Everyones Gasoline Problems Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Everyones Gasoline Problems - Assignment Example This indicates that there are a number of factors other than oil prices that dictate price fluctuations in gasoline.   The factors that drive gasoline prices are complex and encompass international crude oil inventories, national wholesale product price discounting, inflation, domestic retail competition and federal taxes (Borenstein, Cameron, & Gilbert, 1997). The description and influence of the following factors on gasoline prices are described below:   Price of Crude Oil: Reports from Federal Trade Commission recognize that changes in crude oil are the major contributing factor of the variability of gasoline prices. Crude oil prices, in turn, are reflective of supply and demand imbalances across the world, especially triggered by production levels set by OPEC countries. Rising demand in developing economies such as China and India also affect the supply and demand for crude oil.   Infrastructure Issues: In the United States, the availability, consistency, and prices of gasoline are intricately linked to its production and delivery infrastructure such as transmission lines, processing plants etc. and are also a driver of gasoline prices.   Weather: Many times, colder than normal weather patterns are responsible for short-term volatility in gasoline prices since fluctuations in weather can change (rise or fall) the demand dynamics of the commodity.   Speculative Trading and Market Manipulation: Presence of unreliable price data and large price movements attracts the attention of speculators and hedge funds that see market volatility as an opportunity to make the profit. Speculative tradition can further cause gasoline market to be imbalanced and hence cause high price differentials.   In case of premium coffees, it is assumed that the coffee market is currently in a state of equilibrium, i.e. the supply and demand for the product balance one other.  

Atomic Bombing on Japan Essay Example for Free

Atomic Bombing on Japan Essay On the morning of August 6th, 1945 at around 8:16 a. m. , the United States dropped the first bomb on Hiroshima. This bomb was given the nickname â€Å"Little Boy. † Three days after the first atomic bomb was dropped, on August 9th, 1945 at around 11:02 a. m. , the United States dropped a second atomic bomb on Nagasaki. This bomb was given the nickname â€Å"Fat Man. † These two bombs immensely destroyed these cities and took the lives of many people. There was an estimated 200,000 lives taken in the atomic bombing on Japan. The war on the Pacific had been going on for over four years before the atomic bombing occurred. There were two big battles that could have led to the United State’s decision of dropping the atomic bomb, the Iwo Jima and Okinawa. In these two battles there was an astounding amount of deaths taken in these battles from both sides. While both sides of the Japanese and American soldiers fought vigorously taking the many lives of one another, the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima was a military necessity for the United States. The reason why the dropping of the atomic bomb was a military necessity is because there was nothing else to force Japan to surrender. President Harry S. Truman asked the Japanese to surrender on August 3rd, 1945 or face devastation, but the Japanese failed to meet the deadline. Truman ordered the air force to use the new atomic weapons against Japan. Some argued that if we would had waited a few more weeks, Japan would have surrendered. Others argued that there was no other way to persuade the Japanese to surrender but the atomic bombing. Truman said this was a simple military mission. He said a weapon was available to quickly end the war so he sees no reason not to use it. The alternative to dropping the atomic bomb was a ground invasion in Japan, which would have caused heavy losses to our American troops. From my perspective, I believe that the atomic bombing of Hiroshima was necessary for the preservation and security of our nation. At the time of this incident, the United States was involved in World War II serving as part of the Allied Powers. Therefore, on the morning of December 7th, 1941, the Japanese decided to implement surprised attacks on Pearl Harbor. Pearl Harbor was a US Navy base located in Hawaii. The United States was not expecting these attacks at all. I feel that the attack on Hiroshima was retaliation for the attacks on Pearl Harbor. Although we may have gone a little over board, it had to be done to establish that the US was not a nation to be messed with. The Japanese’s opportunity to fight back was over after the first atomic bomb was discharged because the navy was taken out, the inability to import food and the lack of industrial supplies. In addition the second atomic bomb was dropped to seal the victory over Japan. Although both Japan and the United States suffered great losses from the altercations, Japan was left with much more trauma. The first atomic bomb that was dropped on Hiroshima immediately killed an estimated amount of 66,000 people out of a population of 255,000. The second bomb that was dropped on Nagasaki instantly killed about 35,000 people. However, a numerous amount of soldiers and citizens of Japan did not immediately die. These bombings lead to an awful amount of physical effects that dismembered the country of Japan for many years. Many individuals of Japan either died or suffered from radiation burns, cancer, leukemia, and many other physical disorders. Research shows that radiation increases the long-term risks of cancer. At the time of the bombing, many pregnant women gave birth to children with congenital malformations because of the contact with radiation. After the bombing, there were said to be 6,500 orphans in the city of Hiroshima. Despite the many people that were killed in the bombings, Americans saved many lives on both sides by not invading Japan. The city of Hiroshima and Nagasaki was essentially wiped out by the two atomic bombs. The bombs fiercely took out anything in its path. Not one thing or person within 800 meters of the bomb’s blast survived. Only parts of two buildings were standing after the bomb at the explosion site. The survivors in Japan had to clean up over 11. 5 square kilometers of debris and dead bodies after the bombing. This process took Japan four years to clear up. The bombings also cost Hiroshima $2 billion in damage. There were an estimated 60,000 to 90,000 buildings destroyed by the atomic bombing in Hiroshima. And an additional 14,000 buildings destroyed in Nagasaki. To conclude, the atomic bomb dropped on Japan by the United States was indeed a military necessity. The position of the United States at the time left our country with no other choice but to establish superiority; we needed to end the war. There was little sympathy for an enemy who had stimulated the fight and had behaved the way Japan had. Also, Japan’s surprise attacks on Pearl Harbor had left many Americans pleading for revenge. The atomic bomb did just that, wiping out almost entirely two cities in Japan, Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Although much tragedy and trauma had resulted from the attacks of both countries, the sacrifices were necessary and appropriate.

Status Of Languages In Mauritius English Language Essay

Status Of Languages In Mauritius English Language Essay The study of this dissertation is based on the use of modern technology in the teaching and learning process at secondary level education. Being a language teacher (French language), I have focused my study on language classes being conducted in a technology-based environment, also known as a Language Laboratory. This dissertation will seek to evaluate the use and the effectiveness of a language laboratory to teach second languages such as English and French languages in Mauritian secondary schools. It is a comparative study between the St. Andrews School, situated at Rose-Hill, which is equipped with a language lab and the Vacoas SSS (Girls) which represents the classical classroom method of teaching languages. 1.1 BACKGROUND: STATUS OF LANGUAGES IN MAURITIUS In the official website of the Government of Mauritius, the status of languages in Mauritius is described as follows: English is the official language. French is extensively used and Creole is widely spoken. Asian languages also form part of the linguistic mosaic. (Government portal of Mauritius 2012) However, when unfolding the above-mentioned description of the linguistic situation in Mauritius, we will see that it is not that simple, due to its complex history of immigration and colonization. 1.1.1 COLONIAL HISTORY OF MAURITIUS The colonial history of Mauritius is the root cause of our multiethnic and multilingual society. It all started with the Arab and then Portugese sailors who are believed to have visited our island in the early XVIth century. Between 1590 and 1710, the Dutch colonized the island and their main activity was the exportation of ebony wood. For this purpose, they brought several Malagasy slaves in Mauritius. However they have not made major developments apart from the introduction of sugar cane, domestic animals and deer. In 1715, Mauritius became a french colony and it has been extensively developped especially when Mahà © de Labourdonnais governed the country as from 1735. Many slaves were imported mostly from Africa and Madagascar and a few Indians came from Coromanddel and Malabar Coast. Other French governors continued the development of the island until 1810 when the British took over. However, they decided to preserve the laws, customs, language, religion and property, that is, the civil and judicial administration of the island as it was during the French reign. During the English colony, sugar production increased to become a major foreign income earner, thus leading to economic progress which called for the expansion and development of means of communication and appropriate infrastructure. All these development necessitated the importation of more slaves from Africa and Madagascar. However in 1835 the abolition of slavery brought major changes in the island on the socio-economic and demographic fields. A large number of indentured laborer from different parts in India were coming to Mauritius to work in the sugar cane fields and later a small number of Chinese traders joined them in the island. In 1907 the immigration ceased, however many Indians had already settled permanently in the island and as a matter of fact they formed the majority of the population. The gathering of a mosaic of people from India, China, Africa and Europe lead to a process of hybridization and intercultural frictions and dialogues. In 1959, voting took place for the first time on the basis of universal adult suffrage and the number of electors rose to 208,684. In 1968 Mauritius gained its independence. (Government protal of Mauritius 2012) 1.1.2 ACTUAL LINGUISTIC SITUATION OF MAURITIUS Today the population of Mauritius is more than 1.2 million people, which consists of 68% Indo-Mauritians (Hindus and Muslims), 27% Creole (Af ro-Mauritians and mixed population), 3% Sino-Mauritians and 2% Franco-Mauritians (CIA, 2008). Rajah-Carrim (2005) has identified eleven main languages actually used in Mauritius and she further classified them into three categories: colonial languages (English and French) and language of everyday communication (Creole), and ancestral languages (Indian and Chinese languages) which are used on limited occasions. Mahadeo (2004) explains the linguistic situation of Mauritius in these terms : Given the number of languages (at least 12) used by different ethnic groups in an island with a population which now exceeds 1.2 million people and an area of 720 square miles, Mauritius presents an extreme case of individual multilingualism According to Chiba (2006), Mauritius is the most linguistically fashionable place on the planet. Mauritian swap languages depending on the circumstances, in the same way as others change clothes. He further illustrated his point of view with the following example: Over the course of a day a typical Mauritian might use English to write a school essay, Kreol Morisien to chat with friends, French to read a novel and Bhojpuri to spend a quiet evening with the family. Chiba (2006) then classified the use of the major languages as follows: Home: Kreol and Bhojpuri Government and schools: English Business: French and Kreol Literature, newspapers and television: French Casual speech: Kreol However Chiba (2006) pointed out that this table is only an overview since French is also often present in government and English is not completely absent in the media. In his Ethnologue: Languages of the world, Lewis (2009) has enumerated the main languages spoken in Mauritius with their respective number of users: English: 3,000 speakers (1993), French: 37,000 speakers, Morisyen: 800,000 speakers (2005), Bhojpuri: 336,000 speakers (2001), Urdu: 64,000 speakers (1993), Hakka Chinese: 35,000 speakers (1990), Tamil: 31,000 speakers (2001), Eastern Panjabi: speakers (1990), Marathi: 11,800 speakers (1990), Telugu: 10,700 speakers (1990) and Gujarati: 3,340 speakers (1990). The main colonial languages used in Mauritius are English, which is the official language and French which is considered as the second and semi-official language and which is widely used in the media and for oral communication. However other languages such as Spanish, Italian and German are also used especially in the sector of education and tourism. The lingua franca of Mauritius is the Kreol Morisyen which is considered by the majority of Mauritians, as their mother tongue. Moreover, this language as acts as a language of unity and many works are being presently carried out to standardise its orthographe and its grammar. The Kreol Morisyen is now present in the education system of Mauritius, at primary level where the students are given the choice to opt for this language or an oriental language. A quite large number of ancestral languages are also present in Mauritius such as Bhojpuri, Hindi, Gujerati, Kutchi, Mandarin, Marathi, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu and Arabic, but their use are limited to cultural instances. However the Bhojpuri language can be considered as another lingua franca of Mauritius since quite a large number of Mauritians still use it for oral communication. 1.2 AIM The aim of this study is to find out whether the language lab can be considered as a solution to the various language issues faced by Mauritian students, by evaluating its impact in the teaching and learning process of languages at secondary level of education. 1.3 OBJECTIVES The set objectives of this study are to evaluate: 1. The level of improvement, if any, in the language competencies of the students with the language laboratory 2. The students level of comfort and ease in a language lab, a modern class setting and with modern learning tools. 3. The students level of motivation, interest and response in language laboratory classes. 4. The Teachers response, the classroom management and the classroom atmosphere in a language lab. 5. A comparison between language classes in a language lab and language classes in a traditional language class. 1.4 PROBLEM STATEMENT Mauritians are considered bilingual; we can communicate in both English and French languages. Even if Mauritians use the Creole language to communicate orally, English is the official language in Mauritius and French is considered as a semi-official language in Mauritius. Both these languages are taught in primary schools as compulsory subjects alongside the Mauritian Kreol and some oriental languages which are optional subjects. In secondary schools, English and French languages are core compulsory subjects from the Form I till the School certificate classes and they are taught as second languages and not foreign languages. Thus we can say that all Mauritian students study English and French languages since the age of 5 or 6 yrs old, but still at the end of the secondary education, few of us can have a proper conversation or can write a letter without grammatical errors in these languages. A precise analysis of the statistics, published by Mauritius Examination Syndicate MES on the pass rate of Mauritian students, clearly shows that the level of Mauritian students in English and French is low. Even though the percentage pass is high, quality-wise the results are not good. (MES, 2011) There are various factors which can explain this problem and the main reasons are: the lack of motivation of the students in language classes, the lack of exposure to the languages, contact with other languages, the decline of the reading culture, the language subjects being considered as less important subjects and the exam oriented syllabus among others. This research will thus propose an alternative way of conducting language classes, namely using the language laboratory. It will try to measure its effectiveness, efficiency and relevance and whether it can be considered as a solution to the above mentioned problem. 1.5 RESEARCH QUESTIONS According to the objectives of the study, the research questions have been formulated as follows: 1. What are the language issues in the teaching and learning process of second languages in Mauritius? 2. What are the roles of modern technology in language classes and to what extent can technology be a remedy to these issues? 3. What is a language laboratory and what is its impact in a secondary school? 4. What is the students and teachers response in a language laboratory which is a modern class setting with modern teaching and learning tools? 5. To what extent can the students compare this modern language class with their traditional language classes? 6. Have the teachers and the students noticed an improvement in their language competencies with the language laboratories? If yes, which specific domain(s) of their language competencies have been improved? (E.g. grammar, pronunciation, vocabularies, reading, writing, spelling, fluencyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦)

Social Class in the Classroom Essay -- Sociology, Lower, Middle and Up

Social class has a large effect on the lifestyles of all Americans. But what does it really mean to be a part of the lower, middle or upper class? These divisions of social class are defined by aspects such as family income and lifestyle; however, education plays a large role in determining ones social class. That does not mean that it will determine success in ones life but to interpret, many people with a further education usually have a higher income as well. Those of the upper class have higher standards for education and career aspirations in contrast to those of the lower and middle class. Besides the differentiation of aspirations of the individuals of each social class, it is also used to determine who will go to college, depending on who can afford it or have no other priorities that can get in the way. There are approximately â€Å"20 percent of Americans in the lower class† (Long, Social Class Stratification, 18). In contrast with these 20% of Americans a long with the other 80% are a lot of differences when it comes to learning in the classroom. According to Lee Warren of Harvard University, â€Å"In many parts of the country, class differences are sharply defined by accent: people talk like the neighborhood they came from†(Class in the Classroom, 2) where as someone from a more â€Å"run-down† neighborhood might have a less sophisticated vocabulary, just because they do not speak that way on a daily basis. However, that is all stereotypical. People â€Å"wrongly anticipate the knowledge or potential of specific classes of children† and as a result â€Å"children from high-class families are sometimes viewed as being more intelligent than those from lower social classes† (Social Class-Effects 1), which is not right at all. The amount of mo... ...tudents in high-poverty schools. Indeed, low-income students given a chance to attend more-affluent schools performed more than half a year better, on average, than middle income students who attend high-poverty schools† (Kahlenberg, Middle Class Schools for All 2). From this data, it is clear to see that the type of school is what matters most, not income. Ones social income class should not be used to determine their intelligence, but to only advertise their yearly salary. Social class is a determinant used to define where a family stands in terms of salary and socioeconomic status. However, it is used to determine what will be offered to the family, for example, the type of school that each child will attend. But what it does not determine is the success of that student’s education attainment. Money can buy a college education yet, it will not buy literacy.

Paleolithic Societies

Although the San and the Chumash were both hunter-gatherers, their culture and lifestyle had significant differences. Many cultures around the world had their fair share of differences. If you look closer though, you can find certain patterns that occur in many of the first societies that emerged in the world. Even these days, you can find the same types of patterns in people. The San lived in Southern Africa. They are also known as Bushmen, Sho, Barwa, Kung, or Khwe.Their lifestyle consisted of much leisure time, and the children did nothing but play. Women were greatly respected and admired in the San culture. The women would take part in both gathering and hunting, but mainly gathering. They used everything very wisely, including parts of ostrich eggs to hold fluids. Overall, the San were your typical hunter-gatherer society of the Paleolithic era. The Chumash lived in Southern California. They were also a hunter-gatherer society. They also were very good fisherman.They painted on cave walls and some of the drawings are still there today. Some of the Chumash settlements are believed to be over 10,000 years old. They were visited by the Spanish, which brought many diseases to the Chumash. They were also believed to be visited by Polynesians. Comparing these two cultures, we can see some similarities and many differences. They were both hunter-gatherer people. As their main food sources migrated, they followed along with them. Some differences would be that they lived in completely different parts of the world.The San did not fish, yet the Chumash did. They both have many more similarities and differences. The cultures I have compared and contrasted are only two of the many Paleolithic societies out there. They all can be recognized by their hunting and gathering ways. They followed their food, and obviously made it work for themselves. I think it would be an interesting journey to go back in time and see how they lived and interacted with each other before th e emerging of some of the technology that is common to us today.

Edgar Allan Poe Essays - Edgar Allan Poe, Free Essays, Term Papers

Edgar Allan Poe Essays - Edgar Allan Poe, Free Essays, Term Papers Edgar Allan Poe Many authors have made great contributions to the world of literature. Mark Twain introduced Americans to life on the Mississippi. Thomas Hardy wrote on his pessimistic views of the Victorian Age. Another author that influenced literature is Edgar Allan Poe. Poe is known as the father of the American short story and father of the detective story. To underezd the literary contributions of Edgar Allan Poe, one must look at his early life, his literary life, and a summary of two of his famous works. "Edgar Allan Poe was born in Boston'' (Inglis 505) "on January 19, 1809'' (Asselineau 409). He was born to a southern family that were in a traveling company of actors (Inglis 505). His father, David Poe, was from a Baltimore family. He was an actor by profession and a heavy drinker. Soon after Edgar Allan Poe was born, he left his family. Poe's mother, Elizabeth Arnold Poe, was a widow at the age of eighteen. Two years after his birth, she died of tuberculosis (Asselineau 409). When his mother died, Poe was adopted by John Allan (Perry XI) at the urging of Mr. Allan's wife. In 1815, John Allan moved his family to England. While there, Poe was sent to private schools (Asselineau 410). In the spring of 1826, Poe entered the University of Virginia. There he studied Spanish, French, Italian, and Latin. He had an excellent scholastic record. He got into difficulties almost at once. Mr. Allan did not provide him with the money to pay for his fees and other necessities. Poe was confused and homesick. He learned to play cards and started drinking. Soon he was in debt in excess of two thousand dollars. Poe discovered that he could not depend upon Allan for financial support. His foster father refused to pay his debts, and Poe had to withdraw from the University (Asselineau 410). In May of 1827, Poe enlisted in the army as a common soldier. He did this under the name of Edgar A. Perry. He was stationed on Sullivan's Island in Charleston Harbor for over a year. Poe adapted very well to military discipline and quickly rose to the rank of regimental sergeant major. After a while, he got tired of the same daily routine involved in military life. Poe wrote regularly to Mr. Allan. He met with Mr. Allan after the death of Mrs. Allan in February of 1829. With Allan's support, he received his discharge and enlisted in West Point on July 1, l830 (Asselineau 410). While at West Point, Mr. Allan, who had remarried, continued in not providing Poe with enough money. Poe decided to have himself kicked out of school. Cutting classes and disregarding orders were his solutions. He was court-martialed for neglect of duties in January, 1831, and left West Point the following month (Asselineau 411). "Poe was great in three different fields , and in each one he made a reputation that would give any man a high place in literary history. Poe wrote great short stories, famous not only in his own country, but all over the world (Robinson V)." "Hawthorne, Irving, Balzac, Bierce, Crane, Hemingway and other writers have given us memorable short stories; but none has produced so great a number of famous and unforgettable examples, so many tales that continue, despite changing ezdards to be read and reprinted again and again throughout the world (Targ VII)." "Poe was the father of the modern short story, and the modern detective story (Targ VII)." "With the possible exception of Guy de Maupassant, no other writer is so universally known and esteemed for so large of a corpus of excellent tales as in Edgar Allan Poe (Targ VII)." In 1831, Poe succeeded in publishing a new edition of his poems entitled, Poems. Poe was now in great difficulty. He went to New York, but could find no job there. Eventually he took refuge with his aunt, Mrs. Clemm, in Baltimore. There he decided to seek employment and make his living by writing. Failing to get attention with his poems, he decided to start writing short stories. Poe competed in a contest for the best short story in 1831. The prize was offered by