American Progress

John Gast’s painting, â€Å"American Progress†, illustrates many depictions of the early movement and development of the United States. This particular painting defines uniqueness and character throughout. Looking at it geographically the angel portrayed in the middle is floating westward as though she is exemplifying the Westward Expansion. She has the â€Å"Star of Empire† imprinted on her forehead, which better portrays the idea of her trying to move westward. This painting is a great description of our country’s economical progress and expansion. Gast artistically explains the present day United States as nice cities along rivers with big buildings and churches along the right edge of this painting. This scene is also shown as being happy and awakening because of the bright sun rays being shown down upon it. The city is supposed to represent a growing city along the mighty Mississippi River. You are able to see the evolution of transportation through boats and railroads. The three main intercontinental railways are shown departing from this city, and the beautiful angel in the middle is carrying the telegraph cable which eventually linked the nation together. She is also carrying with her some type school book, which to me represents intellectual ideas being spread throughout the country. In the background behind her lies many rolling hills and plush green grass. There is not many trees in this portrait, but the snow capped mountains on the left and the great plains on the right depict a great deal of land diversity from coast to coast. There are also many cattle, Indians, wild horses, bears, and other wild game trying to flee her approach towards the west and eventually into the storms and waves of the Pacific coast. Although she seems very divine in appearance some may take her intentions as revolting. Her central idea seems as though she is trying to spread the economical progress throughout the entire United States. Emotionally this is a very strong painting because of its detail and significance. When I first looked at this painting it made me think of Manifest Destiny. The angel in the middle attempting to emigrate westward defines the meaning of manifest destiny. Many thought it was God’s belief that the United States would expand from the Atlantic coast to the Pacific coast. I also felt another tie to my previous assumption when I noticed the star on her forehead. I felt it had great importance so I began to acknowledge her surroundings and I realized it was the â€Å"Star of Empire†, which signifies westward movement as well. The star is a bright golden color, almost identical to rays of light being exposed upon new land. She is wearing a long, swaying white robe which is also significant because the color white signifies freedom. Her bright golden, blonde hair also signifies the presence of God to me. Her presence in this painting is not just for beauty but for great importance. I have always felt strongly about the spread of equality throughout our nation, and to me it seems as though she is trying to spread the superior life-style across the United States. The book in her arm represents that she is trying to spread intelligence and the teaching of literacy. It was very rare in the past for many people to be able to both read and write, and with the spread of civilization trying to take place it is very important that she also spread the gift of teaching. I also believe that she is trying to spread the connection of communication throughout the country by carrying the telegraph cord in her other hand. This became a very important facet of our country, because many of the connections and deals made over time would not have been made possible without communication. When I looked more towards the left side of the painting I noticed it was very dark and gloomy. Coincidently that happened to be the way everyone was fleeing, which in my mind represents everyone trying to escape freedom and return to normalcy among themselves. These men, women, and animals look as though they are afraid of the angel hovering over them, but ideally they are trying to escape normal civilization. This painting portrays many different themes and central ideas depending on which way it is observed. I feel from my point of view that I was able to interpret that the theme is based on moving forward in society. As seen on the right side of this portrait, the eastern United States progressed sooner than the west, and many frontiersmen are afraid of this new lifestyle. It seems as though the angel is trying to help everyone move forward and develop a new way of living and become more acquainted with this innovative way of living. No one copes very well with change, and like-wise neither did the Indians, farmers, and all of the other wild animals. These individuals had to manage survival with whatever nature skills they had. The mountainous region on the left side of the painting is covered with dark, rainy clouds and white snow caps. This symbolizes harsh climates and bad conditions for any type of living. Some of the animals may not be used to the western climates and may not be able to adapt quickly enough before facing the edge of extinction. The angel present in the center of the painting is able to help spread this central idea of moving on by her presence and what she brings with her. The coloration of her long, curly hair exemplifies traits from Jesus Christ. Her intentions are as His would be, and that is to create happiness and equality throughout. The gleaming star on her forehead also ties into the main theme through the concept of Manifest Destiny. I believe the star has the most significance of any object in the painting when referring to the main theme. The principle of the star represents the same significance as the main theme; people are trying to move forward in society. This entire painting depicts the importance of this exploration to the western United States. Everything is explained in perfect artistic form from the bright, sunshiny city on the right to the dark, gloomy coast on the left. The depiction of the angel in the middle is obviously the most important characteristic of this painting, but she also brings a lot of debate for whether or not she is subsiding good or bad influence on our country. There are many details and translations that can be looked at from many different angles depending on the person’s train of thought. I have explained in every detail the way I feel about this painting and the way I sensed each direction of the artist’s feelings. John Gast has a great connotation of each perception in his painting, and uses many features to depict different portions of his famous artwork. Many great Americans can agree with the central concept of this painting and will be able to grasp the implications behind each item portrayed in the painting. I personally feel that this painting is well thought out and had great meaning behind each aspect.

Why I Want a Wife

Weddings are often a time of celebration, especially for my family. This past summer, as we prepared for my sister Gini’s wedding, the festivities extended to good-natured teasing of the bride- and groom-to-be. For example, WITH knowing smiles, my parents–self-proclaimed experts on marriage courtesy of their own wedding almost thirty years ago–dispensed advice about everything, including how to improve her cooking skills beyond instant rice and grilled cheese. Gini’s typical responses included â€Å"That was a long time ago,† â€Å"Things are different now; times have changed,† and â€Å"Jason can do a lot of things for himself. † It was with particular delight that my family took to rubbing in one of Jason’s smoother moves. He waited until a few short weeks before the wedding to inform Gini that his Mom had always done his ironing for him, and now he expected Gini to take over that task—after all, he couldn’t wear wrinkled clothes to his new job, could he? Poking fun at the responsibilities involved in marriage is similar to the attitude presented in Judy Brady’s 1971 essay, â€Å"Why I Want a Wife. † In â€Å"Why I Want a Wife,† Brady offers hypothetical criteria for an ideal wife in a satirical commentary on how the work of wives is often taken for granted. The humor of the essay lies in its structure: on the surface it seems to accept the criteria it puts forth, while the meaning actually operates in the recognition that the narrator is being sarcastic. Using writing as one of her tools for activism, Judy (Syfers) Brady has established herself as a supporter of the women’s movement since she began more than thirty years ago. In â€Å"Why I Want a Wife,† she narrates a setting that mocks the situations and obligations wives find themselves immersed in. The narrator draws on her own experiences to present examples of how â€Å"good† wives are expected to behave. The satirical critique emerges as the narrator thinks through her reasons for wanting a wife. The language used has a satirical edge evident in both the author’s emphasis on certain modifiers (indicated by italics) and in the surface structure of the sentences, which belies the underlying criticisms. The audience should recognize the sarcasm from the language and attitude of the narrator. Now let's consider all the elements supporting her satirical point, beginning with the author's long history with this style of writing. Judy (Syfers) Brady has established herself as a supporter of the women’s movement, and critics point to this essay as typical of her career. â€Å"Throughout the article, [Brady] lists characteristics that she would like in a wife†¦She never comes out and says that the way that women are treated in family situations is wrong. She implies it by sarcastically creating her ideal wife. This technique works because it forces readers to realize it for themselves† writes Diego Vasquez on a webpage titled â€Å"A Rhetorical Critique of ‘Why I Want a Wife. â€Å"2 Vasquez’s analysis includes the supposition that the essay first appeared in pamphlet form, and suggests that Brady was a â€Å"†¦radical feminist writing for other radical feminists. † Vasquez also notes that Brady is reported to have said, â€Å"I am married, am a housewife, and have two female children; all three of those factors keep my anger alive,† and that â€Å"[Brady] t ried to persuade other housewives to take a step back and look at how they were being exploited. † Judy Syfers Brady, who was born in 1931 and later studied at the University of Iowa, now lives in San Francisco. In 1972, â€Å"Why I Want a Wife† appeared in the first issue of â€Å"Ms. â€Å"3 Although at that time, few critics expected the magazine to last4, almost twenty years later it (re-) featured â€Å"Why I Want a Wife. â€Å"5 Another decade later, almost thirty years after the essay first appeared in Ms. , Ms. Brady is still active in women’s movements. Her more recent work can be found in â€Å"Greenpeace Magazine†6 and in the â€Å"Women’s Review of Books. â€Å"7 Through all these works and critical commentary on it, we can see her personal focus on making a strong case for the feminist cause. Much as her personal life informs her recent article in the â€Å"Women’s Review of Books,† Judy Brady appears to have drawn on her own experiences when she wrote â€Å"Why I Want a Wife. † In the essay, the author/narrator drives home the amount and type of work expected of wives both by situating herself as involved in some it and by listing qualifications. In my reading, the setting of the over-worked housewife will take the form of the narrator both being such a wife and of describing such as wife through mimicry. To indicate this setting, I will use actions to reinforce the narrator’s words. For example, at the beginning, in the clause â€Å"while I was ironing,† the narrator slips in that she thought through her argument while engaged in domestic labor. When I read that line, I will direct a look at the audience that conveys just how thrilled I am to be pressing clothes. Which is to say, my look will suggest that yet again, while I was doing one of my many thankless jobs, I was thinking about that â€Å"poor† guy. A second way I intend to suggest the setting is to give the audience a withering look while I use my right hand to pick up and put away imaginary things as I read the lines â€Å"I want a wife who will keep my house clean. A wife who will pick up after my children, a wife who will pick up after me. I want a wife who will keep my clothes clean, ironed, mended, replaced when need be, and who will see to it that my personal things are kept in their proper place so that I can find what I need the minute I need it. Later, to show the perfect wife being the perfect hostess, I will offer up imaginary hors d’oeuvres with a graceful sweep of my hand when read the clause â€Å"I want a wife who takes care of the needs of my guests so that they feel comfortable, who makes sure that they have an ashtray, that they are passed the hors d’oeuvres, that they are offered a second helping of the food, that their wine glasses are replenished when necessary, that their coffee is served t o them as they like it. The gracefulness of the movement will hopefully reinforce the wife-seekers conception of feminine social skills in addition to suggesting and mimicking an actual setting where hors d’oeuvres are being offered. Also, to follow up that line and to show that the coffee is just right, I will bring up my right hand, holding my fingers folded down, except for my thumb and index finger, which will be touching at the imaginary point of perfection. This movement will signify the (anal) expectations about a wife’s responsibilities. In all these ways the author's relationship to the setting supports the point of the essay through a performance of the character's satirical tone. As a character, the narrator has chosen to view these (anal) expectations in a humorous, satirical light. To show this mark of a sharp mind and wit, I will read every line in light mockery. This sweet little wifey has a biting way of deftly masking her meaning in false agreement. The criticisms of the narrator aren’t malicious, but they are satirical, and I hope to project that satire in my reading. I imagine the narrator as someone with self-confidence and poise, dignified even in undignified circumstances, and I plan to portray that by standing upright, neither puffed with arrogance nor slumped with despair. That is how I will stand, too, when I read the brief paragraph on replacing the hypothetical wife (â€Å"If, by chance, I find another person more suitable as a wife than the wife I already have, I want the liberty to replace my present wife with another one. Naturally, I will expect a fresh new life; my wife will take the children and be solely responsible for them so that I am left free. â€Å") For that paragraph, I will assume the tone of a martyr, as if the wife-seeker is sacrificing him(/her)self for the well-being of the universe. Also, to show the narrator as parodying the self-centered concerns of a wife-seeker, I will gesture toward myself, occasionally laying my hand below the base of my throat, throughout my reading. This movement will direct attention to the self who is self-centered and will be a trifle melodramatic, as can be expected of someone who is over-acting to make fun of another person’s selfishness. And, to further express the overall satire of the essay, I will try to keep the hint of a smirk (a dubious, critical smirk-not a self-satisfied one) on my face. This smirk should put a sarcastic edge on my reading as the character considers all the benefits of having a wife which she would like to enjoy. Thinking about and sarcastically expounding on the thankless duties expected of â€Å"good† wives is how I envision the development of this piece’s â€Å"action. † I plan to show this action of â€Å"Thinking† in several ways. One way is to pretend as though I, the narrator, think some of my ideas are super, such as â€Å"I want a wife who is a good nurturant attendant to my children, who arranges for their schooling, makes sure that they have an adequate social life with their peers, takes them to the park, the zoo, etc. â€Å"). I will try to keep a fake, bland smile on my face to suggest how nice, easy, and convenient it must be to be able to rely on someone else for such tasks. Another way I will demonstrate the narrator’s thought processes will be to act as though some of my ideas have just occurred to me, including the somewhat random â€Å"I want a wife who will type my papers for me when I have written them. † I will pause before that line and try to look thoughtful before coming to the revelation that that would be quite handy. An additional way to indicate the narrator’s thinking will be to vocally (not verbally) suggest that some of my ideas are onerous duties I have long since grown tired of doing, such as â€Å"When I meet people at school that I like and want to entertain, I want a wife who will have the house clean, will prepare a special meal, serve it to me and my friends, and not interrupt when I talk about things that interest me and my friends. † I will adopt a haughty, superior tone to deliberately imitate how I have been told, in effect, to lower myself. Showing this process of reflecting on the expectations for wives will help to foster the sense of mockery the narrator employs throughout her satirical litany. This satire and sarcasm is evident in the language used even at the beginning of the piece, and I plan to play it up. For example, when I read the second line (â€Å"I am A Wife. â€Å"), I will say â€Å"I amm†Ã¢â‚¬â€œholding the â€Å"M† slightly longer than necessary for emphasis-before I punctuating â€Å"A Wife† with a demure smile to indicate the sublime pleasure I derive from the this, the most fulfilling of feminine roles. Also on â€Å"A Wife,† I will lower my voice to further emphasize the depth and fullness of my appreciation for my position. I plan this obviously exaggerated infusion of wife-dom with positive connotations to set up the satirical attitude toward â€Å"wife† in the rest of the piece. . Some other ways I plan to use the language of the essay to drive home the narrator’s voice is to take advantage of the author’s locations of emphasis. In two places, the author has italicized â€Å"my† when she writes â€Å"my physical needs† and â€Å"my sexual needs. In those two places I will particularly stress â€Å"my† to reflect the intensity of the selfishness being described, and I will gesture toward myself. The author has also italicized the â€Å"good† in â€Å"I want a wife who cooks the meals, a wife who is a good cook. † I will vocally stress the â€Å"good† and I will make an â€Å"Mmmm† face (quick raising of my eyebrows while smiling with my lips closed) to reflect the author’s intentional emphasis. These actions should help to make the satirical intention of the speaker clear to the audience. Making the sarcasm/satire of the narrator clear to the audience will be an essential part of my performance. To introduce the sarcasm in the opening, I will look over the audience’s heads, almost at an imaginary star that represents how dreamy my life as a wife is and how happy I am at my good fortune of being married when I read the lines â€Å"I belong to that classification of people known as wives. I am A Wife. And, not altogether incidentally, I am a mother. Of course, this dreamy look will be an act on behalf of the narrator, who is making fun of anyone who actually believes that that is the sum of how she feels. In the next paragraph, I will look at the audience as I brace them for my diatribe. I will be giving them a semi-serious look, with my eyebrows raised in a quizzical way, that matches the narrator’s dry tone. From this look, the audience should infer that the narrator actually judges her friend, or people like the friend, much harsher than the words bein g used would imply. Further into the essay, there is the paragraph about sexual needs (â€Å"I want a wife who is sensitive to my sexual needs, a wife who makes love passionately and eagerly when I feel like it, a wife who makes sure that I am satisfied. And, of course, I want a wife who will not demand sexual attention when I am not in the mood for it. I want a wife who assumes the complete responsibility for birth control, because I do not want more children. I want a wife who will remain sexually faithful to me so that I do not have to clutter up my intellectual life with jealousies. And I want a wife who understands that my sexual needs may entail more than strict adherence to monogamy. I must, after all, be able to relate to people as fully as possible. â€Å") When I begin that paragraph, I will give the audience a saucy, playful look. Then, I will look eager (chin and eyebrows raised, expectant smile) when I speak of making love eagerly, and I will look stubborn (eyebrows lowered, negative shake of my head) for when I am â€Å"not in the mood. † Although I will have maintained appropriate eye-contact throughout the reading, at the end, with the final sentence (â€Å"My God, who wouldn’t want a wife? ), I will pin the audience with a piercing look, looking them straight in the eye, as if to say, â€Å"Well, duh! ,† when the narrator’s true voice finally speaks. These actions should connect the audience directly to the progression of thought and satire as the speaker leads up to and makes her strong concluding statement. Judy Brady has strong opinions about what shouldn’t be automatically presumed as a wife’s obligations. Her opinion influenced her essay â€Å"Why I Want a Wife†, wherein she introduces the reader to an overworked housewife’s reasons for wanting a wife of her own. This housewife/narrator cleverly uses language to comment on the condition of wives by verbally condoning what she actually despises. Because the audience will be able to pick up on her sarcasm, they will understand her unsaid message. Although it might be possible to construe Brady’s essay as a bitter diatribe against the injustice of the way some wives are subordinated, I prefer to read this piece as the humorous product of a sharp wit, almost like Jonathan Swift’s â€Å"A Modest Proposal. Usually, when I read over this essay, a smirk finds its way to my face-the same kind of smirk I feel starting when I think back to the proud phone call my family received after my newlywed sister Gini succeeded in making meatloaf all by herself. Maybe Gini was right in those days before her wedding when she anticipated that things would be different for her and Jason, and that the two of them would share household responsibilities. They seem to be equally experiencing the hazards o f cooking. Recently, Gini told us about a kitchen disaster that involved them both. Ace-chef that she is, Gini failed to notice that some fresh-from-the-freezer sauerkraut was burning one of her (wedding gift) pans. Jason came to the rescue, though, convinced that he could save the day with his superior knowledge that only inorganic chemicals can clean up burned organic materials. And so, he set about â€Å"desperately† trying the salvage the pan using Gini's nail polish remover. It does my heart good to know that the two of them work so well together in the kitchen. Although now I am torn about what to get them for Christmas: new cookware? Who knows, maybe I'll get them a restaurant gift certificate.

Attributes that compliment for Professional growth

Attributes that compliment for Professional growth Professionally successful people all share a certain set of attributes. These attributes are what differentiates them from average people and helps them achieve all their goals along with organizational goals. If one wishes to become a successful and attain new heights in their career a certain set of attributes are necessary which can be adopted through self-development and self-assessment. Professional focused people always welcome challenges as they believe that challenges are those experience which help to refine one self and are never afraid about failure. There are lots of qualities that sum up a person, but not everybody can put them together to practice. What one must learn is where strength lies and how he can develop other qualities which will make him a complete and through professional. The qualities that count as good professional attributes can be summed up as follows: 1Must be highly motivated and enthusiastic and have a keen desire to continually update knowledge and skills required for the job. 2Must be a loyal employee who is hard working, dependable and trustworthy because it is a it is a two way relationship between an employee and employer. 3The ability to work individually and as part of the larger organizations team. Should have a strong sense of commitments should able to begin a course of action and work through it until its finished. Should have a very strong drive and motivation to continually develop my professional skills. Should have excellent communication skills, both verbal and written. Should have the ability to relate to all types of other people I work with. Should be flexible and adaptable to meet changing conditions or situations. Should have the ability to learn quickly and my common sense helps me respond to the needs of new situations. Should use common sense and the ability to make decisions based on knowledge and good judgement. Must maintain a balanced attitude towards work and home life, giving appropriate consideration to things that matter at home and at work. Must be able to deal with pressure and organize their well, so that work and job demands get proper attention and justice. Should have a sense of humor and be able to join with others and enjoy funny situations. Having mentioned the above attributes, it is possible every person must be blessed with at least few of them. One of the major goal is to first identify how we relate to them, what we already have and ways to develop which are critical to the current job profile. Every time if it would be good to appear a little more professional, just choose to be a little more professional coz that professional attitude helps to build long term relations. There is one absolute requirement for becoming valuable and successful: Accept total responsibility for your life professionally and personally, No blame, no victim-hood, no excuses. For life to get better, one must get better. Its as simple as that. One cannot become a great leader simply by reading about leadership. Similarly, one cannot refine oneself without practicing. So, dive in learn lessons from failures and develop wisdom and to increase proficiency and always remember the path to mastery is Practice.

A report evaluating the processes, methods and outcomes of a website Essay

A report evaluating the processes, methods and outcomes of a website created for Autistic people - Essay Example At present, there are very few websites for those with ASD. However, there are a lot of websites, books, journals and articles which target people who have to deal with ASD patients like teachers, parents employers etc. Objective To agree on the requirements of those with autism spectrum disorder and determine what elements must be present in a fully-functioning, educational website, the objectives to determine if the website is working are: Present the developmental requirements of autism patients. Autistic people develop at different rates and in different ways as opposed to those who do not suffer from ASD (National Autistic Society, 2010). To find out how those with ASD feel about the internet. Do they feel comfortable browsing website and talking in online chat rooms? How would Human-Computer Interaction or user interfaces will affect autistic people? Rationale As mentioned above there are currently a few, known websites that deal with autistic people directly. This made the res earch very hard as it would have been easier to look at other websites aimed directly to them and see how they have used human computer interface to design the look of the website. However, to find the information needed, research had to be done published materials of writers and professionals dealing with the autistic disease communication as well as evaluate websites that are already up and running. The research conducted was at first to list the basic activities a person does on a day to day basis and then to find out how ASD patients handle these situations. It will also try to seek out how the ASD individuals seek support from websites. The main purpose of this project is to make sure that people with ASD and related disorders can live together in a society where no one is isolated. The rest of this report will evaluate the research that was done, the methodology used to create the website, the results where the whole product will be evaluated and finally the conclusion. Resear ch Implementing the product was based on the research that had been carried out during the initial part of the project. The means of research included books, websites, journals and information from professionals within the field of autism. There were two parts of research done. The first part of the research was based on the behaviour, activity and general responses that ASD patients show. The second part of the research is about the way the website was going to be built; the design and how the website was going to be populated. ASD patient research To first process to learn about ASD patients was to ask major organisations within the UK for basic information such as the National Autistic Society and Autism UK. However, they could not provide the relevant information needed that directly was aimed at autistic people (Appendix A.1). To overcome this obstacle, research was carried out through books and interviews with notable people who deal with autistic people (Appendix A.2). At fir st it was hard researching, as it was something new, but after undertaking the Research Report, researching now was something familiar and quite enjoyable as a lot of time was used just on researching in the field of autism. Using this information, it was easy to apply to autistic people. The website now had information that is useful for the autistic

Business Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 2

Business - Coursework Example In addition, it is the ability of accepting changes and novelty. Creativity is driven by individual’s interest, passion, and the existing market problem and not by external pressure. Additionally, creativity is made up of three component: innate motivation, creative thinking, and expertise. On the other hand, innovation is the implementation of a new idea that provides an entrepreneur with a competitive advantage. The element of innovation distinguishes a successful business from the rest. Therefore, innovation increases the business competitiveness through rejuvenating and redefining an existing idea. Creativity is subjective; it cannot be measured while an innovation is measurable. In the U.K., the beauty industry is a big business. There are numerous beauticians and beauty salons offering the beauty conscious populace with a large number of competent cosmetologists (Erdomus & Cicek, 2012, p.1354). In today’s world, women and men are increasingly becoming conscious of their looks. As a result, the demand for high-quality treatments and reliable beauticians is great. Mobile beauty shops provide treatment to customers at their homes. In addition, they provide reliable and accessible services to the clients. The business requires a beautician to travel to clients and provide them with beauty treatments in the comfort of their homes. In UK, the beauty industry is catching up with dynamics of modern day lives. An average middle-aged British woman spends over 40 hours per week on full time work. As a result, the demand for mobile grooming has rose dramatically. . In the U.K., the number of mobile beauty parlors is lower compared to countries such as the U.S. The existing mobile beauty shops are not enough to cover the ever rising for the grooming services. However, to venture into the business one must love the industry and must be ready to learn.

Methods of research that warrant the use of qualitative research Essay

Methods of research that warrant the use of qualitative research methods in Criminal Justice - Essay Example Qualitative research is deemed as the more superior way with which to conduct important and meaningful research in the field of criminal justice/security management. Qualitative research methods provide several advantages which enhance the intensity of understanding with regard to the operations of justice system; criminals and crime as well as allowing for data processing that supersedes statistically oriented conclusions arrived at through the use of quantitative research methods. This mainly because of the difference in information due to the means of data collection applied, data analysis which generally provides a wealth of information on subjects being studied. Knowledge gained therein provides more information, is richer and allows for more concrete understanding. In this paper, I intend to discuss and analyze the types of research that warrant the use of qualitative methods in criminal justice/security management research.... myriad of intellectual techniques so as to effectively and efficiently facilitate for the organization, management, analysis and interpretation of data collected. Researchers in criminal justice/ security management use qualitative research which accords them the challenge to look for meaningful ways with which the acquired data can be produce workable trends and patterns required for meaningful research (Copes, Brown & Tewksbury, 2011). It is important to note that there are of course generally accepted guidelines in qualitative research which offer guidance as to how researchers can apply qualitative data information, actual tasks, and undertakings of data and information gathering, analysis as well as interpretation while ensuring an acceptable degree of innovativeness and creativity. Data collected and applied in qualitative research is sourced from a variety of data collection methods. These types include individual interviews, observing people, social interactions and place, an alysis of various forms of media, content guided conversations with regard to focus groups and personal engagements with respects to research sample settings in an effort to better understand how, where, when and what social interactions and social structures affect criminal justice/security management research studies (Copes, Brown & Tewksbury, 2011). Each and every one of these types of data collection differ, more so with the source and origin of data as well as in the means with which researchers carry out real time tasks towards the collection of raw data while also comparing these with similar and regularly realized events things and or situations. Interviews Interviews are in a nutshell structured conversations carried out by researchers with individual members of society in an

Career Coaching & Personal Development Assignment

Career Coaching & Personal Development - Assignment Example The week’s lecture involved the use of questionnaire one of which had been prepared by our lecturer. The module highlighted Person-environment (P-E) fit theory of organizational behavior, which forms the basis for assessing and predicting our personality, determine our skills and our preferable careers. The first questionnaire was about scoring myself on my skill. We first filled a questionnaire followed by adding up our scores. I scored highest on People Skills, which suggested that I like carrying out activities such as management, guiding others, in addition to activities that require persuasiveness.These traits suggested that my preferable careers were management, as well as other jobs in the field of business. This was encouraging since I had never considered myself persuasive. These findings made me realize that I had more potential than I had previously thought and needed to be open-minded since I could do other jobs other than management. The next questionnaire was on Career Directions Indication, which was based on the model of John Holland in the form of a hexagon, depicting the six different personalities or themes, which include Realistic, Investigative, Artistic Social, Enterprising, and conventional. People who share the same personality prefer working together and have a specific work environment in which they perform best.   Holland’s model is based on Person-environment (P-E) fit theory and denotes the congruence, match, or connection between the personalities and environment. Understanding one's personality is important in that it helps one choose a career that provides the appropriate environment.  It was intriguing to learn that all individuals may be associated with this model of personality types and that one can fall in up to three of these themes. The model is hexagonal and the different personalities are arranged such that personality types that are neighbouring share some similarities while those lying oppositely diff er more. I eagerly completed the questionnaire and the results proposed that I fall into is ‘Enterprising’, ‘Social’ and ‘conventional’ themes. This was captivating since the three personality types lie adjacent to each other. Being in enterprising category meant that I prefer managerial and sales type of jobs, which is true.

Project 9 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Project 9 - Essay Example Examples of parametric tests are t tests and z tests which are used on both paired and independent quantitative data. Nonparametric tests do not assume any particular distribution for the data; however, they look at the category or rank order of the values and ignores the absolute difference between them (Driscoll and Lecky 2001.). In addition to the application of these tests to quantitative data that are not normally distributed, nonparametric tests are also applied to nominal and ordinal data. According to Driscoll and Lecky (2001), examples of nonparametric tests include Chi Square, Fisher exact test which are used for nominal data; and Wilcoxon, Mann-Whitney and Kolmogorov-Smirnov which are used for ordinal data. Chi-Square (χ2) test is a very popular nonparametric test which is used on unpaired nominal data. This paper shows how the χ2 test is applied to data relating to gender and office locations of 60 sworn officers. The test is used to determine if there is a difference in the gender distribution among the three locations. According to Salkind (2009), the Chi Square test is a very interesting test which allows the researcher to determine if what is observed in a distribution of frequencies represents what is expected to occur by chance. The data relating to gender and office locations have been grouped in order to perform a Chi Square test. The test has more than one independent variable and so is described as a test of independence. The table below shows the arrangement of the data. The table above shows that there are a total of 35 males and 25 females distributed across three locations. The test seeks to determine whether there are any differences in relation to the gender distribution across the three locations. Therefore, the null hypothesis (Ho) and research hypothesis would be stated as: According to Salkind (2009), the next step is to determine the level of

A grammar test to an intermediate level Assignment

A grammar test to an intermediate level - Assignment Example For a longtime teachers have had a hard time trying to determine whether their students have grasped the various learning concepts tests were therefore introduced to enable teachers asses the learning levels of their students (Harmer 2007, Pg 2). Prior to any testing exercise, teachers often put many factors into consideration, such, may include the age of the students, the topics covered under study. One of the importances of testing the intermediate students English language levels is that it helps the teacher make various decisions regarding the teaching models to use.   Teachers have various styles of teaching and such may affect the students understanding of the given topic (Hughes 1989, pg 15).   The testing therefore enables teachers to tailor their teaching styles to fit the students that are being taught. In the face of ever changing English and language developments, the testing of students gives them exposure to these changes. Students at intermediate levels may not ha ve so much grasp and command of the English language, however, through testing the teachers may introduce elements that will be suitable for their learning (Yule, 2000 Pg 17). Therefore, testing of this kind allows the teacher to determine what the learners ought to know and the various changes that are talking place in the English language. Through testing, the teacher will be able to know the various interests of the learners especially in regards to the learning styles applicable in teaching them.   For instances students that are convergers.... Prior to any testing exercise, teachers often put many factors into consideration, such, may include the age of the students, the topics covered under study. One of the importances of testing the intermediate students English language levels is that it helps the teacher make various decisions regarding the teaching models to use. Teachers have various styles of teaching and such may affect the students understanding of the given topic (Hughes 1989, pg 15). The testing therefore enables teachers to tailor their teaching styles to fit the students that are being taught. In the face of ever changing English and language developments, the testing of students gives them exposure to these changes. Students at intermediate levels may not have so much grasp and command of the English language, however, through testing the teachers may introduce elements that will be suitable for their learning (Yule, 2000 Pg 17). Therefore, testing of this kind allows the teacher to determine what the learne rs ought to know and the various changes that are talking place in the English language. Through testing, the teacher will be able to know the various interests of the learners especially in regards to the learning styles applicable in teaching them. For instances students that are convergers are often solitary and may not like learning in the same environment as the others (Yule, 2000 Pg 17). Through this the teacher will be in a position to identify the conformist students who have preference to studying the language rather than using the language. Others like concrete learners and the communicative learners will also be identified and the teacher will come up with various teaching models that are suitable for them. Having knowledge on the type of students in your

Sodium thiosulphate and Acid Essay Example for Free

Sodium thiosulphate and Acid Essay For our investigation we will be looking at how the temperature affects the rate of reaction between sodium thiosulphate and an acid. To make sure the experiment is a fair test we must first see which other factors may effect the investigation and how we can control them. The temperature, concentration of the two solutions, the light intensity, the depth of the solution and the person judging whether they can still see the cross are all factors which may affect the rate of the reaction. Description of reaction: When sodium thiusulphate are added together they react as shown below: HCL + sodium thiosulphate sodium chloride + sulphur dioxide + sulphur + water. HCL(aq) + Na2S2O3(aq) NaCl(aq) + SO2(g) + S(s) + H2O(l) The sulphur produced is held in suspension turning what was a colourless solution into a clouded one. This is what causes the cross to disappear. When we are measuring the time for the cross to disappear we are also measuring the time for a set amount of sulphur to be produced. The rate: The rate of reaction is the speed at which the reaction takes place. Speed are measured as distance over time such as metres a second (m/s) and miles per hour (mph). A speed could also be the speed at which someone works out at, say a factory worker makes 5 footballs per hour so there work speed would be number of footballs over hours so in this case 5 footballs/hour. The speed (rate) at which a reaction happens at is written in the same way but in stead of a distance over time or footballs over time it is the point of the reaction you are measuring upto over time. The point you measure upto in this experiment isTheoretical background and prediction: Since starting chemistry in year 7 we have performed and been shown experiment and demonstrations which involve reactions. The speed and how vigorously these reactions take place have been shown to vary greatly. The reaction between a strong acid and a strong alkali can happen in a few seconds and they react together extremely vigorously while the rusting (oxidising) of a metal statue can take years. Reactions occur as described in the collision theory when two molecules collide (intermolecular collision); this is shown in the diagram below: In our experiment we will be measuring the rate of the reaction by measuring the time taken for the reaction between the hydrochloric acid and the sodium thiosulphate to reach a set point (when we could no longer see the cross). The time taken to reach this point could be changed by increasing or decreasing the number of reactions, which took place every second. This could be done in two ways: a) Increasing the number of molecules of the two reactants (increasing concentration) in a given volume of the solution b) Increasing the speed of the molecules by increasing the temperature of the reactant. Both of these increase the chance of collisions occurring. Kinetic theory tells us that the higher the temperature then the more energy the molecules have and the faster they move around. A basic rule followed by most chemists is that for every 10 Kelvins the temperature is raised through the rate of reaction is doubled therefore for each 1 Kelvin raised the rate of reaction increases by about 10 percent. However experiments using the kinetic theory show however that the increase in total number of intermolecular collisions is only about 2 per cent for each 1 Kelvin rise in temperature. Only a certain proportion of collisions actually produce a reaction. This proportion rises more rapidly with increase in temperature than the total number of collisions. It was first suggested in 1889 by a man named Arrhenius that a molecule would only react on collision if it had higher than the average energy i. e. a necessary amount of energy is required for the reaction to occur. If they do not have this minimum amount of energy they will just bounce off each other and no reaction will occur. The minimum amount of energy required for the reaction to take place is called the activation energy (Eact). Light intensity will affect how long it takes before the person judging cannot see the cross anymore. As if there is a higher light intensity it will be a lot easier to see the cross. Also the person who is judging whether or not they can see the cross makes a difference as we all have different eyesights and judgement. If two different beakers are used and both filled with the same volume of water then if one has a small surface area then there will be a greater depth of solution. The greater the depth then the quicker the time taken before the cross can no longer be seen as the light would have to pass through a greater amount of sulphur. I predict that the higher the temperature is the quicker the time will be for the reaction to take place and that the higher the temperature the higher the rate of reaction. I predict this because as I have stated above that the more energy the molecules are given by heating them the faster they move thus more collisions occur with a greater force. This results in more reactions taking place in a shorter space of time. If more reactions are taking place in a shorter space of time as the temperature increases then more sulphur will be produced per second as you raise the Temperature. This means that the more you raise the temperature the quicker the amount of sulphur required for the person judging the experiment to be unable to see the cross. When two liquids of different temperatures are mixed together the solution produced will have a new resultant temperature. The formula used to tell us what this resultant temperature will be is: V1T 1 + V2T2 V1 + V2 T3 =Resultant Temperature This formula can be rearranged so that the temperature the sodium thiosulphate needs to be heated to can be worked out so that the desired resultant temperature is achieved when the HCL is added which is at room temperature. The formula is rearranged to: T3 (V1 + V2) V2T2 V1 Throughout the experiment T1 and T3 are the only parts of the experiment, which will be changed, all the others will remain constant. V1 and T 1 are the volume and temperature of the water and sodium thiosulphate solution, the volume will be 50 ml for the whole experiment and the temperature will vary. V2 and T2 are the volume and temperature of the HCL acid, the volume will be 5 ml throughout and the temperature will be room temperature (around 20 degrees Celsius). T3 is the temperature of the sodium thiosulphate and water solution after the HCL has been added and is the temperature, at which the reaction takes place, the temperature will either be 20, 30, 40, 50, 60 or 70 degrees Celsius. T3 ( C) T1 ( C) 20 20 30 31 40 42 50 53 60 64 70 75 The table above shows the temperatures the sodium thiosulphate and water solution will need to be at for the desired resultant temperature to be achieved when the HCL is added. Trial experiments: Before we could start the experiment we needed to run some trial experiments to see if our method was correct and to decide what concentration to use. Previously we had performed a similar experiment to see how concentration affected the rate of reaction. This gave us a starting concentration of around 40 ml of distilled water to 10 ml of Sodium thiosulphate. This concentration proved to be slightly to fast when doing it at 70 degrees celcius. So we tried using 42 ml of distilled water to 8 ml of sodium Thiosulphate. This concentration was fine. Water (ml) Thiosulphate (ml) Concentration (g/dm) Time at 20 C (s) Time at 70 C (s) 40 10 8 42 8 6. 4 We will use 42 ml of water and 8ml of Sodium thiosulphate which gives us a concentration of 6.4 g/dm for our experiment as if we use a concentration which is any higher it will react to quickly for us to record accurately when the experiment is done at 70 degrees celcius. If the concentration was any lower then it takes too long when the temperature is at 20 degrees Celsius. Aparatatus: Apparatus: 2 x 150ml Beakers. 1 x 100ml measuring cylinder, 1 x 25ml measuring cylinder, 1x 10 ml measuring cylinder.   1 x stopwatch   1 x alcohol thermometer (1 degree Celsius graduations)   1 x Bunsen Burner   5 x piece of paper with a Large cross computer printed on it   1 x Tripod  1 x Gauze   96 ml of Sodium Thiosulphate   60ml of Acid 504 ml of distilled water 1 x Petra dish Method: 1. Measure out 8ml of 40g/dm Sodium Thiosulphate into a beaker using a 10ml measuring cylinder. Measure out 5ml of Acid into a beaker using a 10ml measuring cylinder and Measure out 42ml of distilled water into a beaker using a 100ml measuring cylinder. 2. Pour the sodium disulphate into the same beaker as the distilled water. 3. Heat the solution to 30 degrees Celsius using a Bunsen burner Place a pertri dish on top of the beaker to stop the solution evaporating out of the beaker. 4. Place the beaker containing the Sodium Thiosulphate on top of the cross, which should be in a plastic Esselte. 5. Pour the acid into the beaker containing the Sodium Thiosulphate and start the stopwatch. 6. When you judge that you can no longer see the cross stop the stopwatch and record the time taken for this to happen. 7. The temperature is taken at the end of the experiment. 8. Clean out the beakers and repeat the experiment again varying the temperature to 20, 40, 50, 60 and 70 degrees Celsius. Do every experiment twice. Fair test: All variables except temperature will be kept constant so that the experiment will be a fair test. The concentration will be kept the same by using acid and Sodium Thiosulphate from the same batch each time. The sodium thiosulphate and water solution will be mixed in bulk so that the concentration will remain the same through out even if an error is made on the part of the person creating the solution. The same person will be judging when the cross cannot be seen anymore as different people have different eyesights. The light intensity will be kept constant by only using natural sunlight and keeping classroom lights off. The same cross will be used each time and will be printed by computer so if something happens to the original there is an exact duplicate of it to take its place. The same Beaker will be used every time so that the person doing the experiment will have to look through the same depth of solution each time. Each experiment will be repeated to avoid anomalous results. If the repeat experiment isnt within a reasonable range of the first experiment then it will be repeated once more. The temperature will be taken at the beginning and end of the experiment to make sure that the temperature didnt drop too significantly throughout the experiment. The stopwatch will be started as soon as the first drop of acid touches the sodium thiosulphate every experiment. Safety: Goggles will be worn at all times during the experiment, as safety is paramount. As acids are being handled there is the off chance that some could well be splashed into the experimenters eyes which is goggles are warn will reduce the risk are any making contact with the eye itself. As the acid is very weak and watered down lab coats are not compulsory but if any if spilt on ones hand or other areas of bare skin it should be washed immediately. Once we have completed our experiment we will wash our hands as we will have been handling acids which are corrosive so we will need to wash any which has managed to get onto our skin off. Treatment of results: When the results have been collected they will be put in a table of results showing both the recorded times taken for each experiment and the average of these two. Anomalous results will be highlighted in the table and will not have been taken into account when the graphs are drawn. The results will be used to produce two graphs, the first of which will have temperature plotted against time and the Second will have temperature plotted against one over time taken, which is the same as the rate of reaction. A line of best fit will be drawn for both graphs. Method: The apparatus was set-up as shown in the diagram. 8 ml of 8g/dm sodium thiosulphate was measured into a 10 ml measuring cylinder and 42 ml of distilled water was measured out into a 100 ml measuring cylinder. Both the 8 ml of sodium thiosulphate and the 42 ml of distilled water were poured into a 250 ml beaker together. A thermometer was then put in the beaker and a petri was placed over the top of the beaker to stop the solution evaporating when it was heated up. The beaker was then placed on top of a tripod and gauze and heated using a Bunsen burner. Heating was stopped just before the temperature reached 30 degrees Celsius, as the temperature would keep on rising for a short time after the Bunsen burner was taken away. The Beaker was placed on top of a piece of paper with a black cross-drawn on it. When the temperature cooled down to 31 degrees Celsius the HCL was added as the fact that the HCL would lower the temperature had to be taken into account. As soon as the HCL was added the stopwatch was started. The stopwatch was stopped as soon as the person judging could no longer see the cross. The time taken was recorded and the apparatus was clean thoroughly. The same experiment was then repeated again a second time and at 40 C, 50 C, 60 C and 70 C, it was repeated for these temperatures a second time as well. The experiment was also done at room temperature so no heating was therefore involved. Results: Temperature ( C ) Time 1 (secs) Time 2 (secs) Average Time (secs) Rate (1/time) Room temperature had changed by 1 C when the experiment was repeated for room temperature so both results have been shown and will both be plotted on the graph at there respective time and temperatures. Calculating the rates: 17 C: Time taken for cross to disappear = 307 seconds Rate of  30 C: Average Time taken for cross to disappear. Anomalous results: The graphs showed that there were no anomalous results as it produced a smooth curve. As I used room temperature which subsequently went up a degree from 19 degrees Celsius to 20 degrees Celsius is was unable to repeat it at 19 degrees as I had no way of cooling the solution down. As these results were not done a second time we cannot be sure they are not anomalous but they appeared to be fine and were included in the graph. All the results were within a reasonable range of each other. The only results, which appeared dubious, were the pair for 70 degrees Celsius as there was such a big difference between the two. We would have done the experiment for a third time except we had run out of time. If we were to do the experiment again I would obtain a third set of result for every temperature to make certain none of the results were anomalous. Though on the graph it appeared that none were anomalous as the results produced such a smooth curve. Conclusion: As I predicted the graph of temperature against time showed that the higher the temperature is the lower the time taken for the cross to disappear. Unlike I predicted the time does not double with an increase of 10 degrees Celsius. My results show that as the temperature increases the percentage difference between that temperatures time and the time taken for 10 degrees Celsius less than that temperature decreases. At 20 degrees Celsius it took 238 seconds for the cross to disappear while at 30 degrees it took 123 seconds. 123 is 51. 68% of 238, which equates to a percentage decrease of 48. 32%. At 30 degrees Celsius it took 123 seconds for the cross to disappear while at 40 degrees it took 70 seconds. 70 is 56. 91% of 123, which equates to a percentage decrease of 43%. This decreasing trend continues as the temperature increases as shown in the table below. Temperature 1 ( C) Time 1 (secs) Temperature 2 ( C) Time 2 (secs) Calculation Percentage Decrease The amount the percentage decreases does not decrease evenly. As the percentage differences are so marginal they cannot be clearly seen on the graph. The graph showing time over temperature showed that the higher the temperature the quicker it took for the cross to disappear and the lower the temperature the longer it took. This was shown by the graph having a monotonically decreasing smooth curve. The graph plotting rate of reaction (1/time) against temperature showed that the lower the temperature the lower the rate and the higher the temperature the higher the rate. This was shown by a monotonically increasing smooth curve. The reason the rate of reaction is increased as the temperature increases is due to the sodium thiosulphate and HCL molecules being given more energy, which they convert into kinetic energy. This causes them to move faster which enables more collisions to take place and reactions occur when two molecules collide. Not only does the higher temperature increase the number of collisions but it also causes the collisions to happen with more energy. This increases the number of collisions, which actually produce a reaction. This is because for a collision to actually trigger a reaction it must happen with a certain amount of energy (activation energy). The higher temperature increases the average amount of energy each molecule has so more reactions will occur with enough energy. Errors: Measurement errors: The water, sodium thiosulphate and HCL were all measure out using measuring cylinders. A 100ml measuring cylinder was used for measuring out the water which could only be read to the nearest ml. It is reasonable to estimate we could read it to +/- 0. 5 ml. The HCL and Sodium thiosulphate were measured out using a 10 ml measuring cylinder which could be read to the nearest half a ml. So it is fair to say we could read it to +/- 0. 25 ml. These errors can be used to decide the percentage error in our final results. Error in reading the HCL measuring cylinder: +/- 0. 25 ml. Error in reading the Sodium thiosulpate measuring cylinder: +/- 0.25 ml Error in reading the water-measuring cylinder: +/- 0. 5 ml % error = +/- estimated error Reading So for the HCL % error = +/- 0. 25/5 x 100% = 5 % So for the Sodium thiosulphate % error = +/- 0. 25/8 x 100% = 3. 125 % So for the water % error = +/- 0. 5/42 x 100% = 1. 19 % Total percentage error = 9. 135 % The percent deciding when to stop the stopwatch may have not stopped it at the same time every experiment the 70 degrees Celsius experiment was extremely hard to judge as the experiment took place so quickly. Method errors: The temperatures did not remain constant while the reaction was taking place, as the experiment could not be heated once it had started to react. The concentration of the HCL and the Sodium thiosulphate was supposed to be 1 mole and 40 g/dm respectively but there must have been errors involved when these solutions were originally made so there will be errors in there concentrations. Improvements: If I had another chance to redo the experiment there would be several things Id change. Firstly rather than allowing a human being to judge when they cannot see a cross I would use a data-logger and light sensor. The beaker would be encapsulated in a container blocking out external light and a lamp would be placed shining up from underneath it and a light sensor would be placed above it. The light sensor and data logger would be able to record how long it took for the reaction to only allow say 20% of light through to the light sensor. I would also use a water bath to heat the solution up with to allow more even heating. As the temperature would carry on increasing after the Bunsen was taken away. I would allow more time to carry out the experiment so I could repeat each experiment around 4 times so make sure I had no anomalous results. I would also the same experiment varying the temperature with a couple of different concentrations to observe how greatly the temperature affected the rate at a higher temperature. I would try the experiment over a greater temperature. Range using intervals of five degrees Celsius rather than ten, which we were unable to do due to time. I would not use room temperature as it went up by a degree during the experiment and I had no way of cooling down the solution to allow me to do the experiment again at 19 degrees Celsius. I would investigate how exactly concentration affects the reaction. A method for an improved version is shown below: Diagram: Method: The apparatus was set-up as shown in the diagram. 8 ml of 8g/dm sodium thiosulphate was measured into a 10 ml measuring cylinder and 42 ml of distilled water was measured out into a 100 ml measuring cylinder. Both the 8 ml of sodium thiosulphate and the 42 ml of distilled water were poured into a 250 ml beaker together. A thermometer was then put in the beaker and a petri was placed over the top of the beaker to stop the solution evaporating when it was heated up. The beaker was then placed in a water bath and heated. Heating was stopped when the temperature reached 30 degrees Celsius. The Beaker was placed in the sealed container and the data logger was started as soon as the HCL was added. The lid was place on top of the container as soon the HCL was added. The light sensor measured the percentage of light passing through the solution and the data logger logs how long it takes for the solution to only allow 20% of the light pass through. The time the Logger showed would be recorded. The time taken was recorded and the apparatus was clean thoroughly. The same experiment was then repeated again a second time and at 40 C, 50 C, 60 C and 70 C, it was repeated for these temperatures a second time as well. Bibliography: Diagram and information on collision theory from Chemistry explained by j. r. palmer, B. A. J Shaw pg 219 www. gcsechemistry. com/rc1. html G. I Brown Physical Cemistry Show preview only The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our GCSE Patterns of Behaviour section.

CBN and FDI Outflows to China

CBN and FDI Outflows to China Introduction and Research Problem Since its economic opening in 1979, China has become one of the worlds largest recipients of foreign direct investment (FDI). In 2007, inflows to China totalled over US$82 billion, bringing Chinas cumulative FDI to almost US$700 billion for the period 1979 to 2007 (CSB 2007). But what has particularly captured both academic and popular attention is the extent to which Chinas massive levels of FDI may be attributable to diasporic ethnic Chinese capital, what Harvard academic John Kao famously termed the Chinese commonwealth (Kao 1993: 24). It has often been asserted that some two-thirds of all the foreign investment that has poured into China originated from ethnic Chinese living outside of China (e.g., Wolf 2002: 134). This unprecedented level of intra-ethnic investment presents something of a headache to mainstream FDI theories, which, at the level of the firm, tend to explain internationalisation as an incremental process resulting from, variously, the pursuit of market power, an internalising of technological improvements, and the accumulation of foreign market knowledge and experience. Protesting against this type of theorizing as under-socialised and Western-centric, many Asia scholars (who are frequently also Asian) developed an alternative account drawn upon insights from network theory and some sociological studies of Chinese firms done in the 1990s. Their account—which in this dissertation is referred to as the Chinese Capitalism corpus—spans a variety of disciplinary frameworks including anthropology, economic geography and sociology, development economics, management, and Southeast Asia Regional studies, but has at its heart the premise that ethnic Chinese enterprises domin ate the economic activity of East Asia and FDI flows into China in large part because of their ability to draw upon dense, interlinked networks of social/family/political relationships that span national boundaries. These linkages are commonly known as Chinese business networks (CBN). The assertion that ethnic Chinese engage in pervasive networking on an international scale has become so ubiquitous in popular and academic literature that it is usually considered a stylized fact. But is it true that—despite citizenship in countries with differing social structures, political economies, and histories—the Chinese diaspora is linked by transnational webs of strong personalistic ties? And have these webs actuated and facilitated massive flows of FDI to China? If so, this would suggest that ethnic Chinese business operates in a distinctive manner, that it is proper to speak of a Chinese Capitalism in which flexibly linked Chinese enterprises might even form a competitive substitute for formally structured Western and Japanese multinational enterprises (MNEs). Alternatively, it has been suggested that the concept of CBN might simply be a cultural myth which obscures, possibly exaggerates and distorts, the internationalisation of ethnic Chinese enterprises (Mackie 2000). If so—if intra-ethnic networking is ill-defined, over-stated and under-researched—what should we make of the prevalence of the CBN discourse in economics-based discipline s? And, if they are not advantaged by networks, how should mainstream FDI theories be amended to account for the fact that at the turn of the 21st century we find so many Singaporean enterprises in China? The main purpose of my research was to move this debate forward. I did so by investigating claims of extensive intra-ethnic networking among the ethnic Chinese with an eye toward enhancing mainstream internationalisation theorising. More specifically, I tested whether evidence of CBN could be found in the transnational expansion into China of randomly-selected Chinese-Singaporean small-medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). This chapter has two main objectives. The first is to present my dissertations research question and to explain why it is important. The second is to provide an overview of how and why I investigated it as I did. To this end, the following section discusses the general context of my research problem and reviews the conventional theoretical frameworks that address the phenomenon of internationalisation. Section 1.1.2 explains why it is important that claims of extensive intra-ethnic networking be investigated. Next, the focus is narrowed to the specific research question that was tested. The concept of CBN is carefully defined in Section 1.1.3, and it is conceptually operationalised into testable sub-hypotheses in Section 1.1.4. Background of CBN Claims With some US$30 billion cumulative FDI invested in China between 1979 and 2006, Singapore ranked as Chinas seventh largest source of foreign investment, after Hong Kong, Japan, the Virgin Islands, the United States, Taiwan, and South Korea (CSB, 2007). In 2006, about 70% of the Association for East Asian Nations (ASEAN) FDI originated in Singapore, and between 1990 and 2006, over 15,000 Singaporean projects were set up in China. These figures are all the more remarkable given Singapores small size. Furthermore, as significant as Singapore now is as an investor to China, it is likewise true that China has become important to Singapore as an investment market. Since 1997, China—a vacuum cleaner for foreign direct investment, as Lee Kuan Yew has frequently called it—has each year received the largest share of FDI by Singaporean entities, replacing Malaysia as Singapores top investment destination (Hamlin 2002). In 2002, FDI to China accounted for over 17% of total Singaporean investment abroad (Department of Statistics 2002). It is clear from these figures that not only are Singaporean transnational enterprises (TNEs) a significant force in the rearticulation of China into the global economy, but that China has become an important factor in the regionalisation of Singaporean firms. How can we account for this tremendous and unprecedented diasporic transnational investment? Two corpuses of literature that purportedly shed light on this phenomenon are critically examined in this dissertation: the mainstream internationalisation construct and what I refer to as the Chinese Capitalism perspective. Three strands within the mainstream internationalisation literature are highlighted in this dissertation. The first is theories of the MNE, which grew out of Stephen Hymers seminal work on post-war multinational investment in Europe and has its roots in the utilitarian tradition of classical and neo-classical economics. This corpus of literature has expanded over the decades to encompass a range of views, but at its core is some version of the argument that MNEs are enterprises which, in response to market imperfection and a desire to exploit proprietary advantages, have internalised activities by investing abroad. A distinctive sub-group of these theories has arisen in response to the spectacular increase in developing-country MNEs since the 1970s. Within Developing-Country MNE theories, the leading argument is that emerging MNEs from developing countries follow an incremental internationalisation process driven by gradual internal technological accumulation. Internationalisation Process Models is the second important strand within the mainstream approach. With its roots in behavioural theories of the firm, it offers a more explicitly dynamic approach to understanding the process by which firms engage in FDI. Though there is some variation in the explanation employed in the models—for instance, some stress learning and others focus on technological accumulation—and though the process is variously described as cyclic, stage-based, or evolutionary, a key premise is that internationalisation is incremental by nature, as the firm acquires knowledge necessary for further internationalisation. A third major strand within the mainstream approach has explicitly incorporated the concept of network into internationalisation theorisations. It is important to note the schism in the network literature between viewing networks as a form of governance structure versus focusing on networks as social relationships. This has caused a number of definitional problems and contributed to a seemingly irreconcilable divergence between mainstream economics/business theories and an approach that has grown out of the sociology discipline. Of the former, perhaps the most important for this thesis is the Late Industrialisation framework, which treats the concept of networks as a distinctive mode of organisation through which learning and the adaptation of borrowed technology were combined to promote economic development in a number of late industrialising countries in the 20th century. These three strands within the mainstream internationalisation construct dominate much of the research on MNEs and FDI but they have their shortcomings. In particularly, many Asia scholars (who were frequently Chinese-speaking Asians) have objected that mainstream internationalisation theories, with their under-socialised and Western roots, cannot adequately explain the phenomenon of ethnic Chinese investment in the motherland (Yeung 2000: 10). These scholars have instead drawn upon the insights of network theory and several sociological studies of ethnic Chinese enterprises (that were done in the 1990s) to develop an alternative account—the Chinese Capitalism perspective—to elucidate the specific case of ethnic Chinese transnational expansion. As its name suggests, this large corpus of literature is exclusively concerned with ethnic Chinese enterprises because it is argued that they differ in important respects not only from Japanese and Western firms, but from other d eveloping-country enterprises (Kao 1993). Central to the Chinese Capitalism perspective is the premise that ethnic Chinese firms dominate FDI flows into China, and indeed much of the economic activity of East Asia, because of their ability to form and draw upon dense, interlinked webs of social/family/political relationships that span national boundaries and rest on trust and reciprocation (Hamilton 1996a: 17). These relationships—Chinese business networks (CBN)—are variously ascribed to cultural and/or institutional factors and ostensibly give ethnic Chinese TNEs a strong advantage, especially when entering culturally Chinese markets such as China, while non-ethnic Chinese businesses meet with less success (EAAU 1995). As Hamilton-Hart wrote: Investment and trade flows linking Southeast and Northeast Asia have been promoted by network-like relationships among firms and individuals. These relationships have fostered regionalization by reducing the costs and risks of transnational investment (Hamilton-Hart 2002: 1). Describing this advantage in an especially enthusiastic manner, Redding wrote that ethnic Chinese capitalism is essentially an economic culture characterized by a unique capacity to co-operate (emphasis added: Redding 1990: 79). And Hamilton, concluding that the Chinese diaspora will elbow out non-Chinese entrants in the China market, wrote: Many Westerners honestly believe that they have a real chance to sell to the one billion plus Chinese consumers, but I do not believe it will work out this way (Hamilton 1996a: 19). Journalists and management gurus have similarly embraced the concept of Chinese business networks (e.g., Seagrave 1996; Backman 1999; and Drucker 1994). The concept of CBN has historical roots in the centuries of mass migration that have fostered transnational ethnic Chinese communities which span the world. Many historians have argued that commercial and financial networks based on fictive and agnatic familism, pang or speech-group solidarities, and regionalism, were historically important social channels in some settings, such as for those emigrating to Southeast Asia from southern China. But the Chinese Capitalism literature, taking new life from the treatment of networks within the sociology discipline, extended this historical observation further. It not only asserted that CBN remained important at the turn of the 21st century, but it emphasized CBN as a distinctive characteristic or skill of the ethnic Chinese. Research Significance The skill or special ability to combine a firms resources with the complementary resources of its partners can no doubt be an important organisational capability. Among the benefits, networks lower business transaction costs, provide for better risk assessment, and lead to prompt decision-making. But is there evidence that networking has been a primary factor in ethnic Chinese transnational expansion? Does it explain why Singaporean FDI has flowed so far afield to China? My research contributes to academic understanding in a number of ways. It adds to the scarce academic research that has been published to date on Southeast Asian SMEs, and it contributes to a more rigorous definition of CBN and some of the terms associated with it, such as guanxi. But its most significant contributions are to the following three areas: 1) theorizing on internationalisation and FDI in general, and ethnic Chinese businesses in particular; 2) assessments of whether Singaporean FDI outflows to China represent actual or faux economic development, and what that implies for evaluations of Singaporean state developmentalism; and 3) the use of CBN as a small state strategy to facilitate economic development and to accommodate an ascendant China. Chinese Capitalism and Internationalisation Theorising Further research into CBN is necessary to enhance theorising in both the Chinese Capitalism and mainstream internationalisation corpuses. As discussed in detail in Chapter 3, the Chinese Capitalism literature has to date suffered from a serious lack of empirical evidence. Articles that discuss CBN do often reference prior academic works, but when checked these references typically are revealed to be rather insubstantial. There is also a marked tendency to repeat, mantra-like, the same three or four original works on the subject, but because these studies were largely descriptive and based on a tiny sample size, they do not provide an adequate buttressing for the claim of extensive intra-ethnic business networking. Moreover, there have been virtually no rigorous cross-cultural comparative studies, and little consideration has been given to the drawbacks and costs of operating through networks. My investigation into CBN also speaks to the appropriateness of the academic niche that has developed for Chinese Business. A virtual phalanx of Chinese business experts has popped up since the late 1990s, and it is common to find universities that have dedicated a Chair—or even a department—to the business practices of this specific ethnic group. In contrast, one is less likely to find similar attention to Russian or Indian business studies. Of course, this is due in part to the staggering market potential represented by Chinas 1.3 billion population, but it can also be traced to the essentially culturalist assumption that ethnic Chinese have unique business practices such as CBN. In fact, CBN has become so widely accepted that much of the academic discussion has shifted away from directly considering ethnic Chinese ties towards as pseudo cross-comparative approach that is problematic because it contrasts the fact of CBN with the lack of networking in other cultures. Research into how, for example, Nordic or Indian networks are not as strong as CBN have become common. In short, though some of the details of CBN may be contested, the general premise of the Chinese Capitalism literature has largely been accepted and is influential. This has been especially true in the international business rubric, but references to CBN abound in economics-based disciplines as well. For example, in an Institute for International Economics special report describing the lessons South Korea should learn from CBN, Young argued: In the 1990s, they [the Chinese diaspora] formulated an international strategy to form a global network of overseas ChineseThe experiences of overseas Chines e networks would be good models for Korea (Young 2003: 50). And how did Young define CBN? They are led by the unique Chinese personal network, guanxi, which links individuals, hometown associations, business associations in the same industry, and associations of people with the same family name (Young 2003: 53). Mainstream internationalisation theories also have significant shortcomings. The economics discipline has a long history of neglecting—often completely omitting—the social, political, and historical context in which firms are embedded. A large gulf between mainstream economics and other social sciences has developed, making each seem increasingly irrelevant to the other. Economics many insights and strengths are too often viewed as inapplicable to other disciplines, and disciplinary cross-fertilisation has been hampered. Sloppy theorisations arise and thrive in such an environment. One of the most significant ways that evidence for CBN affects mainstream theorising lies in its suggestion that informally-linked enterprises might serve as functional substitutes for Western and Japanese MNEs. Large firms, especially multinationals, enjoy significant benefits of scale and scope as well as learning and productivity advantages that are unavailable to smaller, isolated firms (Nolan 2001). In contrast, the relatively small size of ethnic Chinese firms, which tend to be family-owned and -controlled, is considered by mainstream theorists to limit their competitiveness in international business. But perhaps the 21st century will indeed be a network age in which the economies of scale that dominated in the previous period seem to have given way to network economies (Young 2003: 33). If so, then the concept of CBN suggests that ethnic Chinese firms are informally bound together in such a way that they can duplicate, and maybe exceed, the benefits derived from the larger sco pe of MNEs (Borrus 1997). This intriguing possibility—that the limitations on competitiveness inherent in a family-controlled firm may be overcome by networking—provides a further reason for why my research into claims of extensive CBN is significant. Moreover, as my results demonstrate in Chapter 5, irrespective of whether extensive intra-ethnic networking is taking the place, the effects of the CBN discourse are profound and have affected FDI decision-making. Mainstream economic theory would be improved if economists took a more open-minded and sophisticated approach to appreciating, understanding, and incorporating such social dimensions. Singaporean Development(alism): Actual or Faux? My research contributes in another key way. Empirical evidence (or its absence) of CBN should factor into evaluations of Singapores level of economic development and, hence, assessments of the states developmental policies. FDI from Singapore to China has not only been large but it continues to grow. Though this transnational expansion has been actively promoted by the ruling Peoples Action Party (PAP) through various policies, programmes, and an official discourse on creating an external economic wing, the state would have us interpret Singaporean investment in China as growing economic maturation, a sign that Singapore is moving away from MNE-led development to a stage in which home-grown capitalists diversify into new areas. Outward direct investments are beneficial to both firms and the home country as they provide access to strategic assets, technology, skills, natural resources, and markets. It is especially important for a small state with limited market size and resources to be able to access international markets and connect with global production/knowledge systems. The degree to which Singapore has experienced the social and technological progress associated with economic development has been a contentious subject for the PAP-state (e.g., Krugman 1994), and it is perennially anxious to demonstrate its effectiveness. As discussed in Chapter 8, signs of declining popular support for the PAP in election results since 1988, in conjunction with a series of accumulation crises over the past two decades, have the state very worried. Though recognized as highly intrusive, the state has largely been given credit for developing Singapore from a sleepy entrepà ´t into a major communications hub with a population that enjoys one of the worlds highest per capita incomes. Since the 1990s, the Singaporean state has to a striking degree officially embraced and propagated a (selectively Confucian) culturalist discourse alongside calls for the development of an external sector to help insulate the country from downturns in the world economy. Is this yet another sign of an enduring comprehensive developmental state (Pereira 2007) cheerleading the march towards the next stage in Singapores economic development, this time, in part, by encouraging latent networking capabilities in its ethnic Chinese population? This might imply that after years of neglect, the PAP-developmental state has reached a stage where it is prioritising the engagement of local capitalists in its economic strategies (Haggard and Cheng 1987). For while the developmental state is expected to be the most powerful political and economic player during much of development, at some point state strategies should pay off and produce a vigorous and competitive domestic capitalist class (Periera 2007: 3). But what should we make of Singaporean FDI to China, and the states insistence that these flows are rooted in Chinese exceptionalism, if evidence suggests that CBN claims are over-stated? Justifications for Singapores domineering one-party state have always pointed to the Republics strong economic performance. If public proclamations about Chinese business networking turn out to be rather more wishful thinking than actual practice, then the government may be judged to have taken a serious mis-step, especially considering its own massive investments in China and the problems associated with some of them (, The New Frontier, Far Eastern Economic Review, December 6, 2001, BY Ben Dolven e.g., the Suzhou Industrial Park). The implication would be that Singaporean investment in China represents, at least in part, something other than the cool, independent economic rationalism upon which PAP political legitimacy rests; concerns might be raised about the optimum use of resources and the degr ee to which political considerations have lead the state to invest heavily in China itself, push its GLC sector to do so as well, and create a discourse in which local capitalists are encouraged to make the risky move to China. More importantly, high levels of Singaporean FDI to China might not represent maturation out of the MNE-dependency that is widely recognized to now seriously limit economic growth and make the island-state exceptionally vulnerable to fluctuations in a world economy beyond its control. And it may hint that the hither-to developmental PAP-state is losing some of the political insulation, technocratic skills, and discipline it needs to continue to lead Singapore. In summary, my research contributes to assessments of the PAP-developmental state. Should Singaporean FDI to China be interpreted as a sign of economic development, with all the benefits this implies for a small state that has to date been extremely exposed to world economic conditions? Or, alternatively, is it at heart a sort of faux development that does not bring the social and technological progress that accompanies actual development? This important topic—the role of the PAP-states CBN discourse in FDI decision-making—is discussed at length in conjunction with the results of my research in Chapter 8. CBN as a Small State Strategy My research also contributes to an understanding of how CBN and the discourse surrounding can be used by a small state wishing to punch above its weight in its engagement with the international environment, especially an ascendant China. By this I am referring to Singapores strategic use of culture and ethnicity to further its economic and national security/foreign policy goals. Chinas growing economic and military strength is increasingly presenting a dramatic challenge to world, particularly East Asian, power relations. Tapping into (or manufacturing) the Chinese-ness of a states population or subgroup may be an excellent strategy for accommodating a rising China, especially for small states such as Singapore which are looking for ways to compensate for their power deficit. A small state faces an integration dilemma when it considers Chinas growing markets and reach (Goetschel 1998: 28). It can insist on economic and security independence but risk being abandoned or isolated, with the disadvantages this would like cause. Or it can accept a constraint on its freedom to act in ways that are contrary to Chinas economic and security goals and instead try to accommodate, identify with, even in some sense integrate with, China. Stressing as it does not just civilisational fluency but actual networks with China, the CBN discourse functions as a novel way of enabl ing Singapore to do the latter. Whether Singapores strategy might successfully be imitated by other small states remains to be seen. It is interesting to speculate how, for example, Africas over 7 million ethnic Chinese and Perus 1.3 million, might factor into their states strategic possibilities for engaging China (e.g., Mung 2008). Singapore has tried to modify the international environment through its cultural discourse in another sense. As discussed in Chapter 8, this former British colony has for the two decades heavily marketed itself as the Gateway to the East. Its stated goal since Singapores regionalisation drive was announced in 1993 has been to be the regional hub, a place where MNEs locate their headquarters and higher value-added operations (such as research and development), while situating lower value-added parts in China and other areas of East Asia where labour is cheaper. The clear implication of the self-orientalising discourse of CBN is that Western firms are unlikely to be successful if they invest directly in China. They need instead to engage a mediating force, such as Singaporean firms, in order to become part of the transnational networks in which Chinese business is accomplished, or so the story goes. As a Singaporean government minister put it: Those who have knowledge of the culture and cultural nuances are able to lower business risks [for foreigners]. The Chinese overseas understand Chinese culture because they are ethnically Chinese themselves, but they also understand the world outsideThey are like modems. They modulate and demodulate and add value in the process. (George Yeo, quoted in Crovitz 1993: 18). With its middleman familiarity with both East and West and its purportedly dense transnational networks with China, the CBN discourse therefore places Singapore in the enviable niche position of knowledge arbitrageur (Tan, K.B. Eugene 2006). It is a striking example of the claiming of territoriality over knowledge (Brown and Menkhoff 2006), in both a conceptual and quite literal sense. Defining the Concept of CBN Unfortunately, a clear-cut definition of the concept of Chinese business networking does not currently exist. Much of the Chinese Capitalism literature is largely descriptive rather than theoretically precise, and to the degree that a definition is specified it varies significantly from author to author. Some scholars discussing networks have stressed their origin in qiaoxiang (usually defined as ancestral homeland ties), kinship, religious, and/or school ties (Hamilton 1996; Liu 1998, 1999; Yeung 2000d). Other scholars have used a broader definition that characterises Chinese business networks as long-term, but extensible, personalized networks, based on trust and upheld by the indispensability of reputation within such a system (Tracy et al. 2001: 262). These are contrasted with what are characterised as the generally weak, situational, and non-enduring ties of the West (Zahra et al. 1999: 45). A particular problem with the fuzziness surrounding CBN is that this concept is often—and unhelpfully—confused with guanxi. Like CBN, the latter term suffers from a lack of definitional rigor. Guanxi has commonly been translated as both connections and relationships, but neither of these terms adequately gives a sense of how this multi-faceted concept is commonly understood by Chinese. A more sophisticated definition is, the concept of drawing on connections in order to secure favors in personal relations (Luo 2007: 2). There are obvious similarities between the concepts of CBN and guanxi, but closer scrutiny of the academic literature as well as the results of my fieldwork led me to a conclusion, shared with a few researchers (e.g., Fan 2002), that guanxi is not identical to CBN. For example, it is not generally considered to be something that is exchanged between family members or childhood friends, nor is it usually described as having any sense of qiaoxiang or ancestral homeland sentiment. Also, unlike CBN, guanxi has on occasion been described quite negatively by a few researchers. Fan, for example, argued that guanxi and corruption are inextricably intertwined in 21st century China (2002). This assessment was supported by my fieldwork, as most of the SME owners I interviewed ascribed negative qualities to the practice of guanxi. Some of them described guanxi as a payment—on occasion they used the term bribe—that must be paid to local government officials as a cost of doing busine ss in China. Others equated it with an obligation to pay for lavish dinners and parties for customers or suppliers in the (frequently forlorn) hope of receiving enough business in return to justify these outlays. When one of my interviewees was asked to define guanxi, he summed it up as, If you want to do business in China, you must pay to play (Interviewee #6). In summary, though any attempt to definitively delineate these two unwieldy and messy terms (Luo 2007) is beyond the scope of this dissertation, the results of my research, combined with a close scrutiny of the academic literature, led me to the conclusion that they are not identical. While creating guanxi with someone may lead to a close networking relationship, it should not be confused with the networking relationship itself. So, though these concepts overlap, it is important to carefully define and distinguish between them. Yet in many accounts of Chinese business practices these two terms—guanxi and CBN—are used as though they were interchangeable. As discussed further in Chapter 5, the frequent conflation of what are actually two separate concepts adds to the confusion surrounding intra-ethnic networking and has important ramifications for my research conclusions. In light of the definitional jumble surrounding CBN, it was important in this thesis that the concept be defined in such as way as to convey the general intent of the Chinese Capitalism literature, yet be specific enough to be rigorously tested. To this end, I chose to draw upon the definition of Chinese business networking suggested by Gomez and Hsiao (2001). They argued that the Chinese Capitalism literature is characterised by an emphasis on Chinese exclusivity, a special conception of trust, and an explicit challenge to existing theories of transnational expansion. Thus, contrary to the very broad definitions typically put forth or assumed, the concept of CBN must necessarily imply a precise, strong connection among businessmen that goes beyond the common, and casual, use in the West of the term business networking (Gomez and Hsiao 2001). More specifically, Gomez and Hsiao claimed that the concept should be reserved for: The e

Whiteout in Wyoming :: Rhetorical Analysis Kevin Deenihan Essays

Whiteout in Wyoming This article is a comical recollection of a young college student’s trip to Jackson Hole, Wyoming entitled â€Å"Whiteout in Wyoming†. He uses a journal entry structure and rhetorical appeals to enable his audience to clearly perceive his perception that Wyoming is white. Through his whole vacation there is snow everywhere, and he only encounters one minority, who I kind of got the feeling that the author didn’t consider him a â€Å"real† minority, or a minor enough minority. It is written by a student from the University of California at Berkeley named Kevin Deenihan, who recently took a vacation to his home in Jackson Hole with his family. The article was published in the only intentionally funny journal from UC Berkeley called, â€Å"The Heuristic Squelch†. Most students from UC Berkeley read the journal, but anyone can subscribe. It is also published on the web for those who don’t feel they need six issues every year. The purpose of the article is to inform people who have never been to Wyoming how it is, but it’s mostly to entertain. There are three structures in this argument: chronological, topical, and cause and effect. It is in journal entry style beginning February 21st and spanning for the next five days of his vacation discussing the presence of snow and the lack of minorities in Jackson Hole. It is cause and effect because he spends so many seeing one minority person that when he returns to Los Angeles he is more appreciative of them and tips his cab driver, named Ahmed, extra. He does not use any logic to convince the audience that that Wyoming is white, but uses a deductive argument by generally noting that â€Å"for the past four years we’ve had a blizzard wherever we go skiing†. (Deenihan 2003) Then moving to a more specific Rhetorical Analysis of example, for example, â€Å"It is, in fact, snowing, and we find that a giant cloud has settled over the mountain†. (Deenihan 2003) Then He does build himself up, but not in a way that would make him more credible- quite the contrary in fact. He tells the reader that he is a weather god because clouds follow him wherever he goes. When someone says something like that, it takes away a lot of their credibility. He appeals to the reader’s sense of humor and imagery. He almost immediately attracts the audience by an obscure account of his landscape in the second sentence.