Sunday, December 29, 2019

Obama Stimulus Package Pros and Cons

President Obamas stimulus package, the American Recovery and Investment Act of 2009, was passed by Congress on February 13, 2009 and signed into law by the President four days later. No House Republicans and only three Senate Republicans voted for the bill. Obamas $787 billion stimulus package is a consortium of thousands of federal tax reductions, and expenditures on infrastructure, education, health care, energy and other projects. This stimulus package was to jumpstart the U.S. economy out of recession mainly by generating two to three million new jobs and replacing decreased consumer spending. (See specific Pros and Cons at page two of this article.) Stimulus Spending: Keynesian Economic Theory The concept that an economy would be boosted if the government spent large sums of borrowed money was first set forth by John Maynard Keynes (1883-1946), a British economist. Per Wikipedia, In the 1930s, Keynes spearheaded a revolution in economic thinking, overturning the older ideas... that held that free markets would automatically provide full employment as long as workers were flexible in their wage demands. ... During the 1950s and 1960s, the success of Keynesian economics was so resounding that almost all capitalist governments adopted its policy recommendations. The 1970s: Free-Market Economic Theory Keynesian economics theory receded from public use with the advent of free-market thinking which postulated that the merket works optimally when without government inteference of any kind. Led by U.S. economist Milton Friedman, 1976 Nobel Economics Prize recipient, free-market economics evolved into a political movement under President Ronald Reagan who famously declared, Government is not the solution to our problems. Government is the problem. 2008 Failure of Free-Market Economics Absence of adequate U.S. government monitoring of the economy is blamed by most parties for the 2008 U.S. and worldwide recession. Keynesian economist Paul Krugman, 2008 Nobel Economics Prize recipient, wrote in November 2008: The key to Keynes’s contribution was his realization that liquidity preference — the desire of individuals to hold liquid monetary assets — can lead to situations in which effective demand isn’t enough to employ all the economy’s resources. In other words, per Krugman, human self-interest (i.e. greed)occasionally must be prodded by government to facilitate a healthy economy. Latest Developments In July 2009, many Democrats, including some presidential advisors, believe that $787 billion was too small to bolster the economy, as evidenced by the continuing U.S. economic slump. Labor Secretary Hilda Solis admittedon July 8, 2009 about the economy, Nobody is happy, and the president and I feel very strongly that we have to do everything we can to create jobs. Dozens of respected economists, including Paul Krugman, told the White House that an effective stimulus must be at least $2 trillion, in order to replace the drop in consumer and governmental spending. President Obama, however, aspired for bipartisan support, so the White House compromised by adding Republican-urged tax breaks. And hundreds of billions in desperately-sought state aid and other programs were chopped from the final $787 billion stimulus package. Unemployment Continues to Climb Unemployment has continued to climb at an alarming rate, despite passage of the $787 billion economic stimulus package. Explains The Australian News: ... only six months ago Obama was telling Americans that unemployment, then at 7.2%, could be held to a peak of 8% this year if Congress passed his $US787 billion stimulus package. Congress duly obliged and unemployment has galloped ahead ever since. Most economists now believe the 10% mark will be reached before the year is out. ... Obamas jobless prediction would be out of whack by more than four million jobs. As it stands now, he has miscalculated by about 2.6 million jobs. Slow to Spend Stimulus Funds The Obama administration has stumbled in rapidly circulating stimulus funds back into the economy. Per all reports, as of the end of June 2009, only about 7% of approved funds have spent. Investment analyst Rutledge Capital observes, In spite of all the talk we have seen about shovel ready projects, not much of the money has actually made its way into the economy yet... Economist Bruce Bartlett explained in The Daily Beast on July 8, 2009, In a recent briefing, CBO director Doug Elmendorf estimated that only 24 percent of all the stimulus funds will have been spent by September 30. And 61 percent of that will go to low-impact income transfers; only 39 percent is for high-impact spending on highways, mass transit, energy efficiency, et al. By September 30, only 11 percent of all the funds allocated to such programs will be spent. Background President Obamas stimulus package of $787 billion includes: Infrastructure - Total: $80.9 billion, including: $51.2 billion for roads, bridges, railways, sewers, public transportation $29.5 billion for government facilities and vehicle fleets $15 billion for other projects, including $7.2 billion for public broadband, wireless Internet access, $750 million to the National Park Service, $650 million to the Forest Service, and $515 million for wildfire prevention. Education $44.5 billion to local school districts to prevent layoffs and cutbacks, with flexibility to use the funds for school modernization and repair $15.6 billion to increase Pell Grants from $4,731 to $5,350 $13 billion for low-income public schoolchildren $12.2 billion for IDEA special education $300 million for increased teacher salaries Health Care $86.6 billion for Medicaid $24.7 billion to provide a 65% subsidy of COBRA healthcare premiums for the unemployed $19 billion for health information technology $10 billion for health research, National Institutes of Health facilities $1.3 billion for medical care for military members, families $1 billion for the Veterans Health Administration $2 billion for Community Health Centers Energy $11 billion funding for an electric smart grid $6.3 billion for state, local governments to invest in energy efficiencies $6 billion for renewable energy, electric transmission technologies loan guarantees $6 billion for the cleanup of radioactive waste from nuclear power plants $5 billion for weatherizing modest-income homes $4.5 billion to modernize the U.S. electrical grid $2 billion for manufacture of advanced car battery systems $400 million for electric vehicle technologies Housing $4 billion to HUD for repairing, modernizing public housing $2.25 billion in tax credits for financing low-income housing construction $2 billion to help communities purchase and repair foreclosed housing $1.5 billion for rental assistance and housing relocation Scientific Research $3 billion to the National Science Foundation $2 billion to the United States Department of Energy $1.3 billion for university research facilities $1 billion to NASA American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 BY Wikipedia Pros Pros for the Obama administrations $787 billion stimulus package can be summed up in one obvious statement: If the stimulus works to shock the U.S. economy out of its steep 2008-2009 recession, and stems the unemployment rate, then it will be judged a success. Economic historians persuasively argue that Keynesian-style spending was largely instrumental in pulling the U.S. out of the Great Depression, and in propelling growth of the U.S. and world economies in the 1950s and 1960s. Meeting Urgent, Worthy Needs Of course, liberals also fervently believe that many thousands of urgent and worthy needs... long ignored and exacerbated by the Bush administration... are met by spending initiatives included in Obamas stimulus package, including: Long overdue repair and renewal of dangerously crumbling U.S. infrastructure, including highways and roads, the electric power grid, dams, bridges, levees, water mains and sewer systems, airports, and more; Vital aid to beleaguered local school districts to prevent layoffs and cutbacks, plus $300 million for increased teacher salaries Expansion of public transportation systems, building new high-speed passenger rail systems $116 billion in payroll tax relief for individuals making less than $75,000 annually, and for couples jointly making less than $150,000. $40 billion to extend unemployment benefits, and to increase benefits by $25 weekly Increased medical coverage for military members and their families, and $1 billion for the Veterans Administration, which suffered major cutbacks under President Bush Food programs for low-income Americans, including $150 million to help refill food banks, $100 million for meals programs for seniors, and $100 million for free school lunch programs . Cons Critics of President Obamas stimulus package either believe that: economic stimulus spending is doomed to fail, especially when it entails borrowing to obtain the funds to be spent (i.e. deficit spending); or the compromise size or focus of the stimulus bill doomed the measure to be inadequate to pull the U.S. out of the 2008-2009 recession. Stimulus Spending Coupled with Borrowing Is Reckless A June 6, 2009 Louisville Courier-Journal editorial eloquently expresses this con perspective: Lyndon is getting a new walking path between Whipps Mill Road and North Hurstbourne Lane... Lacking sufficient funds, the U.S. will borrow from China and other increasingly skeptical lenders to pay for luxuries like Lyndons little walkway. Our children and grandchildren will have to pay back the unimaginable debt with which we are saddling them. Of course, the fallout from their forebears financial irresponsibility could first consume them in revolution, ruin or tyranny... Obama and congressional Democrats are making an already awful situation exponentially worse... Borrowing from foreigners to build paths in Lyndon is not only bad policy, but ought to also be unconstitutional. Stimulus Package Was Inadequate or Wrongly Focused Lamented liberal economist Paul Krugman, Even if the original Obama plan — around $800 billion in stimulus, with a substantial fraction of that total given over to ineffective tax cuts — had been enacted, it wouldnt have been enough to fill the looming hole in the U.S. economy, which the Congressional Budget Office estimates will amount to $2.9 trillion over the next three years. Yet the centrists did their best to make the plan weaker and worse. One of the best features of the original plan was aid to cash-strapped state governments, which would have provided a quick boost to the economy while preserving essential services. But the centrists insisted on a $40 billion cut in that spending. Moderate Republican David Brooks opined ... theyve created a sprawling, undisciplined smorgasbord, which has spun off a series of unintended consequences. First, by trying to do everything all it once, the bill does nothing well. The money spent on long-term domestic programs means there may not be enough to jolt the economy now... The money spent on stimulus, meanwhile, means there’s not enough to truly reform domestic programs like health technology, schools and infrastructure. The measure mostly pumps more money into old arrangements. Where It Stands Congressional Republicans tore into the Obama administration over the economic stimulus plan,... arguing that the White House is mishandling the distribution of the money while overstating the ability of the package to create jobs, reported CNN on July 8, 2009 about a contentious hearing before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. CNN continued, The White House Office of Management and Budget defended the plan, arguing that every federal dollar spent has, by definition, helped to ease the pain of the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. A Second Stimulus Package? Obama economic advisor Laura Tyson, former Director of the National Economic Council, said in a July 2009 speech that the U.S. should consider drafting a second stimulus package focusing on infrastructure projects because the $787 billion approved in February was a bit too small per Bloomberg.com. In contrast, economist Bruce Bartlett, a conservative Obama supporter, pens in an article entitled Obamas Clueless Liberal Critics, that the argument for more stimulus implicitly assumes that the bulk of stimulus funds have been paid out and done their work. However, the data show that very little of the stimulus has actually been spent. Bartlett argues that stimulus critics are reacting impatiently, and notes that economist Christina Romer, who now chairs the Council of Economic Advisers, says the stimulus is working just as planned and that no additional stimulus is needed. Would Congress Pass a Second Stimulus bill? The burning, relevant question is: Is it politically possible for President Obama to push Congress into passing a second economic stimulus package in 2009 or 2010? The first stimulus package passed on a House vote of 244-188, with all Republicans and eleven Democrats voting NO. The bill squeezed by on a filibuster-proof 61-36 Senate vote, but only after making significant compromises to attract three Republican YES votes. All Senate Democrats voted for the bill, except those absent due to illness. But with public confidence falling in Obamas leadership in mid-2009 on economic matters, and with the first stimulus bill failing to quell unemployment, moderate Democrats cant be relied on to solidly support additional stimulus legislation. Would Congress pass a second stimulus package in 2009 or 2010? The jury is out, but the verdict, in summer 2009, doesnt look good for the Obama administration.

Saturday, December 21, 2019

Differences Between Bisexuality And Homosexuality, And...

Cerny and Janssen (2011) aimed to determine if self-identified bisexual, heterosexual, and homosexual men show different arousal patterns to videos showing sexual interactions of different sexual orientations. Past studies had never included a sexual stimulus that was defined as bisexual (depicting a man having sex with both a women and a man.) Past studies always look at the differences of a bisexual’s stimulation to heterosexual and homosexual stimuli compared to homosexual’s and heterosexual’s stimulations. No study had ever had a specific bisexual stimulus that they could compare bisexuals’ stimulation to non-bisexuals. Lots of studies have found the bisexual orientation does to not exist. There have been many studies that have found little difference between bisexuality and homosexuality, and bisexuality and heterosexuality. These studies were based on stimulation and physical arousal. The construct of bisexuality is a foggy one. This study provides an interesting look into something no one had done before. Having a bisexual stimulus is a great new variable. However, after dissecting the Introduction and the Methods section there seems to be some conceptual and methodological weaknesses. The literature that this study is based on is peculiar for a few reasons. First, they bring up studies that back that bisexuality exists established by interview and questionnaire studies that measure fantasies, attraction, and behavior. Then right afterwards they list variousShow MoreRelatedThe Psychology Of Sexual Orientations934 Words   |  4 Pagesstigma that still exists today. There are many different sexual orientations that people identify as (including heterosexuality, homosexuality, bisexuality, as well as many others); the orientations that do not coincide with what people viewed as normal were originally given classification as mental disorders. The most common sexual orientation, regardless of culture, is heterosexuality. This is defined as a sexual orientation in which an individual is generally sexually attracted to members of theRead MoreHistorical and Scientific Perspectives on Homosexuality907 Words   |  4 PagesHistorical and scientific perspectives on homosexuality In contemporary Western culture, choices about romantic love and sexuality are a critical aspect of individual self-definition. Whether someone is homosexual or heterosexual is thus also considered to be a crucial aspect of who he or she is as a human being. In previous eras, where individuals were married young, and entered into arranged marriages, this was not the case. Although people had same-sex desire, this desire was enjoyed outsideRead MoreGay Marriage And Its Slow Progression Of Acceptance1441 Words   |  6 Pagessexually and romantically attracted to. Heterosexuality, homosexuality and bisexuality are the three mostly familiar categories of sexual orientation for a typical person, and these sexualities make up for 98.9% of the sexual orientation among American adults (Ward 1, et al). But what about the other 1.1% of sexualities? While these three categories continue to be widely used to refer to all different sexualities, by those uninformed about the differences in sexua lities, sexual orientation itselfRead MoreShould Same Sex Marriage Be Legal?1551 Words   |  7 PagesThis movement caused the nation to be torn between those who were for and those who were against same-sex marriage. Although the nation has made a huge step forward, its’ people still have so much more to learn about what this movement means overall. In regards to same-sex marriage, people only think just as it states same-sex marriage, but how about the others who do not quite fit into either heterosexuality or homosexuality? Outside from heterosexuality, there are so many other types of sexual orientationRead MoreWhy Natural Law Theory Is an Inadequate Criticism of Homosexuality1147 Words   |  5 PagesNatural Law on these grounds, as well as proving that it is inapplicable when judging the ethical value of homosexuality, and discrediting homosexuality as a perversion. Act utilitarianism depicts the argument more clearly, because there are certain semantic inconsistenci es with Kantian ethical Theory that will be discussed further on. Let us first consider the premise that homosexuality is contrary to Natural Law, because the Natural Law dictates that sexual relationships must be heterosexualRead MoreSexuality And Gender : Social Constructs Essay1366 Words   |  6 Pagescontroversial topics, more specifically the spectrum? Well, the idea of sexuality being more than just heterosexuality has been challenged by conservative types and others alike for years. They may even deem anything other than heterosexuality as something abnormal and immoral. For some, it can be quite difficult to understand that sexuality is on a spectrum. Especially with identities like bisexuality and pansexuality, it can be difficult for some people to wrap their minds around that idea. In recentRead MoreThe Historical Prevalence Of Bisexuality Essay1855 Words   |  8 Pagesprevalence of bisexuality is hard to determine because same-sex sexual activity has traditionally been very stigmatized; furthermore bisexuality is often ignored in h istorical discussions of sexual orientation. Nonetheless, over the past few decades, the status quo with regard to same-sex sexual activity has changed drastically. The repeal of anti-gay laws and the 2003 supreme court decision Lawrence v. Texas which eliminated all remaining sodomy laws in the United States, the removal of homosexuality fromRead MoreHow Masculinity is Potrayed in the Movie, Brokeback Mountain1952 Words   |  8 Pages The dominant masculinity in western culture is associated with heterosexuality, a unit of a man and woman from opposite axis of masculinity and femininity. For Annie Proulx, â€Å"Brokeback Mountain† complicates the gendered duality, portraying two men acting on their homoerotic desires, but also depicts them as hetero-social. Proulx blurs the boundaries of gender and sexuality by representing her main protagonists, Ennis del Mar and Jack Twist, as bisexuals. The characters are able to slip in and outRead MoreLesbian, Bisexual And Gay1131 Wor ds   |  5 Pagesamong lesbians and gay men† (p. 215). Bisexuality involves romantic attractions of one individual to men and women. Cox, Bimbi, and Parsons (2013) claims that the individuals as being incapable of maintaining a monogamy relationship or sexually promiscuous and carriers of sexually transmitted diseases. They exist amongst women and men in the society. Cox, Bimbi, and Parsons (2013) refers that some researchers relate bisexual to heterosexuality and homosexuality while others argue that the two areRead MoreDoes Involement in Sports Begt Better Character Development? Essay903 Words   |  4 Pagesand collision athletes that supported this model. Their findings indicated that anger and aggressiveness is positively correlated with athletic identity. Men’s team sports are often associated with hegemonic (dominant) masculinity and hyper-heterosexuality. Connell (1987, 1995) provides an understanding of the problematic method of building masculinities within men‘s sports, particularly emphasizing the advantage of some versions of masculinity over others. She proposes that hegemonic masculinity

Friday, December 13, 2019

Disparities in Health Care Free Essays

Problems of Disparities in Health Care Insurance The United States leads the world in spending on health care. Yet , other countries spending substantially less than the United States have healthier populations. America’s performance is marred by deep inequalities linked to income, health insurance coverage, race, ethnicity, geography, and – critically – access to care. We will write a custom essay sample on Disparities in Health Care or any similar topic only for you Order Now Employer-based Insurance plans Income The United States is the only wealthy country with no universal health insurance system. Its mix of employer-based private insurance and public coverage has never reached all Americans. All working Americans are categorized based on annual income – top-income (earning on average $210,100 annually), higher-middle-income (earning an average of $84,800 annually), lower-middle-income earning on average $41,500), and bottom-income (earning an average of $14,800 annually) (Auguste, Laboissiere, Mendonca, 2009). As the general population knows that those are in the both top-income category and higher-middle-income category can afford any expenses that are incurred in facilities, doctor visits, ER visits, etc. ithout any hindrance (Auguste et al. , 2009). The lower-middle-income and bottom-income population have much harder time in paying for services because it puts them in a tight budget. Paying for out-of-pocket costs can be detrimental to one’s credit and often those patients are sent to collections if they can’t pay. As reported in the 2011 study done in Arizona by Herman, Rissi, and Walsh, it also confirmed that individuals who have higher income s were able to pay for medical expenses without going through financial hardships. Cost Its been reported that immigrants have less access to care due to having no insurance plans and the cost of services when they are sick than the general population born in the United States (Pandey, 2010). In Herman et al. ‘s study (2011), out-of-pocket medical expenses caused financial hardships and that top-income individuals were able to cover cost of medical services without hardships. It has been made known by many employers are making employees be responsible for a portion of health care costs by raising premiums or deductibles (Auguste et al. , 2009). Because of rising costs of deductibles (out-of-pocket costs) and the rising cost of premiums, employees are opting-out of enrolling into employer-based health insurance plan saying that to get the coinsurance amount, the deductible amount that they have to meet is out of their financial budget (Quinn, 2011). Race/Ethnicity and Environment Evidence of racial and ethnic disparities in health-care is, with few exceptions, remarkably consistent across a range of illnesses and health-care services. These disparities are associated with socioeconomic differences. Its been reported that immigrants are less likely to use the health care system yet alone have no health insurance coverage (Pandey, 2010). Its not only immigrants who have trouble getting care, but different nationalities in the United States population have trouble as well – just to name a few – American Indians, Asian Americans, Hispanics, populations that live in rural and urban areas, and the general population ranging from infants to senior citizens (Copeland, 2005). Especially the Hispanic or Latino population were less likely to seek care (Herman, et al. , 2011). African American populations are the most researched when it comes to health care issues. For example, a study was done on racial disparities in exposure, susceptibility, and access to health care in the United States H1N1 Influenza pandemic which reported that Hispanics were at greater risk of exposure, however Blacks were a lot more susceptible in contracting H1N1 (Quinn, 2011). Access to Care Unequal access to health care has clear links to health outcomes. The uninsured are less likely to have regular outpatient care, so they are more likely to be hospitalized for avoidable health problems. The lack of transportation, health insurance, providers, appointment access, and inconvenient location of doctors offices caused many people to have poor health (Copeland, 2005). In 2011, a study in Arizona was performed to see is access to care was an issue among the residents. The study found that people who were uninsured had problems paying bills which prevented the ability to seek care and receive treatment (Herman, et al. , 2011). Individuals with higher incomes were able to seek care as well as ace/ethnicity background were indicators that individuals were less likely to seek care (Herman, et al. , 2011). Conclusion Income level and race/ethnicity in relation to environment, cost of medical services, access to care, play big roles as to why there are disparities in health care insurance. References Auguste, B. G. , Laboissiere, M. , Mendonca, L. T. (2009). How health care costs contribute to income disparity in the United States. Mckinsey Quarterly, (2), 50-51. Copeland, V. ( 2005). African Americans: Disparities in Health Care Access and Utilization. Health Social Work, 30(3), 265. Herman, P. E. (2011). Health Insurance Status, Medical Debt, and Their Impact on Access to Care in Arizona. American Journal Of Public Health, 101(8), 1437. doi:10. 2105/AJPH. 2010. 300080 Quinn, S. (2011). Racial Disparities in Exposure, Susceptibility, and Access to Health Care in the US H1N1 Influenza Pandemic. American Journal Of Public Health, 101(2), 285. doi:10. 2105/AJPH. 2009. 188029 Pandey, S. (2010). Health Insurance Disparities among Immigrants: Are Some Legal Immigrants More Vulnerable Than Others?. Health Social Work, 35(4), 267. How to cite Disparities in Health Care, Papers

Thursday, December 5, 2019

Israel Marcano Essay Example For Students

Israel Marcano Essay Buddhist Monks Aim for NirvanaBuddhism states that there is a path to happiness and the Buddha canlead you there. Buddhist monks of all different orders are trying to reachhappiness, or Nirvana. There may be some differences between the sects butthe core beliefs surround the Buddhas teachings and practices. An ordainedmonk or nun lives a special life. Some last a lifetime while others onlyfor a brief time, however both experiences are moving. Tibetan Buddhist monks take there vows for life. When becoming aBuddhist monk it is very important that you do not rush into taking yourvows. Time must be taken to fully understand the advantages anddisadvantages of becoming a Buddhist monk. Currently there are monasteriesthat allow you to live the life of a Buddhist monk for a few days, weeks ormonths in order to make the correct decision. The Tibetan tradition doesnot encourage those who take the vows to give them back and return to asecular lifestyle. As long as a monk asks permission he is able to freelyleave the order. Theravadin Buddhist countries, like Thailand, believe that every manmust have served as a monk at one point in his life. These monks arereferred to as short-term monks. The period that they are actually monksmay range from a few days to as long as a few months. This short-termservice is seen as primarily a teaching tool. Living even a short periodof time as a monk is believed to prepare the individual for life as alayman, householder and family head. Also this practice helps theindividual earn merit with his family and especially his parents. Manypeople in these countries still chose to remain a monk for their lifetime. Before making any final decisions on becoming either a short-termmonk or a lifetime monk the fundamental teachings of the Buddha must bethoroughly understood. These teachings include the Four Noble Truths, theEightfold Path, and the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment. Normally thisinvolves a number of years of study and practice with the help of ateacher. This teacher will be your guide and sponsor. With your teacheryou will learn how to live your everyday life according to the Buddhistteachings and practices. During this time you may live in a monastery tofully understand and appreciate this lifestyle. Once you have made the decision to lead a monks life, you mustapproach the abbot or his secretary for an interview. You are thenaccepted as a naga. Then are given training in the rules, daily chanting,and the ordination procedure. The length of training before ordination canbe one month or less, the abbot might expect an applicant to spend at least9 months as a layman and novice before higher ordination. During thisperiod the layman wears a white robe and learns eight precepts. Novicemonks wear the orange robes and are given ten precepts to follow along withseventy-five training rules. There are certain requirements that must bemet in order to be ordained. The novice must be at least twenty years old,free of debt, free of any government or military duties and they must havethe consent of their immediate family. The ordination ceremony uses thePali language and the novice must memorize the lines. The novice must alsomemorize the 227 rules of discipline, called the Patimokkha, that the monksfollow. Originally the Buddha did not allow woman to become nuns.ThenBuddha received many requests from woman to allow them to become nuns. Hereconsidered his position and decided to allow woman in to the order. Thefirst woman accepted as a nun was Paccabadi Gotami, the Buddhasstepmother, who was ordained by the Buddha himself. In establishing theBhikkhuni Sangha, or nuns, the Buddha added that any other ordinationsshould be held with a fully ordained bhikkhuni present as a witness. Since the time of Buddha there have always been nuns ordained intothe order. In more recent years the number of woman becoming nuns becamesmaller and smaller. There came a point were there were no longer any fullyordained nuns in the world. Without these fully ordained nuns there cannotbe any present at the ordination of new nuns, this prohibits any new nunsfrom becoming fully ordained themselves. Buddhist woman today can live inthe order as an eight or ten precept novice but can never be fullyordained. Stem Cell Research and Breast Cancer EssayA day in the life of a monk is simple and beautiful. Monks wake upwhen the temple gongs are sounded in the early hours of the morning. Afterthey wash and dress they meditate until it is light enough to go around andcollect the alms offering. When a monk goes on his rounds he acceptswhatever foods are placed in his alms bowl. He never asks for anything,accepting what is offered, standing silently, with eyes lowered, untilafter the offering is made, when he may chant a brief blessing for thedonor. When they return to their huts they can eat their meal. This meal isusually their only one for the day. Some monks eat a second meal but nomonks are allowed to eat after noon. The rest of their day is spentmeditating, reading, studying, and can sometimes include a nap. In theevening they attend the twilight ceremonial chanting. At night the monkssleeps for six sometimes four hours. Meditation is a conscious effort to change how the mind works. ThePali word for meditation is bhavana, meaning to grow or to develop. Meditation is very important because although we may want to make changesin our lives, it is not easy to have control of our thoughts and actions. Meditation develops awareness and the energy needed to change our old waysand prepare for the right path. There are many types of meditation, theBuddha taught a number of ways to meditate and particular ways to deal withspecific problems. The most common are Mindfulness or Insight Meditation,called Vipassana, and Loving-kindness Meditation, called Samatha. The Pali word Nibbana is formed of Ni and Vana. Ni is a negativearticle and vana means desire. The ultimate goal of all Buddhists is to endthe cycle of life and death, of reincarnation, by enlightenment andreaching nirvana or nibbana. Nirvana is not a place where we go; it is astate of mind and being. Nirvana can be reached here on earth as the Buddhahas. The Buddha said that Nirvana is the highest happiness. All Buddhist are living for Nirvana. The simple life facilitates theprocess. Meditations and ascetic living allow the mind to focus on its pathand state of being. The Buddha ordained woman and there were many nuns foryears, the teachings of the Buddha however prevents any future woman frombeing ordained. Buddhism may be all over the world and have differentpractices, but the Buddha is always the center and happiness is alwayseveryone ultimate goal. Works Cited 1. Bechert, Heinz. The World of Buddhism : Buddhist monks and nuns insociety and culture, New York : Thames and Hudson, 1984. 2. Della Santina, Peter. The tree of enlightenment : an introduction tothe major traditions of Buddhism , Taipei, Taiwan: Reprinted anddonated for free distribution by the Corporate Body of the BuddhaEducational Foundation, 1997. 3. Lopez, Donald S. The story of Buddhism : a concise guide to itshistory and teachings , San Francisco, California: Harper SanFrancisco, 2001. 4. Novick, Rebecca McClen. Fundamentals of Tibetan Buddhism , Freedom,California: Crossing Press, 1999. 5. Prebish, Charles S. The A to Z of Buddhism , Lanham, Maryland:Scarecrow Press, 2001. 6. Saddhatissa, H. Buddhist ethics; essence of Buddhism , New York, G. Braziller, 1971. 7. Schumann, Hans Wolfgang. Buddhism; an outline of its teachings andschools , Wheaton, Ill., Theosophical Pub. House, 1973. 8. Trainor, Kevin. Buddhism : the illustrated guide , New York : OxfordUniversity Press, 2001.

Thursday, November 28, 2019

The Goal free essay sample

Do you think that this is an operational methodology or a philosophy? Please explain. The Goal is a management-oriented novel that focuses on the concepts of systems management. The fictional novel focuses around Alex Rogo and the problems in his production plant. The plant is constantly behind schedule and unprofitable. Alex is given three months to turn things around or the plant will be shut down. The Goal introduces the â€Å"Theory of Constraints (TOC)† which is an overall management philosophy that adopts the idiom â€Å"A chain is no stronger than its weakest link†. This emphasizes how organizations and processes are vulnerable because that weakest link can always adversely impact and damage the company. The â€Å"goal† is to make money and anything that assists in doing this is productive, while anything that hinders this is a bottleneck. The Goal goes on to identify bottlenecks (constraints) in the manufacturing process and how identifying them helps reduce impact and allows for controlling the flow of materials. We will write a custom essay sample on The Goal or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page One of the main emphasis points throughout is the communication element. Whenever a problem arises the team discusses the problem amongst themselves to find a solution. The discussion process uses five steps to solve any problem: 1. Identify the system’s constraint 2. Decide how to exploit the system’s constraint 3. Subordinate everything else to the prior decisions 4. Elevate the system’s constraint 5. If, in the prior steps, the constraint has been broken, go back to step one. The line between an operational methodology and a philosophy in my opinion is not clear cut black and white. An operational methodology in certain instances can be well defined. Let’s start with a simple example of putting a computer together. The steps could be: †¢ Installing a motherboard †¢ Installing the Processor †¢ Installing the CPU Cooler †¢ †¦.. While not all computers contain the same parts or pieces, from an abstract layer all computers do require a standard set of pieces to run. This high level standard could be the operational methodology for assembling a PC. It would be tough to argue that this is a philosophy. Now if we are to get into more detail and begin discussing processor optimization, this could blur the lines of operational vs philosophy based on proven facts and research. The actual definition of philosophy as stated by Google is â€Å"A set of views and theories of a particular philosopher concerning such study or an aspect of it†. With that being said I do feel that The Goal is abstract enough to be considered an operational methodology. The thesis of The Goal is that the goal of an organization is to increase throughput while simultaneously reducing both inventory and operating expense. That statement can be applied to all businesses. All organizations have some constraints or bottlenecks. Lack of resources and/or resource allocation is one of the most common and challenging constraints organizations face. A good attempt to try and counter argue The Goal would be to look at one of the world’s most profitable companies in Apple. An initial thought might be what possible constraints could such a large and profitable company have. Apple recently set the records for the most valuable company in history with a net worth of $624 billion. However, this has not come without restraints or bottlenecks in the process. One of the major issues Apple has had for a while is in the manufacturing process. At multiple points in time Apple was having difficulties manufacturing enough iPhones to meet the demand. This of course was a constraint on the system and on the bottom line. More recently, Apple has come under fire about its worker treatment in some of its manufacturing plants in China. These constraints have major impacts on the business and Apple is constantly making an effort to identify them and streamline the process. If we can apply The Goal to the world’s most profitable company it seems safe to say that other companies in some shape or form will fall under this umbrella as well. [pic] Fig 1. 0 How to apply Constraint Management to a Production Facility? How about to a Bank? Assume that we can apply constraint management! A production facility seems like the classical example in terms of analyzing the Theory of Constraints. As time has evolved production facilities have become larger, more complicated and depend on technology more than ever. With that said, even the most advanced of processes have at least one constraint (Theory of Constraints principle) and that constraint must be properly managed. Following the 5 step process the first thing we need to do is identify the issues/constraints in the system. This is quite broad and can cover anything from issues with human capital down to bottlenecks in the shipping process. To correctly identify the issue or issues that are holding the facility back, the identification process must be extremely detail-oriented and thorough in the discovery process. Without this full scope analysis simple errors can occur which in turn will lead to unexpected or undesired results. The next steps would be to exploit and subordinate. Once we actually identify the constraint we have to turn the focus to how to get more production within our current capacity limitations. We have to be extremely careful when doing this as exploiting the constraint does not always ensure output on the other end. In today’s day and age one of the most important factors to look at is the technology behind the processes. The key question here in production facility is are we using the technology in our process flow to a maximum capacity. Can we revise our business process with the help of technology to maximize our output? Keep in mind, human capital can be considered part of the process inclusive of technology. A perfect case study in terms of identifying constraints from a broad (internet) perspective is seen in the world’s largest online retailer in Amazon. Amazon started as an online bookstore in 1994. Amazon soon exploited not only a constraint in their own company, but a constraint in sales as a whole. Amazon soon expanded from selling only books to selling electronics, dvds, cds, and the list continued to expand. By creating a one stop shop where a user can buy anything, they found a need in the market and created a monopoly. Studying Amazon’s warehousing and shipping practices further emphasizes their efficiency, but we will leave that detailed discussion for another time. In terms of applying constraint management to a bank, the first steps in a normal climate would to be to identify which department or area has the weakest link. However, the economy has recently gone through some of the toughest times in history and the landscape has changed significantly. Without understanding the climate and market we are currently in, we are bound to get erroneous results from our analysis phase. With the changing landscape also comes changing laws. Many of the fees that banks were once able to assess without monitoring have now been eliminated. This brings to light a major constraint in generating revenue. Banks now have to be more creative in how to generate the lost revenue from the elimination of many fees and interest rate hikes. Once again technology can be the focal point here. In the case of banks which store an abundance of data, technology can really help or hinder revenue generation. From the top down, the use of analyzing data through current technologies can help identify trends and opportunities that exist for optimization. This can be seen through investment opportunities, mortgage rate optimization and even SLA (Service Level Agreement) timeframes. Can we detect bottlenecks? When†¦ Yes †¦ and†¦ When †¦ Not? Explain this. When JIT is better than the Goal? A bottleneck in a process occurs when input comes in faster than the next step can use it to create output. Detecting these bottlenecks however can be very difficult.. When dealing with bottlenecks in a production line, the problem magnifies. The cause can be due to random events (random machine failure) or other changes. A random event failure example in the IT world is a â€Å"system out of memory exception†. This error is known to be a huge constraint at random times in overused systems. The issue with this error is that it happens at random times and thus reproducing can be almost impossible. Before finding the bottleneck the first thing you must do is define the goal of the system you are working on. Simply put, you can’t find the bottleneck if you have no end goal in sight. For most production operations this would be to make money. There are two main types of bottlenecks: [6] 1. Short-term bottlenecks  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ These are caused by temporary problems. A good example is when key team members become ill or go on vacation. No one else is qualified to take over their projects, which causes a backlog in their work until they return. 2. Long-term bottlenecks  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ These occur all the time. An example would be when a companys month-end reporting process is delayed every month, because one person has to complete a series of time-consuming tasks – and he cant even start until he has the final month-end figures. Identifinyg bottlenecks in production are normally easier to find than in a business process. In the production line you can identify which point has the most pile up or which process is taking the longest and pinpoint that process. However, in a business process there are many other factors to consider. As an example let’s consider a director at a software development team. The irector oversees the whole team and is trying to identify what bottlenecks occur in the development process. Let’s assume the team is made of four people. Three of the members are extremely talented however the fourth team member is not pulling his/her weight. You would assume this would come to light but what if the other team members constantly cover for the fourth member and pick up his slack. The work gets done, however production could be much higher if the fourth member was replaced with a more talented member. This bottleneck would be a tough one to detect and may go undetected for a long amount of time. For reasons like this, bottlenecks in a business processes can be very difficult to detect. The Just in Time philosophy is a stagey aimed at improving a business’s ROI by reducing in-process inventory and associated carrying costs. The JIT philosophy evolved out of the production lines of Toyota and Toyota became a competitive threat to the US in the automotive industry. [pic] Fig 2. 0 Just in Time model JIT/lean manufacturing is well suited to repetitive environments such as those for producing automobiles and consumer electronics; however, it is not a panacea for all production companies. 7] JIT is not well suited to the assembly or fabrication firms and also for small batch or job shop operations,. While the Goal focuses on defining the weakest link, JIT concentrates on inventory reduction and exposure of waste. In terms of a business process where human resources are part of the process there could be a common ground between the two theories. Again, consider a process where the weakest link is a team member. In this sense that team member unfortunately could be seen as the â€Å"waste† in that process. With that said it The Goal and TOC have significant contributions in sales, marketing and product development just to name a few. JIT has had a huge impact on other industries such as oil, which is almost purely supply and demand driven. Based on your Recipe (Question 2). Develop a plan to apply theory of constraints to the business case: â€Å"Paediatric Orthopaedic Clinic at the Childrens Hospital of Western Ontario†. By the way where is the Bottleneck in the case study! (to be uploaded – webcourses ucf – on September 7, 2012) The case study makes note of the surveys the customers were given which were written forms that 218 patients filled out. Based on those surveys key data points were introduced. To analyze utilization rates for job functions we divided the hours spent on the process by the total hours available for work from that worker. (Figure 3. 0) [pic] Fig 3. 0 Utilization Rates Going back to our main focus from question #2 in terms of technology, the case study does not give details in terms of the technology systems it uses or whether each department is using the same system. I think this would be an interesting aspect to look at. We are focusing on the process, but we not know the system dynamics behind this. Some interesting questions to ask which are not mentioned: †¢ Do the different departments have effective communication with each other through software? †¢ Are the notes being recorded and shared across all departments? †¢ What are some of the manual processes/ constraints that software could possible help expedite One of the biggest patient complaining points was that of losing money by missing work to take their child to the hospital. A simple but effective solution for that could be to change the hours of operation to either open very early or close very late so the adults can go during their off work hours. Purchasing additional equipment could also help if the clinic’s research shows that the lack of equipment is a constraint. Lastly, the bottlenecks in the process seem to revolve around the analysis of the wait times and the utilization rates. In The Radiology department the patient wait time at 58 minutes is almost double of any other wait time.

Sunday, November 24, 2019

Computer Essay

Computer Essay Computer Essay Computer Essay: Essay Writing On Computer When working on a computer essay any number of topics or subject backgrounds may be needed. There are a lot of different ways in essay writing. But, the standard essay always follows the same basic steps. You can find many computer essay examples on different topics in the Internet; however, they all are based on the main rules. Computer Essay: General Tips Select the topic of your essay: State the central idea or thesis of your computer essay. Begin your introduction paragraph with an interesting sentence; write your thesis statement from above. Finish the introduction with a summary or goal statement. In each of the two or three body paragraphs the ideas that were first presented in the introductory paragraph should be developed. Give detailed information and examples. All body paragraphs need to develop the central idea and should finish with a summary of that idea. There should be at least two examples or a few facts in every body paragraph in order to support the central idea. The summary paragraph should summarize your whole essay. Often it is a reverse of the introductory paragraph. Begin your summary paragraph by restating quickly the principal ideas of the body paragraphs. In the penultimate sentence restate the basic thesis of your essay. Your final statement can be a future prediction based on what you have shown in the essay. Computer essay history develops with very quick steps. Computer essay now is the main demand in high schools and colleges. However, writing essays with a help of computers make students life easier. But, anyway, follow our main examples: use strong verbs and avoid modals to state your opinion. Do not apologize for what you are saying. An essay should be about your personal opinion. But never translate from your mother language; it will quickly get you into trouble. However, if you need help with your computer essay writing you can always advertise in a professional custom essay writing services. You will get a professional work, 0% plagiarized before your deadline. Simply leave your topic, list all requirements and you request will be sent to the appropriate person, experienced particularly in this area. Computer Essay: Writing Help Whether you have problems with your computer essay writing, or you are stuck among different ideas and thoughts, or you do not have time for essay writing, you are welcome to become our customer. Please contact us and our professional writers will provide you with a high quality work overnight. Save your time for more important and pleasant things. It is so easy and convenient! Interesting posts: Write a Term Paper Term Papers Medieval Knights Term Papers for Sale Term Papers and Report Term Paper Writing Help

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Foucault notions of power and its implications of studying power in Essay

Foucault notions of power and its implications of studying power in international relations - Essay Example are few of the pertinent examples of power play within the society. But Foucault’s concept of power within the international relation becomes vital elements of global politics that has wide ranging implications for world at large (Patton, 1998). In the contemporary times, power within and across nations has emerged as major contentious issue that tends to suppress the wider objectives of democratic principles and sovereignty of nations which are less power powerful in terms of socio-economic, technology and military superiority. He describes it as a relation that is only visible when it is applied or used strategically in a situation to achieve one’s own vested interests (Foucault, 1982; Mills, 2003). Thus, it use or misuse becomes vital ingredients of maintaining one’s status in global political arena. The hegemony of America in global politics is prime example of economic, technological and military power that it applies over other nations. America has used its power either directly like invading Iraq on false pretence or indirectly through leading financial institutions like World Bank, IMF and international agencies like United Nations etc. and forcing developing and under-developed nations to open their markets for foreign business. Thus, Foucault’s concept of power can easily be applied on international

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

On the movie, The Blind Side Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

On the movie, The Blind Side - Essay Example For instance, Michael was admitted in all white dominated Wingate Christian school where he thought he could not survive because of the segregation and discrimination. The movie also, considers the other side when Leigh Tuohy, a wealthy white woman, adopts Michael Oher. Even though she was white, Tuohy was humane in that she decided to help Michael Oher by inviting him to her all white family where Michael adapts and becomes part of them. In addition, they took Michael Oher to school where he was able to utilize his potential as a great footballer because of his body size and attained much in his life. ‘The blind side’ is centered on selective charity, and concerned with Michael Oher lifestyle. Michael seems grateful, happy, sad, and shy. It is because of these features that Tuohy realizes that Michael possess protective instinct, and utilizes that information to help him discover his abilities. For instance, as footballer, Michael has strong-offensive abilities, which he uses to guard unrecognized opponents in his

Monday, November 18, 2019

CRJS315 U2IP Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

CRJS315 U2IP - Research Paper Example It is the nature of teenagers to be rebellious but has the society asked itself what causes all this. Reported cases of bad behavior and illegal practices are common among juveniles, and this is worrying (BartuschandBurfeind, 2011). Anomie is the scenario where a community does not offer any guidance or direction to the people. This is especially the case for the 21st century where everyone is busy looking for money and self-empowerment while disregarding the general cohesion and togetherness of the community (Welsh and Siegel, 2011). Anomie is caused when a society undergoes rapid changes in its underlying values due to e.g. the emergence of different social classes. When this happens, the general cohesion of the society is weakened leading to different chances for the individuals to access opportunities equally. The lack of opportunities especially on the side of the less fortunate, results in a lack of morals. This is because they are willing to do anything to have those chances. Some end up finding their lack but most never do and may end up detesting the well-off (Clark,2000). This usually leads to cases of bad behavior e.g. bullying, pickpocketing, petty thieves and even drug and substance abuse. In cases of college teenagers, the inequality among the students may cause some of them to be involved in exam malpractices (Peterson,2013). To them, it is available means to excel in class and make a better life for them especially if they come from poor backgrounds. The solution, therefore, as a probation officer, is to encourage the community that, even though people may be in different social classes, the general cohesion and togetherness of the people should be maintained (Nowinski, 2007). The other things would be to encourage them to ensure equal opportunity for everyone and prevent discrimination against because of anything. Be it because of their sexual orientation, gender, race, social class or anything,

Friday, November 15, 2019

The Traditional Malay House

The Traditional Malay House This study is to analyze the modern traditional vernacular Malay house. How is the origin Malay house being transform into modern vernacular houses and what is the effect of contemporary materials. The kampong Baru is located in the capital city of Malaysia, Kuala lumpur. This is a reserved area for the Malay ethnic groups. From the case study will found out the climatic effect of using contemporary materials in the traditional Malay house by the following questions: 1: How is the climate of Malaysia? 2: How did the climatic factors of Malaysia influence the design of the traditional vernacular Malay house? 3: How did the traditional vernacular Malay house being modernization? 4: What are the climatic effects on the modern vernacular Malay house? Introduction In this paper, is to study and analyze the influences of Malaysia climatic factors on the design of the traditional vernacular Malay houses. Basically it is part of the research on the climatic effects on the contemporary construction materials in the traditional vernacular Malay houses in Malaysia. The study is more focused on the adaption of the local climate on the traditional vernacular Malay houses and how the building was transformed into modern vernacular Malay houses through the modernization process also the effects of using modern construction materials in the modern vernacular Malay houses. During the early 20th century, modernization and colonization periods the British had brought multiracial immigrants into Malaya. Then, Malaysia defines as a multiracial country that included Malays, Chinese, Indian and others. During the colonization period, multiracial group is staying separately. The majority staying in countryside mostly is Malays group and the Chinese and Indian were staying in the city. The Malay racial group depends heavily on the environment. Villages can be established even a single traditional Malay house and the additional houses came later. Normally, the buildings that built closely together were usually family members. The most significant characteristics of traditional vernacular Malay house are the adaption natural climatic factors in Malaysia. The traditional vernacular Malay house defines as a richest component of Malaysia cultural heritage. The buildings built with local materials and local techniques. Mostly, the occupant will participated in the process of design and construct, it is to manifest the aesthetic skills of the Malays. The site planning of the building based largely on Islamic beliefs and its environment. The layout was split into two parts, front and back yards. Obviously, front part will be the welcoming guest area and it is decorated with different types of ornamental plants and flowers. Back yard is the area linked to kitchen and washroom and it is placed near water, as the kitchen needs intense water usage. The marital status also reflected the architectural style of the building because of the Islamic beliefs. The house form had developed and modified over a long period to satisfy most of the cultural, occupants needs and circumstances changes. The traditional Malay houses are bamboo or timber houses raised on stilts (timber). The building mostly is a post and lintel structure with timber or bamboo walls and a thatched gabled shape roof. There are always large openings on the sides of the building to providing good ventilation. From a distance the traditional Malay house seems to integrate naturally with the environment. The large gabled shape roofs, dominates the low walls and with different orientations and sizes created an interesting visual form. Overall the Malay house is designed to cater the local climatic factors by various ventilation and local materials that are low thermal capacity materials. Besides the well adaption to the environment, the design of the traditional Malay houses are flexible is to cater the needs of user and it evolved a building system called prefabricated. Th e building has developed a sophisticated addition system that allows the building can be easily extended with the needs of the occupants. There were various traditional Malay house forms can be found in Peninsular Malaysia. Normally, they classified based on the shapes of roof. The basic forms of Malay house are called the bumbung panjang, bumbung lima, bumbung limas and bumbung perak. The most common design of the Malay house form was bumbung panjang that with a simple long gable roof, supported by the main posts. The bumbung panjang is the simplest one of the four roof shapes and it is an oldest identified in Malaysia. The bumbung panjang form became most popularity used on the Malay house among the poorer users and those built the buildings by themselves. Due to the bumbung panjang house form, it is simplicity and become a very efficient roof shape for the building. Mostly the material used for the bumbung panjang is attap. Attap is a thatch covered and tied together with nipah and others palm trees that can easily found in the local area. The simple funnel shape of bumbung panjang roof is a very efficient in ventil ation properties. The roof can cools the house effectively is because of using the ventilation grilles at the ends of the gable called tebarlayar and the ventilation joints to provide better ventilation. Besides the bumbung panjang, the bumbung lima, bumbung limas, and bumbung perak are all not origin tradition roof shapes, it has modified and developed through foreign influence. Furthermore, the bumbung lima Malay house always with a hipped roof, the bumbung perak Malay house form always with a gambrel roof and the bumbung limas house always with a pyramidal roof. Hence, they are two type of houses believed that were influenced by Dutch and British architecture during the colonization. Lastly the bumbung perak house form also known as the bumbung potongan Belanda which is a type of Dutch roof and it is a famous roof in East Coast. Originally, spaces in traditional Malay houses can be separated into front part and back portion. Therefore, the core house (rumah ibu) or main area must be at the front and the kitchen (Dapur Rumah Tengah) area will be on the back portions of the house. The selang is a closed walkway covered by leaves and used to be a linking device for the front and back portions. The selang is providing good ventilation and natural sunlight entering the house. Besides the location of the side entrance to the kitchen, it is also a space for womenfolk to socialize and chat. Most of the traditional Malay houses entrance there will be a covered porch called the anjung that acts as a transition place between the private and public spaces. The anjung will only used to entertain the unfamiliar visitors and it is a favorite space for the users to chat and rest. This floor was approximately 0.5 to 1 meter lower than the rumah ibu floor level. Beside the anjung was a hanging verandah (serambi gantung) wher e most of the guests will be entertained here and it is a one step down from the main house around 15 centimeters. The openings in the serambi gantung provide good views to outside and allowing natural ventilation entering the place where usually occurred daily activities. At the serambi gantung area can easily observed the embellishments like carving and grill of openings, balustrades and wall panels. Next to serambi gantung was the rumah ibu, which is the core area and it is the largest area and can defined as multi purpose area for most activities were conducted here. The rumah ibu floor level was the highest and cleanliness area white the kitchen (dapur) was the lowest level and untidy area of the house. The main characteristics of traditional Malay vernacular houses are it is well designed to cater the Malaysia climate. From the Malay houses we can notice it is designed with a very good understanding for nature. In the traditional Malay societies, the villagers were directly obtain most of the resources from the natural environment for theirs building materials, food and medicines. To understand better on the influences of local climatic factors on the Malay houses, must first understand the local climate, thermal requirements comfort and the conditions of the environment that the building will build. Malaysia is located in central South-East Asia and has a tropical weather. Due to the latitude and longitude, it gives Malaysia a warm humid equatorial that influenced by monsoonal climate. The monsoon climate here comes twice a year, the first monsoon season comes during the summer season and the other comes during winter season. The differences between the two monsoon season are summ er season bring lots of rainfalls and winter monsoon does not brings rain and is generally dry. The annual rainfall was averaging 80 inches to 100 inches. Furthermore, the climate here gives hot summer and high humidity throughout the year. The temperature here holds around 24 Celsius to 34 Celsius, which gives warm days and fairy cool nights. The annual humidity level was averaging about 75% or above. The high humidity climate causes the very high water vapour in the air. It can filter the solar radiation but it also speeded up the rotting, and the growth of algae. The local wind only comes in from northeast and southwest these two directions. Normally winds are in low variable speed, high variable speed wind will only occur when rain. Hence, the local climatic factors here were high temperatures, humidity and solar radiation. Based on the local climatic factors the building built here should able to achieve the thermal comfort. Therefore, rain, floods and strong winds must be control to achieve thermal comfort in Malaysia Malay houses. For thermal comfort, heat will produce from the human activities and metabolic process. The metabolic process will balance and maintain the body temperature (37celcius). The heat will release during the metabolism process of conversion of good into energy. The heat loss through convection, conduction and radiation can be negligible is due to the local temperature are almost same as the body temperature. Similarly, the perspiration is reduced and the body temperature is decreasing because of the high humidity. The saturated air envelope blocks the evaporation from the human body and it is easily form especially in humid climate. In the building ventilation is important because air fl owing can removed the saturated air envelope in order to accelerate evaporation. Similarity, a building without any ventilation, it will increase the temperature and humidity to an uncomfortable conditions. The main sources of body heat gaining are the local climatic factors conduction from the building fabric. Direct solar radiation is the main sources of body heat gaining, thus the proper design of controlling the direct solar radiation entering the building is the most important to achieve thermal comfort. Besides that, the type of materials used is one of the major sources because the high thermal capacity materials will absorbed heat and emitted to the interiors buildings. Therefore, heat gain from solar radiation must be minimized and maximized the ventilation in order to achieve the human thermal comfort in the house. Obviously, the traditional Malay vernacular house is well local climatic control building and it also influences by the local climatic factors. A local design of Malay house must have the following factors must raised up on stilts (timber), large opening on side, use low thermal capacity building materials (wood,timber,rattan,bamboo), controlling the direct sun radiation, a long thatched steep gable roof by attap , site planning and site layout. From the design of traditional Malay vernacular house, it is a very appropriate design to cater the tropical climate of Malaysia and it is more suitable to the Malaysia climate compared to the modern brick house. The raised up floor in traditional Malay house is maximizing the ventilation in the house as well as preventing the monsoonal rain floods. The raised floor is hardly seen in most modern house and the quality of openness in the building is shown by the voids in its window, ventilation grills, the open raised up bottom and the open int eriors. There are various features providing effective ventilation in Malay house. The purpose of elevated the floor on stilts is to catch high velocity of winds and the interiors with minimum partitions is to maximize the cross ventilation occur in the building. Normally, full-length opening and fully adjustable windows or louvers will surround the traditional Malay house. The carved panels on the top of the windows and wooden grilles also an important ventilation device. Behind the ventilation, the craving on wooden panels controlled the glare entering the house and it also representing the Islamic scripts. There are two effective ventilation devices on a simple gable roof. They are the sail-like gable-end (tebar layar) of the roof and the ventilation joints called patah both are very effective ventilation to direct air to ventilate the roof space. The houses in village are randomly arranged and planting the tree wisely around the house to allow natural flow through the building a nd integrated harmoniously with nature. The Malay house mostly built far apart for future extension to fulfill the needs of occupant. In the traditional Malay house, there are more voids than mass and it is a lightweight construction using natural materials to cater the local climate. The natural materials define as low thermal capacity materials and it is a very good in insulating. The long thatched roof with large overhands in traditional Malay house has reduced the solar radiation and it also designed to reduce direct sunlight. The low walls and large overhangs in Malay house, it make the shading easier and reduced the solar radiation also the glare from he open skies. Besides providing good shading, the large overhangs also gives protection against driving rain. The walls and overhangs have allowed the windows to be open in different situation weather. In addition, the external environment of Malay house mostly covered and shaded with trees or vegetation. This provides a cooler environment and lessened the reflective of glare for the house to set in. Traditionally, most of the Malay houses are oriented to face East-West for religious reasons and reduces direct exposure to heat from direct solar radiation. Nowadays, most of the traditional vernacular Malay houses are being transforming into modern Malay house throughout the modernization period. The Malay houses were modernized due to the stress from urban redevelopment and sociality changes. The new Malay houses has different spatial layout also the used of construction materials and technique. Based on the case studies, the Malay houses in the kampong bharu were transformed the roof, wall, pillar and window. The external environment has also changes is hardly to see high and tall trees only short trees are planted there due to the limited space of the compound. The short and small trees also blocked most of the natural airflow passes through the house. Besides the changes of external environment, the interior of Malay houses was transformed into more walls to divide the rooms and spaces. The cross ventilation and natural air movement were reduced due to the mass partitioning walls inside the house. As I mentioned above, the roof is the most significant feature because the Malay house were categorized based on their roof types. The Malay house in the kampong mostly used bumbung panjang compared than the other 3 types of roof. This is because the type of roof is easier to construct and cheaper. From the site I have found some houses actually using different roof for theirs main and secondary roofs. The most famous combination types of roof in kampong are bumbung perak with bumbung panjang and bumbung panjang with bumbung panjang. The long gable steep roof has become gentler for the sloping degrees and regarding the tebar layar on the gable ends of the roof were modified the design or closed with wall panels. Traditionally, attap or wooden shingles were the main materials of the roof but generally now modern construction materials were often used than the traditional materials. Besides the transformation of roof, the walls and the openings also modified due to introduce of new arc hitecture during the colonization period. The traditional wall is made by bamboo and the traditional arrangements of wallboard were totally modified. The shuttered windows on the wall are one of the significant features to show the characteristic of Malay house. The faade of the Malay house can be separated into 3 parts, the carved wooden panels providing better ventilation mostly at the top part above the window, while the window or adjustable louvers always built at the middle and bottom parts. There are some Malay house walls still using the timber board but in the modern construction brick walls are replaced the traditional bamboo or timber board wall is due to the maintenance and long lasting problems. There are 3 main types of windows such as the short window (tingkap), the tall window (jendela) and the punched window. The aesthetic wooden balustrades behind the windows are being used for safety purposes. In origin of window pattern, the jendela and tiangkap window have a key feature to classify the windows pattern called Jenang pintu. Although, the windows in Malay house has the traditional elements but the proportion of the window has modified to slimmer and became closer of the gap between the windows. The western punched glass window was adopted modern glass louvers to maximizing the ventilation while maintaining the safety of the house. The traditional stilts are no longer in use since pillars are a very important structural to support load from the house. In general, the brick and reinforced concrete pillar were often used, with the increasing of concrete pillar heights spaces of underneath became more efficient. In the modern vernacular Malay house only used concrete pillars and the underneath is usually walled to fulfill the needs of user. The transformation of wooden pillars to concrete pillars is due to the concrete pillars is more suitable for supporting the loads. After brought in the modern construction materials like zinc, cement, brick, glazing and aluminum louvers window into traditional Malay house has modified the traditional house forms and side effects of the high thermal capacity materials. The high thermal capacity materials are not suitable in local climate example like the zinc and asbestos roofs in Malay houses are generated more noise during the rains fall and gives a very hot interiors during the day. Besides the climatic effects the used of modern materials also causes the diminishing of traditional aesthetic skills and techniques of creating the complicated thatched attap roof. Other than used of zinc and asbestos materials, the bricks, cement and concrete are better materials use for creating walls especially the wet area parts and stronger structures for the house. Some of the Malay house has a closed underneath to create the house to double-storey house. Such change has transformed the light and airy Malay house into solid looking building. The full-length wooden window has been replace by the adjustable glass louvers window with aluminum frames. The louvers window has modified the traditional windows into smaller and closed the bottom part of the window. It causes the less efficiency of ventilation. The iron bar in louver window is for safety purpose but it totally destroyed the quality of openness in traditional Malay house. Throughout the studies, the traditional vernacular Malay house was design to cater the local climate and it is one of the richest components of Malaysia cultural heritage. Besides the adaption of local climatic factors the houses also reflected the Islamic belief. The houses were developed and modified until it satisfies the user. Based on the research they are various house form in Malaysia, they only can be classified based on the roof types. Overall the traditional Malay house was adapted to the local climate and it is design such as random spatial layout, raised up floor, full-length windows and high-insulated roof. The shading tress and vegetation around the house also helps to cool down the temperature in the house. The orientation of house facing to east and west was influences by the religions reason and it helps reduced the direct sun light radiation. In the modern vernacular Malay house was transformed and modified to fulfill the needs of occupant but it still maintained the traditional roof shapes. The used of modern materials was directly changed the house form and brought climatic effects into the house. Secondly, introduce of modern materials the lightweight construction Malay house has transformed into more solid looking building and it also causes the diminishing of traditional skills. Overall, the sustainably in modern vernacular Malay house was transformed and also the traditional house forms were changed.

Wednesday, November 13, 2019

The Actual Meaning of My Papas Waltz by Theodore Roethke Essay example

The Actual Meaning of "My Papa's Waltz" by Theodore Roethke Poetry is made to express the feelings, thoughts, and emotions of the poet. The reader can interpret the poem however they see fit. Critics are undecided about the theme of Theodore Roethke's "My Papa's Waltz." Some people believe that the poem is one of a happy exchange between a father and son. The more convincing interpretation is that it has a hidden message of parental abuse. Careful analysis of the keywords and each individual stanza back up this theory of child abuse by a violent and drunken father. The word that is key to the poem is romp. Roethke states that "we romped until the pans / slid from the kitchen shelf" (5-6). The word is usually associated with happy, boisterous, and energetic running around or dancing. A second definition is rough, lively play. Alcohol would cause a person to act in such a harsh manner. In athletics, a romp is an easy victory over an easy opponent. This means one side is clearly superior and beats the competition with fury and ease. The father could be viewed as a dominating and overpowering force to a small child. The younger son could not possible fight back to his bigger father especially with the added influence of liquor. Further reading of the poem will back up that meaning of the poem is to illustrate parental abuse. The first stanza sets the scene with clear imagery. The father appears to be in a heavily drunken state because the son can smell the "whiskey on your breath" (1). The reader knows the drinking is excessive because it almost made the boy dizzy. Clearly, the father is in a heavenly drunken state because someone else is feeling the effects of his drinking. Critics will ague that the son was enjoying ... ... is a happy time between a father and his child. Through careful reading, that interpretation is not valid. In 1948, actions such as this may have been a part of life. Maybe that is why Roethke wrote the poem this way because the event was probably happening in many households and people then could identify with this. Because of the vivid imagery, the reader can feel the boy's pain and fear of his father. In this case, the waltz is not a bonding time between a father and his son. People now would identify with the son and find a hatred for the father because of the mental and physical toll this could have on a child. The father does his dance by "waltzing" all over his son. Works Cited Roethke, Theodore. "My Papa's Waltz." Discovering Literature: Stories, Poems, Plays. Ed. Hans P. Guth and Gabriel L. Rico. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1997, 536.