Proper Waste Disposal

First of all, I would like to thank my wonderful parents whose support has inspired me greatly in making a willful choice in doing my best. I appreciate the skills that they have imparted to me to upon doing this research and their editing of my work has been of great help. Also, I would like to thank the library of Trinity College for being a good source of books which had aided me in writing the main body of this research. We will write a custom essay sample on Proper Waste Disposal or any similar topic only for you Order Now Very special thanks to my fellow classmates who have been readers to my research paper and who have pointed out my mistakes. I would like to thank them for exchanging ideas with me and for helping me deal with the arduous publishing process of paper. I doubt that I won’t be able to express my appreciation to them fully, but I owe them all my gratitude. I would also like to acknowledge my friends for being the ones who have motivated me to develop focus, as well as self-confidence. Without their support and understanding, I would not have accomplished this research paper. Lastly, I must acknowledge my beloved teacher, Ms. Nancy Ramos, for being the greatest help I would ever need in this research. Without her skills and assistance in writing this, I won’t be able to finish this research. And without her, this research wouldn’t have been made possible. Abstract Improper ways of disposing are common nowadays. Therefore, researches about proper waste disposal and waste management are of great interest. This study shows how the collection, transport, processing, recycling, and monitoring of waste materials can be as important as can be. Its immediate objective is to inform the readers, the community, and the society about how properly disposing of our waste materials can change lives. To come up with a research output, some books were used as a good source of materials and some people who worked for the government’s waste management had been interviewed. Also, observation of wastes all around Metro Manila had been done for a good source of evidence of whether or not people dispose of their wastes properly. As a result, the knowledge of waste disposal will be imparted not just to any special figure or anyone who works for the government management, but also to any citizen, may it be a student or a teacher, or a parent or a child, just like you. I, therefore, conclude that it is important and beneficial for everyone to know how to dispose their wastes properly to contribute to the improvement of our Mother Nature. Hopefully, this research may be of good use to better understand how our wastes affect our atmosphere greatly. IntroductionIn the early pre-industrial times, wastes compose of ashes from fires, woods, bones, bodies, and vegetable wastes. They are disposed of underground to serve as compost and contribute to the soil’s improvement. But only small amounts of ash, broken tools, and pottery were excavated by the archeological digs. Everything was repaired and reused and populations were smaller before. The change from nomadic hunter-gatherer to farmer meant that wastes could no longer be left behind. Because waste could no longer be left behind, it had become a big issue. Reusing and recycling became an everyday routine since the industrial revolution, wherein materials became more available than labor. There was a reuse system of bronze scrap operation 4000 years ago in Europe where they discovered that composting started in China. Reusing and recycling is widely recognized in the form of salvage, the usual tradition until the Rag-and-Bone men. Conventionally, salvaged materials included leather, feathers, and textiles. Feeding vegetable wastes to farm animals is also considered as a form of recycling, and as well as using green wastes as fertilizers. Soon after, some activities for improvements were done such as the melting down and re-casting of gold, the salvaging of timber, etc. But as the populations in cities had increased, the space for disposal had decreased. And because of that, societies had developed waste disposal systems. Proper waste disposal reduces the impact of waste into the atmosphere by observing the proper methods of disposing of. Because improper disposal of our wastes imposes cost on others, waste disposal has been a big political issue. Dirty disposal methods such as dumping are big problems nowadays. Though the easiest among any method, it creates health risks for the public. Waste disposal was not always observed and monitored properly; therefore, everyone must comply with the methods used in order to achieve environmental advantages. Achieving this awareness in proper waste disposal is important to lessen the waste we dispose of improperly. Discussion Waste disposal is either disposing our wastes in the water, on land or anywhere. Waste is usually managed where it can prevent the releasing of pollutants in our environment. Before disposing of our wastes, it is a must that they may be classified according to its physical, chemical, and biological characteristics. By classifying them according to consistency is the major way of classification; whether it is liquid waste, solid waste, or sludge. Liquid wastes must be less than 1% solid. On the other hand, solid wastes must contain less than 70% water. Sludge is another classification of waste materials; being somewhere in between a liquid and a solid. It must contain 3 and 25% solid and the rest is made up of water. Hazardous and Non-hazardous Wastes One must also know how to differentiate the waste between hazardous and non-hazardous. Hazardous wastes are possible threats to public health and the environment. To certify that the waste is really hazardous, one must observe the following factors attributed by the waste material: ignitability, reactivity, corrosivity, and toxicity. It is said to be ignitable when a waste contains liquid with a flashpoint of less than 60o C or 140o F. The waste is also ignitable if it is a solid that burns spontaneously, flammable compressed, an oxidizer, and a material with National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) or Hazardous Materials Identification System (HMIS) flammability hazard rating of 3 or 4. But if the material tends to be unstable at normal temperatures and pressures, it is a hazardous waste that is classified as a reactive. Examples of this are explosives and cyanide or sulfuric bearing wastes. (â€Å"Waste Types† p.1) A corrosive substance, on the other hand, is a substance that will permanently damage another substance or surface whenever it comes in contact with it. To people, it can cause damage to the eyes, the skin, and tissues under the skin. Inhaling corrosive substances can also damage the respiratory gastrointestinal tracts. Lastly, hazardous wastes can be considered as toxic wastes. Toxic wastes are poisonous. They spread easily and can contaminate bodies of water. These wastes can pose a long-term risk to the public health and environment. In disposing of hazardous wastes, bear in mind those we should recover and dispose of waste without endangering human health and harming our environment.If factors of hazardous materials were not determined, it must then be a non-hazardous waste. Non-hazardous wastes do not pose any threats to the public health and environment. They can be in the form of sewage wastes, cesspool wastes, food industry wastes, vehicle wash, drain cleanings, etc. Solid and Liquid Wastes When disposing of liquid wastes, there are certain ways in order to prevent pollutants to the storm drain systems. These include the Erosion Control, Sediment Control, Tracking Control, Wind Erosion Control, Non-stormwater Management Control, and lastly, the Waste Management and Materials Pollution Control. Practicing effective erosion control can help in the prevention of water pollution and soil pollution. Sediment control is designed to keep eroded soil in a construction site, so as to not let any nearby bodies of water to wash it off. This is done to reduce water pollution. Lastly, wind erosion is the control wherein water or any dust palliatives is applied to lessen dust created by construction sites. (â€Å"Liquid Waste Management† pp. 1-4) Landfills However, when solid wastes are being disposed, they are usually thrown in landfills. Pavoni, Heer Jr.Hagerty (1975) defines landfills as: Landfilling of solid wastes is a method of waste disposal which has been practiced since very early times. As a general rule, it is still one of the most economical waste disposal techniques in current use. It is often referred to as the only final solid waste disposal method since, unlike incineration or composting, it is not a processing operation which yields a residue or end product which requires disposal. The wastes deposited in a sanitary landfill are considered to be ultimately ‘eliminated’; the landfill is their ultimate destination. Because of this, landfilling of solid waste material is in some ways a very undesirable procedure; many potentially useful materials which could be recycled are buried in the earth and lost. Disposing of waste materials in landfills is commonly done by waste management. This involves the burying of wastes in abandoned places such as quarries, mining voids, and borrow pits. It is a must for landfills to be properly arranged in order to prevent the scattering of garbage everywhere, the growing of undesired vermin, and as well as the multiplication of the growth of liquid leachate. And even though we get certain benefits from the usage of landfills and though it had been a helpful place for waste burial, it was proven that landfills may contaminate drinking water. Also, the byproduct of landfills is gas. And these organic wastes break down anaerobically. The produced gas may develop foul odors, may kill a high percentage of vegetations and crops, and lastly, the most trivial of all, it may be a greenhouse gas. (â€Å"Landfill† p. 2) Greenhouse Effect Greenhouse gases are gases that happen to be the reason of the so-called greenhouse effect. Greenhouse gases generally clouds the earth and keep it about 33 degrees Celsius warmer than it would be without these gases present in the earth. They are generally known as warmers of our world. There are many compounds in the earth that act as greenhouse gases. These gases allow sunlight (relative shortwave energy) to reach the earth’s surface without hindrance. As this energy produced heats the surface, longer wave energy is reradiated to the atmosphere. (â€Å"Greenhouse Effect† p. 1) The greenhouse effect usually occurs brought by greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, methane, water vapor, and nitrous oxide. But some gases are man-made which includes the chlorofluorocarbon (CFC), hydrofluorocarbon (HFC), perfluorocarbon (PFC), and the sulfur hexafluoride (SF6). Concentrations of these gases had risen due to different activities done by man. As the population of human and the reliance upon fossil fuels had increased, the release of these gases had also increased. Though carbon dioxide reacts naturally with the atmosphere, but because of the obstruction of man in the carbon cycle by burning, mining, etc, we move carbon from solid to its gaseous state, leaving the earth with atmospheric concentrations. â€Å"Greenhouse Effect† p. 1) The production of carbon dioxide is achieved from the terrestrial biosphere. But as mentioned, human activities had intervened in the natural cycle of carbon production through the burning of coal, oil, natural gas, and wood. Carbon dioxide is the first greenhouse gas which had increased in atmospheric concentration. Earlier industrial revolution concentrations were steady and stable at 280ppm. But nowadays, there are at around 380ppm, increased by 30%. Atmospheric concentration has fluctuated due to the extent of landmass and vegetation from the northern hemisphere.A great drawdown of carbon dioxide happens in the spring and summer season in the northern hemisphere as plants convert carbon dioxide. Then, it would again be released during the fall and winter when plants undergo decomposition. (â€Å"Greenhouse Effect† p. 2) Incineration But aside from disposing our waste materials through landfills, incineration is also commonly used. Pavoni, et al. , (1975) states that: Incineration is a controlled combustion process for reducing solid, liquid, or gaseous combustible wastes primarily to carbon dioxide, other gases, and a relatively noncombustible residue. The residue is usually deposited in an accompanying landfill (generally located in a distant spot) after recovery of any valuable materials. The carbon dioxide and other gases generated through the combustion process are released to the atmosphere. Incineration is known to be the second oldest form of waste disposal. And until the present time, it is still practiced. Certainly, the discovery of fire had brought to men different kinds of advantages. From the advantages, the fire obtained led to primal incineration as a disposal practice. Until the present time, men relied greatly upon waste fire.Most of them ignored the consequences of burning wastes. But, established communities can no longer ignore this open burning because rather significant production of air pollutants is related to uncontrolled burning. (â€Å"Incineration† p. 2) For several years, incineration of wastes consisted of open burning in pits. The use of fire wagon was once an innovation during the early industrial times. The wagon was pulled by a horse through medieval towns so people in the cities can just toss their wastes in it through upper story windows onto this moving bonfire.People’s interest on this brilliant innovation grew. And so, in the late 1950s, a proposal of enclosed mobile incinerator was approved. The incinerator was to be used for the reduction of domestic and demolition wastes in a number of districts. Two American engineers, Hering and Greely, have explained the historical developments of incinerators. (Pavoni, et al. p. 59) Certain arguments about the usage of incinerators had been done, although it does contribute to the reducing of wastes. It had been a controversial method of waste disposal due to certain issues such as gaseous pollutants, etc. Incineration is very common in some countries like Japan, wherein their lands are very scarce. Because of that, they need not too much area of landfills. Waste-to-energy (WtE) or Energy-from-waste (EfW) are widely used terms for facilities that burn wastes in furnace to make, produce, or generate heat, steam, and/or electricity. Combustions in incinerators are not always perfect and highly recommended because there had been concerns about micro-pollutants in gaseous emissions from incinerator stacks. But aside from the facts argued about, this method produces heat that can be used as energy.(Pavoni, et al. . 162) Innovations in Disposal Although traditional methods of disposal are used (composting, sanitary landfills, and incineration), they are not fully practiced without following the three R’s, also known as the Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle method. Inadequate markets for compost have practically stopped composting as a feasible disposal technique. Also, the volume reduction provided by incineration necessitates the need of a larger landfill for residue disposal. The sanitary landfill method is also weighed down by an increasing scarcity of adequate land areas. (â€Å"Innovations in Disposal† p.224) Accordingly, there is a need for an upgrade in such methods or other innovations to develop proper waste disposal. Innovative disposal methods are as follows: aside from the widely known three Rs method, proposals have included both new methods of disposal; medium-temperature and high-temperature incineration. According to Pavoni, et al. (1975), â€Å"A new development in incineration, the so-called ‘high-temperature incineration’ process, consists of combustion and fusion of wastes at temperatures between 3000 and 3300o F, which is 1200 to 1500 o F higher than combustion temperatures in conventional incinerators. However, medium temperature incineration will most likely to be available. Older community solid waste incinerators are medium temperature incinerators and the use of these facilities is encouraged as a short-term measure, rather than less safe options, such as inadequate discharge to a landfill. Waste Management Hierarchy Waste hierarchy refers to the widely known Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle method, which classify waste management according to their appeal in terms of minimizing our wastes. The aim of waste hierarchy is to encourage citizens to generate a minimum amount of waste.Extended producer responsibility (EPR) is the strategy made to support the addition of all costs associated with products throughout the life cycle into market prices. This simply means that manufacturers are required to be responsible and hold account for their products. (â€Å"Waste Managing Concepts† p. 6) Lastly, the Polluter pays principle is states that any pollutant party shall pay for the impact damage caused to the environment. With regard to waste management, they are required to pay for the appropriate disposal of waste. (â€Å"Waste Managing Concepts† p.6) Conclusion The best way of disposing our wastes properly may vary in different techniques, may even cause pollution, and may even recover materials and energy. Preferably, the so-called Incineration method is the best way for hazardous wastes, organic wastes, and combustible miscellaneous wastes. By doing so, ashes can be used as nutrients, too. Not only can we dispose through the use of incineration, but we can also classify our wastes by their kinds: biodegradable and non-biodegradable. Recyclables should be reused intact if possible, processed on board if that is cost-effective, or compacted and shipped to recycling plants on land otherwise.Also, recycling has many advantages in our environment. It uses less energy while causing less pollution and it reduces the waste disposed in landfills. In the 18th century, the disposal of waste wasn’t always monitored. However, since then, our trash has become more complicated. We have many different types of wastes and it is a must that they may be disposed properly to prevent contaminating our environment. Nowadays, our natural sources have become scarcer and scarcer. That is why, putting the three R’s into action is the most efficient and forward-thinking approach to waste. And so, one must learn the proper ways of disposing of and pass it on from generations to generations. How to cite Proper Waste Disposal, Papers

Willy Loman, Tragic Hero or Selfish Individual free essay sample

Willy Loman, the protagonist in Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman, is often referred to as a tragic hero who is forced to commit suicide to valiantly save his family from the â€Å"elusive† American Dream. The majority of critics give readers the impression that Willy was a selfless man that worked himself to death in order to support his family and ensure their success and happiness. He is portrayed as a hard worker with a life full of tribulations and challenges. However, his hard work never seemed to pay off and instead he found himself living the American nightmare. Unfortunately his true character and image is constantly being distorted and readers constantly fall into the trap of believing Willy Loman is a tragic hero, whom deserves nothing less than respect and sympathy. However, after complete understanding of the play one realizes that Willy Loman brought all his misfortunes upon himself due to his warped mindset about success, his dedication in acquiring the approval of others, and his tunnel vision that was only directed towards money and wealth. We will write a custom essay sample on Willy Loman, Tragic Hero or Selfish Individual? or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Critic Bert Cardullo summarizes this whole play by claiming, â€Å"What is left in this play is neither a critique of the business world nor an adult vision of something different and better. Rather, it’s the story of a man (granting he was sane) who failed as a salesman and father, and made things worse by refusing to admit those failures, which he knew to be true,† (Cardullo 9). Not only did Willy Loman refuse to admit his constant failings, he also abruptly ends his own life at the end of the play, which should not grant him the title and status of tragic hero, instead Willy should be considered a selfish and arrogant salesman who’s constant failings lead him to commit suicide in order to escape from his dead end life. Critics across the world agree on very few issues when it comes to analyzing literature. However, critics were able to come to a common consensus in defining a tragic hero. All tragic heroes have common characteristics such as wisdom, a flaw or error, recognition that their own actions is leading down the wrong path, and a reversal of fortune. When comparing Willy Loman to the common archetype of the tragic hero he does not come close to fitting the mold all critics agree upon. Through his actions and business endeavors only realizes that Willy Loman lacks any type of wisdom. His constant failures also show that he refuses to recognize the action’s he has taken have been the wrong ones and therefore his difficulties were self inflicted. As the play begins Willy Loman appears to be a salesman hit hard by America’s capitalistic society, which leaves him with most of his unsold merchandise at the end of the day and a family that he is unable to provide for. The fact that he must travel hours on end to attempt a sales deal, and go through many inconveniences to keep his commission-based job, and still have to borrow money from his successful neighbor, portrays Willy as a man who has no luck and is in a desperate state. However, as the story progresses Willy Loman displays a great deal of stubbornness and an irrational understanding of success. His only concern in life is to achieve the elusive American Dream. Unfortunately, â€Å"in a country with an every-man-a-king theology the delusion of royalty is a powerful drug, a dangerous dream. And Miller argued that the fall, on waking up, can be fatal, can meet the demands of tragedy,†(Corliss). The reader realizes early on that Willy did not truly understand what the American Dream meant and that he was headed down the wrong road. Willy is in this position of desperation because he acts like he is working hard to support his family when in reality he is only consumed with acquiring wealth and status. During one of Willy’s flashbacks he says, â€Å"Bernard can get the best marks in school, yunderstand, but when he gets out in the business world, yunderstand, you are going to be five times ahead of him†¦Be liked and you will never want,† (Miller 935). Willy is advocating that education is a waste of time. He attempts to convince his son that high marks in school may seem nice for the time being, however in the business world they mean nothing. Willy Loman is an emotionally stunted father that refuses to act his age and is setting the worst of precedents for his two sons (Thompson). How can a man with such a mindset be given the honor and title of tragic hero? All archetypes for tragic heroes mention wisdom early on the list of characteristics. If Willy had a bit of wisdom he would emphasize the importance of his children’s education. Rather he explains that success and happiness come from the approval of others. Although his job is clearly heading in the wrong direction, he does not press pause and try to turn his situation around. Instead he dedicates his time and effort to other minuscule causes such as seeking approval of his counterparts. Willy is a salesman with high goals and expectations. It is common knowledge that success and achievement of goals is due to a definitive plan and determination. As a salesman Willy must understand that his success will only come from making sales. Rather than spending time he will never get back trying to seek approval, he must spend that time reaching out to new potential clientele and trying to convince them to buy his product. Unfortunately, at this point in the play, Willy has reached the age of senior citizenship and the reader realizes that he spent countless time running after a dream with the wrong game plan. Instead of focusing all his efforts on making sales and finding new clientele, he spent a large portion of his time with people who would not benefit him and chasing after selfish causes. He was completely blinded by the opportunity of achieving high status. He did not realize that status would take away from the success and advancement of his business. One would think that with age comes wisdom. Willy has been working in sales for as long as he can remember yet he was never able to recognize that his actions were taking him through a cycle of failure. He is not able to understand that success comes with hard work and dedication. At this point Willy is at a dead end. He refuses to actually put some work and effort into his business endeavors. He is at a point where everything that lay before him was composed of difficulties, trials, and tribulations. He led himself into a state of extreme poverty and he was relying on the financial support of his neighbor to provide for his family. Unfortunately, Willy had too much pride to speak to his family about the situation he has put himself into. He felt that eventually he would be able to work his way back up the ladder, however he was digging himself into a deeper hole with each new day. With all these difficulties the reader is compelled to feel sympathy for this helpless character which is a characteristic of a tragic hero; however he did not deserve an ounce of sympathy because a true tragic hero’s fate is much greater than what he truly deserves. Willy Loman’s fate was self inflicted. He had so many debts and a dead end job because he did not work. He would go on business trips and make a social hour out of it. His fate and situation was fully deserved. Another clear flaw in Willy’s character was he was given an opportunity to redeem himself, erase his past, and turn his life around. His neighbor Charlie, offered Willy a job. Charlie explained to him, â€Å"You can make fifteen dollars a week. And I wont send you on the road,† (Miller 969). For a man in desperation, this would seem to be an offer sent down from the heavens. However in the case of Willy, this offer was an insult and a direct shot at the little pride he was able to build over the years. Ultimately he rejected the job offer out of arrogance. Willy, who felt life should hand him amazing opportunities rejected a job that would make all his difficulties disappear. A tragic hero is known to make many mistakes along his journey. However, eventually they have an awakening and attempt to make a genuine change. Willy was handed the situation where he can make a genuine change and he selfishly denied it so people would not think of him as a lesser man; Willy fails to realize that people do not even bother to think of him as a man. Critics constantly argue that Willy Loman was left in a situation with no hope. They argue that Willy’s main concern was to keep his family happy and fully supported. Contrary to popular belief, he was a selfish and arrogant person who only cared for status and wealth. Had Willy been concerned about the state of his family and their survival, he would have jumped at the opportunity for a new job. He would not have thought twice about it and he would have accepted on the spot. This job could have turned everything around for him and his family. He was always explaining that he was worn out and, â€Å"tired to the death,†(Miller 924). It was apparent that he was no longer in shape to travel anymore, however he denied a job offer that gave him everything he desperately longed for, leaving one to question his true intentions. Was Willy truly concerned with the well being of his family? As Willy’s life passes him by, he misses the most important aspects of it. He is not able to realize that he has something many men long for. He has a wife, Linda, who is not concerned with the amount money he makes. She says â€Å"I don’t say he’s a great man. Willy Loman never made a lot of money. His name was never in the paper. He’s not the finest character that ever lived.†(Miller 948). However even after all these shortcomings, she makes it clear that her love for him will only grow stronger with each new day. He also has two sons, yet he always ignores them and has a bad relationship with them. He does not even attempt to reconcile with his sons. His son Biff resents him because he found out that his father was having affairs with other women while he travelled. His son Happy has never been put in the spotlight, or given any attention even though he is the most successful one regardless of his position of â€Å"assistant to the assistant manager.† Willy tries to convince himself that his family is the most important aspect in life, however he never truly tries to be there for them both physically and financially. All these problems cannot be blamed on capitalistic America. Instead there is no one to blame but Willy himself. He was not interested in the well being of his family; if he was, he would connect with his sons and he would rebuild his relationship with them. Willy’s actions are contradictory to the dream he so desperately appears to be chasing. He is having troubles maintaining stability within his home and therefore uses his business as an outlet to get away. He hits the road pretending to make sales when in reality he is after an unclear dream, status and pleasure. Willy brings all these problems upon himself causing his own hopelessness. Eventually all these problems begin to cause regret and denial in Willy. Instead of accepting the job offer from his neighbor he begins to think of other ways to get his family back on their feet. He realizes that he has no choice but to kill himself. He felt that he was, was worth more dead than alive (Miller). Willy was so pompous, he would rather end his life and provide his family with his insurance policy instead of taking a hit to his pride and admitting his wrongs. He did not want to be judged by others and therefore he rejected a perfect job opportunity, although nobody would judge a man that was trying to make a genuine change for the wellbeing of his family. He convinced himself that the only resort would be killing himself. He thought his suicide would show him in a more positive light and would allow him to pay off his debts, causing others to consider him a righteous and respectable man. He was willing to take his own life for the sake of some recognition, which he never received after he was gone. Arthur Miller put Willy Loman in such a situation because, â€Å"He was grieving for mankind, for man’s inability to connect with his fellow man, maybe for the need to dream. Miller saw the American Dream as a kind of curse, for it led us to mistake ambition for destiny, and to suffer the inevitable slump and crumble when reality makes mock of the dream† (Corliss). This play is not supposed to instill sympathy in the reader, proving that Willy was not created to be a tragic hero. Instead, he is supposed to be used as an example of how not to go about achieving your dreams and goals. One critic goes on to claim that Miller’s true intentions were to, â€Å"identify the sins of the father, of all the fathers who grabbed for too much, who didnt care enough,† (Corliss). Willy made mistakes which are human and acceptable, however he was given multiple chances to redeem himself and he rejected them out of arrogance. A person in despair should not be embarrassed to seek assistance and should accept advice from the wise people that surround him. People need to learn to connect and work with each other. Embarrassment and pride, similar to Willy’s case, will only lead to downfall. Critic Bert Cardullo summarizes the end of Willy by stating, â€Å"In fact, he [Willy] kills himself for money. Because he confuses materialistic success with worthiness for love,†(Cardullo 9). In conclusion, Willy Loman’s pride and delusions led him to commit suicide. Willy did not die the death of a hero he died the death of a man who was too full of himself. His actions would have been understandable if he was cornered and had absolutely no other choice to financially support his family. However, one opportunity after the other was thrown in his direction to redeem himself and his precious pride caused him to reject them. He felt his suicide would make all his problems disappear and bring his family happiness. A hero does everything in his power to fight until the end, yet Willy saw no hope and therefore saw no reason to continue living. Willy left his wife grieving over his grave, questioning why he would leave his family and causing them to endure all this pain. His entire life was based on working towards the American Dream and achieving the approval of others, but we see how far that got him when no one attends his funeral. Willy Loman did not truly desire the American Dream. He was in the pursuit of a warped version of success. He spent countless hours and business trips seeking the approval of others and sexual pleasures. His death and journey were not one of a tragic hero. Willy never admitted to his flaws and never attempted to turn things around. Simply put he was a selfish and self consumed individual. When he realized how deep the hole he dug himself into became, he arrogantly ended his life as an escape. He did not think twice about what he was leaving behind. Willy only cared for wealth and status, and when he realized he would never attain either, he no longer found a purpose for his life. Critic, Bert Cardullo, proves this point in his journal entry in the Columbia Journal of American studies by writing: â€Å"In fact, he kills himself for money. Because he confuses materialistic success with a worthiness for love,† (Cardullo). Willy’s perception of status and wealth being the epitome of success blinded him from the true purpose of life and the true American Dream. Such a character is an ill to society that does not deserve the honor to be classified as a tragic hero. â€Å"Willy Loman is an aging and mediocre salesman who will not grow up, but who will instead remain an impulsive and â€Å"mercurial† boy groping ineffectually for success in a world that pays him no heed,† (Thompson 245).

Major Musical Periods free essay sample

An interesting look at music through the ages with examples of music from the periods and their composers. In this paper the author looks at the characteristics of different time periods in music starting with Medieval music and cites examples in each category. The author then moves on to look at some prominent composers, including, (to name but a few), Purcell, Vivaldi, Shutz, Bach, Mozart and Beethoven, and shows how their works demonstrate the traits of the periods previously mentioned. The author concludes with a brief discussion of form and structure looking at various examples such as song form, themes and variations and sonatas. From the paper: Franz Liszt Liszt was a composer of the Romantic period and was among the first to arrange entire programs of solo piano music. He composed piano miniatures, solo piano music, transcription pieces, symphonic poems and symphonies. Some of his best known pieces include Mephisto Waltz, Totenanz,Leibestraum and the Hungarian Rhapsodies. We will write a custom essay sample on Major Musical Periods or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page

Global village free essay sample

What is meant by the global village? the global village is describing the world and how it has shrink into a village by the different media types, mostly importantly the world web making it extremely easy to pass messages to people across the globe. This making the world become like a village where people can contact others quickly and conveniently. The GAIA hypothesis? The whole idea known as the gaia hypothesis, is believed to be that the earth is considered as living organism. The earth is a very put together system that all living things have an effect on the earths environment, including the atmosphere, the temperature and the location of the earth to the sun are very important factors to the planet. Earth as a fragile plant? From all the planets that we know about in the solar system as far as we know earth is the only planet with life on it. We will write a custom essay sample on Global village or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Which means that the earth is able to give us the materials and the nutrients we need to survive, such as water, and oxygen. For the earth to provide us with what we need to live we take the materials it supplies for us. But as the more people living on the earth, the more we need of the materials. The more we use the more that the earth has to continue to supply for us. When people are taking advantage of what the earth is providing for us and cutting down more trees then it can give us the forests will disappear one day. We will have no more wood, paper and other things we get from it. Most importantly we will soon have our plants and animals that live in forests become extinct. The earth is very fragile. We need to treat it with care so we have it providing us with what we need for a long time, people need to reduce waste and use what it gives us more efficiently. Time space convergence? With transportation being much different then it use to be and much more Advanced there is the advantages of getting people and goods to different places quicker. People tend to measure the distance from point to point by minutes rather than kilometers which reduces the travel time between locations is similar to a reduction in actual distance between two places. The traveling of people and goods has become more advanced due to communications and transportation systems. Global village free essay sample America was a time of challenging authority and established conventions. It was into this era that a Professor of Media studies at Toronto University rose to media personality status. Marshall Mcluhan is famous for introducing society to catchy aphorisms such as â€Å"the medium is the message†. Although his theories have always been contested, they were popular at the time and are currently enjoying a revival. One such theory is his vision of the â€Å"Global Village† which I will discuss in this essay. To understand the term, a comprehension of some of his other ideas is necessary. Mcluhan was influenced by Harold Adams Innis who suggested that each medium of communication had a time â€Å"bias† which affected the stability of society. In short, he saw that â€Å"time biased† media such as stone carving would endure time and lead to a stable society. â€Å"Space biased† media, such as papyrus, could easily be revised and lead to an unstable culture (Meyrowitz 1985:17). We will write a custom essay sample on Global village or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Mcluhan went beyond this to suggest that different media have â€Å"sensory bias† (Postman went beyond this to argue that the medium contains an â€Å"ideological bias†). Mcluhan saw each new media invention as an extension of some human faculty. In The Medium is the Massage he notes, â€Å"All new media are extensions of some human faculty† (Mcluhan and Fiore 1967:26). The book illustrates some examples; the wheel of the foot, the book of the eye, clothing of the skin and electronic circuitry of the central nervous system. In terms of the â€Å"global village† the last extension is the most important. He saw us as breaking our ties with a local society and, through our new electronic extensions, connecting globally to a new world of total involvement. â€Å"We now live in a Global Village†¦a simultaneous happening† (Mcluhan Fiore 1967:63). He refers to the village as a global community, existing with a level of connection associated with small rural settlings. We can see evidence for this in terms of what is sometimes termed an â€Å"always on† culture. News travels instantaneously across the globe, 1 in 6 people own a mobile phone (Guardian 2002) and the Internet smashes old barriers of communication. However, the Internet was in its infancy when Mcluhan used the term, which was first used in response to radio. There is some debate over the origin of the term â€Å"global village†. Eric Mcluhan writes that James Joyce reffered to a similar phrase, as did Wyndham Lewis. His opinion is that his father was probably already developing the concept and found it referenced in Lewis’ work afterwards. Mcluhan’s view of the â€Å"Global Village† was positive. He saw it championing greater social involvement and wrote, â€Å"In an electronic information environment, minority groups can no longer be ignored† This is a technological determinist attitude as it holds the medium as the single key to their involvement. Mcluhan also notes, â€Å"there is absolutely no inevitability as long as there is a willingness to contemplate what is happening† (Mcluhan and Fiore 1967:25). This is rather at odds with some of Mcluhan’s other material. He often makes poetically powerful statements about our helplessness in the face of technology (â€Å"All media work us over completely† (Mcluhan Fiore 1967:26)). Digital TV offers increasing interactivity with Internet functions such as e-mail and online banking available next to greater entertainment choices. It is being put to an alternative use in sheltered housing by allowing residents in difficulty to contact the manager; an example of how new technology is including minority groups. However, with the advent of digital TV the Government has come under pressure to sell the broadcasting spectrum that analogue occupies and is planning to do so before 2010. The effects of this look set to create a greater divide than the one it healed. 50% of homes currently have digital TV but a third of homes are unable to receive digital TV at all. A report by the Department of Trade and Industry found that 6% of the population are likely to object to the switch-off based on the cost of upgrading and the belief that we watch too much TV (The Observer, 2004). If the analogue signal were to be switched off, those who couldn’t (or wouldn’t) receive digital TV would have no access to TV. The gap between rich and poor would accelerate and a greater social divide would exist. Technological Determinists refer to a â€Å"technological revolution† and since the invention of this term there has been concern for those left outside. The issue is more complex than Mcluhan presents it and subject to factors beyond that of just the medium. In Mcluhan’s time the Internet was far from the widespread facility it is today. He died in 1980, but only 5 years later the system to which the phrase â€Å"online community† is most pertinent was operational. Internet forums allow a number of people across the globe to converse in real time. The Internet seems to provide the most convincing argument for the â€Å"global village†. With broadband most actions are instant, allowing the user to converse, transfer money, view information and order products regardless of geography. Mcluhan’s idea of electronic circuitry extending the nervous system is easier to comprehend when you consider someone sitting down at a computer. The physical action of typing becomes the cause, but the effect is realised in an electronic global network. Meyrowitz notes how â€Å"At one time, parents had the ability to discipline a child by sending the child to his or her room-a form of ex-communication from social interaction† (Meyrowitz 1985:Preface). This is no longer the case. The Internet offers the possibility of extending our central nervous system across the globe. It is intrinsic in today’s society and much has been written over its social effects. Wellman and Gulia remark, â€Å"those on either side of this debate assert that the Internet will create either wonderful new forms of community or will destroy communication altogether† (Wellman: â€Å"The Networked Community†). The reality is unlikely to be as clear as this (although Mcluhan’s â€Å"global village† would suggest that it is). Meyrowitz has argued that new media blur the boundaries between public and private behaviour (Meyrowitz 1985:93-114). The same headline in a newspaper and read by a newsreader are two different messages. Print media does not invite the same depth of character analysis that TV does. The public broadcast begins to merge a private situation and invites a personal reading of the presenter. The personal homepage is an explicit example of the blurring between public and private boundaries. People from all walks of life are making available to the connected world their presentation of themselves. Cheung notes how it can be emancipatory as it allows you to rehearse your presentation (Cheung 2000). Unlike face-to-face communication you can refine your presentation until you are content. Mcluhan envisaged the â€Å"global village† as creating a greater level of social involvement and to some extent we can see this happening with the personal homepage. Individuals are reaching out to a global mass audience to say, â€Å"this is me†. Grosswiler notes that Mcluhan â€Å"would have agreed with the idea that electronic media increase the desire for closeness and intimacy in the Global Village† (Grosswiler 1998:118). However there is a problem in defining what we mean by â€Å"closeness and intimacy†. A personal webpage is more personal than the BBC homepage but not as personal as face-to-face communication. Mcluhan would argue that the â€Å"closeness and intimacy† on the personal webpage is the only type that exists as we live in the â€Å"global village†. For Mcluhan there was no other village and intimacy could be with anyone, anywhere. There is a tendency by those who consider the Internet in a technologically determinist way to view it in isolation. The Internet is for most people not the totality of their social interaction, although it is becoming increasing possible to live your life without human contact. It is possible to order almost everything you could need using the Internet, yet town centres still exist. I may talk to friends online but the majority of communication with them will be face-to-face. Mcluhan is often accused of exaggerating his conclusions and this is evident. While the personal webpage is popular it doesn’t provide a substantial system of interaction. It also clear that while a minority of people make friends online, face-to-face interactions comprise the majority. Mcluhan’s famous aphorism â€Å"the medium is the message,† represents the belief that the medium itself has social impact of which the masses are usually considered to be unaware. If the power of the media is so great, how is it that determinists such as Mcluhan can stand outside of it to comment? Furthermore Mcluhan thought that as soon as we are aware of something as environment, a greater process must be in effect (Mcluhan, Eric). However, Mcluhan was considered knowledgeable enough to sit on a board set up to examine â€Å"the totality of communications problems in modern society† (McBride cited in Briggs and Burke 2002:258-260). The outcome of this report would have made interesting reading but unfortunately political conditions halted proceedings. Maybe I would be discussing a different concept if the report had gone ahead. Mcluhan once remarked that the one thing a fish is not aware of is water. The water determines everything the fish does yet the fish is blissfully unaware. The point is that we are the fish and technology our water. However this doesn’t prove the argument, it simply explains it. At first glance the phrase appears clever yet contains no empirical evidence and is typical of Mcluhan’s inventive and persuasive useful of language. Mcluhan’s global village is perceived as optimistic. Yet a Marxist interpretation offered by Ang notes that â€Å"the making of the â€Å"global village† can be rewritten as the transformation, or domestication, of the non-Western Other in the name of capitalist modernity† (Ang 1996:150-180 cited in Grosswiler 1998:142). While the idea of the spread of communication remains constant, it is seen to destroy individual non-western cultures to make way for capitalist exploitation. The sociologist Tom Nairn argues that while Mcluhan’s â€Å"global village† could be reality, it is prevented from being so by the social forms of capitalism† (Nairn 1968:150 cited in Grosswiler 1998:34). He is not denying that it is achievable, but notes, â€Å"The potential of electric media is, in fact, in contradiction with a great deal of the actual social world†. He accuses Mcluhan of creating myths and ignoring the contradictions of his theory. The graphic below compare the distribution of Internet routers and the global population. (Soon-Hyung Yook, Hawoong Jeong, and Albert-Laszlo Barabasi at http://www. cybergeography. org/atlas/geographic. html) It is obvious from the map that the majority of the world is not connected. According to this the â€Å"global village† is made up of a minority of the worlds population. This is a model far from creating greater social involvement and has the potential to create a global divide between the connected and the unconnected. In my introduction I cited a statistic claiming that 1 in 6 people own a mobile phone in support of the â€Å"global village† concept. As with Mcluhan’s aphorisms this initially seems persuasive but closer inspection reveals the truth. The statistic suggests proportionality. As Briggs and Burke explain, â€Å"While there were 600 million telephones in the world in 1982, half the world’s population lived in countries which together had fewer than ten million†. Again this undermines the â€Å"global village† vision and adds empirical weight to Nairn’s criticism that the potential of the media is in contradiction with reality. As with the Internet, the â€Å"global village† is presented here as almost exclusively existing between developed western countries. Mcluhan’s vision dictated that minorities couldn’t fail to be incorporated, yet they have been excluded by virtue of being unconnected. Furthermore the Marxist view upholds that where third-world nations are included, it is only as means of stripping them of identity for capitalist ends. These points considered, it seems that Mcluhan’s vision is not a reality. Much of the world is unconnected and I need cite no evidence that it has not led to world peace. However, it should be noted that Africa is currently leading the way in the realms of mobile phone ownership. It has become the first continent in which the number of mobile phone users exceeds that of landline subscribers. A report â€Å"has estimated that there will be 60 million people using mobile phones by the end of the year more than double the 27 million who have a landline† and mobile phone ownership is growing at an annual rate of 65%, double the global average (Guardian, May 2004). It seems that we may be fast heading toward a â€Å"global village†. However even with Africa’s growth in mobile phone ownership, this still only brings the total to 6% of the population (Guardian, May 2004) and Internet access is considerably lower. While it may be true that a virtual village has been created, it is far from the all-inclusive global vision that Mcluhan prophesised. Global village free essay sample Global Village and its relevance in today’s society Nicholas Jones 1960’s America was a time of challenging authority and established conventions. It was into this era that a Professor of Media studies at Toronto University rose to media personality status. Marshall Mcluhan is famous for introducing society to catchy aphorisms such as â€Å"the medium is the message†. Although his theories have always been contested, they were popular at the time and are currently enjoying a revival. One such theory is his vision of the â€Å"Global Village† which I will discuss in this essay. To understand the term, a comprehension of some of his other ideas is necessary. Mcluhan was influenced by Harold Adams Innis who suggested that each medium of communication had a time â€Å"bias† which affected the stability of society. In short, he saw that â€Å"time biased† media such as stone carving would endure time and lead to a stable society. We will write a custom essay sample on Global village or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page â€Å"Space biased† media, such as papyrus, could easily be revised and lead to an unstable culture (Meyrowitz 1985:17). Mcluhan went beyond this to suggest that different media have â€Å"sensory bias† (Postman went beyond this to argue that the medium contains an â€Å"ideological bias†). Mcluhan saw each new media invention as an extension of some human faculty. In The Medium is the Massage he notes, â€Å"All new media are extensions of some human faculty† (Mcluhan and Fiore 1967:26). The book illustrates some examples; the wheel of the foot, the book of the eye, clothing of the skin and electronic circuitry of the central nervous system. In terms of the â€Å"global village† the last extension is the most important. He saw us as breaking our ties with a local society and, through our new electronic extensions, connecting globally to a new world of total involvement. â€Å"We now live in a Global Village†¦a simultaneous happening† (Mcluhan Fiore 1967:63). He refers to the village as a global community, existing with a level of connection associated with small rural settlings. We can see evidence for this in terms of what is sometimes termed an â€Å"always on† culture. News travels instantaneously across the globe, 1 in 6 people own a mobile phone (Guardian 2002) and the Internet smashes old barriers of communication. However, the Internet was in its infancy when Mcluhan used the term, which was first used in response to radio. There is some debate over the origin of the term â€Å"global village†. Eric Mcluhan writes that James Joyce reffered to a similar phrase, as did Wyndham Lewis. His opinion is that his father was probably already developing the concept and found it referenced in Lewis’ work afterwards. Mcluhan’s view of the â€Å"Global Village† was positive. He saw it championing greater social involvement and wrote, â€Å"In an electronic information environment, minority groups can no longer be ignored† (Mcluhan Fiore 1967:24). This is a technological determinist attitude as it holds the medium as the single key to their involvement. Mcluhan also notes, â€Å"there is absolutely no inevitability as long as there is a willingness to contemplate what is happening† (Mcluhan and Fiore 1967:25). This is rather at odds with some of Mcluhan’s other material. He often makes poetically powerful statements about our helplessness in the face of technology (â€Å"All media work us over completely† (Mcluhan Fiore 1967:26)). Digital TV offers increasing interactivity with Internet functions such as e-mail and online banking available next to greater entertainment choices. It is being put to an alternative use in sheltered housing by allowing residents in difficulty to contact the manager; an example of how new technology is including minority groups. However, with the advent of digital TV the Government has come under pressure to sell the broadcasting spectrum that analogue occupies and is planning to do so before 2010. The effects of this look set to create a greater divide than the one it healed. 50% of homes currently have digital TV but a third of homes are unable to receive digital TV at all. A report by the Department of Trade and Industry found that 6% of the population are likely to object to the switch-off based on the cost of upgrading and the belief that we watch too much TV (The Observer, 2004). If the analogue signal were to be switched off, those who couldn’t (or wouldn’t) receive digital TV would have no access to TV. The gap between rich and poor would accelerate and a greater social divide would exist. Technological Determinists refer to a â€Å"technological revolution† and since the invention of this term there has been concern for those left outside. The issue is more complex than Mcluhan presents it and subject to factors beyond that of just the medium. In Mcluhan’s time the Internet was far from the widespread facility it is today. He died in 1980, but only 5 years later the system to which the phrase â€Å"online community† is most pertinent was operational. Internet forums allow a number of people across the globe to converse in real time. The Internet seems to provide the most convincing argument for the â€Å"global village†. With broadband most actions are instant, allowing the user to converse, transfer money, view information and order products regardless of geography. Mcluhan’s idea of electronic circuitry extending the nervous system is easier to comprehend when you consider someone sitting down at a computer. The physical action of typing becomes the cause, but the effect is realised in an electronic global network. Meyrowitz notes how â€Å"At one time, parents had the ability to discipline a child by sending the child to his or her room-a form of ex-communication from social interaction† (Meyrowitz 1985:Preface). This is no longer the case. The Internet offers the possibility of extending our central nervous system across the globe. It is intrinsic in today’s society and much has been written over its social effects. Wellman and Gulia remark, â€Å"those on either side of this debate assert that the Internet will create either wonderful new forms of community or will destroy communication altogether† (Wellman: â€Å"The Networked Community†). The reality is unlikely to be as clear as this (although Mcluhan’s â€Å"global village† would suggest that it is). Meyrowitz has argued that new media blur the boundaries between public and private behaviour (Meyrowitz 1985:93-114). The same headline in a newspaper and read by a newsreader are two different messages. Print media does not invite the same depth of character analysis that TV does. The public broadcast begins to merge a private situation and invites a personal reading of the presenter. The personal homepage is an explicit example of the blurring between public and private boundaries. People from all walks of life are making available to the connected world their presentation of themselves. Cheung notes how it can be emancipatory as it allows you to rehearse your presentation (Cheung 2000). Unlike face-to-face communication you can refine your presentation until you are content. Mcluhan envisaged the â€Å"global village† as creating a greater level of social involvement and to some extent we can see this happening with the personal homepage. Individuals are reaching out to a global mass audience to say, â€Å"this is me†. Grosswiler notes that Mcluhan â€Å"would have agreed with the idea that electronic media increase the desire for closeness and intimacy in the Global Village† (Grosswiler 1998:118). However there is a problem in defining what we mean by â€Å"closeness and intimacy†. A personal webpage is more personal than the BBC homepage but not as personal as face-to-face communication. Mcluhan would argue that the â€Å"closeness and intimacy† on the personal webpage is the only type that exists as we live in the â€Å"global village†. For Mcluhan there was no other village and intimacy could be with anyone, anywhere. There is a tendency by those who consider the Internet in a technologically determinist way to view it in isolation. The Internet is for most people not the totality of their social interaction, although it is becoming increasing possible to live your life without human contact. It is possible to order almost everything you could need using the Internet, yet town centres still exist. I may talk to friends online but the majority of communication with them will be face-to-face. Mcluhan is often accused of exaggerating his conclusions and this is evident. While the personal webpage is popular it doesn’t provide a substantial system of interaction. It also clear that while a minority of people make friends online, face-to-face interactions comprise the majority. Mcluhan’s famous aphorism â€Å"the medium is the message,† represents the belief that the medium itself has social impact of which the masses are usually considered to be unaware. If the power of the media is so great, how is it that determinists such as Mcluhan can stand outside of it to comment? Furthermore Mcluhan thought that as soon as we are aware of something as environment, a greater process must be in effect (Mcluhan, Eric). However, Mcluhan was considered knowledgeable enough to sit on a board set up to examine â€Å"the totality of communications problems in modern society† (McBride cited in Briggs and Burke 2002:258-260). The outcome of this report would have made interesting reading but unfortunately political conditions halted proceedings. Maybe I would be discussing a different concept if the report had gone ahead. Mcluhan once remarked that the one thing a fish is not aware of is water. The water determines everything the fish does yet the fish is blissfully unaware. The point is that we are the fish and technology our water. However this doesn’t prove the argument, it simply explains it. At first glance the phrase appears clever yet contains no empirical evidence and is typical of Mcluhan’s inventive and persuasive useful of language. Mcluhan’s global village is perceived as optimistic. Yet a Marxist interpretation offered by Ang notes that â€Å"the making of the â€Å"global village† can be rewritten as the transformation, or domestication, of the non-Western Other in the name of capitalist modernity† (Ang 1996:150-180 cited in Grosswiler 1998:142). While the idea of the spread of communication remains constant, it is seen to destroy individual non-western cultures to make way for capitalist exploitation. The sociologist Tom Nairn argues that while Mcluhan’s â€Å"global village† could be reality, it is prevented from being so by the social forms of capitalism† (Nairn 1968:150 cited in Grosswiler 1998:34). He is not denying that it is achievable, but notes, â€Å"The potential of electric media is, in fact, in contradiction with a great deal of the actual social world†. He accuses Mcluhan of creating myths and ignoring the contradictions of his theory. The graphic below compare the distribution of Internet routers and the global population. (Soon-Hyung Yook, Hawoong Jeong, and Albert-Laszlo Barabasi at http://www. cybergeography. org/atlas/geographic. html) It is obvious from the map that the majority of the world is not connected. According to this the â€Å"global village† is made up of a minority of the worlds population. This is a model far from creating greater social involvement and has the potential to create a global divide between the connected and the unconnected. In my introduction I cited a statistic claiming that 1 in 6 people own a mobile phone in support of the â€Å"global village† concept. As with Mcluhan’s aphorisms this initially seems persuasive but closer inspection reveals the truth. The statistic suggests proportionality. As Briggs and Burke explain, â€Å"While there were 600 million telephones in the world in 1982, half the world’s population lived in countries which together had fewer than ten million†. Again this undermines the â€Å"global village† vision and adds empirical weight to Nairn’s criticism that the potential of the media is in contradiction with reality. As with the Internet, the â€Å"global village† is presented here as almost exclusively existing between developed western countries. Mcluhan’s vision dictated that minorities couldn’t fail to be incorporated, yet they have been excluded by virtue of being unconnected. Furthermore the Marxist view upholds that where third-world nations are included, it is only as means of stripping them of identity for capitalist ends. These points considered, it seems that Mcluhan’s vision is not a reality. Much of the world is unconnected and I need cite no evidence that it has not led to world peace. However, it should be noted that Africa is currently leading the way in the realms of mobile phone ownership. It has become the first continent in which the number of mobile phone users exceeds that of landline subscribers. A report â€Å"has estimated that there will be 60 million people using mobile phones by the end of the year more than double the 27 million who have a landline† and mobile phone ownership is growing at an annual rate of 65%, double the global average (Guardian, May 2004). It seems that we may be fast heading toward a â€Å"global village†. However even with Africa’s growth in mobile phone ownership, this still only brings the total to 6% of the population (Guardian, May 2004) and Internet access is considerably lower. While it may be true that a virtual village has been created, it is far from the all-inclusive global vision that Mcluhan prophesised.

How to Find Stories to Cover in Your Hometown

How to Find Stories to Cover in Your Hometown Are you looking for newsworthy stories to cover but don’t know where to start? Here are some places you can dig up ideas for news articles worth writing about right in your own hometown. Once you’re written your article, see if you can get it published in the local community paper, or put it on your blog. The Police Precinct If you want to cover the local crime beat, visit your local police precinct or station house (it’s good to call ahead first.) If you’re in a small town, get to know the police chief, detective and beat cops if you can. Ask them about any interesting cases or crimes they’ve handled recently, or ask to see the arrest log for a day-by-day listing of incidents. The Courthouse The local courthouse can be a treasure trove of stories. Your local district court will typically be where less-serious cases are dealt with – everything from traffic tickets to misdemeanor offenses – while a superior courthouse will be where felony trials are held. Check with the court clerk’s office to see what cases are due to be heard on any given day. Town Hall The city council, county commission, town board or village committee – whatever you call it, local government can be a rich source of stories for any reporter. Start by finding the website for your local town government. It will probably list times and even agendas for upcoming meetings. See what issues are being discussed, do some background research, then head to the meeting, pen and notebook in hand. The School Board School board meetings can also produce great stories. Again, school districts typically have websites that list school board meeting times and agendas. Such sites will probably list the members of the school board along with contact information, which can be useful for doing pre-meeting research or for doing interviews after the meeting. High School Sports Events Aspiring sportswriters need to look no further than their local high schools for games to cover. Many top sportswriters – those who cover the NFL, NBA, and MKB – got their start covering high school football, basketball and baseball games, among other sports. Check your high school’s website for schedules. Community Centers and Local Libraries Places like these often have bulletin boards listing upcoming events in your area. Such facilities also often host events like lectures from visiting speakers or authors or community forums. Art Galleries and Performing Arts Venues Is there a new exhibit by an up-and-coming artist at your local gallery? Review the exhibit or interview the artist. Is a community theater group performing a new play? Again, write a review or interview the actors or director. Local Colleges Colleges and universities typically host to a wide range of lectures, concerts, and forums that are often free and open to the public. Check the college’s website for listings of such events. Businesses Want to become a business writer? Interview local merchants for their thoughts on the state of the economy. Are their businesses thriving or struggling? Are new shops opening up or closing down on your local Main Street?

Strategic planning and Control Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

Strategic planning and Control - Coursework Example This learning statement is dedicated to outlining the learning that took place and how the learning came about. The module exposed me to two types of learning which were desk learning and field learning. Each of these two brought about different forms of learning for me. For example the desk learning which involved reading from books, articles and the PPT files given by the lecturer exposed me to concepts about planning and control. Today, I know that planning is the fulcrum around which any successful organisation revolves (Bazin, 2012). I have also come to learn that without planning, an organisation cannot be said to have a future (Gunder, 2003). Planning is also very important in setting targets based on several areas of the organisation such as marketing, taxes, logistics, research and development, promotions, and production (Roy, 2008). Indeed through the PPT, I have come to learn how to use PEST analysis, SWOT analysis, Ansoff matrix, Porter’s five forces and many more to strategically plan an organisation (Allmendinger & Gunder, 2005). The field learning involved those concepts and knowledge I acquired whiles involving myself in real interaction with people including colleagues in my team and customers on the market. As a result of the field learning also, I have come to learn so much about market demographic dynamics where I now that the best way to serve any given market is to have a thorough understanding of the different forms of needs available to the customer (Das, Binod, Kar & Rauno, 2012). Indeed the field learning also helped in developing several soft skills in me, most of which focused on communication skills, leadership skills, interpersonal relations skills, time management, ethics and courtesy, and critical thinking skills. An example of instance that can be cited as accounting for the development of the soft skills is when I needed to interact with

Pollutions and External Costs Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Pollutions and External Costs - Case Study Example The externality can be considered as one of the most important concepts which can be perceived on the basis of different aspects. The externality can refer to the cost of the factors that can affect business transactions mainly the group that used the factor to be able to be related to a group. Thus, the externalities then can be perceived in cases wherein the group being supplied gains profit (Gibson, 1996). Due to the fact that every factor and component of the environment even the economic aspect can be considered to have a price. For that matter, the sale of the products being produced can be of great effect to the supplier company, although it can be considered as an indirect effect. In the study of the effects of externality, it is important to determine that the effects of the said concept can either be positive or negative (Gibson, 1996; Hussen, 2000). A negative externality can be perceived when the side of the production or consumption of a particular product. One of the most significant examples of a negative externality in consumption is pollution. In such case then, externalities can be considered as an effect of the failure of the 3rd group. On the other hand, externality can also be positive wherein indirect actions in the society can improve the chance for good transactions. An example is the development of different types of remedies and medication (Gibson, 1996; Hussen, 2000). The presence of externalities can be questioned in terms of efficiency. This can be attributed to the fact that a system targets the efficient use of every part and every material. Due to the fact that externalities are based on the indirect effects of different factor, a sign of being weak, the study of the implications of externalities is a vital issue (Gibson, 1996; Hussen, 2000).