Wednesday, October 30, 2019

Questions Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 4

Questions - Assignment Example Some of the differences between mitosis include but not limited to, mitotic cells divide once whereas meiotic cells divide twice. Mitosis results in cell replication as for meiosis, genetic recombination and production of reproductive cells being the sole aim. Mitosis doesn’t yield exact copies whereas meiosis does. Mitosis also gives rise to diploid cells while meiosis gives haploid cells. DNA crossover occurs only in meiosis (Armstrong, 2007). As for similarities, duplication of an organism’s genome takes place only once preceding any other duplication in both processes. There is the existence of metaphase plates, centrioles in both (Armstrong, 2007). Basic steps of division are the same for both. Mitosis and meiosis occurs both in eukaryotic cells. Finally, both represent reproduction processes. A wild population contains tall and short plants. In one cross, two parental tall plants yield all tall progeny. In another experiment, two short plants are crossed and all progeny are short (cross 2). In the third experiment (cross number 3), two different short plants from cross 2 are crossed and 23 tall progeny and 77 short progeny are observed. The F1 generation came about through selfing of F1 plants. While maintaining Mendel’s first law, law of segregation, where the gamete is formed when each member of the allelic get disjointed from their other member. Confirmation of accuracy of his law through selfing of F2 plants yielded all tall and short plants respectively (Tornqvist, 2006). This can be depicted using a Punnet square as depicted on the next

Monday, October 28, 2019

Employment in America Essay Example for Free

Employment in America Essay The United States is amongst the global states which are embracing low rates of unemployment. Except for the Latin America which is fiercely allied to high informal employment the rest of the American continent is having a low unemployment rate which goes as low as 3% compared to 55-60% for most Asian and African countries. Broadly, the effects of law rate of unemployment in the US can be allied to the interaction phenomena in both the macroeconomic and microeconomic structures which have acted to influence the broad array of the economic growth. The state of the economy is stable with few challenges into the inhibitors of poor states of economy. Over decade of years, US have enjoyed the superiority context into a stable state of the economy with elsewhere high purchasing power of the American dollar. Across the global imagery, it has enjoyed various economic benefits and economic integrations of its stable state of economy and strong purchasing power of its currency. High state of economic activity have been the launching pad and the benchmark into high capital inflows from other states through foreign investment in America and the economies allied to favorable balance of payments enjoyed by the America. From the favorability in the economic structures, America has continued to embrace the economic structures of a macroeconomic capacity which provide instruments for high rates of employment. For states within the Latin American region, the high rate of informal employment is much functional and beneficiary with even better wages than most formal employments in the developing countries. Broadly, the high rate of employment/low rate of unemployment in American can summarily be explained by the operation interlinkage between various macroeconomic and microeconomic structures. However, the great deal behind this situation can be credited to the macroeconomic variables which are captured in the broad economic equation. Elsewhere, the fiscal and monitory variables in the functional outlay of the American system provides an adequate pursuit for moral sense of high rates of employment. (Riggs, 2004) At one level, microeconomic variables lobby in to define the factors at an individual level which influence and determine the state of employment. This is mostly credited to the reciprocating factors in the relationship between household income and the levels of consumption and savings. Generally, the economic model of personal income is described as a function of consumption and saving. The relative changes to one another gives the respective marginal propensities (to consume and save). The two are reciprocals of one another where a decrease in one will increase the other. However, within America, the individual population has high marginal propensity to save due to the high income obtained from the formal employment and informal cases. With high saving ratios, the population is able to finance investment cost for new investment structure. The general investment portfolio within the US is highly favorable and highly growing to shoulder in the relatively high employment requirements. High investment structures provide an adequate room with which the broader human population is able to be absorbed within the employment structures. (Riggs, 2004) Macroeconomic influences provide a great refuge for creating employment opportunities. Such macroeconomic tools can be defined in terms of the economic environment to yield adequate economic conditions for a high rate of employment. Generally, the fiscal economic variable does a lot to provide adequate environment for ensuring high state of economic activity. Generally, the federal government has done a lot about its spending to the public. High government spending has been a benchmark in the foundations of high states of economic activity which does not compromise high employment rates. Government spending has been of a diverse nature in which it has provided various insurance allowances to the unemployed above other social structures allied to the public population. Government spending has helped to increase the broad income supply within the public. High expenditure has been an instrument in to the provision of capital for investment by the people. Elsewhere, the federal government has been in the forefront in instituting various structures aimed at providing adequate environment in its investment in government investment. Fiscal policy has also been promoted by various adequate systems in its taxing structure. Consequently, the taxing system has provided a comprehensive package of desirable rate of taxes which are less prone driving out investors from the economy due to losses through government taxation. Through adequate levels of taxes which include tax exemption and rebates for various persons within the economy, the people and investment bodies have embraced the value consequence allied to such law rates of taxes. (Riggs, 2004) Within the America, the monitory policy does a lot in providing an adequate environment for high rates of employment and the reduction of various unemployment inequalities borne of the people. The strong sense of the monitory policy provides a structure with which capital inflow is available. Indeed, America is amongst the global states in which case capital inflow is subordinately of high scale and encompassing no monitory rigidities. Broadly, the American monitory policy can be described in terms of the state of money supply and the demand for American dollar. However, the two sides (both the demand and the supply conditions) show a concrete rigidity in their equilibrium level. The state of money supply is equal to the relative demand which helps to provide an attractive state of equilibrium. With equilibrium in the money market, the American dollar has embraced a high state of purchasing power. Economically, such high purchasing power has been the backbone of facilitating high capital inflows within the states. High purchasing power has provided economic advantage in the international symmetry of economic integrations. Through favorable conditions of economic integrations, America has embraced high capital inflows from its trading partners. (Riggs, 2004) Alternatively a positive challenge into the monitoring system has been a solid factor for the influence of a positive balance of payment. Economically, desirable conditions and states of the monetary marketing are discretionally importance factors in determining the state of employment. Every high employment is an in depended variable of the state of monitory policies. Conceptually, stable monetary economy defines the stability in the economic integration and the parameters of balance of payments. A stable economy is discretionary important for providing structures aimed at improving the state of employment. For every essence of capital inflow within America, this has been a foundation aimed at improving the export level and decreasing the state of foreign imports. Every aspect of high exports than imports helps to improve the state of employment. To America, the low rates of unemployment are counter factors determined by the existing state of high export than imports. Stability in the economic state and the purchasing power of the currency has helped to improve the state of capital inflow within America High capital investment from the foreign world which has helped to improve the existing state of employment states. Summarily, the low state of unemployment in America can be allied to the prevailing economic structures existing within the American economy. The same has favored the stable state of investment which has on the other hand helped to increase the rate of employment within the state.

Saturday, October 26, 2019

Jigsaw Dinosaurs :: essays research papers

Jigsaw Dinosaurs Jigsaw Dinosaurs is a non-fiction book as well as a child’s toy under one hard cover. The non-fiction aspect of it offers some introductory detail on the physical appearance and social behavior of six different dinosaurs: Allosaurus, Stegosaurus, Diplodocus, Tyrannosaurus Rex, Triceratops and Oviraptor. These are presented on each left-hand page along with information inserts about some of the smaller dinosaurs: Ornitholestes, Lesothosaurus, Compsognathus, Protoceratops, Velociraptors and Quetzalcoatlus. To complete the left-hand page is a 'stone-age' information rock sign, on each page, offering a little-known dinosaur fact under the title: Did you know? The toy aspect of it involves six different jigsaw puzzles elaborating on the main dinosaur being discussed on the left-hand page. The puzzles, illustrated by Anne Sharp, fully occupy each right page in the book. These puzzles make learning for the younger children easier, and more fun because of the clear simplicity of them. The last double page of the book is an illustrated time line following the common dinosaurs through the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous periods. This sums up the dinosaur period quite nicely. The illustrations are colored in highly appealing blue and green, red and yellow, purple and orange. The colors are moody, evoking the eeriness of the Mesozoic period. The illustrations fit the large text nicely so if this is being read aloud children will be able to follow lovely detail in the illustration, which will assist with gaining memory retention. Children will be able to track dinosaurs mentioned in text on one page, in illustrations on another: another fun game for dinosaur recognition. There is a nice sense of action about the illustrations, which is also reflected in the text. For example, the text asks: "Do you think the Struthiomimus will see the T Rex in time?" and Anne Sharp draws a distracted Struthiomimus and a T Rex ready to pounce. Very effectively. These could be used as hypothetical scenarios to encourage young kids to create their own imaginative plots to fit the illustration and the text question: Do you think... And what will happen next...? As there is no definitive ending supplied. So, this book offers some great catalysts for developing creative thinking in children. And even on re-reading, children could be encouraged to offer different responses, and even dramatize the very scenarios they create, further intensifying their pleasure in what they have read here. There are strong and weak points associated with having a book that is also a puzzle.

Thursday, October 24, 2019

A Message from Disadvantaged Children of Friends for Street Children in Ho Chi Minh City – Vietnam

A message from disadvantaged children of Friends For Street children in Ho Chi Minh City – Vietnam Ladies and Gentlemen, Ho Chi Minh City is an economic city of Vietnam, with a population of more than 8 million. Attracted by the rapid economic expansion of Ho Chi Minh City, a large number of migrants from many parts of the country is coming. However, they mostly are poor in material, education, professional skills which leads to unstable jobs and low salaries. They live together with many other family’s members in a temporary houses or narrow rental rooms. They cannot earn enough for living.It becomes so difficult for these parents to manage school fee for their children; even they need financial help from their children. Many children of these families have to support financially by selling lottery tickets, newspapers, shoes polishing, or begging. Why we help disadvantaged children? The reality of early labors and dropping out of school of migrant children in Ho Chi Mi nh City is so common. Adding to these labor migrant children is poor children of Ho Chi Minh City who live in slums. They are also the target for child labors, illiterate and many social issues.Facing with the reality that many children cannot access school and their rights are neglected, Friends For Street Children Association was established in 1984, purposely to assist the disadvantaged children in their studies. The Association organizes seven Development Centers to serve about 1200 children studying from Kindergarten to Grade 5. What do children benefit from your help? With the help of donors, sponsors, individuals and groups, and organizations for disadvantaged children at cities of development countries like Vietnam, we can prevent and resolve little by little the basic issues such as: Preventing the dropping out of the school of children. – Reducing illiterate. – Resolving child labor. – Reducing child malnutrition. – Increasing child self-confide nt and self-esteem due to lacking social integrating environment. – Encouraging respect of child basic rights. – Providing a good environment for education in order to reduce social crime concerning children. Your support will help us to organize what activities? Your support will give children chances to access a good education. In FFSC system, we organize free education for children from 5 to 15 years old included Pre-school and Elementary School classes.This is a very important step to support all children to excel certain knowledge in order to integrate public schools. Without supporting, it will be impossible for poor and labor child to access further education. – At the center, we also organize language classes such as English, Japanese for children; – Vocational training courses such as sewing, embroidery for girls; – Building up child self-confident and social understanding through life skills and life values courses; – Improving chi ldren’s creativities through recreation programs according to age such as circle games, drawing; Improving their health through outdoor body exercises; – Healthcare, teeth care and providing milk; – Sponsorships for poor children who study at public schools to prevent dropping out due to financial reason; – Supporting children and families psychologically through home visits. What’s impact of our support for children? Our purpose focuses on and enhances well-being and a better future of disadvantaged children. – These disadvantaged children will have chance to access and integrate the public school and to develop their talents. Some girls who are trained can earn living in the future. – They are served better in nutrition and health. – They will gain a balance on psychology. – They have chances to have fun as any other children. – These poor children can proceed higher education in order to graduate from high scho ol and college. – They are provided necessary knowledge and skills to live healthily, happily and usefully in future society. Our dear guests, we would like to express our deepest gratitude for your kind presence here today. Thank you for your attentive listening.

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Spectroscopic Determination of Iron with Phenanthroline

Experiment A Spectroscopic determination of Iron with Phenanthroline Unknown # 2 Mass of Mohr’s Salt: 0. 2040 1. 5mL of 6M acetic acid was measured and transferred into a 100mL volumetric flask with a pipette and diluted to the mark. Concentration= [0. 2040(Â ±0. 0001)g/100(Â ±0. 08)mL]*[(1mol/392. 16g)/(1L/1000mL)] = 0. 005202(Â ±0. 09382%) = 0. 005202(Â ±0. 000005)mol/L 2. 10mL of the above stock solution was transferred to a 250 mL volumetric flask and diluted to the mark. Concentration= [0. 005202(Â ±0. 9382%)mol/L]*[10(Â ±0. 02)mL/250(Â ±0. 12mL)] = 0. 00020808(Â ±0. 22607%) = 0. 00020808(Â ±0. 0000005)mol/L 3. Standard error of burette is 0. 02mL in every reading. Solution| Desired Volume| Absorption 1| Absorption 2| Average Absorption| Standard 1| 30| 0. 662| 0. 664| 0. 662| Standard 2| 25| 0. 544| 0. 546| 0. 545| Standard 3| 20| 0. 43| 0. 434| 0. 432| Standard 4| 15| 0. 317| 0. 309| 0. 313| Standard 5| 10| 0. 222| 0. 217| 0. 2195| Standard 6| 5| 0. 113| 0. 112 | 0. 1125| Unknown 1| | | | 0. 096| Unknown 2| | | | | 4.Sample standard concentration calculation with standard 1, Concentration= [30(Â ±0. 02)mL/100(Â ±0. 08)mL]*[0. 00020808(Â ±0. 0000005)mol/L] = 0. 000062424(Â ±0. 2807%) = 0. 000062424(Â ±0. 0000002) 5. From the Calibration curve of Absorbance Vs Concentration, we know the equation of the graph is : y = 10553. 63(Â ±190. 5558)x – 0. 00363(Â ±0. 007721) Where, y is the absorbance and x is the concentration. We know the absorbance of the unknown is 0. 096. Therefore, 0. 096 = 10553. 63(Â ±190. 5558)x – 0. 00363(Â ±0. 007721) x= [0. 096+0. 00363(Â ±0. 07721)]/ [10553. 63(Â ±190. 5558)] = 0. 00000944(Â ±7. 957%) = 0. 0000094(Â ±0. 0000008) 6. Standard Concentrations| Uncertainties| Average Absorbencies| 0. 000062424| 0. 0000002| 0. 662| 0. 00005202| 0. 00000013| 0. 545| 0. 000041616| 0. 000000108| 0. 432| 0. 000031212| 0. 00000007| 0. 313| 0. 000020808| 0. 00000006| 0. 2195| 0. 000010404| 0. 00000005| 0. 1125| SUMMARY OUTPUT| Column1| Regression Statistics| Multiple R| 0. 999348603| R Square| 0. 99869763| Adjusted R Square| 0. 998372037| Standard Error| 0. 008293572| Observations| 6|ANOVA| Column1| Column2| Column3| Column4| Column5| | df| SS| MS| F| Significance F| Regression| 1| 0. 2109807| 0. 2109807| 3067. 32299| 6. 3634E-07| Residual| 4| 0. 000275133| 6. 8783E-05| | | Total| 5| 0. 211255833| | | | Column1| Coefficients| Standard Error| t Stat| P-value| Lower 95%| Upper 95%| Lower 95. 0%| Upper 95. 0%| Intercept| -0. 003633333| 0. 007720895| -0. 4705845| 0. 66245106| -0. 025069975| 0. 017803308| -0. 025069975| 0. 017803308| X Variable 1| 10553. 63322| 190. 5558304| 55. 3834181| 6. 3634E-07| 10024. 56542| 11082. 0102| 10024. 56542| 11082. 70102| 7. Isobestic point is a specific wavelength at which two chemical species have the same molar absorptivity. A pair of substances can have several isobestic points in their spectra. In a 1-to-1 chemical reaction that involves a pair of sub stances with an isobestic point, as long as the sum of the concentrations of the two molecular entities in the solution is held constant there will be no change in absorbance at this wavelength as the ratio of the concentrations of the two entities are varied.This is because the two substances absorb light of that specific wavelength to the same extent. We do not observe any isobestic point in this experiment because we did not scan through the entire spectrum but rather chose a wavelength at which the species have different molar absorptivity. Besides, if we were working with an isobestic point, we would not be able to obtain changes in absorption with changing ratios of concentrations. 8. Transmittance is the ratio of the radiation falling upon a material, to the radiation transmitted through a material.Absorbance is negative logarithm of transmittance. Molar absorptivity is a measurement of how strongly a chemical species absorbs light at a given wavelength. From Beer’s la w we know that, A=? bc. Therefore the absorbance is proportional to the concentration. 9. A solution of Fe34- would show a violet-blue color at an absorbance maximum of 562. And if the absorbance maximum were 414, a green-yellow color would be observed. The spectra for absorbance maximum 562 are sketched in the following: The spectra for absorbance maximum 414 are sketched in the following: 10.There could be instrument related sources of error. Stray light could be a problem since the detector responds to all the light that reaches it. In liquids, the extinction coefficient usually changes slowly with wavelength, which could add to the possible errors. There could be errors from the measurement uncertainty of the results. There could also be errors while preparations of the standards, due to presence of impurities in the apparatus which may lead to discrepancy in the calculation of the concentration. 11. Van De Water, Leon G. A; Jaap A. Bergwerff, T.Alexander Nijhuis. UV-Vis Microsp ectroscopy: Probing the Initial Stages of Supported Metal Oxide Catalyst Preparation. J. Am. Chem Soc. 2005, 127(14), pp 5-24-2025. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO host. University of Minnesota Lib. Twin Cities. Minneapolis. MN. 05/02/12. In this article UV-Vis microscopy is used to monitor macro distribution and speciation of the catalyst precursor species. Through this experiment more detailed information on the structure-function correlation of the catalytic material is obtained. Koeppet, Benjamin; Tolstoy, Peter M; Limbach, Hans-Heinrich.Reaction Pathways of Proton Transfer in Hydrogen-Bonded Phenol Carboxylate Complexes Explored by Combined UV-Vis and NMR spectroscopy. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2011, 113(20), pp7897-7908. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO host. University of Minnesota Lib. Twin Cities. Minneapolis. MN. 05/02/12. In this article better insight about the tautomeric states of the H bonded anions, and the solvent configurations were obtained from UV-vis time scale. The UV-vis absorptions were broadened inhomogeneously because of distribution of the H-bond geometries from the different solvents.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

The territory of Great Britain is divided into 15 parts Essays

The territory of Great Britain is divided into 15 parts Essays The territory of Great Britain is divided into 15 parts. First, it - Britain, and in it - London suburbs, where, among other things, is the Royal Greenwich Observatory, through which the meridian. Then - South east coast which overlooks the English Channel (British the name of the English Channel), which in its narrowest point, near the town of Folkestone, begins "Channel" tunnel 46 under the English Channel, which connects England with France. In southern England, Poole is the largest port of the British Isles, the Isle of Wight and coastal. West of England, called the West a country bordering the English Channel and Bristol Bay. This territory is a rolling and mountainous areas, happens and wetlands, some of which drained for agricultural use. There Plains, including Salisbury Plain, which is a mysterious Stonehenge, ancient (4000 years) building with giant boulders in the form of dolmens, which, they think, could be long astronomical observatory. To the northeast lies the area called Thames and Chylternski hills, and even further east - East of England, the coast of which comes already in the North Sea. Above is Midlands region (central counties of England), which is sometimes divided into East Midlands, on the coast North Sea and West Midlands (or Heart of England), bordering the west Wales. Here the river flows Severn, the longest in the UK. Pennines, backbone of England that stretch from the border with Scotland center of the country, divided its northern half. The right of the Pennine mountains are two regions: Hambersayd Yorkshire and Northumbria (county Nortamberlend) and left - North west and Cumbria (District lakes in north-west England), near the coast which, in the Irish Sea, Isle of Man is a popular tourist center. The north of Cumbria and Northumbria is Scotland - its mainland and Orkney, Shetland, Hebrides and many small islands. Scotland bordering the North Sea and the Atlantic Ocean, in particular, its warm Gulf Stream. Scotland can be divided in three parts. On the north is North Highlands ridge of the mountains and Ben Hrampianskyh Nevis, the highest peak in the UK, and in the south - Southern Uplands. Between them, in the basin of the Clyde and Forth, is the central belt or lowland Scots. Here, on the eastern coast, Bay Fort, is the capital of Scotland, Edinburgh, and on the west coast, at the mouth River Clyde, which flows into the Irish Sea, lies Glasgow, the largest city in the country. Between them, on the eastern coast, Bay Fort, at the mouth of the Fort, is another fairly large city - Sterling, a little north, on the east coast at the mouth of the River Tay, is the town of Dundee. Further north see Aberdeen importance city on the northeast coast, at the mouth of the River Dee, which flows into the North Sea. The only major is a city in northern Iverness, which is located on the northern coast of the Gulf of Moray, near Lake Loh- Ness, in the mouth of the River Ness. Loch Ness is known worldwide thanks to the Loch Ness monster, a large water reptiles, such as plesiosaurs, with a relatively small head and long neck, which seems to be living in the lake. Mainland Wales - a peninsula bordered by Bristol Bay, which enters the mouth Evon river and St George's Channel in the Irish Sea. On the shore of Bristol Bay is located and Welsh capital, Cardiff. Wales also includes coastal island of Anglesey. The landscape of the country mostly mountainous. In Cambrian spine are two mountains at a height of 800 meters each, are known called "Brekonski Signal lights", because in the old days they lit signal lights. Immediately there are more than ten Welsh mountain peaks, the height of each of which exceeds 3000 feet. Seven Welsh wonders include Rekshemsku bell tower of St. Giles, built in the XVI-th century; Overtonski old yew tree at the church cemetery at Holy Mary in. Overton-on- D; Source St. Vinefrid - a place of pilgrimage near the city. Holivell in the county of Flintshire; Hresfordski bells in the medieval church of All Saints in. Hresford; Snowdon, the highest mountain peak Wales Llanholenskyy bridge over the River Dee, built in 1347, and Pistyll Redr, the largest waterfall in Wales, the height of 75 meters. Northern Ireland occupies a sixth of the island of Ireland. Its landscape is hilly in places, and places is the fertile lowlands of arable land. Deforestation and unpredictable humid climate, resulting

Monday, October 21, 2019

What Is Point of View First, Second, and Third Person

What Is Point of View First, Second, and Third Person SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips One of the best ways to prepare for the AP Literature exam is to learn about different literary devices and how you can use them to analyze everything from poetry to novels. Not only will this help you on the multiple choice section of the test, it’s critical for earning perfect scores on your essays, too! Today, we’re going to take a closer look at one specific device: point of view. First, we’ll give you the point of view definition, then we’ll explain how the work’s narrator affects its point of view. Then we’ll explain the four types of point of view and provide examples and analysis for each one. By the end of this article, you’ll be a point of view expert! So let’s get started. Point of View: Definition and Meaning In literature and poetry, point of view is defined as the perspective from which a story is told. Put another way, a story’s point of view is a way to articulate and analyze the position of the narrator in relation to the story they’re telling. Is the narrator a participant in the story they’re telling? Or are they describing events that happened to someone else? Both of these perspectives are different types of point of view (which we’ll talk about in a lot more depth later in this article, so hang tight)! So how do you figure out the point of view in a text? In order to find the point of view of a story, you first have to identify whose perspective the story is told from. That’s because the perspective of the story determines a piece of literature’s point of view! That means that in order to establish a text’s point of view, you have to figure out the narrator of the text first. What Is a Narrator? Okay...so obviously figuring out the narrator of a piece of literature is important. But what’s a narrator, exactly? No matter what type of text you’re reading- whether it’s a newspaper article, a textbook, a poem, or a best-selling novel- someone is communicating the story to the reader. In literary terms, we call that someone the text’s narrator. In other words, the narrator of a piece of literature is the person telling the story. And you know what’s even more helpful than that? Almost all written texts- whether they’re fiction, non-fiction, poetry, or otherwise- have a narrator. And since a narrator and point of view go hand in hand, that means that almost all texts have a point of view, too! Finding the Narrator So how do you figure out the narrator of a text? Sometimes the narrator of a text is pretty easy to determine. For example, for a newspaper article, the narrator of the story is obviously the reporter who’s written the piece to report the facts. They’re the person who followed the story’s trail, and now they’re sharing the story with you! Another good example of an â€Å"easy to find† comes from Herman Melville’s Moby Dick. The very first sentence of the book reads, â€Å"Call me Ishmael.† Because that’s a line in the text rather than a piece of dialogue that uses quotation marks, you know it’s the narrator speaking to the audience. In other words, the narrator of Moby Dick identifies himself and tells you his name in the very first line of the book! But figuring out the narrator of the text isn’t always that easy. For example, the Harry Potter books by J.K Rowling don’t have an easily identifiable narrator. Neither do some classic works, like The Giver by Lois Lowry or Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. What do you do in those situations? Well, just hang tight: we’ll walk you through how point of view can help you figure out the narrator in these tricky situations! Narrator vs. Point of View: What’s the Difference? Before we start really digging into point of view, it’s worth pausing a minute to talk about the differences between point of view and narration. Because narration and point of view are closely linked, it’s tempting to think of them as interchangeable terms. But the narrator of a text and the point of view of a text are two different things. The narrator is who is telling the story. In contrast, a text’s point of view is the perspective the story is being told from. If you think of the narrator as a person, their point of view is the angle they’re taking on the story. Think of it this way: in literature, point of view and narrators go together like...well, like thunder and lightning. You can’t have one without the other, but they’re definitely not the same thing. The 4 Types of Point of View Okay, let’s look more closely at the four different types of point of view found in literature. In the following sections, we’ll explain each type of point of view, give you tips for figuring out if something is written in that perspective, and then walk you through a real-life example of that point of view in literature. In first person point of view, you seethe story through the narrator's eyes First Person Point of View In first person point of view, the story is told from the narrator’s perspective. This allows the narrator to give readers their first-hand experience, including what they saw, felt, thought, heard, said, and did. Think of it kind of like The Blair Witch Project: in first person point of view, it’s like the narrator is wearing a GoPro camera strapped to their forehead. The reader sees exactly what the narrator sees and gets their singular perspective on the events that unfold. In other words, a first person point of view makes the narrator the eyewitness to the plot of the story. Using a first person point of view allows an author to dive much more deeply into the narrator’s character, since the reader gets to hear the narrator’s inner thoughts and experience the narrator’s emotions. Additionally, it makes the narrator the main character, or protagonist, of the story. If something is written in first person, it’s a pretty big indicator that the narrator is going to play a pivotal role in communicating the text’s messages or themes. But there are also some pretty major limitations to a first person point of view, too. Just like real life, readers won’t be able to get the thoughts and feelings of other characters in the novel. Also, the narrator’s observations might be skewed depending on how they feel about other people. Because of that, first person narrators can be unreliable, meaning that their perspective skews the accuracy of the story they’re telling. That means it's up to the reader to determine whether they believe the narrator is being truthful or not. Tips for Identifying First Person Point of View In many ways, a first person point of view is one of the easiest to pick out because it uses first person pronouns, like I, we, me, my, our, and us. If the book is written using these terms, then you can pretty much guarantee that the author is using first person! Keep in mind that not all first person narrators are the book’s main character, like Moby Dick’s Ishmael or The Hunger Games’ Katniss Everdeen. That’s because first person narrators aren’t always the main characters in the work. Take, for instance, the Sherlock Holmes stories, where Dr. John Watson is the narrator. While he’s an important character in the story, he’s definitely not the main characterSherlock Holmes is! Additionally, sometimes first person narrators are anonymous, like third person narrators often are. (Don’t worry: we’ll get into third person narration in just a minute.) That’s why it’s best to look for pronouns when trying to figure out a work’s point of view! If you’re trying to find the narrator’s name, it might not always be there. A good example of this is Shakespeare’s â€Å"Sonnet 130,† where the narrator is describing the woman he loves. The narrator of the poem is never named, but because he uses pronouns like â€Å"I† and â€Å"my,† you know it’s written in first person. Example of First Person Point of View: Shakespeare’s â€Å"Sonnet 29† Many of Shakespeare’s sonnets are written in first person, and â€Å"Sonnet 29† is no different. Let’s look at the full poem and see why it qualifies as being written in first person: When, in disgrace with fortune and men’s eyes, I all alone beweep my outcast state,And trouble deaf heaven with my bootless cries,And look upon myself and curse my fate,Wishing me like to one more rich in hope,Featured like him, like him with friends possessed,Desiring this man’s art and that man’s scope,With what I most enjoy contented least;Yet in these thoughts myself almost despising,Haply I think on thee, and then my state,(Like to the lark at break of day arisingFrom sullen earth) sings hymns at heaven’s gate; For thy sweet love remembered such wealth brings That then I scorn to change my state with kings. Remember, we can tell that something’s written in first person if it uses first person pronouns outside of dialogue. Since there’s no dialogue in this poem at all, we can look at the entire text to find evidence of the first person point of view. Notice that the narrator (or speaker, as the narrator is often referred to in poetry) uses words like â€Å"I,† â€Å"me,† and â€Å"myself† throughout the poem. This is a clear indicator that this poem is written in a first person point of view! Actually, â€Å"Sonnet 29† is a good example of something written in first person where the narrator isn’t named. But we can still learn quite a bit about them through the poem itself! For example, we learn that he’s an outcast (line 2) who is unhappy with his current status (line 4). Despite his all-encompassing misery (line 9), when he thinks upon his love, his spirits are lifted (lines 10, 11, and 12). As we start piecing the evidence together, we begin to get a clearer picture of who the narrator of the poem is, and the power love has to lift us out of even the bleakest circumstance. Other Works Written in First Person Point of View First person is a really popular writing technique, so it’s no surprise that there are tons of books written in this point of view! Here are a few other poems, books, and book series that you might be familiar with that use first person point of view: Shakespeare’s â€Å"Sonnet 18† Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games book series Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes stories Second person point of view uses pronouns like "you" and "your" to tell the story. Second Person Point of View In second person point of view, the story is told from the perspective of another character. Sometimes this character is another person in the book, but it can also be the reader themselves! More importantly, when a writer uses second person, they want readers to connect emotionally with the topic they’re writing about! Here’s an example of what we mean. Say you’re reading an article about the amount of plastic pollution in the ocean. If the writer wants to pull on your heartstrings and make you take the issue they’re writing about seriously, they might use a second person point of view and write something like this: â€Å"Imagine you’re on the vacation of your dreams sailing across the Caribbean. You can’t wait to get out into the open water, where everything will be calm, peaceful, and gorgeous. You take a nap as the captain sets sail, and when you return to the deck, you’re shocked by what you see. Instead of a vast expanse of sparkling blue water, you see a huge, bobbing mound of trash. Fast food containers, plastic bags, and discarded water bottles bob along the surface as far as you can see. It looks like you’re sailing through a garbage dump, and you feel equal parts disgust and despair.† Using the second person point of view in a passage puts the reader into the story- in this case, it’s a story about pollution. Second person makes the reader feel like they’re making every move...from the joy of going on vacation, to the shock of seeing so much plastic in the water, to the â€Å"disgust and despair† of realizing what pollution is doing to the sea. Suddenly, the reader becomes more invested in what the author has to say about the problem, since the second person point of view makes them feel like they’ve experienced it first-hand! While it’s very rare to find a text that’s written completely in second person, many authors will switch to this perspective when they want readers to feel connected to the topic they’re writing about. Tips for Identifying Second Person Point of View Like first person point of view, it’s pretty easy to spot the second person point of view...when you know what you’re looking for, that is. When something is written in second person, the writer uses second person pronouns (like â€Å"you,† â€Å"yourself,† and â€Å"your†) in the text that falls outside of dialogue, too. Like we just mentioned, it’s pretty rare to find a whole text that’s written this way. More than likely, you’ll find a few paragraphs written in second person, rather than an entire work. The one exception to this rule is the classic Choose Your Own Adventure book! You probably remember these from when you were a kid: each book had a topic, and at the bottom of each page, you were given decisions to make. Depending on what you chose, you’d flip to a different page in the book, and your decisions would affect the story! Example of Second Person Point of View: Bright Lights, Big City by Jay McInerny Jay McInerny uses second person to open his book, Bright Lights, Big City, which tells the story of life in the fast lane in 1980s New York. Let’s look at the first paragraph to see the second person point of view in action: You are not the kind of guy who would be at a place like this at this time of the morning. How did you get here? It was your friend Tad Allagash. Your brain is rushing with Brazilian marching powder. You are talking to a girl with a shaved head. You want to meet the kind of girl who isn't going to be here. You want to read the kind of fiction this isn't. You give the girl some powder. She still doesn't want you. Things were fine once. Then you got married. Notice that all the pronouns in this section are either â€Å"you† or â€Å"your,† which is a clear indicator that this is written in second person! It’s also a good example of how using second person can immediately pull someone into a narrative by making the reader and the main character one in the same. In this case, McInerny is creating a whole backstory for your character- from giving you friends like Tad to hinting at your dysfunctional marriage. Other Works Written in Second Person Point of View Second person is probably the rarest of the points of view. Usually writers will use second person in sections of their work to emphasize a point, rather than throughout their entire work. Here are some pieces of literature that use a second person point of view (at least in part): Langston Hughes’ â€Å"Hard Luck† Italo Calvino’s If On A Winter’s Night A Traveller Claudia Rankine’s Citizen: An American Lyric Emma Campbell Webster’s Lost in Austen: Create Your Own Jane Austen Adventure In third person omniscient point of view, the narrator is god-like and tells the reader everything! Third Person Omniscient Point of View The third type of perspective you can find in literature is a third person omniscient point of view. In third person omniscient, the narrator uses third person pronouns like â€Å"he,† â€Å"she,† â€Å"they,† and â€Å"their† to refer to all the characters in the work. As a result, the narrator removes themselves as a critical character in the work (unlike the narrators that use a first or second person point of view). Additionally, because this is a third person omniscient perspective, the narrator is given god-like qualities over the story. (Merriam-Webster defines an â€Å"omniscient† person as someone who has â€Å"universal or complete knowledge†!) That means the narrator can dive into any character’s head and share their thoughts and emotions with the reader. Additionally, the narrator can move around in time and place to show the reader events that the characters themselves may not be aware of! That includes jumping around from location to location, or even moving backward and forward in time. Using a third person omniscient narrator lets an author show the reader the whole gameboard, so to speak. There’s no real limit to what a narrator can show the readers! Consequently, it allows the author to build a robust world full of well-developed characters, since the author no longer has to contend with the single-character limits of a first or second person point of view. It’s also a particularly useful technique in works with large casts of characters, since the narrator can introduce the reader to each character more quickly- and with more detail- than other points of view would allow! Example of Third Person Omniscient Point of View: Middlemarch by George Eliot The narrator of George Eliot’s Victorian novel, Middlemarch, is an excellent example of how a third person omniscient narrator can give readers a comprehensive view of a text. Let’s take a look at the book’s opening paragraph to see this type of point of view in action: Miss Brooke had that kind of beauty which seems to be thrown into relief by poor dress. Her hand and wrist were so finely formed that she could wear sleeves not less bare of style than those in which the Blessed Virgin appeared to Italian painters; and her profile as well as her stature and bearing seemed to gain the more dignity from her plain garments, which by the side of provincial fashion gave her the impressiveness of a fine quotation from the Bible,- or from one of our elder poets,- in a paragraph of to-day's newspaper. She was usually spoken of as being remarkably clever, but with the addition that her sister Celia had more common-sense. Nevertheless, Celia wore scarcely more trimmings; and it was only to close observers that her dress differed from her sister's, and had a shade of coquetry in its arrangements; for Miss Brooke's plain dressing was due to mixed conditions, in most of which her sister shared. The pride of being ladies had something to do with it: the Brooke con nections, though not exactly aristocratic, were unquestionably "good:" if you inquired backward for a generation or two, you would not find any yard-measuring or parcel-tying forefathers- anything lower than an admiral or a clergyman; and there was even an ancestor discernible as a Puritan gentleman who served under Cromwell, but afterwards conformed, and managed to come out of all political troubles as the proprietor of a respectable family estate. Young women of such birth, living in a quiet country-house, and attending a village church hardly larger than a parlor, naturally regarded frippery as the ambition of a huckster's daughter. Remember: omniscient narrators are god-like in that they can give you more information than a single character could provide from their limited perspective. In this case, Eliot’s omniscient narrator gives us tons of information about Miss Brooke. We know that she’s beautiful but not financially well off ( the narrator calls this living in â€Å"mixed conditions†), which is reflected in her â€Å"plain garments.† Regardless, Miss Brooke is also â€Å"remarkably clever.† Beyond that, the narrator tells us about Miss Brooke’s family by looking into her past- which is easy given that the narrator is omniscient! We learn that she and her sister, Celia, aren’t aristocratic, but they come from a good family that includes admirals, clergymen, and politicians. This helps Eliot develop characters and situations quickly, which is important in a book with a large cast of characters like Middlemarch. Other Works Written in Third Person Omniscient Point of View Third person omniscient is a common point of view, especially in longer texts. Here are some examples of other works that feature an omniscient point of view: Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter Philip K. Dick’s Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? In third person limited point of view, it's as if the narrator is standing behind one character's shoulder. Third Person Limited Point of View The last point of view an author can use is the third person limited point of view. Just like the omniscient perspective we talked about earlier, texts written in a third person limited point of view use third person pronouns to discuss characters outside of dialogue. The difference between the two is in how much information the narrator shares with the reader.With a third person limited perspective, the narrator is limited to giving you the perspective of a single character. The narrator can peek inside the character’s head to share their thoughts, feelings, and experiences, similar to a first person point of view. Unlike first person, however, a narrator using a third person limited point of view can also zoom out to give readers a better understanding of how the character they’re following fits into the text’s plot, setting, or situation!Here’s an easy way of understanding the difference between a first person, third person omniscient, and a third perso n limited point of view. Think of the narrator as a person holding a camera. You, as the reader, get to see everything the camera sees. With first person point of view, it’s like the character has had the camera implanted in their brain. You can see whatever the character looks at and nothing more.With a third person limited point of view, on the other hand, it’s like the narrator is standing behind one character and filming over his shoulder. Not only can you get a sense of what the character is seeing, the narrator can also step back a little bit to show readers what’s going on around the character...as long as the character stays in the frame. Third person omniscient is the most comprehensive view. It’s as if the narrator is filming from the rafters of the building. They can zoom out to show everyone for a global perspective, or they can zoom in on different events to give you a better idea of what’s happening in specific situations.So why would a writer use a third person limited point of view? Well, it’s great for situations where knowing every single detail of a story would spoil the plot. Mystery novels, for instance, often use third person limited point of view. It allows the narrator to give you the detective’s thoughts and feelings while not spoiling the whodunit! It also allows the writer to focus on developing a single character while giving readers a better view of what’s going on around that character. Example of Third Person Limited Point of View: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. RowlingLike we mentioned earlier, all texts have a point of view...which means that the Harry Potter stories do, too! Let’s look at a passage from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone to get a better idea of how a third person limited point of view works. In this scene, Harry and his friends, Hermione and Ron, are looking through the library to learn more about the sorcerer’s stone: Hermione took out a list of subjects and titles she had decided to search while Ron strode off down a row of books and started pulling them off the shelves at random. Harry wandered over to the Restricted Section. He had been wondering for a while if Flamel wasn’t somewhere in there. Unfortunately, you needed a specially signed note from one of the teachers to look in any of the restricted books, and he knew he’d never get one. These were the books containing powerful Dark Magic never taught at Hogwarts, and only read by older students studying advanced Defense Against the Dark Arts. It’s clear that this passage is written in third person: the narrator uses pronouns like â€Å"he,† â€Å"she,† and â€Å"them,† instead of first person pronouns like â€Å"I† or second person pronouns like â€Å"you.† But how do we know it’s third person limited? Well, we get Harry’s thoughts and feelings- like his curiosity about Nicholas Flamel- but no one else’s. We don’t know what Hermione and Ron are reading, or if they’re excited, nervous, or scared.Rowling wrote all seven Harry Potter books using a third person limited point of view that made Harry the focal point. The narrator can tell us what Harry’s thinking, feeling, and seeing- as well as zoom out to tell us more about the precarious situations he finds himself in. But because the narrator is tied to Harry, they can’t give us a glimpse into other characters’ minds, nor can it show readers what’s happening in other par ts of Hogwarts (where Harry isn’t). That helps readers get to know Harry, even as it helps Rowling maintain the mystery around the sorcerer’s stone (or the chamber of secrets, or the half-blood prince, etc.). Other Works Written in Third Person Limited Point of ViewThe third person limited point of view is a popular perspective for writers to use, so there’s no shortage of examples! Here are a few works you might be familiar with that feature a third person limited point of view: Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s â€Å"Christabel† Eudora Welty’s The Golden Apples Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wrinkle In Time What’s Next? If you’re studying for the AP Literature exam, you’ll need to know about more literary devices than point of view. Why not check out our other comprehensive guides, like this one on personification? The more familiar you are with literary terms, what they mean, and how to use them, the better your test score will be! Did you know that there are two English AP tests? One is the literature exam, which focuses on literary analysis and comprehension. The second test is the language exam, which tests your ability to understand argument and write persuasively. Click here to learn more about the AP Language exam, how it differs from the literature exam, and what you need to do to knock it out of the park! After you learn the fundamentals, the best way to prepare for an AP exam is to take practice tests. Check out this article on how to find the best AP practice exams, and learn how to use them to boost your score!

Sunday, October 20, 2019

History of Astronomy - Rise of Modern in 20th Century

History of Astronomy - Rise of Modern in 20th Century Tycho Brahe has often been called the Father of modern astronomy, and for good reasons. However, I think that title really belongs to Galileo Galilei for his pioneering use of the telescope to magnify the view of the sky. However, Brahe did advance the science more than anyone in the past, simply by using his senses, rather than philosophy to study the sky. The work that Brahe began was continued and expanded by his assistant, Johannes Kepler, whose laws of planetary motion are among the foundations of modern astronomy. There are many other astronomers since Galileo, Brahe, and Kepler who have advanced the science:  Here, in brief, are some of the other bright lights who helped bring astronomy to its current place. Edmund Halley (1656-1742) was a British astronomer who was also a big fan of Sir Isaac Newton. After encouraging Newton to write his Principia, Halley then published it at his own expense. Not stopping to rest on the fame of another, he went on to calculate the orbits of comets, including the one named after him.Sir William Herschel (1738-1822), though born in Germany, was a British astronomer. He discovered Uranus in 1781 coined the word asteroids. He also cataloged about 2,000 nebulae, discovered several satellites of Uranus and Saturn, studied the rotation of planets. Discovered and studied binary stars. He discovered two satellites each orbiting Uranus and Saturn. He studied the rotation period of many planets, the motion of double stars, and nebulae. He cataloged more than 800 double stars and contributed new information on the constitution of nebulae. Herschel was the first to propose that these nebulae were composed of stars. He is considered the founder of sidereal astronomy. Albert Einstein (1879-1955) was a German-born American physicist and Nobel laureate. He may be the most well-known scientist of the 20th century. In 1915, he developed his general theory of relativity, which states that the speed of light is constant and that the curvature of space and the passage of time are linked to gravity. Thinking the universe was unchanging, he inserted a  cosmological constant fudge factor  into his calculations to make them fit his viewpoint.Willem de Sitter: (1872 - 1934), a Dutch astronomer, removed Einsteins cosmological constant from his calculations and used the theory of relativity to show that the universe may always be expanding.Georges-Henri Lemaitre: (1894 - 1966) was not only a Belgian astronomer, he was also a Jesuit priest. Discovering the writings of Russian mathematician, Alexander Friedmann, Lemaitre took his solution for an expanding universe and theorized that if the universe is expanding, if we follow it back to the starting point, the n our universe began as a great cosmic egg which exploded and expanded outward. Lemaitre is often referred to as the father of the Big Bang theory. Edwin P Hubble (1889-1953), American Astronomer. In the 1920s, Albert Einstein stated, I have made my greatest blunder. This pronouncement came when Hubble  demonstrated that the universe was not static and Einsteins cosmological constant was not necessary. Utilizing improved telescopic devices, he was also able to confirm that those fuzzy objects astronomers had seen for years were in fact other galaxies.Thomas Gold (1920 - 2004) was an American astronomer. Though it is generally believed that Golds steady state theory of the universe is incorrect, he made many major contributions to our knowledge of the universe, including the nature of pulsars as rotating neutron stars, and the origin of planetary hydrocarbons. These are just a few of the astronomers and their findings in the pre- and early 20th century history of astronomy. There have been and are many other great brains in the field of astronomy, but its time to get away from history for now. Well meet some of these other astronomers throughout the rest of our lessons. Next, well look at numbers. Fourth Lesson Big Numbers Lesson 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 Edited and updated by Carolyn Collins Petersen.

Saturday, October 19, 2019

Enchancinf m-commerce adoption in Thailand Essay

Enchancinf m-commerce adoption in Thailand - Essay Example This technology has seen rapid development and it has increased an organization’s ability to reach its customers regardless of the geographic distances due to which even farmers in India and Bangladesh made use of this technology. This in turn has created more demand for more advanced mobile devices with advance features. However, the success of m-commerce lies on mutual trust as trust plays a vital role in acceptance. It has become vital to the economic growth of a nation. While more than a third of mobile users in Japan had already used their phones to buy goods by 2003, m-commerce was introduced in Thailand only in 2005 (ATM Marketplace, 2003). It has been found that countries like Korea and Japan experience widespread penetration and success while another important Asian country – namely Thailand lags behind in e-commerce penetration. Developing countries have an advantage in adopting technology or ICT as they just have to follow the leader and thereby avoid costly mistakes (Gray & Sanzogni, 2004). Thailand has been competent in every respect, including political stability and financial robustness in introducing technology but it did not succeed. Penz (2006) contends that differences in behaviour and response pattern differ across culture and societies. Individuals group together through shared beliefs, emotions, lifestyles and consumption patterns. These perceptions, ideas and representations become the social creations and people base their responses accordingly. The attitude of the Thais has prevented new technologies from being accepted by the community at large (Gray & Sanzogni, 2004). This is because they do not tolerate failure and they do no readily accept ideas from the younger generation. This is also the reason that the government was slow to acknowledge the importance of internet for the progress of the nation. The Thai culture is based on trust and relationships with others,

The Distinctive Features Of Jesus' Image In Matthew And Luke Essay

The Distinctive Features Of Jesus' Image In Matthew And Luke - Essay Example Christ is able to lead people by giving each of them the opportunity to find personal salvation as well as to continue His good work in Israel by teaching others the truth of God: â€Å"But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel† (Matthew 10:6). Jesus warns the Israelites that they will have the difficult task of discovering the truth of God to ordinary people. He tells them that they can be rejected, however, nothing and no one should break their faith in God and God's truth: â€Å"And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell†. Christ explains that the Jewish people can find spiritual salvation only if their souls become a fertile ground for the grain of God's truth. Otherwise, the human soul cannot find a way to God. People should be prepared for various trials and temptations on the way of their spiritual enlightenment. Christ warns people that the way to God involves the spiritual struggle with their vices and sins. This manifestation of the Jewish wisdom of Christ is inseparable from his missionary teaching. Christ focuses on the fact that only adherence to his ethical teaching can give the possibility of salvation, and thus can open a road to eternal life. In general, the essence of the Jewish wisdom of Jesus Christ implies that all people should perceive each other as if they are brothers and sisters. Integrity, honesty and mutual assistance should be the criteria of the life of Jews.

Friday, October 18, 2019

A case study of Marks & Spencers, critically analysing the marketing Essay

A case study of Marks & Spencers, critically analysing the marketing strategies it employs in U.K and making recommendations for future strategic directions - Essay Example For instance, they engage in new product innovation and creativity, they use information system to understand their customers and keep in touch with their customers. Organizations today focus on value-creation rather than just short-term profitability. Competition has intensified in the UK fashion industry with the supermarkets entering the fashion segment. The consumers too have become price conscious and started looking towards the supermarket for discounts and bargains in the fashion sector. Supermarkets have been successful in extracting value from their existing customer base. Many high street retailers have lost out to supermarkets in the process (Hines, 2001). This has urged the high street retailers to rethink their marketing strategy to remain sustainable. Use of technology, getting the quality and design to match consumers’ desires, needs and tastes, adding value to the services, finding newer ways of reaching the consumer have made fashion marketing for high street retailers a challenge. Fashion leadership means to be a step ahead of competitors. The UK fashion retailers have been operating in an environment characterized by high levels of market concentration, centralized control and market standardization (Birtwistle & Freathy, 1998). Standardization resulted in lack of product differentiation and this led some retailers to bring about a shift in their marketing approach. The UK consumer market is divided between those who value product quality and those who value price. Marks & Spencer’s failed to recognize the moves by its competitors and give due cognizance to the needs and demands of the consumers. Established in 1894, Marks & Spencer’s (M&S) was the leading retailer till the mid 1990s. It started facing a decline towards end 1990s as it failed to keep up with the market demands. Although M&S initiated its recovery plan, it encountered several

Fair trade for the developing countries Research Paper

Fair trade for the developing countries - Research Paper Example Fair trade mainly exists in developing countries and it targets specific areas, for instance, the Handicrafts, Coffee Industry, Tea Industry etc, it does so in order to make sure that the workers and the producers are benefitted and their economic stature improves by participating in Fair trade. To understand the concept better, its principles should be well understood and they are as follows:â€Å"Creating opportunities for economically disadvantaged producers, Fair trade is a strategy for poverty alleviation and sustainable development. Its purpose is to create opportunities for producers who have been economically disadvantaged or marginalized by the conventional trading system.† The most important principle of Fair trade is to ensure that there are ample opportunities provided to the producer, the sole aim of Fair trade is to ensure the well being of the workers and the producers and in this process the first is to provide opportunities to the producer because only when th e producer has opportunities, it can be passed on to the workers.â€Å"Transparency and accountability, Fair trade involves transparent management and commercial relations to deal fairly and respectfully with trading partners.† Another important principle of Fair trade is to make sure transparency exists in every activity initiated by it, in the sense that every activity initiated by Fair trade should be without any fusses and problems, fair rules and policies are followed hence ensuring the economic and financial safety of the producer.

Thursday, October 17, 2019

Develop business aptitude skills including communication, Assignment

Develop business aptitude skills including communication, presentation, and leadership abilities - Assignment Example However, the client wonder if another software making company comes out with more efficient and software product that can prove to deliver cut throat competition for the client. Furthermore, the client is extremely concerned that the competitors may develop software or application capable to test the cell phone signal strengths provided by different carriers such as AT & T Sprint and Verizon among others in specific building sites. The client fears that this application which might be developed by the competitors could be efficient enough to determine the need for rooftop antenna and signal re-amplification for the workers inside the building to receive calls in their cell phones. Contextually, the primary problem anticipated by the client is the threat from the competitors in terms of product imitation and innovation that might reduce the market competiveness of the client’s software. It is also feared that the competitors’ application may render more efficient service s to customers which may ultimately reduce the demand for the client’s product. However, the above identified problem can be well rationalized as opportunities for growth for the client, as it will give him the opportunity to compete with his/her rivals with constant innovations in terms of technologies. Q2: Formalize Four Objectives for the Project Based on the level of threats and the problematic issues that are drawn by the client, the primary objectives of the project were to advise him to effectively to manage and deal with these challenges in order to remain competitive at the marketplace. These objectives were also directed towards increasing the competency level and revenue generating capability for the client’s product. The four broad objectives of the project are revealed below. Firstly, the project intended to suggest the effective marketing plan including role of promotion in demand creation to client in order to attract large base of customers towards his/ her software product Secondly, the project aim at emphasizing the importance of monitoring the performance and the marketing activities of competitors for the client in order to outpace the competitors Thirdly, the project envisioned to identify and acquaint the client with the importance of continuous innovation in the technology oriented business Lastly, the project aimed at assisting client with the ways of increasing revenue and market reach (Wickham & Wickham, 2008). Q3: Consider What Problems Might Emerge in Reconciling the Client’s Objectives with Your Own as A Consulting Team From the perspective of a consulting team, there are various issues that may arise while making efforts for accomplishing such broad objectives. It can be affirmed that the accomplishment of these objectives requires considerable planning and effective execution. Accordingly, there may arise numerous issues relating to development of a market plan and involving various marketing and advertisement activities. Contextually, it can be admitted that for carrying out these activities the client may require to make considerable investment. Also, it will prove to be a problematic for the client to monitor the performances and various activities that are undertaken by the competitors. Correspondingly, this will require the client to gather considerable data regarding the competitors which may be time consuming and cumbersome tasks (Pfeffer, 1995). Additionally, creating a competitive

The Financial and Economic Environment of a US website business Essay

The Financial and Economic Environment of a US website business targeting South African students - Essay Example The services provided are universities/colleges details with their respective courses, course details, and online resources, career counseling through emails, telephone and online-conferencing, and student visa assistance. Price: The price charged from the students is based on the type of membership. There are two types of membership- Basic and Premium. The services for the Premium members are in addition to the services which Basic members will avail. The membership fee is US$30 for Basic members and US$50 for Premium members on annual basis. Place: The customer will be able to subscribe and pay online. According to the membership, the customer will be provided with a login id and password from which it can access the services offered to him/her. Promotion: As this is an online service, the target group of customers can be reached out through advertising in career magazines, local newspapers, online via social networking sites, and promotional campaigns setup in the schools and coll eges campus. Financial & Economic Environment South Africa has a well-developed financial and legal environment with its stock exchange the world’s 18th largest exchange, ranked 17th with market value $1.013 trillion in 2010. It is one the most advanced developing countries on African continent. It is a middle-income economy with abundant natural resources. The country’s former fiscal policy was conservative mainly focused on controlling inflation and reducing budget deficit. The policies still exist but the recent global recession has put pressure to provide with the basic services to poorer sections and provide for employment guarantees. The unemployment stands at 25% which is high as compared to other economies such as US and UK which are at 107... The paper tells that South Africa has a well-developed financial and legal environment with its stock exchange the world’s 18th largest exchange, ranked 17th with market value $1.013 trillion in 2010. It is one the most advanced developing countries on African continent. It is a middle-income economy with abundant natural resources. The country’s former fiscal policy was conservative mainly focused on controlling inflation and reducing budget deficit. The policies still exist but the recent global recession has put pressure to provide with the basic services to poorer sections and provide for employment guarantees. The unemployment stands at 25% which is high as compared to other economies such as US and UK which are at 107 and 87 respectively. In 2000 population below poverty lines was 50%. South Africa is ranked 30th in terms of Foreign Direct investment at home. South Africa’s main trading partners include China, Germany US, Japan and UK. The country was the h ost for 2010 FIFA World Cup which boosted its business revenues and infrastructure. USA is the market-oriented economy with the most advanced technology. In many previous years the country has been the net importer of the goods and services being the number 1 importer in the world and ranked 4th in exports. Its population below poverty line stands at 15.1% and unemployment rate at 9.6% in 2010. The country is also the largest consumer of oil. The US and South Africa signed a $120 million investment fund protocol under OPIC (Overseas Private Investment Corporation) in 1996 for equity investments in South Africa.

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

Develop business aptitude skills including communication, Assignment

Develop business aptitude skills including communication, presentation, and leadership abilities - Assignment Example However, the client wonder if another software making company comes out with more efficient and software product that can prove to deliver cut throat competition for the client. Furthermore, the client is extremely concerned that the competitors may develop software or application capable to test the cell phone signal strengths provided by different carriers such as AT & T Sprint and Verizon among others in specific building sites. The client fears that this application which might be developed by the competitors could be efficient enough to determine the need for rooftop antenna and signal re-amplification for the workers inside the building to receive calls in their cell phones. Contextually, the primary problem anticipated by the client is the threat from the competitors in terms of product imitation and innovation that might reduce the market competiveness of the client’s software. It is also feared that the competitors’ application may render more efficient service s to customers which may ultimately reduce the demand for the client’s product. However, the above identified problem can be well rationalized as opportunities for growth for the client, as it will give him the opportunity to compete with his/her rivals with constant innovations in terms of technologies. Q2: Formalize Four Objectives for the Project Based on the level of threats and the problematic issues that are drawn by the client, the primary objectives of the project were to advise him to effectively to manage and deal with these challenges in order to remain competitive at the marketplace. These objectives were also directed towards increasing the competency level and revenue generating capability for the client’s product. The four broad objectives of the project are revealed below. Firstly, the project intended to suggest the effective marketing plan including role of promotion in demand creation to client in order to attract large base of customers towards his/ her software product Secondly, the project aim at emphasizing the importance of monitoring the performance and the marketing activities of competitors for the client in order to outpace the competitors Thirdly, the project envisioned to identify and acquaint the client with the importance of continuous innovation in the technology oriented business Lastly, the project aimed at assisting client with the ways of increasing revenue and market reach (Wickham & Wickham, 2008). Q3: Consider What Problems Might Emerge in Reconciling the Client’s Objectives with Your Own as A Consulting Team From the perspective of a consulting team, there are various issues that may arise while making efforts for accomplishing such broad objectives. It can be affirmed that the accomplishment of these objectives requires considerable planning and effective execution. Accordingly, there may arise numerous issues relating to development of a market plan and involving various marketing and advertisement activities. Contextually, it can be admitted that for carrying out these activities the client may require to make considerable investment. Also, it will prove to be a problematic for the client to monitor the performances and various activities that are undertaken by the competitors. Correspondingly, this will require the client to gather considerable data regarding the competitors which may be time consuming and cumbersome tasks (Pfeffer, 1995). Additionally, creating a competitive

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

Movie comment Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 14

Comment - Movie Review Example As Robert Levin reviews, â€Å"La Mission is a quiet, authentic movie about life in the hardscrabble Mission District of San Francisco. It features a charismatic lead performance by Benjamin Bratt, while writer-director Peter Bratt depicts the neighborhood with a keenly observed sense of the close-knit macho culture at its core.† (Levin) Therefore, it is significant to realize that the drama film makes a perfect portrait of the old-world style milieu in order to present the interracial and other lifestyle issues in today’s urban environment. The major contribution to this effective handling of the social issues is made by the characters and themes of the movie. The characters in the movie such as Che Rivera, Jesse, Lena, Rene, and Smoke represent the various aspects of the interracial and lifestyle issues of the contemporary world. In fact, the story is narrated in the background of a father’s love for his son turning out to be his disgust for the son’s ga y relationships. However, themes such as interracial and lifestyle issues of the modern urban environment predominate the entire movie and the characters of the movie also contribute to the successful portrayal of these themes. In Emily Wilson’s interview with Benjamin and Peter Bratt the issues of Latino masculinity, power, community pride, and identity emerged and it is fundamental to realize that the filmmaker effectively merges these elements to produce a wonderful film of concurring themes. Thus, it becomes evident that the entire movie focuses on the life and social issues of the Mission and it remains as the merging force. â€Å"The brothers grew up in the neighborhood and have always wanted to make a film about the Mission, which they say had a big influence on them†¦ For Peter Bratt, movie making is about social justice, and in La Mission he wanted to explore the presence and acceptance of violence in our daily lives.† (Wilson) It is, therefore, essential to comprehend

Monday, October 14, 2019

Health safety and security for health and social care Essay Example for Free

Health safety and security for health and social care Essay Potential Hazards and the Harm that may arise from each in a Health and Social Care Setting In this unit 3 assignment, I will be explaining the potential hazards and the harm that may arise from each (physical environment, equipment, infections, working conditions, working practices and security conditions) in a health and social care environment. These settings can include day centers, hospitals, health centers, schools, residential and nursing homes, private homes, and nurseries. First I will define each of them and then explain 6 hazards that may harm an individual. A hazard is something that is dangerous which can cause harm to you or any other individual and cause pain, especially if nothing is done to reduce the risk. Physical Environment Physical environment incorporates anything around ranging from different objects, people, pets, the temperature, buildings and also the air. This can have a great impact on the health of individuals and staff. If a room is not well ventilated with any windows so that there is fresh air flowing around, then the bacteria from different people with influenzas and cold can spread around the room and those germs when they sneeze or a cough can make it contagious for other people to catch very easily. Temperature is how hot or an object, subject or person is measured in degrees. Temperature can cause various complications to persons with disabilities, babies and older people because they find it difficult to sustain their body temperature, as it is very important to keep yourself wrapped up very warm to reduce the cold breeze from off of their body. It can cause bronchitis and other respiratory problems. Fumes and smoke that may be contaminated the air in the room because of fires (house fires, factory or building) or leakage (gas, petrol) can cause persons to inhale it and eventually die. Persons with very light skin who go to the beach or just going on picnics with residents or the residents themselves from within a care home may be exposing themselves to too much sun and not protecting their skin with sunblock or even a hat can which can cause skin cancer. Water that has been spilled and left on the ground can be a hazard to anyone in a care home as they may not see the water on the floor to avoid it and can slip and end up injuring themselves by damaging their spine or even fracturing their limbs. Blocked fire exists can be a hazard as it should be clear at all times in case of an emergency so that you are able to leave the building quickly. If the exits are blocked and persons try to run to that exist then they can run into the thing or even push down someone causing that indivi dual to be trampled on and fracture their ribs or have a head injury. Equipment You may find different equipment in a care home which can include overloaded sockets, wheelchairs, chairs, hot surface of a cup, broken piece of furniture, walking stick. These are equipment which is used daily in care homes. In a care, there may be certain things which you may need to plug in but overloading the sockets is not an option as the amount of energy that would be generating from the electricity can cause it to spark and go up in flames. Persons near these plugs may end up being burnt on any part of their body which may cause them to lose some of their skin or even death. Tripping over the cords if it is not properly protected by being covered over causing to cut their lips or fractures to some parts of their body or by even hitting their head onto something causing them to become unconscious and have brain damage. If persons use their wet hands to either plug in or out any plugs it can be very dangerous as they can be electrocuted these hazards may cause people to be trap ped in the building because the elderly are not able to move as quickly as they would like to. An elderly can be at risk of falling out of the wheelchair when being pushed if they are not safely secured to the chair. This may cause individuals to bruise or fracture themselves as elderly people are very fragile. If left in the way the wheelchair can cause someone to hit their feet into it causing bruising and swelling to the toes. Chairs can also be another set of hazards that can harm someone when left in the way as it can also injure their feet if they hit into it. This can cause bleeding, swelling, bruising and obviously pain to the individual’s feet. Broken equipment such as a chair that needs to be thrown out because it is weak if the chair is left in everyone’s way and one of the elderly sits in it the chair will give way causing the individual to land on the floor and have back injury or even shift their pelvis out of alignment. Sometimes these scales can be very serious and life-threatening as they will need to seek medical attention. When giving the elder ly anything that may be hot you have to be careful as it may burn their hands and they may end up dropping the tea or cup over their legs or hands causing it to scald them. This can cause blisters and charred, black or red skin. Sometimes in a care, an elderly person may be sitting down but does not put the walking stick out of anyone’s way. A carer or another elderly person may be passing and does not see the stick will end up tripping over the walking stick and hurt the elderly person’s feet causing pain and swelling to that individual and to the person that fell they may have bruising.

Sunday, October 13, 2019

Ultra High Temperature Ceramics for Thermal Protection

Ultra High Temperature Ceramics for Thermal Protection Recent Developments in Oxidation Resistance and Fracture Toughness of Ultra High Temperature Ceramics for Thermal Protection Systems Katrin Abrahams (Dated: February 3, 2015) For safer and faster space vehicles a reduction of the tipradius of the leading edges is inevitable. This leads to temperatures exceeding 2200  °C which the used material has to withstand. ZrB2/SiC and HfB2/SiC have suitable properties, but the oxidation resistance and fracture toughness at high temperatures have to be improved. This review describes the recent approaches to handle these problems that base mainly on the addition of a third material (La2O3, Gd2O3 or graphite). The addition of either La2O3 or Gd2O3 led to increased oxidation resistance, but the processing, the amount of additive and the testing methods have to be improved. Due to the addition of graphite à ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å¡akes the fracture toughness of ZrB2/SiC (20 vol%) increased from 1. INTRODUCTION The Thermal Protection System (TPS) of space ve ­hicles is one of the most important parts of the whole vehicle [1–3]. This protects it from the heating during re-entry. During this process the temperatures are very high, especially at the nose cone and leading edges as shown in Fig. 1. Figure 1: Temperature proà ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ le of a space vehicle during re ­entry prepared by the NASA. The dark red colour represents the highest temperatures and the light blue regions are coolest parts (copied from [4]). The tip of the leading edge has a radius of 10 cm, but a radius in the range of millimetres is wished so that sharp leading edges instead of blunt leading edges can be used [5]. This would have the advantage to â€Å"help reduce the vehicles drag, enhance maneuverability and performance, and also improve safety due to an increased cross-range-capability† [5]. The problem of a smaller tip radius is that this leads to higher surface temperatures, which can exceed 2000  °C [6, 7]. Jin et al. [8] investigated the maximum surface tempera ­ture depending on the radius of the tip using an oxyacety ­lene torch. Fig. 2 shows that the temperature increases from 1930  °C with a radius of 1.5 mm to 2100  °C with the radius of 0.15 mm. Due to the high requirements for these materials only a few can be considered. Very good potential for the usage show Ultra high temperature ceramics (UHTC). These are ceramic materials with high melting points (> 3000  °C), good thermal shock resistance and chem ­ical and mechanical stability e.g. ZrB2, ZrC, HfB2 or HfC [6, 9, 10]. Although the carbides have a higher melt ­ing point than the diborides, their thermal conductivity is lower, which is very important because the heat on the surface has to be transported as fast as possible away [5]. Therefore the main focus of research is on ZrB2 and HfB2. The problem with these diborides is their brittleness and their oxidation at temperatures exceeding 1200  °C [11]. To fabricate a more ductile material SiC was added to ZrB2 or HfB2 [12]. Although ZrB2/SiC and HfB2/SiC are promising materi ­als for the usage in TPS, there are still two main problems which have to be solved. On the one hand side there is still the problem with the oxidation resistance at higher temperatures [11, 13]. On the other hand the fracture toughness decreases with the temperature to rather low values which also leads to mechanical problems [14]. This review gives an overview over solution attempts that have been made in the last years, with the main focus on ZrB2/SiC. 2. OXIDATION RESISTANCE The oxidation resistance of MeB2/SiC (Me = Zr, Hf) depends on the ratio of MeB2/SiC [10, 15], the pres ­sure [10, 16, 17], the temperature [18], the exposure time [19], on the processing [20, 21] and in case of the addition of additives also on their chemical structure and the amount of additive [22, 23]. Considering just ZrB2, the following happens during ox ­idation [24]: The liquid B2O3 forms a protection layer for the porous ZrO2 layer, where oxygen can dià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â€š ¬use very fast and easily through. But at 1100  °C this protective layer evaporates and cannot prevent the oxidation of the bulk material anymore. The addition of SiC leads to the following additional re ­actions [10, 25, 26]: During oxidation four dià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â€š ¬erent layers can form (Fig. 3). Above the bulk material the SiC depleted zone forms, where SiC oxidizes to SiO2 which forms a borosilicate (BS) glass on the surface. This layer is porous due to the formation and evaporation of CO (Eq. (2)). Above this layer there is the oxidized layer, which consists of porous ZrO2 and the upper layer is the Silica rich layer which consist of the BS glass, that also à ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ lls partly the pores of the ZrO2 layer. Due to the evaporation of B2O3, the protection layer is shrinking over time and shows an oxidation resistance up to 1600  °C [24, 26]. In general the oxidation resistance is measured by the thickness of the reaction zone under the given parameters of the experiment. But also the dià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â€š ¬usion coeà ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã†â€™cient of O2 is important but rarely measured. 2.1. Ratio ZrB2/SiC The dependency of the oxidation resistance on the ra ­tio of ZrB2/SiC was investigated by many researchers [10, 12, 15, 27–29]. The addition of SiC led in all cases to a re ­duction in grain size, a homogeneous distribution of SiC, higher viscosity and higher density. Karlsdottir et al. [29] investigated not only the reaction Figure 3: Schematic demonstration of the dià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â€š ¬erent layers that form during oxidation of ZrB2/SiC and their arrangement. zone thickness but also the viscosity depending on the volume fraction of SiC. The results are shown in Table I and an increase in viscosity with the amount of SiC can be seen. This reduces the dià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â€š ¬usion coeà ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã†â€™cient of O2 in the layer. Seong et al. [10] compared ZrB2, ZrB2/SiC (20 vol%), ZrB2/SiC (30 vol%) and ZrB2/SiC (40 vol%) and mea ­sured the resulting thickness of the reaction zone. All samples were densià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ ed by hot pressing and exhibit a ho ­mogeneous distribution of SiC. The grain sizes were be ­tween 1.0  µm and 3.0  µm. They investigated the oxi ­dation under low and high pressure and the results are shown in Figure 4. The SiC depletion layer did not form and therefore the reaction zone consisted only of the Silica rich layer and the oxidized zone. In air (2âˆâ€"104 Pa) the thickness of the reaction zone was in ZrB2 the thickest due to the missing protecting silica layer and with increasing amount of SiC the thickness de ­creases. The problem with high amounts of SiC (30 vol%) is, that it does not form single grains anymore, but in ­stead a network, which leads to higher porosity. Under low pressure the behaviour is vice versa. Because the space shuttle has to deal with low and normal pressure ZrB2/SiC with 20 vol% or 30 vol% SiC is the best choice. Apart from the improvements of oxidation resistance due to optimization of the ZrB2/SiC ratio, at temper ­atures above 1800  °C active oxidation (Eq. (4)) of SiC takes place and this hinders the formation of the BS layer. 2.2. Additives To increase the oxidation resistance at higher temper ­atures transition metals were added to the ZrB2/SiC ma ­trix [21, 30–32]. They are suitable due to their high melt ­ing points and low reactivity with the environment [30]. The transition metal cations can be enclosed in the BS layer to form a higher viscous layer that decreases O2 dià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â€š ¬usion [11]. Furthermore this may lead to a higher evaporation point of the protective layer so that the ma ­terials are stable at T > 2000  °C. This is based on an assumption, the mechanism how the transition cations interact with ZrB2 and SiC is not understood yet but in general a positive trend to higher oxidation resistance can be seen [11]. Several attempts were made with many dià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â€š ¬erent transi ­tion metal oxides [9, 30], borides [11, 33], carbides [21, 31] and silicates [32]. This review focuses on La2O3 and Gd2O3 because they are the most promising additives and introduce two dià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â€š ¬erent processing methods that ef ­fect the properties [30]. 2.2.1. Addition of La2O3 The addition of La2O3 to ZrB2/SiC was investigated by several researchers and led to dià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â€š ¬erent results, espe ­cially various new phases were found [6, 9, 22, 23]. Ta ­ble II gives an overview over the composition, the pro ­cessing routes to densify the material and the new phases that were discovered. Although Table II shows many dià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â€š ¬erent results, gen ­eral trends due to the addition of La2O3 despite the usage of dià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â€š ¬erent processing routes (hot pressing, spark plasma sintering (SPS)) were observed [6, 22, 23]: †¢ Higher density Higher Vickers Hardness Reduction of grain sizes Besides the use of La2O3 leads to a more homogenized distribution of SiC, because it is always close to it and therefore prevents agglomeration [9]. In the case of fracture toughness there are contradictory statements: Li et al. [22] measured an increased fracture toughness compared to the material without additive and Guo et al. [23] published a lower fracture toughness due to the addition of La2O3. After hot pressing at 1900  °C for 60 min Li et al. [22] dis ­covered the formation of new phases: La2Zr2O7 (melting point: 2295  ± 10  °C [9]) and La2Si2O7 due to the follow ­ing reactions: 2ZrO2(s)+ La2O3(s) → La2Zr2O7(s) (5) 2SiO2(s)+ La2O3(s) → La2Si2O7(s) (6) La2Zr2O7 was also observed by Zapata et al. [6] and Jayaseelan et al. [9] but no other working group detected the formation of La2Si2O7. The addition of 10 wt% La2O3, densià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ ed by SPS and oxidized for 1 h in air at 1600  °C led to the formation of two dià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â€š ¬erent oxidized layers [9]. On the surface a La ­BS-glass formed (Eq. (7)), below it two oxidized layers, one consisting of La2Zr2O7 (Eq. (5)) and the other one of ZrO2. SiO2 + La2O3 → La − BS − glass (7) The large expansion coeà ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã†â€™cient of La2O3 causes à ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ lling of the pores that appear after the evaporation of B2O3 and therefore still protects the bulk material. The same composition and the same processing was used by Guo et al. [23] but they could not detect the new phases. Instead they found out that La2O3 reacts Table II: Overview over the composition (always ZrB2/SiC (20 vol%) + the given amount La2O3), the processing route and the new phases that formed. amount La2O3 processing new phase 5 vol% hot pressing La2Zr2O7 (1900  °C, 60 min) La2Si2O7 3 vol% hot pressing La2O3-SiO2 (1900  °C, 60 min) 10 wt% SPS La2Zr2O7 oxidized (1600  °C, 1 h, air) La-BS-glass 2 wt% SPS La2Zr2O7 oxidized (1400  °C, 16 h, air) La-BS-glass with SiO2 to form La2O3-SiO2 as a protective layer. Further studies were made by Zapata et al. [6] who used less La2O3 (2 wt%). Due to the proximity of the La2O3 particles to the SiC particles they are also included in the BS melt whereby this results in a higher viscosity, a higher thermal stability and in general a better protec ­tion against O2 dià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â€š ¬usion. The oxidation tests show that at 1400  °C the sample with La2O3 has a better oxidation resistance but at 1500  °C and 1600  °C it is worse. The reason is that because of the addition of La2O3 the BS layer has a higher viscos ­ity and therefore the ZrO2 particles cannot precipitate directly to the top of the surface layer. This leads to a more homogeneous mixing with the BS melt. The oxy ­gen dià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â€š ¬usion through ZrO2 is much easier than through B2O3 and therefore a homogeneous distribution of ZrO2 makes it easier for O2 to dià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â€š ¬use through this layer, al ­though the La-BS-glass has a higher viscosity due to the addition of La2O3. Mo reover at 1600  °C ZrOxCy and SiOxCy form with dif ­ferent O/C ratios which were found in the BS melt and in the oxide layer [6]. This can be seen as another pro ­tection layer because when O2 dià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â€š ¬uses into the oxidation layer it will react with ZrOxCy or SiOxCy, so it can be seen as a puà ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â€š ¬er zone and it takes longer until the oxygen reaches the bulk material. HfB2 dià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â€š ¬ers from ZrB2 because the formation of HfO2 is more dià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã†â€™cult [6]. Therefore a smaller amount is formed which leads to a lower amount of B2O3 and therefore a thinner protection layer compared to ZrB2. But it has the advantage that the dià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â€š ¬usion coeà ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã†â€™cient for O2 through HfO2 is smaller. Another problem in the case of HfB2 is that SiC is not as homogeneously distributed as in ZrB2 and it forms large agglomerates. When these agglomerates become oxidized they leave behind a highly porous material where O2 can easily dià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â€š ¬use throug h. This shows that further improvements are inevitable in a more homogeneous distribution, further analysis of the new formed phases must be made and the C/O ratio can Figure 5: Topview (a) and sideview (b) of the surface with the dimensions of the cavities for Gd2O3. oxidation layer was 15  ± 3  µm and formed in accordance with the following reaction equation [9]: 2Gd2O3(s)+2ZrO2(s) → Gd2Zr2O7(s) (8) Gd2O3(s)+ SiO2(s)+ B2O3(l) → Gd − BS − glass (9) The thickness of the layer below it was 160  µm and consisted mainly of porous ZrO2 due to the oxidation and evaporation of the glassy phase. The advantage of Gd-BS-glass compared to BS glass is the higher viscosity and therefore the reduced dià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â€š ¬usion of O2 through this coating. At higher Gd2O3 fractions Gd stops ZrO2 particles at the glassy phase and they cannot dià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â€š ¬use further. This leads to O2 vacancies which is the driving force for inward O2 dià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â€š ¬usion. Using a distance of 20  µm between the cavi ­ties, the Gd2O3 fraction is high enough to get a higher viscosity in the BS melt but ZrO2 can still precipitate so that no O2 inward dià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â€š ¬usion occurs. 3. FRACTURE TOUGHNESS In 2009 the à ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ rst tests were made to include graphite in the ZrB2/SiC matrix [34, 35]. Hu et al. [34] investigated the fraction of additive graphite to ZrB2/SiC (20 vol%). They found out that the addition of graphite led to a 1high dense material with an increasing fracture toughness be optimized. But the addition of La2O3 is already a from 4.5 MPam (ZrB2 + SiC (20 vol%)) to 6.1 MPam1 22 very promising approach for a better oxidation resistance although further research is necessary. 2.2.2. Addition of Gd2O3 For an improved surface and at the same time un ­changed bulk material a new processing method was in ­vented [11]: At à ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ rst the sample was prepared and densi ­Ãƒ ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ ed using the bulk material ZrB2/SiC. Afterwards they used a laser to make equal sized cavities on the surface that were à ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ lled with Gd2O3 nanopowder. The dimen ­sions of the best sample can be seen in Fig. 5. Due to this new processing it was possible to create only a thin protection layer that consisted of BS mixed with Gd2O3 ( Eq. (9)). After 1 h in air under 1600  °C the thickness of the outer (ZrB2 + SiC (20 vol% + graphite)). The dià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â€š ¬erences be ­tween 10 vol% and 15 vol% graphite were negligible small. Moreover there were investigations about the inà ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å¡uence of the diameter size of the graphite à ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å¡akes [36]. They found out that in the range of micrometres the diameter size does not change the fracture toughness. Asl et al. [14] used soft graphite nano-à ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å¡akes. They found out that ZrB2 + SiC (20 vol%) + graphite (10 vol%) showed a higher density than the samples without graphite. Furthermore the addition of graphite led to a decrease in grain size from 6.9  µm to 3.2  µm. The reason is the homogeneous distribution of graphite which stopped grain growth. Because of the reactions of graphite with the surface impurities the addition of graphite results in higher dense samples: ZrO2(s)+ B2O3(l)+5C(s) → ZrB2(s)+5CO(g) (10) The particles that form due to this reactions can à ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ ll the pores in the ZrB2/SiC matrix and therefore lead to a higher density. The resulting fracture toughness can be seen in Fig. 6. An increase in fracture toughness due to the addition of graphite is obvious. The following mechanisms led in this case to a higher fracture toughness: nano-à ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å¡akes pull-out, crack bridging, branching and deà ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å¡ection. 1 Figure 6: Fracture toughness depending on the composition of the sample at RT [14]. Wang et al. [37] investigated the dependency of the fracture toughness of ZrB2 + SiC (20 vol%) + 1 graphite (15 vol%) on the temperature in vacuum and in air (Fig. 7). Over the whole temperature range the fracture toughness in air was higher than that in vac ­uum. In vacuum the fracture toughness decreases from This oxidation layer densià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ es with higher tempera ­ture and yields in higher fracture toughnesses than with ­out this layer. That is the reason why there is nearly no decrease in fracture toughness between 1200  °C and 1300  °C. Moreover crack deà ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å¡ection which absorbs the energy leads to higher fracture toughnesses at higher temperature. These mechanisms all result in a slower decrease in frac ­ture toughness in air than in vacuum. Figure 7: Fracture toughness depending on the environment and on the temperature [37]. 4. CONCLUSION The recent developments to improve the oxidation re ­sistance and the fracture toughness based mainly on the addition of a third component (La2O3, Gd2O3 or graphite). Concerning the oxidation resistance, the best matrix composition is ZrB2/SiC (20 vol%) because it shows the best oxidation protection over the whole range of O2 partial pressure. Above 1800  °C active oxidation of SiC begins and oxidation resistance is not given anymore. at 1300  °C because The approaches for a better oxidation resistance at higher ual thermal stresses between the ZrB2/SiC matrix and temperatures due to the addition of La2O3 or Gd2O3 arethe graphite inclusions are released. The residual stresses very promising, but more research to understand the real acted at low temperature as toughening mechanism and function of the additives and the interaction with the ma ­with the release of these stresses the fracture toughness trix is necessary. Furthermore there are many parameecreases. At 1300  °C the group observed a brittle to ductile trans ­formation which leads to a slight increase of fracture toughness. But afterwards the fracture toughness de ­creases further due to the distorted graphite and the larger ZrB2 grain sizes. In air at higher temperature the material starts to ox ­idize and a oxidation layer forms on the surface due to ters that have to be optimized, e.g the amount of ad ­ditive, the processing route and especially the analytical approaches. Due to the varying experimental parameters and insuà ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã†â€™cient analytical tests it is dià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã†â€™cult to compare results. To solve this problems standard tests have to be introduced and a wider temperature range for oxidation has to be investigated. The fracture toughness increased due to the addition of Eq. (1), (2) and the following reaction: graphite from 4.5 MPam to 7.1 MPam creases, but also this is slowed down due to the graphite tives, because extensive testing of the dià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â€š ¬erent samples à ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å¡akes. is missing. Especially tests under real atmospheric and Taken into account the oxidation resistance and the frac-re-entry conditions are important but not done yet. ture toughness it is dià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã†â€™cult to announce the best addi ­