necessary functions for the government to perform.  The Capitalism Site  lists three necessary things a government must provide: An Army: To protect against foreign invaders.A Police Force: To protect against domestic criminals.A Court System: To settle honest disputes that arise, and to punish criminals according to objectively predefined laws. Government Spending and the Economy Without the last two functions of government, it is easy to see that there would be little economic activity. Without a police force, it would be difficult to protect anything that youve earned. If people could just come by and take anything you owned, wed see three things happen: People would spend a lot more time trying to steal what they need and a lot less time trying to produce what they need, as stealing something is often easier than producing it yourself. This leads to a reduction in economic growth.People who have produced valuable goods would spend more time and money trying to protect what theyve earned. This is not a productive activity; society would be much better off if citizens would spend more time producing  productive goods.There would likely be a lot more murders, so the society would lose a lot of productive people prematurely. This cost and the costs people incur in trying to prevent their own murder greatly diminish economic activity. A police force which protects the basic human rights of citizens is absolutely necessary to ensure economic growth. A court system also promotes economic growth. A large portion of economic activity depends on the use of contracts. When you start a new job, normally you have a contract specifying what your rights and responsibilities are and how much you will be compensated for your labor. If theres no way to enforce a contract like that, then there is no way to ensure that you will end up getting compensated for your labor. Without that guarantee, many would decide it is not worth the risk to work for someone else. Most contracts involve an element of do X now, and get paid Y later or get paid Y now, do X later. If these contracts are not enforceable, the party who is obligated to do something in the future might decide then that he doesnt feel like it. Since both parties know this, they would decide not to enter into such an agreement and the economy as a whole would suffer. Having a working court system, military, and police force provides a large economic benefit to a society. However it is expensive for a government to provide such services, so theyll have to collect money from the citizens of the country to finance such programs. The financing for those systems comes through taxation. So we see that a society with some taxation that provides these services will have a much higher level of economic growth than a society with no taxation but no police force or the court system. So an increase in taxes  can  lead to larger economic growth if it is used to pay for one of these services. I use the term  can  because it is not necessarily the case that expanding the police force or hiring more judges will lead to greater economic activity. An area which already has many police officers and little crime will gain almost no benefit from hiring another officer. Society would be better off not hiring her and instead of lowering taxes. If your armed for ces are already large enough to deter any potential invaders, then any additional military spending drags down economic growth. Spending money on these three areas is  not necessarily  productive, but having at least a minimal amount of all three will lead to an economy with higher economic growth than none at all. In most Western democracies the majority of government spending goes towards social programs. While there are literally thousands of government-funded social programs the two largest are generally health care and education. These two do not fall into the category of infrastructure. While it is true that schools and hospitals must be built, it is possible for the private sector to profitably do so. Schools and healthcare facilities have been built by non-government groups all over the world, even in countries that already have extensive government programs in this area. Since it is possible to cheaply collect funds from those who use the facility and to ensure those who do use the facilities cannot easily evade paying for those services, these do not fall into the category of infrastructure. Can these programs still provide a net economic benefit? Being in good health will improve your productivity. A healthy workforce is a productive workforce, so spending on health care is a boon to the economy. However, there is no reason the private sector cannot adequately provide health care or why people will not invest in their own health. Its tough to earn an income when youre too sick to go to work, so individuals will be willing to pay for health insurance that will help them get better if they are ill. Since people would be willing to buy health coverage and the private sector can provide it, there is no market failure here. To purchase such health insurance you must be able to afford it. We could get into a situation where society would be better off if the poor got proper medical treatment, but they do not because they cannot afford it. Then there would be a benefit to giving  health care  coverage to the poor. But we can get the same benefit by simply giving the poor cash and letting them spend it on whatever they want, including health care. However, it could be that people, even when they have enough money, will buy an inadequate amount of health care. Many conservatives argue that this is the basis of many social programs; government officials do not believe that citizens buy enough of the right things, so government programs are necessary to ensure people get what they need but wont buy.   The same situation occurs with educational expenditures. People with more education tend to be on average more productive than people with less education. Society is better off by having a highly educated population. Since people with higher productivity tend to get paid more, if parents care about the future welfare of their children, they will have an incentive to seek an education for their children. There are no technical reasons why private sector companies cannot provide educational services, so those who can afford it will get an adequate amount of education. As before, there will be low-income families who cannot afford a proper education although they (and society as a whole) are better off by having well-educated children. It would seem that having programs which focus their energies on poorer families will have a greater economic benefit than those which are universal in nature. There seems to be a benefit to the economy (and society) by providing an education to a family with limited opportunities. There is little point in providing an education or health insurance to a wealthy family, as they will likely buy as much as they need. On the whole, if you believe that those who can afford it will buy an efficient amount of health care and education,  social programs  tend to be a deterrent to economic growth. Programs which focus on agents who are unable to afford these items have a greater benefit to the economy than those that are universal in nature. We saw in the previous section that higher taxes can lead to higher economic growth  if  those taxes are efficiently spent on three areas which protect the rights of citizens. A military and a police force ensure that people do not have to spend a great deal of time and money on personal security, allowing them to engage in more productive activities. A court system allows individuals and organizations to enter into contracts with one another which create opportunities for growth through collaboration motivated by rational  self-interest. Roads and Highways Cannot  Be Paid by Individuals There are other government programs, which bring a net benefit to the economy when fully paid for by taxes. There are certain goods that society finds desirable but individuals or corporations cannot supply. Consider the problem of roads and highways. Having an extensive system of roads on which people and goods can freely travel greatly adds to the prosperity of a nation. If a private citizen wanted to build a road for profit, they would run into two major difficulties: The cost of collection.  If the road was a useful one, people would gladly pay for its benefits. In order to collect fees for the use of the road, a toll would have to be set up at every exit and entry to the road; many  interstate highways  work this way. However, for most local roads the amount of money obtained through these tolls would be dwarfed by the extreme costs of setting up these tolls. Because of the collection problem, a lot of useful infrastructures would not be built, although there is a net benefit to its existence.Monitoring who uses the road.  Suppose you were able to set up a system of tolls at all the entrances and exits. It may still be possible for people to enter or leave the road at points other than the official exit and entrance. If people can evade paying the toll, they will. Governments provide a solution to this problem by constructing the roads and recouping the expenses through taxes such as the income tax and the gasoline tax. Other pieces of infrastructure such as the sewage and water system work on the same principle. The idea of government activity in these areas is not new; it goes at least as far back as  Adam Smith. In his 1776 masterpiece,  The Wealth of Nations  Smith wrote: The third and last duty of the sovereign or commonwealth is that of erecting and maintaining those public institutions and those public works, which, though they may be in the highest degree advantageous to a great society, are, however, of such a nature that the profit could never repay the expense to any individual or small number of individuals, and which it, therefore, cannot be expected that any individual or small number of individuals should erect or maintain. Higher taxes which lead to improvements in infrastructure  can  lead to higher economic growth. Once again, it depends on the usefulness of the infrastructure being created. A six-lane highway between two small towns in upstate New York is not likely to be worth the tax dollars spent on it. An improvement to the safety of the water supply in an impoverished area might be worth its weight in gold if it leads to reduced illness and suffering for the users of the system. Higher Taxes Are Used to Finance Social Programs A tax cut does not necessarily help or hurt an economy. You  must  consider what the revenue from those taxes is being spent on before you can determine the effect the cut will have on the economy. From this discussion, though, we see the following general trends: Cutting taxes and wasteful spending will help an economy because of the disincentive effect caused by taxation. Cutting taxes and useful programs may or may not benefit the economy.A certain amount of government spending is required in the military, the police, and the court system. A country which does not spend an adequate amount of money in these areas will have a depressed economy. Too much spending in these areas is wasteful.A country also needs infrastructure  to have a high level of economic activity. Much of this infrastructure cannot be adequately provided by the private sector, so governments must spend money in this area to ensure economic growth. However, too much spending or spending on the wrong infrastructure can be wasteful and slow  economic growth.If people are naturally inclined to spend their own money on education and healthcare, then taxation used for social programs is likely to  slow economic growth. Social spending which targets low-income families is m uch better for the economy than universal programs. If people are not inclined to spend towards their own education and healthcare, then there can be a benefit to supplying these goods, as society as a whole benefit from a healthy and educated workforce. The government ending all social programs is not a solution to these issues. There can be many benefits to these programs which are not measured in economic growth. A slowdown in economic growth is likely to occur as these programs are expanded, however, so that should always be kept in mind. If the program has enough other benefits, society as a whole may wish to have lower economic growth in return for more social programs. Source:   The Capitalism Site - FAQ - Government

How to Become a Health Information Technician

How to Become a Health Information Technician It used to be that when you’d walk into a doctor’s office, behind the desk there’d be shelves and shelves of bulky patient files, organized alphabetically with neat color-coded tabs. The busier the office, the bigger and more packed those rows of shelves would be. As we move toward a more digital life in general, medical records are following suit- healthcare providers and hospitals are moving patient data off the shelves and into secure databases. These changes call for health information technicians who manage the transition to electronic medical records and maintain the crucial information on a daily basis. Day-to-Day of the JobHealth information technicians organize, analyze, and maintain patient health information on an ongoing basis. This includes patient background information, information about in-office procedures and tests, and treatment plans. The health information technician is responsible for updating and coding this information in different systems , often using different medical vocabularies and classification systems to make sure that the information is everywhere it needs to be accessible to doctors, nurses, other medical professionals as appropriate, and billing systems. Above all, this info needs to be accurate and secure. (If your personal motto is, â€Å"close enough,† then this career path may not be for you.)This administrative position is typically a 9-to-5 kind of job, with potential overtime in some cases (especially in hospitals or urgent care centers). Health information technicians usually work in hospitals or medical practices, healthcare agencies, and a variety of medical office settings.Job RequirementsThis job typically requires a high school degree at minimum, with an associate’s degree preferred in many cases. Many health information professionals opt for certifications such as the Registered Health Information Technician (RHIT) and Registered Health Information Administrator (RHIA), which bo th require passing a national exam. Certification requirements can depend on location, so be sure to read up on your own state’s rules.Skills You’ll NeedBeing a health information technician pulls a number of different skills together, such as strong organizational skills, technical savvy, and the ability to handle confidential data. Attention to detail is essential, as incorrect information can have major consequences for patient healthcare. A background in information technology can be helpful, as is basic knowledge of finance or medical billing. Also, medical environments are often hectic and fast-paced, so candidates should be prepared to work in a variety of conditions.Pay to ExpectPer the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the median salary of health information technicians is $35,900.The OutlookHealthcare careers are undoubtedly hot right now. The BLS expects that the demand for health information technicians will grow by 15% by 2022, which is much faster th an average. As more and more medical offices make the switch to digital records, this particular area will be one of the biggest growth areas in the medical administration world.

TMA T173 01 Many engineering projects are associated with construction Essay

TMA T173 01 Many engineering projects are associated with construction - Essay Example The project aimed at providing an arena for the summer Olympic Games of 2012. The project also aimed at offering an improved sporting experience to that of Beijing, 2008. The British government sought to prove its capabilities of hosting high-profile global sporting events. Following delayed completion of the Wembley renovation, the British engineering sector needed to undertake construction of a new, modern stadium effectively (Woodman, 2007). Funding of the construction was provided by the public sector through the British government. Various companies also contributed significantly towards the funding for the construction. Following economic recession, budgetary allocations for the project had to be distributed among numerous organisations (Dyckhoff, 2007). Though the main contractor was Sir Robert McAlpine, other companies were also awarded sub-contracts. Each element of the construction was undertaken by a different company. This could be attributed to the limited time available for the completion of construction. The main contractor played a supervisory role of the sub-contractors. The benefits for this project include the probability of British construction companies winning tenders for Olympic stadiums’ construction. Successful and timely completion redeemed the image of British companies following delays in completing the Wembley stadium. The finishing of the stadium utilised high-tech decorative wrap to cover the concrete as steel was used for construction. This followed criticisms of the stadium having a dull appearance. The wrap gives the entire stadium a glossy appearance illuminating the London skyline. The spectacular feature of the stadium remains the 25-metre high vertical panels fitted on the exterior side in the stadium. These panels turned the exterior into an enormous video screen (Booth, 2008). The stadium appears like a circular screen from outside. Numerous challenges faced the construction of the Olympic stadium.

American Politics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

American Politics - Essay Example In the election of 1964, Lyndon Johnson positioned himself against his GOP opponent, Barry Goldwater. Johnson campaign ran a commercial entitled the "Daisy Girl" ad, which featured a little girl picking petals from a daisy in a field, counting the petals, which then signal into a launch countdown and a nuclear explosion in response to Goldwaters advocacy of using tactical nuclear weapons to fight communism in Asia. Johnson defeated Goldwater in the general election, winning 64.9% of the popular vote, and this was noted to be the largest percentage differential since the 1824 election. (Wikipedia, 2007a) (Paraphrasing made). In addition to nuclear weapon issue to address communism, anther critical issue in the election was that on civil rights. Thus despite Johnson’s winning the election, loss of support in Southern states was evident and signified a reversal in electoral fortunes for Democrats who had depended on the "Solid South" as an electoral base. The issue of civil rights divided conservative southern whites from the rest of the party, the political coalition of labour unions, minorities, liberals, and southern whites (the New Deal Coalition. Lyndon Johnson appeared to have taken advantage the issue with the 1963 assassination of J.K. Kennedy, who was has supported Civil Rights Act of 1964. (Wikipedia, 2007a) (Paraphrasing made). Hence the 1965 Voting Rights Act had an immediate impact on federal, state and local elections, so that with its passage on August 6, 1965, one quarter of a million new black voters had been registered, one third by federal examiners and within four years, voter registration in the South had more than doubled. Hence its effect in voter turnout was manifested at 74% in 1965 resulting a number of black leaders elected and in 1969, where Tennessee had a 92.1% voter turnout, Arkansas 77.9% and Texas 77.3%. (Wikipedia, 2007a) (Paraphrasing

Prospect and Effectiveness of Web 2.0 Tools Usage Research Proposal

Prospect and Effectiveness of Web 2.0 Tools Usage - Research Proposal Example The research proposal "Prospect and Effectiveness of Web 2.0 Tools Usage" talks about the prospect and effectiveness of the use of web 2.0 tools in information literacy in education, workplace, and everyday contexts by carrying out a comparative study in Australia and other countries as digital information affects modern life aspects of people. This study is exceedingly beneficial because it will center on the effectiveness of web 2.0 tools in information literacy in education, workplace and everyday lives of the peoples in Australia and New Zealand. Digital information affects every modern life aspects of the people. This aims to develop guidelines ‘formalizing academic standard practices’ and reporting using web 2.0 forms of authoring or content creation like blogging, social bookmarking and podcasting. This study is intended to investigate the strategies and tools available to further develop the success of web 2.0 tools in the sectors of education, workforce and the society as a whole, specifically in Australia and New Zealand. Web 2.0 technologies provide teachers new ways to engage students in a meaningful way. Children raised on new media technologies are less patient with filling out work sheets and listening to lectures because they already participate on a global level through the internet. The use of web 2.0 technologies proves the fact that education is a constantly evolving process. Research methods will include literature review, experimental investigation, modeling, and data validation.

Las 432 - Genetically Modified Foods Essay Example for Free

Las 432 Genetically Modified Foods Essay It has been determined that GMO’s are made up of plants, animals, viruses and bacteria that are created in laboratories. Scientist started experimenting with GMO’s in the early 1950’s with investigation of plants DNA. In the 1970’s scientist developed the first genetically engineered organism. By the early 1990’s biotechnology had expanded on production of GM foods to the public, but this brought fourth concerns. There are also those who believe that the laws and regulations that are attributed to genetically modified foods have been influenced through both the media and political aspects. These influences have brought about worries to GM food consumers and they started comparing the similarities and differences in organic foods and GM foods. Consumers want to know what GM food products they have consumed and will be aware of any affects that may be acquired with consumption. Not only are there consumer challenges that must be faced with these technological experimentations, but also the impacts that may be developed environmentally or effects that may incur with nature and wildlife. Some societies are worried about how the rich will prosper and the poorer countries will suffer and possibly go hungry. Some religions and groups protest eating genes and do not want to consume such un-natural foods and other concerns still the unknown effects on human allergies and transfer of antibiotic resistance to intestine bacterial flora or pathogenic bacteria in our bodies. Genetically Modified Organisms in Food Thesis: Consumers today have a right to know if genetically modified foods are harmful to our health, the environment and our economy. In order to be able to answer these questions more research needs to be done. Summary Controversy around genetically modified foods is becoming big news and sorting through volumes of information can be intimidating. The public is asking a lot of questions about GM foods and they are also raising concerns about the effects these foods may have on their health or the environment. There are different advantages and disadvantages of GM foods, although to what extent they can help or harm humans and the environment is a debatable aspect of this technology. The time has come to look at the decisions that we make about genetic engineering in food crops and if it will have permanent consequences on our food production capacity. Are genetically modified foods putting us at a crossroads in terms of the agricultural legacy that we will leave behind for our children and grandchildren? Modern technology has given us the ability to go beyond selective breeding. Organisms can now be modified by moving genes from one species to another and by introducing synthetic genetic material into their genomes. Humans no longer simply select from variations present in the population: they create new variations! Some find our new power exciting. They dream of crops with greater resistance to disease and insect pests, pigs with healthy fats, and a level of agricultural production sufficient to feed everyone on the planet. Others fear that we have crossed an important boundary and are now tinkering with living systems that we understand incompletely. They question our ability to predict the consequences of our actions and are afraid that we may disrupt the delicate natural order. GMO Technology I. What Are GMOs? GMOs (genetically modified organisms) are plants, animals, viruses and bacteria that are created in the laboratory. Their DNA (genes) has been modified through the use of gene splicing techniques in a desire to create â€Å"new† organisms. The technology involves removing the DNA of one species and inserting it into another species, resulting in new and different varieties of plant, animal, viral and bacterial genes which don’t naturally occur in nature or by hybridizing (Smith, 2012, para. 7). Other names for the technology are â€Å"modern technology or gene technology,† genetic engineering or recombinant DNA technology, and biotechnology (World Health Organization (WHO), 2012, para. 2). GMOs are used to create genetically modified plants which in turn are used to create genetically modified crops for human consumption and as animal feed. Developers believe that producers and consumers would be interested in these foods due to their â€Å"built-in† advantages of lower prices, high nutritional value and hardiness. The desire is to achieve crops that are resistant to spoilage, drought, insects and herbicides. At the outset genetically modified (GM) seed manufacturers envisioned their product being used by producers, thus they focused on innovations those farmers, and more generally the food industry, would accept and appreciate (WHO, 2012, para. 3). WHO states that (2012), the initial objective for developing plants based on GM organisms was to improve crop protection. The GM crops currently on the market are mainly aimed at an increased level of crop protection through the introduction of resistance against plant diseases caused by insects or viruses or through increased tolerance towards herbicides† (para. 4). Commodity crops were the First Generation GM crops and included soybean, maize/corn, cotton, canola and sugar beets (Schonwald, 2012, p. 26). GM soybeans and canola have permeated the market and can be found in most processed foods, e.g. , spaghetti, candy Schonwald, 2012, p. 25). There was expectation that with the success of first generation crops, biotech specialty crops (produce) would follow, focusing more on consumer tastes. According to Kent Bradford, director of University of California (UC) at Davis’s Seed Biotechnology Center (2012), â€Å"these crops hadn’t been commercialized since 1998† (Schonwald, 2012, p. 26). The author wondered why, and so enlisted the assistance of Kent Bradford for answers on â€Å"what was going on with bioengineered specialty crops† (Schonwald, 2012, p. 26). Bradford and a collaborator, Jamie Miller, found that research on specialty crops was underway and had never ceased. The research involved input traits that are important to agriculture such as â€Å"disease resistance,† â€Å"insect resistance,† â€Å"adaptability to certain environments† and output traits that â€Å"improve taste and texture and could lead to changes in the dining experience of the future† (Schonwald, 2012, p. 26). Schonwald says Bradford contends that (2012), â€Å"There was research on 46 different species with more than 300 traits being tested† (p. 26. ). So things were going on at the research level, but the results were not moving forward. Bradford found this was due to regulatory controls. Because of the lack of consumer confidence in transgenic breeding the regulatory process for genetically modified foods was much different than for non-GMO foods. In contrast, foods using classic breeding processes were considered safe for consumption. But GMO foods were â€Å"guilty until proven innocent† (Schonwald, 2012, p. 26). Schonwald reports that (2012), â€Å"A genetically engineered crop must pass review by the U. S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Food and Drug Administration before it is commercialized. The cost could range from $50,000 to tens of millions of dollars to win regulatory approval. For every â€Å"transgenic event,† the genetic engineer must show exactly what genes went into the plant and how they function, and then prove how the plant makeup has been altered. That research is costly. So is plant storage. Once a transgenic creation is spawned at the Plant Transformational Facility, it is whisked to the UC Davis Controlled Environment Facility, where it will stay in a tightly secured warehouse. Or it will be airmailed to some other place, where it will live out its life in another intensely biosecure environment. The process is costly and time-consuming, which partly explains why biotech crop development is largely in the hands of the agribusiness giants – the Monsanto’s, Syngentas, and Bayer Crop Sciences of the world—who have the resources to undertake the process. With such high approval costs, big companies have favored commodity crops with market potential for hundreds of millions of dollars to sales, not tens of millions† ( p. 26) According to Bradford, non-governmental organizations – Greenpeace and the Union of Concerned Scientists – were responsible for the stringent governmental handling of the biotech specialty crops. The $20 million organic foods industry labored to stop the proliferation of GMO foods. They did so by launching a campaign against GMOs, inundating the USDA with thousands of letters (â€Å"275,026 to be exact†) expressing anti-GMO sentiments. This led to the non-inclusion of GMO foods under the USDA’s standards of organic produce (Schonwald, 2012, p. 27). U. S. Leads in Biotech AgricultureMore than 170 million acres of biotech crops are under cultivation in the United States, more than twice Brazil’s acreage, which ranks second. Experts credit faster technological advances, more lenient regulations and expanding economic benefits for the U. S. lead. Biotech acreage by Country, 2011| Country| Acres (in millions)| Biotech crops| United States| 170. 5| Corn, soybean, cotton, canola, sugar beet, alfalfa, papaya, squash| Brazil| 74. 9| Soybean, corn, cotton| Argentina| 58. 6| Soybean, corn, cotton| India| 26. 2| Cotton| Canada| 25. 7| Canola, corn, soybean, sugar beet| China| 9. 6| Cotton, papaya, poplar, tomato, sweet pepper| Paraguay| 6. 9| Soybean| Pakistan| 6. 4| Cotton| South America| 5. 7| Soybean, corn, cotton| Uruguay| 3. 2| Soybean, corn|. Source: Clive James, â€Å"Global Status of Commercialized Biotech/GM Crops: 2011,† International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications, 2011, p. 2, www. isaaa. org/purchasepublications/itemdescription. asp? ItemType=BRIEFSControl=IB043-2011| (McClure, 2012, p. 724) Below is a list of tips on how to say no to GMOs: Tip #1: Buy Organic Certified organic products cannot intentionally include any GMO ingredients. Buy products labeled â€Å"100% organic† â€Å"organic,† or â€Å"made with organic ingredients. † You can be doubly sure if the product also has a Non-GMO Project Verified Seal (see next tip). Tip #2: Look for Non-GMO Project Seals Products that carry the Non-GMO Project seal are independently verified to be in compliance with North America’s only third party standard for GMO avoidance, including testing of at-risk ingredients. Tip #3: Avoid At-Risk Ingredients Even if it’s not labeled organic or verified non-GMO, you can still avoid products made with ingredients that are likely derived from GMOs. The eight most common GM food crops are: *Corn (as in corn oil, cornmeal, cornstarch, and other corn-based ingredients) *Soybeans (as in soybean oil, soy protein, soy lecithin, soy milk, tofu, and other soy-based ingredients). *Canola (as in canola oil) *Sugar beets (the â€Å"sugar† listed on food labels is almost always derived from sugar cane and GM sugar beets) *Most Hawaiian papaya *A small amount of zucchini and yellow squash *Also, beware of dairy products, which may come from cows injected with GM bovine growth hormone, and meats from animals (including farmed fish) that have been fed GM foods. [Instead] look for dairy products labeled No rBGH or rBST, artificial hormone-free, or organic; wild-caught fish; and meat labeled organic or 100% grass-fed. Tip #4: Use Non-GMO Shopping Guides. Download either the new Non-GMO Shopping Tips brochure or Non-GMO Shopping Guide at www. nongmoshoppingguide. com; in order to help identify, avoid GM foods and find hidden GM ingredients on food labels. If you have an iPhone, download the ShopNoGMO guide for free from the iTunes store. Copyright of Better Nutrition is the property of Active Interest Media, Inc. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder’s express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use (Smith, 2012, p. 14). II. Scientific Techniques and Experiments Various techniques are used to transfer DNA genes into the host cell. Researchers have been perfecting these techniques over the past 40 years. In one technique, target cells are bombarded with heavy metals coated with the gene transferred have been bombarded. Yet another technique transfers genes by using a naturally occurring bacterium along with a pulse of electricity to introduce genes into the targeted cell (McClure, 2012, p. 720). According to McClure (2012), Opponents of GM foods argue that the public should be informed of the techniques used in gene-transferring (p.720). At the Plant Transformation Facility at the UC, Davis more than 15,000 transgenic events have occurred. Transgenic event is the molecular biologists way of describing the blasting of DNA from one life form into another. This building, a short distance from the student union, houses thousands of Petri dishes of microscopic plantlets bathing in pink and fluorescent blue lights. Here biologists use a gas-pump-like tool called the Helium Particle Delivery system to mix sexually incompatible species together. They use gold bullets (literally) to fire genes from one species into another in a bombardment chamber. As a result the â€Å"Davis lab has birthed grapes spiked with jellyfish, tomatoes spiked with carp, transgenic squash, transgenic carrots, and transgenic tomatoes† (Schonwald, 2012, p. 25). In Changing Genes to Feed the World, David Pimentel takes a look at one molecular biologist’s account of plant breeding and the field of genetic engineering of crops. In her book, Mendel in the Kitchen, author Nina Fedoroff compares the contributions of genetically engineered plants with that of early plant breeding research, e. g. , development of hybrid corn, achieved through the transfer of genes within the confines of crop species. This method contributed greatly to the growth of crop yields during the Green Revolution. Specifically, according to Fedoroff (2004), traditional methods of cross breeding were responsible for, â€Å"40 percent of the increase in yields. The remaining 60 percent was due to greater inputs in fossil-fuels energy, fertilizers and pesticides† (Pimentel, 2004, paras. 1-2). Crop yields increased greatly during the years 1950-1983. Globally, 80 percent of the calories consumed by humans came from grains, making the Green Revolution an important feeding mechanism for billions of people around the world (Pimentel, 2004, para. 2). Though the use of traditional breeding methods greatly increased the yield and quality of crops, these methods were quite slow, in comparison to the advances being made in the field of molecular biology and genetic engineering. Before, breeders were required to manually manipulate genetic material within a specific crop to increase yields. Now, through genetic engineering, genes can quickly be transferred from one plant species to another and brought into crops (Pimentel, 2004, para. 3). As more and more genetically modified foods are being integrated into our food systems, there is a need to be able to detect their presence in food products in order to determine if food manufacturers are in â€Å"compliance with labeling requirements† (Yi, Yien-Chian, Foo-Peng Lee, and Nam-Trung, 2009, para. 1). There is a method that allows for the rapid detection of the presence of GMOs in foods and it is called ferrofluid-driven PCR microchip. â€Å"The microchip was fabricated in polymethyl methacrylate by CO? laser ablation and was integrated with three temperature zones. PCR solution was contained in a circular closed micro channel and was driven by magnetic force generated by an external magnet through a small oil-based ferrofluid plug. Successful amplification of genetically modified soya and maize were achieved in less than 13 minutes. This PCR microchip combines advantages of cycling flexibility and quick temperature transitions associated with two existing microchip PCR techniques, and it provides a cost saving and less time-consuming way to conduct preliminary screening of GMOs† (Yi, Yien-Chian, Foo-Peng Lee, Nam-Trung, 2009, para. 1). History of GMO’s I. Biotechnology Chronology â€Å"1950s – 1960s: Scientists identify genes and begin investigating the role of DNA in plant development. 1953-American biochemist James Watson and British biophysicist Francis Crick describe the structure of DNA, setting the stage for mapping the genetic code. 1967-Lenape potato, a new variety bred for making potato chips is withdrawn from experimental production after high levels of toxin are found. 1970s – 1980s: Scientists begin experimenting with genetic transformation of plants and animals. 1973-Scientists create first genetically engineer organism. 1983-Researchers transfer new DNA into plants, leading to the creation of genetically modified crops. 1989-Calene Inc. receives U. S. patent for gene sequence in GM Flavr Savr tomato. 1990s: Biotech foods are marketed to the public despite environmental and health concerns. 1992-FDA decides not to require labeling of most GM foods, sparking mistrust of the technology. 1993-FDA allows cows to be injected with bovine growth hormone (rBGH) made from genetically modified bacteria, setting off consumer protests. 1994-FDA approves Flavr Savr tomato, first GM food approved for sale to consumers. 1996-Monsanto introduces Roundup Ready soybeans, first of several popular herbicide-tolerant or insecticide-producing crops. 1998- European Union (EU) halts approvals of new GM crops in what is termed an â€Å"unofficial moratorium. † 2000s: Genetically engineered foods face continued criticism despite growing scientific consensus that they do not pose greater safety risks than conventional crops. 2000-Bowing to international demands, U.S. officials agree to label GM commodities for export†¦. Weeds resistant to Roundup discovered in Delaware†¦. Friends of the Earth, a major environmental group, reports that genes from StarLink corn, a GM crop approved only for animal consumption, have been discovered in taco shells. The discovery prompts recalls of corn products and lawsuits, but researchers are unable to document any human health effects†¦. Centers for disease Control study concludes StarLink did not cause allergic reactions claimed by 28 people. 2002-National Center for Food and Agricultural Policy finds that GM crops in the United States produced four billion pounds of additional foods and fiber on the same acreage, improved farm income by $1. 5 billion and reduced pesticide use by 46 million pounds†¦. Monsanto announces it will delay introduction of GM wheat amid concerns from farmers that it will harm exports. 2003-Bollworms resistant to the Bt toxin, an insecticide produced by GM cotton, discovered in the South. 2004-Under U. S. pressure, EU drops de facto ban on GM crops but institutes mandatory labeling; many European stores won’t stock GM foods because of consumer fears. 2008-Monsanto sells unit that produces rBGH, as major grocers including Wal-Mart, Publix and Kroger decline to sell milk from cows treated with the product. 2010-After approving the sale of GM eggplant, India’s environment minister declares a moratorium on the product because of public outcry. 2011-GM crops are grown on 395 million acres of farmland globally, though more than 90 percent is in just three crops: soybeans, corn and cotton. 2012-Anti-GMO groups file petitions containing more than 1 million signatures demanding that the FDA require GM foods to be labeled†¦. Californian vote scheduled for Nov. 6 on ballot initiative requiring labeling for GM foods† (McClure, 2012, p. 727). II. Advantages and Disadvantages The people of the United States (U. S. ) have been unknowingly consuming GMO foods since the 1990s. The Food and Drug Administration scientists warned that these new foods had the capability to produce new allergens and toxins and advised that more thorough testing was needed. But the U. S. government’s position was that GM foods were equivalent to non-GMO foods and failed to require labeling and testing (Smith, 2012, para, 9). According to the American Academy of Environmental Medicine (AAEM), eating GMO foods contributes to a number of health risks (Smith, 2012),â€Å"including infertility, immune system issues, accelerated aging, disruption of insulin and cholesterol regulation, gastrointestinal issues, and changes in organs† (para. 9). AAEM reported that doctors most likely are seeing negative health effects in their patients and may not realize that GMO foods are the culprit. Doctors are urged to prescribe non-GMO diets for all of their patients (Smith, 2012, para. 9). The environment is not exempt from the risks of GMO foods. There is the threat of GMO seeds contaminating nearby fields of organic and non-GMO crops. Pesticide usage has dramatically increased over the first thirteen years since the GM crops were introduced. Further, high amounts of herbicide usage on GM herbicide –resistant crops have caused the development of â€Å"superweeds† that adapt to and withstand your typical herbicides (Smith, 2012, para. 10). On the positive side, genetic engineering offers a wonderful solution to farmers, especially those in developing countries, and that is the opportunity for developing perennial grains. As most grains are annual crops, tilling and replanting of the soil is required every single year. This involves an enormous amount of energy each year, including fossil and human energy and strength. Annual tillage also results in soil erosion. Planting perennial grains would mean that farmers would only need to till and replant every five or six years. This would be a major benefit for farmers in developing countries, as tilling for them involves 400 hours per hectare, hand-tilling their fields prior to planting their crops. As such, according to the author, â€Å"plant breeding and genetic engineering will continue to make a tremendous contribution to our food supply† (Smith, 2012, para. ). Other advantages of GM foods include disease resistance, cold tolerance, drought resistance, nutrition, pharmaceuticals, and phytoremediation (Whitman, 2012, pp. 2-4). Legal and Political Issues I. Regulations and Laws There have been an abundant number of studies done in the past on American health and safety standards that have demonstrated the inconsistencies of risk assessment. Some standards are rather strict and offer few or no benefits in savings lives, preventing diseases or injuries; while other standards have been negligent and have placed a considerable amount of lives at risk or harm. It is essentially due to the passage of these standards for which the American regulatory policy making has been implanted. In the past, both Congress and the political appointees who head regulatory agencies have been very susceptible to public opinion and public pressures. As a result, the more the American public is prone to worry about a particular risk, the more meticulous American policy-makers are likely to regulate it. â€Å"Therefore, many of the American regulatory policies, especially those between the mid 1960s through the mid 1980s, were characterized by the triumph of passion over sound science. (Vogel, 2001). In 1984, the Federal Government established a formal policy that is referred to as â€Å"The Coordinated Framework for Regulation of Biotechnology†. This policy describes the Federal system for evaluating products that have been developed using modern biotechnology. â€Å"The Coordinated Framework is based upon health and safety laws developed to address specific product classes and involves the cooperation of three federal regulatory agencies; the EPA, the USDA, and the FDA. The U. S. Government has written new regulations, policies and guidance to implement these laws for biotechnology as products have developed† (United States Regulatory Agencies Unitied Biotechnology Website, 2012). EPA Regulation â€Å"Under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), the EPA regulates the use of intergeneric microorganisms in commerce or commercial research. The EPA considers intergeneric microorganisms to be those formed from organisms in different genera (genera is the plural of genus, which is a level in a taxonomic classification system based on the relatedness of organisms) or those microorganisms formed with synthetic DNA not from the same genus† (Biotechnology Program under the Toxic Substances Control Act, 2012). â€Å"The EPA believes that inter generic micro organisms have a sufficiently high likelihood of expressing new traits or new combinations of traits to be termed new and warrant EPA review. The Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (OPPT), Biotechnology Program conducts a screening program for new microorganisms under section 5 of TSCA. In 1997, the EPA published regulations that fully implement its pre-manufacture program for microorganisms under TSCA section 5. Prior to 1997; the EPA operated its biotechnology program in accordance with the 1986 Policy Statement† (Biotechnology Program under the Toxic Substances Control Act, 2012) USDA Regulation. | â€Å"USDA supports the safe and appropriate use of science and technology, including biotechnology, to help meet agricultural challenges and consumer needs of the 21st century. USDA plays a key role in assuring that products produced using biotechnology are safe to be grown and used in the United States. Once these products enter commerce, USDA supports bringing these and other products to the worldwide marketplace† (Bitechnology, 2012). | â€Å"The Advisory Committee on Biotechnology and 21st Century Agriculture (AC21) was originally established in February, 2003 and first met in June, 2003. Under its Charter, the committee is charged with examining the long-term impacts of biotechnology on the U. S. food and agriculture system and USDA, and providing guidance to USDA on pressing individual issues, identified by the Office of the Secretary, related to the application of biotechnology in agriculture. The AC21 is a broad-based committee representing a wide range of interests and agricultural expertise† (USDA Advisory Committee on Biotechnology 21st Century Agriculture (AC21), 2012). FDA Regulation â€Å"In the Federal Register of May 29, 1992 (57 FR 22984), FDA published its Statement of Policy: Foods Derived from New Plant Varieties. The 1992 policy clarified the agencys interpretation of the application of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act with respect to human foods and animal feeds derived from new plant varieties and provided guidance to industry on scientific and regulatory issues related to these foods (Genetically Engineereed Plants for Food and Feed, 2012). The 1992 policy applied to all foods derived from all new plant varieties, including varieties that are developed using recombinant deoxyribonucleic acid (rDNA) technology. This site refers to foods derived from plant varieties that are developed using rDNA technology as bioengineered foods† (Genetically Engineereed Plants for Food and Feed, 2012). â€Å"In the Federal Register of January 18, 2001 (the premarket notification proposal; 66 FR 4706), FDA issued a proposed rule that would require that developers submit a scientific and regulatory assessment of the bioengineered food 120 days before the bioengineered food is marketed. In the premarket notification proposal, FDA recommends that developers continue the practice of consulting with the agency before submitting the required premarket notice† (Genetically Engineereed Plants for Food and Feed, 2012) The chief statutes under which the above agencies have been given regulatory or Review authority comes from the following Act’s: * The Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) (EPA); * The Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) (EPA); * The Food, Drug and Cosmetics Act (FFDCA) (FDA and EPA); * The Plant Protection Act (PPA) (USDA); * The Virus Serum Toxin Act (VSTA) (USDA); * The Public Health Service Act (PHSA)(FDA); * The Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA) (FDA) * The Meat Inspection Act (MIA)(USDA); * The Poultry Products Inspection Act (PPIA) (USDA); * The Egg Products Inspection Act (EPIA) (USDA); and * The National Environmental Protection Act (NEPA)(Guide to U. S. Regulations of Genetically Modified Foods and Argricultural Biotechnology Products, 2001) II. Current Political Issues Genetically modified foods have been a concern for many people around the world. In the past Europeans have been the most vocal in their resistance to GM foods and crops, to the point that they have implemented strict labeling requirements for any genetically modified foods sold. In the absence of stronger health and safety data, many national governments across the world have taken steps to lessen the existence of GE food within their borders. â€Å"In Europe, six nations (Austria, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, and Luxembourg) have enacted bans on the cultivation and import of GE products, and nearly 50 nations worldwide require that all GE foods be labeled as such† (Dahl, 2012). To date in the United State there have been no mandatory labeling requirements for genetically modified foods. However this may soon change, Americans are now starting to ask questions about what they are eating and suspicions about the health and environmental effects of biotechnology is now behind the demand that foods from genetically modified crops be labeled. The most recent labeling effort that has come to the fore front is the California ballot initiative Proposition 37 called â€Å"The Right to Know†. What is Proposition 37? The California â€Å"Right to Know† Genetically Engineered Food Act is easy: The initiative would basically require food that is sold in retail outlets to be labeled if it is produced through genetic engineering, and would not allow these products to be labeled as â€Å"natural. † Prop 37 allows companies 18 months to change their product labels, and allows for the GMO disclosure to appear wherever they choose on the packaging (Facts Yes on Prop 37, 2012). If this initiative passes, California will be the first state to require all foods that have genetically modified crops in them to be labeled. However, there is an opposing side to this Proposition. Those that are against Proposition 37 feel that by having to label all foods with genetically engineered crops would mean higher food prices due to the cost of re-package existing foods, recordkeeping, or companies being forced to switch to higher priced non-GM foods. The opposing side also states that it would add more government bureaucracy and taxpayers cost, and create frivolous lawsuits (Stop the Deceptive Food Labeling Scheme, 2012). This is one political debate that will have everyone on the edge of their chairs. III. What are the Possible Health Effects of GM Foods? With so many of our foods today now coming from GM crops, questions are now being asked if there is a health risk from GM foods. The problem is that unlike the safety evaluations that are required for the approval of a new drug, the safety evaluations of genetically engineered foods for human consumption has not been as strict. So what is known about possible health issues from the consumption of GM foods? Scientists from around the world have been complaining that a majority of the research that is being done about the possible side effects of GM foods for human consumption is being conducted by scientists that are associated with the biotechnology companies; the same companies that are selling the crops seeds. That and the fact that these studies are being done by the biotechnology companies tend to show that there are no health problems associated with eating GM foods. The problem is this is a one sided research study. One of the biggest problems that independent researchers are facing is that it is extremely hard to get GM seeds in order to conduct any type of research. These seeds can only be purchased through a licensed seed dealer and a technology licensing agreement must be signed stating that no research will be done on the seed; this includes any research attributed to health and environment. Scientists who have managed to do research on the health impacts of the GM seeds are often harassed, intimidated, and defamed by those with a strong interest in the GM technology. Even with these challenges researcher have managed to conduct medical research on the health effects of GM seeds; of these tests the most obvious concern has been the risk of allergic reactions.