Neil Postman: Amusing Ourselves to Death

Neil Postman was a special type of a man and considered that he was not an expert on anything, and yet he was ready to express his opinion on every subject under the sun. The person's mind was continuously working at jokes, headlines and different ideas. This infected an individual when he met Mr. Postman and that could be responded to only with humor, and even that was likely to bring out more ideas. There were a lot of people who knew him – in excess of a hundred thousand or so – had first met his humor. This was also reflected in the books that he wrote. Each of these is also a source of propaganda for his views and written like an essay. The first was â€Å"The Disappearance of Childhood† in 1982, and this was on the infantile nature of American culture. The next book was in 1985 and a satire on entertainment and was named â€Å"Amusing Ourselves to Death†. The last was in 1993 called â€Å"technopoly† and this criticized the fall of culture to technology. He had an excellent intellectual pose along with poise in public meetings and all this rode on the back of his capacity for humor. He always felt that he was the civilized man in a barbaric setting. This setting gradually changed into television and was concerned with the dots, and pursued him all his life. Now let us look at what is this television and how it connects with people. In the United States it first started transmission in New York and the British play, â€Å"The Man with the Flower in His Mouth† was broadcast there in July 1930. Thus one can say that television started off in the heart of United States and the television station was located in South Eastern New York at the mouth of the Hudson River. The station began broadcasting seven days a week on July 21, 1931. This was a television channel or station that broadcast on the terrestrial mode as that was the only mode available then. The bandwidth was then highly confined and this led to a high control by the government. Yet, from the beginning television has been highly used for advertising. Organizing the TV programs that are to be broadcast can be worked out either as a direct production by the manufacturers and then selling to the station that intends to buy it. Sometimes the production itself is paid for by the TV station that will show it. (Television) In other cases the station issues a license to the producers to produce the show for the channel. The show is sometimes carried on in other centers after the show is over on the main channel. In TV terminology this is called secondary programming usage. The secondary shows may be in the original country where the show was produced or in other countries from where the channels are interested in the show. The shows may be controlled by the original producer or not depending on the agreement. Sometimes a group of TV stations run some common programs in their own interest, or through an individual. This is called syndication and the show may be sold by the producers themselves or their agents. Yet with all this it has been seen that doctors recommend that children should only see TV for an hour or two at the maximum in the day. Excess of TV viewing is known to cause various diseases like ADD, excessive weight and heart problems. These may lead to diabetes or excess aggression. Thus it is clear that viewing of Television is not recommended in a high dosage for anybody, and the problem in our country is made worse by the situation of having a number of stations at every town or city due to the possibility of multiple channels being available now. These channels can also be seen on the set through a cable and the customer only has to pay a monthly fee. This is the problem that was envisaged by Postman quite a few years ago, and possibly he foresaw the worsening of the situation due to the advent of cable TV. The problem was also made clear by the decline of the family in the country and as a result the children are being left with only one parent. Most of the time, the single parent is working and is not able to attend to the child when the child comes back from school. These let the child free with the television and see any program of their choice. (Television) Neil Postman is an authority on children and has written many books about different subjects. These are mostly concentrated on education, as he was a teacher himself. He has written on the crisis in the schools, the effect of Television on our public and political life and the nature of modern childhood and education. He has taken the position of conscientiously objecting to whatever he saw being harmful to the society. In certain cases he has pointed out institutionalized mistakes or organizational stupidity and asked for their solution. Throughout the West, there has been the concept of three stages in life – infancy, childhood and adulthood. This had gone undisturbed for 350 years, but is now being questioned by a new element in the communicational facilities – television. This is seriously disturbing as the contents of life that would be normally faced by adults are now being made open to the children through this new medium. The children do not have to go through the portals of adulthood for reaching this information. Earlier this was being protected by the adults through certain secrets that are known to adults, but not revealed to children till they reached the appropriate age. These secrets are the social, political and sexual secrets that an adult must know. At the same time Television reveals all these secrets at once, and this makes it difficult to control the socialization of the young among themselves. This is making the young less discernible from adults. Stirring Up Trouble about Technology, Language, and Education) In the past there was a time when alcoholism was seen only among adults, and not at all among children. Today it is common to see child alcoholics. The same situation exists among children for drugs and it is quite common among children. The same situation exists for sex and sexual disease and this is seen from the total crime statistics. There are a number of figures that show the young being involved in crime today while this was not the situation even in 1959 as the figures for crime by people under the age of 18 shows. Thus it is clear that television is making the concept of childhood as being different from adulthood being different extremely difficult to sustain in North America, and childhood is disappearing from that region of the world. At the same time, there some parents who are well off and if they know what is happening to the child may still provide him or her with a childhood. This requires the parents to be very careful on the influences of the media on the child, among other factors. The problem is that not many parents can meet those conditions, and the influence of television among media is still rising. As mentioned earlier, there are many single parent houses in America and their difficulties have already been discussed. Even when there are two parents, both of them are working at the same time and that stops them from being able to give enough time to the children for socializing. This transfers the socializing exercise to the television set, and many of them are unable to control the channels that the children see or what films they see, or even know what records they have. These activities require the parents to have a lot of time for the child, and advise the child. Yet not many parents find the time for that. Thus for the children to have a childhood, the parents must spend a lot of time with the child. On the other hand many parents are too busy and there children get the required education from the advertising of NBC, CBS, Steven Spielberg, Coca-Cola and Proctor and Gamble. In certain countries television is being controlled – Denmark. They have now limited the extent of commercials that an advertiser supported station can have. These stations are not permitted to have advertisements on cigarettes, liquor, beer, banks, medicine, religious organizations, political organizations, or even advertisements aimed at children. Also, in Denmark, the television operates for the full 24 hours in a day. But, it is not possible for this to happen in the United States as the Americans would feel it is very restrictive, apart from the ideology of the present day administration. The present day administration may even be called the extreme type of free market supporters. This has not started today and even Ronald Reagan was not conservative, and he was probably as oriented to the free market as is the present President Bush. They are all willing to get as much out of technology as possible in terms of gains of dollars. Thus there is no chance of any restriction being put on the hours of operation of the Television through any social policy. This attitude goes on in Americans well beyond the limits of television and is being applied by them even in the case of computer technology. The issue is not of one particular technology, but the general question of using technology for financial gain to extreme limits, or no limits. (Stirring Up Trouble about Technology, Language, and Education) It can be said that in the exploitation of technology, there are no limits in America and they generally do not have any concerns about the psychological and social effects. They are just interested in knowing what the new technology can do. They are not concerned about the effects of the new technology in changing the social or cultural behaviors of the citizens. This is reflected in Sesame Street which makes the children get more attached to television than school. The concerned program is well prepared and makes the maximum possible use of a visual image based medium. When the makers of the program say that the program will make the children like school it is only right in the sense that the children will like school if it is a show like Sesame Street. The show is probably helping the children learn the elements that are taught in school like the letters and the numbers, yet at the same time, it is also giving the children some built in impressions about school. This is teaching the children that school must be entertaining, and that images have to form the basic of learning. It also gives the children that feeling that learning is immediately rewarded by getting of rewards in some form or the other. The impressions which are built into the children turn out to be more important than the learning that they get, and that is the problem. The children learn the numbers and letters in other forms also, and that also happens within the expected time, but the normal learning process does not build in these difficulties. It is often said that these methods of education make the children more intelligent, but that is a moot question to answer as the differences in intelligence are hard to define and their benefits are also hard to judge. The question of intelligence is easy to be used, as nobody probably understands what we are trying to say, but it is much easier to understand when we say that a person is stupid. It is possible that the technology available in the computer will help the technology of printing to a large extent, and that would be a service. It also increases the thinking by the children as to program a computer the child has to think quite a lot. Yet the total effect that this would cause is rather difficult to guess. (Stirring Up Trouble about Technology, Language, and Education) Technological development has had a very big impact and much more so when the development has been on the matters of information and communication. They have great impacts in terms of socialization, ways of thinking and methods of learning. A lot of these changes have taken place in the latter part of the 20th century and this brings up the question of defining the new Child of the Information Age. Some people may be defining all the children of today as Children of the Information Generation with television, computer games and video games. This had also been the thinking of Neil Postman, and he believed that this made the child cross puberty physically but never reach maturity. Thus they loose their childhood but are then are lost to mankind. The phrase â€Å"technology development† normally refers to the development of tools and these are being developed from the time that men have started on the path to development. (Children of the Information Age: A Reversal of Roles) Until the seventeenth century, tools of a more primitive kind were being used by all civilizations. Not that all countries were using the same tools and some had only spears and cooking utensils available to them. On the other side, others had water mills, coal and horse power. At the same time, these tools were not intended to change the civilization which had brought them into existence, and they were not intended to attack. Thus the tools did not stop people from believing in their versions of god, politics, and methods of education or their methods of social organization. (Kaplan, 34) Some cultures and religions believe that television is intruding into their religion and the use of television is banned by some sections of believers in Islam in some parts of the world. In the world of today, children and adults see the same movies thanks to television and highlighted by Postman. They all get into telephone romances; get informed about the same pop music and the same computer games. These come through both the television and the computer. This results in the adults never growing up and becoming more childish as time goes on. The children become more mature as they are exposed to all matters of adulthood, or at least seem so. This adulthood is only superficial and not emotional, as the amount of information to be passed on to the child should be passed on in a controlled manner by the concerned adult, as otherwise, the concept of being a child will end. This gradually stops the clear line of demarcation between adults and children, and the sense of independence and responsibility also becomes unclear. This is highlighted by Postman who describes the present day children as living between illusion and realty. This has also made the adults loose most of their authority, and it is a world without borders. (Children of the Information Age: A Reversal of Roles) In truth these makes them totally dependent for all the time, and never grow up into adults. Yet the children of the present day differ a lot from the children of earlier years and they consist of a larger section of the people who come to the net regularly. This is quite understandable as the net is a part of their life which has never been the case with their parents. In studies it has been seen that as much as 73% of the American population between the ages of 12-17 use the Internet regularly and the study was in June 2001. These children also certainly have a care in the world for the world that they live in. One of their main contributions is through the creation of web sites for helping others. Jason Fernandez from Mumbai had built a site which supported children with learning disabilities along with their parents and teachers. This is a site for common good. The new facility of Internet has made it possible for everybody to publish his or her work. This is irrespective of age, gender, or education. The control is not with groups of people that existed in earlier generations where the work could only go out in the printed format. This change will also bring in other changes in the methods of learning, working and social structure. (Children of the Information Age: A Reversal of Roles) Postman had been concerned that the importance of all items was being reduced by television – be it politics, religion, news, athletic education or commerce. This was how we were amusing ourselves to death. It also showed that image was viewed as more important than content, and television was the master of images. (Neil Postman's amusing ourselves to Death) If Postman were to now concentrate on the newer developments he would write on the Internet. To be negative, the Internet contains a lot of false information, and this would hurt the beliefs of a normal human being. But this is also something that we learn while growing up into adults from childhood, and is not necessarily negative. (Final Project Paper: Amusing Ourselves to Death by Neil Postman) To conclude, one can thus say that while television makes the audience less responsible and childish, the Internet makes the audience more apparently mature. It is up to the audience to carry the work further, and not live for their own life, abandoning the responsibility of the children that they created.

Dead Poets Society Essay

To what extent do you agree? In the movie â€Å"Dead Poets Society† produced in 1989 by film director Peter Weir who provides us with an example of a â€Å"charismatic teacher† who persuades the boys away from conforming to the traditions. Suicide was overall Neil’s choice as he was unable to overcome and deal with the difficult relationship with his father. Neil was a sensitive, passionate type of person who found it hard to express his private thoughts about how he felt. Mr Keating is somewhat blamed for Neil’s death as he opened the students minds to different ways of learning and thinking and wanted them to avoid conforming with society and to express individualism. Neil’s father pressured Neil into things he didn’t want to do which took a major part in the act of suicide for Neil. When Neil Perry decides to pursue a career in the performing arts, rather than in medicine, his father, Mr Perry, is furious. Unmoved by Neil’s extraordinary performance in the play â€Å"A Midsummer Night’s Dream†, Mr Perry continues to insist on controlling his son’s life and dictating his every move. But Mr Perry’s efforts were in vain; Neil had already experienced freedom—a privilege not easily relinquished. So in a way the act of suicide was Neil’s way of standing up to his father. Mr Keating encourages his pupils to have independent ideas. For instance, in their second English lesson, he instructed the boys to rip out the introduction to their poetry textbooks, because he believed that the pupils should develop their own responses to poetry rather than follow the guidance of the editor. Throughout the film Mr Keating repeatedly says to the boys â€Å"carpe diem† which means seize the day, so Mr Keating was not in fact ever saying that suicide was not conforming or seizing the day, it was completely against what he was trying to teach the boys. Neil eventually stands up to his father, but is unable to communicate his opinions to the increasing tyrannical traditionalist figure that his father has become. Rather than continuing to live a dreary half-life, Neil decides that the only way to gain control is by taking his own life. Though he lost everything in the process, suicide was the only way for Neil to stand up to his father and live life to the fullest (â€Å"Carpe Diem†). Through the act of suicide, Neil is taking control of his life decisions—and must, as a result, accept the consequences. Neil’s clearly existential actions were a necessary step in his process of self-discovery and individual growth.

Marketing Emotiv

Emotiv Case BACKGROUND: By October 2007, Emotiv Systems Inc. had developed a mind reading device called EPOC, which had the ability to process brain signals in order to measure 30 different mental states. Founded in 2003 (with $1 million in startup money from four partners and $17 million in additional financing mainly from Technology Venture Partners and Epicure Capital Partners), the company's research and development team incorporated existing electroencephalography technologies to introduce a relatively inexpensive and effective cognitive and emotional recognition system.Management at Emotiv believed that video gaming applications represented a solid opportunity for the EPOC technology. EPOC would allow gaming users to move onscreen objects or support secondary features using their thought patterns. With the product ready to launch, the company had to decide how to market EPOC. Emotiv wanted to launch the product in 12 to 14 months, in time for the 2008 holiday season.Although it s new product was generating much interest across the gaming industry, it had yet to secure a partnership for the sale and marketing of EPOC with one of the three major video gaming consoles (Sony PlayStation3, Microsoft Xbox 360, and Nintendo Wii). The Nintendo Wii seemed like a perfect fit. The Wii was established to provide interactive movement games for casual users. Thought games seemed like the next natural step for Nintendo. In addition, Wii had a leading 42. 1% share of the gaming market in the United States. Partnering with the leader would certainly give Emotiv more exposure.However, the Wii was not compatible with the EPOC system because it lacked the computational power the run the advanced EPOC system. It would also have made sense for Sony to jump on board with Emotiv, as it was attempting to turn around plummeting sales. However, poor interorganizational conflict within Sony slowed talks between the two companies. Sony's European division did offer Emotiv a contract f or a dumped down version of EPOC, but that was never really a viable option for Emotiv (it would have hurt Emotiv's image and consumer perceptions of EOPC).Microsoft was highly interested, but did not want to be a first mover on the new technology. It wanted to wait for the EPOC to prove its popularity and worth. To further add to Emotiv's problems, there were no games incorporating EPOC yet. It would be very expensive for Emotiv to produce games internally, and the Electronic Arts (the leading gaming manufacturer) had a wait-and-see approach similar to that of Microsoft. It was now time for Emotiv to make decisions on its marketing strategy. Should it wait until it locked in a major gaming partner to launch EPOC?Or should it launch in the PC gaming market? Emotiv also faced many questions related to the price, distribution, and promotion of EPOC. Their choice and the success of the marketing plan would affect the future profitability of the company. RECOMMENDATION: My recommendatio n would be for Emotiv to initially enter to PC gaming market. Even though it was less lucrative than the console gaming market (only a fifth of the size) and continuing to lose market share, the PC market was easier to enter because games featuring EPOC would be relatively simple to produce.By merely releasing compatibility codes, independent users could easily build EPOC applications into new or existing games, representing a stark difference from the cumbersome game development process in the console market. The wide availability of titles would help promote adoption of the new technology and add to customers' perceived value of the product. Even if the company was able to immediately find a console partner, sales may be low due to a scarcity of games for EPOC. I believe Emotiv should price EPOC at the highest price point advised by retailers, which was $399. Emotiv should create an exclusive product and brand.From its price to its distribution to its positioning statement, the co mpany should portray that EPOC gives users a high customer value. On the distribution front, EPOC should be sold on its own website and at specialty electronics retailers such as Brookstone, which is known for offering the latest and most innovative high-tech gizmos. I think a positing statement that would indicate high value and resonate with consumers is â€Å"Imagine the Unimaginable. † (See Exhibit 1 for the ad containing this positioning statement). The statement conveys that EPOC offers a unique experience.This is important because a distinct user experience is the key point of difference that separates EPOC from other products. Brand value is often created through usage and the customer's overall experience. Thus, I would suggest Emotiv produce one game showcasing the best that EPOC has to offer. The game could be bungled in the sale of the EPOC, giving users an initial application and tutorial for the device. The company had a $2. 5 million offer from Demiurge Studios to develop a PC game to give the user a demonstration of the capabilities of mind-controlled interactivity.The game would feature a martial arts master lifting rocks or walking on water using the user's thoughts. Once the company had its EPOC headset and game ready to launch, it should begin to distribute these items to various influential opinion leaders. Distribution to employees at tech magazines and tech television stations would be ideal. Favorable reviews by sources such as PC Magazine as well as G4 TV and Tech TV would quickly spread word about EPOC. Advertising could also be done using these same mediums. The niche hard-core gamers segment routinely follows these media outlets.Therefore, it would make sense to concentrate on these sources. EPOC also had favorable reviews at industry tradeshows. To gain more exposure, I would advise Emotiv to continue to appear at various tradeshows across the nation, and maybe even host their own conference. The high-profile 2008 Game Devel oper's Conference was five months away. Emotiv should use the event to demonstrate their breakthrough product and create enthusiasm by announcing a launch date. The holiday season would be strategic time to launch, as discretionary consumer spending increases during that time.Management's plan was to release EPOC for the 2008 holiday season, and I would encourage Emotiv to stick with that idea. As the company generates attention and increases awareness for EPOC, it will likely gain a partnership with a major console as they had been seeking. At that time, Emotiv could move from the niche hard-gamers segment to a mass marketing strategy that would also target casual gamers that play for entertainment and fun. The inroads created by their initial strategy can help the company achieve this goal. BASIS FOR RECOMMENDATION: The PC gaming market provides a solid first step or the company. There are significantly fewer barriers to entry in this market. Customers in the PC gaming market tend to be hard-core gamers that spend thousands of dollars upgrading their computers. As such, hard-core gamers would likely be the early adopters of EPOC anyway. In fact, the prospect of a brain computer interface was already creating buzz and generating excitement in online hard-core gamer blogs. I feel that the hard-core gamer segment is a strong target segment, and natural first step for EPOC. Gaming for hard-core users is a lifestyle.They use video games and peripherals for the experience and seek as much reality as possible. EPOC fits this group's needs perfectly, and provides substantial customer value. Thus, a high price tag would be warranted. The price skimming would give Emotiv more flexibility as it eventually moves into the mass market. From a cost benefit standpoint, the move is an optimal strategy. The PC market generates higher margins because the company does not have to pay royalties to console partners. The fee in the console market is usually between 3% and 4% of sa les.Selling the EPOC in Brookstone is a good strategy to target customer looking for the next cool gadget (Brookstone would attract this type of customer), but the company would also be able to negotiate much better terms than the 35% margins that Best Buy demands. Emotiv should be able to exploit hard-core gamers due to the concentrated nature of that market. Adverting costs would be kept minimal, as ads in tech magazines and on television stations command much lower rates than would primetime placements to target the mass market.At a price of $399, the company would need to sell 213,399 units by the end of 2009 in order the breakeven (See Exhibit 2 for a full breakeven analysis). This seems like an attainable sales level for the company. With time, I believe EPOC will become popular enough to move to the mass market. Following the successful launch of EPOC, Microsoft, Sony, and Electronic Arts would be more willing to work with Emotiv. The pace at which the industry adopts EPOC de pends on many factors. An opportunity for the company to accelerate the conversion from niche to mass markets would be a partnership with an influential company like Apple.Their products are widely recognized as being highly innovative. An iPad app that supported the EPOC system could drive sales, making EPOC mainstream quicker. (See Exhibit 3 for a full SWOT analysis for Emotiv). Once the EPOC technology is adopted by the major consoles, I believe its growth can be similar to that of Guitar Hero. Like Guitar Hero, EPOC is an add-on device that creates an interactive experience for the user. The video game industry is rapidly changing, and casual fans are increasingly demanding the kind of games that EPOC can provide.An optimistic sales forecast once the EPOC reaches the mass market could be estimated with an analogy to Guitar Hero (See Exhibit 4 for an optimistic EPOC sales forecast by analogy to Guitar Hero sales). Once EPOC becomes mainstream, sales could quickly increase to more than one million units annually. Although advertising expenses, distribution costs, and royalties paid to console and video game manufacturers would increase, the company would realize a cost savings for manufacturing. After one million units, the incremental cost per unit drops from $110 to $60.ASSUMPTIONS AND UNCERTAINTIES: In the breakeven analysis, I assumed that Brookstone would receive a 20% margin on the sale of EPOC, significantly lower than the 35% margin that Best Buy demands. I am assuming that hard-core gamers will pay an elevated price for a product that provides mainly secondary features, as hard-core gamers usually play fast-paced shooting games that have less of a need for EPOC in the main features of the game. There is also a huge assumption that EPOC will be successful enough to encourage a console maker to adopt the technology.Finally, comparing EPOC to Guitar Hero would be the best case scenario for Emotiv. Casual gamers are harder to reach than hard-core gamers . They could be highly price sensitive (EPOC will be priced at $399 compared to Guitar Hero's $99 price) and expensive to attract (because they are more fragmented and ad space on primetime television would be more costly). EPOC will also have to compete with demand for newer versions of Guitar Hero, which could cut into its sales. ACTION STEPS: Emotiv should immediately contact Demiurge Studios, so it can have the tutorial game ready as soon as possible.Emotiv should showcase EPOC at the 2008 Game Developer's Conference in March 2008. At this point, it should distribute the headset and game to influential opinion leaders across the gaming industry. Hopefully this will create buzz for the release of EPOC. The release should be slighly ahead of the holiday shopping season, in early November 2008. As sales build, the company should continue to target a partnership with a console maker and game producer. By the beginning of 2010, they should have won a contract and be positioned to mas s market EPOC.At this point, their marketing strategy would change. The increased demand facilitated by the console market will give the company higher revenues and profits, giving it more financial flexibility to advertise on primetime television and distribute its products in Best Buy stores. In time, perhaps the company could use its talented research and development team to build even more advanced devices for the gaming market, or even expand the distribution of EPOC for other uses, including applications in the medical, military, market research, and business sectors. See Exhibit 5 for a complete time line for Emotiv). Exhibit 1. Print advertisement for EPOC using its positioning statement. Imagine the Unimaginable Emotiv's EPOC Exhibit 2. Breakeven analysis for years one (2008) and two (2009). Fixed Costs| | | Startup investment | | $1,000,000 | Additional financing used *** | | +$9,500,000 | Cost to produce video martial arts games| | +$2,500,000 | Expected operating expense s for 2008 | | +$11,086,000 | Expected operating expenses for 2009| | +$20,557,000 | Expected total fixed costs| | $44,643,000 | | | Contribution| | | Price | | $399 | Retailers Margins (Price * 20%)| | -$79. 80 | Emotiv's Revenues| | $319. 20 | Cost of Goods Sold| | | (Manufacturing Cost is $110 per unit for the first million units produced)| -$110 | Total contribution per unit | | $209. 20 | | | | | | | Breakeven (fixed costs/contribution)| | 213,399| | | | | | | ***| | | Additional financing raised | $17,000,000 | | Capital still on hand| $7,500,000 | | Additional financing used | $9,500,000 | | Exhibit 3. SWOT analysis for Emotiv.Strengths * Superior quality * Emotiv's EPOC was the best mind- reading device on the market * Technological leader * Its research and development team was highly experienced and innovative, giving the company the ability to continue to improve EPOC and perhaps develop another product in order to move into another gaming category or market segment| Weak nesses * EPOC could be inconsistent * The human mind works differently on different days and times, which can confuse the algorithm behind EPOC * The EPOC is not compatible with the Nintendo Wii, hurting its growth chances since Wii has a leading market share in the console market * No games are currently available for EPOC, which could slow adoption rates by decreasing the value customers receive from the product | Opportunities * Efficiently target hard-core gamers since they are a concentrated group that would likely have an high interest in EPOC and act as early adopters of the technology * Eventually target the mass market once gaming console companies realize the value of the EPOC, allowing the company to experience robust sales similar to those of Guitar Hero * Could increase penetration rate sooner if an innovative leader such as Apple accepts ts technology | Threats * Although EPOC was the most advanced mind-reading device on the market, Emotiv still faced the threat of com petition from other firms * NeuroSky and OCZ Technology were both developing mind-reading devices (although inferior to EPOC) that could be marketing for video gaming applications, which could cut into its market share * Consumers may have unjustifiably high expectations from EPOC (someone once asked if it could move objects in real space), which could lead to customer disappointment and bad reviews| Exhibit 4. Sales Forecast for 2011 once EPOC is mass marketed to all video game players. Under an optimistic scenario, sales of EPOC will mirror sales of Guitar Hero. Exhibit 5. Time line for Emotiv. OCTOBER 2007: Sign a $2. 5 million contract with Demiurge Studios to develop a PC game to be sold with EPOC that demonstrates the capabilities of mind-controlled interactivity. MARCH 2008: Appear at the 2008 Game Developer's Conference. Showcase EPOC and announce that it will be released in November 2008.APRIL 2008: Begin creating buzz for EPOC's launch by sending headsets and the accompany ing PC game to influential opinion leaders at Tech TV and PC magazine. OCTOBER 2008: Create more consumer awareness through advertisements. Target hard-core video game players by running ads on Tech TV and in PC magazine. NOVEMBER 2008: Launch EPOC in time for the start of the 2008 holiday season. Commence its distribution agreement with Brookstone. MARCH 2009: Wait for sales figure for the fourth quarter. Then resume talks with Sony, Microsoft, and Electronic Arts for a partnership to market EPOC. Show them sales statistics for EPOC, which could help demonstrate the success and popularity of the product. JANUARY 2010: Hopefully sign a contract with one of the major console makers.OCTOBER 2010: Prepare to release EPOC for a gaming console. Start advertising on primetime television to capture the mass market. NOVEMBER 2010: Release EPOC for a gaming console in time for the start of the 2010 holiday season. Expand distribution to include Best Buy. MARCH 2011: Conduct research on EPOC upgrades. NOVEMBER 2012: Introduce a new and improved EPOC 2 model. If consumers are satisfied with the first model, repeat sales volume will be high. MARCH 2013: Begin research to expand its product line beyond video games, perhaps for medical, military, market research, or business applications. NOVEMBER 2015: Launch a new product in a new sector. Similar essay: Reed Supermarkets: a New Wave of Competitors

English Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 43

English - Essay Example There is a systematized industry and motif working behind the embalming of bodies and Jessica wanted to bring these points before the common mass, just to make it stronger that the procedure considered inevitable is not at all mandatory. An expert on death and dying, Jessica Mitford is completely against embalming dead bodies after death and puts forward many valid points in support of her contention. Her motive of writing this essay is explicit from the very beginning of the literary piece. She has placed a strong objection regarding the secrecy maintained during embalming. Another major purpose of writing this essay was to make it clear that the process of embalming is barbaric and it is evident that her real goal in writing this essay was to reach the common mass so that common people should understand, how barbaric the practices are and the mystery that actually lies behind the closed doors of the funeral parlors. She clearly claims that the ritual of embalming in North American funeral tradition is grotesque. Yet, people seem to remain ignorant about it. By highlighting these points, she wanted to create a common awareness against these rituals and tried to correct them. She brings out evidences to make her contentions more concrete. She wanted to show that a planned industry works behind these traditions which try to make burial a pleasurable thing. This ritual, according to Jessica, only prevails in North America and does not occupy any place in the tradition of other areas apart from it. She writes with specific examples. She brings forth the example of the ritual of open - casket ceremony only common in North America. She ends her essay with the following line that completely complements her intentions behind writing the essay:   Ã¢â‚¬Å"He has done everything in his power to make the funeral a real pleasure for everybody concerned. Consequently well over 90

Hydrogels Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Hydrogels - Term Paper Example A hydrogel construction can be described as a three-dimensional jetty is made up of linear polymer chains with covalent connections, which are in turn connected together by further cross-connections. These cross-connections could be covalent, ionic grafts or crystal sections [2]. Hydrogels form due to polarity and hydrophilic nature of polar groups existing between the polymer chains cross-connections that render it insoluble. There are several known methods of synthesizing hydrogels, some of which are explained below. A simple method of constructing hydrogels is by crosslinking water-soluble polymers (with functional groups like -OH, -COOH, -NH2) in solution. In solution co-polymerization reactions, ionic or neutral monomers are mixed with a multi-functional crosslinking agent. The reaction is initiated thermally using UV-light, or by a redox initiator system. The solvent serves as heat sink and minimizes temperature control problems. The reaction is carried out in an organic solvent to prevent water from reacting with the crosslinking agent. Once crosslinked, the resultant hydrogels are washed with distilled water to remove any unreacted monomers, crosslinking agent, and the initiator. Equation 1 shows one such solution polymerization reaction conducted on 2-hydroxyethylmethacrylate monomers to form a hydrogel. This solution crosslinking method is often advantageous since the starting material used can be a well-characterized, purified polymer, and the crosslinking conditions required are mild enough to be carried out in the presence of an active agent. For example, poly (2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) hydrogels are prepared from hydroxyethyl methacrylate by this method, using ethylene glycol dimethacrylate as the crosslinking agent [3]. The hydrogels synthesized can be made pH- sensitive or temperature-sensitive as required by incorporating methacrylic acid or N-isopropylacrylamide [4] as monomers. Ionizing radiation, such as Co-ÃŽ ³ or

Securities act of 1933 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Securities act of 1933 - Essay Example In fact, this law was brought into light after the great depression in 1929 in the US economy. By means of fraudulent activities, many companies sold fake securities based on false information and thus huge investment from the investors went in vain. So, underlying principle of 1933 act was to help potential investors get information about the company (issuer) and its securities that are offered for sale publicly. This overt expression from the issuer, thereby results a more concerned securities market because the investor were fully aware of the background of the company and their securities before investing money into purchase. Thus, it was a pressing need for a first major federal law which can govern the unstable situation in a uniform manner. In fact, from the buyer point of view, it was really inspiring step to make the issuers conformed to certain rules as to disclose their information accurately before they offer or sale securities. Regardless of whether securities must be registered, the 1933 Act makes it illegal to commit fraud in conjunction with the offer or sale of securities. A scammed investor can sue for recovery under the 1933 Act. Rule 144, promulgated by the SEC under the 1933 Act, permits, under limited circumstances, the sale of restricted and controlled securities without registration.. The amount of securities sold during any subsequent 3-month period generally does not exceed any of the following limitations: 1% of the stock outstanding, The avg. weekly reported volume of trading in the securities on all national securities exchanges for the preceding 4 weeks, and The avg. weekly volume of trading of the securities reported through the consolidated transactions reporting system (NASDAQ). Regulation S is a "safe harbor" that defines when an offering of 'securities' will be deemed to come to rest abroad and therefore not be subject to the registration obligations imposed under Section 5 of the 1933 Act. Civil Liability under the 1933 Securities Act Any violation of the registration requirements can be a cause to civil liability for the issuer and underwriters Sections 11, 12(a) (1) or 12(a) (2) of the Act. Additional

Elevating Brand Values Through Corporate Social Responsibility in Essay

Elevating Brand Values Through Corporate Social Responsibility in China A Study on Sporting Goods Companies - Essay Example On the other hand, advocators of CSR say that companies exhibiting social responsibilities can gain the trust of customers thereby increasing sales. In China, the CSR activities are conducted more for serving the interests of the government than the consumers and therefore companies mostly focus on ethical issues that are initiated by the government. This paper is based on a survey conducted on 200 Chinese consumers and also representatives from Nike and Adidas to assess their perception on CSR activities of their companies. The survey result showed that although majority of people are aware of CSR activities, almost 65 percent of the respondents’ purchase decisions are not affected by a company’s CSR activities. In contrast, the company respondents generally felt that although CSR activities are necessary for positive responses from customers, only 22 percent of them felt that CSR activities are responsible for their companies’ success. Corporate social responsibility is one of the main aspects that almost all the organizations in the world now focusing at. In its earlier stage, the performance of any organization was always measured by its overall business volume, its awareness among the people across the globe and by its innovativeness. But in modern age, along with the business performance, corporate social responsibility also plays an important role in creating value for the organization in the society. Moreover, different organizations across the globe now use CSR strategies as one of their branding and promotional activities to reach out to more consumers across the globe. The Cone Communications/Echo Global CSR Study organized by The Cone Communications, 2013, carried out a clear fact about the test to enterprises in present world’s continuously challenging and ever changing market place, and that is: the challenge of creating a â€Å"real and meaningful impact†. In modern world the question is not about engaging in Corporate

Educational Change Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Educational Change - Essay Example The USA government has invested a lot in research to better the education systems so that its citizens can be more innovative and competitive. The extensive research has brought about many changes in the education sector. This paper will discuss the key changes that have occurred in the USA system of education and their impact. Additionally, the paper will also look at the driving forces to the changes giving more attention to technological changes. The paper will also discuss how good leadership catalyzes educational changes in an institution. Educational competition is evident globally, and all nations are looking forward to making their students the best in the world. The USA has made graduating from high school to college a national imperative. The education system and curriculums are more focused on ensuring that students are competitive in their careers. This is an improvement to the former system whereby the student was supposed to read a lot of course work which might not relate to the career in the future (Films for the Humanities & Sciences, 2007). The K12 education system is aimed at providing complete and competitive education. The requirement for college education has been raised which translates into mandatory better reading in high school levels. The number of teachers recruited in every school is much higher as compared to the numbers recruited in the past. The educational institutions are more ambitious in the kind of teachers that are recruited and how they are prepared and developed to meet the pre-set goal (Hargreaves, 2010). The academic requirement of principals and teachers is quite high, and hence schools have a good workforce to deliver quality education. It has become obligatory that every school has data systems that record education performance of every student (Razik & Swanson, 2010). Such systems provide the teachers with a good reflection of the students past

Female genital mutilation and the practice of midwifery Dissertation

Female genital mutilation and the practice of midwifery - Dissertation Example The practices of FGM seem to be barbaric and cruel to Western society and in societies that hold such practices are done with the belief that there is a benefit to stealing the sexual arousal mechanisms from women in order to make them less carnal and more proper. The difficulty comes in trying to honour cultures for their beliefs while motivating them to change those beliefs because of false and dangerous consequences where female sex organs are concerned. Midwifery requires the acceptance of beliefs in concert with the application of good medical and traditional knowledge where childbirth is concerned. Consulting and caring for women who have had FGM requires sensitivity to the cultural beliefs with a firm understanding of how such procedures affect women in reference to their procreative lives. Psychological and medical knowledge is necessary to treat women with both respect and dignity despite any converse beliefs on the subject. While ideally it would be beneficial to abolish th e act of FGM, at this point in time it is still a potential problem that might arise when caring from patients from certain cultures or who come from a history of traumatic circumstances that ended in FGM. The following research proposal will explore the potential for a project in which the subject of FGM is examined through victims of the procedures, through the medical consequences that midwives face when dealing with patients who are victims of FGM, and through examining the balance between the victimisation of women and the cultural belief systems that must be honoured and respected while finding ways to deal with the consequences and offer reparative solutions where possible. 1.2 Background Female genital mutilation, also known as... From this research it is clear that female genital mutilation, also known as female genital cutting and female circumcision, has been defined by the World Health Organisation as â€Å"all procedures that involve the partial or total removal of female genitalia, or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons†. Unlike male circumcision, there are no health benefits to female circumcision and often contribute to urination difficulties or difficulty in childbirth later in life. The procedure most often will occur between the ages of birth and 15 and is considered a violation against women by world organisations across agencies. There are an estimated 100 to 140 million women who live with the consequences of the procedure with 92 million living on the African continent. There are four major types of FGM. These types are as follows: †¢ Clitoridectomy: partial or total removal of the clitoris (a small, sensitive and erectile part of the female genitals) and, in very rare cases, only the prepuce (the fold of skin surrounding the clitoris). †¢ Excision: partial or total removal of the clitoris and the labia minora, with or without excision of the labia majora (the labia are "the lips" that surround the vagina). †¢ Infibulation: narrowing of the vaginal opening through the creation of a covering seal. The seal is formed by cutting and repositioning the inner, or outer, labia, with or without removal of the clitoris. †¢ Other: all other harmful procedures to the female genitalia for non-medical purposes, e.g. pricking, piercing, incising, scraping and cauterizing the genital area.

Enhancing the Self through Tennis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Enhancing the Self through Tennis - Essay Example From this paper it is clear that players can choose from one-on-one game play or doubles matches, involving four or more combatants on the court. Whatever version of the game they decide, tennis provides a forum where players maintain routine socialization with opponents, creating the opportunity for increased camaraderie and the development of long-term friendships both on and off the court. In contemporary society, a common theme can be observed which promotes the professional and social benefits of teamworking and networking as methods to enhance life successes. With this in mind, tennis provides the opportunity to build a solid set of social skills, improving one's ability to work positively with others. Whether one-on-one or doubles, this athletic pastime could potentially provide an opportunity to network with others on the court, perhaps creating a chance to advance one's career through newfound prospects.As the essay declares  most interesting to improving one's personal su ccesses through tennis is the old adage which suggests that practice makes perfect. Virtually anyone familiar with the game would likely offer that perfecting tennis skills represents a significant commitment to the player. One does not walk onto the court a tennis professional, thus continued practice creates a noticeably more proficient player.  Personal goal-setting requires similar commitment and determination in order to emerge into the life position they desire.

Energy in American History Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Energy in American History - Essay Example In fact, there was less reliance on the wood for fueling locomotives after discovery of coal. Moreover, there was a high preference for coal as a source of energy was due to its higher-energy content compared to wood. Coal was needed for production of coke in the process of manufacturing iron and steel; in fact, it was identified as an economical component in the production process. Nevertheless, the paper will focus on exploring use of energy in America through a comparison of different sources, while the next section will summarize arguments in these sources, thereby evaluating them to determine whether they are honest and accurate. Finally, the paper will explore the historical context for energy issue and discuss the way knowledge can influence evaluation of these arguments. There was profound growth of energy consumption in the transport sector during the nineteenth century, and this growth led to an exhaustion of sources of energy such as wood and coal, in American history. How ever, this was not until the Second World War, when petroleum was introduced (Johnson, 30). Establishment of petroleum let to a shift from use of coal as a source of energy to use of diesel and gasoline on locomotives and trucks. This was also facilitated by engines designed to consume gasoline and diesel, thereby making petroleum products predominant sources of energy for transportation. Nevertheless, this led to a rise in labor issues, safety standards, increased costs of coal production and a reduction in the use of coal as a source of energy. Years later, there was a reemergence of coal consumption as a source of energy, which involved firing electrical generators; this clearly indicated its stake as source of energy. However, introduction of petroleum as a source of energy and natural gas continued to reduce use of coals as a prime supply of energy. There was a further increase in the use of petroleum in the 1920s after a completion of the first petroleum drilling project by Ed win Drake (WOU, 1). In fact, this led to a significant increase of use of petroleum during the depression, which increased until 1973. In this case, petroleum can be considered the only source of energy that underwent sudden increase in consumption during the American history. Issues and arguments at this section of the paper entails a comparison of two sources from both governmental and non-governmental website, and these sources seem to agree in numerous accounts regarding changes in the consumption of energy in American history. Therefore, these accounts can be considered rational, and with an attribute of high level of accuracy. Consequently, this makes the stance of the paper to be in agreement with the accounts provided by these sources in relation to the history of energy consumption in America. Evaluation of the Arguments There has been a notable change in the patterns of energy consumption over the American history throughout the development of different sources of energy a nd change of energy consumptions. Therefore, the arguments proposed in the first section of the paper can be considered rational and accurate. In fact, there are other websites indicating that wood was used as a source of energy before establishment of coal, which was later replaced by petroleum. In this case, accounts by these sources indicate that coal was a highly preferred source of energy during the nineteenth century. Moreover, different sources also indicated that in

satire 1984 Essay Example for Free

satire 1984 Essay In Nineteen Eighty-four, George Orwell introduces Communism regime through the community of Oceania. Communism is a socioeconomic structure and political ideology that promotes the establishment of an egalitarian, classless, stateless society, and single party control (Wikipedia). Most of party members are proles, working class. They are uneducated and unaware of what is happening; thus they are completely under the Partys control. Therefore, the party then can remove any possibilities of rebellion. Through the novel, Orwell uses satire to warn us about surveillance, physical and psychological intimidation, and isolation. Satire, a mode of writing that exposes the failings of individuals, institutions, or societies to ridicule and scorn. Satire is often an incidental element in literary works that may not be wholly satirical, especially in comedy (answers). Orwell, through the characters, predicts what our future will be like if the totalitarian regime remained in power. SURVEILLANCE: Winston Smith, the main character in the novel, is somehow different than other characters, even though he is a Party member. Since Winston is an intellectual man, he is able to discern the truth from the falsehood; thus he stands against the Party. He resists the party, resists the stifling in his life of being controlled. George Orwell satirizes the surveillance through these facts.   He dreams about a girl ripping off her clothes. It represents the idea of throwing away the shackles that are imposed by the Party and Big Brother.   He writes down with Big Brother in his diary. Now he commits thoughtcrime that he will be captured by the thought police sooner or later.   Telescreens and portraits of Big Brother are everywhere; therefore, it is impossible to not being heard and seen. Party can check on citizens whenever and wherever, since each individual is coded: Smith! screamed the shrewish voice from the telescreen. 6079 Smith W! Yes, you! Bend lower please! You can do better than that (1,3,39) . No one is able to betray the Party. BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU There is no freedom of speech in community of Oceania. An example to this fact is Winston. He is incapable of expressing his personal ideas about the Party. Moreover, Winston is unable to quit his job when he does not like it, and he is not allowed to keep any personal documents. George Orwell is clearly worried about our lack of privacy. Orwell predicts that our future will be governed by one ruler and that one ruler will watch every move we make. He worries about the future where we do not have freedoms. For example is freedom of speech which is impossible in some communism country. Physical, psychological intimidation and manipulation Through the main characters in the novel, George Orwell satirizes the physical, psychological intimidation, and manipulation of nazi regime and the Russian revolution. In the society of Oceania love, sex, joy, happiness, personal documents, thoughts, etc, are completely forbidden. The Morning exercise is a good example for physical manipulation. Winston lives in the world in which legitimate optimism is impossible because he is always being controlled by the thought police.   Moreover, anyone who betrays the Party will be vaporized and their files will be rewritten, that is Winstons job to rewrite historical documents. They never existed and will never exist. In nineteen eighty-four, there should be no religion but the idea of Sacred Leader. Since, Winston writes down God is power( he is tortured again. On the other hand, Big Brother represents god; everyone worships him. In the beginning of the novel, the two minutes hate is introduced to the reader, which is somehow a public worship of Big Brother.   George Orwell also explores the use of language to control peoples mind and thoughts. Dont you see that the whole aim of Newspeak is to narrow the range of thoughts? In the end it will make thoughtcrime impossible, because there will be no words in which to express (1,5,55) 2+2=5 is a symbol of manipulation of science. The Party has the power to control everything even science. The truth is wrong when the Party says it wrong   Sexual life is totally forbidden under the Partys control. Winstons wife considers sex as a duty for a Party. She does not get any pleasure out of it.   Julia, a young apathetic and rebellious girl, grows up under the Party regime. The society that she lives in is based on suspicion, spying, fear, hatred and intimidation. Julia obeys the Party but she does not believe in it, but she is way different from her lover Winston. Julia is somewhat selfish. She is interested in rebelling only for the pressures to be gained. Whereas Winston is fatalistic concerned about large-scale social issues, Julia is pragmatic and content live in the moment that makes the best for her life. Junior Spy is a symbol of educational manipulation in which very young children are brainwashed to embrace the Partys ideas. There are a lot of similarities between the Hitler Youth and Oceanias youth. The kids are taught to ferret out disloyal members and denounce anyone who criticizes the Party or Big Brother even their own parents. In the beginning of the novel, when Winston meets the Parsons Kids; they are dressed in the uniform of the Spies with a tough looking. Suddenly they leap around him shouting traitor. Later on, Mr. Parsons, Winstons comrade, gets caught because his little daughter listens at the keyhole and hears he sleeptalks Down with Big Brother. The two Parsons Kids beg their parents for take them to see the hanging. Activities for boys include War game which intends to toughen them up. In a few years they will hold real weapons not riffle toys.   In the beginning of the novel, OBrien appears as a rebellious man who Winston suspects of him secretly opposing the Party. In fact, he is a powerful member of inner Party, and he tricks Winston into believing that he is a member of a revolution group called Brotherhood. Later, OBrien appears in Winstons jail cell as a party member to abuse and brainwash disloyal Winston. He admits that he pretended to be connected to the Brotherhood merely to trap Winston. In the end, OBrien successfully changes Winstons feeling toward Big Brother from hate to love. Orwell is again scared of physical and mind manipulation. He is worried that people will be control physically by propaganda, for example Junior Spy in the novel or the Physical Jerk. Moreover, Orwell predicts about how people are brainwashed by the Party, and his predictions come true. Nowadays, in some communism countries, for example Vietnam, every Party member are not allowed have religion, and then they will love the party most. ISOLATION: Through the character Winston and Goldstein, Orwell satires the isolation in human nature and totalitarianism society.   Isolation appears often in the novel. Winston lives alone at his house with no companionship except the surveillance cameras and the telescreens. He has a world of his own only in his head. He cant have a social life because the party forbids any means of social communication. He writes in his diary because that is his only way of expressing his feelings and thoughts even though its considered thoughtcrime. Every person in the novel is isolated from the community; they can not have any open conversation with themselves. Goldstein represents Trotsky in real life. He stands against the party thus he is expelled from the party and sent out of the country. After Goldstein becomes a scapegoat of the Party, and he is brought up in Two Minutes Hate. George Orwell brings up the idea of isolation in the novel. He is afraid that the next generation will have the isolated life if the totalitarianism regime remains. Bibliography http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Communist , 11 January 2009 http://www. answers. com/satire , 11 January 2009 Spender, Stephen. Evil In Nineteen Eighty-Four. Harold Bloom, editor. George Orwells Nineteen Eighty-Four. USA: Chelsea House Publisher, 1996 Show preview only The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our GCSE Miscellaneous section.

Physical And Chemical Properties Of Bamboo Environmental Sciences Essay

Physical And Chemical Properties Of Bamboo Environmental Sciences Essay Chapter 1 has been drafted in a manner that it is to draw the context of this dissertation. It defines the locality, and has an insight into the North East Indian Bamboo industry. It attempts to justify the use of bamboo as a primary construction material in the area, due to its abundant availability. It tries to highlight the faults in the current and traditional methods prevalent in the region which are a hindrance to bamboo being more often used for construction. The dissertation research looks into gathering substantial proofs to support the hypothesis which comes after understanding the problems of the area. 1.1: Bamboo Distribution 1.1.1 World Wide Distribution Bamboo is a plant belonging to the true grass family Poaceae, subfamily Bambusoideae, tribe Bambuseae. In bamboo, the internodal regions of the stem are hollow and the vascular bundles in the cross section are scattered throughout the stem instead of in a cylindrical arrangement. Bamboo is a native to five continents around the world : Asia, Africa, South America, North America and Australia. It is found at all elevations from the coast of the Philippines up to 15,000 feet above sea level in the eastern Andes. Bamboo grows in the tropical, subtropical and temperate regions of all continents except Europe, geographically divided into 3 zones: the Asia- Pacific zone(around 700 species), the America zone (around 400 species) and the African zone (around 50 species). There are totally 70 genera and 1200 species of bamboo all over the world that have been recorded, with some more in undeveloped regions to be discovered and identified. Over 2.5 billion people worldwide use or trade in bamboo worth 4.5 billion US Dollar every year (INBAR 1999). 1.1.2 South East Asia Bamboo is found in abundance in South East Asia, the tropical scenario, temperature and soil conditions in the area widely promotes the growth of bamboo in the area. China is known as the Kingdom of Bamboo, with around 500 bamboo species native here, naturally distributed in 16 provinces and 1 municipal city, among which Yunnan takes up 220 species due to its diversified climate and geographical characteristics. Due to its abundance in availability, from the starting of time bamboo as such has been a part of all South East Asian traditions. Bamboo is an inseparable part of south east Asian culture, medicine , music, construction and food. In construction, bamboo provides pillars, floors, walls, doors, window frames, rafters, room separators, ceilings and roofs. The meeting houses of some New Guinea villages are 20 m tall and more than 40 m long, with huge bamboo poles set deep into the ground and bent over in the shape of Gothic arches to carry the thickly thatched roof, creating some of the boldest structures built with minimal equipment and technology. Japanese houses are far more sophisticated, but are still typically built of wood, paper and bamboo. Bamboo is used to make guard houses in rice fields, roadside food shops, hot houses for growing mushrooms, smoke houses for drying tobacco or rubber, store houses for rice and other produce, and livestock sheds. Bamboo is also used to make pegs which replace nails. Bamboo scaffolding finds extensive use in Asian cities, even on very tall buildings. Bamboo is used throughout rural Asia to build bridges of many types and sizes; they can be as long as 25 m, often involvin g sophisticated technology as suspension bridges, but also with simple technology in the form of pontoon bridges (Kurz 1876). Many villagers use bamboo shingles, with the large stems split in half and laid with the convex and concave sides alternately facing upwards, with their edges overlapping. In coastal areas, roofs often are made of thatch woven from nipa palm around long slivrers of bamboo. Location Bamboo Area (10,000 hectare) Bamboo Species China 500.00 500 India 400.00 136 Burma 217.00 90 Thailand 81.00 60 Bangladesh 60.00 30 Cambodia 28.70 Vietnam 13.00 92 Japan 13.80 230 Indonesia 6.00 30 Malaysia 2.00 44 Philippines 2.00 55 Korea 0.80 13 Sri Lanka 0.20 14 In countries like China, Japan and Korea, bamboo also is a frequently used popular motive for poets and painters. Philosophers and literateurs took bamboo as a symbol for a good personality: making progress; modest; straight (Wang 2000)  ¿Ã‚ ½ there, bamboo is not only a useful material for their everyday life, but also has already been developed into a so called  ¿Ã‚ ½bamboo culture ¿Ã‚ ½ through the long time of cohabitation with people. 1.1.3 India Why North East India? India is home to about 45% of the world ¿Ã‚ ½s bamboo production. There are 125 species of bamboo in India spread across 18 genera. According to a survey by BMTPC (Building Materials and Technology Promotion Council) India produces about 13.5 Million Metric Tons of bamboo annually from 9.6 Million Hectares land area (used only for bamboo plantation). Sympodial bamboo consists of 67% of growing stock and monopodial bamboo comprises of 20% of growing stock. Out of this amount the North Eastern part of India alone has the gross share of 66% of the total production. So, it can be said that potentially this region has the widest range climate and topography suitable for growth of bamboo. Distribution of Bamboo in North East India (Area in sq km * ) S. No. State Area under Bamboos Area under Muli Bamboo Area under other Bamboo Spp. Area expected to flower Area accessible (Flowered) 1. Arunachal Pradesh 4590 100.00 2. Assam 8213 2950 1456 3. Manipur 3692 1592 400 4. Meghalaya 3100 400 2700 400 200 5. Mizoram 6646 5100 1500 5100 1200 6. Nagaland 0758 250 250 7. Tripura 2397 960 1437 2397 300 Bamboo is a vital element of Indias North Eastern region comprising the states of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura. Bamboo has been a traditional material of construction that has been used in the north east region from quiet some time. In Borneo and the Naga Hills of India, large communal houses that may be 100 m long are built of bamboo. In Arunachal Pradesh, large suspension bridges have been made out of bamboo, In Assam houses made of bamboo are the typical house type in villages which stand the test of floods and earthquakes in the region. Bamboo is the material of choice when it comes to arts and craft in the region. A number of traditional musical instruments are also made from bamboo.  ¿Ã‚ ½The virtues of bamboo are not new, but the interest in it is, ¿Ã‚ ½ says Antonios Levissianos, UNIDO senior industrial development officer.  ¿Ã‚ ½Bamboo is no longer seen as a poor man ¿Ã‚ ½s timber, it is growing to be the most promising substitute for wood and there is great scope for further generating rural employment. India ¿Ã‚ ½s current demand for bamboo is an estimated 27 million tones. However, only 50 per cent of that demand can be met because of lack of facilities for value addition and transportation. ¿Ã‚ ½ 1.2: Why Bamboo? Bamboo is one of the foremost sustainable naturally available material that has been used in construction since ages. Bamboo is the traditional material of choice that has been in use in the North East region of India since time immemorial. Bamboo is enduring, versatile and renewable, and due to its vast production (13.5 million metric tonnes annually), it was also the material of choice in construction. Bamboo can replace a variety of woods that are being increasingly used for construction today, and thus help in saving forests which today are in a critical stage of deforestation. Also, bamboo converts more carbon-di-oxide, than most other plants, and hence a more eco-friendly material. The growth rate of bamboo is also three times to eucalyptus and it can be harvested four times in the same period, hence its production and availability is much more compared to wood. So, bamboo should be the material of choice in the field of construction and not only as a scaffolding option as it i s mostly used today, at least in the regions where it is readily available and in bounty. 1.2.1 Physical and chemical Properties of bamboo Physical Properties Physical properties of bamboo varies greatly from species to species, and to some extent within a species. Culms are generally long and straight and the hollow internodes make it comparatively light. The strength of bamboo varies within the species, age of culm, moisture content and portion of culm and generally increases until it reaches maturity. The tensile strength of a bamboo pole is high parallel to the grain. Bamboo however, fails in shear before it fails in tension and so modulus of rupture is used to calculate strength. Due to its weak transverse bonds between its fibres, it can be spilt easily along the length (radial or tangential) Chemical Properties The main constituents of the bamboo culm are: cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin. Other constituents consist of resins, tannins, waxes and inorganic salts. The composition varies based on years of growth, season, species and the part of the culm. Studies on moisture, ligno-cellulosic, starch and silica content are presented in this section. The main percentage composition of a bamboo pole are mainly:  ¿Ã‚ ½ Cellulose Fibers 40%  ¿Ã‚ ½ Parenchyma 50%  ¿Ã‚ ½ Vessels (voids) 10% Mechanical Properties The fibers contribute 60-70% of the weight of the total culm tissue. They are long and tapered at their ends. The ratio of length to width varies between 150:1 and 250:1. Fiber length has showed considerable variation within species. There is also variation in strength properties along the culm height as well. Compressive strength tends to increase with height [Espiloy 1987; Liese 1987; Sattar et al. 1990; Kabir et al. 1991]. The strength increases from the central to the outer part. There is more than 100 percent variation in strength from the inner to the outer layers [Narayanamurti and Bist 1947]. 1.2.2 Bamboo In comparison to other prevalent construction materials A comparative study of the energy required to produce a unit of a building material with a certain level of load-bearing capacity gives an idea of the sustainability of bamboo. Due to its hollowness and the fibres being in the longitudinal direction, bamboo is a very efficient material for structural design, as less material is needed than in case of traditional construction materials such as steel and concrete as massive sections can be avoided. In case of load bearing mass, due to its tubular structure bamboo behaves as a I-shaped cross-section, in each of the direction of its load, but it is less efficient than other cross sections in one or two directions. The mechanical properties, the high extent of flexibility, its exceptionally fast growth rate, comparatively lower weight and low cost make bamboo a preferable building material over other construction materials. Although, in its natural state bamboo is little efficient to be used as a construction material due to its proneness to decay and insect attack, so, bamboo needs to be treated before it can be used as an extensive construction material. 1.2.3 Bamboo as a sustainable construction material Bamboo is not a tree, it is a grass, so unlike trees it does not yield timber. Bamboo ¿Ã‚ ½s environmental benefits arise largely out of its ability to grow and spread quickly  ¿Ã‚ ½ in some cases three to four feet per day  ¿Ã‚ ½ without the need for fertilizers, pesticides or much water. A bamboo grove also releases some 35 percent more oxygen into the air than a similar-sized stand of trees, because of this, planting bamboo is a great way to reduce your carbon footprint and help fight global warming, a perfect selection for going green and it matures (and can be replanted) within seven years (compared to 30-50 years for a stand of trees), helping to improve soil conditions and prevent erosion along the way. Bamboo is so fast-growing that it can yield 20 times more timber than trees on the same area. As a building material, bamboo is also ideal in that it is sturdy, and can be cut and laminated into sheets and planks, just like wood. The quality of bamboo laminate varies between manufacturers and the maturity of the plant from which it was harvested; the sturdiest products fulfill their claims of being up to three times harder than oak hardwood but others may be softer than standard hardwood. Again, the many varieties of bamboo give it the advantage of versatility. For countries who are poor and struggling to move away from polluting industries, growing bamboo has the potential to become a viable economic and environmental solution. Bamboo if used as a major construction material, addresses three major areas: ECOLOGICAL SECURITY: conservation of forests through timber substitution, alternate materials to non-biodegradable high energy consuming materials like metals and plastics SUSTAINABLE FOOD SECURITY: bamboo based agro -forestry system, maintenance of soil fertility of adjoining agricultural lands, and bamboo shoots. LIVELIHOOD SECURITY: generation of employment in planting and primary processing for manufacturing mat based composites and other market driven bamboo products. Bamboo poles can be used to make papers and clothes, and the process is environment friendly as little harmful chemicals are required to make paper and clothes out of the bamboo plant. The environmental impact of bamboo is what makes it an ideal material for construction in both interior and exterior of any building. 1.3: Bamboo Usable in Construction 1.3.1 Durability of bamboo structure Bamboo is a natural composite with remarkable growth rate, and potent physical and mechanical properties which makes it one of the most suitable replacement for wood and a major and most sought after sustainable building material in the region of its growth. But bamboo in its natural state is not a very durable material and is very prone to infestation and decay. Thus, most bamboos used for structural purposes in rural and tribal housing deteriorate in a couple of years, putting heavy pressure on the resource, owing to increased demands for frequent replacements. This adversely affects the supplies of bamboo, even in bamboo rich regions. India, with an annual production of about 3.2 million tones of bamboos, ranks second only to China in bamboo production (Pathak, 1989). Over 136 species in 30 genera occur in India (Suri and Chauhan, 1984). The two most widely distributed genera in India are Bambusa and Dendrocalamus. In South and Southeast Asia, the most economically important species for structural uses from the point of view of easy availability are Bambusa balcoa, Bambusa bambos, Bambusa blumeana, Bambusa nutans, Bambusa polymorpha, Bambusa tulda, Barnbusa vulgaris, Dendrocalarmus hamiltonii, Dendrocalarnus strictus, Melocanna barnbusoides, Gigan tochloa spp., Ochlandra travanicorica and Oxytenathera nigroeiliata. Unfortunately, like most lignocellulosic materials, bamboo has very low resistance to biological degrading agents. Several techniques to enhance its durability have, therefore, been developed. Natural Durability of Bamboo Worldwide and mainly in the South East Asian mainland where bamboo grows in abundance there are a great many traditional and chemical methods for the preservation and enhanced durability of bamboo. However, here we mainly discuss briefly the traditional method of increasing the durability of bamboo which are tested and practiced in the north east Indian region which is the main producer of bamboo in the country. Variation in durability has also been observed along the length of the culm and the thickness of the wall. The lower portion of the culm is considered more durable, while the inner part of the wall deteriorates faster than the outer harder portion. This is probably related to the anatomical and chemical nature of the woody cells. Because of the lack of any toxic constituents, bamboos form a ready food source for a variety of organisms. The presence of considerable quantities of starch in green or dry bamboo makes it more attractive to such organisms, especially stain fungi and borer beetles. Some sap sucking insects have been reported to attack bamboo plantations as well (Chatterjee and Sebastian, 1964,1966; Singh, 1988). The most serious borers of felled bamboos are three species of Dinoderus (celluris, minutes, brevis) and Lyctus, which attack bamboo rich with starch (Casin and Mosteiro, 1970; Sandhu, 1975). They cause immense damage during drying, storage, and subsequent use. Carpenter bees and termites also attack bamboo (Beeson, 1938;Sensarma and Mathur, 1957). Bamboos are attacked by marine organisms as well (Anon, 1945). It is reported that bamboos harvested during summer are more rapidly destroyed than those felled in the rainy season (Liese, 1980). Culms of bamboo plants which have flowered are more resistant to beetles because of starch depletion. Hence, the first point of consideration for the durability of bamboo is harvesting. Harvesting of Bamboo In bamboos, soluble sugars are the principal nutrients for parasites. Thus, bamboos with depleted carbohydrates become reasonably resistant to the attack of borers and staining fungi. Methods adopted for lowering the sugar content at the time of harvesting of bamboos are: (i) Life Cycle: Felling of bamboo at maturity when sugar content is low:- Sugar content in bamboos varies with age. It is lowest during the first year but felling of one-year-old bamboo is not desirable because of very low strength and yield. Normally, bamboo matures at 3-4 years (ii) Annual Cycle: Felling of bamboo during low-sugar content season:-Sugar content in almost all plants varies with seasons. In India, for example, it is higher in spring than in winter (Joseph, 1958). Therefore, it is advisable to harvest bamboos between August and December, which is basically the dry season before monsoons. (iii) Daily Cycle: Felling of bamboo after sunset:- During the day time due to the availability of sunlight a lot of photosynthesis occurs in the bamboo plant and hence a lot of movement of food occurs resulting in increased starch content in most parts of the bamboo tree. But during the night mainly stored food is used and no photosynthesis happens, so it is advisable to fell the bamboo tress after sunset. Leaching of Bamboo The bamboo available after harvest is not ready yet, it still has a large amount of sap content which makes it prone to infestation and decay. Leaching is the removal of sap after harvest. The sap levels in harvested bamboo are reduced either through leaching or postharvest photosynthesis. A variety of leaching practices are used to remove the sap content, the mostly used include: 1. Cut bamboo is raised clear of the ground and leant against the rest of the clump for one to two weeks until leaves turn yellow to allow full consumption of sugars by the plant. 2. A similar method is undertaken, but with the base of the culm standing in fresh water, either in a large drum or stream to leach out sap. 3. Cut culms are immersed in a running stream and weighted down for three to four weeks. 4. Water is pumped through the freshly cut culms, forcing out the sap (this method is often used in conjunction with the injection of some form of treatment). In the process of water leaching, the bamboo is dried slowly and evenly in the shade to avoid cracking in the outer skin of the bamboo, thereby reducing opportunities for pest infestation. Storage of Bamboo The bamboo after removal of the sap content is than ready to be stored in storages but certain precautions are taken to enhance the durability of bamboo, they are: 1. Bamboo is not stored in the open to avoid exposure to climatic forces such as rain and direct sunlight. 2. Bamboo is stored in a semi closed area to allow wind movement through its stacks. 3. Bamboo is stored a bit (app. 10cm) above the ground to avoid infestation from below, also an insect repellent may be sprayed on the ground. 4. Bamboo is stacked in vertical manner, and it should be noted that a minimum of 30% of the moisture in bamboo should be retained. These measures taken ensures that the bamboo is stored properly and is well protected from reagents, and ready for selection and grading. Selection/ Grading of bamboo The bamboo culms are now ready for selection and grading into various categories, which are then accordingly put to use in the construction as per the nature of demand of the work. The main characteristics of a good, durable and structurally usable bamboo culm are based on the following key points along with a idea of advisable range of values. 1. Age and Maturity : plus 5 years 2. Dimensional Characteristics : 4 6 3. Wall Thickness : 12mm 25 mm 4. Inter Nodal Distance 5. Straightness and Uniformity 1.3.2 Treatment processes of bamboo Although a great deal of care is taken in increasing the durability of bamboo right from the beginning from the process of harvesting to the selection and grading, the natural bamboo still is not good for long standing structures due to its still proneness to infestation. Hence, the bamboo is made to go through a number of treatment and preventive processes. Natural means- 1. water seasoning 3-4 months 2. smoke seasoning 3. heat seasoning Chemical means- 1. internodal injection treatment- petro based chemical, creosote oil+diesel (1:1) 25-40ml 2. borax boric solution- 1:1 in hot 25L of water 50g of each 3. vacuum pressure treatment 4. brochh-vsie treatment gravity based 1.4: Current State of Problems 1.4.1 A Glance at the drawbacks of traditional bamboo construction in North East India Since time immemorial bamboo has been an integral part of the traditional practices of the people of north east India. The north eastern parts of India, bamboo is in abundance due to its topography and geographical conditions, and bamboo has found its use in many variations and utilities, ranging from bamboo as a construction material, a key element of interiors such as furnitures and home decor, to daily household usable commodities. Bamboo shoot is a delicacy exquisite to the North Eastern region of India. Although available in bounty in nature, the state of bamboo usable for construction purposes is in a state of bother in the region. The traditional methods of bamboo usage and construction can be said to be inadequate to meet long term goals of sustainable and long lasting and permanent structures.  ¿Ã‚ ½The virtues of bamboo are not new, but the interest in it is, ¿Ã‚ ½ says Antonios Levissianos, UNIDO senior industrial development officer.  ¿Ã‚ ½Bamboo is no longer seen as a poor man ¿Ã‚ ½s timber, it is growing to be the most promising substitute for wood and there is great scope for further generating rural employment. India ¿Ã‚ ½s current demand for bamboo is an estimated 27 million tones. However, only 50 per cent of that demand can be met because of lack of facilities for value addition and transportation. ¿Ã‚ ½ According to Antonios if proper infrastructure is provided for transportation, either by way of roads or canals, bamboo can be a material with great potent ial to be used in the construction industry in the NE region of India. If we are to highlight a few key points as to what leads to the failure of the current traditional system of bamboo usage in the construction industry we can consider the following key points: (i) Bamboo not Treated: In the current practice system of bamboo usage in the region the bamboo after the process of harvesting as discussed in section A3 : 3.1, it undergoes little treatment procedures, which makes it prone to infestation and attack from natural reagents. (ii) Lack of Proper Joinery: The current practice involves crude joinery mechanisms to join two bamboo structural members, which are derogatory and have inverse effects on the life of bamboo and also tend to cause in rupture of the bamboo members. (iii) Lack of Safety measures from Climatic Forces: This is one of the major cause of failure of current bamboo structures, as the natural climatic forces have an adverse effect on the untreated bamboo. The lack of solid and stable joinery is exploited by the wind in the region whereas, the rain and floods play an even dangerous effect to the untreated bamboo. 1.4.2 Identifying the Possible problems in constructing with bamboo The state of bamboo in the North Eastern region of India can be easily be improved if we identify and improve upon the key points or the distinct nodes of the problems, that are associated with the traditional method of construction of bamboo. After a look into our study so far, if we are to list some key issues which needs to be addressed upon as the main nodes to look at for making bamboo a suitable and efficient material of construction we can list out the following points. 1. Appropriate technology for bamboo treatment and working tools The region does not have a proper treatment facility for the treatment of harvested bamboo which will protect it from insect and reagent attacks as well as slow its decay process due to effect from natural forces. Moreover, no specialized tools are available for working with bamboo and most of the work is done with tools developed for wood/timber as such it results in rupture and wear and tear of bamboo elements which can be avoided by proper use of tools developed especially for bamboo. 2. Design of proper joinery system- conducive effective production to bamboo material The current joinery type used for bamboo based construction is either by tying by ropes or bolting with iron bolts as shown in Fig. 11, the rope tied bamboo joints tend to fail the test of time and climatic forces, whereas the bolting results in unwanted cracks and rupture of the structural bamboo elements. 3. Skilled labour- workmanship Although bamboo has been the choice of material since long in the region , a relatively low quantity of labours can come up to the level of being called a primary bamboo construction workman. This is a major setback as to when an architect or builder decides on constructing with bamboo as there is serious lack of skilled labour for bamboo construction. So, the region demands a specialized center for training persons in bamboo construction who can in turn come up to be the skilled bamboo works man for the region. This can inturn help to generate employment for the local public, who after being trained can work as bamboo craftsman in the industry. E.g. Hong Kong Bamboo Scaffolding Factory 4. Change in Social mindset A major setback related to bamboo construction in the region is the social mindset of the people who are of the idea that bamboo is a poor mans timer, and fail to understand the potential and beauty of the bamboo material. A through policy for propagate to mass with appropriate technology has to be introduced in a systematic manner which is competitive, durable, aesthetically pleasing and eco friendly. CHAPTER 2: HYPOTHESIS 2.1 STATEMENT Bamboo is a natural material, it is non-uniform, and degradable in its natural state. However it is one of the most sustainable building materials used till date. However, the key area of concern and the biggest obstacle in the bamboo being used more often in construction is, due to its dimensional constraints the joinery system for the structural elements of a bamboo construction becomes extremely difficult and non-durable. However, custom made joints, which are flexible and also adjustable can help solve the problem as it can convert a non-standardize construction material to a standardize material. Moreover, factory setups for availing the construction industry with well treated, and standardize bamboo elements as well as products can help a great deal in making bamboo the material of choice for construction in the region.  ¿Ã‚ ½Customization of the joinery system of bamboo elements along with better industrial setup for bamboo and bamboo based products will make bamboo a primary construction material. ¿Ã‚ ½ 2.2: METHODOLOGY Literature comprising books, research notes, websites, published papers, news articles and e-mail correspondence were means of research undertaken. the author also visited Assam from 13/05/2012 to 10/06/2012 for observations and discussions with professionals. There were site visits conducted during the period. The understanding developed was in the form of why the traditional method of bamboo construction is inadequate and what are the major problems which limit bamboo usage as the primary construction material. These were then explained in terms of case studies with examples from India and rest of the world. The case studies and the problems are then evaluated to reach a conclusion which hint at possible solution to make bamboo a standard and primary construction material Chapter 3: CASE STUDIES Bamboo itself has a lot of advantages using it for building houses, bridges . It is a cheap, fast growing material with excellent statistics according to the mechanical properties. However, although it is abundantly available in North East India there are some major problems related to bamboo based construction in the region which has been discussed in clause 1.4.2 of chapter 1 of this report. There may be a lot of solutions possible for the above mentioned problems, which are a hurdle to the establishment of the hypothesis statement. In order to throw some light on as to how these problems can be looked at and approached, the following case studies are picked from India and abroad. 3.1 : Case Studies Addressing to Standardization of Bamboo Material Standardization of the bamboo material is a very important aspect towards establishing bamboo as a primary construction material. Bamboo is a natural material, and is non uniform and degradable in nature. Moreover, in the current industry setup there are no specific tools to be worked on bamboo, this as a result makes bamboo a vulnerable material of construction in the region. But, if the bamboo material is somehow standardize, be it whole bamboo or split bamboo, and specific tools are applied for its processing than it is possible to use bamboo and bamboo based products in a way we now use brick and concrete. 3.1.1 : BMTPC Initiative The BMTPC (Building Materials and Technology Promotion Council) of the Ministry of Housing Urban Poverty Alleviation Government of India is looking forward to promote the increased use of Bamboo throughout the country. According to the BMTPC, the strength of bamboo culms, their straightness and lightness combined with hardeners and range and size of hollowers, with good physical and mechanical properties, low shrinkage and average density, it is well suited to replace wood in several applications. The BMTPC propagates the preservation of bamboo through the IS9096:2006, Code of Practice for preservation of bamboo for structural purpose. It covers the type of preservation, the treatment procedure for structural purposes like posts, scaffolding, walls, trusses etc. For the process of standarization the BMTPC has

Case Study Of The Three Gorges Dam

Case Study Of The Three Gorges Dam The following case study on the Three Gorges Dam illustrates the pros and cons of concrete gravity dam construction and is an excellent complement to the material discussed in the technical paper. Chinas Three Gorges Dam (TGD) is the largest power generating plant in the world. The TGD is a hydroelectric concrete gravity dam that spans the Yangtze River, in Hubei province.5 It is located in the Xilingxia gorge which is one of the three gorges of this river.5 Costing a total of over 30 billion US dollars 6, the TGD project was put in place for several reasons including flood protection, energy production, increased navigability throughout the Yangtze River and access to fresh water for the citizens. 3 The construction of this dam is having a major impact on Chinas national economy, and its performance is critical to the large population living in Three Gorges region. 3 Upon its completion, the dam will measure 2.6 kilometres in length, 186 meters in height and it will form a 645 kilometre long reservoir in the midsection of the Yangtze. 3 The dam is designed to generate an output of 17680MW which includes 26 generators at 680 MW per unit. 3 The following figure shows the exact location of Three Gorges dam. Figure 3: Map of the Three Gorges Dam In terms of construction, the dam will be composed of 32 primary generators which will allow the dam to reach its maximum power output capacity. 26 generators are found on the dam itself while the remaining are built below a neighbouring mountain.6. Furthermore, a ship lift capable of vertically transporting ships (weighing as much as 3000 tons) from one water level to another will be built on the north side of the Three Gorges Dam.6. Other than the ship lift, a series of locks have been installed designed for boats weighing up to 10 000 tons; approximately four hours are needed for transit of these vessels. 6. The ship lifts and locks constructed as part of the TGD are very beneficial aspects as they promote increased navigability throughout the Yangtze River. By transporting more freight on the river, a reduction in emissions caused by the trucking industry is predicted,6 which is beneficial to the environment. The following table shows a summary of several specifications of the da m: Table 3: TGD Physical Summary (http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/theses/available/etd-12142004-125131/unrestricted/SAllin_010304.pdf) Location Dam Site Sandouping, Hubei Province, China Dam Crest 185 meters Dam Length 2,000 meters Reservoir Specifications Normal Pool Level 175 meters Flood Control Level 145 meters Total Storage Capacity 39.3 billion cubic meters Flood Control Storage 22.1 billion cubic meters Power Generation Installed Capacity 17,680 MW Unit Capacity 26 units, 680 MW/unit Inundation Land 632 km-long, 19 cities, 326 towns Arable Land 30,000 hectares Population 1,980,000 people As mentioned previously, prevention or mitigation of the effects of floods is one of the primary reasons for the construction of the Three Gorges Dam since Chinese records show that about one major flood per decade occurs in the area, some killing over 300 000 people. 3 The TGD which has a total of 22 billion cubic meters of capacity destined to flood control will allow China to control some major floods which also have a great impact on the economy.3 Energy production is also a major benefit involved in the construction of the dam. In fact, with its output of 18 million KW, the TGD is worlds most powerful plant. It was found that the TGD would produce a total of nearly 10% of the available energy in China.3 A third reason for the construction of the dam would be for consistent access to fresh water for consumption or agricultural use. In fact, it is known that the Yangtze Rivers water level fluctuates significantly which could affect the amount of water available for use; the TGD wi ll be able to supply this water consistently, mitigating the effects of these fluctuations in the water level of the river. 3. Finally, increased navigability in the river is another benefit related to the construction of this dam. The Three Gorges Dam allows for a direct access from the Pacific Ocean into mainland China, which in turn promotes increased trade in the cities; in the end, increased navigability will create new job, new markets will emerge, and there will be a better economic vitality in general.3 It is clear that there are significant benefits to the construction of this dam, as it will not only have a positive impact on the Chinese economy, but it will also increase the quality of life of Chinese citizens and contribute to human development. Unfortunately, some argue that the environmental and social price to be paid with respect to the construction of the Three Gorges dam outweighs its benefits to society. In fact, the environmental impacts including effects on biodiversity, emissions, erosion and sedimentation as well as waste, and the social effect of relocation of millions of citizens causes great harm to the Chinese population. The following information on the environmental and social effects of the construction of the Three Gorges Dam is written with the help from a report from Samuel Robert Fishleigh Allin which will be listed in the references used for this technical paper. Environmental effects The construction of dams definitely has a detrimental impact on the environment. Some of the impacts involved are greenhouse gas emission, loss of aquatic biodiversity, loss of water quality, loss of wildlife, and creation of wetlands. The construction of the dam negatively alters the composition of the water in the Yangtze River, already one of the most polluted rivers in the world due mainly to coal shipping. First, the dust resulting from the construction itself will enter and pollute the water. It is found that the oxygen levels as well as the temperature of the water, which affects fish downstream, are also altered upon the dams completion. Furthermore, greenhouse gases are released from the breakdown of vegetation and silt, which lowers the surrounding air quality. Also, a silt build-up in the river could possibly affect the reservoirs of the dams increasing the possibility of floods, upstream from the dam. The flow of silt throughout the river is very crucial to aquatic wildli fe; without it in proper quantities, the organisms can be deprived of a sufficient quantity of nutrients. Moreover, the Three Gorges Dam affects the stream flow of the River and this disrupts the aquatic ecosystems which are very dependent on the timing of the water level fluctuations. Finally, one more aspect that is more related to the health and safety of the population is the fact that the TGD was built near a fault line and the magnitude and force that this dam exerts on the ground can increase the chances that an earthquake occurs. Social effects It is important to account for the different negative social impacts before launching the construction of a large dam. The most significant social implication related to the Three Gorges Dam is the fact that over one million people living near the reservoir area had to be relocated, many already living in severe poverty, while the compensation for relocation was often inadequate. Water from the Three Gorges Dam is expected to flood 13 cities and over 100 000 acres of farmland which really disturbs the people`s everyday life as it results in loss of jobs and well being. Some of the difficulties involved in the resettlement process include medical services, schools, drinking water and food as well as electricity. Also, another social impact is the fact that some of the archaeological sites near the dam including historical artefacts will become inaccessible due to the construction of the dam. On the other hand, one social benefit of the TGD is flood control provided by the dam will sav e people from disasters in the future as the frequency of a major flood is expected to be at 1 in 100 years frequency. To end the section on social impacts a figure of the scope of the resettlement area caused by the construction of the TGD is shown: http://www.ctgpc.com/benefifs/images/06.jpg In conclusion, although the construction of the Three Gorges Dam is great for the development of the Yangtze River, contributes to the Chinese economy, and presents benefits such as flood control, energy production, increased navigability and access to fresh water, it is clear that the negative social and environmental price to pay to sustain these benefits is a major cause of concern for the future.