Summary of Why a Global Language Essay Example For Students

Summary of Why a Global Language Essay Summary of Why a Global Language In why a Global Language, author David Crystal explains what a global language is, how English has become the global language of today, and also why it is important for the world to have a global language. The article begins with David Crystal going explaining how English is the global language today. He explains how English is everywhere, it can be found all around the world, even headlines in other countries are written in English. From here David switches views and shows the reader that not everyone understands English, others all around the world, view English differently. We will write a custom essay on Summary of Why a Global Language specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now English is not everyone’s first language and some even may feel threatened that because English is growing so quickly, it makes their first langue’s seem powerless. David ends this first section saying that it is natural for people to feel overwhelmed or threatened by English, but as English grows, everyone is able to benefit more from one global language. In the next section of the text, David Crystal Explains what a global language is. He explains that for a language to be a global language when it has developed a â€Å"specific role† in other countries. This â€Å"specific role† basically means that a certain amount of people needs to understand this language. It is because of second languages that the use of a global language has become inevitable. English is becoming the global language today because in over 100 countries English is taught to students as a second language. The next section talked about by David is â€Å"what makes a global language? † He goes on to explain that the number of people who speak the language is important but it isn’t quite as important as how powerful the group of people who speak the language is. If a small country is somewhat powerless and becomes taken over by a much larger more powerful country, then chances are the country is going to start using the larger country’s language as their main language and the existence of the old language will go away. Also different languages are adapted faster or slower depending on how easy they are to lean. English is derived from many other languages witch makes it easy to learn. And also English is gender exempt. Language has a lot to do with the culture of the language’s people. The last part of the article explains why a global language is needed. As the technology of the world today is growing so rapidly, communication around the world is more necessary now than it has ever been in our past. With the increases of international contact, it has become more important that a global language is set up to allow easy communication. Because English is already known by so many, it has made its way to becoming the next true global language. Paraphrase Practice pg. 354 paragraph 14 The strength of a language depends less on how many people speak it and more on the power of the people who do speak it. Languages don’t live anywhere other than in the minds and mouths of the people who speak that language, if these people were to die off or somehow forget their language, the language is going to die off. If a culture is strong and powerful, the language is going to be spread along with the culture and grow. If the culture is weak or dyeing off the language of that culture is going to be weak and die off with it.

Año fiscal en EE.UU. y efectos migratorios

Aà ±o fiscal en EE.UU. y efectos migratorios En Estados Unidos, el aà ±o fiscal del gobierno federal son los 12 meses comprendidos entre el 1 de octubre de un aà ±o y el 30 de septiembre del siguiente. Se le denomina FY por sus siglas en inglà ©s. Las fechas de inicio y final del aà ±o fiscal federal se fijaron en 1976 con el objeto de que el gobierno tuviese tiempo suficiente para presentar su presupuesto para el aà ±o siguiente y obtener su aprobacià ³n. Puntos Clave: Aà ±o fiscal Aà ±o fiscal federal : 1 de octubre al 30 de septiembre del aà ±o siguiente.Los estados establecen las fechas de sus aà ±os fiscalesLas empresas pueden decidir cules son los 12 meses de su aà ±o fiscal.El aà ±o fiscal federal afecta a visas, loterà ­as y green card. Aà ±o fiscal de los estados en EE.UU. Los 50 estados y los territorios de Estados Unidos pueden fijar las fechas de sus propios aà ±os fiscales para los asuntos dentro de sus competencias. En la actualidad, solo en el aà ±o fiscal Alabama y Michigan coincide con el federal de 1 de octubre a 31 de septiembre del aà ±o siguiente. Por otro lado, 46 estados inician su aà ±o fiscal el 1 de julio y lo finalizan el 30 de junio del aà ±o siguiente al igual que el Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico. Finalmente, en Nueva York el aà ±o fiscal corre del 1 de abril al 31 de marzo y en Texas del 1 de septiembre al 1 de agosto. Aà ±o fiscal (fiscal year) y aà ±o impositivo (tax year) Para los negocios, el Servicio de Ingresos Internos (IRS, por sus siglas en inglà ©s) distingue entre aà ±o fiscal y aà ±o impositivo. El aà ±o fiscal para las empresas son 12 meses consecutivos cuyo dà ­a final coincide con el fin de un trimestre, es decir, 31 de marzo, 30 de junio, 30 de septiembre o 31 de diciembre. En la mayorà ­a de los casos es la propia empresa la que decide cundo empieza y finaliza su aà ±o fiscal y lo utiliza en su propia contabilidad. El aà ±o impositivo o de pago de impuestos (tax year) de una empresa puede coincidir con su aà ±o fiscal o con el aà ±o de calendario, es decir, del 1 al 31 de diciembre. Por otro lado, las fechas para presentar las planillas de impuestos (IRS filing) son las que fija el gobierno para todas las empresas, segà ºn su tipologà ­a. Aà ±o fiscal y estadà ­sticas migratorias Inmigracià ³n es una competencia del gobierno federal de Estados Unidos, por esta razà ³n todas las estadà ­sticas se computan teniendo en cuenta su aà ±o fiscal. Por ejemplo, en el FY18 se aprobaron 236.526 visas de inmigrante en la categorà ­a de familiares inmediatos. Esto quiere decir que entre el 1 de octubre de 2017 y el 30 de septiembre de 2018 la cantidad citada de cà ³nyuges, padres, madres e hijos solteros menores de 21 aà ±os de ciudadanos estadounidenses obtuvieron la tarjeta de residente permanente por peticià ³n del ciudadano. El aà ±o fiscal se puede dividir en trimestres (Q, por su sigla en inglà ©s). El primer trimestre (Q1) comprende desde el 1 de octubre al 31 de diciembre y asà ­ sucesivamente hasta llegar al cuarto (Q4) de 1 de julio a 30 de septiembre. Por ejemplo en Q1FY18 las autoridades migratorias aprobaron 140.467 ajustes de estatus. Eso quiere decir que de 1 de octubre a 31 de diciembre de 2017 ese nà ºmero de extranjeros obtuvieron la tarjeta de residencia permanente por ese trmite. Aà ±o fiscal: là ­mites y retrasos en categorà ­as de visas El aà ±o fiscal tiene un gran impacto en los casos en los que se concede un nà ºmero fijo de una determinada categorà ­a de visas por aà ±o fiscal. Es lo que se conoce en inglà ©s como annual cap. Este problema del annual cap afecta tanto a algunas visas no inmigrantes como a algunos tipos de visas inmigrantes, por ejemplo: Visa H-1B para profesionales y modelos. Si bien hay importantes excepcionesVisas U para và ­ctimas de la violenciaVisado T para và ­ctimas de trfico humanoH-2A y H-2B para trabajos en agricultura y no cualificadosPeticiones de green card de ciudadanos para hijos solteros mayores de 21 aà ±os, hijos casados y hermanos y de residentes permanentes para sus cà ³nyuges e hijos solterosVisa EB-5 para inversionistasConcesià ³n de estatus de asilado o refugiado polà ­ticoLoterà ­a de visas de diversidad En los casos en los que el nà ºmero de solicitudes en una determinada categorà ­a de visa es superior al là ­mite fijado por aà ±o fiscal se pueden producir dos situaciones diferentes. En primer lugar, se producen retrasos, que pueden llegar a ser enormes por acumularse aà ±o tras aà ±o ms peticiones que visas disponibles, como es el caso de la visa U que tiene asignado un mximo de 10.000 visas por aà ±o fiscal y que lleva en estos momentos un retraso superior a tres aà ±os y medio para que USCIS decida sobre los primeros pasos de si aprueba el permiso de trabajo. Otro ejemplo de retrasos por esta causa se da en las peticiones familiares en las categorà ­as con là ­mites anuales. Las demoras pueden verificarse mes a mes en el boletà ­n de visas. En segundo lugar, se celebra una loterà ­a entre las solicitudes y se procesa la visa para quien gana. Es el caso, por ejemplo, de la visa H-1B para profesionales. En general funciona de la siguiente manera: Existe un là ­mite anual por aà ±o fiscal de 20.000 visas para los profesionales que estudiaron la maestrà ­a en EE.UU., otra de 65.000 visas para profesionales en general y, finalmente un cupo de 6.500 visas para à ºnicamente ciudadanos de Chile y Singapur. El 1 de abril se abre el plazo de presentacià ³n de solicitudes. Los seis aà ±os anteriores, a los cinco dà ­as ya habà ­a ms peticiones que visas disponibles y se cerrà ³ el plazo. A los pocos dà ­as se celebrà ³ la loterà ­a y quienes no la ganaron deben presentar de nuevo la solicitud, si asà ­ lo desean, al aà ±o siguiente. Cabe destacar que no todas las H-1B estn sujetas a là ­mites. Por ejemplo, cuando el patrocinador es un instituto investigador o educativo puede pedir las que necesite a lo largo del aà ±o. Adems, la administracià ³n del presidente Donald Trump est elaborando nuevas directrices y es posible que se anuncie la obligatoriedad de pre-registrarse. Aà ±o fiscal y fechas para presentarse a H1-B y loterà ­a de visas Con respecto a la visa H1-B la normativa vigente dice que las solicitudes pueden presentarse seis meses antes del inicio del aà ±o fiscal para el que se aplica. Excepto en los casos ya nombrados de excepciones en los que los solicitantes no estn sujetos al là ­mite anual, est ocurriendo que hay ms solicitantes de visa que nà ºmero de visas y asà ­ durante meses no se puede emitir ninguna nueva, hay que esperar al nuevo cupo con el nuevo aà ±o fiscal. Esto quiere decir que si un extranjero que aspira a una visa H-1B que no est exenta del là ­mite anual debe esperar al 1 de octubre, es decir, al inicio del aà ±o fiscal. Sin embargo, para obtenerla la empresa patrocinadora debe presentar los papeles 6 meses antes. Por ejemplo, para una visa del FY20 debe presentarse la solicitud el 1 de abril de 2019. Con respecto a la loterà ­a de visas para obtener la tarjeta de residencia, tambià ©n conocida como green card, el plazo para registrarse gratuitamente se inicia al comienzo del aà ±o fiscal, generalmente en torno al 3 o 4 de octubre, y finaliza un mes despuà ©s. Por ejemplo, para participar en la loterà ­a de visas (DV por sus siglas en inglà ©s) del aà ±o fiscal 2021 (DV21), el solicitante debe registrarse en la pgina oficial en octubre de 2019 hasta principios de noviembre de ese mismo aà ±o. Todo el proceso se demora para los ganadores hasta el 30 de septiembre de 2020 y ya podrà ­an disfrutar de su green card a partir del 1 de octubre de 2020, esto es, el aà ±o fiscal 2021. Este artà ­culo es meramente informativo. No es asesorà ­a legal para ningà ºn caso concreto.

Was alexander the great really great Research Paper

Was alexander the great really great - Research Paper Example ign, Alexander conquered many territories and until to date, he is considered one of the brilliant military leaders who used unique tactics to bring down their opponents. The main reason why he was called the â€Å"Great† because of his victory in conquering the Persian Empire (Anson 2). This paper explores the legacy of Alexander the Great and presents an argument that he was really the great. Notably, Alexander was named the â€Å"Great† after his death and he is known worldwide as Alexander the great since then. The question that arises from this is whether he really deserves to be called the great or not. Undoubtedly, Alexander the Great was great, for instance, he was a great conqueror who managed to establish the largest empire in the ancient world. The greatness of Alexander is usually covered in respect of his achievements, conquests and influence when he was a king. Arguably, establishing great cities is one of his greatest legacies. Alexander established one of the largest empires in ancient history, which acts as one of his biggest achievements that made him popular. He was able to stop Persians from encroaching further upon Greece, and he conquered an empire that stretched from the Balkans to modern- day Pakistan. As Anson (1) noted, Alexander’s conquests spread over two million square miles. There are many cities, about fifty-eight, in the world that are named after Alexander the Great. The names that were given to these cities showed that the founder, Alexander wanted these cities to be great and prosperous (Anson 183). Secondly, he was a great military tactician because he won almost all the battles that he was involved in. His unique tactic was to attack in more than one direction simultaneously and this enabled him to win many battles and defeat his opponents accordingly. Alexander was a good soldier who never hesitated to lead his army in his attempt to conquer the world and motivated them by being part of them during the battles. His military

Issues of Race, Class and Gender in A Rose for Emily Essay

Issues of Race, Class and Gender in A Rose for Emily - Essay Example The use of the derogatory term â€Å"negro† is a clear picture of author’s intensions. Faulkner actually conveys the experience of the African American in the period the story was written. By using the tern â€Å"negro† or â€Å"nigger† to describe African Americans, shows how stripped they were. Faulkner uses some of these derogatory terms to elucidate prejudices suffered by African Americans in the South. Another example is in the text "he who fathered the edict that no Negro woman should appear on the streets without an apron" (308). From this text, one can clearly see that colonel Sartoris’s intentions were to enforce rules in which African Americans were to be seen as workers, not people who socialized. â€Å"Of course a Grierson would not think seriously of a Northern, a day laborer" (Faulkner 311) is such an ironic statement which can be examined from different perspectives to bring out different meanings, depending on the reader. However, t his statement could be termed as an ironic humor to describe such a pretty and obvious extension of bigotry. The statement could be analyzed to bring out a picture of sexualized master-slave relationship. Fathering the edict seems to in some way be fathering the women, to be fathering that state of affair. Gender The role of gender is apparent in ‘A rose for Emily’. Faulkner’s commentary on role of women in society is clear. He believes that women are inferior to men, something close to second class citizens. For example, in the text, "he who fathered the edict that no Negro woman should appear on the streets without an apron" (Faulkner 308) is an indication of the place of women in the society. In fact, the aspect of gender is clearly portrayed right from the beginning of the story. Faulkner begins the story by saying that â€Å"When Miss Emily Grierson died, our whole town went to her funeral: the men through a sort of respectful affection for a fallen monumen t, the women mostly out of curiosity to see the inside of her house†¦Ã¢â‚¬ . This statement can be analyzed to mean that women are less honorable. Moreover, Faulkner believes that a woman’s true value to society is her appearance. He actually spends a lot of time describing Miss Emily’s appearance throughout the stages of her life. Characteristically, he doesn’t detail any male character as vividly as he does to Emily. Since the text presents just the one word â€Å" fathered, â€Å" one can not be in a position to clearly explain its context by a way or text alone but would find that word heroic, another neutral abstract. Therefore, it can be argued that the sexual- intercourse that took place between whites and Negroes could be a sign of just paternalism. â€Å"No one should appear on the streets without an apron† this far, the statement could be portraying and identifying servants that show their state of conduct as workers. This means that the y should be distinct from other classes of people. Social class The aspect of social class is portrayed in different ways. The character Tobe highlights the role of race in the setting of the story. Tobe is seen to be disrespected and dehumanized throughout the story. For example, judge Stevens refer to him as â€Å"†¦ that nigger of hers...† (Faulkner 319) this evidently shows the dehumanization of blacks as low class people. Amazingly, the townspeople don’

Coca Cola Company and its Product Modifying Method Essay

Coca Cola Company and its Product Modifying Method - Essay Example Currently, Coca Cola is undergoing a series of transformations specifically in the production of its products with the aim of ensuring it meets the set standards provided by the FDA. The company is now looking into the details of most of its recipes in order to ensure that it produces beverages that are in line with the recommendations and regulations of FDA. Given that research findings opine caffeine as well as tannin mixtures with cancer related causes, people are taking a step forward towards doing away with products said to have such ingredients in their contents (59). Change of such consumer market has seen most companies head towards the verge of losing a large market base. However, in order to ensure continued profitability, Coca Cola which happens to be one of the world’s largest producer and distributor of beverage products resolve to come into terms with the FDA standards which require companies to observe health regulations and recommendations.On March 7, 2012, Coc a Cola Company asserted that its use of caramel coloring in preparing its drinks has always resolved to put into consideration the necessary requirements and thus is safe. Douglas Karas, FDA spokesperson stated that FDA is working round the clock and ensuring that companies like Coca Cola and Pepsi provide their consumers with quality beverages that pose no challenge to the users. According to Beverage Digest, one of the most active industry trackers, PepsiCo and Coca Cola hold the largest percentage.

Disaster Management Planning For Earthquake

Disaster Management Planning For Earthquake The risk for disaster occurs when the social, physical, environmental and economic vulnerabilities are hit by hazards. The biggest volumes of disasters are mainly a result of events originating hydrometeorogically. Even in the face of gradual understanding of the significance of reduction of disasters and disaster response capabilities, disasters continue to be a global problem especially the one of disaster management techniques. It is now globally accepted that plans should be put in place to reduce the risk of a disaster. The plans should be conceptualised and brought into action in spheres such as policies, programmes for poverty reduction and should be assisted by international and regional cooperation. Poverty reduction, proper governing and sustainable development are mutually cooperative plans along with disaster management. Efforts have to be made at a rapid pace to put in place the required plans to counter any threats posed at the regional and international level by disast ers. Introduction The occurrence of such disasters has continued to increase in a rapid succession. More than three million lives were lost due to disasters in the last quarter of a century itself. This number does not stop as billions have been affected in some way or the other. The cost of rehabilitation from these disasters has run into thousands of billions alone. The increase in the population of the world only enhances the chance of disaster risk which could cause massive casualties and harm to the human life in large numbers. The six billion mark in world population was reached on the 16th of November in 1999. The annual growth rate was estimated at nearly 1.33 %( seventy eight million every year). There is a greater risk on account of the industrialization and vast urbanization since a lot of people are moving to urban areas which do not have sufficient health care and infrastructure in place. Energy is released after accumulation in the volcanic activity or geological faults which cause seismic waves to bring about movement of the crust which is known as an earthquake. Humans are able to only detect three thousand earthquakes from the total of five hundred thousand earthquakes that occur every year. 7 to 11 out of these 3000 earthquakes cause significant damage to property and human life though this figure has increased the past few years. The toll of death due to an earthquake can range from as less as five to higher than two hundred and forty thousand. One out of two cities in a developed country is susceptible to a natural hazard like earthquake. Seventeen of the twenty largest cities are situated in countries with low resources. Eighty percent of the population of the world will reside in developing countries by the year 2025 according to an estimate. The research on natural disasters is of a lot of significance in case of developing countries. What is a Disaster? Many definitions have been put forward regarding disaster. Samuel Henry Prince started the study related to disasters in 1971 in Canada during the worst disaster witnessed in Canada. The disaster in point is the ship explosion occurred in 1917 in the harbour of Halifax, Nova Scotia. His research and social exploration of the implications of the disaster paved way for further theoretical and empirical research that lasted through the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. This saw a change in the way disasters were perceived. The focus shifted from the primary physical agent to the description and definition of disasters related to the social impact caused by it. Various academic disciplines were dedicated to the study of nature and disasters during the 1960s and 1970s. The definition of a disaster can be classified between the national and international level. The working definition of a disaster is designed in way to suit the professional background of the place where it is defined and is closely associated to the studies, work and research that is carried out. The World Health Organization has defined disaster on the base of the resultant health implications post the disaster. They have made use of the terminology called as Health Action in Crises. The International Red Cross has taken into account the factors that cause interference in human life. IN simple words, floods, earthquakes and hurricanes only acquire the status of a disaster when they leave behind a negative and disruptive impact on the living force. Al-Madhari et al in 1997 studied if a universal definition for the term disaster is possible and came up with a definition that takes into account both the factors of economic and health implications. The definition was as follows- an event localized in time and space with one or more of the following consequences occur: 1) Ten or more fatalities, 2) Damage exceeds $1 million, 3) 50 or more people evacuated. This is the basic essence that is found in most definitions of disaster which may carry different views. All the definitions accept disaster as a situation that is beyond the cope of control of the local community which warrants the need of external help. The disasters maybe a result of naturally occurring phenomena like extreme changes in climate or weather, technological and man made threats. Psychological stages of disaster Heroic stage The heroic stage is shown by the community and the individuals within that direct the various levels of energy in the tasks of help, rescue, shelter, clean up and repair. This behaviour is carried out in the span of a few hours to even days if required. Honeymoon stage The optimism characterized by the people in the community is the showcase of this stage in spite of the losses that occur due to the disaster. There is a wide media attention and, flow of resources inwards, and reassurances by personal visits by high profile personalities that look towards the rehabilitation process of the community. They provide the hope and belief that life will return to normalcy and no traces of the disaster will be seen. These resources though tend to exhaust by the third week of the aftermath of the crisis, there is reduced media attention and the real problems in the rehabilitation program start to develop. The energy shown by the survivors in the community gradually starts to fade away and gives way to the next stage of disillusionment. Disillusionment The hard experiences, the lack of necessities and the work needed to be done to restore normalcy creeps up on the person which leads to disillusionment among the survivors. Survivors find that the various types of financial help being offered are in the form of loans instead of grant, home insurance was not the best available option and that politics played a bigger role in the decision making. Signs of disgruntlement is how by means of complaints related to abandonment, betrayal and injustice, incompetency and bureaucracy. Stress is a negative aspect that troubles the survivors which slowly disintegrates any hope that may be left. Recovery All the work for which the base has been setup starts to show results. The applications are passed, loans are approved, and reconstruction is started. The individuals start to work at their normal capacities. People start regaining the state of normalcy with a period of six months after the disaster. Some individuals might take up to thirty six months. There is an overall sense of appreciation to aspects like life, relationship and morale towards tackling problems all owed to the lessons learnt post the disaster. Stages of Disaster Response Preparation stage The main objective of this stage is to improve the healthcare system and the general system that can be improved to the extent that future disasters can be tackled with ease and efficiency. Quick Reponses Stage The main objective of this stage is to make sure that there is a prober health response in case of a disaster strike that may create some needs. Counselling is provided during this stage which is present in the current health system. There should be help sought from external sources to boost the resources that are available in case they are not sufficient to fulfil all the necessary needs. In many cases the local supplies may not be enough to meet the requirement of the community which is why the stock has to be filled with the help of some additional commodities obtained from other external sources. Recovery Stage This stage has to be worked upon continuously and lasts more than a month after the disaster takes place. This stage could go on for years depending on the resources that are available for rehabilitation and the impact and type of the disaster. The needs of the survivors are taken care of by the local providers in this stage. Federal funds may flow in case the disaster is declared as a Presidential Declared Disaster. The funding is given to those in need of individual help. Disaster Management Definition of disaster management A lot of definitions have been put forward by authors on the topic of disaster management. A lot of these definitions merely explain the meaning of the term rather than completely stating the terms of preparation for a disaster. Christopolis, Mitchell and Liljelund regarded efficient and effective abilities and result of disaster response as the main themes of preparation for a disaster (2001). Creating a local response system and providing early warnings is also a big part of preparation (Integrated Regional information Networks, 2005). The definitions by United Nations Development program, McEntire and Twigg have definitions similar in theme with their own take on the preparation for a disaster. The program by United Nations holds hazard easing as the central source for disaster preparation along with the inclusion of planning in the description (2004). Similarly, McEntire and Twigg also consider hazard easing as a crucial aspect in disaster preparation saying that it should be a p art of it (McEntire, 2003 and Twigg, 2002). McEntire talks about different factors relevant for disaster preparation as a local government function that includes vulnerability and hazard evaluation. The lesser highlighted aspects of disaster preparation are also very important. Izadkhak and Hosseni point out education to be the foremost media in the preparation of a community for disasters (2005). The emergency plans, storage of food, securing furniture to walls and creating inventories of storage commodities are a part of this level (Paton, Smith, Johnston, 2003 and Siembieda, 2001). Review of preparation literature The disaster preparedness aspect is basically dynamic in nature which keeps changing constantly. The researches find out new facts with the occurring of new disaster even with respect to the community. The disasters and crisis are consistent but the practises applied in its management still lack the capacity to provide necessary results. McEntire has worked towards some crucial points in disaster preparedness and emergency management in his study. McEntire, Fuller and Johnston and Weber (2002) published an article reviewing the emergency management and the methods related to it. The main concern in the 2002 research was vulnerability while McEntire also finished his research related to disaster preparedness. Dynes also provide his view on emergency planning. His views were based on research instead of military models. The problem solving methods of Dynes emphasizes cooperation and coordination as the key aspects. (1994). This concept has been used in developing many other models as opposed to the earlier practice of using military models and instead switching to a research based and discipline specific model. The best methods of disaster preparedness incline towards discipline specific objectives as in the case of emergency management. A valuable amount of work has been spent for the identification and evaluation of the concepts and principles that are used in disaster preparedness. Some contributions have been made to development of disaster preparedness with the aim of creating a theory based practise and practise based theory (Gillespie and Streeter, 1987). The contributions from most individuals are not aimed at the creation of a complete disaster preparedness technique but individual research has helped immensely in making contributions towards building a complete disaster preparedness plan. A case in point is the research by Kirschenbaum (2002) article based on disaster preparedness from the point of view of Israel. The inferences drawn from his study were found to be applicable in a general environment. Perry and Lindell (2003) based their study on disaster management on the principles of perspective and planning and were able to identify 10 guidelines that should be used in the process of planning. Lindell was more focused on the planning while Kirschenbaum gave more importance to localized applications and principles. Each on his own was able to contribute an important aspect that led to the creation of a comprehensive disaster preparedness plan although none of the studies focused on all the aspects on the whole. Components of disaster management Earthquake Risk The risk of earthquake is a seismic risk to the environment and its habitats. The earthquake risk is inversely proportional to the capacity of resisting it. Research based on social learning by May (1994) shows that the more knowledge that is available, the less is the worry and lesser in the rationale for prevention. Knowledge and the use of the knowledge in the best way are required to improve the safety measures today. There is a process known as Earthquake Risk Management that works towards the prevention of threat or danger from an earthquake, reducing risk or consequences of an earthquake. It also deals on topics like preparation for dealing with a disaster, responding to a threat due to natural disaster, capacity building and knowing the effects of the natural disasters. There are the basic points of evacuation, rescuing, relief, rehabilitate and reconstruct that are covered. The population in India was marked at over a billion in 2001 and is estimated to be doubled by the yea r 2050. This calculates to a population growth of 1.61% per annum. The risk of earthquake increases by leaps and bounds in such a scenario. The urban areas are been populated to the extent of being overcrowded and figure in the highest density in the world of 237 people per square kilometre. This only worsens the situation. People in thickly dense areas have no alternative but to live in conditions like low lying areas situated closely near the rivers. This makes it mandatory to keep a full time alert and be ready with a disaster preparedness plan. Gillespie and Banerjee (1993, pp.242) have proposed there is a 5 stage plan which spirals upward with more refined levels including avenues, assessment, knowledge, preparedness and practise. The central point in these levels is considered to be knowledge. As pointed by Srivastava et al (2007), the reduction in disaster risks can be brought about by the proper use of information. Disaster management planning for earthquake In the past few decades, a high level of importance has been attached to the effective and efficient management of information and its use as a key component of disaster management in the regions of Asia especially Pacific Asia. Disaster management information systems have been setup by a number of countries according to their own calculations and needs. The applications include early warnings, reduction of disaster risks and emergency planning. The information plays an important part in disaster management and it should be used wisely. The needs of the information related to disaster management can be classified in two activity categories Pre disaster activities like research and analysis, prevention, risk assessment and preparedness. Post disaster activities like rehabilitation, response and reconstruction. The data related to disaster can also be classified into two categories- Pre disaster data consisting of the risks and the country Post disaster data showing the impact of the disaster and the resources available to counter the effects. National Disaster Management Information System The main aspects of a disaster management information system is a database containing the following- Mapping of hazard assessment Vulnerability Assessment Distribution by Demography Lifelines, Infrastructure and Critical Facilities Transportation Routes and Logistics Material and Human Response Resource Communication Facility The use of Disaster Management Information System is based on three aspects- Preparedness planning Response and mitigation Recovery Earthquake activities Preparation and Planning Identifying areas prone to earthquake Identifying problems Identifying and using Resources Control and command Advance Preparatory Action Post earthquake activities The relief activities needed to be performed by the government are- Maintaining uninterrupted communication Endorsing disaster preparedness and relief measures through media like newspaper and AIR. Evacuating and movement of commodities of essence such as petroleum should be facilitated in transport. Making sure that essential commodities are available at a reasonable rate. Providing adequate supply of drugs, vaccine and medicine. Restoration and preservation of physical communication links. Providing infrastructure such as latrines, shelter, electricity, road etc. On a temporary basis by making the necessary investment. Mobilising financial resources. In addition to these aspects, there are certain secondary functions that are needed by the relief efforts of the State such as Military aid should provide relief, restoration and rehabilitation services to the civil authority. Backup plans for cattle preservation, crops and health measures should be put in place. Technological and technical inputs for providing drinking water. Providing technical assistance for water management, water budgeting and several other uses. Coordinating activities of the voluntary and state agencies. Knowledge Management The knowledge related activities are dealt taken care of by the knowledge management procedure (Wiig, 1997: Civi, 2000). These activities include organizations and creation of knowledge along with share and use of the knowledge. Knowledge management can be more appropriately defined as the strategies and processes of identifying, capturing and leveraging knowledge. This definition was provided by the American Productivity and Quality Centre. Knowledge management is a field on the rise which has been able to collect considerable attention especially from the industrial community. A large number of industrial organizations have taken to knowledge management programs which serve as proof of its widespread use. These programs are helpful in making the industries more competent and improving their organizational performance. It is only a matter of time when all the companies will adopt such a program and the only factor to be accounted for is the way in which it has to be implemented to m ake optimum use of knowledge management and managing it properly at the same time. Implementation of Knowledge Management The Knowledge Management concept has caught a lot of attention due to its importance but there are only a few industries that have been able to make optimum use of the knowledge management techniques by managing the knowledge in their respective organizations. Stoney and Barnett (2000) suggest that a major number of Knowledge Management steps are bound to fail. This is due to the fact that the implementation of Knowledge Management is not an easy task that can be carried out by an organization. Technological infrastructure needs to be in place for the implementation of Knowledge Management along with change in the culture of the organization and managing knowledge of different types. Organizations that have made use of the Knowledge Management without making certain of the necessary resources at their disposal have mainly failed due to improper infrastructure and implementation. Implementation of the Knowledge Management is a tough task for any organization as pointed out by Drucker (1993) who is known as the father of modern management theory. He stressed on the fact the biggest challenge faced by an organization is the building of a systematic framework for the management of knowledge. Hence, it is imperative to build a perfect prototype or framework which helps the organizations before the implementation of Knowledge Management. Framework definition According o the Oxford English Dictionary, (2003), the framework is defined as a structure composing of parts that are framed together especially designed for enclosing or supporting anything like a skeleton or a frame. Popper (1994) has defined framework as a set of assumptions or fundamental principles of intellectual origin that form the basis for action. In accordance with these definitions, framework can be said to be a framework or a structure formed using a set of specific instructions or principles that is required to provide a base for carrying out necessary activities and actions. Knowledge Management Frameworks According to Rubenstein-Montano et al. (2001b), Knowledge Management frameworks are categorized as a mode of providing guidance in a specific discipline. This means that it shows the way towards the building of Knowledge Management in a specific discipline completely. Dale (1999) defines framework as a tool used for the development and laying out of plans, a guide that helps an organization to carry out a certain action that works best for their business needs at their own pace. The framework most importantly acts as a link between the practical and theoretical aspects of the Knowledge Management and eases its implementation during an emergency or disaster. Various Knowledge Management frameworks The frameworks that have been described in theory are made to focus on different parts of Knowledge management and achieving its various purposes. The most popularly known framework is the framework for knowledge creation created by Nonaka (1991, 1994) that explains the evolution and conversion seen between tacit knowledge (not easy to articulate) and explicit knowledge (can be easily put into words). This is not the perfect form of a framework since it is only concerned with the creation of knowledge which is nothing more than a part of the Knowledge Management. Another type of framework that is described in theory is the one that provides information on cyclic processes of the Knowledge Management. From the studies of Rubenstein-Montano et al. (2001a), it is evident that many of these frameworks only provide activities that stress on the knowledge cycle activities. They lay importance on phases of knowledge without providing supervision in the implementation of Knowledge Management. The examples of such frameworks are plenty including the framework by Bose and Sugumaran (2003) and many of the frameworks that were studied by Rubenstein-Montano et al. (2001a). A third type of framework is the one developed by researchers that is used to explain the performance of Knowledge Management in an organization. The framework provides reference to shoe the analysis, structure and evaluation of the Knowledge Management in various organizations belonging to different fields. They were developed by Apostolou and Mentzas (1998). Framework requirements The framework helps in understanding, improving awareness and gives the conceptual definition of the Knowledge management that informs the people about the processes involved in it. Al the components can be understood with the help of a framework and puts the Knowledge Management in perspective by providing the people with a clear and concise vision which helps in its implementation. Managers find framework as a beneficial and important tool since it helps to decide whether all the aspects related to the Knowledge management have been covered that may be easily overlooked without the framework. It also helps in enabling the implementation process and helps coordinate the efforts put in by the organization in a controlled and systematic way. System Approach Framework Holsapple and Joshi (2002) laid out a three layer framework which consists of three major building blocks known as knowledge resources, activities and influences. The resources pat highlighted the pool of the knowledge of the organization that can be classified into six main forms of resources namely participants knowledge, infrastructure, culture, knowledge artefact, strategy and purpose. The activities block represents the processes to be used by the organization for manipulating the knowledge resources. Holsapple and Joshi (2002) were able to identify 4 activities related to this aspect namely acquiring, selecting, internalizing and using the knowledge which means the generation and externalization of knowledge. The manners in which these activities are performed tend to be influence by a number of factors that can be seen in the next block called as knowledge influences. The implementation is greatly influenced by this block and is classified into three categories namely resource (human, financial, material and knowledge), managerial (coordination, leadership and measurement) and environmental (customers, competitors, suppliers, markets and other conditions). The three aspects when viewed collectively act as the main components in the operation of Knowledge Management. A framework was created with the idea of four stages namely review, concept, reflect and act by Wiig et al. (1997) in order to explain a number of Knowledge Management techniques and methods. Review is the first step and relates to evaluating and monitoring the performance of the organization to find out whether the desired results have been obtained. Conceptualize has two parts namely analysis of knowledge and inventory knowledge. The former is used to identify and assess the problems, weakness, strengths threats and opportunities related to knowledge. The latter is used to find out the state of knowledge in the organization by finding out the knowledge assets. TH reflect part is used for the following- Create teams for assessing. Find out the Knowledge management requirements. Collect knowledge by identifying. Design structure to knowledge in warehouse. Maintain technology. Test the technology again. Train the knowledge workers. Show the use of Knowledge management practises. Track the usage. Get the system to start. Measure the productivity and quality, measure Knowledge Management practices. Conduct assessment review of the processes. Hygoyo Protocol Framework of Hyogo The priorities, mission and vision of the National Framework were created in synchronisation with the Hyogo Framework of Action (HFA) 1005-2015 that was agreed upon by all the nations in January 2005 in the city of Kobe, Japan during the UN-World conference held for Disaster Reduction. The expected result of the HFA after ten years is significant reduction in the lives and economic, social and environmental assets of the countries and communities. The following objectives have been adopted by HFA to attain the desired results- Better integration of disaster risk considerations and accordingly makes development policies. Planning at all the levels with focus on disaster prevention, preparedness, reduction and vulnerability reduction. The strengthening and development of institutes, capacities and mechanisms at all the levels especially at the community level that can help in building resistance to hazards. Incorporation risk mitigation approaches in the implementation of recovery programs, response and emergency preparedness that is used in rehabilitation of the affected communities. Scope This particular framework relates to provision of guidelines and direction to the national, local and provincial institutions. Aspects such as capacity building and vulnerability reduction are the crucial factors that help the communities and institutions to counter disaster risks. The strategies, policy implementation are taken care by this phase and programs for the parts of disaster are provided for. There are certain challenges that are recognized in the five major areas as follows- Governance- legal, organizational and policy frameworks. Risk identification. Monitoring, assessment and early warnings. Knowledge education and management. Reduction of risk factors. Preparedness to improve response and recovery. The Yokohama strategy concludes in its review the discussions in the World Conference on Disaster Reduction and the desired result that was decided can be described into five priorities of action as follows- Make sure disaster risk is a local and national priority with a very strong institutional base for execution. Identify, monitor and assess the disaster risks and identify early warnings. Use innovation, knowledge to build a safety culture which is strong at all the levels. Reduce the risk factors Make the disaster preparedness strong for better response. Case study of earthquake in Pakistan with respect to Knowledge Management The earthquake in Kashmir in 2005 was a massive earthquake with its epicentre in Pakistan controlled Kashmir close to the city of Muzaffarabad that affected the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Gilbit Baltistan province of Pakistan. It took place at 8:52:37 PST on the 8th of October. It was similar in size to the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and 2001 earthquake in Gujarat with magnitude of 7.6. Tremors of this earthquake were felt in surrounding nations like western China and Tajikistan. Four people died in Afghanistan while close to fourteen hundred people died in India controlled Kashmir according to reports. The damage caused was blamed on poor construction and major up thrust. Infrastructure Network usage- the network usage was high throughout the phases of recovery. Data and voice communication was very good in Islamabad. The landline network was brought on track within a coupe of days in town hit by the earthquake and the cell network was extended post the earthquake. The areas that were hit the worst had no assistance and relief and were left with no communication. Some parts were wiped out entirely. The skills to manage the technology were available in Pakistan but the management was not properly planned. Network Availability- At first the network was very low during recovery and later was raised to a medium level. The inconsistency of connection was the main factor rather than low bandwidth. The connection would break consistently which proved to be disruptive. The limitations were known fully in the remote areas but the staff did not pay heed to the cell coverage problem. Cell phones are not adequate in such circumstances. Inter

The Theme of Responsibility in An Inspector Calls Essay -- An Inspecto

The Theme of Responsibility in An Inspector Calls John Boyton Priestly (1894-1984) wrote ‘An inspector calls' in 1945 and it was first performed in 1946. The play was set in 1912. Priestly wrote this play to send out a message of responsibility to the people. Priestly believed that even in 1945 they were still the same as they were in 1912, which is why Priestly choose to set the play in 1912, along with various other reasons, such as he wanted the audience to have the benefit of dramatic irony. During the Second World War, the people had united to fight one common enemy. This unity was that he wanted us to understand and believe in. He wanted to give everyone a choice. Should we go back to the way it was before the First World War, when everything was based on class, where an individual had to look solely after themselves, and no one else, or should we move forward, walk into the society where everyone looks for one another, where we all are equal and we work together? He wanted people to choose. He demonstrates the difference with the older generation representing the society where you care for yourself, and some of the younger generation that represents a new society where you care for one another. Priestly used dramatic irony to discredit Mr. Birling’s pronouncements in the opening scene. When Mr. Birling, head of the family and a respectable business man, talks of things that the audience knows is wrong, such as his opinion of the ‘unsinkable’ titanic, we begin to doubt Mr. Birling’s opinions, because we already know that the Titanic does in fact sink. At the time of which the play was set in, there were bitter divisions between the rich and the poor, industrial towns such as ‘Brumley’ were ... ... was to change, he knew the adults were stuck in their own reality and will never change so he puts his hope into the children. However, Priestly also knew that some of the children like the adults will not agree with his ideals, which is where Gerald comes in. Gerald is just like Mr. Birling as he does not think that he has done anything wrong. For these reason I dislike him. J. B. Priestly’s message (told via the inspector) tells us that we should have collective responsibility, and share our duties equally between us all. Do we really want to live in a world where those of higher class choose our fate, or do we want to choose our own fate? His message is still relevant today, as I think we still live in a society such as the one Priestly desires, we still need to learn his message, as we need to remember our responsibility for others and ourselves.

Components of Science Planning Essay

There are five essential components of scientific inquiry teaching that introduce students to many important aspects of science while helping them to develop a clearer and deeper knowledge of some particular science concept and/or process. Research has demonstrated that student involvement in the inquiry process provides a much needed connection and ownership of scientific investigations that will lead to a deeper conceptual knowledge about the content. Inquiry can be labeled as â€Å"partial† or â€Å"full† and refers to the proportion of a sequence of learning experiences that is inquiry-based. For example, when a textbook doesn’t engage students with a question, but begins with an experiment, an essential element of inquiry is missing and the inquiry is said to be partial. Also, inquiry is partial if a teacher chooses to demonstrate how something works rather than have the students explore it on their own and develop questions and explanations. What is important is that at least some of the components of inquiry are present within classroom hands-on experiences and hands-on does not necessarily guarantee inquiry. If all five elements of classroom inquiry are present, the inquiry is said to be full, however each component may vary depending on amount of structure a teacher builds into an activity or the extent to which students initiate and design an investigation. How does a teacher decide how much guidance to provide in an inquiry-based activity? The key element is in the intended outcomes. Whether the teacher wants the students to learn a particular concept, acquire certain inquiry abilities, or develop understandings about scientific inquiry influences the nature of the inquiry. In some instances partial inquiry may be more appropriate than a full inquiry-based experience. Teachers need to make meaningful decisions about how to best deliver the curriculum. The Five Essential Components to Inquiry 1. Learners are engaged by scientifically oriented questions. Scientists may pose two types of questions. They may propose â€Å"why† questions such as â€Å"Why do objects fall toward the Earth?† or â€Å"Why do humans have chambered hearts?† Many of these types of questions can’t be addressed by science. Then there are the â€Å"how† questions such as â€Å"How does sunlight help plant grow?† or â€Å"How are crystals formed?† which can. Students may ask â€Å"why† questions that can be turned into â€Å"how† questions and thus lend themselves to scientific inquiry. The initial question can originate from the learner or the teacher. Purposeful questions can be answered by students’ observations and scientific knowledge they obtain from reliable sources. Skillful teachers help students focus their questions so that they can experience both interesting and productive investigations. Teachers can provide opportunities that invite student questions by demonstrating a phenomenon or having them engage in an open investigation. Sometimes, questions will develop from students’ observations. Other times, the teacher provides the question. Either way, questions must be able to be investigated in a classroom setting. Teachers will likely have to modify student questions into ones that can be answered by students with the resources available, while being mindful of the curriculum. 2. Learners give priority to evidence, allowing them to develop and evaluate explanations that address scientifically-oriented questions. Science uses empirical evidence as the basis for explanations about how the natural world works. Importance is placed on getting accurate data and from observations. To make observations, scientists take measurements in natural settings, or in laboratories. The accuracy of the evidence collected is verified by checking measurements, repeating the observations, or gathering different kinds of data related to the same phenomenon. Evidence collected is then subject to questioning and further investigations. Within the classroom setting, students should follow similar guidelines during their laboratory experiences. 3. Learners formulate explanations form evidence to address scientifically oriented questions. Scientific explanations should be based on reason. They provide causes for effects and establish relationships based on evidence and logical argument and must be consistent with the observations and evidence collected. Explanations are ways to learn what is unfamiliar by relating what is observed to what is already known. For science, this means building upon the existing knowledge base. For students, this means building new ideas upon their current prior knowledge and understandings. 4. Learners evaluate their explanations in light of alternative explanations, particularly those reflecting scientific understanding. Evaluation, and possible elimination or revision of explanations, is one feature that distinguishes scientific from other forms of inquiry and subsequent explanations. Examples of questions one may ask are: â€Å"Does the evidence support the proposed explanations?†, or â€Å"Can other reasonable explanations be derived for the evidence?† An essential component of this characteristic is ensuring that students make the connection between their results and scientific knowledge. 5. Learners communicate and justify their proposed explanations. Scientists communicate their results in such a way that their results can be reproduced. This requires clear articulation of the question, procedures, evidence, proposed explanation, and review of alternative explanations. Having students share their explanations provides others the opportunity to ask questions, examine evidence, identify faulty reasoning, point out statements that go beyond the evidence, and suggest alternative explanations for the same observations. As a result of this communication, students can resolve contradictions and solidify an empirically based argument.

Wasteland - Rios Garbage Pickers essays

Wasteland - Rios Garbage Pickers essays Vik Munz wanted to change the lives of humans. To help them out and made their lives better. He was an artist that made millions by his pictures that he made out of all kinds of materials. In the movie Wasteland it shows how Vik tried to help these people that wanted help. Making them believe that they could have something better in their lifes and can do whatever they want if they believe in themselves. He wanted to create pictures of them out of garbage and sell them to give the money to these people so they could have better lives. Vik went to Rio, Jardim Gramacho the biggest landfill in Rio that brought seven tons of garbage to it daily. The reason he went there was to change the lives of the people that were working in the garbage, known as pickers. They would go through the garbage that was dumped and pick out the recyclable materials. Vik watched this for a day before he found Isis, Zumbia, Tio, Irma, Magna, and Suelem. He took these six people and got their story of why they became pickers at the wasteland. Viks story can relate to the poor pickers because he grew up in the poorer area of Rio. The only reason he got out was because he was shot by a rich drug dealer; while trying to break up fight, the rich drug dealer gave him money and he took it and moved to the United States. He grew up with nothing but had everything he needed to be happy and survive. Vik started making art out of materials that had the same concepts of the picture. He became rich from making and selling his pictures. Vik heard about the wasteland from his friend Fabio. Vik decided to go over to Rio and try and help the pickers. Show them that life isnt bad and they can do better for themselves. At first Vik said that the people he will be helping the roughest people, drug addicts, end of the line people that are no different than the garbage. This being a classism statement it soon changed after arriving t...

The Continental Divide and How the Rivers Flow

The Continental Divide and How the Rivers Flow Every continent except for Antarctica has a continental divide. Continental divides separate one  drainage basin from another. They are used to define the direction that an areas rivers flow and drain into the oceans and seas. The best-known continental divide is in North America and it  runs along the Rocky and Andes mountain ranges. Most continents have multiple continental divides and some rivers flow into endorheic basins (inland bodies of water), such as the Sahara Desert in Africa. The Continental Divide  of the Americas The Continental Divide in the Americas is the line that divides the flow of water between the Pacific Ocean and the  Atlantic Ocean. Rain or snow that drains on the east side of the Continental Divide flows toward the Atlantic Ocean.Precipitation on the west side drains and flows toward the Pacific Ocean.   The continental divide runs from northwestern Canada along the crest of the Rocky Mountains to New Mexico. Then, it follows the crest of Mexicos Sierra Madre Occidental and along the Andes Mountains through South America. More Water Flow Divides in the Americas To say that any continent, including North America, has a single continental divide is not entirely true. We can continue to divide the flow of water (called hydrological divides) into these groups: East of the Rocky Mountains and north of the Canada-U.S. border, the rivers flow into the Arctic Ocean.Most rivers of the central U.S. flow into the Gulf of Mexico via the Mississippi River. Indirectly, this is an Atlantic Ocean drainage.Rivers on the east side of Mexico and Central America also drain into the Gulf of Mexico.Rivers around the Great Lakes and along the entire east coast of Canada and the U.S. flow directly into the Atlantic Ocean.South America has a true east-west continental divide. Everything east of the Andes flows into the Atlantic Ocean and everything west flows into the Pacific. The Continental Divides of the Rest of the World It is easiest to talk about the continental divides of Europe, Asia, Africa, and Australia as a whole because many of the drainage basins span all four continents. The Atlantic Ocean:  Along the entire western coast of Europe and Africa, the rivers flow into the Atlantic Ocean.The Mediterranean Sea: The southern part of Europe, most of the country of Turkey, and many rivers in the northern part of Africa drain into the Mediterranean Sea. Most notably, the Nile River  flows north and has a drainage basin that reaches south past the equator.The Indian Ocean:  Ã‚  The rivers of countries that surround the Indian Ocean flow into it. This includes most of the eastern coast of Africa, the Middle East, India, and Southeast Asia as well as the majority of  Australia.The Pacific Ocean: Along the eastern coast of Asia and Australia, the rivers flow into the Pacific Ocean. This includes China and much of Southeast Asia along with all of the island nations that fill this area of the Pacific.The Arctic  Ocean:  The majority of Russian rivers flow into the Arctic Ocean.Endorheic Basins: Asia and Africa are home to the largest endorheic basins whe re the rivers empty into deserts, large lakes, or inland seas.

Business Management (Introduction to Management and Organisations ) Essay

Business Management (Introduction to Management and Organisations ) - Essay Example The management of change is really essential for the effective and useful results. The change happens for the enhancement of the potential working and structure enhancement. These potential enhancements can be physical or logical. During the change the business leader needs to pay effective attention towards the management of changes. Change management is the practice throughout which we can organize the transforms/changes of a system during its development or implementation. Change management saves organizations from the ongoing changes during the project execution. For this purpose they establish a predefined model or framework for the incorporation of some practical changes or modifications in the project (Nickols, 2008). When administrators or managers are scheduling to handle change, there are five main and most significant factors regarding the handling of change, these factors need to be kept in mind by change managers (Teamtechnology, 2009): One most important sense of the change management is to the formulation of changes in an intended and systematic or orderly way. The most important reason of change is to add additional efficiency and latest techniques and arrangements in an ongoing organization. The transformation to be directed lies inside and is proscribed through the business (possibly the most recognizable example of this type of transformation is the â€Å"change control management† phase of IT system improvement developments.) (Nickols, 2008).  Despite the fact that, these inner transformations can have activated through activities initiated outside the business, in what is frequently expressed as â€Å"the atmosphere.† Consequently, the subsequent sense of administration transform, particularly, the respond to changes in excess of which the business workout small or no management (for example public and political

Dra Rod DB 4 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Dra Rod DB 4 - Assignment Example The elements of the play that enforce that Wilson’s play is about African-American life than the universal man include; Troy’s inability to participate in professional baseball as a young man, and the fact that he had to consult their boss Mr. Rand to become a truck driver (Fences 40). Troy Maxson sets up the direction of the play’s plot in such a way that the theme of fatherhood and responsibility are depicted throughout the play. Events such as unfaithfulness in his marriage create a struggle for him as his wife takes care of another woman’s child but ends her relations with Troy. The rivalry between Troy and Cory is revealed when the father denies him the chance to play baseball professionally hence making the son move out of the house (Fences 57-60). The comment that surprised me in the interview was that when African Americans go back to Africa they are treated as white tourists and in the dictionary the blacks are regarded as violators of laws. This is interesting because in one land they are discriminated and in another they are celebrated and regarded as visitors. I felt that the interviewer does not get what Wilson was saying at the end of the interview. This is because he wonders why Wilson defends the blacks all the time yet one of his parents is white. What Wilson says relates to my experience in the world as I have witnessed some African-Americans striving to look for jobs and those in employment earning low incomes. Wilson’s play created a realistic set of characters and situations effectively as it displayed what happens in most African-American families where one of the relatives could be in prison, parents struggling to get money to pay their bills and their children discriminated in society because of their races. I would particularly relate to the scene where Cory is denied by the father a chance to play professional