Becketts superimposing Essay Example for Free

Becketts superimposing Essay On the surface this exchange is witty and would have the audience laughing if well performed. However, when considering what theyre talking about it is slightly depressing the humour then turns much more sardonic and despairing. One is chair bound and the other is tormented by having to be constantly on his feet. A little bit later on they have another exchange which shows their discontent and depression with these fact Hamm: Nature has forgotten us. Clov: There is no more nature! The possibility of nature not existing gives the whole play still further meaning. Are they living in the aftermath of a nuclear holocaust? If one does decide that the characters are living in a bunker avoiding the effects of a nuclear winter, then everything in the play is given extensive resonance and to call it meaningless would be ignorant. If Beckett did intend the play to have this nuclear agenda, then it would explain Hamm saying towards the end of the play when Clov sees a little boy outside the house/bunker Its the end, Clov, weve come to the end The end Hamm refers to would be the end of the nuclear winter. The play, for one which has such elusive dialogues, has very strong themes. The strength of themes, I feel, is one of the things which makes it difficult to claim that Endgame has no meaning. One theme, which Beckett refers back to regularly throughout the play, is finishing. The reason for Becketts choice of this word for this theme is the multitude of its possible meanings. The theme is so important it is presented in the opening moments of the play by Clov Finished, its finished, nearly finished, it must be finished. One could argue that the fact that Beckett chose a word, which has so many meanings, indicates that Beckett does not wish to imply any specific meaning what so ever. If this were true then one of the main themes of the play is meaningless thus providing substantial evidence for the argument that Endgame has no meaning. I however disagree with this, everything in this play remains unfinished or incomplete even the characters bodies. I think Beckett is implying that the only thing that finishes everything is death. The only way to be complete is to die. I feel this is backed up by the following exchange Clov: I couldnt finish you. Hamm: Then you shant finish me. The design of the set also provides argument as to what the meaning of the play is. Beckett designed the set to accommodate many possible readings of the play. One could take it, as I mentioned earlier, as a nuclear bunker; this would explain the ground level windows and the deformed characters. The stage setting has also been likened to a skull, the two windows being the eyes. If this were true the characters could represent the differing departments of the brain. In this reading the entire stage and production would be a metaphor for an ageing or dying mind; evidence for this would be Clovs continual memory lapses and the death of Nell. In conclusion I do find Endgame very resonant. There are many different ways of interpreting this play and Beckett invites this by the seemingly abstract dialogue. Becketts superimposing of his ability to write comical (if slightly obscure) dialogue on top of his contrary and nihilistic attitude to life creates a very amusing yet conceptually powerful piece of drama.

An Introduction To The Philippines

An Introduction To The Philippines The Philippines is an island nation located in the Malay Archipelago in Southeast Asia. It has 7107 islands. And has a total area of 300000 square kilometers. At the north side of Philippine the Taiwan is located. At the east side the Pacific Ocean, Indonesia and Malaysia at the south and South China Sea at the west. The capital city of Philippines is Manila which is located in the island of Luzon at the northern part. The total population of Philippines is 98 million. The climate of Philippines is tropical. The culture of Philippines is influenced by Spanish and Chinese. Most of the people having also Spanish surnames. It has generally west European culture, people of Philippines are Christian. Islam is more popular in island of Mindanao. The Philippines has developing economy with agricultural and service sector base. The poverty line is 40% it means 40% of the population remain be poor. The large trading partners of the Philippines are the US and Japan. Philippines is a presidential unitary republic with the president at the apex, as the head of state, the head of government and the commander in chief of the armed forces. He is elected by popular vote, every 6 years. Government policies are design to promote industrial development. 1.1 ECONOMICAL ENVIRONMENT : Economic environment of business has reference for economic systems to operate the business. The business sectors also continue economic relations with govt, capital market, worldwide and households sector. It would affect the trends and formation of the economy. The outer factors that influence with the following points. Economic Conditions :- The economic circumstances are safe in the country. Per capita income, national income, allocation of income and assets, Economic resources, economic growth etc are also affected to prepared the business strategies. Economic growth and business cycle are easily defined the economic environment. System :- The economic system also impact on business endeavor. Economic system of a Philippines also considered socialist, capitalists, mixed or communist. Economic Policies :- The government also decided budgets, economic planning, economic industrial regulation, law of business. Industrial guidelines to control on price and wages, trade and transportation polices the size of national income, demand and supply of different merchandise. Economic Growth :- The economic growth impacts the strategies of business. It helps in rising the economic growth and expenses in consumption. It provides opportunities to the industries for the expansion. v. Currency Exchange :- Current exchanges have direct impact on the environment of business. The rupee was devalued in1991. The Indian products cheaper in the world market and boost exports of India. ECONOMIC CONDITION 2.1 GDP of Philippines : The GDP growth rate provides an aggregated measure of changes in value of goods and services produced by an economy. The GDP growth rate of Country from 1998 to 2012 is average 1.08%. The domestic economy accelerated in the second quarter of 2012 to 5.9% from 3.6%. The earlier year boosting the first semester growth to 6.1% from 4.2%. The resilient Services sector remained the main driver of growth supported by the sustained growth of manufacturing and the return of construction. Philippines is a recently industrialized country in the Southeastern Asia. The most important industries of Philippines are food processing, textiles and garments, automobile parts and electronics. Philippines have also treasury of chromites, nickel, copper, coal and newly discovered oil. Philippines GDP Growth Rate This chart is all about the past data for Philippines growth rate. [Source: http://www.nscb.gov.ph/sna/2012/2nd2012/2012qpr2.asp] 2.2 Per Capital Growth in Philippines : In 2011, it was at 1.98% in Country and it was published by World Bank report in 2012. The Growth rate of GDP per capital depends on continuous local currency. The GDP Divided by Mid Year Population. The GDP of Purchasing Price is total of all resident products in economy (+) product taxes (-) any subsidies which is not included in value of the product. This is calculated without making deduction for depreciation of fictional assets. It includes a chronological chart, news and estimate for GDP. In Southeastern area of Philippines is newly industrialized country. Philippines Predicting food processing Textiles and Garment, Electronic and automobile parts and also significant reserve of Chromate, Nickel, Copper, Coal and Recently Discovered Oil. [Source: http://www.kedingeconomics.com/philippines/GDP.Per.Capitagrowth.Annual.Percentwb.data.html] 2.3 PPP Philippines : Philippine has long familiarity with public-private partnership, initiatives and serves as future investment with aggressive PPP promotion. The Government is to attract private partners to invest only in traditional infrastructure Projects like Power, Transportation and Water Sectors and in Non-Traditional Infrastructure similar to information and communications technology, health and property development. The Partnership addressed in 1990s and it help out to improve road network quality, transport linkages and social Services. [Source: http://www.ppp/gove.ph/] 2.4 International Reserve : Countys beginning gross global reserve is significantly increased up to US $79.3 Billion in July.BSP Governor Amando Letangco said that foreign reserve were US $3.2 Billion higher than GIR of US $76.1 Billion, The Level of GIR Increased in end of July, Due to Foreign exchange operations. The funds of the Country are deposited in foreign currency. The Philippines acquire income from investment in a foreign country of the BSP and gain revolution on BSP gold holdings arising from increase in price of Gold in global Market. The Import of goods and payment of services and income adequately cover in 11.7 months and also corresponding 10.7 times. Philippines short term outer debt based on original maturity. [Source: http://www.sunstar.com.ph/breadkingnews/201208/] ECONOMY OF PHILIPPINES Population : 95.9 Million GDP (PPP) : $351.4Billion : 6.1% growth in 2012 : 5.5% 5-year compound annual growth : $4,700 per capita Unemployment : 7.3% Inflation (CPI) : 3.60% FDI Inflow : $1.7 billion for 1st Half Quarter 1 Peso : 1.3134 Rupee and 0.0243 Dollar The Philippines ranks 19thout of 41countries in the Asia Pacific region. And 44th the biggest economy on the earth. According to HSBC estimates. The stock market is one of the best performers in the region. The peso reached a 4 year high against the dollar about the same time. Economy has been on a solid path of economic expansion. The govt. has pursued a series of governmental reforms to increase the industrial environment and build up private sector for reduce unemployment. But regulatory efficiency has been not improved. And over last 5 year the economy has been develop at average annual rate of 5%. Rule of Law : The rule of law is not on level and authorized structure is poor in independence and efficiency. The judiciary is independent but there is political interference. There is some progress due to government anti corruption efforts to eliminate corruption and fix efficiently. Limited Government : Government spending Spurs on 6.4% growth in 1st Quarter. Taxable Income Tax Rate More than But less than 0 P10,000 5% P10,000 P30,000 P500 + 10% of the Excess over P10,000 P30,000 P70,000 P2,500 + 15% of the Excess over P30,000 P70,000 P140,000 P8,500 + 20% of the Excess over P70,000 P140,000 P250,000 P22,500 + 25% of the Excess over P140,000 P250,000 P500,000 P50,000 + 30% of the Excess over P250,000 P500,000 P125,000 + 32% of the Excess over P500,000 in 2000 and onward Corporate tax rate is 30% and Regional are taxed at 10% on taxable income. The VAT an environmental tax with overall tax is 12.8% of total domestic income. If any taxpayer fail to pay VAT component in the sales invoice or official receipts shall be penalized as : Fine of not less then P1,000 but not more than P50,000 and Suffer custody of not less than 2 but not more than 10 years. Regulatory Efficiency : The business regulatory environment has improved considerably. Although launching a business still takes more than the world averages of seven procedures and 30 days, the overall process has become less costly. The time and cost involved in dealing with licensing requirements have been notably reduced. The labor market remains structurally rigid, but existing regulations are not particularly burdensome. Inflation is modest. Open Market : The trade weighted average tariff rate is 4.8 percent, and layers of non-tariff barriers further inhibit more dynamic gains in trade. Despite a strong desire to attract longer-term foreign investment, systemic inefficiency exacerbated by heavy bureaucracy discourages dynamic growth in investment. The financial sector, which is gradually modernizing, remains relatively stable and sound. [http://www.heritage.org/index/pdf/2012/countries/philippines.pdf] ECONOMIC POLICIES 4.1 Monetary Policy The international Monetary Fund will look into the countrys progress on the monetary and fiscal policy and assess the 2 year old Aquino administration by short staff visit which is commence. The most accurate forecasters agree on that Monetary authorities are trying to control foreign investment in the Peso arguing that Asias best performing currency has strengthened too much. The economic momentum has built up from decreasing of monetary policy may boost the country is growth in2012 is 5.8% and up to 7 % is 2013. And the govt.s success in containing the budget deficit has been given monetary authorities considered liberty. In 2011 the govt. incurred a budget deficit of 197.8 billion which was less than two third of 2010. The size of economy in overspending in 2011 comprised only 2% less than 3.5% recorded in2010. The debt stock of 2011 settled at P4.95% trillion or 50.9% of gross domestic. [http://business inquirer-net/49369/bsp-monetary-policy-expected-to-push-up-ph-economy] 4.2 Fiscal Policy : The Philippines long term foreign currency credit rating raised from BB to BB+. It kept rating outlook at stable. According to Presidential spokesman Ricky Carandang the Philippines can still afford to undertake public spending without put in to danger its overall financial position. And the govt. doesnt want a strong peso to delay competitiveness of exports. The Philippines economy grew by 6.4% in 1st quarter, it is one of the highest in Asia and upgrade is a vote of confidence for the country. According to finance secretary Cesar V Purisima, that this gives more confidence to continue with the work towards macroeconomic stability, fiscal sustainability and inclusive economic growth. [http://www.philstar.com/Artical.aspx?article Id=824407 publication Sub Category Id=] 4.3 Deficit Policy : The Financial Secretary Cesar Purisima said that the govt. spent P19.90 billion and the deficit was manageable, expressing, confidence the full year fund shortfall would staying within 2.6% of GDP or P279 billion. The govt. continued rise in revenue collections so that the fiscal position remains under control. So this wide fiscal space will gives the advantage to finance infrastructure projects and social programs that curb poverty and promote equality. Jan-May deficit P22.79 billion. The govt.s self imposed 1st half ceiling of P109.34 billion and it spent P668.43 billion in 1st five month of year up 13.1% compared to last year. And revenues reached P645.64 billion. For May revenue grew 9.4% to 131.4 billion while spending reached P151.3 billion. Purisima said that the govt. is committed to reach its 5.6% growth in 2012 and recorded 6.4% expansion in 1st three month. The Philippines suffered a P 197.8 billion budget deficit last year which is equivalent to 2% of GDP. [http://business-inquirer-net /67459/Philippine-budget-deficit-shoots-up] 4.4 Foreign Trade Policy : According to the Global Enabling Trade Report 2012, the rank of Philippines is 72nd out of 132 countries. It measured the factors, policies, services, areas of market access, border administration transport and communication infrastructure and business environment. In the area of market access the Philippines jumped 14 from 64 and in terms of efficiency of import-export procedure it looks 48 spot from 55. And access to imported inputs at competitive prices identifying potential market and buyers corruption at the border and other concerns it places 62 out of 132 countries. The trade chief attributed the countrys improvement in ranking to the debt of Trade and Industrys effort to facilitate trade across borders like the Doing business in Free Trade Areas an awareness campaign has aimed to help stakeholders into understand new markets and instruments like free trade agreement. It reforms to improve the ease of doing business in country through the Philippines. Business Registry (PBR) and Business permits and license streamlining (BPLS) programs for local govt. [http://businessinquirer-net/63369/Philippines-climbs-20-nitches-up-in-business-destination-ranking] 4.5 Balance of Payment : The inflow of foreign currency exceeded than the outflow in Feb and Philippines balance of payments hitting a surplus of $588 million. BOP is recorded of the countrys commercial transaction with the rest of world. It helps beef up the countrys total reserves of foreign exchange or gross international reserves (GIR).It stands at a record high of $78 billion. According to economist the unfavorable global economy that investors have tendency to pull out funds from emerging markets like Philippines. So it create depreciation pressures on local currencies. But with enough reserves of foreign exchange the Bangko Sentral ng philipines can buy pesos and reduce its depreciation and it will hit a surplus of at last $2.8 billion by end of 2011. Due to increase in employment in US an economist said that it would lead to increase in demand for imported goods from Philippines. [http://bus.inquirer.net/50127/bsp-balance-of-payment-stood-at-surplus-in-feb] GLOBAL INTERNATIONAL ECONOMICAL GOVERNMENT 5.1 Import : Philippines import were worth 5101 million USD in June of 2002 until 2012,Philippines averaged imports 4155.20 million USD reaching an all time high of 5848.00 million USD in July of 2008 and low record of 2226.00 million USD in January of2002. Philippines imports mostly considered electronic products, mineral fuel, industrial machinery and equipment, transport equipment, lubricants, steel and iron. Mostly import partners are Japan, china, Singapore, South Korea, United States. Here we include the chart with historical data for Philippines import. Philippines Imports [http://www.tradingeconomics.com/philippines/imports] Export : Philippines exports were worth 4314 million USD in June of 2012. From 2002 until 2012, average export of Philippines 3681.10 million USD reaching an all time high of 5325.00 million USD in September of 2010 and record low of 2506.00 million USD in February of 2009. Major exporter of electronic products like processors, chips, and hard drives (more than 50% of total exports revenue) and other major exports include apparel and clothing accessories, wood crafts, coconut oil and furniture. Philippines major export partners are United States, Singapore, Japan, Hong Kong, china. This page includes a chart with Philippines historical data of Philippines exports. Philippines Exports [http://www.tradingeconomics.com/philippines/exports] 5.2 Corporate Income Tax : The domestic and foreign resident corporations income tax rate in Philippines is 30%, based on net taxable income. Domestic company payable company tax on all income derived from sources outside and within the Philippines. Foreign corporations, whether resident or non-resident are taxable on income derived from sources within the Philippines. Non resident foreign corporations are ,in certain circumstances, subject to a final withholding tax on passive (investment) incomes at rates higher than the applicable tax rates applying to domestic and foreign resident corporations. Resident companies are created or organized under the law of Philippines or foreign companies licensed to engage in business or trade in the Philippines. The corporate income tax rate for domestic and foreign resident corporations is 30%, income tax excluded from are dividend received from domestic corporations, interest on Philippines currency bank deposits and other monetary benefit from deposits substitutes and trust funds and arrangements and final taxes, interest income derived from the foreign currency deposits is include final tax of 7.5% ,other interest earned by domestic and foreign resident corporations is included 20% final withholding tax. Special economic tones enterprises registered with economic tone authority are taxed at the rate of 5% on gross income in lieu of national and local taxes and real property tax. Gross sales or gross revenue derived from the business activity within the Ecozens, sales returns, net of sales discount and allowances less the cost of sales or direct costs but before deduction made for expenses of administrative and losses during the taxable period. [http://www.quezoncity.gov.ph/index.php?option=com_contentview=articleid=226Itemid=347] India 2005-36.59 2006-33.66 2007-33.99 2008-33.99 2009-33.99 2010-33.99 2011-32.44 2012-32.44 The corporate tax rate is 32.445% .Domestic companies tax rate is 30%, profits from life insurance business in India are taxed at the rat of 12.5%.foreign companies are taxed at the rate of 40%. A minimum alternate tax (MAT) is levied at 18.5% of adjusted profit of companies. The tax payable is less than 18.5% of book profits. Dividend distributed from domestic company. Surcharge and education cess is above taxes is applicable.5% surcharge in case of foreign companies is applicable. The total income is in excess of INR 10 million. Education cess of 3% is applicable on income tax plus surcharge wealth tax is imposed at a rate of 1% on the value of specified assets held by the tax payer in excess of basic exemption of INR13million.transaction tax of securities transactions in equity shares and units of equity oriented funds. [http://www.kpmg.com/global/en/whatwedo/tax/tax-tools-and-resources/pages/corporate-tax-rates-table.aspx] HOW ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT OF PHILIPPINE AFFECTS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS? The Philippines has certainly had a steady flow of positive economic news recently. On July 4, Standard Poors raised the countrys debt rating to just below investment grade, the highest rating for the country since 2003 and equivalent to that of Indonesia. The Philippines is the 44th-largest economy in the world today, according to HSBC estimates. But if current trends hold, it can leap to the No. 16 spot by 2050. The Philippine stock market, one of the best performers in the region, closed at a record high after the recent S. P. rating upgrade, and the countrys currency, the peso, reached a four-year high against the dollar at about the same time. With $70 billion in reserves and lower interest payments on its debt after recent credit rating upgrades, the Philippines pledged $1 billion to the International Monetary Fund to help shore up the struggling economies of Europe. The gross domestic product of the Philippines grew 6.4 percent in the first quarter, according to the countrys central bank, outperforming all other growth rates in the region except Chinas. Economists expect similarly strong growth in the second quarter. We have made a very bold forecast for the Philippines, but I think justifiably so, said Frederic Neumann, a senior economist at HSBC in Hong Kong. A high population growth rate, long considered a hindrance to prosperity, is now often seen as a driving force for economic growth. About 61 percent of the population in the Philippines is of working age, between 15 and 64. That figure is expected to continue increasing, which is not the case for many of its Asian neighbors, whose populations are aging. 6.1 Trade Economy : The GDP per capita growth (annual %) in Philippines was last reported at 1.98 in 2011, according to a World Bank report published in 2012. Annual percentage growth rate of GDP per capita based on constant local currency. GDP per capita is gross domestic product divided by midyear population. GDP at purchasers prices is the sum of gross value added by all resident producers in the economy plus any product taxes and minus any subsidies not included in the value of the products. It is calculated without making deductions for depreciation of fabricated assets or for depletion and degradation of natural resources. This page includes a historical data chart, news and forecats for GDP per capita growth (annual %) in Philippines. Philippines is a newly industrialized country in the Southeastern Asia. The nations most important industries are food processing, textiles and garments, electronics and automobile parts. Philippines also has significant reserves of chromite, nickel, copper, coal an d recently discovered oil. In addition, the Philippians economy relies on remittances as a source of foreign currency. philippines gdp per capita growth annual percent wb data 6.2 Domestic Price : The Philippine domestic economy shrunk to 3.7 percent in 2011, after a stellar growth of 7.6 percent in 2010. Growth was mainly undermined by the severe state under spending as well as the frail external environment. Outlook for 2012 is relatively sanguine with the government hinging its optimism on robust consumer demand and a more vigorous public spending. However, downside risks to growth persist with the global recovery poised to remain slow and uncertain. 2011 domestic economy tepid at 3.7%. The Philippine domestic economy grew by 3.7 percent in 2011, almost half of its 7.6 percent growth in 2010. The growth is within the latest forecasts of the National Economic and Development Authority (3.6-4.0 %) and the International Monetary Fund (3.7%). However, the growth figure is well below that assumed by the Development Budget Coordination Committee (4.5-5.5%), Asian Development Bank (4.7%), and the World Bank (4.2%); and is significantly off the growth target of the Philippine Development Plan (7.0%). Notable is the countrys poor economic performance relative to its neighbors. Except for Thailand, most Asian economies registered higher gross domestic product (GDP) growth rates than the Philippines in 2011. Gross national income (GNI)1 likewise slumped to 2.6 percent from 8.2 percent in 2010. This resulted from the significant contraction of net primary income (NPI),2 which slowed to a negative 0.9 percent, a turnaround from the 10.0 percent growth in 2010 6.3 Labor Force : Unemployment down to 7%. The countrys labor force numbered at 61.9 million in 2011. Of this number, 2.8 million were unemployed registering an unemployment rate of 7.0 percent. Moreover, the service sectors share of total employment increased from 51.8 percent in 2010 to 52.1 percent. Agriculture accounted for 33.0 percent of the employed while industrys share was 14.9 percent. Although the economy managed to generate more than one million jobs in 2011, the quality of employment is still a concern given the substantial increase in the underemployment rate as well as in the number of unpaid family workers. Latest data showed that the underemployed numbered at 7.2 million 6.4 Inflation : Headline inflation is within target. Headline inflation averaged 4.8 percent in 2011, well within the 3.0-5.0 percent inflation target for 2011 but higher than the 3.8 average recorded in 2010. A rise in the prices of food items had been recorded mainly due to the adverse effect of typhoons on agricultural food supplies. Core inflation,3 on the other hand, averaged 3.6 percent The government is particularly bullish on having higher investments in 2012 as investment pledges registered with the Philippine Economic Zone Authority surged by 47 percent in the first two months of the year. The PSEis breaching of the 5,000 mark for the first time in March 2012 is also said to bode well for the equities market. Likewise, private construction, particularly in the property subsector, is anticipated to remain robust given the upward momentum in office demand and investments in low-cost housing. Demand for commercial spaces will continue to be buoyed by the BPO sector, the revenues of which are slated to grow even further this year by 20 percent. The residential sector is also expected to receive continued support by the robust demand from families of overseas Filipinos. Consumer spending will similarly be sustained by the favorable inflation outlook and the continuous inflow. 6.5 Unemployment Rate : Unemployment means the number of people actively looking for a job divided by the labor force. Unemployment depends on the number of non-employed people who found the job and the people who lost their current job. Unemployment related to labour force, participation rate and employment rate. The unemployment rate of Philippines is 7.2 % which we can show that in the graph. 6.6 Private Sector Development : The stimulus package presented by Gloria Macapagal Arroyo is known as the economic resiliency plan. The package included personal income-tax relief for low- and middle-income earners, reduction in corporate income tax, higher social spending on cash transfers and job-creation schemes, as well as a series of infrastructure projects. Although the reforms were not entirely new, the package led the Philippines to being acknowledged as Asias more socially responsible stimulus plans thanks to its focus on agriculture and social services that directly benefit the poor population. The fall in agricultural commodity prices helped support personal disposable income. As a result personal household budgets were minimally effected. The social component in their reforms may be credited with the largest impact due to the focus on poverty. The Philippines must sustain the reform movement in order to spur investments, increase growth, generate higher employment, and alleviate poverty for the fast growing population. Their reforms have already generated 34 consecutive growth quarters, created 8 million jobs, and maintained the lowest inflation in a generation. Most importantly poverty has decreased while revenue increased and has allowed the nation to invest in human and physical infrastructure. With sustained reform and their economic resiliency the Philippines may soon be a prime investment opportunity in uncertain world economic and financial conditions.

computers :: essays research papers

Olu Taju-Deen Jr. 12/2/04 Professor Jones Research Paper Computers are already giving people today access to large amounts of information. This is increasing our brain power, like a hot air balloon it increases our brain power. As computers become more powerful they will grow more intelligent. Some people think that someday computer and machines will be smarter than people. In 5 to 20 years there seems no reason why machines should not become more intelligent than people in the future. Scientists believe computers will start to design and build other computers. They will then be able to evolve more like life evolves. There will then be two forms of life. Many thousands of years in the future there might be competition for power between computers and life. Computers certainly have many advantages over life. They can process large amounts of information quickly. They can be switched off for years, then start to work perfectly when they are switched back on. They come in handy for traveling over long distances. Computers can even be made very small, and control tiny machines which work together in networks to find equations for big problems. The computers of the future are expected to be smaller, faster and smarter. For the past twenty years, CPU performance has doubled about every eighteen months. The storage capacities of hard drives will continue to expand, they are currently growing at a rate of about sixty percent per year. Today, Intel's Pentium II has 7.5 million transistors. If the trend continues, Intel processors should contain fifty million to one hundred million transistors in the first decade of the next century. In five years, computers will have sixteen times the memory capacity they do now. "One big challenge is the time for the processor to access the memory. Bill Gates solution is the processor might be on the same chip as memory. Every time you buy memory, you get a processor." Actual voice input will become a reality, but it may not be widely employed in offices because of privacy and environmental issues. According to Bill Gates, he predicts that within ten years, "every computer will have speech and linguistics built into it†. Instead of typing or clicking, you'll tell your PC to launch this application or print that document. At the office, your e-mail message is just as likely to be a video clip. At home it probably means that your PC takes control of the lights, temperature, and appliances.

Modernism vs Neo-Traditionalism Essay -- essays research papers

Modernism vs Neo-Traditionalism: A debate on the merits and failures of two major competing paradigms in architecture and urban planning.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Beyond the term modernism underlies one of the greatest ideas in architectural development. Modernism was meant to provide more green areas, cheaper housing and more efficient use of space. This was to be accomplished by creating vertically dense spaces with the use of the new inventions of the nineteenth century, such as steel, glass, electricity and elevators. By decreasing costs of building, modernists hoped to provide cheaper housing, affordable to almost anybody. The modernist movement was also promising to meet the growing demand for office spaces, hence the motto â€Å"form follows function† . Today, the inhabitants of every large city are able to see products of modernist influence. Its opposite, neo-traditionalism, is admired for its beauty and variety. â€Å"Small City U.S.A.† is an extremely popular concept among today’s citizens, looking to escape the ordinary, colorless office buildings. Boring and redundant, is modernism today wh at it was conceptualized to be? Its ideas shape today’s housing, from housing projects to single homes that have neo-traditional skin. Modernist concepts are of incredible importance and necessity; however, they were misunderstood in application.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Modernism was a response to the rise of industrial manufacturing as man’s chief economic activity.† Modernism fulfilled the growing demand for office space. It made use of such inventions as steel, glass, concrete and elevators. Steel and concrete allowed building to go to whole new heights. Glass and electricity provided lighting, thus making the workday longer. Elevators made the office buildings possible by carrying its inhabitants to any floor in the building. These materials also solved the problem of fireproofing and were definitely less costly than the materials used for traditional buildings. At the same time, modernist buildings became uniform: built from the same materials, modular, colorless with the same components, flat roofs and lack of ornamentation. Kunstler argued that such buildings have seized to have any meaning that they destroy social arrangements and do not consider natural resources. He blamed modernism for ruining the c ities with corporate gigantism, failing to creat... ... supposed to provide for both.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  People who despise modernism, probably do not know what it is supposed to be. Post-modernism seems to be more or less of an answer. It finally lets modernist buildings nurture creativity. Post-modernist buildings vary in shape, size and color, thus making them more appealing to the eye and less redundant. It seems that the costs of such innovations would still be less than those of traditional buildings.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I believe that our society needs post-modernism. People long for trees and parks and waterfronts, as well as for buildings that one can look at and think, â€Å"Oh, G-d, that is beautiful.† We need this no less than we need office buildings. Modernism and post-modernism are deemed to be different, and they are in the sense that post-modernism is exactly what modernism was supposed to be, may be with a bit more variety. In many instances, post-modernist buildings are even more attractive than neo-traditional. So, maybe one day when all modernist ideals are realized, a person will come out of the new Federal Plaza and for a hundredth time think, â€Å"This is the most relaxing landscape I’ve ever seen.

Essay --

Where; where hR, hF are the normalized gray level histograms of xR and xF, respectively. The joint gray level histogram of xR and xF is denoted by hR,F, and L is the number of bins. xF and xR correspond to the fused and reference images, respectively. I(xR;xF) indicates how much information the fused image xF conveys about the reference xR. Thus, higher the mutual information between xF and xR, there are more chances that xF resembles the ideal xR. D. Entropy (EN);- Entropy can be used to measure the difference between two source images and the fused image. The entropy of an image is a measure of information content. Entropy is the average number of bits which have a need of quantize the intensities in the image. It is represented as follows : where p(g) is the probability of grey-level g , and the range of g is [0,.....,L-1].High information content of image would have high entropy. High entropy of fused image indicates that the it contains more information than the original image sources. V. PROPOSED SOFTWARE DESIGN Interactive software is developed to do the reliable monitoring and management of Fusion process. The system software is made using MATLAB .We are taking two images image A and image B after the process of Counterlet transform. We get one output fused image. VI.CONCLUSION With this we conclude that contourlet Transform can be used to fuse two dimensional images and represent them more efficiently, which makes the fused images more clear and more informative. Contourlet Transform overcomes the drawbacks of traditional Image Fusion schemes by using ALM. The Experimental results using this technique of IF show that it can preserve more useful information in the fused image with higher spatial ... ....7, pp . 372-377( 2009) 12) Yi Yang ,Chongzhao Han ,Xin Kang and Deqiang Han â€Å"An Overview on Pixel-Level I mage Fusion in Remote Sensing,† Proceedings of the IEEE International Conference on Automation and Logistic,vol 6, no .4, pp .2339- 2344 feb (2007) 13)image code,† IEEE Transactions on Communications, vol. 31, pp. 532–540, 1983. 14) R. H. Bamberger and M. J. T. Smith, â€Å"A filter bank for the directional decomposition of images: theory and design,† IEEE Transactions on Signal Processing, vol. 40, no. 4, pp. 882–893, 1992. 15) G. H. Qu, D. L. Zhang, and P. F. Yan, â€Å"Information measure for performance of image fusion,† Electronic Letters, vol. 38, no. 7, pp. 313–315, 2002. 16) H. Tian, Y.-N. Fu, and P.-G. Wang, â€Å"Image fusion algorithm based on regional variance and multi-wavelet bases,† in Proc. of 2nd Int. Conf. Future Computer and Communication, vol. 2, 2010, pp

Benefits of Returning to School

The many benefits to returning to school and some of the obstacles I had and have to overcome to see my dream come alive. What I want to see happen and by faith it’s going to happen. | I have many reasons for returning to school. I had the chance to get a job in television station, and have never done television before and wanted to at least have a general idea of what would be expected to do this job. First thing that came to my mind about going back to school I didn’t know if I would be able to do the work. I had been out of school so long would I remember the simple things, was scared and didn’t know if or how I would be able to maintain, but with the grace of God I’m doing it. The first couple classes to me was like a refresher, because I had been out of school for so long once I saw the work it all came flooding back. Plus, I wanted to start my own business and what better way to have a successful business than to know everything there is to know before you jump in to deep. I would have to say the benefits of my degree would be seeing single parents like me with goals and dreams and no one to help them fulfill them. With no one to even watch their children, while they try to attempt to start the process. Seeing single parents smile when they have the help that is needed to gain a better life is enough for me. If I just gave up and let the Devil win I wouldn’t be able to help those in need. Everything from computer problem to no lights, and I still made a way. I live by faith and there is nothing better that knowing that the Lord Jesus Christ got my back through it all, and willing to make a way for me to see my dream come alive. Helping other people is what I want to do in life. Single parents will be my main focus, helping them find the benefits they will need to assure their families are stable. I have always been kindhearted, and wanted to help people. What other way than to keep someone from going through what I had to alone. My life style has changed so much I’m more spiritual, open minded, and more aware of the many road blocks along the way. If I can help at least one family it would warm my heart and that would be enough for me. I have been where a lot of people are and at the same time not knowing that the next person may be going through something more serious than I. So what’s more fulfilling than to help ones that feels like me, over come some of the obstacles I had to, to make a better life for their children. The many obstacles I had to overcome just to start my degree were very overwhelming early in the process. First day class started my computer crashed, had to get another one since it was early on in the process I was able to start over. Next, my internet service stops working. Then in to the program once everything was back on track second class my new computer wants to stop working, couldn’t access the portable document formats. If it wasn’t one thing it was something else. I was determined to get my degree, by any means necessary, neighbors house, friends houses, libraries, anywhere where there was an internet connection I was trying to get there. My number one strategy for overcoming the many obstacles is prayer and that’s how I plan to get through the rest of my degree. A wise man once said, â€Å"No weapons formed against me shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shall condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is from me, Says the Lord† (Isaiah 54:17 KJB). Plus I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (Philippians 4:13 KJB). I also know that whatever God does it shall be forever. Nothing can be added to it, and nothing taken from it (Ecclesiastes 3:14 KJB). Everything I do in life these days I pray and ask the Lord to show me his way. Like with this paper, I really don’t know how to write a good paper. When I sat down after I wrote the first draft and started typing it parts of it changed. I worked hard and hope it shows and pray it’s the way it was suppose to be done. I don’t see any more obstacles that are too much for me not to get my degree. I feel that if it took this much hard work to get something I really want then it will be will worth the fight. I fight everyday, willing and ready for what else the devil has to put in my way. I can honestly say that the hard work that comes alone with my degree will be well worth it once I have that piece of paper with my name on it.

How well do you communicate Essay

I am considered to be a communicative person who established an outstanding raport with others. I am able to listen deeply to people,to help them ,to share my experience with them. Many of them tell me I am a good listener and when I talk they usually listen to me. What is important for a good communication? You need to take into consideration the point of view of others. I respect their opinion,but I respect my opinion as well.. I understand how people interpret my communicative style and I am able to avoid misunderstanding. I sometimes handle children hassles effectively. People usually understand my thoughts and I can nderstand theirs.. The tone of my voice sometimes communicates how I feel about my partner. Determining a communication problem is not very hard for me and I am often able to resolve it. I usually speak in a gentle manner,to give an impression of kindness. I often stay calm in tense situations. I can express my feelings and tell people close to me how much I care about them. My relationship with my family is full of emotion and devotion. Many people think I am a friendly and expansive person. I often know how to cooperate with them and they usually do what I want them to do. Read more:  Reasons why people communicate  essay However,I have not always been so successful. I was shy when I was younger and did not speak with assertion. It was hard for me to express my thoughts,it was hard for others to know how I felt about something. Later,I improved my communication skills. During my experience,I began to speak louder and people could understand me. I listened to others more carefully. I learned that it is important to avoid passive style of communication. I also learned to speak with more assertion because my own opinion is as important as the opinion of other people. I usually tell people to stay calm in unpleasant situations in order to avoid misunderstanding or aggressive communication. This style enables me to communicate effectively. I discovered that my body language and some gestures I made earlier affected my communication in a bad way. Eye contact is extremely important as it shows respect and interest for the person you are talking to. In addition to this,posture is another important aspect of dealing with others and sometimes it affected my communication. I learned to get my posture right which made me feel better. By finding out the major cause of communication breakdown,I could easily improve it. Being aware of the importance of a successful communication,I am trying to find the ways to improve my communication skills. For example,using body language may lead to great communication. This is especially useful when I am not sure how to start a conversation. In addition to this,I need to be clear about what I want to communicate. I also need to be confident that the information if useful and accurate. By successfully getting my message accross,I convey my thoughts effectively .