A Simpler German No Cases, No Gender, No Capital Nouns

Due to many complaints about German being too difficult to learn, the German Institute for Efficiency in International Relations (Bundesinstitut fà ¼r Effizient in internationalen Relationen, short: BIER) has initiated an Initiative to improve the learnability of German. A commission consisting of renowned experts has already published some very promising suggestions. Among them: One (Article and Case) to Rule them All The articles, namely der, das, die, den, dem, des, shall be reduced to just one form: de  e.g. De Mann ist alt. Ich liebe de Mann. Ich mà ¶chte mit de Mann sprechen. The cases then can be eliminated (see example above) Prepositions do not have to be learned with their respective cases anymoree.g. De Schlà ¼ssel liegt auf de Tisch. Was machst du mit de Schlà ¼ssel? Adjectives will not require any ending anymore and simply be used in their infinite form.e.g. De neu Auto war teuer. Ich mà ¶chte auch ein neu Auto. Fahren wir mit dein neu Auto? Goodbye Capitalization Another idea  is to eliminate that nasty capitalization of nouns. Unlike in English, Germans tend to capitalize a lot of words. the house becomes das Haus. Actually any word that could use a   the in English is being capitalized by the Germans. And there are quite a few exceptions, like Mir wird angst und bange. meaning: I am scared. But its die Angst, so why is it not capitalized? You dont want me to go into detail here. Just learn it as an exception, that will be far easier than to understand the thoughts of those linguists who have simplified the German language in 1996. But soon the only words that will be capitalized will be the first letters of the first word in a sentence: Die Deutsche Sprache ist die schà ¶nste Sprache der Welt. will then become:Die deutsche sprache ist die schà ¶nste sprache der welt.   Simple, isnt it? And forget those, who complain about those absurd situations, where capitalization makes a difference. Those are rare enough to be ignored and you will certainly understand the meaning of those sentences with help of their context. Just some examples: Der gefangene Floh. means: The captured flea.Der Gefangene floh. means: The inmate fled. Hard to mistake one for the other, right?  Another example: Er hat in Berlin liebe Genossen. means: He has got lovely companions in Berlin.Er hat in Berlin Liebe genossen. means: He has enjoyed love in Berlin. Lets just get rid of those capital letters once and for almost all. More examples can be found here. A Single Plural The German plural forces you to handle 8 possible changes to the noun. Here they are in an overview (order: Singular-Plural): das Kind die Kinder (adds an -er)das Land die Là ¤nder (adds an -er and gets an Umlaut)das Auto die Autos (adds an -s)das Fenster die Fenster (doesnt change)der Vater die Và ¤ter (doesnt change but gets an Umlaut)die Lampe die Lampen (adds an -(e)n)der Tisch die Tische (adds an -e)der Sack die Sà ¤cke (adds an -e but gets an Umlaut)Whenever the plural does not already end in -s -n or belongs to groups 4 or 5, it will get an additional -n if it is in the dative case. We Germans are very proud of our sophisticated grammar. Please find me another language with nine options for the plural. And those are just the nouns. Imagine adding adjectives to those!   But as we are also very empathic and feel your pain, in the future you will only be confronted with one form: -(e)s almost like in Englisch. Some examples. Can you make sense of them?   Die Kindes waren all frà ¶hlich.All Landes brauchen Touristes.Ich habe all Fensters geputzt.Ich habe mit viel Vaters gesprochen.In mein Wohnung stehen fà ¼nf Tisches. Theres no need for Irregular Verbs Although theres only about a hundred irregular German verbs and in the end they are not THAT irregular, it simply doesnt make any sense to keep them alive. And despite all kinds of creative efforts to teach them in memorable ways, learners and natives, who have to hear non-natives speak broken German, still suffer from them. Then there is this brain-breaking auxiliary verb sein  that has to be used with some verbs in the Perfekt-past which will also be eradicated. In the future you will not hear sentences like the following but their updated versions: Old versionIch bin gestern frà ¼her von der Arbeit nach Hause gegangen.  I have left work earlier and went home.  New version  Ich habe gestern frà ¼her von de Arbeit nach Hause gegeht. Old versionIch habe dich ja lange nicht mehr gesehen. I havent seen you in a while.New versionIch habe dich ja lang nicht mehr geseht. Old versionHast du die Schlà ¼ssel mitgenommen? Have you taken the keys?New versionHast du de Schlà ¼ssel mitgenehmt? Much easier, right? A Tiny Step for a (Ger)man Those might be tiny steps for a German but huge steps for any non-German. If you are thinking of learning German any time soon, maybe wait until these rules are in place as it  will become a lot easier.   Please note: This article was originally published on  April Fools Day  and should be read accordingly.

Case Analysis Whole Foods - 1011 Words

Case Analysis 2 Whole Foods Analysis Whole Foods is one of the largest organic food stores in the industry. During the years of 2007 – 2008, the company has been undergoing criticism and reluctance from the customers and the employees. There was tension between the financial growth, social value, and brand image of the company, the critiques argued. Their argument is that the CEO, John Mackey has forgotten the core values on which the firm’s foundation was laid, and that the organization is focussing just on the profits and capitalizing the company. Mackey, on the other hand, describes this system as â€Å"conscious capitalism†. According to the article, from the date of initial public offering or IPO of the Whole Foods Market, the investors had returns of over 2700%. This makes the investors hold legitimate power over the firm’s decisions of growth. Though, the investors may not hold a formal position in the company to have such legitimate power; they indirectly possess a threat to the company’s valuation and brand image. This might be one of the reasons why the CEO, John Mackey, is trying to expand the Whole Foods Market. Also, expansion is seen as a factor to imbibe growth. The reasons why the Whole Foods Market has grown over the years is that it has a very ambidextrous organizational structure, wherein it imbibes both mechanistic and organic structures. As the CEO of the company points out that, the store workers do not have to wait for their managers to make the decisionsShow MoreRelatedWhole Foods Market Case Analysis1687 Words   |  7 PagesWhole Foods Market Case Analysis Whole Foods Market has received recognition as recent as January 27th 2011 when CNBC aired Supermarkets Inc: Inside a 500 Billion Money Machine. â€Å"Whole Foods is arguably the most influential, and by some measures, the most successful supermarket chain in the world. The specialty gourmet store has grown into a Fortune-300 company offering specialty foods and locally grown organic produce.1† CNBC goes on to state that even â€Å"Established brands like Safeway, Giant EagleRead MoreCase Analysis On Whole Foods Market1577 Words   |  7 Pages Case Analysis on Whole Foods Market Wanda I. Ramos Trident University BUS 599: Title of Course Professor’s Name July 16, 2015 Abstract Case analysis are detailed descriptions of real management situations. In the case analysis below on Whole Foods Market, the objective was to analyze the organization’s strategy in the market, as well as looking at their mission and values, and how they have applied them and grown. By applying concepts to actual cases, we improve your ability to thinkRead MoreWhole Foods Market Case Analysis1768 Words   |  8 PagesWHOLE FOODS MARKET, 2005: WILL THERE BE ENOUGH ORGANIC FOOD TO SATISFY THE GROWING DEMAND? Introduction Whole Foods Market has developed into the world’s largest retail chain of organic foods supermarkets. Their fast growth success is mainly due to being high selective core values. The company employs more than 32000 workers and also with an average size of store of approximately 3000 square metres. Analysis General environment Economic An affluent Organization for Economic Co-operationRead MoreWhole Foods Case Analysis Essay2011 Words   |  9 PagesMission/External Analysis According to Whole Foods Market, Inc.s Form 10-K from 2002, the companys goal is to become an international brand synonymous with not just natural and organic foods, but with being the best food retailer in every community in which we are located. The vision of Whole Foods goes deeper than just being a successful grocery store. The company is dedicated to ultimately improving the world in general; it plans to do this by continuing to focus on its immediate visionsRead MoreWhole Foods Case Analysis Essay1890 Words   |  8 Pages1. Whole Foods Market (WFM) was founded in 1980 as a single local grocery store by John Mackey for natural and health foods. By 1991, WFM had 10 up-and-running stores with revenues of about $92.5 million in United States Dollars (USD), and a net income of about $1.6 million in USD. In 1992 WFM became a publicly traded company with its stock trading on the NASDAQ. By 2006 Whole Foods Market had progressed into the world’s largest retail chain of natu ral and organic foods supermarket. As of SeptemberRead MoreWhole Food Markets Case Analysis Essay1986 Words   |  8 PagesRunning Head: GROUP CASE ANALYSIS WEEK 6 Group Case Analysis WEEK 6 Whole Foods Markets, Inc. Executive Summary: Existing mission, objectives, and strategies: According to Strategic Management Concepts and Cases, written by F. David, Whole Food Market, Inc.’s current mission statement is as follows, â€Å"to promote the vitality and well-being of all individuals by supplying the highest quality, most wholesome foods available† (DavidRead MoreWhole Foods Individual Case, Financial Analysis1550 Words   |  7 Pagesto perform financial analysis on Whole Foods Market Inc and its competitor Safeway Inc. This in depth report is both to determine which company is doing financially better and how also how they are doing comparing them to their whole industry. The ratios in this report are going to be used to compare WF to its competitior and also to compare its financial performances to the whole Grocery store industry (SIC: 5411) to see how Whole Foods Inc is doing in regards to the whole industry. It is crucialRead MoreCase Analysis of Whole Foods Decides to Open in Detroit1092 Words   |  5 Pagesï » ¿Case Analysis of Whole Foods Decides to Open in Detroit Company Background Whole Foods Market, Inc. is an American foods supermarket chain specializing in finest natural and organic foods with locations in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. It was founded by John Mackey and his girlfriend Rene Lawson on September 20,1980, and today Whole Foods Market is headquartered in Austin, Texas. The current CEO is the founder John Mackey. Whole foods Market is the largest U.S. retailer of naturalRead MoreBelief and Support of Human Capital: Case Study Analysis of Whole Foods1242 Words   |  5 PagesLella McLemore Duane Saari BME-214614-04 Organizational Behavior 18 February 2013 Belief and Support of Human Capital: Case Study Analysis of Whole Foods What role, if any, does McGregor’s Theory Y play at Whole Foods? Explain? The primary focus of this case study analysis shall be to examine the methods of Whole Food’s distinctive approach and development to the implementation of creative management strategies and how they can continue to successfully help them to maintain growth in theirRead MoreCase Analysis: John Mackey, Whole Foods Market Essay examples1702 Words   |  7 PagesEric Smith Christine Hill Organizational behavior January 24, 2013 Case Analysis: John Mackey, Whole Foods Market 1. What role, if any, does McGregor’s Theory Y play at Whole Foods? Explain. According to Kreitner and Kinicki (2013) McGregor contrasted two views on human nature by insisting that Theory Y assumes that people are more positive at work, and believed managers could accomplish more by viewing employees as such (p.9). The other outdated theory, is Theory X, which is a more

Transfer in Ecosystem Service Valuation

Question: Discuss about the Transfer in Ecosystem Service Valuation. Answer: Introduction: The concept of the green economy was first expressed nearly a quarter of a century ago that published the design for green economy. Ecosystems are the advantages that are obtained by the individuals from ecosystems. These mostly include provisioning of services such as water and food as well as regulation of the services. The economics of ecosystems and diversity was considered as a key global initiative and used the framework of ecosystem services in order to draw attention the international economic benefits of ecosystems. This in turn highlights the increasing costs of biodiversity loss as well as degradation of the ecosystem (Kenter et al., 2015). The Tripple Bottom Line (TBL) is an accounting framework that integrates three magnitudes of performance such as social, environmental and financial. This however, varies from conventional reporting frameworks as it comprises ecological and social measures. Ecosystem service valuation is the procedure that helps to assess the contributi on of ecosystem services in order to meet a specified objective or objectives. In economics, this objective is effectual allocation. In other words, it indicates the allocation of scarce ecosystem services among competitors. There are several diverse values that starts from total economic value that acts as an surrounding measure of the economic value of any environmental advantage (Richardson et al., 2015). References Kenter, J. O., O'Brien, L., Hockley, N., Ravenscroft, N., Fazey, I., Irvine, K. N., ... Church, A. (2015). What are shared and social values of ecosystems?. Ecological Economics, 111, 86-99. Richardson, L., Loomis, J., Kroeger, T., Casey, F. (2015). The role of benefit transfer in ecosystem service valuation.Ecological Economics,115, 51-58.

Music and Colors free essay sample

I have an image of a girl with ponytails sitting on the couch listening to her little brother play the Twinkle variations. That girl was me. I would take out my twist-up crayons and begin to color each note, occasionally singing the pitch. Anything related to the D string usually corresponded with a shade of blue, the G with purple, the A with green, and the E with red. I still love to look at a piece of music and see all the colors swirl around in my mind. The sound they make is beautiful and clear. It is as if the rhythm is the wind blowing the colors thinner or thicker to darken or lighten them and mix them together. I often think of notes as stars; they burn with their color. When listening to a friend play a piece once, I made the mistake of asking her to make a note a deep red with the texture of a brick. We will write a custom essay sample on Music and Colors or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page My friend gave me a confused stare, so I attempted to explain. A red brick note is rougher, slightly speckled with a deep vibratoed tone, all the while remaining melodic and pure on the E string. While my explanation seemed perfectly reasonable to me at the time, I have since learned that not all musicians â€Å"see† music the way I do. I have worked to express what I mean through words in a much more effective way, although I am delighted when someone does understand what I mean through the use of color. Ten years later, that girl who once enjoyed coloring her notes in order to make her teacher understand what she saw still imagines these colors flowing whenever she encounters music. This helps me relate to the music, memorize it quickly, play expressively, and learn the most from the repertoire. Everyone must have his or her own learning tools. Identifying the tones of music with colors just happens to be mine.

The eNotes Blog 7 Texts That Will Make You the Family Intellectual This HolidaySeason

7 Texts That Will Make You the Family Intellectual This HolidaySeason Ah, the holidays: that season of cheer, giving, and proving to your relatives that you do, in fact, have your life together. One of the joys of the season is proving yourself smarter than the rest of your family, but how can you cement your position as the family intellectual? Simple: read some of the classics. Here’s a mixture of short stories, essays, plays, poetry, and literature that span from satire to tragedy. Best of all, you can find all of these and more on Owl Eyes. With these under your belt, you’re set to claim your place as the smartest of your siblings and cousins. Drop a quote into conversation at your leisure and wait for a flare of recognition in the eye of the nearest English major (or, possibly, a spark of alarm on the face of someone more plebeian). Whether you come away from the holidays with a reputation for a superior knowledge of literature or as the eccentric cousin, you’ve won. The Prince, Machiavelli This is the classic work on ways to acquire and maintain power. A fascinating treatise on cunning unchecked by moral scruples- Machiavelli’s means of manipulation are perhaps not ideal for, say, getting out of washing the dishes after dinner, but now you can sit patiently during Aunt Judy’s well-meaning monologue about how you should live your life while silently pondering your plans for world domination. â€Å"Since love and fear can hardly exist together, if we must choose between them, it is far safer to be feared than loved.† Use it when: Great Aunt Lynn asks, for the fifth time that weekend, why you’re single. Watch the look of alarm on your cousin’s face as he overhears. Smile innocently, offer him a cookie, and watch him wonder if it’s safe to eat. â€Å"A Modest Proposal,† Jonathan Swift In this classic example of satire, which was published during Ireland’s food shortage in 1729, Swift argued that eating babies was the perfect solution. It might not be a good idea to bring this one up to your cousins with children. â€Å"A most delicious nourishing and wholesome food, whether stewed, roasted, baked, or boiled; and I make no doubt that it will equally serve in a fricassee, or a ragoust.† Use it when: Someone discusses meal prep. Slice one of Swift’s most famous lines in half and serve with a dark note of irony, disquieting your relatives for a reason they can’t quite place. â€Å"The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock,† T.S. Eliot A melancholy monologue, Eliot’s poem explores the inner life of a deeply self-conscious man. Notable for its immersive sensory details and striking metaphors, the poem also contains lines guaranteed both to inspire and confuse relatives. â€Å"There will be time, there will be time To prepare a face to meet the faces that you meet; There will be time to murder and create, And time for all the works and days of hands That lift and drop a question on your plate.† Use it when: Anyone mentions the future or how quickly time flies. A brief mention of murder ought to redirect the conversation nicely. Bonus: â€Å"I grow old I grow old I shall wear the bottoms of my trousers rolled.† Use it: In response to overenthusiastic third cousins twice-removed who haven’t seen you since you were a baby and are now exclaiming at how much you’ve grown. Oedipus Rex, Sophocles A disquieting story of irony and tragedy, essential to any lover of the classics. Name-drop Sophocles during any conversation to make yourself look impressive. â€Å"Fear? What has a man to do with fear? Chance rules our lives, and the future is all unknown. Best live as we may, from day to day.† Use it when: Giving a toast at dinner. Watch as tears are discreetly patted away with napkins. The Importance of Being Earnest, Oscar Wilde A masterpiece of satire, Oscar Wilde’s best-known play is a gold mine of sarcasm and absurdity. Pull a random quote out of this book, toss it at your relatives, and watch their faces contort as they try to decide if you’re kidding. â€Å"If I am occasionally a little over-dressed, I make up for it by being always immensely over-educated.† Use it when: You suddenly realize that no one dresses up for family dinners and that, therefore, your formal clothing is a bit overkill. Bonus: â€Å"I hope you have not been leading a double life, pretending to be wicked and being good all the time.† â€Å"Self-Reliance,† Ralph Waldo Emerson A transcendentalist manifesto, â€Å"Self-Reliance† argues in favor of independence and self-sufficiency. Quote it to disprove those tired Millennial stereotypes. â€Å"Trust thyself: every heart vibrates to that iron string.† Use it when: Arguing philosophy and politics at the dinner table. If those in the know scoff because of the quote’s fame, throw the following suitably-obscure quote at them. Bonus for hipsters: â€Å"Is it so bad, then, to be misunderstood? Pythagoras was misunderstood, and Socrates, and Jesus, and Luther, and Copernicus, and Galileo, and Newton, and every pure and wise spirit that ever took flesh. To be great is to be misunderstood.† Use it when: You fall on the losing side of an argument. Keep your head held high- they only need to get away from society’s convictions. Additional quote: â€Å"The great man is he who in the midst of the crowd keeps with perfect sweetness the independence of solitude.† Use it when: Grandpa nags you about being on your phone during appetizers and not socializing. Social media is the sweetest form of solitude, after all. The Metamorphosis, Franz Kafka Absurd and surreal, The Metamorphosis begins with Gregor Samsa awakening to discover that he has become a giant insect. Mention it and witness the accompanying shudder of revulsion: whether at the ambiguity of the text or the notion of transforming into an insect, you’ll soon find out. â€Å"Could I be less sensitive now?† Use it when: Someone inevitably turns on an episode of Friends while dinner is cooking. Stress the words just like Chander does (â€Å"Could I be less sensitive now?†) and laugh along with everybody as they congratulate you on your impression of him. Catch the eye of someone who knows better and weep internally.

ART OF DOMINATION essays

ART OF DOMINATION essays Human beings are creatures which are equipped with the feeling of god. And because of this feeling, during the long history of humanity people thought of the god or gods and tried to find a logical answer whether god or gods exist and if there is a god what the god look like. Besides this, most of the civilizations have the faith of multiple gods. The Hittites are one of the examples of these civilizations. But they had had problems with imagining the gods, because its difficult to imagine something that you dont see. So Hittites thought of gods, as they have human like sights and also they imagined gods as they have relationships with human beings especially with the kings. In most of the ancient civilizations people believe that there are lots of gods and each god has a constant duty. And they believe that the gods have attendants which serve the gods, so on earth. We can see the figures that reveal this belief on the carvings which are displayed in the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations. There are some mythical creatures called ugallu, kusarikku and griffon daemons. Ugallu is a composition of human and lion, and kusarikku is created by combining the bull and human. And the griffons are created by the combination of eagle and lion which are imagined to be very strong, and they are also believed that they are carrying the sky. Also ancient people believed that there are human attendants of gods on earth and that gods can rule the vassals by this way. In those ages people trust kings because the kings are believed to be the servants of gods. We can examine this in other ancient civilizations like Egypt and also in some Turkish empires which was found in Middle Asia. Although this was the general belief of the citizens, the kings and the queens in those civilizations are inclined to use this to strengthen their position in the society. Because this religion power with the military power doubles the power of the king upon ...

Charles Darwin theory Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Charles Darwin theory - Essay Example I don’t think there is any evidence to support this idea. The truth is that the theory of evolution dictates which species continue to exist and which fail. It moulds and shapes the functions and appearance of each species. However, it does not guide them towards any one particular end. Evolution says that nature changes in a random way and that nothing is being progressed towards. Each step of evolution happens because of various circumstances none of which are planned. However, there is the problem of love. Some think that evolution cannot explain why people love each other. However, love is an important function of evolution. Â   In this, the 201st anniversary of the birth of the great British biologist and scientist, Charles Darwin, it is fascinating to look at how his powerful theory of evolution is still a subject of debate and how exactly it operates in nature. More particularly, it is fascinating to see how love fits into his scheme. Love is what bring together people to raise children. People fall in love for many reasons, but the main one—attraction--is a direct product of evolution. What do people find attractive? Strength, symmetry, health. These are all things that indicate good genes. People want to reproduce with people who have these attractive qualities because they want to pass on good genes to their offspring. They fall in love and stay together in order to raise their children. The reason the pattern of families have existed for so long is that the system works. We have nuclear families because they are the most effective way, according to evolution, to raise children to become h ealthy and successful adults. There is no system in competition. And this is the product of love. The truth is that heredity and genetic variations are only spokes in the wheel of natural selection (Margulis 65). Heredity is what is passed down from one generation to the next

Retirement Gamble Movie Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Retirement Gamble - Movie Review Example There is an important concept that is brought about in the video concerning the availability of actively managed funds that are worthy the value of investors’ money. The authors argue that there are no actively managed funds that can add value to the investors’ investments. I disagree with the argument because there are several beneficial actively managed funds in the market. Moreover, Christine Marcks, the head of Prudential Retirement, argues that she is not aware of any research findings showing the advantages of low cost index investments over the high cost active management. The general public needs to be made aware that the task of finding and determining whether the actively managed funds are worthy the investors’ money should lie under the responsibility of investment accountants. Research shows that one third of Americans do not have any retirement saving plans. Nevertheless, half of the American population think that they cannot save enough funds for th eir retirement. These findings show how uninformed many employees are. There is the need to have investment consultants who will enable the investors to choose the best retirement saving plans to suit their needs. However, it has not addressed the following question; is there any single 401 (k) plan that investors can rely on? This question is important because it will help in solving the current problems facing employees rather than blaming the financial industries for taking too much money from investors while offering little value in return.

Inferential Statistics Essay Example for Free

Inferential Statistics Essay With inferential statistics, you are trying to reach conclusions that extend beyond the immediate data alone. For instance, we use inferential statistics to try to infer from the sample data what the population might think. Or, we use inferential statistics to make judgments of the probability that an observed difference between groups is a dependable one or one that might have happened by chance in this study. Thus, we use inferential statistics to make inferences from our data to more general conditions; we use descriptive statistics simply to describe whats going on in our data. Here, I concentrate on inferential statistics that are useful in experimental and quasi-experimental research design or in program outcome evaluation. Perhaps one of the simplest inferential test is used when you want to compare the average performance of two groups on a single measure to see if there is a difference. You might want to know whether eighth-grade boys and girls differ in math test scores or whether a program group differs on the outcome measure from a control group. Whenever you wish to compare the average performance between two groups you should consider the t-test for differences between groups. Most of the major inferential statistics come from a general family of statistical models known as the General Linear Model. This includes the t-test, Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA), regression analysis, and many of the multivariate methods like factor analysis, multidimensional scaling, cluster analysis, discriminant function analysis, and so on. Given the importance of the General Linear Model, its a good idea for any serious social researcher to become familiar with its workings. The discussion of the General Linear Model here is very elementary and only considers the simplest straight-line model. However, it will get you familiar with the idea of the linear model and help prepare you for the more complex analyses described below. One of the keys to understanding how groups are compared is embodied in the notion of the dummy variable. The name doesnt suggest that we are using variables that arent very smart or, even worse, that the analyst who uses t hem is a dummy! Perhaps these variables would be better described as proxy variables. Essentially a dummy variable is one that uses discrete numbers, usually 0 and 1, to represent different groups in your study. Dummy variables are a simple idea that enable some pretty complicated things to  happen. For instance, by including a simple dummy variable in an model, I can model two separate lines (one for each treatment group) with a single equation. To see how this works, check out the discussion on dummy variables. One of the most important analyses in program outcome evaluations involves comparing the program and non-program group on the outcome variable or variables. How we do this depends on the research design we use. research designs are divided into two major types of designs: experimental and quasi-experimental. Because the analyses differ for each, they are presented separately. Experimental Analysis. The simple two-group posttest-only randomized experiment is usually analyzed with the simple t-test or one-way ANOVA. The factorial experimental designs are usually analyzed with the Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) Model. Randomized Block Designs use a special form of ANOVA blocking model that uses dummy-coded variables to represent the blocks. The Analysis of Covariance Experimental Design uses, not surprisingly, the Analysis of Covariance statistical model. Quasi-Experimental Analysis. The quasi-experimental designs differ from the experimental ones in that they dont use random assignment to assign units (e.g., people) to program groups. The lack of random assignment in these designs tends to complicate their analysis considerably. For example, to analyze the Nonequivalent Groups Design (NEGD) we have to adjust the pretest scores for measurement error in what is often called a Reliability-Corrected Analysis of Covariance model. In the Regression-Discontinuity Design, we need to be especially concerned about curvilinearity and model misspecification. Consequently, we tend to use a conservative analysis approach that is based on polynomial regression that starts by overfitting the likely true function and then reducing the model based on the results. The Regression Point Displacement Design has only a single treated unit. Nevertheless, the analysis of the RPD design is based directly on the traditional ANCOVA model. When youve investigated these various analytic models, youll see that they all come from the same family the General Linear Model. An understanding of that model will go a long way to introducing you to the intricacies of data analysis in applied and social research contexts. The T-Test The t-test assesses whether the means of two groups are statistically  different from each other. This analysis is appropriate whenever you want to compare the means of two groups, and especially appropriate as the analysis for the posttest-only two-group randomized experimental design. Figure 1. Idealized distributions for treated and comparison group posttest values. | Figure 1 shows the distributions for the treated (blue) and control (green) groups in a study. Actually, the figure shows the idealized distribution the actual distribution would usually be depicted with a histogram or bar graph. The figure indicates where the control and treatment group means are located. The question the t-test addresses is whether the means are statistically different. What does it mean to say that the averages for two groups are statistically different? Consider the three situations shown in Figure 2. The first thing to notice about the three situations is that the difference between the means is the same in all three. But, you should also notice that the three situations dont look the same they tell very different stories. The top example shows a case with moderate variability of scores within each group. The second situation shows the high variability case. the third shows the case with low variability. Clearly, we would conclude that the two groups appear most different or distinct in the bottom or low-variability case. Why? Because there is relatively little overlap between the two bell-shaped curves. In the high variability case, the group difference appears least striking because the two bell-shaped distributions overlap so much. Figure 2. Three scenarios for differences between means. | This leads us to a very important conclusion: when we are looking at the differences between scores for two groups, we have to judge the difference between their means relative to the spread or variability of their scores. The t-test does just this. Statistical Analysis of the t-test The formula for the t-test is a ratio. The top part of the ratio is just the difference between the two means or averages. The bottom part is a measure of the variability or dispersion of the scores. This formula is essentially another example of the signal-to-noise metaphor in research: the difference between the means is the signal that, in this case, we think our program or  treatment introduced into the data; the bottom part of the formula is a measure of variability that is essentially noise that may make it harder to see the group difference. Figure 3 shows the formula for the t-test and how the numerator and denominator are related to the distributions.

What is Civil Engineering? :: essays research papers

Historically, Civil Engineering is the oldest branch of engineering and dates back at least 5,000 years to the profession of "master builder" involving pyramids, temples and irrigation projects. Engineering has changed greatly since those days but the fundamental principles have stayed the same. Engineers solve peoples problems with applied science and innovation. Today's problems are more complex and the needs of current and future societies have created challenges for engineering unparalleled in our history. The use of electronic data collection methods and the application of computers has revolutionized the practice of Civil Engineering. To interpret and satisfy these needs, Civil Engineers currently direct the spending of more than one tenth of Canada's gross national product, more than any other professional group. The Civil Engineer must deal with the human impact of engineering. Social, moral and legal issues concern us to a far greater degree than ever before. Civil Engineering has become an extremely diverse field with many areas of application. A summary of the major fields follow: Structural Engineering Structural Engineering deals with the design and construction of all types of structures including buildings and bridges. Emphasis is placed on mechanics and the behaviour of materials. Infrastructure Management and Construction Infrastructure Management and Construction deals with project management, construction materials, construction engineering and building engineering. Water and Waste Management Engineering Water and Waste Management Engineering addresses water and waste water treatment, surface and ground water pollution and control, solid and hazardous waste management, contaminant transport and behaviour in the environment. Support areas involving aquatic chemistry, computer modeling, simulation and laboratory experimentation as examples are also stressed. Transportation Engineering Transportation Engineering deals with the planning, design, construction, traffic operation and evaluation of streets, highways, airports, and transit systems. Geotechnical Engineering Geotechnical Engineering covers the engineering properties of soils, the fundamentals of soil mechanics, and the application of geotechnical data and fundamentals to the design of foundation elements, earth-retaining structures, excavations, earth embankments and highway pavements. Engineering Mechanics Engineering Mechanics deals with the rigorous study of mechanics, applied mathematics and related fields. This leads to an understanding of advanced analysis and leads to study in structural engineering, hydraulics, mechanics of solids and fluids, or properties of materials. Experimental Mechanics Experimental Mechanics involves the experimental investigations of the static and dynamic response of structures and machines, and in the development of improved techniques to obtain and analyze experimental data. Water Resources Engineering Water Resources Engineering covers the planning,

Hooded Americanism: The First Century of the Ku Klux Klan Essay

In â€Å"Hooded Americanism,† David M. Chalmers narrates the olden times of the Ku Klux Klan in every single one of its personifications from right away following the Civil War to the belatedly 1970s. Mr. Chalmers moreover talks about the Klan’s expansion and accomplishments in all of the states throughout its strongest era in the 1920s to 1930s. Mr. Chalmers furthermore discusses in great detail the tumultuous 1960s and how the Klan lends a hand unintentionally to produce the Civil Rights legislation for which it struggled so toughly against the opposition. Comprehensively investigated and finely written, â€Å"Hooded Americanism† is based on facts and peeps into the life of a contentious association and into the survival of the men and women who made it achievable. Summary of the Book: In the book â€Å"Hooded Americanism†, according to the author, David M. Chalmers, â€Å"it is not possible under American law to forbid the existence of an organization such as the Klan. Only the overt deeds of individuals, not organizations and opinions, are punishable† (David Mark Chalmers, 391). In other expressions it is practically not possible to pin the activities of a company on one human being. In result, the group gets away with monstrous and dreadful actions of violent behavior and no one is penalized for it. They have extended an effectual and successful approach and it is one of terrorization. All the way through the past, the Ku Klux Klan has instilled terror in others compelling them to give the impression to be substandard and defenseless. Not including the capability to threaten civilization, the Klan may perhaps still subsist, but it would obtain no authority above others. David Chalmers’ Hooded Americanism is in spite of everything, a standard history of the Ku Klux Klan. His 1981 modified version traced the indistinguishable territory all the way through its fourth period, peaking with the late-1970s resurrection directed by new leaders like David Duke and manifested by the assassinators of five anti-Klan protesters at a 1979 war of words in Greensboro, North Carolina â€Å"Greensboro† readdresses here. Greensboro, North Carolina is a municipality in the U. S. state of North Carolina. Subsequently Klan relationships previously again forced, even though hard-core Klansmen soldiered into the new millennium by setting of connections crossways the chauvinistic Right, counterfeiting associations with Christian distinctiveness supporters, armed force combatants Nordic paganists, and neo-Nazi demagogues. Thesis of the book:  In spite of the civil rights modifications being approved greater than 40 years ago, racial discrimination persists to continue living to a great extent in America. A good example of this is the book â€Å"Hooded Americanism†. This book is based on the southern-based group known as the Ku Klux Klan. Instantaneously subsequent to the Civil War, this group moved towards the Modernization Period. The Ku Klux Klan (KKK) is one of America’s oldest and mainly one of the most apprehended groups. Determined by the vision of a world with simply one master ethnic group, the KKK frequently makes use of violent behavior, aggression and tactics exceeding the law to encourage their cause: white domination. Believe it or not, the innovative components intended for the KKK, were supposed to be an entertaining communal association that would be occupied of meaningless excitement and enjoyment despite the fact that in later years the KKK grew to be identified for their violent behavior and brutality in opposition to inhabitants outside the white nation and public who connected with them. With the times gone by that image Americans have of the KKK is hard to accept as true that it was on track for the reason that a small number of inhabitants wanting to have some childlike enjoyment, not because they were determined to establish a procession of hostility on anybody outside the white ethnic group. The Klan was extremely mysterious; all of the components were protected from individuals meaningful in their real characteristics (if that was their desire). Because of this confidentiality they obtained the alternate substitute name of â€Å"The Invisible Empire†. Even though slavery was brought to a conclusion, racial discrimination was not. The KKK was decived by the U. S. Government when it established and started being familiar with African-Americans as more than simply slaves. The KKK started their remonstration by execution, tar and feathering, thrashing, pounding and assassinating African-Americans in the South. The Klan doesn’t make use of the similar strategies as they did years and years ago. At that instant the KKK grasps nonviolent complaints in front of civil rights organization structures, the White House, and so on. For the reason that of their further diplomatic and more knowledgeable sounding loom, the Klan gets further encouraging awareness from brainless southerners. Subsequent to the removal of the U. S. Government hordes from the South in the late 1800’s, the Klan accomplished its objective. Numerous of the groups separated. Following the turn of the century, it started happening another time. This instant the objective was a lot superior, emancipation of America from all non-white, Christian Americans. This is the Ku Klux Klan we are familiar with at the moment. The Klan hasn’t been as authoritative from the time when they began, but for the past 50 years it has had a lot of reincarnation and plunges. All the way through the history, the KKK has tried to put a stop to the correspondence of America. They will maintain to do well by pleading with further inexperienced and unqualified Americans to stick together with them. It is correct that racial discrimination still continues to exist in the United States, but there will at all times be men and women of every color and shade struggling in opposition to group similar to the KKK. Provided that there are dissimilarities linking people on this earth, there will forever be revulsion. And the KKK will be there to nourish on this abhorrence and take advantage of it in each and every way probable. They might be noiseless for numerous years, but you can calculate on the reality that they are there. They are â€Å"The Invisible Empire† and will for eternity be the dark and mysterious side to American History. The book goes in length into the Klan’s spreading out into numerous nations and documents their accomplishments/collapses and the universal communal response of the group of people the Klan was entering. The novelist despite the fact that appeared to have a pro-Klan prejudice, and this is sensed just by the title and the understanding of the within jacket. He infrequently spots out the tribulations of the Klan’s philosophy (throughout his utilization of expressions, particularly exclusion of such words as â€Å"racist† and â€Å"bigot†, which a lot of Klan associates gave the impression to symbolize), and glamorizes the Klan’s analyses on white preeminence as a standard, contemporary inspection of white Christians (a little exceptionally distant from the reality). It glamorizes Klan violent behavior and intimidation of aggression, and in more than a small number of places it blames those adjacent to the Klan as unpatriotic Americans, or unappreciative colonizers or minorities. Mr. Chalmers furthermore highlights community brutality not in favor of Klan action as the actual erroneous and wickedness, something I believe is a usual response to these ‘pseudo-Christian revolutionary law enforcers’ who wish for time (and America) to stand still and static for them. A number of areas furthermore intimate towards the writer’s support for the Klan’s principles. The foremost Klan was established in 1865 by veterans of the co-conspirator defense force. Its rationale was to reinstate white incomparability in the consequences of the American Civil War. The Klan opposed Reconstruction by threatening â€Å"carpetbaggers†, â€Å"troublemakers† and freedmen. The KKK promptly accepted aggressive techniques. The increase in assassinations finally resulted in a counterattack between Southern leaders who observed the Klan’s immoderation as an explanation for centralized troops to prolong occupation. The association refused from 1868 to 1870 and was shattered by President Ulysses S. Grant’s route and enforcement of the Civil Rights Act of 1871. In 1915, the following Klan was established. It developed quickly in a different period of postwar social apprehensions. After World War I, a lot of Americans managed with successful development rates in main metropolis, where plentiful influence of refugees from southern and Eastern Europe and the Great Migration of Southern blacks and whites were being captivated. Subsequent to World War I, labor anxiety increased as veterans attempted to reenter the work energy. In response to these new groups of migrants and refugees, the second KKK urged racial discrimination, anti-Catholicism, anti-Communism, nativism, and anti-Semitism. Conclusion: Mr. Chalmers creates exceptional use of modern newspaper descriptions and perspectives to cover the Klan and its reputation in a specified group of people. What I found particularly fascinating was the Klan’s demographics. Mr. Chalmers acquaints with investigation that disproves long-held confidences that the Klan was for all time strongest in the South; in actual fact the Klan, at times, lined the authorized administrations of the Midwest. Mr. Chalmers furthermore talks about how different state governments and councils struggled with the Klan or sided with them. Yet again, I was astonished at how numerous administrations in reality attempted to restrain the enlargement of the Klan in their states throughout anti-mask commandments and other legislation. Mr. Chalmers has printed an outstanding history that includes in huge detail the 100 years subsequent to the Civil War. I look forward to that he is at an effort on modernizing this essential work.

Innovators in the development of this technology Essay

Biochips are soon expected to revolutionize clinical diagnostics, massively parallel DNA analysis, and other laboratory procedures involving molecular biology. In recent years, high-density DNA micro arrays or biochips have revolutionized biomedical research and greatly accelerated target validation and drugs discovery efforts. The utility of micro array technology is that it permits highly parallel gene expression profiling; provide snapshots of the transcriptome in both healthy and diseased states. Biochips can be used to identify and prioritize drug targets, based on their ability to confirm a massive number of gene expression measurements in parallel. Biochips have been utilized to address in vitro pharmacology and toxicology issues, and are being widely applied to improve the processes of disease diagnosis, pharmacogenomics and toxicogenomics. The biochips widely in use today, however, owe their existence to innovation in miniaturization in both the private and academic sectors. Innovators in the development of this technology include Hyseq, Oxford Gene Technologies and Stanford University. The biological nature of biochips also raises the possibility of some exciting medical applications – they could be implanted in the body of interface with the living system. Some possibilities include: Brain implants to circumvent damage that has caused blindess and deafness. Cardiac implants to regulate heart beat, Blood implants to regulate drug discovery (e. g. insulin for diabetics) and implants to control artificial limbs The fabrication of complex three dimensional biochips with the fabrication technology now used in the electronics industry is probably impossible. An essential feature of the use of a protein matrix is that the proteins directly their own assembly and the appropriate positioning of the semiconductor molecules. These are numerous examples of self assembling protein structures, including virus particles and these are being studied intensely for potential applications to biochip technology. Biochips will not be possible without computer designed proteins and rDNA technology. Yet it will probably be several years before rDNA technology will be able to contribute substantially to biochips research, because it is first necessary to understand more about the relationship between protein structure and function, the biological self-assembly processes, and the mechanisms by which molecules could do logic functions and store memory. Future The boundaries of technology will be continually challenged as this technology progresses, and novel applications are devised. In addition to the evolving technical approaches of DNA micro array systems, new applications for microarrays are being developed. Recent progress in combining the use of chromatin (ChIP) arrays with DNA microarrays has allowed genomewide analysis of transcription factor localization to specific regulatory sequences in living cells. Biotechnology is usually among most technologies in that it spans an array of scientific disciplines. Individuals seeking to be well versed in applications of biotechnology must have inter-disciplines training. Bioprocess engineers, for example need some knowledge of biochemistry and microbiology as well as knowledge of engineering design so that the most efficient combination of micro-organism and bioreactor can be determined. Many industrial sectors are applying biochip technology. The sectors include are pharmaceuticals, agriculture, specialty chemical and food additives, environmental applications, commodity chemicals and energy and bioelectronics. References Commercial biotechnology: An International Analysis, 1985, Office of Technology Assessment, United States Congress. Office of Technology Assessment, United States, Congress Biochips: Technology and Applications, 2003, Wan-Li Xing, Jing Cheng

America is a violent society essays

America is a violent society essays Undoubtedly, America is a violent society. Each year in America there are 11 127 firearm homicides. Compared to other countries this is an extremely large amount of guns. Why is it that there are so many deaths due to firearms in America than in any other country? We will explore possible reasons why America is such a violent society to answer this question. Somehow people in America have brainwashed themselves into believing that owning a gun enhances safety. America has the highest rate of firearm ownership than any other country. With about 200 million guns its a gun crazy country . But why is it that if guns enhance safety there are more and more deaths due to firearms than any other country? If guns ensure safety then there should be fewer deaths. Owning a gun doesnt guarantee safety. Its an illusion. Almost half of American households own firearms. They have these firearms because they believe these potentially fatal weapons provide safety for their families and themselves. A very large proportion of the gun related deaths in America are due to people mistaking family members for burglars. This is not safety. Firearms in America are very easily accessed. In the documentary, bowling for columbine, Michael Moore has shown simply and effectively how easily guns and ammunition can be accessed in America. In America you can open a bank account and as a bonus you get a free gun. They offer you a wide choice of guns when you open up an account. The bank is also an authorized federal arms dealer. Michael Moore discovered this gun offer in the local newspaper that showed a gun across the top with the heading More bang for your buck . After receiving his gun Michael then went to the local barber-shop for a haircut, where he purchased hassle-free bullets. The two boys from the columbine shooting, Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris bought their guns from a gun show and their bullets ...

Heinrich Himmler, Nazi SS Head Oversaw the Holocaust

Heinrich Himmler, Nazi SS Head Oversaw the Holocaust Heinrich Himmler was a key figure in the Nazi party and leader of the feared SS. He was also responsible for turning the racist and anti-Semitic ideology of the Nazi movement into a shockingly efficient killing machine. Himmlers fanatical devotion to Hitler, as well as his fascination with the pseudoscience that fortified Nazi beliefs, made him one of the main architects of the Holocaust. The unlikely rise of Himmler from an unimpressive clerk-like figure running a small farm to one of the most powerful men on earth was attributed to his penchant for organization. Upon his suicide, soon after hed been captured and the Nazi regime had crumbled, the New York Times noted that Himmler had â€Å"raised wholesale slaughter to a science.† Fast Facts: Heinrich Himmler Known For: As head of the Nazi SS elite troops, he terrorized much of Europe and masterminded the HolocaustBorn: October 7, 1900 in Munich, BavariaDied: May 23, 1945 in Luneberg, Germany (committed suicide after being captured)Spouse: Margarete Concerzowo, known as MargaChildren: Gundrun Himmler, born 1929 Early Life Heinrich Himmler was born in Munich, Bavaria, on October 7, 1900. His father, Gebhard Himmler, was a schoolmaster. Early in his career, Himmler’s father had been appointed the tutor of Prince Heinrich of Bavaria, and Himmler was named in honor of the prince. Growing up in a middle-class family with an older and younger brother, Himmler developed a great sense of pride in German traditions. When his older brother joined the military in World War I, he wrote in his diary that he wished he was old enough to enlist. He did eventually join the German army and received training, but the war ended before he saw action. Following the war, Himmler studied agriculture and seemed destined to be a farmer. Like other young and angry Germans, he responded to his country’s defeat and perceived humiliation by the Allied powers by becoming interested in nationalist political movements. He officially joined the small Nazi Party in August 1923. He was involved in a minor role, manning a barricade and holding a Nazi banner in the Munich beer hall putsch that November. After the failed takeover attempt, he escaped prosecution and avoided prison, unlike Hitler and other participants. Rise to Power As the Nazi Party grew, Himmler became a key figure. In 1925, Himmler joined the SS (Schutzstaffel, the Nazi paramilitary organization), which had originally been a thuggish group of bodyguards tasked with protecting Hitler at public gatherings. As the second-in-command at the SS, Himmler dealt with fairly mundane tasks such as increasing party membership, collecting dues, and canvassing for advertisements for the party’s newspaper. In 1927 Himmler met his future wife, Margarete Concerzowo, known as Marga. They married in July 1928, and with Marga’s money they bought a small farm about ten miles outside Munich. They kept hens and grew some produce, and proceeds from the farm augmented Himmler’s salary from the Nazi Party. At some point, Hitler recognized Himmler’s fanatical loyalty and talent for organization, and in January 1929 he appointed him Reichsfuhrer SS, essentially making him the head of the organization. Himmler had a grand vision for the SS. He saw the black-uniformed troops as elite soldiers for Hitler, modern-day knights in service to the Nazi movement. As Hitler moved to seize power in Germany in the early 1930s, Himmler made plans to increase the size and power of the SS as well as its racial composition. In 1932 he issued a marriage code for the SS. Based on the concept of Blut und Boden (blood and soil in English) expounded by Nazi theorist Richard Walter Darre, the code stressed the racial purity of SS members. By Himmler’s orders, prospective members of the elite group had to prove they were of pure Nordic stock. Potential wives of SS members had to submit to physical examinations and prove they were free of Jewish or Slavic ancestry. Himmler became fixated on the idea of selective breeding. Heinrich Himmler, left, and Adolf Hitler review SS troops. Getty Images   Building the SS Himmler accelerated SS recruiting, and by 1932 the organization had grown to more than 50,000 men. Within a few years, the SS grew to more than 200,000 and became a formidable presence in German life. A major boost to Himmler’s plans came when he happened to meet a young German who had been forced out of the German navy. Reinhard Heydrich had family connections which led him to Himmler, and Himmler, believing Heydrich had intelligence experience, hired him to perform a particular mission: build a spy network within Germany. Heydrich had not actually worked in military intelligence, but he was a fast learner and before long he had an efficient network of spies and informers. An early sign of what was coming occurred in 1933 when Himmler and Heydrich opened the first concentration camp. The Dachau camp was created to hold political dissidents and it served as a warning to anyone who opposed the Nazi regime. Throughout the 1930s Himmler acquired more power. In 1934 he participated in the notorious Night of the Long Knives, the purge of the leadership of the SA, the Nazi stormtroopers, an organization which rivaled the SS. Having won the power struggle with the SA, Himmler became known as a major figure in the Nazi leadership. In 1936, the New York Times published a front-page article noting that Himmler had become the head of all â€Å"Reich Police.† By the end of the 1930s the SS had become the dominant force within the Nazi Party. And Himmler as head of not only the SS but the Gestapo, the secret police, was established as the most powerful figure in Germany after Hitler. Heinrich Himmler inspecting a camp holding Russian prisoners of war. Getty Images Directing the Holocaust Himmler’s main historical significance was for the role he played in the Holocaust, the Nazi’s systematic slaughter of millions of European Jews. From his early youth Himmler had been an ardent anti-Semite, and he eagerly used his great power to persecute the Jews in Germany. When Germany invaded Poland in 1939, militarized units of the SS were part of the invasion force. Under Himmler’s direction, SS troops were tasked with removing undesirable populations, which generally meant Jews, from areas conquered by German troops. SS units called Einsatzgruppen rounded up Jews and killed them in massacres across Poland. When the German forces attacked the Soviet Union in June 1941, SS units followed to conduct racial cleansing at a vast level. Himmler’s work at eliminating Jews in Europe moved quickly. By late 1941 large-scale massacres by SS troops had occurred. At the Wannsee Conference in January 1942, Heydrich laid out SS plans to come up with a Final Solution for Jews in Europe. This plan for mass murder was followed by Himmler after Heydrich was assassinated by partisans months later. Himmler directed the mass murder of millions and paid close attention to what was happening in the concentration camps. It is known that he visited the death camp at Auschwitz on two occasions. At times he issued detailed orders about how the camps should be run, even explaining in detail how much food prisoners should be given. He also authorized the gruesome medical experiments conducted by Nazi doctors who used concentration camp prisoners as subjects. As part of the Nazi campaigns in Eastern Europe, many Jews were forced to live in ghettos, where they were isolated in overcrowded and brutal conditions. Himmler took a great interest in the Warsaw Ghetto, and when the Jews rose up in a rebellion in the spring of 1943, he gave orders to conduct a brutal campaign that amounted to extermination of the residents. As World War II expanded and the Germans began to suffer defeats, Himmler made plans to create SS guerrilla units which would conduct warfare against the Allies in the event Germany was forced to surrender. In 1944 he was put in the field at one point to command troops, but as he had no real military experience, he was ineffective. Hitler called him back to Berlin to command troops positioned there. Downfall In early 1945, when it became evident that Germany would lose the war, Himmler tried to reach out to the Americans to make a peace deal. He hoped to evade prosecution as a war criminal. The American commander in Europe, General Dwight D. Eisenhower, refused to consider Himmler’s peace offer and declared him a war criminal. Hitler was enraged by the betrayal and stripped Himmler of his power. As Germany was collapsing, Himmler sought to escape. He shaved his distinctive mustache, dressed in civilian clothes, and tried to blend in with the refugees traveling on the roads. Himmler was stopped at a checkpoint manned by British soldiers and he was able to produce fake identity papers. However, he aroused the suspicion of the British, who took him into custody and turned him over to intelligence officers. When questioned, Himmler admitted his real identity. While being searched on the night of May 23, 1945, Himmler managed to put a vial of poison in his mouth and bite down on it. He died minutes later. A dispatch by the Reuters News Service published in the New York Times on May 25, 1945 was headlined Himmler Outsmarted Himself. The story noted that Himmler, who had created a system of Germans often having to show identity papers to members of the Gestapo, would have had a set of fake identity papers created for himself. But in the chaos of the war’s end, few refugees on the roads still had their papers. Himmler’s pristine set of papers was what drew attention at the checkpoint. Had he simply claimed he was a refugee trying to walk home and had lost his papers, the British soldiers at the bridge might have waved him along. Sources: Heinrich Himmler. Encyclopedia of World Biography, 2nd ed., vol. 7, Gale, 2004, pp. 398-399. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Reshef, Yehudacxv, and Peter Longreich. Himmler, Heinrich °. Encyclopaedia Judaica, edited by Michael Berenbaum and Fred Skolnik, 2nd ed., vol. 9, Macmillan Reference USA, 2007, pp. 121-122. Gale Virtual Reference Library.Himmler, Heinrich. Learning About the Holocaust: A Students Guide, edited by Ronald M. Smelser, vol. 2, Macmillan Reference USA, 2001, pp. 89-91. Gale Virtual Reference Library.SS (Schutzstaffel). Europe Since 1914: Encyclopedia of the Age of War and Reconstruction, edited by John Merriman and Jay Winter, vol. 4, Charles Scribners Sons, 2006, pp. 2434-2438. Gale Virtual Reference Library.

Transition to Walsh College Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Transition to Walsh College - Essay Example However, it must be admitted that many of my peers have experienced a tough transition period. As far as I can see, the major difficulty encountered by students is the rigor of the academic curriculum. Many students struggle to cope with the coursework on entry because of the varying standards of their previous accounting backgrounds. Of course, any dilution of academic standards will only be counterproductive to the college’s aim of producing graduates of the highest caliber in accounting practice, and no student would wish for that. I recommend that all transitional students take a brief test to ascertain their level of proficiency as measured against the standards of Walsh College’s program. Any students falling short in this could be given the opportunity to attend a short bridge course tailored to bring them on par with the prevailing standards in college. In this context, optional courses in English communication may also find some takers. This would iron out any differences in academic foundations and make the transition smooth and stress-free to all students, giving everyone a level playing field.

What are the arguments in favour of electoral reform in britain Essay

What are the arguments in favour of electoral reform in britain - Essay Example While people have greater disregard for politicians, many are looking at them with mistrust, as they feel that politicians have no solutions fro the ills that face the country. As, the country needs more aggressive approach towards politics and the requirement to bring the required changes in political culture and conduct of politics, the methods to do so should include expansion of citizenship and voter education programs. However, the greatest need is to change the voting system, without which the above-mentioned goals may not be achieved. Hence, this paper shall discuss on the merits of the desired changes, which are called as electoral reform for Great Britain. In this direction, the effective application of advantages of â€Å"Single Transferable Vote† (STV), would require massive interaction with the politicians and citizens, encouraging younger blood to participate in elections, analyzing electoral results and reporting of election news by media in a mature and responsible manner.....(Electoral Reform Society, 2009) While the liberal parties have always favored a change in the voting system, conservative parties like the labor party and its allies are happy with the present system of voting. However, the adoption of Proportional Representative method of voting would necessarily change the present system of FPTP. As this system is prevalent in UK and USA, we find number of countries in the continent that follow a liberal proportional representative (PR) system of voting. The present system of FPTP allows for demarcation of constituencies, according to their geographical location and demographic characteristics, while the electorate is divided into such constituencies allowing a candidate to contest polls from a particular territory. Under this system, there is no difference in the winning methodology as any candidate is winner, whether he or she

Thirsty For A Lovely Aroma Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Thirsty For A Lovely Aroma - Essay Example This time the guy on this ad is holding the product and facing the consumers. His head is turned towards us while holding the perfume to show us how important it is to feel like a real man. â€Å"Dune Pour Homme† by Dior and Old Spices are two examples of Steve Craig’s argument about how advertisers manipulate men and reinforce the men stereotypes in order to increase perfume sales. â€Å"Dune Pour Homme† by Dior and Old Spice’s â€Å"Smell like a MAN,MAN† use visual stereotypes portraying the image of well-established men in a way that represents the consumer. The thought processes, experiences and personality differ from person to person. That is why marketers divide consumers into various segments based on their demographics, psychographics and lifestyle attributes. They come up with advertisements that target a specific segment and throw signs that they can understand in a similar fashion. (Beasly and Danesi). Consumers can relate to these ads b y reflecting upon the stereotypes present in them. These advertisements establish a persona of the brand. This persona is established in the minds of consumers with the help of visuals and text. These signs combine together to give a single image of the brand and the personality it has. The personality of brand is close to the personality of its target market; its consumers. The ad shows that the perfume has a persona of freedom, independence, peaceful solitude, lack of concern towards normal life. This somehow represents that type of personality its consumers have or want to have. The first advertisement â€Å"Dune Pour Homme†by Dior offers stereotype of a young, sexy and heterosexual man. The man on the ad appears in a youthful, glamorous sky magazine and it clearly signifies the target segment the ad caters to. The ad shows a man in his mid-twenties, sitting on a sand dune with clear blue sky behind him. It gives a picture of peace and freedom, which is something most desi red by men of this age in American culture. There is a large bottle of perfume shown in the left side of the man, underneath which there is written â€Å"Essence of Freedom† in French. Together with the image and the line, they form a single idea of the product and the identity of this iconic brand. The sexy image of this man attracts both the heterosexual men and women who wish their men to be sexy like him. The Dior ad talks about freedom. This particular ad serves the objective well. The young age of the man who appears to be in the ad, the light colours in the advertisement, the relaxed expression on the man’s face, the loneliness he has, seems unrestricted by normal life, the loose unorthodox attire that he is wearing; all give a notion of freedom. Dior ad shows a narcissist picture of men. Writer Twitchell claims that it appeals differently in each of the individuals. Mr. Twitchell, in his essay â€Å"What we are to advertisers† talks about the different s egments advertisers divide consumers into â€Å"Are you a believer† or a â€Å"striver†, an â€Å"achiever† or a â€Å"struggler†, an â€Å"experiencer â€Å"or a â€Å"maker†?†. According to the Values and Lifestyles system, the market segment that Dior ad caters to lies in the innovators group. And will these narcissist models be a role models for raising children? Million teenagers see the ad and cannot wait for a chance to be discovered. Clear example of that is shown in chapter six (96) of â€Å"The Narcissism Epidemic†, where Jake Halpern writes that the need of becoming famous in our decade is very intense â€Å"

With the Stroke of a Pen Government Reaction Paper Essay Example for Free

With the Stroke of a Pen Government Reaction Paper Essay Kenneth Mayer took an upright approach investigating the president’s executive power they used to issue amounts of executive order. He calls it â€Å"presidential edicts† which are official orders that the presidents create to assist executive branch in managing operations within the federal government. Mayer believes that this use of executive order; creating laws and procedures, is turned into an arbitrary order. This legislative act of making laws is stated in the constitution, given to congress; and with â€Å"the stroke of a pen† the â€Å"Laws of the Land† were made with no regard or interaction with the legislative. And as we learn in â€Å"With the Stroke of a Pen†, executive order can be criticized with substantial argument and can have â€Å"great impact†. Mayer put together charts of 1,028 presidential orders into categories, between March 1936 and December 1999, constructing two tables. Mayer leaned to the more necessary side of executive power, realizing the â€Å"formal and informal† restraints put on the president within the â€Å"separated system† and the use of checks and balances that protects, and also the vast difference in ones party in the congress can take the executive powers implied in the 2nd Article of the constitution away (not literally speaking). Mayer explained an issue dealing with Democratic issue with Eisenhower’s apathetic look on discrimination in housing and federal employment; with Kennedy’s promise to the people and equality of opportunity (constitutional) with the stroke of a pen came the fair housing order. As so with Clinton’s scare of impeachment, his idea of executive orders and unilateral decisions (such as, prohibiting the use of genetic information if hiring) showed the capability of a president. These presidential legislations therefore make general policy and link to public law. The argument many make about the executive order is that it’s a way for the president to avoid public opinion and constitutional limits. Though it’s said that this is an example of secrecy and totalitarianism, Mayer actually feels as if the president is limited enough and with all this his orders are constantly judged through a system (checks and balances) in our government anyway and through political parties in the congress. The constitution he says specifies that, President â€Å"shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed† meaning, that if laws aren’t being broken or disregarded then we have no argument against the president’s order. Supreme Court ruled in the steel seizure case (Youngstown), such decisions that aren’t constitutional or statutory. In the cases Mayer mentions about which are Korematsu v. U.S (decision of freedom fro internment camps of Japanese Americans), Schechter Corp v. U.S (about unhealthy chicken being sold, exceeding commerce clause), and Cole v. Young; these are all decisions that derived from executive orders. In the random sample of 1,028 executive orders between March 1936 and December 1999, took a look at the subject of the orders. Civil service which involved retirement exemptions, salary, holiday, and personnel; Public lands deal with land for public use, revoking previous land orders; War and emergency powers deal with orders creating or abolishing wartime agencies, and emergency preparedness procedures; Foreign affairs are orders dealing with importation, trade, aid, and affairs with other territories particularly signed by treaties; Defense and military policy deal with military personnel, intelligence community, and military lands; Executive branch administration order are orders creating boards, councils, agency transferring powers, and tax policies; Labor policy focuses on emergency boards and inquiry, and managing federal government labor policy; Domestic policy orders include energy, environment, civil rights, economy, and education. More than 60% of orders dealing with Executive branch, Civil service, and Public lands; the rest were dealing with Foreign affairs and War powers, and domestic and labor policy were small percentages. Since presidents have been given so much responsibility, orders are then handed down to clerks and subordinates. Mayer noticed through the second table/chart that focused on which the orders were made each year, that War and emergency powers have dropped since 1940’s, which is the result of no more World wars and such; also Foreign affairs, Executive branch, and Domestic policy orders have grown since 1930’s supporting the fact that executive orders do matter. When can a president rely on executive order? Mayer asks. Well in my opinion whenever he is stuck with the task of trying to protect the good, order, and equality among our union. The president is elected for the people by the people and in order for policies that can’t get through the congress as simple, and then this â€Å"Necessary evil† people call giving the president too much power is good. It’s fair to say that some power can be misused but, if the government and congress are doing there job right then the protections we have against a treasonous president or unconstitutional laws being made, almost nothing can go horribly wrong. With the bills and laws being opposed just because of parties in congress then executive order can be made first if the reason and issue is great.

Starting Philosophic Problem :: Philosophy Philosophical Papers

Starting Philosophic Problem ABSTRACT: The starting philosophic problem is related to the categories ‘being’ and ‘nonbeing.’ This is the problem of the relationship between being and nonbeing. The cardinal question of philosophy is: ‘What can be considered to be primary, being or nonbeing?’ In the history of philosophy, it is possible to speak about two basic philosophic paradigms: philosophy of being and philosophy of nonbeing. This paper is an elaboration of the ‘philosophy of nonbeing.’ One of the most fundamental problems of philosophy is related with the most meaningful philosophic notions, that is, with the categories of "being" and "non-being". The notion "being" is the philosopohic notion that denotes: 1) something that is existing, 2) the totality of really existing things, the existing reality. "Non-being" is the other philosophic notion that denotes: 1) absence of something, 2) all things non-existent in reality, non-existent reality. The form of manifestation for being is "something" and the non-being manifests itself in the form of "nothing". So, according to the author, the most fundamental philosophic problem is the problem of the relationship between the being and the non-being, it is the problem of relationship between these two categories, "being" and "non-being". In the first line, this problem brings up the question about the existence of any real things existing in the real world: things that were existed, exist, and will exist; also put forward is the question about the existence of the world as a whole. In the final account, it is a matter of the problem of existence as such. The German philosopher and mathematician Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz (XVII-th century) attacked this problem in the following way: he states that the first and cardinal question must be expressed in the form: Why there exists "something", but not "nothing"? A similar thought was expressed later by the German philosophers Friedrich Schelling (XIX-th century) and Martin Heidegger (XX-th century). The problem of the relationship between being and non-being turns to be the starting philosophic problem, inasmuch as all other philosophic problems and questions are meaningful in cases when it is necessary to solve this problem that deals with the matter of principle, more specifically, the existence of things, phenomena, world on the whole, object and subject of cognition. The very solution of the problem of relationship between the being and the non-being is the basic and key solution for a number of philosophic problems such as: world origin, world space-time structure formation, causes and mechanisms of motion and development, build-up and destruction of objective forms, human being life and death, meaning of human being existence, mankind survival, and others.

Personal Values Development Essay

In each and every day of an individual’s life he or she has to face various kinds of decisions. He or she has to make simple choices like the clothes to wear for a particular day or the right food to eat. There are also crucial and important decisions that can change his or her life such as choosing a career path or moving to another state. Nevertheless, individuals also have to assess the way in which they will deal with particular situations as well as their interaction with other people. In these instances, it is very important that every individual has a particular ethical standard that he or she must adhere to. These will serve as a basis in which a person could be guided according in his or her decisions and actions. It is also important to realize that in almost all of the choices that a person made there are corresponding consequences that will directly or indirectly affect the person who made the decision and even other people. Being the case, it is vital that an individual’s decision-making process is governed by ethical standards. Personal values can be considered as an ethical standard of an individual. These are the morals and principles that he or she believe and uphold. His or her judgment is usually based upon these personal values that he or she stands for. In the process of his or her interaction with other people as well as his or her stance regarding specific societal issues are usually guided by personal values. Simply put, the personal values of an individual govern his or her behavior. The development of these personal values does not happen overnight. In order to enhance the personal values of an individual ample amount of time is needed and important factors around him or her must also be given due consideration because these greatly influence the formation of his or her morals and principles. Personal values tend to developed as an individual matures. The level of maturity of an individual that is enhanced by the different situations and challenges that he or she went through also contribute to that person’s perspective and attitude ethical behavior. The formative years of a child is the most important phase by which values and principles could be instill in him or her. It is during this time that a child simply obeys and believes in almost anything that a parent or other adults would teach him or her. This could be exemplified by my personal experience when I was still a kid. I remember that my parents applied the concept of reward and punishment in disciplining me when I was just a young child. They would give me things that I want like toys and food such as chocolate and candies as long as I follow what they instructed me to do. My mom would usually say that I am doing the right thing that is why I should be rewarded. On the other hand, whenever I disobey their wishes like when they told me not to play in the mud, I would be reprimanded. They would punish me by spanking me and then explaining why they have to result to such action. Due to these, at a young age, I learned that if I do what is right then I would reap the benefits of it while doing the opposite would entail consequences that I must suffer from. As such, it developed in me that in order to acquire good things I must do what is right. When I was in pre-school, I started to interact more with kids that are around my age. I can say that my teachers at that time influenced some of the values that I formed in my life. Every recess period, most of the kids like me would usually spend their time in the playground. Almost all of the children were allowed to bring their favorite toy at school. One time, when I was playing with my toy, a classmate of mine approached me and asked if he can see it. At first, I was hesitant to let him borrow it but then our teacher approach me and convinced me that I should share it with him. My teacher further explained that for other people to also lend me their toy I should also do the same thing to them. This was one of the instances that I realized the principle of reciprocity wherein in order for you to be treated nicely you should also do the same for others. An individual get what he or she gives out (Maxey, 2005). This principle of reciprocity was further developed in me when I started to become aware of my religious faith. My family gives importance to our religion, which is why it has become part of their responsibility in rearing us to also enhance our spiritual growth. Our religion has played an important role in their method of disciplining us. They would see to it that the rules and regulations that they impose upon us coincides with our religious teachings. One of the most important lessons that I will always remember is the Golden Rule. The idea of the Golden Rule is also similar with the principle of reciprocity wherein it states that â€Å"Do not do to others what you would not like yourself† (Teaching Values, 2000). I also found out that this exact teaching also exists in other religious belief. This value was instilled in me in a sense that most of the time before I do something I always think of its possible consequences. I would place myself in the shoes of other people and analyze what I would feel if this particular action is done towards me. Since then I became conscious of my decisions. This could be best exemplified by my idea of respect wherein in order for other people to respect me I must also give the same courtesy to them. However, I later found out that not all people are guided by this same kind of principle. There are those who would still do you harm regardless of whether you do good things to them. I found this the hard way when I was in high school. I experienced interacting with students who are considered as bullied of the campus. During my freshman year, they approached me in this good natured manner and I thought that they were actually trying to be friendly to me. Later on, I realized that I was just part of a joke wherein they would ask me to do a lot of things for them like their school works and asked me to run errands for them. The time came when I had enough of such kind of maltreatment and I started to stand my ground and told them that I would no longer obey any of their orders. At first, they were shock with such kind of reaction coming from me but later on they just let me go as they no that they could no longer bully me. In this situation, I realized that there are instances that the golden rule is not always applicable because even though you behave properly toward other people there are still those who would take advantage of you. Due to this, I also realized when to fight and stand your ground in defending your right especially when other people are violating it. As I grow older, I become exposed with more harsh realities of the world. There are situation wherein people tend to put their selves in an advantageous position at the expense of others. I experienced this kind of event when one of my classmates encouraged me to cheat in one of our exams. He told me that he got the set of questions from one of his friend who was in charge of the copying machine. This classmate of mine asked me to help him in answering the questions. In doing so, we are both sure that we could get high grades for this subject. However, doing so would be very risky not only for us if we get caught but also for our other students who are also taking that subject because the teachers would automatically impose a re-test and will surely make a harder exam questions. The situation would indeed be beneficial for me and for my friend if we successfully accomplish it but it would be detrimental for many people if not. The costs in this situation are greater than its benefits. As such, I decided not to participate in this kind of cheating and I was able to also encourage my classmate not to do it. The influence of my family, religion, and educational institution as well as the various events that I have to go through was able to help me in developing my personal values. My personal values tend to focus on doing what I deem is right and just that will not only benefit me but also take into consideration the welfare of other people. Having this kind of morals and principles are very essential especially when the time comes that I already have to pursue a career in my chosen field of profession. This would help me in dealing with various kinds of people that have different personalities and attitude from each other. Moreover, this would also guide me in making decisions and choices when it comes to the challenging situations that I will encounter I my future endeavors. My personal values also adhere to the principles of some theories of ethics. The morals that I adhere to during my childhood days up to my older years is greatly exemplified by the ideas of Cognitive Moral Development. As proposed by Lawrence Kohlberg the idea of ethics could be acquired through education. Just as people develop other aspects of their being, they could also develop ethical values. As an individual matures, he or she has to go through different stages of ethical thinking that helps him or her to know oneself better. A person strives to make the next level better than the previous one in his or her process of moral development (Northern Arizona University, n. d. ). This described the development of my personal values that improves and become wider and diverse as I get older. My values in life that follow the principle of reciprocity and the teaching of the Golden Rule could be linked to the Universalism theory of ethics. The Universalist perspective explains that ethical principles should be applicable to everybody and not merely to an individual or group of people (Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2002). In the same manner, the concept of reciprocity and the Golden Rule is similar to the Universalism theory of ethics because it gives emphasizes that an action made by one person should also be applicable to other people. An individual should put his or her self in the position of others to see if such decision or action is also agreeable to them. Lastly, the instance wherein I gave importance to the welfare of the majority of schoolmates instead of the benefit my friend and I will get from cheating follows the tenets of the Utilitarian theory of ethics. Utilitarianism asserted that a right act is the one that gives the greatest amount of good as compared to evil for all people concern (Northern Arizona University, n. d. ). In this sense, I was able to apply the utilitarian concept in the development of my personal values. The development of an individual’s personal values is largely dependent upon many aspects. Some essential factors are the span of time and level of maturity of a person. This allows him or her to interact with other people and experience various events. In relation to this, the people around an individual like his or her family and friends also have a great influence in the formation of his or her values in life. Different institutions like the church and school also help in molding the morals and principles of a person. In all of these, it can be said that personal values are something that an individual can learn, change and enhance in order for it to adhere to the beliefs that he or she uphold. Having this personal values are indeed important to guide a person in his or her journey in life.

India’s Population Growth

CHAPTER – 1 INTRODUCTION – POPULATION GROWTH The world experienced dramatic population growth during the twentieth century, with the number of inhabitants doubling from 3 to 6 billion between 1960 and 2000. India, too, saw very rapid population growth during this period – from 448 million to 1. 04 billion – and to 1. 21 billion in 2010. The effects of past and projected future demographic change on economic growth in India is the main focus of this chapter.Figure 1 plots world population from 1950 to 2050, and shows the share of world population attributable to India; post-2010 data are United Nations (UN) projections. Global population grew at roughly 2% per annum from 1960-2000, a level that is unsustainable in the long term, as it translates into population doubling every 35 years. India’s population is currently growing at a rate of 1. 4% per year, far surpassing China’s rate of 0. 7%. The differential between India and China will result in India surpassing China with respect to population size in less than 20 years.While a cause for concern, global population growth has not met Malthus’ pessimistic predictions of human misery and mass mortality. During the past few decades, rapid population growth has been accompanied by an unparalleled decline in mortality rates and by an increase in income per capita, both globally and in India. GLOBAL WORLD POPULATION In 1901 the world population was 1. 6 billion. By 1960, it became 3 billion, and by 1987, 5 billion and in 1999, 6 billion.Currently, one billion people are added every 12 – 13 years. During the last decade there has been substantial decline in birth rate. The reasons for decline vary from society to society; urbanization, rising educational attainment, increasing employment among women, lower infant mortality are some major factors responsible for growing desire for smaller families; increasing awareness and improved access to contraception have made it possible for the majority of the couple to achieve the desired family size.In some countries slowing of the population growth has been due to an increase in mortality (e. g. HIV related mortality in sub-saharan Africa). As a result of all these the decline in the global population growth during the nineties is steeper than the earlier predictions. Currently, the annual increment is about 80 million. It is expected to decrease to about 64 million by 2020 -25 and to 33 million by 2045 -50; 95 % of the growth of population occurs in developing countries.Most demographers believe that the current accelerated decline in population growth will continue for the next few decades and the medium projections of Population Division of United Nations, that the global population will grow to 8. 9 billion by 2050 is likely to be achieved (Figure 1) POPULATION PROJECTION The Technical Group on Population Projections set up by the National Commission on Population has recently come out with popu lation projections for India and states. As per this report, India’s population is expected to reach 1. 2 billion by 2011 and 1. billion by 2006 (see Table 5). According to this projection, population would grow by 1. 4 percent during the Eleventh Five-Year Plan period (more precisely during 2006-11). Even by 2021-26, the population is expected to have a growth rate of 0. 9 percent (see Table 6). An important assumption underlying this projection is that the total fertility rate would reach replacement level (approximately 2. 1) only by 2021. The reason behind this gloomy expectation is the slow pace of fertility transition in several large, north Indian states.In fact, according the Technical Group, TFR would not reach the replacement level in some of these states even by 2031. Although the Technical Group did not carry forward the projection till the date of stabilization, the projected delay in reaching the replacement-level fertility would imply that India’s popula tion would not stabilize before 2060, and until population size nears 1. 7 billion. One of the most chilling results of this exercise is the wide geographical disparity in the projected population growth.If the total population of the country is expected to grow by 36 percent between 2001 and 2026, in southern states, the growth is expected to be around 15-25 percent only, whereas in northern parts of the country, the growth is expected to be in the range of 40-50 percent (see Table 7). Of the expected addition of 370 million to India’s population during 2001-26, Uttar Pradesh alone would account for a whopping 22 percent, and the other three northern states – Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan – would account for another 22 percent.The population growth in these regions is also expected to cause population pressure in major migration destinations, chiefly Delhi and Maharashtra. Clearly, something urgent needs to be done to check population growth in these stat es. CHAPTER – 2 DEMOGRAPHIC TRANSITION DEMOGRAPHIC SCENARIO Demographers refer to these changes from stable population with high fertility and mortality to a new stability in population due to low fertility and mortality patterns as demographic transition.Demographic transition occurs in four phases; of these the first three phases are characterized by population growth. In the first phase there is a fall in death rate and improvement in longevity; this leads to population growth. In the second phase there is a fall in birth rate but fall is less steep than fall in death rates and consequently there is population growth. In the third phase death rates plateau and replacement level of fertility is attained but the population growth continues because of the large size of population in reproductive age group.The fourth phase is characterized by fall in birth rate to below replacement level and reduction in the proportion of the population in reproductive age group; as a result o f these changes population growth ceases and population stabilizes. Experience in some of the developed countries suggest that in some societies even after attainment of stable population there may be a further decline in fertility so that there is a further reduction in the population- so called negative population growth phase of the demographic transition.Different countries in the world have entered the demographic transition at different periods of time; there are also substantial differences in the rate of demographic transition and time taken to achieve population stabilization. CURRENT DEMOGRAPHIC SCENARIO India, currently the second most populous country in the world, has 17 percent of world’s population in less than three percent of earth’s land area. India began the 20th century with the population about 238 million and by 2000 it ended up with 1 billion. According to estimates, India added another 100 million by 2006 when its population reached 1. 1 billion .The country added 16 million people annually in the1980s and 18 million annually in the 1990s until the present. While the global population has increased threefold during the last century, from 2 billion to 6 billion, India has increased its population nearly five times during the same period (Table-1). India’s population is expected exceed that of China before 2030 to become the most populous country in the world. India is in the middle of demographic transition. Both fertility and mortality have started declining throughout the country, though the pace and magnitude of the decline varies considerably across the states.Like many countries of the world, the onset of mortality decline preceded the onset of fertility decline by few decades. The country has witnessed significant improvements in demographic and health indicators since Independence. But an accurate assessment of India's demographic achievements is hampered by data deficiencies, particularly for the period before the 1970s. The official estimates of fertility and mortality levels at the time of independence are believed to be gross underestimates. Nonetheless, even they suggest significant achievements in this field.The crude birth rate, which was officially put at 42 per 1,000 in 1951-61, has declined to 24 in 2004, as per the estimates available from the sample registration system (SRS). The life expectancy at birth, which was about 32 years at the time of independence, has doubled. Infant mortality rate has come down from about 150 in 1951 to 58 by 2004. Considering the size and diversity of India’s population, the decline in both fertility and mortality is a significant achievement. Nearly one-third of India’s population has lowered its fertility to replacement level.Fertility in India has come down under a wide range of socio-economic and cultural conditions. Despite this achievement, many are concerned with the pace of fertility decline, particularly in the large, north Indian states. To overcome this, the northern region of India will need much more focused programmes and more investment not only in the provision of family welfare services but also for the overall socio-economic development. CHANGE IN THE AGE ; STRUCTURE India’s demographic changes are also manifest in its age structure.The population pyramids below show the share of population in each age group, separately for males and females. In 1950, India had a very young population, with many children and few elderly; this gave India’s age distribution a pyramidal shape. Moving forward in time, the base of the population pyramid shrinks as the number of working-age individuals increases relative to children and the elderly. Following charts depict India’s population pyramids: In developed countries the reproductive age group population is relatively small; their fertility is low and the longevity at birth is high.Population profiles of these countries resemble a cylinde r and not a pyramid. These countries have the advantages of having achieved a stable population but have to face the problems of having a relatively small productive workforce to support the large aged population with substantial non-communicable disease burden. Some of the developing countries have undergone a very rapid decline in the birth rates within a short period. This enabled them to quickly achieve population stabilization but they do face the problems of rapid changes in the age structure and workforce which may be inadequate to meet their manpower requirements.In contrast the population in most of the developing countries (including India) consist of a very large proportion of children and persons in reproductive age. Because of the large reproductive age group (Population momentum) the population will continue to grow even when replacement level of fertility is reached (couples having only two children). It is imperative that these countries should generate enough employ ment opportunities for this work force and utilise the human resources and accelerate their conomic growth. Planners and policy makers in developing countries like India have to take into account the ongoing demographic changes (number and age structure of the population) so that available human resources are optimally utilised as agents of change and development to achieve improvement in quality of life. This chart illustrates several critical points. First, the ratio of working-age people to dependents has been lower in Sub-Saharan Africa than in East Asia throughout the entire period shown.This means that East Asia has had higher numbers of people in the prime years for working and saving. The difference between the two lines is primarily a reflection of a relatively high burden of youth dependency in Sub-Saharan Africa, due to its long history of high fertility. By contrast, East Asia, with a precipitous decline in fertility, experienced the most rapid demographic transition in history. Today, East Asia has more than 2. 3 workers for every non-worker, dwarfing Sub-Saharan Africa’s 1. 2 workers per non-worker.This difference translates into households having an entire extra worker for every non-worker, which in turn results in a commensurately large increase in income per household, ultimately aggregating upward to increased country- level growth. Fertility decline lowers youth dependency immediately, but does not appreciably affect the working-age population for 20-25 years. But when the working-age population does increase as a share of the total population, there is an opportunity for economic growth. Figure 3 suggests that the superior economic performance of East Asia since the mid-1970s is related to East Asia’s demographics.Indeed, using rigorous theoretical and statistical tools and appropriate data,2 economists have spent the past decade garnering evidence that East Asia’s rapid economic growth was spurred by its demographic tr ansition, during which East Asia’s age structure has evolved in a way that has been highly favorable for economic growth. The resulting body of work suggests that demographic change accounts for approximately 2 percentage points of the growth rate of income per capita in East Asia, representing one-third of the supposed miracle.Labeling the economic growth East Asia as a miracle, therefore, was partly a reflection of a failure to consider the implications of demographics. Figure 4 plots several aspects of India’s demographic profile over time, revealing significant improvements in basic health indicators. The interplay of these mortality and fertility changes implies sizable changes in the age structure of India’s population. Since 1950, India has experienced a 70% decline in the infant mortality rate, from over 165 deaths per thousand live births in the 1950s to around 50 today. India’s child (i. e. under age 5) mortality rate has fallen from 138 deaths per thousand in the early 1980s to 75 today. Life expectancy has increased at an average pace of 4. 5 years per decade since 1950. The fertility rate has declined sharply from approximately 6 children per woman in the 1950s to 2. 7 children per woman today. Figure 4 shows three trends that fertility may follow in the future, based on the assumptions the United Nations makes in publishing low-, medium-, and high-fertility scenarios. The population growth rate, after peaking in the late 1970s at about 2. 3% per year, has fallen to 1. % in 2010. In spite of the decline in fertility and the population growth rate, India’s population is still projected to increase (based on the UN’s medium-fertility scenario) from about 1. 2 billion today to an estimated 1. 6 billion by 2050 due to population momentum (i. e. , the large cohort of women of reproductive age will fuel population growth over the next generation, even if each woman has fewer children than previous generations di d). Finally, the decline of crude birth and death rates shows that India is well along in its demographic transition. The sex ratio at birth in India is 1. 2 males for each female – one of the highest ratios in the world. The corresponding figure for 2003 was 1. 05 (United States Central Intelligence Agency, 2010). Sex-selective abortions, although illegal, are thought to be a prime reason for this high ratio. Indian families have long shown favoritism toward boys, and new technologies are allowing that preference to be expressed in differential birth rates. As in virtually all countries, life expectancy at birth in India also differs by sex. In the period 2005-2010, female life expectancy was 65. 0 years, and male life expectancy was 62. years – very similar to the differences that are seen in developing countries as a whole and in the world. However, India differs from the world and from developing countries as a whole in the manner in which sex differences in life e xpectancy have evolved since 1950. In most countries, women lived longer than men in 1950, whereas in India female life expectancy, at 37. 1 years, was 1. 6 years less than that of men. This differential has reversed in the intervening years. (United Nations, 2009) India’s demographic changes are also manifest in its age structure.The population pyramids of Figure 5 show the share of population in each age group, separately for males and females. In 1950, India had a very young population, with many children and few elderly; this gave India’s age distribution a pyramidal shape. Moving forward in time, the base of the population pyramid shrinks as the number of working-age individuals increases relative to children and the elderly. The ratio of working-age to non-working-age people in India mirrored the corresponding ratio in East Asia from 1950 to 1975. Since then, it has been lower than that of East Asia – corresponding to a higher burden of youth dependency.In deed, India’s demographic cycle now lags roughly 25 years behind that of East Asia. A purely demographic perspective suggests that the next three decades will be a period of catching up for India with respect to per capita income in East Asia. While these fertility scenarios have very different implications for the future age structure of India’s population, all three suggest further growth in the working-age share. Under the low- fertility scenario, according to which the total fertility rate will drop to 1. 4 by 2030, India is expected to reach a higher working-age ratio than ever seen in East Asia.The medium scenario shows India reaching a ratio nearly as high as East Asia’s high point, and the high scenario shows a very modest increase over today’s ratio in India. In sum, the medium- and low-fertility scenarios bode well with respect to India’s potential for realizing a sizable demographic dividend, representing what could amount to an addition al percentage point or more of per capita income growth, compounded year after year. This is not an insignificant amount, given that the annual rate of growth of India’s real income per capita averaged a little over 4% during the past three decades (World Bank, 2010).As an aside, it should be noted that India’s demographic indicators are similar to those of the South Asian region as a whole. Compared with the two other large South Asian countries, it is ahead of Pakistan in the demographic transition, but behind Bangladesh. An additional demographic fact deserves mention: there are an estimated 11. 4 million Indians living outside of India. The countries to which Indians have emigrated in largest numbers, as of 2010, are United Arab Emirates (2. 2 million), the United States (1. 7 million), Saudi Arabia (1. 5 million), and Bangladesh (1. 1 million).In 2000, 57,000 Indian physicians were living overseas. In 2010, Indian emigrants are estimated to be sending home remitta nces totaling $55 billion, the most of any country, constituting about 4. 5% of GDP. (Ratha, Mohapatra, and Silwal, 2011) The number of Indian immigrants in the United States has grown rapidly in recent years (there were 1. 0 million in 2000). Their median age is 37, and just over half are female. Nearly three-quarters have at least a bachelor’s degree, and nearly half work in professional occupations. Mean personal income (in 2008 dollars) is $53,000, and median household income is $92,000. United States Bureau of the Census, International Data Base (2008 midyear estimates). As political, economic, and social conditions change over time in India and its neighbors, the number of migrants, the skills they take to other countries, and the value of the remittances they send may change significantly. DEMOGRAPHIC REPRESENTATION * INTERSTATE DIFFERENCE The projected values for the total population in different regions is shown in the Figure 2. 10. 3. There are marked differences be tween states in size of the population, projected population growth rates and the time by which TFR of 2. 1 is likely to be achieved.If the present trend continues, most of the southern and the western states are likely to achieve TFR of 2. 1 by 2010. Urgent energetic steps to assess and fully meetin availability and access to service are needed in the unmet needs for maternal and child health Rajasthan, Orissa, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh (MCH)care and contraception through improvement and Bihar (before division) in order to achieve a faster decline in their mortality and fertility rates. The performance of these states would determine the year and size of the population at which the country achieves aster decline in their mortality and fertility rates.The performance of these states would determine the year and size of the population at which the country achieves replacement level of fertility. It is imperative that special efforts are made during the next two decades to break t he vicious self- perpetuating cycle of poor performance, poor per capita income, poverty, low literacy and high birth rate in the populous states so that further widening of disparities between states in terms of per capita income and quality of life is prevented. An Empowered Action Group has been set up to provide special assistance to these states.The benefits accrued from such assistance will depend to a large extent on the states’ ability to utilize the available funds and improve services and facilities. * GENDER BIAS The reported decline in the sex ratio during the current century has been a cause for concern (Figure 2. 10. 4). The factors responsible for this continued decline are as yet not clearly identified. However, it is well recognised that the adverse sex ratio is a reflection of gender disparities. There is an urgent need to ensure that all sectors collect and report sex disaggregated data.This will help in monitoring for evidence of gender disparity. Continue d collection, collation, analysis and reporting of sex disaggregated data from all socialoffence. However, unless there is a change in social sectors will also provide a mechanism to monitorattitudes, these legislations cannot achieve the whether girls and women have equal access todesired change. Intensive community education these services. In the 0-6 age group show massive inter-state differences (Figure 2. 10. 5). In addition, data indicate that over the last three decades there has been a decline in the 0-6 sex ratio . Table 2. 10. 2) There had been speculation as to whether female sex determination tests and selective female feticide are, at least in part responsible for this. The Government of India has enacted a legislation banning the prenatal sex determination and selective abortion while female infanticide is a cognizable efforts to combat these practices, especially in pockets from where female infanticide and foeticide have been reported, are urgently required. The Nati onal Family Health Survey clearly brought out the sex differentials in the neonatal, post neonatal, infant and under five mortality rates .As there is no biological reason for the higher mortality among the girl children these differences are an indication of existing gender bias in caring for the girl child (Figure 2. 10. 5a). In the reproductive age-groups, the mortality rates among women are higher than those among men. The continued high maternal mortality is one of the major factors responsible for this. Effective implementation of the RCH programme is expected to result in a substantial reduction in maternal mortality. Currently, the longevity at birth among women is only marginally higher than that among men.However, the difference in life expectancy between men and women will progressively increase over the next decade. Once the reproductive age group is crossed, the mortality rates among women are lower. Women will OUTNUMBER men in over 60 age group Departments of Health, F amily Welfare and Women and Child Development are initiating steps to ensure that these women get the care they need. CHAPTER – 3 CAUSES OF POPULATION GROWTH BIRTH RATE * POVERTY According to ABC News, India currently faces approximately â€Å"†¦ 33 births a minute, 2,000 an hour, 48,000 a day, which calculates to nearly 12 million a year†.Unfortunately, the resources do not increase as the population increases. Instead the resources keep decreasing, leading to making survival for a human being more and more competitive even for the basic necessities of life like food, clothing and shelter. ?  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  India currently faces a vicious cycle of population explosion and poverty. One of the most important reasons for this population increase in India is poverty. According to Geography. com, â€Å"More than 300 million Indians earn less than US $1 everyday and about 130 million people are jobless. The people, who have to struggle to make two ends meet produce mor e children because more children mean more earning hands. Also, due to poverty, the infant mortality rate among such families is higher due to the lack of facilities like food and medical resources. Thus, they produce more children assuming that not all of them would be able to survive. The end result is a mounting increase in the population size of India. Due to the increase in population, the problems of scarce resources, jobs, and poverty increases.Thus the cycle continues leading to an ever-increasing population that we see today. This cycle in fact might be considered as a positive feedback, in that the increase in one results in the increase of the other factor. As the poverty and the population both increase, the development of the country and the society seems even more far-fetched.? * Religious beliefs, Traditions and Cultural Norms? India’s culture runs very deep and far back in history. Due to the increased population, the educational facilities are very scarce.As a result, most people still strictly follow ancient beliefs. According to ABC News, the famous Indian author, Shobha De said, â€Å"God said ‘Go forth and produce’ and we just went ahead and did exactly that. † In addition, a lot of families prefer having a son rather than a daughter. As a result, a lot of families have more children than they actually want or can afford, resulting in increased poverty, lack of resources, and most importantly, an increased population. ?  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Another one of India’s cultural norms is for a girl to get married at an early age.In most of the rural areas and in some urban areas as well, families prefer to get their girls married at the age of 14 or 15. Although child marriage is illegal in India, the culture and the society surrounding the girls in India does not allow them to oppose such decisions taken by their family. For many, giving a girl child in marriage is done not by choice, but rather out of compulsion. The poor economic status of tribal villagers is attributed as one of the primary factors responsible for the prevalence of child marriages in India.An example of one such incident was reported in Indiainfo. com. According to an article written by Syed Zarir Hussain on October 16th, 2000, â€Å"Forty-two-year-old Rojo Tok, a tribal peasant in Arunachal Pradesh, was all decked up in local finery to wed Mepong Taku, a girl who will turn 14 this winter. † ? I was brought up in a very different environment and never had to worry about getting married at the age of 14 or 15. However, my parents turned their eyes away, when my maidservant’s daughter was being married off when she was only 13 years old.I was very young, but my parents simply said, â€Å"That’s just how things are with poor people† and I did not have a say in it. Due to the young age of these girls, they have more potential of bearing children, that is, since they start bearing children at a very ear ly age, they can have more children throughout their lifetime. This results in the increase of the global fertility rate. Since these girls get married at a very early age, they do not have the opportunity to get educated. Therefore, they remain uneducated and teach the same norms to their own children, and the tradition goes on from one generation to the other. DEATH RATE Although poverty has increased and the development of the country continues to be hampered, the improvements in medical facilities have been tremendous. This improvement might be considered positive, but as far as population increase is considered, it has only been positive in terms of increasing the population further. The crude death rate in India in 1981 was approximately 12. 5, and that decreased to approximately 8. 7 in 1999. Also, the infant mortality rate in India decreased from 129 in 1981 to approximately 72 in 1999 (Mapsindia. com, Internet).These numbers are clear indications of the improvements in the medical field. This development is good for the economy and society of India, but strictly in terms of population, this advancement has further enhanced the increase in population. ?  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The average life expectancy of people in India has increased from 52. 9 in 1975-80 to 62. 4 in 1995-00. Although our near and dear ones would live longer, due to the increase in the population, the resources available per person would be much less, leading to a decrease in the curvature of the slope of development instead of a higher gradient.In addition, abortion is not allowed by several religions that are followed in India. In fact, in Islam, one of the leading religions of India, children are considered to be gifts of God, and so the more children a woman has, the more she is respected in her family and society. As a result, although the measures to control birth are either not available or known to the public, the facilities to increase birth through medical facilities are available. ? MIGRATION? In countries like the United States (U. S. ), immigration plays an important role in the population increase.However, in countries like India, immigration plays a very small role in the population change. Although people from neighboring countries like Bangladesh, Pakistan and Nepal, migrate to India; at the same time Indians migrate to other countries like the U. S. , Australia, and the U. K. During the 1971 war between India and Pakistan over Bangladesh, the immigration rate increased tremendously. However, currently the migration in India is –0. 08 migrants per 1000 population (AskJeeves. com, Internet), and is decreasing further.This is definitely good for India. This way, the population might eventually come close to being under control and more people may get better job opportunities and further education. For example, the students in my university from India, like myself, have better chances for job opportunities and better education outside India than we would have had in India. CHAPTER – 4 IMPACT OF POPULATION GROWTH ECONOMIC GROWTH During the past decade, there have been two significant breakthroughs regarding the impact of demographics on national economic performance.The first has to do with the effect of the changing age structure of a population. The second relates to population health. Demographers use the â€Å"demographic transition† as a starting point for explaining this effect. The demographic transition refers to the nearly ubiquitous change countries undergo from a regime of high fertility and high mortality to one of low fertility and low mortality. As this phenomenon tends to occur in an asynchronous fashion, with death rates declining first and birth rates following later, countries often experience a transitional period of rapid population growth.This period has traditionally been the main focus of economists interested in demographics. But population growth is not the only major consequence of the de mographic transition. The age structure is also transformed. This happens initially as a consequence of a baby boom that occurs at the beginning of the transition. The baby boom is not caused by an increase in births, but rather by the sharply reduced rates of infant and child mortality that are characteristic of the beginning of a demographic transition, mainly due to increased access to vaccines, antibiotics, safe water, and sanitation.This type of baby boom starts with higher survival rates and abates when fertility subsequently declines as couples recognize that fewer births are needed to reach their targets for surviving children, and as those targets are moderated. Baby booms are very consequential economically, because the presence of more children requires that there be more resources for food, clothing, housing, medical care, and schooling. Those resources must be diverted from other uses such as building factories, establishing infrastructure, and investing in research and development.This diversion of resources to current consumption can temporarily slow the process of economic growth. Of course, babies born in such a boom will invariably reach working ages within a period of 15-25 years. When this happens, the productive capacity of the economy expands on a per capita basis and a demographic dividend may be within reach. Environmental and ecological consequences The already densely populated developing countries contribute to over 95% of the population growth and rapid population growth could lead to environmental deterioration.Developed countries are less densely populated and contribute very little to population growth; however, they cause massive ecological damage by the wasteful, unnecessary and unbalanced consumption the consequences of which could adversely affect both the developed and the developing countries. The review on â€Å"Promotion of sustainable development: challenges for environmental policies† in the Economic Survey 1998- 99 had covered in detail the major environmental problems, and policy options for improvement; the present review will only briefly touch upon some of the important ecological consequences of demographic transition.In many developing countries continued population growth has resulted in pressure on land, fragmentation of land holding, collapsing fisheries, shrinking forests, rising temperatures, loss of plant and animal species. Global warming due to increasing use of fossil fuels (mainly by the developed countries) could have serious effects on the populous coastal regions in developing countries, their food production and essential water supplies. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has projected that, if current greenhouse gas emission trends continue, the mean global surface temperature will rise from 1 to 3. degrees Celsius in the next century. The panel's best estimate scenario projects a sea-level rise of 15 to 95 centimeters by 2100. The ecological impact of rising oceans would include increased flooding, coastal erosion, salination of aquifers and coastal crop land and displacement of millions of people living near the coast. Patterns of precipitation are also likely to change, which combined with increased average temperatures, could substantially alter the relative agricultural productivity of different regions.Greenhouse gas emissions are closely linked to both population growth and development. Slower population growth in developing countries and ecologically sustainable lifestyles in developed countries would make reduction in green house gas emission easier to achieve and provide more time and options for adaptation to climate change. Rapid population growth, developmental activities either to meet the growing population or the growing needs of the population as well as changing lifestyles and consumption patterns pose major challenge to preservation and promotion of ecological balance in India.Some of the major ecological adverse effe cts reported in India include: severe pressure on the forests due to both the rate of resource use and the nature of use. The per capita forest biomass in the country is only about 6 tons as against the global average of 82 tons. adverse effect on species diversity: conversion of habitat to some other land use such as agriculture, urban development, forestry operation. Some 70-80 % of fresh water marshes and lakes in the Gangetic flood plains has been lost in the last 50 years.Tropical deforestation and destruction of mangroves for commercial needs and fuel wood. The country’s mangrove areas have reduced from 700,000 ha to 453,000 ha in the last 50 years. Intense grazing by domestic livestock Poaching and illegal harvesting of wildlife. Increase in agricultural area, high use of chemical fertilizers pesticides and weedicides; water stagnation, soil erosion, soil salinity and low productivity. High level of biomass burning causing large-scale indoor pollution. Encroachment on habitat for rail and road construction thereby fragmenting the habitat. ncrease in commercial activities such as mining and unsustainable resource extraction. Degradation of coastal and other aquatic ecosystems from domestic sewage, pesticides, fertilizers and industrial effluents. Over fishing in water bodies and introduction of weeds and exotic species. Diversion of water for domestic, industrial and agricultural uses leading to increased river pollution and decrease in self-cleaning properties of rivers. Increasing water requirement leading to tapping deeper aquifers which have high content of arsenic or fluoride resulting health problems.Disturbance from increased recreational activity and tourism causing pollution of natural ecosystems with wastes left behind by people. The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (1992) acknowledged population growth, rising income levels, changing technologies, increasing consumption pattern will all have adverse impact on env ironment. Ensuring that there is no further deterioration depends on choices made by the population about family size, life styles, environmental protection and equity.Availability of appropriate technology and commitment towards ensuring sustainable development is increasing throughout the world. Because of these, it might be possible to initiate steps to see that the natural carrying capacity of the environment is not damaged beyond recovery and ecological balance is to a large extent maintained. It is imperative that the environmental sustainability of all developmental projects is taken care of by appropriate inputs at the planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation stages. UrbanizationThe proportion of people in developing countries who live in cities has almost doubled since 1960 (from less than 22 per cent to more than 40 per cent), while in more developed regions the urban share has grown from 61 per cent to 76 per cent. Urbanization is projected to continue well int o the next century. By 2030, it is expected that nearly 5 billion (61 per cent) of the world's 8. 1 billion people will live in cities. India shares this global trend toward urbanization. Globally, the number of cities with 10 million or more inhabitants is increasing rapidly, and most of these new â€Å"megacities† are in developing regions.In 1960, only New York and Tokyo had more than 10 million people. By 1999, the number of megacities had grown to 17(13 in developing countries). It is projected that there will be 26 megacities by 2015, (18 in Asia; of these five in India); more than 10 per cent of the world's population will live in these cities (1. 7% in 1950). India’s urban population has doubled from 109 million to 218 million during the last two decades and is estimated to reach 300 million by 2000 AD. As a consequence cities are facing the problem of expanding urban slums. Like many other demographic changes, urbanization has both positive and negative effect s.Cities and towns have become the engines of social change and rapid economic development. Urbanisation is associated with improved access to education, employment, health care; these result in increase in age at marriage, reduction in family size and improvement in health indices. As people have moved towards and into cities, information has flowed outward. Better communication and transportation now link urban and rural areas both economically and socially creating an urban-rural continuum of communities with improvement in some aspects of lifestyle of both. The ever increasing reach of mass media communicate new ideas, points f reference, and available options are becoming more widely recognized, appreciated and sought. This phenomenon has affected health care, including reproductive health, in many ways. For instance, radio and television programmes that discuss gender equity, family size preference and family planning options are now reaching formerly isolated rural population s. This can create demand for services for mothers and children, higher contraceptive use, and fewer unwanted pregnancies, smaller healthier families and lead to more rapid population stabilisation. But the rapid growth of urban population also poses some serious challenges.Urban population growth has outpaced the development of basic minimum services; housing, water supply, sewerage and solid waste disposal are far from adequate; increasing waste generation at home, offices and industries, coupled with poor waste disposal facilities result in rapid environmental deterioration. Increasing automobiles add to air pollution. All these have adverse effect on ecology and health. Poverty persists in urban and peri-urban areas; awareness about the glaring inequities in close urban setting may lead to social unrest. Rural population and their developmentOver seventy per cent of India’s population still lives in rural areas. There are substantial differences between the states in the proportion of rural and urban population (varying from almost 90 per cent in Assam and Bihar to 61 per cent in Maharashtra). Agriculture is the largest and one of the most important sector of the rural economy and contributes both to economic growth and employment. Its contribution to the Gross Domestic Product has declined over the last five decades but agriculture still remains the source of livelihood for over 70 per cent of the country’s population.A large proportion of the rural work force is small and consists of marginal farmers and landless agricultural labourers. There is substantial under employment among these people; both wages and productivity are low. These in turn result in poverty; it is estimated that 320 million people are still living below the poverty line in rural India. Though poverty has declined over the last three decades, the number of rural poor has in fact increased due to the population growth. Poor tend to have larger families which puts enormous burden on their meagre resources, and prevent them from breaking out of the shackles of poverty.In States like Tamil Nadu where replacement level of fertility has been attained, population growth rates are much lower than in many other States; but the population density is high and so there is a pressure on land. In States like Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh population is growing rapidly, resulting in increasing pressure on land and resulting land fragmentation. Low productivity of small land holders leads to poverty, low energy intake and under nutrition, and this, in turn, prevents the development thus creating a vicious circle.In most of the states non-farm employment in rural areas has not grown very much and cannot absorb the growing labour force. Those who are getting educated specially beyond the primary level, may not wish to do manual agricultural work. They would like better opportunities and more remunerative employment. In this context, it is imperat ive that programmes for skill development, vocational training and technical education are taken up on a large scale in order to generate productive employment in rural areas.The entire gamut of existing poverty alleviation and employment generation programmes may have to be restructured to meet the newly emerging types of demand for employment. Rural poor have inadequate access to basic minimum services, because of poor connectivity, lack of awareness, inadequate and poorly functional infrastructure. There are ongoing efforts to improve these, but with the growing aspirations of the younger, educated population these efforts may prove to be inadequate to meet the increasing needs both in terms of type and quality of services.Greater education, awareness and better standard of living among the growing younger age group population would create the required consciousness among them that smaller families are desirable; if all the felt needs for health and family welfare services are fu lly met, it will be possible to enable them to attain their reproductive goals, achieve substantial decline in the family size and improve quality of life. Water Supply In many parts of developed and developing world, water demand substantially exceeds sustainable water supply.It is estimated that currently 430 millions (8% of the global population) are living in countries affected by water stress; by 2020 about one fourth of the global population may be facing chronic and recurring shortage of fresh water. In India, water withdrawal is estimated to be twice the rate of aquifer recharge; as a result water tables are falling by one to three meters every year; tapping deeper aquifers have resulted in larger population groups being exposed to newer health hazards such as high fluoride or arsenic content in drinking water.At the other end of the spectrum, excessive use of water has led to water logging and increasing salinity in some parts of the country. Eventually, both lack of water and water logging could have adverse impact on India's food production. There is very little arable agricultural land which remains unexploited and in many areas, agricultural technology improvement may not be able to ensure further increase in yield per hectare. It is, therefore, imperative that research in biotechnology for improving development of foodgrains strains that would tolerate salinity and those which would require less water gets high priority.Simultaneously, a movement towards making water harvesting, storage and its need based use part of every citizens life should be taken up. Food security Technological innovations in agriculture and increase in area under cultivation have ensured that so far, food production has kept pace with the population growth. Evolution of global and national food security systems have improved access to food. It is estimated that the global population will grow to 9 billion by 2050 and the food production will double; improvement in purchasi ng power and changing dietary habits (shift to animal products) may further add to the requirement of food grains.Thus, in the next five decades, the food and nutrition security could become critical in many parts of the world especially in the developing countries and pockets of poverty in the developed countries. In India one of the major achievements in the last fifty years has been the green revolution and self- sufficiency in food production. Food grain production has increased from 50. 82 in 1950-51 to 200. 88 million tons in 1998-99 (Prov. ). It is a matter of concern that while the cereal production has been growing steadily at a rate higher than the population growth rates, the coarse grain and pulse production has not shown a similar increase.Consequently there has been a reduction in the per capita availability of pulses (from 60. 7 grams in 1951 to 34 grams per day in 1996) and coarse grains. Over the last five decades there has been a decline in the per capita availabil ity of pulses. During the last few years the country has imported pulses to meet the requirement. There has been a sharp and sustained increase in cost of pulses, so there is substantial decline in per capita pulses consumption among poorer segment of population.This in turn could have an adverse impact on their protein intake. The pulse component of the â€Å"Pulses and Oil Seeds Mission† need to receive a major thrust in terms of R;D and other inputs, so that essential pulse requirement of growing population is fully met. Rising cost of pulses had a beneficial effect also. Till eighties in central India wages of landless labourers were given in the form Kesari Dal which was cheaper than cereals or coarse grains. Consumption of staple diet of Kesari Dal led to crippling disease of neuro lathyrism.Over the last three decades the rising cost of pulses has made Kesari Dal more expensive than wheat or rice and hence it is no longer given to labourers as wages for work done; as a result the disease has virtually disappeared from Central India. Over years the coarse grain production has remained stagnant and per capita availability of coarse grain has under gone substantial reduction; there has been a shift away from coarse grains to rice and wheat consumption even among poorer segment of population. One of the benefits of this change is virtual elimination of pellagra which was widely prevalent mong low income group population in Deccan Plateau whose staple food was sorghum. Coarse grains are less expensive than rice and wheat; they can thus provide higher calories for the same cost as compared to rice and wheat. Coarse grains which are locally produced and procured if made available through TPDS at subsidised rate, may not only substantially bring down the subsidy cost without any reduction in calories provided but also improve â€Å"targetting† – as only the most needy are likely to access these coarse grains.Another area of concern is the l ack of sufficient focus and thrust in horticulture; because of this, availability of vegetables especially green leafy vegetables and yellow/red vegetables throughout the year at affordable cost both in urban and rural areas has remained an unfulfilled dream. Health and nutrition education emphasizing the importance of consuming these inexpensive rich sources of micronutrients will not result in any change in food habits unless there is harnessing and effective management of horticultural resources in the country to meet the growing needs of the people at affordable cost.States like Tamil Nadu and Himachal Pradesh have initiated some efforts in this direction; similar efforts need be taken up in other states also. Nutrition At the time of independence the country faced two major nutritional problems; one was the threat of famine and acute starvation due to low agricultural production and lack of appropriate food distribution system. The other was chronic energy deficiency due to pov erty, low-literacy, poor access to safe-drinking water, sanitation and health care; these factors led to wide spread prevalence of infections and ill health in children and adults.Kwashiorkor, marasmus, goitre, beri beri, blindness due to Vitamin-A deficiency and anaemia were major public health problems. The country adopted multi-sectoral, multi-pronged strategy to combat the major nutritional problems and to improve nutritional status of the population. During the last 50 years considerable progress has been achieved. Famines no longer stalk the country. There has been substantial reduction in moderate and severe undernutrition in children and some improvement in nutritional status of all segments of population.Kwashiorkor, marasmus, pellagra, lathyrism, beri beri and blindness due to severe Vitamin-A deficiency have become rare. However, it is a matter of concern that milder forms of Chronic Energy Deficiency (CED) and micronutrient deficiencies continue to be widely prevalent in adults and children. In view of the fact that population growth in India will continue for the next few decades, it is essential that appropriate strategies are devised to improve food and nutrition security of families, identify individuals/families with severe forms of CED and provide them assistance to over come these problemOperational strategy to improve the dietary intake of the family and improve nutritional status of the rapidly growing adult population would include: †¢Ensuring adequate agricultural production of cereals, pulses, vegetables and other foodstuffs needed to fully meet the requirement of growing population. †¢ Improving in purchasing power through employment generation and employment assurance schemes; †¢Providing subsidised food grains through TPDS to the families below poverty line. Exploring feasibility of providing subsidized coarse grains to families Below Poverty Line (BPL) Operational strategies to improve health and nutritional status of the growing numbers of women and children include: * Pregnant and lactating women – screening to identify women with weight below 40 Kgs and ensuring that they/ their preschool children receive food supplements through Integrated Child Development Services Scheme (ICDS); adequate antenatal intrapartum and neonatal care. 0-6 months infants – Nutrition education for early initiation of lactation protection and promotion of universal breast feeding, exclusive breast feeding for the first six months; unless there is specific reason supplementation should not be introduced before 6 months and immunisation, growth monitoring and health care. * Well planned nutrition education to ensure that the infants and children do continue to get breasted, get appropriate cereal pulse vegetable based supplement fed to them at least 3 – 4 times a day , appropriate help in ensuring this through family/community/work place support and immunisation and health care. Children in the 0 – 5 age group – screen by weighment to identify children with moderate and severe undernutrition , provide double quantity supplements through ICD , screening for nutrition and health problems and appropriate intervention. * Primary school children – weigh and identify those with moderate and severe chronic energy deficiency, improve dietary intake to these children through the mid-day meal. Monitor for improvement in the identified undernourished infants, children and mothers; if no improvement after 2 months refer to physician for identification and treatment of factors that might be responsible for lack of improvement. * Nutrition education on varying dietary needs of different members of the family and how they can be met by minor modifications from the family meals. Intensive health education for improving the life style of the population coupled with active screening and management of the health problems associated with obesity. chapter – 5 Strategi es to Achieve Population StabilizationFertility decline in India has been the effect of various socio-economic developments as well as government sponsored family welfare programme. Rising levels of education, increase in female age at marriage, influence of mass media, economic development, gender empowerment and measures for equality, continuing urbanization, diffusion of new idea, and declines in infant and child mortality have all contributed in lowering the levels of fertility. These factors, along with strong health infrastructure and focused family welfare programme, will continue to be driving the fertility transition.Even at the national level, the views regarding the ideal number of children are fast approaching the two child norm. But at the same time, preference for sons is clearly evident in many parts of India. The regional difference in fertility level is also likely to continue for many more years. Given this context, what are the strategies that can be adopted to ac hieve the population stabilization within a reasonable time period? National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) Recognizing the importance of health for social and economic development and for improving the quality of life, the Govt. f India launched the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) in 2005 to carry out the necessary correction and strengthening of basic health care delivery system. The Plan of Action of NRHM envisages increasing public expenditure on health, reducing regional imbalances in health infrastructure, pooling resources, integration of organizational structures, optimization of health manpower, decentralization and district management of health programmes, community participation and ownership of assets and providing public- private partnership.The goal of the mission is to improve the availability of and access to quality health care of the people, especially for those residing in rural areas, the poor, woman and children. The expected outcomes from the Mission as refle cted in statistical data are: IMR reduced to 30/1000 live births by 2012. Maternal Mortality reduced to 100/100,000 live births by 2012. TFR reduced to 2. 1 by 2012. Malaria Mortality Reduction Rate – 50% up to 2010, additional 10% by 2012. Kala Azar Mortality Reduction Rate – 100% by 2010 and sustaining elimination ntil 2012. * Filarial/Microfilaria Reduction Rate – 70% by 2010, 80% by 2012 and elimination by 2015. * Dengue Mortality Reduction Rate – 50% by 2010 and sustaining at that level until 2012 * Cataract operations-increasing to 46 lakhs until 2012. * Leprosy Prevalence Rate – reduce from 1. 8 per 10,000 in 2005 to less than 1 per 10,000 thereafter. * Tuberculosis DOTS series – maintain 85% cure rate through entire Mission Period and also sustain planned case detection rate. †¢ Upgrading all Community Health Centers to Indian Public Health Standards. tilization of First Referral Units from bed occupancy by referred cases of les s than 20% to over 75%. * Engaging 4,00,000 female Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs). The NRHM (2005-12) seeks to provide effective health care to rural population throughout the country with specific focus on 18 states that have weak public health indicators and poor health infrastructure. National Population Policy The immediate objective of the National Population Policy is to meet all the unmet needs for contraception and health care for women and children.The medium-term objective is to bring the TFR to replacement level (TFR of 2. 1) by 2010 and, the long-term objective is to achieve population stabilisation by 2045. The Policy has set the following goals for 2010: * universal registration of births and deaths, marriages and pregnancies; * universal access to information/counselling and services for fertility regulation and contraception with a wide basket of choices; * to reduce the IMR to below 30 per 1,000 live births and a sharp reduction in the incidence of low b irth weight (below 2. kg. ); * universal immunisation of children against vaccine preventable diseases; * promote delayed marriage for girls, not earlier than the age of 18 and preferably after 20 years; * achieve 80 per cent institutional deliveries and increase the percentage of deliveries conducted by trained persons to 100 per cent; * containing of STD reduction in MMR to less than 100 per 100,000 * universalisation of primary education and reduction in the drop-out rates at the primary and secondary levels to below 20 per cent for both boys and girls.Several states/districts have demonstrated that the steep reduction in mortality and fertility envisaged in the National Population Policy are technically feasible within the existing infrastructure and manpower. All efforts are being made to provide essential supplies, improve efficiency and ensure accountability – especially in the states where performance is currently sub- optimal – so that there is incremental imp rovement in performance.An Empowered Action Group attached to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has been constituted in 2001 to facilitate capacity building in poorly performing states/districts so that they attain the goals set in the Policy. If all these efforts are vigorously pursued it is possible that the ambitious goals set for 2007/2010 may be achieved. National Commission on Population The National Commission on Population adopting the small family norm; was constituted on 11 May 2000 under the chairmanship of the Prime Minister. The Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission is the vice chairman.The Commission has the mandate to: * review, monitor and give direction for the implementation of the National Population Policy with the view of achieving the goals it has set; * promote synergy between health, educational, environmental developmental programmes so as to hasten population stabilization; * promote inter-sectoral coordination in planning and implementation of the programmes through different agencies at the Centre and in the states; and * develop a vigorous people’s programme to support this national effort.A Strategic Support Group consisting of secretaries of concerned sectoral ministries has been constituted as a standing advisory group to the Commission. Nine working groups were constituted to look into specific aspects of implementation of the programmes aimed at achieving the targets set in the National Population Policy. NCP has allocated funds for action plans drawn up by district magistrates in poorly performing districts to implement programmes aimed at accelerating the pace decline in fertility.Meeting the unmet demand for contraception The NPP document lays great stress on meeting the unmet need for contraception as an instrument to achieve population stabilization. The presence of high level of unmet need for contraception in EAG states is not a myth, as it is supported by data from both NFHS and DLHS. But it would b e a mistake to assume that inadequate access to services should be the dominant, or even a major, explanatory factor for its presence.As a carefully conducted in depth investigation in the Philippines had shown, unmet need for contraception could arise from several reasons, such as weak motivation, low female autonomy, perceived health risks, and moral objection to the use of contraception. The elimination of these factors, and thus the unmet need, could prove to be as difficult as generating fresh demand for contraception. According to the DLHS Round 2 (2002-2004) 21 percent of women in India have an unmet need for family planning.The unmet need for limiting is higher (13 percent) as compared to unmet need for spacing (9 percent). Total unmet need is highest among the younger women an