Western European Agricultural Advances Essays -

Western European Agricultural Advances Western European Agricultural Advances Over the course of world history, there have been many factors that have changed the course of Western European history. Two of those main factors were the inventions of the chest harness for the horse and the three-field system of agriculture. The harness for the horses of the early middle ages was poorly designed and needed to be changed. The early harnesses were used around the horses neck. This led to strangulation of the horses while pulling the plow. Obviously, these early harnesses needed to be designed better to better put the use of the power and speed of the horse. This change came about in the early 900's. An invention was made that allowed the harness to be placed around the horses chest. This new invention prevented horses from being strangled, which allowed for faster plowing and greater food production. Around the same time as the chest harness' invention, medieval villagers were organizing their land into a two field system of agriculture. This system utilized one large field divided in half, one half of a field with crops and left the other half of a field was left unplanted for a year so as not to exhaust the soil. This system led to problems, because dividing the land in half led to shortages in the production of food because only half of the field was being used. This system of agriculture needed some minor adjustments to increase the production of food without destroying the soil in the process. This new system came about around the year 800. Farmers began to use a new system, the three-field system, to farm their crops. The three field system used one large field like it's earlier counterpart. The only change, was that the field was divided into three fields. Instead of only getting food from one half of your land, you could use two-thirds of the land to produce your own food. The direct result was a greater food production. Both of these agricultural inventions forever changed the course of western European history. Using the three field system allowed for the villagers to have more to eat because of the amount of food produced. They produced more of the foods that are good sources of proteins which led to decreased sickness and disease. This led to the increase in the population of Western Europe. People were now able to raise larger families. With the new and improved harnesses on the horses, horses could now plow quicker. A farmer could start farming more land quicker because of the faster plowing methods. This led to even more food being produced, also increasing the population. These two inventions, brought together, forever changed the course of European history. They increased fertile land growth, increased the population, help to try and prevent disease and sickness with better foods and increased food production tremendously.

Water Shotage Around the World Essay Example

Water Shotage Around the World Essay Example Water Shotage Around the World Essay Water Shotage Around the World Essay Humans consume water, discard it, poison it and waste it without considering the consequences. Supplying enough water in the right quantity, at the right time and in the right place has always been a concern. All of life depends on water. It is as important to life as air, food and sunlight. For this reason water has always played an important role in civilizations throughout history. People can live for days without food but will not survive for very long without water. The problem with water is that there is the same amount now as there was in pre-historic times and no way to make anymore of it.As the citizens of Chennai have been witnessing over the past few years, the city is still in the grip of an acute water shortage. Two of the rain-fed lakes that meet the citys needs- Poondi and Red hills- have severely depleted storage owing to the failure of the southwest monsoon and the northeast monsoon last year and a third, sholavaram, is dry. Tanker trucks pressed into service by the Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (CMWSSB) and those run by private operators are trying to meet the peoples daily needs, at least partially.The people of chennai get 35 liters of water per capita in the best of times. The poor, the majority of them living in slums, are the worst- affected. They depend entirely on the water supply systems. Groundwater is the citys major water source now; It is drawn mainly from the well-fields in the Araniyar- Kortakaiyar basin and the aquifer between tiruvanmiyur and Muttukadu along the coast of south Chennai. Groundwater extraction is reaching its limits. According to the Central Groundwater Board, 80% of Chennais groundwater has been depleted and any further exploration could lead to salt water ingression.The assured yield from groundwater sources is estimated at 190 million liters per day (mld); of this, 158 mld has been tapped already. During the past century, the World population has tripled, and water use has increased six- fold. These changes have come at great environmental cost: half the wetlands have disappeared during the twentieth century; some rivers dont reach the sea and twenty percent of the freshwater fish are endangered. These environmental consequences also entail social and economic costs.While agriculture uses more and more water every year, to meet the food demands of a growing population, other users are competing for the same water: more people means more energy required and more hydropower. Especially in the western world, industrialization has had serious and often negative effects n water quality; currently global markets move the most polluting industries to the developing countries, usually near cities where population growth and illegal settlements already put a lot of pressure on water resources.In 2020, 60% of the Worlds population will be urban, a concentration that makes urban water infrastructure development an extremely urgent issue. These are but one of the factors influe ncing the worlds water resources, complicated by the fact that they are interlinked, and cant be approached separately. The projections are grim: around the world over the next twenty years, the average supply of water per person is expected to drop by a third and it already is in short supply.The United States projects that by the middle of the next century, at least two billion people in sixty countries- depending on factors such as population growth and climate change – will be seriously short of water. In the meantime, the water quality will worsen due to pollution and rising temperatures. Growing populations, wastage of water, inefficient irrigation and pollution exert pressure on this resource. Pollution and wastage are the primary threats to this resource, both of which we as human beings are responsible for.Water shortage and degradation is a growing concern for many countries including the United States. Drinking water protection is a big responsibility that involves government, business and individuals. Everyone has an important role in trying to protect the supply of water. Water is a vital necessity that all people need in order to survive. Without water, people could only go a few days to a few months before having serious health problems or even death. One of the major concerns regarding water is if there will be enough water for the demand within the next 25 to 50 years.With the help of agencies, scientists and experts, we as people may see that there will be a shortage of water in the years to come. Today in the world the leading cause of the water shortage is the rising demand for water for the industries and agriculture (George, 1). On the earth today there is no more freshwater than there was 2,000 years ago. Then the population was 3% of what it is today (Knight, 1). In 31 countries around the world that contains near a half a billion people face water shortage with the most severe being in the Middle East and Africa.By the year 2025 it is estimated that another 17 countries will be added to that list. Some researchers believe that also be the year 2025, 35% or 2. 8 billion people will face shortage. There are different reasons and causes of what continues to cause a shortage of water. Some of the water is being contaminated with pollutants. Agriculture is the biggest polluter in which the pollutants come from the fertilizers and pesticides used on the crops. The industries and municipal pollutions are also a factor. In some countries 90 to 9

Duc de Saint-Simon forum 14 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Duc de Saint-Simon forum 14 - Essay Example Saint-Simon describes the opulence of the royal life of the king while at Versailles. He begins by describing the large and infinite number of rooms at the place and the comfort the palace provided the king. He explains that the King’s life changed while in Versailles as he became increasingly sensitive. He developed interest on the operations of the palace and would always seek to note any cases of absenteeism. Additionally, whoever visited the palace needed reasons to see him. However, Louis XIV maintained his composure and demeanor magnificence and splendor. Versailles offered him the peace to maintain such a lifestyle. He therefore lived in Versailles to his death. The article is a reliable historical document. The author uses descriptive and simple sentences coupled with timeline record of events features that enhance the comprehension of the topical issue. Furthermore, the author uses appropriate intent citations that show the sources from where he borrows some of his major

Unit 2 Discussion art and Humanities Research Paper

Unit 2 Discussion art and Humanities - Research Paper Example According to the stylistic features seen in the portrait, it can be assumed that Andy Warhol did not show some seriousness in his work. This was so because many artists perceived designing of a self portrait to be very difficult for it involved a lot of research. Though this particular portrait is considered to be one of the most famous portraits in the world, it still does not meet the viewers’ expectations (Frei and George, 202). The portrait in this case does not earn fame because of the stylistic features used but being the first self portrait to be designed. Actually, no one still understands the main purpose of the portrait as it does not display the real Warhol. The viewers of this portrait are still expecting more insight and depth as they claim that there is nothing displayed but a whitish brown sketch that is behind sunken eyes (Fieldman and Jorg, 193). This shows that the color background of the portrait was not also well set as it tend to resemble or match that of the main portrait hence making it very difficult to see the portrait clearly. Some hidden parts of the portrait such as the eyes appear to be dark hindering clear view. From the features seen in this portrait, it can be concluded that the portrait is one of the famous self portraits that from which many artists drew their experience from. This portrait only brought some idea in the artistic industry as it showed that there is a possibility in designing a self portrait. The designing of portrait though took decades; it is considered a sketch work that only a partial image of the artist. This is also considered to have been so because Warhol who was the designer of this portrait was only advised to do so by a friend after designing many portraits and art works in the art industry. Frei, Georg and Neil Printz, editors. The Andy Warhol Catalogue Raisonnà ©, Volume 01, Paintings and Sculpture 1961-1963. 503 pp. New York and London: Phaidon Press, 2002. (and Volume 02, 1964-1969. 423

Religion question Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Religion question - Assignment Example In addition to this, this god had a child with one of his wives, thus, Jesus was born. After the birth of Jesus, Satan was born which places him as the brother of Christ. This belief definitely contradicts the Christian theology that recognizes Satan as a fallen angel who rebelled against God. In this context, the Jesus Christ that Christians recognize is not the same Jesus that the Mormons know of. Their teachings created another theology of Jesus. Lastly, Christians recognize the authority of the Bible and its message, considering it perfect. Nothing should be added or subtracted from its message. In Mormonism, they have expressed the limitations of the Bible through the 8th article of faith from the Mormon Church states, "We believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly."Â  Thus, Mormons can interpret the Bible according to their perspective. In conclusion, Mormons are not considered Christians since their theology contradicts the essential doctrine of Christianity, more so, they do not fully recognize the Bible as the unerring word of

The Early Years Foundation Stage Children And Young People Essay

The Early Years Foundation Stage Children And Young People Essay Introduction The portfolio is a planning file which contains three detailed assessments of childrens learning. The assessments will be conducted on three different children; each assessment will cover all seven areas of learning. Firstly, the writer will describe the setting, and then the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) 2012, that requires schools to work in partnership with parents. This will be a part of the on-going observation and assessment process. By observation, assessment and planning the system will be effective particularly when these elements come together as a cycle. According to Macleod and Kay (2008) all planning starts with observing children in order to understand and consider their current interests, development and learning. By observing children, teachers understand their needs, what they are interested in and what they can do. Secondly, there will be an analysis of the role of observation and assessment in planning that will highlight the three childrens achievements or their need for further support. This will start with Child A, followed by Child B and lastly Child C who are aged 4-5 years. Observation, assessment and planning will flow into one another. Finally, the writer of this profile will discuss developmental assessment, what it is and how it is used in the setting for each of the children. This all will result in summarising how the planning/observation cycle has enabled progress in the learning of Children A, B and C. The Setting The primary school itself is a four storey Victorian building. The rooms are spacious and very well resourced. They have a dedicated early years centre, music and performing arts suite and a computer suite as well as computers in every classroom. There are three outdoor play areas for the children including a wildlife garden, two quiet gardens and games areas. The school is in Central London, surrounded by world class learning institutions and opportunities, which act daily as extended classrooms. It works in close partnership with parents and carers to encourage them to be involved in their childrens education. As well as valuing their parents and carers, they are always welcome in school. The primary school is a multi-cultural environment but the majority of children are Bengali. The school runs from Nursery to Year Six with the capacity for over 400 children aged between three to twelve years. There are 39 children in reception aged between 4-5 years and this is where the three children are observed. It is formed by having two groups: one called Lady Birds and the other Grasshoppers, the teachers both work in tandem with one another to plan the childrens curriculum. Both of the groups have one main teacher with a teaching assistant. The Lady Birds has 19 children, 10 boys and 9 girls. The Grasshoppers has 11 girls and 9 boys. As this is a primary school all children are expected to attend as childrens attainment and achievement is directly linked to high school attendance (Ref?).   School starts at 9 oclock. Children are expected to attain a minimum of 95% attendance. All classes compete for an attendance award each week and a cup each term. The Equality Act 2010 was introduced to ensure protection from discrimination, harassment and victimisation on the grounds of specific characteristics (referred to as protected characteristics). This means that the setting cannot discriminate against pupils or treat them less favourably because of their gender, race, disability, religion or belief. (The Act also covers discrimination relating to gender reassignment, sexual orientation or pregnancy or maternity which perhaps has less relevance for young children). Early Years Foundation Stage EYFS 2012 is a legal framework that sets the standards for all the providers for early years to certify that children learn and develop as well as maintained in a healthy and secure manor. It encourages teaching and learning and ensures that they are well equipped with a range of knowledge and skills. In addition this will help them build the basis of their learning and aid them to progress through education and life. The school wants the children to develop independence and to co-operate with others and to talk and communicate in a range of situations. The opportunities for learning are provided through a planned and balanced adult-led and child-initiated curriculum. To enable children to develop positive self-esteem and attitude, learning takes place both indoors and outdoors. It is expected that suitable clothing and footwear are worn to school so that children can benefit from the experiences provided in all weathers. All early years providers follow the EYFS (2012) ensuring that every child is encouraged to learn through play. History In September 2008 the EYFS framework becomes statutory for all early years care and education providers in Ofsted registered settings attended by children from birth to five years of age. It created a framework that replaces the three previous early years documents Curriculum Guidance for the Foundation Stage, Birth to Three Matters and National Standards for Under 8s Day-care and Child-minding. However On the 27th March 2012 a revised version of the EYFS framework was established which then followed the execution from the 1 September 2012. This covers a vital part of the Governments wider vision for families in the foundation years. It shows the emphasis of supporting children by removing professionals from bureaucracy. Together with a more flexible, free early education entitlement and new streamlined inspection arrangements, this was the birth of EYFS 2012. In addition the Early Education (2012) is also pleased to launch Development Matters in the Early Years Foundation Stage, new non-statutory guidance produced by Early Education with support from the Department for Education that supports all those working in early childhood education.    The role of observation and assessment in planning for childrens learning Children are observed to assess developmental progress. Observation takes place primarily through childrens normal daily activities, their use of language, social interactions with others and work samples that demonstrate learning. In a sense, observation can have different meanings and imply different degrees of involvement to many practitioners. But in this case, the term observation according to Wadsworth, (1983) is the act of looking at something, without influencing it and recording the scene or action for later analysis (Also see Appendix 3A). The four key ideas of observation involve regular intentional watching of children in a wide variety of circumstances that are representative of their behaviours and skills demonstrated over time. Secondly, a daily observation would be an on-going one involving classroom/home performances and typical activities of the child leading to the collection of a wealth of reliable information. The third key idea of observation relates to demonstrated performance during real activities, not actions that are contrived or unnatural. Finally, as a practitioner the writer would need a solid understating of the meaning and purpose of observation and should have practice recording childrens behaviours and skills every day. According to Bruce (2006), we observe in order to improve our teaching, construct theory, help parents, use an assessment tool, wonder why and solve a problem and communicate with children. The different types of observation include narrative where the observer makes records that keep track of everything that happens in a specified time period. The writer finds this most valuable, but also the most difficult because à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. Secondly, the observer can use time samples where the method used is to count the number of behaviours occurring at uniform timed intervals. There are also event samples where the observer records a specific behaviour only when it occurs. Finally, there are teacher-designed instruments, like checklists, rating scales and shadow studies. When assessing a plan, evaluation would be key, according to ________ (year), who goes on to say that in education practitioners evaluate for curriculum, materials and equipment, the environment, childrens behaviour and teachers effectiveness. As the writer is a practitioner he can reflect that when he evaluates, it provides information by which to rate performance, define areas of difficulty, and look for possible solutions, as well as goal setting, monitoring growth and progress, and planning. ___________ (year) suggests good evaluations include selecting what will be evaluated, having a clear purpose and stating goals clearly, and so forth. But ___________(year) expresses concern about evaluations making unfair comparison, placing overemphasis on norms and interpretations, and so forth. However, although both theorists might make a justified point, the current writer agrees that evaluation is a broad concept which can be an informal process but is often times confused with more formal testing and measurements. Through evaluation, teachers link specific goals to larger, more encompassing objectives that focus on the relationship between teaching in the classroom and the overriding educational objectives. The writer also understands that observation is a natural process in which all practitioners participate all the time. They look at and listen to children. However the disadvantage and a major problem with observation, according to Wadsworth, (1983) is the fact that an observer is also a learner. Observers, like their subjects, have feelings, aspirations, fears, biases, and prejudices. Any one of these can influence and distort that which is being observed. He goes on to say that, an observer watches a group of children at play. One child turns to another and strikes him on the arm. The observer jots down hostility. The event was one child strikes another. The observer interpreted the act to be one of hostility. Wadsworth (1983) explains that when an observer thus infers motive to observed action, he/she adds something of him/herself to the data. Such data may be distorted and therefore invalid and unreliable. In the early years setting there are seven areas of learning and development which are labelled into two. The first is the three prime areas which are Communication and Language (CL); Physical Development (PD); and Personal, Social and Emotional Development (PSED) Secondly, the four Specific Areas, through which the three Prime Areas are strengthened and applied, are Literacy (L); Mathematics (M); Understanding the World (UW); and Expressive Arts and Design (EAD). Macleod and Kay (2008), mention that all areas of learning and development are important and inter-connected. The Three Prime Areas are particularly crucial for igniting childrens curiosity and enthusiasm for learning, and for building their capacity to learn, form relationships and thrive. The writers school Developmental Assessment follows the EYFS (2012) review. They consider the assessment pyramid. The pyramid demonstrates that there is a large amount of information collected about each child and attempts to define some of these data sets. This pyramid also attempts to demonstrate that there is a link between formative assessment and planning. The pyramid shows that the end result of summative assessment of the data collected is the end product and that the progress of the child remains as the main focus of the process (EYFS 2012). The Statutory framework for the EYFS mentions the responsibility for assessment and day to day practice like the planning cycle. This lies with teachers who observe, assess, plan and do these again and again. Development Matters (2012) is also used as part of observation, assessment and planning. It is used at points during the EYFS (2012) as a guide to making best-fit summative judgements, with parents and colleagues across agencies, about whether a child is showing typical development, may be at risk of delay or is ahead for their age. Appendix 1A shows the Plan in the settings of EYFS Medium Term Planning for Children A, B and C; it displays the seven stages as mentioned before. The main focus and theme is traditional tales. (See Appendix 1A underlined in pink) It also gives objectivess and early learning goals; these are under the seven areas of development and the ones that are highlighted in yellow are the ones Child A, B and C had completed; at the bottom are the Characteristics of Effective Learning like assessment, environment/resources and stories. (See Appendix 1A) Appendix 2A shows the Assessment and Evaluation of the weekly planning for Child A, B and C. and gives the childrens interest, needs and schemas. It also gives the children seven areas as well as the next steps to be taken for Child A, B and C; finally it gives the childrens experiences. (See Appendix 2A) Appendix 3A shows the weekly Environment Plan for Reception giving time to include the activities with the theme set. (See Appendix 3A) Appendix 4A is the characteristics of effective learning process over outcome. This is to give practitioners and teachers ideas and encourage the keeping in mind of these thoughts when interacting with children. (See Appendix 4A) Observation of children A, B, and C Based on the three assessments above the writer observed each child engaged in activity/exp. The framework which the school uses is the Early Years Foundation Stage curriculum (2012). The activities they provide cover the seven areas of learning for Child A, B and C. It will help them to plan how best to support young childrens learning and development and share information and ideas with parents and carers. Assessment and Evaluation Observationsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Aresa Prim and Specify à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Weekly Environment Plan for Reception Observationssà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Areas working together Good assessment and planning show that all staff participate together as a team for the good of the children giving the children the best start in life with the parents at the heart of their childs planning and learning. In order to provide an appropriate curriculum, it is required that individuals working with young children learn about the individual childs needs, as well as the needs of the group (Peck et al, 1993). Assessment should be an on-going process, be made both formally and informally, and incorporate a variety of methods. Assessment should include the use of input (Peck et al, 1999) As a practitioner working with young children the writer should acknowledge the importance of consistently updating assessment information and using that information in planning and developing programmes and intervention strategies. The children who were observed are constantly growing, developing new skills, and sometimes developing new concerns and difficulties; it is recognised by the setting that the importance of collecting data on a childs progress is less important than determining how to address their needs. Conclusionà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ In conclusion, at the school attendee by Child A, B and C curriculum goals would seem to be realistic and attainable for most children and assessing of individual childrens development is appropriate for the curriculum. The literature relating to early learning suggests that assessment and curriculum should be integrated, with teachers continually engaging in observation for the purpose of improving teaching and learning. This seems to be the case at the school in question and the planning/observation cycle has enabled progress in Child A, B and Cs learning. Appendix One Permission slip The father to Child A gives permission concerning Abdul to take pictures, drawing and any other effects to help him to complete his task. I also give him permission to look at my childs profile or anything related that he might need to use. Parent ______________ Abdul Ali The mother to Child B gives permission concerning Abdul to take pictures, drawing and any other effects to help her to complete his task. I also give him permission to look at my childs profile or anything related that he might need to use. Parent ______________ Abdul Ali The father to Child C gives permission concerning Abdul to take pictures, drawing and any other effects to help him to complete his task. I also give him permission to look at my childs profile or anything related that he might need to use. Parent ______________ Abdul Ali - I __________ Mentor for Abdul at the school, give him the permission to take a serious of observation on Child A, B and C to complete his task. Teacher ____________ Abdul Ali Appendix 1A Early Years Foundation Stage Medium Term Planning for Reception Appendix 2A Assessment and Evaluation Appendix 3A Weekly Environment Plan for Reception

My Teaching Philosophy Statement :: Education Educational Educating Essays

My Philosophy Statement Methods of how to educate individuals have been studied by many different philosophers in many different ways. I formed my view of method, curriculum, nature of students, nature of knowledge, and the purpose of public education, as well as my person career goals from those philosophers. I took different aspects of the philosophies of Plato, Rousseau, Sophistry/Foucault, and Pragmatism/Progressivism to create my own philosophy of education. My first view of method is an idea formed by Pragmatism/Progressivism. Being student centered is one method of effective teaching. I believe that students should enjoy their classes. I think part of being a good teacher is making the students want to learn. The most important person in the classroom should be the student. Teachers should base their lessons around the needs of their students. One way in which a teacher could do this is through group work sessions. If one child were behind in a subject the other students in the group might be able to help them. Another idea that I agree with is Rousseau's idea that students should learn through experience. I believe that instead of lecturing, students should learn through experience. The students could bring in leaves and study them, instead of just learning about them in their Science books. I think having variation in the classroom is also an important method of teaching. Instead of their usual Friday spelling test have a Spelling Be e instead. These are all ways to keep the students interest. The main method I chose for my philosophy is student centered. All other methods I have discussed fall into this category, in which the main focus of the classroom is the students. My next philosophy is on curriculum. I agree with Pragmatism/Progressivism. I believe that the purpose of a teacher is to teach their students how to think. Not what to think. There are several ways to go about doing this. One way is through math, students can be taught how to think through reading problems. One reason schools have many subjects is to make their students well rounded, another is to help students develop ways to reason. I agree with Rousseau's idea that students should be taught reason so that they can care about and respect others. Through out ones life they need reason to make decisions. I think students should be taught history so that they do not remake the mistakes of the past.

Discretionary family trust Essay

In the general life, wealth management is necessary on attaining a sustainable and a desired level of living standard over someone’s lifetime. Following this desire, individual persons take various steps that are aimed at ensuring the future flow of income on the effective utilization of the current levels of income and in making the necessary investments that will ensure the future flow of income. This can take an individual person perspective or as a family. This results into the formation trust funds. The trustee is the owner of the trust; however there are other participants depending on the nature of the trust. The paper is meant to compare and contrast the role, responsibility and duties of a trustee of a self managed superannuation fund and a discretionary family trust. It takes an approach of describing the Discretionary Family Trust and the role of the trustee, and the from the identified roles, responsibilities and duties of a trustee, they are confronted with the roles, responsibilities and the duties of a trustee under the role, responsibility and duties of a trustee of a self managed superannuation fund on coming up with the possible similarities and differences. Discretionary family trust Discretionary family trust forms one of the common business structures that are adapted in Australia . The business structure is adapted with an aim of benefiting the family members. The benefits that accumulate in the family arise from the reason that, it enables the family members to share a tax burden. It also used as a step towards protecting the family assets. It becomes significant in situations when a family holds assets that realize capital growth and the assets that generate income overtime. The discretionary family trust is comprised of the trustee, appointer, trust fund, and the beneficiaries. The trustee is the legal owner of the trust, the appointer it the person who is responsibility of hiring and firing the trustee, trust fund implies the assets, and the beneficiaries imply the persons who are likely to benefit from the trust. The appointer can be the trustee at the same time. The main objectives for taking the discretionary Family Trust as a business structure follows from its features the enable it to perform its expected tasks. Some of the features that are attributed to discretionary Family Trust include the following: Discretionary family trust enables the family to avoid the family business from going bankruptcy and insolvency. Discretionary family trust is also attributed as being the most cost effective business structure to adapt following its low cost of maintaining and simplicity in operation. As a strategy, the business structure enables the transfer of income to the family members with a low tax rates according to the Australian tax rates, which imply that the family is likely to reduce its tax burden following the reduced tax revenue that is paid by the family as a whole. This business structure is also used as a means of streaming income to the family members, that is , a given type of income can be streamed to one member of the family whereas the other types of will also be streamlined to the other members of the family. The Discretionary family Trust is estimated to be lasting for a time of up to eighty years . Following the features of the discretionary Family Trust provided above, it can be perceived that a trustee has a responsibility of ensuring an improved welfare for all the family members that are included in the trust fund scheme. Therefore, he or she can be perceived as a custodian for the family property on ensuring mutual benefit to the family members. He or she is the custodian of the family business, which is certain to benefit the family in the long-run. There were amendments in all the family trust in Australia in 2002. The amendment introduced the Capital Gain Tax Small Business Role over relief that was meant to reduce the Capital gain Tax which the discretionary family Trust was expected to pay at the selling of the assets or business. The main reason for introducing this relief was to provide the discretionary family trust to plan for longer time in consultation with tax lawyer and adviser over the tax tariff to take. Therefore, the trustee can be perceived to had taken an initiative planning for the family business in the long run. On undertaking a discretionary family trust, different business vehicles can be taken that involve operating the business as a sole trader, a partnership or a company but in this case through a Discretionary Family Trust . One is expected to make a rational decision on choosing a business vehicle. The changing of a business vehicle is perceived as change of ownership and for that reason tax is imposed on every change. Therefore, it’s advisable to choose a business vehicle rationally on avoiding the tax impositions. This means that a flexible business vehicle should be chosen. The trustee has a responsibility of choosing the best vehicle that will enable an efficient and cost effective transfer of ownership of the family business. The beneficiaries of the trust are determined by the trustee, that is, it not all the family members that should benefit from the trust. The decision on who should benefit from the trust is done by the trustee, but should get advice on who should benefit from the appointer. When a trustee fails to define who gets the income from the income, the default beneficiaries are given the annual income flows from the trust . The other beneficiaries, that is, the ones who are not default beneficiaries receive income from the trust only on the acknowledgement of the trustee. The settler, that is, the financial advisor, lawyer or accountant is not a beneficiary of the trust. The role of the settler is only to start the trust. Therefore, a trustee can be perceived to having a duty of determining on who should benefit from the trust, that is, he or she ensures that rightful beneficiaries get their dues.

research paper on Somalia essays

research paper on Somalia essays The nation of Somalia faces many difficulties. Political, agricultural, civil, economical, famine, poverty, and the separation of the country into several little parts owned and run by warlords is making Somalia need financial aid by other countries. Somalia barely has any government. These warlords run almost the entire country. The warlords often fight against each other and several innocent people die because of this fighting. When other countries have tried to give Somalia aid with food and other supplies the warlords would take the supplies and distribute them to only the people they wanted to have the supplies. One of the several major issues that are occurring in Somalia is their government. Somalias government once was run by military leaders. They ran the government from 1969 to 1991. Then in 1991 a rebel group called the United Somalia Congress overthrew the harsh military government. The rebels believed that the military government was unfair and needed to leave. Then when the United Somalia Congress government became in charge of the Somalia, they could not hold the government up and the United Somalia Congress split into rival clan factions and fighting broke out in the capitol. Other rival groups took over parts of the country, and Somalia was left without a government. As of September 1991, Somalia is effectively under control of as many as twelve rival clans and sub clans. The major issue is affecting the entire country. The issue has been occurring since 1991 till present day. Somalia was left without a government because the rebels couldnt handle running the country a nd the government, and so the entire country fell into chaos. Somalia isnt really attempting to help anything because there is no where to begin a new government. The effects of the major cause are terrible on Somalia. Not having any government is tremendously hurting the people of Somalia. The only people that thi...

The Best Place To Put Social Media Buttons On Your Blog

The Best Place To Put Social Media Buttons On Your Blog Have you ever wondered  where the best place to put social media buttons on your blog is? If so, youre not alone. Back when we first added  social sharing analytics  to over a year ago,  I wondered  the same thing.  There are so many small tweaks that you can make to your blog layout thatll  improve conversions and reader experience.  Surely, I thought, there has to be a set of best practices for social media buttons as well. I set out to find all the data on which best influences social sharing on our blog.  What I found may actually surprise you.  Are you ready to see how you can improve social media sharing on your on blog? If so, read on! Im going to improve my #socialmedia button placement to get more social sharing. #blogging Why Worry About Social Media Buttons? This is a common question, and the answer is a bit more complicated than it might seem at first. In 2016, social media is as important as ever.  However, there is still some debate whether or not social media buttons drive clicks. Part of the reason for that discussion likely derives from how many blogs and sites implement social media buttons ineffectively. It's not entirely fair to judge a design decision that isn't set up for success, but we also don't want to make decisions that can't be supported by accurate data. That's why it's important to make sure you get the design and placement of your buttons correct. It's not enough that your buttons simply look good, or that they are just present somewhere on your pages. They need to be placed where they're going to catch your readers attention and make it easy to share your awesome content with their followers. So Many Options, So Many Opinions By now, you've probably gathered that there's  a lot of chatter about this topic. A quick Google search reveals  this discussion at Stack Exchange, which considers whether social media buttons should be placed at the beginning or end of a blog post. Despite all of the discussion, there is little evidence to back those ideas up. Even this conversation over at Moz.com fails to provide solid evidence on the subject. It seems like we may be just guessing. Can't we do better than that? To start digging, I looked  at what some of the most common options are. I started with the question, "Where do some of the biggest sites on the web place their social media buttons?" The answer? Everywhere! Popular Placement Options For  Social Media Buttons: Top of post  - Do users share before they actually read the article? This is one of the most common placement options frequently used by sites like TechCrunch and Mashable. Left of post -  Placing social buttons to the left of the blog post makes a lot of sense, as readers follow text left to right. This is the placement that we use here at . Right of post  - This one surprised me, but it is out there. Social Media Examiner is a good example of a site with this placement. Bottom of post  - Placing social media buttons at the bottom of the post was very common, and the only place you will find social buttons on Seth Godin's blog. Is he missing out on possible shares because of this placement? In-line of post  - A growing trend is to actually   place shareable content inline with the rest of your content. We do this regularly on our blog using our   plugin. No social buttons at all  - This is a surprising and growing trend heralded by sites like the Signal v. Noise blog by Basecamp. Are they hurting their chances for viral success? We'll look into this in a minute, but for now, that's the playing field. The question still lingers- where do these sharing buttons perform the best? The answer is, admittedly, a bit hard to find (which may be why so many sites place them so seemingly haphazardly) but there are certainly some big data points that we can examine to reach a conclusion. Data Point #1: Prominence Matters More Than Placement Popular social sharing tool AddThis provides some excellent insight on this topic.   Their advice to users is as follows: Pick a prominent position: The more visible the button is the more people will bookmark and share your content, which will lead more traffic back to your site. Keep your button near the top of the page: Avoid making your readers scroll to find your sharing button. It is okay to have the button at the top and bottom of the page, but users will find it easier at the top. Place the button in close proximity to the content being shared: This helps readers understand what they are sharing. Watch out for navigation:  Be careful about placing the button too close to navigation, so users don't interact with it by accident. From these tips, we can easily conclude that prominence matters more than placement when it comes to social media buttons. With the wrong placement, readers can easily mistake social buttons as ads or other navigation. This will likely result in lower usage for the buttons. Reading through the lines, we can also see that AddThis advocates  keeping social media buttons near the top-left side of the  page- a conclusion  that  is  supported by other sources. Data Point  #2:  Users Interact With The Top Left Side The Most According to usability icon Jacob Nielson and a study that he conducted in 2006,  eyetracking visualizations show that users often read Web pages in an F-shaped pattern: two horizontal stripes followed by a vertical stripe. Readers view your page in an F-style pattern. Keep this in mind when placing social media buttons. The  top left portion is the most-viewed part of the web page.  Ã‚  More eyes go there than anywhere else. This supports the idea that left and top are best choices for social share buttons, as indicated by AddThis. Readers view your page in an F-style pattern. Keep this in mind when placing #socialmedia buttons....Data Point #3:  Too Many Social Buttons Will Make Things Worse Doug Antkowiak  makes a great point about social media buttons on the Search Engine Journal blog. He points out that too many social buttons may negatively impact  the speed of your website. This is a big red flag, as site speed has been clearly linked to better readership and SEO performance. The most valuable conclusion that we can draw from this is that we should  limit the number of social media buttons that we display to as few as possible. The risks of slowing down our site just isn't worth it. Social media buttons provide one of those situations where more is not necessarily better. The data here continues: After polling 50 of the most popular websites in the world, Webaholic.co.in  found that Facebook and Twitter were easily the most-used social media buttons on the web with Linkedin and Google+ also showing strong results. They concluded that the utility of each of those networks fluctuated quite a bit depending on the audience type for each site. This evidence is backed up by  TrackMaven's  more polarizing  conclusion  after  examining nearly 2 billion social shares. Their data concluded that the vast majority of social shares take place on the top two social networks (Twitter and Facebook). Clearly, we don't need to include all networks to make a good use of social media buttons. In this report, TrackMaven reveals that 38.6% of social shares were on Twitter. Facebook â€Å"likes† and  Ã¢â‚¬Å"shares†Ã‚  accommodated  for another 60.3%. Data Point #4:  Under-Used Social Buttons Provide Negative Social Proof Social proof  is a psychological phenomenon where people use the actions of others to guide their own behavior. In essence, it's the  psychological term for "monkey see monkey do." As one of our own writers, Julie once pointed out: â€Å"Social proof is a shortcut in the thought process. We don’t have to think. The others already did (we assume).† The reality is that social proof plays a big role in social sharing and can make a big impact on the success of social media buttons. Negative social proof diminishes the value of the social sharing button. In a now classic A/B test,  Taloon.com   (a Finland-based hardware eCommerce store) found that social media buttons were actually hurting their conversion rates. When they removed the social media buttons from their page, they recorded an 11.9% increase in CTA clickthroughs as compared to the original page. If the results surprise you, you can read more here, but social proof gives us a clear answer for this result. Because very few people actually  Ã¢â‚¬Å"like† product pages, the near zero results on social media buttons were actually providing negative social proof- preventing users from purchasing what they were perceiving as an unpopular product. As Chris Coyer points out on his CSS-Tricks blog, "low numbers can look embarrassing." Near zero results on #socialmediabuttons may actually be providing near-negative social proof....Data Point #5: Social Sharing Buttons Can Bring Traffic In one of the more complete (but not scientific) studies on the value of social sharing buttons, blogger  Joshua Benton concludes that many news organizations receive 20% of their Twitter traffic from Tweet buttons available on their page. That's actually a pretty big deal! For example, 16.3 percent of tweets to the New York Times in his tests actually came from a Twitter social media button on the site itself. For the  Wall Street Journal, the share rate was more like  20.2 percent. Not bad, huh?  Social media buttons can help traffic after all. 20.2%  of tweets to the #WallStreetJournal actually came from their Twitter share button.One point to keep in mind, however, is that Twitter recently  removed the ability for social sharing buttons to display their sharing stats  for that platform. So, while the presence of a button to tweet an article may help boost shares, publishers have lost the benefit of positive social proof that comes from having a stat counter. That makes it tougher to see how many times your posts are getting tweeted, but  if you have some technical skills, Google has a partial solution using Google Analytics. It won't let you display within your social sharing widget how may times a post was shared on Twitter, but it can at least help you know for yourself if readers are clicking your Twitter button. Data Point #6: Negative  Sentiment Against Social Sharing Buttons Is Gaining Momentum, But Why? Despite the results from the New York Times and The  Wall Street Journal, not all publications have seen the same success. UK blog  Inside GOV.UK  reported a paltry 0.2% increase in shares after adding social media buttons to their site. While buttons being placed at the bottom of the page couldn't have helped, their results are in line with conclusions developed by Luke Wroblewski, who felt that only 0.25% of Tweets were actually attributable to a social media button after analyzing more than 18 million page views. Others, like Signal v. Noise just prefer the way their site looks and loads without them and believes that if someone wants to share their content, they will find a way. To each their own, of course, but there is definitely some truth in the matter. Just a quick survey around the office concludes that  most social sharing takes place outside of the article itself, and can be attributed to a  variety  of other tools. A few  examples of this include: Buffer Chrome Extensions Other Social Browser Extensions Feedly, FlipBook, and Other RSS/Content Readers Mobile browsers Pocket And more than we can list Conclusion: Where Is The Best Place To Put Social Media Buttons On My Blog? The opinions about social sharing buttons are wide, but often not particularly deep. Reality is, that it just depends on your own blog and audience type. But, being the adventurous sort that I am, I think that we can easily answer this question (at least to find what's true in most cases). And the winner is...

The Impact of E-Commerce on International Business Essay

The Impact of E-Commerce on International Business - Essay Example And e-commerce often becomes handy in making products or services available to the consumer that may not be available in his country/area of residence. In simple words, e-commerce makes international markets easier, cheaper, and faster for the vendor as well as the consumer. But it must be admitted that e-commerce has its own disadvantages too, especially while coming to Internet security and delay in receiving the product ordered. The study on â€Å"Impact of E-Commerce on International Marketing† conducted by Payman, Rosamaria, Marco, Anand, Robert and Xiaowen in 2006 defines e-commerce as follows: â€Å"Electronic commerce primarily consists of the distributing, buying, selling, marketing and servicing of products or services over electronic communications systems such as the Internet and other computer networks like extranets, e-mail, e-books, databases and mobile phones† (Payman, Rosamaria, Macro, Anand, Robert, and Xiaowen). All kinds of commerce including B2B, B2 C and C2C activities are performed in a number of ways including electronic funds transfer, supply chain management, online marketing, etc. As per the above mentioned study (Payman et al.), a voluminous sale of $12.2 billion took place in 2003 via e-commerce. Today, the World Wide Web has emerged as the exclusive venue of e-commerce ventures as it is the most widespread communication network of the world. A number of e-commerce companies took their shape in 1990s, but the â€Å"dot.com† collapse of 2000 and 2001 was a major setback for them. It was at the beginning of the new millennium that e-commerce received the popular attention and acceptance which it boasts about today. The extent and expansion of e-commerce relies cliquishly on the expansion of technology. E-Commerce is widespread in almost all the developed countries but it is still in primary stages of growth in many industrialized countries and is apparently non-existent in a good proportion of the third world count ries. Electronic Commerce is, of course, a new methodology in global trade and commerce. A paper by Kuzic, Fisher and Scollar that studies the impact of e-commerce in Australia points out that e-commerce has its own tangible and intangible benefits. As Kuzic, Fisher and Scollary state, e-commerce is mainly â€Å"enhanced business efficiency, a boost in the automation of processes, transformation of traditional market chain, retained and expanded customer base, reduced operation costs and acquisition of a niche market† which are regarded as the tangible benefits; and, â€Å"enhancing education and well-being of consumers, consumer loyalty, competitive advantage and convenient shopping† are the intangible advantages. Many of these are clearly benefits that no other way of trading involves. E-Commerce is beneficial not only for the merchant but also for the consumer because it offers a wide range of products to choose the best from, and the remarkable speed of the process es cannot be found anywhere else. Compared to traditional markets, the transactions take place between the seller and buyer directly and no intermediates are present contrary to the traditional markets. When we think how the international market has been benefited out of e-commerce, a common opinion

Cybersecurity Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Cybersecurity - Essay Example According to the National Initiative for Cybersecurity Careers and Studies, NICCS (2013), this initiative also covers the private sector, students from primary to university level and the workforce in general. NICE framework gives a standardized working taxonomy that fits into the occupational structure of an organization. The framework gives seven categories of jobs sharing common functions (Jackson, 2011). ‘Securely’ provides for conceptualization, designing and building secure IT systems. The administration, maintenance and support for performance and security would be covered under ‘operate and maintain.’ ‘Protect and defend’ ensures that threats get identified, analyzed and mitigated. The framework also provides for the ‘investigation’ of breaches, crimes and incidents. Under ‘operate and collect,’ intelligence would be developed from cybersecurity information. The ‘analyze’ arm of the framework encompasses reviewing and evaluating incoming information so as to evaluate how useful it would be for intelligence. Finally, the framework offers ‘support’ to other parties undertaking cybersecurity tas ks. Therefore, this framework provides a standard approach that baselines capabilities, identifies the gaps in skills, develops cybersecurity talent in organizations and prepares for future talent. The NICE initiative is an important component of organizations based on the key findings on cybercrime survey in the US by Price Waterhouse Coopers, PWC (2013). The survey indicates that organizational leaders do not know those responsible for the cybersecurity of their organizations. In case of an attack, such organizations would find it difficult to identify those responsible. The NICE initiative serves the important role of ensuring organizations have cybersecurity workers and defining cybersecurity professional requirements. Secondly, many leaders still underestimate the capabilities of their cyber-adversaries and the associated possible reputational, financial and regulatory risks. NICE raises awareness on the risks involved in online activities, hence informing such leaders appropri ately. Finally, through expanding social collaborations, use of mobile devices and adoption of cloud computing, leaders unknowingly increase their vulnerabilities to digital attacks. Through broadening of the pool of support workers in cybersecurity and developing and maintaining an internationally competitive cybersecurity workforce, the NICE initiative ensures that organizations adopt emerging technologies without compromising the security of their information. Led by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, NIST, the NICE initiative anticipates raising a cybersecure public and an internationally acclaimed cybersecurity workforce (Bullock, Haddow, & Coppola, 2013). Thus, it aims at making resources for educating and training on the improvement of cyber skills, knowledge and behavior available to all the population segments so as to make the American public aware of the risks associated with online activities. It seeks to bring forth a secure digital nation that would ad vance the economic prosperity of America and its national security