English Language and Composition

AP ® English Language and Composition 2011 Free-Response Questions About the College Board The College Board is a mission-driven not-for-profit organization that connects students to college success and opportunity. Founded in 1900, the College Board was created to expand access to higher education. Today, the membership association is made up of more than 5,900 of the world’s leading educational institutions and is dedicated to promoting excellence and equity in education.Each year, the College Board helps more than seven million students prepare for a successful transition to college through programs and services in college readiness and college success — including the SAT ® and the Advanced Placement Program ®. The organization also serves the education community through research and advocacy on behalf of students, educators and schools.  © 2011 The College Board. College Board, Advanced Placement Program, AP, AP Central, SAT and the acorn logo are registered trademarks of the College Board.Admitted Class Evaluation Service and inspiring minds are trademarks owned by the College Board. All other products and services may be trademarks of their respective owners. Visit the College Board on the Web: www. collegeboard. org. Permission to use copyrighted College Board materials may be requested online at: www. collegeboard. org/inquiry/cbpermit. html. Visit the College Board on the Web: www. collegeboard. org. AP Central is the official online home for the AP Program: apcentral. collegeboard. om. 2011 AP ® ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION SECTION II Total time—2 hours Question 1 (Suggested time—40 minutes. This question counts for one-third of the total essay section score. ) Locavores are people who have decided to eat locally grown or produced products as much as possible. With an eye to nutrition as well as sustainability (resource use that preserves the environment ), the locavore movement has become widespread over the past decade.Imagine that a community is considering organizing a locavore movement. Carefully read the following seven sources, including the introductory information for each source. Then synthesize information from at least three of the sources and incorporate it into a coherent, well-developed essay that identifies the key issues associated with the locavore movement and examines their implications for the community. Make sure that your argument is central; use the sources to illustrate and support your reasoning. Avoid merely summarizing the sources.Indicate clearly which sources you are drawing from, whether through direct quotation, paraphrase, or summary. You may cite the sources as Source A, Source B, etc. , or by using the descriptions in parentheses. Source A Source B Source C Source D Source E Source F Source G (Maiser) (Smith and MacKinnon) (McWilliams) (chart) (Gogoi) (Roberts) (cartoon)  © 2011 The College Board . Visit the College Board on the Web: www. collegeboard. org. GO ON TO THE NEXT PAGE. -2- 2011 AP ® ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS Source A Maiser, Jennifer. 10 Reasons to Eat Local Food. † Eat Local Challenge. Eat Local Challenge, 8 Apr. 2006. Web. 16 Dec. 2009. The following is an article from a group Weblog written by individuals who are interested in the benefits of eating food grown and produced locally. Eating local means more for the local economy. According to a study by the New Economics Foundation in London, a dollar spent locally generates twice as much income for the local economy. When businesses are not owned locally, money leaves the community at every transaction. Locally grown produce is fresher.While produce that is purchased in the supermarket or a big-box store has been in transit or cold-stored for days or weeks, produce that you purchase at your local farmer’s market has often been picked within 24 hours of your purchase . This freshness not only affects the taste of your food, but the nutritional value which declines with time. Local food just plain tastes better. Ever tried a tomato that was picked within 24 hours? ’Nuff said. Locally grown fruits and vegetables have longer to ripen. Because the produce will be handled less, locally grown fruit does not have to be rugged† or to stand up to the rigors of shipping. This means that you are going to be getting peaches so ripe that they fall apart as you eat them, figs that would have been smashed to bits if they were sold using traditional methods, and melons that were allowed to ripen until the last possible minute on the vine. Eating local is better for air quality and pollution than eating organic. In a March 2005 study by the journal Food Policy, it was found that the miles that organic food often travels to our plate creates environmental damage that outweighs the benefit of buying organic.Buying local food keeps us in touch with the seasons. By eating with the seasons, we are eating foods when they are at their peak taste, are the most abundant, and the least expensive. Buying locally grown food is fodder for a wonderful story. Whether it’s the farmer who brings local apples to market or the baker who makes local bread, knowing part of the story about your food is such a powerful part of enjoying a meal. Eating local protects us from bio-terrorism. Food with less distance to travel from farm to plate has less susceptibility to harmful contamination.Local food translates to more variety. When a farmer is producing food that will not travel a long distance, will have a shorter shelf life, and does not have a high-yield demand, the farmer is free to try small crops of various fruits and vegetables that would probably never make it to a large supermarket. Supermarkets are interested in selling â€Å"Name brand† fruit: Romaine Lettuce, Red Delicious Apples, Russet Potatoes. Local producers often play with their crops from year to year, trying out Little Gem Lettuce, Senshu Apples, and Chieftain Potatoes.Supporting local providers supports responsible land development. When you buy local, you give those with local open space—farms and pastures—an economic reason to stay open and undeveloped. Jennifer Maiser, www. eatlocalchallenge. com  © 2011 The College Board. Visit the College Board on the Web: www. collegeboard. org. GO ON TO THE NEXT PAGE. -3- 2011 AP ® ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS Source B Smith, Alisa, and J. B. MacKinnon. Plenty: One Man, One Woman, and a Raucous Year of Eating Locally.New York: Harmony, 2007. Print. The following passage is excerpted from a book written by the creators of the 100-Mile Diet, an experiment in eating only foods grown and produced within a 100-mile radius. Food begins to lose nutrition as soon as it is harvested. Fruit and vegetables that travel shorter distances are therefore likely to be closer to a maximum of nutrition. â€Å"Nowadays, we know a lot more about the naturally occurring substances in produce,† said [Cynthia] Sass. It’s not just vitamins and minerals, but all these phytochemicals and really powerful disease-fighting substances, and we do know that when a food never really reaches its peak ripeness, the levels of these substances never get as high. † . . . Yet when I called to confirm these facts with Marion Nestle, a professor and former chair of nutrition, food studies, and public health at New York University, she waved away the nutrition issue as a red herring. Yes, she said, our 100-mile diet—even in winter—was almost certainly more nutritious than what the average American was eating.That doesn’t mean it is necessary to eat locally in order to be healthy. In fact, a person making smart choices from the global megamart can easily meet all the body’s needs. â€Å"There will be nutritional differences, but t hey’ll be marginal,† said Nestle. â€Å"I mean, that’s not really the issue. It feels like it’s the issue— obviously fresher foods that are grown on better soils are going to have more nutrients. But people are not nutrient-deprived. We’re just not nutrient-deprived. † So would Marion Nestle, as a dietician, as one of America’s most important critics of dietary policy, advocate for local eating? Absolutely. † Why? Because she loves the taste of fresh food, she said. She loves the mystery of years when the late corn is just utterly, incredibly good, and no one can say why: it just is. She likes having farmers around, and farms, and farmland.  © 2011 The College Board. Visit the College Board on the Web: www. collegeboard. org. GO ON TO THE NEXT PAGE. -4- 2011 AP ® ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS Source C McWilliams, James E. â€Å"On My Mind: The Locavore Myth. † Forbes. com. Forbes, 15 J ul. 2009. Web. 16 Dec. 2009.The following is excerpted from an online opinion article in a business magazine. Buy local, shrink the distance food travels, save the planet. The locavore movement has captured a lot of fans. To their credit, they are highlighting the problems with industrialized food. But a lot of them are making a big mistake. By focusing on transportation, they overlook other energy-hogging factors in food production. Take lamb. A 2006 academic study (funded by the New Zealand government) discovered that it made more environmental sense for a Londoner to buy lamb shipped from New Zealand than to buy lamb raised in the U.K. This finding is counterintuitive—if you’re only counting food miles. But New Zealand lamb is raised on pastures with a small carbon footprint, whereas most English lamb is produced under intensive factory-like conditions with a big carbon footprint. This disparity overwhelms domestic lamb’s advantage in transportation energy. N ew Zealand lamb is not exceptional. Take a close look at water usage, fertilizer types, processing methods and packaging techniques and you discover that factors other than shipping far outweigh the energy it takes to transport food.One analysis, by Rich Pirog of the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture, showed that transportation accounts for only 11% of food’s carbon footprint. A fourth of the energy required to produce food is expended in the consumer’s kitchen. Still more energy is consumed per meal in a restaurant, since restaurants throw away most of their leftovers. Locavores argue that buying local food supports an area’s farmers and, in turn, strengthens the community. Fair enough. Left unacknowledged, however, is the fact that it also hurts farmers in other parts of the world.The U. K. buys most of its green beans from Kenya. While it’s true that the beans almost always arrive in airplanes— the form of transportation that consumes t he most energy—it’s also true that a campaign to shame English consumers with small airplane stickers affixed to flown-in produce threatens the livelihood of 1. 5 million sub-Saharan farmers. Another chink in the locavores’ armor involves the way food miles are calculated. To choose a locally grown apple over an apple trucked in from across the country might seem easy. But this decision ignores economies of scale.To take an extreme example, a shipper sending a truck with 2,000 apples over 2,000 miles would consume the same amount of fuel per apple as a local farmer who takes a pickup 50 miles to sell 50 apples at his stall at the green market. The critical measure here is not food miles but apples per gallon. The one big problem with thinking beyond food miles is that it’s hard to get the information you need. Ethically concerned consumers know very little about processing practices, water availability, packaging waste and fertilizer application.This is a n opportunity for watchdog groups. They should make life-cycle carbon counts available to shoppers. Reprinted by Permission of Forbes Media LLC  © 2010  © 2011 The College Board. Visit the College Board on the Web: www. collegeboard. org. GO ON TO THE NEXT PAGE. -5- 2011 AP ® ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS Source D Loder, Natasha, Elizabeth Finkel, Craig Meisner, and Pamela Ronald. â€Å"The Problem of What to Eat. † Conservation Magazine. The Society for Conservation Biology, July-Sept. 2008. Web. 16 Dec. 2009.The following chart is excerpted from an online article in an environmental magazine.  © 2011 The College Board. Visit the College Board on the Web: www. collegeboard. org. GO ON TO THE NEXT PAGE. -6- 2011 AP ® ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS Source E Gogoi, Pallavi. â€Å"The Rise of the ‘Locavore’: How the Strengthening Local Food Movement in Towns Across the U. S. Is Reshaping Farms and Food Retailing. † Bloomberg Businessweek. Bloomberg, 20 May 2008. Web. 17 Dec. 2009. The following is excerpted from an online article in a business magazine.The rise of farmers’ markets— in city centers, college towns, and rural squares—is testament to a dramatic shift in American tastes. Consumers increasingly are seeking out the flavors of fresh, vine-ripened foods grown on local farms rather than those trucked to supermarkets from faraway lands. â€Å"This is not a fringe foodie culture,† says [Anthony] Flaccavento. â€Å"These are ordinary, middle-income folks who have become really engaged in food and really care about where their food comes from. † It’s a movement that is gradually reshaping the business of growing and supplying food to Americans.The local food movement has already accomplished something that almost no one would have thought possible a few years back: a revival of small farms. After declining for more than a century, the number of small farms has increased 20% in the past six years, to 1. 2 million, according to the Agriculture Dept. . . . The impact of â€Å"locavores† (as local-food proponents are known) even shows up in that Washington salute every five years to factory farming, the Farm Bill. The latest version passed both houses in Congress in early May and was sent on May 20 to President George W.Bush’s desk for signing. Bush has threatened to veto the bill, but it passed with enough votes to sustain an override. Predictably, the overwhelming bulk of its $290 billion would still go to powerful agribusiness interests in the form of subsidies for growing corn, soybeans, and cotton. But $2. 3 billion was set aside this year for specialty crops, such as the eggplants, strawberries, or salad greens that are grown by exactly these small, mostly organic farmers. That’s a big bump-up from the $100 million that was earmarked for such things in the previous legislation.Small fa rmers will be able to get up to 75% of their organic certification costs reimbursed, and some of them can obtain crop insurance. There’s money for research into organic foods, and to promote farmers’ markets. Senator Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) said the bill â€Å"invests in the health and nutrition of American children . . . by expanding their access to farmer’s markets and organic produce. † Reprinted from the May 20, 2008 issue of Bloomberg BusinessWeek by special permission, copyright  © 2008 by Bloomberg L. P.  © 2011 The College Board. Visit the College Board on the Web: www. ollegeboard. org. GO ON TO THE NEXT PAGE. -7- 2011 AP ® ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS Source F Roberts, Paul. The End of Food. New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2008. Print. The following is excerpted from a book about the food industry. [T]he move toward local food, for all its trendiness (the more adamant adherents, known as â€Å"localvores,† strive to buy products that have traveled the least â€Å"food miles†), highlights one of the problematic pieces of the modern food economy: the increasing reliance on foods shipped halfway round the world.Because long-distance food shipments promote profligate fuel use and the exploitation of cheap labor (which compensates for the profligate fuel use), shifting back to a more locally sourced food economy is often touted as a fairly straightforward way to cut externalities, restore some measure of equity between producers and consumers, and put the food economy on a more sustainable footing. Such a shift would bring back diversity to land that has been all but destroyed by chemical-intensive mono-cropping, provide much-needed jobs at a local level, and help to rebuild community,† argues the UK-based International Society for Ecology and Culture, one of the leading lights in the localvore movement. â€Å"Moreover, it would allow farmers to make a decent living while giving consumers access to healthy, fresh food at affordable prices. † While localvorism sounds superb in theory, it is proving quite difficult in practice.To begin with, there are dozens of different definitions as to what local is, with some advocates arguing for political boundaries (as in Texas-grown, for example), others using quasi-geographic terms like food sheds, and still others laying out somewhat arbitrarily drawn food circles with radii of 100 or 150 or 500 miles. Further, whereas some areas might find it fairly easy to eat locally (in Washington State, for example, I’m less than fifty miles from industrial quantities of fresh produce, corn, wheat, beef, and milk), people in other parts of the country and the world would have to look farther afield.And what counts as local? Does food need to be purchased directly from the producer? Does it still count when it’s distributed through a mass marketer, as with Wal-Mart’s Salute to America’s F armer program, which is now periodically showcasing local growers? The larger problem is that although decentralized food systems function well in decentralized societies—like the United States was a century ago, or like many developing nations still are—they’re a poor fit in modern urbanized societies.The same economic forces that helped food production become centralized and regionalized did the same thing to our population: in the United States, 80 percent of us live in large, densely populated urban areas, usually on the coast, and typically hundreds of miles, often thousands of miles, from the major centers of food production.  © 2011 The College Board. Visit the College Board on the Web: www. collegeboard. org. GO ON TO THE NEXT PAGE. -8- 2011 AP ® ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONSSource G Hallatt, Alex. â€Å"Arctic Circle. † Comic strip. King Features Syndicate, Inc. 1 Sept. 2008. Web. 12 July 2009. The following is a ca rtoon from an environmentally themed comic strip. ARCTIC CIRCLE  © 2008 MACNELLY. DISTRIBUTED BY KING FEATURES SYNDICATE  © 2011 The College Board. Visit the College Board on the Web: www. collegeboard. org. GO ON TO THE NEXT PAGE. -9- 2011 AP ® ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS Question 2 (Suggested time—40 minutes.This question counts for one-third of the total essay section score. ) Florence Kelley (1859-1932) was a United States social worker and reformer who fought successfully for child labor laws and improved conditions for working women. She delivered the following speech before the convention of the National American Woman Suffrage Association in Philadelphia on July 22, 1905. Read the speech carefully. Then write an essay in which you analyze the rhetorical strategies Kelley uses to convey her message about child labor to her audience.Support your analysis with specific references to the text. We have, in this country, two million childr en under the age of sixteen years who are earning their bread. They vary in age from six and seven years (in the cotton mills of Georgia) and eight, nine and ten years (in the coal-breakers of Pennsylvania), to fourteen, fifteen and sixteen years in more enlightened states. No other portion of the wage earning class increased so rapidly from decade to decade as the young girls from fourteen to twenty years.Men increase, women increase, youth increase, boys increase in the ranks of the breadwinners; but no contingent so doubles from census period to census period (both by percent and by count of heads), as does the contingent of girls between twelve and twenty years of age. They are in commerce, in offices, in manufacturing. Tonight while we sleep, several thousand little girls will be working in textile mills, all the night through, in the deafening noise of the spindles and the looms spinning and weaving cotton and wool, silks and ribbons for us to buy.In Alabama the law provides t hat a child under sixteen years of age shall not work in a cotton mill at night longer than eight hours, and Alabama does better in this respect than any other southern state. North and South Carolina and Georgia place no restriction upon the work of children at night; and while we sleep little white girls will be working tonight in the mills in those states, working eleven hours at night. In Georgia there is no restriction whatever! A girl of six or seven years, just tall enough to reach the bobbins, may work eleven hours by day or by night.And they will do so tonight, while we sleep. Nor is it only in the South that these things occur. Alabama does better than New Jersey. For Alabama limits the children’s work at night to eight hours, while New Jersey permits it all night long. Last year New Jersey took a long backward step. A good law was repealed which had required women and [children] to stop work at six in the evening and at noon on Friday. Now, therefore, in New Jersey , boys and girls, after their 14th birthday, enjoy the pitiful privilege of working all night long.In Pennsylvania, until last May it was lawful for children, 13 years of age, to work twelve hours at night. A little girl, on her thirteenth birthday, could start away from her home at half past five in the afternoon, carrying her pail of midnight luncheon as happier people carry their midday luncheon, and could work in the mill from six at night until six in the morning, without violating any law of the Commonwealth. If the mothers and the teachers in Georgia could vote, would the Georgia Legislature have refused at every session for the last three years to stop the work in the mills of children under twelve years of age?Would the New Jersey Legislature have passed that shameful repeal bill enabling girls of fourteen years to work all night, if the mothers in New Jersey were enfranchised? Until the mothers in the great industrial states are enfranchised, we shall none of us be able to free our consciences from participation in this great evil. No one in this room tonight can feel free from such participation. The children make our shoes in the shoe factories; they knit our stockings, our knitted underwear in the knitting factories.They spin and weave our cotton underwear in the cotton mills. Children braid straw for our hats, they spin and weave the silk and velvet wherewith we trim our hats. They stamp buckles and metal ornaments of all kinds, as well as pins and hat-pins. Under the sweating system, tiny children make artificial flowers and neckwear for us to buy. They carry bundles of garments from the factories to the tenements, little beasts of burden, robbed of school life that they may work for us. We do not wish this. We prefer to have our work done by men and women.But we are almost powerless. Not wholly powerless, however, are citizens who enjoy the right of petition. For myself, I Line 5 45 50 10 55 15 60 20 65 25 70 30 75 35 80 40  © 2011 The Colleg e Board. Visit the College Board on the Web: www. collegeboard. org. GO ON TO THE NEXT PAGE. -10- 2011 AP ® ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS shall use this power in every possible way until the right to the ballot is granted, and then I shall continue to use both. What can we do to free our consciences? There is one line of action by which we can do much.We can enlist the workingmen on behalf of our enfranchisement just in proportion as we strive with them to free the children. No labor organization in this country ever fails to respond to an appeal for help in the freeing of the children. For the sake of the children, for the Republic in which these children will vote after we are dead, and for the sake of our cause, we should enlist the workingmen voters, with us, in this task of freeing the children from toil! 85 90 95  © 2011 The College Board. Visit the College Board on the Web: www. collegeboard. org.GO ON TO THE NEXT PAGE. -11- 2011 AP ® ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS Question 3 (Suggested time—40 minutes. This question counts for one-third of the total essay section score. ) The following passage is from Rights of Man, a book written by the pamphleteer Thomas Paine in 1791. Born in England, Paine was an intellectual, a revolutionary, and a supporter of American independence from England. Read the passage carefully. Then write an essay that examines the extent to which Paine’s characterization of America holds true today.Use appropriate evidence to support your argument. If there is a country in the world, where concord, according to common calculation, would be least expected, it is America. Made up, as it is, of people from different nations, accustomed to different forms and habits of government, speaking different languages, and more different in their modes of worship, it would appear that the union of such a people was impracticable; but by the simple operation of constructing g overnment on the principles of society and the rights of man, every difficulty retires, and all the parts are brought into ordial unison. There, the poor are not oppressed, the rich are not privileged. . . . Their taxes are few, because their government is just; and as there is nothing to render them wretched, there is nothing to engender riots and tumults. STOP END OF EXAM  © 2011 The College Board. Visit the College Board on the Web: www. collegeboard. org. -12-

Marijuana Persuasive Essay

Do you believe the negative effects of marijuana are more damaging than alcohol and tobacco? Personally, I really don’t think the effects are any worse, and seeing as though alcohol and tobacco are legal; so should marijuana. Presently, it is illegal to consume, grow, and/or sell any amount of marijuana in the United States of America for any reason; with the exception of fourteen states, which uses it strictly for medicinal purposes. Yes, I said medicinal purpose. Crazy how an herb that is capable of helping to cure you can be illegal while another that kills over 3 million a year can be legal (Charltan, 2004). Marijuana is a hallucinogen that has been around for many years, initially used for recreational purposes. In recent years, doctors have come to realize that it can actually help with diseases such as cancer, Alzheimer’s, multiple sclerosis (MS), glaucoma, and more (â€Å"Drug Free America Foundation, Inc.†). The active ingredient in marijuana, delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, has been proven to prevent the increase of rate â€Å"Alzheimer plaques† in patients (â€Å"Marijuana may help stave off Alzheimer’s†). It has been known to work more efficiently than any other commercial drug presently being marketed, but many people still have qualms about the idea. They believe marijuana is just a drug that has bad side effects, when in reality; tobacco and alcohol have worse effects. In contrast to marijuana; alcohol and tobacco are legal. Although there is an age limit to consume both, 21 and 18 respectively, the use is not prohibited. When it comes down to lasting effects on the body and organ damage; tobacco does way more damage than marijuana. Tobacco causes emphysema, cavities, gum disease, and it is responsible for 9 out of 10 lung cancer deaths (â€Å"Cigarette Smoking, 2009†). People are warned of the negative effects of tobacco on a daily basis, but yet they smoke packs of cigarettes continuously, and you may wonder why this is so. I concluded that the reason why they smoke cigarettes is because they’re legal, point blank. If marijuana was legal I guarantee no one would ever smoke a cigarette again, and as a result, there would be less cases of lung cancer, emphysema, and oral cancer altogether. In the case of what drugs should and should not be legal, this argument is very astonishing. Just how tobacco; such a harmful herb, with barely any health benefits can be legal and available to everyone. The lasting effects are so harsh; I cannot understand how people do not see my point of view. While tobacco causes cancer, marijuana helps cure it. For one to say that legalizing marijuana is a ridiculous idea, it would be like saying using a band-aid on a cut is pointless. It should be legalized and officially recognized as a medicine. All states, not only fourteen, should sign off on this topic. Marijuana is treatment for many diseases and it is what a band-aid is to a cut. Many people need it and are afraid to obtain it because of possible repercussions. That should no longer be an issue in this country. Works Cited. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Annual smoking-attributable mortality, years of potential life lost, and economic costs — United States, 1995–1999. 2002;51(14);300–303. MMWR Morb Mort Wkly Rep. Accessed at www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5114a2.htm on September 17, 2009. Charlton, Ann. (2004). Medicinal use of tobacco in history. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1079499/ Marijuana may help stave off Alzheimer’s. (2006, October 10). Retrieved from http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15145917/#storyContinued

Buddhism and Christianity Essay

Thesis: While both Christianity and Buddhism were religions that encourages kindness and renunciation of wealth, Christianity caused a stir with Jesus’ hatred against the greedy rich and powerful and his alliance with the lower class, which eventually lead to his execution, whereas Buddhism’s leader, Buddha, spread a message that was not threatening to the high class, letting him live his life until his natural death at 80. This Venn diagram compares and contrasts Buddhism and Christianity. It represents my key knowledge and thinking skills by showing my ability to diagnose important similarities and differences between the two major religions, My Venn diagram is okay, but there is room for improvement. It lists some key similarities and differences, but they are worded in an awkward manner. Christianity Christianity * First Christians were persecuted by the Roman Empire (because of the Christians’ refusal to worship the roman polytheistic religion) * By the time Theodosius was Emperor, Christianity became the preferred official religion of the Roman Empire. * Women’s role in church slowly deteriorated * The Great Schism split Christianity into two religions, Roman Catholic and Greek Orthodox. * Saint Paul spread the small religion  * First Christians were persecuted by the Roman Empire (because of the Christians’ refusal to worship the roman polytheistic religion) * By the time Theodosius was Emperor, Christianity became the preferred official religion of the Roman Empire. * Women’s role in church slowly deteriorated * The Great Schism split Christianity into two religions, Roman Catholic and Greek Orthodox. * Saint Paul spread the small religion Changes Changes Continuities Continuities * Strong denial of gods of other Religions * The Bible stayed a constant Main religious text for Christianity * Extremely Monotheistic * * Went from worshipping Brahma to three deities (Vishnu, Siva and Brahma) * Women were not allowed to perform sacrifices anymore  * Went from having sacrifices of animals to personal sacrifices (fasting) * Changed from Brahmanism and lunar and solar lineages to Hinduism. * Went from worshipping Brahma to three deities (Vishnu, Siva and Brahma) * Women were not allowed to perform sacrifices anymore * Went from having sacrifices of animals to personal sacrifices (fasting) * Changed from Brahmanism and lunar and solar lineages to Hinduism. Changes Changes Continuities Continuities Hinduism Hinduism Open to everyone * Caste system * Intentional misinterpretation of Hindu texts To keep patriarchy Thesis: While Christianity and Hinduism both had continuities of (respectively) a strong sense of denial of other religions’ gods and a strong caste system, both had major changes such as going from a heavily persecuted religion to the Roman Empire’s official religion and switching from animal sacrifices to personal sacrifices. The two tables show changes and continuities for two  major religions, Christianity and Hinduism. The table shows my key thinking skills by being able to point out key continuities and changes. My Table is a little bit sparse on the continuities side, but the changes for Christianity are plentiful. I need to work on researching with more effort. Thesis: Although the four main religions, Buddhism, Brahmanism, Hinduism and Christianity affected the role of women, the poor social role of women outside of church was uniform in all the regions of these religions. Patriarchy is very much alive in all of them. My spoke diagram shows a variety of religions. The statements are also positive and negative towards patriarchy. It shows my key thinking skills by displaying quotes for all the statements. My spoke diagram could use more statements, five seems like enough, but more would be better. I think I did a great job on putting quotes for all the statements. Analyze similarities and differences in attitudes and treatment towards women in TWO of the following societies in the Classical period. Han China (206 B.C.E.–220 C.E.) Mauryan/Gupta India (320 B.C.E.–550 C.E.) Imperial Rome (31 B.C.E.–476 C.E.) or Analyze similarities and differences in methods of political control in TWO of the following empires in the Classical period. Han China (206 B.C.E.–220 C.E.) Mauryan/Gupta India (320 B.C.E.–550 C.E.) Imperial Rome (31 B.C.E.–476 C.E.) cause of the cast system and its traditions, India had more of a social code of conduct instead of rigid laws. Tradition of having local princes also was a cause of the fall of the Maurya Empire, because they made it easier to rebel against the main government China During the HAN dynasty, Confucianism came back into government with high sights on education, the tradition of using the mandate of heaven ensured that the Han Empire fell by 3rd century CE. And the Qin Empire fell in a mere 20 years since he lost his mandate of heaven Confucianism taught orderly society with relationships. The tradition of bureaucracy in the Chinese government kept power in the wealthy class. * So they traveled on the Silk road and also traveled to Spain and France * All the provinces conquered by the Roman empire now were influenced to become Christians * So he wrote the gospels * So he used the Roman Roads and traveled all across the Empire, spreading the word of Christ * So they traveled on the Silk road and also traveled to Spain and France * All the provinces conquered by the Roman empire now were influenced to become Christians * So he wrote the gospels * So he used the Roman Roads and traveled all across the Empire, spreading the word of Christ Cause and Effect of the spread of Christianity Cause and Effect of the spread of Christianity Cause Effect * Christians were expelled from the Roman Empire * Theodosius made Christianity the  Roman Empire’s Official religion * St. Paul wished to make Christianity A major religion * St. Paul wanted to spread the Religion throughoutCause and Effect of the spread of Buddhism Cause and Effect of the spread of Buddhism Roman Empire Effect * His word was spread in India, but not much more than the Ganges River. * Buddhism spread even more in India, to northern India even. * The monks made the Chinese believe in Buddha * He promised himself to make up for it by spreading Buddhism by erecting stupas Effect * His word was spread in India, but not much more than the Ganges River. * Buddhism spread even more in India, to northern India even. * The monks made the Chinese believe in Buddha * He promised himself to make up for it by spreading Buddhism by erecting stupas Cause * Buddha traveled in India * After Buddha’s death monks also traveled in India * Monks traveled along the Silk Road * Asoka was appalled by the bloody Battle of Kalinga Thesis: Although both Christianity and Buddhism spread along the Silk Road, Christianity moved along this trade network because of exiled Christians who were seeking a home away from the Roman Empire, whereas Buddhism spread voluntarily, with monks successfully trying to convert the Chinese. The cause and effect table lists the causes and the effects of the spread of two major religions, Buddhism and Christianity. It displays my abilities to  make connections to major effects and their causes. The table is okay. It has four causes and effects for both religions, which is not great. For Buddhism, it seems a little too focused on monks traveling to spread Buddhism. Thesis: Although both China and India’s political systems were influenced by tradition, India’s caste system created no need for laws, while the qin dynasty’s legalistic system created very rigid ones. The two flowcharts show a continual effect of tradition or religion on India and China’s political systems. It displays my abilities to connect separate events into one continuous lineage of facts. The flowcharts do point out main ideas I was trying to display, but they seem a little bit incoherent at times.

The Significance of Kafka's The City Coat of Arms Essay

The Significance of Kafka's The City Coat of Arms - Essay Example The essay "The Significance of Kafka's The City Coat of Arms" analyzes a short story "The City Coat of Arms" written by Franza Kafka. It unveils layers of concepts and phenomena. It is unimaginable yet brilliant how such a miniature of the textual piece may have such a broad range of interpretations. The significance of the story ‘The City Coat of Arms’ lies in the multitude of phenomena it touches upon ranging from a diversity of human existence to common purpose of living to even larger than life realities, and yet converging the ideas in a simple notion of creation which is the essence of human existence. In other words, the significance of the work of Kafka lies in the connotation and explanation of the idea of creation and further explaining how every individual in this world is indulged in the act of creating something. The idea centers around a diverse array of an issue like how humans are divided along a range of societal and other logistical identities. The stor y touches upon how when this diverse array of individuals are engaged in some common act, there are difficulties and differences, yet the common ground is reached at a point often by virtue of consensus. Also, the story talks about larger than life realities, for instance, the construction of the Tower of Babel is itself an extraordinary idea since its purpose is to reach heaven. This serves an immense philosophical purpose since various arguments about bureaucratic culture can be explained with the help of the ideas propagated in the story.

Nike Company and the Targeted Consumers Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Nike Company and the Targeted Consumers - Essay Example Also, in the year 2008, the company presented the Air Jordan XX3 which was identified to be a high-performance basketball shoe created with the environment in mind (Kapferer, 2012). Some of the Nike Companies’ newest shoes contain Lunarlite and Flywire foams to lessen weight. In addition, Nike Company is well recognized and popular in young adult and hip-hop philosophy for their delivering of city fashion clothing (Kumar, 2009). However, The Company being well recognized for its performance, the question is â€Å"What constitutes the capability of the Company to capture its targeted consumers?† There is a bundle of attributes presented by the Nike Company for their targeted consumer consideration. Some of this attribute is discussed in the following paragraphs in detail. First, is the logo â€Å"swoosh† which is the company’s signature or trademark. With or without the name Nike underneath the logo, the general consumers can perceive the logo and visualize Nike. Regardless of a check of excellence, the flowing nature of the logo has played a vital role in the marketing of the brand. The role of visual rhetoric is to influence the company’s targeted consumers visually.  Ã‚     The logo visually ties into the early gods of sports, elaborating its achievement as a successful, recognizable, and uncomplicated trademark. Second, the attribute is the slogan â€Å"Just Do It† which is the tag-line allied with the Nike logo. Together, the tag-line and the logo feature the importance of Nike’s brand objectives and ideals; victory and athleticism. The design of both logo and the slogan has emerged as a motto and the way of life for Nike’s consumers (Palmer, 2009). The Nike slogan and the logo serve to identify consumers as icons for action and excellence. When the consumers read the word â€Å"Just Do It†, the word is defining content; however, they do not reflect it visually. The slogan provides distinction and identification. The word â€Å"Just Do It† is distinct in its content. It means do not talk about it, do not ask, do not regret it, do not think, but just do it (Hawkins, 2013).

Close encounters of the third kind (1977 movie) Essay

Close encounters of the third kind (1977 movie) - Essay Example Although countless films have been made, certain films stand out as being notable. One of these films is the 1977 Steven Spielberg classic, Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Looking at the release date of this film from a big picture perspective, it arrived during a prime period for the alien premise. That same year George Lucas launched the most popular film franchise of all time with Star Wars, and only two years later, 1979 saw the release of Ridley's Scott's Alien and the first Star Trek movie. There are several factors that contributed to the proliferation of this genre during this time period. One factor was a dismal American Economy, which was struggling with both a high unemployment rate and rapid inflation. These sobering aspects of the real world gave rise to a desire that moviegoers had for an escape, and the genre that most reliably guarantees this release is the Science Fiction genre, especially alien visitation. The arrival of extraterrestrial beings is the most signi ficant game changer imaginable here on Earth and there is no better way to forget about our Earthly troubles if a film takes a moviegoer off the planet and into outer space. Another significant factor was the improvement of special effects technologies occurring within the industry.

According to Cronon, when and why did the contemporary American Essay

According to Cronon, when and why did the contemporary American conception of wilderness emerge, and why does he consider it dangerous to environmentalism - Essay Example part, have always defined the wilderness as being an environment in which ordinary human beings struggled to be able to provide for themselves and their families. Moreover, this unrealistic notion disregards the fact that the American Indians lived comfortably in that supposed ‘harsh wilderness’ for virtual centuries; only to be unceremoniously cast out of it so that pampered tourists could continue to take pleasure in the illusion that they still had places in their nation which were preserved in their original and pristine state. Cronon openly avows that the notion of the preservation of the wilderness is actually a myth of mainstream cultural construction (Cronon, LoPrete and Demos, 2003). The supposedly ‘American Wilderness’ was once the home of American Indians who farmed the land to produce food and lived on it as well. They also freely owned this land. Today, the notion of hunting societies gaining sustenance from the wilderness is in direct conflict with the statutes sustained the concept of environmentalism. Environmental dualism holds that environmentalists have a duty to safeguard â€Å"unspoiled† environments. This means that the natural inhabitants of these lands who farm or hunt in them are viewed as being threats to the natural condition of the

Enlightenment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 2

Enlightenment - Essay Example Firstly, Frederic II promoted enlightened absolutism where rulers were encouraged to make decisions based on enlightenment hence promoting rationality in formulation of rules. Through enlightened absolutism, Frederic II was able to modernize the Prussian civil society by reforming religious policies, judicial system and supporting arts and philosophers. Through these reforms, Prussian society witnessed toleration of religious diversity, incorporation of the noble category into the judicial system and economic growth since the noble stock could work in senior administrative levels and generate income. On the other hand, Joseph II also promoted the use of enlightened absolutism during his tenure. His leadership was aimed at making everybody in Hasburg lands to be satisfied despite the different social classes that existed. For instance, Joseph II implemented a program that gave the peasant class of people freedom from slavery. Joseph II also initiated legal reforms where he banned brutal punishments, death penalty and initiated equal treatment for all offenders. In addition, Joseph II introduced religious policies that tolerated diversity of religions in his region. Of more importance, Joseph II promoted education by making it compulsory for young boys and girls to attend schools. Further, Joseph II formulated a foreign policy that promoted expansion of his territory through colonization of other regions and trade. This meant that the society benefited in terms of increased resources from other regions. In conclusion, both Frederic II and Joseph II are said to have been enlightened leaders because their leadership incorporated principles of enlightenment. As a result, members in societies under their leadership benefited

Managerial Economics - Traded Firm and the Global Competition Research Paper

Managerial Economics - Traded Firm and the Global Competition - Research Paper Example In the leisure market due to the availability of large aircraft like Boeing 747 has made it very convenient and affordable for the common people for travelling and exploring new destinations for luxury purposes as well as business needs (The Airline Industry, 2012). With enormous growth in the airline industry the governments of many developing countries are reaping mammoth benefits and utilizing those benefits in spurring massive development in different sectors of the economy (The Airline Industry, 2012). But with this extensive growth many new potential competitors (airlines companies) are infiltrating the industry and there exists cut throat competition. The companies who are thriving in the industry are developing and implementing strategies on a daily basis for gaining competitive edge over one another. The company who loses its edge comes out of the market and has to shut down its business operations. The airlines industry is almost a perfectly competitive market where each pl ayers influence is minimal. The paper will discuss the market dynamics of Etihad airlines which is an Asian airline with the price elasticity of its products, cost structure, strategic decisions and recommendations which will allow the company to strive in this highly competitive airlines market. Propulsive expansion in the Asian airline industry As Etihad airline is an Asian airline and so highlight will be entailed on the current Asian airline industry. The Asian airlines industry despite of some exceptions have encountered tremendous recovery from the year 2008/2009 which was predominated by deep recession which adversely affected the global demand for air travel and air freight. There has been an escalated expansion in the numbers of passengers, premium travels and so on. The load factors of Asia Pacific airlines have recovered and have surpassed the peak levels of 2007. A large part of this can be attributed to the cautious move made by these airline companies in reinstating th e capacities cut during the economic downturn. This has led the industry to either raise ticket or the cargo charges or that of reducing the discounts previously offered. The rise in the number of passengers and higher traffic has yielded positive results reflecting in the operating profits for most of the airlines. Although the hike in the jet fuel prices have been a symptom of worry for the airlines. Since the year 2009, the price of the jet fuel has multiplied around two times keeping in line with the rise in the price of the crude oil. Higher fuel prices are indeed an important constraint which hampers the present profitability as well as the future growth trajectory of the companies (Seah & Yusof, 2010, p.1). Etihad airways -Legacy Etihad Airways is a national airline of United Arab Emirates. In eight years the airline company has been able to establish itself as one of the world’s leading airlines company. The airlines company was established by Royal (Amiri) Decree in July 2003 and has been able to establish itself as fastest growing in the commercial aviation history. The airline’s fleet of around 66 aircrafts has the operation capacity of 1000 flights per week. The airline provides serves unparalleled network of around 84 passengers and cargo destinations in areas like Middle East, Africa, Asia, Australia and North America. The company also owns around 30 percent of airberlin which is the sixth largest carrier and 40 percent of Air Seychelles. The

Christianity Essay Example for Free

Christianity Essay Followers of Jesus, a Jewish man, started a new religion, Christianity. Christianity started to grow during the Pax Romana, a period of peace in Rome. The Pax Romana lasted from 27 B. C. E to 180 C. E. and during it government improved, literature prospered, engineering improved, and laws formed. The peace during the Pax Romana provided a time for Christianity to rise. Christianity spread rapidly and successfully in the 1st through 3rd centuries because it appealed to many people, missionaries could easily travel and spread the message, and because of the events taking place in Rome. The Christian message, a universal message, appealed to many people. In the Sermon on the Mount, the only full sermon existing from Jesus, a section called â€Å"The Beatitudes† lists all of the blessed people. Jesus blessed the oppressed, the hungry, the merciful, the peacemakers, and the pure in heart in his sermon. The Christian message of hope appealed to those out of power and suffering under the rule of the Roman authority, because the Christian message gave people hope and a thought of salvation. The Sermon on the Mount, given by Jesus, encompasses the Christian message of hope. In addition because of the simplicity and directness of the Christian message, people could easily catch on to the message. In addition to those suppressed by the Roman government, Christianity also appealed to gentiles, non-Jews. Paul, a missionary, preached Christianity to the gentiles and compromised with them. Originally following the strict rules such as circumcision and eating Kosher showed to be a roadblock to the gentiles. Paul and Peter argued over whether or not the gentiles should have to follow these rules, and Paul won, so the gentiles that converted to Christianity did not have to adhere to any rules of dress, eating Kosher, or being circumcised. This allowed for Christianity to appeal to the gentiles. Christianity also appealed to widows. In Roman Civilization those that had been widowed had a low place in the social hierarchy and people looked down on them. However, in Christianity widows were honored and called brides of Christ. The charity work that the Christians did also made Christianity an appealing religion. Christians set up hospitals for the poor and homeless. Hospitals gave the homeless a place to become comfortable before they died. In addition to the charity work that Christians did, Christianity emphasized peace, love, and brotherhood, which appealed to some. In the 1st-3rd centuries C. E. the message of Christianity could also be spread quite easily throughout the Roman Empire. The 200,000 miles of roads built in Rome helped Christianity spread throughout the entire empire. The roads allowed for missionaries to travel throughout the empire easily so that they could spread and preach Christianity. The Pax Romana, a period of peace, also allowed for the roads to be safe for the missionaries to travel and spread the word without the fear of being attacked. The many different cities helped spread Christianity rapidly because of the great amount of people in a small area. In addition Christianity could catch on faster and reach more people. Missionaries also had an easy time getting across the message because of the use of only two languages. In the eastern half of the Roman Empire the people mainly spoke koine Greek, and in the western portion of the Roman Empire the people mostly spoke Latin. Because no language barrier existed, missionaries could spread Christianity with fewer difficulties. The events taking place in Rome helped the Christian message to spread rapidly and successfully. The old Roman religions started losing their vitality setting the stage for new beliefs and giving way to the rise of Christianity. Unlike other cults, like the cult of Isis or Mithras, Christianity was freer and adaptable. The loosely organized internal structure of Christianity allowed for Christianity to adapt to people. The persecution of Christians led to the organization of Christian ideas and thoughts. The persecution of the first Christians led to the idea that the ideas of Christianity should be written down and organized. The two groups of Christians, the Apostolics and the Gnostics, had similar but different views on Christianity. Irenaeus, an Apostolic Christian, wrote the first book of the Christian Church titled Against the Heresies. Irenaeus thought that the Gnostics did not represent the true teachings of Jesus, and that the Apostolic Christians represented the teachings of Jesus more than the Gnostics. The Apostolic view of Christianity became the mainstream Christian view and people recorded the Apostolic ideas in the Bible. The persecution on Christians led to the spread of the message of what the Christians died for. Christianity spread due to many factors including roads, missionaries, and the honoring of widows. The timing of the rise of Christianity helped Christianity spread and rise rapidly and successfully. The period of peace in Rome, the Pax Romana, helped Christianity flourish. Christianity at this time grew as older Roman religions started to decline, missionaries preached Christianity to many people, and the Christian message of hope gave hope to those who needed it. These factors along with the rise of Christianity during the Pax Romana helped Christianity spread and continue throughout the Byzantine Empire and beyond.

Analysis of Proteins in Fish Muscle Tissue

Analysis of Proteins in Fish Muscle Tissue Introduction In vertebrates, the muscular system is an anatomical organ system controlled through the nervous system. Derived from the mesodermal layer of embryonic germ cells, these contractile tissues-of skeletal, smooth, or cardiac origin-are responsible for blood circulation, internal organ function, heat production, and organ protection.[1] With the skeletal system integrated, voluntary and reflexive movement, as well as posture and body position, become possible. Surrounded by an epimysium, skeletal muscles are composed of many long muscle fibers lined with endomysium, which are bound together by perimysium into bundles called fascicles.[2] Within these myocytes, there are smaller strands of myofibrils that contain myofilaments (or sarcomeres) the basic unit of a striated muscle tissue. These repeating sarcomeres contract in response to nerve signals by means of sliding filaments: actin and myosin. The thin filaments consist of two chains of spherical actin proteins twisted in a helical co nformation and troponin as a contraction regulator.[2] Each actin molecule has a myosin-binding site that is covered by tropomyosin during muscle relaxation. Having a head and tail region, myosin II proteins generally form the thick filaments with its six polypeptide chains and can cross bridge with actin filaments due to their elasticity and contractibility properties. Specifically, the motor domain of its two heavy chains adopt an ÃŽÂ ±-helical coiled coil configuration and couple ATP hydrolysis with its motion while its two light chains-which wrap around the neck region of each heavy chain at the IQ sequence motif-have regulatory roles[1]. Although this major multi-subunit protein has remained greatly stabile across the animal kingdom over time, myosin light chains have undergone evolutionary divergences for different species; however, the essential structure and functions have remained highly conserved.[3] Caused by genetic mutations, only favorable variations are passed thro ugh this process allows for specialization, speciation, and evolution that eventually increases survival ability: DNA (genes)  ® RNA ® Protein  ® Trait  ® Evolution. Protein gel electrophoresis and western blotting can be used to compare myosin light chains of different species by identifying any commonalities or alterations in specific subunits. Since proteins reflect changes in the gene pool, the phenotype and function as well as form of an organism can be identified, allowing for the study of their physiological adaptations to the environment. Through comparative proteomics-defined as the analysis of differentially expressed proteins with comparison between at least two protein profiles-changes in the proteome that have been caused by development, diseases, and the environment can be identified allowing for assessment of biological variability and dataset comparability.[4] The objective of this lab was to extract proteins from unknown samples of fish muscle tissue and then qualitatively analyze this protein mixture by performing sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) twice. The protein bands of the first gel-representing the total amount of proteins found in the tissue homogenate-were stained and visualized at 595nm with the Bio-Safe Coomassie Blue G-250 dye at 595nm while the fractionated proteins of the second gel were electroblotted onto a nitrocellulose membrane via Western blotting where the specific protein of interest was selectively immuno-detected by chemiluminescence with a horseshoe radish peroxidase-linked secondary antibody. [3,4] Accordingly, the goal of this report is to identify the different types of proteins found in fish muscle-specifically of shark, tilapia, skitter, and salmon-required for muscle contraction and movement and to establish whether they are highly conserved or variable across all animal species. Consequently, information about the environment, niche, or physiological stresses faced by the organism can be elucidated as specific protein modifications that alter muscle function and performance work to increase their fitness and adaptiveness.[2] Differences in proteins may reveal information about the evolutionary relationships among various organisms and by understanding this diversity in the natural world, many biological problems can be solved to improve the quality of human life.       Materials and Methods First, unknown tissue samples from two different fish species were prepared for protein extraction: in a 1.5mL microcentrifuge tube, 250ÃŽÂ ¼L of Laemmli (1x SDS) sample buffer was added as well as the minced tissue. After gently agitating the contents by flicking the tube, it was left to incubate at room temperature for five minutes. Next, the tube was centrifuged to pellet the tissue; this allowed for transfer of the supernatant buffer to a new 1.5mL screw cap tube, which was then boiled at 95 °C for five minutes. Second, SDS PAGE was performed on two separate precast TGX gels (purchased from Bio-Rad) since both Coomassie Blue staining and Western blotting were required. Refer to the BIO314 experiment 7 lab manual for instructions on how the gel apparatus was assembled with the Mini-Protean gels and tetra cell. When this was completed, the loading scheme for Coomassie staining involved pipetting the protein ladder (Biorad cat #161-0375) in lane 1 (at 7 ÃŽÂ ¼L/line) and the actin/myosin standards in lane 6 (at 5 ÃŽÂ ¼L/line). The rest of the lanes were used to load the samples (at 10ÃŽÂ ¼L/line). The same set-up was done for the immunoblotting gel, except only 5ÃŽÂ ¼L/line of each boiled sample was loaded. Refer to the BIO314 experiment 7 lab manual for instructions on how these solutions were loaded. After all of the samples have been loaded, the gel box lid was connected to the electrode assembly by matching the red and black leads with their corresponding electrodes. Then, the leads were plugged into the power supply, which was subsequently turned on and set to run at a constant voltage of 200V. This process was terminated at 30 minutes when the loading dye started to exit the gel. Refer to the BIO314 experiment 7 lab manual for instructions on how the gels were removed. Third, Bio-Safe Coomassie staining was done on the appropriate gel-with samples loaded at 10ÃŽÂ ¼L/line-which was peeled from the plate: it was then inserted into a container of deionized water and washed for 5 minutes on a rocking platform. Afterwards, the gel was transferred to another container with Coomassie staining solution again, this was left on a rocking platform for 15 minutes. Upon completion, the stained gel was put in deionized water (destaining solution) and the lid was capped onto this container, which was placed onto the rocking platform for 15 minutes. Fourth, the immunoblot was prepared and transferred: with blunt-ended tweezers, the PVDF membrane and bottom stack was placed on the cassette base; the membrane was left facing up. Any air bubbles seen were immediately removed with a blot roller. Since one mini gel was employed, the stack was centered in the cassette. Then, the second gel-with samples loaded at 5ÃŽÂ ¼L/line-was peeled from the plate (from the SD S-PAGE step) and stacked over-top of the PVDF membrane. Any air bubbles present were subsequently removed using a blot roller. Next, a second wetted top-ion transfer stack was placed above this gel. This assembled sandwich was rolled thoroughly with a blot roller to prevent any air bubbles from being trapped. Finally, the lid was closed and locked onto the cassette and this was set inside the turbo blotter to initiate the transfer. When the electro-transfer process was finished, the blots were dismantled and stored (at -20 °C) according to the instructions written in the BIO314 experiment 7 lab manual. After one week, the Western blot-that had been rocked on a platform with block solution A for 1 hour-was placed into 10mL of blocking solution B and 5ÃŽÂ ¼L of primary antibody was added on that solution with swirling; this was incubated for 20 minutes. Upon completion, the gel was washed with 15mL of wash buffer (three times, each with 10 minutes of incubation); then 15mL of blo cking solution B and 5ÃŽÂ ¼L of secondary antibody was added and incubated at 15 minutes. The three wash steps were repeated. With the wash buffer drained, the membrane was put on a plastic paper protector (with the protein side up) and 400ÃŽÂ ¼L of substrate (made by mixing reagent A and B in 1:1 ratio, 200ÃŽÂ ¼L each) was spread evenly across the middle of the blot. A plastic protector was then added over it and this was imaged with a digital imager for chemiluminescence detection and analyzed using the BioRad ChemiDOC-MP Imaging System for the molecular weight and signal intensity of the protein bands (refer to the instructions posted on blackboard on how this program was operated). Results and Discussion According to the Coomassie-stained gel, the variability in the staining intensity of the protein bands in lanes 2, 3, 4 and 5-for skeletal muscle tissue samples from shark, tilapia, skitter, and salmon-signify the difference in the relative abundance of individual polypeptides in each organism (note that lane 5, band 11 was used as the reference). Influenced by factors such as protein expression and control, these species have generated different quantities of proteins with similar masses in their muscle tissues as they have adapted to specific environmental and biochemical interactions.[5] In figure 1, the potential mass and intensity values of myosin-light chain (MLC) are as follows: shark (15.43kDa at 0.37, 17.65 at 1.71, 20.64 at 1.09, 21.60 at 0.25, 23.05 at 0.69, 23.79 at 0.92, and 25.54 at 1.02); tilapia (15.33kDa at 1.34, 16.42 at 0.75, 19.02 at 0.35, 20.37 at 1.56, 21.47 at 0.34, and 23.79 at 0.36); skitter (15.92kDa at 2.09, 17.99 at 0.94, 20.12 at 0.48, and 23.75 at 0.55) and salmon (16.07kDa at 1.13, 20.12 at 0.31, 21.08 at 0.64, 21.76 at 0.26, and 24.92 at 0.34). Due to selective immunodetection of MLC proteins in Western blotting by a primary antibody, the various protein bands lying in the general MLC range of 15-25kDa in the Coomassie gel can be narrowed to: shark (23.94kDa at 1.33); tilapia (24.47 at 0.70); skitter (24.47 at 0.36); salmon (24.47 at 0.22) and myosin marker (24.47 at 2.40) all of which resemble the myosin light chain isoform I (>20kDa) as isoforms II (20kDa) and III (15kDa) have lower masses; with a greater variability of myosin, tilapia has an additional band of 20.68kDa at 0.39 that resembles isoform II. [5] The other bands were dismissed as non-specific background interferences (note that lane 4, band 5 was used as the reference for the immunoblot). The high specificity of primary antibodies in probing their target allows for its wide-use in proteomic research as a reliable immunodetection technique; since proteins can indica te evolutionary relatedness or the presence of genetic diseases, their role as biomarkers has allowed for measurements of physiological changes as well as their quantifications.[6] In the appendix, all of the protein bands for the four species have been assigned a protein that corresponds to its molecular weight. From this, it can be denoted that sharks are more closely related to salmons than tilapia and skitters, both of which are tied for second place. However, based on fish phylogeny: sharks and skitters-belonging to the same class called Chondrichthyes-have diverged prior to the class of Actinopterygiis, which include both salmon and tilapia.[7] In terms of classification relative to the order, sharks (of Elasmobranchii) have the greatest evolutionary relationship with skitters (of Rajiformes), then salmons (of Salmoniformes), and lastly tilapia (of Perciformes).[7] As a hexameric ATPase cellular motor protein, myosin is composed of four light chains (MLC)-two non-phosphorylatable essential alkali chains, two phosphorylatable regulatory chains-and two heavy chains (MHC). Specifically, the protein bands of these light chains have a molecular weight as a range from 15 to 25kDa; this diversity in the masses occur largely from alternative RNA splicing mechanisms that generate multiple tissue-/developmental stage-specific isoforms.[7] Although these polymorphic variations do not significantly alter the actin-activated ATPase activity of the myosin-heavy chain, they affect the actin-filament sliding velocities and kinetics-leading to different force-generating abilities.[8] In an evolutionary context, the existence of these hybrid molecules has been adopted by muscles-in response to changing functional demands-to shorten this translocation time in order to increase their overall fitness. Consequently, numerous variants of slow and fast light chains we re developed despite the underlying plasticity of striated muscles.[7] Voluntary muscles are divided into slow twitch and fast twitch muscles. The main difference is that the former red muscle contracts for longer periods of time with little force, require an oxygen-rich operating environment, and contain only two distinct light chains while the latter white type contracts quickly and powerfully for only short bursts of anaerobic activity as they become exhausted due to lactic acid buildup, have glycogenolytic capacity, and possess three different light chain subunits.[8] Over 90% of swimming muscles from sharks are composed of myotomes that can create massive propulsive forces by contracting their high numbers of white fibres; only a few such as the Great White incorporate bands of red muscle to elevate endurance over strength.[9] Accordingly, this explains why the MLC band on the Western blot has the greatest intensity of 1.33 relative to the other species. Conversely, fish species are generally composed of endothermic red-segmented muscles in their t runk musculature-allowing for their stiff-bodied, slow undulatory swimming motions.[6] Due to their decreased mass of white muscles, MLC bands of tilapia, skitter, and salmon are of lower intensity at 0.70, 0.36, and 0.22 respectively. Relative to mammals, fish myosins share the same light chain patterns but have higher variability in MLC mass and quantity due to adaptive differences in movement between red and white myofibrils.[6] Since they have larger phylogenetic diversity, there is an enormous range of contraction speeds and swimming styles among homologous muscles.[6] For example, fast twitch muscles of rabbit, sheep, and chicken have three light chain components at 250kDa-whereas only one is found homologous at 180kDa among pike, dogfish, mackerel, angler-fish, and carp.[5] Moreover, their poikilothermic-nature may have contributed to these light chain divergences as they were forced to adjust to fluctuating environment temperatures that required specific muscle responses fo r survival.[9] Sources of errors with the techniques employed contributed in hindering the accuracy of the results. First, the amount of protein stained with Coomassie dye varied greatly between the sample replicates since the dye may complex with the anionic detergent in its free cationic form interfering with protein concentration estimates. Moreover, this dye selectively targets amino acid resides arginine, tryptophan, tyrosine, histidine, and phenylalanine; however, the assay performed responds primarily to arginine residues eight-times higher than other ones listed above.[2] Second, reproducibility of the sample preparation and protein extraction steps was an issue due to variability among the skills of the student, which may have caused the quantity differences seen among the replicates. For example: if more tissues were added for one specie, the increased concentration of proteins loaded into the lane would be misled for a true difference in expression among or between the species. To over come these problems: one, an automated protein extraction systems should be employed since its robotic liquid handing technology can control for errors and contaminations leading to greater reproducibility and accuracy; two, silver staining can be substituted for Coomassie due to its higher sensitivity (0.2ng versus 7ng respectively); third, adjustable single-/multi-channel Rainin electronic pipettes should be used as its fully automated and repetitive micro-pipetting has superior consistency allowing for higher throughput work.[4,5,6,9] Overall, it has been discovered that-irrespective of muscle tissue origin-myosin light chain molecules are heterogeneous in mass and intensity and the existence of phasically active fast muscles versus slow tonic muscles has led to characteristic light chain patterns among different fish species. Based on similarities and divergences in the overall protein content and intensities of the different fish species mentioned above, sharks are deemed to be more closely related to salmons than tilapia and skitters both of which are tied for second place. However, according to fish phylogeny, sharks and skitters have diverged before salmon and tilapia, leading to an order classification of sharks (Chondrichthyes, Elasmobranchii) having the greatest evolutionary relationship with skitters (Chondrichthyes, Rajiformes), then salmons (Actinopterygiis, Salmoniformes), and lastly tilapia (Actinopterygiis, Perciformes). Radical alterations in their muscle proteome may have originated from adaptive responses to environmental stresses-i.e. osmotic, anaerobic, and thermal condition changes- or during symbiosis and development since cells can make different sets of proteins based on its specific spatial-temporal conditions.[5] The inferences made in this lab come with great uncertainty due many accuracy and reproducibility problems. Thus, fluorescence two-dimensional differential gel electrophoresis can be substituted for SDS-PAGE; high-throughput proteomic technologies like micro arrays, mass spectrometry-based methods, protein chips, and reverse-phased protein-microarrays can be used for protein profiling and detection; and hybrid separation-analysis techniques such as reversed-phase chromatography-ESI ionization online analysis systems can be utilized for greater sensitivity, accuracy, and precision all of which allow an experimenter to draw firmer conclusions. References Bandman, E. et al. Developmental Appearance of Myosin Heavy and Light Chain Isoforms in-Vitro and in-Vivo in Chicken Skeletal Muscle. Developmental Biology. 1982, 2, 508-518. Chatfield, S. Experiment 7: Extraction and Electrophoresis of Proteins: Immunoblot Preparation. BIO 314 Laboratory Manual. 2017. Chatfield, S. Experiment 8: Development of Immunoblots (Western Blots). BIO 314 Laboratory Manual. 2017. Focant, B. et al. Subunit Composition of Fish Myofibrils: The Light Chains of Myosin. Journal of Biochemistry. 1976, 110-120. Lowey, S. et al. Function of Skeletal Muscle Myosin Heavy and Light Chain Isoforms by an in Vitro Motility Assay. The Journal of Biological Chemistry.1993, 268, 20414-20418. Lowey, S. et al. Light Chains from Fast and Slow Muscle Myosins. Nature. 1971, 81-85. Syme, D. et al. Red Muscle Function in Stiff-Bodied Swimmers: There and Almost Back Again. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 2011, 1507-1515. Tomanek, L. et al. Environmental Proteomics: Changes in the Proteome of Marine Organisms in Response to Environmental Stress, Pollutants, Infection, Symbiosis, and Development. Journal of Animal Science. 2003, 373-390. Young, R. et al. Structural Analysis of Myosin Genes Using Recombinant DNA Techniques. Journal of Animal Science. 1968, 259-268.

Automation Technology for Food Processing and Manufacture :: Industrial Manufacturing Technological Essays

Automation Technology for Food Processing and Manufacture Industrial manufacturing technology is constantly changing. In the 1700's, we first really saw the concept of "specialization of labor" in which an individual specialized in one aspect of an item's production. With the Industrial Revolution the 1800's, people began using machines to do their work for them. Through the 1900's to today, we are seeing electronics make even more sophisticated machines possible. It seems with each new step of technology, industry is becoming more and more automated, completely changing the role people play in production. The average "worker" is nearly extinct, having been replaced by engineers, technicians, and the machines originally created to make their jobs easier. Automation technology is used in every large scale production industry. I chose to learn about automation technology with regards to food processing in particular because it is a field I am familiar with, and it will continue to exist and evolve as long as people and animals need to eat. Overview Large scale food production is more involved than one may think. The following are illustrations of a generalized food processing plant, such as one used to make cereal: Food Process Packaging Process These processes are automated using technology created by companies such as Rockwell, Siemens, and Texas Instruments. For the sake of example, I will talk about Rockwell, because it tends to be the leader in the industry. The Technology PLC's (Programmable Logic Controls) - actual sensor inputs are called tags . speed sensors . counters . thermocouples . photo sensors . scales . density sensors . on/off switches . anything that can measure the change of the state of something - each sensor is connected by hardwire to the PLC - PLC's are connected by Ethernet to a central hub, making data available to all stations on the network - form elaborate logic trees - offers near infinite flexibility

Why Miller Included the Character of Alfieri in A View From A Bridge :: Papers

Why Miller Included the Character of Alfieri in A View From A Bridge The character Alfieri has a very important role in the play " A View From The Bridge." Alfieri acts both as a narrator and commentator but his main function is to offer ideas to the audience to set them thinking about the message of the play. Alfieri is a character in the play and yet his advice is objective and sympathetic. Alfieri is the first character to speak in the play; he therefore sets the scene and informs the audience the background to the action. He is a lawyer but in this area of Brooklyn the people distrust the law, he tells us "A lawyer means the law, and in Sicily, from where their fathers come, the law has not been a friendly idea since the Greeks were beaten". This speech immediately sets up tension between Alfieri, a representative of written law and the Italian immigrant community, who prefer to follow their own 'law', the Italian law of natural justice! Alfieri was born in Italy and tells us in his first speech that "I only came here when I was twenty-five." Because he grew up in Italy, Alfieri understands the other characters very well. They are all Italian immigrants and have a very similar background. The audience understands how fatalistic Alfieri is when he says "another lawyerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. sat there as powerless as I, and watched it run its bloody course." He is telling the audience that he can sense that a terrible event is about to happen but knows he is powerless to prevent this. He understands that in such a community it is better to "settle for half." Alfieri is a realist who is prepared to make a compromise between two cultures. He knows that there will always be injustice no matter how hard he tries to help the citizens of Red Hook. He is happy that he "no longer needs to keep a gun in my filing cabinet." Alfieri acts as a witness to the events as they happen and he makes comments

Why I Volunteer Essay -- Contribution to My Community Service

"You must be the change you wish to see in the world." - Mahatma Ghandi I believe I have been truly blessed to have the opportunity to grow up in Smallville, USA, in a home where my parents have instilled in me the principle that there is a service requirement beyond our immediate household. Realizing what has been provided for me by my parents, my church and my community, I want to use my college degree to serve my community. Not only have my parents modeled before me that we are to volunteer our time and services as citizens to make our community a better place to live, but they have always encouraged me to become involved in church and community activities. Therefore, church and community service, which I feel are inseparable for a thriving community where people desire to live and raise families, have become a way of life for me. I have been taught t... ...ontinue to locate and expand, I am committed to obtaining a quality college education to become an investment for my community. If I am selected as a recipient of this scholarship, your organization will not only be investing in my education but you will also be investing in my community for many years in the future as I live out my commitment to fulfill my obligation of giving back to a community that has helped mold and shape my life.

Does My Head Look Big In This by Randa Abdel Fattah Essay

The beginning of discovering identity leads to the process of one’s journey. Refer to the novel â€Å"Does My Head Look Big In This† by Randa Abdel Fattah, highlights a personal journey throughout the main character, Amal. Randa Fattah explores the relationship between, identity, perspectives and journey in the theme of individuals should not be judged by appearance, traditional culture, stereotype and gender roles can not limit individuals from becoming who they truly are and others’ perspectives cannot prescribe an individuals’ identity. She clearly revealed the beginning of Amal’s discovery of her own identity through the destinations of the journey. In the journey of life others’ perspectives always judge on Individual’s external features. However, Individuals should not be judged by their appearance. Others should create a balance between external and internal features when judging an individual accurately. In chapter twenty-one of the novel Does My Head Look Big In This, Amal has forced to visit Mrs. Vaselli at her house. She found out that an old lady with a serious and unfriendly look who always put all the negative things in this world in her head and the one who talks harshly to others without caring, is the one who actually cares of Amal. It is evident throughout the novel when Amal realised that Mrs. Vaselli does smoking too, she was a little bit angry as Mrs. Vaselli is the one who smokes but why does she keep on blaming Amal. She finally speaks out that â€Å"smoking for girl, it look like street woman. No nice! † The composer demonstrates that Mrs.  Vaselli has a caring nature especially to Amal. Clearly, individuals should not be judged by their appearance, because even a bad appearance can’t prevent one from being such a nice person in one’s eyes. Traditional culture, stereotype and gender roles cannot limit individuals from becoming who they truly are. Of course these things provide effects on individuals but, it cannot restrict them from their self-identity. Referring to the novel Does My Head Look Big In This, Randa Fattah has shown this theme throughout chapter sixteen. The evidence is when Tia and Adam asked Amal about the Doco on Muslim fundamentalists on T. V. last night in the tone of lacking in believed. She explodes â€Å"I’m Muslim doesn’t mean I’m a walking TV guide for dealing with the Muslim dilemma! † it creates sympathy for Amal, wanting freedom from stereotyping. The composer tries to communicate to the audience that self-identity cannot be restricted despite the stereotypes. In the process of individuals finding their true identity they should not be judged by others’ perspectives. In the other words, others’ perspectives cannot be prescribed an individuals’ identity. During the journey of life, individuals are often imposed by other’s thoughts. Randa Fattah has also included this theme in to the novel, Does My Head Look Big In This through chapter three. It is evident when Amal decided to wear the Hijab as a full timer. It seemed that her parents are not agree with her opinion. She explodes â€Å"Yeah right! How can they stop me?! the composer demonstrates that Amal’s determination is resolved as she’s being strong and confident of what she has decided to do. Individuals experienced a lot of challenges throughout the life’s term and that is how we assumed the process of journey. Randa Abdel Fattah highlights these challenges via the main character Amal, such as; the perspectives from others effects on individuality and the way finding their true identity. Once one’s being conscious to resolve the problems, there’ always an exit ways through to the journey’s destinations.

Caribbean studies IA Essay

For much too long Trinidad has been a home to appalling murder rates, gang violence and mass illicit drug and weapon trading. These unlawful activities were starting to take a toll on the country’s economy, international reputation and law abiding citizens. During mid August 2011, the county lost seven persons in the space of 24 hours to murder, driving the murder toll to 263.These allegedly gang related homicides persuaded Prime Minister Kamla Persad- Bissessar to declare a limited state of emergency in the country with an accompanying curfew of 9pm – 5am in designated â€Å"hot spots† for fifteen days on the 21st August, 2011. The state of emergency was further extended until 5th December, 2011. The recent state of emergency in Trinidad (August 21st 2011- 5th December 2011) was chosen in relevance to Caribbean Studies because it was one of the most recent events that had a serious impact on the lives of the citizens. The financial and cultural inconveniences faced by my family during this state of emergency persuaded me to study this event. The researcher is under the opinion that the state of emergency was the government’s â€Å"quick fix† for the crime situation which had no long term worth to the country. It is intriguing that as soon as the curfew was lifted, criminal activities continued whilst the state of emergency continued. This implied that the cultural and financial inconveniences associated with the state of emergency had no value if crime were to continue as normal prior to the state of emergency. The purpose of this study is to access the practicality of state of emergency 2011 to the citizens of Trinidad and the criminal future of the county. This study conducted locally is an attempt to compare the experiences and views of a small cross- section of local businessmen and women with what is reported by economic experts and government officials in the local reports. Educational Value For this study, the researcher hopes to raise awareness on the effects of state of emergencies on the general public and to help others to critically assess other decisions made by their government and determine whether or not they are profitable to them on an individual and societal basis. These evaluations would make for a better educated, developed society. Also, the researcher hopes this study would be helpful to future students conducting research on a similar topic. Problem Statement Was the state of emergency 21st August, 2011- 5th December, 2011 beneficial to the citizens of Trinidad? Research Questions (1)How did the state of emergency impact on the culture of the citizens of Trinidad and Tobago? (2)How did the state of emergency impact on the small local businesses of Trinidad and Tobago? (3) How successful was the state of emergency in its efforts to crack down on crime? Delimitations The questionnaires were given only to persons who owned small businesses in order to research the impact of the state of emergency 2011 (August 21st- December 5th, 2011) on small businesses as well as culture and crime. Also, for the purpose of investigating at the immediate effect of the state of emergency on crime, criminal statistics from February 2011 and February 2012 were compared. Definition of Terms Illegal- forbidden by law. Narcotics- any of a class of substances that blunt the senses. Culture- the ways of life of a people within a society. Homicide- the killing of a human being by another. Legislation- Law enacted by a legislative body Act- A formal decision, law, or the like, by a legislature, ruler, court, or other authority. Curfew- an order establishing a specific time in the evening after which specific regulations apply, especially that no civilians or other specified group of unauthorized persons may be outdoors or that spaces of public assembly must be closed. Economy- the management of the resources of a country. Ammunition- the material fired, scattered, dropped, or denoted from any weapon. Tribunal- court of justice. State of Emergency- a governmental declaration that may suspend some normal functions of the executive, legislative and judicial powers, alert citizens to change their normal behaviours, or order government agencies to implement emergency preparedness plans. Government- the political direction and control exercised over the actions of the members, citizens, or inhabitants of communities, societies, and states; direction of the affairs of a state, community LITERATURE REVIEW The state of emergency 2011 (August 21st- December 5th 2011) was a decision made by the government to halt the spike in gang activity and crime in general in the shortest time possible. However, continuous complaints of regular citizens led investigators to believe that the state of emergency had no noteworthy effect on crime whilst disrupting the natural flow of small businesses and person’s everyday lives. At first the state of emergency had astonishing results, where on September 5th 2011 a reported 1, 356 alleged criminals had been detained, 33 guns and more than 1,700 rounds of ammunition were seized. Prime Minister Kamla Persad- Bissessar declared the state of emergency a success and opted to extend the event until December 5th 2011. However, no detainees had yet been brought before the three-member tribunal established by the Chief Justice Ivor Archie to review their cases (Richards, P. (2011, September 5th) Trinidad: State of emergency in more ways than one. Global Issues. http://www.globalissues.org/news). By 5th December, 2011 a total of 8,118 alleged criminals were arrested, 400 of which were under the Anti- Gang regulations. Since then, all the men arrested under that Anti-Gang Act were freed. During the state of emergency 45 homicides had been recorded, 15 of which occurred after the lifting of the curfew. (Alli, J. (2011, December 5th) State of Emergency Ends. C. News. http://ctntworld.com/LocalArticles). To date, the TTPS (Trinidad and Tobago Police Service) boasts that the state of emergency has allowed them to gather crucial intelligence. (Alli, J, 2011, December 5th). According to the Police Service Serious Crime Statistics, the murder rate has seen a slight decrease from 72 murders in February 2011 to 67 murders in February 2012 whilst there has been even greater success in the narcotics trade with only 56 cases being reported by February 2012 compared to the 69 cases by February 2011. However, the state of emergency seems to have had no effect on â€Å"smaller† crimes such as robberies which have increased by 11% since 2011. (Bhagan, K. (2012) Policed Service Serious Crime Statistics. Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago http://www.ttps.gov.tt/Statistics/). The state of emergency also brought with it some short- term and long term consequences for local businesses with its imposed curfew negatively impacting the entertainment industry. According to economist Indera Sagewan- Alli the extended curfew would â€Å"†¦. damage economic growth and the country’s prospects for growth this year†¦. It will bite into small businesses, restaurants, nightclubs, factories and even hurt Christmas sales†¦Ã¢â‚¬  She went on to say that once a country is under state of emergency, that in itself is a disincentive to foreign investors who will not be inclined to choose Trinidad until the state of emergency is lifted and local investors will follow the trend. During the state of emergency, business in the service industry had felt a significant bite in their revenues, restaurants and nightclubs for example lost approximately 90% of their revenue. The negative impacts on the service industry were to be mainly blamed on the curfew with the state of emergency and once the curfew was lifted, businesses were given a chance to revive themselves. (Bridglal, C. (2011, September 6th) State of Emergency Damaging to the Economy. Trinidad Express Newspapers http://www.trinidadexpress.com/businessmagazine) On the other hand, according to the Governor of the Central Bank, Mr. Ewart Williams â€Å"†¦. If the state of emergency succeeds in significantly reducing the rule of crime then, it should, in the long term, help the business climate. That is what we are hoping for†¦ The big issue is the extent to which the cost you pay is compensated by the benefits that you get down the road and it is only time will tell†¦ potential investors will adopt a wait and see approach on the way forward for business with this country.† (Bridglal, C.) The state of emergency’s success with regards to the local businesses cannot yet be determined until a substantial decrease in crime is seen, in the mean while local businesses especially those involved in night life are still recovering from the mass loss in revenue during the event. A major disruption in the everyday lives of the citizens also accompanied the state of emergency. This interference however was to be totally blamed on the curfew which had both positive and negative effects. According to Prime Minister Kamla Persad- Bissessar’s state of emergency address the curfew would have had a positive effect in promoting family life and in the future, make families feel safer in their own homes. This promotion in family life might have had an impact on the value systems of the people, in turn changing their habits and thus, changing the culture of the people for the better. (Alli, J. (2011, August 21st) Breaking news: State of emergency declared. Trinidad Express Newspapers. http://www.trinidadexpress.com/news/BREAKING-NEWS) The state of emergency in Trinidad only lasted for 104 days and so would not have had a permanent impact on the cultural celebrations of the people such as Divali and Eid- Ul- Fitr. The present study is located within this body of both Caribbean and International data and presents survey data on the impacts of the state of emergency on an individual basis to the citizens of Trinidad. It adds to the growing body of work on the success of the state of emergency 2011 (August 21st- December 5th, 2011), as few studies have yet been undertaken specifically on this topic. While survey data provides only a ‘snapshot’, this study could be extended by researchers in the future to obtain more in- depth perspectives. The quantitative data acquired from the total of twenty five respondents determined the beneficial and non- beneficial effects felt by the citizens of Trinidad during the recent state of emergency 21st August- 5th December 2011. According to FIGURE 1.0 a high percentage of the respondents (70%) stated that the state of emergency affected their cultural celebrations whilst only 30% of the interviewed said that the state of emergency had no impact on their cultural celebrations. The common cultural celebrations affected were Divali (25%), Eid- Ul-Fitr(45%), weddings (8%). The most uncommon cultural celebrations were placed into a group called â€Å"other† which held 12% of the interviewed. FIGURE 1.0 answered the first research question, â€Å"How did the state of emergency impact on the on the culture of the citizens of Trinidad and Tobago?† According to this figure, the allocated curfew and the ban of pyrotechnics during the state of emergency were mainly responsible for the cultural interruptions. FIGURE 2.0 described the effects of the state of emergency on family life. 67% of the respondents stated that the state of emergency had some impact on their family life whilst 33% stated that it did not. All of the responses pertaining to this figure dealt with the state of emergency’s associated curfew, even those who said that the state of emergency had no effects on their family life all stated that this was most likely because the curfew did not affect them. The other respondents were further broken up into two groups. Those whose families were affected positively (86%) and those who were affected negatively (14%). familiar problems whilst those who were affected positively said that the state of emergency’s curfew forced them to spend more time together. FIGURE 2.0 aided in answering the problem statement which was whether or not the state of emergency was beneficial to the citizens of Trinidad as well the first research question. FIGURE 3.0 showed the effects on business profits in Trinidad during the 2011 state of emergency. 25% of the interviewed claimed that their profits decreased by 100% while 22% claimed that their profits decreased by 70%. Another 21% claimed that their profits decreased by 50%, 10% said that their profits decreased by 20% and 19% said that their profits remained the same. Only 3% of the interviewed claimed to have an increase in business profits during the state of emergency 2011. These results were most likely due to the curfew and ban on pyrotechnics associated with the state of emergency. The ban on pyrotechnics would have greatly decreased the firework sales during the Divali and Eid seasons. The curfew would have affected the sales of night food vendors and night entertainment industry, decreasing sales. Some businesses probably altered their business hours preventing a drastic decrease in profits. FIGURE 3.0 answered the second research question â€Å"How did the state of emergency impact on the small local businesses in Trinidad?† FIGURE 4.0 showed the reasons for the decrease or increases in business profits during the state of emergency given by the surveyed. A dominating 84% of the interviewed stated that the restricted hours of the state of emergency was responsible for the loss in business. 12% stated that their products or skills were not required during the state of emergency causing a loss in business. On the other hand 4% of the interviewed said people spent less money on socializing during the state of emergency and were able to purchase their products. FIGURE 4.0 aided in answering the second research question. FIGURE 5.0 showed the effects of the state of emergency 2011 on businesses in present day and their opinions of the future. 79% of the interviewed said that their business returned to usual profits after the state of emergency had ended. 69% of these persons stated that the return of usual business profits was due to the return of regular business hours whilst 31% said that it was due to people feeling safer at night after the state of emergency, promoting their business. On the other hand 21% of the interviewed claimed that their business profits did not improve after the state of emergency. All of the interviewed simultaneously said that this was due to persons still recovering from the state of emergency thus, having less money to spend. The diagram also shows that 23% of the surveyed predicted that there would be an improvement in the business sector of Trinidad after the state of emergency, all of whom agreed that foreign companies would tend to invest in the economy since the crime situation has been stabalised by the state of emergency. However, the majority (77%) said that the state of emergency would not improve the business sector of Trinidad. 48% of which stated that the â€Å"drug kings† were released and continue to run the economy whilst 52% stated that the illegal importation of goods still exists making it tough for smaller businesses to make a profit. FIGURE 5.0 helps to answer the second research question. FIGURE 6.0 shows how safe persons felt during the state of emergency and after. During the state of emergency, 70% of the interviewed felt safer whilst 10% felt less safe. 20% said that they felt no change in safety during that state of emergency. This was most likely as a result of persons feeling safer due to the large number or arrests made during the state of emergency and the increase in police patrols. Other persons may have felt targeted and in danger of the police officers. After the state of emergency, 30% of the interviewed claimed that they felt safer, 53% felt no change in their safety whilst 17% felt less safe. Persons may have felt no difference in their safety after the state of emergency since the majority of the detained criminals were released due to a lack of evidence against them. Some may have felt safer due to the continued actions of the protective forces after the state of emergency and some may have felt less safe with the continued increase in gang activitie s after the state of emergency. FIGURE 6.0 aids in answering the third research question â€Å"How effective was the state of emergency in its efforts to crack down on crime?† FIGURE 7.0 shows the view of the interviewed on whether or not the government should have taken other measures to curb Trinidad’s crime problem other that the state of emergency. 42% of the interviewed agreed, 27% strongly agreed, 22% disagreed and 9% strongly disagreed. FIGURE 7.0 aids in answering the problem statement. FIGURE 8.0 shows the percentage of persons who thought the state of emergency was beneficial to them as citizens of Trinidad. 27% of the interviewed thought that the state of emergency was beneficial to them whilst 73% did not. FIGURE 8.0 answered the problem statement. The persons who agreed that state of emergency was not beneficial to them and that other measures should have been taken to cut criminal activity were possibly under the impression that the release of criminals after the state of emergency due to a lack of evidence did not help in eradicating crime but â€Å"bottling† it. The people agreed with the state of emergency and thought that it was beneficial to them were most likely appreciative of the large mass of narcotics and arms seized during the state of emergency as well as the few criminals who were further detained by the police. According to the data obtained, the majority of people were affected by the state of emergency culturally and financially. This was mainly as a result of the ban of pyrotechnics and the imposed curfew. The few exceptions were explained by persons who were obviously not affected by these impositions or those who altered their celebrations and business hours. The majority of people were not in favour of the state of emergency since it seemingly had no long term effect on the crime in Trinidad. A few felt unsafe, stating that they felt targeted by the police, some were indifferent and the others agreed with the state of emergency. They possibly saw the effects of the state of emergency to be successful and were grateful for the efforts taken by the government. DICSUSSION OF FINDINGS As seen from both the results of the questionnaire and the literature articles, the state of emergency in Trinidad (21st August- 5th December 2011) did have both negative and positive impacts on the lives of the citizens. According to FIGURE 1.0, the state of emergency definitely had a negative impact on two of the most popular religious festivals of Eid- Ul- Fitr and Divali which are very vital to the cultural identity of Trinidad. The interruptions were mainly due to the proposed curfew and ban of pyrotechnics. The interruption in such events would however not continue since the state of emergency ended on December 5th, 2011 and should not have a permanent destructive effect on culture. On the other hand FIGURE 2.0 showed that the state of emergency had mostly positive effects on family life as expressed in the Prime Minister’s State of Emergency Address, which could have potential long term positive effects on culture. Hence, if the state of emergency did have a prominent impact on culture, it would be mostly positive. According to FIGURE 3.0, during the state of emergency local business profits mainly decreased with less than 5% portion of the surveyed claiming to see an increase. FIGURE 4.0 explained these decreases in profits to be a result of forced the limited hours of business and the lack of desire for particular products and skills. The surveyed claimed their increase in business was mainly due the restricting curfew encouraging persons to spend less money on socializing and more money on their products. This data is similar to the statements made by economist Indera Sagewan- Alli who predicted that the state of emergency, mainly its curfew, would have a damaging impact on small businesses in Trinidad, harming economic growth. The Governor of the Central Bank, Mr. Ewart Williams however, had a different outlook on the state of emergency. He thought the severe crime situation to be hindering economic growth and saw the state of emergency, if successful, as an avenue to strengthen the business sector of the country. According to FIGURE 5.0 the majority of business profits had returned to normal and in other cases was still suffering from the state of emergency. Not one business saw an increase in business profits. The majority of the surveyed predicted no future increase in business profits since the bulk of alleged criminals had been released back into society. The majority of the obtained data did not support Mr. Williams’ statement. Hence, the state of emergency had a negative impact on the small businesses. The major aim of the state of emergency was to cut down on crime in Trinidad making it a safer home for the citizens. FIGURE 6.0 revealed that the mass of the sample felt safer during the state of emergency, which is most likely a result of mass numbers of alleged criminals detained and weapons seized during the state of emergency. However, after the state of emergency, the greater part of the sample said that they felt no difference in their safety which is most likely a result of the mass of detainees being released back into society. The Police Service Serious Crime Statistics showed no major decrease in criminal activity after the state of emergency nor did the general public feel safer. Hence, at this point in time the state of emergency had not had a major positive impact on crime. FIGURE 7.0 and FIGURE 8.0 showed that majority of the study thought the state of emergency to be non beneficial to them and would have preferred if other measures were taken by the government to curb the crime problem in. To date, there has not been a significant reduction in crime which was the main purpose of the state of emergency. The state of emergency did not only have positive but also negative impacts on the small businesses and culture of the people. In the case of this study, the state of emergency was not truly beneficial to the citizens of Trinidad. The research conducted therefore concludes that the state of emergency was a poor decision made by the government of Trinidad which had no real effect on criminal activities and hindered the financial and cultural lives of the citizens. Hopefully the research conducted would encourage people to take a closer look at the decisions made by their government and encourage the government to be more cautious when making decisions that could potentially disrupt the lives of a large number of people for the worse. Also, the findings may be used by other researchers who may to compare the direct impact of the state of emergency to that of the delayed impact of the state of emergency. CONCLUSION The purpose of this study was to determine whether or not the state of emergency 2011 (August 21st- December 5th) was beneficial to the citizens of Trinidad. The state of emergency negatively affected some of the most popular cultural celebrations in Trinidad. It was however not very lengthy and so its associated repercussions would not have had a permanent effect on culture. On the other hand, the state of emergency did benefit family life in most cases, strengthening the values of the institute family. Hence, the state of emergency 2011 had more of a positive impact on culture. The state of emergency had mainly a negative effect on small businesses which were mainly a result of the curfew. After its end, the majority of small businesses had gone back to their regular turnovers with a few exceptions. Not one business surveyed had an increase in business profits and the majority did not predict an increase since the event did not provide a significant decrease in the crime rate. Hence, the state of emergency was not beneficial to the majority of small businesses of Trinidad. Through my research, it can be concluded that the state of emergency was not beneficial to the majority of the citizens of Trinidad and other efforts such as the implementation of other laws with similar but less harsh repercussions to that of the state of emergency would be more advantageous to the citizens. LIMITATIONS Throughout my research, many limitations were encountered, reducing the accuracy of the study. Firstly, data collected by the means of questionnaires were collected from a sample limited to the town of Marabella a department of the city of San Fernando for easy accessibility. This means that only people in those areas were surveyed, and hence the entire population of San Fernando was not well represented and hence my research may only represent that portion of San Fernando. Also, my sources were very limited due to the fact that the state of emergency 2011 (August 21st- December 5th 2011) was a very recent event and there were not many studies done were present. Hence, the search for appropriate resources was time consuming and difficult. Lastly, my domain was a very large one and could not be properly be represented by my sample size. Hence, the conclusion drawn may not fully represent the entire business community of Trinidad since the sample size was so small, making the conclusio n slightly biased. RECOMMENDATIONS With regard to the topic studied, a number of recommendations can be made: †¢The curfew of the state of emergency seemed to cause the majority of the problems and hence, if one were to occur again it should not be accompanied by a curfew to prevent negative cultural and economic consequences. †¢The Trinidad and Tobago Police Service should conduct more random yet regular patrols and raids, to cut down on the illegal trade of narcotics and murders. †¢The Anti- Gang Act 2011 and Bail Amendment Act 2011 which are both already- enacted legislations should be used more frequently. These legislations allow for the persons for up to 120 days without bail. Hence, it gives the police service more time to gather appropriate evidence to ensure prosecution of criminals. BIBLIOGRAPHY Anonymous. (2011, August 21st) Breaking news: State of emergency declared. Trinidad Express Newspapers. Retrieved January 15th, 2012 from, http://www.trinidadexpress.com/news/BREAKING-NEWS-State-of-Emergency-declared-128160123.html Anonymous. (2011, December 5th) State of emergency ends. C. News. Retrieved January 15th, 2012 from, http://ctntworld.com/LocalArticles.aspx?id=35954 Anonymous. (2012) Policed Service Serious Crime Statistics. Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. Retrieved March 18th, 2012 from http://www.ttps.gov.tt/Statistics/tabid/141/Default.asp Bridglal, C. (2011, September 6th) State of emergency damaging to the economy. Trinidad Express Newspapers. Retrieved January 15th, 2012 from http://www.trinidadexpress.com/business-magazine/_State_of_emergency__damaging_to_economy_-129350363.html Richards, P. (2011, September 5th) Trinidad: State of emergency in more ways than one. Global Issues. Retrieved January 15th, 2011 from, http://www.globalissues.org/news /2011/09/05/11066 APPENDIX The questionnaire is for a school research project based on the State of Emergency 21st August- 5th December 2011 in Trinidad. All information will be kept in the strictest confidence. The researcher is grateful for the time and effort you take in completing the questionnaire below. Please tick the response most likely to be correct. (1)Did the recent state of emergency affect your usual cultural celebrations? 0 Yes 0 No (Move on to question four if your answer is no) (2)If yes, state the cultural celebration(s) that was/ were affected by the recent state of emergency. (3)How was/ were these celebration(s) affected by the state of emergency? (4)Do you think the state of emergency was worth the interruption in your usual celebrations? 0 Yes 0 No (5)Did the state of emergency have an impact on your family life? 0 Yes, negatively. 0Yes, positively. 0 No. (6)If you chose either â€Å"yes† option in the previous question, in what way did the state of emergency affect your family life? (7)Did the state of emergency have a negative impact on you financially? 0 Yes. 0 No. (8)If you answered yes in the previous question, how did the state of emergency affect you financially? (9) As a business owner, did your usual profits deplete during the state of emergency? 0 Yes (approx. 100%) 0 Yes (approx 20%) 0 Yes (approx. 70%) 0 No. 0 Yes (approx. 50%) 0 No. My profits increased by (9) What do you believe was the cause for your decline/ increase in business profits? (10)Since the end of the state of emergency, has your business returned to its usual profits? 0 Yes. 0 It has improved. 0 No. (11) If there is an improvement in your business, do you think it is due to the state of emergency? State why. 0 Yes. 0 No. (12) Government officials have predicted that there would be an overall improvement in the business sector of the country due to the recent state of emergency. Do you agree? State why. (13) Did you feel safer than usual during the state of emergency? State why. 0 Yes. 0 No. 0 No I felt more unsafe. (14) Do you feel safer now that the state of emergency has ended? 0 Yes I feel safer. 0 No. 0 No I feel more unsafe. (15) Do you think the state of emergency will improve the crime situation in the country in the long term? 0 Yes, it will improve. 0No, there will be no change. 0 No, it will deteriorate. (16)Explain your answer for the previous question? (17) Do you think the state of emergency was a solution to the crime problem of Trinidad? 0 Yes. 0No. (18)The government should have taken other measures to curb the crime problem. 0 I agree. 0 I disagree. 0 I strongly agree. 0 I strongly disagree. (19) Do you think the state of emergency was worth the problems faced by the citizens of Trinidad? 0 Yes. 0 No. (20)Was the state of emergency beneficial to you as a citizen of Trinidad? 0 Yes. 0 No.