Global Warming and Kyoto Protocol Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Global Warming and Kyoto Protocol - Term Paper Example Although the Protocol was signed by more than 159 countries, major industrial countries, such as the United States, refused to ratify it, believing that the commitments included in this Protocol threaten the national security of the country. Hence, the issue of global warming and the role of industrial countries in this concern have emerged a lot of debate. While poor and developing nations strongly push industrialized countries to bear their responsibilities in protecting the environment from global warming, developed and industrial countries, on the other hand, argue that all the countries of the world should bear equal responsibilities of protecting the environment. Hence, the attitude of those industrial nations, led by the United States, needs to be analyzed and evaluated in terms of its validity and fairness. Actually, in order to protect the environment against the dangerous impacts of global warming, all countries of the world, especially industrialized nations such as the Un ited States, should abide by the items of the Kyoto Protocol to decrease greenhouse gas emissions and fight environmental pollution. Basically, global warming is a negative environmental phenomenon that can lead to serious environmental problems, such as destruction of the environment, loss of biodiversity, and pollution. According to environmentalist Richard Dahl, global warming is an environmental problem that leads to a rise in world temperatures that is caused by the concentration of greenhouse emission gases in air (Dahl). This rise in temperatures will lead to melting of snow Mountains, which will increase sea levels (Dahl).  

Smart Grid Essay Example for Free

Smart Grid Essay The current electricity infrastructure in the Unites States consists of one way â€Å"communication† between the electric company and the homes receiving the electricity with the communication coming from the electric company to the homes. The current electricity infrastructure in the United States is more than 100 years old and because of this fact, it is outdated resulting in a great lack of efficiency. There is no way for the electricity company to obtain information from the individual homes pertaining to actual usage. Smart grids allows for two way communications between the electricity company and the homes allowing both electric companies and homes to operate more efficiently. This two way communication will allow home users to cut costs by efficiently utilizing energy. Smart grids will also allow the electricity companies to raise prices when the demand is high and lower prices when the demand is low. Mirroring the price advantage, smart grids will allow the user to dictate the usage of appliances that may have a significant impact on their utility bills. Knowledge of the user’s consumption will also help in making decisions that the electricity company can use to be more efficient. Smart grid technology is the evolution of the current electricity infrastructure that will continue to evolve if accepted. Development of smart grids will need management inputs especially when deciding the benefits, or lack thereof. The financial issues that are already on the table and future issues will determine whether or not smart grids will ultimately become a detriment or a true asset. Management will also have to make decisions in the design or redesign process so that the final product is as efficient as possible. Organizations could be affected depending on the opinion of the end user. If the end user, for whatever reason, decides that smart grids are not beneficial enough and refuse to buy into the system, the organizations will feel the negative impact throughout due to this lack of participation. If people decide to simply stop using appliances or turn down temperatures instead, the organizations will lose money. Issues with technology will essentially be based on the fact that the entire system will need to be redesigned and implemented. There will be great costs involved in all of the aspects needed for smart grids. Between the networks needed for two ways communication, monitoring devices at the electricity company as well as the dashboard needed at each home will result in a very high operating and implementation cost. There are various situations that would hamper the development of smart grids. I feel the main hindrance would be the attempt to get end users comfortable with the user interface. Although people are more tech savvy today, a poorly designed and difficult to use user interface will frustrate people to the point that they would no longer buy into the concept. On that same note, some people will question whether letting the electricity company control their devices is in their best interest. They will understandably question the integrity of electricity companies and wonder if they are actually and honestly trying to save them as much money as possible of just enough money to seem efficient. The ultimate cost of developing smart grids and the means of financing it is also a point that could hamper the development. Although assistance will be gained from the government, the remaining costs have to either be funded privately or by the end user. The transition itself could also hamper development. The simple concept of switching from the current infrastructure to smart grids will not be an easy task especially if there is some backlash from the consumer. Another area of our infrastructure that could use smart technology is water. Just like smart grids, some type of smart technology for water could curtail the over usage of water that is prevalent today. The over usage of sprinklers, showers, tubs, pools could be exposed if they were monitored. Most people do not and will not realize this over usage until it is shown to them. Smart water technology can show the consumer the adequate levels for pools or the tub, the adequate time needed to water a lawn or take a shower. There are always signs about being wasteful with water, â€Å"dry days† to conserve water, and â€Å"watering times† that people can use their watering devices. With smart water technology, these things can be done electronically and could alleviate the issues of having those people who do not care about water conservation ignoring the need. Water conservation is just as important as energy conservation and I feel that people would be more trustful and willing to let a company control this aspect of their everyday lives without feeling like profits are the forefront of the actions. I’m not for or against my home or community being a part of a smart grid but if I HAD to make a decision I would so no. I think that there is enough education out here to realize the need to conserve energy and the tools needed to do it. Mainly the simple fact of turning down or off appliances when it is not needed will suffice. A product such as the NEST thermometer does the same thing as a smart grid would without the intrusion of the electricity company. The cost of a NEST thermometer would be a great deal less than having to invest in the installation of a dashboard for the home. Also, would everyone be forced to buy into smart grids or would those on smart grids have a separate electricity company to deal with. And if so, what is the end result of having to separate the two in the same neighborhood, on the same street. Would they still pay the same rates or will those who decide not to switch end up paying more, or vice versa. I simply feel that there would be more issues to deal with if the switch was made instead of just educating people on how to personally conserve energy like we currently do.

Pickering: The Victorian Gentleman

Pickering: The Victorian Gentleman Pickering the Victorian Gentleman: In the play many characters changed as the play went on like Pickering. Pickering in the play seemed to be a gentleman around others and also treated them as a gentleman would treat them. But in act 4 the reader sees that Pickering is not the man he seems to act or look like. In act 4 the reader sees a switch from being a gentleman to a disrespecting man. The first example is in act 4 where pickering is talking to Higgins, another gentleman who turned out to be a disrespectful man as well, about Liza while she is right in front of them. This demonstrates that instead of acknowledging Liza which is in the room during the conversation he in fact ignores her and then proceeds to talk about her and not in a good way but in a bad way. Before this happened the reader can see that Pickering treats Liza with respect and dignity but now we see that he in fact disrespects her in a very rude way. In act 5 we see pickering acts different towards Liza by acting very respectful towards her. In act 5 he talks to her in a calm very gentleman like way while Higgins goes off on Liza for her attitude in the ending of act 4. In act 5 the reader sees that pickering acts nice and confident towards Liza to convince her to go back to Higgins house to finish what he started. This demonstrates that pickering can act nice towards her Liza by acting like a gentl eman towards her. Pickerings relationship with other characters like Higgin and Liza are respectful and very gentleman like. With Higgins he treats him like an acquaintance or like a friend but nothing more. The reader can see this in act 3 when mrs.Higgin tells her son Liza is not ready to be presented to the public in which in response both Pickering and Higgins both praise Liza for she has become. Another example of Pickering with Higgins is in act 2 where we see that Higgins does not have any personal feelings towards Liza but only professional feelings. Pickerings attitude with Liza is also respectful in a professional and kind way. An example of this is in act 2 where we see when Pickering offers to pay for all the lessons to Higgins for him to transform Liza from a corner street flower girl to a perfect speaking younglady worthy of being in a high class environment. Another example where we see Pickering being very gentleman like to Liza is in act 5 where Liza is talking to Pickering about how he has helped her build the self-respect she had by Your calling me Miss Doolittle that day when I first came to Wimpole Street. That was the beginning of self-respect for me. And there were a hundred little things you never noticed, because they came naturally to you. Things about standing up and taking off your hat and opening doorsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. During the victorian time majority of the men were gentleman or at least nice to other people. Pickering during this time found his role and responsibilities and played it well by being an almost perfect gentleman. The reader sees this in act 5 when Liza gave thanks to Pickering for being a gentleman and treating her like a lady. Your calling me Miss Doolittle that day when I came to Wimpole Street. That was the beginning of self-respect for me. Another way he showed a character that was nothing but a gentleman was when he offered to pay for the lessons that Liza would have to pay for herself with the money that Higgins threw at her in act 1. Pickering gave Liza the opportunity to turn into a high class woman with the ability to be around other high class woman and act like she belonged there. This illustrates that although Higgins only took it turning Liza to a high class woman as a joke, Pickering saw it as an opportunity to turn a flower girl to something much better and he gave h er that option. In the victorian time the culture for men where either respecting women or not respecting them. Like in act 5 Higgins does not respect Liza when confronted about what happened in act 4 but when Pickering does confront her also in act 5 he does so in a manner that respects Liza in a way that does not insult her or disrespect her in any way. In conclusion Pickering shows us that he was a gentleman through most of the play and does not disrespect her in any way because those are part of his values, that is how he treats the majority of characters, and during that time that was the culture at the time.

Response to Trifles by Susan Glaspell Essay -- Plays Susan Glaspell Mu

Response to Trifles by Susan Glaspell The play â€Å"Trifles† by Susan Glaspell is type of murder mystery that takes place in the early 1900’s. The play begins when the sheriff Mr. Peters and county attorney Mr. Henderson come to attempt to piece together what had happen on the day that Mr. Wright was murder. While investigating the seen of the murder, they are accompanied by the Mr. Hale, Mrs. Hale and Mr. Peters. Mr. Hale had told that Mrs. Wright was acting strange when he found her in the kitchen. After taking information from Mr. Hale, the men leave the women in the kitchen and go upstairs at seen of the murder. The men don’t realize the plot of the murder took place in the kitchen. The action begins when the men leave the women in the kitchen alone. This where Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters find out themselves find out who had kill Mr. Wright. For some unknown reason the women were acting like they were profession detectives, they were asking question and making conclusion. They were discussing the way the kitchen was left are the murder. For example, when Mrs. Peters was looking through the cupboard, she finds out that Mrs. Wright had bread set. Mrs. Hale concludes that Mrs. Wright was going to put the loaf of bread beside the breadbox. Another example is when Mrs. Peter notices that Mrs. Wright had been making a quit. They were asking question if Mrs. Wright making quilt or making a knot, like a professional detective. The men come back in the kitchen and overhear th...

Among the Hidden Book Report

Among the Hidden In the book Among the Hidden by Margaret Peterson Haddix is about the Governments rules and restrictions about having more then two children and in this essay I'm going to describe the three characters and how they resisted the Government. The book Among the Hidden is about Government controlling the population by limited the number of children people can have and how one boy Luke survives bing hidden in his house his whole life. I'm going to write about three main characters and how they resisted the population police. They can change the future by opposing the government and population police by helping the shadow children. I'm going to write about Luke, Jen and Mr. Talbot and how they defied the Government and population police. Luke resisted by getting a fake I. D, Jen resisted by creating the shadow children chat room and Mr. Talbot resisted by sabotaging the population police work. Each characters had there own way to combat the suppressive Government. Luke is a naive 12 year old boy that can never leave his house because he is a third child which is illegal and all that changes when he discovers Jen. After he found Jen he did a lot to resist the population police. One of the things he resisted was that he sneaked out to Jen as much as he could. They usually talked about how Government and population police were wrong. Also, he left his home to help the shadow children, so he got a fake I. D as Lee Grant. Luke proved that he was brave by leaving the safety of his home and the only four people he loved and know to help other shadow children. Jen is brave and street smart 12 year old 3rd child and unlike most shadow children she happened on purpose. Jen also did many things to resist the population police, but she been doing it for most of the 12 years of her life. One thing she did was create the shadow children chat room. Another thing she did was that she blogged about the stuff she thought were wrong and thought was right. Also, she thought of the rally at the presidents house. Even though it ended terribly, she still hoped and tried. Jen was very courageous and persistent, she died trying to help all the shadow children and she encouraged Luke to go out and help the Shadow children on his own. Mr. Talbot also known as Jen's dad works for the population police but he does not agree with them and tries to sabotage them as much as he can, I'd describe as a secret agent working inside enemy lines. He resisted the population police by agreeing with Mrs. Talbot about taking care and keeping a secret about Jen. Another thing he does is bribing the citizens, workers and the policeman about shadow children. Also, he helped Luke by getting him a fake I. D so Luke can go out and help shadow children. Mr. Talbot is braver then Luke or Jen because he works for the population police and if he gets caught he can lose his job and get killed so he is very cunning and valiant. They can alter the future by withstanding the Government and population police by helping the third children. Luke, Jen, and Mr. Talbot are very brave and heroic. They help shadow children in different, but equally important ways. Jen with her outward protesting, Mr Talbot and his inside secret ways and Luke with his courageous decision to go out to the world only to help third children. This book Among the Hidden is captivating and intelligent novel and the characters are interesting and different that makes me want to read this book over and over again.

History of Sainsburys Essays

History of Sainsburys Essays History of Sainsburys Essay History of Sainsburys Essay John James and Mary Ann Sainsbury were the two that founded the renowned company in 1869. The first store to be opened was opened at Drury Lane, London this store offered dairy products. Drury Lane was one of Londons poorest areas and the Sainsburys shop quickly became popular for offering high-quality products at low prices. The low prices were due to the fact of scale of economy. The business was so successful that several branches were opened in other market streets including Stepney, Islington and Kentish Town. On the road to their success Sainsburys faced various challenges. Some obvious challenges like competition with rival retailers such as Liptons. John James found it necessary to step up his rate of expansion so that he could buy goods as competitively as these companies. Between 1890 and 1900 the number of Sainsburys branches trebled from 16 to 48. Sainsburys was still owned by the founders when it entered its second century. However, it had reached a scale and stature that warranted public status. The companys public flotation in 1973 was at the time the largest ever flotation on the Stock Exchange, with a 45-fold oversubscription for shares. Presently Sainsbury is owned by many people and the supermarket employs over 14500 people to work for them, of the 145000 60% is part time jobs and the rest 40% is full time jobs. A large Sainsburys Supermarket offers over 23,000 products 40% of these are Sainsburys own brand. In addition to a wide range of quality food and grocery products, many stores offer bread baked on the premises, delicatessen, meat and fish counters, pharmacies, coffee shops, restaurants and petrol stations. Share prices As eWave is a Plc. The shares can be bought and sold on the stock exchange this is why it is called a Plc. Share prices can go up and down Figure 2 is the share prices over a period of one year. You can see how the shares changed. At points the prices were expensive and vice versa. All in all I believe that over this period of time the prices have increase which implies that Sainsburys have been doing well. Why do share prices change? As seen on figure 2 the share prices of Sainsburys have changed. The prices of shares are very unpredictable. It is unpredictable because when too many shares are sold at once the share price becomes very cheap and people tend to buy lots of it. However when the business is doing well the shares are very expensive. The reason why share change is because when shares start to be sold this is maybe the business is not doing well and is the reason why the owners want to sell their share. Due to this reason the shares fall in price. In the other hand when prices goes up it could be down to the fact that the business is doing will and the owners want to keep their stake in the firm. When the business is not doing well the share prices tend to be at its lowest to persuade customers to buy the shares. However when the business is making a lot of money than the share prices increase. Figure 3- The change of shares on a single day Figure 3 shows the change of share prices of the firm Sainsburys on the date 1st march 2007. At the time 8. 00 clock the prices of the shares is low mainly for the reason that people have just woken up and the demand is not very high. As time goes on the prices start to increase this is because the shares start to be sold and bought moreover the shares are on demand. Major share holders of Sainsburys Like any other Plc, there are many shareholders. These shareholders are in thousands. The focal shareholder of Sainsburys includes the Sainsburys family of whom own 13% of the business, the Brandes investments partners L. L. C. who then own 11%. Another major shareholder was Legal and General Group plc who held a share of 3%. In 2002 private individuals held just over 42% of Sainsburys shares; banks and nominees held over 56% of shares; pension funds, insurance companies and investment trusts held less than 2% of shares. Why buy shares? Buying shares is a superb way of investing money. However many people do not realise this positive aspect of buying shares. There are many advantages of possessing shares below I have stated them. Advantages such as; At the end of the year you receive a dividend . You could sell your share when prices are high making profits. Â  If you keep on buying share you could eventually be in control of the firm . If in any the company falls in debt you will not loose any excess money Receive a dividend The company makes money and at the end of the year a share of that price will be received by the shareholders. Moreover the more money the firm makes the more money the shareholder will receive. The more shares a person owns the more dividend the person will get. Sell your share when prices are high making profits As you might know share prices change. They change very often. This why when share prices are high the holder can sell their share making money. This is another great way of making money without much work. Will not loose any excess money You cannot guarantee that the business you invested in will make a profit. This is why when you invest in a Plc if the business falls in debt or is not successful of get bankrupt the share holder will only loose the that he or she invested. Liabilities Like I have mentioned above in large businesses like Sainsburys all shareholders will benefit from limited liability for debts incurred. This means that, should the business get into difficulties financially, the shareholders would only stand to lose what they originally invested; this is a major advantage for Sainsburys as it would help to attract more investors in the future because they know that not all their life savings will be taken.