ShantanuT01/DACTYL-Pretraining huggingface dataset:
The United States experiences periods of catastrophic weather occurrences, especially between June and November. In “How Do Hurricanes Form? A Step-Step Guide”, Plumer and Arrieta-Kenna indicate that people get bombarded with different meteorological terms during this period. Terms such as “Tropical storm, Tropical depression, Category 3 hurricanes, Category 4 hurricanes” are invidiously used (3). However, in research from Plumer and Arrieta-Kenna, these terms characterize different weather events. The most important aspect is for the population to understand the diverse phases of a hurricane, step by step. Plumer and Arrieta-Kenna seek to describe the different phases of the hurricane by using the case of Hurricane Irma, which struck in 2017. It commenced as a wave off the African coast. It kept becoming bigger, causing major destruction on numerous Caribbean islands and finally hitting the U.S coast of Florida as a Category 4 storm (2). Plumer and Arrieta-Kenna use their knowledge of the development of a hurricane to prompt the reader’s feelings to make them understand the differences in terms used by meteorologists. They begin by describing the initial stage of a hurricane in the form of a tropical disturbance. A systematized thunderstorm commotion characterizes the first stage. The activity stretches for 100 miles and keeps this character for over 24 hours (RedCross). The tropical disturbances usually begin as storms in the course of the summer that move westward off the coast of Africa in the form of “tropical waves.” The attention of meteorologists is usually drawn to tropical disturbances that show signs of further development, after which they start to observe their progression keenly (14). Plumer and Arrieta-Kenna continue to build on the logic of a hurricane by introducing the second stage, which they call a cyclone or tropical depression. In a logical progression, they introduce a spinning element into the tropical disturbance. Spinning takes place in a region where the tropical disturbance bounces into low pressure. According to Plumer and Arrieta-Kenna, other favorable conditions for forming a cyclone include warm water with temperatures not less than 80°F. Adequate moisture must also be manifest, and the local winds need to be arranged in a manner that facilitates spinning (4a). The readers are taken to the next stage of developing a hurricane, which entails a decline in pressure allowing more air into the cyclone that engenders strong winds. The additional power and speed of wind exceeding 39 mph create a tropical storm. Irma reached this stage on August 30, 2017, in the far eastern Atlantic. Finally, Plumer and Arrieta-Kenna introduce the term hurricane, which embodies the fourth stage of development. A hurricane occurs when a tropical storm passes over a region with warmer temperatures, and winds maintain their speed. In the process, pressure at the center of the tropical storm decreases, and the winds accel
Introduction The rate, at which change is taking place in society, as well as the challenges posed by the digital era, forces any government to employ new strategies in order to realize its existing strategies. Based on this, development of strong leadership strategies, instituting strong governance and embracing the culture of professionalism as regards to knowledge and information handling, is critical if the government wishes to accomplish its missions. This essay aims to evaluate the importance of freedom of information in government. It analyzes the effectiveness of information sharing within three domains: among government agencies, between the government and the public and between the private sector and the public sector. Firstly, the major aims or objectives of freedom of information will be presented, followed by a discussion on the reaction of the government regarding free information flow. The third chapter explores the new systems of openness, whereby the government has been forced to accept information sharing. The last chapter offers a succinct conclusion, whereby it is reiterated that information sharing plays a critical role in boosting the security and the economy of the country. Major Aims of FOI Aims of Policy Makers One of the aims of policy makers is to develop the value of information and data that is within the public domain (Dawes 2010, p. 379). Information and knowledge found at various levels serve different purposes, hence the policy makers ought to improve them in an attempt to utilize them in the most suitable way. The availability of such knowledge and information benefits members of the public in a number of ways because it empowers them to take up their roles as citizens. This in turn would affect the economy and bolster the performance of the government. Improved information and knowledge handling enable policy makers to develop evidence-based policies, implying they would engage in research before designing new policies. Thus, policy makers have the opportunity of evaluating the results of the existing policy by means of information sharing process. It should be noted that efficient utilization of information, namely in decision-making, encourages the drafting of strong policies and superior service delivery (Cartwright-Hignett & Carter-Silk 2011, p. 31). Studies show that sharing information with the right people at the right time facilitates better value and more adaptive service deliverance, since it reduces doubling-up of roles and the chance for error (Cartwright-Hignett & Carter-Silk 2011, p. 33). Furthermore, improving the value of information enables personalization of services and utilization of customer knowledge (Cartwright-Hignett & Carter-Silk 2011, p. 35). Another aim of policy makers would be to develop a knowledge handling and sharing culture, which would disseminate the power of the information within the public domain (Birkinshaw 2010, p. 314). Previously, policy makers were simply concerned with improving information handling techniques, but not information sharing sk
Introduction The first Russians immigrants reached America in early 1747 and initially settled in Alaska having come as fur traders. Following their settlement in the area, they brought about the Orthodox Church which became active in the region’s transformation and in 1795 the place became a colony of Russia. The first settlements were founded on Kodiak, an Alaskan coast island and they extended to the Alaska mainland Yakutat and Sitka. With increased tension between Britain and Russia, Russia sold its possession of Alaska to America in 1867 and moved southwards to California and Oregon while others moved back to Russia Approximately 2.95 million Russians are in America according to the 1990 US census results while other sources say that 750,000 Americans have roots in Russia; 44% of these people live in the North East (Boston areas), 16% in the Midwest, 18% in the South, and 22% in the West (Russians and East Europeans in America, 2009 para 4). Today, the Russians immigrants are concentrated in the East like the Alaska area, and in major cities like New York, San Francisco, Chicago, and Detroit. Russians’ homelands have been described as two, the present day Russia is one and it includes the territory presently inhabited by the ethnic Russians. The second is the territory beyond Russia historically described as part of the Russian empire which was later known as the Soviet Union (Russians and East Europeans in America, 2009 para 5). Russian Americans are the first immigrants and their descendants originated from countries such as Baltic, Belarus, and Ukraine. The Russians migration to America was forced by several factors and history has several immigration and emigration stories that Russians underwent. The Russian immigration to America can be seen in four different waves as explained in this paper. The third wave is described as the promise to America and was the wave that occurred after 1945, and the fourth wave known as the second exodus is illustrated as well as its effects and causes. The major Russian American achievements that have changed Americans have also been given and the Russian desire to preserve their culture is prominently seen in their habits and religious practices. The first wave The first wave of migration of the Russians was in the second half of the nineteenth century and during the early 20 th Century before the First World War. This migration involved the Jews running away from the Pale Settlement. The Pale was a territory established in 1786 after division of Poland where the Jews were forced to move out. During this time the Jews practiced business for livelihood and they educated their children to the university level (Gibney, & Hansen, 2005 p.134). They maintained strict orthodox doctrines and never allowed marriage between Jews and non-Jews. Some Russians immigrants were connected to the religion and they settled in Los Angeles and later moved to Willamette Valley in Oregon. The Molokans were known for their agricultural practices and religious practices of sobraniye, which was a religious service they attended regularly. Many of the Star
Introduction Information technology projects are subject to failure or success depending on several socio-technical issues. The success of a project depends on a developer, and the user or the customer. The main objective of the developer is to always meet the customer’s requirements which will deliver a working system. The users’ desirable demands should be met hence they will be satisfied. Discussion There are issues which affects the success and the failures of the projects such as the scope creeping which is the most common socio-technical issue. Scope defines the system and its boundaries. It also states what the system is expected to deliver. When the developers stick to the limits of the project, they will deliver a working project within the set project duration. Scope creeping makes the project too large to manage since it increases the system functionalities thus affecting the project timing. It is very crucial to go by the scope while developing so as to attain a good quality project. Scope creeping should be avoided by all means by the developer. There is an issue of planning which involves having a clear plan for resources to be used in project development. Time is an essential factor and it should not be overlooked since proper time scheduling will lead to a good project. Every project activity must have a well defined time scale and resources needed. Planning gives define milestones to be undertaken in order to achieve the desired goals. A budget should be prepared as a planning tool which estimates the cost throughout the development process. Team motivation is an important factor during the development process which should be highly practiced (Berniker, 1992). The project development team should always be encouraged so as to concentrate on the project work hence motivated team will strive to deliver what is best. Appreciating the efforts of the team and paying them well is the best way to encourage them. It has been seen with recent statistics that a team that has a good relationship with their team leader tend to be more productive. While the teams which do not have a good relationship with their team leader lacks motivation to work. User involvement is another important issue in development process. The users should be involved throughout the development of the project since they are the ones who are going to use the system. Failure to include the user will make the dislike the system since they will perceive it as the developers’. Every project should be ended when its duration has elapsed so as to avoid it taking more resources than it had been planned for earlier (Myers & Lamb, 2007). The developer should ensure that the customer’s critical factors had been included in the project before its closure. If there is need to add more functionality to an already closed project, then it should be considered as another project. New resources should be allocated to it such as time, effort, money and labor. Risk management is a very vital activity and should
The 2008 Financial Crisis is known as one of the worst recessions in the American economy. The domestic meltdown turned into one of the most devastating world economic crises. It also led to the lack of trust in the government and gave rise to populism in politics (“Panic: The Untold Story of the 2008 Financial Crisis”). The current essay describes the causes of the Financial Crisis of 2008 and the solutions suggested by the Keynesian school of thought. The starting point for the 2008 Financial Crisis was the appearance of the mortgage crisis. According to “Panic: The Untold Story of the 2008 Financial Crisis”, the crisis was caused by unconscious mortgage lending. In turn, this facilitated the creation of the housing bubble that finally burst, causing the Wall Street crisis that grew into a national and later the global one (“Panic: The Untold Story of the 2008 Financial Crisis”). Two years before the crisis, the housing prices went down, and the banks gave loans to too many people. Finally, this caused a high level of non-payments because of which banks lost their liquidity. Such an event became possible due to the securitization and deregulation of the American economy. Keynesian school of thought argues that government intervention in economics makes sense if the goal is to reduce unemployment and stabilize prices (Jahan et al. 53). This way, it could be suggested that the crisis of 2008 could be prevented if the government intervened in economic affairs instead of deregulation. Besides, Keynes emphasized the necessity to avoid deficits and surpluses in trade. This practice could be recommended to use by the government to deal with the outcomes of the crisis (Bateman et al. 225). Additionally, the Keynesian school suggests using fiscal stimulus as a measure that would facilitate the resolution of the crisis. Already by the end of 2008, this recommendation was used by the leading 20 economies in the world to cope with the consequences of the crisis and stabilize domestic economies (Giles et al.). Thus, it could be observed that the views propped by Keynesians appeared to be useful and led to the revival of the school. Works Cited Bateman, Bradley W., et al. The return to Keynes . Harvard University Press, 2010. Giles, Chris, et al. “The undeniable shift to Keynes.” The Financial Times , vol. 29, no.12, 2008, Web. Jahan, Sarwat et al. “What is Keynesian Economics?” Finance and Development , vol. 51, no. 3, 2014, pp. 53-54. “Panic: The Untold Story of the 2008 Financial Crisis.” YouTube , uploaded by HBO, Web.
While delivering his ruling in the case of Regents v. University of California v. Bakke, Justice Harry Blackmum, a judge of the US Supreme Court, upheld the decision by institutions of higher learning to use race as one of the guiding factors in selecting qualified students to join college. The court ruled out that the practice by the medical school at the University of California at Davis to preserve positions for less-privileged minority students in each entering class was unlawful. Justice Blackmum noted that “in order to get beyond racism, we must first take account of race. There is no other way” (Cornell University Law School, n. d.). I do not agree with this statement because it appears to suggest that one’s identity is judged by his/her race and that when judging someone’ potential or character, race should be a guiding factor. If at all we intend to end racism, we must learn how to judge people based on their character, skills, and identity. We must also stop evaluating people based on their race. Racisms involve grouping people based on their ethnicity or color of their skin. It also involves taking action on racial grounds. By definition, racism means taking account of race. Based on this definition, Justice Blackmum appears to suggest that we must be racists in order to end racism. This is not only immoral, but also illogical. We should always endeavor to judge people by the content of their character, as opposed to the color of their skin. That this statement means is that we should not use skin color to evaluate the moral stature or competence of other men. For example, we should not use skin color as a factor in admitting people to institutions of higher learning on in hiring them. Instead, we should admit students or hire people based on their competence, qualifications, and skills possessed. However, in our modern society, this appears to be far from the case. Color preference seems to have replaced color blindness. Inasmuch as we may try to appear rational, there is no denying it that affirmative action entails a lot of racism (Bobo, 1998). Affirmative action promotes racism, in that it tries to please one group of people in the society at the expense of another group. In case society decides to adopt a colorblind approach, we may end up losing more than we are likely to gain from this approach. For example, because the colorblind approach hinges on the premises that race should not and does not matter, we stand to lose all that we might have gained by identifying with a different culture. In addition, we need to appreciate the fact that because all of us perceive the world differently, this is what adds spice to life. By adopting a colorblind approach through affirmative action, we risk losing this valuable possession. Nobody benefits from or desires the “sameness” idea
Diversity is a strategy that helps business premises to serve different types of people. As a telecommunications company, Sinclair Broadcasting Group (SBG) has proven its diverse nature through the various channels offered to different segments of its clients. In addition, gender equality is observed, although it is not as strong as it is supposed to be. In the current paper, the author responds to a number of commonly asked questions about diversity. Sinclair is used as a case study in responding to these queries. Organizational Structure and Diversity in Sinclair Like any other business, SBG is headed by a chief executive officer (Sinclair, 1997). The officer is the overall decision maker. A board of governors exists to advise the CEO or president of the company before making any decisions. As such, it is the executive officer who holds the powers to make principal decisions (Harvey & Allard, 2011). The president is also the chairman of the board of directors at SBG. The composition of the board of directors and senior managers illustrates diversity at Sinclair (Sinclair, 1997). For example, every department has a head who is a vice president in the organizational structure. The diverse departments provide a varied environment in SBG in general. In addition, there are different female anchors working for the television stations. Diversity of the Board and Management at Sinclair Diversity in the board of management means that gender equality is observed. A number of women are found in the hierarchical organizational structure of SBG. The women serve as group managers and senior vice presidents. However, a comparison between the number of men and women at the various management levels reveals that male employees are dominant. The development raises a major issue that needs to be dealt with. In corporate governance, it has been established that the participation of women in senior management levels boosts financial performance of the firm. As Harvey and Allard (2011) state, a number of policies to nurture the advancement of women in business circles have been put in place in different organizations and countries. The Diversity of the Target Market and Management at SBG A company operating from different perspectives offers better ideas in policy development compared to a firm working with a single worldview. Another major advantage of diversity is improved service delivery. The different cultures depicted by employees from various socio-economic backgrounds help in understanding customers served by SBG (Harvey & Allard, 2011). Defining a target market is important in establishing the needs of the clients (Harvey & Allard, 2011). Using this strategy, SBG strives to offer high quality services to the consumers. The diverse management team and employees from different backgrounds help in establishing ta
Introduction There are various engineering disciplines such as mechanical, electrical and civil engineering. However, of these three engineering disciplines, civil engineering is broad. In fact, civil engineering comprises of many other smaller disciplines that can on be engineering disciplines by themselves. The reason why civil engineering is dominant over other engineering disciplines is that it is broad and deals with many things such as design, building, and refurbishment of corporeal and ordinary built environment. Civil engineering works include the construction of houses, highways, and roads. Other major works that requires civil engineering background include the construction of canals, water reservoirs, and bridges. Just like military engineering, civil engineering is old, and into divides into very many sub-disciplines such as geophysics, materials science, geotechnical engineering, transport engineering, surveying and many more. At least in all levels, both private and public, we see very many works of civil engineering. This paper discusses civil engineering as a professional career (Narayanan and Beeby 5-13). History of Civil Engineering Profession Undoubtedly, since the existence of humanity, men have done things that make their lives easier and comfortable. For example, the world has always witnessed the development of technology. Through these developments, we now have modern houses and structures, state-of-art bridges and canals, and magnificent roads. These are civil engineering works. Many historians believe that the first civil engineering practices originated from Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia. During these times, people lived in shanty hoses due to their nomadic way of life. However, the need to abandon the nomadic life prompted the desire to have permanent shelter, which became their home. Additionally, transport was gradually becoming vital and with the development of wheels and sailings, for sure they needed roads. Although the peculiarity between architecture and civil engineering become lucid in modern times, civil engineering practice was still evident in ancient days. For instance, the edifice of Egypt pyramids in 2700 BC, water management system in Qanat, the Appian Way, and other constructions prove that civil engineering is among the oldest engineering disciplines. It is paramount to note that during the ancient times, military engineering, the oldest of all engineering disciplines, incorporated civil engineering too. However, at the beginning of the 18th century, those opposed to military engineering decided to form a society of civil engineers with their main offices in London. They defined civil engineering as an art using natural resources a