Does organic pollution affect E.Coli growth Essay

Does organic pollution affect E.Coli growth - Essay Example The paper tells that biological analysis of water to detect and quantify water pollution is a non-sensitive process. Microbes such as E.coli, which is a fecal contaminant, are able to survive the effects of water pollution through genetic adaptation. The changes in cellular metabolism that take place during this adaptation can be detected at a sensitive level, such as the quantity of E.coli in the water, or the amount of stress proteins being synthesized by the bacteria. Therefore, E.coli can act as a bio-indicator of water pollution. My research question and experiments were designed to study what effects take place on the growth and protein synthesis of E.coli when the bacteria is exposed to environmental stress. The growth of E.coli from lakewater was also compared with that of genetically engineered E.coli DH-5, to determine whether plasmid-mediated mutations assist in the survival of lakewater E.coli under environmental stress. My results showed that DH-5 was inhibited by the po llutant benzene and by high and low pH and temperatures. E.coli from lakewater survived in a greater quantity under these stressors compared t the genetically engineered strain DH-5. Also, the growth of E.coli from lakewater was inhibited to a small extent by the stress of temperature and pH change until a limit. Beyond these limits in the conditions, E.coli could not grow at all. Thus, the adaptation of E.coli to pollution is a characteristic with limitations. In conclusion, the changes in the growth and protein synthesis of E.coli under stress makes it suitable as a bio-indicator of water pollution. Further studies are needed to examine the usefulness of detecting synthesis of specific stress proteins by E.coli as sensitive bio-markers of water pollution. Table of Contents Interest in Topic 5 Introduction 6 Methods 8 Results 12 Discussion, Conclusions and Limitations 13, 14 Images 15 Bibliography 21 Interest in Topic My selection of my research topic is based on my interest in con ducting biological research, my concerns regarding environmental pollution, and my ambition to reduce the consequences of pollution through the results of my research work. I have been highly concerned regarding the many severely polluted water sources in my environment that I have observed. Various unchecked and unregulated commercial and industrial activities near rivers and lakes have released harmful substances into the water, destroying the ecology of these areas. I learned that to prevent and correct these changes, monitoring of the water quality and changes taking place in the aquatic environment are necessary. I have always been fascinated by the science of how some microorganisms work to solve the problem of pollution by producing signals and changes. I was also interested in learning how biological studies are used to derive information and understanding of the many mechanisms happening in our surroundings. After background reading, I developed an interest towards solving the problem of effective biological water analysis, which would

The Great Depression Essay Example for Free

The Great Depression Essay A large amount of literature including research and text books, exist on the subject of the Great Depression. It is considered by many economists as the worst economic crisis in American History. Statistics suggest that from the business cycle peak in 1929 to the trough in 1933, the real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) contracted by 39%. From 1929 to 1933, the unemployment rate rose from 3. 2% to 25% any may who had jobs were only able to work part-time. By 1933, 50% of American banks had failed. From 1929 to 1933, the consumer price index (CPI) fell by -25%. The Dow Jones industrial average fell -89. 2% between September 1929 and March 1933. Net investment was negative from 1931 to 1935 and the economy experienced a sharp decline in aggregate real income, then there were massive defaults and bankruptcies by business and households (Bernanke. S, 2004, White, 2009). But what caused the great depression? Or rather, why did the recession of 1929 turn into a depression? Calomiris (1983) remarks there is still very little consensus amongst economist on this question. Before Maynard Keynes (1936) General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money, economist relied on the Classical approach both to manage and explain the Great Depression. However, the classical theory could not explain a lot of the data at the time; for instance, it could not explain the protracted unemployment (Keynes, 1936). This signified the need for a new theory of macroeconomics. Such a theory was provided by Keynes. The essence of Keynes theory is contained in the simple aggregate demand model. Keynes identified the collapse of the growth in the 1920s as part of the problem. In his opinion, the collapse of growth led to a reduction in investment opportunities and a downward shift in investment demand. The unprecedented levels of unemployment could also be explained by the collapse of aggregate spending. Keynes along with Irvin Fischer (1933) also identified the financial markets as important sources and propagators of economic decline during the Great Depression (Calomoris, 1983). However, the exact nature of this connection is still a hot topic of debate, and this is where much of the literature on the great depression can be found. According to Keynes theory of aggregate demand, monetary policy had no causal role in the Great Depression (Mishkin, 2007). Mishkin (2007 p 588) argues that this assumption was based on three pieces of evidence. He states that during the Great Depression; interest rates on U. S treasury securities were extremely low (Below 1%). To the early Keynesians, the low nominal interest rate meant that the monetary policy was easy – expansionary (Hamilton, 1987). The second assumption was underpinned by the lack of empirical evidence on the co-movement between nominal interest rates and investments spending. While the third assumption was based on the fact that surveys by macroeconomists carried on businessmen indicated that their decision to invest was not influenced by market interest rates (Mishkin, 2007). In 1963, Friedman and Schwartz published the Monetary History of the United States in which they outlined a theory implicating money supply as the major cause of the Great Depression. In their opinion, what transformed the recession of 1929 into a depression were the imprudent policies by the Federal Reserve, which led to the stock market crash; and to the waves of banking failures which reduced the money multiplier and the money stock (Bernanke, 1983a; Friedman and Swartz, 1963). The figure 1 below shows the close correlation between GDP and the money stock. Friedman and Swartz countered the Keynesians argument that interest rates on U. S. treasury securities and high grade corporate bonds were low was countered by the observation that interest rates on lower grade bonds rose radically during the peak of contraction (between 1930-1933) this indicated that monetary policy was tight (Mishkin, 2007). The second reason why the Keynesian assumptions were regarded as misleading on the question of the tightness of the monetary policy during the depression was that; in a period of deflation; the important interest-rate transmission mechanism is through the real interest rate and not the nominal interest rate, hence low nominal interest rates do not necessarily mean that cost of borrowing is low and that monetary policy is easy since public expectation of a reduction in price levels can increase real interest rates (Hiuzinga, 1986; Summers, 1984). A good example of how the real-nominal interest rate relationship affected the U. S. economy during the Great Depression was seen in the housing sector. Wheelock reports that even though the nominal value of mortgage dept peaked in 1930, deflation caused a rise in the real value of outstanding mortgage dept up to 1832. Thus the outstanding mortgage dept burden increased sharply during the contraction phase of the depression (Wheelock, 2008). Researchers also criticized the use of Structural Model evidence by Keynesians. Mishkin (2007) argues that the quality of this type of evidence is dictated by the goodness of the model used. Friedman and Swartz narrative on the Great depression was that the original trigger of the Great Depression was the, 1928, Federal Reserve attempt to contain inflated share prices at Wall Street which they attributed to speculative activity. To accomplish this, they raised the policy interest rate. This depressed interest-sensitive spending in areas such as construction and Motor industry. This in turn induced a drop in production and investments, which led to reduced hiring of workers by companies. The tightening of the monetary policy through the recession which begun in August 1929 precipitated the October 1929, stock market crash (Hamilton, 1987, Bernanke, 2002b). The stock market crash eroded the nation’s accumulated savings, leading to a reduction in aggregate demand. From 1930, the contracting economy triggered successive waves of widespread banking panics (Calomiris etal, 2003; Hamilton, 1987; Chandler, 1970). Bank failures and hoarding of cash increased both the currency deposit ratio and the reserve – deposit hence a decline in money stock; this added to the deflationary pressures (Bernanke, 2007b; White, 1984). They asserted that â€Å"failure by the Fed to reverse the decline in money stock with open market operations and loans to banks through discount windows added further pressure to the economy (Friedman, 1963). † According to them, the 1937 -1938 recession was triggered by the Fed’s attempt to stimulate lending by doubling of the required reserve – ratio, this had the opposite effect. Mishkin (2007) writes that the importance of this theory to most economists is that it opened a whole new connection between the financial sector and the macroeconomy. Another important contribution was that it suggested new research agenda; Calomiris (1993) summarized them thus: 1) Can the reduction in money stocks from 1930 to 1933 explain the bank failures or did they have a separate origin? 2) Was the demand for money stable given the low nominal short term interests rates in the 1930s or was there a liquidity trap 3) Could nominal price and wage rigidity offer an adequate explanation for the persistent stagnation during the 1930s? 4) Were policy failures by the Fed actions acts of omission or commission or did they represent the application of the old classical theories to new circumstances? 5) Were open market operations by the Fed, unaccompanied by reforms in the monetary and bank regulations, sufficient in reversing the 1930-1933 stagnation? Following the publication of the Monetary History, economist focused either on confirming Friedman and Swartz assertions or in researching the implications of their findings. For two decades, the focus was mainly on the first three questions. Unfortunately, economists restricted there inquiries within the framework of the sticky-price, IS-LM paradigm. This approach severely limited the search for alternative transmission mechanisms between financial markets and the macroeconomy (Bernanke, 1983). Support for the Monetarist theory has come from formal statistical tests which examined the correlations between money and aggregate spending (Mishkin, 2007) a number of researchers found that there was no liquidity trap during the 30s; therefore, money supply shocks could have had an important effect on aggregate output (Meltzer, 1963; Temin, 1989). Field argued that the pre-depression stock market boom increased money demand and that this was not offset by corresponding increase in money supply. This resulted in increases in the interest rates and in deflation (Field, 1984). Evidence corroborating Friedman-Swartz illiquidity hypothesis as the trigger of the bank failures came from data on bank suspensions aggregated at national or regional level, this data show a correlation between bank failures and turning points in indices of industrial production, the money supply, the money multiplier, interest rate, and deflation rate (Friedman, 1963; Wicker, 1980). According to White (1984, p 138), the first bank failures in the 1930 were not unique; rather, it was a continuation of the banking failures of the 1920s. Recently studies by Calomiris and Joseph (2003) have revealed a strong correlations between the characteristics of banks, the economic environment in which they operated and their chances of survival. The thesis that banks failures were not panic induced, but were a continuation of the bank failures of the 1920s, which were linked to bank overbuilding suggested a lesser role of bank failures as a transmission mechanism. Other critics â€Å"advocated additional exogenous expenditure shocks to explain the cause of the depression noting that the real money stock had not contracted during the early stages of the depression (Temin,1976; Bernanke,1983 ). † At the same time, some scholars argued that the reduction in money stocks during the initial stages of the depression was not large enough to trigger the depression (Meltzer, 2003) In short, economists realized that money shocks alone could not have transformed the recession into a depression. Thus, additional link were needed between the financial markets and the macroeconomy. Bernanke captured it this way in his 1983 research paper: â€Å"One problem is that there is no theory of monetary effect {per se} on the real economy that can explain protracted non neutrality. Another is that the reduction of money supply in the period seems quantitatively insufficient to explain the subsequent fall in output (Bernanke, 1983, p257)† The new paradigm shift came with the application of theoretical models of credit allocation under asymmetric information in imperfect markets to the Great Depression. Mishkin was the first to apply this model in his study of the impact of changes in household balance sheet and consumer spending during the Great Depression (Mishkin, 1978). He argued that â€Å"in the 1930s, the depressive effect of aggregate wealth reduction on consumption was compounded by the dept deflation which in turn reduced aggregate consumption demand. Using empirical evidence, Bernanke research suggests that the efficiency of credit allocation was reduced under imperfect market conditions of the 1930s and that aggregate demand was reduced by the resulting higher cost and reduced availability of credit (Bernanke, 1983). This process, in his opinion, can account for he protracted length of the great depression. Taken together, this new paradigm was not a rejection of Friedman and Swartz thesis, it merely showed that the monetary shock and other events in the early phase of the Depression prolonged the Depression through there effect on the institutional structure of the credit markets and the balance sheet of borrowers (White, 1984; Romer,1989). In short, macroeconomists have concluded that the tendency of banks to respond to deposit outflows and increased risk of loan defaults by freezing credit can aggravate recessions, magnifying declines in investment, production and asset prices (Calomiris, 2008) The focus on deflation and financial collapse throughout the world also suggested ways through which the depression was channeled to other countries. Currently, economists agree that the gold standard played an important role in transmitting the economic decline in America to the rest of the world (Campa, 1990; Bernanke, 2002b) under the gold standard; trade imbalances gave rise to international gold flows. In his analysis of international transmission of the American Depression, Kindleberger reasoned that that the stock market collapse and deflationary shocks triggered a liquidity squeeze, a reduction in bank lending and the international financial collapse of the 1930s i. e. the lack of access to credit forced less-developed countries to use up their gold and foreign exchange reserves; this forced them to sell old quantities of primary products at reduced prices (Kindleberger, 1973). He also noted that the depression was more protracted in countries which stuck to the gold standard The countries that abandoned gold pursued independent monetary policy and were able to rebound faster. International studies correlating adherence to the gold standard, deflation and continued economic decline have confirmed this argument (Bernanke and James, 1991; Eichengreen, 1992). Economists also believe that the enactment of The Smoot-Hawley Tariff which was supposed to protect American Farmers triggered a counterproductive wave of protectionist measures around the world, which worsened the depression (Draghi, 2009; Hamilton, 1987, Meltzer, 1963) Although most of these debates occurred after the Great Depression, scholars now agree that both inept fiscal and monetary policies transformed a normal business cycle into a depression. Since monetary contraction was part of the problem during the Depression. Currency devaluation and monetary expansions had to play a leading role in the recovery process. A number of commentators have shown that the American money supply increased by 42% between 1933 and 1937 and worldwide monetary expansion led to a lowering of interest rates and easy access to credit (Mishkin, 1991). Economists argue that since fiscal expansion can reduce expectation of deflation, they can reduce the cost of borrowing (Romer, 2009). Keynes theory that government spending, tax cuts, and monetary expansion are essential in countering recession can also be justified in light of historical evidence. Economists reason that the massive government spending, such as the New deal program {specifically Work Progress Administration (WPA) and Agricultural Adjustment Administration (AAA)} reignited the economy (Calomiris and Mason 2003, Romer 1989, Temin 1989). In fact, the general consensus among scholars is that the economy â€Å"American economy began to recover with a new monetary expansion and spending in preparation for war (White, 2009b). † Concerning Banking sector reform, the view on the Bank Holiday is that it was a dramatic and effective remedy. The other reforms have also drawn support from Great Depression scholars (Blinder, 2008; Gapper, 2007; White, 2009b). These reforms saw the creation of a number of regulations and institutions, Banking Act of 1933 (commonly known as Glass Steagall Act) – the act prohibited commercial banks from underwriting of dealing in corporate securities. Insurance of bank deposits by FDIC was designed to prevent depression type bank runs. SEC regulated investment and Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLB) guaranteed Residential mortgage loans. Collectively, scholars now believe that these regulations insulated America’s banking system from the booms and busts of the financial markets (Russell, 2008). Bernanke (1983 p2) â€Å"argues that only with the rehabilitation of the financial system in 1933-35 did the economy begin its slow emergence from the Great Depression. † The 2007 Economic recession The economic literature on the current recession is still limited, however adequate amount of literature exist on the impact of the down turn on the U. S. economy. The Economic Report of the President Jan, 2009 gives a comprehensive coverage of how the recession started; where it started and what is to be done. A large amount of literature can also be found on the causes of the crisis. among others. In terms of impact, the reports from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) indicates that from Dec 2007 to May 2009, America has had 57 bank failures; the unemployment rate has increased to 8. 9%; the economy has declined by – 3. 3% from the second quarter 2008 – first quarter of 2009; from Sept 2008 to may 2009, the federal government has increased the money stock by 125% and over the same period the biggest fall in the Dow Jones industrial stands at -53. 8%. The outlook is equally dire; most analysts have predicted a recession that may last up to two years (Roubini, 2009) Moody’s Investors Services (MIS), while further job losses are also expected have predicted increased foreclosures, while further job losses are also expected. But the impact has not been limited to America. The International Monetary Funds (IMF) World Economic Outlook published in Jan 2009 painted a bleak picture of the world economy in general: They predict that the real global growth will be close to zero; in the same report, growth in advanced world economies was projected at -2%. In his report, presented to the V Symposium on International Trade (Feb 20, 2009) Cline reported that the economic crisis in America has triggered a highly synchronized global recession, which has seen a contraction in all economies (see the Graph below showing global growth over 3 decades (Cline, 2009). Figure, 3 Showing the Synchronization of Global Recession Taken together, commentators are unanimous that, in term of severity, this recession is still mild vis-a-vis The Great Depression. Shiller (2009) writes that a lot of the upheavals in the economy have not been seen since the Great Depression. He cites the stock market volatility, the bank failures, the housing bust, the breakdown in intermediation, and the near zero interest rate. Besides the statistical comparisons, the current debate and research effort is focused on how the how the crisis started. The proximate consensus is that: the mortgage security backed housing boom in America it to blame and that the origination and distributions of this paper assets is at the heart of the problem (Markus; 2008; Grotty, 2009; Bernanke, 2009; Gapper, 2009) at the same time, researchers maintain that the crisis in the banking sector, was not independent, but resulted from distortions and incentives created by past policy actions. Blundell-Wignall, etal (2009), in there paper presented at a Reserve bank of Australia conference, averred that the current financial crisis is caused by global macro policies affecting liquidity and by very poor regulatory frame work. More specifically, economists recognize that any theory of causality, must, among other things, explain how the housing boom started, describe the factors behind the explosion of the residential mortgage backed securities (RMBS), how the banking crisis was triggered and the policy distortions that made it possible (Tett, 2007; Rajan 2009; Grotty, 2009). The findings of a number of researchers who have studied the causes of the current financial crisis in America conclude that the policy distortions started with gradual undermining of the Glass Steagall Act, from the 1980s; and the rise of the neo-classical theory of free markets (which advocates markets deregulation) Shiller (2005, p 43) argues that business cycles in the financial markets would not have been a major problem had banks been kept off the asset markets. The same argument is advanced by Summers (2008) who asserts that the deregulations in the banking sector exposed the banks to the bubbles and bursts of asset markets. Wray (2009) traces the poor regulatory framework in the U. S to the New Financial Architecture (NFA) which he claims is represented by a globally networked system of giant bank conglomerates and shadow banking system of investment bank, hedge funds and bank created special investment vehicles (SIV). In short, most scholars agree that the Riegle-Neal interstate banking and Branching efficiency Act of 1994 and the repeal of Glass Steagall Act in 1999 through the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Financial Act played a crucial role in laying the foundation which led to this crisis (Mishkin, 2009, p 268; Grotty, 2009). Atkinson, Wigall, and Lee (2009) have also concluded that the Basel II accord on international bank regulation also opened an arbitrage opportunity for banks which led to the acceleration of off-balance-sheet activities. In the same paper, they claim that SEC 2004 decision to allow investment banks to manage there own risk was a major policy blunder. Soros puts it this way. â€Å"Since 1980, regulations have been progressively relaxed until they have practically disappeared. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦authorities could no longer calculate their risks and started relying on the risk management methods of the banks themselves (Soros 2008)† At the same time, scholars have concluded that the other root cause of the problem is traceable to the easy availability of credit. Diamond, etal (2009, p 615) argue that the policies affecting liquidity availed a lot of funds to the banks. The 1% federal interest rate, the % interest rate in Japan, the fixed exchange rate in china and large reserves of sovereign wealth funds are listed in his paper as sources of cheap credit which fueled the economic boom in America led to an inflation of prices around the world. The claims that interest rates were low are supported by statistics which indicates that real short term interest rates were negative from mid 2001 to mid 2005, given the modest values of inflation (Yellen, 2008) The low interest rates, in turn, ignited a housing boom. Fig, 3 shows the Case-Shiller house index from 2000-2008. According to Grauwe (2009), the doubling of US house prices from 2000-2006 was not underpinned by real changes in the U. S economy. In the same survey, he reports that between July 2006 and July 2007 the value of Dow Jones and the SP 500 rose by 30% while GDP increased only by 5%. Taken together, researchers have concluded that the collapse of the real estate market in 2006 was the origin of the crisis. The rising foreclosures turned the credit boom into a bust. however, economist have at the same time stated that the severity of the housing market bust has been compound by the weakness inherent in the financial system (Calomiris, 2008; Rajan; 2009; Bookstabber, 2007) namely; use of bank deposits for speculative activities- this operation was made possible though special investment vehicles (SIV) sometimes called shadow banking; new financial innovations – derivative products like Credit Defaults Swaps (CDS) and Collateral Dept Obligations (CDO): they have been described as complex and overly opaque; failure of rating agencies to properly calculate the risks embedded in this instrument; and failures by regulators and supervisors. Some have added that the formulas used to compute the level of risk in this instrument was questionable and that the development of riskier higher order CDOs tended to magnify the systemic risk (Volcker, 2008; Veneroso, 2007; Soros, 2007; Rajan 2009 b). Sorros (2008) argues that the new types of mortgage-backed securities central to the boom were too complex and opaque to be priced correctly. Grotty (2009 p 40) also argues that these instruments encouraged fraud since most investors did not even know what they were buying. That when the risk inherent in these products became apparent in 2007, investors pulled back from structured products in general, banks had to re-absorb the losses incurred by their off balance entities – SIV, straining there balance sheets in the process. Moral hazard problems and adverse selection worsened with time lending to a credit freeze which led to a slow down in economic activities around the world (Mishkin, 2007, Folkman etal, 2007; Dornbusch etal, 2000) Concerning solutions, most policy makers agree that to reverse the recession, there is need for closely coordinated intervention at global level and that efforts must focus simultaneously on fiscal, monetary and financial stability policies. The underlying assumption is that restoring confidence in the prospects for employment and income and returning to balanced growth are the only way out of the recession (Draghi, 2009). Strong expansionary fiscal policies, with measures to support demand and safeguard banking and financial system have been instituted throughout the western world. The $ 800 billion dollar stimulus plans in America has been seen as bold policy initiative, although many economist are worried about its repercussion on the national dept. The proponents of this plan see it as the best way to either create jobs or prevent job losses (Romer, 2009). At the same time, most central banks around the world have rapidly lowered there interest rates. Draghi (2009) argues that in the initial stages of a crisis, rapid disinflation should not be allowed to turn into a deflation. To keep the banks afloat, central banks have injected large quantities of money into the system; in some instances, they have bought corporate dept to keep financial institution afloat. Russell (2009) notes that reactivating financial intermediation is also essential since capital requirements cannot be satisfied by the state alone. To achieve this goal, economists agree on three basics steps. The need to guarantee liabilities to stop bank runs; taking the banks through a stress test to identify the banks with solvency problems and ring-fencing the problematic securities or transferring them to separate entities such as bad banks followed by recapitalization (Wheelock, 2009; White, 2009, Draghi, 2009) are possible ways of unfreezing bank lending. At the same time, economists agree that a solution to the housing crisis is necessary. Lastly economists have pointed out that there is a need to reform securitization, credit rating agencies, poor risk modeling and underwriting standards, as well as corporate governance lapses (Krugnall etal, 2008). Some economist has also concluded that massive failure in corporate governance in some companies reflects poor incentive structures for decision, thus bank reforms should be extended to corporate remuneration practices (White, 2009; Blinder, 2008, Crotty, 2009) Reference Bekaert, G, Harvey, C. R. , 2005, â€Å"Market Integration and Contagion,† Journal of Business, Vol. 78, (No. 1), pp. 39–96. Bernanke, B. S. , 1983. Nonmonetary effects of the financial crisis in the propagation of the great depression. American Economic Review 73, 257–276. Bernanke, Ben (2002). On Milton Friedmans Ninetieth Birthday, at the Conference to Honor Milton Friedman, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, November 8. www. federalreserve. gov. (accessed on May, 10, 2009) Blinder, Alan, 2008. What Created This Monster? , New York Times, 23. Bookstabber, R. , 2007. The next financial crisis starts here, Financial Times, August 23. Calomiris, W. C. , Mason, J. R. , 2003. Fundamentals, panics, and bank distress during the depression. American Economic Review 93 (5), 1615–1646. Calomiris, C. W. , Financial Factors in the Great Depression. The Journal of Economics Perspectives, Vol 7 (2) pp 61-85.

The Outline For Urie Bronfenbrenners

The Outline For Urie Bronfenbrenners Urie Bronfenbrenner theory is based on ecological theory, which is focusing on environmental factors (Santrock, 2011). The Urie Bronfenbrenners ecological theory is explained how natural environments can be a big influence to the development of persons. In other words, the development of persons can be affected by the surroundings from home to the wider context such as culture. Bronfenbrenner stated that there were many different levels and types of environment effects that might affect how a child grows and develops (Shaffer Kipp, 2010). There are the microsystem, the mesosystem, the exosystem, the macrosystem, and the chronosystem. The microsystem refers to the interactions between a person and the people surroundings him or closes to him. To put in differently, it is the small and immediate environment where the person lives in for instance a persons family, school, peers, neighborhood play area and work. The second of Bronfenbrenners environmental layers is the mesosystem. The mesosystem is defined as the relationship or connection between different parts of the microsystem like the relationships between family and teachers, family and peers, and teachers and religious group. Next is the exosystem. The exosytem level has the less interaction or may not have it all between the children or adolescents and the other people or places but they may affect the development of the person herself, for instance parents work environments, extended family members and neighborhood. Last but not least is the macrosystem. Bronfenbrenner defines that the macrosystem consists of cultural, subcultural, or social class context ( Shaffer Kipp, 2010). It is wide, and the largest level in this theory but still it has a great influence to the person. The macrosystem includes the economy, government, wars, the relative freedoms and cultural values. Therefore, the persons can get the positive and negative impact from this level. Finally is the chronosystem. The chronosystem is about how the pattern of individuals life is changing over time depending on the environmental events. Besides, the environmental changes caused by cognitive and biological changing that occur at the puberty as well as the age of the individual. How the Bronfenbrenners ecological theory apply to child development Family, teachers and community members play important role in raising children with applying values and customs to socialize them so they can contribute something to the society. From the views of Barbour, Barbour and Scully (2011), children develop some attitudes by observing actions, hearing words and surmising the feelings of significant others in their environment. At this point, family, peers and religious group are located in the Bronfenbrenners innermost environmental layer, or microsystem. It means people in the microsystem are the major influence of the child especially at the early age. Childrens perceptions and behaviors can be developed early from home and the direct interactions take place in the microsystem like the interaction between a child and parents, siblings, teachers and peer group. Besides, the good environment and better encouragement to the child will affect how better the child will grow up (Oswalt, 2008). According to Oswalt (2008), Each childs special genetic and biologically influenced personality traits, what is known as temperament, end up affecting how others treat them. Another case is how some parts in microsystem having the connections or interrelationships among them like parents, teachers and peers. For example, a childs parents have a good relationship with teachers will have a major influence on childrens learning and acceptance of school. Also parents and teachers support the childrens interest and the competition that they participate. As a result, it will help the childs overall growth. The child might feel confident about her talent and ability consequently will affect her performance in study and have good relationship with other people. This kind of interaction between different parts of the microsystem is called the mesosystem. . According to the Shaffer and Kipp (2010), Bronfenbrenner argues that development of a child will be effective if the connections between microsystems are strong and supportive. Conversely, if the connections are non-supportive, it can produce trouble on child. For the third environmental layer or exosystem, this may not have contact with the child but might affect the development of the child. As an illustration, parents work environment. If both parents have their own careers, it might cause the conflict between the caring for children and the responsibility at the workplace. The conflict is largely happened to the mother because beside responsibility for children, they also have full participation at the workplace. Therefore, this will give the impact to the children and the time for family interaction will decrease, increased dependence on child care and fewer choices in recreation. As a result the family will have less information about the childrens activities and the children only depending on her friends who can be good or bad friends. Oswalt (2008) states that the child at home can possibly be affected by a parents experience at work. Then, another environment is about the larger context called the macrosystem. For example, the family role in culture, how children should be treated, what they should be taught and the goals they should achieve. The styles of interaction within family will reflect the roles expected of children (Barbour, Barbour Scully, 2011). For instance, in most European American families encourage their children to go outside and find and establish other relationship. While in Asian families cultures, they pay respect for elders and the children are expected to be family oriented and encouraged to work hard for the family. To sum up, very family has different styles in raising their children and from that it will influence their behavior. Lastly is the chronosystem. The chronosystem is about how the feeling, perceptions and attitudes of child can be changed over time. This model includes a temporal dimension (Shaffer Kipp, 2010). It is focusing on the ecological context of development or the transformation of the child can influence the way that development is likely to take (Shaffer Kipp, 2010). For instance, when the child is found out he is an adopted child, he will feel rejected and abandoned. He will have low self -esteem and struggle with identity development issues. This event may affect the child for a few years, but after he has grown up, the curiosity, sensitivity and the rebellious are becoming less and the interaction with family will be more stable. After all, the environmental factors like age, cognitive and biological changing play a major role in human development. How the Bronfenbrenners ecological theory apply children in preschool and early primary levels Normally children are only exposed to the family at home until they are placed in day care, preschool classes and begin their formal schooling. When they grow up, there are more exposures from many sources to them. In the microsystem, family is one of the factors that affect children in development. Furthermore, family plays important role to the physical development of children in aspect of education and family income. Family who has good education and good income usually has awareness with their diet. Therefore, parents will model healthy eating habits for their children, who are also dependent what food is put in the table. When the child gets enough nutrition in his diet, he will develop well. Besides that, environmental factors like family and peers also affect the social development of child. For example, when a child is shy, aside from inherited characteristic from a parent, it also can be caused from interaction between parents and child. Sometimes, parents are having less in teraction with the child and the parents dont even speak to each other. It will affect the social development of child, however, the difficulty to have appropriate sociality with peers will decrease after he enters the school. It can be concluded that, parents can influence the social actions of child but it will change after being exposed to the peers, hence surely can be influential factor to the development of child. The interaction between people in the microsystem is essential for the development of child in the aspect of emotional development. For instance, family-teacher relationship that many people overlooked the importance of this relationship especially the teachers that only focus on to their relationship with children only. Children in the school always feel insecure, difficult to accept criticism, or punishment and unadaptable. Therefore, parents and teacher should work together for childs growth and development. Teacher can know the family background of the child and their culture. Furthermore, it is really important for teacher to maintain the childrens culture since cultural identity and family connectedness are critical emotional health. In addition, both teacher and parents can discuss the childrens problem in school and together helping to solve the problems that may have lifelong consequences. Also, when their relationship is good, they can inform one another and the information might be useful and has lifelong effects on the child. Invite families to the social events in school and hold a parent-teacher conferences are some of the ways to build the partnership. On the whole, this relationship can provide support to children and build childrens emotional health. Next we proceed to the level where children do not make any contact with these people and places but still have an effect on them. This level is the exosystem. Parents workplaces and mass media can be a largely affected to the children in term of emotional problems and cognitive development. Parents nowadays usually spend their time at work more than at home with their children. It will result in having less time to spend with children. They dont have time to know their childrens activities, they cant control their children and they dont have time to help their children in developing important skills. Stress at work also influences the children because they might release their stress by resting and sleeping at home and lead to have less interaction with children. So then, the emotional problem will be faced by children because dont have bond with parents. Studies have shown children who are given plenty of attention and love usually less have emotional problems than those who do. Bes ides that, mass media also influences the development of children. Children can develop and acquire the cognitive development from the good television shows. For example Blues Clues, Dora the Explorer, Go Diego Go!, and The Smurfs. Moreover, another electronic media source is internet that also contributes the cognitive development of children. It provides children to solve problems, practice skills and creativity, and widen their knowledge base (Barbour, Barbour Scully, 2011). For instance, practice chess, puzzle word and creative writing. But, as long as parents monitor their children from accessing inappropriate websites, internet can be a rich resource for childrens lives. The next layer of Bronfenbrenners ecological theory is the macrosystem. Government plays a big role to the development of children. What government can do is enacting the law for protecting the children hence to ensure the well-being of development of children. The examples of the law are Education Act 1996 [Act 550] and The Compulsory Education Act. Both are related to the compulsory for parents to make sure their children attend preschool and primary school. Preschool Education is for all children to improve their necessary skills at the early age and the programmes are provided by Government in rural and urban area. The purposes are to develop basic communication skills, and characters, moral values, doing physical activities for good health and improve critical thinking skills through senses. Besides, the Education system in preschool emphasizes on nine elements for children development like Malay language, English language, Islamic education, moral studies, civics education and childrens physical development. From the policies, personal development and the socialization process can be acquired by children and can affect children positively. Summary Children acquire many things from surroundings for their development and they depend on how good and bad of their environmental are. Adult people should know their roles as parents, teachers and societies to the development of children. Although they affect the childrens growth and development in some ways, their behaviors and viewpoints also affect their perceptions and attitudes. However, adult also can be influenced by children. The family is the major influence in the systems because they are the most trusted by children. So it is essential for family to stress on the development of children in the elements of physical, cognitive, emotional and social development. The place also like home, is supposed to be the suitable place for children to develop with more tools provided and more interaction with children. Even though some environment is out of familys control, but they can do their best to develop their children necessaries skills for their lifelong consequences.

Benefits of Women Entrepreneurship

Benefits of Women Entrepreneurship Jump to: Advantages of Female Entrepreneurs | Disadvantages of Female Entrepreneurs | Challenges for Female Entrepreneurs | Schemes to Develop Female Entrepreneurs | Leading Female Entrepreneurs in India | Differences between Male and Female Entrepreneurs Women constitute around half of the total world population. So is in India also. They are therefore regarded as the better half of the society. In traditional societies, they were confined to the four walls of houses performing household activities. In modern societies they have come out of the four walls to participate in all sorts of activities. The global evidences prove  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  that women have been performing exceedingly well in different spheres of activities like academics, politics, administration, social work and so on. Now they have started plunging into industry also and running their enterprises successfully. Therefore while discussing on entrepreneurial development of women entrepreneurs in the country. Al through small businesses owned by women have traditionally focused on fashion , fond and other services sector, but recently women entrepreneurs have been moving rapidly into manufacturing, construction and other industrial filed. Women owned business are lightly increasing in the economics of almost all countries. The hidden entrepreneurial potential of women have gradually been changing with the growing sensivity to the role and economic status in the society. It means women have the potentials, skill, knowledge and adaptability to run a business successfully. Meaning And Definitions Women entrepreneur is a person who accepts challenging role to meet her personal need and become economically independent. There are economical, social, religious, cultural and other factors existing in the society which responsible for the emergency of the entrepreneurs. Women entrepreneur refers equally to someone who has started a one women business to someone who is a principal in family business or partnership or to someone who is shareholder in a public company which she runs.   Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  The Government of India has defined  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  a women entrepreneur is an enterprise owned and controlled by a women having a minimum financial interest of 51% of the capital and giving at least 51% of the employment generated in the enterprise to women . Advantages Of Female Entrepreneurs Social Networking.   Lets face it-women are natural networkers. They love to talk, mingle, and rub elbows. This is the very reason why husbands rarely ever manage the social calendar. In todays business environment, mastering social media is mandatory, and the ladies absolutely have a leg up! Intuition.   They call it womens intuition for a reason.   Women in general can size up another person much faster than her male counterpart. In todays ultra-fast paced business environment, you need the ability to quickly identify the allies and the enemies. Regardless if you are a male or female, you need to trust your gut. Pain Tolerance.   Okay, initially I would have said this is irrelevant. But after watching my children be born, there is no question that my wife can handle  a lot  more pain than I can. And I am not just talking physical pain, I mean emotional, too (have you seen how tough children can be on their mothers?). In business, there are a lot of painful moments. A lot. Women definitely have an advantage in this area. Multi-tasking.   Women are known for juggling many tasks at the same time and still being able to produce excellent results. Conversely, the guys are masters at focusing on one thing. Still, the advantage in todays distracting environment goes to women. Patience.   Women inherently seem to have more patience. And in todays business environment, patience is key! Aggressive business strategies are not paying off like they once did. Slow and steady wins the race in this category. Listening.   A friend of mine went to buy a new bed at a small bedding store owned by a husband and wife team. The female owner approaches my friend and asked all kinds of questions about why they needed a new bed, if they could fix their old bed, what else they were considering, etc. She asked questions and listened closely. She clearly showed that she cared about helping to meet their needs. My friend was moments away from buying any bed that she recommended. But just then, the frustrated husband on the sales team ran up and said let me handle this. Then he just tried to hard close the sale. He was pushy, telling them what he recommended and what they had to have. Guess what? The sale was lost the second he began speaking! They walked out. I am sure he blamed her, but it was him. The key is to ask questions and really listen. Quite frankly, any great sales person knows this, man or woman, it just seems that the ladies are naturally better at doing it. Problem/Disadvantages Of Female Entrepreneurs Women Entrepreneurs encounter two sets of problems i.e. general problems entrepreneurs and problems specific to women entrepreneurs. These are discussed follows Finance Finance is regarded as life blood for any enterprise be in big or small. However women entrepreneurs suffer from shortage of finance on two counts. Firstly women do not generally have property on their names to use them as collateral for obtaining funds from external sources. So that access to the external sources funds is limited. Secondly the banks also consider women less credit-worthy and discourage women barrowers on belief that they can at any time leave their business.  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   Scarcity Of Raw Materials Most of the women enterprises are plagued by the scarcity of raw materials and necessary inputs. Added to this are high prices of raw materials, on the one hand and getting raw material at the minimum of discount on the other. The failure of many co-operatives in 1971 engaged in based making is example how the scarcity of raw material sounds the death knell of enterprises run by women. Male Dominated Society The constitution of India speaks of equality between sexes. But in practice women are looked upon as abla i.e.  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Weak in all respects. In male dominated Indian society, women are not treated equal to men. This turn serves as a barrier to women entry into business.   Lack Of Education In India around 60% of women are still illiterate. Illiteracy is the root cause of socio- economic problem. Due to the lack of education women are not aware of business, technology and market knowledge. Also lack of education causes low achievement motivation among women.   Market Oriented Risk A number of women have to face the challenges of market because of stiff competition. Many business women find it difficult to capture the market and compete with their product. They are not fully aware of the changing market conditions. Motivational Factors. Successful businessmen can be self motivated through setting up a mind and taking up risk and accepting social responsibilities on shoulder. The other factors such as family support government policies financial assistance etc. are also important to set up business. Lack of Confidence Women lack confidence in their strength and competence. The family members and the society and reluctant to stand beside their entrepreneurial growth Training Programs Training programs are essential to new rural and young entrepreneurs who wish to set up a small and medium scale unit. The programs enrich the skill and potential of women entrepreneur. Present Position Of Women Entrepreneurs Out of the total 940-48 million people in India in the 1990s of the female comprise of 465% of the total population. There are 126.48 million women work force (representing 28.9% of the female population) but as per the 1991 census only 185900 women accounting for only 4.5% of total self employed persons  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  in the country were recorded. Majority of them are engaged in the un organized in the unorganized sectors like agriculture, agro based industries, handicrafts, handloom and cottage based industries. As per the 2001census report, there are of women workers of the total working population including formal as well as informal sector. In the era of L.P.G (Liberalization, Privatization, Globalization) the  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Indian women entrepreneurs are very fast entering the non -traditional sectors. Which indeed is in response to their greater awareness. Five Business Challenges Women Entrepreneurs Face and How to Overcome them Cultural Value The first entrepreneurial challenge women entrepreneurs face is that of cultural value or tradition. This challenge is more profound on women entrepreneurs in Africa; where the cultural value entails that the man/husband be the bread winner. A woman exhibiting her entrepreneurial prowess is presumed as wanting to take over the leadership role of the husband. This challenge also surfaces in families where the husband/father is an entrepreneur. The male children are usually groomed on  running the family business  and carrying on after the demise of the father while the female children are usually left out of this entrepreneurial grooming process. To overcome this entrepreneurial challenge,  you must be prepared to breakthrough this limiting tradition; you must stick to what you believe in. Societal Discrimination The next challenge women face in business is societal discrimination. Most people still live with the mentality that certain businesses or tasks are better handled by men.  Have you ever come across a female auto mechanic, plumber, mason or welder? What was your first reaction? You must have screamed what the hell is a woman doing with such occupation. Well, I have done it countless times. The truth is that we often assume women are generally incompetent in certain fields of life. People would rather deal with a business man than a woman. Why? The reason is because its believed that the men are born to do it. You might think this challenge is uncommon; wait until you lose a business deal or contract just because you are competing with male counterparts. The only solution to handling the challenge of societal discrimination is to develop a tough skin towards criticism. Stop seeing your feminine gender as a weakness; see it as a strength, and prove yourself by striving to outperform your male competitors. Lack Of Investors Confidence The third challenge women entrepreneurs face when starting a business is the challenge of raising capital. Investors naturally give less consideration to business women and I cant really pinpoint the reason for this. Its easier for business man to raise capital than a woman; except such a woman has proved her competence and credibility over time. Women entrepreneurs generally find it difficult to raise capital or obtain a bank loan because investors and bankers would rather risk their venture capital with male entrepreneurs than females. Now how do you overcome such challenge? The answer is persistence. You must keep asking for what you want;  irrespective of the amount of rejections you get. You must press on while selling yourself on why you should be trusted. Balancing Business And Family The fourth business challenge women entrepreneurs face is that of balancing business and family. Women naturally are the backbone of the family; they lay the building blocks on which the family foundation is built. So often times, women entrepreneurs usually find themselves torn between commitment to the family and business. Now how do you handle such challenge? The answer lies in  time management and delegation. These two keys are  essential to balancing your act and building a successful home alongside a family. Stress Due To Competition And Business Routine The last but not the least challenge women face in business is the stress and stiff competition associated with running a business.  The entrepreneurial process of building a business from scratch entails hard work, commitment and persistence. Business is a game of dog eat dog; to survive, you have to be tough. As a woman in business, you might find yourself going head to head with competition and fulfilling your business tasks; and this might lead to fatigue. When confronted with such challenge,  you have to use the art of delegation and time management to your advantage. Get the tedious business tasks off your neck and concentrate more on the core issues at hand. How to Develop Women Entrepreneurs   Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Right efforts on from all areas are required in the development of women entrepreneurs and their greater participation in the entrepreneurial activities. Following efforts can be taken into account for effective development of women entrepreneurs. Consider women as specific target group for all developmental programmers. Better educational facilities and schemes should be extended to women folk from government part. Adequate training programmed on management skills to be provided to women  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  community. Encourage womens participation in decision-making.   Vocational training to be extended to women community that enables them to understand the production process and production management.   Skill development to be done in womens polytechnics and industrial training institutes. Skills are put to work in training-cum-production workshops.   Training on professional competence and leadership skill to be extended to women entrepreneurs.   Training and counseling on a large scale of existing women entrepreneurs to remove psychological causes like lack of self-confidence and fear of success.   Counseling through the aid of committed NGOs, psychologists, managerial experts and technical personnel should be provided to existing and emerging women entrepreneurs.   Continuous monitoring and improvement of training programmers.   Activities in which women are trained should focus on their marketability and profitability. Making provision of marketing and sales assistance from government part.   To encourage more passive women entrepreneurs the Women training programmed should be organized that taught to recognize her own psychological needs and express them. Leading Business Women In India Chanda Kapoor Executive Director ICICI Bank. Ekta  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Kapoor Creative Director Balaji Telefilms Jyoti Naik President Lijjat Papad Lalita .D. Gupte Jt.Managing  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Director (MD) ICICI Bank. Preeta Reddy Managing Director   Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  (MD) Apollo Hospital Rashree Pathy Chairman Rashree Sugar and Chemicals Ltd. Ravina Raj Kohli Media Personality and Ex- President Star News Renuka Ramanath   CEO ICICI Ventures Tarajani Vakil Former Chairman and MD EXIM Bank. Ritu Nanda CEO Escolife Schemes for Women Entrepreneurs 1. Seed Capital Scheme 2. National Equity Fund 3. Prime Ministers Employment Guarantee Scheme 4. Single Window Scheme. 5. Bank Schemes for Women Entrepreneur 6. Mahila Artik Vikas Mahamandal What Makes Women Entrepreneurs Different from Men? Over the past few years, there has been a surge in business startups by female entrepreneurs. Today Im going to discuss how the way women run things may be a bit different from how men play the game. Strong Focus On Values Its not that men dont put values in the front lines of their company, but most women entrepreneurs make it the number one priority over everything else. According to Margaret Heffernan, who recently wrote How She Does It: How Women Entrepreneurs Are Changing the Rules of Business, women think about what their business will stand for before they start planning anything else. Will Ask For Help Many men (not all) have difficulty asking for help when it comes to something like their very own business. Pride can sometimes get in the way. But most women dont have a problem admitting that theyre not sure how to accomplish a certain task or what needs to be done next in the building-a-business game. This can sometimes provide an advantage in a well-spring of knowledge from sources that help ground their business more quickly. Focused On The Working Environment According to Heffernan, male entrepreneurs see their businesses as a machine, while female entrepreneurs see it as a living organism. I can see where shes coming from. Men may be more likely to take the position that bad parts (employees) can easily be replaced with new and better functioning ones. Many male entrepreneurs may overlook the fact that the parts are going bad because the machine as a whole is not in great condition. Some may take the position that a new employee here or there will help to make the business function better, rather than examining the whole business under a microscope to see if there may be underlying problems. Women entrepreneurs tend to be on the other end of the spectrum with the perspective that, if the environment their employees are in isnt working, then the entire ecosystem of the business, if you will, could collapse. Basically, women entrepreneurs focus more on making sure the work environment is comfortable to obtain the best performance from their employees, rather than expecting the best from their employees despite the work environment. Strength Of The Business Women entrepreneurs tend to focus on building a business so strong that it could function completely and successfully without them. Men build strong businesses, but often want to make sure they are always part of the central element that keeps things going. According to Heffernan, women entrepreneurs are more like the conductor of the symphony the person who doesnt make the noise, but pulls it all together.

The Subjection of Women Exposed in A Doll’s House Essay -- Henrik Ibse

A man, intoxicated and impoverished, lay on the dirty streets of patriarchal Norway, and as the jeering citizens sauntered by, they could have never guessed that this man, Henrik Ibsen, would be the Prometheus of women’s rights and the creator of the modern play. Having been born in 1828, Ibsen lived through various examples of the subjection of women within the law, such as Great Britain allowing men to lock up and beat their wives â€Å"in moderation† (Bray 33). Therefore, Ibsen was known for his realistic style of writing within both poetry and plays, which usually dealt with everyday situations and people (31). Focusing on the rights of women, Ibsen’s trademark was â€Å"...looking at these problems without the distortions of romanticism† and often receiving harsh criticism for doing so (31). In an attempt to support his family, Ibsen became a pharmaceutical apprentice, but after three years he abandoned this profession and began writing poet ry. After an apprenticeship in the theater, he began writing his own plays, including a drama in verse, Peer Gynt (31). While working and writing in Norway, Ibsen and several social critics observed â€Å"...the penalty society pays when only half of its members participate fully as citizens†, deciding to flee Norway in hopes of finding a more accepting social environment (33). Ibsen wrote A Doll’s House, his most famous work about women suffering through the oppressive patriarchal society, while living primarily in Germany and Italy where he â€Å"...was exposed to these social norms and tensions to a much greater extent than he would have been had he remained solely in Norway† (32). While Sweden, Norway, and Denmark began to grant legal majority to women, Ibsen understood the legal improvements f... ... DE: Prestwick House Inc.: Literary Touchstone Classics, 2006. Print. Mill, John Stuart. From The Subjection of Women. England in Literature: Medallion Edition. Ed. Helen McDonnell et al. Glenview, Il.: Scott, Foresman and Co. 1979. 436-439. Secondary Sources Bray, Ashlin Ed. "Biography of Henrik Ibsen and Fact Sheet of Women's Progress." In Multiple Critical Perspectives: A Doll's House. Clayton DE: Prestwick House Inc. 2007. 31-34. Print. Orjasaeter, Kristin. "Mother, Wife and Role Model: A contextual perspective on feminism in A Doll's House." Ibsen Studies: Tahlor and Francis. Ltd. 2005. 19-47. Print. Scott, Clement. "Review of 'A Doll's House.'" The Theatre 14.79 (July 1889): 19-22. Rpt. in Twentieth-Century Criticism. Ed. Paula Kepos. Vol. 37. Detroit: Gale Research. 1991. Literature Resource Center. Web

A Picture Is Worth a Thousand Words: Visuals as a Persuasive Tool for

A Picture Is Worth a Thousand Words: Visuals as a Persuasive Tool for War Nations all over the world constantly utilize various forms of media to rally support amongst its own people. Manuscripts, newspapers and radios were and still are of the many mediums through which political figures connect and communicate with civilians. Especially during a time of war, the government sets as one of its highest priorities, the goal of keeping its people adequately informed and behind their nation’s cause. One of the most popular and persuasive forms of propaganda has been war posters. The famous age-old saying, â€Å"A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words,† is the secret that lies behind why these posters were so powerful and successful in the first place. Even though we are looking at them many centuries later, we can still feel the impact and experience the intended effects of their depictions. As Americans, many have been exposed to a range of American war posters through various means such as a school history books. There are few different war posters that are definitely worth taking a look at. Though at first glance they look extremely different, their main message is essentially the same: this war is necessary and we, as Americans, must do all that we can to help. Here’s the first poster, entitled â€Å"Don’t Let That Shadow Them† courtesy of Lawrence B. Smith. Lawrence B. Smith uses children’s innocence, helplessness and need for protection as the basis of his war poster. Through careful implementation of color and patriotic images, Smith is able to send a strong and convincing message to the American people in â€Å"Don’t Let That Shadow Touch Them.† The setting of this picture is in an open field with the shadow of the sw... ... has been used centuries upon centuries because of its effectiveness. While we can look at these political masterpieces and acknowledge the message that they are voicing, it is important that people remember to interpret with a critical eye. It’s rather funny to know that the same pictures that are convincing you that one side is the good side and the other the bad; is the same thing that people on the other side of the world, and on the other side of a war, are seeing too –but of course with the heroes and the villains reversed. Media and propaganda in general are very interesting to follow. But we should remember not to believe it all so quickly. It is important to bear in mind that the photographer or artist has a specific job to do. They must support their government and its actions. We have to keep in mind the question: who actually controls the media?

Baz Luhrman’s modern interpretation of the Shakespeare play Essay

This essay is based on Baz Luhrman’s modern interpretation of the Shakespeare play; Romeo + Juliet. It will be focusing on the opening scene, and Prologue. I will be analysing how Baz Lurhman portrays the feud between the Montagues and the Capulets. I will also be discussing how the presentation of The Prologue helps the audience to understand the play. The film begins with a blank TV screen. The TV screen could represent the modern interpretation to the play. The screen the becomes occupied by a news-reader, who begins reciting the sonnet. The idea of the sonnet being read off the news, emphasises the how important the situation is. Once the news-reader has completed the sonnet, the TV ‘transports’ you to the scene of the play; Verona. The establishing shot becomes apparent; a Montague building separated form a Capulet building, only by the statue of Christ. This emphasises the theme of religion, and the line in the sonnet: â€Å"Both alike in dignity† This is because each building belittles the rest of Verona, as well as the other. The camera then speeds up and shows a sequence of fast shots. This is known as ‘mise en scene’. This represents a degree of chaos, and highlights the conflict between the two families. The Prologue is then recited again, this time, by the Friar. As he reads, the words are reinforced by bold, white text, on a black background. The contrasting colours could be highlighting the two families’ differences. The use of colour; in this case black and white, are most likely an deliberate choice, as black and white are both immediate opposites, therefore helping the audience differentiate between text and background. This allows the audience to correlate the friar’s voice with the text, despite the short amount of time in which the text is shown. After the Friar has completed The Prologue, the camera focuses on a family tree, of each family; in turn. Almost as soon as it has shown the family trees, the shot becomes engulfed in flames. The flames could convey a message of hatred, rage and anger between the two families. From the flames, a newspaper heading appears, whilst the flames fade. The heading suggests re-occurring violence between both the Montagues and the Capulets, and could also show that the feud is still as strong as ever. We can then learn that the strongest of the families quarrel lies between the youth of each house. This becomes apparent when the camera focuses on a number of magazines, with the younger generation of each house on the cover. Baz Lurhman also incorporates the use of magazines, as opposed to tabloids, when referring to the youth, as younger people are usually more associated with magazines. In the next shot, the parents of each house are pictured, accompanied by the actor’s name and character. In turn, the same happens for every character. This is important, as it allows the audience to differentiate between the members of each family, and who the main roles are. The types of shots depicted are very solemn, except for a character named ‘Paris’. He is shown in a happy scene; as he is not involved in the feud, whilst every other character is affected, in some way, by the civil conflict. The Prologue concludes with a montage of shots, featured earlier in The Prologue, aswell as a repertoire of emotion-provoking shots, from later in the film. As the closing sequence is shown, shots of fireworks are merged in, to again, establish the theme of chaos. Finally, the title appears, and The Prologue finishes. The final aspect of Baz Luhrman’s interpretation, is the Music. Without this particular piece (Carmena Burana), The Prologue would not provoke as many emotions within the audience. This is because; as the tempo, and volume rises beyond forte, Baz secrenises the action scenes to run along side this. He also utilises the piano-pianissimo parts of the piece to again, establish the sonnet. All together, the music adds the element of drama, and strong emotions to the opening scene.