Pets Are Our Responsibilty Essay Example for Free

Pets Are Our Responsibilty Essay Many people think that pets are too much of a responsibility, as they require food, walked on a regular basis, trained properly and lots of love and care. Any pet that lives outside a cage has to be trained properly so that it does not soil the home. Without training dogs can be very destructive and even dangerous. Pets are also very expensive and their food, toys, and medical treatment cost a lot of money too. Some pets are not looked after properly by their owners and sometimes the owner even loses interest. There were 40,879 humane destruction’s of dogs last year, 32,769 of cats and 18,816 of others. These figures include 29,610 dogs and cats too sick to live. People are cruel to pets and hurt them in al sorts of ways. In 1985 the RSPCA had to destroy 137,632 dogs cats and other pets, many were healthy but just too much for the RSPCA to find homes for. Inspectors from the RSPCA were called out to investigate 64,678 complaints last year. These are just some of the bad points of having a pet.Others think of pets as trusted friends as they give us comfort and affection. Pets are tame animals kept for companionship or because they are attractive to look at. Pets are good fun and can teach children responsibilities in life. Pets in the UK are very popular below are the top ten pets in England and Wales. In 1980 there was 5.6million dogs in the UK, this number increased by 1.8million in 1989. There were 2million more cats in the UK in 1989 than in 1980. The number of Budgies also increased by 0.1million in 1989. The Royal Society for the prevention of cruelty to animals more commonly known as the RSPCA looks after animals that have been treated badly. Last year the RSPCA homed 105,079 animals including dogs, cats and many other animals. If you don’t have a pet I would seriously consider buying one. Pets are very good company and almost any animal could be a pet. Unusual pets require special care and some knowledge and how they behave in the wild. Many pets need very little attention or space – there is room in the smallest home for a fish tank or a birdcage.

What constitutes an outstanding presentation instead of a mediocre one Essay Example for Free

What constitutes an outstanding presentation instead of a mediocre one Essay Presentations, are defined as the simplest collection of ideas that help persuade, inform or motivate people (Stevenson, 2002, p. 3). In the past, presentations were simply concerned with a monotonous display of bullet-point lists, to convey the speaker’s train of thoughts. Today, technology has encouraged a broad variety of presentation mediums: standalone presentations on the Web, loop presentations to show repeatedly at trade show booths, burning of CD’s of a presentation to distribute to a wide audience, adding of sound, animation, and even video to the slides (Stevenson, 2002, p. 3). The purpose of this paper is to outline what marks the difference between an outstanding, and a mediocre presentation, and to analyze the critical factors that go in the making of one. The term â€Å"outstanding† doesn’t really convey the right impression since the overall aim of effort applied in making a presentation, is to achieve some sort of desired result. For this, we shall use the term â€Å"winning† presentation for our remaining discussion. The desired result examples can be as follows (Stevenson, 2002, p. 3): 1) Outlining of timeline and deliverables of the product launch to the manufacturing team. 2) Teaching the sales force about the feature and benefit of the new product so that they can sell better. 3) To make a business case for the potential market for the new product to gain financing from investors. 4) To introduce new products to customers. So, what makes a presentation mediocre? Different communication experts have their own opinions drawn from personal experience. But, for the sake of all-inclusivity, we shall outline the most typical characteristics of mediocre presentations that not only fail to produce results, but are commonly labeled dull, dry and boring- no euphemism required for a situation where the audience is compelled to doze off because the presentation failed to capture their interest. ANR Communication Services at the University of California, have outlined Seven Deadly Sins of PowerPoint presentations (ANR, 2006): 1) Length: It is not necessary to utilize the whole time allotted, in fact the winning presentation should always aim at delivering a message as fast as possible. The common refrain is that some speakers tend to â€Å"warm-up† with a windy introduction that noone bothers to pay attention to. It is always advisable to hit bottom-line directly, and come â€Å"straight to the point†. 2) Bad visuals: Bad visuals come in several categories, but their general definition lies in a sheer ignorance of aesthetics. E. g. using elaborate graphics which have no connection to the subject matter, and were included just in order to cast an impression of technical know-how. Other examples are sandwiching too much information in very little space, and using illegible fonts against an atrocious background. Other sins are: 3) Not sticking to the main point: Too many speakers have a habit of digressing from the subject, and beating around the bush, an exercise that can be really testing on the audience’s patience, and defeat any chances of success with the presentation. 4) Too many numbers: Even technical presentations can do better without an overdose of figures and numbers. It is a common misconception for many people, that a bombardment of numeric data using charts and graphs would illustrate the monumental effort they put in, in order to create the presentation. Charts and graphs, and figures are meant to support some conclusion, but in no way should they be the only reason for the presentation to exist. 5) Technical failure: Too many presentations have been ruined due to glitches such as the Projector not working (that too after spending considerable time in making one presentation). It is always advisable to double-check before final show. 6) Not summarizing: If the presentation fails to summarize the key points discussed, the entire purpose is defeated because audience memory is short. The speaker needs to tell the audience what was the underlying conclusion for them having met. 7) Inadequate rehearsal: This goes with Point no. 1 and 6. Other useful ideas worth mentioning are David People’s recollections from interactions with IBM executives (People, 1992, p. 20): 1) Showing information, and then â€Å"apologizing† in advance – it conveys the impression that the speaker is not confident about the subject matter, and kills the very purpose of presentation. 2) Not explaining any reason why the subject has any value to the audience – such an act can convey a total disregard for audience time. In order to round up our discussion on mediocre presentations, it is important to mention common technical characteristics of such presentations (OneVision UK, 2004): 1) Slide transitions and sound effects; when unnecessary they can become a pain in the neck for they divert the focus of the audience from the central theme. 2) Standard Clip-Art which shows a clear lack of creativity on behalf of the presenter who could have done better by including more relevant graphics. 3) Presentation templates – unless there is no other alternative, these should be best avoided. 4) Reading the presentation – a speaker should have extempore communication skills, otherwise the presentation can be very boring. A winning presentation does not repeat the common fallacies mentioned for mediocre presentations as above. Also, a winning presentation has a persuasive style that impresses with its tone, content, representation and output (People, 1992, p. 45). To tell the difference between the two, Tom Sant from the American Management Association, reviews the scope and utility of a winning presentation, which should take into account the following considerations (Sant, 2004, p.12): 1) It is not a blind price quote. 2) It is not a bill of materials, project plan or scope of work. 3) It is not about the history of a product. The watchword, here is â€Å"influencing† of client (Sant, 2004, p. 17). Each time a presentation is made, the objective is in terms of thinking about the long-term influence that the presentation will have on the client, something that requires a lot of introspection on part of the presenter. Thus, presentations should be looked at as â€Å"tools and opportunities† (Sant, 2004, p. 17) rather than a summary judgment on a particular subject. Having clarified the differences between the two types of presentations, we shall look into the key ingredients of winning presentations. Structurally, a winning presentation comprises of two parts: the formal (one-way) episode followed by a question and answer session (two-way) (Gilchrist Davies, 1996, p. 3). As a bench rule, the presenter must allow at least 3 times the time allotted for one-way communication. This time is utilized for discussions, development of conceptual ideas, generating feedback, and general brainstorming. Also, a competent presenter is able to perform well in three areas of communication (Gilchrist Davies, 1996, p. 5): 1) Non-verbal i. e. body-language. 2) Verbal i. e. fluency of language and intonation. 3) Visual i. e. computer screens, slides and paper-based accompaniments. A competent presenter must have enough behavioral science knowledge so that he is able to control the crowd, in case a heated argument is generated. Contentwise, a winning presentation offers ample room for independent thinking, and allows plenty of flexibility in terms of omissions and adjustments. The objective is, that the presentation must â€Å"flow† in terms of ideas, an exercise that builds continuous credibility for the presenter (Sant, 2004, p. 29). Thomas Leech, at the American Management Association, has identified the following guidelines to delivering a winning presentation, which he calls â€Å"fundamental keys† (Leech, 2004, p. 11): 1) Prior preparation: According to several top-key executives, the biggest blunder a presenter makes when he declares that he didn’t prepare well. 2) Self-belief: It is important to convey â€Å"sincerity and honesty† through the effort made. 3) Knowing one’s purpose – the bottom-line. 4) Having a focused central theme: The audience came with a purpose. It is important to shell out the central theme at the very start of the presentation, so that people are able to develop connections. 5) Knowing your audience and tailoring the presentation according to their needs: A presentation has to be varied depending upon the possible expectations of audience. Also, age-groups have to be taken into account. Other fundamental keys are: 6) Early summarizing for time-pressed audience. 7) Reinforcement of central belief: The central theme should be backed up with substantial evidence, to make the presentation idea seem rock-solid. 8) Visual effects: It is important to ensure that visuals add, and not blur presentations. 9) Consider Murphy’s Law: This is what happens in real-life scenarios. According to Murphy’s First Law, if anything can go wrong, it will! So, it’s always advisable not to take chances with defective areas of presentation. 10) Making the delivery personal and passionate: A competent presenter is always able to connect with the audience. Instead of begging the question, he tries to convince the soundness of his ideas through passionate and compelling discussions, the most successful ingredient of winning presentations. That was presentation, but from a preparation point of view, a successful PowerPoint presentation must undergo a preliminary review, keeping following things in mind (Negrino, 2005, p. 9-107): 1) Writing the presentation: It is always advisable to start with an outline of the entire content, and using features like the Research Pane to make slides. 2) Gathering images and sound files: The graphics and animation part should be done, avoiding the loopholes mentioned in mediocre presentations. 3) Picking a design: It is important to pick a slide design, apply the layouts, and adjust text location for aesthetic appeal. Other attributes are: 4) Working with text: Editing slide text, formatting slide text (font, color, etc. ), aligning slide text (left, center, justified), changing line space (again it depends on aesthetic requirements.), using numbered (bulleted) lists, adding hyperlinks and text-boxes, 5) Illustrating the presentation: This involves adding images, clip art, using the drawing tools, adding relevant diagrams, charts, tables etc. 6) Making it move: This envisages adjustments in slide order, setting slide transitions, adding custom animation and summarize slide effects. 7) Preparation: The presentation should always be reviewed by a colleague, especially if it’s very important. It is useful to make printed notes for the speaker, and slides and handouts to the audience. Summary: On a final note, the weight of a good presentation, apart from key points mentioned in this paper, depend a lot on the individual presenter’s qualities, what are known as â€Å"gestures† (Arrendondo, 1991, p. 73). It is important to state that appropriate gestures and movements add meaning to a message, and mark the difference between a â€Å"winning† and a â€Å"mediocre† presentation. The gestures should convey a positive energy, and enthusiasm in the subject, and be manifested through the presenter’s self-belief.

Housing need and demand

Housing need and demand Q.2 In assessing current and future housing requirements how would you distinguish between the concepts of housing need and housing demand? Housing need and demand are planning issues for many countries around the world, it’s important that â€Å"adequate shelter is available and accessible to meet the needs of an ever-increasing population in many urban settlements† (David, 2002:31). The operation of the UK housing market has seen problems over recent years and is the focus of much discussion (Jones and Watkins, 2009:11). UK policies aim to address three major issues of housing shortages, housing quality and housing affordability. Housing markets can be complex, â€Å"housing markets should supply the right kind of units and the right time in the right places† (Downs, 2004:73). Failure to achieve this raises several implications that have been felt in UK. Even though housing shortage is arguably a symbol of success, growth and competiveness all vital to creating a successful economy (Tallon, 2010:216), it has obvious problems. This essay aims to explore more closely the difference between housing ne ed and demand as well as the factors they depend on for current and future housing requirements. By identifying the issues that housing need and demand depend upon, the essay will explain the effect this has particularly in the UK and some possible trends for the future. Finally the essay will critically explain several approaches to estimating housing requirements that take into account some of the issues raised. Housing need and housing demand can often be confused yet they have different meanings. Every household has a housing need irrespective of income or type of housing. Housing need is described as â€Å"the quantity of housing required to accommodation of the agreed minimum standard and above for a population given its size and household composition without taking into account the household `s ability to pay for the housing assigned to it† (Robinson, 1979:56-57). This is not be confused with housing demand which is defined as the relationship between â€Å"the price of housing and the quantity and quality of housing for which people are able and willing to pay† (Shucksmith, 2002:61). An individual or household has an unmet housing need when they fail to exercise effective demand for decent housing (Oxley, 2009:6). By satisfying housing need it enables the empowerment of people to be able to live in satisfactory housing despite their possible inability to afford it (Tighe and Mueller 2013:87). Most housing problems are essentially †problems of a lack of effective demand for decent housing† (Oxley, 2000:2), It is therefore vital that the correct housing is built to meet the needs of the population; this will increase the demand for housing and play a significant role in improving the economy. Housing need depends on various factors that will differ from country to country particularly in developing countries (Struyk, 1998:21). Firstly the population in the UK is growing; this creates greater numbers of households requiring more housing. â€Å"Household numbers for England are expected to grow by an average annual rate of 220,000 over the decade to 2021† (Wilcox and Perry, 2013:8) shown in Appendix A, as a result more housing must be built in order to accommodate this need. 122,590 new homes were started in 2013 which is a 23% increase from 2012 shown in appendix B (DCLG, 2014:4). Household numbers are rising due to population growth putting pressure on housing, infrastructure, schools and hospitals (Madden et al. 2010:3). Households are also changing, people are living longer meaning housing must cater for elderly people, building more retirement housing could consequently free up family homes for young people thus solving some housing need issues (Best and Porteus , 2012:3). Longer life expectancy means Households are staying together for longer, it’s now suggested that 60% of over 60`s own their home outright (DCLG, 2013:18). Households have different housing needs, not everyone demands a one bedroom house for example the most common household between 2011-12 was couples with no dependent children accounting for 35% of the population (DCLG, 2013:18). Household patterns are constantly changing over time, its vital therefore that the correct housing is supplied to meet current and future needs, the number of one-person households is expected to grow in the UK by 60% by 2025-30 and as a result this must be addressed (OECD, 2011:29). The standard of living is increasing in the UK; this means that people now expect more from their homes. Some countries have now â€Å"shifted from increasing the number of units to increasing the quality of units† (Noguchi and Poterba, 1994:224), certain amenities such as double glazing windows used to be a luxury now it is almost expected in most properties. â€Å"Quality and affordability are key for housing in a western society† (Pacione, 2009:215), the minimum standard of housing is rising meaning there is a requirement for ‘decent, safe and secure housing both with new builds and renovations` (GLA, 2013),†Poor housing impacts directly on residents’ health and educational attainment† emphasising the need for quality housing (Wilson, 2010:76). This not only an issue of new homes but also of existing housing both with social housing and in the private rented sector, many existing social houses were built decades ago and therefore their condit ion may be lacking in standard. Vale (2013:114) explains another pressure on housing standards, the increasing pressure to build environmentally friendly and efficient housing. One of the main elements to assessing housing needs is to examine existing stock as â€Å"existing stock usually accounts for the majority of dwelling stocks† (Xue, 2013:65), of which in wales 83% is in the private sector (welsh Government, 2008:26). Current stock must be reviewed when considering calculating housing requirements for the present and future; this is explained later in the essay. This finally leads onto the type housing needed; â€Å"the biggest problem is that as a country we are simply not building enough affordable homes† (Shelter, 2013) and therefore the public needs are not met, the type of houses build should also reflect the population’s household structure. Housing demand is affected by several separate issues to housing need, understanding these issues is important for current and future demand to be met. Firstly and most importantly the supply of housing is not addressing the UK’s demand, â€Å"there are not enough affordable houses in the economy† (HCTC, 2013:75). The Government sets targets for the number of houses which need to be built yet these are rarely met and the demand keeps increasing, â€Å"almost half of Londons largest developments are not meeting the affordable housing targets being set by local authorities† (BBC, 2013). Despite its importance, â€Å"housing is yet to have the same political profile as health and education† (Wilson, 2010:76). One of the main issues with regards to housing demand not being met is that private developers will not build housing they won’t be able to sell and therefore another reason for more affordable housing (Empty Homes, 2014). Housing supply must be c alculated for development, for example taking deaths and existing stock into consideration. House prices also affect housing demand, there are not enough houses being supplied at the right price to meet the demand therefore the price of housing rises as people who have money will pay to have a nice house resulting in â€Å"increasing numbers of people being priced out of the market† (Stephens, 2011:6). â€Å"Falling house prices due to the recession have not solved the problem of affordability as they have been accompanied by tighter lending criteria† (Wilson, 2010) especially with deposits, as a result the help to buy scheme was introduced. Housing demand depends on several other factors such as income and wealth, these terms are very different to an economist; wealth represents the accumulation of economic resources valuable to a household where income is a flow measure of capital over a period of time (Pozdena, 1988:25). Wealth and income can give access to credit loans and mortgages, â€Å"credit access and mortgage availability go a long way to promoting higher quality and affordable housing† (Nothaft and Erbas, 2002:12). Due to the credit crisis many people’s income and wealth have been affected, this has had an effect on the housing market and people’s ability to demand housing. Secondly the availability of credit and obtaining mortgages is something that has resulted in households being unable to afford housing. Lenders look at current income and financial assets because they represent measurable indicators of a borrower’s means of repaying the loan (Pozdena, 1988:26). The supply of mo ney in the economy will affect mortgage interest rates and availability. â€Å"People are getting second jobs when interest rates rise to cope with higher mortgage repayments† (Telegraph, 2013), as a result this has led to many people not being able to afford the housing supplied. There are many factors contributing to housing need and demand however â€Å"different needs may warrant different solutions† (Bramley et al, 2010:17), not everyone needs to be provided with social accommodation perhaps the issue can be solved by enhancing or adapting an existing property. As a result there are several different models that can be used to assess housing requirements. The first approach to be discussed is the household and dwelling balance sheet, this is a simple way to reveal housing shortages or surpluses (DoE, 1980:56), it simply compares the number of households to the number of dwellings. This method may show a shortage or surplus however doesn’t take into account many other factors such as home ownership, the location, nature of dwellings or condition of housing. As a result the balance sheet can prove inaccurate and â€Å"tend to double count or overestimate requirements† (Monk and Whitehead, 2010:60). The second approach is the net-stock a pproach which is characterised by Holmans (1995)(Whitehead and kleinman, 1992), it consists of measuring different types of need and forecasting household growth, estimating housing need for the present and future. The model â€Å"exemplifies the important link between household growth, need and housing investment† (Kleinman et al, 1998:78). Third is the affordability approach, the aim of this is to identify the relationship between house prices and household income to determine housing requirements (WMRA, 2014), it is calculated by taking the percentage of households unable to purchase plus household formation minus social sector relets which equals the additional housing requirements. The model however â€Å"does not purport to measure needs relating to house condition or unsuitability within the social sector† (Bramley 2010:38). The final method is the gross flows approach. Used to create current housing need, this is calculated by taking â€Å"Gross household formation by category, and adding the tenure propensity of each category to arrive at the demand for social housing from new households† (Pinto, 1995:75). This was used by the Greater London Authority for the London housing capacity study (Livingstone, 2005), it provided an ambitious growth plan where a regional housing growth target was set for 45 7,959 houses to be provided from 1997-2016 (Manzi, 2010:107).The concept is effective as it uses actual behaviour such as age and cohort effects rather than affordability norm (Boelhouwer et al., 2005:103). Quantity, quality and affordability are at the heart of housing need and demand issues in the UK and must be addressed in order to meet current and future housing requirements. This essay has defined the difference between housing demand and housing need and provided insight into the factors in which they depend on. Changes in the population and households are guaranteed to change in the future and therefore must be taken into consideration. Housing demand is mainly affected by the price of housing and the factors surrounding it such as supply and income, addressing these factors has led to not only solving current needs and demands but also the importance of planning for the future. This has been shown through the explanation of several different models displaying ways of estimating future and present housing requirements such as the net-stock approach or affordability approach. In conclusion for current housing needs and demands to be met larger amounts of housing must be provided at a price that is affordable and of a good quality, by setting and reaching targets this will hopefully meet the needs and demands of the present and the future. Appendices Appendix A (Wilcox and Perry, 2013:8) Appendix B (DCLG, 2014:4) Bibliography BBC (2013) [ONLINE] http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-24449898 (Assessed 7/3/2014). Best, R, Porteus, J. (2012) â€Å"Housing our Ageing Population: Plan for Implementation†, All part parliamentary group on housing and care for older people. Boelhouwer, P, Doling, J, Elsinga, M. (2005) â€Å"Home Ownership: Getting In, Getting From, Getting Out, Part 1†, Delft University Press. Bramley, G, Pawson, H, White, M, Watkins, D. (2010) â€Å"Estimating housing need†, Department of communities and local government. David, P, A. (2002) â€Å"Report of colloquium on contribution of the co-operative sector to housing development†, UN-HABITAT. DCLG (Department of communities and Local Government). (2013) â€Å"English Housing Survey households 2011-12†, DCLG. DCLG (Department of communities and Local Government). (2014) â€Å"House Building: December Quarter 2013, England†, DCLG. DoE (Department of Environment). (1980) â€Å"Housing requirements: a guide to information and techniques†, University of Bristol School for Advanced Urban Studies. Downs, A. (2004) â€Å"Growth Management and Affordable Housing: Do They Conflict?†, The Brookings Institution . Empty Homes (2014). [ONLINE] â€Å" http://www.emptyhomes.com/what-you-can-do-2/get-involved/what-to-do-with-your-empty-home/ (Assessed – 07/03/2014). GLA (Greater London Authority). (2010) [ONLINE] http://www.london.gov.uk/priorities/housing-land/improving-quality (Assessed 6/3/2014.) HCTC (House of Commons Treasury Committee). (2013) â€Å"Budget 2013: Ninth Report of Session 2012-13†, House of Commons. Holmans, A. (1995) â€Å"Housing demand and need in England 1991-2011†, Joseph Rowntree foundation. Jones, C, Watkins, C. (2009) â€Å"Housing markets and planning policy†, Wiley-Blackwell. Kleinman, M, Matznetter, W, Stephens, M. (1998) â€Å"European Integration and Housing Policy†, Routledge. Livingstone, K. (2005) â€Å"2004 London Housing Capacity study†, Greater London Authority. Madden, P, Goodman, J, Green, J, Jenkinson, C. (2010) â€Å"Growing Pains: Population and Sustainability in the UK†, Forum for the Future. Manzi, T, Lucas, K, Jones, T, Allen, J. (2010) â€Å"Social Sustainability in Urban Areas: Communities, Connectivity and the Urban Fabric†, Earthscan. Monk, S, Whitehead, C. (2010) â€Å"Making Housing more Affordable: The role of intermediate tenures†, Wiley-Blackwell. Noguchi, Y, Poterba, J, M. (1994) â€Å"Housing Markets in the United States and Japan†, The University of Chicago Press. Nothaft F, E, Erbas, S, N. (2002) â€Å"The Role of Affordable Mortgages in Improving Living Standards and stimulating growth†, IMF Working paper. OECD (organisation for economic co-operation and development). (2011) â€Å"Doing Better for Families†, OECD Publishing. Oxley, M. (2000) â€Å"The Future of Social Housing: Learning from Europe†, IPPR. Oxley, M. (2009) â€Å"Financing Affordable Social Housing in Europe†, UN-HABITAT. Pacione, M. (2009) â€Å"Urban Geography: A Global Perspective†, Routledge. Pinto, R. (1995) â€Å"Developments in Housing Management and Ownership†, Manchester university press. Pozdena, R, J. (1988) â€Å"The Modern Economics of Housing: A Guide to Theory and Policy for Finance and Real Estate professionals†, Greenwood Press. Robinson, R. (1997) â€Å"Housing economics and public policy†, Macmillan. Shucksmith, M. (2002) â€Å"House building in Britains Countryside†, Routledge. Shelter (2013) [ONLINE] http://england.shelter.org.uk/campaigns/why_we_campaign/Improving_social_housing/Why_we_need_more_social_housing (Assessed 6/3/2014). Stephens, M. (2011) â€Å"Tackling housing market volatility in the UK†, Joseph Roundtree Foundation Struyk, R, J. (1988) â€Å"Assessing Housing Needs and Policy Alternatives in Developing Countries†, The Urban Institute Press. Tallon, A. (2010) â€Å"Urban Regeneration in the UK†, Routledge. Telegraph (2013) [ONLINE] http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/personalfinance/interest-rates/10529164/Millions-of-homeowners-may-need-second-job-if-interest-rates-rise-BoE-warns.html (Assessed 7/3/2014). Tighe, R, J, Mueller, E, J. (2013) â€Å"The Affordable Housing Reader†, Routledge. Vale, J, L. (2013) â€Å"Purging the Poorest: Public Housing and the Design Politics of Twice-Cleared communities†, Routledge. Welsh Government (2008) â€Å"Affordable Housing in Wales: Report to Deputy Minister for Housing and Regeneration†(â€Å"Essex Report†), Cardiff, WG. WMRA (West Midlands Regional Assembly)(2014) [ONLINE] http://www.wmra.gov.uk/documents/Chapter%204.pdf (Assessed 11/3/2014). Whitehead, C, Kleinman, M. (1992) â€Å"A Review of Housing Needs Assessment†, The Housing Corporation. Wilcox, S, Perry, J. (2013) â€Å"UK Housing Review Briefing Paper†, Chartered Institute of Housing†, The University of Chicago Press. Wilson, W. (2010) â€Å"Key issues for the new parliament 2010: Housing supply and demand†, The House of Commons. Xue, J. (2013) â€Å"Economic Growth and Sustainable Housing: An Uneasy Relationship†, Routledge.

Creativity in Alice Walkers Color Purple Essay -- Color Purple Essays

Expressing Creativity in The Color Purple  Ã‚     Ã‚   In Alice Walker's The Color Purple, many characters at some point find a way of expressing their artistic creativity. For instance, Celie makes pants, and Shug Avery and Mary Agnes sing. But what is the significance of expressing creativity? If there is a relationship between artistic expression and one's personal development, what exactly is this relationship? I wish to answer these questions by examining Celie's case in particular. The key to the first question lies in the comment Albert makes on life while sewing with Celie on the porch, "If you ast yourself why you black or a man or a woman or a bush it don't mean nothing if you don't ast why you here, period" (289-290). It is about existence, about why we are here. However, this existence is not confirmed by others' acknowledgement. Rather, it depends only on one's awareness of one's own existence. Coming to such recognition, however, is a gradual process divided into several different stages. It starts with a power of creativity within a character (in the context of this novel, primarily a female character) that is unnoticed but screams to be released. When the character, usually with the inspiration of a role model, finds a vent for her creativity, it gushes out like a fountain. The character is often surprised at the art she is capable of creating, and soon comes to admire her own creation and creativity. From here she gains confidence, and comes to realize that she is here for a divine purpose: to express a beauty that God has created. In Walker’s essay "In Search of Our mothers" Gardens, she talks about the black mothers or grandmothers who are torn by their own creativity: These grandmothers and mothe... .... In making pants, she understands and affirms her own existence, and comes close to God. Walker, through the story of Celie, describes for us a process of development. It is a search into oneself for the purpose of one's existence. The answer is that we all possess a creative power that is divine, and when we find it, recognize it, and express it, we show that we are, each of us, God, who creates beauty and loves all.    Works Cited Walker, Alice. In Search of Our Mothers Gardens. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1983. - - -. The Color Purple. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1982.    Other Works Consulted Bloom, Harold ed. Alice Walker (Modern Critical Views). New York: Chelsea, 1989. Dixon, Melvin. Ride Out the Wilderness: Geography and Identity in Afro-American Literature. Chicago: Univ. of Illinois Press, 1987.    Creativity in Alice Walker's Color Purple Essay -- Color Purple Essays Expressing Creativity in The Color Purple  Ã‚     Ã‚   In Alice Walker's The Color Purple, many characters at some point find a way of expressing their artistic creativity. For instance, Celie makes pants, and Shug Avery and Mary Agnes sing. But what is the significance of expressing creativity? If there is a relationship between artistic expression and one's personal development, what exactly is this relationship? I wish to answer these questions by examining Celie's case in particular. The key to the first question lies in the comment Albert makes on life while sewing with Celie on the porch, "If you ast yourself why you black or a man or a woman or a bush it don't mean nothing if you don't ast why you here, period" (289-290). It is about existence, about why we are here. However, this existence is not confirmed by others' acknowledgement. Rather, it depends only on one's awareness of one's own existence. Coming to such recognition, however, is a gradual process divided into several different stages. It starts with a power of creativity within a character (in the context of this novel, primarily a female character) that is unnoticed but screams to be released. When the character, usually with the inspiration of a role model, finds a vent for her creativity, it gushes out like a fountain. The character is often surprised at the art she is capable of creating, and soon comes to admire her own creation and creativity. From here she gains confidence, and comes to realize that she is here for a divine purpose: to express a beauty that God has created. In Walker’s essay "In Search of Our mothers" Gardens, she talks about the black mothers or grandmothers who are torn by their own creativity: These grandmothers and mothe... .... In making pants, she understands and affirms her own existence, and comes close to God. Walker, through the story of Celie, describes for us a process of development. It is a search into oneself for the purpose of one's existence. The answer is that we all possess a creative power that is divine, and when we find it, recognize it, and express it, we show that we are, each of us, God, who creates beauty and loves all.    Works Cited Walker, Alice. In Search of Our Mothers Gardens. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1983. - - -. The Color Purple. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1982.    Other Works Consulted Bloom, Harold ed. Alice Walker (Modern Critical Views). New York: Chelsea, 1989. Dixon, Melvin. Ride Out the Wilderness: Geography and Identity in Afro-American Literature. Chicago: Univ. of Illinois Press, 1987.   

Three Important Symbols in The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams Es

Three Important Symbols in The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In Tennessee Williams' The Glass Menagerie, the narrator is used to reveal elements of Williams' own life as a victim of the Depression in the 1930s. Williams does this through his eloquent use of symbolism. Three symbols seem to reveal Williams' intent especially accurately; the unicorn, the picture of Mr. Wingfield, and Malvolio's coffin trick.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The unicorn is a symbolic representation of ways that Laura is unique or unusual.   The first facet of the unicorn, its horn, refers to ways that Laura is an unusual person, such as in her may escape mechanisms.   Laura's escape devices include her glass menagerie, list... ...ness in the Plays of Tennessee Williams. Bowling Green: Bowling Green State University, 1997.    Presley, Delma. The Glass Menagerie: An American Memory. Boston: Twayne, 1990.    http://www.olemiss.edu/depts/english/ms-writers/dir/williams_tennessee    Williams, Tennessee. "The Glass Menagerie". New York: Random House, 1985.

John Steinbeck’s The Chrysanthemums Essay -- John Steinbeck The Chrysa

In John Steinbeck’s The Chrysanthemums, the reader is introduced to the seemingly timid and shy Elisa Allen. Elisa is routinely planting her yearly sets of Chrysanthemums, which appear to be the sole receptor of her caring and gentle touch, but all the while it is evident that â€Å"the chrysanthemum stems seemed too small and easy for her energy.† Her hidden eagerness seems not only out of place, but out of touch with her dry and wilted surroundings, of which her husband, Henry, abruptly interrupts her steady pace. Inquiring of dinner plans, he is quickly shuttered  out, so that Elisa can continue her work in the fenced in flower bed. This seems to be the only place on the ranch that belongs to her, and thus devoting the entirety of her time, and consideration, towards this lonely sandy square.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  It isn’t long before another interruption comes cluttering up to country road toward the Allen Ranch. This time it comes in the form of a worn wagon, drawn by two mismatched horses, and a large rugged man sitting behind the reins. Elisa appears to be somewhat static as she introduces herself to the peddler, making it known that he is drawing her away from her duties. But the peddler, who is just trying to find something to fix-up for money, sparks a vigor in Elisa, and she suddenly gains interest in everything he says, as benign as it may be. This peddler, who merely altered Elisa’s routine, has immediately altered her life. The change in routine is the first in many years for her...

Firefighter Employment Scenario Essay

Although it’s not clear in the story whether an associates degree is a precondition for taking the exam, in your opinion, should a degree be a requirement to sit for the exam? Yes Why or why not? A Fire science degree should be a requirement to take the test. It shows that the fire fighter it trying to improve him or her self and become more knowledgeable of their craft. It also shows that they are committed to their career. Working and going to school is not an easy thing to do. Like the question states we do not know if the degree is required to sit the exam, if not stated as a requirements, then the degree should not be a factor in the selection process. Based on the fact that Doug and Sam earned the first and second highest test scores, is it a reasonable assumption that the city of Davis will add Doug and Sam to the certification list? Yes Why or why not? According to what we know of the information provided they should both be on the list. They have both meet the requirements to sit for the exam and scored the two best scores. Can the City successfully defend itself on the basis of â€Å"disparate impact?† Yes Why or why not? The city did will not effect anyone of a protected class, under Title VII Once disparate impact is established, the employer must justify the continued use of the procedure or procedures causing the adverse impact as a â€Å"business necessity.† Under what circumstances may racial discrimination be proved by â€Å"disparate impact?† One does not need to be direct about the discrimination. Example would be â€Å"Whites only need to apply†.