Marco Polo Comparison Essay - 1546 Words

The prolific writings of both Marco Polo and Ibn Battuta give accounts of early world travel and exploration during the middle ages, these two explorers’ managed to travel the length of the Eurasian empire, while creating written accounts of their adventure. When comparing these two individual writings on their travels and perception of cultures, religion and trade also their reasons for travel it is imperative that we acknowledge that these two individuals came from very different back rounds Polo a Christian and Battuta a Muslim. Thus their accounts and view points maybe very different in retrospect to one another due to a religious, and cultural bias when exploring these areas. In order to understand these two travelers it†¦show more content†¦Polo’s view on this was made clear when he states that the kings was so â€Å"Lecherous that I assure you that he has fully 300 wives†5. It is important to note the language used in the second quote which shows how he felt about this king’s indulgement as lewdness and lust in a way regarded as distasteful. This was with out a shock to polo who came from a Christian back round where such an act was considered unacceptable and blasphemous. Ibn Battuta also mentions slaves in the text many times through his travels; his view of slave trade contradicts that of Polo’s. This is evident when Battuta was given his first â€Å"hospitality Gift†6 of a young male in Turkey, where he also bought and sold slaves. This comparison is in sharp contrast to Polo’s view on slavery for trade where Battuta seemed to accept this as normal practice within his culture and even seemed it fit to deem it as a gift. This comparison shows how cultures within the middle ages held very different beliefs and guild lines for individuals of various ideologies, what interested and was seen as acceptable practice of slave trade for Battuta, was on the other hand very shocking to Polo. A comparison of the travels of both Battuta and Polo show that both men came in contact with great leaders of Eurasia which shaped their travels and lead them to seek control and obtain control over the Mongolian empire now known as China inShow MoreRelatedExplorers And Voyagers Written Presentation972 Words   |  4 Pagesemploys the technique of classical comparison in order to help its readers understand the events in the court of the great Khans at Karakorum. However, despite the great achievements in his work, Rubruck is far less a figure of study in modern day academic study. But this should not be the case. Comparison with his contemporaries and analysing historiographical trends, is going to prove the Rubruck is far a more reliable source than that of Longjumeau, Carpine and Marco Polo, and should be treated as suchRead MoreThe Impact of Expectations Upon Marco Polo and Hernan Cortes2059 Words   |  9 Pages Human history is filled with the names of bold explorers who ventured into the great unknown, only to come out basked in glory as some of the great heroes of their day. Among the grandest are Marco Polo, who provided little known information about the Far East to Europeans, and Hernan Cortes, the great Spanish conquistador who is given credit for the defeat of the Mexica Empire. These two famous explorers are also ideal case studies to analyze the influence of expectations, interestsRead Morepersuasive message777 Words   |  4 Pagesyear, I believe it would behoove us create our new device and let the public know that it’s coming and it’s going to be amazing! The Iphone 6 has made such a tremendous effect this year but the applications and capabilities of the 7 will hold no comparison. I have attached a video that will demonstrate what we at Apple have been working on for the new 7, and detail all its fascinating features. I see no reason why the product would fail since Apple still led the market with 40.6% market shares last Read MoreEntrepreneurship Is An Integral Part Of Our Economy1765 Words   |  8 Pagesinvestors for startup capital, and this has always been this way. In the thirteenth century, Marco Polo, the famous explorer, wanted to trade with Asia, but wasn’t sure how to get the materials he wanted to trade there, so he asked financiers in Venice to let him use their money with the promise that he would then return their money and share his profits with them. This idea of investment and return made Marco Polo one of the first known entrepreneurs whose ideas of business spread throughout Europe andRead MoreEntrepreneurship Is An Integral Part Of Our Economy1758 Words   |  8 Pagesinvestors for startup capital, and this has always been this way. In the thirteenth century Marco Polo, the famous explorer, wanted to trade with Asia but wasn’t sure how to get the materials he wanted to trade there, so he asked financiers in Venice to let him use their money with the promise that h e would then return their money and share his profits with them. This idea of investment and return made Marco Polo one of the first known entrepreneurs whose ideas of business spread throughout Europe andRead MoreWhy did the Great Divergence Occur1384 Words   |  6 Pagescurrency and the printing of literature. China also saw the innovation of printing by paving the way towards other inventions such as wallpaper, tissue paper, toilet paper and certain articles of clothing. Many of these inventions were recognised by Marco Polo, who spread the innovations in Europe. These items, along with tea, silk, and porcelain, were some of the vast array of inventions supplied by China, showcasing it as a prime country of innovation prior to the Great Divergence. Moreover, tracesRead MoreHotel Thesis6924 Words   |  28 PagesEmployed / Member State 20000 16000 12000 8000 4000 0 04 01 99 00 02 03 20 05 20 20 Year EU27 EU25 19 20 20 Year Czeck Republic Spain United Kingdom Germany France Source: Eurostat.eu 2008 Also, in comparison to the USA and Japan, the European Hotels and restaurant sector has experienced the highest growth in terms of employment in the recent years. Within Europe; the UK, Spain, and Germany are the most important member states regarding employment inRead MoreComponents Of A Computer Based Information System1455 Words   |  6 Pagessee how their health systems compare with the American system (the US is the only developed nation on earth without universal health care). He visited doctors, hospitals, and health ministries. In a TV interview on ABC, Reid was described as a â€Å"Marco Polo† looking at health care around the world. Reid said he set out on his global reporting journey to answer a simple question: â€Å"How come the other advanced industrialized free market countries offer universal health care at half the cost? â€Å"He thenRead MoreThe Elastic War Machine : The Revolutionary War1647 Words   |  7 Pages the horses themselves should be of note to any who thinks of a tall, sleek, Arabian stallion flying across the steppe. What is now the domestic horse, is not what the Mongols rode. 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The Powers of the Prime Minister Free Essays

string(58) " as he will not be able to exercise his role effectively\." Introduction The purpose of this essay is to describe and discuss the powers of the British Prime Minister and which implications arise from his position for the government and politics. This essay will consist of three parts. In the first part the main powers of the Prime Minister (PM), currently David Cameron, will be considered. We will write a custom essay sample on The Powers of the Prime Minister or any similar topic only for you Order Now These include his tasks as head of government, the right to select his cabinet and to dismiss ministers, to represent the country abroad and more functions, which will be explained in more detail below. In the second part the limits of his powers will be illustrated and how effective they are. These will lead to the third section, where it will be discussed whether the Prime Minister is too powerful. The focus will be especially on the argument whether Britain has a more prime ministerial government rather than a Cabinet government. Furthermore a comparison with the powers of the German chancellor is made, and it will be reviewed if the organisation of the office of German Chancellor is a better manner to regulate the powers of the PM. Lastly, it is discussed which reforms are possible to reduce the Prime Minister’s powers. The Roles of the Prime Minister As head of the UK government, the PM is probably the most influential person in British politics. To the present day 52 men and one woman have passed through the doors of Number 10 Downing Street as British Prime Minister. The office of the PM is the creation of convention, and the role and the powers conferred on him still depend mainly on convention and political circumstances. His powers are not defined in legislation, instead they evolved as a matter of political expediency and historically evolution. Moreover, it now appears to be a firm convention that the Prime Minister should be a member of the House of Commons. Most of the powers to be discussed derive from the royal prerogative.The royal prerogative is supposed to give the Monarch substantial power as the Head of State. However, the prerogative powers should be understood „not as personal discretionary powers of the Monarchâ€Å", but as „clearly circumscribed constitutional duties to be carried out on the advice of the PM. He is the principal government figure in the House of Commons and has a general authority to intervene in any sphere of government. The Prime Minister controls the central government apparatus in that he decides how the tasks of government should be allocated to departments and whether departments should be created, amalgamated or abolished. Furthermore it is the PM who appoints the members of the Cabinet and „sets the paceâ€Å" of Cabinet activity. He may ask ministers to resign, recommend the Queen to dismiss them or, with their consent, move them to other offices. Lord Atlee has said that an important quality in a Premier is the capacity to dismiss inadequate ministers. The Prime Minister is able to control Cabinet discussions and the process of decision-making by setting the order of business, and may name one of the Cabinet to be Deputy Prime Minister, or first Secretary of State. Therefore the power of appointment is one of the chief ways a Prime Minister keeps his cont rol over his party. By controlling influential committees, the PM can also ensure that he drives the policies of these committees. Accordingly, it can be said that the Prime Minister is in a position to exercise a dominant influence over the Cabinet, having powers that other ministers do not have. The PM customarily holds the titular position of First Lord of the Treasury. His approval is also required for the appointment of the most senior civil servants and important Crown appointments are filled on his nomination, for example, high-ranking members of the Church of England and senior judges. Furthermore, he also has control over the Cabinet Office. The PM, in addition, retains other patronage powers. He still advises the Queen on new peerages, on appointments to the Privy Council and the grant of honours. The Prime Minister’s Office supports him in his role as head of government. This includes providing policy advice and ensuring effective communications to Parliament and the public. Most Prime Ministers must take a special interest in foreign affairs, the economy and defence. The Queen is Britain’s head of state, but the PM is Britain’s de facto representative abroad. He often takes a leading role in foreign relations, dealing directly with other heads of government, and is also likely to take the lead on major issues as the national and international response to the crisis in Libya. Another function of the PM is that he is also in a position to dominate if not control the government’s communication to the press, and to disclose information about government decisions and the Cabinet business. He has regular meetings with the Queen and is responsible for keeping the Queen informed of the Cabinet’s handling of affairs. As has become clear above, the PM is involved in all aspects of government in a way that no other government official is, and thus it is safe to say that, despite the limits on his power (see below), the PM can be considered the most influential person in politics. Limits of his power Despite the Prime Minister’s emerged position within British politics there are limits to his powers. Firstly, one great limit comes from the party he represents. If the PM loses the support from his party’s backbenchers, his position becomes very fragile. Therefore the biggest danger is that a Prime Minister builds up a range of enemies. One example for that is what happened to Margaret Thatcher, when another minister, who disagreed with her policies, put an effective revolt against her style of leadership, which led to her resignation. This means that if the PM loses the support of his party, he will almost always have to resign as PM, as he will not be able to exercise his role effectively. You read "The Powers of the Prime Minister" in category "Essay examples" Moreover, all Prime Ministers must include most senior party colleagues in the Cabinet, who could always be some troublemakers, if they don’t get the position they would like to have. The PM’s powers of appointment are also limited by the need to provide a balance of party views in the Cabinet. Therefore an authoritative leadership of the party is a main factor for a PM to be successful. Additionally there are other ways in which the PM’s powers are limited. For instance the fact that he is seen to be publicly responsible for any major mishap that occurs during his time in power. As the most known member of the government, it is he that the public blame when they aren’t satisfied with politics. Margaret Thatcher was held responsible for the problems in association with the Poll Tax and Tony Blair has been accused of being too friendly with the USA’ President Bush. This means that the electorate body has the power to remove the PM by way of elections, and so the PM is indirectly also controlled in this way. This is referred to as indirect as the body can not directly stop any decisions the PM makes, but can stop him from continuing in the office of PM when general elections take place by voting for another party. As another limitation can be seen the questioning time on Wednesday, which is an opportunity for the leader of the opposition and other members of the House of Commons to ask the PM supplementary questions on any subject. Therefore he is directly accountable to the Parliament for his actions and decisions. However, the PM will be extensively briefed by government departments in anticipation of likely subjects he could be asked about and they cannot force him to change his engagements. Additionally the European Union has the power to influence government policy by imposing on member states’ policies. Even though the Conservatives have generally not been very happy with this imposition on the British State, David Cameron still accepted when he became PM that the UK is part of the EU, and that therefore, it has to adhere to certain decisions. He, as PM, had to compromise on this point for him to effectively lead the country. Although the courts have long had the power to determine the existence and extent of a prerogative power, traditionally they have had no power to regulate the manner of its exercise. The position is now governed by the decision of the House of Lords in CCSU v Minister of State for Civil Service (1985). The judiciary placed some restraints on executive use of the royal prerogative. But not every prerogative power is justiciable: matters such as the appointment of Ministers, the disposition of the armed force and the dissolution of Parliament are still beyond judicial control.The justiciability of the prerogative powers could in theory have been a powerful limit on the PM’s powers. However, in practice it has shown this was not so, as only limited part of the prerogative powers is in fact justiciable and that there are limits to what extent remedies are available. Also, this limit does not prevent or deter the PM on acting in a particular way, it will only compensate certain gro ups or people after an event has occurred, and so does not even directly affect the PM. As seen above the Prime Minister has big political powers, but this power is also balanced by the fact that there are limitations to that power. Although some of these limitations are really effective, most of the powers of the PM can not easily be influenced. Is the Prime Minister too powerful? In the last 40 years the powers of the Prime Minister within the British political structure have developed to such an extent that some critical politicians and academics now refer to Britain as having a Prime Ministerial government rather than a Cabinet government. He is the „keystone of the Cabinet archâ€Å", occupying a position which is one of the exceptional and peculiar authority. In essence this means that the office of PM is very much attached to the person by which is meant that the individual PM has a discretion in which way to exercise his powers. If the PM is very popular than the limits given above will have very little effect as most of them are heavily dependent on the dislike of and disagreement with the PM and his politics. Recently, more emphasis has been placed on the role of the Prime Minister and less on the Cabinet itself and therefore it is argued that the description of British government simply as „Cabinet governmentâ€Å" had become misleading, for „the country is governed by the Prime Ministerâ€Å". The PM has three main functions, which give him his enormous powers within the British government: being able to appoint and dismiss ministers; by setting the agenda for Cabinet discussions, and by controlling the remit and membership of Cabinet committees. Certainly the way in which these powers are operated naturally differs from one PM to another. This is an immense concentration of power in the hands of the Prime Minister, particularly discharging is one of his ultimate weapons. The argument of prime ministerial dominance seemed to be confirmed by the premiership of Margaret Thatcher. By displacing some important decision-making to informal, ad hoc groups of ministers convened by herself she diminished the role of Cabinet and demonstrated the dominant authority that can be wielded by a PM. As evidence of strengthened prime ministerial control under Mr Blair can be also cited paragraph 9.2 of the Ministerial Code: In order to ensure the effective presentation of government policy, all major interviews and media appearances should be agreed with the No 10 Press Office before any commitments are entered into(†¦). As explained above, therefore the PM is in a position to dominate the government’s communication to the press. Another claim of his overwhelming power is that Cabinet meetings are too dominated by the PM. The members of the Cabinet are simply ‘yes-sayers’. „With Mr Tony Blair there has been a reversion to a „command and controlâ€Å" premiership with centralised and informal processes of decision-making tending to displace collective discussions in Cabinet and Cabinet committeesâ€Å". Also the doctrine of collective responsibility helps to strengthen the powers of the Prime Minister, as ministers must not criticise government policy in public. This is underlined by the fact that many decisions of government are not taken by the Cabinet as a whole, but by the Prime Minister in consultation with a few key colleagues. Moreover, there are those who believe that the personality of the Prime Minister is now almost as important as stated party policies. But the implication is that if people vote for personalities as much as issues, then the opponent has no chance of winning the next election as long as the current PM’s personality and manner are still popular with the people. All these facts have led some to seek ways to limit or control the power of the PM in order to rehabilitate the Cabinet government. Thus far, it has been established that the PM has great amounts of power and that it seems that Britain currently has a more prime ministerial government than a Cabinet government. However, to demonstrate whether the PM can be considered as too powerful, it would be best to compare his function with that of the German Federal Chancellor, who has the equivalent role in Germany. Even though the legal foundations of the political systems of the United Kingdom and Germany are very different, the roles of the PM and the Chancellor are in many ways very similar, and so this comparison would be a good way to show how powerful the PM actually is, and whether that could be considered as being too powerful. The German Chancellor is the head of government. Currently this position is held by Angela Merkel of the CDU. The Chancellor determines the guidelines of government policy, so called Richtlinienkompetenz. He is elected every four years by a majority of the members of the Bundestag upon the recommendation of the President. For this election a majority of all elected members of the Bundestag is required, which should ensure to establish a stable government. The Chancellor has the power to choose his ministers and to determines the number of ministries and their responsibilities. Another power is that the Chancellor himself can propose a vote of no confidence.Therefore he can test whether he still enjoys the unlimited support of the governing parties. The powers of the German Chancellor are also limited. Removing the Chancellor from office is an alternative when there is no more political consensus between the parties before a general elections for a new Bundestag.In the German history there have been only three occasions where this happened. This course of action was taken in order to prematurely dissolve the Bundestag, which according to the constitution is otherwise not possible. This ensures that no single party can form a government on its own. Furthermore limitations can be given from decisions of the Federal Constitutional court: It allows the authority and the citizens to present a complaint to abolish a law they found infringing the terms set in Basic Rights. In comparison to the Prime Minister the power to appoint members of high authority, legalise acts and dissolve parliament is vested in the German Bundesprasident. The fifty-year history of the Federal Republic has shown that despite the Chancellor’s strong position the ability of the government to act cannot be guaranteed by him alone. Even though the Chancellery makes it possible to impose central management and coordination, a non-hierarchical relationship between the Chancellor and his Ministers plays an important role in government practice. In this context the Cabinet deals with important interministerial issues such as the federal budget or tax reform and takes joint decisions on them (â€Å"principle of joint Cabinet decision-making†). In a government coalition the Chancellor is also bound by the terms of the coalition agreement and has to adhere to these terms to avoid straining the coalition. The â€Å"principle of joint Cabinet decision-making† means that the Chancellor and the Ministers decide jointly on matters of general political importance. When there are differences of opinion between Ministers the Chancellor mediates (as a â€Å"primus inter pares†). Cabinet decisions are based on majority rule. The â€Å"principle of ministerial autonomy† means that each Minister conducts the affairs of his ministry independently and on his own responsibility. This means that the Chancellor cannot automatically intervene in his Ministers’ areas of responsibility. At the same time Ministers must see to it that the decisions they take remain within the limits. As can be seen by this comparison the British PM and the Chancellor in theory have very similar powers, but in practice the PM has a lot more power than the Chancellor as he has more discretion about the execution of these powers. However, before one can say that this means he is too powerful, the effectiveness of the functions of Prime Minister and Chancellor have to be compared. In fact, in the six decades of the Bundestag, there have been only eight Chancellors – a remarkable element of stability. In the same period of time, Britain has had 14 Prime Ministers. In the British parliamentary system usually only has one party in power, because the first-past-the-post system there favours the strongest party. There have only been a few hung parliaments. The latest elections resulted in this, and currently the UK has a coalition government, existing out of the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats. In May there will be a referendum to change the voting system, and if the voting system as a consequence of this is in fact changed to one of additional voting, then this might all change. Since Germany has a system of proportional representation for the election of its lower house, no one party has ever had a clear majority in the last 60 years, and for this reason all German governments have been coalitions. Finally, there is the question, which reforms of the PM’s position are could be made, and what their advantages and disadvantages would be. One way of reform would be the limit of the PM’s power to a greater extent to prevent the role of PM to be so attached to the person, and instead to be more like the German Chancellor’s position, whose powers are more controlled by the political process. The House of Commons Public Administration Select Committee recommended that the government should initiate a public consultation about Minister’s executive powers, which would include proposals for legislation to provide for greater parliamentary control over all such ministerial powers. Furthermore, changing the way in which Cabinet meetings and decisions are made would be helpful in a similar way. The PM would still lead the Cabinet, but could not unilaterally ignore their opinions and views and would be forced to take them into account. In addition, by giving the PM perhaps also a more mediating role rather than just a leading role, the resources of various departments would come to better use. The PM would by supporting the other ministers in their responsibilities and by organising better co-operation between the different ministerial departments achieve better results. The better these departments function with each other, the less dependent they would be on the PM, and in that way his power would be limited. In my opinion the rules regarding the operation of parliament and its processes should be clearer as they would provide for another method of limiting the PM’s power. It can also be argued that the entire office of the PM should codified in a statute. The move away from an unwritten constitution – with statutory provisions – limits the PM’s scope,for example an Act of Parliament which states that there has to be a PM, how and who should be appointed for the role, and what the powers attached to this position would be. Lastly, the changing of the voting system might lead to far reaching consequences for the office of PM, as explained above. However, at this point, this is all theory as the referendum still has to take place, and even if it takes place, it might show people do not wish a change in the voting system. Even if it does, the politicians will still first have to act on this before anything changes. As this should make clear there are ways in which the position of the Prime Minister can be reformed in a way that will limit his power to the extent that he is no longer too powerful, but still powerful enough to carry out his function in an appropriate way. Conclusion The British Prime Minister has extensive personal power, which prevent there from being an „averageâ€Å" Prime Minister. The power of the PM will change according to the personality of the PM, his popularity, the success of his government, external circumstances and the resources of other actors within the core executive.James Barber argued that by putting the three factors together – constitutional and political frameworks, circumstance and personality – the picture that emerges is one of fluctuating powers, whereby sometimes a PM may appear to have presidential-like position, and at others he is subject to obvious constraints. All these things will have an important effect on how powerful the PM is. As written above, there are some possibilities in which way his power can be reduced and more controlled, and in that way to achieve a â€Å"Cabinet government† rather than a prime ministerial government. The PM should not be a presidential figure, but able to lead the Cabinet and ensure that decisions are made. Bibliography Books: Bogdanor, Vernon _The New British Constitution, 2009 The British Constitution in the Twentieth Century, 2004_____Bradley, A. W. / Ewing, K. D._Constitutional Administrative Law, 15th ed. 2010__Brazier, Rodney_Constitutional Texts – Materials on Government and the Constitution, 1990 Constitutional Reform – Reshaping the British political system __Hilaire, Barnett_Constitutional Administrativ Law, 6th ed.__Loveland, Ian_Constitutional Law, Administrative Law, and Human Rights – A critical introduction, 2006. __Maurer/ Hartmut_Staatsrecht I – Grundlagen, Verfassungsorgane, Staatsfunktionen, 3th ed__Oliver, Dawn_Government in the United Kingdom, 1991__Parpworth, Neil_Constitutional and Administrative Law, 5th ed. 2008__Turpin, Colin / Tomkins, Adam_British Government and the Constitution, 6th ed. 2007__ Articles: Benn, article in Parliamentary Affairs, 1990. Theakston / Kevin – Prime Ministers and the Constitution, in Parliamentary Affairs, Vol. 58 No.1, 2005, 17-37. Heffernan, article in Parliamentary Affairs, 2005. Hennessy, article in Parliamnetary Affairs, 2005 How to cite The Powers of the Prime Minister, Essay examples

PLASTIC SURGERY IN THE WORLD Essay Example For Students

PLASTIC SURGERY IN THE WORLD Essay We are living in an incredible age. Technologic improvements have changed almost everything in our lives. Today we can do many jobs more easily and faster than we did in the past. Our life expectations are increasing steadly, and we are asking for more and more. In recent years a new field in medicine has been held, and it is called plastic surgery. It has made many peoples dreams come true, and d its popularity is rising everyday. In fact, plastic surgerycan make people feel much happier, and it also gives cures for many suffering such as being overweight, cuts after an accident birth defects. The first and most importantreason to be against haveing plastic surgery is that theese kinds of operation are very dangerous and maybe harmful to peoples health. To begin with, it is possible that something can go wrong during the operation, and it may be result in a worse physical appearance. Even the operation may cause patients to die during the operation or later. Another reason why people should not have plastic surgery is that it can be addictive. For example, after a person has an aesthetic operation for the first time, he or she will probablywant to do it again. That is because peoples wishes for being more beautiful never come to an end. Besides, all people have defects and nobody can be perfect. Even the miracles which plastik surgery creat can not change this basic fact. All in all, people should not change their lookings by having plastic surgery for it is very dangerous and can be addictive and also it gives a mock beautyto people. In my opinion having an aesthetic operation to look better is just like opening the door of a mock heaven. People should be satisfied with their own, natural lookings and they should not be interested in just how they look. .

The Eruption of Toba

Introduction The largest volcanic explosion in the late Pleistocene occurred in Lake Toba, approximately 72,500 (+- 3000) years ago. The super eruption of Toba has attracted a lot of scientific disrepute due to various reasons. When viewed from space, the caldera is observed as one of the biggest volcanic craters on earth, since it measures over 100km.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on The Eruption of Toba specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More On the steep was of the caldera is lake Toba. This lake is said to be the largest volcanic lake on earth. Various scientists including Gasparotto, Spadaforab, Summac, Tateoc, Spadafora and Summa (567) and Jones, Gregory and Stott (725) sugest that the eruption resulted in a massive volcanic winter that caused a human population bottleneck. Super-volcanoes are colossal eruptions that are referred to as super-eruptions, and they vary from other catastrophes like tsunamis or earthquakes since their environmental outcomes threaten global civilization (Buhring and Sarnthein 277). These super eruptions are known to occur once in about 500,000 years, like the largest Yellowstone eruption in the USA, or the Toba eruption in Indonesia. Figure 1: Distribution of volcanic ash from the 73 ka Toba super-eruption showing location of marine cores and sections sampled in India According to Ninkovich, Sparks and Ledbetter (5), super-eruptions occur in areas of the earth where the tectonic plates collide. Ambrose, Williams and Chattopadhyaya (167) also suggest that super-eruptions can occur in areas where hot material wells up from the deep earth interior below a continent.Advertising Looking for research paper on geography? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More According to Williams and Clarke (633), there are many regions on earth that are suspected of volcanic activity, like Andes and Japan. A cause for concern i s the location of super-volcanoes within or near continents, which impies that these vents are situated in areas that have crowded populations (Lang, Leuenberger Schwander 934). This paper looks at the eological setting of Toba, in an effort to understand the super eruption and its probable effects. In doing this, this study seekd to validat that the eruption resulted in the putative bottleneck. Table 1:  Particle size distribution of the YTT ash at the Rehi section, Son valley, India. Geological Setting of Toba Toba is located in western Indonesia, in the island of Sumatra, in the north province. It is found in the Barisan Mountains as shown in figure 1. Fig. 2: Tectonic setting and location map (inset) of the Toba Caldera. Tectonic map modified from Simkin et al. (2006).Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on The Eruption of Toba specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More These mountains comprise metamorphic rock s, Quaternary volcanic and Miocene sedimentary rocks (Ambrose 274). De Silva (671) suggests that Indian-Austrlain plate located beneath the continental Eurasisn subdues a the rate of aproximately 5.5cm.year, towards the Sunda trench, which has resulted in the formation of an active volcanic (Gathorne-Hardy and Harcourt-Smith 228). Sadler and Grattan (186) suggest that the crust is about 30 to 39 km thick under Toba, with a visible depth of around 125 km (De Silva 671). This is an indication of a 30 degrees subduction angle, which has caused the formation of two parallel faults that lie between the trench and vulcanic arc. One of the faults, the vertical Sumatran, marks the border between the Eurasian plate and most of the Volcanic arc and fore arc basin on the north east and south west respectively. The other fault, Mentawai, forms the division between the fore arc basin and the fore arc accretionary sridge complex in the southwest direction (Erwin Vogel 894). According to Westgate , Shane and Pearce there is a dxtral displacement aong the Sumatran Fault. The displacement extends for about 150 km. It is referred to as the Investogator Ridge Fracture Zon (IFZ), with a subduction that is directly nelow Toba. The results of a geometry assessemt of the subduction slab beneath Toba by Chesner et. al. (201) suggest that there is a bend in the slab that coincides with Toba.Advertising Looking for research paper on geography? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The study also showed high seismicity along the subducted portion of the IFZ, which suggests the probability of IFZ concentrating volatile release into the mantle wedge beneath Toba (Chesner et. al 201). Figure 3: Bathymetric map of Lake Toba. Depth is represented by isochromes; 100 m contour lines are plotted for reference. The Toba Super eruption The single event of the Toba eruption resulted in a minimum magma eruption of 2,800 km. The magnitude of the eruption was noted as 8.8, which made it one of the largest eruptions in the Quaternary geologic period. The super eruption caused an injection of over 1015 kg of fine ash into stratosphere, while the pyroclastic flows extended for an area of approximately 105 km2 with lava reaching both the Malacca straits and the Indian Ocean. Kelly, Jones and Pengqun (550) suggest that there are layers of tephra in India, at a location that is over 3000 km away from Toba. The ignimbrite extended from one coast to the next, causing a wide area o f the North Sumatra to be drowned. Moreover, there was an aerosol cloud and dust cloud that covered the globe. The possible effects of the cataclysmic eruption include the total obliteration of both flora and fauna in North Sumatra by the ignimbrite, considerable effects on flora and fauna by ash fall in Southeast Asia, as well as, the regional or global change in temperature and effects on the environment. The Toba Catastrophist Theory The Toba catastrophe theory suggests that the super-eruption resulted in the population decline. Scientists suggest that the super-eruption is the worst disaster that human beings have ever been faced. The volcano eruption in Toba resulted in the exhaustion of large amounts of fine ash and aerosols into the atmospheres. The expulsion of these fumes is compared to nuclear-winter situations (Samuel, Harbury, Bakri, Banner Hartono 350), since the global land temperatures fell by 5-15 degrees Celsius, and the surface of the ocean, and other low altitude s, cooled by 2-6 degrees Celsius. This scenario is thought to have prolonged for several years. As a result, the persistence of soot in the atmosphere for 3 years or so may have resulted in a cooling of the climate (Pattan, Shane Banakar 244). This climatic change is though to have extended for several decades, due to the climatic feedbacks such as increased snow cover and sea ice, resulting in less solar radiation reaching the earth’s surface. Consequently, the earth’s temperature remained low since the ground and atmosphere were not heated up. Researchers suggest that the human population faced a bottleneck during this period, due to the rapid decline in the number of females by about 500, in a population that was thought to have only 4000 individuals (Hawks, Hunley, Lee Wolpoff 18). Data suggests that the eruption caused a peak in sulfur aerosol levels in the GISPs ice core, in addition to the global climatic change. According to ice core data, the weather was coo ler for several centuries after the eruption of Toba. Based on the estimates, the Toba eruption resulted in the near extinction of modern humans. Ambrose, Williams and Chattopadhyaya suggest that this led to the human population, though Oppenheimer (1593) provides an alternative hypothesis, arguing that the Toba super-eruption did not have a significant effect on human existence. Oppenheimer (1593) suggests that human beings should not have been the only ones facing termination. According to Rose and Chesner (913), the Toba induced winter should have resulted in an environmental catastrophe resulting in a population crash of more specialised ecological flora and fauna, causing them to be extinct, in a similar manner that it affected human population. In support of this notion, Gates and Ritchie suggest that the Toba super-eruption did not lead to the extinction of any mammal. In adtion to this, studies by Gathorne-Hardy and Harcourt-Smith (228), on the effects of super-eruptions on flora and fauna suggest that they do not result in mass extinctions, which disapproves the Toba catastrophe theory. According to Gasparotto, Spadafora and Summa (569), a bottleneck in human populations would have assumed the shape of an hour glass, causing the human population to crash at 73.5 Ka and then expand again later. According to Schulz, Emeis and Erlenkeuser (22), the studies on human genome that analyse nuclear sequences suggest that the Y chromosome and mitochondrial DNA support the existence of a bottleneck. Consequently, Robock, Ammann and Oman (114) support the possibility of a bottleneck, though they raise concerns about the time when the bottleneck is expected to have occurred. Some research suggests that the phenomena occurred over 2 million years ago (Petraglia, Clarkson and Ditchfield 114), while other researchers provide evidence of a long period of stasis that was followed by a population expansion around 75,000 years ago. The different opinions with regard to t he bottleneck differ on the timing of the event, which raises concerns as to whether it was caused by the super-eruption at Toba. Differences also arise based on the shape of the bottleneck, in terms of an hourglass model or a short bottle with a long neck. The hourglass model suggests a short period of human population decrease, followed by an expansion, while the long neck period indicates a proonged period of winter, and low population density (Rampino and Ambrose 274). However, the hourglass shaped bottleneck is dispreuted due to its timing of the expansion, which is proposed to have a minimum range of 50,000 years. Consquently, the super-eruption of Toba was unlikely to have resulted in the bottleneck (Rampino and Self 75). In addition to this, studies by McBrearty and Brooks on the Middle and Late Pleistocene human sites in Africa show that by 73.5 Ka, modern humans occupied a variety of habitats around the African continent. The human beings were also noted to be considerably adaptable and resourceful, with the ability to hunt and perform other tasks requiring skill (Westgate, Shane and Pearce). Conclusions In conclusion, it has been established that the super-eruption of Toba resulted in a severe climate change; however, there is inadequate evidence to support the notion that it caused a bottleneck in human population. Studies suggest that the effects were localized. In addition to this, research shows that the super-eruption had negligible effect on the Asian population, and none in Africa. During the time, human beings were adaptable, mobile and well equipped, which made them fully capable of handling the effects of the Toba phenomena. Moreover, the studies suggest that the super-eruption did not result in the extinction or decline of any fauna. Consequently, it is evident that the super-eruption of Toba did not result in human, flora or fauna bottleneck (Thornton 34). Figure 4: Sonar profiles along selected transect lines. Works Cited Ambrose, Stan ley H., Martin Anthony J. Williams and Umesh Chandra Chattopadhyaya. â€Å"Environmental impact of the 73 ka Toba eruption reflected by paleosol carbonate carbon isotope ratios in central India.† Quaternary International. 1.8 (2007): 167 –168. Print. Ambrose, Stanley H. â€Å"Did the super-eruption of Toba cause a human bottleneck? Reply to Gathorne-Hardy and Harcourt-Smith.† Journal of Hu man Evolutio. 45 (2003): 231 – 237. Print. Buhring, Christian and Michael Sarnthein. â€Å"Toba ash layers in the South China Sea: Evidence of contrasting wind directions during eruption ca. 74 ka.† Geology. 28 (2000): 275–278. Print. Chesner, C.A., Rose, W. I., Deino, A., Drake, R., Westgate, J.A. â€Å"Eruptive histo ry of earth’s largest Quaternary caldera (Toba, Indonesia) clarified.† Geology. 19 (1991): 200– 203. Print. De Silva, Shanaka. â€Å"Arc magmatism, calderas and supervolcanoes.† Geology. 36 (2008): 671 – 67 2. Print. Erwin, Douglas H. and T. A. Vogel. â€Å"Testing for causal relationships between large pyroclastic volcanic eruptions and mass extinctions.† Geophysical Research Letters. 19.9 (1992): 893–896. Print. Gasparotto, Giorgio, Elena Spadaforab, Vito Summac and Fabio Tateoc. â€Å"Contribution of grain size and compositional data from the Bengal Fan sediment to the understanding of Toba volcanic event.† Marine Geology. 162.2-4 (2000): 561 – 572. Print. Gates, Alexander E. and David Ritchie. Encyclope dia of Earthquakes and Volcanoes, 3rd edition. New York: Facts on File. 2007. Print. Gathorne-Hardy, F.J. and W.E.H Harcourt-Smith. â€Å"The super-eruption of Toba, did it cause a human bottleneck?† Journal of Human Evolution. 45 (2003): 227– 230. Print. Hawks, John, Keith Hunley, Sang-Hee Lee and Milford Wolpoff. â€Å"Population Bottle necks and Pleistocene Human Evolution.† Molecular Biology and Evolution. 17.1 (2000): 12–2 2. Print. Lang, C., M. Leuenberger and J. Schwander. â€Å"Rapid temperature variation in Central Greenland 70,000 years ago.† Science. 286 (1999): 934–937. Print. Jones, G.S., R.S.J.,Sparks and P.J. Valdes. â€Å"An AOGCM model of the climate response to a volcanic super-eruption.† Climate Dynamics. 25 (2005): 725 – 738. Print. Jones, M.T., R.S.J. Sparks and P.J. Valdes. â€Å"The climatic impact of supervolcanic ash blankets.† Climate Dynamics. 29 (2007): 553– 564. Print. Kelly, P.M., P.D. Jones and J. Pengqun. â€Å"The spatial response of the climate system to explosive volcanic eruptions.† International Journal of Climatology. 16 (1996): 537 – 550. Print. McBrearty, Sally and Alison S. Brooks. â€Å"The revolution that wasn’t: a new interpretation of the origin of modern human behavior.† Journal of Human Evolution. 39.5 (2000): 453–563. Print. Ninkovich, D., R.S.J. Sparks and M.T., Ledbetter. â€Å"Th e exceptional magnitude and intensity of the Toba eruption, Sumatra: an example of the use of deep-sea tephra layers as a geological tool.† Bulletin Volcanologique. 41.3 (1978): 1 –13. Print. Oppenheimer, C. â€Å"Limited global change due to the largest known Quaternary eruption?† Quaternary Science Reviews. 21.14-15 (2002): 1593 –1609. Print. Pattan, J.N., Phil Shane and V.K. Banakar. â€Å"New occurrence of youngest Toba tuff in abyssal sediments of the central Indian Basin.† Mar. Geol. 155 (1999): 243–248. Print. Petraglia, M., R., Korisettar, N., Boivin, et al. â€Å"Middle Pleistocene assemblages from the Indian subcontinent before and after the Toba super-eruption.† Science. 317 (2007): 114 –116. Print. Rampino, M.R. and S. Self. â€Å"Climate-volcanism feedback and the Toba eruption of 74 000 years ago.† Quaternary Research. 40 (1993): 269– 280. Print. Rampino, M.R. and S.H Ambrose. â€Å"Volca nic winter in the Garden of Eden: The Toba supereruption and the late Pleistocene human population crash.† Volcanic Hazards and Disasters in Human Antiquity: Geological Society of America. 345 (2000): 71 – 82. Print. Robock, A., C. Ammann, L. Oman, D. Shindell, S. Levis, and G. Stenchikov. â€Å"Did the Toba volcanic eruption of 74 ka B.P. produce widespread glaciation?† Journal of Geophysical Research (2009): 114. Print. Rose, W.I. and C.A. Chesner. â€Å"Dispersal of ash in the great Toba eruption, 75 ka.† Geology 15.10 (1987): 913– 917. Print. Sadler, J.P. and J.P. Grattan. â€Å"Volcanoes as agents of past environmental change.† Global and Planetary Change. 21.1-3 (1999): 181 – 196. Print. Samuel, M.A., N.A.Harbury, A. Bakri, F. Banner and L. Hartono. â€Å"A new stratigraphy for the islands of the Sumatran Forearc, Indonesia.† Journal of Asian Earth Sciences.15 (1997): 339–380. Print. Thornton, Ian.W.B. Krakatau, the destructio n and reassembly of an island ecosystem. Cambridge, Massachusetts and London: Harvard University Press. 1996. Print. Schulz, H., et al. â€Å"The Toba volcanic event and interstadial/stadial climates at the marine isotope stage 5 to 4 transition in the northern Indian Ocean.† Quaternary Research. 57 (2002): 22 – 31. Print. Westgate, J.A., et al. â€Å"All Toba tephra occurrences across peninsular India belong to the 75, 000 yr B.P. eruption.† Quaternary Research. 50 (1998): 107 –112. Print. Williams, M.A.J. and M.F. Clarke. â€Å"Late Quaternary environments in north central India.† Nature. 308 (1984): 633– 635. Print. Zielinski, Gregory A. â€Å"Use of paleo-records in determining variability within the volcanism-climate system.† Quaternary Science Reviews. 19.1-5 (2000): 417–438. Print. List of illustrations Tables Table 1: Particle size distribution of the YTT ash at the Rehi section, Son valley, India Figures Figure 1: Dist ribution of volcanic ash from the 73 ka Toba super-eruption showing location of marine cores and sections sampled in India Fig. 2: Tectonic setting and location map (inset) of the Toba Caldera Figure 3: Bathymetric map of Lake Toba. Depth is represented by isochromes; 100 m contour lines are plotted for reference. Figure 4: Sonar profiles along selected transect lines This research paper on The Eruption of Toba was written and submitted by user Nakia to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Robert Gober essays

Robert Gober essays Through researching, I come to know that Robert Gober is an extraordinary American artist who has contributed many exclusive sculptures to the art gallery. Most of his works are from his imagination and daily life acquaintances. For instant, his sculptures are as much about jokes, puns, and slips of the tongue of everyday life and they also reveal the distressing scenes of early childhood. In both their content and fabrication, Gober's objects address the repetitious nature of the everyday. This is all to say that some of Gober's objects are funny; and that their humor is of a daily nature. Although there are some unpleasant aspects of the project, which he created, has diminished my affection for his artwork. The sexuality and the coarse icons perform in his art style give the artwork an unattractive, repulsive appearance. If Gober ever receives any fame for his sculptures, it is because of his brilliant, eccentric idea for the artwork. Gober has developed a unique sculptural practice that links many of the issues underlying Surrealism, Minimalism, and Conceptualism to psychological questions concerning the body and our domestic environment (Wallingford). With these representations, his sculptures typically explore the themes of childhood, memory, loss and sexuality. Gober's work is about a fantasy of being an artista fantasy in which creativity never involves immersing yourself in the overarching logic of a formal language. Described J. Simmon, an interviewer (Perl). Gober figures to be an unique American artist who always dream up amusing and crazy stuff which other artists would never think of for their artwork. His images evolve from our everyday domestic lives and are transformed into the most realistic objects that distinguish between reality and dream. Simple but full of complexity, Gobers uses variety of body figure and regular craftsmanship in the artwork to portray his sophist ...

Cameron Auto Parts Case Study

Cameron Auto Parts was founded in 1965 after the signing of the U. S. and Canada Auto Pact. The main consumers were the Big Three automotive manufacturers and the company prospered in this new business environment. In 2000, problems started to occur in the company. First, a consequent drop of the sales of more than 50% happened. Second, the Japanese were great competitors and took advantage of the market opportunities in Canada. Alex took the control in 2001 in order to implement a process of modernization of the company. His â€Å"operation survival† consists of cutting the production costs by being more focused on the workforce (mainly lay-offs). Although is it difficult to manage a financial problem, Cameron faced serious â€Å"gaps† in this function. In 2003, the situation of Alex familial company is stabilized, even if there is a need to invest in another plant. As Cameron was not financially ready to make such a progress, the first option was, on one end, to wait and generate more profits leading to more financial stability through exports. On the other end, the company can choose to license the production of the flexible coupling with McTaggart. In this case, Cameron is the licensor and McTaggart, the licensee. The licensor shares patents, copyrights or trademarks and gets royalty fees in return. In 2004, Alex signed a five years licensing agreement with McTaggart. Following this agreement, McTaggart had to pay $100,000 fee in advance in order to help Cameron to recover and a royalty of 3% on the first $1 million of sales and 2% on the second. In case McTaggart reached a higher level of technology, it would also have the obligation to share at least one of them with Cameron. Alex realized that the plant cannot afford both systems because the costs of expanding the activity were too high and required too many of the companys resources. Moreover, the companys financial situation could not permit Cameron to implement a plant expansion. The potential in the European market is a great way to expand a business although the culture is different. It is difficult to adapt a North American business system to a European system. Exporting to the European market means that the average European customer will have to pay the international fees (about 20 per cent more than North Americans because of taxes). By granting McTaggart a license, Alex ensures a quick and minimize the risks while penetrating the U. K and European markets. Although there are many advantages when licensing, there are other consequences such as sharing not only profits, but also knowledge, and so Cameron’s intellectual property. The advantages of licensing McTaggart are numerous. The low investment costs, reduced financial risks, and economies of scope are very interesting when implementing an activity’s expansion. Cameron is concerned about its financial situation and licensing provides them a higher security. It is a quick market entry with a minimized risk of poor performance from the licensee, McTaggart, which is already and directly running operations in the U. K. On the contrary, the risk of image loss, the distance between both countries leading to communication losses, the lack of revenue, and the shared profits are some disadvantages to take into account when implementing a license strategy. Exporting also has its advantages and disadvantages. First, it provides independence, a higher control over the quality of final products, economies of scale, and a higher, non-shared profit. In this case, disadvantages are numerous. The lack of capacity of Cameron limits its ability to expand its business through exports. Plus, the different currency represents a risk as currencies’ value varies greatly on the short term. There are also high investment costs, a limited knowledge of the U. K. and European market, the costs of transportation and the trade barriers. Considering the companys financial situation, the costs and risks of penetrating a new market, we think that Alex should license McTaggart. It is clear that McTaggart is the perfect business partner. This company owns all the tools necessary to concretely produce and sell the flexible couplings. They are able to sell the product very fast and build a strong and sustainable relationship with Cameron. McTaggart is experienced in this business and Cameron can benefit from it to increase production capacities. They have a solid reputation and a great financial situation. The sales persons are very involved concerning the marketing and selling of the products. They have high manufacturing capacities and are willing to invest and develop the manufacturing capability to efficiently produce the flexible couplings. Additionally, their client base is essential. Licensing McTaggart is the best choice Cameron can do to improve its situation.

Funding Healthcare System, Sharing Risk and Portfolio Theory Thesis

Funding Healthcare System, Sharing Risk and Portfolio Theory - Thesis Example 10). These processes are vital for the policy makers as well as planners who often face challenges in designing health care funding systems towards meeting the specific social, economics, and political objectives. Many countries are ever under constant pressure in issues related to social policies since they often experience increased expenditure and scarce resources. Nonetheless, the policy makers must analyze the following three options: increasing health care funding and containing costs or both. The heath care funding and expenditure crisis have introduced radical changes in the organizational and funding mechanisms within the health care sectors (Grossman, 2011; pg. 12). Since the 1970s, the cost containment is the principal driving factor in the discussion of the health care policies especially in the industrialized nations. Despite the underlying challenges in funding health care systems, an articulated and a well balance budget will provide sufficient revenue towards managing health care systems. Notably, nations have restrained themselves from bulk revenue borrowing; otherwise, economies have shift to sound economic policies with focus on revenue policies. Can these changes produce sufficient and sustainable health care funding systems? Literature Review Government or associated organizations often pay the bulk of the funding of the health care services. The major part of these funds is generated from the tax collected from the citizens of such nations. For instance, in the United Kingdom has a single payer system that governs its healthcare systems (Grossman, 2011; pg. 72). The UK taxation and health care funding system take funds directly from the government to the health care systems. In other nations like Germany and France, the government collect tax from the citizens and only fund part of the health care systems towards paying individuals and employees among other involved costs. In other nations such as America, a certain portion of the health c are system is often market based. In the market based funding systems, the health care systems are paid for by the private entities including employers and individuals. Moreover, the market-based systems require governments to provide health care to the vulnerable persons (Elton and Gruber, 1999). For example, in the United States, it is the responsibility of the federal government to fund health care systems towards supporting the disable and the elderly through its federal supported Medicaid program. On the other hand, the federal and state supported Medicaid program aims at covering the health care services for the low-income earners. These two different health care funding approaches have their different distinct applicability within the health care sector. Individuals and private organizations generally deliver the market-based systems. Moreover, a part of the systems is usually subjected to a certain level of competition. Market base funding systems is often open to many suppl iers, providers, and payers as well as persons with insurance that aims at serving their specific medical needs (Glied and Smith, 2011). In such funding mechanisms, doctors may be given a benefit of practice as a guideline that direct them of when and what different treatment to be applied; however, they are ever free in making care decisions depending on