Wednesday, December 25, 2019

Aviation Essay examples - 463 Words

There are several factors that enabled Wilbur and Orville Wright, two high school dropouts, to produce a successful airplane controlled by a pilot. The Wright brothers were self-educated and very experienced with several types of technologies when they began their efforts to produce an airplane. Having worked as bicycle mechanics, they understood the importance of several technologies working together to create one particular design, as well as the significance of balance. The brothers worked well together, learning from past attempts at aviation, and drawing from other’s findings, in addition to discovering many of their own. One of the most distinct differences in their attempt from other aviators was that the brothers began by first†¦show more content†¦They were willing to take their design in small steps, working toward a fully powered plane, whereas, most aviators attempted to add power first. As accomplished pilots, they were able to better control the plane on ce an engine was added. The Wright’s were masters in using graphic mental imagery to understand structure and design. The ability to form visual pictures of how a piece should look and operate and then put that picture to physical hardware was a key point in their success. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Two prime examples of successful airplanes are the Spirit of St. Louis and the DC-3. On May 21, 1927, Charles Lindbergh completed the first solo nonstop transatlantic flight in history. His accomplishment helped to reassure the pubic as to the reliability and safety of airplanes. From then on, the aviation industry as a whole increased in profit and in interest. More planes were produced and used for differing reasons. The public was astonished at the achievement and started to believe in the idea of commercial aviation being open to the general public. In 1935, the aviation system in America proudly produced the versatile DC-3, using it primarily to carry passengers and cargo. This plane was the first to make a profit from flying passengers, as well as the first to fly non stop from New York to Chicago with comfort amenities. Later, it was and in some cases still used today to move cargo. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Recognition is due to theShow MoreRelatedContribution Of The Aviation Industry On The Uk Economy1261 Words   |  6 PagesTrade 2.2 Overall Trade 3. Impact of Tourism 4. Impact of Employment 5. Impact of Tax 6. Conclusion Contribution of the aviation industry to the UK Economy 1. Introduction This explosion provides research of how the UK Economy contributes to the Aviation industry in various way with the standard points and innovation – have impacted on UK economic growth through the Aviation industry. By this report, contribution to UK economy has explained such as trade, tourism, employment and government taxRead MoreSkill Development in Indian Civil Aviation2599 Words   |  10 PagesDEVELOPMENT IN INDIAN CIVIL AVIATION SECTOR: OPPORTUNITY AND CHALLENGES INTRODUCTION: Indian civil aviation sector is poised for growth. Reports suggest that the Indian civil aviation sector will become the largest civil aviation market by the year 2030. A series of positive reforms have spurred the Indian civil aviation sector, the biggest of them have been the easing of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in airlines. There have been some other reforms like direct import of Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF), ExternalRead MoreIndian Aviation Industry : The Indian Domestic Aviation Market3000 Words   |  12 PagesIndian Aviation Industry The Indian Domestic Aviation market registered a growth of 5% in FY 2013-14 with a total of 60.3 million domestic passengers carried during the year. Market share of Low Cost Carriers (LCC) comprising SpiceJet, Indigo, Jet Lite, Go Air continued to increase at the cost of the Full Service Carriers. The market share of the LCCs increased to 64% in the domestic space, with ~25% CAGR for domestic passengers carried over the last 4 years. Indian LCCs (Indigo, SpiceJet) haveRead MoreGeneral Aviation And A Business Jet1260 Words   |  6 PagesGeneral Aviation Value Analysis – The Comparison This General Aviation Value Analysis will provide a comparison between commercial aviation and a business jet. To help with this comparison a short distance and a long distance trip will be used. Both trips will be a business trip in nature and each include myself and three additional colleagues. The business trip is set for July 12th. The departure location is Seattle, WA to Boise, ID (short t rip) and Seattle, WA to Houston, TX (long trip). The analysisRead MoreEducation And Training Within The Aviation Industry1635 Words   |  7 PagesEducation and Training within the Aviation Industry Kamiana K. Jardine Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Management 314: Human Resource Management Professor Trish Poznick Abstract This essay examines how companies are meeting the demand for a highly skilled work force through the integration of technology and higher education as well as adaptation policies enacted by the FAA. It will examine the current market as well as forecast the next few years within the industry and how this will affectRead MoreA Brief Note On The Aviation Safety Of Aviation Accidents1826 Words   |  8 Pageshumans are accountable for approximately 70-80% of aviation accidents (p.156). A majority of these are caused by the different variables associated with human performance. Psychological factors have a key role in a pilot’s everyday responsibility. Some of these traits include: perception, memory, attitude, judgment and decision making, as well as ego (Rodrigues Cusick, 2012, p. 158-160). These qualities can have drastic effects in commercial aviation if they are not recognized and adjusted accordinglyRead MoreCommercial Aviation Management824 Words   |  4 Pagesmiddle sc hool years, my love for flying kept on growing and with the guidance from my parents, I started selecting courses that would help me build the basis for more advanced aviation related courses in the future. I started taking extra curricular activities such as map reading, studying advances in the field of aviation and making model airplanes. I also started reading books written by veteran pilots sharing their life long experiences, do’s and don’ts and explaining best possible choices toRead MoreNotes On Indian Aviation And Airlines3190 Words   |  13 Pagessite 11 5.7 Aeronautical and non-aeronautical revenue 11 6 Economic Impacts on Indian Aviation and Airlines due to Night Flight Operation Restrictions 12 6.1 Restriction on Night Operations of Chapter 2 Aircraft: 13 7 Appendix 15 8 Conclusion 16 9 References 17 List of Figures Figure 1 : Key factors in economic impact caused by airports (Torvonin, 2005) 2 Figure 2 : Key impacts caused by airport and aviation activities ( UK, 2011) 5 Figure 3: Direct Impact of Delhi Airport 13 Figure 4 – DelhiRead MoreGeneral Aviation Aircraft Value Analysis1592 Words   |  7 PagesGeneral Aviation Aircraft Value Analysis A value analysis of four different modes of transportation was conducted to assess which would be the most economical by means of time and expense. Two separate trips were analyzed. The first, a relatively shorter trip of 1200 miles round trip from Detroit Michigan to Nashville Tennessee. The second, a longer trip of 2800 round trip miles from Detroit to Miami Florida. Three colleagues were used as a baseline for costs for all modes of transportation. TheRead MoreBirth of Aviation Essay941 Words   |  4 Pagesindustry in particular, and in aviation activity in general, resulted in the need to have aviation managed, controlled, and regulated as a comprehensive system so that its potential for widespread growth would be met† (Wells Young, 2011 p.57). Throughout the next fifty to sixty years the airline airlines jumped through many hoops that consisted of consumer fears, competition, regulation and deregulation. The government began developing programs such as the Federal Aviation Act, Department of Transportation

Tuesday, December 17, 2019

Welfare Marijuana Of Our Society - 1303 Words

Welfare -The Cannabis of Our Society Welfare has been a major controversy in the realm of social policy for many years. Welfare has become a fundamental part of everyday life for many families. The present state of Welfare does not encourage job growth, reduce poverty, or reduce dependence on governmental aid in the United States despite its work relief elements and large governmental programs. Currently the United States’ Welfare system is being abused by its members and it should be monitored and revised to cut back on people misusing the benefits. Welfare did not reach the United States, until after the Great Depression with Franklin D. Roosevelt s New Deal. The New Deal brought on new economic and social welfare legislation.†¦show more content†¦The New Deal has received credit in our educational system as being a major governmental tool that assisted in getting the United States out of the Great Depression. Many do not realize that while the New Deal helped many by providing work in the public job projects; it also held back those same people from entering the private sector jobs. Private sector jobs were the key catalyst for getting the United States out of the Great Depression. It was not until our military personnel returned home at the end of World War II that our country began to fully escape the clutch of the Great Depression. The improvement in the economy was mainly due to the mass influx of trained workers returning home and entering the work force. There had been a huge part of our human and raw materials tied up in the war effort that limited the growth of the public sector of the economy. After four years of war there was a pent up demand for domestic consumption that boosted the US economy out of the depression that held the economy captive since the late 1920’s. In his book Welfare: Opposing Viewpoints, David Bender states† The definition of Welfare is very important in terms of fully understanding the problems an d issues of the Welfare Debate† (Bender 15). Arthur J. Schlesinger, Jr. who was part of the Kennedy administration and was a historian stated about welfare: â€Å"Briefly, it is a system wherein the government agrees to

Sunday, December 8, 2019

Evidence for Agricultural Development †Free Samples to Students

Question: Discuss about the Evidence for Agricultural Development. Answer: Introduction: In the video, Vanuatus Broken Dreams, three small islands were covered, namely, Wala, Efate and Pentecost. Vanuatu is a nation on the Pacific, consisting of few small islands. The people of the islands are extremely poor and their economies are mostly dependent on the tourism business. As seen in the video, the PO cruises sail to Wala bringing the Australian, and sometimes the Chinese tourists. The tourism business has flourished as the tourists spend money on food, stay, souvenirs and entertainment activities, but the lives and economy of the locals have not improved (SBS Dateline 2013). There has been some development in the island for the foreigners but the locals are not benefitted from that. There is huge cash flow from the tourists, but the money is not properly used. There is a proper toilet with running water in the island, but that is meant for the tourists only. The locals expressed their need for a good toilet in every home, running water for all, good health facilities an d a school for the children with the proper utilization of the money that is coming in. They do not know where the money is going or who is taking all the money. Even if they know, they do not want to reveal. As per the government official, everyone is corrupt. Hence, corruption is a big issue in the islands in Vanuatu. There is no initiative from the local development committee or the government to improve the lives of the people of Wala (Olszowy et al. 2015). The PO cruises offer holiday cruise packages to the beautiful islands of Vanuatu for the people of Australia and other nations on the pacific. These cruises bring tourists to these islands, which has helped in the development of the tourism business in Wala. Thus, the cruises act ethically in the matter of development of the local economy of Wala and other islands. Due to tourism, the local people earn money by entertaining the tourists, selling souvenirs, renting the boating and other activity services, renting hotels etc. (Buys et al. 2014). This is a huge boost for the local economy, as this brings in money. Majority of the services exist only for the tourism. However, the developments were made by the foreigners and not by the government of Wala or Vanuatu. Hence, the developments are only focused towards to tourists, and not for the locals. The ships of PO can ensure the flow of money into the islands, but it cannot control the how the money is spent on the development of the lo cal economy. The government of Vanuatu, local development committee of the islands and the local people should be responsible for rectifying the issues. Corruption is the major issue in this case. The money that is coming in from the tourism activities is not properly used for the welfare and development of the local economy. Some people are stealing the money, but there is no effort from anyone to rectify the problem. Everyone should come forward to stop the unethical practices and improve the lives of the local people. They live in extremely bad condition in the islands. They do not have toilet, running water and health and hygiene facilities. Children of the island of Wala have to cross the water every day to go to a school. The number of tourists is increasing every year, and the cash flow is increasing too. However, lack of governmental initiatives and regulations, the corruption has increased and the money is not properly utilized. Thus, people should eliminate the level of corruption if th ey want to improve their lives (Thomas and Postlethwaite 2016). The government of Vanuatu could have made strict laws to curb the corruption in the community, which would punish the unlawful people who steal the money. Proper programs and planning could have been made and implemented to make infrastructural development for the communities. This would have benefitted the tourism industry as well, and tourist inflow might have increased. The government should form and deploy efficient people in the developmental committee to implement the developmental programs without any corruption. They should organize awareness programs for the local communities to promote other business opportunities apart from tourism, just the way people of Pentecost do (Clarke 2015). The government of Australia can also come forward to improve the economy of Wala and other islands of Vanuatu. Australia and Vanuatu could go for agreements between them to promote the growth in Vanuatu. Being a highly developed country, Australia could provide grants for development in Vanuatu , but it has to be ensured by the government of Vanuatu that the money would be utilized in the proper direction. It could enter into trade agreement for importing local products of Vanuatu islands and exporting developmental products to them. It could also initiate some developmental projects, especially the amenities in the islands, which would not only help in the growth of the tourism facilities, but it would also generate employment for the local people. Thus, economic condition of the islands would improve (Bedford, Simoni and Lebot 2017). To overcome these issues, firstly, all the people and the government should make efforts to reduce the corruption in the community. They should ensure that the money that they are earning through massive volume of tourists is not stolen. The government should make strict regulations to punish the corrupt people (Sun et al. 2017). Secondly, people should make an effort themselves rather than waiting for the help from the government. The people of Pentecost have adopted the right way. They have built school and new office building without waiting for the government. Thirdly, they should also explore other economic activities to promote growth and development of the economy and must not solely depend on the tourism activities to prosper. Hence, there are many aspects of Vanuatu, which can be improved through less corruption and cooperation from all the people along with the government (Addinsall et al. 2016). References Addinsall, C., Glencross, K., Rihai, N., Kalomor, L., Palmer, G., Nichols, D. and Smith, G., 2016. Enhancing agroforestry in Vanuatu: striking the balance between individual entrepreneurship and community development.Forests, Trees and Livelihoods,25(1), pp.78-96. Bedford, S., Simoni, P. and Lebot, V., 2017. The anthropogenic transformation of an island landscape: Evidence for agricultural development revealed by LiDAR on the island of Efate, Central Vanuatu, South?West Pacific.Archaeology in Oceania. Buys, J., Spandler, C., Holm, R.J. and Richards, S.W., 2014. Remnants of ancient Australia in Vanuatu: Implications for crustal evolution in island arcs and tectonic development of the southwest Pacific.Geology,42(11), pp.939-942. Clarke, M., 2015. Christianity and the Shaping of Vanuatu's Social and Political Development.Journal for the Academic Study of Religion,28(1). Olszowy, K.M., Pomer, A., Dancause, K.N., Sun, C., Silverman, H., Lee, G., Chan, C.W., Tarivonda, L., Regenvanu, R., Kaneko, A. and Weitz, C.A., 2015. Impact of modernization on adult body composition on five islands of varying economic development in Vanuatu.American Journal of Human Biology,27(6), pp.832-844. SBS Dateline, 2013.Vanuatu's Broken Dreams. [online] YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMACsi8j3us [Accessed 1 Oct. 2017]. Sun, C., Pomer, A., Dancause, K.N., Chan, C.W., Olszowy, K.M., Silverman, H., Lee, G., Tarivonda, L., Taleo, G., Regenvanu, R. and Kaneko, A., 2017. Ownership of consumer electronics is associated with measures of adiposity during health transition in Vanuatu.American Journal of Human Biology,29(2). Thomas, R.M. and Postlethwaite, T.N. eds., 2016.Schooling in the Pacific Islands: colonies in transition. Elsevier.

Sunday, December 1, 2019

Napster, The Internet, And Mp3s Essays - Metallica, File Sharing

Napster, The Internet, And Mp3s The Internet. It is a vast network of millions of users, surfing and sharing billions of files, all day, every day. This scares many copyright holders out of their minds. After all, there is virtually no one to protect these copyright holders from the misuse of their intellectual property certainly not the dinosaur that is our government. But, as Scott Sullivan, writer for The FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin stated, as history has proven, freedom and technological and societal advances usually come with a price. The price society is paying for the Internet is a loss of copyright protection by laws for their intellectual material. Take Napster for instance. It is a simple program created by a young college student named Shawn Fanning that enables users to anonymously swap and share audio files known as MP3s. When it first came into existence, it only had 3,000 or so users. However, according to Chris Sherman, writer for the magazine Online, says Napster has become the most successful new Web technology ever, gaining more than 25 million registered users in just over a year or existence. At the beginning of its life, Napster could probably have easily been protected by the Audio Home Recording Act, which gives consumers the right to create and transfer digital music for noncommercial purposes. (Sherman) At this point, however, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) begs to differ. They believe the fact that millions of users can share songs with one another is an egregious violation of copyright and constitutes outright theft of intellectual property. (Sherman) They have won a lawsuit under this argument against Napster in early 2001, so the program may go offline unless a compromise is reached. Unfortunately, its a fairly simple job to shut down Napster permanently because of its centralized service. However file sharing, a mainstay of Web activity thats considered almost a right by many users, is too popular to stomp out in one fell swoop (Sherman) The technology under which Napster operates, File Transfer Protocol (FTP), has been in use since 1971. It would be as difficult to destroy this technology as it would music itself. But, thats what the RIAA insists on attempting to do. Instead of embracing and adapting FTP and MP3s, they mindlessly attempt to crush it, like they do to all new technology. Alex Torralbas, who has worked in the recording industry, states, in the 1980s they effectively killed the digital audio tape, and in the 70s, albums and tapes bore skull-and-crossbones stickers warning buyers against taping the music on cassettes. The MP3 is nothing new to the RIAA just another piece of technology to instinctively crush. The record industrys business model is pure Industrial Age; manufacturing and shipping pieces of plastic. MP3 and other forms of digital music threaten this model. (Torralbas) It doesnt matter that this technology would effectively allow RIAA to come into the Digital Age by letting users directly download music, bypassing the CD stage (for a small fee, of course). It doesnt matter that, if Napster does shut down, virtually millions of music fans will be wondering where they can download music. It doesnt matter that the majority of those same fans would be willing to pay money for downloadable music. Millions of people want easily accessible music, whether they pay for it or not, and if the RIAA doesnt realize that soon, no amount of lawsuits will prevent them from becoming extinct. The United States Supreme Court has made its ruling against Napster, but how will it hold up in reality, or more specifically, on the Internet? In some cases, the law is extremely inadequate protections, and the Internet is one such case. Simply put, the Internet is too expansive to be governed by conventional laws. The Web offers anonymity and a buffer from getting caught. (Sullivan) If a major crime has been committed, such as Vladimir Levins theft of $10 million dollars, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is competent enough to track down the criminal and put him or her behind bars. But what of the case of simple copyright violation? Is it really feasible to drag out some FBI agents to track down some high school child who

Tuesday, November 26, 2019

Danielle Dawkins Essays (1054 words) - Thought, Terminology

Danielle Dawkins Essays (1054 words) - Thought, Terminology Danielle Dawkins Dr. Bentzen American Government 5/5/17 Political Culture Political culture can be defined as "historically-based, widely-shared beliefs, feelings and values about the nature of political systems, which can serve as a link between citizens and the government." Political culture is not to be confused with political ideology, which is a set of values and beliefs that an individual holds. Every country has its own political culture, which provides clues as to why certain governments are organized the way they are, or why some countries are allies with each other while others are not. As it stands, there are currently three theories of political culture: parochial political culture, subject political culture, and participant political culture. In a parochial political culture, citizens possess little to no interest in the government and are mostly uninformed other the entire political process. On the contrary, citizens in a participant political culture are, more or less, well-informed and actively engaged in the political process. America has a participant political culture with a wide array of values and beliefs. In a country that is fundamentally conservative, many American citizens believe and take pride in democracy, equality, and individualism. These values can be traced all the way back to the American revolution. Even so, America's political culture has changed generation by generation through means of political socialization, or a process by which people acquire various political values through family, religion, gender, race, and social class. One key aspect of political culture is political ideology, which is a coherent set of values and beliefs that people hold dear to themselves. The ideologies that people hold set the framework of their thought process while greatly influencing how they perceive the world. Isaiah Berlin, a historian and philosopher, stated that "ideological battles" is one factor that shaped human history in the 20th century. Berlin stated, "the other ideological battles - totalitarian tyrannies of both right and left and the explosions of nationalism, racism, and religious bigotry that the most perceptive social thinkers of the nineteenth century failed to predict." There are currently four functions that political scientists attribute to political ideologies in terms of ideas transforming into actions, and they are the following: explanation, evaluation, orientation, and political program. A lot of the time, social and political conditions are direct products of the political ideologies at hand. For example, totalitarian governments typically have poor social settings, as the government has every say over the lives of its citizens. Along with explanation, ideologies can also produce standards for social conditions and political institutions. Regarding America's standard, Americans tend to take pride in personal responsibility, which is why there so much stigma surrounding entitlement programs and whatnot. Ideologies provide orientation toward several different issues, and they also guide their political actions. In other words, identity politics are employed. There may be four functions attributed to political ideology, but there are also two ways of measuring it. To what extent do people use broad political categories to justify their own beliefs, and how consistent do their beliefs stay over time? Before one can answer these questions, they must have knowledge of American political ideologies, as they are not as simple as just being conservative or liberal. Ideologies are complex at best, and are far more than just labels. The Nolan chart, created by Libertarian party leader David Nolan, captures the political beliefs of citizens on two dimensions: economic and personal freedom. From left to right, Nolan outlined the five key political ideologies: left (liberal), moderate, right (conservative), libertarian (limited government) , and statist (big government). Conservatives tend to believe in limited government and always favor local and state government over the federal government, as they are always advocated for "States' rights". Also, conservatives believe that the private sector is more suited than the federal government in terms of addressing domestic problems like poverty and discrimination. Since the 1970's, social conservatism has been on a rise. While social conservatives tend to believe in limited government on the grounds of domestic problems or whatnot, they see no issue with the government infringing upon personal liberties, such as same-sex marriage, abortion, contraceptives. On the other side of the scale, liberals seek use for the government in terms of changing the

Friday, November 22, 2019

Facts and History About the Country of Cambodia

Facts and History About the Country of Cambodia The 20th century was disastrous for Cambodia. The country was occupied by Japan in World War II and became collateral damage in the Vietnam War, with secret bombings and cross-border incursions. In 1975, the Khmer Rouge regime seized power; they would murder approximately 1/5 of their own citizens in a mad frenzy of violence. Yet not all of Cambodian history is dark and blood-drenched. Between the 9th and 13th centuries, Cambodia was home to the Khmer Empire, which left behind incredible monuments such as Angkor Wat. Hopefully, the 21st century will be much kinder to the people of Cambodia than the last one was. Capital: Phnom Pehn, population 1,300,000 Cities: Battambang, population 1,025,000, Sihanoukville, population 235,000, Siem Reap, population 140,000, Kampong Cham, population 64,000 Cambodias Government Cambodia has a constitutional monarchy, with King Norodom Sihamoni as the current head of state. The Prime Minister is the head of government.  The current Prime Minister of Cambodia is Hun Sen, who was elected in 1998.  Legislative power is shared between the executive branch and the bicameral parliament, made up of the 123-member National Assembly of Cambodia and the 58-member Senate. Cambodia has a semi-functional multi-party representative democracy. Unfortunately, corruption is rampant and the government is non-transparent. Population Cambodias population is about 15,458,000 (2014 estimate).  The vast majority, 90%, are ethnic Khmer. Approximately 5% are Vietnamese, 1% Chinese, and the remaining 4% includes small populations of Chams (a Malay people), Jarai, Khmer Loeu, and Europeans. Due to the massacres of the Khmer Rouge era, Cambodia has a very young population. The median age is 21.7 years, and only 3.6% of the population is over the age of 65. (In comparison, 12.6% of US citizens are over 65.) Cambodias birth rate is 3.37 per woman; the infant mortality rate is 56.6 per 1,000 live births.  The literacy rate is 73.6%. Languages The official language of Cambodia is Khmer, which is part of the Mon-Khmer language family. Unlike nearby languages such as Thai, Vietnamese and Lao, spoken Khmer is not tonal. Written Khmer has a unique script, called abugida. Other languages in common use in Cambodia include French, Vietnamese, and English. Religion Most Cambodians (95%) today are Theravada Buddhists. This austere version of Buddhism became prevalent in Cambodia in the thirteenth century, displacing the combination of Hinduism and Mahayana Buddhism that was practiced previously. Modern Cambodia also has Muslim citizens (3%) and Christians (2%). Some people practice traditions derived from animism as well, alongside their primary faith. Geography Cambodia has an area of 181,040 square kilometers or 69,900 square miles. It is bordered by Thailand to the west and north, Laos to the north, and Vietnam to the east and south. Cambodia also has a 443 kilometer (275 miles) coastline on the Gulf of Thailand. The highest point in Cambodia is Phnum Aoral, at 1,810 meters (5,938 feet). The lowest point is the Gulf of Thailand coast, at sea level. West-central Cambodia is dominated by Tonle Sap, a large lake. During the dry season, its area is about 2,700 square kilometers (1,042 square miles), but during the monsoon season, it swells to 16,000 sq. km (6,177 sq. miles). Climate Cambodia has a tropical climate, with a rainy monsoon season from May to November, and a dry season from December to April. Temperatures dont vary much from season to season; the range is 21-31 °C (70-88 °F) in the dry season, and 24-35 °C (75-95 °F) in the wet season. Precipitation varies from just a trace in the dry season to over 250 cm (10 inches) in October. Economy The Cambodian economy is small, but growing quickly. In the 21st century, the annual growth rate has been between 5 and 9%. The GDP in 2007 was $8.3 billion US or $571 per capita. 35% of Cambodians live below the poverty line. The Cambodian economy is based primarily on agriculture and tourism- 75% of the workforce are farmers. Other industries include textiles manufacturing, and extraction of natural resources (timber, rubber, manganese, phosphate, and gems). Both the Cambodian rial and the US dollar are used in Cambodia, with the rial mostly given as change. The exchange rate is $1 4,128 KHR (October 2008 rate). History of Cambodia Human settlement in Cambodia dates back at least 7,000 years, and probably much farther. Early Kingdoms Chinese sources from the first century A.D. describe a powerful kingdom called Funan in Cambodia, which was strongly influenced by India. Funan went into decline in the 6th century A.D., and was supplanted by a group of ethnically-Khmer kingdoms that the Chinese refer to as Chenla. The Khmer Empire In 790, Prince Jayavarman II founded a new empire, the first to unite Cambodia as a political entity. This was the Khmer Empire, which lasted until 1431. The crown jewel of the Khmer Empire was the city of Angkor, centered around the temple of Angkor Wat. Construction began in the 890s, and Angkor served as the seat of power for more than 500 years. At its height, Angkor covered more area than modern-day New York City. Fall of the Khmer Empire After 1220, the Khmer Empire began to decline. It was attacked repeatedly by the neighboring Tai (Thai) people, and the beautiful city of Angkor was abandoned by the end of the 16th century. Thai and Vietnamese Rule After the fall of the Khmer Empire, Cambodia came under the control of the neighboring Tai and Vietnamese kingdoms. These two powers competed for influence until 1863, when France took control of Cambodia. French Rule The French ruled Cambodia for a century but viewed it as a subsidiary of the more important colony of Vietnam. During World War II, the Japanese occupied Cambodia but left the Vichy French in charge. The Japanese promoted Khmer nationalism and pan-Asian ideas. After Japans defeat, the Free French sought renewed control over Indochina. The rise of nationalism during the war, however, forced France to offer increasing self-rule to the Cambodians until independence in 1953. Independent Cambodia Prince Sihanouk ruled newly-free Cambodia until 1970 when he was deposed during the Cambodian Civil War (1967-1975). This war pitted communist forces, called the Khmer Rouge, against the US-backed Cambodian government. In 1975 the Khmer Rouge won the civil war, and under Pol Pot set to work creating an agrarian communist utopia by exterminating political opponents, monks and priests, and educated people in general. Just four years of Khmer Rouge rule left 1 to 2 million Cambodians dead- about 1/5 of the population. Vietnam attacked Cambodia and captured Phnom Penh in 1979, withdrawing only in 1989. The Khmer Rouge fought on as guerrillas until 1999. Today, though, Cambodia is a peaceful and democratic nation.

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Financial services Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Financial services - Essay Example Transactions on derivative contracts occur between two parties in which a financial agreement is done whose payments depend on the value of the underlying assets and securities. Derivative contracts are broadly categorized into lock and option products. Lock category derivative contracts bind the two parties into an obligation of executing the contract according to the terms and conditions over the period for which the contract is agreed upon. Option product derivatives are contracts that provide the right to the buyer but not the obligation to execute the contract over the period of the contract (Whaley, 2007, p.121). The derivative contract includes an agreed upon price between the two parties to buy or sell the product within a specified period of time. The derivative contracts may be traded in the exchange in which case these are called exchange-traded-derivatives or may be privately traded in which case these are called Over-the-counter derivatives. Over the counter derivatives are not traded in specialized exchanges. Recent examples of banks and companies making heavy losses from using derivatives The financial meltdown of 2007 in US was largely due to the fall in the mortgage prices which served as underlying assets for loan products. Irresponsible lending, relaxed policies of the banks, corporate houses and happy-go-lucky attitude of the regulators in assessments of the derivative products led to the fall of big banks like Lehmann Brothers. After a meagre financial recovery from the support of the government, derivative market is again one of the biggest markets in today’s global financial scenario (Schwartz and  Smith, 1997, p.499). Banks today are carrying out transactions on derivative markets on a much larger scale than ever before. The banks are more opaque and are indifferent to the risky derivative products. Banks, however, are unwilling to disclose the face of the derivative contracts to their investors. It is understood that a change i n the underlying market factors would lead to massive losses of the world economy as a result of devaluation of the underlying assets. The size of the derivative markets has grown from $500 trillion in 2007 to $707 trillion in 2011. Lack of transparency in trading of derivative contracts reflect the risk involved as a result of probable fluctuation of underlying market factors. This can be observed in the light of recent examples. J P Morgan has registered a loss of $6 billion due to trading in risky derivatives. The increasing size of derivative markets and declining due diligence in investments in order to achieve higher profits imposes higher risk. Several high ranked officials from big companies like Meryl Lynch, Morgan Stanley, and Citigroup commented that the banking industry is vulnerable in the wake of huge losses in derivative markets. After the earthquake in Japan, J P Morgan decided to reverse their position in derivatives due to the huge losses to be incurred. In 2011, D eutsche Bank decided to reduce the foreign currency exposure of Post bank by â‚ ¬8.1 billion looking at the heavy losses in their investment in derivatives. Deutsche bank themselves lost $1.74 billion in US derivative markets. A huge foreign exchange option for Hewlett Packard was executed early in order to reduce the losses predicted out of market uncertainty. Due to lack of transparency on the investments in derivative ma