A League of Their Own Essay Example for Free

A League of Their Own Essay The film begins with the commencement of the second world war and female baseball players are drafted into the All American Girls Baseball League, in the attempt to save the sport. With the induction of this league, the girls obtained the chance to show how women deserve an equal chance in sports, an opportunity to show their hard work and perseverance, and free themselves from the clutches of lower class life through success in the sport. The value of family was portrayed throughout the film and became a top priority for some of the players. In achieving a spot on a team the girls also had to conform to the rules and requirements that the owners of the league were demanding. To give this league the popularity it needed, the girls needed to work hard to be the leagues top players in every team. They all acquired the chance to go to training camps and try out for teams that would be placed into the league. The amount of work they displayed to get placed on the team showed that they wanted to earn the respect of the country and show that women could do more than just care for kids or be in charge of the kitchen. They worked extremely hard to show that women could play the sport as easily as men could. For example, this hardworking value was best portrayed by Kit, one of the individuals who played for the league. She got her sister to play because that was the only way they would take her and she did not want to stay on a farm for the rest of her life. Her persistent attitude helped her reach her goal and she became one of the top players of her time just like her sister. The family values are expressed greatly throughout the film by all the characters, but particularly by Dotti. Many of the women on the team had spouses in the army or back home. Dotti was the protagonist who was a girl with beauty and love of the sport like no other girl. What was different about her, besides being extremely skillful in the sport and never having a bad game, was that in her mind she was only playing while her husband was in the war. She loved the game, but her husband and family were always more important for her. The conflict between winning and her sister’s loyalty ended with her realizing that being friends with her sister was far more important than winning or playing in a baseball league. The women dealt with external conformity within the league because of the rules and regulations that the owners had placed on apparel and style of play. The women were required to wear a skirt outfit and makeup while they were playing. They were all forced to take etiquette classes and learn how to act like â€Å"ladies†. The women were upset with this because they had joined the league to play the sport they loved not to go out on the field and model for the fans. This movie was used to display that women were not inferior to men and to show how the game of baseball was used as more than publicity. The hard work and perseverance gave women in the united states a sense of hope and desire to succeed in a male dominated world.

The blowflies

The blowflies Background The insects that have been most extensively studied in relation to their forensic uses are the blowflies, members of the Calliphoridae fly family in particular their larvae because they are the insects most commonly associated with corpses. Blowflies are usually the first to colonise a body after death, often within hours. The larval stage is the main period in which blowflies face limited food resources, when the fully grown third instar larvae stop feeding; they usually migrate in search of a place to pupate. Because blowfly pupae can provide useful forensic evidence it is important to know where the pupae are likely to be located. Methodology This study was carried out to investigate a variety of factors affecting the pupation behaviour of two forensically important species of blowfly larvae of Calliphora vomitoria and Lucilia sericata in soil. The burrowing behaviour of both species was studied in the laboratory under controlled conditions. Larvae of both Calliphora vomitoria and Lucilia sericata were used in six experiments for each condition. Principle findings The main findings were that most of the biological factors had an effect on the burial behaviour in Larvae of Calliphora vomitoria and Lucilia sericata. 1. Introduction Calliphora vomitoria and Lucilia sericata are two forensically important species of blowflies since they can arrive within few minutes (Payne 1965) or even few seconds (DeJong 1995) following corpse exposure. Because of this, the age of the oldest blowflies gives the most accurate evidence of the post mortem interval (PMI). Many other species of fly, beetle and wasp are also associated with corpses resulting in a succession of insects arriving at the body, but as they tend to arrive after the blowflies, they are less useful in establishing a PMI.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Blowfly infestations of human bodies are a natural outcome of the flies role in the environment as primary decomposers. The larval infestations are an essential component of the natural recycling of organic matter and, on human bodies; they can provide vital evidence to the timing and cause of death. Adult blowflies are well adapted to sensing and locating the sources of odours of decay, eggs are usually laid in dark and moist places such as the eyes, mouth and open sores. The eggs then quickly hatch into first instar larvae which feed rapidly, and shed their skin twice to pass through second and third instars until they finish feeding, or once the food resource has become unavailable.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  After the fully grown third instar larvae stop feeding and show no further response towards food, depending on the species the larvae leave in search of a suitable place to pupate. They may move many meters before burrowing into the soil. The larva then contracts and the cuticle hardens and darkens to form the puparium, within which the pupa transforms into an adult fly. When the fly emerges, the empty puparial case is left behind as evidence of the blowflies development. However, there are many biological factors that affect the pupation behaviour of larvae in soil. These factors include temperature, soil moisture content, soil compaction, as well as the effect of pre burial and high density. All the mentioned factors need to be considered when determining a PMI, however for many of them, little information is available. Furthermore, there are several studies on the influence of temperature on the behaviour of burrowing in larvae of blowflies such as the one done by Gomes (2009). The study of larvae burying behaviour is important to improve understanding of one of the process during larval dispersion, and to try and understand the influence of biological variables on this behaviour   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The present study was conducted to investigate factors that influence the burial behaviour in post-feeding third instar blowfly larvae of Calliphora vomitoria and Lucilia sericata to evaluate if these two species have a different pupation pattern in the different treatments. 2. Materials and Methods C. vomitoria and L. sericata were collected; one thousand and sixty of each species in the final third instar stage were used for these experiments. The soil used was John Innes No 2 potting compost; all six experiments were carried out using the main materials mentioned. 2.1. Determination of normal burial depth and how this is affected by temperature Nine plastic containers were filled with soil to a depth of 24cm and were placed in an incubator so as to allow the soil to reach the temperatures required. Three of the containers had to reach 10 °C, the other three had to reach a temperature of 20 °C, and the remainder each at 28 °C. Fifteen larvae of Lucilia were then placed onto the soil surface of each of the containers; three at 10 °C, 20 °C and 28 °C. The same was done to the larvae of Calliphora, and the time of how long it took the larvae to burrow into the soil was observed, i.e., how long is it before the first and last larva burrows down. Similarly observations were made to see whether the larvae resurface and how if they do how soon. A total of eighteen containers were then covered with muslin cloth kept firmly in position by a rubber band and left for seven days. 2.2. Determination of the effect of moisture content Six plastic containers were filled with soil to a depth of 24cm, then 100ml of water was added to three of the containers and these were labelled as moist. 500ml of water was added to each of the remainder and these were labelled as wet. The containers were then left for 40 minutes in order for the water to be absorbed, after which fifteen larvae of Lucilia were added into each of the six containers, three wet and three moist. The same was done to the larvae of Calliphora, and then the time of how long it took for the larvae to burrow into the soil was counted and all twelve containers were placed into an incubator at 20 °C. 2.3. Determination of the effect of pre-burial 1 cm of soil was added to the bottom of a plastic container, and fifteen larvae of Lucilia were added and covered with 10cm layer of soil, and this was replicated twice. Also 10cm layer of soil was added to the bottom of another container, and fifteen larvae of Lucilia were added but this time they were covered with 20cm layer of soil and this was replicated twice. The exact same was done to the larvae of Calliphora. After the larvae were buried to a depth of 10cm or 20cm, observations were made to check how long it took for the first maggot to reach the surface, and the number of larvae on the surface was counted at 15, 30, 45 and 60 minutes. All 12 containers were then placed in an incubator at 20 °C. 2.4. Determination of the effect of soil compaction Soil was compacted into six containers to a depth of 24cm, and then fifteen larvae of Lucilia were added to each of the three containers. Also fifteen larvae of Calliphora were added to the other three containers, and observations were made to check how long it took for the larvae to burrow into the soil, i.e., how long was it before the first and last larva were burrowed. All six containers were incubated at 20 °C and then left for seven days. 2.5. Determination of the effect of larval density Three plastic containers were filled with highly dense soil to a depth of 24cm, and 150 larvae of Lucilia were added to each container. The same was done to the larvae of Calliphora, and observations were then made to see how long it took for the first and last larvae to burrow down. All six containers were covered with muslin cloth kept firmly in position by a rubber band and incubated at 20 °C. 2.6. Determination of the distance moved by the post-feeding stage of C. vomitoria and L. sericata from their feeding site 500 post-feeding larvae of the two species were released on a grassland area on the Byrom Street Campus, Liverpool John Moore University, UK. After 7 days soil core samples were taken from the surrounding soil and were searched in order to locate the pupae.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  After the larvae pupated in all of the experiments, they were located and removed from the soil as follows: a line was drawn every 2cm on the side of all the containers up until a soil depth of 24cm using a permanent marker pen, after which the number of pupae found on the surface was counted and removed. Moreover, each 2cm layer of soil was then carefully removed using a spatula and placed onto a plastic sheet where it was thoroughly searched, and the number of all the pupae of all the containers of the five experiments was calculated. All five experiments were undertaken at a lab temperature of 20 °C. However, there are many biological factors that affect the pupation behaviour of larvae in soil. These factors include temperature, soil moisture content, soil compaction, as well as the effect of pre burial and high density. All the mentioned factors need to be considered when determining a PMI, however for many of them, little information is available. Furthermore, there are several studies on the influence of temperature on the behaviour of burrowing in larvae of blowflies such as the one done by Gomes (2009). The study of larvae burying behaviour is important to improve understanding of one of the process during larval dispersion, and to try and understand the influence of biological variables on this behaviour   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The present study was conducted to investigate factors that influence the burial behaviour in post-feeding third instar blowfly larvae of Calliphora vomitoria and Lucilia sericata to evaluate if these two species have a different pupation pattern in the different treatments. 2. Materials and Methods C. vomitoria and L. sericata were collected; one thousand and sixty of each species in the final third instar stage were used for these experiments. The soil used was John Innes No 2 potting compost; all six experiments were carried out using the main materials mentioned. 2.1. Determination of normal burial depth and how this is affected by temperature Nine plastic containers were filled with soil to a depth of 24cm and were placed in an incubator so as to allow the soil to reach the temperatures required. Three of the containers had to reach 10 °C, the other three had to reach a temperature of 20 °C, and the remainder each at 28 °C. Fifteen larvae of Lucilia were then placed onto the soil surface of each of the containers; three at 10 °C, 20 °C and 28 °C. The same was done to the larvae of Calliphora, and the time of how long it took the larvae to burrow into the soil was observed, i.e., how long is it before the first and last larva burrows down. Similarly observations were made to see whether the larvae resurface and how if they do how soon. A total of eighteen containers were then covered with muslin cloth kept firmly in position by a rubber band and left for seven days. 2.2. Determination of the effect of moisture content Six plastic containers were filled with soil to a depth of 24cm, then 100ml of water was added to three of the containers and these were labelled as moist. 500ml of water was added to each of the remainder and these were labelled as wet. The containers were then left for 40 minutes in order for the water to be absorbed, after which fifteen larvae of Lucilia were added into each of the six containers, three wet and three moist. The same was done to the larvae of Calliphora, and then the time of how long it took for the larvae to burrow into the soil was counted and all twelve containers were placed into an incubator at 20 °C. 2.3. Determination of the effect of pre-burial 1 cm of soil was added to the bottom of a plastic container, and fifteen larvae of Lucilia were added and covered with 10cm layer of soil, and this was replicated twice. Also 10cm layer of soil was added to the bottom of another container, and fifteen larvae of Lucilia were added but this time they were covered with 20cm layer of soil and this was replicated twice. The exact same was done to the larvae of Calliphora. After the larvae were buried to a depth of 10cm or 20cm, observations were made to check how long it took for the first maggot to reach the surface, and the number of larvae on the surface was counted at 15, 30, 45 and 60 minutes. All 12 containers were then placed in an incubator at 20 °C. 2.4. Determination of the effect of soil compaction Soil was compacted into six containers to a depth of 24cm, and then fifteen larvae of Lucilia were added to each of the three containers. Also fifteen larvae of Calliphora were added to the other three containers, and observations were made to check how long it took for the larvae to burrow into the soil, i.e., how long was it before the first and last larva were burrowed. All six containers were incubated at 20 °C and then left for seven days. 2.5. Determination of the effect of larval density Three plastic containers were filled with highly dense soil to a depth of 24cm, and 150 larvae of Lucilia were added to each container. The same was done to the larvae of Calliphora, and observations were then made to see how long it took for the first and last larvae to burrow down. All six containers were covered with muslin cloth kept firmly in position by a rubber band and incubated at 20 °C. 2.6. Determination of the distance moved by the post-feeding stage of C. vomitoria and L. sericata from their feeding site 500 post-feeding larvae of the two species were released on a grassland area on the Byrom Street Campus, Liverpool John Moore University, UK. After 7 days soil core samples were taken from the surrounding soil and were searched in order to locate the pupae.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  After the larvae pupated in all of the experiments, they were located and removed from the soil as follows: a line was drawn every 2cm on the side of all the containers up until a soil depth of 24cm using a permanent marker pen, after which the number of pupae found on the surface was counted and removed. Moreover, each 2cm layer of soil was then carefully removed using a spatula and placed onto a plastic sheet where it was thoroughly searched, and the number of all the pupae of all the containers of the five experiments was calculated. All five experiments were undertaken at a lab temperature of 20 °C. 3. Statistical Analysis The results were expressed as the mean and standard deviation (S.D). The Chi-Square test was performed to determine whether the observed frequency distribution differs significantly from the expected one. 4. Results discussion 4.1. Determination of normal burial depth and how this is affected by temperature The larvae of Calliphora vomitoria burrowed themselves deeper at a temperature of 10 °C to pupate, whereas the larvae of Lucilia sericata remained closer to the surface at the lower and higher temperatures used in this experiment. L.sericata shows normal distribution at 10 °C, however it stops burrowing at a depth of 14cm. In contrast, C.vomitoria continues to burrow to a depth of 24 but is not evenly distributed. The Chi square test was done for this experiment in order to see if there was a significant difference between the specific temperatures used as the graph didnt show clear differences. The results from the test showed that the distribution of C.vomitoria and L. sericata at a temp of 10 °C was significant ?2 (df 2) = 18.30 p>5.99, ?2 (df 2)= 17.85 p>5.99, also at a temperature of 20 °C for C.vomitoria it was found to be significant ?2 (df 2) = 6.49 p>5.99, and for L. Sericata ?2 (df 2) = 18.30 p>5.99 significant distribution. 4.2. Determination of the effect of moisture content The two species of larvae burrowed themselves up until a depth of 10cm; remained close to the surface to pupate in wet and moist soil conditions. However, the number of pupae of C.vomitoria was high in wet soil. In contrast, the number of pupae of L.sericata was high in moist soil. 4.3. Determination of the effect of pre-burial 4.4. Determination of the effect of soil compaction It is clear from the results that biological factors studied have a significant effect on the burying behaviour of the two species of larvae studied in this experiment. The rate of development of all insects is directly dependent on the ambient conditions, mainly temperature. Between upper and lower thresholds, which vary between species, the higher the temperature, the faster the insects will develop; the lower the temperature, the slower they will develop. If the ambient temperatures during the period of development are known, then the minimum PMI can be determined. Temperature affected the burrowing behaviour of larvae prior to pupation (Fig.1). At low temperatures, the metabolic rate may be markedly reduced and this could result in greater body weight and a tendency to burrow deeper in order to escape low temperatures (Grassberger and Reiter 2002) 5. Acknowledgement I would like to thank Dr Alan Gun for supporting the research reported by providing the data and equipment. I would also like to thank Dr Jeri Bird for his assistance in the data analysis. Thanks also to my lab partners and colleagues for their help and support. 6. References Clark, K., Evans, L. Wall, R. (2006) Growth rates of the blowfly Lucilia sericata on different body tissues. Forensic Science International 156, 145-149 DeJong GD. An Annotated Checklist of the Calliphoridae (Diptera) Of Colorado, With Notes on Carrion Associations and ForensicImportance. Journal of Kansas Entomological Society, 1995; 67(4): 378-385. Gomes,L., Gomes, G., Von Zuben, C.L. (2007) the influence of temperature on the behaviour of burrowing larvae of blowflies,Chrysomya albiceps and Lucilia cuprina, under controlled conditions. Journal of insect science.9, 1536-2442 Gomes, L., Sanches, M.R. Von Zuben, C.J. (2004) Dispersal and Burial Behaviour in Larvae of Chrysomya megacephala and Chrysomya albiceps (Diptera: Calliphoridae). Journal of insect behaviour 18, 282-292 Grassberger, M. Reiter, C. (2002) Effect of temperature of development of the forensically important holarctic blow fly Protophormia terraenovae (Robineau-Desvoidy) (Diptera: Calliphordae). Forensic Science international 128, 177-182 Gunn, A. (2009) Essential Forensic Biology. 2nd edition, Wiley 214-251 Payne JA. A Summer Carrion Study of the Baby Pig Sus scrofa Linnaeus.Ecology, 1965; 46 (5): 592-602. Singh, D., Bala, M. (2009) the effect of starvation on the larval behaviour of two forensically important species of blow flies (Diptera: Calliphoridae). Forensic Science international 193, 118-121 Tullis K and Goff ML. Arthropod Succession in Exposed Carrion in tropical Rainforest on Ohau Island, Hawaii. Journal ofMedical Entomology, 1987; 24: 332-339. Wooldridge, J., Scrase, L., Wall, L. (2007) Flight activity of the blowflies, Calliphora vomitoria and Lucilia sericata, in the dark. Forensic Science International 172, 94-97 Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Blow fly life cycle. Available: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/visibleproofs//education/entomology/blow_fly_life_cycle.pdf Accessed 09/01/2010

Predictability of Earnings and Reversion of Profitability

Predictability of Earnings and Reversion of Profitability 1. INTRODUCTION, RESEARCH QUESTION AND CONTRIBUTION In a competitive environment, economists say there is a mean reversion of profitability. Mean reversion of profitability infers that variation in profitability and earnings can be predicted. Although there are some literatures making an effort to find prediction in profitability and earnings, the findings somewhat cannot fully explain those variations. Early researches (Beaver 1970; Brooks and Buckmaster 1976; and Lookabill 1976) did not test the prediction formally. When there were formal tests, models were mostly time-series and identified only companies with long-earning histories (20 years). This approach causes the issue that long-term survivors might not represent all the firms. Furthermore, 20 years of data on earnings is an inaccurate estimation of the time-series model. Thus, the results found are statistically weak (Lev 1969; Freeman, Ohlson, and Penman 1982). There are some later researches attempting to identify those variations as well. Freeman et al (1982), Collins and Kothari (1989), Easton and Zmijewski (1989), Ou and Penman (1989), Elgers and Lo (1994) and Basu (1997) found that cross-sectional tests constructed more consistent evidence of predictability. However, Elgers and Lo (1994) found the unrealistic assumption that there is no correlation among companies due to changes in earnings and profitability. Moreover, most existing literatures do not investigate connection of the predictability of profitability and that of earnings. Contrastingly, like Freeman et al. (1982) and Lev (1983), this research paper is to answer the question: Is much of what is predictable about earnings due to the mean reversion of profitability? The result confirms the answer to question is yes. Those results are applicable to the real world. Therefore, the main contribution is the confirmation of economists presumption that there is a mean reversion of profitability in a competitive environment. 2. Data and methodology 2.1 A First-Pass Partial Adjustment Model for Profitability This test uses a simple cross-section partial adjustment regression in profitability changing for each year t from 1964 to 1995. This regression from t to t+1 is as followed   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   (1a)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚   (1b) where is total book assets of firm at the end of year t,is earnings before interest,is profitability measure, is expected value of profitability measure, is profitability change from year t to t+1 and is the profitability deviation from the expected value.   Ã‚  Ã‚   The paper uses a two-step method to identify equation (1). After doing regression to investigate differences in expected profitability among companies, the fitted values from the first-step regression are used as the proxy for in the cross-section regression.   Ã‚  Ã‚   In the first-stage regression, (dividends to book value of equity at the end of year t) is used as proxy for expected profitability, (dummy variable to capture nonlinear relationship of dividends and expected profitability) and (market-to-book ratio to find variation of expected profitability which cannot find by dividend determinants. In the cross-section regression, in (1) is the fitted value from the first-stage regression.   Ã‚  Ã‚   (2)   Ã‚  Ã‚   Due to the high regulation during the sample period (1964-1995), financial companies and utilities are omitted. This paper considers only the firms with more than $10 million assets and more than $5 million book equity. With these exclusions, 2,343 companies per year are taken into account. The interpretation is based on the average slopes and the time-series standard errors of the average slopes. However, with only 33 slope observation from 1964 to 1995, the estimation of autocorrelation is inaccurate. Therefore, this paper uses a less strict approach with t-statistics requirement of about 2.8 rather than the common 2.0. 2.2 A Nonlinear Partial Adjustment Model for Profitability This test is developed to investigate whether there is comparable nonlinearity in profitability characteristics with the hypothesis that the mean reversion of profitability results in the predictability of earnings. The nonlinear partial adjustment model equation is expanded from equation (1). (3)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   where is the negative deviations of profitability from expected values, is the squared negative deviations, is the squared positive deviations, is negative changes in profitability, is squared negative changes and is squared positive changes. , and are to capture the nonlinearity in the mean reversion of profitability and , and are to capture the nonlinearity in the profitability changes autocorrelation. 2.3 Predicting Earnings Freeman et al. (1982) and Lev (1983) argue that the competition causes mean reversion of profitability. This paper inspects the predictable changes in earnings and how much of the predictability brings the nonlinearity of mean reversion in profitability. The dependent variable is change in earnings, . The regression of change in earnings is (4)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   where is negative changes in earnings, is squared negative changes in earnings and is squared positive changes in earnings. , and are to capture the nonlinearity in the earning changes autocorrelation. 3. results 3.1 A First-Pass Partial Adjustment Model for Profitability The negative slope of implies that there is a nonlinear relationship of dividends and profitability. The significant positive slope of confirms the hypothesis that market-to-book ratio investigates variation of expected profitability which cannot find by dividend determinants.

The Collapse of the Ottoman Empire Essay -- History, The Zionists, Jew

Following the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, The Arab-Israeli conflict began in earnest. As the years went on and the conflict escalated it gradually shifted from a large scale Arab–Israeli issue to the more personal Israeli–Palestinian conflict. The issue that divided both parties is primarily a territorial concern based on secular belief. Zionists belief that God had made a covenant with the Jewish people to return them to the Land of Canaan or the Biblical Promise land (Christian Zionists share sympathize with the Jews, based on common backgrounds). Yet in the Quran, as espoused by the Prophet Muhammad, the lands of Jerusalem are said to be the holiest of all Arabic lands. Three movements would develop in response to these deep divisions. The Zionism movement, the Arabism movement, and the Palestinian movement. The Zionism movement, as outlined by Theodore Hertzl in his pamphlet The Jewish State, concerns itself with the creation, and later preservation of the Jewis h state. The Arabism movement seeks to shine light on a shared cultural heritage between the Arabic nations and to consolidate each nation into a collective whole. Palestinian nationalism, emerged from Arabism, and concerns itself with recapturing the sovereignty of their historic home that they believe was taken from them by western powers and given to the Jews. All three of these nations owe their creation and continued existence to each other. And while each party has their deep difference they share parraelles and common goals that will be outlined in this paper. The word Zion means harmonized community or utopia, and is a reference to the biblical land of Israel as outlined in the Jewish Torah in the books Exodus and Genesis. The secular belief championed by... ...ents’ remains perpetually intertwined in a game of cause and effect. Zionism sought the solution to years of persecution of the Jews and eventually found that solution in their biblical home of Israel, cast out from this territory the Palestinian’s, who had been brought togetheher by Arabism, assumed the role of those in Diaspora, and sought a return to the homeland they believe is there’s. Although they would never admit it to each other each of these movements has more in common then they think. They rotate around each other like the earth around its axis, perpetually cycling into one another, championing the same complains, the same causes, and same animosities that they’ve had for thousands of years. The Arab-Israel conflict when put on paper is a series of parallel lines with occasional intersection, but never a unified theme and always an incomplete picture.

Eye tracking techniques improve aircraft simulators :: essays research papers

A simulated flight environment for pilot training may soon be made more realistic through the use of eye-tracking technology developed by researchers at the University of Toronto's Institute of Biomedical Engineering (IMBE). Many safety and cost benefits are obtained by training aircraft pilots under simulated conditions, but to be effective the simulation must be convicingly realistic. At present, th e training facilities use large domes and gimballed projectors, or an array of video screens, to display computer-generated images. But these installations are very expensive and image resolution is low. Further, it would take an enormous amount of addi to improve image quality significantly throughout the whole viewed scene. However, based on the visual properties of the eye, realism can be obtained by providing a high-resolution 'area of interest' insert within a large, low-resolution field of view. If the image-generating computer 'knows' where the pilot's fixation is, it mage there. The technology to make this possible was developed by a research team headed by Professor Richard Frecker and Professor Moshe Eizenman. The work was carried out in collaboration with CAE Electronics Ltd. of Montreal with financial support from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada. Their eye-tracker can record and analyze accurately up to 500 eye positions per second. The system works by means of capturing and processing the reflections of a low-level beam o f invisible infra-red light shone onto the eye. Multi-element arrays capture the image of the eye and digitize the information, which is then processed in real time by a fast, dedicated signal processing unit. The difference in position between the ligh tre of the pupil reveals the instantaneous direction of gaze. Developments by the IBME team have significantly increased the speed of signal processing in addition to enhancing accuracy of eye position estimates. Eizenman believes that "these improvements make our eye-tracker very effective in monitoring the large G-force environment where the pilot tends to make larger eye movements because of contraints which exist on movements of his head". In a new generation of aircraft simulators, under development by CAE Electronics Ltd. of Montreal, a head tracker which tells the direction of the pilot's head is mounted on top of the helmet. The eye tracker is mounted on the front of the helmet, and is ll exactly where the pilot's eye is fixating. Frecker said that "successful integration of our eye tracker into the novel helmet-mounted CAE flight simulator would result in a new generation of simulators that would likely replace the current large domes and cumbersome video display units.

Swot: Brand and Dove Conditioner Shampoo

StrengthsDove conditioner shampoo varieties are products of the Dove Company. However, Unilever is the parent company of Dove products. As well know, Unilever is a Anglo-Dutch multinational corporation that owns many of the world's consumer product brands in foods, beverages, cleaning agents and personal care products. Therefore, Dove conditioner shampoo varieties own a strong brand name and image as a part of a wide range of leading brands with Unilever’s other products portfolio such as; Lipton teas, Slim-fast, Ben and Jerry's ice-cream. Thus, it is good for establishing and promoting brand prestige and getting numbers of commercial partners, economic aids and resources. As the brand has grown, so has the investment in advertising. Dove regularly uses magazine advertising to place itself at the heart of the beauty arena, specially its conditioner and shampoo products. Dove’s use of magazines in the marketing strategy has gone far beyond regular display advertising to promotions. Additionally, Dove consistently uses magazines as the lead medium in a number of multi-channel, short-term, product-focused projects. On the other hands, over one million consumers visited Dove’s website to know conditioner and shampoo products in August 2009.It shows that the promotion of Dove conditioner and shampoo products on the Internet is also successful and accepted. The conditioner and shampoo products of Dove are not completely single products. When a shampoo product is sold, a conditioner product can be promoted and sold with a favorable price, and vice versa. Or promote and sell them two products together with special packaging.WeaknessShampoo and conditioner product development has followed movements in fashion, adding value to the sector, but this market has also been affected by changes in the wider economy. The data shows that there are many brands in hair care market, and Dove conditioner and shampoo†¦

Distinguish between problem-focused coping and emotion-focused coping Essay

Problem-focused coping: Problem-focused coping is attempting to alleviate stress directly either by changing the stressor or the way we interact with that stressor, Problem-focused coping, targets the causes of stress in practical ways which tackles the problem or stressful situation that is causing stress, consequently directly reducing the stress. Problem focused coping aim to remove or reduce the cause of the stressor. (McLeod, Stress Management – Problem Focused Coping with Stress. , 2010) For example, the way classmates deal with stressors like exams , you can see a range of different coping responses. Some classmates will pace around or worry about it, others will revise, or pester their teachers for clues. Problem-focused strategies include: Taking Control – this response involves changing the relationship between yourself and the source of stress. Examples: escaping from the stress or removing the stress. : Information seeking is the most rational action. This involves the trying to understand the situation (e.g. using the internet) and putting into place cognitive strategies to avoid it in future. Information seeking is a cognitive response to stress. : Evaluating the pros and cons of different options for dealing with the stressor. In general problem-focused coping is best, as it removes the stressor, and so deals with the root cause of the problem, providing a long term solution. However, it is not always best, or possible to use problem-focused strategies. For example, when someone dies, problem-focused strategies may not be very helpful for the bereaved. Dealing with the feeling of loss requires emotion-focused coping. Problem focused approached will not work in any situation where it is beyond the individual’s control to remove the source of stress. They work best when the person can control the source of stress (e.g. exams, work based stressors etc.). It is not a productive method for all individuals. For example, not all people are able to take control of a situation. People with low self-esteem typically use emotion focused coping strategies. Emotion-focused coping. Emotion-focused coping Involves trying to reduce the negative emotional responses associated with stress such as embarrassment, fear, anxiety, depression, excitement and frustration. This may be the only realistic option when the source of stress is outside the person’s control. Drug therapy can be seen as emotion  focused coping as it focuses on the arousal caused by stress not the problem. Emotion-focused strategies include: Keeping yourself busy to take your mind off the issue : Letting off steam to other people : Praying for guidance and strength : Ignoring the problem in the hope that it will go away : Distracting yourself (e.g. TV, eating) : Building yourself up to expect the worse Emotion-focused strategies are often less effective than using problem-focused methods. For example, Epping-Jordan et al (Epping-Jordan, 1994) found that patients with cancer who used avoidance strategies, e.g. denying they were very ill, deteriorated more quickly then those who faced up to their problems. The same pattern exists in relation to dental health and financial problems. It does not provide a long term solution. However, they can be a good choice if the source of stress is outside the person’s control for example a terrorist attack. There are Gender differences: women tend to use more emotion-focused strategies then men (Billings, 1981) It also may have negative side effects as it delays the person dealing with the problem. (McLeod, Emotion Focused Coping., 2009) My basic outlook on life and how does it impacts on my ability to cope with stress According to the study by Meyer Friedman, Ray Rosenman, and their colleagues (friedman, 1984) I am a type B personality so less prone to heart problems, I have always been an easygoing person and an optimist. In my coping with stress I think I use the problem-focused coping most times, as I have always been a muscularly big person so with that confidence I was never afraid to grab the bull by the horns so to speak and directly try to work things out, also I have been into the healthy lifestyle and gyms since the age of fifteen. my social support is good and I do have a lot of close friends and keep in touch with them regularly, my family is with me most times (sons, daughter, sister and brother )so I think that my ability to cope with stress is excellent Some stress minimizing and management methods are exercise, relaxation, mediation, biofeedback and spirituality Exercise: exercise is your shortest route to a feeling of well-being and a physical glow. Everyone knows that exercise is good for you and that it is one of the best stress combatants available Not only does it keep the heart healthy and get oxygen  into the system, but it helps deplete stress hormones and releases mood-enhanc ing chemicals which help us cope with stress better. Relaxation: Relaxation is more than a state of mind; it physically changes the way your body functions. When your body is relaxed breathing slows, blood pressure and oxygen consumption decrease, and some people report an increased sense of well-being. This is called the â€Å"relaxation response.† Being able to produce the relaxation response using relaxation techniques may counteract the effects of long-term stress, which may contribute to or worsen a range of health problems including depression, digestive disorders, headaches, high blood pressure, and insomnia Mediation: Meditation can give you a sense of calm, peace and balance that benefits both your emotional well-being and your overall health. And these benefits don’t end when your meditation session ends. Meditation can help carry you more calmly through your day and can even improve certain medical conditions. The emotional benefits of meditation include: Gaining a new perspective on stressful situations, Building skills to manage your stress, Increasing self-awareness, Focusing on the present, Reducing negative emotions Spirituality: Research shows that people who are more religious or spiritual use their spirituality to cope with life,† In her new book, The SuperStress Solution, Dr. Roberta Lee devotes a section to the topic of spirituality and prayer. Notes ,Dr. Lee. â€Å"They’re better able to cope with stress, they heal faster from illness, and they experience increased benefits to their health and well-being. On an intellectual level, spirituality connects you to the world, which in turn enables you to stop trying to control things all by yourself. When you feel part of a greater whole, it’s easy to understand that you aren’t responsible for everything that happens in life. Among the research she cites is one study of approximately 126,000 people that found that the people who frequently attended services increased their odds of living by 29 percent. Another study conducted by the National Institute for Health Care Research (NIHR) illustrated that the Canadian college students who were connected to their campus ministries visited doctors less often and were less stressed during difficult times than the other students. The students who had strong religious correlations also had higher positive feelings, lower levels of depression, and were better equipped at handling stress. (a) I employ exercise and relaxation for stress relief,and I use the problem-focused  coping most times to directly address any stressful situation I encounter Bibliography Billings, A. G. (1981). The role of coping responses and social resources in attenuating the stress of life events. . Journal of Behavioral Medicine,, 13: 539-547. Epping-Jordan, J. A. (1994). Predictors of cancer progression in young adult men and women: Avoidance, intrusive thoughts, and psychological symptoms. Health Psychology. McLeod, S. A. (2009). Emotion Focused Coping. http://www.simplypsychology.org/emotion-focused-coping.html. McLeod, S. A. (2010). Stress Management – Problem Focused Coping with Stress. . http://www.simplypsychology.org/problem-focused-coping.html.