Pentecostal History Essay

The largest and the most important religious movement to originate from the United States is the Pentecostal Movement. It is considered as the fourth force in Christendom alongside Catholicism, Protestantism, and Orthodox, and its exponential growth rate in terms of adherents is testimony to its appeal. The Charismatic Renewal Movement has some of its roots in historic Pentecostalism, and it is now deeply entrenched in most of the mainline Protestant denominations, in Catholicism, and in some Orthodox. In the 21st Century, the total adherents of Pentecostals and Charismatics probably exceed the combined numbers of Protestants and Orthodox. Pentecostal statistics show a total adherent base of 400 million in 1993,including the 200 million members designated as nominational Pentecostals and 200 million Charismatics in the main Protestant denominations and Catholicism. â€Å"When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly a sound came from heaven like the rush of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues as of fire, distributed and resting on each one of them†(Garnett 1987) The Acts of the Apostles, 2:1-3 (Cox 1995) Background History Adherents of Pentecostalism take their name from an incident recounted in Chapter two of the Acts of the Apostles. The story describes how the confused followers of a recently crucified Rabbi whom they all believed to be the messiah of the world, had gathered to mark the fiftieth day after Passover. Suddenly there was a heavenly sound â€Å"like the rush of a mighty wind. † The Holy Spirit filled them, tongues â€Å"as of fire† crowned their heads, and surprisingly they could understand each other’s language although the gathering comprised people from many different countries and different linguistic affinities. Apparently, the ancient curse of Babel had been reversed and that God was creating a new inclusive human community in which â€Å"Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia† could all live together. Origins of the Pentecostal Faith The first Pentecost appeared on the scene in 1901 in Topeka, Kansas in a Bible school conducted by Charles Fox Parham, a holiness teacher and former Methodist pastor. There exists considerable controversy about the origins and timings of Parham’s emphasis on glossolalia; there is general agreement amongst historians that the movement was initiated in the first days of 1901, in the beginning of the Twentieth Century. One of Parham’s Bible School students Agnes Ozman , was the first person to be baptized in the Holy Spirit and she thereafter began speaking in different tongues on the very first day of the new century on January 1, 1901. According to J. Roswell Flower, the founding Secretary of the Assemblies of God, Ozman’s experience was the â€Å"touch felt round the world,† an event which â€Å"made the Pentecostal Movement of the Twentieth Century. Due to the Topeka Pentecost, Parham postulated the doctrine that tongues (glossolalia) was the biblical evidence of the baptism in the Holy Spirit and that it a was a supernatural ability endowed for the purpose of world evangelization. Glossolalia is an experiential phenomenon of an ecstatic, altered state of consciousness, in which â€Å"orgiastic techniques are cultivated to achieve ecstasy in the belief that unusual psychological and physical states are synonymous† with Spirit-possession. He added that since missionaries had the ability to speak in any language, they need not learn any new language for the purpose of evangelical preaching. Armed with this new theology, Parham founded a church movement which he called the â€Å"Apostolic Faith† and began a whirlwind revival tour of the American Middle West to promote his exciting new experience. â€Å"saw an angel coming down from heaven With the key to the abyss and a great Chain in his hand. He seized the dragon and chained him up for a thousand years So that he might not seduce the nations until the thousand years were over†. Revelation 20:1-3 â€Å"Fed by broken packing cases and discarded wrapping paper the fire quickly spread from the boarded-up Casino to the empty Music Hall. From there sparks flew through the arctic night to the roofs of the exposition†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ (Cox 1995). Prophecy of the Pentecost Traditionally, Americans have always had a strong dose of millenium drilled in to them, covering the time the puritans landed in New England to the revival preachers who traveled the Midwest on horseback, they were continually being told that the last stages of history was unfolding and that America would play a major role in the grand finale. Going in to the 20th century, prophecies and speculations regarding a new Pentecost and a New Jerusalem were rife. And in the last days it shall be, God declares, That I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh† Acts of the Apostles 2:17-19 â€Å"The fire from heaven descended on April 9, 1906, on a small band of black domestic servants and custodial employees gathered for prayer in a wooden bungalow at 214 North Bonnie Brae Avenue in Los Angeles, California†¦. †(Cox 1995) Pastor at Azusa Street Seymour who had learned the tongues-attested baptism in a Bible school that Parham conducted in Houston, Texas in 1905 was invited to pastor a black holiness church in Los Angeles in 1906. Seymour opened the historic meeting in April, 1906 in a former African Methodist Episcopal (AME) church building at 312 Azusa Street in downtown Los Angeles. The happenings at Azusa have fascinated church historians for decades and have never been fully understood or explained (Wackman 1994). For three years thereafter, the Azusa Street â€Å"Apostolic Faith Mission† conducted three services a day, seven days a week, where thousands of seekers received the tongues baptism. Word of the revival was spread abroad through The Apostolic Faith, a paper that Seymour sent free of charge to some 50,000 subscribers. From Azusa Street Pentecostalism spread rapidly around the world and began its advance toward becoming a major force in Christendom. The Azusa Street movement seems to have been a merger of white American holiness religion with worship styles derived from the African-American Christian tradition which had developed since the days of chattel slavery in the South. The expressive worship and praise at Azusa Street, which included shouting and dancing, had been common among Appalachian whites as well as Southern blacks. The admixture of tongues and other charisms with black music and worship styles created a new and indigenous form of Pentecostalism that was to prove extremely attractive to disinherited and deprived people, both in America and other nations of the world(MacRoberts 1988). â€Å"Pentecost has come to Los Angeles, the American Jerusalem. Every sect, creed and doctrine under heaven†¦ as well as every nation is represented. †(Frank Bartleman,1906). The Inter racial Aspect The interracial mingling at the congregations was a stark contrast to the existing racial tensions and segregations of the times. The interracial aspects of the movement in Los Angeles were a striking exception to the racism and segregation of the times. The phenomenon of blacks and whites worshipping together under a black pastor seemed incredible to many observers. The event also cemented William Seymour’s place as not only the most influential black leader in American History, but also as a co-founder of world Pentecostalism(Deyoung et al 2003). â€Å"This is the work of God, and cannot be stopped. While our enemies scold, we pray and the fire burns† Household of God, Nov. 1907 Spread of Pentecostal The Azusa Street movement in 1906, led by the African-American preacher William Joseph Seymour provided the much needed impetus for the spread of the Pentecostal faith, which until then had not really captured popular imagination. The first wave of â€Å"Azusa pilgrims† journeyed throughout the United States spreading the Pentecostal fire, primarily in holiness churches, missions, and camp meetings. In America Gaston Barnabas Cashwell of North Carolina, who spoke in tongues in 1906 was one of the Azusa Pilgrims, whose six-month preaching tour of the South in 1907 resulted in major inroads among southern holiness folk. Under his ministry, Cashwell saw several holiness denominations swept into the new movement, including the Church of God (Cleveland, Tennessee), the Pentecostal Holiness Church, the Fire-Baptized Holiness Church, and the Pentecostal Free-Will Baptist Church. Also in 1906, Charles Harrison Mason ,upon his return to Memphis from Azusa Street, spread the Pentecostal fire in the Church of God in Christ. The Church he founded comprised African-Americans only one generation removed from slavery. (The parents of both Seymour and Mason had been born as southern slaves). Although tongues caused a split in the church in 1907, the Church of God in Christ experienced such explosive growth that by 1993, it was by far the largest Pentecostal denomination in North America, claiming some 5,500,000 members in 15,300 local churches. Another Azusa pilgrim was William H. Durham of Chicago. After receiving his tongues experience at Azusa Street in 1907, he returned to Chicago, where he led thousands of mid-western Americans and Canadians into the Pentecostal movement. In 1914, he established the Assemblies of God, which by 1993 had over 2,000,000 members in the U.  S. and some 25,000,000 adherents in 150 nations of the world. Conclusion The Pentecostal Movement has proved to be a major force in Christendom throughout the world with unprecedented exponential growth of adherents. By the Nineties, The Pentecostals and their charismatic brothers and sisters in the mainline Protestant and Catholic churches had turned their energy and resources to world evangelization. The future will reveal the ultimate results of this movement which has greatly impacted the world during the Twentieth Century.

Healthy Life

Healthy life is a very important thing in our lives. We should watch what we eat. We should look at the nutrition label whenever we buy food and drinks. The most important thing on healthy life is exercise. Living healthy is very relaxing.The best thing to do if you want to live healthy is look at the nutrition label on anything you are eating. Look at how much calcium does the food has because it’s an essential nutrient to our body needs everyday and keeps our body run smoothly. Potassium give you strength and endurance that maintain higher level for a long time. Iron is the another best thing you should worry about because iron helps the blood transport oxygen from the lungs to the tissue cells where it is needed and if you don’t get the iron you need in future you will have problem. They are more good vitamins that you can eat for example â€Å"Multi-Vitamins† has everything you need for the whole day.The most important thing about being healthy is exercise be cause it prevent you getting any type of diseases. There are a lot of things that help you when you exercises everyday. Your body improves stamina because you motivating yourself to work your body out more and you feel better about yourself. The most important thing I have notice is insomnia problem because your not active an you cant’t sleep right. When you work out and active an doing stuff insomnia goes away and you will get nice sleep. Exercising is very important to everyone lives.Living a healthy and relaxing life is very important in our lives because you can live longer. If you don’t work out and be lazy and don’t worry about exercising your long term life will be in danger. Everyone should start exercising everything and trust me you will feel a different in your life.

1950s mens fashion

What Was The Fashionable sass Man Wearing? In the ass's life was changing in America. Due to the war, Europe had stopped producing fashion, this gave American designers a chance to show what they were capable of. As the wartime restrictions on fabric eased and America's economy improved, the population was able to express themselves through Men and Woman's fashion. There were certain elements of men's fashion in the sass that were standard amongst the general American population. As the war time restrictions on fabric tapered off fashion became more broad.Pleated Pants that had the big double pleats in the front, and a wide, full leg, a skinny tie and the cardigan sweater. † In America, Esquire introduced the â€Å"Bold Look, with wide shoulders, broad lapels. â€Å"(http:// incur. Com/a/union? Gallery). Because of the growing economy there was time for leisure. Men had separate clothes for leisure and work. â€Å"The suit was worn mainly for the office or heading out on the town†(http://incur. Com/a/union? Gallery'). In America after WWW there was great social and cultural change. Popular culture exploded due to mass media and consumerism.The sass brought in a number of subcultures with their own fashion. Many of these subcultures derived from musicians and movie stars like ‘James Dean' and ‘Elvis Presley, they were linked with gangs, rebellion and the teenage desire to be different. For example, The Greaser, was a style that originated amongst teenagers and young men in northeastern and southern United States. A Greaser was very well groomed, the hair was slicked back, and they wore motor cycle Jackets, white T-shirts and blue denim Shares with the cuffs rolled up. The music genre associated with the Greasers was Rock n Roll.Musicians like Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Bill Haley, and Archie Valves were huge influences on the style. â€Å"Up until the sass, men were rarely seen out and about without a hat sitting upon their head. â€Å"(http://www. Artificialness. Com/2008/03/01 [bringing-back-the-hat/). During the sass the wearing of hats declined. On the other hand the sass was considered the best era for men's hairdressing. Hairstyles were divided into the conservative, the short and the wild Rock n Roll . The main influence behind all the hairstyles was popular music and film stars.Due to the war, short haircuts like the military, crew cut and the ivy league haircuts were still in fashion. The conservative and rock n roll hairstyles used pomade to slick back the hair and create a shiny and greasy look. Pomade was used in many popular hairstyles like the pompadour, comber and the ducks erase. The popularity of sideburns rapidly increased due to Elvis Presley, and subcultures such as Greasers had side burns symbolizing post pubescent manliness. Omens shoes did not change much around the decades surrounding the sass. Men's shoes were made from leather and were typically a singular color.Dress shoes were usually Wingtips or Brogue's. Twelve Angry Men is a sass production. I have researched men's fashion in the sass, and so it would be practical to use it in the production. Wearing the correct fashion from the sass would help understand the setting better and enhance the characters personalities. The characters in the production are from a variety of different working backgrounds and social statuses. It would be very effective to use dress as a label for the different personalities on the stage. It is important in drama to exaggerate, so the audience can understand the message being sent through by the director.Table 1 . The Characters in Twelve Angry Men (http://en. Wisped. Org/wick/Twelve_Angry_Men) Table 1 shows the occupations and the personality traits of the characters in Twelve Angry Men. The costume designer can choose a costume for each of the characters based on occupation social status that I have found in my research. For example the house painter, a blue color worker. The costume designer could put him in a suit room the sass, without all of the sass fashionable changes, because he unlikely to be able to afford a more modern suit.This would help the audience to recognize his social status through his dress. If we decided to change the setting of the production, the research would not be wasted, even though fashion has changed since the sass. From my research I have found the important factors that influence fashion are mass media, consumerism, popular music and celebrities. These are still relevant today. If the play, for example, was set in 2014, these features will inform the fashion worn by the characters.

Natural approach method Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Natural approach method - Essay Example This approach to teaching has a socio-economic impact to all those involved. Individuals can get to exchange ideas with different people from other countries, which use different languages to communicate (Larsen-Freeman 183). This opens doors for globalization and industrialization. This paper will examine the approach, and its impact in today’s society. Based on works that were produced in the late 19th century, this approach was formed to better understand the critical nature of language. The aspects involved in the implementation of the approach were a step in the right direction. The socio-economic implications of having the ability to comprehend the knowledge surrounding languages were tremendous (Larsen-Freeman 187). It created a demand for the practical use of all disciplines available. New approaches were developed to cater to the rising need to have an understanding on the living languages. Time and lack of proper technology restricted teachers in that era to teach and listen to different languages. However, the introduction of a phonetic alphabet made work much easier. They could use this avenue to listen for sound and information. Through such techniques, this information would be passed on to the learner. Pronunciation and enunciation would then form the basis of their lessons. Visual aids and teacher-talk made this theory practical and intelligible. A positive impact in the learning process was made possible through these methods, and comprehensible input put into account by all those involved (Larsen-Freeman 191). This is especially by the learners. The main idea of the approach is to increase the competence of a learner in the communication level (Richards and Rodgers 179). It is not meant to be a grammatical perfection exercise. Emphasis is placed on listening as the teachers present the learner with an easy approach to understanding the material. This is what is referred to as input,

Summary of the film -- the flowers of war Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Summary of the film -- the flowers of war - Essay Example In 84th Academy Awards, the film was selected as the best foreign language film though it never made to the final list. The film also was nominated for the sixty-ninth Golden Globe Awards. The Awards of sixth Asian film presented this film with several nominations including the Best Film. The distribution rights in North America were acquired which led to qualification to Oscar limited where it was released in Los Angeles and San Francisco in 2012. In 1937, Japan invaded China, which led to beginning of the Second Sino War of Japan. The Imperial Japanese army overrun the Nanking the China’s capital city in December where they carried a systematic and brutal massacre in Nanking. The Chinese Army was overpowered by the invading Japanese Army, the desperate school-going girls fled to the protective walls of the convent at Western Roman Cathedral. At this place John Miller, who an American mortician was tasked with burying the priest met with the schoolgirls (Yan and Harman 55). He found a boy there by the name George, who was an orphan, rose by the dead priest and had some English proficiency. The boy was an age mate to most of the girls. After a short while a group of prostitutes came to the Cathedral, they took refuge where they hide in the cellar. Miller pretended to be a priest and tried to make everyone safe as he repaired the convents truck and used it to escape. After an incident when the Japanese forces assaulted the cathedral, Japanese Colonel promised to secure the Cathedral by placing some guards outside the gate and requested the students to sing the chorale for him. He later gave Miller an official invitation for the girls to go and sing at the Japanese Army celebration for their victory, but he feared their safety he declined. The Colonel told Miler that it was an order and that they were to be picked

The Role Of Financial Management In Successful Business Acquisitions Essay

The Role Of Financial Management In Successful Business Acquisitions - Essay Example Therefore in the light of all these considerations in order to ensure that my presentation is a success my aim will be to educate the audience into becoming more informed users of financial statements pertaining to mergers and acquisitions.I will emphasize upon the intricacies of financial accounting in this regard particularly with regard to goodwill, acquisition provisions and tax. Another consideration will be the use of acquisitions concluded by contract, rather than by exchange of equity interests. This is will also involve an explanation of how the GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) have coped with the variances in different systems in order achieve successful financial reporting objectives.The presentation will highlight the fact that corporate financial statements serve as information givers about the portfolio of the firm pertaining to its performance and prospects.My presentation will demonstrate the link between the economic atmosphere and how its reflects ont o a financial statement.Also included in the presentation will be how the organizational manager of a firm can communicate to the financial users the views of the financial issues thus taking on the role of a financial intermediary. Of prime importance will be an understanding and communication of financial statements and what should or should not be disclosed in line with the regulation and strategy.  This would help the acquirer recognize many intangible assets  separately from goodwill.... ng to its performance and prospects.My presentation will demonstrate the link between the economic atmosphere and how its reflects onto a financial statement.Also included in the presentation will be how the organisational manager of a firm can communicate to the financial users the views of the financial issuers thus taking on the role of a financial intermediary. Of prime importance will be an understanding and communication of financial statements and what should or should not disclosed in line with the regulation and strategy. The Balance Sheet The pith and substance of reviewing a financial statement prior to concluding a merger/acquisition contract pertains to the underlying economics of the economic events highlighted.The relevant information would include the figures which reflect the current value of the assets which are to be acquired and the liabilities assumed.This would allow a potential buyer to recognise the assets acquired and liabilities assumed at their acquisition date fair values and this should be reviewed regardless of the fact how these assets were acquired (that is by merger or contribution or even purchase).This would help the acquirer recognise many intangible assets separately from goodwill. The diagram above1 shows how the financial information and its disclosures will finally lead to the closing of a merger deal. Before concluding a merger or acquisition the experience accountant will scrutinise the pension and tax liabilities which will arise subsequently and how will they be computed post acquisition.Also relevant is the extent to which the buyer will be held responsible for the company's individual assets acquired and liabilities assumed . It has to observed from the balance sheet and agreed from the start how the liability for the

Bullying and Cyber Bullying Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Bullying and Cyber Bullying - Research Paper Example It is quite possible that a number of parents remain unaware about the fact that their child is being bullied at school or in the neighborhood; as many children might not complain about being bullied. In other cases, where children do complain about being bullied, their parents, caregivers, or school teachers might not take such complaints seriously. Thus, it is important that parents should take interest in whatever is going on in the school lives of their children, so that if they detect any disturbing signs in them, they can address the issue instantly. Keeping in view the rapidly growing rates of bullying in school, it is imperative for the teachers and the parents not to ignore the complaints of children regarding bullying. â€Å"Use of the three criteria of intention, repetitiveness, and imbalance of power for classification of behaviour as bullying seems now to be well accepted among both researchers and practitioners (e.g. Smith & Brain, 2000)† (Jimerson 11). When children interact with each other, they act and respond according to their individual behaviors. In general, they can either show normal or hyper active, or sensitive, or aggressive behaviors, depending upon the type of situation they find themselves in. Bullying is such type of behavior that has three distinct qualities: intention, repetitiveness and imbalance of power. Bullying is definitely not an unintentional behavior. A bully intentionally hurts the other child by identifying his/her weakness or sensitivity. It is normal for children to fight or quarrel during playtime. Normally, their quarrels are resolved within no time and they start playing again. But in a situation where one child is intentionally hurting the other, then they both might be gradually adopting the roles of a bully and the bullied, respectively. Their quarrels would not settle on their own but would

Cloning Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

Cloning - Essay Example According to Sir Johns, cloning humans will be the same as making an identical twin which is just like copying what nature has already produced (Collins). This can be used to relieve suffering among people who have lost their loved kids. Research has shown that about 60 % of the people asked to express their views towards cloning are in favour of it. However, cloning has been criticised as a result of various reasons. For instance, the Stanford Encyclopaedia of Philosophy argues that cloning raises a wide range of moral and ethical issues. For instance, embryos are destroyed for stem cells and this is seen as a serious moral wrong. An embryo should be treated as a human being. Cloning is also labour intensive and it is very expensive to carryout and this is one of the main reasons why it is criticised by many people. It is feared that the rate of still births can increase if cloning is done on human beings since this reproductive process would be different from the natural way of foetus development in the womb. Critics of cloning also argue that identity and personality of cloned individuals will be compromised and this can affect their social growth and development. There is a general feeling that cloning undermines human dignity which is enshrined in different international conventions about human rights. In my own opinion, I think cloning should be banned since the off springs produced are not original in nature. For instance, research has shown that the off springs are not 100 % perfect so there are likely chances that they will be affected by different health complications. I also feel that cloning undermines the dignity of people in different societies. This contravenes the law of natural life where it can be argued that it is only God who can create human beings. Cloned species would not be original and this is the reason why I am also against the idea of cloning human beings

English Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

English - Essay Example The very next day, the child mysteriously died (as cited in Clugston, 2010, pp. 44-50). This paper will use historical approach in criticizing and analyzing the theme of the story. Country Lovers is a very engaging story because of the intensity and the scandalous nature of the topic. Because of the heightened sense of racial prejudice during the early 1900s, a forbidden romance—an interracial romance is considered social taboo. And to even consider writing a literature that centres on this topic is truly fascinating and attention-grabbing to any readers, especially to those who are aware of American History and the heightened racial tension between the African Americans and the Caucasians in the South. This is very unpopular and unsavoury a topic for some but a social reality nonetheless; and the social stigma attached to mulattos is but a verifiable proof that though this is a work of fiction, it is grounded on social reality. Another aspect that adds merit to the story is t he credibility of the author. Nadine Gordimer was born 1923 in South Africa and have strong conviction on exposing the injustices that the majority of the black people are suffering—her people. These social injustices are the central themes of her writing and have since made impacts in improving racial relationships among countries (Clugston, 2010, p. 44).

Dq-4-Sheila Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Dq-4-Sheila - Essay Example example, the case study provided in this research involves studying the effects of the 2010 murder in Northern Illinois University among parents, students as well as the Faculty members. Normally this is the second step in implementing any type of research design. The objectives are usually formulated to serve a purpose of a guiding formula for undertaking a research; they are usually formulated in a realistic and manageable to ensure that the research meets all the intended objectives for instance (Alter, 2013): The case study provided, could be guided by an objective of studying and identifying the psychological effects of the 2010 murder among students and other concerned stakeholders. There are different types of data. However, it is usually crucial for any researcher to identify and determine the appropriate data that his intended research will require. Additionally, the researcher should identify and state the sources of data, taking in consideration the nature of his/her study for example if the research is a case study, the researcher could opt for qualitative or quantitative data recorded in books as well as other primary sources of data that could be collected through interviews (Alter, 2013). This information is usually properly stated at the beginning of the research for readers to have an insight regarding the intended research dimensions presented. There are different techniques applied in collecting research data; however, the criteria for selecting any research technique is usually based on the type of data needed, taking into consideration the research design as well as the objectives for instance, a theoretical research would majorly depend on qualitative data, which can be collected through focus group interviews or even observation (Bryman & Cramer, 2011). This is the fifth step of implementing a research design; identification of a study scope is crucial for purposes of determining the sample size as well as the geographical coverage of a

What Are the Purposes of Prisons Essay Example for Free

What Are the Purposes of Prisons Essay

Hospitality and Transport Essay Example for Free

Hospitality and Transport Essay The historical development of hospitality has been developed for more than2000 years. There are normally 3 different types of hospitality, which are: i) hostels ii) motel and iii) hotel. There is also self-camping facility for people staying and living in the campsites. The first early travelers were either warriors or traders or people who traveling for education or religious purpose. As there was no hotel at that time, so they pitched their tents for temporary accommodation. After the camping period, there were some small Inns that were the first type of commercial enterprise within Hospitality industry, this has been the first catering service in the field of hospitality where customers pay for different service while staying in the Inns. In the early days, the travelers used to stay in a large communal room with limited privacy and the places were rough and simple. All the guests were usually shared the same quarter with their houses and livestock. As time went on, some luxuries structure of hospitality was gradually introduced for the wealthy travelers with private rooms and toilets. There was little improvement had been made in the inns, the Hoshi Ryokanis the world’s oldest hotel, it is located in Komatsu, Japan. The hotel and spa have been owned by the same family since 1300 years ago. The quality assurance scheme (Star rating) is usually rated by customers who had been staying in the hotels. The star rating system allows customers to assess the standard of accommodation and rate them at their own choices. It also motivates businesses to continually improve or maintain their standards and encourages healthy competition. Nowadays, the hotel industry has equipped with a Star rating for people to review. The rating is start off with the lowest rating e.g. ‘One Star’ rating which represents clean and tidy, have basic facilities, acceptable with all basic needs in the rooms. They may even provide breakfast for the guests as well. On the other hand, the higher the hotel rating means better and more luxury the hotels are. For example the Six Stars rated hotel will normally include a 24- hours’ reception and room service, internet PC and self-care production in the room. The world highest rating hotel is ‘The Burj Al Arab hotel’ in Dubai that is widely described as a Seven-Star property. New Trends of hospitality: * Electronic check-ins, guests’ registers as preferred customers are sent key cards equipment with the latest of identification technology that uses radio frequencies. On the day of guest ‘s confirmed arrival, a text message will be sent to their mobile device carrying basic details: room number, timing and the guest do not have to go to the check in desk while arrived, they just have to simply moves to his room and uses the key card. It saves time for both the guests and the hotel. * The historical development of transportation: *   The first earth tracks were created by humans. The first ever transportation was using animals such as horses, oxen and donkeys which became an element in track-creation. Tracks were often flattened or widened to accommodate animal traffic. Few years later, the Travis was developed to use on the icy road. By the development of transport, the first modern highways were designed by John Loudon McAdam, using paving material of soil and stone. The modern history of road transport also involves into the development of transportation such as new models of horse- drawn vehicles, bicycles, motorcars, motor trucks and electric vehicles. The development in UK: * The main transportation in UK is facilitated air, rail and water networks. A radial road networks have a total of 29,145 miles of main roads, 2173 miles of motorways and 213750 miles of paved roads. The rail network consists of  two independent parts: Great Britain and Northern Ireland since 1994. The Great Britain network is the oldest network in the world. The system consists 5 speed main lines from London to the rest of country. And also there’s some airports have built within those countries and London Heathrow airport have been known as the busiest in the world. The road network is the most popular method of transportation in the UK. Which carries over 90% of motorized passenger travel and 65% of domestic traveler. Local bus services are covering over the whole country since they operated by the ‘’ Big five’’ private transport companies such as National express, First Group and Stagecoach. The other similar transport of buses is coach, which provides a long- distance links throughout the UK. The majority of coach services are provided by national express and Scottish City link is operating in Scotland. Newest development in the world * The newest development of transportation in the world is the high speed TGV, It is developed during the 1970s by GEC. And the word ‘’TGV’’ stands for Tre’s Grande Vitesse (Very high speed) which has the top speeds touching 200 mph. It is more than just a train it operates from Paris or Lille for little more than just 3 hours. And major crossing France and northern Spain. Inside will be including arm sets and individual tables. It can also reach over 150 destinations by the high- speed TGV network. Current trends of the transportation section: * The road, air and rail transport are used by the people who are able to afford extra money on transport and even a holiday (high income groups), buses are used predominately by low income groups such as pensioners and elderly people. * In 2003 85% of distance traveled was by car or taxi; with 6% being by bus and 6% by rail. Air, pedal cycle and motorcycle accounted for roughly 1% each. * Three in ten homes in Britain don’t have a car (13 million people) * Passenger transport has grown in recent years, the statistic figure shows that total passengers travel in domestic country has risen from 1970 to 1979 billion in 2004 Part B Chosen city: Barcelona, Spain = Where Barcelona located in the Map * * * Recently there is some tendency of young couples getting married in overseas, so the couple can travel together for a romantic trip as well as getting registered marriage in overseas. Also, honeymoon travel packages are getting more popular and only those leading travel operators have the resources and reputation to organize such tours. I am therefore intending to organize a package tour for couples and the destination will be Barcelona, Spain – a very romantic and artist’s city in Europe, yet the overall living standard in Span is relatively lower than other European countries and still one of the most popular destinations in Europe. Since many couples like to go to travel to other countries and cities, so I propose our company to consider promoting a package tour for couples. The name of the tour will be â€Å"Romantic Package Tour in Barcelona, Span (3 to 7 days). In order to explore the package tour in a more holistic approach, the following topics including transportation (External and Internal), accommodation and catering in the city of Barcelona will also be discussed for the package. Transportation: * By train: Firstly, you can take the Euro star to Paris and then you can choose either overnight train or daytime trains from Paris to Barcelona. London to Barcelona by train: * It is a more eco-friendly option for tourists to travel. If you are planning to go to Barcelona with a longer time staying, here’s one of the choice for you to experience more with you lover. Train hotel will be your choice to  choose. There is a restaurant and a bar in the overnight train, it gives you an opportunity to enjoy a meal with a bottle of wine in the train, the fare start at  £39 one-way or  £69return for the Euro star plus  £68 each way for train hotel. Including a bed in a 4-bed Tourist class sleeper or a  £152 each way per person in a 2-bed Gran please sleeper with private shower and toilet, dinner and breakfast next morning will be included as well. The other one is daytime trains, it operates since 2010, and It is a two double – decter TGV Duplex high-speed trains linking with Paris and Spain every day. You can firstly get into the Eurostar train from London then spend approximately 3-4 hours, you will be reach the destination. It’s a first sector of the new Perpignan-Barcelona high speed lines. There’s two different classes for you to choose in the train, the 2nd class seats on TGV is like a mix of unidirectional seating and some tables for four, the 1st class seat have a ‘club duo’ on the left and a ‘club quatre’ on the right. All seats inside are all with power sockets for laptop and mobiles. The Eurostar will cost  £39 one-way or  £69 for return, Paris to Barcelona cost starts at  £59 in 2nd class and  £73 in 1st class each way. And you can also use the train to travel to the other cities within Spain! By air: *   There are totally 3 terminals in Barcelona, A and B are for international flights and C is for domestic flight. It is the fastest way to travel to Barcelona and there are several options of budget airlines for you to choose from London to Barcelona, which include easy jet, Ryan air, and Monarch. The ticket will be around  £60-70 economy class for return. You can choose a higher class of seats which you only have to pay a little bit more for you to have more comfortable seats. After arriving at Barcelona you can get into the buses and they will take you through where your accommodation is. By sea: * * The port supports both ferries and cruises ships, this is the relax way to travel within Barcelona. There’s sun, sea and incredible views of the  city in the luxury and comfort way for you to enjoy your time being in Barcelona. The ferries hold routes to Liverpool and Portsmouth, duration from 7hours 30 minutes. So you can easily take a ferry to Barcelona. It is also a romantic way for couples to travel. Other Internal transportations within Barcelona: *   For sure, you can get to hire a taxi in the city and it should take you to wherever you like, all taxis in Barcelona are black and yellow so it is very easy for you to recognize it. It will show a green light when available for hire. Barcelona is also known as a cyclist friendly city with cycle lanes, packing facilities are many great traffic-free places to cycle such as port. You can also hire a car for self-driving to anywhere you wish! In conclusion, all of the above transportation will be one of the options for the customers in the package tour. The price of the tour is varies depends on the type of transportation they chose. The short 3 days tours are recommended to travel via air while the 7 days tours can choose either by sea or train. Accommodation: *   There are 3 main types of accommodations for customers to choose during the journey. Resort with facilities: * In Barcelona, most of these large scale resorts lie somewhere out of town and the couples are on the main coast road heading for sites. If they are enjoy themselves with their partners in the country side and they should take a more relaxing way- to stay in the city, staying in large resort is one of many types of accommodation You should be looking for. However it is not a serviced accommodation so you have to self-catering but they do provide space for you to cook. One of the best resort site near Barcelona city center is called ‘’Resort Barcelona’’ which is extremely well serviced and it operates a free daily bus to Place Cataluà ±a (the city center) from the site during a period of September to June. Travel time is about 30-60 minutes. There is also train that operates from MA taro to Barcelona city that runs every 10 minutes during the day. The resort site itself provides swimming pool, supermarket restaurant and an Internet cafà ©, so you don’t have to consider of buying food and drinks. The Internet connection within the site is very handy because they have several supermarkets inside the site and also have access of free WIFI in all of the bungalows and camping space. The site also has a beach club at the Matron Beach along with a Diving lab at the port of MA taro. It also offers bicycle rental from a reasonable price. So you can spend one of the afternoons with your love ones at the beach. Hostels: * It is the cheaper accommodation option that you have to share rooms with normally 4-8 people of bunk bed. The toilets and showers will also be shared amongst the guests as well. This type of accommodation will only aim at people who are traveling with a spotless budget of money and they prefer to have self-cater service for saving travel expenses. The other similar accommodation in Spain is family hostels, similar to Bed and Breakfast in UK, which is slightly different than hostels. It is operated by local families in Spain. Normally aiming a group of people, they will provide rooms with double bed, individual and triple beds. Some of them will have to share toilets and bathrooms but some may have their own inside the bedrooms. They will provide breakfast or you have to self-catering. Hostel Felipe II is a 2 stars serviced hostel. Welcoming, quiet and cheap accommodation right in the center of Barcelona. It is a modern, colorful and bright hostel. Which have been recently reformed. It only takes 10 minutes walking to the city center so it is one of the best choices of hostel. The facilities will include tourist information in reception open 12 hours a day, left- luggage service, bedclothes included in the price. Lift, common room and computer room, dining room, free Wi-Fi Internet connection, car park, Air condition/heating, private showers and toilet. The prices will be  £38 per night with private toilet and bathroom. Hotels: (3-4 star): * Hotels are one of the main types of accommodation which most of the tourists will choose to stay. There is star rating from 1 to 5+ but it is also the most expensive ones. But some of them have reasonable prices and it depends on which seasons you going to stay there. The three stars hotels offer small meeting rooms and business services, wirelesses Internet for guests to contact friends and family. It will serve hot and cold breakfast each mornings, additional property amenities will include multilingual staff; laundry services there will be private showers and toilets in the bedroom. It is more likely to be a basic accommodation, which is most suitable for all people. The prices are from  £40-100+. The example of it is ‘Travel Lodge’ which will provide B and B service and reception at a very low and reasonable price. Royal Ramblas is a 4 stars rating hotel that located in central Barcelona. It is connected to the airport within an easy reach and it only takes 5-10 minutes walking distance of Placa de catalunya, Las Ramblas and Barcelona cathedral There is also dining option at the hotel includes a restaurant and a coffee shop for you to relax during the day. It also contains tour assistance, airport shuttle, laundry facilities and currency exchange. The prices are from  £120 to  £200 per night (double bed). All the basic things are included in the hotel except some entertainment, so you may have to choose a higher rating hotel to reach your needs. Luxury hotel: * For those who is traveling for honeymoon or wedding I will recommended the customers can choose the higher class of hotels which is between 4 to 6 stars with luxuries service and facilities. 5 stars hotels often offer excellent access to the city center and all the main attractions in Barcelona and normally takes 10 to 15 mins to walk from the hotel to the city center. One of the popular hotel in Barcelona is ‘’hotel arts Barcelona’’ which owned by the Palace Carlton group which offers modern and high quality accommodation right on the sea front. To make your trip goes perfectly, we suggest our customers to choose the most luxury hotel in Barcelona to stay, which is Mandarin Oriental Barcelona. It contains 7 types of rooms for guests to choose from, and we have come up a choice of best three rooms for couples to choose. They are ‘’deluxe room’’ the classical room have goose down bedding, twice daily housekeeping service with complimentary water on turndown, large working desk, separate bath and walk-in showers, plush terry bathrobes. The other choice is ‘’Deluxe Terrance Room’’ with the added benefit of an outdoor Terrance overlooking views and the most impressive are the bathrooms, which feels like wonderful spa-like sanctuaries. The last one is ‘’Mandarin Terrance Room’’ which is a spacious room flooded with light and for you to enjoy a real sense of calm and space. It also contains light wood floors, white leather furnishings and sumptuous linens have been combined with white walls. All the rooms will include a fast, high quality bandwidth, both wired and wireless. A high definition LCD television including the latest movies for you to get some entertainment in the room and high quality audio system. Catering: * Self- catering: * There are five different types of catering service that the tourists can choose during their stay in Barcelona. The first one is self-catering which the tourists have to buy their own food form supermarket. But they have to  make sure that their accommodation have a kitchen or self-=catering facilities provided. These kinds of self-catering will provide for people who have the lowest budget for the trip, and for those who enjoys themselves being in the countryside because some people may go out for a picnic with their lovers to explore more about the nature. The local supermarkets are ‘’Las Ramblas’’, ‘’El Corte Ongles’’ and’’De Tot al Born’’ They are all operate from 10:00- 22:00. Some supermarkets may provide a 24 hours service as well. The budget can be flexible for self-catering and it all depends what you will buy in the market. But normally won’t be as expensive as the local restaurants . So it will cost about  £2-5 per meal and person. Medium budget traveler: * If you are aiming for a reasonable restaurant at a reasonable price but do not want to do the self-catering, I suggest these customers to go to some fast food restaurant such as ’Pizza Hats’ or some sandwiches cafà © to have their meals. Or even takeaway service from the takeaway shops near to their accommodation. The other cheaper choice for them is have a choice of good quality restaurant in cheaper price. There is one restaurant located near by the church of Santa Maria de Mar. It is called ‘’El Casal’’ the word ‘’casal’’ means a place of Encentro, exchange. The guests will enjoy a relaxing atmosphere, familiar and a quiet time with their lover in here. It Is mainly a sandwiches with premium Catalan products, fresh smoothie and a cappuccino. They can also book the restaurant for a special event for themselves and their partners. The prices are form  £2  £8 for a normal lunch. Dinner restaurant: * This is one of the most popular dinning places for couples/ families to have during their trip. It will normally present a relatively higher price from between  £8-40+ per person. It depends on the type of food and the restaurant’s location. They can enjoy the local Spanish dinner at ‘’La Rita’’ that is an Elegant and formal place with a modernist look, the  cuisine is based in the Mediterranean tradition. The prices for meal from  £7 to  £11. With a choice of vegetarian food as well. It also provides long life recipes, cooked over a low heat and with the best ingredients from the market that provides you a cozy environment with a special event. To make your trip goes more smoothly with a bottle of wine. In view of arranging package tour for couples in their wedding or honey moon trip, our company should aim at people who is willing to spend a little bit more money to make the trip most memorable, therefore I will highly recommended that the dinning in fine restaurants in the city is to the choice of this kind. Our company can also offer a pre-booking system for those most popular restaurants in the city that normally would not be possible booked by tourists. Some extra cost for this service would be added. This type of restaurant will be discussed in the next paragraph. High-class restaurant: To ensure the high class of the trip for the couples, dinning in high-class of restaurants are the way forward for the package for newly marriage couple as well as couples for honeymoon. Therefore I strongly recommend the couples to choose this type of catering service for them. One of the selling points as mentioned above was pre-booking system which is only available for local residents. Our company would offer such pre-booking for the couples joining the package. It is normally aim at people who have some special event to hold such as romantic proposal or an after wedding party. It is usually hard to book a table in the normal circumstances and should normally take a week or so. Our company would book in advance for the couples once they join the package tour with down payment made to the company. We would choose those high class restaurants with good reputation or famous rating under the Michelin of Stars, however our company does provide this service for special customers of getting married or going for honeymoon which they do not mind to spend extra money in the tour. In order to enjoy this lovely environment. Our potential customers can just simply say to us and we can manage to make the pre-booking of a table(s) for two. One of the restaurant we recommended to you is ‘’Comerc 24’’ which is a 1 Michelin star restaurant. The chef – Charles Abellan is the professional of legendary chef and 3 stars Michelin fame. ‘’Comerc 24’’ is an inspired stylish and elegant dining experience.  The menu changes constantly but the high quality of the cuisine will never change. The prices are range from  £20 to  £100. This is especially for people who would like to explore a new style of wine tasting and an enjoyable moment i n Barcelona.

The Harmful Effects Of Processed Foods Health Essay

The Harmful Effects Of Processed Foods Health Essay Processed foods are areal food that has undergone several processes so that it can be kept safe for human consumption or for convenience. It is food that has been infused with chemicals, preservatives, and are then canned, frozen, refrigerated, dehydrated, or have undergone aseptic processing. Most of the processed foods are usually made from saturated fats, huge amounts of sugar, trans-fats, and large amounts of sodium. Due to their convenience, over time they have become very popular because they are usually prepackaged. However, studies have shown that processed foods are a cause for alarm as they are a major contributing factor to many types of cancers and heart problems. This is because their calorie, sodium, and saturated fat content are usually vey high. Very many adverse health effects are associated with the use of processed foods. Take sugary soft drinks for example, research has shown that soft drinks are a major contributor to weight gain and obesity cases. Due to its sugary and fizzy nature, soft drinks are very tempting and consumers are more likely to opt to taking this drink as opposed to taking water or other non-sugary drinks. According to researchers, consumption of soft drinks is likely to increase chances of a person getting obesity by 1.6 times. Soda has also been known to affect the kidneys. Those with high phosphoric acid content have been known to increase renal colic especially in men. The high phosphoric acid content is most common to all kinds of colas. Due to their acidic nature, sodas/soft drinks are a contributing factor to dental decay because they tend to dissolve the mineral content of the enamel and therefore teeth become weaker. They have also been known to damage the liver according to and Israeli medical study. This is especially so for the fizzy drinks. If stored for too long, fizzy drinks can leach aluminum from the cans. Aluminum, which is the main component of the fizzy drinks cans, is responsible for Alzheimers disease. Aluminum metal has also been known to cause neurological diseases. Soft drinks are believed to contain high amounts of sugar that causes the pancreas to produce a lot of insulin, which leads to fatigue, sleepiness, and lethargy. Persistent rise and reduction of sugar levels in the blood can cause diabetes due to the imbalance. High soda consumption has also been known to reduce potassium levels in the blood leading to severe fatigue and appetite loss. Another effect of fizzy drinks is the increased risk of osteoporosis since it increases the risk of impaired calcification of bones. This is a major problem especially in young girls as it increases their risk of developing osteoporosis (increasing the probability of fractures) in the future. Fizzy drinks contain little or no nutritional value and due to their sweet and fizzy nature, they are often an option for many people and therefore people forego the option of taking healthier choices like water, fruit juice, or milk. Since most of them are diuretics, they are therefore a major cause of dehydration in people and therefore instead of adding water to the body, they squeeze water out of the body. According to the World Health Organization, processed foods are linked to increased obesity cases in the World. Processed foods usually contain high amounts of fructose that has many negative health effects in the body. They also contain large amounts of salt, which is a major cause of stroke. Consumption of salt over a long period has been associated with hypertension and other heart related problems (Gogus 46). Processed foods usually contain hydrogenated fats in them. Hydrogenated fats usually take a long time metabolize. They also interfere with the bodys ability to digest the good fats. They also alter the composition of cell membranes. They also contain many additives that have been known to cause a range of diseases. According to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) there are over 3,00 chemicals that have known to be used during food processing to add color, preserve, sweeten, soften, emulsify, thicken, add flavor and to achieve other desired effects o processed foods. Some of these additives have however, never been tested for safety. Some of these compounds are known to be toxic to humans and animals though may not be harmful at very minute levels. Side effects vary between chemicals and some products contain a variety of these and it might therefore be hard to determine which chemical has caused which adverse effects unless under comprehensive tests. Companies that deal with processed foods sometimes provide false information as to the ingredients are contained in the foods. They may also at times exaggerate as to the benefits of the processed food in order to make more sales and attract more customers to buy its product (Packard) During processing of processed foods, natural food is usually subjected to extrusion after which it is treated with oils and sugars to give them taste and texture. By the time they are packed, most of the natural ingredients that were initially contained in the foods have been destroyed. This therefore renders processed foods non-nutritional though they become more appealing. Processed foods should be highly avoided especially during pregnancies. This is because at this particular time, the unborn baby is very sensitive to the food that the mother is taking. Since it is not a requirement by the FDA to list all ingredients that have been used in processed foods, one might ingest harmful chemicals without their knowledge and these chemicals may end up being harmful to both the mother and the baby. Although at this time the mothers body may be able to sieve these harmful chemicals from its systems, the unborn babys metabolism has not fully developed and therefore may end up being retained in the babys body. The mothers body is however still vulnerable during pregnancy. Since the processed foods contain high amounts of sugar, it may lead to gestational diabetes, weight increase or type 2 diabetes, which usually occurs at around this time. It is therefore advisable for pregnant mothers to go for natural foods so that they can protect their lives and that of th eir unborn babies (Rountree, Block 60). Food enhancers found in processed foods like chewing gums, low fat milk, drinks, and others. These enhancers have been known to cause headaches, nausea, high blood pressure, and reproductive disorders. These enhancers are also used in medications. Caffeine has also been known to cause fertility problems, heart diseases, insomnia, nervousness, and depression. Another risk that is associated with frozen foods is that when food is defrosted, it should not be used then frozen again. This is because it makes it susceptible to invasion by harmful bacteria, which might lead to diseases. Opposing views: Benefits of processed foods With all its many disadvantages, processed foods do have their benefits. The most advantageous one is that it makes available a variety of food and makes it easier to access the food, as it is available in the supermarkets. It also makes it possible to access the foods that are seasonal all year round for example, fruits and vegetables. Food processing also helps to improve food safety by various methods e.g. heating food at high temperatures helps to kill harmful bacteria. Some additives are also very effective in preventing the growth of fungus and bacteria on the foods. These bacteria are responsible for a wide range of diseases and therefore processing foods also helps to protect against some diseases that may be found in foods in their natural state. For foods like milk, pasteurization helps to keep it fresh. For milk, pasteurized milk is considered safer for use than fresh milk. Some processed foods are fortified with other minerals and therefore may be used as supplements Processed foods are usually packaged and this reduces interference of the food. The food is therefore well preserved when packed as compared to when it is not. Packaging also helps to increase convenience when it comes to transporting the food over long distances, as there will be minimal tampering of the foods. Packaged food is also very convenient as it is quick and easy to prepare, as most of the processed foods are usually precooked. Processed foods also present economic benefits as they are easier to sell and easier to transport. They are also easier to export as compared to fresh foods an therefore companies are able to sell more products both within the domestic markets and also outside the country. It also makes it easier for seller to sell the processed foods at cheaper prices as compared to the fresh foods thus making more sales. For people with diabetes, controlling their calorie intake is sometimes very hard when taking natural foods. It is therefore easier to control the calorie intake using processed foods as they have specified amount of calories. The same case applies to patients with heart problems. Conclusion It is almost virtually impossible in todays modern lifestyle to live without processed foods. However, the disadvantages outweigh the advantages, it altogether proper to say that the best way to avoid the negative effects of processed foods is to avoid them altogether. Other ways that would significantly reduce these effects would include avoiding giving the processed foods to infants and children. This is because their metabolic systems have not fully developed and may not be able to sieve the toxins that may be found in the processed foods. One should always read the label of the packed food carefully because though a food may be advertised to be low in sugar or salts, it may contain high levels of saturated fats (Nisha 17) One should also be vey careful as to purchase grains that are not overly refined but whole meal. Expiry dates on the labels should be checked to ensure that the foods are not expired and also that they are not due to expire soon. Though taste is usually a determinant of the foods we buy, one should ensure that they go for quality and not taste. In addition, one should make sure that they buy foods with minimal additives and flavors. Where unavoidable processed foods should therefore be used in moderation.

Another Baseball Paper :: essays research papers

The activity that I enjoy most is Baseball, which is a competitive game of skill played between two teams, each with nine players. Baseball is Americas National Pastime and is played by people of ages. Abner Doubleday, a former American Civil War officer, is the inventor of baseball. Born in Ballston Spa, NY, Doubleday attended school at the United States Military Academy. As a young man, Doubleday organized a small amount of baseball teams in Cooperstown, NY, who played what is now known as Doubleday Field. Cooperstown is the home of the Baseball Hall of Fame. Doubleday then died in 1893. Since then, amateur and professional baseball players have been improving the game of baseball in many ways. Baseball is played for the money, and medially played for the love of the game. The average salary for a baseball player is around $2 million a year. Some players can make as low as $250,000 a year up to about $25 million a year. On this present day, there is a baseball league in the United States called MLB, which stands for Major League Baseball. The MLB is made up of thirty teams and two different leagues, National and American. Out of the two leagues, there consists of fifteen teams that make up three divisions with a different number of teams in each division. Each team plays 162 games every year, unless they are tied with a team in their own division and a one game playoff must be played. At the end of the year, who ever has the best record out of their division makes it to the playoffs, as well as a wildcard team, who has the fourth best regular season record in the league, which makes four teams from each league that go to the playoffs. Each team plays a team from their own league. The team with the best and the worst record in the regular season play each other, and the

Materialism in The Dharma Bums and Goodbye, Columbus :: Dharma Bums Essays

Materialism in The Dharma Bums and Goodbye, Columbus    Several works we have read thus far have criticized the prosperity of American suburbia. Jack Kerouac's The Dharma Bums, Philip Roth's Goodbye, Columbus, and an excerpt from Lawrence Ferlinghetti's poem "A Coney Island of the Mind" all pass judgement on the denizens of the middle-class and the materialism in which they surround themselves. However, each work does not make the same analysis, as the stories are told from different viewpoints. The Dharma Bums and "A Coney Island of the Mind" are critiques of materialism by people who have rejected the middle-class ideals. In Goodbye, Columbus, however, Roth makes his point via Neil, a dweller of the lower class who wants to join the prosperous rank of the Patimkin family. The difference is that Kerouac and Ferlinghetti mock the suburbanites, yet pay them little attention while several characters in Goodbye, Columbus are disdainful of the materialism exuded by the Patimkins while feeling excluded from their social class. In The Dharma Bums, Kerouac strengthens his argument for the Zen ideal of poverty and freedom by this criticism of the conformity practiced by the middle-class: ...you'll see if you take a walk some night on a suburban street and pass house after house on both sides of the street each with the lamplight of the living room, shining golden, and inside the little blue square of the television, each living family riveting its attention probably on one show; nobody talking; silence in the yards; dogs barking at you because you pass on human feet instead of wheels. You'll see what I mean, when it begins to appear like everybody in the world is soon going to be thinking the same way and the Zen Lunatics have long joined dust, laughter on their dust lips. (104) Kerouac's point is that freedom doesn't exist in a place where everyone is watching the same thing and thinking the same thing at the same time. Kerouac also reflects on the futile trap of materialism. Japhy discusses "all that crap they didn't really want anyway such as refrigerators, TV sets, cars, at least fancy new cars, certain hair oils and deodorants and general junk you finally always see a week later in the garbage anyway, all of them imprisoned in a system of work, produce, consume, work, produce, consume.

Analysis of M.I.A.s Paper Planes Music Video -- Music Analysis

There is one universal language: the language of music. Music has a special quality and ability to bridge both social and cultural divides. A proposed theory by Dr. Gray, Founder and Director of National Musical Arts’ BioMusic Program; describes music has been around longer than human-beings have. Music is the one thing human beings from various backgrounds can relate to. Every living creature would agree. Music is heard everywhere not just among humans, but in nature as well, through the twitting of birds, winds blowing, the soft sound of raindrops against a windowpane, the ocean waves moving back and forth and the hum of the ocean rushing in a sea shell. There is no escaping it; music lives in and surrounds us steadily. While there are countless songs which confer social or cultural consciousness, this paper will analyze and address the dynamics of M.I.A.’s â€Å"Paper Planes†, video. Stylistically, the paper will examine the artist point of view, the unique use of lyrical analysis and sound description in relation to its historical, social, political and/or cultural context. This essay will also trace the lyrical analysis and sound description of song and discuss how the elements (visually, sonically, and lyrically) interplay with the theme of immigration and/or violence. Known in the music genre as one of the â€Å"most provocative pop star of her age† (Sawyer, Pg. 1). Mathangi "Maya" Arulpragasam or M.I.A. by her stage name was born in London in 1975. At 6 months, her parents returned to their native land of Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka is an island which is located off the southern coast of the Indian in South Asia. M.I.A is considered one of the most controversial music artists of her time. Many agree that she has a unique way of com... ....com/wpdyn/content/article/2005/09/15/AR2005091500697_pf.html>. M.I.A., â€Å"Paper Planes,† 2007, [Lyrics], http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/mia/paperplanes.html Moraga, Cherrie, and Gloria Anzaldua. This Bridge Called My Back. New York: Kitchen Table Women of Color Press, 1984. N. pag. Print. â€Å"ONTD.com- Interview†, [2010] http://ohnotheydidnt.livejournal.com/45685085.html Reed, La Trina L. "La Trina’s Mixx Tape: A Literary look in." Los Angeles. 22 Mar. 2012. Essay. Sawyer, Miranda. "MIA: 'I'm here for the people'." The Observer 12 June 2010: 1+. Web. 25 May 2012. . Stetler, Carrie. "Violent references raise concerns in Sri Lankan pop star's 'Paper Planes'." Nj.com 8 Oct. 2008: 1+. Web. 20 May 2012. .

Human Anatomy and Physiology Essay

Abstract On October 1, 2014, a 56 year old man, Mr. Brown, came in for his follow-up appointment to talk about his cholesterol panel. Mr. Brown’s cholesterol levels are not within healthy standards and he needs to change his life style before his health diminishes. Mr. Brown likes to eat and hates to exercise. I am going to show him his cholesterol levels so that he can see what he is doing to his body. If he does not get his cholesterol levels where they need to be his arteries might get so clogged up that he could have a heart attack or stroke. He needs to do some preventive medicine on his own with a little help from me and my staff. Hello Mr. Brown thank you for coming back for your follow up on your test results. My name is Laura Bramlett and I am the Physician Assistant (PA) that will be going over your tests results. First I would like to give you some good news. Your Triglycerides is at 145 mg which is a normal range. Triglycerides are fats, oils, and waxes known as Lipids that are in your body and their functions are energy storage, insulation, and protection. Now your cholesterol on the other hand are in a dangerous bad area. Cholesterol is a waxy, fat-like substance found in the body cells to make hormones, vitamin D and substances that help you digest foods (NIH). Your overall cholesterol level is 210 mg/dl which is border line high and your Low Density Lipoproteins (LDL) and High Density Lipoproteins (HDL) are just as high. Lipoproteins is made up of protein and lipids. In reference to your LDL and your HDL they are out of control and I am here to help you get them under control. Your LDL is 160 mg/dl which is high and we need to get it down to the normal range of 100 – 129 mg and your HDL is 33 mg/dl which is a poor level and needs to be 60mg/dl or higher to be at its best levels. (Mayo) What is LDL and HDL? Mr. Brown LDL is known as bad cholesterol and could lead to a buildup of cholesterols in your arteries if we do not get it under control. HDL is known as good cholesterol and it carries and collects the cholesterol from all over your body and sends it to the liver and the liver will remove the choleste rol from your body. Cholesterol is produced in the liver and small  amounts of it is produced in the small intestine and individual cells and the causes of high cholesterol are as follows: is a person who is a smoker, is obese, has a poor diet with lack of exercise and a possible diabetic. (NIH) Mr. Brown, our records show that you smoke and are obese for your age and height. We need to get your good (HDL) and bad (LDL) cholesterol under control before it is too late and you have a heart attack or stroke. Reducing your high cholesterol is manageable and treatable, we just need you to commit on eating right and healthy so that you can lose some of your weight. I know you do not like to exercise but if you can just walk around the block or walk 30 min a day to start off with it will jump start everything to a better health. There is medication that I can give you however, I would like for you start off exercising and eating right to lower your cholesterol before we resort to medication. One of the medications that I would have you take is called Crestor and it will help lower your LDL or bad cholesterol and increase your HDL or good cholesterol. However, like most medications Crestor does have some side effects. You could experience muscle pain or weakness, feel unusually tired or have a fever, and have  headaches or abdominal pain. Sir, if you have any of these symptoms I need you to come back in so we can see what is going on. Once I give you your medication I still need you to exercise, at least walk, for 15 – 30 min a day. Mr. Brown, it is better for you to exercise and eat right before we add Crestor to your diet. Because of the side effects that the medication gives I believe we should try everything else before adding something that is at risk to you and your health. Mr. Brown I know that you might be unwilling to change your life style but take your family into consideration. If you do not get your health, especially your cholesterol under control you might end up in the emergency room and not only will you be suffering but so will your family. I know that I have said it before but I really need you to consider walking and exercising to get your Cholesterol down before we think about giving you the Crestor. The Gwinnett Medical Hospital, my staff, and I are here for you to help with any concerns or fears you might have to jump start your healthy life style. I assure you that if you start to walk during halftime of your football games or even during your games it will make a difference in your life. Here are some pamphlets I would like for you to read about Cholesterol and what it can do to your body. Focus on small accomplishments first and then we can set up some larger goals and accomplishments. Now if you have any more question or concerns ab out your health, after you leave here, please give us a call immediately. References Griffin, Morgan R., Cholesterol and Triglycerides Health Center, High Cholesterol Treatment – What Works? WebMD retrieve from http://www.webmd.com/cholesterol-management/features/high-cholesterol-treatme nt-what-works Mayo Clinic, Diseases and Conditions, High cholesterol, Cholesterol levels: What numbers should you aim for? Retrieve from http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/high-blood-cholesterol/in-depth/cholesterol-levels/art-20048245 National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, What is Chlosterol? Retrieve from http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/health-topics/topics/hbc/ Tortora, G. J. and Derrickson, B. (2014), Principles of Anatomy and Physiology, Hoboken, NJ. Wiley & Son Inc.,

International Reporting Financial Standards Essay

International reporting financial standards are the guidelines that are used when preparing financial reports (Rutherford, 31). They are used by the international accounting standards board as an outline when preparing financial statements. These financial standards gives the accountants a guideline when they are preparing financial statements and this ensure that the accountants follow the right financial standards and prepare financial reports as per the required financial statements (Rutherford, 31). The international financial reporting standards ensure that information provided concerning the entity ensures that transparency is maintained when preparing financial statements (Schroeder, 20). It also ensures that people who are interested in investing in the business receive information that is more precise and reliable (Melville, 202). Financial reporting involves the preparation of financial information to users who include customers, banks, government, employees, investors and management who need this information to make informed economic decisions (Schroeder, 20). Before all these users make any decision concerning the organization they will need to review the financial reports of the organization to help them make decisions. The organization which is the reporting entity usually prepares financial statements which include the balance sheet, statement of retained earnings, profit and loss account and cash flow statement (Melville, 202). These financial statements help users of information to be able to understand how the management uses the entity’s resources to achieve the set goals and objectives. It also helps users to know the financial position of the business and the cash flow of the entity (Schroeder, 20). Investors in the entity need the financial reports enable them know the returns of their investment in the organization. Information provided in the financial statements helps them to know when to buy or sell their investment. It also helps them to know when to hold and also provide information which helps to determine whether the entity would be able to pay dividends at the right time (Rutherford, 31). Information in financial statements helps lenders to determine whether it should lend to the entity or not. It gives lender information to determine whether the entity would be able to pay loans (Rutherford, 31). Employees also use the information to determine if their employer would be able to pay them in time and if the employer would b e able to provide them with retirement benefits. The government needs the financial reports to determine whether an entity is able to pay taxes and also for the purpose of resource allocation. Customers are also users of the information and they use this information to know the stability and continuity of the entity. Objectives of financial reporting The general-purpose of financial reporting is to give users of financial statements the most useful information as possible at the least cost to enable them to make informed economic decisions (Melville, 202). On the other hand, users of this accounting information need to cover a rational understanding of business as well as financial accounting procedures to understand financial statements well. Internationally, as planned at distinctively in the present conceptual framework through the IASB, there are two key goals of financial reporting (Rutherford, 31). The main goal of financial reporting is to enable the management to provide information to the owner or shareholder of the business to show how they have used the entity’s resources to achieve the set goals and objectives in the organization (Rutherford, 31). Since the shareholders have given the management powers to use resources of the business, the management therefore has the responsibility to report to the shareholder concerning the performance of the business. The information that is provided through financial reporting also helps to give information about the financial performance and situation of the business. This is help when it comes to the creation of economic resolutions. Management should ensure that they maximize the shareholders’ wealth and this should be reflected in the financial statements (Melville, 202). Underlying assumption of international financial reporting standard Accrual Basis Financial reports that are prepared by an entity are prepared on the basis of accrual so as to meet the objectives of an entity (Melville, 202). This means that transactions are recognized when they occur and not when cash is received. This assumption helps to provide information about past events that are useful for decision making by the users of the information. Going concern assumption This assumption assumes that the business would be in operation for the foreseeable future and that the entity has no intentions to close the business in the near future (Michael et al, 2003). The qualitative characteristics of financial reporting These are qualities that make financial reporting useful to user of financial information when making economic decisions. The main qualitative characteristics of financial information include understability of the information, relevancy of information, reliability of information and comparability (Bromwich et al, 2006). The quality of understability requires that financial statements must be prepared in a manner that can be easily understood by users (Michael et al, 2003). However, users are required to have at least basics knowledge about business, accounting and economic activities. Users should also be willing to study carefully the information provided. All information that is relevant should be included the financial reports even if there is some information that may be difficult for some users to understand (Bromwich et al, 2006). Relevance requires that all information that is relevant for decision making be included in financial reporting (Michael et al, 2003). Relevance is when information include in the financial reports affects the economic decision made by the users of the financial statements. Information can only be useful to users if it is relevant. Relevant information helps users to make economic decisions since it gives them opportunity to assess the past, present and future actions. Information that has no effect on the decisions made by the users is irrelevant and therefore should not be included in financial reporting (Michael et al, 2003). The relevance of certain information in financial reporting may be affected by its materiality. Information that is material affects decision making in that its omission can mislead users to make wrong decisions. Relevant information must have a predictive value and confirmatory value meaning that for information to help capital providers for instance investors to make predictive decisions about the future information should be valuable and information is able to change the past or present depending on previous evaluations (Bromwich et al, 2006). Reliability of information is important for financial reporting. For financial information to be useful for decision making it must be reliable (Rutherford, 31). Information that is free from any material error and biasness is reliable and therefore useful for decision making by users. International financial reporting standards require that information be represented in a faithful way for such information to be reliable. Comparability of information is important in financial reporting as it helps users to compare information for different financial years and for different reports from different entities (Bromwich et al, 2006). By comparing financial reports for different periods helps to compare the performance of the entity for the different periods. Information should also be represented in their real value for financial information to be reliable. The constraints on relevant and reliable information Timeliness of information Some information if delayed to report may be come irrelevant. For relevant information to be reported in time it will mean that some aspect of information need to be included and this may weaken the relevance of information (Michael et al, 2003). Before all relevant information is reported, the cost of reporting must be considered alongside with the benefits that the entity will gain. Relevant information should give more benefits than the cost incurred when reporting (Bromwich et al, 2006).

Accountancy Class Test Questions

This examination paper must be returned. Candidates are not permitted to remove this paper from the examination room. STUDENT NUMBER†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ STUDENT'S NAME†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ First name Last name SIGNATURE†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ MACQUARIE UNIVERSITY Semester 2, 2010 IN-CLASS TEST NO 2 Unit: ACCG308 CORPORATE ACCOUNTING AND REPORTING Time allowed: Total number of questions: Instructions: 45 minutes ONE This is a closed book examination. You are not permitted to access any books, notes or other written m aterials. Silent calculators, nonprogrammable are allowed.Questions must be answered on the examination paper. Answer all parts of all questions. (Office Use Only – Do Not Write Here) Total /25 Question 1 (25 marks) On the 1 July 20X6 Howard Ltd gained control of Carter Ltd by buying 70% of its shares for $70,000. At this date, Carter had share capital $50,000 and retained profits $30,000. Additional information: ? Goodwill impairment is $500 in year ended 20X8 and $850 in 20X9. ? ? Dividends are paid out of current period profit. The dividends were paid before year-end. Inventory purchases by Howard from Carter during the current year amounted to $30,000.Their cost to Carter was $20,000. Howard still holds $18,000 of this inventory at year-end. Loan from Carter attracts 12% interest per annum. The interest was paid before year-end. Included in other assets of Howard is equipment purchased from Carter on the 1 July 20X7 for $41,000. The equipment was four years old when sold, had cost Carter $50,000 to buy, with expected residual value $5,000, and had been depreciated 10% p. a. straight-line. Howard depreciates the equipment (after deducting the same residual) straight-line over the remaining six-year life. ? ? Required: Complete the consolidation worksheet on the next page.Note: 1. Marks are awarded for each correct individual worksheet entry. 2. For the eliminations column only, entries that are placed in a location where there should not be any entry may attract a penalty mark. 2 Workings: Elimination 1: Substitution. Deletes 70% of subsidiary's pre-control equity. Capital: 50 000 * 0. 7 = 35 000 Retained profits: 30 000 * 0. 7 = 21 000 Investment in subsidiary: 70 000 Goodwill: 14 000 Recognise goodwill impairment (prior and current years) Dr Goodwill impairment expense 850 Dr Retained profits 500 Cr Accumulated Goodwill impairment 1 350 Deletes intra-group dividend revenue and appropriation. 5 000 * 0. 7 = 10 500 Dr Dividend revenue 10 500 Cr Divid end 10 500 Deletes intra-group sales. Dr Sales Cr Cost of sales Elimination 2: Elimination 3: Elimination 4: 30 000 30 000 Elimination 5: Deletes profit on intra-group sale from inventory valuation (Current year). (18 000/30 000) * (30 000-10 000) Dr Cost of sales 6 000 Cr Inventory 6 000 Deletes intra-group loan Dr Loan from Carter Cr Loan to Howard Elimination 6: 50 000 50 000 Elimination 7:Deletes interest from intra-group loan Dr Interest revenue 6 000 Cr Interest expense 6 000 Deletes profit on intra-group sale of equipment and reinstates equipment carrying amount at sale date Dr Retained profits 9 000 Dr Equipment 9 000 Cr Accumulated depreciation 18 000 Add back inflated depreciation (2 years) of equipment arising from intragroup sale of equipment 6 000 – 4 500 = 1 500 p. a. Dr Accumulated depreciation 3 000 Cr Depreciation expense 1 500 Cr Retained profits 1 500 Elimination 8: Elimination 9: 3 NCI calculations: Net profit: 0. 3 * (18 000 – 6 000) = 3 600 â€⠀œ 6 000 = subtract profit on intra-group sale of inventoryRetained profits: 0. 3 * (38 000 – 9 000) = 8 700 – 9 000 = subtract profit on intra-group sale of equipment Dividend: 0. 3 * 15 000 = 4 500 Capital: 0. 3 * 50 000 = 15 000 Parent interest = Group interest – NCI 4 Combined consolidation worksheet as at 30 June 20X9 Howard Carter Sum Eliminations Dr Cr 30 000 4 6 000 5/4 Group Allocation to NCI Parent Sales COGS Gross profit Other revenues Other expenses 94 000 57 000 ______ 37 000 17 000 22 000 ______ 32 000 26 600          ______ 58 600 27 000 31 600 90 000 121 600 50 000 12 000 30 000 ______ 213 600 45 000 70 000 – 98 600    ______ 213 600 2 000 176 000 36 000 93 000 ______ ______ 46 000 83 000 6 000 23 000 34 000 ______ 18 000 38 000 56 000 ______ 50 000 64 600 146 000 30 000 69 000 77 000 10 500 6 000 850 3 7 2 7 9 1 2 8 9 3 6 500 6 000 1 500 49 350 34 150 Net profit Opening retained profits 3 600 30 550 21 000 500 9 000 Profit availab le less Dividends Retained profits Capital Owners' equity Loan from Carter Other liabilities Accum depreciation Accum goodwill impairment Total equities + liabilities ______ ______ 56 000 114 600 15 000 42 000 41 000 72 600 50 000 140 000 91 000 212 600 – 25 000 28 000 50 000 37 000 58 000 5 000 1 1 500 35 600 69 750 10 500 31 500 38 250 105 000 143 250 – 37 000 18 000 73 000 1 350 1 350 254 600 8 700 26 900 12 300 57 450 4 500 27 000 7 800 30 450 15 000 90 000 22 800 120 450 50 000 6 8 9 2 3 000 ______ ______ 144 000 357 600 26 000 – 50 000 71 000 70 000 50 000 Inventory Investment in Sub Loan to Howard Consolidation goodwill Other assets 5 1 6 1 8 6 000 65 000 70 000 – 50 000 – 14 000 175 600 ______ ______ 194 850 254 600 Total assets 14 000 68 000 166 600 9 000 ______ ______ ______ 144 000 357 600 194 850 5

Reduction of Demand for Drugs by Incorporation of Elasticity

Prohibited drugs have been one of the major concerns of the federal government for the past decades. Various negative effects of prohibited drugs not only on the user itself but also on the immediate community of the latter have been identified. Due to this, various programs has been launched by the federal government just to regulate and prevent citizens from drug addiction. One of the said government projects to minimize drug addiction would be the intensification of drug treatments aside from the border patrolling etc. The question now would be which of the identified two governments program will be more effective?Since prohibited drugs are addictive, users will continue to buy the said good even if there is a high risk involving its usage, not to mention that it is expensive (Kuehlwein, 2007). In other words, drug users will continue to buy as long as their will be someone who will supply them with those prohibited drugs regardless how much will it cost. Therefore, the intensific ation of drug treatment programs would be more effective as compared to the border patrolling since the former will reduce the addiction of the drug users which will eventually shifts its demand elasticity towards elastic demand.On the other hand, border patrolling will only lower down the supply of prohibited drugs in the market which only further increases its price level due to possible shortage as authorities on borders confiscate more prohibited drugs. At the end of the day, the root of the problem will not be solved by only patrolling on borders since drug users will always find ways on how to get marijuana or cocaine on the streets.This makes the intensification of drug treatment programs more effective since this attacks the root of the problem by minimizing the drug dependency of users which eventually leads to quitting drug usage. At this point, it is already clear that through reducing the demand of drug users to prohibited drugs will solve the said problem of the governm ent more effectively than with the border patrolling. It would be better on the part of the federal government to concentrate more on the drug treatment programs than with border patrolling. AppendixWith the drug treatment program, the elasticity of demand of drug users will shift from being inelastic to being elastic. The good thing with this will be, under the elastic demand; by the time drug users will quit using prohibited drugs, there is a big possibility that they will no longer go back into being drug addicts since they are no longer drug dependent. Whereas, border patrolling will do only no harm on the demand of the drug users and at the same time will only boost the prices of prohibited drugs on the streets as shown by demand curve1.Demand curve 1 is inelastic while demand curve 2 is elastic and the latter is the end effect of the intensification of drug treatment programs. Reference Kuehlwein, M. (2007). Cocaine and the Elasticity of Demand. Retrieved February 21, 2008, fr om http://images. google. com. ph/imgres? imgurl=http://www. unc. edu/depts/econ/byrns_web/GreatIdeas/ART/GI05-12. gif&imgrefurl=http://www. unc. edu/depts/econ/byrns_web/GreatIdeas/02-CoreMicro/GI-05. htm&h=411&w=909&sz=10&hl=tl&start=13&um=1&tbnid=wBaZSi2QPBBJ3M:&tbnh=66&tbnw=147&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dinelastic%2Bdemand%26ndsp%3D18%26um%3D1%26hl%3Dtl%26sa%3DN

Adinkra

The very essence of the word ‘Adinkra’ is ‘farewell’; as such, every symbol that is encapsulated in the whole body of Adinkra communicates or corresponds to a unique message or idea. Documented history has it that, as far back as the nineteenth century, unique Adinkra symbols were used in customary and traditional rites of society to depict the ideological stance of that society as regards to the ceremony or event in question. The art was showcased in various forms during festivals, funerals, marriages among others. Today, the use of Adinkra has been widely extended to cover almost every facet of life. In recent times, Adinkra symbols have become a suitable choice of branding the modern, competitive, and trendy Ghanaian clothing lifestyle. Over the years, Adinkra has gone beyond traditional cloth-making designs and has been fashionably incorporated into the designing of t-shirts, buttons, linen fabric clothes. Today, young people would prefer t-shirts with screen-printing inscriptions like ‘Me firi Ghana’, with an Adinkra like ‘Gye Nyame’ boldly designed beneath. Indeed, some acclaimed Ghanaian fashion designers like Mawuli Okudzeto, Kofi Ansah among others, have received international recognition by carving such niches for themselves, with popular brand names like MKOGH and PKOG, just to mention a few. Beyond that, apparels like footwear have also had a taste of Adinkra art. Artisans who make local footwear like sandals, slippers and ‘ahenema’ have also included these symbols in their designs. For instance, a locally made ‘ahenema’ has a carefully designed Adinkra symbol of three concentric rings encircling each other, known as ‘adinkrahene’ at the nose of each slipper. One other art is the design of bags with Adinkra symbols woven or sewn on the surface with fabric, (often kente pieces). The most popular addition to this art collection is the use of these designs in making jewellery and other fashion accessories. It is popular to see rings, pendants, earrings, necklaces, anklets, beads and many others designed with symbols like ‘ohene aniwa’, ‘epa’, ‘nkonsonkonson’, etc. In Ghana, the Precious Mineral Marketing Company (PMMC) is a typical example of an enterprise in this regard. Thus, on the international stage, Adinkra symbols have been employed as one of, if not the best indigenous symbols that give all manner of clothing, a unique fashion identity easily recognisable as truly Ghanaian. Quite apart from clothing, these symbols have formed part of locally designed fine and visual art. This has been such that, in creation of several Ghanaian sculptures, Adinkra has been one of the most recognisable themes. There many instances of metal and wooden sculpture designed into Adinkra. More often than not, these visual and fine arts have been used by individuals for decorative purposes. It is now commonplace to see a wall hanging in someone’s home, at the lobby of a corporate institution or in the sitting area of an afro-centric restaurant with the caption ‘welcome’ and a popular symbol like ‘Gye Nyame’ underneath it. Without a shred of doubt any Ghanaian who sees this in any institution in any distant part of the world, feels quite homey and comfortable, to some extent, immediately. Moreover, the designs of wooden plaques lately have also adopted Adinkra symbols. For instance, African institutions of late present Adinkra-designed plaques to individuals and entities, as gifts and awards for splendid performances. Woodcarvers as at today, still design stools for domestic as well as traditional purposes with these popular symbols. In Akan traditional homes, stools often known as ‘asesedwa’ are carved out of wood with these designs. Today as a unique of catching up with the west, local artisans have modernized their design of home furniture placed in areas like the living room, dining room and the study. Beautiful and attractive-looking sets are being carved daily. A common example is wooden coffee-table, which has an Adinkra symbol like ‘sankofa’ at the base with a glass plane on the surface. Hence it is ordinary to see the prolific use of Adinkra in fine and visual art because of the inherent artistic merits they possess. In present day, the use of symbols for trademarks and emblems cannot be over-emphasized. In corporate branding and marketing, many institutions have resorted to the use of symbols, both tactile and visual, as a mark of exclusivity and Adinkra are symbols of no exception. There are countless examples of institutions of all sorts who have adopted these symbols as logos, emblem, etc. In Ghana, for instance, a corporate institution like HFC Bank uses the symbol ‘ebankese’ as its corporate logo. Interestingly, Vodafone Ghana has designed their recharge cards such that whichever denomination has a long strip Adinkra symbols in front of the card. A popular plastics company by name ‘Strong Plast Ltd’ also uses the popular symbol, ‘Gye Nyame’ as a brand name for its plastic chairs. A very popular flour mill also uses ‘sankofa’ as the brand name of it flour. On a lighter side, along the coastal area it is fun to see fishermen decorate their canoes with these symbols as an interesting way of ownership.