Being a true disciple of Jesus Essay Example for Free

Being a true disciple of Jesus Essay A03. It is not possible to be a true disciple of Jesus in the modern world Do you agree? Christianity is a worldwide religion and this leads us to believe that it is possible to be a true disciple in the modern world. Modern Christians believe that they are called to follow the example Jesus set. They spend time discovering the teachings of Jesus from the bible and trying to put those teachings into practice. (Michael Keene). There are many examples of modern day Christians. Priests, Nuns and missionaries are examples of people who devote their whole lives to God. Oscar Romero was an archbishop in El Salvador where the government has constantly violated human rights. There are also many people living in poverty. Oscar spoke out about the government in sermons. In 1980 he was gunned down by four masked men. His last words were May Christs sacrifice give us the courage to offer our own bodies for justice and peace. I believe that Romero is an example of someone who followed Jesus example and was a true disciple. Many religious people take vows of poverty so that God is placed first above everything and that they do not get distracted by money. The Rich Man didnt take this vow. It is much harder for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God than for a camel to go through the eye of a needle. (10:25). Maximilian Kolbe was a polish Catholic priest who was arrested and taken to Auschwitz, one of the Nazi death camps, in 1941. After three weeks of dehydration and starvation, only four of the ten men were still alive, including Kolbe. During the time in the cell, he led the men in songs and prayer. One day the guards picked out a man to be tortured to death but Kolbe said take me instead. The cells were needed, and Kolbe and the other three were executed with an injection of carbolic acid in the left arm. His heroism echoed through the camp and in 1982 he was made a saint. He once said, My aim in life is to serve others. He sacrificed his life for another and put God at the centre of his life. This makes his out to be a true disciple. Corrymeela is a peace group on the Antrim coast in Northern Ireland. The community is made up of Protestants and Roman Catholics. They live together, work together and worship together. It is a place where people can meet to discuss their differences in an atmosphere of mutual respect and trust. I think the people involved with Corrymeela are good modern day disciples. However, there are many challenges that make being a modern day disciple difficult. War, hatred and violence make it very hard to love our neighbour and forgive. The event of the world trade centre collapsing due to a terrorist attack on September 11th is an example of a difficult time to forgive. 2992 people were killed due to this attack. We live in a consumerist society were the emphasis on wealth is great. This can lead to injustices and selfishness. It distracts Christians from living a Christian life and makes it difficult for them to be true disciples. Years ago there wasnt any trading on a Sunday leaving more time for prayer and worship. Nowadays most shops are open from 1pm to 6pm this leaves little time for the people who work to pray and worship. It has an impact on our Christian lifestyle. Modern moral challenges such as abortion are unchristian. Many women have this procedure done to remove a foetus from their womb. People see this as a form of murder and that it is immoral. I believe it to be possible to be a true disciple of Jesus in the modern world, although it is very difficult as there are many obstacles in the way. Christians today still see it as being their duty to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ to others. This may be by doing missionary work or more simply by living out the Christian life and being an example for others.

Development of Indias Banking System

Development of Indias Banking System Introduction With a population of over 1 billion, India is one of the most important countries with accelerating economic growth. According to the World Bank (2009), the annual GDP growth of India has been more than 7% over the past ten years. The financial crises in 1997 and 2008 have revealed the importance of robust banking system towards economic development. Indian Government liberalized the banking system through Indian Banking Sector Reform in 1991. From the first bank in India in 1786, the development of Indian Banking System has three distinct phases. Early Phase (1786 1969) There were 1100 small banks in India. The Government implemented the Banking Companies Act 1949 to facilitate the functioning of commercial banks. Reserve Bank of India (RBI) was authorized to supervise the Indian banking sector and became the Central Banking Authority. Post Nationalization Period (1969 1991) State Bank of India was formed to act as a principal agent of RBI and handle banking transactions in India. Fourteen major commercial banks were nationalized as there was a decline in public confidence during the early phase. Nationalization guaranteed the sustainability of banking industry and aroused public confidence. Post-Liberalization Period (1991 now) Liberalization of banking practices occurred. Foreign banks, ATMs, phone banking, net banking were introduced to make the banking system more convenient and efficient. The development of banking system is transiting. Public-Sector Banks contributes to 78% of total banking industry asset. Private-Sector Banks, on the other hand, are experiencing great progress in internet banking, ATMs and other technology advancements. They are likely to expand in India. Central Bank Reserve Bank of India It was established in 1935 and was nationalized in 1949. It has 8 functions explained as follows: Note Issuance: It has the sole right to issue bank notes of all denominations as an agent of the Government. Government Banker: It acts as Government banker, agent and adviser. It controls the banking system through licensing, inspection and calling for information. It also supervises and controls commercial and cooperative banks. Maintenance of Minimum Reserve Ratio: RBI set the cash reserve ratio is 5% and repo rate is 4.75 % in 2009. Lender of Last Resort: It acts as the lender of last resort by providing rediscount facilities to scheduled banks. Credit Controller: It controls the credit operations of banks quantitatively and qualitatively like open market operations, discount policies and reserve requirements. Settlement of Clearing Functions: RBI facilitates the inter-bank clearing of current accounts in 1050 clearing houses in India. Custodian of Foreign Reserves: RBI sets a limit on money transfer in and out of India under Foreign Exchange Management Act. It examines Indias reserve of international currencies and maintains the official rate of exchange with all member countries of International Monetary Fund. Promotional Functions: RBI is responsible to extend banking facilities to rural and semi-urban areas, and establish and promote new specialized financing agencies. Banking System Banks in India The Reserve Bank of India heads the Indian commercial banks. Banks in India can be categorized into three tiers scheduled commercial banks; regional rural banks which operate in rural areas not covered by scheduled banks; and cooperative and special purpose rural banks. There are approximately 98 scheduled commercial banks, both Indian and foreign, almost 200 regional rural banks, more than 350 central cooperative banks, 20 land development banks, and a number of agricultural credit societies. Commercial Banks Commercial banking is dominated by 28 state-owned banks controlling 69.9% of assets in the sector in 2007/08. Private domestic held 21.7% and foreign banks had the remaining 8.4%. Commercial banks can be categorized into domestic banks and foreign banks. Domestic Banks They include public-sector banks, private-sector banks and savings, mortgage and co-operative banks. The biggest domestic bank is a public-sector bank, State Bank of India with market share 16.83%. The second biggest domestic bank is a private-sector bank, ICICI Bank with market share 9.11%. Public-Sector Banks They have a country wide networks and each has its own geographic stronghold. They provide a full range of banking services and are an important source of short-term funds. State Bank of India is the largest bank providing 16.83$ of loan advances in 2007/08. In 2008, SBI merged its subsidiary, State Bank of Saurashtra, and is increasing its international presence. The introduction of stringent capital-adequacy, income-recognition and asset-classification norms in economic reform promoted public-sector banks to reveal true positions in financial statements. The gap between strong and weak banks is thus widened. Private-Sector Banks There were 41 private-sector banks and 18 of them were listed on the stock exchange as of 2009. They usually have strong regional client bases and upgrade their technology and services. ICICI, the largest private-sector bank, merged with Bank of Madura in 2001 and Shangli Bank in 2007. Life Insurance Corporation of India raised its stake in Corporation Bank to 27% from 12.32% in 2001. It is expected that more mergers and acquisitions will be found in the coming decade. Savings, mortgages and co-operative banks They are small and contribute slightly to the source of funds for most companies. They tend to finance rural and small sectors and have geographically-restricted operations. New RBI regulations have imposed restrictions on them in 2001 as some urban cooperative banks were discovered to have a high exposure to the stock market. Foreign Banks The biggest foreign bank is Citibank with market share 1.55%. Standard Chartered Bank ranked the second. Citibank, Standard Chartered Bank, HSBC and ABN Amro Bank dominate the sector in the diagram shown below. Comparing the advances of foreign banks and that of commercial banks, it is shown that foreign banks play a small role in banking industry. They accounted for 8.4% of total commercial-bank assets in 2007/08. But the rising net profits of the banks to Rs66.12bn in 2007/08 from Rs45.85bn in 2006/07 suggested the increasing importance of this sector. Foreign banks offer borrowing terms similar to local banks, but their benchmark prime lending rates are 1 to 3 percentage points higher. Foreign banks usually form part of a lending consortium. Foreign banks without a branch presence can conduct business through representative offices. These banks concentrate on providing offshore currency loans and related foreign-exchange products, rather than retail banking or local-currency lending. Investment Banks and Brokerages Investment banks and brokerages rely on advisory business. They have a limited involvement in risk capital. They can weather the downturn without the risk of going out of business. However, if the downturn continues in 2010, some banks may leave the small Indian market. Citi(US) and JM Financial Group have the greatest market share in this sector with their contribution of more than half deal value. Given the growth of Indian market, major foreign investment banks have reworked their partnerships with investment banks to help them to capture a greater market share. Development Banks Public-sector development banks were traditionally the principle source of long-term capital. Development banks provide medium and long-term rupee and foreign-currency financing, underwrite and subscribe to stocks and debentures. Due to the financial sector reform, they offer new services and products, set up organizations to provide a variety of financial services. Some countrywide development banks are Industrial Finance Corp of India and Industrial Investment Bank of India. The Post Office Saving Bank It has the largest retail-bank network, with over 155,000 branches. A growing number of post offices are also connected electronically. Given its large distribution network, India Post now leverages its presence to become a general financial-services distributor. It provides various mutual funds and bonds. It also offers an inward international money-transfer service. Offshore Banks Banks are allowed to set up overseas banking units within the countrys special economic zones functioning as overseas branches of domestic banks. Six domestic banks set up overseas banking units: Bank of Baroda, Canara Bank, ICICI Bank, Punjab National Bank, State Bank of India and Union Bank. Domestic banks can enjoy a tax deduction on the income from OBUs and advantages of global presence. Banks Deposit Composition The deposits of national banks dominate the banking industry because they are backed up by the government and the public thus have confidence in nationalized banks. However, regional rural banks have a small share of deposits. It is mainly due to the lower income level in rural areas. Although foreign banks have a second smallest share of deposits, liberalization of the banking industry will allow them to expand their business. Competitive Situation More aggressive merger and acquisition are stemming in India. One advantages stemming from merger is the ability to cross-sell a slew of retail products including housing loans, car loans, personal finance and credit cards. Further, merged entity will be able to compete with threats from global players, for instance, HSBC and Citibank. However, challenges of merger are the integration of financial and human resources, as well as satisfying statutory requirements. Also some FIs faced the problem of relying on an increasing cagey market to raise capital. As FIs were funding long-term projects with money rose short term, there was a critical asset-liability disparity. RBI then proposed to convert financial institutions into universal banks recently. A reverse merger with their own subsidiary banks will now give FIs access to low-cost funds. The trend of mergers and acquisitions will prevail in the coming years. Economic Conditions Indian banks balance sheets are not directly exposed to sub-prime mortgage leading in US. The GDP and GDP per capital are expected to grow in the coming decade. The global financial crisis does not undermine the banking industry in India in a great extent. The assessment of the banking sector risk is rather low compared to that in Asia and Australasia in 2009. The expansion of consumer credit does not pose a high risk to the banking industry as the level of debts per customer remains low. In contrast, RBI moved the focus of its policy from boosting economic growth to containing inflation. Interest rates are expected to rise and tighter monetary policy are expected to be implemented. Conclusions The liberalization of banking system has (1) strengthen the banking sector (2) provide more operational flexibility to banks (3) enhance the competitive efficiency of banks (4) strengthen the legal framework governing bank operations. This well-developed banking system is favourable when it comes to expansion in India. However, a keen competition is found in India. Each sector has various existing banks with strong customer loyalty. Numerous state-owned banks and FIs are the dominant players in India. Despite the stable Indian economy and the steady and slow movement towards liberalization of banking system, the Government will probably strengthen the financial regulatory system sufficiently before a complete liberalization. Therefore, it is concluded that India is not suitable for expansion. References World Bank (2009). Word Bank in India. Retrieved November 25, 2009, from http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/COUNTRIES/SOUTHASIAEXT/0,,contentMDK:22398481~menuPK:2246552~pagePK:2865106~piPK:2865128~theSitePK:223547,00.html India Finance Investment Guide (2009). Introduction. Retrieved November 25, 2009, from http://finance.indiamart.com/investment_in_india/banking_india.html Maps of India (2008). Banks in India. Retrieved November 25, 2009, from http://business.mapsofindia.com/banks-in-india/ Kamath, G.B. (2009). Emerald. The Intellectual Capital Performance of Indian Banking Sector, pp.4. Retrieved from, http://www.emeraldinsight.com.eproxy1.lib.hku.hk/Insight/viewPDF.jsp?contentType=ArticleFilename=html/Output/Published/EmeraldFullTextArticle/Pdf/2500080104.pdf Bank of India (2009). Main Functions. Retrieved November 25, 2009, from http://www.rbi.org.in/scripts/AboutusDisplay.aspx#MF OneIndia News (2009, July 28). RBI Keeps All Key Rates Unchanged. Retrieved November 25, 2009, from http://news.oneindia.in/2009/07/28/rbi-keeps-all-key-rates-unchanged.html Hubbard, R.G. OBrien (2006). How the Fed Reserves Manages the Money Supply. In Macroeconomics (2nd Ed.), Money, Banks, and the Federal Reserve System (pp. 451-452). United States: Pearson International Edition. NK Infobase (2009). Reserve Bank of India. Retrieved November 30, 2009, from http://money-transfer.in/reservebankofindia.html Economist Intelligence Unit (2009, July). Country Finance, India. Domestic Banks, pp. 14. Retrieved from http://www.eiu.com.eproxy1.lib.hku.hk/report_dl.asp?issue_id=1784732363mode=pdf Economist Intelligence Unit (2009, July). Country Finance, India. Foreign Banks, pp. 14. Retrieved from http://www.eiu.com.eproxy1.lib.hku.hk/report_dl.asp?issue_id=1784732363mode=pdf Economist Intelligence Unit (2009, July). Country Finance, India. Investment Banks and Brokerages, pp. 16. Retrieved from http://www.eiu.com.eproxy1.lib.hku.hk/report_dl.asp?issue_id=1784732363mode=pdf Economist Intelligence Unit (2009, July). Country Finance, India. Development and Postal Banks, pp. 18. Retrieved from http://www.eiu.com.eproxy1.lib.hku.hk/report_dl.asp?issue_id=1784732363mode=pdf Economist Intelligence Unit (2009, July). Country Finance, India. Offshore Banks, pp. 20. Retrieved from http://www.eiu.com.eproxy1.lib.hku.hk/report_dl.asp?issue_id=1784732363mode=pdf Subhash, D.V. (2002, February). Birth of a Universal Bank. Retrieved 2 December, 2009. from http://search.ebscohost.com.eproxy1.lib.hku.hk/login.aspx?direct=truedb=bthAN=7210765site=ehost-live Economist Intelligence Unit (2009, October). India: Banking Sector Risk. Retrieved 28 November 2009, from http://www.eiu.com.eproxy1.lib.hku.hk/index.asp?layout=displayIssueArticleissue_id=1514868936article_id=1664868951 Scribd (2009). A Report on Non-Performing Assets Challenge to the Public Sector Banks, pp. 10. Retrieved December 2, 2009, from http://www.scribd.com/doc/8817767/A-REPORT-ON-NPA-IN-BANKING

The Debate Over Abortion Essay example -- Informative Essay

With the ongoing debate and the advancement of technology in determining the viability of a fetus, abortion, the ending of a pregnancy by removing a fertilized egg, has become increasingly controversial. The morality of abortion has caused many to separate into opposite sides of the spectrum, pro-life and pro-choice. The arguments over abortion has stirred a continuous debate between a pro-choice stance such as that presented by the analogical reasoning of Thomson or Glover’s examination of social context and a pro-life position argued by a moral view of personhood by Noonan. The ethical arguments presented by the conflicting views in the abortion debate has caused others to taken into consideration a sociological account visible in Luker’s examinations of world views in order to discover underlying motivations. The debate has caused many to argue either in support of or against abortion. In the article â€Å"A Defense of Abortion,† Judith Jarvis Thomson uses analogical reasoning (such as the case of the sick violinist) to support and convince a right to abortion. Thomson presents the argument that all people are entitled a right to life and that a person’s right to life outweighs any person’s right to decide what happens to their body (1, Thomson, CC p.188).Thomson proposes a hypothetical situation in which the reader is kidnapped and their circulatory system is linked with that of a sick violinist in order to prevent his kidneys from failing. If the person agrees to offer his or her kidneys, they would have to remain plugged for nine months or even more. However if the person refuses, the violinist would die. By using the sick violinist example, Thomson seeks to undermine the argument that an abortion cannot be performed because ... ... pro-choice activists leads to a re-evaluation of the moral arguments such as those given by Thomson, Noonan, and Glover. Luker’s explanations enlarge our capacity of reasoning by appealing to social beliefs and values that help us to understand the social behavior and the motivations behind pro-choice and pro-life activists. Luker’s account ultimately expands the level of ethical reasoning to generate moral insights concerning the ethics of abortion because it helps us to look beyond the surface of the arguments about abortion and search into the roots and causes of the debate. Once these motivations are exposed, one can assess the complex relationship between differing social values and the arguments of conflicting views on abortion. Works Cited â€Å"A Defense of Abortion,† Judith Jarvis Thomson â€Å"Abortion & the Politics of Motherhood,† Kristen Luker

Book Review of That Eye, The Sky by Tim Winton :: Book Review

I have chosen to read the book â€Å"That Eye, The Sky† by Tim Winton. The front cover isn’t very appealing- it has a picture of a house in the outback, with the night-sky covering it. I have picked this book because one of the school librarians have recommended it to me, and said that it is a very moving book. And that it will expand my vocabulary. The blurb suggests that ‘That Eye, The Sky’ has little bit to do with the supernatural, which I’m a bit wary of. I don’t enjoy reading books that haven’t much to do with things â€Å"out of this world†. Actually, I don’t really enjoy reading books that are written about things outside of what I know as familiar. But we’ll see how I go. The main character in this story is Morton â€Å"Ort† Flack, and he is twelve years old. He lives in outback Western Australia with his mother, father, older sister, Tegwyn (I have had so much trouble with the pronunciation of her name!), and his grandma. His mum is a housewife and works on their farm, I’m not sure what his dad would be classified as but he works for Ort’s best friend’s dad, Bill Cherry, who he is obliged to run personal errands for. Ort looks up very much to his father, and his parents are very much in love. His sister is a typical sixteen-year-old. She constantly fights with her parents, rebels against everything and practises self-mutilation- â€Å"Real careful she takes the smoke out of her mouth and looks at the hot end and put it in one of her tits and shivers†- (ok, maybe that last part isn’t typical but she is a teenager living in the bush with nowhere to go and no chance to have friends or get out of the bush so I, as a teenager, can justify why she would do something like that). It is never mentioned what his grandmother is suffering from but I’ve made the assumption that it’s something along the lines of Alzheimer’s- she doesn’t remember anything and has slowly withered away. Ort as the youngest likes to make sure everyone is living their lives alright so he spies on his sister, grandma and parents just to see what they do when they don’t know anybody’s watching. I thought this part was a bit perverted at first, but it can be translated as his way of feeling safe and making sure everyone else is safe.

Statistics Summary Essay

Statistics is commonly known as a tool used to make decisions, but the official definition of statistics, according to the textbook, is â€Å"The science of collecting, organizing, presenting, analyzing, and interpreting data to assist in making more effective decisions.† (Lind, Marchal, & Wathen, 2011) There are two types of statistics, descriptive, and inferential. Descriptive statistics provide information that can be used to show changes such as growth or decline in the area of study. Inferential statistics provide information about a specific topic of study by gathering information from samples. The science of statistics is also divided into levels, depending on certain characteristics of the information being analyzed. The first level is called nominal and contains data that is simply counted by category, such as the number of red cars on a car lot, or how many boys or girls are in a classroom. Another level is called ordinal. Ordinal data includes data that can be ranked in a certain order such as satisfactory ratings and championship rankings. The next level in statistics is called interval. Interval level not only ranks the data, but reflects a measurable difference between values. An example of this could be average inches of rainfall. The final level of statistics is called ratio. Ratio level includes data that is ranked, reflects a measurable difference between values, and also assigns a meaningful value to zero. An example of ratio data could be the number of positions filled in a company. Statistics is used for everything from estimating highway/bridge traffic to determine structural safety, to percentage of growth in population to determine adequate classroom space in schools, to the average units of water used per household to establish monthly water rates. Statistics, used formally and informally, affects nearly every aspect of our lives. Reference Lind, D. A., Marchal, W. G., & Wathen, S. A. (2011). Basic Statistics for Business and Economics (7th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill/Irwin.

Indian Motorcycles: America’s First Motorcycle Essay

The specific purpose of this presentation is to inform the audience and give a brief insight into the history of the Indian Motorcycle Company. The desired outcome of this presentation is to give a sense of understanding to the audience with regards to Indian Motorcycles. 1. Introduction Indian Motorcycles – An exquisitely designed machine, a thrilling history and a wellknown rivalry with its competition Harley Davidson, makes the Indian Motorcycle a legend in its own time. The history of the Indian Motorcycle dates back to the turn of the 20th century. They have taken our troops into two World Wars and have set land speed records, one of which still stands today. a. America’s love for the motorcycle began in 1900 with bicycle racer George M. Hendee and engineering wizard Carl Oscar Hedstrom. In 1901, the partners, who were both former bicycle racers, unveiled their first creation, the 1901 Single. This was a 1.75 bhp, single cylinder engine in Hendee’s home town of Springfield. b. The Indian Motorcycle was produced from 1901 to 1944 under the Indian name. In 1945, the company was sold and consolidated into the Torque Engineering Company. Later, the company was divided, with manufacturing going to the Atlas Corporation and distribution to The Indian Sales Corporation. Following the war, Indian struggled with re-entry into the public market. In 1953, with sales continuing to plummet, Indian was forced to halt production. c. After numerous attempts to revive the Indian name since its close in 1953, several formerly competing companies merge to become the Indian Motorcycle Company in 1998. Manufacturing begins in 1999, but the venture proves unsuccessful, and 2003 is the company’s final model year. d. In 2004, Stephen Julius and Steve Heese, business partners who resurrected the dying Chris-Craft Boat Company, turned their attention to Indian. They acquired the trademark rights and in 2008 production began. In 2009, Indians start rolling of the assembly line in Kings Mountain, NC. and production continues through today. 2. Competition and the Indian a. One of the American firm’s best early results came in the Isle of Man TT race in 1911, when Indian riders Godfrey, Franklin and Moorehouse finished first, second and third. b. Indian star Jake De Rosier set several speed records both in America and at Brooklands in England, and won an estimated 900 races on dirt-tracks. He left Indian for Excelsior and died in 1913, aged 33, of injuries sustained in a race crash. c. In 1967, New Zealander Herbert â€Å"Burt† Munro, a 68 year old grandfather, used a self-modified 1920s Indian Scout to an under-1000cc land-speed record at the Bonneville Salt Flats which clocked him at a top speed of 206 3 miles per hour. Forty four years later, Munro and his Indian’s record still stands. This was dramatized in the 2005 film â€Å"The World’s Fastest Indian†. 3. Modern Marvels a. In 1904, Indian wins the Gold Medal for Mechanical Excellence at the St. Louis Exposition. b. In 1906, Indian released the first American production V-Twin. More than 100 years later, the V-Twin engine remains most popular cruiser-motorcycle engine design. c. In 1940, Indian engineers incorporate the use of â€Å"plunger†. This is a spring, coupled to an oil-dampened shaft, and together becomes rear suspension. d. In 1943, Indian wins the coveted Army-Navy Production Award for its highly advanced shaft-drive, four-speed motorcycle built for the military. 4. Indian Models a. Indian introduced the Twin in 1907. b. In 1920, Indian expanded the model lineup to five. c. The revolutionary Scout, the 95 mph Chief, the even more powerful Big Chief, the lightweight Prince and the awesome 4-cylinder Four. d. In 1932, The Pony Scout and the Sport Scout were both introduced. 5. Conclusion In conclusion, Indian Motorcycles have withstood the test of time, although hard times did fall upon them and bankruptcy was filed. Production was halted for a number of years, but in the end America’s First Motorcycle has solidified its name in America’s history books. Indian Motorcycles proved to be engineering marvels from the first moment of conception through today. From the battlefields of World War 1 and 2 to the racetracks of days gone by, Indian Motorcycles are an American Icon. References Johnstone, G. â€Å"Classic Motorcycles† p. 44, 46-47 Tiger Books International PLC, 1993 Franklin’s Indians: â€Å"Irish motorcycle racer Charles B Franklin, designer of the Indian Scout & Chief†, by Harry V Sucher, Tim Pickering, Liam Diamond and Harry Havelin, pp. 46-50, Panther Publishing Ltd, 2011 Wilson, H. The Encyclopedia of the Motorcycle p. 11 Dorling-Kindersley Limited, 1995 Wilson, H. The Encyclopedia of the Motorcycle p. 108-109 Dorling-Kindersley Limited, 1995 â€Å"Online Museum for Indian Bicycles†. Retrieved 2011-10-03 Wilson, H. The Ultimate Motorcycle Book p. 31 Dorling-Kindersley Limited, 1993 Wilson, H. The Encyclopedia of the Motorcycle p. 271 Dorling-Kindersley Limited, 1995 Wilson, H. The Ultimate Motorcycle Book p. 37 Dorling-Kindersley Limited, 1993 http://www.indianmotorcycle.com/ Description of Visuals Title Slide 1– This slide introduces my presentation, states my name, date, class/number and Professor. Introduction Slide 2 – With this slide, I formally introduce my presentation. I used colors that are appealing to the eyes and relevant to the colors of my topic. The picture is a vintage Indian sign displaying one of Indians first logos. Main Point Slide 3 – This slide displays pictures of each of the two men that started Indian Motorcycles and gives a brief history of the men. Slide 4 – This slide describes more history and the picture represents a 1940’s logo. Slide 5 – This slide continues with history and the picture is of the traditional Indian Head Fender Light. Slide 6 – This slides finishes out the history portion of my presentation and the picture is of Indians biggest motorcycle â€Å"The Big Chief†. Slide 7 – With this slide, I introduce the competition part of my presentation and the picture is of an Indian hill climb race. Slide 8 – The slide talks about the racing efforts and the pictures are of two of Team Indian’s top racers. Slide 9 – This slide talks about the record setting Herbert â€Å"Burt† Munro and his top speed of 205 mph. The picture is of Mr. Munro and his machine. Slide 10 – With this slide, I introduce the engineering achievements and awards that Indian won. The pictures are of a V-Twin engine, a military Indian and the Indian corporate factory. Slide 11 – This slide list the various models that Indian produced and the pictures are of the Sport Scout, the V-Twin and the Pony Scout. Conclusion Slide 12 – This slide re-visits the main points of the presentation and finishes off with a Famous Indian Motorcycle quote. No pictures as of yet.

Biology Essay Research Paper Term paperPrinciples of

Biology Essay, Research Paper Term paper: Principles of Ecology 310L New Ecological Penetrations: The Application of Fractal Geometry to Ecology Victoria Levin 7 December 1995 Abstraction New penetrations into the natural universe are merely a few of the consequences from the usage of fractal geometry. Examples from population and landscape ecology are used to exemplify the utility of fractal geometry to the field of ecology. The coming of the computing machine age played an of import function in the development and credence of fractal geometry as a valid new subject. New penetrations gained from the application of fractal geometry to ecology include: understanding the importance of spacial and temporal graduated tables ; the relationship between landscape construction and motion tracts ; an increased apprehension of landscape constructions ; and the ability to more accurately exemplary landscapes and ecosystems. Using fractal dimensions allows ecologists to map carnal tracts without making an unwieldy flood of information. Computer simulations of landscapes provide utile theoretical accounts for deriving new penetrations into the coexistence of species. Although many ecologists have found fractal geometry to be an highly utile tool, non all concur. With all the new penetrations gained through the appropriate application of fractal geometry to natural scientific disciplines, it is clear that fractal geometry a utile and valid tool. New penetration into the natural universe is merely one of the consequences of the increasing popularity and usage of fractal geometry in the last decennary. What are fractals and what are they good for? Scientists in a assortment of subjects have been seeking to reply this inquiry for the last two decennaries. Physicists, chemists, mathematicians, life scientists, computing machine scientists, and medical research workers are merely a few of the scientists that have found utilizations for fractals and fractal geometry. Ecologists have found fractal geometry to be an highly utile tool for depicting ecological systems. Many population, community, ecosystem, and landscape ecologists use fractal geometry as a tool to assist specify and explicate the systems in the universe around us. As with any scientific field, there has been some discord in ecology about the appropriate degree of survey. For illustration, some being ecologists think that anything larger than a individual being obscures the world with excessively much item. On the other manus, some ecosystem ecologists believe that looking at anything less than an full ecosystem will non give meaningful consequences. In world, both positions are right. Ecologists must take all degrees of organisation into history to acquire the most out of a survey. Fractal geometry is a tool that bridges the # 8220 ; spread # 8221 ; between different Fieldss of ecology and provides a common linguistic communication. Fractal geometry has provided new penetration into many Fieldss of ecology. Examples from population and landscape ecology will be used to exemplify the utility of fractal geometry to the field of ecology. Some population ecologists use fractal geometry to correlate the landscape construction with motion tracts of populations or beings, which greatly influences population and community ecology. Landscape ecologists tend to utilize fractal geometry to specify, depict, and theoretical account the scale-dependent heterogeneousness of the landscape construction. Before researching applications of fractal geometry in ecology, we must foremost specify fractal geometry. The exact definition of a fractal is hard to trap down. Even the adult male who conceived of and developed fractals had a difficult clip specifying them ( Voss 1988 ) . Mandelbrot # 8217 ; s foremost published definition of a fractal was in 1977, when he wrote, # 8220 ; A fractal is a set for which the Hausdorff-Besicovitch dimension purely exceeds the topographical dimension # 8221 ; ( Mandelbrot 1977 ) . He subsequently expressed sorrow for holding defined the word at all ( Mandelbrot 1982 ) . Other efforts to gaining control the kernel of a fractal include the undermentioned quotation marks:# 8220 ; Different people use the word fractal in different ways, but all agree that fractal objects contain constructions nested within one another like Chinese boxes or Russian dolls. # 8221 ; ( Kadanoff 1986 )# 8220 ; A fractal is a form made of parts similar to the whole in some way. # 8221 ; ( Mandelbrot 1982 ) Fractals are # 8230 ; # 8221 ; geometric signifiers whose irregular inside informations recur at different scales. # 8221 ; ( Horgan 1988 ) Fractals are # 8230 ; # 8221 ; curves and surfaces that live in an unusual kingdom between the first and 2nd, or between the 2nd and 3rd dimensions. # 8221 ; ( Thomsen 1982 ) One manner to specify the elusive fractal is to look at its features. A cardinal feature of fractals is that they are statistically self-similar ; it will look like itself at any graduated table. A statistically self-similar graduated table does non hold to look precisely like the original, but must look similar. An illustration of self-similarity is a caput of Brassica oleracea italica. Imagine keeping a caput of Brassica oleracea italica. Now break off a big floweret ; it looks similar to the whole caput. If you continue interrupting off smaller and smaller flowerets, you # 8217 ; ll see that each floweret is similar to the larger 1s and to the original. There is, nevertheless, a bound to how little you can travel before you lose the self- similarity. Another placing feature of fractals is they normally have a non- whole number dimension. The fractal dimension of an object is a step of space-filling ability and allows one to compare and categorise fractals ( Garcia 1991 ) . A consecutive line, for illustration, has the Euclidean dimension of 1 ; a plane has the dimension of 2. A really jaggy line, nevertheless, takes up more infinite than a consecutive line but less infinite so a solid plane, so it has a dimension between 1 and 2. For illustration, 1.56 is a fractal dimension. Most fractal dimensions in nature are about 0.2 to 0.3 greater than the Euclidian dimension ( Voss 1988 ) . Euclidian geometry and Newtonian natural philosophies have been profoundly frozen traditions in the scientific universe for 100s of old ages. Even though mathematicians every bit early as 1875 were puting the foundations that Mandelbrot used in his work, early mathematicians resisted the constructs of fractal geometry ( Garcia 1991 ) . If a construct did non suit within the boundaries of the recognized theories, it was dismissed as an exclusion. Much of the early work in fractal geometry by mathematicians met this destiny. Even though early scientists could see the abnormality of natural objects in the universe around them, they resisted the construct of fractals as a tool to depict the natural universe. They tried to coerce the natural universe to suit the theoretical account presented by Euclidean geometry and Newtonian natural philosophies. Yet we all know that # 8220 ; clouds are non domains, mountains are non cones, coastlines are non circles, and bark is non smooth, nor does lightning go in a consecutive line # 8221 ; ( Mandelbrot 1982 ) . The coming of the computing machine age, with its sophisticated artworks, played an of import function in the development and credence of fractal geometry as a valid new subject in the last two decennaries. Computer-generated images clearly show the relevancy of fractal geometry to nature ( Scheuring and Riedi 1994 ) . A computer- generated coastline or mountain scope demonstrates this relevancy. Once mathematicians and scientists were able to see graphical representations of fractal objects, they could see that the mathematical theory behind them was non capricious but really describes natural objects reasonably good. When explained and illustrated to most scientists and non-scientists likewise, fractal geometry and fractals make sense on an intuitive degree. Examples of fractal geometry in nature are coastlines, clouds, works roots, snowflakes, lightning, and mountain scopes. Fractal geometry has been used by many scientific disciplines in the last two decennaries ; natural philosophies, chemical science, weather forecasting, geology, mathematics, medical specialty, and biological science are merely a few. Understanding how landscape ecology influences population ecology has allowed population ecologists to derive new penetrations into their field. A dominant subject of landscape ecology is that the constellation of spacial mosaics influences a broad array of ecological phenomena ( Turner 1989 ) . Fractal geometry can be used to explicate connexions between populations and the landscape construction. Interpreting spacial and temporal graduated tables and motion tracts are two countries of population ecology that have benefited from the application of fractal geometry. Different tools are required in population ecology because the declaration or graduated table with which field informations should be gathered is attuned to the survey being ( Wiens et al. 1993 ) . Insect motions, like works root growing, follow a uninterrupted way that may be punctuated by Michigans but the tools required to mensurate this uninterrupted tract are really different. Plant motion is measured by detecting root growing through exposure, insect motion by tracking insects with flag arrangement, and carnal motion by utilizing tracking devices on larger animate beings ( Gautestad and Mysterud 1993, Shibusawa 1994, Wiens et Al. 1993 ) . Spatial and temporal graduated table are of import when mensurating the place scope of a population and when tracking carnal motion ( Gautestad and Mysterud 1993, Wiens et Al. 1993 ) . Animal waies have local, temporal, and scale-specific fluctuations in tortuousness ( Gautestad and Mysterud 1993 ) that are best described by fractal geometry. The function of insect motion besides required usage of the proper spacial or temporal graduated table. If excessively long of a clip interval is used to map the insect # 8217 ; s advancement, the sections will be excessively long and the elaboratenesss of the insect # 8217 ; s motions will be lost. The usage of really short intervals may make unreal interruptions in behavioural moves and might increase the sampling attempt required until it is unwieldy ( Wiens et al. 1993 ) . Movement tracts are one of the chief features influenced by the landscape. Motion tracts are influenced by the flora spots and spot boundaries ( Wiens et al. 1993 ) . Root warp in a growth works is similar to an carnal tract being changed by the landscape construction. Waies of carnal motion have fractal facets. In a continuously changing landscape, it is hard to specify the country of a coinage # 8217 ; s home ground ( Palmer 1992 ) . Application of fractal geometry has given new penetrations into carnal motion tracts. For illustration, carnal motion determines the place scope. Because carnal motion is greatly influenced by the fractal facet of the landscape, place scope is straight influenced by the landscape construction ( Gautestad and Mysterud 1993 ) . Animal motion is non random but greatly influenced by the landscape of the place scope of the animate being ( Gautestad and Mysterud 1993 ) . Structural complexness of the environment consequences in Byzantine animate being tracts ( Gautestad and Mysterud 1993 ) , which in bend lead to ragged place scope boundaries. Gautestad and Mysterud ( 1993 ) found that place scope can be more accurately described by its fractal belongingss than by the traditional area-related estimates. Since limit of place scope is a hard undertaking and place scope can # 8217 ; t be described in traditional units like square metres or square kilometres, they used fractal belongingss to better depict the place scope country as a composite country use form ( Gautestad and Mysterud 1993 ) . Fractals work good to depict place scope because as the sample of location observation additions, the overall form of Thursday e place secret plans takes the signifier of a statistical fractal ( Gautestad and Mysterud 1993 ) . Fractal dimensions are used to stand for the tracts of beetling motion because the fractal dimension of insect motion tracts may supply penetrations non available from absolute steps of pathway constellations ( Wiens et al. 1993 ) . Using fractal dimensions allowed ecologists to map the tract without making an unwieldy flood of information ( Wiens et al. 1993 ) . Insect behaviour such as forage, coupling, population distribution, predator- quarry interactions or community composing may be mechanisticly determined by the nature of the landscape. The spacial heterogeneousness in environmental characteristics or patchiness of a landscape will find how organisms can travel about ( Wiens et al. 1993 ) . As a beetle or an other insect walks along the land, it does non travel in a consecutive line. The beetle might walk along in a peculiar way looking for something to eat. It might go on in one way until it comes across a shrub or bush. It might travel around the shrub, or it might turn around and head back the manner it came. Its way seems to be random but is truly dictated by the construction of the landscape ( Wiens et al. 1993 ) . Another betterment in population ecology through the usage of fractal geometry is the mold of works root growing. Roots, which besides may look random, do non turn indiscriminately. Reproducing the fractal forms of root systems has greatly improved root growing theoretical accounts ( Shibusawa 1994 ) . Landscape ecologists have used fractal geometry extensively to derive new penetrations into their field. Landscape ecology explores the effects of the constellation of different sorts of environments on the distribution and motion of beings ( Palmer 1992 ) . Emphasis is on the flow or motion of being, cistrons, energy, and resources within complex agreements of ecosystems ( Milne 1988 ) . Landscapes exhibit non-Euclidean denseness and perimeter-to-area relationships and are therefore suitably described by fractals ( Milne 1988 ) . New penetrations on graduated table, increased apprehension of landscape constructions, and better landscape construction patterning are merely some of the additions from using fractal geometry. Troubles in describing and patterning spatially distributed ecosystems and landscapes include the natural spacial variableness of ecologically of import parametric quantities such as biomass, productiveness, dirt and hydrological features. Natural variableness is non changeless and depends to a great extent on spacial graduated table. Spatial heterogeneousness of a system at any graduated table will forestall the usage of simple point theoretical accounts ( Vedyushkin 1993 ) . Most landscapes exhibit forms intermediate between complete spacial independency and complete spacial dependance. Until the reaching of fractal geometry it was hard to pattern this intermediate degree of spacial dependance ( Palmer 1992, Milne 1988 ) . Landscapes present beings with heterogeneousness happening at a myriad of length graduated tables. Understanding and foretelling the effects of heterogeneousness may be enhanced when scale-dependent heterogeneousness is quantified utilizing fractal geometry ( Milne 1988 ) . Landscape ecologists normally assume that environmental heterogeneousness can be described by the form, figure, and distribution on homogenous landscape elements or spots. Heterogeneity can change as a map of spacial graduated table in landscapes. An illustration of this is a checker board. At a really little graduated table, a checker board is homogenous because one would remain in one square. At a somewhat larger graduated table, the checker board would look to be heterogenous since one would traverse the boundaries of the ruddy and black squares. At an even larger graduated table, one would return to homogeneousness because of the form of ruddy and black squares ( Palmer 1992 ) . An increased apprehension of the landscape structures consequences from utilizing the fractal attack in the field of distant detection of forest flora. Specific advantages include the ability to pull out information about spacial construction from remotely sensed informations and to utilize it in favoritism of these informations ; the compaction of this information to few values ; the ability to construe fractal dimension values in footings of factors, which determine concrete spacial construction ; and sufficient hardiness of fractal features ( Vedyushkin 1993 ) . Computer simulations of landscapes provide utile theoretical accounts for deriving new penetrations into the coexistence of species. Fake landscapes allow ecologists to research some of the effects of the geometrical constellation of environmental variableness for species coexistence and profusion ( Palmer 1992 ) . A statistically self-similar landscape is an abstraction but it allows an ecologist to theoretical account fluctuation in spacial dependance ( Palmer 1992 ) . Spatial variableness in the environment is an of import determiner of coexistence of rivals ( Palmer 1992 ) . Spatial variableness can be modeled by changing the landscape # 8217 ; s fractal dimension. The consequences of this computing machine simulation of species in a landscape show that an addition in the fractal dimension increases the figure of species per microsite and increases species habitat comprehensiveness. Other consequences show that environmental variableness allows the coexistence of species, lessenings beta diverseness, and increases landscape undersaturation ( Palmer 1992 ) . Increasing the fractal dimension of the landscape allows more species to be in a peculiar country and in the landscape as a whole ; nevertheless, highly high fractal dimensions cause fewer species to coexist on the landscape graduated table ( Palmer 1992 ) . Although many ecologists have found fractal geometry to be an highly utile tool, non all concur. Even scientists who have used fractal geometry in their research point out some of its defects. For illustration, Scheuring and Riedi ( 1994 ) province that # 8220 ; the failing of fractal and multifractal methods in ecological surveies is the fact that existent objects or their abstract projections ( e.g. , flora maps ) contain many different sorts of points, while fractal theory assumes that the natural ( or abstract ) objects are represented by points of the same kind. # 8221 ; Many scientists agree with Mandelbrot when he said that fractal geometry is the geometry of nature ( Voss 1988 ) , while other scientists think fractal geometry has no topographic point outside a computing machine simulation ( Shenker 1994 ) . In 1987, Simberloff et Al. argued that fractal geometry is useless for ecology because ecological forms are non fractals. In a paper called # 8220 ; Fractal Geometry Is Not the Geometry of Nature, # 8221 ; Shenker says that Mandelbrot # 8217 ; s theory of fractal geometry is invalid in the spacial kingdom because natural objects are non self-similar ( 1994 ) . Further, Shenker states that Mandelbrot # 8217 ; s theory is based on want and has no scientific footing at all. He conceded nevertheless that fractal geometry may work in the temporal part ( Shenker 1994 ) . The unfavorable judgment that fractal geometry is merely applicable to precisely self-similar objects is addressed by Palmer ( 1982 ) . Palmer ( 1982 ) points out that Mandelbrot # 8217 ; s early definition ( Mandelbrot 1977 ) does non advert self-similarity and therefore allows objects that exhibit any kind of fluctuation or abnormality on all spacial graduated tables of involvement to be considered fractals. Harmonizing to Shenker, fractals are eternal geometric procedures, and non geometrical signifiers ( 1994 ) , and are hence useless in depicting natural objects. This position is kindred to stating that we can # 8217 ; T usage Newtonian natural philosophies to pattern the way of a missile because the missile # 8217 ; s exact mass and speed are impossible to cognize at the same clip. Mass and speed, like fractals, are abstractions that allow us to understand and pull strings the natural and physical universe. Even though they are # 8220 ; merely # 8221 ; abstractions, they work rather good. The value of critics such as Shenker and Simberloff is that they force scientists to clearly understand their thoughts and premises about fractal geometry, but the critics go excessively far in demanding preciseness in an imprecise universe. With all the new penetrations and new cognition that have been gained through the appropriate application of fractal geometry to natural scientific disciplines, it is clear that is a utile and valid tool. The new penetrations gained from the application of fractal geometry to ecology include: understanding the importance of spacial and temporal graduated tables ; the relationship between landscape construction and motion tracts ; an increased apprehension of landscape constructions ; and the ability to more accurately theoretical account landscapes and ecosystems. One of the most valuable facets of fractal geometry, nevertheless, is the manner that it bridges the spread between ecologists of differing Fieldss. By supplying a common linguistic communication, fractal geometry allows ecologists to pass on and portion thoughts and constructs. As the information and computing machine age advancement, with better and faster computing machines, fractal geometry will go an even more of import tool for ecologists and life scientists. 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