Thursday, October 31, 2019

Legal Environment assignment Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Legal Environment assignment - Case Study Example The defense has challenged the application of subsection (4) (c) and (5) (c), and has justified the action of the defendant for non-submission of the documents as per the injunctions of subsection (3). The counsel of the defendant referred to the decision of the district judge, and focused upon the true and legitimate interpretation of the subsection (6) (b), the submission of the defendant stated that 'It is a defense for the defendant to prove that he has a reasonable excuse for not providing a document within three days of the interview'. The legal issues in the case have been the raised and addressed. It was observed that two subsections have been taken as assumption with reference to the false immigration document submitted during the journey. If the defendant is able to justify his non-submission of the document, his actions can be regarded as legal by virtue of the provisions of subsection (7) (b) (iii), as per which 'the defendant had handed the false passport that he had used to his facilitator in circumstances where it would have been unreasonable to expect non-compliance with his instructions to do so'. As per the district judge, the subsection (3) and (6) (b) are applicable on the immigration document which has been in the possession of the defendant during his journey, however the subsection is not applicable provided that it has been proven that the immigration documents never existed. The claim ca neb verified through revision of the official records of the Immigration Department. Such issue further procl aimed that 'it was not open to the appellant to rely upon the fact that he had been unable to provide a genuine immigration document within three days of his interview'. However, the district judge has contended that the application of the two subsections is legal, and the subsections can be referred to during the discussion of the contentious issues related to the false immigration document. However, the appellant's alternative case has been disqualified, because 'he had not demonstrated that it was unreasonable to expect him not to comply with his facilitator's instructions to return the false passport'. The defendant has claimed that the mention of adverbial in the subsection signified that 'only relevant provision of subsection (3) shall be submitted within three days', thus providing exemption to the defendant. Which technique(s) of statutory interpretation do you consider that the Lord Chief Justice employed in the case Give reasons for your answers. According to the Chief Justice the subsection (4) (d) is related to the situation when the defense is implicated for the submission of the false documents, therefore the application of the subsection (3) has been declared as restricted, whereas the defense is obliged to submit his documents within three days of his interview. According to the judge, the application of the subsection (4) (d) is justified provided that the false documents are submitted by the immigrant after the charges are levied against him, therefore the conviction under section 2 is not possible until the period of three

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

Madness in Love in William Shakespeare Essay Example for Free

Madness in Love in William Shakespeare Essay Madness in Love in William Shakespeare’s â€Å"Twelfth Night† There are many definitions for love, but there are also many definitions for madness. Both words, when joined together, create an endless possibility of emotions and actions one can bare to hold for the sake of another. Madness can be described as â€Å"senseless folly†. When a person is in love with another, they tend to define their feelings of passionate affection for this other person. Shakespeare’s concept was to involve some of his characters with this feeling. In Twelfth Night, madness is created by the misconception and misunderstanding due to love. Mainly, it is said that Love is one of the most significant types of madness. It leads to causes like confusion and chaos in mind, mentality, and behavior. In the Twelfth Night, the Duke Orsino falls madly in love with Olivia. Orsino describes his love towards Olivia deeper than he could imagine, â€Å"So full of shapes is fancy, that it alone is high fantastical†. Orsino loses his focus on reality as he says â€Å"For such as I am all true lovers are. Unstaid and skittish in all motions else, save in the constant image of the creature, that is beloved. †(P. 34) The only thing that is real for him at the moment is anything that has to do with his â€Å"beloved creature†, the beautiful Olivia. We also see Olivia’s senseless acts come to play as she finds herself smitten after her first encounter with Cesario: †I do I know not what, and fear to find. Mine eye too great a flatterer of my mind. [†¦]What is decreed must be – and be this so! †(P. 24) Olivia finds herself unable to think properly because she is so distracted and flustered by the attractive looks of Cesario. Another interpretation could be that Olivia’s affection has been taken and used up by Cesario due to the loss of her brother and she refuses to share her love with anyone else. Later on in the play Malvolio’s madness changes from the state of being madly in love and committing crazy acts of devotion to the state of being in madness or chaos because of the misunderstanding of the situation. He thinks it was Olivia who wrote the trick note when it was really Maria, Toby, and Andrew who tried to trick him. They created a letter, pretending to be Olivia, telling Malvolio what will make her happy. The letter did not even state that it was Olivia, but because Malvolio was excited to gain her favor he jumped to the conclusion that it was her. Malvolio’s infatuation for Olivia was so great it clouded his ability to think properly. â€Å"Daylight and champion discovers not more! †, is Malvolio’s first comment as he finished reading. He was so desperate to please Olivia and gain her love, he jumps straight to the conclusion that she wrote the letter for him. The little acts of devotion Maria mentioned in the letter were so absurd Malvolio was willingly ready to fulfill all of them: â€Å"I do not now fool myself, to let imagination jade me, for every reason excites to this, that my lady love me. I will be strange, stout, in yellow stockings, and cross-gartered, even with the swiftness of putting on. †(P. 44) Malvolio enters into a state of madness and confusion because he feels no one else knows what he is talking about. Whether madness was created due to acting foolishly because of an infatuated feeling or acting with intense emotion over someone you really care about, all these situations were because of love. In the words of Friedrich Nietzsche, â€Å"there is always some madness in love. But there is also always some reason in madness†. Shakespeare’s characters Orsino, Olivia, and Malvolio, all had a cause for their madness, and it was because of their love for somebody else. Sometimes it is a feeling that comes over you that you think is love but it doesn’t have to mean that it is simultaneously true.

Sunday, October 27, 2019

US Law Protections Against Child Laundering

US Law Protections Against Child Laundering Child Laundering: Is U.S. Law Doing Enough? Introduction The paper is an in depth examination of the issue of child laundering in the United States of America. This is done by first defining what child laundering is, how it work in the country, bringing forth some vital statistics concerning its prevalence as well as its ill-effects. Additionally, the existing laws in land that help combat child laundering as well as relevant statistics on whether the current laws have been effective or not are brought to light. Lastly, a set of recommendation are brought forth to help make the law better in addressing the problem of child laundering. Due to globalization, mainly characterized by free movement of people, goods, services and capital due to advent in technology, there are a number of benefits as well as drawbacks associated with it. Political, social, cultural, economic as well as environmental aspects of mankind have been impacted in either way. One social; ill that has been catalyzed by globalization is child laundering. By definition, child laundering has been thought of as; [The practice of illegally using children for exploitative purposes like labor, prostitution, and adoption after stealing and selling a child to adopting parents under false pretenses. The children that are trafficked in or out of a country mostly come from poor and backward families who may willingly give them over for laundering in the hope of earning money or providing a better place to the child. However, most of these children end up in neglect, abuse, and torture at the hands of their recipients] (Garrison, 2000) It is worth noting that this act also known as child trafficking is done mainly by agencies that facilitate adoption mainly against the will of the parents as well as the involved child. The offender does hide or falsify the kids details for instance controlling the origin of the child with the aim of making such children legitimate orphans (Jerome, 2001). On the same note, offenders are capable of manipulating birth certificates, intake records, or even records concerning death of parents who may be alive. Generally speaking, the phenomenon entails unlawfully attaining children by kidnapping or buying for reasons of adoption. As suggested by Zimmerman, 2005 child laundering has been associated with a number of social ill such as sexual abuse, removal of some vital body organs, child labor, illegal adoption, prostitution and slavery among others. For these reasons, governments locally and in collaboration with their international counterparts have set laws that make the act a serious crime that is punishable. Persons under the age of 18 years are deemed to be children accordance to the international law and recruit, transport, harbor and or to obtain such person to be exploited is seen as child trafficking. Although the laws of the land seem to have helped curb the problem, it is evident that there are some loopholes that need to be sealed to successfully and effectively help America address the issue of child laundering. Child laundering in United States of America It is a difficult task to succinctly establish the exact number of children being laundered which is characterized with kidnapping, stealing buying and trafficking children. in the United States of America, child laundering is mainly accomplished by the following ways or mechanism, child buying, intra-familial kidnapping, traditional kidnapping, kidnapping children place into orphanages, hostels or schools for purposes of being educated or cared for, obtaining children through false pretenses, lost children and finally taking children in payment of debts your money or your baby. The children are elated unlawfully to cities within a given country and or trafficked foreign countries (Smolin, 2005). Children, both males and females are culprits, though the reason of laundering does vary for the genders involved. Child buying involved an interconnected link that may constitute independent facilitators, directors of orphanages as well as attorney who are corrupt. They form a system that enables them buy kids from their families. An individual with skills and knowledge is at the realm of the whole scandal and recruits scouts to help him carry out his/her plans. The target here are the poorest families, money is the inducing factor (Smolin, 2006). It is estimated that person at the realm of the whole thing gets between 2,000 and 20,000 US dollars per child. Paying the family, the recruiters as well as bribing the relevant authorities obviously leaves him/her with something substantial. Kidnapping of children placed in homecare, schools or hostels has been another way of child laundering. Parents from very poor background due to financial constrain may relinquish their responsibility of housing, caring and educating their kids to an institution that provide the same. This has been used by facilitators and scouts to convinced parents to place more kids into such systems. It is sad to not that upon entering such institutions, the children are made orphans and transferred to adoptees usually without the consent of the childs parents. Smolin, 2007 held the view that child laundering has been made possible through obtaining minors through false pretense. This entails inducing parents to give custody of their children to a number of agencies. Parents are made to understand that their children are taken to have a better life and are promised they will be constantly updated about the wellbeing of their children. Financial gain from adopting persons or agencies as well as the possibilities of going to America to live there with their children makes thing easier for the perpetrators especially when the parents are naÃÆ'Â ¯ve and poor. What follows after the parents have given custody of their kids is adoption which is done through manipulation of the kids origin as well as parents whereabouts. Parents in the end loss the family contact with their kids forever. There are also cases where a family is forced to surrender the custody of their child due to inability to settle debts. This happens especially with regards to failure in settling medical bills associated with giving birth. Similarly, a woman who is poor is in debt with individuals or agencies that give loans, failure to repay makes the agency to force such women to place their kids to orphanages where the illegal adoption is then done without her consent (Zimmerman, 2005). Additionally, familial kidnapping where one parent takes away the kid from the other and place him/her in another location especially orphanages. This is usually motivated by financial gain and evading the responsibility of raising children due to lack of adequate resources. Countries where parent have to incur cost of marrying of daughter are at more risks. Traditional kidnapping of children especially from hospitals, schools homes, playing grounds, streets for sale has been on thrive as one major way of fostering child laundering. Lastly, cases involving lost children have been capitalized to enhance child laundering. It is common knowledge that once a child is established to be lost; efforts opt to be made too establish his/her family and rejoin them. However, according to Landes Posner 1978 in the wake of lust for money, such efforts are not made and involved children are deliberately given false name as well as manipulated background eventually adopted in an illegal manner wher e they may languish in sex abuse, child pornography, and child labor among others. Statistics Child laundering is deemed to be the second most serious crime in the United States only after drugs. It is the fastest growing crime globally. Globally, about 1.2 million children are stolen and illegally adopted a business that run in excess of $12 billion annually (Wuiling, 2006). Above 2.8 million children are brought to America annually, upon setting foot on U.S soils a third of these children are coerced to engage in prostitution and child pornography, these individuals are 12 years on average. It is asserted that 300,000 children in America are at risk of being exploited via commercial sex. Although foreigners are trafficked into the country, the number of American kids being laundered is much higher with close to 200,000 children of American origin being lured into commercial sex business Zimmerman et al. 2006). Statistic has it that a perpetrator of child laundering can make up to $200,000 annually from one young girl. Additionally, child pornography has been on the rise and threatens the moral stability of the country. According to FBI there has been an increase of 2500% in arrests in the last 10 years (Zhang, 2007). The concept of intercountry adopting has been hailed to create room for child laundering. Between 1990 and 2003, intercountry adoption into U.S tripled up to 21, 654 from 7,093. Table 1 Intercountry adoption to U.S Statistics. Year Intercountry adoption to U.S 2003 21,654 2004 22,990 2005 22,734 2006 20,680 2007 19,609 2008 17,475 2009 12,753 2010 2012 Projected to be Source; Smolin, D. (2010). Child Laundering and the Hague Convention on Intercountry Adoption. The Future and Past of Intercountry Adoption. Retrieved on 15 March 2011 from https://litigation-essentials.lexisnexis.com/webcd/app?action=DocumentDisplaycrawlid=1doctype=citedocid=48+U.+Louisville+L.+Rev.+441srctype=smisrcid=3B15key=997ad293e589e3af1af27ed695146555 Ill-effect of child laundering It is no doubt that child laundering has a lot of negative attributes to the involved children as well as the society as a whole. As stated previously, laundered children are subjected to exploitative conditions such as prostitution, child pornography, child labor, illegal adoption, slavery and to extreme ends removing vital body parts (Landes Posner, 1978). The children involved under go serious sufferings at the hands of their adoptees. They are inflicted with mental/psychological torture as well as physical torture impacting on various aspects of their lives (Lifton, 1975). Child laundering usually denies the involved kids the opportunity of growing up with their blood sibling as well as sharing the bliss of life with their biological parents. Such incidences usually impact on their perception especially towards parents when they come of age and realize that where they are is not their home and their parent cannot be traced (Mabry Kelly, 2006). In incidences that the child was taken from the mother forcefully or by being threaten, the mother will live in guilt for the rest of her life for failing to defend her child. Such traumatic events psychologically torture the victim that it may escalate to her day to day way of living. The emotion associated with losing family ties can be very detrimental to the health of the victim as they may spent a better part of their time crying and thinking about home, siblings, friends and parents (Tyuryukanova, 2002). In cases where the children are subjected to sexual abuse for instance prostitution and child pornography, there are potential possibilities of them contacting sexual transmitted diseases and more seriously HIV and AIDS. It is no doubt that these kids have seen to it that the spread of such diseases are on the rise posing danger not only to them but also to the general public (Marshall Gerald, 2002). Additionally, when molested at such early ages as 12 years, they stand a chance of holding lower esteem of themselves ending up withdrawing from sexual activities even with their beloved partners once they are grown ups. The problem with intimacy can also be along with problems with their kids. Survivors more often that not push away those individual close to them which is seen to be a disturbing issue to one of the spouse. It has been established that close to 80% of children engaging in sexual abuse and child pornography if not saved earlier and put into rehabilitation will definitely engage in prostitution in future especially when they are adults (Williams, 1999). Where the culprit is physically abused, by their recipients there are chances that they my turn to be violent when they grow to adulthood. When the same goes to the extreme, such children are a time physically and permanently deformed. Additionally, the children that are abused physically loss some body senses and cannot feel anything which is dangerous to their growth and development (Wolfe, 2005). On the same note, despite the fact that when facilitators are trying to induce the biological parents of children to be adopted by promising better life, education, provision of basic need, in reality, these children end up languishing in more trouble as compared to before being taken. Basics needs such as health, shelter, food among others are poorly administered. It is only a small fraction that is lucky to have a better shelter over their heads. Lack of education in most cases renders such individual useless later in life as they cannot secure better jobs and for this reason, most of them have ruined life (Torgoley, 2006). It is also a fact that these individuals are subjected to social ill such as drug use/abuse and other forms of crime. The involved children when growing up in such an environment approach adulthood already mentally polluted and corrupted. The end result is having a society that is full of crime, irresponsible and holding negative views on themselves as well as others. Strictly speaking, when children are trafficked to urban centers which is usually the norm, it is obvious that the surging numbers are not in line with the available resources (Vu, 2004). This does contribute to overcrowding of the existing infrastructure in states that are striving to provide financial as well as other resources to meet children needs. As noted by Lindsey Biel, author of Raising a Sensory Smart Child, [Internationally adopted children demonstrate higher incidences of sensory integration and health problems than domestically adopted children. The crowded adoption facilities typically lack adequate medical, educational and nutritional care for children, leading to cognitive, emotional and behavioral disorders in adopted children]. Another social ill that is associated with child laundering is irresponsible parenting. Once couple are given the room to sell their children, this will be the norm hence making the society have irresponsible individual who are not capable of taking care of young individuals and providing them with basic needs. This will provide a wider avenue for the illicit business deemed lucrative to thrive at the expense of values of any given society. Similarly, there are problems faced by the children trafficked to new areas especially if they are from a foreign country. It will take them time to fully adjust to the environment as well as the culture of destination area (Wolthuis Mirjam, 2001). Laws addressing child laundering and their effectiveness Laws that address child laundering especially in US depend on the state. However, it has to meet accreditation law from Hague convention adoption law. It is also affected by the human rights laws to ensure that in legal adoption process is catered for to curd child laundering. The Hague convention is put in place to affect all the adoptions that talk place within the countries that signed the treaty withy it. Therefore, such countries as US, which signed this Convention in 1994, that came into force in April 2008 must comply with their laws during international adoption to ensure that child laundering is avoided. Therefore, Hague convention ensure that each country respect human right in their laws of adoption (Vu, 2004). Hague adoption process The adoption process from a convention country may differ from a non-conventional country in various ways. However, the numbers of the countries that ascertain adoption process from the Hague statute are about seventy-five where US is a member. To eliminate child laundering among conventional countries during adoption, Hague Conventional Adoption process should be followed (Zhang, 2007). Each person should complete six steps during convention process. First, one should ensure that he/she choose accredited adoption agencies that provide this service. Second, apply to them to ensure that they find you legible to adopt. This is to make sure that one is able to be given right to acquire an adoptee legally reducing chances of child laundering. For example According to adoption laws in New York State, a person to be legible to undertake adoption process must be an adult. He/she can be married or unmarried (Williams, 1999). Persons who had married but living separately from each other either under or in pursuant of the decree of separation or through a written separation statement is also legible. A minor husband with an adult wife or a minor wife with an adult husband can together adopt a child. Other groups according to legal proceeding can still adopt provided there is an adult to take care of the adopted child. An adaptor will be referred to a child who she/he is required to adopt. According to the law, adoption should be done with the consent of the adoptee if fourteen years and above with sane mind, from their parents if below that age or incapacitated or from the court of law IdeaConnection (2011). After getting the consent, one is supposed to apply for the child to ensure that one is eligible to immigrate to US. After immigration documents are offered, now the person can adopt the child. The immigration visa for the child is processed as the final process of the adoption. According to the Hague adoption process, it was meant to provide protections to the prospective parents, children and the birth parents. The key principle of Hague adoption convention process follows the interest of the child (Wolfe, 2005). It is meant to ensure that there is no child laundering during inter-country adoption. According to US, the federal government upholds these laws with utmost faith where Inter-country Adoption Act of 2000 and its implementation regulations govern them. According to the Hague convention law, the adoptive service should be accredited, temporarily accredited or should have been approved in a national level to carry out conventional adoption services. Through this, the adapting parents learn about the agency through the adopting lawyer. This ensure that the selected agency have comprehensively been evaluated based on standards contained in the federal regulations. This eliminates the tendencies that develop cartels that propagate child-laundering process. The standards provided for the accredited agencies are meant o address unprofessional adoption practices (Kristof, 2000). The other principle of the Hague adoption process is to address immigrant visa petition and application process. This ensure that the children are notified about potential problems that pose legal bar of children from getting to US before following due adoption process to be adopted by the prospective adaptor. This is to ensure that the child especially who have been adopted from oversee is given a legal permit to reside in the US after adoption. This regulates the illegal child trafficking as the children from other countries are identified by the federal government (Wolfe, 2005). Conventional process The first step in the adoption process is choosing accredited agency in the US. This will help in connecting one with the other country where one is required to adopt the child. It will also offer legal adoption law of that country to ensure that no children laundering (Spangenberg, 2002). Adoption service providers should have complied with federal regulation (22 CFR Part 96). The adoption process is monitored by the council of accreditation (COA) and Colorado Department of Human Services. In addition, the Office of Childrens Issues monitors accrediting entities in compliance to Inter-country Adoption Act (IAA). To ensure that legal adoption is followed and child laundering is minimized, IAA outlines services that the agencies should provide to their client as follows. The agency should identify child for adoption and ensure that they arrange on the due adoption process this regulating irregularities that lead to child laundering. The agencies should also ensure that it secure necessary consent terminating parental adoption right. It should also do home study to ensure that it offers a report on prospective adoptive parents and child background (Zimmerman et al. 2006). The accredited agencies are supposed to perform child non-judicial determination of a child best interest and the appropriate adaptor. They are supposed to ensure that they are capable of providing healthcare to children and any other social care if need arises. This is in accordance to the rights protecting the welfare of the children. After getting an accredited agency, one is require d to apply to ensure that legibility. This done through the help of the accredited agency chosen to ensure that the whole process follow the required laws and child adoption laws. For example, if a US citizen is applying to adopt a child from other country he/she must be found legible by US citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIC). They will access the ability of one to hold capability to cater for the child (Wolthuis Mirjam, 2001). The application is done through a form called 1-8000A. It ensures that one is suitable to adopt the child and ensure that legal process is followed. The form is applied in conjunction with a form showing in detail once health, finances, background among others details. This is mandatory for adoption process to ensure that no child laundering. The agency will help the adoptive parent through referring him/her to the child after being convinced that he/she is legible for adoption. This will depend with the law put in place by the federal government of each country or state. Each country has its adoption law that has to comply with human rights regulation (OHalloran, 2009). Therefore, the agency through the attorney will be sending a report showing determining once legibility. Legibility is determined by article 4 of the Hague Conventional Adoption Process. It says that the child adoption should be done to meet the child interest. It postulate that the legal custodian should be counseled to ensure that he/she understand the repercussion that underlay the adoption and especially illegal adoption otherwise child laundering (Kristof, 2000). The law also provides that the person who give adoption consent on behalf of a child who is not capable of giving own consent does this in writing after counseling. This will offer a legal background incase any undue process is cited elsewhere. It will in addition reduce any child-laundering occurrence. If the child is above 14 years and is capable of giving her/ his adoption consent is counseled on adoption effects and gives consent afterwards in writing. This reduces cases where parents conspire to have child laundering (Spangenberg, 2002). The law also provides that there should be no payment or inducement that should b e offered prior to the completion adoption process to ensure that the process is not compromised whatsoever. For the report to be offered to prospective adoptive parent, it should be accompanied by a translated to ensure that everything in the report is duly understood. It will also be accompanied with birth certificate of the child or secondary evidence showing child age (Wuiling, 2006). Duly signed irrevocable consent by the legal custodians and other entities or individuals who have are entitled to give adoption consent on behalf of the child as provided for in article 16 of the Hague Adoption Convection , the federal law of the country and the habitual certified report. This is to ensure that the adoption process follows legal order to eliminate irregularities (Marshall Gerald, 2002). The next thing is to apply for the legitimacy of the child to the Immigration to the United State after accepting the referral proposed. This is where the USCIS under the department of homeland security come in to approve the adoption of the child through form 1-800 (Smolin, 2003). USCIS makes the provisional determination whether the child is legible to be adopted in US according to the law and in accordance to the information enclosed therein. For a child to be adopted in US, he/she must meet a convention adoptee to ensure that she/he is legible to migrate to US. This will help in controlling the number of children getting in the country illegally consequently curbing child laundering. If Consular Officer finds that the child is legible for adoption, the net thing is the prospective parent adopting him/her. Finally, the application of immigrant visa for the child is done after legal adoption is carried out. This ensure that the child become a citizen of US by adoption. Visa is a necessary document to ensure that the child trafficking is regulated (Torgoley, 2006). Recommendations to better curb the menace As suggested by OHalloran, 2009 no matter how much the child trafficking act is combated; this has been a thorny issue due to some loopholes that have been there for a long time. United State of America being the chief anti children trafficking agents in the world has to some level failed to come up with laws that are concrete to combat completely this vice (Lifton, 1975). To the contrary, it is the highest recipient of the adopted child which most of them are from the same vice. Therefore, from the study that is done herein, some of the recommendation have been proposed to ensure that the vice is reduced if not eliminated. To ensure that the child laundering is combated in US, the federal government of US should work together with State of Department to overcome the confusion that has ever existed in the approach of the child trafficking (Jerome, 2001). First, the project propose to congress to extended the mandate of the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking to include trafficking in purpose of adoption in addition to their normal mandate of labor and sex trafficking (Mabry Kelly, 2006). If its mandate is extended, it should include buying children with adoption purpose as child trafficking contrary to its normal counter-productive approach. Congress and the Office of the Children Issues that is within the Department of the State should implement the Hague Convention depending with its fundamental purpose as anti-trafficking treaty. This will call fro the federal government to review critically the incidences caused by child trafficking within the intercountry adoption system (Garrison, 2000). The US government should provide regulatory measures to ensure that the US consular and immigration being used as child laundering mechanisms. This is through provision of comprehensive criminal and civil actions towards children trafficking and children laundering and remedies within the intercountry adoption system (IdeaConnection, 2011). US government should concern themselves in the aftermaths brought by the vice of children trafficking and children laundering. This is through offering resource support to the prone countries as most of this vice is driven by poverty. Conclusion From the review of the issue of child laundering, it is apparently that it entails illegal stealing and selling of children to adopting parents under false pretenses. The phenomenon has been prevalent thanks to globalization which is free movement of people, capital, goods and services due to technological advancement. Coming second after drug trafficking, child laundering is serious crime in the United States. Globally, about 1.2 million children are stolen and illegally adopted a business that run in excess of $12 billion annually. Above 2.8 million children are brought to America annually, upon setting foot on U.S soils a third of these children are coerced to engage in prostitution and child pornography, these individuals are 12 years on average. The ill-effects of child laundering are both physical and psychological. It is evident that children are subjected to social ill such as pornography prostitution, child labor among other which in the long run impact on their health, how they perceive themselves as well as others, some grow to be abusers and lone rangers even if they are in an intimate relationship. America does have numerous laws that have been put in place to curb child laundering. It is worth noting that each and every state do have varied version of how to tackle the menace. From the statistics, it seems the laws have helped curb the problem as there was a decline on the number of children being adopted. However, the laws have not been effective in successfully addressing the matter. For that matter, there is need for U.S to tighten the mechanisms it uses to verify the validity of the children in question, collaborate with other countries and involve other relevant state organs in fighting the menace, coming up wi th better proposal that will help curb poverty which seems to be the root cause of child laundering. The later can offer a long term solution if successfully adopted.

Friday, October 25, 2019

The Persecution of Christians Today Essay example -- Exploratory Essay

The Persecution of Christians Today The persecution of minority groups has been well documented throughout history. These documentations have been mostly of people of one race, culture, or ethnicity; persecuting another based on the belief that one race is superior to the other. In the case of Christianity, however, the documentation of the persecution has been kept to a minimum. In fact, it is rare to find a case in today’s world of the media reporting on the persecution of Christians. The reports of the atrocities of the Jews during the Holocaust where horrifying indeed, but equally horrifying are the accounts of the slaughter of Christians in the first century A.D. The descriptions of the means of death that many Christians faced during the early years of the Church leave one’s stomach uneasy to say the least. Tortured, raped, and killed, simply for what they believed in, Christians faced death almost willingly in some cases. Today the extent of the persecution of Christians often depends on where an individual lives. In the United States, a â€Å"nation under God,† Christians are quietly persecuted during everyday life. It is not seen as persecution by non-Christians who live in the U.S., but as their right to freedom of speech to mock and belittle Christians. In other parts of the world, however, the persecution is much more severe. Maltreatment in areas of the Middle and Far East are often issues of life and death. Christians are being imprisoned, tortured, and killed for their belief in the Lord Jesus Christ and their attempts to spread the good news of salvation to the lost. This discrimination will not end anytime soon. It will be in the world until Jesus returns. Different groups will... ... Christian Legal Society. Center for Law and Religious Freedom. 22 April 2003 http://www.clsnet.org/clrfPages/litigation/litigation_Hensley.php3 . Focus on the Family. Dr. James Dobson. 21 April 2003 www.family.org . Fox, John. Fox’s Book of Martyrs. Philadelphia:The John C. Winston Co., NO DATE. Life Application Study Bible. NIV. Illinois: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., 1997. â€Å"Persecution of Christians Growing in the United States.† Thomas Horn. 21 April 2003 http://www.worthynews.com/christian-persecution.htm . Pong, Peter, Wang, Shih-Ping, Liu, Tsin-Tsai, Cheng, Samuel, Kim, Kyung. Communist Persecution of Churches in Red China and Northern Korea. Washington: United States Government Printing Office, 1959. 1-7. Swint, Wayne. Personal interview. 22 April 2003. â€Å"Working with the Communist.† Christianity Today 7 Oct. 2002. 56-59.

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Nature †Man Destruction Essay

We as human beings are very fortunate to be living on this planet that we call Earth. We toil over the land, and in return we receive provisions off of which we live. Even though we get all that we need from this bountiful land, we still for some reason feel like we need to alter it. In doing so we also end up ruining the land that we thrive on. We reshape the world to fit our individual needs, and the earth just doesn’t work that way. Everything on this planet has a purpose, from the largest animal to the microscopic bacteria, and without it, it is impossible to live in harmony People have learned how to turn wild natural areas to dram land, how to exploit minerals to adapt their needs, how to build roads and houses to expand their territories. People continuously improve their knowledge and develop technologies to improve their lives. It is undeniable that these activities of human beings make their lives better than ever before. Nevertheless, those activities also cause side-effects to the Earth because of pollution, deforestation, and exaggerated natural resources exploitation. â€Å"As Man progresses scientifically, he has also become more destructive.† Examine the statement with respect to events and happenings around you and giving sufficient examples wherever necessary. Man has, over the ages, been progressively moving towards a world and life of destruction. What most people fail to realise is that this destruction is not only the destruction of the world around us, but also a systematic destruction of the universe inside ourselves. Man has been destroying trees, forests, the birds and the bees, and on a completely different level, he has been destroying himself in terms of his mind, body and soul. forest is asking for help in desperation. For last few decades, the forest areas have been reduced to 50 percent because of human deforestation. Green forestland of the Earth can be compared to the lungs of human. How healthy you are if their lungs are trespassed. I am sure that you will get more difficult with aspiration; as a result your health will be affect badly. From this example, we can infer that how serious problem our Earth has to face with. I wonder how long it can endure. In conclusion, the human beings harm the Earth. Human beings as well as their dear planet, the Earth, have been badly suffered by what caused by humans themselves. I hope that humans are soon aware of those problems so that they can have suitable policies in order to not only improve their lives but also keep and maintain the Earth fresh and green. Science

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

Design, make, test and evaluate a strain gauge sensor Essay

These are my preliminary results that helped me to understand the physics and approach needed to make my experiment successful. In exp1, 3 and 4 I used the same wire and exp2 was a fresh wire. Clearly u can see the set of results obtained in exp2 were different to the other sets of data. After a wire stretches the wire Changes State and becomes a harder material, meaning it will stretch less the next time u apply a strain. Therefore in my real experiment I used fresh wire for each experiment. Trend In Graphs: From the graphs u can see a general trend formed in exp2, as weight is applied the voltage across the rest of the circuit decreases, therefore increasing across the wire. In the other three experiments u can see weight has little or no effect on voltage, thus showing the wire has already been stretched. This can be seen in ‘Chart 1’. Results I have used ‘Ohm’s law’ which is a formula, to get a resistance for my results. R= V/I Experiment one Experiment 2 Experiment 3 Length of Constantine wire (cm) Voltage (v) Resistance (ohms) Voltage (v) Resistance (ohms) Voltage (v) Resistance (ohms). Experiment 4 Experiment 5 Length of Constantine wire (cm) Voltage (v) Resistance (ohms) Voltage (v) Resistance (ohms) 1The anomalies are in red. I have also carried out a further experiment to find out how there is a general increase in voltage and resistance across a wire as it becomes longer. These results support the prediction I have made before hand. I predicted that the longer the wire the greater the resistance will be and then more energy will be needed to push the electrons through. Now I can carry out my experiment, knowing current and voltage will increase as strain is applied on the wire. Results: 1st Set†¦ Length Of Wire/(mm) Current/(milliamps) Weight/(grams) Power, voltage/(millivolts) [Start]8off scale 700 254 This is my first set of results, which I believe to be the most accurate. As u can see there is a clear trend in the increase of current and voltage. There are no anomalies in this experiment. 2nd Set†¦ Length Of Wire/(mm) Current/(milliamps) Weight/(grams) Power, voltage/(millivolts) [Start]8Observations: There was only one major observation and that was to see how the wire stretched as more weight was applied. As more weight was applied the wire slowly stretched until its deformation point. The deformation point is where the wire is stretched or re-shaped so much it cannot return to its original state. Accuracy of Results: The accuracy that I achieved was very high even though I had very little time. Also I got lots of results to make a good analysis. The level of accuracy in this investigation was as high as I could get. The only thing I could of improved was to use more weights and measure every 50grams however this may have taken too long to achieve. I got someone else to check the reading on the meters to be sure I was reading them correctly. Before taking each reading I would also check the connections were crisp between the wire and the rest of the circuit. I could change one or two thing during this experiment. A few examples of these could be the thickness of the wire, the type of wire for example copper and gold. We made sure to limit out systematic error by valuing all the results a 0 for 0 weight. This way only my own human judgement can effect the quality of the results. A random error could of included, when I was reading the results someone knocked or a change in the gravitational field, effected the weight. Also a slight wind could of pushed on the weights for that precise second, tiny chance, but possible! Analysis: First Experiment: The first experiment clearly went much better then the second as I have a significant and clear trend between the strain, current and voltage. From ‘Chart 2’ u can clearly see that as u stretch the wire the current and voltage increase. The voltage only grows very slowly until the wire is deformed, then the electrons need much more energy to move across the wire (large increase in resistance). The sharp slope proves this in ‘Chart 2’. Chart 3 and Chart 4 show this in much more detail. In ‘Chart 3’ u can see where the wire snaps because the stain is too much for it to withstand. Therefore from the first experiment we can see that my theory and hypothesis is proven. Chart 8 shows the general pattern between voltage and current and how resistance increases. Between point 6 and 7 on the X-axis the wire has deformed and resistance has greatly increased. The wire has stretched 45mm, which also increase resistance. Second Experiment: There is one major anomaly in experiment 2 and that is when 100grams were placed on. The reading of power/voltage and current are much too high. On Chart 5 and 6 I have draw a pencil line which I believe should have been the results gained. The general trend again shows that as u stretch the wire the resistance across it increases. Chart 7 shows the general pattern between voltage and current and how resistance increases. Evaluation: A strain gauge can predict when a wire or something with applied stress or stain will deform or even break. When the voltage and current increases in a wire it must mean resistance has also increased. Improvements: If I were to do the experiment again, I could make some improvements to make the level of accuracy better. For example, I could make sure that the joints/connections were jointed properly and would have to make sure I use the same equipment every time. I could also get a machine to measure the length of the fine wire. I would also take more than two sets of results, which would eliminate any factors of anomalies and would therefore make the experiment a lot more reliable.

Technology for Disabled essays

Technology for Disabled essays Technology for the disabled has made numerous advances over the recent years. The things they have been doing to help disabled people to be able to stay with the advances that have been going on in the world is proceeding nicely. This helps the disabled do basic things that we have thought to be an easily accessible occurrence. For example the Internet, all we have to do is turn on the computer and follow the mouse pointer to the designated icon, where as blind people have to do different things. The different types of input devices for the disabled are brail printers, brail displays, and brail keyboards; these are the most common types of brail devices. They also have screen enhancers, and magnifiers that have a specific task that can be done to help out certain people. Another type of key advancement is the use of audio channels. Another aspect that needs to be introduced is something that we do every day at Purdue University Calumet; print papers out. It is an every day occu rrence for us, but what if you wanted it printed out in brail text. Know the paper will show these tools in more detail and with more precise descriptions on how it will help. First the use of brail devices is well established in today's society. There are many types of brail devices like a notebook PC with Integrated Braille Access for the Blind. BRAILLEX Compact is equipped with state-of-the-art processor technology (Pentium processor) and can be upgraded with up to 40 MB of memory (www.tvi-web.com). This gives the blind people plenty of computer power to work with DOS or with one of the popular graphical user interfaces like Windows or OS/2. This helps them to have the same advantages as normal people. BRAILLEX Compact's numerous interfaces make it have a lot of options to go for. You may connect an (external) QWERTY keyboard, a VGA monitor, Braille printers, a scanner, modem, speech synthesizer, and all the usual type of accessories. One of the...

Sunday, October 20, 2019

Expressing a Specific Quantity In French

Expressing a Specific Quantity In French This is the second part of my lesson on French quantities. First, read about  du, de la and des, how to express  unspecific quantities in French,  so you follow the logical progression of this lesson. So now, lets take a look at specific quantities. 1 - Un, Une = One and the Numbers This one is quite easy. When you are talking about a whole item, use: un ( masculine word) to say one. Ex: Jai un fils (I have one son).une ( feminine word) to say one. Ex: jai une fille ( I have one daughter).a cardinal number, like deux, or 33678  Ex: jai deux filles (I have two daughters). Note that un and une are also indefinite articles in French, meaning a/ an in English.   2 - More Specific Quantities = Expressions of Quantity Are Followed by De or D ! This is the part that usually confuses students. I hear these  mistakes several times a day during my Skype lessons. Its definitely one of the most common French mistakes. Expressions of quantity are followed by de (or d), never du, de la, de l, or des. In English, you say I would like a little bit OF cake, not a little bit SOME cake dont you? Well, its exactly the same thing in French. So, in French, after an expression of quantity, we use â€Å"de† or â€Å"d† ( word starting with a vowel). Ex: Un verre de vin (a glass OF wine, NOT DU, you do not say â€Å"a glass some wine†)Ex: Une bouteille de champagne (a bottle of champagne)Ex: Une carafe d’eau (a pitcher of water – de becomes d’ vowel)Ex: Un litre de jus de pomme (a liter of apple juice)Ex: Une assiette de charcuterie (a plate of cold cuts)Ex: Un kilo de pommes de terre (a kilo of potatoes)Ex: Une botte de carottes (a bunch of carrots)Ex: Une barquette de fraises (a box of strawberries)Ex: Une part de tarte (a slice of pie). And do not forget all the adverbs of quantity, that also specify quantities : Ex: Un peu de fromage (a bit of cheese)Ex: Beaucoup de lait (a lot of milk).Ex: Quelques morceaux de lards (a few pieces of bacon). Note that in spoken French, this â€Å"de† is very much glided, so almost silent. OK, now that I made this very clear, I am going to confuse you even more†¦ bear  with me. You could say je voudrais un morceau du gà ¢teau au chocolat. Why? Because in these cases, you are running into another French grammar rule: the du here is not a partitive article, meaning some, but a contraction of the definite article with de, de le du.   It makes sense when you stay focusses on the context: Je voudrais du gà ¢teau some cake, I dont care how much.Je voudrais un morceau de gà ¢teau a piece of cake.Je voudrais un morceau du gà ¢teau au chocolat a piece of the chocolate cake, this specific one Im looking at right now, not the strawberry cake next to it, but that chocolate cake (Imagine Cookie Monster, it will help)†¦ BTW, you say un gà ¢teau AU chocolat because its made with chocolate and other ingredients, not just chocolate. The chocolate is a flavor, but there is also flour, sugar, butter. Youd say un pà ¢tà © de canard because its a way to prepare the duck. Remove the duck and youre left with only spices. But I digress...So now, for the last part of this lesson, lets see what happens when the quantity is zero, and with adjectives of quantities.

Saturday, October 19, 2019

Financial Crisis Impacts on the Employees' Motivational Aspects Research Paper

Financial Crisis Impacts on the Employees' Motivational Aspects - Research Paper Example Based on the responses of these employees, who belonged to different levels in the two organizations, the research concluded that there was indeed a lowered morale and motivation during the crisis. The reason for this was lack of resources and tools available to perform work at optimum levels, lack of incentives and motivators, lack of managerial support and fear and insecurity.The research also found that the managers can help alleviate the situation by taking a more dynamic role, making themselves available to the employees, setting clear targets, giving clear directions and guidance for achieving targets, and by showing their support and commitment to the employees. The managers can encourage employees, even when there are no external motivators, by simply showing their concern and by being honest and open with them.The research, therefore, concluded with a list of these recommendations that the organizations can follow in order to keep their employees motivated even during the cr isis.The economic and financial crisis of 2008/9 led to massive changes in the understanding of how business and organizations needed to be run. While there were very drastic implications for all, like job losses, pay cuts and loss of benefits and incentives, there were also several lessons that were learned about people management and work culture. Though the crisis may well have receded, there is widespread unemployment and loss of investor confidence that is dampening any prospects of growth. Employees have been seeing a downturn in their prospects due to non-availability of alternative jobs as well as due to lack of interests that their organization may be showing in retaining them.

Friday, October 18, 2019

Social Media Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Social Media - Research Paper Example This paper seeks to give an in-depth evaluation of social media marketing. Different social media networks have subscriptions in terms of millions, which are cheaper than other media platform. This is very beneficial to the marketing company as the resources saved can be used in investing in other fields, which would ensure the continuous expansion of the company. Therefore, social media platforms are able to make it easier for companies to make a variety of cost effective strategies and campaigns In marketing, the number of audience who access the information being presented by the advertising company matters a lot in the success of the entire marketing process. Since the cost of accessing other media such as newspapers is high, social media fit very well to numerous individuals. The services are easily accessible to many, especially the youths and middle-aged persons, who form a significant percentage of the targeted group for many products. Through blogs and articles, social media platforms have been proved to be very effective in driving traffic to the website, which in most cases results in stronger brand names and increased sales, which are essential for a brand to have a competitive edge in the market (Meyerson and Entrepreneur press 3-63). When marketing global products, other means of marketing such as billboards, newspapers and radio are not effective due to geographical boundaries limitations. On the other hand, social media has no geographical limitation, and thus can be used by various persons in numerous regions across the globe. As such, in marketing global products, social media is very effective as it allows people from different geographic location to meet at the same time and at the same time and air their view freely. This enables the company to have an understanding of the global perception of their product, and

Stereotyping of the Aging Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Stereotyping of the Aging - Research Paper Example This is usually against the senior members of society by the much younger persons. Stereotyping of aging, often known as ageism, is something that has affected people all over the world. It is a form of discrimination just like racism and sexism. It takes the same pattern as these two since it was believed that the elderly faced the same prejudice due to their old age. This paper will review some of the negative and positive stereotypes of aging, and the process of aging. As seen above, this stage is inevitable. Every living thing that has been born must go through the process of aging. This is to ensure that the life cycle is maintained as the birth, and growth of other living organisms occurs. However, over the years, theories and myths have come up about aging. They often lead the much older people to be perceived in a certain way. The manner in which they are treated by the much younger generation is not right. A name has been given to this form of treatment. It is known as ageis m. It took this name since it had the same pattern as other forms of discrimination (Branch & Palmore, 2005). Stereotyping of the aging has become a common trend especially in these modern times. In modern times, families and relatives of old people still love them. However, this love is often shown to them if they are far away from the much younger family members. This shows that not many people value what the older people have to offer (Branch & Palmore, 2005). When they die, they often think of it as a relief since they were already old, and could not fend for themselves. They think that occasional is enough to show affection and appreciation. Also, that old folks will be satisfied with seeing their children and grandchildren once in a year is something that works. This cannot be considered the correct way to go about treating all those that paved the way for others. They paved the way for everyone, so it is the responsibility of everyone in society to guide and protect them in t heir old age. Stereotyping can be defined as a set of beliefs that often guide a person in everyday life. They shape the way an individual thinks and relates to their immediate surroundings. There are a number of stereotypes about aging and the old that run the lives of many people around the world today (Branch & Palmore, 2005). There are positive and negative stereotypes that exist about aging. The negative stereotyping of the aging has often taken centre stage in the lives of many. This means that the negative beliefs that many people harbour about aging are more than the positive ones. This should not be the scenario as the older generation still have a lot to offer the world. They might be old, but what they know, and believe in could be valuable to each and every person because they are bound to age with time. Positive Beliefs One positive stereotype could be that the aging are often kind. This stereotype can lead to many people believing that at a certain age, they often thin k of putting others before themselves. This is an immensely positive mind-set for those who believe that old people are unkind to those around them, and themselves, as well (Levy, 2001). As people grow older, they get the knowledge that is often not acquired in a classroom with the use of books. This knowledge is acquired with the coming of age. They often tend to become wiser than they were when they were much younger. This can tell all those who believe

Job Cover Letter Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Job Cover Letter - Essay Example Having handled mostly managerial positions, I have developed the skill in influencing people, making short-term decisions which is in line with the long-term strategy of the business organization, manage people, and ensure the efficient operation of the unit. As a person, I have an ardent commitment to excel in everything I do and the motivation to give my very best. I believe that my acquired skill from my disciplines together with my previous experiences satisfy the minimum requirements of the job. However, I am also very willing to learn and gain the knowledge and skills which are required to be most efficient. I am confident that I am qualified for the position and can make significant contributions to the continued success of your organization. I am very willing to furnish you with any additional information in order to pursue my application. For further queries, please contact me anytime. I will also be calling after three days to follow up my application.

Thursday, October 17, 2019

Legal and Ethical Issues Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Legal and Ethical Issues - Case Study Example The parents claimed that the culprit was initially detained by the local police, however once the culprit pretended to be logically, the culprit was released, the psychologist also used his influence to prevent the Poddar from any future arrest, and made a request to the police department to avoid taking any stern measures against Poddar. Legally, if the psychologist was aware about the killing, as alleged by the parents of Tatiana, then psychologist has violated the laws by supporting the murderer and providing assistance to the criminal. It was observed that 'the superior court sustained defendants' demurrers to plaintiffs' second amended complaints without leave to amend'. As per the protest of the parents on the legal grounds imposed liability on the defendants on two different grounds i.e. the failure on the part of the psychologists to inform and warn the prosecutors about the danger before and after its occurrence, it is correct to relate that the psychologist legally under an y law has no justification for hiding the truth and prevalent danger from the parents, police and courts, therefore as per law the psychologist has proven himself wrong through his actions which are violation of law, surprisingly the defendants forwarded and justified their actions in lieu with the California Tort Claims Act of 1963, according to which the defendants were under no compulsion to provide care and concerns for Tatiana (Lawrence, 2002). The parents of Tatiana held the psychologist responsible under Lanterman-Petris-Short Act. Legally it has been observed that the psychologist has performed such action which is contradicting to the injunctions of the laws, 'defendant therapists cannot escape liability merely because Tatiana herself was not their patient', and therefore the reference provided by the defendants is not credible and non-explanatory. Legally a professional is under compulsion to warn and inform the public and police from any expected criminal course of their patient, therefore it was the legal responsibility of the psychologist to alarm the prosecutors, 'when a therapist has observed that his patient has revealed a serious danger of violence to another, the psychologist is liable to incurs an obligation to use reasonable care to protect the intended victim against such danger' (Lawrence, 2002). As per law and legal perspectives the therapist was bound to take different precautionary measures to avoid such crime from occurrence, which in this case the psychologist failed to perform and execute. The failure on the behalf of the psychologist to inform the police, the court, and university administration and the parents has placed the psychologist under severe scrutiny for his failure to abide by the laws and regulations. Although the psychologist did inform the police at the later moment, however his actions were not enough to prevent the crime from occurrence, which could have been avoided because the psychologist was aware about the appr oach and feelings that were developed by Poddar towards Tatiana. The prosecutor blamed the psychologist, and accused him for his failure and reluctance to share the truth at initial

Discuss, analyze, and evaluate Robert Frank's famous photo- New Oleans Research Paper

Discuss, analyze, and evaluate Robert Frank's famous photo- New Oleans - Research Paper Example ty, he happened to show the photographs to a writer named Jack Keruoac, who immediately agreed to give him a good write up in response to his photographic works. From then on, there was no turning back as he embarked on a fruitful an interesting journey of success. One of his most successful photographs was titled â€Å"New Orleans† that Frank clicked while he was on one of his holiday trips with his family. All through the journey he had taken out many photographs, in fact about 27,000 thousand of them of which the photograph titled ‘New Orleans’ was one. From these photographs Frank chose 83 images for a vote which he published in 1958 and titled ‘Les Americains.’ All of Frank’s photographs speak volumes as each character seems so lifelike and filled with emotion. This famous photograph that was titled â€Å"New Orleans† was one that has stood the test of time, just for the sheer way in which it was captured. The photograph portrays an acute consciousness of the prevailing conditions in America when discrimination and segregation were at its peak. Frank’s camera explicitly captures the essence of a segregated trolley car of New Orleans, which shows its passengers seated one behind the oth er. The passengers were five in number comprising of three white individuals and two who were black. The photograph speaks for itself because as soon as you cast eyes on it, you could easily make out the social injustice with which the black population was treated. This particular photograph is filled with melancholic meaning and evokes a sense of sincerity and truth of what America was during the 50’s. This photograph is one of Frank’s most popular ones and finds its honorable place in most of the exhibitions around the world. During the editing of the photographs for the book ‘The Americans’, he placed two of his best images together placing them on the same negatives. These photographs were â€Å"Canal Street - New Orleans  " and the shot was a reverse angle

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

Job Cover Letter Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Job Cover Letter - Essay Example Having handled mostly managerial positions, I have developed the skill in influencing people, making short-term decisions which is in line with the long-term strategy of the business organization, manage people, and ensure the efficient operation of the unit. As a person, I have an ardent commitment to excel in everything I do and the motivation to give my very best. I believe that my acquired skill from my disciplines together with my previous experiences satisfy the minimum requirements of the job. However, I am also very willing to learn and gain the knowledge and skills which are required to be most efficient. I am confident that I am qualified for the position and can make significant contributions to the continued success of your organization. I am very willing to furnish you with any additional information in order to pursue my application. For further queries, please contact me anytime. I will also be calling after three days to follow up my application.

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

Discuss, analyze, and evaluate Robert Frank's famous photo- New Oleans Research Paper

Discuss, analyze, and evaluate Robert Frank's famous photo- New Oleans - Research Paper Example ty, he happened to show the photographs to a writer named Jack Keruoac, who immediately agreed to give him a good write up in response to his photographic works. From then on, there was no turning back as he embarked on a fruitful an interesting journey of success. One of his most successful photographs was titled â€Å"New Orleans† that Frank clicked while he was on one of his holiday trips with his family. All through the journey he had taken out many photographs, in fact about 27,000 thousand of them of which the photograph titled ‘New Orleans’ was one. From these photographs Frank chose 83 images for a vote which he published in 1958 and titled ‘Les Americains.’ All of Frank’s photographs speak volumes as each character seems so lifelike and filled with emotion. This famous photograph that was titled â€Å"New Orleans† was one that has stood the test of time, just for the sheer way in which it was captured. The photograph portrays an acute consciousness of the prevailing conditions in America when discrimination and segregation were at its peak. Frank’s camera explicitly captures the essence of a segregated trolley car of New Orleans, which shows its passengers seated one behind the oth er. The passengers were five in number comprising of three white individuals and two who were black. The photograph speaks for itself because as soon as you cast eyes on it, you could easily make out the social injustice with which the black population was treated. This particular photograph is filled with melancholic meaning and evokes a sense of sincerity and truth of what America was during the 50’s. This photograph is one of Frank’s most popular ones and finds its honorable place in most of the exhibitions around the world. During the editing of the photographs for the book ‘The Americans’, he placed two of his best images together placing them on the same negatives. These photographs were â€Å"Canal Street - New Orleans  " and the shot was a reverse angle

Empire of the Sun Essay Example for Free

Empire of the Sun Essay Empire of the Sun In this essay will be talking about how Ballard shows Jim changing over the course of the book The Empire of the Sun. I am splitting the essay into 5 paragraphs: What Jim is like at the start of the novel, Jims first upheaval, the prison camps, the way Dr Ransong and Bassie treat Jim and the contrast, finally what Jim is like at the end of the novel. At the start of this book, Ballard shows us a typical English schoolboy living in Shanghai. This boy Jim and his family are very wealthy, so you can imagine what sort of lifestyle Jim was living in: Big house, servants that he can call on 24/7, a bike, many toys including aeroplanes. Then there are his clothes: A school blazer and cap. He is also is taught Latin. This shows us that he is very much surrounded by money and anything he could ever wish for. This creates an impression that he leads a very sheltered life and that he does understand reality. Jim has a very normal life. Everything is working well for him. Until one day before he starts school, the Chinese fleet attack the Petrol (a Japanese gun boat. ) This is the first big upheaval in Jims life. This is totally unexpected to Jim. Nothing like this has ever happened before in Jims life, so it comes as a surprise to him. Ballard gives us the sense that Jim is a very ignorant boy because he thought that he started the war when he was flash his light at the opposite Chinese gun boat, and after the bombs had gone he still thought that he would go to school. This shows a lack of maturity and common sense. This gives us a very bad picture of what Jim is like as a person. He thinks that he will still be able to go to school even though there is a war going on. Most people would think that he would be mad to think that. Ballard makes us see Jim as a very naive person. During the book, Jim spends a lot of the time in a prison camp. When he gets to the first camp, he befriends an American called Bassie. He persuades Bassie to help him find his parents in return for a reward. This gives Bassie an opportunity to use Jim for any errands that he has for Jim, and for this Jim gets a little something in return. This is a complete change of lifestyle for Jim. He normally gets people to do his work for him, but now Bassie is making him do work for him. During his stay at the detention centre, Jim experiences hunger, disease and hallucinations. This again is another new experience for Jim. If he had the slightest illness when he was with his parents, he would get the best treatment for the illness, but now he has lost his parents, he has to fend for himself. I think he copes with it very well. He manages to survives and moves on with his life When Jim and Bassie to another camp called Lunghua, Dr Ransong starts teaching him Latin. I think the reason he does is to try and keep Jim as a child. This is because he is losing his childhood because of the war. It is just trying to keep Jim safe until he matures fully. The way Dr Ransong and Bassie treat Jim are very different. Dr Ransong tries to keep Jim as a child to try and protect him from any dangers that occur. Bassie on the other hand, he treats Jim as a young adult. This is because Bassie want Jims trust so that he can do more for him. Bassie tries to keep Jim alive by telling him the way to survive is to steal the metal food bowls in the detention centre from the dead people. So Jim is split two ways, Dr Ransong is trying to maintain Jims ignorance of the world by keeping his childhood to keep him safe, and Bassie is trying to make Jim look at the world very broadly so that Jim can survive and so Jim can keep doing jobs for Bassie. At the end of the novel, Jim is a transformed child. He has gone from being a nai ve 10 year old, to being a mentally scarred 14 year old with a certain understanding of war and life in general. He has lost his childhood completely because of the death and war that he has experienced.

Monday, October 14, 2019

Developing Health and Safety for Fire Fighters

Developing Health and Safety for Fire Fighters CHAPTER 6 DISCUSSION This chapter contains the explanation and evaluation of the findings presented in the preceding section. This chapter provide us with evaluation and analysis based on the hypotheses, objectives, or research question. This chapter relates to the published works outlined and assessed in the review of literature chapter. 6.1. Demographic profile During the whole survey and during the analysis of data collection within the Mauritius Fire and Rescue services, it was observed that internal factors were dominant compared to external factors when indentifying the impact on the health and safety of fire fighters. While analysing the demographic profile section within the questionnaire, it was found that most of the respondents were between 20 and 30 years indicating a relatively young working force within this sector. 71 respondents had Higher School Certificate as highest education level and more than one year working experience. 6.2. Awareness of hazards and years of service. The results showed that all the respondents are of the hazards pertaining to their job The results collected shows that there was a weak significant association between the two variables (phi=0.353, p=0.00 6.3. Types of injury sustained during career Q 4: Which type of injury have you sustained during your career? The types of occupational injuries sustained by fire fighters are as such; Minor injuries, for example, minor cuts and bruises Major injuries, for example, major cuts, bruises, sprains, illness or injury resulting in less than 3 days lost workdays Over 3 days injuries, for example, head injuries, internal bleeding, eye injuries, spinal injuries, fractures, dislocation and any illness or injury resulting in 3 days or more lost workdays. Figure 7 above illustrates the types of injuries sustained by fire fighters at the workplace. 117 fire fighters have sustained minor injuries, 70 of them have sustained major injuries and the remaining 58 have sustained over 3 days injuries which is less compared to minor injuries. It was found that the majority of the fire fighters experience minor injuries Furthermore, figure 6 represents the degree to which fire fighters are exposed to fire. 73 fire fighters were exposed to hazards to a large extent and 128 of them were exposed to hazards to a certain extent. To a lesser extent 32 fire fighters were exposed to hazards and the remaining 12 fire fighters were not exposed to hazards at all. Objective 3: To examine the type of injuries sustained by the fire fighters and the degree of exposure to hazards in fire fighting. Fire fighters have great injury rates as a result of their occupations’ consequential demands and exposure to hazards conditions (anon, 2013). The data collected in the survey that appropriate training and attention is provided to the safety and health of the fire fighters. The perception of the fire fighters on types of injuries and degree of exposure to hazards is that they agree that appropriate training is given to them but the management system should be improved, new features should be taken into consideration. However, there is still room for improvement to reduce the other types of injuries that is major injuries and over 3 days injuries. The factor on injury risk potentially provides insight on how to target injury prevention attempts for the fire departments. 6.4. Assessing whether risk assessment carried out. A risk assessment is a process to identify potential hazards in a workplace and to analyze what could be the consequences if a hazard occurs. (HSE, anon). Every employer has the duty to effect a risk assessment within 30 days of the start of any operation (OSHA, 2005). The data collected have shown that the majority of fire fighters agreed that risk assessment is carried out in MFRS. Every employer has a legal obligation to effect a risk assessment within 30 days of the start of any operation (OSHA, 2005). The results showed that 183 respondents agreed that risk assessment was carried out on the fire ground and 62 respondents disagreed. We can therefore deduce that the views of the respondents were satisfactory as the majority of them agree that risk assessment in carried out and this confirms that the management was abiding to the law. Moreover, a one sample t-test was carried out to determine the relationship between awareness of risk assessment and fire fighters opinion whether risk assessment can eliminate or mitigate risks. The one sample test, statistics programs produce an estimate mean (1.27), with population mean ÃŽ ¼. The mean variable of the variable fir this particular sample of awareness of risk assessment is 1.27, which is statistically and significantly different from the test value 0.4. We can therefore conclude that fire fighters opinion on whether risk assessment can eliminate or mitigate risk has a significantly higher mean on awareness of risk assessment than 40%. The perception of the fire fighters in the fire departments is that they agree that risk assessment can help eliminate or mitigate risks. Yet there’s room for improvement in the MFRS. Improvement on risk management plan can be also made by making surveys on the hazards and risk that cause health problems and injuries. 6.5. Assessing management care and fire fighters ability to communicate One of the objectives of this study was to assess whether management care about the safety and health of fire fighters and fire fighters ability to communicate with management. The management has the duty to put the best of effort in providing safety, health and welfare of all the employees. However, it is a legal obligation for the management to provide as far as is reasonably practicable a safe place of work to all the employees (OSHA, 2005). A correlation test was carried out to determine whether there is a relationship between whether management care about the safety and health of fire fighters and fire fighters ability to communicate with the management a correlation test was carried out. For the correlation test the statistic program produced an estimate r (0.134). The Pearson’s r value 0.134 is positive at 1% confidence interval. Thus, the correlation test between management care and fire fighters ability to communicate with management shows that there is a weak relationship between management care about health and safety of fire fighters and fire fighters ability to communicate with management. The views of the respondents on the management was not satisfactory as the management was not abiding to the law and even the fire fighters hesitate or are in capable to communicate with the management. Therefore, we can deduce that there is a poor management system at the MFRS. 6.6. Providing suggestion for improving safety and health of fire fighters To provide suggestions for improving safety and health in the fire department is one of the objectives of this study. The minority of the fire fighters who are aware of the procedures in the fire department found that the management has the priority to give safety training to all of them concerning safety procedures, safety policy, rules and regulations and awareness on their rights to provide suggestions to improve their safety and health. Thus to improve the health and safety of fire fighters in fire departments certain standards of safety which include risk awareness by the fire fighters, fire fighters participation in risk assessment , the fire fighters should be given motivational benefits to increase safety culture and safety behaviours at the workplace and the fire fighters should be well trained and given appropriate personal protective equipment for the task they are assigned. The management should carry out investigation and find ways how to remedy a dangerous situation. Also the management should seek the perception of fire fighters about the risks and hazards. . The management can also implement health programs which will include regular check up of the fire fighters and a continuous report of the health of the fire fighters should be recorded

Sunday, October 13, 2019

William Faulkner Essay -- essays research papers

Faulkner grew up in Mississippi in the beginning of the twentieth century ('William Faulkner'; 699). He was the son to Murray C. and Maud Butler Faulkner (Hoffman 13). Growing up in the South in the early 1900's meant being exposed to harsh racism. He watched the blacks endure unbelievable amounts of cruelty and was amazed at how the blacks conducted themselves with such dignity. He witnessed, first hand, what discrimination is and could not comprehend why this goes on. In many of Faulkner's works I found that he portrayed blacks as quite,easy-going, well-tempered people. He attempted to show them as heroes. It is my belief that Faulkner writes about the south because that is the subject that has affected his life most. Faulkner's 'Barn Burning'; takes place in the late nineteenth century South. Primarily a story about the relationship between father and son, the story presents itself through the use of symbolism. The most vital sign being fire. The fire is much like the main character in the story, Abner. Both Abner and the fire are uncontrollable and destroy anything in its way, having respect for nothing. Sarty, Abner's son, dislikes what his father does out of acts of hate and tries to stop it (Faulkner 'Barn'; 23). He attempts to put out the 'fire'; inside his father. He is sick of his family's way of life and is ready for a change no matter what it takes, even if it means going against his own blood. No matter what is done, they can not stop Abner from lashing out and burning buildings. Through his sheer enjoyment of the negative sides of his anger and power, Abner rips his family apart. He does so by forcing his family to put up with the consequences of his actions. In a way, Faulkner wr ites as a moralist. He demonstrates, through his character Abner, why a reasonable approach to adversity and letdowns is necessary, to avoid allowing one's problems to get so bad that they can engulf the subject like an inferno. In this story Mrs. DeSpain's 'nigger'; acts loyally and tries to save his owner's animals from the fire that were in the barn. Faulkner's book 'Intruder in the Dusk,'; is the story of a Negro, Lucas Beauchamp, who is wrongfully accused of murder by many whites in the town of Jefferson Mississippi. Instead of telling everyone that he not the murderer, he actually pretends to be the killer and wishes to be innocent... ...and half-Negro (Faulkner 'Bear'; 65). The theme of this particular story is Ike maturing and following his southern traditions. He grew up to become an excellent hunter that showed respect for his fellow hunters as well as the wilderness. As John Lyndenberg wrote, 'The hunters from Jefferson are gentlemen and sportsmen, representing the ideals of the old order at its best, the honor,dignity, and courage of the South'; (Lyndenberg 385). As hard as it may be at times to read Faulkner's writings, I believe that it is well worth the effort. I found some of his writings, particularly his early ones, difficult to understand because he sometimes changes tense in the middle of a sentence and he also seems to enjoy writing with a Southern accent which does not make his writings any easier to read. For example in 'The Bear'; and in "Barn Burning,'; Faulkner consistently uses 'hit'; instead of 'it.'; He has a very down to Earth theme throughout his works: The theme being the coming of age type issue. All the stories I wrote about contain this maturing theme in one way or another. Faulkner is both a writer and a teacher-there is much to learn from his works.

Saturday, October 12, 2019

Replication Of Human Pheromones :: Biology Essays Research Papers

Sexual Or Sexist? Replication Of Human Pheromones From the elixer in Love Potion Number Nine to the Orgasmatron in Orgazmo, the media reflect a popular fascination with the idea of an object that can control other people's sexual desires and behaviors. On a similar but dorkier note, I have occasionally heard at Haverford someone attribute a sexual "lucky streak" to the influence of pheromones. In our well-educated but socially awkward mind frame, we have hit on a more promising possibility than magic potions or radar guns. From the Greek for "excitement carrier", pheromones carry chemical messages between members of the same species (2). Present in many animals and often responsible for aspects of mating behavior, the idea of pheromones in humans has in recent years been a subject of interest. The idea of pheromone perception as a "sixth sense" is intriguing, as it means our behavior is influenced by input from outside stimuli that we cannot consciously perceive. Evidence points to the output by and influence on humans of natural ph eromones, and these pheromones are under attempt at imitation by commercial products. What are the possible ramifications of such developments? Experimental evidence also shows differences in the way men and women respond to pheromones, and the possible implications of these differences on gender roles is the aspect of human pheromone research that interests me most. These chemical signals are detected in the vomeronasal organ, or VNO, which is present in the noses of most species of vertebrates. In other mammals, the VNO is located in a longitudinal bulge at the base of either side of the nasal septum (4). Humans lack this bulge marking the position of the VNO, and although there are nerve bundles running from the human VNO to the brain, it is still unclear whether they contain actual sensory neurons or just autonomic nerves. Unlike that in animals, the human VNO does not have an obvious sensory epithelium; however, it contains cells that are considered to be bipolar receptor neurons. The human VNO is thought to be stimulated by airborne chemicals, as opposed to stimuli dissolved in mucus (3). Although most exploration of the possibilities of human pheromone perception has happened recently, scientists have known about the human VNO since 1703, when Dutch surgeon Roysch discovered it in the nose (2). Since then the VNO has been commonly thought to be present only in fetuses, disappearing over the course of prenatal development.

Friday, October 11, 2019

Branch and Palm Trees Essay

It was raining, I didn’t like rain. In fact, I didn’t like any kind of weather. That was why I only left my house when I had to. I was just heading to my bed so I could relax and finish the book that I was currently reading, it was about†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦wait, I forgot the name†¦..it was something about a girl who volunteered for her little sister to fight to the death†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.wait! It was called The Hunger Games! Then It was all a blackout and I was sound asleep. I woke up to the sound of crashing waves and the taste of salt and sand grains in my mouth. I opened my eyes, and at first I thought I was dreaming. Somehow, after a while, I could tell it wasn’t a dream. It was real. All I could see was blue salt water crashing on the sand shore in front of me. I stood up and touched the water, it felt fairly warm so I could tell I was somewhere besides California (where I lived at the time). I look over the horizon to see only blue skies. This worries me. I am still in my pajamas that are yellow with green palm trees. I turn around and see a fairly sized island with mostly all palm trees packed together into groups. I start walking to the palm trees, my feelings to what has just happened were kind of jumbled and I was confused. I’m halfway to the closest palm tree when I hear the bushes on my left side rustling. It could be my imagination or it could be the ocean breeze. I didn’t know which. To my surprise, it was neither. I push aside the bush only to see a huge lizard lumber out. I shook that off and continued walking towards the palm trees again. I reach the edge and start walking in. The farther I went in the darker it would get because of the dense vegetation. I had nothing else to do, so I continued walking farther and farther in. I tried carving lines into every tree trunk I passed so I could possibly find my way back. Eventually I gave up on that (It was to much work). The sun was going down and now all I was thinking about was where I was going to sleep. I came up with the idea to make a cushion of some kind and then put it up in a stable tree branch. I took the most comfortable looking leaves, stacked them on top of each other and hoped for the best. I woke up in the morning dazed and I could feel the sun rays beaming across the side of my face and my shoulders. The sun is out, but it’s still freezing. I started looking around for food because my stomach was growling, and to my surprise there was a pile of mangos piled neatly at the foot of a tree trunk. At the moment, I wasn’t thinking about how they got there like that, I was thinking about how delicious they looked. I reach over, grab the best looking one I can find, and shove almost half of it in my mouth and I dropped the second half. There was a haggard looking man walking toward me with a knife pointed toward me. At first he was yelling at me saying things, like it took him 3 days to get the mangos. Then he was questioning me, asking, How did you get here? Where are you from? and what do you want? I told him that I didn’t know how I got here, I was from California, and all I wanted was to go home. He told me that if I was hungry he could provide me with some, but very little food. I thought it was better than nothing so I followed him. He stopped in front of a fairly sized hut made out of palm tree branches and bamboo sticks. It sure did look a lot better then the leaf ‘†bed† I made. He pushes aside the seaweed curtain and proceeded to lead me in. There is no kind of furniture, but I am not surprised. I sit down around the fire he had going. He walks back to the fire with a dead, skinned monkey on a stick. Doesn’t look very appetizing but it’s better than nothing. He holds over the fire and slowly turns it until it is done cooking. He rips off a leg and hands it to me. I reach for it reluctantly. Right away he bites down into the monkey. He must have been very hungry, but so am I. I bite down into the thigh and it tastes a lot better than I thought it would. I am alarmed by the sounds of a helicopter. I rush out to see that helicopter landing on the open beach. Once it had landed I ran toward the window and started banging on it. All I wanted to do was return home. After a while of speaking to the men from the helicopter they told me they actually weren’t looking for me but for the haggard man I was with. He had been on that Island for 4 years! Then they tell me that they will only have room for him. They say that they will have to come back for me later. But how much later? Great.

Thursday, October 10, 2019

Prose coursework Essay

London being the most powerful city of its vast British empire had become the central point of the world. In the Victorian period, Britain owned the majority of the world and science was taking major jumps in history with discoveries, inventions and theories, for example the Darwin theory of evolution and the inventions of much revolutionary technology, such as the light bulb, the telephone etc. London was filled with life; it was a city where gas powered lamps lit the squalid streets covered with eerie shadows. Carriages clattered day and night delivering the rich and wealthy, but London was slowly deteriorating through wicked serial murders, drug misuse and frightened prostitutes. The city was famous for poverty: people who were stricken by ill health, cramped living conditions and high risk of sewerage water contamination. Soot rained over the city as the industrial revolution was at its peak, which was the cause of the covering of layers of black pollution creating a dark, dreary place. Public executions were frequency and Victorian people lived from day to day fearing crime, as renowned murderers walking the streets of London caused widespread fear across London, for example the likes of Jack the Ripper, infamous for ruthless murders of prostitutes and taunts he sent to the irresponsible police force, evidently many officers were publicly exposed as corrupt. Victorians had lost their respect for the police as they were thought to be unreliable in their protection of the desperate civilians of London. Arthur Conan Doyle’s character, Sherlock Holmes, surfaced in 1887. The people had found their savior, many immediately fell for the fictional character, and Holmes was seen as the super human detective like a cake with many layers, where each layer was revealed slowly throughout the fiction. He was a detective able to solve every mystery; he seemed to be a superhero always seeking justice to overcome evil. This fantasy became such a reality that when it’s creator tried to kill him off in 1893, many fans protested and even the author received death threats warning him to keep them supplied with the drug that feed their addiction for Holmes. This super sleuth had become famous in every province of the world. Many films, TV production, websites, museums and even organizations of secret police based in Eastern Europe were dedicated to him. Conan Doyle based his idea for Holmes on the traditional guide, but devised and invented the use of the scientific approach to solving mystery: observation, analysis of data observed, formation of theory based only on the facts. The traditional detective story is based on sudden adventitious circumstances; Doyle believed these circumstances didn’t occur in reality. Doyle’s mastery of the six rules of detective story allowed him to use the extra-ordinary. His concept was to reveal the mystery at the opening of the story followed by the development which explores detail of the story and at the conclusion Holmes explains and elaborates how the crime was committed. Holmes role and character is reveals throughout the story this is where we gain knowledge of his personality and mannerism, for example; -In the Red Headed league the case seem to be a joke but Holmes is still determined to work out the mystery, this show Holmes doesn’t fail to attempt even if it seem unworthy task. -In the Speckled Band Holmes pick up the smallest detail like the nonworking bell, the vent that leads into another room instead of outside, the bed that was bolted to the floor, a safe which had two holes, milk on a small plate not used for any animal a their home and the impression on the chair which had feet impression that was directly under the vent, these deduction prove Holmes superhuman ability and why he became so successful. Dr. Watson is the story teller, his relationship with Holmes seems to be strict controlling and ordered towards Dr. Watson but during their breaks Holmes becomes joyful and friendly towards Dr. Watson, for example; -In the Red Headed League Holmes tells Dr. Watson to leave him for 50 minutes to smoke his pipe and think, this order show Holmes superior over Dr. Watson. During many cases Dr. Watson seem to be the plot device as he develops the plot. The Speckled band is mystery where Holmes faces Dr. Roylett, throughout this story a lot of tension is built. Holmes conversation with Helen Stoner is calmer as Holmes gives her sympathy; here Holmes is presented as her knight in shining armor. 1 Sherlock Holmes Coursework Show preview only The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our GCSE Arthur Conan Doyle section.

Wednesday, October 9, 2019

Changes to the GED More High School Equivalency Exam Options

Changes to the GED & More High School Equivalency Exam Options In 2014 the GED exam was overhauled for the first time since 2002. Since the change, the National GED Testing Service saw a significant decrease in graduates. As a reaction to the decrease in grads, many states began researching and implementing alternative equivalency exams. The numbers were nothing to sneer at. Whereas in 2012 401,388 people passed the GED test, only 58,524 passed it in 2014. Some reports said that even high school graduates couldn’t pass the new GED. Changes included computer only administration, and more writing and critical thinking components. Designed to mirror high school curriculum changes and to mimic the skills required in a changing workforce, the GED was due for an update. Since the government created the GED in 1942 for the young men and women returning from World War II, the test has been updated five times. The upgrades usually result in drops in participation the following year, as test takers elect to wait until they have a better handle on what the new test will look alike before signing up. Some see this latest update as an unnecessary barrier for people who are already at a disadvantage. By increasing the test’s difficulty, increasing the cost, and requiring computers, they say people who are already struggling are being put at a disadvantage. Proponents for the changes to the test argue that the changes were needed in order to keep it relevant for employers who rely on the GED to measure skills comparable to those a high school graduate would have. In today’s technological world, it’s rare to find a workplace that isn’t mostly digitized. Alternative high school equivalency exams include the HiSET (High School Equivalency Test) or the TASC. Those opposed to the difficulty level of the GED say that the HiSET and TASC are fairer to students and less expensive. The alternative tests were actually created in the face of concerns that the GED was becoming more profit driven. Some say that it’s good to have alternatives but others argue that the increase in options may confuse test takers and may defeat the purpose of standardization inherent in the GED. In many states, the response to the more difficult GED was to lower the score needed to pass the test. In Michigan and 32 other states, the passing score for the GED was lowered from 150 to 145. The change was recommended by the GED Testing Service after the changes were implemented and fewer people started passing (and taking) their exam. In 2015, the exam had a 73% pass rate. Aside from the lower passing score requirement, in some states, test takers with scores between 165 and 174 are categories as ready to enter credit-bearing college courses and those who receive a score between 175 and 200 qualify for up to ten hours of college credit. These changes demonstrate an effort by the GED Testing Centre and local governments to improve the GED program while also attempting to stay relevant in a world where high school dropouts are finding they have increasing options.