Development of the United Kingdom Essay Example for Free

Development of the United Kingdom Essay Officially known as the Republic of Ghana, it was Europe’s first trading partner in sub-Saharan Africa – initially trading in gold and then later as a primary supplier of slaves. Although it was subsequently colonized by the British, it later became the first country in Africa to obtain independence from its colonizer (BBC News). Ghana came into existence in 1957 when what was then known as the Gold Coast acquired its independence from the British. Situated along the Gulf of Guinea in West Africa (see U. S. State Department map reproduced below), the country occupies an area of about 238,538 sq. km. composed of plains, rainforest, and some scrubland (U. S. State Department). Its capital city is Accra (population: 3 million) and the other principal cities are Kumasi, with an estimated population of 1 million, Tema (500,000), and Sekondi-Takoradi (population: 370,000). English has been designated official language of the Ghanaians but several dialects are spoken like Akan, which is spoken by about 49% of the population, Mole-Dagbani (16%), Ewe (13%), Ga-Adangbe (8%), and Guan, the dialect of 4% of the population. Sixty-nine percent of its estimated population of 23 million are Christians while 15. 6% are Muslims. Indigenous religious beliefs are being practiced by 8. 5% of Ghanaians. Although it existed as a democratic republic since its independence in 1957, the constitution of Ghana took effect only on January 7, 1993 (U. S. State Department). The cultural practices of Ghanaians which are mainly related to â€Å"conception, childbirth, and childrearing† consist of some harmful customs and traditions. One of these is â€Å"female genital mutilation (FGM). † This is a procedure which is conducted to partially or totally remove the external genitalia of a girl to turn her into a real woman. Another is a belief in dietary taboos which often leads to anemia or nutritional deficiency on the part of pregnant women. In Ghana, when a marriage does not produce an offspring after two years, it is considered defective. After a woman gives birth, the Ghanaians believe that burying the placenta near the house of the family would prevent the child from growing up into an errant or rebellious individual. In addition, they would wait for eight days after birth before naming the child and treating the umbilical cord with herbal preparations (Nyinah). Ghana is rich in natural resources with gold and cocoa being two of its major dollar earners. Its other export products are timber, diamonds, aluminum, tuna, manganese ore, and bauxite. In spite of this, the country still relies heavily on the assistance of international financial and technical institutions to remain viable. Thirty-five percent of its gross domestic product comes from the agricultural sector which also accounts for 55% of total employment in the country, mostly in the form of small landowners. Aside from seeking debt relief in 2002 under the Heavily Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) program, Ghana was also one of the beneficiaries of the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative which came into force in 2006 (CIA World Factbook). As of 2006, total exports reached an estimated $3. 9 billion while imports totaled $6. 8 billion. Identified trade partners were the United States, the United Kingdom, China, Germany, France, Spain, Nigeria, the Netherlands, and Togo (U. S. State Department). Statistics gleaned by Global Health Reporting. org from the CIA World Factbook and a report published by UNAIDS in May 2006 about the global epidemic on AIDS showed that as at end of 2005, an estimated 29,000 had already died from AIDS in Ghana, leaving behind them about 170,000 children below 17 years old who had lost one or both parents to the disease. The same sources also revealed that by the end of 2005, there were 320,000 Ghanaians who were living with HIV/AIDS, 25,000 of whom were children below 14 years old. Aside from AIDS, another major health concern of the country is malaria. With about three million new cases being reported every year, malaria accounts for approximately 61% of total hospital admissions in the country among children below five years old (Global Health Reporting. org). In its fight against AIDS, malaria, and other diseases which have been plaguing Ghanaians, the country has received varying degrees of support from international organizations such as the World Health Organization, Global Fund To Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, the World Bank, the Department for International Development of the United Kingdom, and the United Nations Children’s Fund (Accra Daily Mail, 3/17 as cited in Global Health Reporting. org). On March 17, 2008, a campaign named â€Å"Voices for Malaria-Free Future† was launched in the country to educate the people about the techniques and the key concepts and practices used in fighting malaria. Rosemary Ardayfio, who represented the media in the launching ceremony, announced the formation of the Media Malaria Network composed of journalists from the print and online organizations. Ardayfio explained that aside from recognizing the role of the different media organizations in malaria advocacy, the network specifically aims â€Å"to disseminate information about the use of insecticide-treated nets and appropriate medication† (Global Health Reporting. org). Ghana was among the 177 countries that ratified the Kyoto Protocol which aims to require industrialized countries to reduce their emissions of greenhouse gases to prevent global warming (UNFCCC). In addition, Ghana was also a party to other international agreements governing hazardous wastes, biodiversity, endangered species, law of the sea, ship pollution, environmental modification, ozone layer protection, wetlands, and tropical timber (CIA World Factbook). The Republic of Ghana faces a bright future. It is endowed with plenty of natural resources. Its leadership has commitment itself to free and compulsory basic education. In fact, its â€Å"free, compulsory, universal basic education (FCUBE)† which was launched in 1996 has been labeled the â€Å"most ambitious pre-tertiary education programs in West Africa† (U. S. State Department). It has also been described as a â€Å"well-administered country by regional standards† and considered a model for economic and political reforms in the region. And, most of all, a major oil reserve was discovered in 2007 (BBC News). For these reasons alone, the country and its people have no reason to remain impoverished. Works Cited BBC News. â€Å"Country profile: Ghana. † International version. 6 February 2008. 22 March 2008. http://news. bbc. co. uk/1/hi/world/africa/country_profiles/1023355. stm CIA World Factbook. â€Å"Ghana. † 6 March 2008. 22 March 2008. https://www. cia. gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/gh. html Global Health Reporting. org. â€Å"Ghana. † 22 March 2008. http://globalhealthreporting. org/countries/ghana. asp? collID=11id=144malID=187 tbID=188hivIC=189malIC=190tbIC=191map=192con=Ghanap=1 Nyinah, S. â€Å"Cultural practices in Ghana. † World Health. March-April 1997. 22 March 2008. http://www. popline. org/docs/1204/126178. html UNFCCC. â€Å"Kyoto Protocol. † 22 March 2008. http://unfccc. int/kyoto_protocol/items/2830. php U. S. State Department. â€Å"Background note: Ghana. † January 2008. 22 March 2008. http://www. state. gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2860. htm

Having a Career in Fashion Design Essay -- Fashion Employment Educatio

Having a Career in Fashion Design The fashion design career, has recently emerged as one of the most popular and competitive among young people. Those who actually succeed in design have a very individualistic personal style and don’t follow trends set by others. Having fashion design as your profession sometimes allows you to meet glamorous people. It can also put you in charge of what is in and out when it comes to clothing through ramp shows and fashion write-ups. Most designers have a great social status, and are accepted by everyone. However, There are many aspects which may or may not help you choose it as your career. Many talented individuals are attracted to careers as designers. Those with little or no education, as well as those who lack perseverance, will find it difficult to establish and maintain a career in fashion design. There were over 16,000 people employed in this field in 2003 and demand will stay strong for designers because of our consumer culture is always wanting new styles and fashions. The employment is expected to grow fast through the year 2010 and some designers will need to be replaced as they retire, leaving more jobs available. Although, these jobs are only available in large cities such as New York or Los Angeles. Fashion designers don’t work on commission so they do earn wages. The pay is great even for beginner designers. Most beginning designers earn as much as twenty-four thousand dollars annually and upper level designers earn as much as one hundred-five thousand dollars annually. The hourly wages for a beginner is twenty dollars and ninety-five cents while more experienced designers earn as much as fifty dollars or more per hour. Fashion designers may have to keep irregular hours to meet deadlines production deadlines for fashion shows. They may have to travel over seas to productions sites or for showings and conferences or even material shopping. Designers under incorporations normally negotiate their benefits and normally receive full benefits of paid vacations, group insurance plans, and sometimes sick days or break days. It all dep ends on your employer. As for those who are self-employed benefits may depend on themselves. If they set up a health plan for them selves the y may only pay a partial amount on their expenses. Although, they will be able to take time off, but it won’t a paid vacation ... ...ando florida. When wanting to become a fashion designer you must also acquire a licence which you may receive from your school as you graduate. â€Å" You should intern at fashion companies during college. You may have to do administrative stuff, but you’ll be around creative and important people.† (Baron, pg. 73) After college, you may still have your internships but, you may want to fully establish your career. Future designers may find jobs through their training facility job placement offices. Experienced designers are able to locate jobs through other people in the industry, personal affiliations, or advertisements in trade journals or newspapers. Direct application to employers remains the most effective. You can also look for jobs online. The fashion design industry is very large and you must work hard to join those whom re part of it. Its not just about the pay or benefits that draw most people to this career. It’s the liberal feeling of creating new things and making creative, new looks. Its about self expression and freedom to share an opinion on what you think is cool. Some like it, and others don’t, because of everything it stands for or what they would have to do.

Mold Experiment

Bread Mold Experiment Mold is something that we often take for granted, as something that makes us have to throw the bread away or the cheese smell bad. Mold is, in fact, a fascinating organism which has had many different uses over the years and our lives would not be the same without it. Most of us know that food seems to become moldy more quickly in the summer than in the winter when it is colder. Food in refrigerators seems to keep longer than food left out in the sun. Is this true? Does temperature really affect the rate at which mold grows? Mold grows quicker at higher temperatures.Companies pay large sums of money in maintaining food refrigerated in house and on transport, so it is essential for them to know under what conditions and temperature mold grows or it is contained. Mold is often looked as something negative, but mold it is found in different products that we use in our daily life. Some of these products are cheese, soy sauce, medicine, etc†¦ Mold is a fungus wh ich grows in food and other organic products which extract the nutrients of these organic products for growth. Alexander Fleming discovered that common mold killed germs.From this common mold he made a medicine that he called Penicillin and some other medicines are made from chemicals derived from mold. This discovery was discovered by pure accident, it is described that he was cleaning his work area when he discovered it, â€Å"Some mold was growing on one of the dishes†¦ not too unusual, but all around the mold, the staph bacteria had been killed†¦ very unusual. He took a sample of the mold. He found that it was from the penicillium family, later specified as Penicillium notatum. Fleming presented his findings in 1929, but they raised little interest.He published a report on penicillin and its potential uses in the British Journal of Experimental Pathology. † (â€Å"Fleming discovers penicillin,† 1998) Mold grows faster under hot conditions. As the data wil l show from the experiment conducted over 10 days, mold grows at a faster pace when the product is exposed outside temperature (OT) which is from 90-100 Fahrenheit . Below are the tools, products and method needed to conduct the experiment. It is important to be aware of dependent, independent and controlled variables as the experiment is executed.A dependent variable is a variable that is link to the dependent variable in order to exist. And independent variable is the one ‘YOU’ can manipulate. Last, a controlled variable is the constant variable of the experiments. For example, Light is one of our independent variables so in order to keep it constant, the Room Temperature (RT), which is 70-75 Fahrenheit and the OT product was cover with a towel during the entire time the experiment was being conducted. The freezer (F) product, which is 32 – 35 Fahrenheit, was not covered due to the fact that it was contained in the freezer and is not able to received sunlight.I n order to minimize threat reduction validity, the measurement of the product was done equally with all pieces of bread. Bags were of the same brand and size and the bread slices were all members of the same package. Another factor to consider is being able to record quantitative data, by quantitative data is meant results that can be measure and collected in order to verify or disproof the hypothesis of such experiment. What is needed for the Mold Bread Experiment  ·15 slices of bread. Make sure all slices come out from the same bag of bread and all of them are similar size, weight and thickness.Make sure you write down the name of the brand and  ·Use-by- date and the date of the experiment. This is to create record of how many days were remaining from the experiment date to use-by date.  ·Use 15 bags-make sure they seal and are from the same brand.  ·Clean knife  ·Chopping board or cutting surface  ·Adhesive labels  ·Pen or marker  ·Mask  ·Gloves  ·Notebook  ·Pen  ·Thermometer  ·Ruler Method(steps) Use the labels in order to label the bags and use the marker to do so. Mark 5 of the bags with an â€Å"F† for Freezer, mark another 5 bags with â€Å"RT† for room temperature and 5 more bags with â€Å"OT† for outside temperature. Cut the bread in 10X10 using the copping board and the knife. It is important that all the squares have the same measurement.  ·Introduce each bread slide into the plastic bags and make sure they get sealed.  ·Place the 5 bags labeled as â€Å"F† in the freezer, 5 bags labeled â€Å"RT† on the kitchen counter and 5 bags labeled â€Å"OT† in open climate(Outside)  ·Use the thermometer in order to record the temperature for the three different types of climates where the bread will be placed.  ·Make sure the â€Å"RT† bags and â€Å"OT† bags are covered with a towel so light can be a constant factor. Check the bags every 24-36 hrs in order to check f or mold.  ·Average of the pieces of bread with mold can be used to record the daily results  ·Record the mold grow every day in a table using your notebook  ·This process should be repeated for 10 days and record the results.  · Measure the results for labels â€Å"F†, â€Å"RT† and â€Å"OT† are documented accordingly.  ·When the experiment is completed make sure to dispose of the bags without opening them. Type of Bread|Day1 %|Day 2%|Day3%|Day4%|Day5%|Day6%|Day7%|Day8%|Day9%|Day10%| F|0|0|0|0|0|0|0|0|0|0| RT|0|0|0|0|2%|7%|10%|12%|16%|20%|OT|0|4%|7%|15%|25%|35%|50%|60%|70%|85%| Results Because each square of bread is 100 cm2, you can express your results as a percentage. For each of the bread types, â€Å"F†, â€Å"RT† or â€Å"OT† average the amount of mold grown over the ten days by measuring the mold grown over all five slices of bread per bread type and write these figures into a table. Include the average as a percent of all 5 pieces of bread by bread type into a table then transfer this information into a graph. You can then place this information into a graph and begin to explore the results.You can place the amount of mold on each bread sample and compare it to the number of days, like in the diagram below. This can be done with a sheet of graph paper and colored pens or on a computer. As it is recorded in the chart above, mold grows faster under hot conditions. But that is not all, mold grows twice and sometimes three times faster than the rate of mold grown at room temperature and the one in the freezer. Bread in the freezer was at 32F and no mold was shown in the product. This data tells us that freezing conditions help prevent the growth of mold.The results of this experiment confirm the hypothesis described above, mold grows faster under hot environment. The focus of experimental design consists in planning an investigation in something that naturally happens in nature by the manipulation of a s pecific variable. By conducting these types of experiments, scientists are able to understand and cause an effect of a particular inquiry at hand. It helps understand how the manipulation of variables will enhance or affect the natural order of things.Many great discoveries, new medicines and treatments have been recorded and science and technology have advance immensely by applying these methods as experiments are conducted. Any one else following the method specified above can replicate this experiment and receive the same results, by being able to replicate the experiment, it evaluates and gives validity to the recorded data and the findings . Fleming discovers penecilin. (1998). Retrieved from http://www. pbs. org/wgbh/aso/databank/entries/dm28pe. html

The Yellow Pages Scam Keeps on Taking

While the so-called â€Å"yellow pages† scam comes and goes, a new group of Canada-based telemarketers is now attacking U.S. small businesses, nonprofits, churches and even local governments, according to complaints filed by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). How the Scam Works The â€Å"yellow pages† scam calls sound so innocent: Somebody calls your organization saying they simply need to confirm your contact information for a business directory. What could possibly go wrong? They never asked for money, right? Whether they mention money are not, you are soon sent an invoice demanding you pay hundreds of dollars for your new listing in an online â€Å"yellow pages† directory – not at all something you ever asked for or wanted. If you don’t pay, the scammers will often play you recordings – sometimes doctored – of the initial call to â€Å"prove† that you or your employees had approved the charges. If that doesn’t do the trick, the companies start calling you repeatedly to â€Å"remind† you of things like legal fees, interest charges and credit ratings. According to the FTC, the companies would go so far as posing as debt collection agencies, offering to stop the harassing calls in return for a fee. â€Å"In the face of threats,† said the FTC, â€Å"many people just paid.† FTC Files Charges In separate complaints, the FTC charged Montreal-based telemarketing firms; Online Local Yellow Pages; 7051620 Canada, Inc.; Your Yellow Pages, Inc.; and OnlineYellowPagesToday.com, Inc., with running â€Å"yellow pages† scams targeting businesses in the United States. How to Protect Your Business The FTC recommended four ways you can protect your business from the â€Å"yellow pages† scam: Train your staff:  Educate employees on how the scam works and how to recognize dangerous calls.Check the BBB: Always check the calling company’s reputation out for free on the Better Business Bureau’s website.Inspect your invoices: Consider implementing a purchase order review system to ensure you are only paying for services you requested.File a Complaint: If you suspect you have been contacted by a scammer or start getting bogus bills, file complaints with both the FTC at ftc.gov/complaint and with the BBB. â€Å"Businesses and other organizations should train their staff to hang up on cold calls about business directory services,† said Jessica Rich, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection in a press release. â€Å"Report them to the FTC. We can pursue these cases even if the scammers hide in another country.†