Animal Navigation essays

Animal Navigation essays Animal navigation and sense of direction without maps or any assistance has been a mystery, in terms of migration and travel by birds, fishes and insects. Their ability to use different cues to enable themselves to navigate to their destination is amazing. These animals utilize various methods to guide themselves through unfamiliar terrain to get a different area. Some animals use the sun and stars to guide their way to warmer climates. Others may use their sense of smell, or light to direct them. While it has been proposed that some animals are genetically predisposed of having the ability to migrate, it may be debunked or renewed by the theory that animals are guided by a magnetic field. In the article it explains that the core of the earth has a magnetic strip which depending on its intensity can guide animals in different directions. However a question was posed about the ability to detect such a small electric field. Since this magnet is in the core of the earth the intensity on the surface is so weak that how could an animal possible be able to use this source or cue. Well after endless experiments it is concluded that some animals that use this technique can detect electric fields as weak as five-billionths of a volt per centimeter. Applying this new idea to the migration of sea turtles. This experiment concluded that the turtles used the magnetic field as navigational markers. These markers guide them through the ocean, allowing the turtles to avoid fatally cold currents and stay on a path leading towards home. Because of the intensity of the magnetic field these turtles are able to avoid harmful things. Young sea turtles inherit a set of instructions that help guide them along their migratory route. This means that different groups of sea turtles in different parts of the world have probably evolved different instructions that work only for the particular migratory pathway that they follow. T...

Take Public Transportation - Save Money, Save The World

Take Public Transportation - Save Money, Save The World If you want to help reduce global warming, air pollution, and your monthly living costs, one of the best things you can do is to get out of your car. By walking or riding a bicycle for short trips, or taking public transportation for longer ones, you will significantly reduce the amount of pollution and greenhouse gas emissions you generate each day. The Rising Environmental Cost of Driving Alone Transportation accounts for more than 30 percent of U.S. carbon dioxide emissions. According to the American Public Transportation Association (APTA), public transportation in the United States saves approximately 1.4 billion gallons of gasoline and about 1.5 million tons of carbon dioxide annually. Yet only 14 million Americans use public transportation daily while 88 percent of all trips in the United States are made by car- and many of those cars carry only one person. Added Benefits of Public Transportation Cutting back on carbon emissions and costs usage isnt the only added benefit of using public transportation. It also helps increase the energy independence of the country overall. Although an increasing amount of our oil is produced in North America, the majority of it still comes from across the pond. Public transportation is also safer, a lot safer, in fact. Riding a bus is 79 times safer than riding in an automobile, and riding a train or subway is even safer. Its also healthier, studies have shown that people who use public transportation regularly tend to be healthier than people who do not, because of the exercise they get walking to and from bus stops, subway stations and their homes and offices. And of course, theres the reduction of costs overall. According to an APTA study, families that use public transportation can reduce their household expenses by $6,200 annually, more than the average U.S. household spends on food every year. The Heart of the Debate Over Public Transportation So why don’t more Americans use public transportation? Transportation experts and social scientists may argue about which came first, America’s attachment to the automobile or the urban and suburban sprawl that makes long daily commutes in at least one and often two cars a requirement for many American families. Either way, the problem at the heart of the debate is that good public transportation systems are not available to enough people. While public transportation is readily available in many major cities, the majority of Americans in smaller cities, towns and rural areas simply do not have access to good public transportation options. So the problem is twofold: People with access to public transportation has to be persuaded to use it more often. Additionally, more affordable public transportation options in smaller communities need to be created for use. Trains, Buses, and Automobiles Train systems are the most efficient in many ways, typically emitting less carbon and using less fuel per passenger than buses, but they are often more expensive to implement. Also, the traditional advantages of trains can be mitigated to a large extent by using hybrids or buses that run on natural gas. Another promising alternative is bus rapid transit (BRT), which runs extra-long buses in dedicated lanes. A 2006 study by the Breakthrough Technologies Institute found that a BRT system in a medium-sized U.S. city could reduce carbon dioxide emissions by more than 650,000 tons during a 20-year period. If you live in an area with good public transportation, do something good for the planet today. Park your car, and take the subway or the bus. If you don’t, then talk to your local and federal elected officials about the benefits of public transportation and how it may help solve some of the problems they’re wrestling with right now.

Change the united states into a Utopia (the word means nowhere). What Essay

Change the united states into a Utopia (the word means nowhere). What changes should me made and why should they should be made - Essay Example There are several things that can be done to change America to utopia. Some of these things may have certain disadvantages. However, it is also true that majority of benefits may accrue from them. One of the things that may be done to change America to nowhere is ensuring that barriers are limited for the international community to access America (Frazier et al, 31). This may be done by reducing the number of requirements as well as qualifications that anybody wishing to come to America may have to meet. This may include reducing the number of policies that bar such movements involving migrations as well as immigrations to America. The influx of such people to America is quite advantageous to the American society as well as America as a whole. This is because, when the rate of immigration is heightened, a number of people will find their way into the country. This will be economically beneficial in a number of ways. First, the rate of consumption of the American goods by such a growi ng population will massively shoot. This will place more demands on the goods and services from the American industries thereby impacting positively on the businesses in America. This is quite beneficial to both the American society as well as America as a country. This follows that the economy of the country will be affected in an appreciating perspective, thereby leading to more economic stabilization (Frazier et al, 41). In addition, it is of crucial significance to note that the process of learning is always affected in a certain manner following the entry of alien individuals in a new land. Therefore, changing America to nowhere relates to an increase in accessibility of the country by people of different origin, races, ethnicity as well as cultures (Frazier et al, 47). This promotes the issue of intercultural education. This helps in

Why is Reality TV so Popular Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Why is Reality TV so Popular - Research Paper Example The appeal of reality TV has been evident to all people who have watched the shows. Several others have become tired of listening and watching recycled jokes and sitcoms and drama shows. Reality TV shows have been able to create new dimensions in the entertainment industry which have given life to the culture of TV watching. They have yielded a premise that plays out in unpredictable ways. They have been able to appeal to people because there has been an easy way to relate the audience to the one who is shown on the shows. The elements of real life and reality of the actions that are performed in the shows have been the main eye-catching events in the shows. Reality TV shows have been gaining popularity day by day and therefore many people have expressed their desire to have more and more shows. Many have been dreaming of going and participial in the shows and reap the benefit in monetary and fame that comes with actual participation in the shows. The benefit including money, home, and fame or new faces have been the main attraction for the desire by many people who wants to participate in the reality TV shows. Each day when you turn on the TV you are likely to see a reality TV shows on all the channels that you tune to. This shows that these shows have become the recent attractions in the entertainment world. But why have they become so much famous for a short period of time since the first reality TV show was aired in 2000? There are several reasons that can be attributed to the increased fame of the shows.

Health and Safety Practices Plan (Part Two), Product Safety and Research Paper

Health and Safety Practices Plan (Part Two), Product Safety and Security Risks - Research Paper Example 132). The Apple Company strongly believes and upholds each worker’s health and safety. The company requires its suppliers create a safe working conditions and at the same time upholding the standards in its Code. Risks assessment techniques The company’s has health and safety programs that start with standard audits, and include occupational health and safety training which is carried out throughout its supplier base. Audits have resulted in various noncompliance findings, such as workers not wearing appropriate personal protective equipment, lack of first-aid supplies and fire detection equipment, or inadequate exit paths for emergency evacuations. In the last ten years, Apple has grown to become one of the biggest and most successful companies in the world. Apple and other American industries have achieved a dozen of achievements nearly unmatched in modern history. Workers involved in the assembling of iPhones, iPads and other devices are said to labor in harsh and di fficult conditions, which is according to employees inside most of its plants, advocates of these workers and documents published by companies themselves. Security risk More serious violations in the past have also included the exposure to chemicals as a result of poor ventilation, and where workers perform activities at dangerous heights in the absence guardrails or safety harnesses. The apple production uses n-hexane to clean mobile phones screen. The employees find the smell very irritating which makes the eye aches. In case of a prolonged inhalation one may feel weak, in addition, the chemical causes tingling and numbness in the hands and feet. The first poisoning case was discovered in July 2009 and triggered a strike at that time. Afterwards, Wintek sent two doctors to give employees physical exams. According to an employee, the only test the doctors did was to tap their knees with hammers. While recognizing that this is a, method of diagnosis, workers felt the examination was not professional. None of the workers were diagnosed as poisoned during the health examination. Deeply worried about their health, workers went to hospitals for further exams. Around 100 of them were told that their nerves were damaged. After the health examination, the employee had to be advised how he/she would attend the duties to prevent further damage of the nerves. Explaining why workers had to rest at home instead of receiving treatment at the hospital, the management said there was not enough bed space in the hospital. Wintek, which Apple’s n-hexane supplier, promised that workers who were discharged from hospital could rest at home for 3 months. The victims were entitled to a compensation, which included the basic wage, nutrition allowance and meal subsidy. Since the workers' strike, propane and isopropanol are being used in place of n-hexane, and the ventilation system has been improved. However, workers believe the new cleanser is also toxic. Some time the company discovers worker health and safety issues not covered by its regular audits. The company digs deeper to understand the cause of the problem and, in some cases, hire experts to conduct specialized assessments. The results of these assessments have led to the development of new standards for its suppliers to follow. Safety measures In the year 2010, Apple sought the services of Foxconn to initiate an employee assistance program (EAP) at one of its

Greek and Roman Houses Architecture

Greek and Roman Houses Architecture What are the significant ways in which Classical Greek and Roman houses differ? What can we learn about their households from these differences? It is important to remember that houses in the Classical and Roman periods need to be analysed carefully. Excavations carried out through the ages have had varying degrees of accuracy when interpreting the information that is gleamed from the artefacts. Allison describes how items are ‘decontextualized and says that very often sites have been removed from their situations before the context has been properly recorded (2004: 4). This needs to be taken into account when we compare houses and their included artefacts, and also how we interpret what these things tell us about the contemporary societies. While on the subject it is important to account for the fact that some items of less artistic merit may have been removed for museum collections and those that are even less interesting have been left in situ, this can provide an unrealistic interpretation of the site. While investigating the different types of housing I will be using several case studies, namely for the Roman topic I will be using Pompeii for examples. It is also important to remember that we have a lot more standing evidence for Roman housing than we have for the Greek housing. In evidence for Greek housing we have mainly floor plans whereas we have preserved sites such as Pompeii and Ostia (Italy) for the Roman contexts. This essay will not cover the remains of the houses but rather what the houses would have been like, and will provide a comparison between the standing structures, and is not intended to discuss the differences in preservation of the sites. Evidence we have for classical Greek housing is very limited. The structures do not survive like the examples we have of Roman houses that still exist. Although Pompeii is unusual it means we gain an undisturbed look at a society, and can explain a lot about the way of life. Unfortunately we do not have many well preserved sites for classical Greek housing so we have to get the information by thorough excavation of sites and extracting the information from the artefacts found. One example that is often quoted by historians in studies is Olynthus (Ault et al., 1999: 46 Adrianou, 2009: 5). This will be covered in this essay along with buildings from Athens (Goldberg, 1999). As there is less information for Greek housing than there is for Roman, making judgements on what the households were like by studying the housing is difficult. This essay will address housing from the two periods from the urban settlements of both cultures. The focus will be on urban settlements because there has been more research into these areas, therefore patterns can be more easily identified and more accurate conclusions may be drawn. Evidence for housing within the Classical and Roman periods is limited as mentioned above, however, this does not mean that studies have not been carried out, and interpretations of the evidence uncovered have been made. In Athens ‘a small number of houses that are badly preserved (Goldberg, 1999: 142) have been uncovered and the layout of several buildings have been surmised, especially those nearer to the agora (Goldberg, 1999: 142). In parts of Europe which would once have belonged to the Roman Empire there are examples of houses which are better preserved, for instance, Pompeii, which is a beautiful example, although not necessarily a ‘typical Roman city. This essay is to focus on these areas because they are areas that have been most researched and the discoveries made here have been analysed most thoroughly with reports being published on the findings. In Roman housing, when interpreting evidence of the use of rooms it is brought to our attention by Allison (2004) that rooms were labelled as they were excavated in Pompeii. This means that the name that has been allocated to these rooms is not necessarily the nomenclature given by contemporaries of the society. This has other repercussions, it means we cannot assume that the room was used for the reason that we assume from the name. For instance just because we label a room as being a dining room does not mean that it was necessarily used only for dining in. Sometimes rooms had a number of functions (Allison, 2004: 63). There is more evidence of some houses than others in Roman societies. For instance, atrium houses are much better documented than others. McKay also describes the Etruscans as having atrium housing. This shows some overlap between the Roman and Greek societies. But he attributes these techniques to the Near East (McKay, 1998:15 Palagia, 1998: 40). This is down to the fact that they are generally bigger than other houses. Due to this, it is true to say that in Pompeii they were excavated more carefully because they were distinctly larger (Allison, 2004: 29). Vitruvius describes how there were three types of atrium courtyards. One had a ratio of 3:5, another had one 2:3 and the other was 1:1 (VI.III.3). This is important because it shows there were rules to be followed when it came to Roman housing. Vitruvius (On Architecture) describes five different types of courtyard but also describes them and the precise measurements of the rooms adjoining these separate courtyards. This would suggest that these houses followed patterns when they were built; and that there was relatively little difference between them. Roman houses were built following more rigid guidelines than those expressed by Greek house plans. It has been described that Greek housing followed no pattern (Cahill, 2002), this is especially true at Olynthus where Cahill carried out a study on floor levels (2002), but is also seen in plans from houses in Athens. Figure 1 shows one of the houses from the north side of the Areopagus in Athens and is typical of the houses that have been exposed (Goldberg, 1999: 144). As shown, there is no central room which all of the others lead off from, unlike in Roman houses which have a central atrium which the other rooms open out onto such as the House of the Faun shown in Figure 2. Roman houses seem to follow more of a plan demonstrated in Virtuviuss On Architecture which describes the definitive ratios that rooms and courtyards have to be. Although the layouts are very different they have the similarity of both having a courtyard situated in the house. The function of this room in both societies varied, taking into account the time of day, year and what was going on in the house at the time. This is important as it refers back to Allisons point (2004: 63) which said that rooms often had a number of functions which could change. Goldberg also makes the point that this is the reason for moveable furniture (1999: 157); it makes it much easier to change the function of the room. Roman houses have a number of rooms which tend to be found in most other houses. For instance, they all have atrium which lead back into other rooms and generally speaking have a peristyle behind this. The atrium is where most of the business side of things would have been done. This means that private and public matters were kept separated. Alternatively in Greek houses men tended to have a room set aside but this was not necessarily at the front of the house and meant that business was dealt with at home some of the time (Goldberg, 1999: 142). Goldberg (1999: 155-156) also states that the courtyard of the house was the hub of activity. Everything passed through here; even though it may have been a female domain it was a way for husbands to keep an eye on their wives and all traffic through the house would have passed through here initially. This is important because it demonstrates mistrust in women, who were thought by some to be difficult to predict and generally difficult (King, 2005: 110). One of the main differences to be identified between the two types of housing to be studied is that Greek housing seems to have rooms that are gender assigned. This is not a theme that has been identified in Roman housing. It has been suggested by historians (2005: 231) that Greek women were more suppressed than Roman women, which Goldberg (1999: 158) argues may not have been true with the counter argument that women had some leverage and power over their husbands because of the dowries paid to their husbands at the time of their marriages (Goldberg, 1999: 158). What is not argued is that women had less power than men, was it then for this reason that men had different rooms from women? For instance, the andron was a room that historians have related to the male domain. It is thought that this was where symposia would have taken place (Goldberg, 1999: 149); however, this is not a phenomenon that is mentioned in Roman houses as having been something that was prevalent. Maybe this is d ue to the idea that women in Roman society were deemed to have had slightly higher standing than their counterparts in Classical Greece (2005: 231). Ault et al. complain in an article published in 1999 that ‘both artefacts and architecture are studied as isolated entities (Ault et al., 1999: 45), but what there has not been enough investigation into is the link between the two and what each one can tell us about the household as an entire unit. As alluded to above, the open areas within houses in both societies being looked at were busy places within the house. Within the Greek houses they were a ‘defining feature of Athenian houses (Jameson, 1990: 179) but also served a wider purpose, as a temperature control for the rest of the house and were a tool within the economic goings on of the society in that they ‘served as enclosed yards to ensure the protection of the household property (Goldberg, 1999: 144). The courtyards were considered to be the womens domain, although it was not unusual for men to be found here and it would have been used as a thoroughfare for male visitors wishing to get through to the andron (Goldberg, 1999: 147). It is only in more recent years that fewer assumptions have been made as to the value of each of the rooms. By looking at the evidence again historians are now better educated as to the functions of items of furniture and where they fit within rooms and what this tells us about the households and to a certain extent society. These gender divisions which have been described by Goldberg (1999) are not always as clear as it would appear, for instance, the spaces within houses which have been assigned to females are not actually marked archaeologically by ‘womens objects, like mirrors or jewellery boxes (Goldberg, 1999: 149). However this works in the opposite direction when assumptions have been made inaccurately about the function of certain houses just because there is a presence of one particular artefact, for instance loom weights. This is a topic also covered by Allison (2004) within the context of Pompeii, where inaccuracies were made about room nomenclature. The presence of loom weights does not necessarily presuppose that the house is a weaving shop (Allison, 1999: 70); it could be that there were just a larger number of looms within a particular house and the theory that they were mobile would mean that they could quite possibly have stored more than one or two looms in one household (Allison , 1999: 70). What it is more possible to assume is that the presence of loom weights in certain areas of the house, such as the courtyard, would suggest that these areas were dedicated to females (Allison, 1999: 71). In Roman society women would have done the weaving in the forecourts of the house as this was the ‘well-lit part of the house (Allison: 1999: 70). In comparing the houses from the two societies being studied it is clear that there are some spaces that one society demonstrates that the other doesnt. For instance, in Greek houses wells for water are frequent (Goldberg, 1999: 153); this is not something that is mentioned within sources on Roman housing. Neither did Roman houses include a room just for the purpose of male entertaining. Even the atriumwasusedby women for weaving (Allison, 1999: 71). It is perhaps also worth noting that from the sources included within this study there has been no mention of urban villas having a second floor. However, there are examples where houses are situated above shops such as in Ostia (Storey, 2001) and are raised off the ground. This is also difficult to verify within excavation reports purely because if the building no longer exists then there may be evidence of a floor plan for the ground floor, but no evidence of the second floor would remain. With studies like this one we encounter problems. To really investigate this topic, more research needs to be done which links the artefacts which are uncovered and what this can tell us about the household that they were found within. It is not safe to assume that just because an item was found in a room that this is where it belonged long term, an excavation is merely a ‘diachronic sample of debris reflecting patterns of use and behaviour over an extended period (Ault et al., 1999: 52), and this snapshot of the household may not be entirely accurate. Through the course of writing this essay it has been observed that conclusions are difficult to draw due to the nature of the material being dealt with. For instance, the irregular layout of Greek housing means that patterns are not easily identified as they are in Roman housing, there are of course similarities between them and patterns in the rooms that most often appear but there is no rigid layout which means we can predict what we will find, for instance, not all houses had andronesand some houses had second floors whereas others did not. Another fact to be taken into account is that a lot of the uses of these rooms is speculative. There is little evidence from primary sources from the time about the uses for rooms, so where historians have suggested a use for a room they are doing so by using the artefacts which is not always accurate (Allison, 2004). It is difficult to directly compare the two types of housing as the Greeks and Romans go about their housing in different ways, with the Greeks dividing the house into genders, something which does not happen in Roman architecture. This is a very limited cross section across the two societies and their houses leading to the conclusions being limited to urban houses and poorer houses may have been different again. This would be something to look into further. Therefore, ‘we remain woefully uninformed about many of the patterns of social and economic relationships within and between households (Ault et al., 1999: 44).

Between the Self and the Community: The Lost Identity in Morrisons Sul

Aristotle once said, "I count him braver who overcomes his desires †¦ for the hardest victory is over self." Unfortunately, most people don't understand the sheer meaning of Aristotle's quote because they live as servants of their community where one's identity losses its shape. Such end is the inevitable result of living under the constraints of binaries. Toni Morrison's Sula is packed with numerous binaries that define the nature and acts of the novel's characters such as the Self/Community binary. The identities of Sula, Nel and Eva are sketched out by the diverse choices they make in relation to this binary: controlling the privileged side, being controlled by the unprivileged side or sticking in between. To begin with, Sula enjoys the superiority of her pivotal self. Galehouse in her article, "New World Women" states that "despite any real or perceived limitations imposed by her family, her community, or the era in which she is depicted, Sula does not put any limits upon herself"(341). Her disinterest in what the Bottom community glorifies forms her narcissistic identity and creates her "I want to make myself" motto (Morrison 121). For Sula, all the worn-out traditions promoted by her community worth nothing more than her own "dirt" for at least the latter is her own production. Sula`s identity as a new world woman is highlighted by her "daring, disruptive, imaginative,†¦ out-of-the-house, uncontained and uncontainable" personality, as Morrison puts it (qut in. Galehouse 339). Moreover, throughout the novel, Sula`s self controls every aspect of her social and intellectual life resulting in full appreciation of her angelic, as well as, demonic actions. On the one hand, w hen cutting her finger in an attempt to... ...ng? Finally, I idealize Eva, but does she idealize her own self? Questions remain unanswered just as the Self/Community binary remains unchanged even in our legendary 21st century. (1,187) Works Cited Bergenholtz, Rita. "Toni Morrison's Sula: A satire on Binary Thinking." African American Review 30.1 (1996): 89-99. Academic Search Premier. Web. 22 March 2012. Galehouse, Maggie. "New World Woman: Toni Morrison's Sula." Papers on Language and Literature 35.4 (1999): 339-355. Jstore. Web. 21 March 2012. Morrison, Toni. Sula. New York: Penguin Books, 1993. Print. Pessoni, Michele. "She was laughing at their God: Discovering the goddess within Sula." African American Review 29.3 (1995): 439-442. Academic Search Premier. Web. 20 March 2012.