Three Gorges Dam Essay Example for Free

Three Gorges Dam Essay Do you consider the Three Gorges Dam to have been a good thing or a bad thing is it a success or a failure? In my opinion i believe the Three Gorges Dam is a success, simply because of the millions of lives it will save, by ? ood control. Having said that, the Three Gorges Dam does have many negative aspects. The Three Gorges Dam is a hydroelectric dam that spans the Yangtze river in Sandouping, Hubei province, China. It is the largest hydroelectric power station in the world. Construction began in December 1994 and the dam was fully operational by the late 2011, its a costly situation as it cost $26 billion. The dam was built for three main reasons; to produce clean electricity, to control ? ooding and to improve shipping along the Yangtze. Resettlement is one of the greatest negative effects of the dam, around 1. 4 million people have had to move because their villages and towns have been lost beneath the rising waters. However, one of the most worrying consequences of the project has been the sharp increase in landslides around the dam. These landslides are being caused by the huge weight of water behind the dm and ? uctuations in the water level. The reservoir has already collapsed in 91 places and a total of 36km have caved in. The Three Gorges Dam also has a devastating impact on the environment; of the 3,000 to 4,000 remaining Siberian Crane, a large number currently spend the winter in wetlands that have been destroyed by the dam. The Dam also contributed to the extinction of the Yangtze river dolphin. In addition, populations of the Yangtze sturgeon are guaranteed to be negatively affected by the dam. Many people will bene? t from the Three Gorges Dam. Massive economic growth will be allowed by the new navigable waterways along the Yangtze which will provide mass transit of raw materials to the area. This combined with the signi? antly reduced transportations costs provides an attractive location for industry seeking a cheap labour force. In addition, and most importantly ? ood control; it will have a ? ood capacity of 22. 15 billion m , which will be suf? cient to control the greatest ? ood experienced in the past 100 years. It will protect 1,500,000 hectares of farmland and the lives and property of 15 million people. Another incredible factor of this dam, is power generation; the amount of energy produced by the hydroelectric turbines is 84. 6 billion kilowatt hours which is equivalent of 18 nuclear power stations. Tourism also developed greatly, the China Three Gorges Dam Project Corporation built the Tanziling to enable visitors to see the panorama of Three Gorges from the highest point. More than 800,000 tourists visited the Three Gorges Dam area in 2007, with tourism revenue of $15. 6 million. On the one hand, the Three Gorges Dam is a very costly situation and has many negative aspects especially on the environment but on the other hand the Three Gorges Dam has the potential to save the lives and property of 15 million people, therefore i strongly believe that the dam is a success.

Compare Nuclear Fusion vs. Nuclear Fission :: comparison compare contrast essays

Compare Nuclear Fusion vs. Nuclear Fission    Nuclear energy must be a consideration for the future with the rapidly depleting supply of fossil fuels. This type of energy can be created through nuclear fission and nuclear fusion. Nuclear fission is the splitting of a heavy atom into two or more parts, releasing huge amounts of energy. The release of energy can be controlled and captured for generating electricity. Nuclear fusion involves bombarding hydrogen atoms together to form helium. In the long run, nuclear fusion has greater potential than fission.    Cost and availability of fuel is a considerable factor when dealing with nuclear power. Fission requires an element that can be easily split in a particle accelerator, such as uranium or plutonium. Fusion, on the other hand, uses isotopes of hydrogen atoms, specifically deuterium and tritium, that can be obtained from ordinary water. Uranium ores occur naturally in many parts of the world but must go through a costly purification process before used as fuel. The unprocessed ore contains approximately 99.3% uranium-238, a non-fissionable isotope of uranium, and only about 0.7% of U-235 required for fission. One hydrogen atom out of 6700 appears as deuterium, a naturally occurring isotope of hydrogen with an extra neutron, and can easily be separated from the rest. Uranium-235 is a non-renewable resource that will eventually run out, much like the fossil fuels. The abundance of deuterium and lithium provide a virtually unlimited supply of fuel for nuclear fusion. Therefore, nuclear fusion seems to be the better choice.    Second, the potential amount of energy produced by fusion can greatly outweigh the fission. Initially, there are some disadvantages to fusion. The time and money required to develop technology needed to initiate, contain, and sustain a profitable fusion reaction is costly, but the development is still in its early stages and will continue to advance through the next century. Fission readily creates a chain reaction which must be slowed through use of a moderator to avoid core meltdown, while fusion can only be accomplished at temperatures similar to the centre of stars, about 100 million degrees celsius. The components used in fusion exist in the form of plasma where atoms are divided into electrons and nuclei.

Starbucks Review

Review of Starbucks: A Step Above DeVry University Review of Starbucks: A Step Above The product I chose to review is the Starbucks Corporation; the Starbucks Corporation is an American global coffee company and Italian-style coffeehouse chain based in Seattle, Washington (â€Å"Starbucks,† 2012). Starbucks is the largest coffeehouse company in the world, with 19,972 stores in 60 countries, including 12,937 in the United States, 1,273 in Canada, 971 in Japan, 790 in the United Kingdom, 657 in China, 453 in South Korea, 356 in Mexico, 276 in Taiwan, 200 in the Philippines, 158 in Thailand and 1 in India (â€Å"How many Starbucks,† 2012) .The first Starbucks opened in Seattle, Washington, on March 30, 1971 by three partners: English teacher Jerry Baldwin, history teacher Zev Siegl, and writer Gordon Bowker. The three were inspired by coffee roasting entrepreneur Alfred Peet, whom they knew personally, to sell high-quality coffee beans and equipment (â€Å"Starbucks,† 2012). Let’s take a look at how and why Starbucks is a step above the competition and on a straight path of success.Starbucks not only sells amazing coffee blends and delectable pastries but as a corporation always looking for ways to stay ahead. I want this review to be more than just a review of coffee, this is a review of Starbucks as a corporation and how they use their position to make the communities they serve better places. Starbuck defines corporate responsibility and fairness. The most amazing observation about Starbucks is all the charities and forms of help they offer.For starters Starbucks and the Opportunity Finance Network have bracelets available for a $5 donation to support and create local jobs, these are available at all Starbucks. Starbucks also takes place in fair trade and ethical sourcing, which brings stability to other regions in which supply their corporation. Other forms of support are the millions of dollars in grant money Starbucks supplies to youth leadership programs within the communities they serve and Review of Starbucks: A Step Above thousands of hours of community service to improve those communities.Other strengths that propel Starbucks ahead of the competition are their community stores, leadership and education programs, housing initiatives and their Starbucks foundation which above all else is about helping their communities and the countries in which supply them (â€Å"Being a responsible,† 2012). Another form of strengths that really set Starbucks ahead of their competition is their beverage selection. Starbucks offers many different coffee verities from flavors to different strengths which allow them to appeal to many different consumers.You can also purchase most coffee drinks hot, cold or frozen which sets them ahead of other coffee houses. Besides coffee Starbucks also offers tea and other non-coffee beverages as well pastries and on the go sandwiches for the breakfast and lunch crowd. Most recent expansion of the Starbucks line was their addition to the K-Cup line and the release of their very own single cup brewer, this giving the consumer the ability to enjoy a hot fresh cup of Starbucks in the comfort of their own home.Also Starbucks offers a unique and comforting experience at each one of their stores, no two are the same and each store is modeled after the community it is located. Overall Starbucks is a true competitor and leader in the coffee market as well exemplifying corporate responsibility. This company not only serves refreshing beverages and delicious treats but uses their influence and power to improve the communities they serve and benefit the countries that supply them.Starbucks started as a small company in Seattle in 1971 and became a worldwide leader in the coffee industry as well a global corporation for good. This is what truly sets Starbucks a step above the competition. References Being a responsible company. (2012, November 13). Retrieved from http:// www. starbucks. com/ How many starbucks are there?. (2012, Sep 8). Retrieved from http://loxcel. com/sbux-faq. html Starbucks. (2012, Nov 13). Retrieved from http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Starbucks

Duccio Madonna and Child

This is the first time I do the museum paper, that’s made me have a lot of mixing feeling, wondering, excited, curious†¦ Then, I went to the internet to make some research in art works at Metropolitan Museum. Actually, I’m interested in painting for one reason is I love drawing. I made about eleven oil paintings in my whole life. My life inspired me to put my emotion into the painting, sometime it was sad, sometime it was exciting.The value of all the painting is not just only about the drawing skill, but also the deep meaning idea the artist want to put inside the painting and the personality the artist want to present in this painting. I tried to figure out what is the best painting to write about. One Europe painting was be amazed me is the â€Å"Madonna and Child†, by Duccio di Buoninsegna, acquired by the Metropolitan Museum of Art for $45 million, the most expensive purchase ever by the museum. I saw it online and I was so curious and wondering why thi s painting cost so expensive.Then I decided to go to the museum to expand my knowledge about this painting for real. In 1963, when the â€Å"Mona Lisa† came to the Met for a month, more than a million people stood in long lines; but when I went to look at the Duccio, I was the only person in the room. To be sure, 13 and 14 century Italian paintings lack the popular of works by Leonardo or van Gogh, but I think more people will be curious about something that cost so much more what the Met had spent on any previous acquisition. To see this painting for real was so amazing!It’s beautiful, the colors were so unique, shinning and I keep wondering how it can be maintained till nowadays. I came home and felt so hunger to research about this painting. That painting made me surprised every seconds. The â€Å"Madonna and child† by Duccio was purchased in 2004, made in tempura and gold on wood painting was made from 1295-1300. Remarkably, it has the original frame with a technique which would later become popular in Renaissance paintings. The little picture which it just measures eleven inches high by just over eight inches wide has not attracted people that would make it difficult to see.But for real, the painting has a powerful existence with the meaning deep inside. The Virgin holds the Christ child in her left arm and looks beyond him with sad tenderness, while Jesus touching His mother’s veil, and the Virgin’s distant expression. Why Mary was so sad? Perhaps, the sadness in knowing that her only beget son will someday die for the sins of mankind. The subject about biblical was painted by Duccio in a very unique manner for his time. The artist rejected the flat expression of earthly and heavenly beings that was the style of Byzantine art.We are at the beginning of what we think of as Western art; elements of the Byzantine style still linger—in the gold background, the Virgin’s boneless and elongated fingers, and the c hild’s unchildlike features – but the colors of their clothing are so miraculously maintained, and the sense of human intercommunication is so convincing, that the two figures seem to exist in a real space, and in real time. However, The rigid line of Mary's shoulder and her long nose out of Byzantine art. It testifies to a Jesus as a human child, capable of fancy, rebellion, and love.It also testifies to a prematurely independent Jesus, able to sit up straight and to offer a regal blessing. Gold testifies further to the icon's value, its function, and its subject matter. Imagine, in fact, the gold represent to a god. Right away, the work signals at its closeness to the viewer, but also its larger-than-life subject. In this way, it brings the divine into the lives of its beholders. Duccio di Buoninsegna was born in Siena, Tuscany in about 1256. He was one of the most influential artists of his time along with that other great master from Tuscany, Cimabue.He spent almos t his entire working life in Siena. Despite not having a great deal of information about his personal life, we do know that he fathered at least seven children and that he died in 1318 or 1319. Duccio achieves the same end in a different way: he creates not just an image, but also an object. Over time, images became more and more powerful. Artists used the illusion of real life to break through walls. The more real art became, the more it became larger than life. It took Modernism's rediscovery of the art object to return painting to earth. Duccio anticipated the puzzle of the imaginary.That aim helps account for his impulse toward the decorative. It drives the unexpected delicacy of his image. He has a softer, more personal range of color than one expects from a conservative icon, as in the robe on the infant Jesus. Duccio's combination of the familiar, the divine, and the decorative extends to the image, too. When is the painting not just only the painting but also the signature o f something else. The â€Å"Madonna and child† was the last known Duccio still in private hands inspired me so much. But I keep asking myself why just only the lack of people know about the real value of this painting?

Excerpt From Life on the Mississippi by Mark Twain

Excerpt From Life on the Mississippi by Mark Twain In this excerpt from his autobiographical book Life on the Mississippi, written in 1883, American novelist, journalist, lecturer and humorist Mark Twain considers what may be lost as well as gained through knowledge and experience. The passage below, Two Ways of Seeing a River, is Twains account of learning to be a pilot of a steamboat on the Mississippi River in his earlier years. It delves into the changes in attitude about the river he experienced after becoming a steamboat pilot. In essence, it reveals the reality versus the myth of the majestic, Mighty Mississippirevealing danger beneath the mesmerizing beauty that could only be discovered by taking to the river itself. Two Ways of Seeing a River by Mark Twain Now when I had mastered the language of this water and had come to know every trifling feature that bordered the great river as familiarly as I knew the letters of the alphabet, I had made a valuable acquisition. But I had lost something, too. I had lost something which could never be restored to me while I lived. All the grace, the beauty, the poetry had gone out of the majestic river! I still keep in mind a certain wonderful sunset which I witnessed when steamboating was new to me. A broad expanse of the river was turned to blood; in the middle distance the red hue brightened into gold, through which a solitary log came floating, black and conspicuous; in one place a long, slanting mark lay sparkling upon the water; in another the surface was broken by boiling, tumbling rings, that were as many-tinted as an opal; where the ruddy flush was faintest, was a smooth spot that was covered with graceful circles and radiating lines, ever so delicately traced; the shore on our left was dens ely wooded, and the sombre shadow that fell from this forest was broken in one place by a long, ruffled trail that shone like silver; and high above the forest wall a clean-stemmed dead tree waved a single leafy bough that glowed like a flame in the unobstructed splendor that was flowing from the sun. There were graceful curves, reflected images, woody heights, soft distances; and over the whole scene, far and near, the dissolving lights drifted steadily, enriching it, every passing moment, with new marvels of coloring. I stood like one bewitched. I drank it in, in a speechless rapture. The world was new to me, and I had never seen anything like this at home. But as I have said, a day came when I began to cease from noting the glories and the charms which the moon and the sun and the twilight wrought upon the rivers face; another day came when I ceased altogether to note them. Then, if that sunset scene had been repeated, I should have looked upon it without rapture, and should have commented upon it, inwardly, in this fashion: This sun means that we are going to have wind to-morrow; that floating log means that the river is rising, small thanks to it; that slanting mark on the water refers to a bluff reef which is going to kill somebodys steamboat one of these nights, if it keeps on stretching out like that; those tumbling boils show a dissolving bar and a changing channel there; the lines and circles in the slick water over yonder are a warning that that troublesome place is shoaling up dangerousl y; that silver streak in the shadow of the forest is the break from a new snag, and he has located himself in the very best place he could have found to fish for steamboats; that tall dead tree, with a single living branch, is not going to last long, and then how is a body ever going to get through this blind place at night without the friendly old landmark? No, the romance and the beauty were all gone from the river. All the value any feature of it had for me now was the amount of usefulness it could furnish toward compassing the safe piloting of a steamboat. Since those days, I have pitied doctors from my heart. What does the lovely flush in a beautys cheek mean to a doctor but a break that ripples above some deadly disease? Are not all her visible charms sown thick with what are to him the signs and symbols of hidden decay? Does he ever see her beauty at all, or doesnt he simply view her professionally, and comment upon her unwholesome condition all to himself? And doesnt he sometimes wonder whether he has gained most or lost most by learning his trade?

Performance Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Performance Management - Essay Example Performance Management, therefore, combines various management methods that support each other in striving for improved performance in organisations. The concept of performance management and the debate over the effectiveness of performance management programmes have been of interest among human resource professionals for many years (Lawler & McDermott, 2003). As organisations seek ways to improve their competitive edge while maintaining or cutting budgets they are looking towards their human resources to provide more value for money. Performance management is seen as a key element for success in today's increasingly competitive environment (Anonymous, 2001). Indeed, a review of its theoretical foundations indicates that performance management should achieve the stated and, while there is empirical evidence to that effect, the fact remains that its implementation is problematic. Performance Management, as a management method, has three major components, each of which is based on management theories. The first component is strategic planning, involving short and long term goals and objectives, as well as defining the mission and future vision of an organisation and each of its divisions. The second component has to do with constant measurement of variables from the various parts of an organisation. The third component is feedback. The use of teamwork is emphasized in all three major components of Performance Management. The Goal Setting Theory, Total Quality Management (TQM), Reinforcement Theory, and Job Characteristic Theory are used as theoretical bases for Performance Management. The main emphasis in Performance Management is on direction, measures and feedback, to redirect and/or celebrate. Goal setting provides an important basis for management methods, such as strategic planning. Workers must know exactly what results are expected from them and receiv e feedback on actual results which are based on measurements. Strategic planning involving goal setting, both long term and short term, a plan of how to reach the goals, measurement, and feedback are the main factors in Performance Management. Proceeding from the above stated, it appears that the management theories in which Performance Management is grounded, predefine it as a successful approach to managing an organisation's workforce towards greater productivity. While numerous scholars have tended towards this opinion, the fact remains that Performance Management is a topic of controversy. If one is to objectively evaluate Performance Management, it is necessary to review the criticisms which surround it. 3 The Dilemmas of Performance Management In spite of frequently cited problems with traditional, standard performance measurement systems, most companies continue to rely upon them so this practice continues to be vital to organisations. Research at the Center for Effective Organisations suggests that performance appraisal represents the key element in the overall human resource management of an organisation (Mohrman, 1990). The judgments of

Theatre comparison on 2 videos Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Theatre comparison on 2 videos - Essay Example In Arthur Miller’s Death of A Salesman, Willy, the main character, visits his boss, Howard, a man who happens to be the son of his prior boss. The scene radiates realism through the actors’ reaction of one another. It begins with Howard when he shows off his wire recorder: â€Å"Didn’t you ever see one of these? Wire recorder† and Willy asks, â€Å"Oh. Can we talk a minute?† but Howard ignores him: â€Å"Records things. Just got delivery yesterday. Been driving me crazy, the most terrific machine I ever saw in my life. I was up all night with it† (Miller.2.76). Howard is speaking animatedly. The pace of his delivery is quick and clipped as he is bursting with excitement, eager to explain every detail to Willy despite Willy’s need to talk to him about a business matter. In response, Willy’s tone is soft and submissive. When he supports the other actor, he is either ignored or shushed sternly like a child (Miller.2.77-78). The pac e and tone of each actor stems from a direct reaction to one another, thus implementing naturalism in the scene. Similarly in Blood Knot by Athol Fugard, Zachariah and Morris, half-brothers living together in South Africa, are brought to life through the actors’ interchange of dialogue through delivery. When they face each other discussing an imaginary woman in grey, their pace is prompt and heated. It sets up the notion that the characters are different from one another when Morris takes the lead on describing the imaginary scene in the park and Zachariah reacts without hesitation (Fugard.23:47-24:45). Zachariah supports Morris’s exhilarant play through a deep, monotone voice. This exchange on a verbal level creates realism because the scene is natural. Natural as defined by occurring in conformity with the ordinary course of nature: not marvelous or supernatural. Side-by-side, the plays incorporate the technique of tone and rhythm of delivery of text on different hei ghts. Howard’s swift pace of delivery exudes selfishness and pride. Later, it even displays boredom or disinterest when he addresses Willy: â€Å"But where am I going to put you, kid?...No, but it’s a business, kid, and everybody’s gotta pull his own weight† (Miller.2.80). However, Morris’s delivered exuberance shows impatient yearning, frustration and anger. He leans forward on the stage, directing his umbrella like an extension of his body then proceeds to stone the imaginary woman with pent up animation (Fugard.24:03-24:47). Immediately following, Morris beats his brother, making it a bizarre, but realistic twist because the previous dialogue set up the nature of the action through tone. There is similarity between the plays that transpire from delivery of speech. Willy and Zachariah are treated inferior by their counterparts, and they respond through dialect. Zachariah is â€Å"a black man who has endured prejudice and hate (â€Å"Blood Knot, † par. 3), but his brother fails to understand Zach’s struggle. During their role-playing, Zachariah commits to a slow pace that conveys eeriness. His tone is deliberately calm to show indifference, mirroring the state in which Morris treats him. There is no sympathy in the actor’s tone. Willy counteracts his opposer through rhythm and delivery as well. He pleads his case, but the desperation holds more weight during his lengthy speech (Miller.54:52-56:43) because the pace is crawling. The actor pauses throughout, which drives the point that Willy is a depressed, forlorn man at the end of his