ShantanuT01/DACTYL-Pretraining huggingface dataset:
Executive Summary Macro-economic factors are factors that affect the wider financial systems such as national, regional, or international economies. These factors span across the whole economy. They affect all industries or many markets. Some of the macroeconomic factors that have an effect on the main industries and economies include unemployment rate, inflation, the Gross Development Product, and interest rates. The property market in any economy constitutes one of the most important means of livelihood for many households. The housing or real estate industry in particular is important, with households spending a significant amount of their income to pay for the services provided. One of the most important developments that led to this paper’s focus on property markets is the sub-prime crisis in the USA that led to the global economic crisis (Vargas-Silva 2007, p. 998). Many economies around the world were affected, thus leading to the stringent measures put in place to control the macroeconomic factors that influence property markets. Some of the factors discussed in this paper include unemployment that has a negative impact on the property market. A rise in inflation causes a negative performance on property markets, similar to the situation that occurs after a rise in interest rates. On the other hand, the increase in GDP for a country is found to have a positive effect on property markets in the long-term for nations. These factors are tightly controlled by administrations in different countries and regions. They have the ability of changing the performance of any economy. The essay therefore discusses these factors and their effects on property markets. Unemployment Macroeconomic factors are not specific to any individual market. They include unemployment rates, the Gross Development Product (GDP), and price indices such as inflation among others. These factors have critical effects on the property markets. The performance of this sector is dependent on them much more than most other industries and markets. The property market mainly constitutes the housing market where the housing services are provided based on the factors of demand and supply (Zuh 2003). The goods and services markets are very subjective to elasticity in most instances. The property market is one that is inelastic especially in the housing supply (Vargas-Silva 2007, p. 998). Housing and the property markets are some of the major spending sources for many families. The changes in prices for this market are likely to have a major effect on families and in turn the national and regional economies. These changes in prices of property markets are therefore a major concern for individuals, governments, and other institutions. The supply in the property markets is not adjustable in the short run. Whenever there is an increase in expectations of capital gains from investments in this mar
Memory is regarded as the most complex phenomenon in the natural world of living organisms. It has been scientifically established that all organisms have very complex mental processes which help them interact with their respective environments (Schacter, 2002). Most researchers have been more concerned with understanding the concept of memory in human beings. The human brain is adapted and reorganized by the day to day experiences. Continued interactions with the physical world through the sensory experiences, perceptions, and actions play a central role in shaping and changing the state of the brain (Thompson & Madigan, 2007). These experiences will later determine what an individual would be able to recall, perceive, comprehend, and become. The essay seeks to discuss memory in terms of the processes occurring in the brain as far as memory is concerned. It will then analyze one of the existing models of memory as well as discuss some ways of enhancing memory. Researchers have made attempts to provide a comprehensive definition of the complex term of memory. Psychologists have defined memory in human beings as the ability to store, be able to retain for sometime, and recall the stored information, depending on individual’s experiences (Kandel & Squire, 2006). Memory has also been investigated long time ago by the philosophy investigators. Towards the end of the 19 th century and the beginning of the 20 th century saw the rise in research into memory under cognitive psychology. Modern studies into memory are mainly conducted under cognitive neuroscience which is an inter-link between neuroscience and cognitive psychology. Most of these researchers are also interested in understanding the relationship between memory and the mind. The information that is received from the environment can be classified into three main stages in storing and recalling the information. First, there is the registration otherwise known as encoding of information. It involves the reception, processing and the synthesis of the information received (Thompson & Madigan, 2007). The second stage involves the total retention of the encoded information. The last stage is the recollection or retrieval of stored information through bringing them back to conscience. Information storage process has three majo
1508 BC: The birth of Hatshepsut Hatshepsut was born in 1508 BCE to Pharaoh Thutmosis I 1 . Her mother was known by the name Ahmes and she was allegedly a concubine to Thutmosis I. She was raised as a princess in the Egyptian royal courts. She had two brothers and a sister, but they all died at a young age, thus leaving her as the only child. This scenario presented the Pharaoh with a dilemma regarding the heir of the kingdom now that all his sons had died. Image 1: Pharaoh Thutmosis I 1508-1492: Hatshepsut’s upbringing Hatshepsut grew up in the royal courts of the Egyptian Empire under the kingship of her father Thutmosis I. Following the death of her three siblings, Hatshepsut became the favorite child to her father. Therefore, Thutmosis I took time to teach Hatshepsut different skills associated with boys. The King’s dilemma was the person who would inherit the kingdom after he died. Perhaps he was convinced that Hatshepsut would become the heir, which explains why he treated her as a boy. 1492 BC: The death of Thutmosis I Thutmosis I died when his only daughter, Hatshepsut, was 12 years old. Therefore, the kingdom was handed to Thutmosis II, who was Hatshepsut’s half brother. To ensure the continuity of the kingdom, Thutmosis II married Hatshepsut. Hatshepsut served as a Queen to Thutmosis II for 13 years before he died in 1492. However, by the time Thutmosis II died, his son, who was supposed to take the throne, was only 7 years old 2 . 1492 BC: Thutmosis II becomes a king After the death of Thutmosis I, Thutmosis II took over the throne. However, Thutmosis II was not a legitimate heir because he was not born in royalty. Unfortunately, the kingdom had to be handed over to someone, and thus he became the only available option for the post, albeit with some conditions. One of the conditions was to marry his half-sister, Hatshepsut, for purposes of ensuring continuity in the royal family. Image 2: Pharaoh Thutmosis II 1480 BC: Hatshepsut becomes a Regent When Thutmosis II died, the legitimate heir of the throne, Thutmosis III, the son of Hatshepsut, was only 7 years. A disagreement broke out concerning who would be the heir. One side suggested that Hatshepsut should take over because she was the legitimate heir. On the other side, another group emphasized the need to have a male Pharaoh. However, an oracle by Amun declared that Thutmosis III should taker over. Therefore, given his age, Hatshepsut became a regent for him 3 . Image 3: Hatshepsut depicted as a woman 1479 BC: Male depictions After she became a regent, Hatshepsut saw the need for a male figure at the helm of the throne. Being a leader, perhaps she
Introduction There have been many economic systems in history of the world, all formed out of various ideologies but the most prevalent one has been capitalism. It is a system whereby the means of production are in the hand of private owners and its main aim is profits and more profits. Supply, demand, price, distribution, and investments decisions are determined by made a liberated market governments have little or no authority over the market. The revenues from the entities are mainly for the owners and little is used to pay wages to workers. “In this system therefore production is done by the employees who use their employer, producing commodities which belong to the employer. Labor is a commodity of production (just like equipment and materials) belonging to the employer” (Daniel 1986, p. 156). Other economic systems that have been in existence earlier are: feudalism, socialism and communism, all these systems are a little similar but all are completely different from the ideology of capitalism. Both communism and socialism advocate for equality on ownership of property; property should be under the control of the government and all forms of means of production including labor are to be owned by the state to ensure fairness. These systems have been advocated for by many economic theorists for; example Adam Smith, David Ricardo, Karl Marx, among others. One of the crucial issues in this system is labour; as said earlier everything in capitalism is determined by the market including labour. People who believe to have unique talents are paid very highly and once they stop being good at the particular job. The rewarding system of capitalism is very mean because some people earn more than they should for example CEO’s will earn more than anyone else in an organization yet he does perform as many tasks as those below him. Karl max is one of the greatest and most controversial sociologists and economic theorist who existed in the 19 th century but his woks have lived on up to date. He is one of the major proponents for the communist system and a radical political philosopher who some considered to be very dangerous. He criticized capitalism in his various works and said that one day socialism will take over from it. Another major theorist is Adam smith who is considered to be the founder of economics as a science. He integrated social theory with economics and stipulated the way man should live .They both have similar ideologies but politically they are completely different each trying to advocate for the best economic system. Both of them agreed that there would be no consumption without production but their differences were on how production should happen. Smith believed in division of labour which would involve specialized tasks allocated to people who are good at the tasks. The division of tasks would ensure maximum productivity due to specialization . “He saw in the division of labor and in expanding markets virtually limitless possibilities for the expansion of wealth through manufacture and trade” (Shaikh 1998, p. 65); and this would only happen if the government
The internal environment at Overstock.com Purchasing of products over the internet is a key strong point for Overstock.com, especially with the advancement in technology. The firm is the pioneer in the field of online shopping; hence the company has gained a competitive advantage over its competitors that ventured into online shopping technology later on. By being a pioneer in the industry, Overstock.com is in an advantageous position as it has developed its capabilities over time (Overstock.com, 2011). For instance, the firm has gained a huge market share due to its advanced expertise and trust that they have won from the customers. This has led to the firm realizing a high rate of sales turnover due to increased demand from the current and new users of their products (Overstock.com, 2011). The firm’s report (Overstock.com 2011) indicates that its employees are highly motivated; this is a factor that enhances its production. To enhance productivity, Overstock.com has opened a university whereby associates are further equipped on management tasks among others. This is a strategy that prevents brain drain out of the company and enhances the development of skills of the personnel existing in the organization (Zahorsky, 2009). Overstock.com’s strategic choices at the business, functional, and corporate levels Overstock.com applies the corporate strategy level in conducting its business as indicated by participation in the merchandizing of businesses at the same time. The company deals with the sale of its online products to its consumers, advertising other companies’ products, and auctioning of their products online (Overstock.com, 2011). This is indicative of a good corporate strategy level of operation performed by the firm. The company is, for instance, involved in the diversification of its markets throughout the world to win over customers from all over the world. The firm does this through both online and TV advertisements intending to gain a larger market share and a higher market command than those they have (Bramha, 2011)
The central bankers of the Federal Reserve Bank of United States of America, the European Central Bank and the Bank of Japan have been included among the world’s most influential people due to their economic influence. To begin with, the federal reserve bank’s monetary decisions usually influence the adjustment in most of the world‘s economies, because most transactions take place using U.S. Dollars. On the same note, these economies are among the world’s top economies and any action taken by their monetary committee always has spillovers to other countries in the world (Kolb, 2010). These economies, being among the world’s top importers and exporters, usually change their money supply and interest rates which influence trade in the whole world; and this is usually done by the central bankers. In March 2009, following the effects of the financial crisis the Federal Reserve Bank opted for an expansionary monetary policy. The FED announced its intentions to buy $300 billion longer-term securities, and increase purchases for agency debt to $200 billion and mortgage-backed securities to $1.25 trillion. The expansionary monetary policy meant that there was an increase in money supply, which increased the amount of money that people were holding. In this regard, many people had money they were willing to deposit in banks while banks held a lot of money they were willing to lend (Kolb, 2010). Therefore, interest rates were reduced to discourage people from depositing money and encourage them to borrow from banks. On the other hand, due to reduced interest rates, exchange rates also depreciated in relation to other currencies (Hall & Lieberman, 2012). The decrease in interest rates discouraged banks from passing on the credit to consumers because the return to the money was low. However, the banks had a lot of money in their possession and consequently relaxed their lending rules, to increase the chances of getting borrowers (Hall & Lieberman, 2012). On the same note, the decrease in exchange rates and increased money supply increased consumption of local commodities, thus increasing market for local businesses. Similarly, lower exchange rates discouraged imports because they became relatively expensive while encouraging exports. Therefore, as far as international trade is concerned the monetary policy increased net exports (Kolb, 2010). Monetary policy is very influential in any economy. As such, it is my opinion that it would be convenient for the FED to use a policy mix, applying both the Keynesian and the monetary theory. Keynesian theory states that prices are not flexible downwards while this was disapproved during the 2007 financial crisis, when the prices of houses crashed. Nevertheless, it was discovered that monetary policy alone cannot stimulate the economy, because government spending was vital in stimulating economic growth after the financial crisis (Hall & Lieberman, 2012).
At the beginning of the 21 st century, obesity and overweight in children and adults are one of the main national health problems. This is a national problem because around 30% of the population are clinically obese which results in extra 300,000 deaths each year (Clinical Guardlines,2006). In recent years, major advances in the understanding of overweight and obesity have confirmed that they constitute an important medical condition. A better understanding of the genetic contribution to both weight gain and the intra-abdominal distribution of fat (central obesity) is identifying certain ethnic groups and susceptible families who are specifically at risk. The main risks are that obesity causes heart disease and diabetes, respiratory complications, and hypertension. The thesis is purposed that the increased number of obese people in America is caused by the development of the fast-food industry and sedentary lifestyles typical for the majority of the population. Obesity becomes an epidemic in America no longer regarded simply as a cosmetic problem. There is increasing awareness that overweight and obesity are key factors in the development of other chronic diseases and contribute to the high mortality rates of such diseases (Campos 26). The main risk factors are that obesity is associated with increased release and higher plasma levels of free fatty acids (FFA) which may trigger a reduction in insulin sensitivity at both the hepatic and the muscular levels. While in the skeletal muscle such metabolic abnormality results in a reduction in glucose uptake, oxidation, and storage as glycogen. Interestingly, muscle biopsy studies have shown a positive relationship between intramyocellular triglyceride content and whole-body insulin resistance. Each year, the government spends millions of dollars on healthcare and social support for obese people. “The total cost attributable to obesity amounted to $99.2 billion in 1995. Approximately $51.6 billion of these dollars were direct medical costs associated with diseases attributable to obesity. The direct costs also associated with obesity represent 5.7 percent of the national health expenditure within the United States” (Clinical Guardlines 2006). Thus, it was found that the main causes of obesity in American are the fast food industry and false advertising
Recent Social Movements: Overview In the last two years, there have been some distinguished social movements to advance social changes in society (Imhonopi, Onifade, and Urim 76). They involved multiple issues that activists wanted to address and bring to public attention. These issues ranged from environmental, wages, immigration, police profiling and killings, and transgender among others. Although none of these issues addressed by recent social movements is novel, activists have focused on them for many years, and the last two years have presented opportunities to engage stakeholders who have previously not participated in social movements, including the police, politicians, media houses and unengaged public among others. Similarly, social movement events that took place in the last two years attracted a large number of people across the US. Notably, people with diverse characteristics were represented. These movements attracted parents, students, some law enforcement officers, community leaders, politicians, and more, specifically to address issues associated with racial discrimination and police brutality. It is imperative to recognize that various events have been organized to address these social topics for decades now. However, these recent social movements aim at creating social change today and in the future to advance human relations. For instance, following the killings of Eric Garner in New York, Michael Brown in Fer­guson, Mis­souri, Philando Castile, a young black man in Minnesota, a 13-year-old Tyre King, Terence Crutcher in Tusla, and many more, new national discourses about race, racial relations, police brutality against the African Americans and equality have emerged in the recent past. In this paper, Black Lives Matter is examined as a recent social movement. The research covers the goals, ideology, programs for social change, degree of commitment, stage of development, and societal reaction to the movement. Black Lives Matter Following the murder of Trayvon Martin in 2012, the founders of the #BlackLivesMatter claimed that the 17-year old Trayvon was posthumously placed on trial for his own murder while the suspect, George Zimmerman was set free. They subsequently founded the movement in the cyberspace as a sociopolitical media forum, giving it the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter (Ruffin par. 1). Three women, namely Patrisse Cullors, Opal Tometi, and Alicia Garza founded the organization based on experiences of Black Americans in the US to resist dehumanization. The movement is a call to action and a reaction to strong anti-Black racism that rocks the US. Black Lives Matter is a movement that goes beyond police killings of Black people to include other social issues that negatively impact people of the black
Introduction Biomass energy has gained massive support in recent years, due to its economic and environmental implications. As a renewable source of energy, biomass energy cannot be easily depleted. By definition, biomass energy is the utilization of organic matter using appropriate mechanical structures to produce energy. It is doubtless that biomass energy has advantages and disadvantages, which have to be considered when selecting a source of energy. This paper discusses the merits and demerits of biomass energy. Advantages of Biomass energy Biomass is widely known as a renewable source of energy, which is utilized in the production of electricity and other types of energy in most parts of the world. Biomass feedstock mainly comprises of organic matter that can be renewed for energy conversion. Commonly used include animal waste, agricultural crops and industrial wood. In discussing the benefits of biomass energy, it is important to note that it is renewable, i.e. its source cannot get depleted ( ACRE 2008). In addition, this form of energy is safe and does not pose severe environmental pollution. This is because of minimal amount of carbon compounds that are emitted when used as compared to fossil fuels. Additionally, it reduces the concentration of methane in the atmosphere, a compound that is responsible for the greenhouse effect. Importantly, it is cost-effective since the materials used are locally available. This reduces the expenditure of importing oil and petroleum products. Its production and consumption equally provides job opportunities in homes since manpower is needed ( ACRE 2008). Disadvantages of Biomass energy Despite the fact that biomass energy is safe and renewable, it also has an array of disadvantages. The first disadvantage is the addition of dangerous gases into the air during combustion of matter. Common biomass emissions include carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxides and sulfur oxides. These emissions contribute to global warming. Due to the fact that biomass feedstock comprises of crops and residues, there is demand for land, which can be used to raise these crops ( Alternative Energy Geek 2012). This land could be utilized for food crop production to feed