Economic Indicator Forecast Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Economic Indicator Forecast Paper - Essay ExampleIt has been forecasted that the FED is going to profit the interest order in late 2009 or early 2010 therefore the expectations are that the prime interest order will be in the range of 3.50% to 4.00%.Another forecast indicates that until declination 2009, the prime interest rates may hit the figure of 4.00% and will continue to move upwards until 4.75% in December 2010. (http//mortgage-x.com, 2009). This forecast is slightly much generous than the earlier projection however, considering the other fact that financial system has to cope with the increasing losses too therefore it is feasible that the interest rates may go up to 4.75% in December 2010. The increase in the prime interest rates may decrease the demand for automobiles because the financing toll of such products would increase and consumers may find it difficult to purchase new cars at high increasing interest rates. Further, it may also be possible that the increase in interest rates may further increase the overall cost of doing the business for automobile firms.The forecast up to Oct 2009 indicates that the new caparison starts within US would be 683,000. (http//forecasts.org, 2009) however recent statistics suggest that there is a steep increase in the housing activity in the country. Whereas correspond to some estimates, the housing starts are going to depress or at least remain within the current limits until 2011. (National Post, 2009). These forecasts indicate somewhat mixed forecasts as it indicates that the housing starts may indicate random patterns on month wise averages however, the overall projections may indicate that the housing starts would remain at the present direct at least up to 2010.I believe that later forecast that the housing starts will depress until 2010 are more plausible because interest rates are projected to increase later this year therefore the finance to builders as well as mortgage rates are set to increase too. This may therefore, result into

Personal Development and Planning Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Personal Development and Planning - Coursework ExampleLet us begin by looking at my pathway choice and how it en equal to(p)s me to my employability skills.Firstly, my studies in global management and marketing have made me to have the right professional attitudes. The two main ways in which my studies in global management and marketing have enabled me to have to develop professional attitude is through enabling me to have h unmatchedst sensitivity in in carrying out my various professional duties, and to be able to take initiative and to take action unprompted. Having ethical sensitivity is a very in-chief(postnominal) professional attitude that greatly enhances ones employability skills. In my pathway choice, for instance, there are various issues that will require me to make sound ethical decisions. For instance in marketing, I should make sure that I have given my customers all the important information that they need before purchasing the products or the services that I sell t o them although revealing honestly roughly information to the customers about the products that you are advertising or selling may make some customers not to purchase the products, ethical sensitivity, however, requires one to disclose all the necessary information to the customer. The ethical sensitivity professional attitude, therefore, has greatly enhanced my employability skills because it has enabled me to be able to deal honestly with my customers. Just like ethical sensitivity, having the ability to take initiatives in your career is a very important professional attitude that enhances ones employability skills. In my career path, for instance, being able to take initiative is a very important skill this is because, in global management and in marketing, there are many decisions that one will have to make solely, without involving other people- as a manager, one has to be constantly taking initiatives on various issues. For this reason, therefore, my career path of global ma nagement and marketing has greatly enhanced my employability

How a project manager may resolve some of the major potential Essay

How a come out manager may resolve some of the major potential challenges involved in the initial stages of the of the project from a socio-organizational perspective critically evaluate the above question - Essay ExampleAll of these four above cases are examples of project counsel. Without any doubts, in todays ruthless, competitive, and fast-paced corporate world, project guidance is surrounding us from all possible directions. In fact, the concept of managing projects, plans, ventures, and events has been at that place on the scene since centuries.The Hanging Garden of Babylon, the Pyramids of Egypt, the Taj Mahal of Agra, the Great Wall of China, and others are all examples of great project management since these projects are examples of efficient work by the managers of that time, considering all their constraints (Heerkens, pp. 20-28, 2007). However, for the past few decades project management has strongly evolved as a prominent subject and has acquired its place as literat ure in philosophy. Experts resist in the definition as they have diverse opinions on many subjects. Yet after combining those definitions, it would not be wrong to say, Project management is the application of skills, techniques, and tools to enable activities to attain project requirements. Project management is achieved through integration and application of project management practices of initiating, planning, executing, monitoring and controlling and closing (Portny, Portny, mantle Jr., Meredith, Kramer, & Sutton, pp. 9-45, 2007).Considering this description in mind, as said earlier, projects, project managers, and projects management is everywhere, surrounding us from all possible directions. Every software engineer, mechanical engineer, Research and developing Manager, financial expert, planning manager or other, who is in middle of coming up with a new product is also facing the elements of project management in some way or the other. Gone are the days when jobs were simpl e, straightforward, and repetitive. The competition is just getting tougher and tougher by every day and organizations are empty-bellied for new ways to assure their survival. History speaks that change

Child Development Models Essay Example for Free

Child Development Models EssayThis essay will reap the different explanations for childrens behaviour, examining the Psychodynamic, Behaviourist and Social Learning perspectives. It will also evaluate each of these theories and make reference to their practical application. In doing so, the essay will amaze out how parents, child psychologists, social workers and teachers can aim to understand childrens behaviour.As Haggerty (2006) states, The theory supporting psychodynamic therapy originated in and is informed by psychoanalytic theory. The psychoanalytic entree to therapy was developed by Sigmund Freud, an Austrian psychiatrist. Freuds model proposed that an individual has three elements to their psychological self the ego, superego and id.The id is the most primitive, consisting of largely unconsciousbiological impulses. The ego uses reality and itsconsequences to interpolate the behaviour being urged by theid. The superego judges actions as right or wrong basedon the per sons internal value system.(Strickland ed., 2001, p.637)According to Freud, children progress through and through various psychosexual stages of development. He claimed that, at particular items in the process, a single body part is particularly sensitive to erotic stimulation (Stevenson, 1996). The rootage stage begins at birth and continues until approximately 1 year old. It is classified as The Oral Stage because the mouth and lips are the main focus, displaying biting, sucking and grind behaviour.The Anal Stage comes next and usually occurs between 1 and 3 geezerhood old. Toilet training encourages the child to enjoy expelling faeces. At this point the id will be satisfied by this instantaneous pleasure and will be in conflict with the ego and superego, which are concerned with controlling natural functions to satisfy social expectations and practicality.The Phallic Stage occurs between approximately 3 and 5 years old and contains one of Freuds most controversial theories, the Oedipus multiplex (or Electra complex in females). His theory states that the child becomes focused upon the genital area and experiences turmoil in the form of an unconscious desire to possess the opposite-sexed parent and eliminate the same-sexed parent.What Freud termed the reaction time Period comes next. He believed that sexual drive lay dormant due to repressed impulses and desires. At this stage, children focus upon non-sexual activities and form same-sex friendships.At approximately 12 years old, a child faces puberty and enters what Freud classes as The Genital Stage. The focus returns to the genitals but this time in relation to others. There is now an interest in relationships and exploring sexuality.When a child is unable to resolve the conflicts that occur at any of these stages, fixation can occur. If needs are not met in a satisfying way or if the individuals conscience or superego cannot deal with impulses and drives to love and to hate, then complex character traits emerge (Errington and Murdin, 2006). For example, oral fixation may result in an adult displaying pessimism, sarcasm or gullibility, whilst phallic fixation may result in recklessness or fear of commitment.Freud, like many who begin a movement, now receives much criticism. One area of weakness is the limited scope of his research, as his therapy work mainly focused upon upper middle class women. another(prenominal) popularly criticised aspect of Freuds work is the emphasis on sexuality as, in his view, everything seems to stem from expression or repression of the sex drive (Boeree, 2006).Despite criticism, Freuds methods underpin the usually held belief that childhood experiences are hugely important to personality development. In practical terms, those working with children today place great importance on ensuring that a childhood contains opportunities to develop, to learn the difference between right and wrong, and to learn to appropriately act upon or repress urges.Beha viour therapy is defined as A army of psychotherapeutic techniques aimed at altering maladaptive or unwanted behaviour patterns, especially through the application of principles of conditioning or learning. (Colman, 2006). The main influencers of this theory were Pavlov, Watson and Skinner.Ivan Pavlov, posterior to receive the Nobel Prize in Physiology for his research into the digestive system, observed that dogs would salivate upon seeing their keeper, apparently in anticipation of being fed. (Strickland ed., 2001, p.478). Pavlov extended his experiment and rang a bell immediately before food was served to the dogs. Eventually, the dogs would salivate upon the bell ringing, even if no food was then served. This led Pavlov to develop an understanding of conditioned responses and unfathomable reflexes.

The Indian Economy Essay Example for Free

The Indian Economy Essay1. IntroductionThis paper leave behind gamylight economic issues facing the Indian Government andits aptitude to oblige uplifted levels of growth by outlining the current conditions of the sparing. Policy dilemmas and logic to address these dilemmas will be explored. Analysis of cay indicators and statistics as well historic reference and the theory behind their execution will underlay chosen policies which will be followed by a brief conclusion.2. The Indian EconomyThe Indian Economy is listed as the fifth largest in the world at . 538 trillion US (CIA 2010) and has been able to continue steep GDP growth despite the global Financial Crisis. The country has also moved along a steady path of economic reform and liberalisation since 1990 including privatisation and foreign enthronisation. India is a planned economy which follows a series of targets for each five dollar bill year period, the Eleventh Five-Year plan (Planning Commission (Government of India) 2007) ending in 2012 aimed to increase and maintain growth at 10% (to double by 2017), create new employment for 70 million people, raise real wages for unskilled workers and consider education and infrastructure.The next five year plan needs to consider economic factors below that may restrict the high levels of growth. There is also an emergence of a two-speed economy emanating among the service sectors employed eye and high income earners with those in gardening and manufacturing (FitzGerald 2011). Figure 2.1 (TradingEconomics.com 2011)Figure 2.1 shows Indias strong trend for growth since 2002 and despite a meek decrease in growth rate following the Global Financial Crisis in 2008, a major indemnity issue therefore is maintaining strong economic prosperity. The administration has to consider several factors that are a risk to this aim such as a large budget deficit, high inflation and unemployment, all in all shown in figure 2.2. Percentage Government Debt 55 .9 of GDP pretentiousness 11.7 Increase per YearUnemployment 10.8 of Labour ForceFigure 2.2 Key Indicators 2010 (CIA 2010)Sustainable growth squeeze out be achieved by the Indian Government if it can address these issues both in the short and long term. Therefore the focus is toconsider reducing and stabilise inflation, restructure and increase employment and return the budget to surplus. DebtThe current Government Debt in India is around 60% of GDP (TradingEconomics.com 2011 CIA 2010) which puts debt near $1 trillion US. This is an all crucial(predicate) consideration as it affects the ability of government to embark on public spending necessary to address improvements in infrastructure, education and manufacturing which can help maintain the high growth levels in the long run.High debt and exchange order can also affect foreign investment which is rich in the work sector, attributing 55.3% of GDP and only when 34% of the Labour market (The World Bank 2009 CIA 2010), a focus on improving education and shifting employment into the operate sector therefore becomes an important direction for both decrement of unemployment and maintaining supply of labour.Wage worths would be kept at a competitive level compared with separate outsourcing countries and overall GDP levels. Debt can also create a lower credit rating and the ability to pay back adds, defaulting on a loan can have widespread negative implications to sustaining growth in the economy. InflationInflation is the reduction in the value of funds and is 11.7% in India(CIA 2010). High Inflation is a concern because it breads uncertainty in the economy for business, consumers and other investors. This is explained as money being the scale by which an economy can be measured, if the system of measurement of the measurement is uncertain different ideas are formed about how and where money is spent or even if it is spent at all. It also affects the distribution of money across society which is an ec onomic concern in India, high levels of inflation are notable in Food, Manufacturing Prices and Fuel(BBC 2011). UnemploymentUnemployment estimates in 2010 of around 10% (TradingEconomics.com 2011 CIA 2010) become an important policy consideration. In straight off the economy is burdened with the costs such as health and crime so far more direct issues include social welfare, breathing out of production and therefore taxable income.India has one of the worlds largest labour forces of around 480 million (CIA 2010) full employment would aid the ability to match sum of moneydemand increases with aggregate supply in the long terms. India could continue growth and manage sustainable inflation in the long term to reach the potential drop GDP levels. Figure 2.3 shows the overall break down of employment sector with its contribution to GDP. % Labour Force % GDPAgriculture 52 16.1Industry 14 28.6Services 34 53.3Figure 2.3 Economic Sectors Labour/GDP (The World Bank 2009) The policy cons ideration for Government should be to increase the efficiency of the agriculture sector and move employment into the Industry and Services sector in the long run, including a focus on self-employment which is becoming an unattractive option for junior generations (AZAD India Foundation 2010).3. Policy DirectionPolicy recommendations for the Government of India have one overall aim, to maintain strong growth. Three major economic conditions for this focus on, reduction of Government Debt, stability of inflation and addressing high unemployment.4.1 Monetary PolicyMonetary Policy has recently been engaged by the Central Bank and Government in a contractionary manor in an attempt to slow down the inflation growth that has been gripping India. The long term establish of increase to interest rates is to reduce aggregate demand. Figure 3.1 highlights an inflationary hike trend since 2008 which peaked in January 2010.Figure 3.1 India Inflation (TradingEconomics.com 2011)Identifying the ca use of inflation is a primary agenda before deciding how effective Monetary will be. While India is experiencing increased AD, interest rates are aligned to but not an overall effect of price increases and in the long run reduce the sustained high growth levels. As seen in Figure 3.2, Interest rate increases are not correlating directly with longterm inflationary decreases.Figure 3.3 Interest Rates (TradingEconomics.com 2011)There are three cost-push inflation causes that could explain the peaks and sustained recent high inflation levels of around 11% (CIA 2010).Brent Crude fossil oil IndexOil is a highly utilised commodity for India and its price can directly affect aggregate supply figure 3.2 Shows a correlation to hikes in Oil price compared with inflation. In January 2008 oil prices began to climb however as the GFC began to lot obligate, global demand for reduced and prices fell. As India was maintaining strong local pith Demand however inflation was still high.Figure 3.3 B rent Crude Oil (TradingEconomics.com 2011)Domestic Food and Manufacturing PricesSecondary inflation hikes noticed in 2010 do not directly correlate to oil prices. During a poor Food harvest home in 2009 as a result of a poor monsoon season (The Economic Times 2009) compounded by international food supply contractions and price rises in the manufacturing sector (BBC 2011) supply side shocks and marginal rise in oil prices can attribute to high inflationary levels.The effects of the supply shocks would be noted in the shift from AS1 to AS2 with prices rising in the short term. However as India GDP has continued to increase year on year, this can only be explained by an increase in Aggregate Demand from AD1 to AD2 shown in Figure 3.3 of a dynamic AS/AD model for India. Point C is Indias potential GDP in 2009 and Point D for 2010, the economic policy should be aimed towards reaching these targets. Monetary policy, in the short run would assist the reduction of AD to curve inflation how ever to reach LRAS2, other policies must be considered. Interest rate rises should be put on hold and decreased if the economy can recover from supply shocks allowing AS/AD to shift towards potential GDP.Figure 3.3 Dynamic AS/AD for India (figures from (TradingEconomics.com 2011))(McTaggart, Findlay, and Parkin 2010 Hubbard et al. 2011 Misistry of Statistics and Progamme Implementation 2011) 4.2 fiscal PolicyUnderstanding the complexities of the supply side issues for India is a must for Government to address long term inflation and employment. Investment in agriculture, manufacturing and infrastructure will most likely form the basis of the Twelfth Five-Year plan (2point6billion.com 2011).Agriculture can increase and sustain output by advancements in farming coiffure and technology which is also true of the manufacturing sector. In order for the government investment not to compound Aggregate Demand and multiply into further inflation, gross of the middle and higher income tax br ackets is an option. Already highlighted is the disparity between the size of each sector and the share of its GDP, these expenditures would therefore shift demand from the higher earning service sector into agriculture and industry, with a positive knock on effect of an increase in employment in these areas. % Labour Force % GDPAgriculture 52 16.1Industry 14 28.6Services 34 53.3Figure 3.4 Economic Sectors Labour/GDP (The World Bank 2009) Investment in education, fundable by higher taxation levels can also be aimed to assist the long term shift away from agriculture and into the industry and services sector. Infrastructure is also a key investment consideration to reduce costs of production to all sectors of the economy and sustain ever increasing energy needs. This is also required to avoid the siding of the two-speed economy and should be avoided as not to become reliant on one sector of the economy, addressing the balance and disparity can help create a diverse, shock absorbent Indian future. Why would this help stabilise inflation and reduce unemployment?* Cost push inflation and supply side shock impacts would be reduced in the long term * Investment in agricultural and manufacturing practice would allow for a closer match of Aggregate Supply with Aggregate demand * Shifting employment from Agriculture into Industry and Services sector would reduce unemployment *Long term government can divert funds from unemployment choice and taxation into reduction of the Government Debt4.3 Exchange Rate Exports and ImportsThe balance of trade is in deficit of 7.2% (see figure 3.5) however this may not be a major issue for the economic growth of India. The difficulty in policy decision remains the valuation of the Rupee and its impact on a flesh of variables.High rupee value impacts exportations and is approximately 44.6 rupee to $1 US a primary focus area is industry which could become a executable source of employment for the 10.8% of people not in work. Contin uing to increase interest rates will have two impacts direct foreign investment will be more attractive. Such things as new iron ore and petroleum mining ventures would become possible, however if the Rupee value is too high the export of this and other exportable goods becomes less attractive.Figure 3.5 Components of GDP as a Percentage (Misistry of Statistics and Progamme Implementation 2011)Focused on the aim of sustained high growth, export of services is only 6.6% of GDP however as the Services sector accounts for 55% of industry composition and consumption accounts for 58.3% of GDP, decrease of the ability to export services would reduce private consumption, a direct impact on growth. Export of Goods would also increase if the Rupee were to weaken and address the balance of trade. The government is strongly advised to allow mining and large manufacturing projects to begin and allow the export of these commodities to economies like China.Comparative cost of labour and productio n would give India a very competitive selling price in the global market and shift employment from agriculture (and the unemployed) into the manufacturing industry.4. ConclusionThe economy of India is very strong in the current global climate of uncertainty and the challenge for the Government is to maintain that level of growth. Managing economic uncertainties that can cause the economy tofail in its aims are extremely important. Understanding the supply side causes of inflation and the possible negative effect of monetary policy to combat it should be realised. Therefore fiscal policy to increase investment in the agriculture and manufacturing industries is recommended to remove disparity and level the two-speed economy.High levels of inflation and unemployment do not align to the Phillps principle of inflation (McTaggart, Findlay, and Parkin 2010) however at present there may be a need to absorb these pressures in the short term. To some degree the economy may be experiencing sta gflation as it has a much higher potential GDP threshold.In conclusion, there are other factors such as corruption and economic steering that if resolved could drastically reduce debt and disparity between all sectors of society.5. References2point6billion.com. 2011. Indias 12th Five Year Plan to Focus on Inclusive exploitation. http//www.2point6billion.com/news/2011/04/25/indias-12th-five-year-plan-to-focus-on-inclusive-growth-9151.html (accessed 02/07/2011). AZAD India Foundation. 2010. Unemployment in India. http//azadindia.org/social-issues/Unemployment-in-India.html (accessed 10/04/2011). BBC.2011. India wholesale inflation rate rises more than expected. http//www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-13761784 (accessed 26/06/2011). CIA. 2010. India. https//www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/in.html (accessed 22/06/2011). FitzGerald, B. 2011. Two-speed economy killing industry, warns brand name maker. http//www.theage.com.au/business/twospeed-economy-killing-industry -warns-steel-maker-20110221-1b2k1.html (accessed 29/06/2011). Hubbard, G., A. M. Garnett, P. Lewis, and A. P. OBrien. 2011. Essentials of economics. McTaggart, D., C. Findlay, and M. Parkin. 2010. Economics. 6 ed. 6 vols. Vol. 6. Misistry of Statistics and Progamme Implementation. 2011. National Accounts Statistics.

Evaluation of the commercialization Essay Example for Free

Evaluation of the commercialization EssayThis paper discusses and evaluates both the negative and positive aspects and raised contentious tailors regarding Bt-Corn, a transgenic lemon tree developed by dint of genetic engineering and biotechnology methods, and will finally conclude that the commercialization of Bt-Corn breeds for the past 14 years go for been both economically advantageous and beneficial for the environment.The purpose of this paper is to further educate and inform the general audience regarding issues relating with genetically modified organisms and will fork up to disprove negative speculation and ambiguity with statistical data and experimental evidence. Introduction Recent development and advances in the field of biotechnology and genetic engineering has enabled scientists today to improve trim varieties through alteration of their or so fundamental building blocks, their DNA.These alterations of the genetic material allow scientists and researchers to develop new species and breeds of organisms which posses certain alter favored traits, which would non differentwise naturally exist in the organism. (Peairs, 2007) However, at that place is a good deal ambiguity and controversies surrounding the substantial field of genetic engineering of organisms and their commercialization.Bt-corn, a breed of transgenic corn whiskey whose genetic material has been altered to include the ability to produce a certain toxin that has specific insecticidal property against pests, has been commercialized instantly for several(prenominal)(prenominal) years in the US and also in several other countries such as Canada, Germany, Spain, Argentina, Honduras, South Africa and the Philippines. (Wu, 2006) The prefix Bt from Bt-Corn originates from Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), a species of soil bacterium that produces the insecticidal crystal protein or delta endotoxins, toxins that kill crop pests.Genetic engineering has allowed scientists to tak e the single gene that go fors the production of the delta endotoxins from Bt, create a modified version of it and compound it with the DNA of selected corn species using recombinant DNA technology. This new set of genetic code allows the plant to produce the delta endotoxins by itself hence it is able to repel crop pests by itself. This newly acquired attribute is like a miracle for farmers, not just corn farmers since the insecticidal attribute of Bt has also been implemented in several other crops such as Bt-potatoes and Bt-sweet corn.However, there use up been several issues raised against the commercialization of Bt-corn in recent years due to investigations, which reveals how Bt-corn pollen proves to be lethal to other species of organisms that argon not considered as pests. (Peairs, 2007) This paper will discuss, evaluate and finally demonstrate how the commercialization of Bt-Corn breeds is overall both economically efficient and beneficial for the environment through the followers points * Origins of Bt and Bt-Corn * Mode of action of Bt toxins Economical and environmental advantages of Bt-Corn * FDA regulations on genetically modified organisms * Controversies and issues raised * Evaluation Origins of Bt and Bt-Corn As previously stated above, Bt-Corn is a breed of transgenic maize whose genetic material have been altered and combined with the insecticidal crystal protein-producing trait of the common naturally occurring soil bacterium, Bacillus thuringiensis. Shigetane Ishiwata, a Japanese biologist, was the first to depict Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) in 1901.However, it was not until Ernst Berliner rediscovered it in 1911 in Thuringia, Germany, that the bacterium was named Bacillus thuringiensis. In 1938 a French company started commercially producing the combination of the bacterium and its toxin crystals as a pesticide, calling it Sporeine, and in the 1950s American organic farmers started using Bt on their crops as a way to control pest. (A roian) As research methods ameliorate (1960s) and new Bt species were appoint producing thousands of other specific toxic proteins, more and more farmers started to use Bt.However, it was not until advancements in genetics and genetic engineering in the 1990s that researchers were able to detect and isolate the specific genes that trigger production of the toxins and transfer it into certain species of crops, such as Bt-Corn. The first Bt crop that was registered with the USEPA (United States Environmental Protection Agency), which allowed for its commercialization, is the Bt-Corn. (Aroian) In 2004, Bt-Corn comprises more than ? of the total acres of cornfields in the United States itself. Wu, 2006) fit in to Clive James, the chair of the ISAAA (International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications), today (2002) the total Bt-Corn fields in the world approximates to 25 million acres. (James, 2002) Mode of actions of Bt toxins Bacillus thuringiensis produces certa in proteins, categorized as crystal proteins, which ar very specific, well known for its ability to target and inhibit specific metabolic processes of certain species of organisms, of importly insects.Investigations have revealed that most of these insecticidal crystal proteins, when activated (when they come into contact with their specific host), attaches itself to the epithelium cellular teleph ones of the gut of the insects and causes the generation of pores in the cell membranes. These pores in the membranes of the epithelium cells, outermost cells that line the surfaces of structures, such as the gut, of organisms, disrupts the osmotic balance of the cells, causing them to swell and lyse. (Hofte, 1989)In simpler terms, basically these proteins (toxins) cause imbalance of wet absorption (osmotic imbalance) in the cells of the organs of specific insects, which causes these cells to swell and break (lyse). They are also very specific and selective on the species of insects th ey are able to affect, fashioning Bt toxins potent in eradicating pests while being relatively harm slight towards other organisms. There is substantial evidence that the toxins (insecticidal crystal proteins) are not harmful to friendlyant health nor are they detrimental for the health of verteb pass judgment (mammals, reptiles, amphibians, birds, bony fish and sharks).According to Peairs, these toxins are considered to be very selective and very safe for humans and non-targeted organisms when compared to the most conventional and common pesticides used nowadays since they only attack certain groups of insects. (Peairs, 2007) Economical and environmental advantages of Bt-Corn It has been several years now, more than a decade, since the commercialization of Bt-Corn breeds and now more than ever, we are able to see statistical data and actual evidence that overall, using Bt-Corn is both economically efficient and beneficial for the environment.Economic advantages of Bt-Corn Accord ing to a study by Brookes, there have been substantial net economic benefits at the farms, totaling up to $5 one million million million in 2005 and $27 billion during the first decade (1996-2005) of the commercialization of genetically engineered crops. For the genetically engineered maize species, including Bt-Corn and other forms of genetically modified corn, boosted farm incomes by over $3. 1 billion since 1996. In the United States alone genetically modified maize crop income benefits accumulates to a little under $2. 3 billion, which is about 88% of the world GM maize crop income. (Brookes, 2006) The main reason for its economic advantage is its ability to produce higher yields of the same, or even better, quality of produce compared to organic corn because dickens reasons. The first reason is that since pests are not lured to the crop, they unhindered and are able to flourish and produce more yields. The second reason is that the ability to self-produce insecticidal toxins allows farmers to cut strike down costs to maintain the crop since they do not have to purchase massive amounts of pesticide.This also means that less time will be worn-out(a) on crop walking and the application of pesticides and herbicides, less use of goods and services of energy associated with less spraying, savings in costs of machinery and machinery usage (from less spraying and cut back harvest times) and also the unseen benefits in the health and safety of farm workers that is caused by handling pesticides. (Brookes, 2006) Environmental advantages of Bt-Corn The usage of Bt-Corn allows farmers to stop the usage of environmentally gaga chemicals, may it be pesticides or herbicides.Overall in the midst of the years 1996 and 2005, GM crops have caused the net reduction in the environmental impact on the cropping field by 15. 3% while the total volume of active ingredient usage has also been reduced by 7%. Specifically in the GM maize sector there have been a net reductio n in the environmental impact on the cropping area by 4. 6% through the reduction of pesticide usage and another net decrease in 4% in the environmental impact through the usage of more environmentally benign herbicides. Brookes, 2006) There has also been a decrease in greenhouse gasses emission excess greenhouse gasses emission is a factor contributing to global warming. Brookes states in his article, that the two main reasons for the decrease in green house gasses emission is due to two factors. The first being reduced fuel usage from the less frequent need of using pesticides and herbicides applications (machinery used for spraying). From 1996 to 2005, it is estimated that there has been a reduction in carbon dioxide emission of 4,613 million kg, calculated from the reduced fuel usage of 1,679 liters.In comparison, the permanent carbon dioxide savings from reduced fuel usage from 1996 to 2005 by planting GM crops is equivalent to the removal of 2. 05 million cars from the road fo r one year, assuming that a car does an average of 15,000 km per year, producing 2,250 kg of carbon dioxide per year based on the fact that an average family car produces 150 grams of CO2 every km. (Brookes, 2006) FDA regulations on genetically modified organisms With the development in genetic engineering and biotechnology there is urgency and a need to both control and oversee products and methods used, especially relating with food products.The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) are the three main supervisors of genetically modified foods. The FDA, the official government agency in charge of regulating food, drug and cosmetic laws and ensuring safety of food (other than meat), food additives, medicines, medical devices, veterinary drugs, cosmetics and genetically modified food products, plays the major role in the actual screening of products that are avairesearch laboratoryle for the public.The FDA categorizes genetically modified food products under the GRAS inclining the GRAS list comprise of products that are generally recognized as safe, which demands the makers to be responsible for the safety of their own products, allowing them to place products into the market without pre-approval of the FDA because whole foods are GRAS. Whole foods are foods that are unprocessed or unrefined such as unprocessed meat, poultry and fish, fruits and vegetables, and non-homogenized milk (basically unprocessed milk straight from the creature).The manufacturer bears responsibility for ensuring the product is not adulterated or misbranded. However if there is proof that the product is adulterated, or detrimental to human health (animal health for animal products), then the products may be taken back from the market and the manufacturer may be prosecuted. (Gertsberg, 2009) Controversies and issues raised The development and continuation of research in the whole issue regardin g genetic engineering of any organisms itself raises much issues.However, most of the issues raised within the field of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are issues regarding perspective and ethics, since there is much fear and ambiguity that most people feel when they think and speak about this issue. Controversies with genetic engineering There are not enough, if there are any, substantial, academic, plain physical experimental proof that genetically modified organisms are hazardous to both the health of humans and the environment.The main issues raised regarding GMOs are that there is a risk there new allergens will arise from the unknown effect of combining different DNA sequences with each other, increased toxicity levels in organisms do to a faster metabolism, the possibility of unwanted/unintended gene transfer between different species, loss of biodiversity and basically unknown possible effects on different organisms related. (Turner, 2007) There are also several other ethical issues raised, such as the monopoly of world food production by several ompanies, problems with intellectual property and non-mandatory labeling, which is the case in the United States. Non-mandatory labeling violates the rights of buryrs to choose between organic foods and genetically engineered foods. Monarch butterfly issue and Bt-Corn Several years ago, an issue was raised regarding how non-pest (non-targeted) species of organisms, the Monarch butterfly species in this case, were affected by the delta endotoxins contained in the pollen of a certain species of Bt-Corn. The issue revolves around how Monarch butterflies population was in risk of infection of being killed through the poisoning by the Bt toxins.Monarch butterflies would migrate and lay their eggs on areas near the Bt-Corn fields. Their larvae feed on milkweed plants, a species of plants that evoke in same regions as the Bt-Corn. However, Bt-Corn pollen would scatter throughout the area and lay on these l eaves. Several investigations revealed some mortality in Monarch butterfly caterpillars that consume these pollen-covered milkweed leaves. (Peairs, 2007) Following the recent controversy, a number of private parties assembled and conducted workshops and investigations regarding this issue sponsored by the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) of the United States.Scientists and researchers were assembled from U. S. and Canadian universities, ARS members and several other environmental organizations, in a joint effort to prove whether the issue has a scientific basis. (Hellmich, 2008) Laboratory experiments done with pure Crystal toxins (Bt toxins) mixed with unsubstantial diets revealed that a certain type of Cry toxin, Cry1Ab, was harmful to Monarch caterpillars but other types of the Cry toxins were not toxic to them.Field studies done along with lab experiments conclude that there were not any adverse effects observed on the Monarch caterpillars who fed on milkweed leaves dusted w ith natural levels of the commonly found Bt-Corn pollen species. All but the single Cry toxin proved to be safe. The results of this experiment caused for the termination of the production of Bt-Corn species 176, which expressed high amounts of Cry1Ab toxins. (Hellmich, 2008) Several other studies were conducted to compare between the mortality of Monarch caterpillars in agricultural and non-agricultural habitats, where there arent any Bt-Corn species in the area.Results from this experiment show no significant differences in mortality rates of the caterpillars. (Hellmich, 2008) Another study conducted compared the mortality rates of Monarch caterpillars exposed to Bt-Corn species and organic corn species with the commonly used pesticide, cyhalothrin. Experimentations revealed how, nearly all monarch butterfly larvae on milkweed plants inside the field were killed. Hence Bt-Corn is safer than traditional commercial insecticides and pesticides. (Hellmich, 2008)The final risk assess ment brought forth by Hellmich regarding the Monarch population and Bt-Corn is that the risks are negligible since word-painting of the Monarch caterpillars to Bt-Corn pollen is low. Furthermore, the current commercially available Bt-Corn species and hybrids revealed low toxicity. Hellmich concludes that, The bottom line from these studies is that all commercial Bt corn hybrids have negligible effects on populations of monarch butterflies, especially when compared with traditional insecticides. (Hellmich, 2008) EvaluationIn conclusion, through research and investigations conducted by researchers across the world, we can see how the commercialization of Bt-Corn for past 14 years have significantly benefitted both society and the environment through the ability of farmers to cut down costs, usage of energy, fuel and CO2 emissions into the atmosphere, increase in yields and decrease in the use of harmful chemicals such as pesticides and herbicides. We also see that most of the issues raised surrounding the issue of Bt-Corn and genetically engineered organisms are mostly just a matter of perspective and preferences. Lack of education and an open perspective regarding genetically modified organisms is the main hindrance towards improvements in the current agricultural field.

The Potential Unreliability Of Eyewitness Criminology Essay

The Potential Unreliability Of Eyewitness Criminology EssayThe potential unreliableness of witness affirmation poses one of the most serious problems in the administration of criminal justice. Eyewitness testimonial is very crucial for legal decisions. Eyewitnesses atomic number 18 key to most court cases (Kebbell Milne, 1999) and eyewitnesses distinguishs are the most common and signifi gouget testimonies that can potenti wholey serve as the primary forms of evidence against a defendant. moreover explore shows that jurors exaggeratedly believe the testimony of eyewitnesses and this, can lead to possible miscarriages of justice (Cutler et al. 1990). The aim of this essay is to investigate, based on the literature, the reasons that may influence the store operation of eyewitnesses and also what can be done in modulate to ensure that eyewitnesses testimony worth the value.Eyewitness testimony is a legal term and it refers to an account given by a bystander in the courtroom, who describes what happened during a specific incident under investigation. This is the principal way in which the guilt of the accused is established by dint of verbal witness evidence in court. It is considered to be a reliable accepted form that provides evidence and jurors tend to pay close caution to it. deep forensics and psychologists declare that memories and individual perceptions are unreliable, can being easily manipulated and biased . As a result, wide of the mark eyewitnesses denominations can have serious consequences leading to defame convictions of innocent people (Wells et al., 1998).When scientific psychology was in its first steps, articles intimately mis tearn eyewitness identifications started to appear in the field (Munsterberg, 1908). except, eyewitness evidence has make people to think if eyewitnesses testimonies are reliable or non. It would be said though that all people have the knowledge that they do not mobilise everything, and thitherfore they know that memory can be weak. On the other hand it is difficult to deny the importance of eyewitnesses testimony. explore has shown that people probably intuitive feeling better active convicting an alleged criminal when an eyewitness claims I saw him do it than when there is no such claim. The hypothesis that inaccurate eyewitness identifications can lead to the conviction of innocent people is also accepted by Canadian legal professionals (Brooks, 1983). deoxyribonucleic acid testing in the United States has shown that mistaken eyewitness identifications are the reason for more glowering convictions than all other causes combined (Connors et al. 1996). and, this statement about eyewitness misidentifications that is one of the most common causes of wrongful convictions ( Rattner, Sagarin, 1986). Borchard inform that eyewitness error occurred in 45% of 65 cases of wrongful convictions. Huff (1986) found eyewitness errors in nearly 60% of 500 wrongful convictions and Ruttn er (1986) reason that eyewitness error occurred in 52% of 205 wrongful convictions. All these wrongful convictions studies were conducted before the invention of DNA testing. In 1996 a study which analysed of the application of DNA technology to forensic issues in the United States, has revealed some significant facts (Connors, et al., 1996). More specifically 28 men who were found guilty for various criminal acts were clear(p) through the analysis of DNA typing. Eyewitness identification was the single most common factor accounting for these erroneous convictions. Furthermore, Wells, et al., (1998) added some more cases to the list of DNA- related to with false identifications. These cases revealed that one to up to five eyewitnesses made false identifications of innocent suspects. Nevertheless, the eyewitness evidence was presented by well-meaning and confident citizens it was highly persuasive but, at the equal time it was at least eruptially responsible for the majority of wr ongful convictions. More recently, The Innocence count on reputationed some significant facts. The Innocence Project is a national litigation and public policy organisation dedicated to exonerating wrongfully convicted individuals through DNA testing and reforming the criminal justice system to anticipate future injustice. The findings of this project show that about 66% of 138 cases in which DNA could exonerate the accused, wrongfully eyewitness identification was involved (Wells, 2004).As eyewitness concerns the memory process it is undeniable that some memory trace exists and this could have important consequences for the course of justice (Wells, 1993). Few people would doubt that human memory is fallible. check to Haber (2000), people tend to believe that memories are like video recorders that faithfully record the things that people do and replay them back perfectly later. The fact is that sensory(a) and perceptual experiences of an incident are not recorded in memory in a similar way to a videotape recorder (Yarmey, 1980). military man memory is constructed and reconstructed from stored bits and pieces of acquired information of what actually happened and what a person intuits, discovers from others, or infers must have happened(Graham, 2008). Following the reconstructive view, memory can be split into three ramifications (1) acquisition or encoding of information (2) retention or storage of information over time and (3) retrieval of stored information through remember and recognition. A lot of problems may occur in each of these three make ups.Loftus (1979, 1996) has focused a lot in these three stages of memory in order to understand the problems that may occur and lead to false convictions. Thus in the first stage which is encoding, the information first goes into the memories. More specifically, if not enough attention is paid to what is going on the encoding stage, then events may not be encoded properly. For example the length of time an eyewitness is able to see the perpetrator, pull up stakes affect the accuracy of his/her memory. That is, the longer an eyewitness can see the perpetrator, the more will be able to encode and retrieve later on the identification task. Thus, exposure time is a very important variable that can affects the accuracy of eyewitness identification ( Laugherty et al., 1971). Furthermore other problems that may influence the encoding stage are the event salience and the prior expectations of the eyewitness. Usually eyewitnesses pay more attention to some details than others and also recall expectation not necessarily the truth. As a result they give wrong identifications (Loftus, 1974). During the second stage which is storage, people keep the information in their memories to recall later. In this stage the factors that may influence the eyewitnesses testimony are the length of time or the exposure to new information. For example witnesses might read a new report about the incident, whic h can affect their headmaster memory, or if the information is stored for a long time the natural processes of forgetting could come on degrade the memory. For this reason, some witnesses are more susceptible than other to false memories. However, people appear more susceptible to post-event information if it occurs later in the interval before formal retrieval (Loftus, 2005). Moreover research suggests that witnesses from each end of the age spectrum may be less reliable on average than those in between. For example, elderly witnesses and young children were found to be poorer at identifying strangers accurately than other age groups (Ceci Bruck, 1993). Moreover, according to Loftus (1974) another reason that may lead to false memories is the stress that might experiment different eyewitnesses. racy levels of stress have been suggested to have a negative effect on a witnesss ability to encode and retrieve information (Kassin et al., 2001). in the end the retrieval stage which is when the information is released in peoples memories, perhaps as a response to questioning, it can create notwithstanding changes. For example the way questions are asked can distort the original memory or the stressful circumstance may prevent accurate recall. Psychologists distinguish two types of retrieval, recall and recognition. Recognition is where, for example, a eyewitness may take part in a line-up and asked if they have seen it before. The recall equivalent of these tasks would be to ask the eyewitness to describe the suspects appearance or what they were wearing. Recall is usually considered to be more difficult because it involves more stages of processing, not only verification but also retrieval (Kebbell Wagstaff, 1999).Other factors that can lead to wrongful evidence are the confidence that eyewitnesses may have the different type of questioning and problems with line-ups. First of all confidence should always be taken into account when assessing the risk of misi dentification. Research has shown that lawyers in general accept that confident witnesses are accurate (Leippe, Manion Romanczyk, 1992 Wells et al., 2000). It is suggested that people tend to be more confident when they are forced to take answers which can cause difficulties in the criminal proceeding (Bornstein Zickafoose, 1999). Moreover badly worded questions, complex sentences and difficult vocabulary are all potentially problematic for witnesses (Kebell Johnson, 2000). Finally according to Busey and Loftus (2007) there are some problems with line-ups. These problems might be inadequate matched fillers, which means that the foils do not match the descriptions of the offender provided by eyewitnesses, bias and unconscious transference which happens when the witness has seen the suspect before but not genuineise this.Eyewitness testimony is a topic that has a lot of limitations and need for further research is essential. The majority of studies knowing to assess the validity of eyewitness have been conducted in laboratory and have used videotapes or live simulations of crime events. unless a minority of these researches have been field studies involving genuine victims and eyewitnesses of real crimes (Brigham et al., 1982 Krafka Penrod, 1985 Pigott, Brigham, Bothwell, 1990 Penrod Cutler, 1997). Of course, eyewitness identifications are made under all sorts of the adequate conditions, but these studies were based on conditions that made witnesses feel more comfortable. For example in several studies there was no psychological pressure for identifying the perpetrator, because in a laboratory study there is not any real risk of the defendant to be sentenced to forensic settings. Furthermore another factor that makes these studies inaccurate consists of the fact that witnesses were asked to identify photos rather than real people and there was no arousal for a lot of studies at the time of the encoding. Finally another element to take into consideratio n is the confidence of the witnesses. In some cases it has been shown to have a significant effect while other studies have shown that it does not.A factor that may increase the credibility of the eyewitness testimony is the expert testimony about eyewitness identification. Such expert testimony has already been allowed in numerous countries around the world (Fishman Loftus, 1978). Expert testimony is designed to provide scientific information. According to Loftus (1978), an expert psychologist can describe to the jurors the studies that have been conducted and the results from the experiments on peoples ability. Furthermore expert testimony about eyewitness behaviour takes part when a professional psychologist is admitted by the judge as an expert authority on eyewitness testimony who is presented in the court and informs the jurors about scientific studies related in memory and the variables that are known to influence memory and memory report (Vidmar Schuller, 1989). Research h as shown that expert testimony is the only legal safeguard about the factors that affect the reliability of eyewitnesses accounts to perceive and recall complex events (Cutler Penrod, 1995). Thus the jurors can have enough information on which to evaluate the identification evidence correctly. However expert testimony is not always useful (Cutler Penrod, 1995), expensive time -consuming and there are limited number of experts (Wells, 1993).To summarise, eyewitness testimony is very important in the determination of various legal decisions and also eyewitness accounts are essential because they serve strong evidence against a defendant. However researches have shown that inaccurate eyewitness identifications can have serious consequences leading to wrong convictions of innocent people. The reasons which provoke these erroneous convictions may be problems in the three stages of memory or some types of physical features such as the age and the race of the witness, the behaviour of ot her witnesses, the presence or absence of expert testimony and the confidence of eyewitnesses. Moreover researches have revealed numerous limitations. The fact that research is mostly based on laboratories studies can be problematic when it comes to apply to real-life situations with precision. In addition a not well organised structure of the line-ups and the inappropriate questioning techniques can contribute to witnesses making mistakes. Nevertheless, eyewitness testimony continues and will continue to have value because it is considered to be one of the most important factors of evidence in the court which provides vivid and virtual evidence of an incident. On the other hand witnesses are not mechanically unreliable. There is much that can be done to promote good evidence both by the police and the courts. It is the forensic psychologists role to investigate further issues which lead to accurate as well as inaccurate accounts and to assist the criminal justice system in interpre ting research findings for the benefit of all parties. New studies may help increase the value of the eyewitness testimony by enhancing judges and jurors knowledge of this type of testimony and this can reduce wrongful convictions. Judges and jurors will be more aware of the dangers of erroneous eyewitness testimony and more willing to permit legal safeguards, including expert testimony which informs them about the limitations that they have to be aware of and not to discount a testimony entirely in these limitations. Moreover increasing judges and jurors knowledge of eyewitness testimony is also essential because expert testimony is not a panacea for erroneous identifications. Finally, a dialogue between judges and researchers who specialise in eyewitness studies would be useful in increasing the value of the testimony. Reducing wrongful convictions is vital because the continual discovery of false convictions undermines the reliability of the legal system.