Wednesday, November 27, 2019

The Relationship Between Sport and Tourism Essays

The Relationship Between Sport and Tourism Essays The Relationship Between Sport and Tourism Paper The Relationship Between Sport and Tourism Paper The relationship between sport and tourism In order to understand the meaning of sport tourism, firstly we need to understand the term sport and tourism. Generally, sport can be defined as â€Å"all forms of physical activity which, through casual or organised participation, aim at expressing or improving physical fitness and mental well-being, forming social relationships or obtaining results in competitions at all levels† (Council Of Europe, 1992). Having said that, sport is actually a form of activity that is participated by people and it involves not only the participant but also other people. As for tourism, the World Tourism Organisation (WTO) (2000) defined it as â€Å"activities of persons travelling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes†. In this case, both sport and tourism is seen as a form of travel from one place to another. For instance, most sport nowadays involves a considerable amount of traveling to play and compete in different destinations and countries. Other than that, there are also people that travels for the purpose of visiting sports attraction such as stadiums, sports museum and also sports hall. Nowadays, sport and tourism can be seen as an inseparable phenomenon and sport tourism itself is considered to be the fastest growing sector of the tourism industry. However, the definition of sport tourism varies among people, until now, there still has not been a standardize definition for it. Over the years, there have been attempts to define it; for instance (Weed et al, 1997). As such, Standeven and De Knop (1999, p. 2) defines sport tourism as, â€Å"All forms of active and passive involvement in sporting activity, participated in casually or in an organized way for non-commercial or business/commercial reasons, that necessitate travel away from home and work locality†. Therefore, it is known that sport and tourism relates to one another, as also stated by Hinch and Higham (2001) that â€Å"sport tourism is a sport-based travel away from the home environment for a limited time, where sport is characterised by unique rule sets, competition related to physical prowess and play†. Furthermore, they also added that sport is considered to be â€Å"a significant travel activity, whether it is a primary or secondary feature of the trip†. According to Keller (2001), â€Å"the relationship between sport and tourism can be traced back to the ancient Olympic Games†. This is when all the people in the earlier days travelled to the olympic site just to attend the hallmark event. However, according to Delpy (1998), â€Å"high numbers of travellers searching for active and passive involvement in sports are of more recent origin†. The factors resulting to this trend is because there is an expanding demographic profile of participants in sports (Glyptis, 1989), increased demand for active engagement in recreational pursuits while on holiday (Priestley, 1995), and a growing interest in the prominent roles played by sports and sports event in urban renewal and urban imagery, and potential to leverage tourism opportunities associated with sports events (Getz, 1998). Other than that, sport tourism can be categorized into three types of tourism. According to Gibson (2003, pp. 07), â€Å"there is the active sport tourism where participants travel to take part in sport, event sport tourism where participants travel to watch the sport, and also nostalgia sport tourism where participants visit sports related attractions such as halls of fame, famous-stadia or sports-themed cruises†. Furthermore, active sport tourism consists of the active sport tourists, an individual who takes part in sport while on holiday. Gen erally, the sport that is usually related to this type of sport tourists are golf, skiing, swimming, tennis, and sailing. Moreover, the active sport tourist can be breakdown into three more categories; De Knop (1990) states that, â€Å"they are the pure sport holiday, where the primary purpose is to take part in sports such as skiing or golf; the vacation, in which sport is not the primary purpose but individuals make use of the sports facilities in their vacation locale; and the private sporting holiday, where people take part in informal pick-up games such as beach volleyball†. This is important because it means that the sport tourists differ from one another. This also suggests that they require different type of motivations for their choice of sports to participate in. The types of facilities offered, the course’s degree of challenge and also the pricing is considered to be the motivation for most sport tourists. As such, most resorts, clubs, and other hospitality industry try to offer the best facilities in order to attract this type of tourists. Other than that, a research on a cross-country ski and walking event in Japan identified that the reason of being healthy,fit and also â€Å"for the love of sport† are also considered motivational factors (Nogowa, Yamguchi, and Hagi, 1996). As have been said before, event sport tourism consists of participant that travels to watch the sport event. According to Delpy (1997), the experience of â€Å"being there† is considered to be the motivation for most event sport tourists. For instance, the experience of attending the Olympic Games differs from the experience of by just watching the games on television. The main point to be discussed here is that the event sport tourists is responsible in benefitting the host community. This is because most of this event sport tourists are not only from the local community, but comes from all around the world. For instance, when the 2006 Fifa World Cup was hosted, it consisted of 32 national teams representing their country. Thus, there were 31 different countries in Germany at that time and each of the country represents a group of event sport tourists in support of their national team. Having said that, Germany as the hosting country benefited from the Fifa World Cup because a large amount of money were spent by those event sport tourists while there were in Germany. It means that there were increased in economic perspectives when Germany hosted the Fifa World Cup. As for nostalgia sport tourism, it consists of nostalgia sport tourists visiting stadiums, halls of fame, and sports museum. The main purpose of their visit is to experience the place by themselves; such as the stadiums. For instance, taking the Old Trafford Stadium as an example; this type of tourist is a hardcore supporter of the Manchester United team, and only have watched the team playing through the television, thus the â€Å"feeling† of being there have developed. Therefore, it has been decided that this tourist has to visit the Old Trafford Stadium in order to get the maximum satisfaction. As we know it, sport and tourism relates to one another because it works both ways. For instance, if an individual wants to go skiing and there are no skiing facilities around, that individual has to travel to a destination which provides the facilities. Apart from that, when the sport tourists travel to another country, at the same time it boosts the country’s tourism sector. Thus, the country’s economy also increases. This is because when the sport tourists travel, they will not only use the sport facilities, but also uses the other facilities such as the accommodation, public transport, local restaurants and so on. Nowadays, most countries see sport and tourism as a way to develop and to improve the country. For example, the hosting of a mega-event such as the Olympic Games or World Cup. For years, â€Å"competition to host mega-events, such as the Olympic Games, has been intense and huge amounts of money are spent bidding for these events† (Jennings, 1996). It is known that by hosting this type of events, the hosting country will have impacts from it, through economically and also socially. Thus, cities all over the world are working hard to win the bidding process. However, even before the results of which city will be hosting the mega-event is decided, the process of bidding has already impacted the cities that is taking part in the bidding process. By taking the Olympic Games as an example, the cities that are running for the bidding process have to prove to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) that they are capable of hosting such events. This is done by making sure that they are able to provide the facilities such as the stadiums, accommodation and public transport that is needed. Therefore, in order to provide this kind of facilities, the cities have to redevelop themselves and this usually involves high costs. The costs of building and upgrading existing infrastructures often becomes a major concern for the local communities. This is because the taxpayer’s money is being used and often the infrastructures that is build for the purpose of hosting the mega-event are not fully utilized after the event. Furthermore, it is known that the mega-event will generate revenue and contribute major benefits to the hosting cities,region and countries. This is because the mega-event will attract a substantial domestic and also international tourists. Other than that, this is also an opportunity for the host’s country to promote their culture and image as a country. Other impacts of hosting such event are the host community will have an increased in tourism sector, increased tourist knowledge of the country, and the urbanisation of cities. However, there are also the negative impacts of hosting such event, for instance investment in non-needed structure, temporary crowding in cities, increase in crime and also increased in property rental. Thus, it is very important for the host community to properly manage and plan the mega-event as have been argued by Roche (1994) that, â€Å"mega-events tend to be short lived but have long-term consequences for a community that may not always be positive†. There have been a lot of research on the link of sport and tourism, however, it has always been focusing on one dimensions of sports tourism; for instance â€Å"holidays involving sport either as participant or as spectator† (Weed and Bull, 2004). To begin with, it has been identified that there are wo types of sport-related tourism, such as a destination that is using sport to develop their tourism identity and also where the tourism of a destination is develop unintentionally because of the sport activities. This has further been concluded by Gammon and Robinson (2003) that â€Å"sport and tourism is not just about the management and operation of mega-events, it also concerns offering consumer-specific sports and tourism-related services and experiences†. One of the sport that is related to this kind of phenomenon is golf. For most of the golf enthusiast, the sport; golf is considered to be a form of sport-related tourism. This is because the participants tend to travel to other parts of the world just to experience the different types of courses. As stated by Hall (1992), â€Å"golf tourism is considered a major tourism activity both as a direct form of special interest travel and as an adjunct to other forms of travel†. Research on golf tourism has estimated that â€Å"there are over 60 million golfers across the world† (Readman,2003). As such, it can be concluded that golf as a form of sport-related tourism represents the largest sport-related tourism sector. For over decades, golf has been considered as a sport that is played and enjoyed by most people as a past time activity and golf does not have a specific age group of participant. Therefore, it is not surprising that the popularity of golf has grown so fast and the influx of tourists to international golfing destinations has also grown substantially. Furthermore, this type of sport tourist; known as golf tourist can be categorised into three generic types, consisting of the avid golfer; this type of golf tourist is known to travel with golf as the primary focus of the trip and usually prefers world-class golf courses and facilities. Secondly, there is the business traveller golfer; they known to be the business people which put golf as a secondary option, usually playing golf when the resort provides such facilities. Lastly, there is the family golfer or according to Golf 20/20 (2004); known as â€Å"occasional golfer†. This type of golf tourist is known to consider golfing as an activity while travelling but is not likely to choose the travel destination based on the golf courses that is provided. This type of golf tourist also prefers travel destination which provides â€Å"family-oriented activities† (Tassiopoulos Haydam, 2007). However, according to Weed and Bull (2004), golf tourists are categorised by their â€Å"behaviours and motivation and identified as experienced and learner participant†. Moreover, the involvement of the golf tourist are often associated by the type of golf courses provided; the degree of challenge, the uniqueness of the course. All of this are taken into consideration when golf tourists are to planned their travel golfing destination. For some golf tourists, such as those from United States, United Kingdom and Europe; they tend to travel to other places such as the Caribbean due to seasonal factors. This is because places such as the Carribbean has good weather all-year round unlike those in the United States, United Kingdom and Europe. Thus, the Carribbean are taking this as an advantage to promote their tourism in terms of sport-related. Other than that, as for the golf tourists from Korea; the motivation for them to travel is because â€Å"Korea does not have the sufficient golf courses to meet the demand of golf tourists† (Golf Course News, 2003). Furthermore, other motivation for the golf tourists is that it is relatively more cheaper to play golf at other golf destinations compared to in Korea. Despite all of it, there are concerns about the lack of integrated practice and policy among sport and tourism agencies (Gibson, 2001). This is because most sport and tourism agencies lack the coordination in developing policy for sport tourism. Both agencies treat sport and tourism as a separate activity; while both are relatively connected to each other. As stated by De Knop (1990), â€Å"the lack of an integrated sport tourism policy is common throughout the world†. He further stated that without an adequate policy, conflicts of interest among various departments, agencies, ministries, bureau will become more common. Other than that, there are also growing concerns about the effects of sport tourism to the environment. This is because most sport-related tourism requires an area in which needed to be developed before it can be utilized. There is also the concern of maintaining the sport destination. For example, in order to build a golf course, firstly you need have a huge amount of undeveloped land. Therefore, the impact of building a golf course on the environment are the destruction of natural habitat and also deforestation. Apart from that, the sport; ski also contributes in effecting the environment. This is because it is effecting the natural wildlife in the Alps. Therefore, this kind of environmental impacts of sport-related tourism shows that there is a need at a certain level to coordinate and to develop an integrated policy before it is too late. In conclusion, over the past years, there have been alot of research on the relationship of sport and tourism, especially in trying to give sport tourism the proper definition. Whether it is called sport tourism, sports tourism, sport and tourism; all of this are actually just a terminology that have been adapted throughout the years by academic scholars. Therefore, it is important for those scholars to actually conceptualize a thorough definition of the term sport tourism; not as two different sector but as one. Thus, further analysis on sport tourism has to be researched by the academic scholars. In terms of the types of sport tourists that has been identified, it is important to know what actually motivates them in choosing their travel destination in relation of their sport activities. This is because in order for the tourism sector to fully utilize the facilities that they provide, they have to take the sport tourists set of thinking into consideration. As have been said before, the relationship of sport and tourism are interrelated to each other, because without the sport tourists, the tourism industry will not be able to benefit from it. The development of a country also depends on this sport tourists; thus it is important for the local government to coordinate with the tourism agency in order to gain the economical benefits. As have been stated, the sport tourism sector plays an important role in developing such a nation. However, it is also important for the country to properly plan and manage their tourism sector, in this case, when a country is trying to bid for a mega-event, they have to take everything into consideration, even the smallest things. This is so that a positive outcome will be achieved rather than a negative outcome. However, one thing that needs to be taken seriously when trying to develop the tourism industry is the environment. Due to the lack of policy coordination, the environment has to suffer and this has to be taken seriously by the local government agencies. To finish off, there are more sections on sport tourism that needs further research on; future studies should include an in-depth look on the needs, motivational perspectives, and the behaviours of sport tourists. This is so that sport tourism will continue to grow and hopefully it will be a more supportive sector in developing a country.

Saturday, November 23, 2019

Descriptive Essay Sample

Descriptive Essay Sample Descriptive Essay Sample Descriptive Essay Sample:(Excerpt) The first requisite for sexual compatibility in marriage is the abandonment of the self-gratification pattern for the mutual-gratification ideal. This means that each partner instead of seeking a purely personal satisfaction shall seek to make the sexual experience equally satisfactory to the other. This is a high ideal and not always easy to achieve, but the best sex adjustment to be found comes in those cases where this goal is most nearly approached. The very knowledge of mutuality enhances the pleasure of each, as does also the appreciation of each for the thoughtfulness of the other. When one partner satisfies his passion without regard for the satisfaction of the other, there is at first bewilderment, then disillusionment, and finally recoil against being called upon to serve without sharing. Our expert essay writers want to highlight that this may produce frigidity in the wife and a disgust at the sex act that may never be overcome unless she is so fortunate as to come under t he treatment of a competent doctor or psychiatrist. According to our professional writing service, but the ideal of sharing equally the satisfaction of the sexual experience in marriage necessitates knowledge by each of the sex anatomy and psychology of the other. This means that the old conception of the sexual aggressiveness of the male and the sexual passivity of the female must be abandoned. For centuries it was thought that woman had relatively limited sex desire and that, although she might enjoy the sex act and at times even hunger for it, her enjoyment was of a mild, passive type. In fact, so widely was this pattern accepted that it was considered shameful for her to show much sex passion. Any abandonment of inhibitions supposedly denoted an "oversexed" nature and was an attribute of the courtesan. Men, on the other hand, were by nature the possessors of a strong sex urge, so constant as to be easily aroused at almost any time and so powerful that it was a physical necessity to yield to its satisfaction. Such a conception of t he difference between the sex nature of man and woman (evolved in a man-made world) was naturally very convenient to man. Not only did it entitle him to play the dominant role in his conjugal sex life, but it also justified the double standard. Man's sex needs were imperative and must be met in one way or another; woman's sex needs were not so insistent and could easily be satisfied within the bonds of marriage. In addition, you can read other descriptive essays: Descriptive Essay Writing The above descriptive essay writing sample is a short excerpt of a custom essay written by Our descriptive essays writing help is affordable! Even if you need term paper 15 pages, you will be surprised with our prices! Interesting posts: Informative and Surprising Essay Expository Essay English Essay Writing Outline Conclusion Writing Cold War History Essay

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Womans Suffrage Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Womans Suffrage - Essay Example In America both groups originated in the ideals of American democracy and Protestant individualism. But these ideals when applied to women were everywhere met with contradictory economic and social institutions which subjected women to traditional male authority or questioned their capacity for independence and initiative. â€Å"With the flood of post-civil war suffragist rhetoric came an equally full and passionate cry from the anti-suffragists, or antis as the suffragists called them. Threatened by the suffragists new conception of modern government†(Oates 1991) Religion profoundly helped to legitimize woman’s quest for equality. Of the five women who planned the Seneca Falls convention in the summer of 1848, four were Quakers. Historian Margaret Bacon has asked why the tiny Religious Society of Friends contributed such a disproportionate number of leaders to the feminist cause. It turns out that Quakerism was a veritable seedbed for the new feminism. As early as the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, Quaker women had served as traveling ministers, on occasion leaving behind husbands and children, so strongly did they feel called to the Lord’s work. Well before the Revolution the American Friends had also established a tradition of separate women’s business meetings of the monthly meeting. In addition, Quaker women who felt moved by the Holy Spirit to speak in meetings were expected to do so.

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

Leadership, Effective Leaders Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Leadership, Effective Leaders - Essay Example It is importnt tht competing demnds nd pproches not prlyze mngers but insted provide cumultive nd integrtive improvements to ledership effectiveness. In view of bove, current pper provides impiricl pproch towrd the concpet of ledership. Bsing on the book of Chrles Mnz nd Henry Sims, The New SuperLedership, where the principl of self-ledership is peoneered, present discussion covers theorieticl review nd prcticl impliction of types of ledership. It is the im of this pper to present new content nd exmples designed to help leders develop the kind of utonomous, quick-recting workforce necessry to thrive in these turbulent times. I first introduce the theory of ledership styles. Through the discussion of two types of ledrship, I grdully comme to the discussion of effective ledership techniques nd end up with personl model of ledership. Using the exmples of two leders this pper is gret reflection of efficient nd inefficient pproch to ledership. Drwing on contemporry exmples nd profiles, mny from the high-tech nd informtion sectors, Mnz nd Sims shtter the myth of the trditionl, ggrndized versions of "heroic" ledership. They show tht leder truly becomes successful by turning followers into extrordinry self-leders-pillrs of strength tht will support the orgniztion t every level. They detil series of ction-oriented steps through which the SuperLeder provides n opportunity for followers to express nd develop their own ledership skills-nd in the process become highly motivted, dynmic contributors. The typology of ledershi introduced by uthors describes four brod ledership rchetypes: strongmn, trnsctor, visionry hero, nd SuperLeder. The strongmn relies on uthority nd coercion to mke subordintes perform the tsks. Coercion, s mens of influencing the behvior of others, depends upon the expecttion of specified positive or negtive consequences. Coercive power requires tht the expecttion of consequences be reproduced consistently. The continued ppliction of these consequences is usully enough to ensure tht others' behvior will continue to be influenced. Coercion is esy to estblish but costly to mintin since the expecttions of others must be met if their behvior is going to be influenced beyond the previous instnce. uthority is the opposite: it is difficult to estblish but once in plce it is highly effective mens of influencing behvior since specific consequences, nd the inculction of the expecttion of them, re not required. While often considered relic of pst mngeril prctice, mny contemporry leders still employ this uthoritrin style. The trnsctor uses rewrds nd snctions to motivte employees. Positive reinforcement not only shpes behvior but lso teches nd in the process enhnces personl self-imge s Chrles Mnz nd Henry Sims note, the wy the reinforcement is crried out is more importnt thn the mount. First, it ought to be specific, incorporting s much informtion content s possible. Second, the reinforcement should hve immedicy. Third, the system of feedbck mechnisms should tke ccount of chievbility. Compnies should rewrd smll wins. Good news swpping is common in the excellent compnies. The fourth chrcteristic is tht fir mount of the feedbck comes in the form of intngible but meningful ttention from top mngement. The third type, visionry hero, uses inspirtion nd vision to motivte employees. SuperLeders ccomplish this by encourging individuls to set their own gols, monitor

Sunday, November 17, 2019

Project for Math Essay Example for Free

Project for Math Essay For each of the five variables, process, organize, present and summarize the data. Analyze each variable by itself using graphical and numerical techniques of summarization. Use MINITAB as much as possible, explaining what the printout tells you. You may wish to use some of the following graphs: stem-leaf diagram, frequency/relative frequency table, histogram, boxplot, dotplot, pie chart, bar graph. Caution: not all of these are appropriate for each of these variables, nor are they all necessary. More is not necessarily better. In addition be sure to find the appropriate measures of central tendency, and measures of dispersion for the above data. Where appropriate use the five number summary (the Min, Q1, Median, Q3, Max). Once again, use MINITAB as appropriate, and explain what the results mean. * Analyze the connections or relationships between the variables. There are ten pairings here (Location and Income, Location and Size, Location and Years, Location and Credit Balance, income and Size, Income and Years, Income and Balance, Size and Years, Size and Credit Balance, Years and Credit Balance). Use graphical as well as numerical summary measures. Explain what you see. Be sure to consider all 10 pairings. Some variables show clear relationships, while others do not. * Prepare your report in Microsoft Word (or some other word processing package), integrating your graphs and tables with text explanations and interpretations. Be sure that you have graphical and numerical back up for your explanations and interpretations. Be selective in what you include in the report. Im not looking for a 20 page report on every variable and every possible relationship (thats 15 things to do). Rather what I want you do is to highlight what you see for three individual variables (no more than 1 graph for each, one or two measures of central tendency and variability (as appropriate), and two or three sentences of interpretation). For the 10 pairings, identify and report only on three of the pairings, again using graphical and numerical summary (as appropriate), with interpretations. Please note that at least one of your pairings must include Location and at least one of your pairings must not include Location. * All DeVry University policies are in effect, including the plagiarism policy. Project Part A report is due by the end of Week 2. * Project Part A is worth 100 total points. See grading rubric below. Submission: The report from part 4 including all relevant graphs and numerical analysis along with interpretations. Format for report: A. Brief Introduction B. Discuss your 1st individual variable, using graphical, numerical summary and interpretation C. Discuss your 2nd individual variable, using graphical, numerical summary and interpretation D. Discuss your 3rd individual variable, using graphical, numerical summary and interpretation E. Follow this up with computing 95% confidence intervals for each of the variables described in a. -d. , and again interpreting these intervals. 3. Write a report to your manager about the results, distilling down the results in a way that would be understandable to someone who does not know statistics. Clear explanations and interpretations are critical. 4. All DeVry University policies are in effect, including the plagiarism policy. 5. Project Part B report is due by the end of Week 6. 6. Project Part B is worth 100 total points. See grading rubric below.

Thursday, November 14, 2019

Is Proper English Necessary? Essay -- Teaching Writing Education

Is Proper English Necessary? For some reason, proper English has become very important. From elementary to graduate schools, English is stressed above mathematics, history, and the sciences. Whereas these disciplines are universal, English is limited. These subjects can be found all over the world, and beyond, while English remains contained to those who know it. Our language is contained almost completely within speaking and the written word. Thought, the original source of all language, is restricted within the individual which cannot be seen by others. Those who believe they can see others thoghts become mental patients or psychic hotlines by society and condemed as such.(alienation of differences) Mathematics suggests an addition of abilities, making more not less.(profits of math) Instead, language centers around communication with others like ourselves. Any plant, animal, or other entity that cannot communicate clearly with humans does not have a complete languages.(application of humans only standards) English is taught in a manner that emphisizes the correct combination of words. A good communicator -including writers- is defined by their use of voice and grammar.(standards of society) Voice seems to take a back seat to grammar though. Necessities for proper grammar include correct use of words, tenses, spelling, and puncuation.(textbook definitions) These are used in communicating with individuals, but limited to those who speak English. Proper English does not mean anything to a French speaking person or a dog about to bite you. You meet angry dogs more than intellectuals these days. Your voice is what is felt when you speak or write. A stern tone or loud yell is communicated quite well no matter what the lan... ...ticians word is worth more.(alienation of minorites) What had more influence over the people, the grammar of the voice? It might be necessary to weigh the worth of grammar in proper English. The world for those who speak it is becoming smaller. Proper English is becoming part of an elitist group which is also becoming smaller. Possibly less stress should be put on grammar. Few people understand perfect business language but a growling cat is understood quite well. English grammar is a created language, having both seperatist powers and anglocentric values. Voice is universal and quite older than grammar. Standards within English speaking areas must be questioned soon for it is becoming smaller and less powerful everyday. A rising population will require social skills. Seperating these from educated grammar will lead to greater problems.(One country under God...)

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

How Do Artists Use Symbols in the Meaning of Their Work Essay

Artists use symbols in different ways in their works to define their true feelings and to illustrate ideas and experiences. The three artists I will use to demonstrate how symbols can be used to gain different meanings are, Joseph Cornell, Salvador Dali and Rosalie Gascoigne. Cornell uses symbols to represent his fantasies and dreams, Dali also uses surrealist symbols to represent his desires and dreams and Gascoigne uses symbols to represent the landscape where she lived and decay. Joseph Cornell is an American sculptor and filmmaker. He was born on the 24th of December 1903 and died on the 29th of December 1972. Bebe Marie was created in the early 1940’s. It is made from a papered and painted wooden box that contains a doll in a dress made of cloth and a flower made also of cloth. If you look closely you will notice the intricate detail on the doll that has been placed behind the cluster of twigs. Because there is a doll in this sculpture, it perhaps has something to do with childhood and the numerous dark twigs suggests that the childhood portrayed was not a very delightful or happy one. Cornell likes to depict fantasy inspired and illusory images in his works, like in his work The Hotel Eden. Because Cornell lived in New York, he found many interesting and strange objects. He was also interested in second-hand bookstores, so he found a way to incorporate that in his work. Salvador Dali is a Spanish painter, sculptor and filmmaker. He was born on May 11th 1904 and he died on January the 23rd 1989. The Persistence of Memory was made in 1931. It was created by using oil on canvas. The work mainly features melted clocks and sky above the horizon. The clocks in this particular work are what give it a meaning. These symbols represent the facts that dreams can change and become strange and distorted. This work revolves around dreams and personal psychological fantasies. In fact, all of Dali’s work is based around dreams and psychological fantasies and generally things that simply do not occur in reality. For example, Dali’s work Dream Caused by the Flight of a Bumblebee around a Pomegranate a Moment Before Awakening. This work also goes back to the idea of reality and fantasy because of the tigers attacking the nude woman and the elephant hovering above the ocean. Rosalie Gascoigne is an Australian artist and sculptor. She was born on the 25th January 1917 and had died on the 23rd of October 1999. Regimental Colours was started in 1990 and finished in 1991. It was made using sawn soft drink crates on plywood. The work features various brands of soft drinks such as Schweppes. The main symbol in this work is the worn down surface. Many of her works are created around her interest in her surroundings. She likes to use older, worn down materials and signs that show age and have a history. Just like show has shown in Regimental Colours and also her work Sweet Lovers, she does this to show the memories and experiences through the aging material. In conclusion, symbols used in artworks are a very great way to express your inner feelings and emotions. Artists use this to their advantage so they can make their works more interesting and in depth.

Sunday, November 10, 2019

Ethical Analysis of Citigroup

Company Assessment: An Analysis of CitiGroup 1 Company Assessment: An Analysis of CitiGroup Introduction With origins dating back to 1812, Citigroup (Citi) is a global diversified financial services holding company providing both individuals and institutions with a broad range of financial products and services. These services include; consumer banking and credit; corporate and investment banking; securities brokerage; transaction services; and wealth management.Headquartered in Manhattan, NY, Citi currently has over 260,000 employees servicing 200 million customer accounts in more than 160 countries around the globe. Citi is organized into two divisions; Citicorp and Citi Holdings. Citicorp manages the consumer and institutional core client business, while Citi Holdings manages the brokerage and asset management divisions. Based on financial data obtained from the Citi website, the core st business (i. e. Citicorp), represents 92. 9% of the $19. 4 billion ($US) of the 1 quarter 2012 revenue.The total revenues of Citicorp are geographically diversified across the globe with North America representing 40% of the total, Asia at 22%, Latin America at 20% and Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) accounting for the remaining 18% (Citi Financials, 2012) Over its 200 year history, Citi has been a leading innovator in financial services starting in the 1920’s by becoming the first major U. S. bank to offer compound interest on savings accounts. Also, through the acquisition of Second National Bank, Citi has the distinction of being the first bank in New York to provide separate banking services for women.Further innovations include; offering unsecured personal loans and customer checking accounts in 1928 and 1936 respectively (Citi Timeline, 2012). Citi’s original mission of offering traditional banking services evolved as they grew, however, since the financial crisis of 2008, Citi has been selling off many of the non-core operations to refocus on the t raditional banking model. The refocused mission as stated on the corporate website is: â€Å"We strive to create the best outcomes for our clients and customers with financial solutions that are simple, creative and responsible. (Citi, 2012) The purpose of this paper is to conduct a review and overall ethical assessment of Citi which will include an overview of the mission, vision and values, ethics and compliance codes, leadership, corporate social responsibility as well as the corporate governance structure. Mission, Vision and Values Clicking on the â€Å"Our Company† link of the Citi website, you are immediately drawn to the bolded text stating the corporate vision: â€Å"160 Countries. 1 Vision. Citi works tirelessly to provide consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a broad range of financial products and services.We strive to create the best outcomes for our clients and customers with financial solutions that are simple, creative and responsible. à ¢â‚¬  (Citi, 2012) It is clear that Citi has a vision that places them as the global bank focused on client service, innovation and financial responsibility. Expanding upon the vision statement is the mission statement of Citi and the principles that guide them. The Mission statement is: â€Å"Meeting the World’s Challenges. Seizing its Greatest Opportunities† (Citi Mission, 2012).The four key principles that guide the company as they endeavor to deliver on their vision and mission are; Common Purpose; Ingenuity; Leadership; and Responsible Finance. Based on the stated vision, mission and principles, in my opinion, Citi can be described as a focused team, rewarded based on talent and merit, operating in an innovative culture with one clear goal to deliver transparent and prudent financial products globally. I consider the written vision, mission and guiding principles of Citi to be quite inspiring.Ethics and Compliance Codes In early 2005, Charles Prince, then CEO of Citi announced a bold strategy to transform the financial giant that was Citi. His plan, known as the â€Å"Five Point Ethics Plan†, was designed to; improve ethical training; focus on talent and development; integrate ethics into performance appraisals and compensation; improve communications; and strengthen ethical controls. (Restoring Ethics, 2012) As the successor of Sandy Weill, who, Johnson (2012) suggests typifies the ethically neutral leader (p. 19), Prince faced considerable skepticism on whether his plan could work in such a large and complex organization that had a history of significant regulatory scrutiny, and was linked to some of the biggest scandals in corporate history (e. g. Worldcom). While Prince had some critics, he also had some support. In the January 28, 2005 edition of BusinessWeek Online, Prince was described as a smart, logical thinker and another quote made by an analyst was†¦Ã¢â‚¬Å"I believe that non-charismatic Prince is going to be a more p ositive force at Citigroup than the other three charismatic CEOs going back to the 1960s. (Restoring Ethics, 2012) I believe he vision that Prince delivered after taking over from Weill, continues to be embraced by the current Citi CEO, Vikram Pandit as well as the Board of Directors. One of the key responsibilities of the Citi Board of Directors is to review and approve the Citi Code of Conduct (the â€Å"Code†). The Code outlines Citi’s principles, values and standards of practice for all employees of 2 Citi and as such can be viewed as Citi’s ethics code. Employees are expected to read and sign the Code, not necessarily as a condition of employment, but as a formalized agreement to abide by the standards of behavior outlined therein.Although not a formal contract of employment, the formal approach to signing the Code can be viewed as being integrated into HR practices. A point of interest is that Citi also strengthens the employee requirement to abide by the code by stating that even if an employee doesn’t return a signed copy, they are still bound by its terms and conditions. In fact, in the introduction to the Code, Citi is clear that failure to adhere to the Code can result in immediate termination of employment. The latest revision to the Code was made in 2011.The code is available in 26 different languages. While in the past, employees had periodic training on the Code, it appears that the training was ad hoc, but according to the Corporate Citizenship Report, in early 2012, Citi rolled out a formalized ethics training program for all employees. In addition to the Code that exists for all employees, there is an additional Code of Ethics that applies solely to the senior financial executives (CEO, CFO, etc†¦) and financial administrative staff.While it may appear that this is a sign of a higher ethical standard at Citi, as with the NYSE requirement for a firm-wide code of ethics, Sarbanes Oxley mandates a requirement for a separate Code of Ethics for senior executives. In reading both the firm-wide Code as well as the Code of Ethics for the senior executives, it’s interesting to note that the Code of Ethics reads like a very compliance based document, while the firm-wide Code reads more like a call to action for all employees to act with the utmost integrity. In fact, the word integrity appears 9 times in a relatively short document.In all fairness to Citi, they do specify that the Code of Ethics should be considered a supplement to the firm-wide Code and they provide a link to the Code as part of the document. Citi also has a set of ethical principles that applies to suppliers. In short, Citi expects that suppliers adhere to the same high standards of practice that governs Citi. The key areas that the principles apply to are; ethical business practices (Integrity, transparency and community engagement); human rights in the workplace; environmental sustainability; and management systems and implementation.Further information on these principles is available at http://www. citigroup. com/citi/citizen/people/diversity/supplierprinciples. htm. One final point regarding the ethical policies of Citi would be that they operate a 24/7 ethics hotline where employees can report ethical concerns and remain anonymous to the extent that the law will allow. While it is unclear if the hotline is operated independently of Citi, (it appears as if it is not) there is a strong focus on confidentiality and although I was unable to identify the name of the individual, the Code identifies that Citi has an ethics officer.Leadership It is the responsibility of a leader to establish and foster the organizational climate. The leader’s ability to cast shadow or shed light will permeate throughout an organization and ultimately shape the culture. In short, regardless of who is named the formal ethics officer, the leader of the organization is charged with that duty. Citi is managed by an executive team of 24 senior leaders from key regions and divisions across Citigroup's global network. While the ethnic origins of the executive are not specifically mentioned, there appears to be a wide range of ethnic backgrounds on the executive committee.Unlike the Board of Directors however, the executive committee has only 1 woman, Cece Stewart who is the president of US, Consumer and Commercial Banking. Citi maintains a compensation philosophy that attempts to align compensation with their overall Mission statement. The key objectives of this philosophy are to; enhance shareholder value; attract talent; recognize contributions; manage risk; provide independent oversight; and transparency to all stakeholders. You can visit http://www. citigroup. com/citi/investor/data/comp_phil_policy. df? ieNocache=340 for further information on Citi’s compensation policy. Some evidence to support the integrity of Citi’s compensation practices would be that, according to the 2011 Proxy Statement, as part of the process for making incentive awards for 2011, the Personal and Compensation committee considered the April 2011 â€Å"say on pay† vote which received as 92. 9% favorable. Perhaps the vote was biased upwards as a result of Pandit’s decision to only accept a â€Å"total† compensation package of $1 for 2010, and most of 2009?While I was unable to find any concise data that represents the pay gap between the top executives and the front line employees, I am pretty confident that for all of 2010, and the better part of 2009, the CEO was the lowest paid employee of Citi. The table on the following page provides some compensation data for the past 3 years for the key senior executives of Citi. 3 Change in Value of Deferred All Other Compensation Compenstion ($) ($) 0 0 0 73,047 51,995 49,117 0 0 0 0 14,700 0 3,750 14,700 9,800 14,700 14,700 9,800 14,700 14,700 Executive Member Year Salary ($) 1,671,370 1 125,001 500,000 500,000 416,667 500,000 500,000 500,000 500,000Bonus ($) 5,331,452 0 0 2,200,000 Stock Awards ($) 0 0 0 Option Awards ($) 7,839,581 0 0 Total ($) 14,857,103 1 128,751 7,160,916 4,728,462 5,063,817 12,984,481 9,509,800 11,276,454 11,354,536 0 0 11,446,900 10,116,895 10,400,007 Vikram Pandit CEO John Gerspach CFO John Havens COO Brian Leach Chief Risk Officer Manuel Medina-Mora CEO Latin America 2011 2010 2009 2011 2010 2009 2011 2010 2009 2011 2,333,333 2,039,836 4,166,667 4,583,333 4,750,000 2,719,781 9,000,000 10,327,374 434,380 5,400,000 2,039,836 5,000,000 3,400,000 2011 2010 2009 546,966 546,966 546,966 4,181,214 0 0 3,998,939 2,719,781 7,450,911 0 9,328,010 361,984 2,119,018 163,047 0 0 0 Source: taken from the 2011 Citi Proxy Report While on the surface, multimillion dollar compensation packages may appear egregious, however, for each of the executives above, approximately 50% of the total compensation package is deferred and/or exists under a multiyear vesting provision that is not only tied to tenure at Citi, it is directly tied to the performance of the organization. For 2011, there does appear to be a â€Å"traditional† pay gap between the CEO and the other â€Å"C’s† and I suspect that the gap widens significantly as you move down to the front line workers.By looking at just the total cash (salary and bonus) component of the compensation packages that range from a low of $2. 5 million to a high of $7 million, many people will undoubtedly feel several of the other condemning emotions. But to add a little perspective, for 2011, Citi’s charitable giving was more than 2 times the value of the total (cash and deferred) executive compensation of the individuals above. Also, at a total of $6. 4 billion, the 2011 commitment to climate change initiatives represented over 8% of Citi’s 2011 revenues, and almost 60% of net income.I must admit, besides a little wallet envy, I feel mostly admiration for the work, both social and economic that t he leadership of Citi has done that started in 2005, was derailed during the financial crisis, and has continued over the past few years. Based on this evidence, I would challenge an assertion that the current management is hoarding rewards at the expense of all other stakeholders. When Prince took over leadership of Citi in 2005, his calm, intellectual demeanor was quite the opposite of the â€Å"larger than life† charismatic CEO that preceded him.Since taking over from Prince in 2007, Pandit appears to have followed by example and has demonstrated some remarkable unselfish actions as he navigated Citi through the biggest financial crisis since the Great Depression. Despite the critics of the financial industry, Citi, through sound leadership, ranks well on the triple bottom line accounting metrics that forms the foundation of Corporate Social Responsibility. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) One of the biggest criticisms of CSR reporting is that it is simply a public re lations tool designed as window dressing to improve image.After the financial crisis of 2008, no other industry would have as many critics as the financial industry. To provide a little evidence of the integrity of an organization’s CSR claims may help st soothe the critics. Since the early part of the 21 century, Citi has been consistently been a constituent company of the Dow Jones World and North America Sustainability Indexes as well as the FTSE 4Good Index, and in 2011, Citi also became a component of the STOXX Global ESG Leaders indices. It is clear that the CSR activities of Citi are being recognized outside the organization and may have a little more credibility than window dressing.Citi defines its Corporate Social Responsibility framework as Global Citizenship. The three key focus areas of their citizenship efforts are; delivering financial solutions at affordable costs, sustaining the environment 4 and valuing Citi employees. Progress towards these three focus area s are provided as a summary page within the Global Citizenship report, but also as separate publication (attached as Appendix A). There are four key metrics for Financial Inclusion performance indicator. First, they provide charitable contributions (Strategic Giving), which at $121. 9 million for 2011 (1. % of net income), and represents an average annual growth rate of 13% since the end of the financial crisis in 2008. Second, is Small Business Lending, which at almost $8 billion for 2011, has grown by 75% since 2009, and actually surpassed the 2011 goal of $7 billion. nd The third metric is the provision of affordable housing lending, which at $2. 0 billion, places Citi, for the 2 consecutive year, the top affordable housing lender in the US. The final metric under Financial Inclusion is Global Microfinance. In 2011, Citi has provided microloans to almost one million lenders of which 92% of loans where to women.Under sustaining the environment performance indicator, Citi includes metrics for e-communications, clean energy, greenhouse gas emissions and using ESRM screening criteria for financial transactions. As one of the world’s leading credit card companies, Citi’s movement towards paperless statements has, at 29% penetration (2011), doubled since 2008. Under the clean energy metric, in 2007, Citi announced a 10 year, $50 billion commitment to activities directed at mitigating climate change. As of the end of 2011, 5 years in to the program, 73% of the total has been committed.Under the greenhouse gas emissions metric, in 2005, Citi announced a 10 year plan for a 25% reducing in greenhouse gas emissions. As of 2011, there has been a 13. 6% percent reduction since the 2005 baseline. In 2011, the integration of environmental and social factors into the traditional risk management screens for project financing covered over 400 projects globally. Citi appears to have a significant focus on environmental concerns through written policies and state ments as well as real action. Further information on Citi’s position on the environment and their ESRM polices can be found at http://www. itigroup. com/citi/environment/ The final area covered under the report card is the metrics that cover the way Citi values their employees. The key metrics are; training; satisfaction; diversity; and employee volunteering. Citi has a very diverse workforce, and though 61 network groups consisting of 15,000 employee members in 18 locations around the world, Citi encourages employee diversity and support. Employee satisfaction has been increasing since the end of the financial crisis and at 73% satisfaction for 2011; it represents an overall 10% increase since 2009.It is unclear whether the increase in a result of simply happy to have a job in a tough economy, or true job satisfaction, in any event, Citi appears to have a more satisfied workforce. Employee training has seen a remarkable increase since the 2008 financial crises. Training acti vities cover areas such as, leadership, management, product and compliance and since 2008; training hours have increased by over 80% at 38. 4 hours per year per employee. Employees of Citi provided almost 800,000 hours of volunteering activities during 2011, almost 30% growth over 2010.It seems that giving back to the community not only is evidenced by financial metrics but also by the employee’s action. Although Citi’s key performance indicators focus on; Financial Inclusion; Environmental Sustainability; and Valuing our Employees, the Global Citizenship report is quite extensive and can be viewed as a supplement to the Citi Annual Report. In addition to the three key focus areas covered above, the report also covers corporate governance, which is covered in the section that follows, as well as, how Citi serves the customer and maintains sustainable and diverse supply chain relationships.The report outlines both Citi’s achievements as well as the challenges the y face and breaks down Citizenship on a regional basis. In guiding their citizenship activities, Citi uses a stakeholder engagement approach to and list their stakeholders as; Customers; Investors; Employees; Regulators; Suppliers; Community Leaders; Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO’s); Socially Responsible Investors; Media; and Competitors. The communication channel used for each stakeholder and examples are included as Appendix B.Corporate Governance Corporate Governance has been defined as â€Å"The framework of rules and practices by which a board of directors ensures accountability, fairness, and transparency in a company's relationship with its stakeholders (financiers, customers, management, employees, government, and the community). † (Governance, 2012). As an appendix to the annual proxy statement, Citi provides the Citigroup Inc. Corporate Governance Guidelines. Consistent with the overall corporate mission, the corporate governance mission is†¦Ã¢â‚¬ Citigroup Inc. the â€Å"Company†) aspires to the highest standards of corporate governance and ethical conduct: doing what we say; reporting results with accuracy and transparency; and maintaining full compliance with the laws, rules and regulations that govern the Company’s businesses. † (Citi Governance, 2012). This comprehensive document outlines the guidelines and policies with respect to the responsibilities, term, expected qualifications, and compensation of the Board and the committees thereof.Of notable mention in the governance policy would be the restriction against interlocking directorates, the requirement for personal stock ownership, and the annual review and assessment of board performance conducted by the Nomination, Governance and Public Affairs Committee. 5 One shortfall of the policy would be the lack of any set term for a board member. While there are two schools of thought with respect to fixed term appointments, in my opinion, the advantag e of bringing in fresh ideas with new board members would outweigh any potential loss of knowledge that would exit with an entrenched board member.I believe staggered board appointments with fixed term would be an enhancement to the Citi corporate governance policy. As mentioned in the Ethics and Compliance Codes section above, as a requirement to list on the NYSE, a company is required to have a formal code of ethics. In addition to this requirement, the NYSE also requires a minimum standard for the independence of directors. To meet the regulation, Citi would need a minimum of 9 independent directors. At the end of 2011, 11 of the 13 member board were independent. The two connected members were Pandit, and the Citi Chairman, Michael O’Neill.The remaining board members consist of a diverse group of active and retired business professionals, a philanthropic foundation president, a former state federal reserve bank official, a leader from the investment management community as well as Ivey league academics. Although only 3 of the board members are women, almost 40% of the members are visible minorities which also includes the Chairman and the CEO of Citi. Simply put, the Board of Directors of Citi is comprised of a very comprehensive representation of their stakeholder groups as identified in Appendix B.As of 2011, there are 5 standing committees of the Board: Audit; Risk Management and Finance; Executive; Personnel and Compensation; and Nomination, Governance and Public Affairs. A separate Charter exists for each committee that outlines the mission, duties and requirements regarding independence of the committee members. The Audit and Risk management committee is comprised of all independent directors. O’Neill is the current Chair of the Executive as well as the Personnel and Compensation Committees (non-voting) and he sits as a voting member of theNomination, Governance and Public Affairs Committee. Among other roles, the Nomination, Governance and Public Affairs Committee is responsible for the environmental sustainability and stakeholder engagement activities of Citi. Since 2005, non-employee directors receive $75,000 per year plus a deferred stock award valued at $150,000 on the date of issuance with a 2 year vesting period. With the requirement to own stock of Citi, as well as the deferred vesting of the majority of the compensation they will receive, directors of Citi are incented to act in the best interest of the organization.SEC Investigations As a publicly traded, multinational, diversified financial services organization, incorporated in the U. S. , it should not come as any surprise that in the course of their business dealings, both the organization and the individual staff of Citi will be subject to SEC litigations and investigations on a frequent basis. In fact, a search on the SEC website (http://www. sec. gov/litigation. shtml), and filtering the search parameters to include only â€Å"Litigation† an d â€Å"Regulatory Actions† you will actually find too many to list.In fact, since January 1, 2005, there have been a total of 284 Regulatory Actions and 140 Litigations that has Citi named. It would be quite misleading to state that all litigations listed Citi as the defendant, however from my brief review of some of the search results there appears to be complaints related to the accounting treatment of credit derivatives, fair value misstatements of sub-prime mortgage exposure, many of which listed most of the financial services industry. There was however one interesting investigation made in 2008 that questioned the independence of the Board of Directors.While I can’t comment too much on the ethical leadership of the firm leading up to the financial crisis, evidence such as the highly publicized investigations, along with the involvement in Worldcom and other major financial collapses, certainly cast a shadow on the past activities. However, during the tenure of t he current CEO, as well as his predecessor, the Board of Directors appear to have addressed many of the high level governance ethical shortcomings that were past investigations by the SEC.Conclusion Perhaps the most difficult aspect of conducting a review of an organization is coming to a definitive stance, based on concrete evidence, on the degree of ethical culture that exists inside the organization. Without living inside an organization, how can you state that ethical conduct permeates across all aspects of the firm activities? Operating in an industry that has undoubtedly has the highest level of public cynicism regarding ethical conduct, how could anyone take the stance that any financial services company scores well from any ethical standpoint?Despite this challenge, my impression from this review is that Citi does indeed rank well. Since taking over the firm in 2007, carrying on from Prince’s â€Å"Five Point Ethics Plan†, Pandit, has lead the firm back on firm er financial ground by shedding much of the troubled assets and refocusing the operation more towards a traditional banking model. Despite participating in the TARP and subsequently paying back all funds borrowed, under Pandit’s leadership, Citi has become one of the best capitalized banks in the U.S. He won high 6 praise from public opinion by accepting a total compensation package of $1 for most of 2009 and all of 2010, becoming undoubtedly, the lowest paid employee of Citi. Those types of unselfish acts, despite his personal net worth, should be viewed as a sign of an admirable leadership style. The critics statement that he doesn’t need/deserve the money is, in my opinion, ludicrous and shouldn’t overshadow what is a truly admirable action.An ethical culture starts with an ethical leader posed ready to lead by example and in my opinion, by his example, Mr. Pandit ranks very well. In addition to the profit motive, Citi approaches it business with a demonstrat ed commitment to environmental and social key performance metrics, engaging with all stakeholders, going above and beyond the simple legal requirements and acting as an agent of moral influence with suppliers.Adding to this ethical framework a very committed CEO, a strong board representing stakeholders, and ethics training, it’s hard to argue that the firm lacks a robust ethical framework. It appears as if the vision of Prince continues to be embraced by Pandit and Citi’s current leadership. While it may be a long road ahead in the court of public opinion, Citi appears to be on the right track to shed the degree of cynicism the financial industry has, but like most future outcomes, only time will tell. 7 References

Friday, November 8, 2019

Why the Civil War Laster 4 Years essays

Why the Civil War Laster 4 Years essays The American Civil War was a peoples war in which heroes and future leaders emerged transforming our country into a structured and disciplined nation. Fought on both sides with immeasurable courage it shall be, and is forever remembered as a test of perseverance and suffering. The civil war started and ended almost 4 years to the date with 620,000 casualties and a cost of over 6.1 billion dollars. Countless homes and farms were destroyed leaving peoples lives forever scared as they suffered throughout the war. But why did it last so long when expectations had been so low at the beginning of the war. Even before the first shots of the war were fired few believed the war would escalate to such a high and serious level as it did. There are in fact many reasons why the war waged on as long as it did. Whether it was because of the advantages the south had over the north or the north had over the south its hard to say. The advantages each one had over the other seemed to flawlessl y blend together in order to turn a 4 month skirmish into a 4 year total war. One of the first things that comes to mind when you try to think of why the war lasted so long the first one that comes first is how President Lincoln definitely had his hands tied when it came to finding the right general to fight the war. He bounced from one general to next almost faster than we could keep track of them. On the other hand the south had excellent generals defeating Lincolns every attempt to find a general to defeat the south and bring the union back together. Gen. George McClellan was wonderful at organizing an army but when it came to battle tactics and plans it was a whole different story. Lincoln said of McClellan he is an admirable engineer but he seems to have a special talent for a stationary engine. His peninsular campaign failed miserably like most everything else he did leaving Lincoln no choice but to replace him. Lin...

Tuesday, November 5, 2019

Pioneer Tree Species and Biological Forest Succession

Pioneer Tree Species and Biological Forest Succession Pioneer plant species are the first predictable seeders, adaptable to many conditions and the most vigorous flora to colonize disturbed or damaged ecosystems. These plants readily acclimate to bare soil, have the ability to grow and regenerate and respond vigorously on even the poorest soil sites and environmental conditions. Pioneer tree species are also known for their ability to readily seed or root sprout on bare soil and withstand the rigors of low moisture availability, full sunlight and high temperatures along with poorly available site nutrients. These are the plants, including trees, that you first see after a disturbance or fire in newly forming ecotones during field succession. These first tree colonizers become the initial forest tree component of a new forest. North American Pioneers Common pioneer tree species in North America: red cedar, alder, black locust, most pines and larches, yellow poplar, aspen, and many others. Many are valuable and are managed as even-aged stands, many are not desirable as a crop tree and removed for a more desired species. The Process of Forest Succession Biological succession and often-called ecological succession  is the process whereby disturbed existing forests regenerate or where fallow untended lands return to a forested condition. Primary succession is the ecological term where organisms are occupying a site for the first time (old fields, roadbeds, agricultural lands). Secondary succession is where organisms that were part of an earlier successional stage before a disturbance return (forest fire, logging, insect damage). The first plants to grow naturally in a burned or cleared area are usually weeds, shrubs or inferior scrubby trees. These plant species are often controlled or totally removed as defined in a prescribed forest management plan to prepare the area for higher quality tree regeneration. The Classification of Trees following the Pioneers It is important to know which trees will first attempt to cover the site. It is also important to know usually the most dominant tree species in the region that will eventually take over in the process of biological succession. Those trees that move on to occupy and become the main tree species are known as the climax forest community. The regions where these communities of tree species are dominant become the climax forest. Here are the major climax forest regions in North America: The Northern Boreal Coniferous Forest. This forest region is associated with the northern zone of North America, mostly in Canada.The Northern Hardwood Forest. This forest region is associated with the hardwood forests of the Northeastern United States and Eastern Canada.The Central Broadleaf Forest. This forest region is associated with the central broadleaf forests of the Central United States.The Southern Hardwood/Pine Forest. This forest region is associated with the Southern United States along the lower Atlantic through the Gulf coastal areas.The Rock Mountain Coniferous Forest. This forest region is associated with the mountain range from Mexico to Canada.The Pacific Coast Forest. This forest region is with the coniferous forest that hugs the Pacific coast of both the United States and Canada.

Sunday, November 3, 2019

PRIDE AND PREJUDICE Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

PRIDE AND PREJUDICE - Essay Example Womens roles were limited to that of a homemaker, where she took care of her children and husband without any complains what so ever. Education during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century was not a state organized or centrally controlled affair. It was run mainly by the churches in the locality or by charitable organizations where children of the middle and upper classes were not sent for education. At this time class distinction was at its peak, great stress being laid on family wealth and powerful connections. Children of the affluent class were imparted education at the privacy of their homes and women were mostly taught lessons that would help them to run their future homes, like practical lessons related to cookery, sewing, singing, dancing and religious classes. Teaching Greek and Latin were a privilege kept mainly for the boys and the very few grammar schools that did exist did not admit girls. Well known educational institutions like the Eton, Oxford and Cambridge were special facilities reserved for the boys only. Higher education was seen as a completely masculine domain were women dared not to enter. Young men who wanted to further themselves in the social milieu opted for the church, law or the army. Women saw the scope of social advancement and wealth acquisition only through marriages and their social upbringing were aimed at this. With not much of a career and no political rights as such, higher education for women was not even considered an option during those times. The patriarchal nature is aptly shown in the starting lines of â€Å"Pride and Prejudice†, as Jane Austen tells us in a satirical tone â€Å"It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife† (Austen, p.1). In this famous novel Austen paints a wonderful picture of the social fabric of the late eighteenth century England.

Friday, November 1, 2019

Wa#2 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Wa#2 - Assignment Example An example is an employee who gets access to several reports on salaries and decides to compute the individual salaries of some employees. She is allowed to access each report individually, but she does not have permission to know individual salaries. In other words, not properly understanding the implications of access to several data all at once can lead to semantic security breaches. 2. Reporting systems increase the risks of semantic security breaches because they give access to several reports simultaneously for reporting needs. Reporting systems do not realize that giving a bulk of information to one employee can result to the latter using them to deduce certain information that they are not allowed to know or access. These systems are important to getting work done, but they can offer access to too much information that can result to semantic security breaches. These systems unintentionally offer information that one person should not have, provided that the person does some deduction that can result to logical assumptions. 3. An organization can protect itself from accidental losses due to semantic security problems by ensuring that no one person can get access to several data systems or data that can result to semantic security breaches. At the same time, it can hire one people to do one part of the job and not all of the activities of the job, so each person can have limited permissions to access data. Furthermore, it can create clear policies about permissions and data restrictions and penalties for transgressions. These transgressions can prevent employees from conducting data triangulation. Moreover, it can also ensure that the organization has records of the data access it gives to different employees, so that if semantic security breaches happen, they can determine who accessed what. At the same time, the organization can purchase insurance on its semantic security, so that it can have access to