History Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 25

History - Essay Example w the nature of reality and truth (metaphysics); to understand how we know the things that we know (epistemology); the best way to live (ethics); the best way to govern (political philosophy); and the workings of the universe and the natural world (natural philosophy, or science). The Greeks were not the first civilization to wonder about these matters or to explore them, but they made answering these questions such a fundamental part of their cultural experience that they attained a very high level of intellectual advancement across all these areas. Their curiosity and experiments contributed to the development of Western civilization. Thornton is especially interested in the ways that the Greek civilization laid the foundation for modern day scientific and political thought. Scientifically, Greek philosophers laid the cornerstone for modern Western science. Long before the Manhattan Project and nuclear physics, the Greek philosopher Democritus argued that the world was made of tiny particles he called atoms. The Greeks were interested in what things were made of: A pencil was a pencil, but what was the pencil made of? Well, wood. And what was the wood made of? Though their answers weren’t always right, asking the questions was the most important step. And often, they were right: Anaximander theorized that the earth was round (basing this theory on the shadow it casts on the moon during an eclipse) centuries before Columbus sailed the ocean blue. The Greeks based their theories on a combination of scientific observation and rational thought, two things that form the basis of Western scientific innovation today. Most importantly, though, the Greeks gave Western science a passion for understanding the way that things work, and a willingness to make guesses and efforts in pursuit of that goal. The Western notion of government also owes much to the Greek model. Plato’s Republic outlines the model for a utopian society in which people are divided into groups

The Beach Essay Example for Free

The Beach Essay The beaches of Panama City is very nice, but overly crowded. The sand inhabited beach, relaxation in the sun, and fun times. Ah, you’ve arrived to one of your favorite places on Earth, the beach, the magnificent place that God created for relaxation and fun. The beautiful ocean right in front of you. The sand in between your toes, and the blissful sounds of the waves splashing against the shore line. You look around to see the yellow beam of sun shining down on you creating a sense of warmth and happiness throughout your body. You look around to see the different types of people, adults, children, teenagers. The adults are thrilled to be away from their overwhelming everyday lives and are finally able to relax. The children are all exceptionally thrilled about their time at the beach, with their beach toys and friends. The teenagers are thrilled to get to chill, and hang out at the beach, and to get away from their scheduled lives of school and sports etc. The sand surrounding the clear aqua ocean is being occupied by many beach towels, umbrellas and chairs. Children are sprinting in the sand and screaming at the top of their lungs as they splash in the water playfully, teens are creating conversation with new friends they’ve just met. You can hear the different types of people squealing at one another in the midst of playing and what not. You look around trying to figure out which fine dining establishment is sending the amazing smells of fresh seafood your way, hoping that maybe tonight you’ll be able to go chow down on your favorite foods. Beach shops prepare for their day of excited travelers bustling in and out of their small seafront shops. Opening their doors, they bring out all of the beach merchandise hoping to sell to the ongoing tourists. As the day comes to a fault there are still activities to be had, crabbing and night walks on the beaches. Some like to watch the sunsets that turns the sea a burnt shade of orange, and the skies a faint color of orange and a mixture of blue which sometimes can result in a pretty cotton candy color. If there are clouds in the sky, it gives a stunning grayish cast that can be quite interesting to look at. The beach is a wonderful place for relaxation, fun in the sun and an overall good time!

Current Macroeconomic Environment And Policy Of Australia Economics Essay

Current Macroeconomic Environment And Policy Of Australia Economics Essay A strong economy displays characteristics of maximizing growth as well as internal and external balance whilst minimising inflation, foreign debts and liabilities. There are various policies in Australia governing the macroeconomics including Fiscal and Monetary policies. Both these policies influence the economy through altering aggregate demand. In the last three years, since the onset of Global Financial Crisis, Australia has applied both expansionary monetary and fiscal policies to increase aggregate demand. There seems to be a general agreement amongst the economists with regards to the success of the monetary policy implemented. However the only general consensus with regards to the effectiveness of the fiscal policy is that there is no consensus. Key macroeconomic indicators Australias macroeconomic health same as the rest of the world is governed by factors of Gross Domestic Product(GDP),unemployment, price fluctuations, total nations income per year, interest rates, inflation, government spending, tax system, exchange rates, Consumer Price Index(CPI), consumer credit, foreign trades and value of currency. As oppose to Microeconomics, Macroeconomics deals with totals or aggregates. Gross Domestic Product Gross Domestic Product (GDP), is the single best measure of a nations economic wellbeing. It measures the total value of goods and services produced in a country in one single year (Liu,EC 5103 lecture notes,2009). GDP = Consumption + Investment + Government Spending + Net export. There are three approaches to calculating GDP Expenditure approach calculates the final spending on goods and services. Product approach calculates the market value of goods and services. Income approach sums the income received by all producers in the country. Problems with using GDP alone as a measure of economic wellbeing is that by itself, GDP does not give any information on income distribution in the country nor takes into account the effect of negative externalities on economic growth such as pollution or the effect of positive externalities such as health and education( Trading Economist, n.d). Taxes and interest rates influence GDP over time. Non economical factors influencing GDP include war, drought, natural and man made disasters. Figure 1. Australia GDP growth rate- Period 2006-2010 Source: http://www.tradingeconomics.com/Economics/GDPGrowth.aspx?Symbol=AUD#ixzz0i0dpV4ucConf_2009.htm Consumer Price Index The best price index measure is the Consumer Price Index (CPI). CPI is used to calculate the inflation rate and is also a measure of the change in cost of living over time. Business Cycle Fluctuations in economic activity over a period of time are reflected in the business cycle. Figure 2: Business Cycle Different stages of economy over a period of time Source: http://www.thebluecollarinvestor.com/blog/wpcontent/uploads/2008/11/business-cycle-graph-better.jpg The growth rate of Real Gross Domestic Product is used for measuring the fluctuations in the business cycle. Economists argue that higher interest rates can motivate the households for savings, and supply more loanable funds in the market, in form of bank deposits. Increased savings results in reducing foreign dependence which in turn accelerates economic growth due to higher investments. McKinnon (1973) and Shaw (1973) cited in Shrestha, M. B., Chowdhury, K. 2005, further assert that higher real interest rate also helps channel the capital to the most efficient industries and help development and technological advancement leading to economic growth. The aforementioned reiterates the fact that both fiscal and monetary policies are used to smooth out the business cycle. Commodity Prices and Trade One of the key contributors to Australias economic condition is the international economic activities in particular the commodity prices which is reflected in the Terms of Trade i.e. ratio of exports to imports prices (White, 1994). Since Australias export of commodities is large and the import is relatively stable, the world economy trades more with Australia hence strong Term of Trade is one of the key reasons for an increase in standard of living in Australia. The recent rise in global commodity prices due to increase demand in China and a drop in the price of imports mainly from China has allowed Australia to achieve a higher Term of Trade above its average. In 2005 Australia entered into an agreement with the US on Free Trade (Australian US free Trade Agreement- AUSFTA). Other countries that have FTA with Australia include New Zealand, Singapore, China, Japan, Malaysia and South Korea (Travel Document System, n.d). Farm output Farm output also appears to be a key determinant of the economic activity of Australia. This is influenced by factors such as drought. For instance, the major drought of 1980s was one of the key contributors to the disparities between the growth in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries and Australia (White, 1994). Government spending Government spending in infrastructure such as water, transport, telecommunication, education and health are aimed to expand Australias supply capacity such as plans to improve irrigation infrastructure and buy back unused water allocation along the Murray-Darling river. Environment: climate change Climate change must also be mentioned in this context. A report commissioned by the former Howard government recommended a domestic carbon emission scheme emphasizing that Australia should have an active role in developing a global carbon emissions trading scheme. The Rudd government aims to introduce a carbon trading system by 2011 and reduce emissions by 5% by 2020 (from 2000 levels). Interest Rates Interest rate is defined as the percentage rate per annum that a borrower pays to the lender or the cash rate which is the rate charged on overnight loans between the financial intermediaries. Interest rate has a negative effect on the money demand as shown below. Australia is a price-taker in global capital markets, so the Australian interest rates move with the global financial market trends. Interest rates are generally higher in Australia and New Zealand compared to the international standards largely due to strong fiscal policies relative to other developed countries (Kirchner, 2007, p. 11-15). In Australia, the Reserve Bank (RBA) determines the interest rate. It does so by changing the amount of money supplied, in other words by altering the equilibrium quantity of money supplied and money demanded. Australias interest rate is currently at 4.0 percent according to the data published by the Trading Economics in March 2010. Table 1. As at 31.03.2010, Australia has the highest interest rate amongst developed countries. The Reserve Bank of Australia 4% Bank of Canada 0.25% Bank of England 0.5% Bank of Japan 0.1% European Central Bank 1% Federal Reserve 0.25% Swiss National Bank 0.25% Source: http://www.fxstreet.com/fundamental/interest-rates-table/ Figure 3. A graphical demonstration of the effect of change in money supply on the interest rate. Source: Source: (Liu, EC 5103 supplementary notes, 2009) Figure 4. Australias Interest Rate- Period 2000-2010 Source: http://www.tradingeconomics.com/Economics/Unemploymentrate.aspx?Symbol=AUD#ixzz0i0ejiErm Unemployment rate Unemployment rate refers to the % labour force that are unemployed and actively pursuing a job. The unemployment rate is negatively related to the real GDP i.e. falling GDP results in an increase in unemployment and vice versa. As at January 2010 based on data published by Trading Economics the unemployment rate is 5.30 percent. Figure 5. Australia unemployment rate Source: http://www.tradingeconomics.com/Economics/Unemploymentrate.aspx?Symbol=AUD#ixzz0i0ejiErm Inflation rate Inflation rate refers to the % rate of increase in the average level of prices measured against a standard level of purchasing in the economy. According to the latest figures published by the Trading Economics the Inflation rate was 2.10 percent in December 2009. Inflation rate is best reflected in the CPI or the GDP deflator. Figure 6. Australia Inflation rate based on CPI- Period 2008-2010 Source: http://www.tradingeconomics.com/Economics/InflationCPI.aspx?Symbol=AUD#ixzz0i0eRh6VH Consumer Credit One of the major contributing factors that led to the recent Global Financial Crisis was the lack of regulation with relation to consumer credit originating in the United States. Money for institutions to borrow and lend was easily accessible which eventuated in sub-prime mortgages and what has come to be known as NINJA loans (No Income No Job or Assets). This toxic debt was then sold globally through various hedge funds. Although affected by the rest of the world through the freezing of credit markets, Australia has managed to remain in relatively stable position in comparison to the rest of the major economies. This, in part, can be attributed to the regulations enforced through the Consumer Credit Code (Appendix 1). Constant reviews and amendments of macroeconomic policy in relation to consumer credit regulation have contributed to Australias robust financial system in comparison to the majority of other developed nations  [1]  . Gold and Foreign Currency reserves The Reserve bank of Australia (RBA) has the responsibility of owning and managing the foreign currency and reserves for Australia  [2]  . On average, countries hold 10 per cent of their reserves in gold, although the proportion varies widely from one country to another. The Reserve Bank of Australia holds just 80 tones of gold, or 6 per cent of its total foreign reserves. The bank sold down its gold holdings in 1997 and its reserves are now largely held in US Treasuries and other government bonds. The reserves are used, when required, to keep the Australian dollar steady in times of volatility. (Bourlioufas,N. 2008). Several reasons exist for the reduction in gold holdings for Australia such as: Lack of income that it produces The cost of storage/security Inability to put value behind the Australian Dollar. Appendix 2 displays the RBAs current reserve holdings for 2009/2010. The amounts are displayed in Australian dollars and are subject to movement based on current exchange rates. Taxation (GST) One of the many aspects in taxation is the Goods and Services Tax (GST), which is a value added tax on the supply of goods and services in Australia. Until the introduction of the GST, Australia operated a Wholesale Sales Tax (WST), which imposed a tax on wholesale of goods. The GST was introduced to bridge the unfair tax gaps between service based businesses and suppliers of goods (GST Australia, 2009). In Australia the GST is levied at a flat 10%, which is collected from the buyer, which shifts the demand curve downward by the size of the tax, which effectively means both buyers and sellers share the burden of the tax (Mankiw, 2008). National income and output Measures of national income and output are used as an estimate of total economic activity by including Gross domestic profit, gross national product, and net national income. Each of these aspects is in relation with the total amount of goods and services within a country. The National income and output values are of importance for a variety of users such as the Reserve bank, academics, and private as well as the Australian government to allow the government to make interventions into the economy based off current and accurate information, as well. (Australia Bureau of Statistics, 2008) Macroeconomic Policies in Australia The goals of economic policy makers are: Maintaining real GDP growth constant and positive Maintaining unemployment rate low Minimising inflation The most important contributor to the economic growth is aggregate demand (effecting GDP). Both monetary and fiscal policies effect aggregate demand. How is this game being played? Should RBA consider a looser fiscal policy when determining interest rates? Or should the government consider the possibility of a rate cut when deciding on fiscal stimulus? Aggregate Demand (AD= C+I+G+NX) is effected by factors such as: Capital investment boom Rise/fall of exchange rate Consumer boom in a country that Australia has trade agreement with A boom in housing market A share price slump Unexpected cut/rise in interest rate Monetary policy Monetary Policy through the effect of the exchange rate influences the economy. Exchange rates also influence the inflation which in turn affects the trade (export and import). Exchange rates are influenced by factors such as commodity prices and interest rates. This reiterates how the determinants of macroeconomics are intertwined. Monetary policy is set by the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) to influence the supply (availability) of money and credit within the economy in an effort to stimulate growth and stabilise the financial system. Monetary policy influences the interest rates through purchasing and selling of government bonds. When RBA purchases government bonds to increase liquidity, it results a lower interest rate and lower unemployment. During the periods of high inflation, RBA sells government bonds resulting in an increase in interest rates. Effects of monetary policies are: In short term, a tight monetary policy results in a decrease in the prices of Goods and Services as well as higher disposable incomes hence an increase in the households demands. In long term, household demands decrease due to reduced income and increased unemployment. Reserve Bank Act 1959 establishes the objectives of the monetary policies  [3]  . Fiscal Policy: Fiscal policy targets both consumption and capital spending. It influences economic activities through government budget. The budget is announced yearly in May stating the government Revenue (T) and Expenditure (G). By varying the amount of spending, a fiscal policy may achieve one of the following: Fiscal surplus- when G Fiscal deficit- when T Balanced budget- when T=G When government wishes to stimulate economic growth, it applies an expansionary fiscal policy through increase in government spending and tax cuts which in turn increase consumption and investment. On the contrary, if government decides to slow down the economy, it applies a contractionary fiscal policy. Global Financial Crisis and Australias Response Deteriorating housing market in the US was the trigger to the onset of GFC in the world. Banks tightened lending policies; credit became more expensive and this led to a restrained aggregate demand resulting in weakness in world economic activity. The policies of governments around the world in response to GFC were aimed to address these weaknesses. Since the onset of GFC in 2007 Australia has responded by conducting monetary and fiscal policies. Both Short term and long term implications of these policies have to be considered to determine their effectiveness Analysis of Australias Monetary Policy in response to GFC During the GFC, expansionary monetary policies were implemented in Australia in response to the contraction in aggregate demand. RBA increased liquidity through multiple purchases of government bonds resulting in a decrease in interest rate through shifting the LM curve down and IS curve left. Figure 7. Shifts in LM and IS curve reflecting on the interest rate Source: http://www.rba.gov.au/econ-compet/2009/pdf/second-prize.pdf The lower interest rate led to a decrease in cost of borrowing which resulted in lower incentive for saving and ultimately led to an increase in consumption which resulted in the aggregate demand curve to shift to the right (figure 8). Figure 8. Expansionary Monetary Policy and its effect on Aggregate Demand Source: http://www.wcc.hawaii.edu/facstaff/briggsp/Macroeconomics/Chap_34_MonetaryFiscal.pdf Analysis of Australias Fiscal Policy in response to GFC The $42 billion economic stimulus plan of Rudd government between December 2008 and February 2009was intended to stimulate aggregate demand (Treasury, 2009). The focus of this package was mostly on investment in infrastructure which was predicted to have a larger effect on the economy in long run than in short run (Australian Government, 2010). It also provided incentives to housing as well as cash bonuses to stimulate consumption in short run. The inherent weakness of such cash bonuses is where people save their bonuses instead of spending it. Figures published by ABS demonstrate that immediately after the stimulus payments were made, there was a massive hit on spending by Australians households but this slowed down after 3 months (Insider retailing, 2010). According to the latest figures published by Trading Economics on 03.03.2010 and ABS, Australias economy grew at the fastest pace in the last quarter in almost 2 years. Table 2 demonstrates some of these figures published in this report. Table2: Australias economic figures March 2010. Percent Increase/Decrease % Comparison Period GDP à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ 0.9 Last Quarter Growth à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ 2.7 Last Year Current Account à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ 19 to $17,459 b at December 2009 September 2009 Machinery Equipment spending à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ 10.9 Last Quarter Households spending à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ1.8 Last Quarter Unemployment rate à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬Å" to 5.3 Last 11 months Australian Dollar à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ against $US and  £ British 25 year high against  £ British Interest rate à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ by 0.25 Source: http://www.tradingeconomics.com/Economics/GDPGrowth.aspx?Symbol=AUD#ixzz0i0diuCw6 Also http://abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/[emailprotected]/mf/5302.0/ Economists believe that the underlying reason for Australias Economic performance is Rudds Government stimulus package as well as increase in export however the widened account deficit of 19% in December 2009 figures is mainly due to an increase in imports. One of the consequences of this is expected to be a 1.3% decrease in Australias GDP therefore the recovery period is going to be weak (Market watch, 2010). Figure 9.Effect of fiscal stimulus on real GDP (forecasts from May 2009 Budget) Source: http://www.treasury.gov.au/documents/1686/HTML/docshell.asp?URL=Australian_Business_Economists_Annual_Forecasting_Conf_2009.htm The unemployment rate has dropped by 5.3% and the number of people employed has increased by 52700. This will put more pressure on RBA to increase interest (The Australian, n.d). Figure10. Effect of fiscal stimulus on the unemployment rate (forecasts from May 2009 Budget) Source: http://www.treasury.gov.au/documents/1686/HTML/docshell.asp?URL=Australian_Business_Economists_Annual_Forecasting Treasury secretary Ken Henry warns of the adverse shocks to financial markets despite the fact that GFC seems to have passed. Further more he explains that fiscal circumstances improve as the economy strengthens. As the economy strengthens, other things being equal, there is increasing upward pressure on prices and monetary responses to that (The Australian, n.d). In his book The Great Crash of 2008, the economic advisor Ross Garnaut, warns Kevin Rudd of hard times ahead in terms of lower living standards and economic wellbeing as a result of stimulus response to GFC (The Australian, October2009). Garnauts point of view is also shared by many other economists who consider the stimulus package a dangerous revival of a discredited Keynesianism which focuses on the short term aggregate spending as the source of growth in the economy. Some point out that fiscal policies result in an interest rate rise which has a crowding out effect on the expansion due to export and import. Hence they argue the ineffectiveness of Australias fiscal policy. The supporters of Stimulus package on the other hand argue that the spending avoided further economic contraction at the right time boosting consumers and businesss confidence and hence avoiding a recession. They also argue back with regards to trade issue pointed above, in the sense that Australias trade share is 47% of GDP which is less than the 60% quoted in previous studies as a benchmark of ineffectiveness of fiscal stimulus. They therefore argue that because of the lower trade share the fiscal stimulus has been effective in Australia (The Australian, n.d). Irving Fischer, the renowned American economist contributed to the economics in many ways one of which is his theory of Inter-Temporal Choice, which describes that through time savings, interest rates and investments are related(The Australian, n.d.). His theory highlights that present economic decisions have to have the future in mind  [4]  . Discussion There has been increasing concern amongst the economists in Australia about the sustainability of the fiscal policy in particular with regards to a solution for the current government deficit of $17.459 billion (Table 1). Australia has had challenging times in maintaining a stable economic condition. The recent Global Financial Crisis (GFC) that started in 2007 imposed great pressure on the economy. Nevertheless implementation of the fiscal and monetary policies achieved a better than expected performance by the economy (Budget, 2009-10), with forecasts of stronger growth and lower unemployment. Rudds Stimulus package through its fiscal expansionary characteristics seems to have been an appropriate response to the GFC in stabilizing the output levels however there is great concerns regarding the future of the economy. Did our politicians throw in a Keynesian based fiscal stimulus package without consideration of future consequences of it? Was there any vote buying elements incorporated in the design of it? There is a general consensus amongst the economists on the effectiveness of lowering interest rates as a monetary response to GFC by RBA which was also assisted by a depreciated exchange rate. On the other hand the fiscal policy has generated a lot of debate amongst the economists with no consensus on its effectiveness in sight. This is mainly due to the long lasting effect of the fiscal stimulus as oppose to short term, temporary and more reversible effect of the monetary stimulus. Kevin Rudds Fiscal stimulation concentrated on aggregate spending in short term to boost economic growth as per the Keynesian model. This has been proven to be the case in Australia however the unproductiveness of this large scale spending and the deficit resulting from it is far from a perfect economic condition. Does Kevin Rudd share the thought with John Maynard Keynes of in the long run we are all dead? If so are we, the Australian people supposed to suffer the consequences of his 17 billion dollars debt through our taxes, higher interest rates and higher inflation? If Irving Fisher was alive and if he was with Kevin Rudd when he was signing on the stimulus package, perhaps he would have reminded the prime minister that although his short term fiscal stimulus policy would increase public spending, it would show no regards to achieving long term high standard of living for Australian people. The side effects of the fiscal cash out include: Increasing future taxes to pay for the debts Higher interest Likelihood of inflation (as history shows us that the easiest way out of public debt has traditionally involved money creation). So was Kevin Rudds big night out worth the next days hangover of a budget deficit that adds to public debts which would further drain the economy? Or has the government designed an appropriate fiscal rebalancing strategy that it hasnt shared with Australian public yet?

Growth And Development In Babies Essay -- essays research papers

Babies grow and develop at a very rapid rate during the first year of life. They grow physically, mentally, emotionally and socially. However, through this portfolio, I intend to discuss the physical growth and development patterns of the infant through their first year.To begin with, development refers to the baby's increased skill in using various body parts. When dealing with the development of a child there are three basic developmental rules.First Developmental Rule:This rule states that babies develop in the head region first, then the trunk, and lastly in the legs and feet. Therefore, it is said that babies develop in a head-to-toe direction or cephalocaudally. For example, a baby can hold up their head before they can grasp an object with their hand. Also, they can feed themself before they can walk.Second Developmental Rule:The second rule explains that children develop from the midline, or centre of the body, outward toward the fingers and toes. This stage or rule is the one which affects the development of motor skills. Motor skills are the child's ability to control movement. There are two basic classifications of motor skills, gross motor skills and fine motor skills. Gross motor skills are those which involve the large muscles. Whereas, fine motor skills are those involving the smaller muscle groups. For example, a child can grasp a big ball in their arms before they can catch a baseball in their hands. The fine skills of hands and feet are the last to develop.Third Developmental Rule:Finally, this rule reveals that, as the brain develops, a child responds to more and more sights and sounds in their environment. Furthermore, they learn to respond to much finer details.The Baby's BodyIn this section, you will find specific break-downs of the baby's body parts. I decided to do this to show how the baby grows and develops in each area of their body. Also, you will see how these developing body parts affect the developing motor skills of the child. The following areas will be discussed, their size and weight, the head, brain, eyes, ears, arms and hands and finally, the legs and feet and the trunk.Size and WeightThe average baby is 20 inches long at birth, or 50.8cm. However, not all babies are born the same length, generally, lengths vary from 18-21.5 inches or 45.7-54.6 centimetres.The average baby weighs 7.5 pounds at birth, or 3.4 kilogra... ...eveloping control over her body.She can sit with support and may sit alone for short periods of time. She can roll over She will hold out her arms to be lifted up or reach and grab an object. She can hold her own bottle and toys. She laughs out loud, babbles, "calls" for help and screams when annoyed. Height-26 inches *Weight-16 poundsWhat can a 9-month-old baby do?At 9 months, she is exploring her environment.She can sit unassisted, crawl, pull to a stand and side-step along furniture. She can use her fingers to point, poke, and grasp small objects. She feeds herself finger foods She knows her name and responds to simple commands She uses "jargon"-babbling a pattern as if she were speaking a foreign language. Height-27.5 inches *Weight-19 poundsWhat can a 12-month-old baby do?At 1 year, she is striving for independence.She stands and may walk by herself. She climbs up and down stairs and out of the crib or play-pen. She prefers using one hand over the other and can drop and throw toys. She fears strange people and places. She remembers events, expresses affection, shows emotions, uses trial and error to solve a problem. Height-29.5 inches *Weight-22 pounds

Islam and Ramadan Essay

Ramadan in Britain during the early Eighties, when I was growing up, was very different from the way it is now. There was no awareness of the rotating month of fasting in the Islamic calendar, no flexibility to working hours, no facility for prayer in offices and no calls for prayer on television. For one month every year, my family and I would undertake this annual Islamic duty furtively, tip-toeing around for the pre-dawn meal for fear of waking up the neighbours with the kitchen clatter, and reluctant to talk about the practice for fear of censure or mockery. Four decades on, Ramadan is marked far more openly in Britain. Some employers are offering flexi-time to those Muslims who, from this week, will undertake a daily fast for 30 consecutive days that will involve around 19 hours of abstention from all food and drink – from sunrise to sunset. Some firms are allowing Muslims to begin their working day later, so they can catch up on sleep after waking up at 3am to eat, and to end their shifts earlier, so that they are not working when they are physically weakened. The Eid festival that marks the end of Ramadan is also increasingly celebrated in public venues around the country, including Trafalgar Square in London. Channel 4 announced last week that it would broadcast one out of five â€Å"calls for prayer† during the month-long fasting period. The channel called it a deliberately â€Å"provocative† act that would, it hoped, challenge prejudices that link Islam to extremism. It is not just Ramadan that has received a PR boost in recent times but fasting itself. In the early days of fasting – at school and then at university – I was often warned by well-wishers of the danger I might be putting my body under and that abstaining from eating and drinking water for long hours could do me harm. Now, fasting seems to have been reinvented as the ancients saw it – a way of giving the body a rest, cleansing both physically and spiritually, and a way of sharpening our collective sense of self-restraint. These objectives are being resurrected in our obesity-riddled Western world, with its binge culture, its childhood obesity and its addictions to food. Dr Michael Mosley’s Horizon investigation in 2012, which studied the effects of intermittent fasting, and in which he fasted two days out of every week (living on 600 calories during his fasting days) spawned the popularity of the 5:2 diet. Dr Mosley presented medical evidence for the life-extending and life-improving benefits of fasting on the human body, though this is still contentious territory in the scientific and nutritional community. Even grander claims came from American scientists last year who said that fasting for regular periods could help protect the brain against degenerative illness. Researchers at the National Institute on Ageing in Baltimore found evidence that a severe reduction of calorie intake for one or two days a week could protect the brain from the most detrimental effects of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. Aside from the health benefits, there are ethical reasons for fasting, too, even for the most irreligious amongst us. Steven Poole, in his book, You Aren’t What You Eat: Fed Up With Gastroculture, argues compellingly against the recent explosion of â€Å"foodie culture† in Britain, in which food has become a self-indulgent, status-bound and profligate middle-class pastime. Celebrity chefs are now worshipped, he says, and people post pictures of their meals on Facebook. â€Å"Western civilisation is eating itself stupid,† Poole writes. â€Å"The literary and visual rhetoric of food in our culture has become decoupled from any reasonable concern for nutrition or environment.† It is naà ¯ve to think that a few hours of abstinence will harm the majority of the overweight population in the West, though of course, those with certain ailments such as heart conditions or diabetes should avoid fasting on medical grounds (and are exempt from the obligation of Ramadan). After all, hundreds of thousands of people across the world have access to only one meal at best, and limited water, yet they live on. Mohammed Shafiq, founding member of the Ramadhan Foundation, believes that the persistent hunger and weakness of religious fasting may slow us down but it also increases our compassion for those who have been weakened physically in some way. â€Å"During Ramadan, you understand how someone feels when they live in a place with no food or water.† In this sense, there are gains to be made for the soul and its expanded capacity for empathy. Fasting leads us to think about our bodies, their dependencies and their frailties, as well as those of our fellow men and women. And that’s not a bad thing.

25+ Pieces of Writing Software You Should Know About

25+ Pieces of Writing Software You Should Know About 25+ Pieces of Writing Software You Should Know About 25+ Pieces of Writing Software You Should Know About By Ali Hale Of course, all you really need in order to write is a notebook and pen. But there are lots of software packages that can make life easier for writers. Whatever you want to be able to do, there’s almost certainly some software out there to help you. The list below includes the best packages to help you plan and structure a novel, share documents online with other people, format your screenplay or script correctly, minimize writing distractions, improve your English and more Collaborative Documents Often when writing, you’ll want to share a document with other people – either to ask for feedback, or to get them to add to it. All of these pieces of software allow you to share documents online, so that multiple people can have access to and edit them. I’ve found this very successful for receiving feedback from friends on my short stories. Google Docs FREE â€Å"You can easily do all the basics, including making bulleted lists, sorting by columns, adding tables, images, comments, formulas, changing fonts and more. And its free. †¦ Google Docs accepts most popular file formats, including DOC, XLS, ODT, ODS, RTF, CSV, PPT, etc. So go ahead and upload your existing files.† Writeboard from 37 signals FREE â€Å"Writeboards are sharable, web-based text documents that let you save every edit, roll back to any version, and easily compare changes. Use Writeboard to write solo or collaborate with others.† Word Processors Microsoft Word $324.99 for Microsoft Office 2007 Standard version $109.99 for Student version â€Å"Microsoft Office Standard 2007 offers the core Microsoft Office applications, but significantly updated for faster, better results. Comprised of Excel, Word, PowerPoint, and Outlook, this software suite empowers you to create high-quality documents and presentations, build powerful spreadsheets, and manage your e-mail messages, calendar, and contacts.† Word Viewer FREE â€Å"View, print and copy Word documents, even if you dont have Word installed.† Open Office FREE â€Å"OpenOffice.org 2 is the leading open-source office software suite for word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, graphics, databases and more. It is available in many languages and works on all common computers. It stores all your data in an international open standard format and can also read and write files from other common office software packages. It can be downloaded and used completely free of charge for any purpose.† As a hard-up student (who preferred to spend money on booze than software), I used Open Office throughout my degree, and found it an excellent alternative to Microsoft Office. It’s a whole office suite, so can also be used to replace Excel, Powerpoint and more. AbiWord FREE Famous open source word processor, and ideal for someone looking for a light and compact software. It comes with all the basic features that you would expect from a word processor, and it also supports different languages and operating systems. Fiction: Writing Novels and Screenplays If you’ve tried a bit of fiction and you want some help with writing longer pieces, there are a number of software packages you might want to try out. Here’s some reputable, well-established ones: New Novelist $54.99 download, $59.99 download and CD â€Å"If you’ve ever tried to write a novel (or even just thought about it), you know the routine. You just can’t put everything together. You’ve got to work step by step to write a great book, right? NOT ANYMORE! NewNovelist Software has turned the writing process on its head. With this revolutionary software, you can write your novel the way you want to.† I used version 1.0 of this myself, and it definitely helped me with my world building and pre-writing notes. None of the twelve structures it suggested quite worked for the novel I was planning, but you can change the headings to suit yourself. Character Pro (Now called Character Writer, see below) 60 days free, then $69.99 â€Å"Character Pro puts a proven system for understanding human behavior at your fingertips The Enneagram to create a character spine for your character. But thats only the beginning. Character Pro isolates each part of the character, provides tools and extensive help files to guide you to a well-rounded, complex and realistic character.† Quick Story (Now called Character Writer, see below) $49.99 â€Å"Create a basic story structure with the Story Generator then use the tree to organize your structure while you develop the story in the edit box on the right. Simply drag and drop or insert and delete story items until your story is perfectly structured.† Character Writer $69.99 This version combines features of both Character Pro and Quick Story, and is Java Based (so runs on almost any system), for $69.99. Writers Cafà © Demo version free, $45 download,  £32.90 (approx $65) on CD. â€Å"Writers Cafà © is a software toolkit for all fiction writers, whether experienced or just starting out. The heart of Writers Cafà © is StoryLines, a powerful but simple to use story development tool that dramatically accelerates the creation and structuring of your novel or screenplay.† Writing: Organising and Formatting your Manuscript One of the biggest headaches for fiction writers is coming to the end of a project only to realise that every scene or chapter is in a separate file (and sometimes in different formats), and that pulling this all together – and editing it to match editorial conventions – is going to take ages. These packages can help you keep things organised: Celtex FREE â€Å"Celtx is the worlds first fully integrated solution for media pre-production and collaboration. It replaces old fashioned paper, pen binder media creation with a digital approach to writing and organizing thats more complete, simpler to work with, and easier to share.† Scrivener 30 days free, then $39.99 Mac Only â€Å"Scrivener is a word processor and project management tool created specifically for writers of long texts such as novels and research papers. It wont try to tell you how to write it just makes all the tools you have scattered around your desk available in one application.† Minimise Distractions When Writing If you’re anything like me, distractions come up constantly when trying to write. Whether your problem is instant messenger, web browsing, email, or just using all the fancy formatting features on your word processor, a simpler writing environment can be the solution. Wordpad FREE If you’re running Windows, this almost certainly came free with your computer. Some people find all the extra bells and whistles of a full wordprocessor distracting when writing. If you have trouble knuckling down to write, Wordpad allows formatting (bold, italics, etc) and can be easier to use than Word. Write Room Free trial, then $25. Mac only. â€Å"For people who enjoy the simplicity of a typewriter, but live in the digital world. WriteRoom is a full-screen writing environment. Unlike the cluttered word processors youre used to, WriteRoom is just about you and your text.† Dark Room FREE Windows version of Write Room Both Write Room and Dark Room have a retro feel of green text on black background (though you can change the background of Write Room). I’ve used Dark Room when suffering from a severe bout of procrastination on my novel, and would certainly recommend it. Scientific Writing For specialised types of writing, such as creating scientific documentation, normal word processing software may not be enough. Latex FREE â€Å"LaTeX is a high-quality typesetting system; it includes features designed for the production of technical and scientific documentation. LaTeX is the de facto standard for the communication and publication of scientific documents.† Improving your English (for native and non-native speakers) The spelling and grammar checks built into word processors can often leave much to be desired. If your English is shaky, or if you’re learning English as a foreign language, you might want to invest in software designed to help you improve your grammar and style. JaLingo FREE This cool little program will bring a handy dictionary to your desktop, that you can use to confirm spelling of words or to check their meanings. The advantage of JaLingo is that it is OS independent, so it will work smoothly on most computers. WhiteSmoke $79.99 for â€Å"General† version, $99.99 for â€Å"Business† version other specialised ones. Executive writing version usually $250 but currently $125. â€Å"WhiteSmoke is an innovative software tool that improves and edits your English writing. Based on patented natural language processing (NLP) technology, WhiteSmoke performs advanced and context-based English grammar, spelling, and punctuation checking, as well as text enrichment to enhance your writing.† StyleWriter $160, which includes a â€Å"Software for writers† CD â€Å"Designed by journalists, editors and business writing tutors, StyleWriter gives you the skills of a good editor. Simply click the StyleWriter button in Microsoft Words or WordPerfects toolbar (or any clipboard text) to launch a check for thousands of faults and bad habits found in writing. Trimming the excess words, simplifying and clarifying your style, checking for good English usage - editing is easy with StyleWriter.† Typing Software After a mis-spent youth playing online text games, I learnt to touch-type without trying to, but I realise many people aren’t so lucky (or so geeky). Typing speed is a surprisingly big factor in being a successful writer, and if you’re still pecking away at the keyboard with two fingers, it’s worth investing in software to help you learn to type properly. Kaz-Type $19.95 download, $34.95 CD â€Å"KAZ will teach you how to learn to type and master your computer keyboard fast. Our interactive, multimedia typing tutor software uses a revolutionary learning method so you can learn to type really quickly without the need to resort to repetitive typing drills and games. Learning to touch type with KAZ is tested and proven with over 1 million users.† Miracle Type (Not Available Anymore) $19.99 â€Å"Miracle Type is the perfect answer for you if typing on your computer is just taking far too long or if you have given up in frustration after trying to teach yourself to Touch Type with other typing software.† Blogging Platforms If you run your own blog or website, you’ve almost certainly heard of WordPress and Movable Type. Both are content management systems that you install on space provided by your web host, allowing you to easily publish new posts to your blog and modify existing ones. WordPress FREE (but you’ll need to pay for web hosting) â€Å"WordPress is a state-of-the-art publishing platform with a focus on aesthetics, web standards, and usability. WordPress is both free and priceless at the same time.† Moveable Type FREE (but you’ll need to pay for web hosting) â€Å"Movable type is a professional publishing platform.† There are also many blogging services which will host your blog for you, such as blogger.com, livejournal.com, but these are more â€Å"sites† than â€Å"software† (you don’t install them on your own webspace.) Journalling Software At the moment, I journal on paper, as I like to get away from the computer screen and take fifteen minutes alone with my thoughts. I also enjoy writing with a good fountain pen, in a nice hardback notebook. However, this does make it hard to search for anything†¦ David RMs The Journal $39.95 download / $49.95 CD / $69.95 for â€Å"Writers’ edition† â€Å"The Journal is a powerful journaling and writing tool that can help you take control of your life. Create a digital scrapbook of your life! Organize your notes about your family, about your work, about a hobby, about anything. Write a short story, a magazine article, or even a novel. Remember your appointments, events, tasks special days! Find whatever youre looking for with The Journals powerful searching. Get inspired!† Debrief FREE basic version, $29.95 for standard version, $39.95 for professional version â€Å"Debrief ® is software for saving notes on your PC. Ideas. Experiences. Research. Thoughts. They come from projects, meetings, status, tasks, issues, changes, risks, decision, contacts, brainstorming, pondering, work, studies, school. Capture them while you can and put them to good use later† Suggested by Our Readers Final Draft $229 Use your creative energy to focus on the content; let Final Draft take care of the style. Final Draft is the number-one selling word processor specifically designed for writing movie scripts, television episodics and stage plays. This sure is not a cheap writing software, but it is supposed to be the industry standard when it comes to script writing. Q10 FREE A free alternative for Dark Room and WriteRoom, Q10 brings you a full screen word processor that will let you focus entirely on what you are writing. Additionally, it also come with customizable features like paragraph styling and live statistics about your pieces. Scripped FREE An online service that lets you write, edit and print your scripts straight on their website. The advantage is that you can work on your scripts from different locations and from different computers. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the General category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:"Because Of" and "Due To" 3 Types of HeadingsWhat is an Anagram?

Daily Record Gas Howard Essay

Daily Record Gas Howard Essay Daily Record Gas Howard Essay NEWS  » COMMENTARY  » BLOGS  » JOBS PUBLIC NOTICES SPECIAL PRODUCTS  » EVENTS  » SERVICES  » Howard County considers gas station restrictions By: Associated Press January 2, 2014 COLUMBIA - Howard County planning officials are considering whether to place limits on new gas stations built in the county. WBAL Radio reports the planning board is holding a hearing Thursday night on a proposal that would prevent business with more than four gas pumps from being built within 1,000 feet of an existing station. It would also restrict new gas stations from being built near schools, parks or environmentally sensitive areas. The Howard County Independent Business Association, which includes some gas stations, has been seeking the change. But the county’s planning director, Marsha McLaughlin, is recommending that the planning board reject the proposed restrictions. She said there is â€Å"no compelling reason† to change the current restrictions. Another business coalition, led by Royal Farms, is opposing the change. A spokesman said the convenience store chain is considering adding new stores in Howard County but has no definite building plans. Opponents released an economic study by the Regional Economic Studies Institute at Towson University showing that gasoline prices in Howard County are among the highest in Maryland because of the county’s current restrictions on gas stations. The study found the average price of gas in Howard County in 2012 was $3.65 per gallon, and only Montgomery County had a higher average at $3.70 per gallon. Dr. Darius Irani, the institute’s executive director, said Howard County’s current zoning restrictions limit where gas stations can be placed, helping to drive up prices. Former Howard and Anne Arundel County Planning Director Joe Rutter also is opposing the measure, saying it would discourage development of new supermarkets, convenience stores or car washes that also sell gasoline. â€Å"It flies in the face of wanting redevelopment that would be more mixed use, and attractive than the older facilities,† Rutter said. Read more: http://thedailyrecord.com/2014/01/02/howard-county-considers-gas-station-restrictions/#ixzz2xeIiD7iV Howard County considers gas station restrictions Planning board to hold hearing Thursday WBAL Published 12:20 PM EST Jan 02, 2014 1 NEXT STORY Official: Stevenson incident possibly 'poor judgment' VIEW LARGE COLUMBIA, Md. - Planning officials in Howard County are considering whether there should be limits on new gas stations in the county. RELATED Serious crash forces street closures... Police: Man robbed at gunpoint in... Board to vote on status of Md.... 3-alarm fire destroys Gaithersburg... Official: Stevenson incident... The planning board will hold a hearing Thursday on proposed restrictions that would prevent businesses with more than four gas pumps from being built within 1,000 feet of an existing station, a school, a park or an environmentally sensitive area. The Howard County Independent Business Association is seeking the change. The association's membership includes gas station owners. Another business coalition, led by Royal Farms, is opposing the measure. A spokesman for the coalition told WBAL-AM that the convenience store chain has no definite plans to build new stores in Howard County but is considering adding stores there. Former Howard County and Anne Arundel County Planning Director Joe Rutter will testify for the opponents. Rutter told WBAL that the proposed restrictions will discourage the development of new supermarkets, convenience stores or car washes that also sell gasoline. "It flies in the face of wanting redevelopment that would be more mixed use, and more attractive than the older facilities," Rutter told WBAL. Opponents have also released an economic study that shows that gasoline prices in Howard County are the highest in the Baltimore area and among the highest in the state because of the county's current restrictions on gas stations. The study by

The Cell - Prokaryotic and Eukaryotic Cells

The Cell - Prokaryotic and Eukaryotic Cells What Are Cells? Life is both wonderful and majestic. Yet for all of its majesty, all organisms are composed of the fundamental unit of life, the cell. The cell is the simplest unit of matter that is alive. From the unicellular bacteria to multicellular animals, the cell is one of the basic organizational principles of biology. Lets look at some of the components of this basic organizer of living organisms. Eukaryotic Cells and Prokaryotic Cells There are two primary types of cells: eukaryotic cells and prokaryotic cells. Eukaryotic cells are called so because they have a true nucleus. The nucleus, which houses DNA, is contained within a membrane and separated from other cellular structures. Prokaryotic cells, however, have no true nucleus. DNA in a prokaryotic cell is not separated from the rest of the cell but coiled up in a region called the nucleoid. Classification As organized in the Three Domain System, prokaryotes include archaeans and bacteria. Eukaryotes include animals, plants, fungi and protists (ex. algae). Typically, eukaryotic cells are more complex and much larger than prokaryotic cells. On average, prokaryotic cells are about 10 times smaller in diameter than eukaryotic cells. Cell Reproduction Eukaryotes grow and reproduce through a process called mitosis. In organisms that also reproduce sexually, the reproductive cells are produced by a type of cell division called meiosis. Most prokaryotes reproduce asexually and some through a process called binary fission. During binary fission, the single DNA molecule replicates and the original cell is divided into two identical daughter cells. Some eukaryotic organisms also reproduce asexually through processes such as budding, regeneration, and parthenogenesis. Cellular Respiration Both eukaryotic and prokaryotic organisms get the energy they need to grow and maintain normal cellular function through cellular respiration. Cellular respiration has three main stages: glycolysis, the citric acid cycle, and electron transport. In eukaryotes, most cellular respiration reactions take place within the mitochondria. In prokaryotes, they occur in the cytoplasm and/or within the cell membrane. Comparing Eukaryotic and Prokaryotic Cells There are also many distinctions between eukaryotic and prokaryotic cell structures. The following table compares the cell organelles and structures found in a typical prokaryotic cell to those found in a typical animal eukaryotic cell. Cell Structure Prokaryotic Cell Typical Animal Eukaryotic Cell Cell Membrane Yes Yes Cell Wall Yes No Centrioles No Yes Chromosomes One long DNA strand Many Cilia or Flagella Yes, simple Yes, complex Endoplasmic Reticulum No Yes (some exceptions) Golgi Complex No Yes Lysosomes No Common Mitochondria No Yes Nucleus No Yes Peroxisomes No Common Ribosomes Yes Yes Eukaryotic and Prokaryotic Cell Structures

Freedom from Fear Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Freedom from Fear - Essay Example The fear came as a result of a market crash that led to economic, political and social implications. Poverty, unemployment, deflation, minimal profits and poor personal and economic growth fueled the fear (Bernanke, 2004). The depression signified a time in history where the market dynamics failed to meet the expectations of the American people. The depression trickled down to other parts of the globe causing panic and fear. Furthermore, the depression led to critical, political changes in the United States. This can be explained by the landslide win of Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1932 (Bernanke, 2000). Lastly,  the depression caused increased emigration due to fear and panic experienced by the American people (Bernanke, 2004). The fear caused by the depression hindered the progress of the American people to a considerable extent. This is because some left the United States because of the deem future they pictured (Bernanke, 2004). Additionally, the economic and social situation presented many challenges that hindered the progress of the American people. However, behind the devastation, the fear helped the American people to regain their confidence and hope for a better future (Bernanke,

Career Exploration Assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Career Exploration Assignment - Essay Example Having been brought up in a business environment, my father played a gigantic role in helping me determine my career interest. I chose this career path because I believe that I have good communication and negotiation skills. I can also manage my personal records and supervise the work of others with much ease. Additionally, I am empathetic yet firm so I can handle business related challenges with ease. After I travelled to Riyadh, curiosity made me explore one of the colleges there. To my surprise, the courses offered there were in English which I was not familiar with. Upon asking for further guidance, I was advised to study the language because it is very instrumental in the world of business. Globalization has made the world a village and the majority of people communicate in English. Seeing that the language would boost y career, I decided to study it with much encouragement from friends and relatives. The desire to get the Saudi Arabian Cultural Mission (SACM) scholarship also made me work harder because students who get the chance get to study in the United Kingdom where the primary language is English. In part, I still wanted to achieve my childhood dream because I have an uncle who studied Information Technology and his career life is impressive so far. I enquired about his educational background from which I discovered that he studied at the Rochester Institute of Technology under a scholarship as well. I decided to apply for the same without much thought. Luckily for me, things did not go as desired because I was not offered the scholarship. The rejection opened my eyes and made me become more open to other courses. After much soul searching and consultations with my parents who were very supportive, I chose to study Entrepreneurship. From the information I got from my father and his colleagues, it was apparent that the business sector is one that is very promising. In fact, most of them stated that the positions of business

Development and Advancement of Science Research Paper

Development and Advancement of Science - Research Paper Example Cloning is a form of asexual reproduction which involves creating genetically identical genes or cells, plants or animals. The procedure of cloning is done by taking a gene from the animal or human and then putting that gene in another animal or human organisms. Scientists found out that cloning can also make identical twins by using a method called embryo splitting. In July 1996, a team of Scottish scientists had the first cloning success. Dolly was the first ever cloned sheep. Therapeutic cloning is practised to clone things such as organs and tissues for patients in need of them. Reproductive cloning is practised for the purpose of actually producing a human that is genetically identical to somebody else. Human cloning is the creation of a genetically identical copy of an existing, or previously existing human, by growing cloned tissues from that individual. The term is generally used to refer to artificial human cloning; human clones in the form of identical twins are commonplace . Human cloning is amongst the most controversial forms of practice. One of the most ethically questionable problems with human cloning is the farming of organs from clones. 1) Cloning has not been perfect yet. The cloning of sheep Dolly had 276 failures before successfully cloning a sheep. With these kinds of figures, we should not even go near trying to demonstrate cloning on humans. 2) Aldous Huxley in his book the â€Å"Brave New World† illustrates the future with people having a total loss of individuality, creativity, and freedom. This is because if humans are cloned then there would be a lot of the same people in the future.  Ã‚  

Hamza Yusuf Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Hamza Yusuf - Essay Example Yusuf often acts as a guest speaker at events coordinated by different subdivisions of the Muslim Students Association of the US and Canada. Together with Haten Bazian and Zaid Shakir, Yusuf is a co-founder of the Zaytuna College located in Berkeley, California. The college was established in 1996 and is dedicated to reviving traditional methods of study, especially with regard to the sciences of Islam (Ghazali 2011, 65). Yusuf is also a signatory of A Common Word Between Us and You, which is an open letter written by Islamic scholars addressed to Christian leaders, speaking to the need for peace and understanding. Yusuf has adopted a stance against all religious rationalizations for terrorist attacks. After 9/11, he typified the actions of the attackers as acts of mass homicide. Yusuf strongly condemns terrorist attacks arguing that Islamic is exploited as an innocent victim (Ghazali 2011, 115). Yusuf has authored an array of books and pamphlets, which seek to educate Muslims on pro per and ethical conduct. Thought Yusuf is renowned for a number of original thoughts, which are aimed at assisting Muslim lead fruitful lives devoid of evil deeds. One of his most notable thoughts is that of dunya. Yusuf typifies dunya as the illusory nature of the world; it consists of aspects that delude people into thinking that they are permanent fixtures in the world. Dunya also compels Muslims to think that they can transgress since they believe they are independent from Allah. In essence, Yusuf considers dunya as the element that takes Muslims away from the akhira (the after life), thus exemplifying Satan’s game. Satan’s game, according to Yusuf (2008, 69) is aimed purposely at detracting people away from the akhira through shaytan, which means to obstruct or make distant from the akhira. Therefore, Yusuf (Yusuf and Shakir 2007, 128) believes that dunya makes Muslims feel that dunya is nearer than the akhira. Islam argues that dunya is distant and equates it to attempting to reach for grapes that are beyond one’s grasp. This is the true character of dunya; one can never get it since it always evades people. Through his teachings, Yusuf seeks to teach Muslims that dunya is unimportant. He in turn demonstrates the importance of the akhira, which is the essence of all Islamic messages. Therefore, he argues that, in all their actions, Muslims must endeavor to head away from dunya and further towards the akhira. In order to delineate the true nature of dunya, Yusuf contrasts it to normal human actions. Yusuf (2004, 89) argues that seeking food to sustain a healthy body is not considered dunya, neither is earning enough money to meet one’s obligations or spend on halal. In order to justify his stance regarding dunya, Yusuf ponders on the assertions of the Holy Prophet of Islam that if Adam’s son had a single mountain of gold, he would then desire a second mountain. The Prophet argued that the son’s mouth would never b e filled, with the exception of the dust of his private grave. Yusuf takes this teaching to mean that dunya is deceptive since it compels people to desire more earthly possession than they need. Yusuf teaches Muslims to steer clear of the deluder and in turn move towards the akhira. In addition to this, Yusuf teaches that Muslims should avoid the delusion of dunya that it is possible to live both in the past and future. In turn, Yusuf believes that Muslims should always endeavor to live in the present. He argues that

Accounting and finance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Accounting and finance - Essay Example f the organization which will help them in making better and informed decisions; increase their job effectiveness and improve organizational performance (Needles et al., 2010). Management accountants play a role in all stages of a decision making process which involves planning, performing, evaluating and communicating. Their expertise in financial reporting will allow them assist in decision making process. Any business decision has to be based on sound financial knowledge and this is where management accountants are vital. The various areas of business that management accountants play a role are: designing of business strategy, resource usage, internal control, corporate governance, safeguard tangible/intangible assets, decision making, planning and controlling activities, value enhancement, performance improvement, etc (Collier et al., 2006). The role of the management accountants is limited to only serve the internal decision makes of an organization. The focus of management accountants is forward thinking. Management accountants use the financial information and design models that predict the future financial projections. Financial accountants also play an equally important role in effective business management. The role of financial accountants is to assist all stakeholders of an organization by preparing financial statements which summarises and indicates the financial health of the organization. Financial accountants are required to prepare financial statements that assist not only internal but also external decision makers such as shareholders, owners, lenders, banks, suppliers, etc (Loughran, 2011). Unlike management accountants, financial accountants are not seen as business consultants or advisors. The role of the financial accountants is to make the financial information of an organization available in a user friendly way to the stakeholders. Financial accountants are required to look analyse the past performance of an organization and prepare

Issues on Graduating With Student Loan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Issues on Graduating With Student Loan - Essay Example They don’t realize the fact that it is getting difficult for those students who do not belong to those affluent families who can afford it easily but they left behind although they do have the potential and capability, and they do deserve to achieve quality education to enhance and flourish their amazing skills and talents (Baum 75).According to my point of view, these students do have a right to enroll into good colleges and get high standard education because this is not their fault that they don’t belong to wealthy families, then they don’t deserve to be left behind. Before getting a student loan, one should not hurry up and make a decision of getting one. There are some issues which students should know, and then after resolving them, think whether they should go for getting a loan from their respective universities or not. It has been found during the past few years that the number of students who are finding it hard to pay of the student load is increasing. This is a grave issue faced by the universities and because of this; cost of educating student is rising like anything which is creating great trouble in providing educational services. The price of education being provided by both public and private institutions is rising by 37% and 25% respectively and around 18% rise in each borrower’s debt due to student loan (Moomaw 213). These statistics are clearly demonstrating the current student loan situation which should be analyzed and brought under consideration in order to stop and to fulfill the dreams of millions of deserving students (Moomaw 213). As there has been a parallel rise in the cost of education overall, universities are facing many issues in graduating students with the help of these loans as well as students are facing many problems. The student debt problem has to be resolved, and many people are coming up with some wise solutions like giving multiple proposals to the universities which includes different reven ue generating activities and convincing donors to provide more funds for the universities so that this financial problem can be fixed. Numerous types of proposals have been passed like increasing Pel Grants, student loan forgiveness and many others(Martin par. 6).. Spreading awareness among the borrowers is also another solution. This will not give an instant result in curing this issue, but at least one can make a try. But still, we have to look over to issues carefully and start working on them (Cooper 75). In order to decide whether graduating from a university with the help of a student loan will be worth it or not, the student needs to know about the pros and cons of this student loan. Some student loans provide a facility of deferred loans. This helps them to pay off loans once they get employed, but the issue with such types of student loans is this that in this case, the student will not grasp the real consequences of the debt. But this option is considered to be one of thos e which are seen as the last resort to many of the students. Here the issue that was faced by the universities and especially located in US was that more than half of the graduates, around 53.6%, didn’t have any job. They were unable to pay back their loan on time, causing many problems. Therefore, student loans should only be transacted to a student after analyzing his capability to pay it back in future; the lowest possible amount should be given which can be

Hamza Yusuf Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Hamza Yusuf - Essay Example Yusuf often acts as a guest speaker at events coordinated by different subdivisions of the Muslim Students Association of the US and Canada. Together with Haten Bazian and Zaid Shakir, Yusuf is a co-founder of the Zaytuna College located in Berkeley, California. The college was established in 1996 and is dedicated to reviving traditional methods of study, especially with regard to the sciences of Islam (Ghazali 2011, 65). Yusuf is also a signatory of A Common Word Between Us and You, which is an open letter written by Islamic scholars addressed to Christian leaders, speaking to the need for peace and understanding. Yusuf has adopted a stance against all religious rationalizations for terrorist attacks. After 9/11, he typified the actions of the attackers as acts of mass homicide. Yusuf strongly condemns terrorist attacks arguing that Islamic is exploited as an innocent victim (Ghazali 2011, 115). Yusuf has authored an array of books and pamphlets, which seek to educate Muslims on pro per and ethical conduct. Thought Yusuf is renowned for a number of original thoughts, which are aimed at assisting Muslim lead fruitful lives devoid of evil deeds. One of his most notable thoughts is that of dunya. Yusuf typifies dunya as the illusory nature of the world; it consists of aspects that delude people into thinking that they are permanent fixtures in the world. Dunya also compels Muslims to think that they can transgress since they believe they are independent from Allah. In essence, Yusuf considers dunya as the element that takes Muslims away from the akhira (the after life), thus exemplifying Satan’s game. Satan’s game, according to Yusuf (2008, 69) is aimed purposely at detracting people away from the akhira through shaytan, which means to obstruct or make distant from the akhira. Therefore, Yusuf (Yusuf and Shakir 2007, 128) believes that dunya makes Muslims feel that dunya is nearer than the akhira. Islam argues that dunya is distant and equates it to attempting to reach for grapes that are beyond one’s grasp. This is the true character of dunya; one can never get it since it always evades people. Through his teachings, Yusuf seeks to teach Muslims that dunya is unimportant. He in turn demonstrates the importance of the akhira, which is the essence of all Islamic messages. Therefore, he argues that, in all their actions, Muslims must endeavor to head away from dunya and further towards the akhira. In order to delineate the true nature of dunya, Yusuf contrasts it to normal human actions. Yusuf (2004, 89) argues that seeking food to sustain a healthy body is not considered dunya, neither is earning enough money to meet one’s obligations or spend on halal. In order to justify his stance regarding dunya, Yusuf ponders on the assertions of the Holy Prophet of Islam that if Adam’s son had a single mountain of gold, he would then desire a second mountain. The Prophet argued that the son’s mouth would never b e filled, with the exception of the dust of his private grave. Yusuf takes this teaching to mean that dunya is deceptive since it compels people to desire more earthly possession than they need. Yusuf teaches Muslims to steer clear of the deluder and in turn move towards the akhira. In addition to this, Yusuf teaches that Muslims should avoid the delusion of dunya that it is possible to live both in the past and future. In turn, Yusuf believes that Muslims should always endeavor to live in the present. He argues that

Issues on Graduating With Student Loan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Issues on Graduating With Student Loan - Essay Example They don’t realize the fact that it is getting difficult for those students who do not belong to those affluent families who can afford it easily but they left behind although they do have the potential and capability, and they do deserve to achieve quality education to enhance and flourish their amazing skills and talents (Baum 75).According to my point of view, these students do have a right to enroll into good colleges and get high standard education because this is not their fault that they don’t belong to wealthy families, then they don’t deserve to be left behind. Before getting a student loan, one should not hurry up and make a decision of getting one. There are some issues which students should know, and then after resolving them, think whether they should go for getting a loan from their respective universities or not. It has been found during the past few years that the number of students who are finding it hard to pay of the student load is increasing. This is a grave issue faced by the universities and because of this; cost of educating student is rising like anything which is creating great trouble in providing educational services. The price of education being provided by both public and private institutions is rising by 37% and 25% respectively and around 18% rise in each borrower’s debt due to student loan (Moomaw 213). These statistics are clearly demonstrating the current student loan situation which should be analyzed and brought under consideration in order to stop and to fulfill the dreams of millions of deserving students (Moomaw 213). As there has been a parallel rise in the cost of education overall, universities are facing many issues in graduating students with the help of these loans as well as students are facing many problems. The student debt problem has to be resolved, and many people are coming up with some wise solutions like giving multiple proposals to the universities which includes different reven ue generating activities and convincing donors to provide more funds for the universities so that this financial problem can be fixed. Numerous types of proposals have been passed like increasing Pel Grants, student loan forgiveness and many others(Martin par. 6).. Spreading awareness among the borrowers is also another solution. This will not give an instant result in curing this issue, but at least one can make a try. But still, we have to look over to issues carefully and start working on them (Cooper 75). In order to decide whether graduating from a university with the help of a student loan will be worth it or not, the student needs to know about the pros and cons of this student loan. Some student loans provide a facility of deferred loans. This helps them to pay off loans once they get employed, but the issue with such types of student loans is this that in this case, the student will not grasp the real consequences of the debt. But this option is considered to be one of thos e which are seen as the last resort to many of the students. Here the issue that was faced by the universities and especially located in US was that more than half of the graduates, around 53.6%, didn’t have any job. They were unable to pay back their loan on time, causing many problems. Therefore, student loans should only be transacted to a student after analyzing his capability to pay it back in future; the lowest possible amount should be given which can be

Political divide Essay Example for Free

Political divide Essay If we look at the issue of political divisiveness in the United States with the idea in mind that all politics are local, Mike Gates is probably correct in his assessment that the issue is ignorance and people who are too aware of their own opinions. Former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor might agree. Gates is a city council member in the small community of West Linn, Oregon, who did not run for re-election because of what he views as a a growing divide within his own community (2008). His reason, he said, is simple. â€Å"There are just too many people engaging in pure political fantasy. They have accumulated to a point where no one could possibly respond to all the nonsense,† (Gates 2008). In the West Linn case, the issue is one of the government’s ability to provide all the desired services that the city residents are demanding and how exactly the government should fund these services (2008). On a larger scale, this is the same debate that faces the nation as a whole. Many people believe that the United States government should solve all the country’s ills, from global warming and poor economy to the lack of health care. Those who believe that it is the government’s responsibility to assure that all men remain equal and therefore have exactly the same things also believe that to make sure everyone has their needs met, we should take from the rich and give to the poor. On the extreme other side of the coin, we have Americans who believe that a person should take individual responsibility for their own needs and not rely on the government. These people oppose higher taxes to pay for anything. It is a fundamental difference of opinion that has lead to a deeply divided country. This is the divide Gates observes within his community. The people want West Linn to provide more services, but do not want higher property taxes to pay for those services. Complicating the issue is the question of religious freedom versus freedom from religion, as observed by former Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, Sandra Day O’Connor. In a case regarding the inclusion of the word God in the Pledge of Allegiance, O’Connor â€Å"asked whether the schools pledge policy sends a message to nonadherents that they are outsiders, not full members of the political community. And, in concluding that it does not, OConnor emphasized that the pledge has been employed pervasively without engendering significant controversy and caused no political divisiveness prior to the filing of this lawsuit. (Garnett 2004). The Supreme Court justice tried to argue that a middle of the road approach, where those who disagreed with something simply chose not to participate, was appropriate. Unfortunately, this moderate approach was rejected by people on both sides of the issue. Instead of being happy with a compromise solution, it seems that people are more insistent on getting things their way. â€Å"More and more, our law seems suspicious of those divisions that our Constitution actually protectsthat is, the divisions that result when free people contend over difficult questions that matteryet indifferent to the harm done to religious freedom by demands for the privatization of faith and its segregation from civic life† (Garnett 2004). In this case, the author argued that removing God from the pledge was an imposition on the rights of the religious and the case had clearly claimed that the pledge’s use of â€Å"God† was an imposition on the rights of those with other or non-existent religious beliefs. Garnett and others seem more than willing to argue that the middle ground is not sufficient. All sides of an argument now claim moral superiority and believe that they must be given their way. This unfortunately contributes to a devisiveness from which the country cannot hope to recover.

Exploration of beliefs as a Early Childhood teacher

Exploration of beliefs as a Early Childhood teacher The purpose of this essay is to explore my beliefs as a teacher and how these beliefs will shape my practice as an early childhood teacher. The metaphor I have chosen is A Guardian Katiaki of a Flax bush Pa Harakeke. I will discuss my personal history and teaching beliefs in relevance to the metaphor I have chosen. There will be an emphasis on the importance of family and culture in my life and how it shapes my teaching practice and beliefs. I will also discuss some theories that support my practice and also talk on my image a young child. References to support literature will evident throughout this paper. The metaphor I have chosen that I believe best informs my beliefs as a teacher is A Guardian Katiaki of the Flax bush Pa Harakeke. I chose this metaphor because to me it symbolises the growth in life and in the early childhood profession. Before I can be refer to myself as a guardian, I consider myself of being in the life cycle of the Pa Harakeke. The Pa Harakeke is recognised within Maori society as a symbol of family and protection (Pihama and Penehira, 2005). It is also a visual representation of the importance of parents and elders as protectors. The centre shoot te rito symbolises the central importance of a child. The Harakeke is believed to have three inner layers which represent a family. The new shoot represents a child te rito which is protected by the next inner layer that represents the parents awhi rito. The outer layer symbolises the grandparents or ancestors tupuna. To me, this symbolises my childhood and how I grew up under the care of my parents and grandparents. I refer myself as a guardian now because I believe it is my responsibility to nurture for the child in the absence of their parents. I see this as a very significant role, because I can image how hard it must be for children to stay away from their parents for such a long period of time. As a guardian, it is my number one priority to make the child feel as safe, cared for and well looked after. Ministry of Culture and Heritage (2011) describes a Kaitiaki as a person who is recognised as a carer, protector, guardian or conserver. Another reason why I chose to describe myself as a Guardian of the flax bush is to emphasis my beliefs about seeing each child as an individual. The flax bush family has many different species, and varieties of flax. This symbolises children as individuals and unique in their own special way. It is the guardians responsibility to be knowledgeable about the different species, including its need for growth of each flax bush. Same thing applies to me as a teacher. To be a teacher, who sees children as affirmed individuals should have some depth of knowledge about each childs likes/dislikes, dispositions, strengths, health concerns etc. A great source to find this information is from the family. Families can provide valuable information on the child, which will help teachers get to know the child better. This is will help build trusting relationships amongst family, teacher and children. As a guardian it is also my responsibility is to nurture and promote the growth of the child as a whole in a safe/trusting environment. This makes significant links to the New Zealand Early Childhood Curriculum. It relates to the principles of Empowerment (Whakamana) where the child is encouraged to become independent and is provided with resources which will enable them to direct their own lives. There are also links to the principle of Holistic Development (Kotahitanga) where all dimensions (such as physical, social, cultural, spiritual emotional and cognitive) of human development is considered in understand the child as a whole (Ministry of Education, 1996). It is a personal belief that I have learnt from my own culture that to understand wellbeing every aspect of development must be considered. Duries model of the Te Whare Tapa Wha illustrates the four dimensions of Maori well being. These are physical health Taha Tinana, spiritual health Taha Wairua, family health Taha Whanau and mental health Taha Hinengaro. It is believed that our physical being only supports and protects us from the external environment and is one aspect of health well-being. Spiritual health relates to us as individuals or as a community about who/what we are, where we have come from and where we are going. Traditional Maori analysis on physical illness will focus on the the Taha Wairua to determine whether harm here could be a contributing factor. Family health relates to the importance of family. It links to our ancestors, our ties with the past, the present and the future. This dimension makes significant links to the Pa Harakeke. It relates to the importance of family in the health and well being of a person. The last dimension concerns mental health as thoughts, feelings and emotions are vital ele ments of the body and soul. It is about how we see ourselves in the world, our ability to communicate and to feel that our mind and body are inseparable (Durie, 1998). Another health model which is relevant to providing depth in understanding holistic development is Rose Peres model of Te Wheke. The concept of Te Wheke (the octopus) is a symbol used to represent family. Each of the eight tentacles represents a dimension of well being. The tentacles of the octopus are overlapping and interwined to symbolise the interconnected and inseparable nature of the dimensions (Pere and Love, 2004). These Maori health models relate closely to the concept of focusing on a childs well being as a whole. Both models include the valued importance of family/whanau and their contribution to a childs health and wellbeing. The life cycle of the Pa Harakeke consists two major parties that are central to the child te rito, these are the parents and grandparents. This metaphor was very relevant to me because my parents and grandparents were the most important people in my life from birth. They played the role of a guardian, protector and carer, but also as my first teachers. I have always had a very strong bond with my parents and grandparents, which is still there till this day. Claiborne and Drewey (2010) explain how love and acceptance generated towards children by adults/family can positively impact on their health and growth. My family plays an important role in my life. They have always been there for me, and it is because of them of their encouragement and faith in me that I am doing this course. Sometime I feel as though my family are like a group of cheerleaders. They cheer me on, when I am about to loose hope, they give me the support and confidence to keep on going, and for that I am very grateful to have a family that is so loving and supportive. My teaching philosophy is based on building respectful relationships with each childs parent/family because I believe they are the first teachers in every childs life. My ultimate goal is to achieve close relationships with parent/families and stand alongside them in partnership to assist and provide experiences that will best support their childs learning and development. Fraser (2005) suggest that through collaborative partnership between teachers and family children experience a sense of continuity and care which encourages them to learn and grow. This metaphor also highlights the concept of culture. It indicates my knowledge and understanding of bicultural awareness. I believe biculturalism is important in the early childhood sector and that all children should be given the opportunity to develop knowledge and understanding of the cultural heritages of both partners of the Treaty of Waitangi (Ministry of Education, 2010). One reason why I chose to use the metaphor of A Guardian of the Pa Harakeke is because; to me it portrays my achievement in learning about the Maori culture and understanding a different perspective on how we see the world around us. I believe that every child should have the opportunity to learn Te Reo Maori because it is the language of our land and we need to be teach children to be proud of it. I have made it a personal goal to learn as much as I can about Maori culture to further my knowledge and understanding. In order for me to teach children about Maori culture, I need to know about it myself. Culture plays an important role in my life as student teacher and it influences my teaching philosophy daily. Wong (2005) states children learn through cultural tools available to them which include childrearing practices, language, customs and rituals. I believe this quote is very important to me, because I have learnt to be responsive, and caring through seeing my little cousins being bought up with such love and care. Culture is all around us and we can see the different cultures through our multicultural society. Every culture will be different in the ways it transmits cultural knowledge because cultures have different goals for the development of children and different ways of communication knowledge to children (Claiborne, 2010, p160). I was born in the Fiji Island and my nationality is Fijian Indian. My ancestors are from India, therefore as a child, my parents/grandparents taught me a lot about my culture and my ancestral background. I also learned about the Fijian culture be cause I consider Fiji as my motherland and I am very proud of my country. However when I was ten years old, my whole family migrated to New Zealand. When I moved to New Zealand, I experienced a multicultural community. I had to adapt to the diverse culture/lifestyle of NZ, but I also retain the roots of my cultural beliefs. A major theorist that focused on the interlocking systems of family, culture and environment is Bronfenbrenner. Bronfenbrenners ecological systems model emphasises the influences of society and culture in an individual childs life. The immediate relationships and surroundings around the child is called the Microsystem. In this layer the most important influence would be parents/family and also the early childhood centre the child attends to. In the childs Mesosystem the child experiences a sense of connectedness between home and early childhood setting. The excosystem relates to the childs connections with larger social systems. It does not have an active role in the childs immediate context but does have influence the child Microsystem. For example a parent who is employed, is able to provide resources for the child, however if the parent was to lose this job it will cause fiancial stress associated to the provision of those resources and this is likely to cause negative impact on t he parent-child relationship (Wong, 2005).The Macrosystem relates to the large cultural patterns which include cultural values, customs and laws. For example cultural contexts that value children and families may manifest ideological and organisational structures in society, which result in the provision of good quality, affordable and accessible childcare (Wong, 2005, p18). Language acquisition is also a complex component of cultural system (Crain, 2011). According to Wong (2005) every culture has its own language and it holds knowledge about the uniqueness of being in that cultural community. Vygotsky argued that language is the most vital symbolic tool in development. I believe that language is an important part of cultural norms. Through language, we can express cultural views and relate to each other within the same community. I am trilingual, being able to speak Hindi, English and Fijian. I am fluent in all three languages and I believe it is a great advantage in this field of work. Parents/family that speaks the same language may feel more comfortable conversing more openly about their feelings and what they except of their childs learning. It can help in expressing and talking about concerns in a more comfortable manner. Vygotskys sociocultural cognitive theory is an emphasis on how culture and social interactions guide cognitive development (Santrock, 2009). Vygotskys believed that child development occurred as a result of natural and cultural activities. He referred to cultural activity as social processes through which we learn to use cultural tools and to think (MacNaughton and Williams, 2009).He argued that children need to be directly taught new concepts rather than waiting for them to make their own discoveries (Crain, 2010). Vygotsky introduced the concept of Zone of Proximal which was a term used to differentiate between a child actual development levels as determined by independent problem solving and the advanced level of potential development as determined through problem solving with the help and guidance of a skilled adult (Claiborne, 2010). According to MacNaugton (2009) good quality scaffolding allows for joint problem solving. This concept provides great depth and understanding on how childrens knowledge and understanding can be extended. As a teacher I want to be able to provide children with opportunities for exploratio n but also guide them to extend their learning. I believe that the reason why Vygotskys concept of Zone of Proximal is appealing to me is because I remember I was guided through task I was not able to do. One significant memory that I have, which is an example of the concept of Zone of Proximal is when I was five years old, I got my first pair of lace up shoes. Every where I went I wanted to wear them and my parents always had to put them on for me. One day I decided to do up my laces on my own, I tired and tired for a long time but I just couldnt do it, my mother was standing on the side, watching me try and tie my lace up. So as soon as I was about to give up, she intervened and helped me do them up. She went through it with me step by step. It took me a few days until I independently did up the laces myself, it memorable moment for me because I was so proud to be able to do it all by myself. Therefore I want to become a teacher who gives children opportunities to feel proud of their achievement knowing that they did something a ll by themselves. I want to be able create an atmosphere where they feel they are valued and have a sense of self worth. My image of a young child is that each child is an individual have unique qualities that define them as who they are. Before I started my Bachelors in Early Childhood Education, I didnt know what it would be like. I decided to do early childhood because I simply enjoyed being around child. Through the past 2 years of ongoing research, and attending lectures I have really learned the importance of the early years of life and the meaningful learning and development that occur during this time. After my two years in training as a student teacher, I have a more clear vision of a young child. A young child is strong, powerful, and competent learners who need to be challenged and encouraged to form their own working theories about the world they live in. I believe that play is very valuable to childrens learning and development in the early years. Through play children have the opportunity to engage in open ended exploration (Gonzalez-Mena, Widmeyer Eyer, 2007). In conclusion, the metaphor of Guardian of the flax bush, explained my personal beliefs as a teacher. My teaching beliefs are formed from my childhood experience. I learnt the importance of family and culture as I was growing up, and till this day it plays a major role in my life. As a teacher I believe that children should be experience a safe, secure environment where they are cared for and their needs are met. As a student teacher, I have learned to recognise the childrens health and well being as a whole. This means recognising all dimensions of well being. The two models that provide insight on the importance of all dimensions of health are Peres Te Wheke and Duries Te Whare Tapa Wha models. Children are our future and my aim is to provide each child with the opportunity to grow up as competent and confident learners and communicator, healthy in mind, body, and spirit, secure in their sense of belonging and in the knowledge that they make a valued contribution to society (Minist ry of Education, 1996, p9).

Comparing Low Calorie, Low Fat, and Low Carbohydrate Diets Essay

Comparing Low Calorie, Low Fat, and Low Carbohydrate Diets Comparing low calorie diets, low fat diets, and low carbohydrate diets involves looking at how they work, what problems they have, and what foods are allowed, restricted, or prohibited on each diet. Therefore, it is essential to keep in mind the recommended daily allowances of each nutritional component of a diet at non-weight loss conditions. The major nutritional components of a diet are grouped into the major categories fat, carbohydrates and sugars, and proteins. There are also vitamins and minerals that are not a group of their own but are associated with each category – there are different vitamins in each category. The body uses each of these components for a different purpose and needs each in a different amount. One of these needs is energy – energy to keep the heart beating, the brain working and all the various mundane aspects of day-to-day living. Any excess energy is stored as body fat. If it ever needs energy, the body can dip into these reserves – burn fat. Schematically, a healthy, non-weight loss conditions diet can be represented by a pie chart with each nutritional component as one proportionally sized piece of the pie. Each different diet – low calorie, low fat, and low carbohydrate – changes the pie in a different way. On a low calorie diet, the entire pie is shrunk. The proportions of fat, carbohydrates and sugars, and protein are kept the same but fewer calories are consumed. This way, the body does not receive all the energy it needs from the food that it intakes and is thereby forced to dip into its energy reserves – i.e. body fat. But, in cutting down on calories, the amount of other essential nutritional components, such as vita... ...it into cheese. Sweets are completely forbidden. Meat is also allowed, hence the nickname ‘the meat and cheese diet.’ And, most vegetables are allowed and must be consumed to remain healthy. Low calorie, low fat and low carbohydrate diets all aim at reducing the amount of energy obtained from food so that the body is forced to burn fat for fuel. Each has a different proscribed menu. Low calorie diets focus on restricting portion size and overall amount of food eaten while low fat and low carbohydrate diets eliminate fats and carbohydrates respectively. Because each type of food contains a unique set of vitamins, people who practice each of these different diets must be mindful of which vitamins their diet is not providing in adequate amounts and compensate accordingly. Works Cited: http://www.weightlossforgood.co.uk/fat_information.htm