The First Crusade Essay -- essays research papers

The First Crusade As the year 1000A.D. was approaching the strength of Christianity in Western Europe was growing along with its population. The newly reformed and organized Church began to gain great power. A new Europe was being born with the Catholic Church as a force in every area of life. In Christian beliefs, the savior, Jesus Christ was to return to earth and bring judgment on its people. Many clergy members along with lay people believed this would take place in the year 1000A.D. . Knowing this, the people of Europe awaited the return of Christ and feared the Wrath of God. Religious people wanted to make up for their sins and avoid the horrors of eternal damnation. Clergy members were often consulted to figure out what would be a suitable penance. " The Church itself still frequently imposed pilgrimages as a penance" (Campbell p.14). A pilgrimage to the Holy Land was not an easy task to say the least. The road to Jerusalem was jagged. On the way to Jerusalem, pilgrims were often murdered by thieves. They were defenseless and often did not return. Some pilgrims did return from the Holy Land. They came back with tales that planted the seeds for a Crusade. "The pilgrims that returned from the Holy City of Jerusalem recounted tales, often grossly exaggerated, of the horrible pollution of the sacred places at the hands of the Turks" (Campbell p23). Other stories of the destruction of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, the burial place of Jesus, by the Turks surfaced in the early eleventh century. The news of the destruction of the Sepulcher was mourned in every Christian country. The nations looked to Rome for a solution to this most serious of Problems. The Byzantine emperor asked for the aid of the Pope to help him with his Turk problem. To the Pope, it would be a strategic move to aid the Byzantine emperor. The Pope realized that this offered the opportunity to re-establish the universal Church and establish the supremacy of Rome. In 1095, at the Council of Clermont in southern France, "Urban II challenged Christians to take up their weapons against the infidels and participate in a holy war and recapture the Holy Land" (Spielvogel,p344). Pope Urban II addressed the French telling them of the horrors im... ...m the clutches of non-Christian rulers. They successfully carried out the wishes of the Pope and , more importantly, what they believed to be the " Will of God ." The crusading knights gained new powers through the conquest along with salvation. Economically, the First Crusade was a success for Western Europe. New ports on the Mediterranean were in the hands of Western lords, opening new gates for trade. On the other hand, the First Crusade could be seen to be a failure in many ways. Relations with the Byzantine Empire grew far more distant. The Pope's dream of unifying the eastern and western churches could not be achieved. The gruesome display of barbarism on behalf of the Crusaders could also be seen as a failure in morals. It seemed that the Crusaders, for the most part, lost their way. Their goals switched from religious to materialistic. The First Crusade was the first installment in a series that lose their " holiness" and become less successful. Militarily, the First Crusade was an utter success. It started a hatred for the West by the Near and Middle Eastern peoples that still is strong today.

Piagets Theory of Cognitive Development

Piaget’s background Jean Piaget (1896-1980) was actually not a psychologist at first; he dedicated his time to mollusc research. In fact, by the time he was 21 he’d already published twenty scientific papers on them! He soon moved to Paris, and got a job interviewing mental patients. Before long, he was working for Alfred Binet, and refining Burt’s reasoning test. During his time working at Binet’s lab, he studied the way that children reasoned. After two years of working with children, Piaget finally realised what he wanted to investigate – children’s development!He noticed that children of a younger aged answered questions qualitatively different than those of an older age. This suggested to him that younger children were not less knowledgeable, but gave different answers because they thought differently. He spent over 10 years perfecting his theory, and it is widely acknowledged as one of the most valuable developmental theories – e specially of it’s time. It’s no lie that there are many new, possibly more valid theories now, but Piaget’s theory has had a lot of influence on schools, teaching and education all over the world.So, let’s begin exploring Piaget’s theory, the key concepts and the stages. Theories of cognitive development: Jean Piaget. September 5, 2010 at 4:00 pm 49 comments Our first years of life are an incredible, but dangerous journey. Thousands of sperm died trying to make us, and only one made it. From our journey as an embryo to a foetus – the size of a single cell to a fully sized baby – we develop more than we will our entire lives. From birth until we’re a few years old, our development is still incredibly rapid; we have so much to learn in such little time!It is advantageous to learn quickly, that way we’re more likely to survive in the cruel, unforgiving world. Piaget’s background Jean Piaget (1896-1980) was actually n ot a psychologist at first; he dedicated his time to mollusc research. In fact, by the time he was 21 he’d already published twenty scientific papers on them! He soon moved to Paris, and got a job interviewing mental patients. Before long, he was working for Alfred Binet, and refining Burt’s reasoning test. During his time working at Binet’s lab, he studied the way that children reasoned.After two years of working with children, Piaget finally realised what he wanted to investigate – children’s development! He noticed that children of a younger aged answered questions qualitatively different than those of an older age. This suggested to him that younger children were not less knowledgeable, but gave different answers because they thought differently. He spent over 10 years perfecting his theory, and it is widely acknowledged as one of the most valuable developmental theories – especially of it’s time.It’s no lie that there are many new, possibly more valid theories now, but Piaget’s theory has had a lot of influence on schools, teaching and education all over the world. So, let’s begin exploring Piaget’s theory, the key concepts and the stages. Jean Piaget’s theory of cognitive development. Background: Piaget’s theory is based on stages, whereby each stage represents a qualitatively different type of thinking. Children in stage one cannot think the same as children in stage 2, 3 or 4 etc. Transitions from one stage to another are generally very fast, and the stages always follow an invariant sequence.Another important characteristic of his stage theory is that they are universal; the stages will work for everyone in the world regardless of their differences (except their age, of course, which is what the stages are based on! ) Piaget acknowledged that there is an interaction between a child and the environment, and this is a focal point for his theory. He believed a chil d cannot learn unless they are constantly interacting with their environment, making mistakes and then learning from them. He defined children as â€Å"lone scientists†; he did not identify any need for teachers or adults in cognitive development.Children have all the cognitive mechanisms to learn on their own, and the interaction with their environment allows them to do so. To put this in perspective, another theory by Lev Vygotsky suggested that the interaction is not important at all; the child will learn when encouraged to with an adult’s assistance. The Key Concepts of Piaget’s theory: Before explaining the main part of Piaget’s theory (the four stages), it’s very important to look at some of the underlying principles behind it. †¢Schema (pl.Schemata, although some say â€Å"Schemas† for the plural) Possibly one of the most important concepts put forward by Piaget, Schemata help individuals understand the world they inhabit. They a re cognitive structures that represent a certain aspect of the world, and can be seen as categories which have certain pre-conceived ideas in them. For example, my schema for Christmas includes: Christmas trees, presents, giving, money, green, red, gold, winter, Santa Claus etc. Someone else may have an entirely different schema, such as Jesus, birth, Church, holiday, Christianity etc.Of course, there are schemata for all kinds of things – yourself (self schemata), other people (people schemata), events/situations (event schemata) and roles/occupations (role schemata). With regards to Piaget’s theory, a child might have a pre-conceived schema for a dog. If the household has a small West Highland White Terrier as a dog, the schema might be â€Å"small, furry, four legs, white†. When the child interacts with a new dog – perhaps a Labrador, it will change to incorporate the new information, such as â€Å"big, golden, smooth etc. † This is known as: â € ¢AssimilationSimply the process of incorporating new information into a pre-existing schema. So with the â€Å"dog† example, the child assimilated the Labrador’s information into the old dog schema. Assimilation is essentially fitting new information into schemata we already have in place. Unfortunately, this can lead to stereotyping. For example, if an old lady sees a teenager mug another person, she might assimilate â€Å"violence† or â€Å"crime† into her teenage schema. Next time she sees a teenager, her schema will be applied to them – and although they may be a kind person, she will probably show prejudice.Assimilation is normally a simple process, as new information already fits the pre-exisiting categories. †¢Accommodation When coming across a new object for the first time, a child will attempt to apply an old schema to the object. For consistency, let’s use the dog example again. The child may have â€Å"four legs, furryâ €  in their dog schema. When coming across another similar animal, such as a cat, they might say â€Å"Look, a dog! † – that’s assimilation. However, when told that it’s actually a cat – not a dog – they will accommodate the new information into another schema.They will now form a â€Å"cat† schema; â€Å"not all four legged furry animals are dogs – some are cats too! †. They have accommodated the new information. The process just mentioned – of assimilation then accommodation is known as – †¢Adaptation Assimilation and accommodation are the two parts of adaptation – which is simply what it says – adapting our schemata to make an accurate (enough) model of the world we live in. It is a form of learning, but an entirely different form to the kind you’d see in behaviourist psychology for example (such as operant/classical conditioning). †¢EquilibriumPiaget suggested that huma ns naturally strive to achieve a cognitive balance; there must be a balance between applying prior knowledge (assimilation) and changing schemata to account for new information (accommodation). Piaget suggested that when a child has a schema which doesn’t fit reality, there is tension in the mind. By balancing the use of assimilation and accommodation, this tension is reduced and we can proceed to higher levels of thought and learning (equilibration). The following stages form the bulk of Piaget’s theory: STAGE ONE: The Sensorimotor stage Occurs from birth to approx. years old. During this stage, information is received through all the senses. The child tries to make sense of the world during this stage, and as the name suggests, only senses and motor abilities are used to do so. The child utilizes innate behaviours to enhance this learning process, such as sucking, looking, grasping, crying and listening. To make this even more complex, there are 6 sub-stages of this one stage. To begin, the child uses only reflexes and innate behaviour. Towards the end of this stage, the child uses a range of complex sensorimotor skills. The sub-stages are as follows: 1.Reflexes (0-1 month): The child uses only innate reflexes. For example, if a nipple or dummy is put into a baby’s mouth, they will reflexively suck on it. If an object is placed in their palm, the hand will automatically grab it. These reflexes have the sole function of keeping the child alive. 2. Primary Circular Actions (1-4 months): The child now has a fixation with it’s own body with regards to behaviour(what Piaget refers to as primary behaviour); they will perform actions repeatedly on themselves (like sucking their own hand). They also begin to refine reflexes here to form more complex versions of them. 3.Secondary Circular Reactions (4-8 months): At around 4 months, the child begins to take an interest in their environment (their behaviour is secondary). They notice that th ey can actually influence events in their world, for example they can drop a teddy which bashes a ball on the floor. Although this occurs, the infant will not make conscious connections between what they do and the consequences, they merely observe that their actions have interesting effects. 4. Co-ordination of Secondary Circular Reactions (8-12 months): At this point, the child begins to engage in goal-directed behaviour; they begin to develop cause-effect relationships.So rather than crawl over to a teddy in a cart to pick it up, they might instead pull the cart over with the teddy in to acquire it. The child effectively knows that their behaviour will have a certain consequence. At this stage, object permanence is acquired – but I will explain this after these sub-stages. 5. Tertiary Circular Reactions (12-18 months): At this stage, children like to use creativity and flexibility with their previous behaviours, and the result of their experimentation often leads to differ ent outcomes.So rather than grabbing a box, they might instead try to tilt or manipulate it. 6. Symbolic/Mental Representation (18-24 months): At this stage, the child develops symbolic thought and the ability to mentally represent objects in their head. Normally, the child would need to resort to trial-and-error to achieve a desired effect. Now, however, the child can ‘plan’ to some extent and mentally construct the consequences of an action in their head. Of course, predictions are not always accurate, but it is a step up from trial-and-error.There are two key examples of mental representation in children: object permanence and deferred imitation. Object permanence is when objects exist even when out of sight. In the first three sub-stages, children will not attempt to search for an object which is hidden from their view; in their mind, the object simply ceases to exist as they cannot see it. At sub-stage four, however, they show this characteristic of object permanen ce. If an object is hidden from them, they will attempt to find it, but will repeatedly look in the same place – even if the object is moved (the so called â€Å"A-not-B error†).However, by sub-stage 6, the child is able to mentally represent the object in their mind, leading to exploration for an object even if it is moved. They will continue to look for an object until they find it, as they understand objects exist regardless of where they are. Deferred imitation is simply the imitation of behaviour a child has seen before. As a child can mentally represent behaviour they have seen, they are able to enact it through playing and in other situations. So a child might ‘talk’ down a toy telephone or ‘steer’ a toy car around the room.STAGE TWO: The Pre-operational Stage Occurs from 2-7 years of age. The mental representation of the sensorimotor stage provides a smooth transition to semiotic functioning in the pre-operational stage. This essential ly means that a child can use one object to represent another (symbolically). For example, a child swinging their arms in a circular motion might represent the wheels on a train, or sticking their arms out and running might symbolise the movement of an aeroplane. This shows the relationships children can form between language, actions and objects at this stage.A major characteristic of this stage is egocentrism: perception of the world in relation to oneself only. Children struggle to perceive situations from another point of view or perspective, as shown by Piaget and Inhelder’s Three Mountains Task (1956). In this study, children were asked what can be perceived from certain positions on a 3D model. See the diagram below for a clearer idea. Piaget and Inhelder: Three Mountains Task (1956)†] [1 The child would have been asked, â€Å"What view does Piaget have? †. In the actual study though, they were shown around 8 cards of possible viewpoints rather than the th ree above.As you can imagine, the children struggled to decentralise and pick the correct picture. Another feature of this stage is conservation. Children struggle to understand the difference in quantity and measurements in different situations. For example, suppose a child is shown a short, fat beaker full of water. When that water is transferred entirely to a tall, thin beaker – we would know the level of water is identical – only the beaker has changed. However, a child in this stage will conclude there is more water in the tall beaker, just because the level of water looks higher.Children in this stage also lack the required cognition to apply reversibility to situations; they cannot imagine objects or numbers reversed to their previous form. This will be explored in the next stage (where reversibility IS present). When a child has the ability to decenter, they are said to progress to the next stage STAGE THREE: The Concrete Operational Stage Occurs from 7-11 year s of age. This stage sees another shift in children’s cognitive thinking. It is aptly named â€Å"concrete† because children struggle to apply concepts to anything which cannot physically be manipulated or seen.Nevertheless, the child continues to improve their conservation skills, and by the age of 11 they can conserve numbers, weight and volume (acquired in that order). The child can also understand principles of †class inclusion†; perspective tasks become much easier, and children begin to understand that other people actually have different views to themselves. Simple maths, such as addition/subtraction become much easier. However, as this stage is concrete, Piaget suggests children will struggle to apply any prior knowledge to abstract situations.For example, when asked seriation tasks such as â€Å"John is taller than Pete. John is shorter than Simon. Who is tallest? † , concrete children often fail to provide a correct answer as the situation is too abstract. However, when dolls are used to represent Pete, Simon and John, the children are able to answer – as the situation is bought back to a concrete one with physical representations. STAGE FOUR: The Formal Operational Stage. Occurs from age 11 onwards. Children at this stage acquire the ability to think hypothetically and â€Å"outside the box†.Logical conclusions can be inferred from verbal information, and â€Å"concrete†, physical objects are no longer necessary. When presented with a problem, children at this stage can consider solutions to the problem in a logical manner. The child becomes increasingly â€Å"adult-like† with regards to their cognitive abilities. Scientific reasoning is apparent in this stage, and is indicated by Piaget and Inhelder’s Pendulum Task (1958). When asked to determine the effect different weights and rope length have on the speed of a swinging pendulum, formal operational children came to consistent and logical conclusions.

Audit of Automobile industry Essay

AUTOMOBILE INDUSTRY IN UK United Kingdom has been a colossal manufacturer of automobiles in last 10 years. Producing more that 8 million vehicles and engines and exporting more than 80% of these, UK automobile industry stands as a driving force of its economy. The automobile industry generates a yearly turnover of around 55 Billion Pounds and largest value from exports. Nevertheless, the country that has automobile players like, Alexander Davis, Aston Martin, Bentley, BMW, Ford, Honda, Jaguar, etc., is still said to be under a vast influence of dwindling supply chain and its dependence on foreign market. Let us scrutinize the situation of UK automobile industry by doing an internal and external environmental audit. INTERNAL AUDIT Internal environmental audit is performed to understand the position of industry with respect to its own environment. SWOT is one of the tools used to perform internal audit which is employed for studying the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of the subject. STRENGTHS The strengths of UK’s automobile industry: 1. Largest Revenue generating sector UK’s auto industry yearly contributes around 12 Billion Pounds to the economy of UK by generating revenue of more than 55 Billion Pounds, annually. 2. Diversity in products Products manufactured by UK automobile industry range from various premium and sports cars to commercial vehicles and engines. Around 80% of this is exported, yearly. 3. Chief employment generator The automobile industry in UK is a major employment generating sector, offering wide range of employment opportunities in manufacturing and R&D. WEAKNESSES 1. Disparity between manufacturers UK’s automobile industry is known for having an austere disparity between its manufacturers, which stands out to be a major weakness of this industry. 2. Depleted Supply Chain Supply chain of UK automobile industry is going through an appalling phase. A potent supply chain and its capacity is an important factor in determining market expansion and foreign investment. Extensive improvement, in the supply chain of UK automobile industry, is essential. 3. Dependence on foreign markets As the UK car industry exports around 80% of its produce to foreign markets, it is under the risk of getting directly dependent on economic crisis of other markets. UK motor industry should focus on reaching as many markets as possible to ease risk. OPPORTUNITIES 1. Providing eco-friendly vehicles UK’s automotive industry has been constantly active in innovating new products to provide a safe and eco-friendly environment, hence opening up string of opportunities. 2. Investments by Global OEMs In the year 2013 many global equipment manufacturers have announced investments in United Kingdom. Through these strategic alliance UK auto industry is believed to benefit significantly. THREATS 1. Soaring cost of Raw Material The cost of raw material has been ever rising; hence, the manufacturers pay more for procuring raw material every year. This eventually raises the price of automobiles. 2. Increasing competition With new companies coming in UK along with foreign direct investment the competition is bound to soar, ultimately increasing threat for existing companies. Bottom-line is that in spite of challenges faced by automobile industry in last decade, it is resurging from its downfall and looking forward to producing more number of vehicles this year. EXTERNAL ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS The automobile industry in UK has been tactically working towards creating new opportunities and enhancing technology. It has extensively slogged to make UK more attractive for foreign investors. Through automotive industry’s external analysis, we shall study influence of external factors on the industry. The two major models discussed here are PESTLE Analysis and Porter’s Five Forces’ Model. PESTEL ANALYSIS Political To ensure there is no monopoly created in the industry, certain policies restricting firms from forming cartels and fixing price have been implemented. They also control the size of automobile companies. Economic With the advent of increasing inflation across the world, it is predicted that the purchase of automobiles shall increase in coming years. Also, globalisation has opened doors for foreign investors in UK. Social Recent researches show that young population in UK is declining and older population is rising. Hence, it is advisable that companies focus on creating more products catering to smaller families and older population. Technology Increased focus on providing eco-friendly vehicles has encouraged industry to continually invest in research and development. With popularity of new designing softwares, Global Positioning Systems for navigation, etc, technology has advanced two folds. Environmental As people are getting more aware and concerned about a healthy environment, it is imperative to create products that are eco-friendly. Hence, it has created a pressure on the industry to focus on environmental issues as well. Legal A few legal policies have been imposed by UK government like compulsory fitment of Electronic Stability Control and Tyre Pressure Monitoring Systems in all the cars produced. PORTER’S FIVE FORCES’ MODEL 1. Threat from new entrants Automobile industry being capital extensive demands a lot of money to venture and uphold. In order to sustain, present automobile companies have augmented their production, enforcing new entrants to enter only on large scale. 2. Bargaining Power of Suppliers Due to increase in globalisation the industry has suppliers not only from UK but also from across the world. Hence, the bargaining power of suppliers is limited. As some manufacturers have joined hands with OEMs from China and India others source materials from UK itself. 3. Bargaining Power of Buyers This model brings forth the fact that purchasers have a power to regulate the market and increase competition. As consumers have access to extensive information and choice of numerous brands across the globe they definitely stand to have a better bargaining power. 4. Competition from Substitutes Substitute products are those that can be consumed in place of any product. For instance, people of UK can as well use public transport instead of private cars. They may also consider the option of using rented cars. 5. Existing Competition As UK is home to around 50 car manufacturers selling 200 models, the internal competition among the companies is inevitable. Apart from the local car manufacturers like GM, Ford, etc, the foreign manufacturers are also giving a lot of competition. The external influences play a major role in casting future of automobile industry in UK. Analysing the internal as well as the external environment of UK’s car industry helps identifying how it has been performing and what is the scope for improvement. United Kingdom offers an array of car models in a highly competitive market. Nonetheless, it is still facing a lot of issues in recovering from the past downfall. Market experts predict that the industry shall still be able to cater to the new more demanding market.

A Life Almost Lost

As I approached the tower for my first day as an Ocean Rescue lifeguard I thought I knew it all. Fresh out of recruit training and graduating in the top of my recruit class, I had the vision that I was invincible as a lifeguard. I climbed the freshly painted wooden tower, unpacked my gear, and settled into the somewhat uncomfortable plywood seat that I would be sitting on for the next eight hours. At first the water was relatively empty, with the occasional family or two entering to wade around. But by noon, the beach had started to become progressively busier, with well over one hundred bathers within the quarter mile of beach I was responsible for. It was at this exact moment that the confidence I had held earlier that same morning fell right through the cracks, and all the training I had persevered through in the previous weeks became completely useless. It started out with a single bather to my north that appeared to be out past the point where they could touch, but were still comfortable and not in any need of my help. I figured I would just keep a close eye on them through my binoculars. About fifteen minutes later two more bathers swam out past the point of touching, one straight out in front of me and one to my south. By this point I was apprehensive and unsure of what to do. I looked at the bather to my north through my binoculars, and got what is known as tunnel vision. I became so fixated on watching this one individual and making sure that he was all right that I completely disregarded the other bathers. Seconds later, the dispatcher came on the radio frantically telling me to go on a rescue for the bather to my south. Caught up in the situation, I lost my sense of location, could not find where the bather was, and ended up missing the rescue. Fortunately the person made it back to shore, but this was a mistake that could h ave cost a life. Looking back on my first day as a lifeguard, the mistake I made by missing a rescue is one of the greatest regrets of my life. But at the same time, being able to overcome this obstacle and return to the tower the next day has given me a great sense of confidence. I have learned that with hard work and the right attitude, it is possible to work through and overcome the most difficult of situations in life. Now as a senior in high school, earning a low grade on a quiz or losing one varsity tennis match does not bring me down, because I know that these things are small bumps in an unimaginably long and exciting road.

Australian Trade in India and China Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Australian Trade in India and China - Essay Example The rapidly expanding Chinese economy has steadily resulted in solid infrastructural development. This in turn has allowed for the increased prosperity of many within mainland China. With rising personal disposable incomes, comes increased consumption demand and thus growing domestic expenditure. Chinese imports are gradually increasing, thus presenting a myriad of opportunities for suppliers of raw materials and products in various stages of production. Political relations between China and Australia have significantly improved in recent years. An example of the bilateral co-operation includes the Sino-Australian parliamentary exchange conference held in May 2007. The Chinese economy - a renowned net exporter - boasted a current account surplus of $359 billion in 2007 and a net figure of Foreign Direct Investment of $83 billion. All in all, the Chinese foreign reserves stand at $1.5 trillion for the year ending 2007. (Sino-Australian parliamentary exchange conference. Embassy of the People's Republic of China in Australia) This bodes exceptionally well for investment opportunity. With such rapid development and a large and economically powerful buying market, the Chinese sector presents immense profitable opportunity potential to Australian investors. The Chinese housing market; share markets and general government reluctance to allow inflationary pressures to impact on the economy have resulted in an investor safe-haven in the Chinese domestic market. Few economies can lay claim to such robust growth rates as the Chinese economy. With rising prices, spurned by the inflationary pressures of petroleum supplies; food prices and general dollar w eakness, the Chinese government is intent on protecting the domestic economy from global pressures. Investments in Chinese infrastructure allow for significant benefits to International Donor Financiers. The following statistical data was compiled by the World Bank regarding China 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 A. Real Expenditure Growth 1. GDP at market prices 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.7 9.6 2. Private consumption 6.6 7.0 7.0 9.0 8.5 3. Government consumption 6.4 7.2 9.0 8.8 8.0 4. Fixed investment 17.0 11.6 8.8 8.9 8.2 5. Exports, GNFS 26.8 28.4 24.3 23.6 19.1 6. Imports, GNFS 24.8 22.5 12.0 19.5 18.8 B. Contribution to GDP Growth 1. Private consumption 2.9 3.0 2.9 3.6 3.4 2. Government consumption 1.0 1.1 1.4 1.3 1.2 3. Fixed investment 6.1 4.4 3.4 3.4 3.1 4. Net exports 1.3 2.8 5.3 3.8 2.5 C. Price Deflators 1. GDP at market prices 2.6 6.9 2.1 3.1 5.6 2. Private consumption 1.4 4.9 2.9 4.5 6.8 3. Exports, GNFS 4.7 5.3 1.7 3.7 0.9 4. Imports, GNFS 9.7 10.3 4.9 7.2 0.4 D. Share of GDP 1. Private consumption 41.8 39.9 39.1 39.0 39.0 2. Government consumption 15.2 14.5 14.6 14.7 14.6 3. Fixed investment 39.4 40.7 41.3 41.6 41.4 4. Change in stocks 1.8 2.5 0.0 -1.1 -1.2 5. Total investment 41.2 43.3 41.2 40.5 40.1 6. Exports, GNFS 29.6 34.0 38.1 42.8 44.4 7. Imports, GNFS 27.4 31.4 32.8 36.8 38.0 E. Memo 1. Nominal GDP (USD billions) 1640.4 1930.9 2171.7 2477.4 2867.6 2. Population (millions) 1300.0 1308.0 1315.8 1324.1 1332.4 3. GDP per capita, current USD 1261.8 1476.2 1650.4 1871.0 2152.2 4. Real per capita GDP growth 9.3 9.4 9.5 10.0 8.9 5. USD Fx rate 8.3 8.3 8.2 8.0 7.6 6. Current account balance (% GDP) 2.8 3.6 7.4 9.3 9.2 7. General government bal. (% GDP) -2.5 -1.5 -1.7 -0.5 -0.8 India presents with multiple challenges notably generally

Web technology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Web technology - Essay Example Now search engines are working in this regards and comes with the solution of personalized search so as give its users search results based on the user demographic information and interests and taste. In addition, these days search history can be also maintained by search engines, which users can see on later days. Aim: The study of personalized web searching will provide an opportunity to learn how different personalized search engines works and make use of user specific information for assisting web-searching process. Implement a preliminary web searching system (prototype) based on the design and refine the searching mechanism and the system designed to further improve its effectiveness through comparison with other methods. In this section, initially a definition and benefits from the personalized search will be presented than after history and preliminary analysis of some personalized search engines (Google, Yahoo and MSN) will be presented. After that, various tools and technologies that are going to be used for this project will covered in methodology section. Personalized search is the fine-tuning of search results and advertising based on an individual’s preferences, demographic information and other factors. Presumably, the better a search engine understands a user’s interests and preferences, the better able it is to target search results, advertising, sponsored links, etc. [Johnson 2005] After definition now question arises, why these days so many big giants (companies) are interested in providing personalized search. The next few paragraphs will give answer to this question. The first benefit is financial. According to Johnson (2005), personalized search drives financial benefits both in short term and long term. In the short term, advertisers increase revenue by targeting ads and promotions at the users who

The Greater Freedom Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

The Greater Freedom - Essay Example To begin with, the influence of the political class on judicial proceedings will be limited or completely prohibited. This is because politicians often threaten fair administration of justice, hence hindering citizen from airing grievances. The judiciary is thus not autonomous, and prevalence of justice is sabotaged. Secondly, the government will be held accountable through democratic platforms. This would be essential in promoting media freedom in covering proceedings of government business in parliament, and the experts airing views on governance. Lack of questioning or critique of the government breeds corruption and other dubious deals whose burden and effects are borne by the citizens. Thirdly, it will be beneficial to carry over the freedom of rights article from the First Amendment to the new nation, which includes speech, religion, petition, peaceful assembly, and free press. This is because the amendment was made at a time when the United States was experiencing a lot of turbulence due to the then government’s discrimination against those who defied its rulings no matter how weird they were. It was during this period that the people were allowed to be affiliated with their religious groups of choice, and speak freely unless in the case of slander or malice. However, this freedom of expression will be under certain limitations that will include obscenity, advertisement of harmful substances, offensive symbolic expressions, and inappropriate music.America is a technological hub.