A great earthquake Essay

The magnitude 8. 8 earthquake that occurred a month ago in Chile, as well as the impending tsunami along the Pacific Rim is the product of a fortuitous event. These are events which cannot be foreseen or which though foreseen are inevitable. The quake struck at 3:34 a. m. in central Chile. The capital Santiago is about 200 miles from the epicenter and Concepcion, Chile’s second-largest metropolitan area, is roughly 70 miles from the quake’s center. A magnitude of 8. 0 or greater is classified as a great earthquake which results to communities being destroyed. The 8. 8 magnitude earthquake in Chile has killed lesser people compared to the 7. 0 magnitude that struck Haiti on January 12 that killed more than 200,000 people. It was 32 times the energy higher and 64 times greater than what took place in Haiti. The difference in the death toll lies in the buildings’ structures and their construction. Unless a building is designed and engineered specifically to withstand an 8. 0 or greater earthquake it’s going to sustain considerable damage. Even buildings that are well built sustain significant damage. Buildings that are poorly built are completely destroyed. Chile, being a more industrialized nation came up with more stringent building codes. By designing a more flexible structure, we can lessen the effect of the disaster. It makes the buildings slide or sway but not crumble to the ground. Engineers who work on earthquake resistant buildings said that current technologies prevent well-designed buildings from cracking when the ground shakes beneath them Natural disasters such as floods, tsunami and earthquakes do occur. There is nothing we can do to prevent it. However, there is something we can do to lessen its impact. Earthquakes alone don’t actually kill people; it is the collapsed structures that do the damage. Disaster preparedness as well as earthquake-proof buildings are the keys to lessen the impact of such disaster.

Self Education Expenses Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Self Education Expenses - Essay Example Her assert for a deduction is consequently restrained to the first branch of s 8-1(1) which allows loss or outgoing deductible to the extent that; It is adequate if the claimed expending is made "in the course of" gaining or giving rise to the taxpayer's measurable income (Ronpibon Tin NL v Federal Commissioner of Taxation) (www.taxmatrix.com.au) In the present case also it was proved that, what was creative of computable income was the Taxpayer's qualification to receive the Youth Allowance and having continued that qualification all through the appropriate period by fulfilling the activity test. The agreement of that trial, in turn, necessitated her to be entered in a course of education at an educational institution, to be taking on at least three-quarters of the usual amount of full-time study in value of the pertinent course for the period in question and to allow the Secretary to form the judgment that she was making acceptable progress for finishing the course. Actually in the present case, the taxpayer was not employed as a teacher nor was she employed in any other applicable capacity. These expenses were met by her in the course of qualifying for a Teacher's Higher Certificate. The tribunal stated that the applicant was required to be enrolled and make progress in full time study so that she is entitled to receive Youth Allowance. Under such circumstances the costs which she incurred in the course of her studies were allowable as a deduction. The fact that the applicant was enrolled at the Australian Catholic University was "a course of education at an educational institution" pursuant to s541B(5) of the SSA was agreed. The Federal court allowed the expenses in the present case to be deductible on the following grounds: (www.taxmatrix.com.au): a. Such expenditure was supplementary or essential to her gaining Youth Allowance. b. The Commonwealth was paying the taxpayer the Youth Allowance since she was a student; not for studying per se. c. The indispensable character of the taxpayer's expenditure lay in it been incurred in taking on her studies so as to allow her to discharge her course of study and acquire successive employment as a teacher; and d. The expenses were related to or supplementary to the taxpayer's course of study and not to the benefiting or getting of Youth Allowance income. 2. As the ATO is considering whether to appeal this decision, what legal arguments can it put forward in support of such an appeal Critically analyze whether you think these arguments will succeed if the decision is appealed. [Approx 1,000 words] Self education expenses to derive Youth Allowance income is an allowable deduction as ruled in the case of Anstis v FCT. The federal court had held that self education expenditure can be claimed by a taxpayer as deductible expenses. But such expenses had to be incurred as a necessity and also derived as an incident of computable income. In the case mentioned supra the assessable income was the Youth Allowance. In the present case the assessee claimed for a deduction of $920.00 for work-related self-education expenses. The law of Australia lays down that a taxpayer can claim deduction of self education

Ethics and Global Climate Change Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Ethics and Global Climate Change - Essay Example While focusing on the subject of global warming, the question arises whether the developed nations should take the greater burden of combating climate change. Climate change Greenhouse effect Global warming happens when the temperature of the earth’s surface rises. The major contribution towards global warming is the emission of greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide into the air. Global warming can cause serious climate change and can be a grave concern for the health of human beings and all other living beings on this earth. The â€Å"greenhouse effect† is considered as the principal cause of climate change. However, the contribution of greenhouse is a controversial issue. Without the effect of the greenhouse, the surface of the earth would have been much colder than the current temperature. This is one reason why greenhouse effect cannot always be considered as a problem. â€Å"The real problem is the enhanced, human-induced, greenhouse effectà ¢â‚¬  (Gardiner, 2004, p.558). Major Impacts The effects of climate change can have vast impact on the biological life on this earth. Some of the impacts that have been observed so far are â€Å"melting of glaciers, changes in Arctic ecosystems, warming of lakes and rivers, effects on agriculture and forestry, sea-level rise and coastal flooding in some areas†. ... This can be done by the use of â€Å"fuel-efficient vehicles† and by constructing â€Å"energy-efficient buildings†. The most important thing is to learn to become adaptive to climate change and also it is necessary to guide the developing countries towards economic development (Winston & Edelbach, 2011, p.363). Responsibilities of the richer nations According to Gardiner the industrial nations are more responsible for the current grave condition regarding climate change. There have been huge emissions of greenhouse gases during industrial revolution in the 19th century for which the industrial nations have played a major role. The burden of costs as a result of the emissions has fallen disproportionately on the developing countries. Gardiner suggests two ways to the solution. First, â€Å"industrialized nations should bear the costs imposed by their past emissions† and second, â€Å"one must characterize the earth’s capacity to absorb man-made emissions of carbon dioxide as a common resource, or sink† (Gardiner, 2004, p.579). Gardiner thinks that the richer nations have made maximum use of the earth’s capacity in the course of industralisation, and therefore the other countries have not been able to get their due share. According to Gardiner, the richer nations are liable to compensate for â€Å"overusing† the earth’s capacity (Gardiner, 2004, pp.579-580). Justifications It has been suggested by some writers that in the past the developed countries were not aware of the consequences of greenhouses gases on global climate and as such they should not be considered responsible. This argument cannot be conclusive if the impact on the poor population has been severe. If the poor countries do not have the resources to defend

The Colonial southeast Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5250 words

The Colonial southeast - Term Paper Example These periods are the archaic period, the woodland period and the Mississippian period. The archaic period in Louisiana was home to the most primitive mound complex in North America. It was also one of the earliest dated complex constructions in Americas Watson Brake site near Monroe. Furthermore, the woodland period is measured as the poverty point culture. This culture was trailed by the Lake Cormorant cultures of the Tchula period. In addition, the Mississippian period was linked enormously with agricultural practices. In this era, there was the adoption of maize agriculture (Usner 8). Diplomatic history deals with the account of international relations involving states. The diplomatic research tends to be more concerned with the diplomatic age in different countries. The prehistoric study of Louisiana shows that the state was populated by Native Americans who are primarily from the Indian ancestry (Usner 77). The Native Americans lived there for many millennia prior to the influx of the Europeans in the 16th century. The history of Louisiana and the golf South is loaded and quite extensive. ... According to a timeline published by researchers, this state has a number of negotiations which were performed between Louisiana and other states. A succinct outline of the events shows that Louisiana was involved in various issues, negotiations, and treaties with numerous countries. An overview of these events reveals that, in 1783, Louisiana signed a treaty with Paris. In 1786, there was the construction of the first American golf course that was situated in Charleston, South Carolina. Delaware became declared to the American union in 1787. Furthermore, in 1788, more states including Georgia, Maryland, Virginia and South Carolina were also admitted to the American union. In 1789, the U.S. constitution was authorized, and the North Carolina state was also assimilated to the American union. The constitution in America is a document that embodies basic principles that provide guidelines of how to conduct certain aspects in the American republic. The signature on the constitutional doc uments was appended on 17 Sept, 1787 and later approved by nine countries in 21 June, 1788. Moving on to 1791, we get to learn that the Bank of the United States formed Hamilton’s financial plan that was endorsed as his second element. This led to the debut of a constitutional debate between Jefferson and Hamilton in the same year. Additionally, the Bill of Rights was approved by the member states of the union in this same year. Other states owned up to the American union including Tennessee (1796) and Kentucky (1792). In addition, Eli Whitney invented the cotton gin (1793), whereas, in Virginia, the Mint Julep was invented four years subsequent to Eli’s invention. The last outstanding historical happening

Images of globalization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Images of globalization - Essay Example Another example in which consumer goods have been boycotted due to cultural beliefs is McDonald’s. In Malaysia, many Muslim consumers have been calling for Malaysian citizens to boycott the restaurant due to a recent promotion intended to celebrate the Chinese New Year. One of the toys included in the promotional package was a pig, designed to offer support for the twelve different animals of the Chinese zodiac. However, in Muslim society, the pig is considered to be an abhorrence and consumption of pig meat is strictly forbidden. Muslims believed that McDonald’s was being insensitive to the customs and religious beliefs of devoted followers of the Muslim faith, even though the restaurant was not actually attempting to create any conflict with this religious group. Muslims were so outraged that McDonald’s illustrated a pig in a positive light that Muslim boycotters actually started a social media campaign in an effort to gain international support for shunning al l products being offered by the organization. This is yet another example of the images of

Assignment about Leadership Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Assignment about Leadership - Essay Example This is the case with Benes. He had not bothered to know how Madoff made all the money. Due Diligence requires that every investor undertake an investigation that aims at gathering information on the actual risks involved when one is getting into any investment. It is clear that most of these feeder funds failed to do due diligence since they had so much faith in Madoff. It is said that Madoff was a successful party player in Wall Street and thus expected to have a pool of experience in stock trading. The single thing that actually made people believe so easily in him is the fact that the people who had already invested into his Company were making a lot of money consistently even when the market was down. Madoff also allowed them to operate without paying fees for their transactions, a move that enabled them to make a lot of money from numerous investors they had in their firms. This was bait since they saw they could earn even more money from these operations. It was also easy for people not to perform due diligence because many huge companies and prominent people had invested with Madoff. This made people trust in Madoff as an expert in his field. The study of Bernie Madoff scandal brings out a number of personalities about him. To start with, it is easier to say that He had a narcissistic personality since it is evident he was absolutely convinced that he was better than everyone else was. Looking at the whole scandal, we can only conclude that Madoff was a great liar. He deceived everyone. No one knew how the company made all those funds, starting from his family to the Government. He managed to deceive everyone for around 30 years Madoff operated his illegal business. He stole from so many people and did not care the harm he caused them, both financially and emotionally. This is also seen when Bienes firm was closed down after it was said it was an illegal firm. Bienes was

Alice Walker’s the Welcome Table Essay Example for Free

Alice Walker’s the Welcome Table Essay Alice Walker’s The Welcome Table is a short story that gives a historical and cultural look at how segregation in the south influenced people’s lives. The story portrays an old black woman as the main character. It has plot, setting, characters, symbolism, theme, tone and imagery that the author skillfully narrated in the third person omniscient point of view to create the story. The reader experiences an insight into behavior that was caused by segregation in the State of Georgia in the south. â€Å"The reverend of the church stopped her pleasantly as she stepped into the vestibule†¦..†Aunty, you know this is not your church?†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.Inside the church she sat on the very first bench from the back.† (Clugston, 2010) Head of the congregation the reverend instigates the act of religious segregation and without further prompting; his congregants willingly follows. The story also portrays the church people’s mindset to maintain religious segregation even in the act of worship. â€Å"They looked with contempt †¦.at the old woman†¦could their husbands expect them to sit up in church with that? No, no†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Clugston, 2010) The narrator uses strong descriptions to recreate the era and to pull the reader into the story. It really shows how segregation influences people in their everyday life. Black slaves were freed. However, black and white people remained segregated because segregation was the way of life for the people during that period in Georgia. The system of segregation demanded that black people had to sit in the back of public busses and the old woman in the story knew her place because she freely sat at the back of the church. â€Å"Inside the church she sat on the very first bench from the back,† (Clugston, 2010). Religious segregation is the main theme. The song at the beginning of the story sets the tone and pulls the reader into the south where ex-slaves sang Negro spirituals for comfort. â€Å"I’m going to sit at the Welcome table; Shout my troubles over; Walk and talk with Jesus; Tell God how you treat me; One of these days!†(Clugston, 2010) Religious segregation was a major part of the culture in Georgia and it is the theme of this story; in that the author details the harsh cold manner in which it affects people. The spiritual at the beginning points to hope to one day experience welcome (acceptance), to sit and talk with Jesus who both the blacks and whites are worshipping but cannot do so under the same roof. In other words, the song is an expression of hope that segregation will end. The black old woman braves freezing temperature, without warm enough clothing to go to the house of worship. Winter represents death, stagnation and sleep (Clugston, 2010) and the old black woman represents slavery. The black old woman, symbolizing slavery is almost blind and almost dead. Yet she is determined to struggle through the freezing cold to push past the reverend, and ignore the young usher to seat herself in the whites only church. â€Å"She brushed past him anyway, as if she had been brushing past him all her life, except this time she was in a hurry. Inside the church she sat†¦It was cold, even inside the church†¦.† This act by the dying old black woman is symbolic of the ex-slaves’ struggle to conquer the final frontier of segregation more so religious segregation. The author uses symbolism in this case to represent the people’s behavior towards the old woman and her determination to have her way. The Author skillfully uses imagery to tell a powerful story The Welcome Table. The very beginning paints a picture of the main character. â€Å"In her Sunday-go-to-meeting clothes:†¦.head rag stained with grease from the many oily pigtails underneath,† What seems like a simple description of her clothes contained words that contributed to the painting of the picture. Then on the other hand the ladies of the church required a different set of adjectives. â€Å"Leather bagged and shoed, with calfskin gloves to keep out the cold.This done, the wives folded their healthy arms across their trim middles†¦Ã¢â‚¬  This vivid contrast also represents the religious disparity between the black people and the white people even though they are both worshipping the same god. â€Å"The reverend of the church stopped her pleasantly as she stepped into the vestibule†¦..†Aunty, you know this is not your church?†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.Inside the church she sat on the very first bench from the back.† (Clugston, 2010) The black old woman, symbolizing slavery is almost blind and almost dead. Yet she is determined to struggle through the freezing cold to push past the reverend, and ignore the young usher to seat herself in the whites only church. Alice Walker’s The Welcome Table gives a historical and cultural look at how segregation in the south influenced people’s lives. The author skillfully narrated in the third person omniscient point of view to create the story. The reader experiences an insight into behavior that was caused by segregation in the State of Georgia in the south. The spiritual at the beginning points to hope to one day experience welcome (acceptance), to sit and talk with Jesus who both the blacks and whites are worshipping but cannot do so under the same roof. In other words, the song is an expression of hope that segregation will end. REFERENCE Clugston, W. R., (2010). Journey Into Literature, San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education Inc. Barnet, S., Berman, M., Burto, W., (1967) An Introduction to Literature 3rd Edition Toronto, CAN:Little, Brown and Company Inc.