ShantanuT01/DACTYL-Pretraining huggingface dataset:
Introduction Natural disasters range from climatic cataclysms such as droughts, floods, hurricanes and tornadoes to geological catastrophes like earthquakes, volcanoes and tsunamis. Their consequences are both short-term and long-term and lead to either negative or positive consequences on the economy of a country. This effects of natural disasters essay will examine each outcome of such tragedies. Generally, natural disasters affect the physical infrastructural facilities and lead to a lack of agricultural productivity. They tend to cause the loss of life and damage to property. Various factors influence the effects of natural disasters on a country. Among them are the magnitude of the disaster, the geography of the area affected and recovery efforts directed towards reducing the immediate consequences. Failure to mitigate the short-term economic issues impacts the long-term economic growth of a country. It can be crucial to understand both causes and effects of natural disasters. This essay, however, will focus on the negative consequences that follow such tragedies. Effects of Natural Disasters on Natural Resources The effects of natural disasters on natural resources can be both negative and positive. Natural disasters such as hurricanes and tornadoes dislodge trees causing a reduction in forest cover. Hurricanes and floods also wash away the fertile top soil reducing soil fertility that negatively affects agricultural productivity (Popp 2003, 63). Disasters also lead to the destruction of agricultural resources notably crops and livestock. Natural disasters such as droughts and floods affect crop and livestock farming thus reducing agricultural production (Bradford & Carmichael, 2006: 56). This phenomenon results to “high food prices products, which in turn affect the economic stability of a region or country” (Maharatna, 1999: 54). Natural disasters also lead to the destruction of wildlife and natural phenomena thus affecting tourism; for instance, storms such as the Tenerife storm in 2005 destroyed ‘El Dedo de Dios’ an important tourist attraction thus affecting tourism Natural disasters can also cause beneficial effects to a country’s economy. Rich fertile alluvial soils deposited on flood plains are ideal for faming of crops. Additionally, Abbott posits that “Disasters such as volcanic eruptions emit volcanic ash that forms fertile volcanic soils ideal for agriculture” (2004: 342). Volcanic eruptions also lead to the formation of craters that are important tourist attraction. Effects of Natural Disasters on Physical Infrastructure Natural disasters such as earthquakes and floods destroy infrastructural facilities such as roads and airports affecting transportation and economic growth. As Temple says, physical infrastructural facilities are important in stimulation of economic growth of any country (1999: 139). However, natural disasters destroy these structures and thus negatively affect economic growth of a country. Critical infrastructure such as transportation and communication, health systems and energy supply are affected by natural i
Since extensive academic attention has been paid to organizational studies within recent decades, more topics associated with organizational development and leadership have been revealed and explored. This trend is specifically relevant to rapidly developing economies, such as that of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). A specific topic that can be addressed in the context of UAE organizations is the relationship between media and economic impacts and event success. It can be argued that some organizations tend to perceive a dilemma of whether achieving success in specific activities or making an impact in general should be pursued. However, it can also be argued that this perception is misleading because the two notions are connected to different aspects of organizations’ operation. To research the relationship, it is necessary to explo
Introduction For one to understand the new demands placed on policing as a result of the war on terror, it is important to define the police as well as policing. In this case the police refer to an association that has been recruited by the government to maintain law and order as well as prevent crime. Policing refers to the concern by law enforcement representatives such as the state police, business firms as well as citizens in creation of an environment that guarantees the citizens of a nation of their safety (Bayley & Shearing 1996, p. 590). It is noteworthy that traditionally policing in countries all over the world was concerned with the security of citizens from internal threat as well as maintenance of law and order within the country with no consideration of external threats. Nevertheless, we are presently living in an era characterized by global violence. The character and form of terrorism has become more diverse and multifaceted and rebel groups have become even more elusive and intricate. As a result, new demands have been placed on policing from the international war on terror. The aim of this study is to investigate the new demands that have been placed on terrorism as a result of the international war on terror. Types of policing systems Traditional types of policing There are mainly two types of policing namely: the control- dominated system and the community- oriented system. The control dominated system In this system of policing, the main role of the police is maintaining order in a situation where the populace does not identify the state as well as its mediators namely the police as lawful. In communities where this type of policing system exists, the police may engage in a variety of managerial responsibilities on behalf of the state, but seldom give a public service that deals with the interests of the society. The police force is a well ordered and managed organization with the paramilitary features. As a result the difference between the police and the military is small. This system can be accredited with the conventional policing that was utilized in Continental Europe. In this case settlements were put up by Britain and its European neighbors and the Communist Europe. A case in point is Fosdick 1969, 270 who worked as an administrator with the New York Police Department, toured Europe at the beginning of the twentieth century. In this case he made a contrast between the central military like and the control- oriented police systems present in America and England. According to Chapman 1970, p. 35 the basis of the idea of a ‘police state’ formed the basis for the growth of policing in the former Soviet Union and consequently, its satellites in the Eastern parts of Europe. Russia’s policing type features include a militaristic as well as centralized uniformed police affiliated with the secret police force ; the main focus in th
Introduction The visit to this museum was carried out on the 1 st of March. This museum was viewed to be appropriate for the assignment because of the close correlation between world cultures and fine arts. Fine arts speak volumes about human societies, and therefore this visit was expected to be quite informative. The museum is open throughout the year including on public holidays. The visiting hours start from 10 am to 5 pm, however, on Thursdays and Fridays, the closing time is extended to 9 pm. Friday was viewed as a flexible day in case there was a to spend more time past 5 pm in the museum. The museum was not crowded but there was a considerable volume of visitors on that day. There were many exhibitions that were of interest to the museum. However, the replica of the Rosetta stone and a painting titled Domestic, Wild, Divine: Artists look at animals were remarkable and are the subject of this article. Say What? How Ancient Writing Began This exhibition can be found at the Memorial Foundation for Children Teaching Gallery. The exhibition is a replica of the Rosetta stone. It represents the early writing used by the ancient civilizations. The replica represents the very bridges to our civilization. Prior knowledge of the Rosetta stone is important for one to appreciate the significance of this exhibition. I had this prior knowledge and that is why this exhibition was remarkable to me. After examining the replica, I began to suspect that the past civilizations must have been very advanced maybe more than we have ever imagined. At this point, the thought of why modern science has not been able to show properly and convincingly how the Egyptian pyramids were built was presenting itself as proof. I am also aware that the Rosetta stone has caused some tension between the UK and Egypt and this even raised my curiosity over the stone replica. I tried to see whether I could figure out the language on the stone replica but I could not pick anything. As I moved to the next exhibition item, I had a full conviction that the Rosetta stone was living proof of the past civilizations’ ingenuity. Domestic, Wild, Divine: Artists Look at Animals This exhibition can be found at the Mellon Galleries section of the museum. This exhibit has some images of animals particularly horses and an elephant. Animals have so much been part of human civilization all through the ages and therefore it makes sense when they are included in art. The impression created by the animals in this exhibition elicits a lot of reactions. The horses are shown to be on swift motions. Each of the horses is depicted to have some colorful pieces of cloths probably tied to them. It is not easy to figure out what these pieces of clothes are meant to show in the picture. There is also an image of an elephant with its back wrapped with pieces of cloths and ropes. There is a person who sat on the back of the elephant and the elephant is in motion – walking. The image depicts the elephant to be in a joyous mood. The exhibit in some
Some Asians are critical of American individualism which they equate with selfishness and other anti-social behaviors, whereas to them conformity means cooperation and social harmony. Americans tend to believe the opposite and might conclude that Asians would benefit from a more individualistic approach to life if only to prevent another Great Leap Forward or Cultural Revolution. These are extreme examples of conformity but the West has its own, such as Stalin’s purges and the Holocaust. Even in America such incidents as the Salem witch hunt, McCarthyism, and the Day Care Sex Abuse Hysteria of the late 1980s indicate a tendency toward mindless conformity. Using the study “Deviance or Uniqueness, Harmony or Conformity? A Cultural Analysis” by Heejung Kim and Hazel Rose Markus, and Hanna Rosin’s “The Case Against Breast-Feeding,” it will be argued that, apart from some superficial differences, East and West are both essentially conformist cultures. Kim and Markus began their project by asking themselves whether East Asians are more conformist than Americans. East Asians, they claim, are raised to value tradition and social mores and to see the individual expression as childish and showing a lack of concern for the community. In Korea, for example, the term conformity means “maturity and inner strength.” Children are taught to respect their elders and to learn from them so that these values are handed down from one generation to the next and thus are thoroughly internalized. In such societies conformity is not brought about by social pressure but because conformity brings a pleasurable sense of belonging to a group and a culture (Kim and Markus 786). American culture, media, and even social psychological research reflect the ideals of uniqueness, say, Kim and Markus. Americans are told they “should go their own way, chart their own course, and march to the beat of a different drummer. Consequently, people follow the norm not to follow norms” (787). They concede that people’s perception of their ordinariness or individuality may be illusionary, more the product of their environment than anything natural, but their studies were designed to test just how deep these qualities run. They conclude that in American culture, “where people are taught to respect individual rights before the collective and the basic units of society are individuals, we see the glorification of individual freedom to reject norms and an aversion to conformity” (795). To Kim and Markus, cultural values determine the individual’s choices so that Americans actually have no choice but to make their own choices and East Asians have no choice but to choose what everyone else chooses. These are simplistic ideas and the authors more or less acknowledge that by disclaimers inserted in their summary. One of these states that “cultural phenomena are complex, subtle, and replete with inconsistencies and contradictions among ideologies, institutions, practices, and a wide spectrum
Jack Dykinga is a prominent photographer whose pictures of mountains, forests, and prairies continue to fascinate many people. His rich palette and ability to depict space is very difficult to recreate, but they produce a powerful impression on viewers. To examine his style, one can take a look at two of his photograph of Petrified Forest National Park and Sand Tank Mountains. Overall, I can say that Jack Dykinga has been able to portray the beauty of nature in Arizona. Moreover, his techniques should be considered by professional photographers who are interested in landscape. There are several aspects of these photographs that I would like to discuss, namely the interplay of light and shadow and structured space. These are the issues should be examined. There are several qualities of these photographs that make them almost unforgettable. One of them is structured space. For instance, one can look at his picture of Petrified Forest National Park 1 . There is horizontal divide that separates shaded and illuminated parts of the mountain. Overall, I say that such a moment is very difficult to capture and it is a skill of a great photographer. It is worth noting that this picture was taken at sunset and but the Moon is still visible. Moreover, this picture has a very rich palette. The viewer can see how grey color of the mountain is transformed into fiery orange and this image is unforgettable. In my opinion, this effect is difficult to produce because one has to occupy a certain position and use a certain type of camera. Overall, these qualities distinguish Jack Dykinga among others. Additionally, one can look at the way in which Jack Dykinga photographs Sand Tank Mountains 2 . There is one detail that attracts the attention of the viewer, in particular one can mention the contrast between bright and dull colors. Overall, the photographs of Jack Dykinga enjoy considerable popularity among people who like the landscapes of Arizona. It should be noted that Jack Dykinga is one of those photographers who has made the images of Arizona nature popular among many people (Browden, 1994). On the whole, the works of this photographer are of great interest to me. While working on this project, I attempted to recreate some of the techniques used by Jack Dykinga. For example, I attempted to emulate his palette in which there is a divide between dark and bright colors. In my opinion, this effect is very difficult to achieve because a photographer should choose a certain angle and moment when one can see an interplay of light and shadow. This task is quite challenging. Furthermore, one has to choose the best moment at which one can capture the game of light and shadow. Certainly, I will try to develop my own style of photography. However, I do like Dykinga’s perception of nature and his ability to highlight the beauty of landscape. The pictures discussed in the paper show that that a photographer is not a mere observer of people or physical environment. This individual should be able to see how colors, shapes, and
Executive summary This is an individual report that focused on analysing the external factors that could impact the performance of Argos Retail Ltd in the UK. Our team members agreed that the firm is based on a strong platform that has been instrumental in gaining significant market share. An analysis of the various strategic models and theories, such as SWOT analysis, PESTEL analysis, Porter’s five forces, and Porter’s diamond mode provided a clear status of the company. Group members agreed that the management of the firm should use the Porter’s five forces model to improve the performance of the organisation. A key pillar of the proposed model is the gain of market share through focused competitive approaches. The model is characterised by five forces that could either positively or negatively affect the performance of the organisation. In a market that has strong competitors, it would be expected the profits realised from business operations would be driven to normal profits (Johnson, Whittington, Scholes & Pyle 2011). A competitive analysis of Argo shows that it has a remarkable level of competitive advantage (Perdana, Roshetko & Kurniawan 2012). The firm has high quality goods that are offered at competitive prices. Its main rivals have not yet utilised the integration of the online shopping in their business activities. Thus, our advice to the management team of Argos Retail Ltd is that the firm should take advantage of the huge potential for growth that would be supported by their excellent brand and dynamism with regard to changing of customer behaviour. Introduction This report offers an overview of the academic and practical research that was conducted by my team. It gives more emphasis on my individual contribution to achieving the goals of the team. My area of research focused on understanding how external factors influence the performance of Argos Retail Ltd in the UK. At the start of the group assignment, we agreed on the approaches we could utilise to gather data that were critical for the assignment. All group members agreed that we could use a significant number of sources so that we could provide a report with reliable and valid conclusions. We used more than 30 sources. The sources were from academic journals, business magazines, newspaper articles and labour office reports, among o
Introduction The conflict between Native Americans and American immigrants is an interesting topic for discussion because of its magnitude. It has been mostly caused by dissimilarities between these two cultures. Native Americans were not ready to accept changes that were coming, and American immigrants have taken advantage of this fact. It is especially hard to discuss that numerous women and children were ruthlessly wiped out by both sides. It is hard for modern people to understand such barbaric behavior, but it must be said that the times were different. It is a part of history that is sometimes overlooked because of the subject matter that is hard for most to comprehend. It is also paramount to understand the fact that Native Americans did not know the meaning of the concept of a nation, and it was one of their weaknesses during the conflict (Barnes 19). Societies that have been formed by Native Americans were truly unique, and it is hard to argue with the immense richness of their traditions and culture. It is imperative to discuss the role of the chiefs of Native American tribes. They were respected by the people, and some of them are well known for their quotes. The traditions and culture were of utmost importance for them, and this should not be disregarded. Native Americans have become excellent hunters and riders as a result of frequent changes in the lifestyle, and this aspect has had an imperative role during the conflict. Young individuals participated in armed conflicts to demonstrate their courage because they wanted to be accepted by the elders. They could get married if they been to war and brought an enemy’s scalp in some tribes. One the other hand there are American settlers that have moved from numerous countries and wanted to explore new territories. It is one of the youngest nations in the world that has formed as a result of European colonization. The exploration of the new areas was imperative for the settlers that have moved into the area of Northern America with their families. They have brought a broad range of traditions and technologies with them. However, it needs to be said that the culture has changed over the years with the development of the nation. It was inevitable that conflicts with people that inhabited these lands would occur. The difference in weapons that were preferred by both sides of the conflict also needs to be discussed. Native Americans were mostly using hatchets, tomahawks, knives, spears, bows, and others. These weapons were unique and innovative because they were created mainly for hunting. Also, they were able to buy rifles from traders. American immigrants have used more traditional weapons such as swords, cannons, mortars, and
Is your family prepared? The fact that natural disasters are sudden and inevitable and do not have a way of preventing ourselves against them, a natural disaster plan needs to be made available for families within their immediate communities with proposals and guidance on creating an in-house disaster plan for their families if these non-controllable events happen. The relevance of this topic, in this case, is the fact that prior planning saves families a lot of time and agony once they are faced with such disasters. Before any disaster strikes, a family needs to develop a sustainable disaster plan for most of the common kinds of disasters, which have a high likelihood of affecting it (Schaefer-Jones, 2007). Planning to stockpile several disaster supplies as well as protecting the families’ homes will be achieved by keeping in touch with all constituent family members. Here, it is important to make decisions for the times that you will offer shelters at other homes or during evacuation. The thesis also proposes that the essence of thorough disaster management preparations (Kumar, 2011). Here, it is prudent to gather all necessary disaster requirements and supplies for sheltering back at home as well as prepare mobile disaster supply kits if the family has to evacuate. It is important to note that disasters have the possibility of striking quickly without warnings. This forces you to evacuate the immediate neighborhood or even confine yourself to your respective homes. It is therefore prudent to plan for various basic services including water, gas, electricity, and telephones which are cut off. Even though local officials as well as relief workers will be at the scene due to the disaster, they cannot be in a position to reach everyone immediately (Bradley & Bradley, 2011). This way, families can cope with such a disaster through proper preparations made in advance as well as working together as teams. Acknowledging what to do is one of the best forms of protection and a fundamental responsibility therein. This topic also focuses much emphasis on the importance of practicing prior the eventful occasions. Training the family on how best to manage disasters through practicing as well as conducting family disasters is a sustainable drill in achieving safety. This also helps the family bring to attention what needs to be done in times of difficulty. The aspect of protection is on an individual basis and this needs to be cultivated within each family member (Panneerselvam, 2004). Protect one, home, and possessions in times when disaster warnings are issued is critical and instrumental in developing emergency communication plans. If family