Tuesday, August 25, 2020

Slavery In The Tempest Essays - Fiction, Literature, Operas

Bondage In The Tempest Essays - Fiction, Literature, Operas Bondage In The Tempest Bondage in The Tempest Bondage happens on a far reaching premise in The Tempest. Event of subjugation to a significant number of the characters, all in various ways, assists with giving the air to the play. The undeniable slaves are by all account not the only slaves, as Prospero has essentially got everyone enchanted when he needs, to do anything he desires with them. He can likewise control the way that they think. The first and most evident slave is ariel. Ariel is a vaporous soul who is guaranteed his opportunity by Prospero if his activity is progressed admirably. His activity was to entrance the guests to the island under Prospero's influence. What Ariel! My enterprising hireling, Ariel! That is the thing that Prospero said in act 4, scene 1, line 33. He was conversing with his slave, Ariel, who hypnotized the guests to the island. Another model could be Alonso, the ruler of Naples. Since he isn't in Naples, however on Prospero's island, and heavily influenced by him, he is a slave as it were. In act 3, scene 3, lines 95-102, Alonso concedes total and articulate loss of control. O, it is huge, enormous! Methought the surges talked and let me know of it; The breezes sang it to me; and the thunder, that profound and unpleasant organ pipe, articulated the name of Prosper; it did bass my trespass. Consequently my child I' th' overflow is had relations with; and I'll look for him more profound than e'er fall sounded and with him there lie mudded. He is revealing to us that Prospero is in charge of him. Prospero, Trinculo, and Stephano are in charge of Caliban, the disfigured child of Sycorax, and in this manner Caliban is their slave. Beast lay-to your fingers; help to hold up under this away where my hogstead of wine is, or I'll turn you out of my realm. Go to, convey this. In act 4, scene 1, lines 250-253, Stephano advised Caliban to convey something for him, or he would be out of his realm. He treats Caliban like soil since he is their slave. In act 4, scene 1, lines 262-265, Prospero is portraying how the entirety of his previous companions are currently practically heavily influenced by him, despite the fact that they don't have any acquaintance with it, and subjugated to Prospero. At this hour lies at my kindness every one of mine foes. In a matter of seconds will my works end, and thou shalt have the air at opportunity. In act 5, scene 1, lines 7-10, it states Confined together in a similar manner as you gave in control, similarly as you left them-all detainees, sir, in the line woods which climate fights your cell. Ariel is revealing to Prospero that the guests are powerless to resist him, as they despite everything are the way that he left them. They can't do much until he breaks the spell. Taking everything into account, The Tempest is a generally excellent play to exhibit the giant of bondage in the public arena. The play shows exercises subjugation, and about classes of individuals, and how they respond to their environmental factors.

Saturday, August 22, 2020

High School Seniors Essay Example for Free

Secondary School Seniors Essay Numerous individuals accept open lunch ought to be a benefit stretched out to seniors who wish to leave the school grounds and neighboring territories during their alloted lunch periods. This benefit is predicated on the conviction that understudies as they enter their last long periods of secondary school ought to be trusted to settle on develop choices and act capably. A few understudies wish they could leave just so they could grab a bite other than school food. I comprehend that only one out of every odd senior shows the best possible development and they ought to be recognized and treated appropriately. With regards to privilages, seniors dont have many contrasted with underclassman. Of course, we get a free period rather than study lobby and a senior skip day, however dont we merit more for our twelve years of difficult work and exertion put into school? Dont we merit something that, honestly, makes everybody increasingly mindful of our position status, something that we can appreciate this year and different evaluations can anticipate? That something can be found in most likely one of the more dubious themes in secondary schools, off grounds snacks. I comprehend the school is liable for us from the time we show up at school until the time we withdraw, and having the option to have an off grounds lunch would mean we are as yet the schools duty, despite the fact that were not nearby. Be that as it may, imagine a scenario in which guardians were to sign a note expressing their kid is permitted to leave school during lunch hours and would be their obligation. If anything somehow managed to happen to an understudy, guardians would not reserve the option to run into school, arms thrashing uncontrollably, accusing whomever they can for what befell their kid. Yet, isnt it time that the school lets us rely upon ourselves in settling on the better choices, which for this situation would be returning to class in time. We will go from being checked throughout the day to a school domain where we are the ones to choose what to do. Students who neglect to meet their obligation may relinquish the benefit out and out and might be dependent upon other disciplinary activities. The school ought to create decides and guidelines that advance consistence with the arrangement and guarantee that lone qualified seniors use the benefit of open lunch.

Tuesday, July 28, 2020

The Pro-Con List COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY - SIPA Admissions Blog

The Pro-Con List COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY - SIPA Admissions Blog If you have yet to do so, you are bound to eventually.   Old school or digital, you will sit down with a blank piece of paper and draw a couple of columns or open up an Excel spreadsheet.   You will then label the columns Pro and Con. Perhaps you have a separate sheet of paper for each school or a separate tab for each school in Excel.   Decision time. The clock to the deposit deadline is ticking. You will then diligently begin to fill in the columns with what you see to be the pros and cons of each school you have received an offer from.   Or perhaps you just received one offer and it is a matter of either accepting the offer or choosing a different path. I thought I would take an opportunity to help you fill in the pro list in regard to SIPA.   Yes, I am biased.   A native New Yorker I am not, but a converted New York lover I am.   I have lived in New York City for seven years and whenever I leave   for travel, I always miss it. Instead of focusing on topics like world class faculty and a robust curriculum that every policy school can most likely boast about, I will focus on the experience of living in New York City.   The diversity, the energy, the attitude, the people, the events, the culture . . . the sound! I would venture to guess that by the time I help you with the pros of attending school in New York City, your pros column will require you to either go on to a second piece of paper or scroll down on your Excel sheet because more rows are going to filled than you can view on the screen. I lived in California before moving to New York and I was trying to make the decision as to whether or not I should move east.   I had never lived on the east coast before and it was a big decision for me at the time, and I remember my pro con list as well.   I distinctly remember a conversation I had with a very well traveled friend.   He said something along the line of the following: Matt, you would be crazy NOT to move to New York City.   I believe that everyone should live in New York City once in their lifetime.   It has an energy you just cant describe.   Dont let this chance pass. I took his advice, and boy am I glad I did.   Lets take a quick look at some of the unique attributes and flavor of NYC. The following facts are from Wikipedia . . . Over 900 songs have been written about NYC (think about the inspiration you will get living here). NYC has two professional football teams, two professional hockey teams, two professional baseball teams, a professional soccer (sorry rest of the world, thats what we call it) team, a professional womens basketball team, and although it is a subject to local debate, a professional mens basketball team.   There will soon be two so called professional teams when the Nets move to Brooklyn soon. The subway runs 24 hours a day, 365 days a year and is the largest rapid system in the world when measured by stations in operation, with 468. You may not think of nature when you think NYC, however New York City has over 28,000  acres (110  km2) of municipal parkland and 14  miles (23  km) of public beaches. NYC has more than 2,000 arts and cultural organizations and more than 500 art galleries of all sizes. Care to cross pollinate with other students?   There are close to 600,000 university students in New York City. . . .   and how about some famous quotes related to New York City. Culture just seems to be in the air, like part of the weather.   Tom Wolfe I go to Paris, I go to London, I go to Rome, and I always say, Theres no place like New York.   Its the most exciting city in the world now.   Thats the way it is.   Thats it.     Robert Deniro “I miss New York. I still love how people talk to you on the street just assault you and tell you what they think of your jacket.” Madonna When its 100 degrees in New York, its 72 in Los Angeles. When its 30 degrees in New York, in Los Angeles its still 72. However, there are 6 million interesting people in New York, and only 72 in Los Angeles.   Neil Simon At night… the streets become rhythmical perspectives of glowing dotted lines, reflections hung upon them in the streets as the wistaria hangs its violet racemes on its trellis. The buildings are shimmering verticality, a gossamer veil, a festive scene-prop hanging there against the black sky to dazzle, entertain, amaze.   Frank Lloyd Wright You come to New York to find the ambiance that will evoke your best. You do not necessarily know precisely what that might be, but you come to New York to discover it. Dr. James Hillman New York is a galaxy of adventure at once elegant, exciting and bizarre. Its a city that moves so fast, it takes energy just to stand still.   Barbara Walters Can you feel the excitement!?   Not only will you find inspiration at SIPA . . . NYC is a basically an inspiration or great moment waiting to happen.   Thats my quote and Ill leave it at that.

Friday, May 22, 2020

Racism And Prejudice By William Shakespeare s The...

Intolerable Hostility Imagine being paranoid everyday of your life knowing all that you do is being watched and judged. Imagine being mocked and rejected every moment of your life just because you are of different religion. No one likes to be judged and left out because of their religion and what they believe in, however there is racism and prejudice present in the world. William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice is one of his most controversial plays. Written in the 16th century England, the play poses many questions concerning racial, religious and human differences due to anti-semitism being very common at the time. The story is set in Venice where a merchant named Antonio lived. His poor friend Bassanio wants to charm and marry a lovely, rich girl of Belmont called Portia, but he needs money to reach her. He approaches Antonio for the money. Antonio could not lend money to Bassanio because his ships are gone. Both of them go to a Jew moneylender called Shylock and asked for 3,000 ducats. He gave money on one condition, if Antonio could not return his money in three months, then Shylock can have Antonio’s pound of flesh. Antonio agrees to Shylock s condition because he is confident that his ships will return within three months. Bassanio reached Belmont and married Portia. 3 months pass, and Antonio’s ships gets lost in a storm. Shylock wants his pound of flesh. Bassanio goes to Venice and Portia follows him in disguise of a male lawyer. Portia reaches Venice andShow MoreRelatedThe Merchant Of Venice By William Shakespeare1445 Words   |  6 PagesCGI English 11 HH 12 November 2014 Crashing Thru Venice William Shakespeare, possibly the most esteemed writer of all time, wrote a play titled The Merchant of Venice, near the end of the 1500 s. The play takes place in Venice, and while it can be described as what we now call a romantic comedy, it also draws attention to the harsh divides in the Venetian society brought on by conflicting beliefs and religions. Centuries later, in the early 2000 s, Paul Haggis wrote and directed a film called CrashRead MoreAnalysis Of The Movie The Merchant Of Venice 1918 Words   |  8 PagesPerformance Analysis of T he Merchant of Venice Jordan Thomas Mullineaux-Davis William Shakespeare has regularly throughout time been referred to and could be viewed as anti-Semitic because of the cultural implications within many of his plays. A particularly strong example of this could be The Merchant of Venice. This essay will explore arguments of post-colonialism within The Merchant of Venice, discussing the pertinent issues of anti-semitism, racial isolation and prejudice. It will also comment onRead MoreIs Shylock The Villain Or Victim In The Merchant Of Venice By William Shakespeare1411 Words   |  6 PagesCharacter Analysis Shylock Is Shylock the villain or the victim in the Merchant of Venice? In the play the ‘Merchant of Venice’ by William Shakespeare the antagonist Shylock is both the victim and the villain. Shylock is a Jewish moneylender and is initially portrayed as anger filled and bloodthirsty but as the play continues we begin to see him as more human and his emotions become more evident. As the antagonist, Shylock is a fearful adversary to Antonio, the protagonist. But as good begins toRead MoreRacism And Manipulation Of William Shakespeare s Othello2226 Words   |  9 Pages Racism and Manipulation In William Shakespeare’s Othello Racism has been an inevitable aspect of human society throughout the centuries, from Elizabethan England to â€Å" Separate but equal, here in The United States not too long ago. Shakespeare’s tragic play Othello, portrays a young, and recently married Moor named Othello. His own demise is initiated by various deceits, such as his lofty new position as the Venetian Republic’s army general. During the time Shakespeare lived there was an overallRead MoreRace in Five Film Versions of Shakespeares Othello Essay example4150 Words   |  17 PagesWilliam Shakespeares Othello is only moderately interested in questions of race and racism. For Shakespeare, Othellos blackness was mainly a plot device. Though the bard did demonstrate concerns about racial and religious prejudice, in Othello and The Merchant of Venice, his interest in the tragedy of the Moor was principally psychological. For Shakespeare and his contemporary audience, Othello was about jealousy, hatred, and vind ictiveness. The play has aged well, as have all ShakespearesRead MoreLangston Hughes Research Paper25309 Words   |  102 PagesUnable to find work, Homer and Carrie Clark moved to Chicago, leaving fourteen-year-old Langston alone in a rented room in Cleveland. Central High School became a safe haven for Langston. Although few black students attended, very little racial prejudice existed. Langston especially enjoyed classes in graphic and applied arts, taught by Clara Dieke, a young teacher who insisted that her students stick to a thing until it is done. In addition to academic classes, Langston lettered in track and field

Saturday, May 9, 2020

Speech Racism Essay - 823 Words

Speech- How would you like to be called names or even beat up because of you skin colour, religion, ethnicity, or beliefs? Imagine walking into a classroom everyone laughing at you, talking about you behind your back because of your race. Imagine not getting hired for a work because of you race. Imagine playing sport everyone singing negative chants about your race. Well this is happening everyday all around the world. But first let’s describe Racism. Racism is the discrimination of a person because of the race that they have inherited. Racism is very ugly. It divides people into ‘us’ to ‘them’ depending on there culture etc. its an extremely serious issue that faces society today yet people still think its cool to tease and even beat†¦show more content†¦Also the environment someone lives in can also lead to racism. For Example if a child is taught to respect their elders that concept will always be in still with them for the rest of their lives li ke wise if children grew up and are taught to be racist their will be more chance of them being racist. And the last reason is because they have experienced events that have harmed their family or someone important to them by a particular racial group or race. Now lets talk examine the 3 types of racism, historical, scientific, and institutional. Historical racism is when people are judged primarily based on the decent, ancestors or origin history. An example of historical racism is Adolf Hitler in the 1930’s when he powered Germany. He believed that the Jews weren’t the perfect race. He believed the fair skin Germans were. And that is what caused him to eliminate over 3 million Jewish people that lived in Germany in gas chambers. This event is now widely known as the holocaust. Scientific racism is the act of justifying inequalities between natural groups of people by recourse to science. Scientific racism has no place in today’s world, and yet some how a man named Jason Richwine back in 2009 was able to defend a dissertation at Harvard University in which he wrote that Hispanic people have aShow MoreRelatedracism speech Essay1431 Words   |  6 Pagesï » ¿For centuries a disease has plagued our nation just like AIDS has Africa, I bet you all are wondering what this disease is. You probably think that it can be treated with limited breakouts every few years. The virus Im talking about is racism. Imagine living every day in fear knowing that where ever you go, everything you do is being observed and judged. Imagine walking into a store or a boutique and having someone watch every move of yours thinking that you’re going to steal something, or exposeRead MoreSpeech On Racism And Oppression1604 Words   |  7 Pageseducated on racism and oppression, however after reviewing my initial video from the first few weeks of class, I quickly comprehended that in fact I had not been appropriately educated on racism or oppression through out my life. I was among many individuals in society who were convinced that they looked at all individuals equally, so color of skin was never a factor taken into consideration. Unfortunately, I didn t realize how damaging the colorblind approach was. In reality, I was ignoring racism as aRead MoreNegative And Hate Speech On Racism748 Words   |  3 Pageseverywhere. Though today a young boy had been racially hurt only because of the words. He has been one of the racially hurt victims in the world. To him it is not something to joke about not with your friends or anybody. Now negative and hate speech about racism is entering the minds of students and kids around the world. It is being brought into the schools of America and what is to come of the future generations? Our country it is made up with different types of people with captivating heritagesRead MoreRacism and Stereotype in Karl Linders Speech1157 Words   |  5 PagesRacism is a fatal flaw in human society. Whole cultures could be eradicated or brought to the brink of destruction, such as when Adolf Hitler, leader of the Nazi regime, brought on the Holocaust. In his efforts to bring the Jews to extinction he captured and imprisoned the Jews into concentration camps separated from the rest of society. Karl Linder in his efforts to keep the community of Clybourne Park â€Å"pure† for his growing family, attempts to assert dominance over the Stoller family (the CaucasianRead MoreSpeech : Speech On Racism And Weather1106 Words   |  5 PagesBarack Obama Race Speech was delivered on March 18, 2008, at the Constitution Center. When presidents give speeches there are multiple different perspectives, everyone makes their own assumptions on speeches. Race has always been an issues in the U.S. and it will always be, some never see an ending to racism because we don’t live in a perfect world and you can’t make someone believe something you believe because you think it’s right. Obamas presidential speech touches on racism and weather you supportRead MoreRacism Speech1587 Words   |  7 PagesHorrendous is what I can say to describe this.   Ã‚  Ã‚      Read this very carefully guys and take a close look at yourself and the environment that you live in today†¦ â€Å"P.W. Botha speech 1985† (I was 3 years old): THE FOLLOWING is a speech made by former South African President P.W. Botha to his Cabinet. This reprint was written by David G. Mailu for the Sunday Times, a South African newspaper, dated August 18, 1985. Pretoria has been made by the White mind for the White man. We are not obligedRead MoreInformative Speech On Racism1152 Words   |  5 PagesSo many times I’ve seen people say racism is not an issue anymore. So many times I’ve been told I’m living in the past. So many times I’ve been blown off about it because â€Å"its 2017 that’s over with.† I’m a young mixed kid who was raised on the south side of Oklahoma City†¦.not a pretty place. My dad died when I was young in a gang related incident, and I have five brothers and sisters with all different dads. I guess you could say I come from a rough family. My grandma took my little brother and IRead MoreObama Perfect Union Speech - Contemporary Racism1070 Words   |  5 PagesContemporary Racism President Obama’s speech â€Å"A More Perfect Union† was a response to many outbursts made about things that Reverend Jeremiah Wright, Obama’s former pastor, had said on issues of racism. The reverend made statements that Obama called dismissive when what the world needed most was unity to overcome the continual racism in the country. Quotes from the Reverend such as â€Å"In the  21st  century, white America got a wake-up call after 9/11/01. White America and the western world came toRead MoreEssay on Racism Speech by Charles R. Lawrence643 Words   |  3 PagesRacism Speech by Charles R. Lawrence In the following essay, Charles R. Lawrence encompasses a number of reasons that racist speech should not be protected by the First Amendment. In this document, he exhibits his views on the subject and what he feels the society should confront these problems. In this well- written article, he provides strong evidence to prove his point and to allow the reader to see all aspects of the issue. On Racist Speech Charles Lawrence has been active in hisRead MoreUse And Manipulation Of The English Language1394 Words   |  6 Pagesalliance with their audience. â€Å"If freedom of speech is taken away, then dumb and silent we may be led, like sheep to the slaughter† (qtd. in Lindenbaum). This famous quote is an excellent interpretation of one of the most pivotal acts of a distinguished leader, Martin Luther King Jr. On August 28, 1963, MLK presented one of the most iconic speeches in the world to call an end to racism (Carson). However, what makes â€Å"I Have A Dream† such a momentous speech that continues to inspire movements and rebellions

Wednesday, May 6, 2020

A Good Man Is Hard to Find Irony Free Essays

â€Å"A Good Man is Hard to Find† In the short story, â€Å"A Good Man is Hard to Find† there is irony all through the pages. It shows how you should follow your gut instinct when you think you shouldn’t go somewhere, when you know something bad is going to happen. In the story it also talks about how the grandmother wore her nice clothes in case of an accident, she wanted to look like a lady in case anything bad was to happen. We will write a custom essay sample on A Good Man Is Hard to Find: Irony or any similar topic only for you Order Now The grandmother was constantly talking about the good in people, but was she a good woman? The first bit of irony the story throws at the reader is on the first page when the grandmother is talking about how she doesn’t want to go to Florida because that’s where the Misfit is headed. As the grandmother is trying to get her son Bailey to listen as she says, â€Å"The Misfit is aloose from the Federal Pen and headed toward Florida and you read here what it says he did to these people. Just you read it. I wouldn’t take my children in any direction with a criminal like that aloose in it. I couldn’t answer to my conscience if I did† (O’Connor 281). Now I don’t believe that the ironic twist is that the misfit was headed to Florida just like the family, I believe that the twist is that the Misfit just so happen be on the same dirt road that the grandmother asked her son Bailey to turn down later on in the story. The grandmother wanted to turn down this dirt road in Georgia because she remembered an old plantation house she had visited when she was younger. After turning down the road she then remembered that this was not the road at all, the old plantation house she had remembered was in Tennessee, not Georgia. The second major ironic twist that stood out to me was how the grandmother wore good clothes to go on a road trip, â€Å"In case of an accident, anyone seeing her dead on the highway would know at once she was a lady† (O’Connor 282). The grandmother wore a navy dress with a straw hat that had white violets on it. Indeed the grandmother was dressed like a lady, but did she act upon it at all times? I think she did just that, I believe she acted like a lady but was not truly one. Grandmothers cat caused Bailey to have an accident. †¦as the grandmother limped out of the car, her hat still pinned to her head but the broken front brim standing up at a jaunty angle and the violet spray hanging off the side† (O’Connor 287). At this point is when I believe that the grandmother acts as if she is a lady. If she was a true lady then maybe her clothes would not have been messed up, or there wouldn’t have been an accident at all. But there is still that piec e of thought about how the grandmother knew to dress in case of an accident. The final bit of irony is how the grandmother kept talking about good men, and how they are hard to find. When the family stops at the diner to eat she talks to Red Sammy and his wife about how hard good men are hard to find, but then she also tells Red Sammy that he is a good man because he let a couple of men charge gas. Red Sammy’s wife says there isn’t no one that she can trust, â€Å"‘And I don’t count nobody out of that, not nobody,’ she repeated, looking at Red Sammy† (O’Connor 285). After they wreck a car shows up with The Misfit and his two side kicks in it, who turn out not to be good men. The grandmother realizes real soon that the man is The Misfit, she recognized him from the picture in the newspaper. Soon after arriving Bobby Lee takes Bailey and his son John Wesley into the woods to kill them. The grandmother went on about how the Misfit could be a good man, and how he should pray. The Misfit told her that his family was good people, he just wasn’t. Soon Bobby Lee and Hiram took the childrens mother, June Star, and the baby to the woods to meet up with the boys. The grandmother then realized that she must think of something soon, because she would be next. They started talking about Jesus and how he did or didn’t raise the dead. The Misfit said that if he didn’t know but if he would have been there he would have known better and wouldn’t be the way he is now. â€Å"Why you’re one of my own babies. You’re one of my own children! † (O’Connor 293). After the grandmother said that she touched him on the shoulder and the Misfit turned around and shot her three times in the chest. This was a great short story for irony, because the grandmother was correct about most things. The grandmother knew not to go towards Florida because The Misfit was headed that way after escaping from the pen. She was right about dressing like a lady in case of an accident, because indeed there was an accident, but she caused the accident by bringing her cat along without anyone knowing. Then there is speak of a good man, is there any such thing? Red Sammy’s wife wouldn’t even think of him as a good man, if your wife doesn’t believe you are no one really can. The Misfit comes along and talks to the grandmother for a while about good people, while doing so shoots her family then her dead. ‘â€Å"She would have been a good woman,† The Misfit said, â€Å"if it had been somebody there to shoot her every minute of her life†Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ (O’Connor 293). This goes with my assumption that the grandmother was just acting like a lady, and The Misfit even saw through her lies. How to cite A Good Man Is Hard to Find: Irony, Papers

Tuesday, April 28, 2020

The Sucessful Developement of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Essay Example

The Sucessful Developement of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Essay To start off this essay, try painting a picture about a certain neighborhood. This neighborhood does not have any overarching governing body, nor is there a single overarching security force. In short, this neighborhood’s residents are left to fend for themselves. Assuming that there has been an unfortunate event in the neighborhood, whereby one house was broken into by some thieves, what could possibly be the reaction of the residents in that community? Will they seek to protect their own homes and not bother to care about their neighbors? Will they protect their homes and be malicious of their neighbors, thinking they could have been conspirators to the crime? Or will they work together and cooperate in one collective effort to solve the case and to protect themselves? This is an analogous picture of what the international realm may look like for scholars and the questions posted are classic questions that theories of International Relations seek to shed light into. In an international world that is ruled by anarchy, it has been a classic notion that states are left to fend for themselves. In this scenario, security of states is of great importance, if not the outright priority. As international events unfold, different scholars seek to explain the various international phenomena by choosing a theoretical framework that will best explain and account for the phenomenon they choose to account for Be that as it may, what this paper will aim to discuss is the recent development is the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), as an association of states, by using the pertinent theoretical frameworks in the discipline of International Relations.   The first part will discuss a brief introduction of the Shanghai Cooperation and what are the recent developments pertaining to it, while the second part of the paper will discuss briefly what theories in International Relations exist that may be of use to the discussion of the recent events in SCO. Using the chosen theories, this paper will discuss how the core tenets of such theories can possibly explain the recent developments in the SCO for example, using a certain theory, why would a certain actor in the SCO story act this way and what were the interests of that actor etcetera. We will write a custom essay sample on The Sucessful Developement of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on The Sucessful Developement of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on The Sucessful Developement of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer A lot of international organizations exist in status quo. The reasons for their establishment may vary from one case to another. And for scholars, it is interesting to take a look at this phenomenon in the context of the emerging new world order. With the end of the Cold War, it is interesting to observe how states and other emerging world players will configure themselves. In line with recent developments, the formation of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) is worthy of scholarly attention. Upon its formation on June 15 2001, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization has six permanent members: the People’s Republic of China, the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, the Republic of Tajikistan, the Republic of Uzbekistan and the Russian Federation (Brummer, 2007). It is an international organization through its founding members that cover about three fifths of Eurasia (GlobalSecurity.org, 2007). This organization or association of states, though fairly young compared to other international organizations has turned out to be an influential political, economic and security international player (Brummer, 2007). The SCO had a predecessor and it was called, the Shanghai Five mechanism, which came from the five of the, now, six members’ (except the Republic of Uzbekistan) effort to further disarmament in the border regions and to strengthen confidence-building (GlobalSecurity.org, 2007). Upon the signing of the Treaty on Deepening Military Trust in Border Regions and the Treaty on Reduction of Military Forces in Border Regions by these five member states, what started off as an annual meeting of their leaders ended up to be a regular practice (GlobalSecurity.org, 2007). The coverage of their agenda soon expanded to talk about cooperation in various areas like politics, security, diplomacy and economics, and then later on extended the membership to Uzbekistan (GlobalSecurity.org, 2007). When asked in why Uzbekistan wanted to join the organization, the reply of President Karimov indicated that the primary reason was to protect the country from any possible aggressive move by the SCO (Nich ol, 2005). The Declaration on the Establishment of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization gave birth to the organization as it is known now (GlobalSecurity.org, 2007). Recently, however, there have been some developments in the SCO and some issues have risen from these developments. Firstly, the inclusion of other states to the membership of the SCO has caught the attention of a lot of scholars and players in the international field, not so much as a reaction to its expansion but to the profile of the members that wish to be included.   Iran, as a very controversial country in terms of its relationship with the rest of the world vis-à  -vis the United States of America, has been subjected to a series of deliberation (Brummer, 2007). The question of whether it will be granted membership in the SCO is something that has interested the keen observers of international relations. The main concern was what would be implications of Iran’s inclusion to the six-member association and consequently, how would the United States of America react to this inclusion. Secondly, post 9/11, the evaluation of the policies and reaction of the Shanghai Coopera tion Organization towards perceived (or otherwise) terrorist threats in their region, is something that the United States of America has concerned itself with (Nichol, 2005). The next section of this paper will juxtapose these recent events with the literature in International Relations—focusing on pertinent theories in the discipline that can explain the milestones in the development of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and using a comparative approach in discussing them. While it is not true that international phenomenon may only be explained by either realism or idealism, it is interesting to juxtapose discussions of different international events using the two because of the contrasts in their basic assumptions and tenets. Before this paper further discusses the developments in the SCO, it would first help to have a quick overview of the premises of each of these two theories, as these will be the tools to help understand and hopefully explain what transpired in these milestones and why they were so. Realism, as espoused by scholars like E.H. Carr, asserts that states are the main actors in world politics and that their interests lie in the pursuit of power at the expense of others (Mearsheimer, 2005). In a way, it more or less follows the logic of a zero-sum game, whereby one player’s gain is another player’s loss. The implication of this in policymaking is that decision-makers will most likely base their decisions on power calculations, as opposed to that of Idealism which focuses on the moral dimension and on liberal ideas for decision-making considerations (Mearsheimer, 2005). One of the canons of idealism, and most often cited by other scholars, is that of Immanuel Kant’s Perpetual Peace, whereby he asserts how states should act towards each other to achieve peace and prevent war (Kant, 1975). Writers, like Herz, argue that idealists believe that it is an imperative to change the world and champion the realization of a world turning into a secure global community—that would entail states abiding by international law and observing respect and recognition of each other (Hacke and Puglierin, 2007). The inception of the SCO may be seen as an idealist characterization of what international cooperation can do, whereby states seek to cooperate with each other to achieve a common goal. As stated earlier, when the SCO was established, the initial intent was to push the disarmament of the states in the border areas and to strengthen confidence-building. These reasons are liberal in nature—disarmament is antithetical to the realist push that states should be wary of other states and should protect themselves at any cost, and confidence-building is founded on trust and cooperation among partner states. While its inception is liberal in intent, as the time progresses, the developments in the SCO soon lend to realist assumptions. When it expanded membership, the intention of the new member (and even those seeking membership in status quo) may be contended to have realist bearings. As stated above, when Uzbekistan sought membership, it was not for cooperation nor was it based on tru st on other states but, instead, it was to ensure its own safety by establishing ties with China and the other states in the SCO. But the annexation of Uzbekistan is not the only development that lends to realist assumptions. Lately, Iran sought membership to the SCO as well, although it was not granted, there stands a chance that it can happen (Brummer, 2007). From a geopolitical perspective, Iran’s inclusion would have been a political statement saying that between the West and Iran, China and Russia would have taken the side of Iran (Brummer, 2007). This scenario can lend to realist assumptions by focusing on the intention of Iran to gain allies, against a perceived threat and clearly this puts security above all other concerns. It can also lend to liberal assumptions by focusing on the fact that Iran has chosen to be part of a collective effort in dealing with adversaries, as opposed to a unilateral aggressive approach that will more probably lead to war and heightened co nflict. The intention of China on forwarding the SCO agenda can also be explained using realism. There have been writings that talk about China’s effort to gain influence in its regional area and the intention behind the formation of the SCO may well be subsumed under this. In fact, there have been assertions that China has had the intention of challenging the unipolar order by taking on the leadership position of a anti-hegemonic coalition against the United States of America (Foot, 2006). Foot further stresses that China may well be building up its military and economic capabilities to challenge the USA (Foot, 2006). Taken from this angle, this obviously lends to realist assumptions of China using a formation of an international institution to forward its own interest—that is, to secure itself and to gain power by challenging the strength of the leading international player. But it can also be explained in a realist point of view, by showing how this is China’s way to achieve a level of security for itself, but at the same time, it may also be a form of cooperating with the international community. Terrorism being a global problem has also been addressed by the SCO by having its members hold anti-terrorist exercises to promote common security and to gain economic benefits as well (Foot, 2006). Taken from this context, it is logical to say that the SCO has acted in favor of liberal ideas of forwarding collective cooperation. China being one of the torchbearers of the SCO has also coursed cooperation through economic ties with the United States (Langlois and Langlois, 1996). Fighting against terrorism by joining forces with other states lends to liberal ideas of aiming for peace and preventing war, even if it sounds moralistic, and forwarding causes for global security through collective action. But just as the previous discussions, the actions of China towards terrorism may also lend to realist assumptions. One particular example is in reference to the efforts of the United States of America in its fight against terrorism. Post-September 11, the members of the Shanghai Cooperati on Organization did not have a collective response to the proposal of the United States, but instead its members acted individually (Nichol, 2005). This proves the realist argument that states, despite the existence of international institutions, will still act selfishly and in favor of its own national interests. It is obvious that China did not want to lend a hand to this specific United States policy, although it was willing to cooperate with its members in dealing with terrorism in their regional area. China’s definition of its national interests, in this context, was to ensure that terrorism does not thrive in its region, and yet not give the United States the leverage to dictate or influence its policies toward security. This shows how there can be an interplay in the way realism and idealism explains a certain international phenomenon. The next question is, how does this make sense and does this not mean that one of the two theories may lose its ability to explain things if the other can explain it the same phenomenon with equal validity? In seeking to explain political phenomenon, one can use theories as tools to help account for such events. In doing so, scholars may fall to the trap of focusing too much on dichotomies the North and South, Realism and Liberalism. While mutual exclusivity increases the validity of a theory (or a school of thought, for that matter) to distinguish it from other existing theories, this does not necessarily mean that the truth of the other is the shadow of the doubt for the other. In fact, if theories are made to help us explain political phenomenon, then perhaps it pays to have a more comprehensive picture by using the lens of various theories to account for an event. Does realism and liberalism really have to be categorized as contrasts or is it possible that they can complement each other? Lucian Ashworth even asserts that the debate between these two schools of thought may have never existed, as the liberals’ (often called â€Å"idealists† by later realist writers call them) writings were not really addressed properly by realists (Ashworth, 2006). This is not to point out that liberalism has lost its capacity to explain, but what Ashworth is pointing out, is the fact that the line establishing this dichotomy is not absolute, and hence, may be blurred. There have been points raised by writers like Joseph Nye Jr.,that lend to the idea that perhaps the two can complement each other. He argues that in cases when mutual interests or a possibility in the future may suggest that there are plenty of benefits to be had for cooperating, states may actually adopt new strategies in their quest to forward their interests (Nye, 1988). This point may be used to explain why the members of the SCO chose to cooperate in their fight against terrorism in their own region, but chose not to cooperate as a group with the United States of America. This is so, because states and the associations they form can define their interests differently and their interests can also change (Nye, 1988). In this example, what happened was what the other theory cannot account for; the other can shed light to. Realism cannot fully explain how states define their interests and how these interests change, but liberalism can answer that by pushing forward the concept of co llective security, albeit this term needs more discussion as to how it can be operationalized (Nye, 1988). To be blunt about it, the true value of theories being able to explain political phenomenon rests not solely on the exclusivity of their explanations, but on the comprehensiveness of its account. Following Hacke and Puglierin’s   point, the realism in its absolute form can only offer a naked struggle for power, and hence any sound political thought must have elements of both utopia and reality (Hacke and Puglierin, 2007). To have a more comprehensive account of why members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization behaved in certain ways, in certain points in time, one must go beyond the dichotomy of what is considered realist and idealist. Instead, it pays to keep in mind that using relevant aspects of theories (as tools) can help paint a more comprehensive picture that will help account for the explanation of a political phenomenon. REFERENCES Ashworth, Lucian M. â€Å"Where are the idealists in interwar International Relations?† Review of International Studies Vol.32, No. 2 (2006): 291-308. Brummer, Matthew. â€Å"The Shanghai Cooperation Organization.† Journal of International Affairs 60 (2007): 185-199. Foot, Rosemary. â€Å"Chinese strategies in a US-hegemonic global order: accommodating and hedging.† International Affairs Vol.82,   No.1 (2006): 77-94. GlobalSecurity. â€Å"Shanghai Cooperation Organization.† Military. 2007. 15 Oct. 2007 http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/int/sco.htm . Hacke Christian and Jana Puglierin. â€Å"John H. Herz: Balancing Utopia and Reality.† International Relations Vol.21, No.3 (2007): 367–382. Kant, Immanuel. â€Å"Perpetual Peace: A Philosophical Sketch 1975†. 2007. 15 Oct 2007 http://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/kant/kant1.htm Langlois, Catherine and Jean-Pierre P. Langlois. â€Å"Rationality in International Relations: A Game-Theoretic and Empirical Study of the US-China Case.† World Politics Vol.48 (1996): 358–90. Mearsheimer, John J. â€Å"E.H. Carr vs. Idealism: The Battle Rages On.† International Relations   Vol.19, No.2 (2005): 139-152. Nichol, Jim. â€Å"Central Asia’s Security: Issues and Implications for U.S. interests.† CRS Report for Congress. (2005): 1-49. Nye, Joseph S. Jr. â€Å"Review: Neorealism and Neoliberalism.† World Politics Vol. 40, No. 2. (1988): 235-251. The Sucessful Developement of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Essay Example The Sucessful Developement of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Essay To start off this essay, try painting a picture about a certain neighborhood. This neighborhood does not have any overarching governing body, nor is there a single overarching security force. In short, this neighborhood’s residents are left to fend for themselves. Assuming that there has been an unfortunate event in the neighborhood, whereby one house was broken into by some thieves, what could possibly be the reaction of the residents in that community? Will they seek to protect their own homes and not bother to care about their neighbors? Will they protect their homes and be malicious of their neighbors, thinking they could have been conspirators to the crime? Or will they work together and cooperate in one collective effort to solve the case and to protect themselves? This is an analogous picture of what the international realm may look like for scholars and the questions posted are classic questions that theories of International Relations seek to shed light into. In an international world that is ruled by anarchy, it has been a classic notion that states are left to fend for themselves. In this scenario, security of states is of great importance, if not the outright priority. As international events unfold, different scholars seek to explain the various international phenomena by choosing a theoretical framework that will best explain and account for the phenomenon they choose to account for Be that as it may, what this paper will aim to discuss is the recent development is the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), as an association of states, by using the pertinent theoretical frameworks in the discipline of International Relations.   The first part will discuss a brief introduction of the Shanghai Cooperation and what are the recent developments pertaining to it, while the second part of the paper will discuss briefly what theories in International Relations exist that may be of use to the discussion of the recent events in SCO. Using the chosen theories, this paper will discuss how the core tenets of such theories can possibly explain the recent developments in the SCO for example, using a certain theory, why would a certain actor in the SCO story act this way and what were the interests of that actor etcetera. We will write a custom essay sample on The Sucessful Developement of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on The Sucessful Developement of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on The Sucessful Developement of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer A lot of international organizations exist in status quo. The reasons for their establishment may vary from one case to another. And for scholars, it is interesting to take a look at this phenomenon in the context of the emerging new world order. With the end of the Cold War, it is interesting to observe how states and other emerging world players will configure themselves. In line with recent developments, the formation of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) is worthy of scholarly attention. Upon its formation on June 15 2001, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization has six permanent members: the People’s Republic of China, the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, the Republic of Tajikistan, the Republic of Uzbekistan and the Russian Federation (Brummer, 2007). It is an international organization through its founding members that cover about three fifths of Eurasia (GlobalSecurity.org, 2007). This organization or association of states, though fairly young compared to other international organizations has turned out to be an influential political, economic and security international player (Brummer, 2007). The SCO had a predecessor and it was called, the Shanghai Five mechanism, which came from the five of the, now, six members’ (except the Republic of Uzbekistan) effort to further disarmament in the border regions and to strengthen confidence-building (GlobalSecurity.org, 2007). Upon the signing of the Treaty on Deepening Military Trust in Border Regions and the Treaty on Reduction of Military Forces in Border Regions by these five member states, what started off as an annual meeting of their leaders ended up to be a regular practice (GlobalSecurity.org, 2007). The coverage of their agenda soon expanded to talk about cooperation in various areas like politics, security, diplomacy and economics, and then later on extended the membership to Uzbekistan (GlobalSecurity.org, 2007). When asked in why Uzbekistan wanted to join the organization, the reply of President Karimov indicated that the primary reason was to protect the country from any possible aggressive move by the SCO (Nich ol, 2005). The Declaration on the Establishment of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization gave birth to the organization as it is known now (GlobalSecurity.org, 2007). Recently, however, there have been some developments in the SCO and some issues have risen from these developments. Firstly, the inclusion of other states to the membership of the SCO has caught the attention of a lot of scholars and players in the international field, not so much as a reaction to its expansion but to the profile of the members that wish to be included.   Iran, as a very controversial country in terms of its relationship with the rest of the world vis-à  -vis the United States of America, has been subjected to a series of deliberation (Brummer, 2007). The question of whether it will be granted membership in the SCO is something that has interested the keen observers of international relations. The main concern was what would be implications of Iran’s inclusion to the six-member association and consequently, how would the United States of America react to this inclusion. Secondly, post 9/11, the evaluation of the policies and reaction of the Shanghai Coopera tion Organization towards perceived (or otherwise) terrorist threats in their region, is something that the United States of America has concerned itself with (Nichol, 2005). The next section of this paper will juxtapose these recent events with the literature in International Relations—focusing on pertinent theories in the discipline that can explain the milestones in the development of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and using a comparative approach in discussing them. While it is not true that international phenomenon may only be explained by either realism or idealism, it is interesting to juxtapose discussions of different international events using the two because of the contrasts in their basic assumptions and tenets. Before this paper further discusses the developments in the SCO, it would first help to have a quick overview of the premises of each of these two theories, as these will be the tools to help understand and hopefully explain what transpired in these milestones and why they were so. Realism, as espoused by scholars like E.H. Carr, asserts that states are the main actors in world politics and that their interests lie in the pursuit of power at the expense of others (Mearsheimer, 2005). In a way, it more or less follows the logic of a zero-sum game, whereby one player’s gain is another player’s loss. The implication of this in policymaking is that decision-makers will most likely base their decisions on power calculations, as opposed to that of Idealism which focuses on the moral dimension and on liberal ideas for decision-making considerations (Mearsheimer, 2005). One of the canons of idealism, and most often cited by other scholars, is that of Immanuel Kant’s Perpetual Peace, whereby he asserts how states should act towards each other to achieve peace and prevent war (Kant, 1975). Writers, like Herz, argue that idealists believe that it is an imperative to change the world and champion the realization of a world turning into a secure global community—that would entail states abiding by international law and observing respect and recognition of each other (Hacke and Puglierin, 2007). The inception of the SCO may be seen as an idealist characterization of what international cooperation can do, whereby states seek to cooperate with each other to achieve a common goal. As stated earlier, when the SCO was established, the initial intent was to push the disarmament of the states in the border areas and to strengthen confidence-building. These reasons are liberal in nature—disarmament is antithetical to the realist push that states should be wary of other states and should protect themselves at any cost, and confidence-building is founded on trust and cooperation among partner states. While its inception is liberal in intent, as the time progresses, the developments in the SCO soon lend to realist assumptions. When it expanded membership, the intention of the new member (and even those seeking membership in status quo) may be contended to have realist bearings. As stated above, when Uzbekistan sought membership, it was not for cooperation nor was it based on tru st on other states but, instead, it was to ensure its own safety by establishing ties with China and the other states in the SCO. But the annexation of Uzbekistan is not the only development that lends to realist assumptions. Lately, Iran sought membership to the SCO as well, although it was not granted, there stands a chance that it can happen (Brummer, 2007). From a geopolitical perspective, Iran’s inclusion would have been a political statement saying that between the West and Iran, China and Russia would have taken the side of Iran (Brummer, 2007). This scenario can lend to realist assumptions by focusing on the intention of Iran to gain allies, against a perceived threat and clearly this puts security above all other concerns. It can also lend to liberal assumptions by focusing on the fact that Iran has chosen to be part of a collective effort in dealing with adversaries, as opposed to a unilateral aggressive approach that will more probably lead to war and heightened co nflict. The intention of China on forwarding the SCO agenda can also be explained using realism. There have been writings that talk about China’s effort to gain influence in its regional area and the intention behind the formation of the SCO may well be subsumed under this. In fact, there have been assertions that China has had the intention of challenging the unipolar order by taking on the leadership position of a anti-hegemonic coalition against the United States of America (Foot, 2006). Foot further stresses that China may well be building up its military and economic capabilities to challenge the USA (Foot, 2006). Taken from this angle, this obviously lends to realist assumptions of China using a formation of an international institution to forward its own interest—that is, to secure itself and to gain power by challenging the strength of the leading international player. But it can also be explained in a realist point of view, by showing how this is China’s way to achieve a level of security for itself, but at the same time, it may also be a form of cooperating with the international community. Terrorism being a global problem has also been addressed by the SCO by having its members hold anti-terrorist exercises to promote common security and to gain economic benefits as well (Foot, 2006). Taken from this context, it is logical to say that the SCO has acted in favor of liberal ideas of forwarding collective cooperation. China being one of the torchbearers of the SCO has also coursed cooperation through economic ties with the United States (Langlois and Langlois, 1996). Fighting against terrorism by joining forces with other states lends to liberal ideas of aiming for peace and preventing war, even if it sounds moralistic, and forwarding causes for global security through collective action. But just as the previous discussions, the actions of China towards terrorism may also lend to realist assumptions. One particular example is in reference to the efforts of the United States of America in its fight against terrorism. Post-September 11, the members of the Shanghai Cooperati on Organization did not have a collective response to the proposal of the United States, but instead its members acted individually (Nichol, 2005). This proves the realist argument that states, despite the existence of international institutions, will still act selfishly and in favor of its own national interests. It is obvious that China did not want to lend a hand to this specific United States policy, although it was willing to cooperate with its members in dealing with terrorism in their regional area. China’s definition of its national interests, in this context, was to ensure that terrorism does not thrive in its region, and yet not give the United States the leverage to dictate or influence its policies toward security. This shows how there can be an interplay in the way realism and idealism explains a certain international phenomenon. The next question is, how does this make sense and does this not mean that one of the two theories may lose its ability to explain things if the other can explain it the same phenomenon with equal validity? In seeking to explain political phenomenon, one can use theories as tools to help account for such events. In doing so, scholars may fall to the trap of focusing too much on dichotomies the North and South, Realism and Liberalism. While mutual exclusivity increases the validity of a theory (or a school of thought, for that matter) to distinguish it from other existing theories, this does not necessarily mean that the truth of the other is the shadow of the doubt for the other. In fact, if theories are made to help us explain political phenomenon, then perhaps it pays to have a more comprehensive picture by using the lens of various theories to account for an event. Does realism and liberalism really have to be categorized as contrasts or is it possible that they can complement each other? Lucian Ashworth even asserts that the debate between these two schools of thought may have never existed, as the liberals’ (often called â€Å"idealists† by later realist writers call them) writings were not really addressed properly by realists (Ashworth, 2006). This is not to point out that liberalism has lost its capacity to explain, but what Ashworth is pointing out, is the fact that the line establishing this dichotomy is not absolute, and hence, may be blurred. There have been points raised by writers like Joseph Nye Jr.,that lend to the idea that perhaps the two can complement each other. He argues that in cases when mutual interests or a possibility in the future may suggest that there are plenty of benefits to be had for cooperating, states may actually adopt new strategies in their quest to forward their interests (Nye, 1988). This point may be used to explain why the members of the SCO chose to cooperate in their fight against terrorism in their own region, but chose not to cooperate as a group with the United States of America. This is so, because states and the associations they form can define their interests differently and their interests can also change (Nye, 1988). In this example, what happened was what the other theory cannot account for; the other can shed light to. Realism cannot fully explain how states define their interests and how these interests change, but liberalism can answer that by pushing forward the concept of co llective security, albeit this term needs more discussion as to how it can be operationalized (Nye, 1988). To be blunt about it, the true value of theories being able to explain political phenomenon rests not solely on the exclusivity of their explanations, but on the comprehensiveness of its account. Following Hacke and Puglierin’s   point, the realism in its absolute form can only offer a naked struggle for power, and hence any sound political thought must have elements of both utopia and reality (Hacke and Puglierin, 2007). To have a more comprehensive account of why members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization behaved in certain ways, in certain points in time, one must go beyond the dichotomy of what is considered realist and idealist. Instead, it pays to keep in mind that using relevant aspects of theories (as tools) can help paint a more comprehensive picture that will help account for the explanation of a political phenomenon. REFERENCES Ashworth, Lucian M. â€Å"Where are the idealists in interwar International Relations?† Review of International Studies Vol.32, No. 2 (2006): 291-308. Brummer, Matthew. â€Å"The Shanghai Cooperation Organization.† Journal of International Affairs 60 (2007): 185-199. Foot, Rosemary. â€Å"Chinese strategies in a US-hegemonic global order: accommodating and hedging.† International Affairs Vol.82,   No.1 (2006): 77-94. GlobalSecurity. â€Å"Shanghai Cooperation Organization.† Military. 2007. 15 Oct. 2007 http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/int/sco.htm . Hacke Christian and Jana Puglierin. â€Å"John H. Herz: Balancing Utopia and Reality.† International Relations Vol.21, No.3 (2007): 367–382. Kant, Immanuel. â€Å"Perpetual Peace: A Philosophical Sketch 1975†. 2007. 15 Oct 2007 http://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/kant/kant1.htm Langlois, Catherine and Jean-Pierre P. Langlois. â€Å"Rationality in International Relations: A Game-Theoretic and Empirical Study of the US-China Case.† World Politics Vol.48 (1996): 358–90. Mearsheimer, John J. â€Å"E.H. Carr vs. Idealism: The Battle Rages On.† International Relations   Vol.19, No.2 (2005): 139-152. Nichol, Jim. â€Å"Central Asia’s Security: Issues and Implications for U.S. interests.† CRS Report for Congress. (2005): 1-49. Nye, Joseph S. Jr. â€Å"Review: Neorealism and Neoliberalism.† World Politics Vol. 40, No. 2. (1988): 235-251.

Friday, March 20, 2020

Glossary of Terms Regarding Evolution

Glossary of Terms Regarding Evolution Following are definitions of common terms referring to the Theory of Evolution that everyone should know and understand, though this is by no means a comprehensive list. Many of the terms are often misunderstood, which can lead to an inaccurate understanding of evolution. The links lead to more information on the topic: Adaptation: Changing to fit a niche or survive in an environment Anatomy: Study of the structures of organisms Artificial Selection: Characteristics selected by humans Biogeography: Study of how species are distributed across the Earth Biological Species: Individuals that can interbreed and produce viable offspring Catastrophism: Changes in species that happen because of quick and often violent natural phenomena Cladistics: Method of classifying species in groups based on ancestral relationships Cladogram: Diagram of how species are related Coevolution: One species changing in response to changes in another species that it interacts with, particularly predator/prey relationships Creationism: Belief that a higher power created all life Darwinism: Term commonly used as a synonym for evolution Descent With Modification: Passing down traits that might change over time Directional Selection: Type of natural selection in which an extreme characteristic is favored Disruptive Selection: Type of natural selection that favors both extremes and selects against the average characteristics Embryology: Study of the earliest stages of development of an organism Endosymbiotic Theory: Currently accepted theory as to how cells evolved Eukaryote: Organism made of cells that have membrane-bound organelles Evolution: Change in populations over time Fossil Record: All known traces of past life ever found Fundamental Niche: All available roles an individual can play in an ecosystem Genetics: Study of traits and how they are passed down from generation to generation Gradualism: Changes in species that happen over long periods of time Habitat: Area in which an organism lives Homologous Structures: Body parts on different species that are similar and most likely evolved from a common ancestor Hydrothermal Vents: Very hot areas in the ocean where primitive life might have begun Intelligent Design: Belief that a higher power created life and its changes Macroevolution: Changes in populations at the species level, including ancestral relationships Mass Extinction: Event in which large numbers of species died out completely Microevolution: Changes in species at a molecular or gene level Natural Selection: Characteristics that are favorable in an environment and are passed down while undesirable characteristics are bred out of the gene pool Niche: ​Role an individual plays in an ecosystem Organelle:Â  Subunit within a cell that has a specific function Panspermia Theory: Early theory proposing that life came to Earth on meteors from outer space Phylogeny: Study of relative connections between species Prokaryote: Organism made up of the simplest type of cell; has no membrane-bound organelles Primordial Soup: Nickname given to the theory that life started in the oceans from the synthesis of organic molecules Punctuated Equilibrium: Long periods of consistency of a species interrupted by changes that happen in quick bursts Realized Niche: Actual role an individual plays in an ecosystem Speciation: The creation of a new species, often from evolution of another species Stabilizing Selection: Type of natural selection that favors the average of the characteristics Taxonomy: ​Science of classifying and naming organisms Theory of Evolution: Scientific theory about the origins of life on Earth and how it has changed over time Vestigial Structures: Body parts that seem to no longer have a purpose in an organism

Tuesday, March 3, 2020

How To Write Dates in Spanish

How To Write Dates in Spanish There is  a variety of subtle differences between writing common things in English and in Spanish. Such is the case with writing dates in the two languages: Where in English one might say February 5, 2019, a Spanish writer would express the date as 5 de febrero de 2019. Key Takeaways: Writing Dates in Spanish The most common way of writing dates in Spanish follows the form number de month de year.Names of the months are not capitalized in Spanish.With the exception of primero for first, the ordinal numbers are not used in dates in Spanish. Note that in Spanish the name of the month isnt capitalized. You can also spell out the number - as in cinco de enero de 2012 - but this is less common than using a numeral in the example above. However, in parts of Latin America, especially in areas with U.S. influence, you may also see the form abril 15 de 2018 in occasional use, and rarely you may see a period used in the year such as 2.006. Another important distinction is that in Spanish you should not imitate English by using ordinal forms such as tercero de marzo as a direct translation of third of March. The one exception is that you may say primero for first, so January 1st can be said as primero de enero. In numeral form, thats 1o, or a 1 followed by superscripted o, not a degree sign. Less commonly, the form 1ero is used. As in the examples below, dates are typically preceded by the definite article el in sentences. Sample Sentences Showing Use of Dates in Spanish El 16 de septiembre de 1810 era  el dà ­a de independencia de Mà ©xico. (Sept. 16, 1810, was Mexicos independence day.) La Epifanà ­a se celebras el 6 de enero de cada aà ±o en los paà ­ses hispanohablantes. (Epiphany is celebrated in Jan. 6 of each year in Spanish-speaking countries.) El 1 de enero es el primer dà ­a del aà ±o en el calendario gregoriano. (Jan. 1 is the first month of the year of the Gregorian calendar.) El proceso de recuento parcial comenzà ³ el 3 de mayo y todavà ­a continà ºa. (The partial recount process began on May 3 and still continues.) Desde el aà ±o de 1974, el primero de julio celebramos el Dà ­a del Ingeniero en Mà ©xico. (Since the year 1974, we celebrate the Day of the Engineer on July 1st.) Use of Roman Numerals and Abbreviated Forms In abbreviated form, Spanish typically follows a day-month-year pattern using a capitalized Roman numeral for the month. The units may be separated by spaces, slashes, or hyphens. Thus the abbreviated form of July 4, 1776, can be written in these ways: 4 VII 1776, 4/VII/1776, and 4-VII-1776. Theyre the equivalent of 7/4/1776 in American English or 4/7/1776 in British English. Common forms used for B.C. are aC and a. de C. -   for antes de Cristo  or before Christ - with variations in punctuation and sometimes the use of J.C. (Jesucristo) instead of merely using the letter  C. In scholarly writing, you may use AEC  as the equivalent of the English BCE, which means antes de la Era Comà ºn  or Before the Common Era. The equivalent of A.D. is despuà ©s de Cristo  or after Christ and can be abbreviated d. de C.  or dC  with the same variations as noted above. You also may use EC  (Era Comà ºn) for CE (Common Era). The abbreviations AEC  and EC  are even less commonly used in Spanish than their English equivalents are in English, mainly because they arent universally understood. They normally shouldnt be used unless demanded by the context, such as if writing for publication in an academic journal. Pronouncing the Years The years in Spanish are pronounced the same as other cardinal numbers are. Thus, for example, the year 2040 would be pronounced as dos mil cuarenta. The English custom of pronouncing the centuries separately - in English we typically say twenty-forty instead of two thousand forty - is not followed. Saying veinte cuarenta instead of dos mil cuarenta would strike native Spanish speakers as the mark of an English speaker. Using Prepositions With Dates Spanish does not use a preposition as the equivalent of on when indicating that something happens on a particular date. The date itself functions as an adverbial phrase, as it does in English when on is omitted. Such examples include la masacre ocurrià ³ el 14 de marzo wherein the phrase means The massacre occurred on March 14, with the Spanish word for on (en) not used. Similarly in English, one could correctly say The massacre occurred March 14.   During or throughout, on the other hand, can be added into the phrase by including the Spanish word for this, durante.  Such is the case in the Spanish version of the sentence Space exploration began during the 20th Century, which can be written as Durante el siglo XX dio comenzà ³ la exploracià ³n espacial.

Sunday, February 16, 2020

Strategy Implementation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Strategy Implementation - Essay Example This report discusses the strategy that needs to be implemented within CPK and what are the ways through which the strategy can be implemented. The strategic option that is deemed to be suitable for CPK to achieve sustainable competitive advantage is through the adoption of the Blue Ocean strategy and this paper analyzes CPK’s resources to carry out this strategy. Introduction California Pizza Kitchen is a California based dining restaurant that specializes in providing different varieties of pizza. According to their website they have 265 stores in 32 states and ten foreign countries. The company is expanding this business with great vigor and energy. The main purpose of this paper is to evaluate the control environment in the organization and assessing the company’s ability to follow the Blue Ocean strategy. This includes the assessment of the structure, design, control systems and the people working in the organization. ... Main Body The mission statement of CPK is to â€Å"introduce flavors and tastes from around the world, from Thai to Jamaican Jerk†¦all on a pizza in an upscale environment† (About CPK, cpk.com). This mission statement seems to be too broad and according to the innovative trend carried out at CPK (Offering new flavors and new menu items) (CPK, Press Release), it seems that the mission statement is followed appropriately. To ascertain whether CPK can implement the Blue Ocean strategy, proper research of the company’s resources and abilities is done through these three parts: Structuring The structuring part includes the analysis of processes, relationship and organizational structure and their bonding with each other to make them work more smoothly. The processes at CPK are that Larry S. Flax looks at the operations and the menu of the company whilst Richard S. Rosenfield is in charge of the financial and other investor issues. The organizational structure at CPK is a centralized sort of a structure with a proper Board of directors consisting of 2 CEOs and 5 executive directors. It seems that the company is operated in a rigid manner, sort of an autonomous structure but this power is usually vested within both the CEOs of the company rather than any one of them. The CEOs work together in collaboration so that it might help in succession planning; this clearly suggests that the company is forward sighted. (Business Week, Oct 2009) According to the autonomous structure, it clearly seems that the company offers same menu at all the locations that it has around the globe. Although this may be very beneficial as consumers might be able to get all the renowned varieties offered by CPK but this may also have some implication e.g. the taste of the people situated in other

Sunday, February 2, 2020

Current Criminal Justice or Security Policy Issue Essay

Current Criminal Justice or Security Policy Issue - Essay Example After a one-year demonstration phase and testing of the 5,000 life vests distributed to 15 police departments, except our department, 18 shooting occurrences ensued in which the Kevlar body armor was able to shield the officers successfully (DOJ, 2005). However, the utilization of body armor has not been effectively implemented in our Agency - the X-007 Agency. This only means law enforcers under our office are not well protected. There have been shooting occurrences in the past in which, agents under our department have gone to the scene of the crime without a body armor as a protection. The rising incidents of criminality in our community, especially gun shooting incidences where armed robbers and armed men attack banks and other business establishments cause alarm on our local community. Our department was also alarmed as the safety and security of our agents is at stake. Thus, the agency plans to implement a body armor wearing guidelines for the 25 member enforcers of this local agency. In implementing this policy, the agency needs to bear in mind the issues with regards the choice of body armor to purchase. The Second Chance armor, for instance worn by a police officer in Forest Hills failed to protect him and thus when he got shot the bullet pierced through his armor and fatally wounded the enforcer. Studies show that armors made of Zylon or Kevlar deteriorate after a period of time as a result of environmental factors. Thus, in implementing this policy, the agency decided that the Kevlar armor, National Institute of Justice certified vests, will be used but only for a limited period of time. As of now, the agency is waiting for the results of the experiments of the National Institute of Justice which will provide for the duration the Kevlar vests could be used. As the vest deteriorate easily as a result of some environmental and chemical factors, the the NIJ report can also enlighten us on how to care for the vests. The manufacturer of the body armor also provid ed kits in which the officers will find inserts and extra thin padding for protection. This inserts will also provide care for the vests. The vests will be provided for by the purchasing department and should be worn at all times by the officers during their time of duty. For the effective implementation of this policy, guidelines in wearing the vests will be provided for in writing to the officers involved. Officers on active duty who are found not wearing the vest will be penalized as the agency. As the officers comprise of 25 agents, one agent will be tasked to check and record as well as write reports of the uses of the new vests. Partners must another partner if the other is wearing the vest or not. It is the responsibility of the police partners to check the other. If a police partner notices that the other is not wearing the vest during his time of duty, the officer must inform his supervisor immediately by writing a report ((Putt and Springer 1982). A monthly incidence report must also be written by the supervisor on the wearing of the vests, the incidences that occurred while the vests are worn, the condition of the vests and the conditions of the wearer as well. If vests appear to have deteriorated, the supervisor and the officer who used the vest must submit a report and inform

Saturday, January 25, 2020

The Turbidity Test for Pasteurized Milk

The Turbidity Test for Pasteurized Milk Milk and dairy products, such as cream and yoghurt, are an important food group in the food pyramid. This food group provides us with calcium, which is not only crucial in strengthening our bones, but also important in many biological processes, such as facilitating the release of neurotransmitters that transmit nerve impulses across a synapse. Since dairy products serve such importance in our diet, dairy products manufacturing industry takes extra precaution in ensuring that these products meet the guidelines set by statutory bodies, one of which is that the maximum lactic acid content allowed in milk is 0.15% w/w. Hence, the industry will employ various methods to determine the quality of milk. As such, in order to better understand these industrial methods, 2 groups of experiments relating to titratable acidity (TA) of selected foods and turbidity test for pasteurized, UHT and sterilized milk were carried out. The titratable acidity test allows us to determine the titratable acidi ty of a sample as lactic acid (for dairy products) or citric acid (for lemon curd) equivalent. Basically, TA, as an acid equivalent, of a food product measures the total amount of that particular reference acid in the selected food. This reference acid is the major acid component, amongst all types of acid present in the food, which we want to quantify. TA is different from pH as pH only measures the [H+] dissociated from the acid molecules. Hence, TA is a more accurate measure of the degree of spoilage of dairy products than pH. The turbidity test however, serves a different function in terms of quality control. It is usually used by the industry to test if sterilized milk products have been sufficiently sterilized. Titratable Acidity of Selected Foods Materials Phenolphthalein as indicator 50.00ml burette 10.0ml graduated pipette White porcelain basin Magnetic stirrer Experiment 1: Titratable Acidity of Milk Pasteurized milk (Farmhouse Fresh Milk), expires on 20/9/12 UHT milk (Marigold UHT Full Cream), expires on 15/6/13 0.01M sodium hydroxide (actual concentration is 0.0107M) Experiment 2: Titratable Acidity of Cream Sour cream (Bulla Sour Cream), expires on 14/9/12 Yoghurt (FN Alive Yoghurt), expires on 11/9/12 0.1M sodium hydroxide (actual concentration is 0.105M) pH meter Experiment 3: Titratable Acidity of Lemon Curd Lemon curd (Waitrose lemon curd), expired on Feb 12 0.1M sodium hydroxide (actual concentration is 0.105M) Methods Titration of selected food products against NaOH of known concentrations were carried out in order to determine the titratable acidity of these food products. The titratable acidity in lactic acid or citric acid equivalent was then determined by via stoichiometric ratio of the acid to the amount of NaOH, as seen in the stoichiometric calculations below. 3 sets of titrations for 3 different groups of food products, mainly pasteurized milk and UHT milk, sour cream and yoghurt, and lemon curd, were carried. Experiment 1: Titratable Acidity of Milk 10.0 ml of pasteurized milk was transferred to a white porcelain basin. 1.0 ml of phenolphthalein indicator was then added to this sample. The burette was filled up with 0.01M NaOH and then titrated against the pasteurized milk sample. End-point of titration was identified when a pale pink colouration persisted for at least 10 s. Initial and final burette readings were recorded in Table 1 below. The procedure was repeated thrice for both pasteurized and UHT milk. Experiment 2: Titratable Acidity of Cream 10.00 g of sour cream was transferred to a white porcelain basin. 10.0 ml of water was added to the sample and mixed and pH was then measured. 1.0 ml of phenolphthalein indicator was added to the diluted sample. The burette was filled up with 0.1M NaOH and then titrated against the sour cream sample. End-point of titration was identified when a pale pink colouration persisted for at least 10 s. Initial and final burette readings were recorded in Table 2 below. The procedure was repeated thrice for both sour cream and yoghurt. Experiment 3: Titratable Acidity of Lemon Curd 10.00 g of lemon curd was transferred to a white porcelain basin. 10.0 ml of water was added to the sample and mixed. 1.0 ml of phenolphthalein indicator was added to the diluted sample. The burette was filled up with 0.1M NaOH and then titrated against the lemon curd sample. End-point of titration was identified when a pale pink colouration persisted for at least 10 s. Initial and final burette readings were recorded in Table 3 below. The procedure was repeated two more times. Results Experiment 1: Titratable Acidity of Milk Table 1: Titration of pasteurized and UHT milk against 0.01M NaOH Milk sample vol. of milk measured (ml) average vol. of milk (ml) initial burette reading (ml) final burette reading (ml) vol. of NaOH used (ml) average vol. of NaOH used* (ml) ÂÂ  Pasteurized Milk 10.0 10.0 50.00 37.65 12.35 12.35 10.0 37.65 25.15 12.50 10.0 25.15 12.80 12.35 ÂÂ  UHT Milk 10.0 10.0 50.00 37.70 12.30 12.30 10.0 37.70 25.30 12.40 10.0 25.30 13.00 12.30 Pasteurized Milk CH 3 CH OH C O- Na+ O CH 3 CH OH C OH O + NaOH Ã   + H2O (1) Amount of NaOH used = (Average vol. of NaOH used) x [NaOH] = (12.35/1000)(0.0107) = 1.32 x 10-4 mol From (1), lactic acid : NaOH is 1:1 amount of lactic acid in 10.0ml of pasteurized milk = 1.32 x 10-4 mol Concentration of lactic acid (in mol/100mL) equivalent in pasteurized milk = (1.32 x 10-4) / (10/100) = 1.32 x 10-3 mol/100mL Concentration of lactic acid equivalent in g/100mL in pasteurized milk = (molar concentration (in mol/100mL) of lactic acid equivalent) x (molar mass of lactic acid) = (1.32 x 10-3)(90.08) = 0.119 g/100mL UHT Milk Amount of NaOH used = (Average vol. of NaOH used) x [NaOH] = (12.30/1000)(0.0107) = 1.31 x 10-4 mol From (1), lactic acid : NaOH is 1:1 amount of lactic acid in 10.0ml of UHT milk = 1.31 x 10-4 mol Concentration of lactic acid (in mol/100mL) equivalent in UHT milk = (1.31 x 10-4) / (10/100) = 1.31 x 10-3 mol/100mL Concentration of lactic acid equivalent in g/100mL in UHT milk = (molar concentration (in mol/100mL) of lactic acid equivalent) x (molar mass of lactic acid) = (1.31 x 10-3)(90.08) = 0.118 g/100mL From the calculations, it can be seen that both the titratable acidities of pasteurized milk and UHT milk in lactic acid equivalent are below 0.15%, the maximum allowed titratable acidity of milk in lactic acid equivalent. As such, both samples are deemed safe for consumption. The titratable acidity of pasteurized milk is also observed to be slightly above that of UHT milk by a very minute concentration of 0.001 g/100mL. This suggests that pasteurized milk contains slightly more microbes than UHT milk, which goes in tandem with the properties of pasteurized milk. This is because pasteurized milk is heated to about 65oC for at least 30 minutes in order to preserve the flavor of milk, while UHT milk is heated at 135oC for about 2 seconds6. Hence, fewer microbes are killed in pasteurized milk than UHT milk. As such, pasteurized milk will have slightly higher lactic acid concentration which is produced from the fermentation of lactose by microbes. However, the magnitude of difference of 0.001 g/100mL obtained from the titration results is too small to make the above conclusive deduction. The average vol. of NaOH used is almost identical for both milk samples as there is only a difference of 0.05 ml, making the titration results somewhat anomalous. The main reason for this anomaly is the subjectivity of the end-point of titration. The colour change of phenolphthalein from colourless to pale pink is very difficult to ascertain by naked eye for the inexperienced, unlike workers in this industry who carry out large volumes of titrations every day. As such, the faint pink that I observed in pasteurized milk is most probably not the true end-point of titration or it could be that the faint pink I observed in UHT milk is over the end-point of titration for UHT milk. Experiment 2: Titratable Acidity of Cream Table 2: Titration of sour cream and yoghurt against 0.1M NaOH Cream sample pH of sample average pH mass of sample (g) average mass of sample (g) initial burette reading (ml) final burette reading (ml) vol. of NaOH used (ml) average vol. of NaOH used* (ml) ÂÂ  Sour Cream 4.48 4.49 10.00 10.00 50.00 44.60 5.40 5.40 4.50 10.01 44.60 39.20 5.40 4.50 9.99 39.20 33.80 5.40 ÂÂ  Yoghurt 4.43 4.38 10.01 9.99 50.00 37.90 12.10 12.30 4.34 10.00 37.90 25.60 12.30 4.38 9.98 25.60 13.30 12.30 Sour Cream Amount of NaOH used = (Average vol. of NaOH used) x [NaOH] = (5.40/1000)(0.105) = 5.67 x 10-4 mol From (1), lactic acid : NaOH is 1:1 amount of lactic acid in 10.00g of sour cream = 5.67 x 10-4 mol Mass of lactic acid in 10.00g of sour cream = (amount of lactic acid) x (molar mass of lactic acid) = (5.67 x 10-4)(90.08) = 0.0511g Concentration of lactic acid equivalent (in %w/w) in sour cream = (mass of lactic acid in 10.00g of sour cream) / (average mass of sour cream) x 100% = (0.0511) / (10.00) x 100% = 0.511% (w/w) Yoghurt Amount of NaOH used = (Average vol. of NaOH used) x [NaOH] = (12.30/1000)(0.105) = 1.29 x 10-3 mol From (1), lactic acid : NaOH is 1:1 amount of lactic acid in 9.99g of yoghurt = 1.29 x 10-3 mol Mass of lactic acid in 9.99g of yoghurt = (amount of lactic acid) x (molar mass of lactic acid) = (1.29 x 10-3)(90.08) = 0.116 g Concentration of lactic acid equivalent (in %w/w) in yoghurt = (mass of lactic acid in 9.99g of yoghurt) / (average mass of yoghurt) x 100% = (0.116) / (9.99) x 100% = 1.16% (w/w) From the results of this experiment in Table 2, we can see that titratable acidity is not equal to pH, and it shares an inverse relationship with pH, where pH = -lg[H+]. This is because lactic acid is an organic acid and hence it is a weak acid. As such, lactic acid only partially dissociates, giving a [H+] that is lower than the total lactic acid concentration. This is due to the low acid dissociation constant, Ka, of lactic acid. However, by proportionality, it is observed that higher concentrations of lactic acid molecules will give a higher deprotonated [H+]. This is observed in Table 2 where the lower pH of yoghurt corresponds to a higher average volume of NaOH required to neutralize the lactic acid present. In addition, another observation is that yoghurt requires more than twice the volume of 0.1M NaOH to neutralize the lactic acid present as compared to sour cream even though yoghurt is lower in pH by 0.11. This is mainly attributed to the presence of probiotics added into yoghurt. As such, this means that more lactose in yoghurt is converted into lactic acid, resulting in the marked difference in average vol. of NaOH required for neutralization. This second observation also proves that pH is not a true measure of total lactic acid content in dairy products as this small difference in pH is accompanied by a larger than proportionate difference in volume of NaOH required for neutralization. Experiment 3: Titratable Acidity of Lemon Curd Table 3: Titration of lemon curd against 0.105M NaOH Sample mass of sample (g) average mass of sample (g) initial burette reading (ml) final burette reading (ml) vol. of NaOH used (ml) average vol. of NaOH used* (ml) Lemon Curd 10.00 10.00 50.00 29.20 20.80 20.35 10.00 29.20 8.90 20.30 10.00 50.00 29.60 20.40 *As 3 sets of titration were conducted for each sample in order to improve the precision and reproducibility of the titration results, the average volume of NaOH was taken as the average of the 2 closest values of vol. of NaOH used in titration so as to be more precise. C Na+O- O CH 2 C OH C O- Na+ O CH 2 C O- Na+ O C HO O CH 2 C OH C OH O CH 2 C OH O + 3NaOH Ã   + 3H2O (2) Amount of NaOH used = (Average vol. of NaOH used) x [NaOH] = (20.35/1000)(0.105) = 2.14 x 10-3 mol From (2), citric acid : NaOH is 1:3 amount of citric acid in 10.00g of lemon curd = (amount of NaOH used) / 3 = 7.13 x 10-4 mol Molar mass of citric acid = 6(12) + 8(1) + 7(16) = 192 g mol-1 mass of citric acid in 10.00g of lemon curd = (amount of citric acid) x (molar mass of citric acid) = (7.13 x 10-4)(192) = 0.137 g Concentration of citric acid equivalent (in % w/w) in lemon curd = (mass of citric acid in 10.00g of lemon curd) / (average mass of lemon curd) x 100% = (0.137) / (10.00) x 100% = 1.37% (w/w) As calculated above, the concentration of citric acid equivalent in lemon curd is 1.37% (w/w), which is well above the minimum standard of 0.33% (w/w) set by legislation in some parts of the world. Hence, it can be deduced that this sample of lemon curd has passed the quality control measure. Citric acid is used as the reference for quality control of lemon curd mainly because citric acid is present in the largest quantity in lemons. Hence, measuring citric acid concentration present will be a good measure of the quality of the lemon curd. As such, this is a quality lemon curd sample. Even though this lemon curd product expired on February 2012, the citric acid content should not be significantly affected by microbial decomposition mainly because the acidic environment due to citric acid is not suitable for most bacteria to thrive. Discussion There are a few experimental procedures which can be improved on. Firstly, as mentioned in the results of experiment 1, the faint pink observed to mark the end-point of titration is subject to a large margin of human error. As such, a better method to solve the issue of colour subjectivity is to use a colorimeter to determine an intensity of pink as the end-point of titration, thus eliminating any inaccuracies that result from human error. Secondly, it was observed that the dilution of products of a more viscous consistency, such as sour cream and lemon curd, did not yield a homogenous consistency as compared with the milk samples and yoghurt. As such, the titrated NaOH may not have actually reacted with all the acid molecules as some acid molecules may be trapped inside the granular particles. This can be overcome by vortexing the cream and water mixture in a sealed round-bottom conical flask to ensure a homogenous solution is obtained, allowing us to obtain more accurate titration results. Thirdly, for runny liquid samples such as milk, there is a risk of spillage due to splashing when the magnetic stirrer operates probably due to the large exposed opening of the porcelain basin. Splashing can be overcome by using a conical flask to contain the samples and place a white tile under the conical flask so that the change in colour of milk can be made more obvious. This is because a conical flask has a much narrower neck and therefore a significantly narrower opening, thus minimizing spillage from splashing. In this way, more accurate titration results can be obtained. For lemon curd, simply measuring the citric acid concentration is insufficient to conclude a quality product. This is mainly due to the possibility of adulteration of lemon curd by adding more citric acid chemical, just like how milk was adulterated by the adding melamine. As such, additional qualitative methods can be employed, such as measuring the concentration of certain chemical substances more unique to lemon, such as limonene. Turbidity test for pasteurized, UHT and sterilized milk Materials Ammonium sulphate powder Pasteurized milk UHT milk Sterilized milk Method 4.0g of ammonium sulphate, (NH4)2SO4, was dissolved in 20.0 ml of pasteurized milk. The mixture was allowed to stand for at least 5 min and subsequently filtered. 5 ml of the filtrate was collected in a test-tube and then placed in boiling water bath for at least 5 min. The test-tube containing filtrate was then cooled in cold water and the contents were examined for presence of turbidity. Results Discussion Table 4: Turbidity test results Sample Observation Pasteurized milk A cloudy pale yellow solution with precipitation was observed. UHT milk A cloudy pale yellow solution was observed. Sterilized milk A clear pale yellow solution was observed. The turbidity test is useful in telling us if a sample of milk is sufficiently sterilized, whereby a clear solution will be observed. The turbidity test is first carried out by adding a denaturing agent, usually ammonium sulphate, (NH4)2SO4, to the milk sample. As NH4+ exhibits acidic properties, as shown in the following equation, NH4+ + H2O Ã   NH3 + H3O+ this addition of ammonium ions will bring about an increase in [H+], resulting in the disruption of casein micelle structure. This causes casein proteins to precipitate and coagulate as they interact with the ammonium and sulphate ions. For those casein and whey proteins that are already denatured by heat treatment during processing, ammonium and sulphate ions will form interactions with the charged R-groups of the acidic and basic amino acid residues, causing them to precipitate out of the solution. These precipitate are obtained as the residue from filtration. The filtrate obtained contains mostly undenatured whey proteins and probably some unprecipitated protein molecules encapsulated in the casein micelle structure amidst a solution of ammonium sulphate and other soluble milk products such as lactose. Upon heat treatment in a 100oC water bath, the milk proteins denature and are thus exposed to ammonium sulphate. They undergo the same mode of action with ammonium sulphate as described above, resulting in the observed precipitation. Referring to AVA regulations, pasteurised milk is defined to be milk that has been subjected to a single heat-treatment of 62.8 65.6oC for at least 30 min or 72 73.5oC for at least 15 s; UHT milk is defined as milk that has been heated at a temperature of at least 135oC for at least 2 s; sterilized milk is milk heated to 100oC long enough to sufficiently kill all microbes. As such, sterilized milk will have all the casein and whey proteins fully denatured and free in the milk due to prolonged heating. Whereas UHT milk will have a slight concentration of undenatured proteins present due to a short high heat treatment. For pasteurized milk however, it will contain the highest concentration of undenatured proteins due to lowest heat treatment temperature. Hence, the experimental observation in Table 4 clearly fits the hypothesis. On a side note, the yellow pale solution observed is most likely due to the Maillard reaction between lactose in and amino compounds in milk. Conclusion Titratable acidity and the turbidity test for milk is but only 2 out of the many methods that the milk processing industry employs to ensure that the heat treatments have produced milk that are safe for human consumption. The main disadvantage that lies with milk treated with higher heat processes is the loss of flavour. The nutrients that are lost during heat are usually replaced (e.g. enriched milk) and hence this is less of a concern for milk. As such, it is the companys decision on whether to process milk with an emphasis on taste or shelf-life. Nevertheless, it is of utmost importance that the milk products remain well within the margin of safety as stated by regulations. At the same time, regulatory bodies need to stay alert and play a part in ensuring that companies follow the safety guidelines, less an incident like the adulteration of dairy products through melamine addition may occur again.