Volcanoes Essays - Volcanology, Plate Tectonics, Igneous Rocks

Volcanoes By Tricia Severson 2nd hour Science 4/30/98 A volcano is a vent, or opening, in the surface of the Earth through which magma and associated gases and ash erupt. The word also refers to the form or structure, usually conical, produced by accumulations of erupted material. Volcanoes occur mainly near plate tectonic boundaries and are especially common around the Pacific basin, called the Pacific Ring of Fire (see Plate Tectonics). Humanity has long been awed by this powerful force of nature. The Romans attributed volcanic events to Vulcan, the god of fire and metalworking. In AD 79 the eruption of Mount Vesuvius destroyed the Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum. Polynesians believe volcanoes to be ruled by the fire goddess Pele. One of the most spectacular volcanic eruptions in recorded history occurred in 1883 with the explosion of Krakatoa, an island in the Sunda Strait near Java (see Krakatoa). A more recent example is the dramatic 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens in the Cascade Range in Washington State. Volcano Formation and Eruptions Volcanic eruptions may be violent, even catastrophic, or relatively mild. The most explosive eruptions are essentially blasts of steam that create spectacular displays. Quieter fissure eruptions occur when molten rock pushes through long cracks in the Earth's crust and floods the surrounding landscape. Such repeated outpourings of lava can fill surrounding valleys and bury low hills, creating thick lava sequences that eventually become plateaus (see Plateau). The origin of molten rock, referred to by geologists as magma, is not clearly understood. About 80 percent of all magma is composed of basalt rock. Geophysical research suggests that volcanic magma forms near the base of the Earth's crust and moves upward to a shallow magma chamber before erupting at the surface. Magmas rise because they are less dense than the rocks at lower depths, and their heat probably weakens surrounding rocks. The upward movement of magma may also be due to expanding gases within the molten rock or to chemical reactions that dissolve rocks above the magma. Volcanic material moves toward the surface through channelways, or volcanic conduits, and is extruded through vents at the Earth's surface. (See also Lava and Magma.) Eruptions take different forms depending on the composition of the magma when it reaches the surface. Sudden eruptions are often associated with low-viscosity (more fluid) magma where the expanding gases form a froth that becomes a light, glassy rock called pumice. In eruptions of high-viscosity (thicker) magmas, the gas pressure shatters the rock into fragments. Pyroclastic rocks, formed by volcanic explosion, are named according to size: volcanic ash if sand-sized or smaller, volcanic bombs if larger. Consolidated ash is called tuff. Quieter, more passive eruptions release fluid basalt lava from dikes or dike swarms (magma intrusions that cut across layers of rock). These eruptions cover large areas and often produce ropy, or pahoehoe, lava flows. Thicker basalt lava breaks into chunks or blocks, forming blocky lava flows, called aa. The products of volcanism may be classified into two groups: lava and pyroclastics. Lava is the fluid phase of volcanic activity. Pyroclastics (also called tephra) are various-sized particles of hot debris thrown out of a volcano. Whether lava or pyroclastics are being ejected, the eruption is normally accompanied by the expulsion of water and gases, many of which are poisonous. Lava usually forms long, narrow rivers of molten rock that flow down the slopes of a volcano. Explosive eruptions tend to be spectacular events best observed from a safe distance. Earthquakes, high columns of vapors, lightning, and strong whirlwinds often accompany the explosions. The eruption of Krakatoa unleashed a tsunami, a large seismic sea wave, that swept the coasts of Java and Sumatra and drowned more than 36,000 people. A volcano can grow with frightening speed and often affects territory far beyond the area on which the cone forms. When volcanoes are born in the sea, the eruptions may be more violent than those on land because the contact between molten rock and seawater produces steam. Volcanoes also create craters and calderas. Craters are formed either by the massive collapse of material during volcanic activity, by unusually violent explosions, or later by erosion during dormancy. Calderas are large, basin-shaped depressions. Most of them are formed after a magma chamber drains and no longer supports the overlying cone, which then collapses inward to create the basin. One of the most famous examples is the still-active Kilauea caldera in Hawaii. Types of Volcanoes Volcanoes are usually classified by shape and size. These are determined by such

Elizabeth Key and Her History-Changing Lawsuit

Elizabeth Key and Her History-Changing Lawsuit Elizabeth Key (1630 - after 1665) is a key figure in the history of American chattel slavery. She won her freedom in a lawsuit in 17th century colonial Virginia, and her lawsuit may have helped inspire laws making slavery a hereditary condition. Heritage Elizabeth Key was born in 1630, in Warwick County, Virginia. Her mother was a slave from Africa who is unnamed in the record. Her father was an English planter living in Virginia, Thomas Key, who arrived in Virginia before 1616. He served in the Virginia House of Burgesses, the colonial legislature. Accepting Paternity In 1636, a civil case was brought against Thomas Key, alleging that he had fathered Elizabeth. Such suits were common to get a father to accept responsibility to support a child born out of marriage, or to ensure that the father would help to get the child an apprenticeship. Key first denied paternity of the child, claiming that a â€Å"Turk† had fathered the child. (A â€Å"Turk† would have been a non-Christian, which could affect the slave status of the child.) He then accepted paternity and had her baptized as a Christian. Transfer to Higginson At about the same time, he was planning to go to England- perhaps the suit was filed to ensure that he accepted paternity before he left- and he placed the 6-year-old Elizabeth with Humphrey Higginson, who was her godfather. Key specified a term of indenture of nine years, which would bring her to the age of 15, a common time for indenture terms or apprentice terms to expire. In the agreement, he specified that after 9 years, Higginson was to take Elizabeth with him, give her a â€Å"portion,† and then free her to make her own way in the world. Also included in the instructions was that Higginson treat her like a daughter; as later testimony put it, â€Å"user her more Respectfully than a Common servant or slave.† Key then sailed for England, where he died later that year. Colonel Mottram When Elizabeth was about ten years old, Higginson transferred her to a Colonel John Mottram, a justice of the peace- whether it was a transfer or sale is not clear- and he then moved to what is now Northumberland County, Virginia, becoming the first European settler there. He founded a plantation he called Coan Hall. About 1650, Col. Mottram arranged for 20 indentured servants to be brought from England. One of those was William Grinstead, a young lawyer who indentured himself to pay for his passage and work that off during the term of indenture. Grinstead did legal work for Mottram. He also met and fell in love with Elizabeth Key, still held as a bond servant to Mottram, though it was by that time 5 or more years beyond the term of the original agreement between Key and Higginson. Even though Virginia law at that time forbid indentured servants from marrying, having sexual relations or having children, a son, John, was born to Elizabeth Key and William Grinstead. Filing Suit for Freedom In 1655, Mottram died. Those settling the estate assumed that Elizabeth and her son John were slaves for life. Elizabeth and William filed suit in court to recognize both Elizabeth and her son as already free. At the time, the legal situation was ambiguous, with some tradition assuming all â€Å"Negros† were slaves no matter the status of their parents, and other tradition assuming English common law where bondage status followed that of the father. Some other cases held that black Christians could not be slaves for life. The law was especially ambiguous if only one parent was an English subject. The suit was based on two factors: first, that her father was a free Englishman, and under English common law whether one was free or in bondage followed the status of the father; and second, that she had been â€Å"long since Christened† and was a practicing Christian. A number of people testified. One resurrected that old claim that Elizabeth’s father was a â€Å"Turk,† which would have meant neither parent was an English subject. But other witnesses testified that from a very early time, it was common knowledge that Elizabeth’s father was Thomas Key. The key witness was an 80-year-old former servant of Key, Elizabeth Newman. The record also showed that she had been called Black Bess or Black Besse. The court found in her favor and granted her freedom, but an appeal court found that she was not free, because she was a â€Å"Negro.† General Assembly and Retrial Then Grinstead filed a petition for Key with the Virginia General Assembly. The Assembly formed a committee to investigate the facts, and found â€Å"That by the Comon Law the Child of a Woman slave begot by a freeman ought to be free† and also noted that she had been christened and was â€Å"able to give a very good account of her fayth.† The Assembly returned the case to a lower court. There, on July 21, 1656, the court found that Elizabeth Key and her son John were in fact free persons. The court also required that the Mottram estate give her â€Å"Corn Clothes and Satisfaction† for her having served many years beyond the end of her term of service. The court formally â€Å"transferred† to Grinstead â€Å"a maid servant†. That same day, a marriage ceremony was performed and recorded for Elizabeth and William. Life in Freedom Elizabeth had a second son by Grinstead, named William Grinstead II. (Neither son’s birth date is recorded.) Grinstead died in 1661, after only five years of marriage. Elizabeth then married another English settler named John Parse or Pearce. When he died, he left 500 acres to Elizabeth and her sons, which allowed them to live out their lives in peace. There are many descendants of Elizabeth and William Grinstead, including a number of famous people (the actor Johnny Depp is one). Later Laws Before the case, there was, as outlined above, some ambiguity in the legal status of the child of a woman who was in bondage and a free father. The assumption of the Mottram estate that Elizabeth and John were slaves for life was not without precedent. But the idea that all of African descent were permanently in bondage was not universal. Some wills and agreements by owners specified terms of service for African slaves, and also specified land or other goods to be granted at the end of the term of service to aid in their new life as fully free persons. For example, a woman, Jone Johnson, daughter of one Anthony Johnson identified as a Negro, was given 100 acres of land by the Indian ruler Debeada in 1657. Key’s suit won her freedom and established the precedence of the English common law about a child born to a free, English father. In response, Virginia and other states passed laws to override the common law’s assumptions. Slavery in America became more solidly a race-based and hereditary system. Virginia passed these laws: 1660: the term of indentured servitude was limited to five years- for servants from a Christian country1662: a child’s status as free or bond (slave) status was to follow the mother’s status, contrary to English common law1667: being a Christian did not alter status of bondage1670: prohibited Africans from importing any bonded laborers from anywhere (Africa or England included)1681: children of a European mother and African father were to be in bondage to age 30 In Maryland: 1661: a law was passed making all African Americans in the colony slaves, and all African Americans slaves at birth whatever the status of the parents1664: a new law outlawed marriages between European or English women and African (Negro/black) men Note: while the term â€Å"black† or â€Å"Negro† was sometimes used for Africans from the beginning of the presence of people of African descent in colonial America, the term â€Å"white† came into legal usage in Virginia about 1691, with a law referring to â€Å"English or other white women.† Before that, each nationality was described. In 1640, for instance, a court case described a â€Å"Dutchman,† a â€Å"Scotch man† and a â€Å"Negro,† all bond servants who escaped to Maryland. An earlier case, 1625, referred to a â€Å"Negro,† a â€Å"Frenchman,† and â€Å"a Portugall.† More about the early history of black or African women in what is now the United States, including how laws and treatment evolved: Timeline of African American History and Women Also known as: Elizabeth Key Grinstead; due to spelling variations common at the time, last name was variously Key, Keye, Kay and Kaye; married name was variously Grinstead, Greensted, Grimstead, and other spellings; final married name was Parse or Pearce Background, Family: Mother: not namedFather: Thomas Key (or Keye or Kay or Kaye) Marriage, Children: husband: William Grinstead (or Greensted or Grimstead or other spellings) (married July 21, 1656; indentured servant and lawyer)children:John GrinsteadWilliam Grinstead IIhusband: John Parce or Pearce (married about 1661)

Case Analysis Of ZipCar

Case Analysis Of ZipCar Zipcar was established in 1999 and it is a leading company in the car sharing industry in North America with a strong presence in the U.S., Canada and Europe (Goldman S., May 2008). The company has 200000 members in 50 markets and concentrates on businesses, residential areas and universities (Goldman S., May 2008). Their vision is â€Å"†Providing reliable and convenient access to on-demand transportation, complementing other means of mobility.†Ã¢â‚¬  (Goldman S., May 2008) The company car fleet consists of 5000 cars that include hybrid vehicles, SUVs and sedans (Goldman S., May 2008). Their business is concentrated on a small market where people need to rent a car on an hourly basis instead of daily basis. The customers can reserve a car online and use an RFID card called the zipcard to enter the reserved car by swiping the card on the reader near the driver’s windshield (Pearlson, K., Saunders, C. (2009)). Other than having a unique service Zipcar employs pow erful technology to support its business model (Pearlson, K., Saunders, C. (2009)). They have a patented wireless technology that is used to monitor car security, feul level, hourly usage and other features (Pearlson, K., Saunders, C. (2009)) . Zipcar has developed a unique business model and supported it with appropriate technology which makes it a unique business. Regarding the bargaining power of buyers, Zipcar service is considered unique and the market they are targeting is considered niche. Since it is hard to find a service like the one provided by Zipcar and the market is small the buyers bargaining power is low. The other substitute available is renting cars by day which is not convenient for some of the customers. Public transportation and car ownership is another alternative but it may be costly due to the rising fuel prices. In the other traditional car rental companies the customers have to wait for long to get their car. By using Zipcar they can find a nearby car witho ut waiting which is more convenient. In addition, Zipcar has an established brand name and a strong identity which makes the customers more attached to it. With a unique service and an established brand name Zipcar customers cannot be high on price sensitivity and their bargaining power is reduced. Concerning the bargaining power of suppliers, most of the suppliers for Zipcar are not concentrated. Insurers, gas providers and car agencies can be considered among the suppliers of Zipcar. All of these work in competitive markets. There are several insurers, car agencies and gas providers and Zipcar can chose among them which makes the bargaining power of suppliers low. However, Zipcar needs parking spaces and auto services which can be beneficial for the supplier. Parking spaces can be owned by a government authority or a business establishment. Zipcar may need to build and maintain relationships with these entities to get the parking spaces especially if the government or the establis hment owns a huge parking area. This way the supplier might have the upper hand since Zipcar needs those spaces near the customers. Also, the cars that Zipcar uses need services which makes the company limited to a very few suppliers to provide this service. Since cars are the basis for the business, Zipcar needs to choose one reliable supplier for the car service. Therefore, parking area owners and car service providers can be considered powerful suppliers.

Deductive and Inductive Arguments Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Deductive and Inductive Arguments - Essay Example A deductive argument is said to be unsound if its premises are not logically correct, but then they can be founded upon to form a correct conclusion. For instance, the following premises; Mary is 37 years old, Mary is caring then the conclusion from the premises is Mary is a mother. The argument is unsound since the premises are generalized and thus will not form a good basis for making an informed conclusion. The premises since they are general in nature cannot be said to be logically correct since they are not specific to be based for making informed conclusions hence the argument is unsound. Inductive premises are not always correct the person in the argument will take them as they are to influence a certain conclusion that is desirable (Iep.utm.edu). The nature of the premises in inductive arguments determines whether the overall conclusion of the argument is weak or strong. For instance; the policemen said Peter committed the murder, so Peter is the murderer. This argument is weak because its based on a section of the overall evidence and thus, cannot be depended upon. On the other hand, if we have premises like these; eyewitnesses said they saw Peter commit the murder, fingerprint evidence from the body of the diseased together with the weapon are identical to Peter’s and Peter confessed to the police to have committed the act, so Peter committed the murder. The argument above is strong since it incorporates a number of evidence that precisely implicates Peter to the murder beyond reasonable doubt. Therefore, from the aforementioned definitions and illustrations it is evident that the deductive arguments are more compelling than the inductive arguments because their conclusion are correctly premised logically and morally as opposed to the inductive arguments, which are often incorrect and depend upon the perception or intention of the individuals to form a conclusion that

Prejudice experience Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Prejudice experience - Essay Example However, prejudice is not necessarily a disadvantageous phenomenon as explained by Ruchlis because it may be in our favor in a few instances. Being a male Indonesian of Chinese ethnicity, I have also been the recipient of prejudice based on stereotypical thinking. A number of stereotypes portray Indonesians as essentially lazy South East Asians who lack discipline, are illogical and resist change. In Indonesia, the Chinese ethnic group is seen as financially dominant people most of whom own businesses in important town centers. However, this impression is fundamentally flawed as various ethnic Chinese living in Indonesia also do menial jobs such as brick layering and may not earn even USD 2 per day. Because of the business outlook, many Indonesians feel that the Chinese are here to steal the resources from the locals and have occupied all the important and well paid positions. While the income gap may be present but it is not significant enough to conclude the monetary dominance of one ethnicity over the other. Doing so is plain generalization without consideration of complete facts. Various generalizations regarding Indo nesia exist including those regarding religion with many people viewing Indonesia as a predominantly Muslim country although it is explicitly a secular state with diverse ethnicities. Moreover, there exist various stereotypes about age and knowledge. This view stems from the understanding that bigger age implies greater experience which is acquired over a long period of time rather than over night. However, to use this stereotype to form a judgment of one’s knowledge level may be misleading. In this world of technology, the internet acts as a useful resource for children at a very young age to acquire knowledge which previous generations might not have thought of. So, young age does not imply irrationality or lack of knowledge in any sense. In fact, the correlation between age and knowledge is very flexible and

Describe the main grievances of the Russian people Essay Example for Free

Describe the main grievances of the Russian people Essay In the early 19th century Russia was still a typical pre-modern society. A century later it had been transformed. The main changes that effected the Russian community took place in the late 19th century and early 20th centuries. Although the country was prospering in terms of economy, 80 per cent of the population were classified as peasant who lived in small farming villages that were using primitive farming methods. At the beginning of the 20th century, half the Russian population was illerate. This may have been due to the fact that until the 1860s the peasants had not been set free, although the Emancipation Act was attempting to correct this, not much had changed. Industrial growth after the abolition of serfdom did not really help progress the economy. One school of thought expected that the abolition of serfdom would create a spontaneous upsurge in industrialisation. The Emancipation act did nothing to stimulate a sudden upsurge in industrialisation, but it did not entirely block economic progress either. Though the size of peasant allotments did remain roughly equal, the amounts they actually farmed did not, because poorer households, with insufficient labour or livestock to farm their own allotments, rented them to wealthier peasants who could farm extra land. Industrial production did not grow rapidly, and by the 1900 Russia had a well-established base for further industrial development and an extensive railway network. The record for the agricultural sector was unimpressive, even though agriculture remained by far the largest sector of the economy. Growth was thus rapid but unbalanced. While industry expanded, the living conditions of large sections of the peasantry declined. Industrial development was therefore felt for the most part as a decline rather then a rise in material living standards. The problem for most people was how to cope with deteriorating economic conditions. The increased tax burden was combined with growing land shortage. Between 1860 and 1900 the average allotment per male peasant had declined about 46 per cent. At the same time, a growing number of poor peasants did not have the livestock necessary to work and manure their land. Declining land holdings and rising taxes had a profound effect on the peasantry. They meant the peasants who in the past had been able to support themselves mainly from the land, now had to adopt one of two strategies, either sell their grain for cash, or seek monetary incomes/wages. Russian industrial development favoured not the manufacture of consumer goods, but that of producer goods such as iron. In other words it did little to increase the availability or cheapness of consumer goods or increase material living standards. On the contrary, it affected people above all through an increase in the taxation necessary to pay for industrial development. Although the country was prospering in terms of economy, eighty per cent of the population were classified as peasant who lived in small farming villages that were using primitive farming methods. At the beginning of the 20th century, half of the Russian population was illiterate. This may have been due to the fact that until the 1860s the peasants had not been se free, although the Emancipation Act was attempting to correct this, not much had changed.

Extermination Camps Essay -- essays research papers

Nazi Extermination Camps Anti-Semitism reached to extreme levels beginning in 1939, when Polish Jews were regularly rounded up and shot by members of the SS. Though some of these SS men saw the arbitrary killing of Jews as a sport, many had to be lubricated with large quantities of alcohol before committing these atrocious acts. Mental trauma was not uncommon amongst those men who were ordered to murder Jews. The establishment of extermination camps therefore became the â€Å"Final Solution† to the â€Å"Jewish Question†, as well as a way to alleviate the mental trauma that grappled the minds of Nazi soldiers. The following essay will examine various primary and secondary sources to better illuminate the creation, evolution, practices and perpetrators of the extermination camps wherein the horrors of the Holocaust were conducted.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Pridham Noakes maintains that the creation of extermination camps began for two important reasons, the first already being mentioned as a way of soothing the psychological stress imposed upon Nazi soldiers of the Einsatzgruppen ordered to kill Jews with firearms. Fischer discusses the mental consequences which overcame soldiers of the Einsatzgruppen as a result of these brutal murders: â€Å"The men†¦were physically and psychologically drained. Some sought refuge in alcohol, some became physically ill, a few committed suicide.† The second reason for the creation of the extermination camps was to better conceal â€Å"subhuman† extermination from public (and foreign) view while accelerating the process of mass genocide.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The first extermination camp was located in Chelmno, Poland, where gas vans were used to kill the camps’ victims. Gas vans had been introduced in Poland in 1939, Noakes maintains, and had initially been used to murder Russian POWs. The gassing of Polish Jews began in 1941 after the Nazis had forcefully gathered the majority of them into ghettoes around Lodz and Warthegau. The process was of crude design: Jews (and other ‘subhuman’ subjects) were rounded up and told they were to be sent to a labor camp. Before this, however, they were to strip naked and bathe. After stripping, the victims were herded and locked into a gas van. The ‘driver’ started the engine, and the exhaust from the vehicle flooded into the van, killing the victims inside. According to Noakes, â€Å"a recent estima... ... personality structure. Eichmann, Himmler, Hess and Mengele were true believers with all the strength and intensity that accompanies the will to believe. A strong will to believe combined with a stubborn, inflexible personality type is then, according to Fischer what drove these men to commit the atrocities of the Holocaust. All these men needed was to be given something to believe strongly about, and Hitler gave it to them. I find this argument plausible, yet leaning toward generalization. Were the mentalities of Himmler and Eichmann that comparable? I think a far more detailed look at their personalities might prove otherwise. Nevertheless, both indeed carried out the orders of one of the most tyrannical governments to come to power during the 20th Century. An exact estimate of how many Jews were killed during the Holocaust has never been calculated, and figures range anywhere from four to seven million. Noakes asserts that the most reliable source comes from Eichmann himself, whose estimate was voiced through one of his subordinates (Wilhelm Hoettl of the RSHA) and calculated at roughly 6 million. Out of these 6 million, four milli on were killed in the extermination camps. Extermination Camps Essay -- essays research papers Nazi Extermination Camps Anti-Semitism reached to extreme levels beginning in 1939, when Polish Jews were regularly rounded up and shot by members of the SS. Though some of these SS men saw the arbitrary killing of Jews as a sport, many had to be lubricated with large quantities of alcohol before committing these atrocious acts. Mental trauma was not uncommon amongst those men who were ordered to murder Jews. The establishment of extermination camps therefore became the â€Å"Final Solution† to the â€Å"Jewish Question†, as well as a way to alleviate the mental trauma that grappled the minds of Nazi soldiers. The following essay will examine various primary and secondary sources to better illuminate the creation, evolution, practices and perpetrators of the extermination camps wherein the horrors of the Holocaust were conducted.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Pridham Noakes maintains that the creation of extermination camps began for two important reasons, the first already being mentioned as a way of soothing the psychological stress imposed upon Nazi soldiers of the Einsatzgruppen ordered to kill Jews with firearms. Fischer discusses the mental consequences which overcame soldiers of the Einsatzgruppen as a result of these brutal murders: â€Å"The men†¦were physically and psychologically drained. Some sought refuge in alcohol, some became physically ill, a few committed suicide.† The second reason for the creation of the extermination camps was to better conceal â€Å"subhuman† extermination from public (and foreign) view while accelerating the process of mass genocide.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The first extermination camp was located in Chelmno, Poland, where gas vans were used to kill the camps’ victims. Gas vans had been introduced in Poland in 1939, Noakes maintains, and had initially been used to murder Russian POWs. The gassing of Polish Jews began in 1941 after the Nazis had forcefully gathered the majority of them into ghettoes around Lodz and Warthegau. The process was of crude design: Jews (and other ‘subhuman’ subjects) were rounded up and told they were to be sent to a labor camp. Before this, however, they were to strip naked and bathe. After stripping, the victims were herded and locked into a gas van. The ‘driver’ started the engine, and the exhaust from the vehicle flooded into the van, killing the victims inside. According to Noakes, â€Å"a recent estima... ... personality structure. Eichmann, Himmler, Hess and Mengele were true believers with all the strength and intensity that accompanies the will to believe. A strong will to believe combined with a stubborn, inflexible personality type is then, according to Fischer what drove these men to commit the atrocities of the Holocaust. All these men needed was to be given something to believe strongly about, and Hitler gave it to them. I find this argument plausible, yet leaning toward generalization. Were the mentalities of Himmler and Eichmann that comparable? I think a far more detailed look at their personalities might prove otherwise. Nevertheless, both indeed carried out the orders of one of the most tyrannical governments to come to power during the 20th Century. An exact estimate of how many Jews were killed during the Holocaust has never been calculated, and figures range anywhere from four to seven million. Noakes asserts that the most reliable source comes from Eichmann himself, whose estimate was voiced through one of his subordinates (Wilhelm Hoettl of the RSHA) and calculated at roughly 6 million. Out of these 6 million, four milli on were killed in the extermination camps.

China online banking development Essay

China is expected to become the largest information technology (IT) market in the world in the next five years, acknowledging that computers will be popular in Chinese families by that time. China now ranks No. 2 in Internet subscribers in the world. Owing to China’s large population, the country’s Internet market still has great potential. Information technology has been utilized in almost all sectors of China’s economy today. E-government, e-business, e-finance, and upgrading of state-owned enterprises will all provide more opportunities for the development of the industry in  China is expected to become the largest information technology (IT) market in the world in the next five years, acknowledging that computers will be popular in Chinese families by that time. China now ranks No. 2 in Internet subscribers in the world. Owing to China’s large population, the country’s Internet market still has great potential. Information technology has been utilized in almost all sectors of China’s economy today. E-government, e-business, e-finance, and upgrading of state-owned enterprises will all provide more opportunities for the development of the industry in China. Read the Memo sent out by Jaime about 2004 Mid-Year Offsite Business-planning meeting conducted by S1 management team, the key topic of â€Å"Perfecting our International and Distribution Business† caught my attention. Learned the news that Macau Tai Fung bank implemented S1 Banking Solution to launched its online banking services, and found out that S1 opened an office in Beijing – China’s capital city, I got a feeling that S1 already turned its eyes to Chinese Market and wonder whether S1’s management would like to make further moves and seize the opportunity. Before left China to immigrant to Canada, I had 6 years working experiences in Beijing-my home city, dealing with Chinese financial agencies and institutions, Chinese and foreign banks as well as other financial institutions and service providers in China, I’m quite familiar with Chinese financial industry structure. I’d like to reuse my knowledge and made this online research report. If S1 is interested in expanding business in China, but not clear what is the situation there and where to start, my research report will, I hope to a certain extent, answer some of your questions. The main purpose of this report is to provide some information and personal suggestions that, I hope, could be helpful for S1’s management or marketing team to better understand Chinese market. This report includes information covering Chinese banking system structure, the emergence and development of Internet banking and online insurance services in China, Chinese governments’ policies and regulations toward online banking and insurance business as well as some prepositional thoughts about how to present S1 and its products to China. Naissance of Online Banking in China In the late 1990s, China began allowing banks to open online businesses. In 1996, China Merchants Bank launched the 1st online financing service in China through â€Å"All in One Net†, an online payment method, which set up the basic operating pattern of China online banking. On October 1997, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) established its own homepage on Internet to promote its financing services and to provide business guide for Internet users. March 1998, Bank of China successfully handled its first e-transaction. To 1999, all major banks in China had sped up their online banking construction. To date, online banking has made good progress in China. According to statistics from the recently seminar called â€Å"International Symposium on the Development of Online Banking and Supervision† sponsored by China Banking Regulatory Commission, China’s online bank transactions are expected to reach 20 trillion yuan (about 2. 4 trillion US dollars) by the end of this year. Currently, China has over 40 million individuals and 60,000 companies and institutions involved in online banking businesses. In 2003, Internet-based banking businesses have witnessed a big step forward, owing to the outbreak of SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome). Traditionally, Chinese have placed a premium on face-to-face meeting for important business-related matters, but the SARS crisis has forced people to change their attitude. Online Banking Development in China China is in the early stages of a vast transformation – from a traditional â€Å"cash and carry† banking system where customers use the branches for almost every banking activity to a modern Internet banking system. Currently, more than 50 commercial banks (domestic and foreign) and over 200 of their branches in China have opened websites, among which, a total of over 50 banks have launched online businesses. The Growth of Online Banking Customers in China China’s online bank transactions were 14. 3 billion yuan in 2001, increased to 21. 8 billion yuan in 2003, and are expected to reach 20 trillion yuan (about 2. 4 trillion US dollars) by the end of this year. Figure 3. 1: The Growth of Online Banking Customers in China Online Shopping Payment Methods in China. According to a survey made by China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC), payment online by credit card and deposit card is becoming the 1st choice for online purchasing. The traditional payment method of payment on delivery by cash and postal remittance decreased 3. 7% this year. Figure 3. 2: Online Purchasing Payment Methods in China An analysis shows that security and service abilities are the main concerns for Chinese to use online banking services, 72. 2% of the people inquired care a lot about whether the banks can guarantee the safety of all transactions in their online services, 60. 6% hope to see more functions and flexibilities. Figure 3. 3: Factors that that will attract Chinese to use online banking services Both Chinese and foreign banks in China realized that the internet solutions provide clients with more channels to communicate with them and allow them to benefit from greater control and cost efficiency, which are top of mind for treasurers today. Domestic Banks and Their Online Banking Services For many Chinese, banking in general is a new experience and in an economy where cash remains important, so bank branches also provide security to customers. However, with accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO), China’s major banks having to face competition, the local players are increasingly seeing their extensive and heavily manned branch networks as a liability. More and more Chinese banks seem to have discovered the Internet as new source of revenue and the powerful attraction of Internet banking is reflected an attractive proposition. The Chinese bank that has bee quickest off the mark in building Internet banking is China Merchant Bank, which launched the first online financing service in China in 1996. The four state-owned commercial banks quickly followed and successively began to offer some online services since then. May 2000, the Agricultural Bank of China (ABC) implemented a trial Internet banking service in its Guangzhou Branch, which allowed their customers in Guangdong province to access their account through Internet. December 2000, ABC launched online banking service in Shanghai called 95599 Online Bank. The new service of 95599 Online bank has reportedly attracted a number of large corporate clients, such as China Worldbest Group and Shanghai Volkswagen. The services offered include currency exchange, personal cheque issuance and access to consumer loans. Users can also report the loss of certificates of deposit, bankbooks and bankcards as well as prearrange withdrawals of cash sums. At the same time, China Construction Bank (CCB) announced its plans to extend its online banking services to 15 cities in the mainland as well as simplify the process of related authentication in a bid to boost the number of clients using online services. The bank began offering online services in April 2000 in cities of Beijing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Qingdao. Last year, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) unveiled a new platform for its personal online banking business – BANKING@HOME. ICBC officials said the upgraded e-banking platform could facilitate a key shift of the bank’s outlets from all-round functions to sales-orientated services, and gives it a firmer foothold in a market with intensifying foreign competition. ICBC officials said the 58-function brand-name allows â€Å"almost all services a traditional banking outlet offers† to be processed by the client on the computer, including 24-hour any-amount transfers of funds or remittances, securities and foreign currency trading as well as collateralized loans. Figure 3. 4: Internet Services provided by the 4 state-owned commercial banks Name Website URL Language Internet Services The Agricultural Bank of China (ABC) www. abocn. com – Chinese – Simplified Banking industry news and website news, Regulation for foreign currency deposits Link to online banking Bank of China (BOC) www. bank-of-china. com – Chinese Simplified – English Link to branch offices in other cities and provinces Link to E-banking services Cash management Information on the bank and its activities Information on credit card deposits online and phone banking, loans and remittances. China Construction Bank www. ccb-on-line. com – Chinese Simplified – English Links to exchange rates, stock quotes, deposit rates, loan rates, bank fees. Link to branch offices in other cities and provinces Credit card information. International Operations such as financing, merchant banking, international settlements, currency exchange, treasury services, credit investigations Information on oversea branches and domestic branches that conduct international transactions Foreign currency deposit, multi-currency remittances, account settlement and term deposit. Link to online banking and payment The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) www. icbc. com. cn – Chinese Simplified – Chinese Traditional – English Link to branch offices in other cities and provinces Link to online bank services: personal banking, corporate Banking. Information on E-banking Online financing Links to exchange rates, stock quotes, deposit rates, loan rates, bank fees. Foreign Banks and Their Online Banking Services Citibank claims that they are the 1st foreign bank in China that obtained approval from the People’s Bank of China (PCBC) to offer Internet banking services in China to both domestic and international corporations, as well as consumers. Its Internet banking services provide clients with convenient, easy-to-use, and secure access to banking transactions, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, over the Web. Offering its CitiDirect corporate banking service for cash management, the bank has developed an internet-based payments system specifically for the country. The system enables corporate clients in China to make local currency (renminbi) payment transactions to beneficiaries in over 7000 locations. The system, called Citibank Easy Payments, also delivers various payment and collections reports for clients to view or download into their computers. Its Internet-based banking services available in China for corporate and consumer clients include: CitiDirect(r) Online Banking is Citibank’s Web-based delivery channel for corporate clients, designed to securely deliver online an ever-expanding array of Citibank transaction products. CitiDirect(r) Online Banking provides access to account information, payment initiation capabilities, collections data, trade finance transactions, and import/export file integration capabilities. CitiDirect(r) replaces traditional electronic banking applications with a single Web-based delivery channel, thereby improving efficiency and reducing costs to clients. Available in 90 countries and 20 languages including traditional and simplified Chinese, CitiDirecti Online Banking gives clients the benefits of real-time processing, robust security and integration with their in-house treasury systems. * Citibank Easy Payments, an Internet-based payment system that allows corporate clients in China to make local currency (Renminbi) payment transactions to beneficiaries in over 7000 locations in China. This system was specifically developed for the China market. Citibank Easy Payments also delivers various payment and collections reports for clients to view or download into their computers. Citibank Easy Payments supports interface with all major Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) packages such as SAP, Oracle, BPCS as well as locally developed Chinese accounting packages. Citibank. com. cn, an Internet banking portal that allows corporations and consumers to manage their accounts online, make online enquiries or transactions, view customize and personalize pages as well as get online tools and real-time global market information. Global banking group HSBC, Hang Seng Bank and Bank of East Asia received online-banking license and launched online banking service in China on January 2003. This new service allows their customers to check their balances, transfer funds, make time deposits and account enquiries, check interest and foreign exchange rates, and send remittance instructions through Internet. It is said that more foreign banks, like London-based Standard Chartered Bank, have also received approval to launch online banking services in China, but it is not clear when the emerging market specialist would offer such service. China is expected to become the largest information technology (IT) market in the world in the next five years, acknowledging that computers will be popular in Chinese families by that time. China now ranks No. 2 in Internet subscribers in the world. Owing to China’s large population, the country’s Internet market still has great potential. Information technology has been utilized in almost all sectors of China’s economy today. E-government, e-business, e-finance, and upgrading of state-owned enterprises will all provide more opportunities for the development of the industry in China. Read the Memo sent out by Jaime about 2004 Mid-Year Offsite Business-planning meeting conducted by S1 management team, the key topic of â€Å"Perfecting our International and Distribution Business† caught my attention. Learned the news that Macau Tai Fung bank implemented S1 Banking Solution to launched its online banking services, and found out that S1 opened an office in Beijing – China’s capital city, I got a feeling that S1 already turned its eyes to Chinese Market and wonder whether S1’s management would like to make further moves and seize the opportunity. Before left China to immigrant to Canada, I had 6 years working experiences in Beijing-my home city, dealing with Chinese financial agencies and institutions, Chinese and foreign banks as well as other financial institutions and service providers in China, I’m quite familiar with Chinese financial industry structure. I’d like to reuse my knowledge and made this online research report. If S1 is interested in expanding business in China, but not clear what is the situation there and where to start, my research report will, I hope to a certain extent, answer some of your questions. The main purpose of this report is to provide some information and personal suggestions that, I hope, could be helpful for S1’s management or marketing team to better understand Chinese market. This report includes information covering Chinese banking system structure, the emergence and development of Internet banking and online insurance services in China, Chinese governments’ policies and regulations toward online banking and insurance business as well as some prepositional thoughts about how to present S1 and its products to China. Naissance of Online Banking in China In the late 1990s, China began allowing banks to open online businesses. In 1996, China Merchants Bank launched the 1st online financing service in China through â€Å"All in One Net†, an online payment method, which set up the basic operating pattern of China online banking. On October 1997, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) established its own homepage on Internet to promote its financing services and to provide business guide for Internet users. March 1998, Bank of China successfully handled its first e-transaction. To 1999, all major banks in China had sped up their online banking construction. To date, online banking has made good progress in China. According to statistics from the recently seminar called â€Å"International Symposium on the Development of Online Banking and Supervision† sponsored by China Banking Regulatory Commission, China’s online bank transactions are expected to reach 20 trillion yuan (about 2. 4 trillion US dollars) by the end of this year. Currently, China has over 40 million individuals and 60,000 companies and institutions involved in online banking businesses In 2003, Internet-based banking businesses have witnessed a big step forward, owing to the outbreak of SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome). Traditionally, Chinese have placed a premium on face-to-face meeting for important business-related matters, but the SARS crisis has forced people to change their attitude. Online Banking Development in China China is in the early stages of a vast transformation – from a traditional â€Å"cash and carry† banking system where customers use the branches for almost every banking activity to a modern Internet banking system. Currently, more than 50 commercial banks (domestic and foreign) and over 200 of their branches in China have opened websites, among which, a total of over 50 banks have launched online businesses. The Growth of Online Banking Customers in China China’s online bank transactions were 14. 3 billion yuan in 2001, increased to 21. 8 billion yuan in 2003, and are expected to reach 20 trillion yuan (about 2. 4 trillion US dollars) by the end of this year. Figure 3. 1: The Growth of Online Banking Customers in China Online Shopping Payment Methods in China According to a survey made by China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC), payment online by credit card and deposit card is becoming the 1st choice for online purchasing. The traditional payment method of payment on delivery by cash and postal remittance decreased 3. 7% this year. Figure 3. 2: Online Purchasing Payment Methods in China An analysis shows that security and service abilities are the main concerns for Chinese to use online banking services, 72. 2% of the people inquired care a lot about whether the banks can guarantee the safety of all transactions in their online services, 60. 6% hope to see more functions and flexibilities. Figure 3. 3: Factors that that will attract Chinese to use online banking services Both Chinese and foreign banks in China realized that the internet solutions provide clients with more channels to communicate with them and allow them to benefit from greater control and cost efficiency, which are top of mind for treasurers today. Domestic Banks and Their Online Banking Services For many Chinese, banking in general is a new experience and in an economy where cash remains important, so bank branches also provide security to customers. However, with accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO), China’s major banks having to face competition, the local players are increasingly seeing their extensive and heavily manned branch networks as a liability. More and more Chinese banks seem to have discovered the Internet as new source of revenue and the powerful attraction of Internet banking is reflected an attractive proposition. The Chinese bank that has bee quickest off the mark in building Internet banking is China Merchant Bank, which launched the first online financing service in China in 1996. The four state-owned commercial banks quickly followed and successively began to offer some online services since then. May 2000, the Agricultural Bank of China (ABC) implemented a trial Internet banking service in its Guangzhou Branch, which allowed their customers in Guangdong province to access their account through Internet. December 2000, ABC launched online banking service in Shanghai called 95599 Online Bank. The new service of 95599 Online bank has reportedly attracted a number of large corporate clients, such as China Worldbest Group and Shanghai Volkswagen. The services offered include currency exchange, personal cheque issuance and access to consumer loans. Users can also report the loss of certificates of deposit, bankbooks and bankcards as well as prearrange withdrawals of cash sums. At the same time, China Construction Bank (CCB) announced its plans to extend its online banking services to 15 cities in the mainland as well as simplify the process of related authentication in a bid to boost the number of clients using online services. The bank began offering online services in April 2000 in cities of Beijing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Qingdao. Last year, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) unveiled a new platform for its personal online banking business – BANKING@HOME. ICBC officials said the upgraded e-banking platform could facilitate a key shift of the bank’s outlets from all-round functions to sales-orientated services, and gives it a firmer foothold in a market with intensifying foreign competition. ICBC officials said the 58-function brand-name allows â€Å"almost all services a traditional banking outlet offers† to be processed by the client on the computer, including 24-hour any-amount transfers of funds or remittances, securities and foreign currency trading as well as collateralized loans. Figure 3. 4: Internet Services provided by the 4 state-owned commercial banks Name Website URL Language Internet Services The Agricultural Bank of China (ABC) www. abocn. com – Chinese – Simplified Banking industry news and website news, Regulation for foreign currency deposits Link to online banking Bank of China (BOC) www. bank-of-china. com – Chinese Simplified – English Link to branch offices in other cities and provinces Link to E-banking services Cash management Information on the bank and its activities Information on credit card deposits online and phone banking, loans and remittances. China Construction Bank www. ccb-on-line. com – Chinese Simplified – English Links to exchange rates, stock quotes, deposit rates, loan rates, bank fees. Link to branch offices in other cities and provinces Credit card information. International Operations such as financing, merchant banking, international settlements, currency exchange, treasury services, credit investigations Information on oversea branches and domestic branches that conduct international transactions Foreign currency deposit, multi-currency remittances, account settlement and term deposit. Link to online banking and payment The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) www. icbc. com. cn – Chinese Simplified – Chinese Traditional – English Link to branch offices in other cities and provinces Link to online bank services: personal banking, corporate Banking. Information on E-banking Online financing Links to exchange rates, stock quotes, deposit rates, loan rates, bank fees. Foreign Banks and Their Online Banking Services Citibank claims that they are the 1st foreign bank in China that obtained approval from the People’s Bank of China (PCBC) to offer Internet banking services in China to both domestic and international corporations, as well as consumers. Its Internet banking services provide clients with convenient, easy-to-use, and secure access to banking transactions, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, over the Web. Offering its CitiDirect corporate banking service for cash management, the bank has developed an internet-based payments system specifically for the country. The system enables corporate clients in China to make local currency (renminbi) payment transactions to beneficiaries in over 7000 locations. The system, called Citibank Easy Payments, also delivers various payment and collections reports for clients to view or download into their computers. Its Internet-based banking services available in China for corporate and consumer clients include: CitiDirect(r) Online Banking is Citibank’s Web-based delivery channel for corporate clients, designed to securely deliver online an ever-expanding array of Citibank transaction products. CitiDirect(r) Online Banking provides access to account information, payment initiation capabilities, collections data, trade finance transactions, and import/export file integration capabilities. CitiDirect(r) replaces traditional electronic banking applications with a single Web-based delivery channel, thereby improving efficiency and reducing costs to clients. Available in 90 countries and 20 languages including traditional and simplified Chinese, CitiDirecti Online Banking gives clients the benefits of real-time processing, robust security and integration with their in-house treasury systems. * Citibank Easy Payments, an Internet-based payment system that allows corporate clients in China to make local currency (Renminbi) payment transactions to beneficiaries in over 7000 locations in China. This system was specifically developed for the China market. Citibank Easy Payments also delivers various payment and collections reports for clients to view or download into their computers. Citibank Easy Payments supports interface with all major Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) packages such as SAP, Oracle, BPCS as well as locally developed Chinese accounting packages.   Citibank. com. cn, an Internet banking portal that allows corporations and consumers to manage their accounts online, make online enquiries or transactions, view customize and personalize pages as well as get online tools and real-time global market information. Global banking group HSBC, Hang Seng Bank and Bank of East Asia received online-banking license and launched online banking service in China on January 2003. This new service allows their customers to check their balances, transfer funds, make time deposits and account enquiries, check interest and foreign exchange rates, and send remittance instructions through Internet. It is said that more foreign banks, like London-based Standard Chartered Bank, have also received approval to launch online banking services in China, but it is not clear when the emerging market specialist would offer such service. Read the Memo sent out by Jaime about 2004 Mid-Year Offsite Business-planning meeting conducted by S1 management team, the key topic of â€Å"Perfecting our International and Distribution Business† caught my attention. Learned the news that Macau Tai Fung bank implemented S1 Banking Solution to launched its online banking services, and found out that S1 opened an office in Beijing – China’s capital city, I got a feeling that S1 already turned its eyes to Chinese Market and wonder whether S1’s management would like to make further moves and seize the opportunity. Before left China to immigrant to Canada, I had 6 years working experiences in Beijing-my home city, dealing with Chinese financial agencies and institutions, Chinese and foreign banks as well as other financial institutions and service providers in China, I’m quite familiar with Chinese financial industry structure. I’d like to reuse my knowledge and made this online research report. If S1 is interested in expanding business in China, but not clear what is the situation there and where to start, my research report will, I hope to a certain extent, answer some of your questions. The main purpose of this report is to provide some information and personal suggestions that, I hope, could be helpful for S1’s management or marketing team to better understand Chinese market. This report includes information covering Chinese banking system structure, the emergence and development of Internet banking and online insurance services in China, Chinese governments’ policies and regulations toward online banking and insurance business as well as some prepositional thoughts about how to present S1 and its products to China. Naissance of Online Banking in China In the late 1990s, China began allowing banks to open online businesses. In 1996, China Merchants Bank launched the 1st online financing service in China through â€Å"All in One Net†, an online payment method, which set up the basic operating pattern of China online banking. On October 1997, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) established its own homepage on Internet to promote its financing services and to provide business guide for Internet users. March 1998, Bank of China successfully handled its first e-transaction. To 1999, all major banks in China had sped up their online banking construction. To date, online banking has made good progress in China. According to statistics from the recently seminar called â€Å"International Symposium on the Development of Online Banking and Supervision† sponsored by China Banking Regulatory Commission, China’s online bank transactions are expected to reach 20 trillion yuan (about 2. 4 trillion US dollars) by the end of this year. Currently, China has over 40 million individuals and 60,000 companies and institutions involved in online banking businesses. In 2003, Internet-based banking businesses have witnessed a big step forward, owing to the outbreak of SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome). Traditionally, Chinese have placed a premium on face-to-face meeting for important business-related matters, but the SARS crisis has forced people to change their attitude. Online Banking Development in China China is in the early stages of a vast transformation – from a traditional â€Å"cash and carry† banking system where customers use the branches for almost every banking activity to a modern Internet banking system. Currently, more than 50 commercial banks (domestic and foreign) and over 200 of their branches in China have opened websites, among which, a total of over 50 banks have launched online businesses. The Growth of Online Banking Customers in China China’s online bank transactions were 14. 3 billion yuan in 2001, increased to 21. 8 billion yuan in 2003, and are expected to reach 20 trillion yuan (about 2. 4 trillion US dollars) by the end of this year. Figure 3. 1: The Growth of Online Banking Customers in China Online Shopping Payment Methods in China According to a survey made by China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC), payment online by credit card and deposit card is becoming the 1st choice for online purchasing. The traditional payment method of payment on delivery by cash and postal remittance decreased 3. 7% this year. Figure 3. 2: Online Purchasing Payment Methods in China An analysis shows that security and service abilities are the main concerns for Chinese to use online banking services, 72. 2% of the people inquired care a lot about whether the banks can guarantee the safety of all transactions in their online services, 60. 6% hope to see more functions and flexibilities. Figure 3. 3: Factors that that will attract Chinese to use online banking services Both Chinese and foreign banks in China realized that the internet solutions provide clients with more channels to communicate with them and allow them to benefit from greater control and cost efficiency, which are top of mind for treasurers today. Domestic Banks and Their Online Banking Services For many Chinese, banking in general is a new experience and in an economy where cash remains important, so bank branches also provide security to customers. However, with accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO), China’s major banks having to face competition, the local players are increasingly seeing their extensive and heavily manned branch networks as a liability. More and more Chinese banks seem to have discovered the Internet as new source of revenue and the powerful attraction of Internet banking is reflected an attractive proposition. The Chinese bank that has bee quickest off the mark in building Internet banking is China Merchant Bank, which launched the first online financing service in China in 1996. The four state-owned commercial banks quickly followed and successively began to offer some online services since then. May 2000, the Agricultural Bank of China (ABC) implemented a trial Internet banking service in its Guangzhou Branch, which allowed their customers in Guangdong province to access their account through Internet. December 2000, ABC launched online banking service in Shanghai called 95599 Online Bank. The new service of 95599 Online bank has reportedly attracted a number of large corporate clients, such as China Worldbest Group and Shanghai Volkswagen. The services offered include currency exchange, personal cheque issuance and access to consumer loans. Users can also report the loss of certificates of deposit, bankbooks and bankcards as well as prearrange withdrawals of cash sums. At the same time, China Construction Bank (CCB) announced its plans to extend its online banking services to 15 cities in the mainland as well as simplify the process of related authentication in a bid to boost the number of clients using online services. The bank began offering online services in April 2000 in cities of Beijing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Qingdao. Last year, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) unveiled a new platform for its personal online banking business – BANKING@HOME. ICBC officials said the upgraded e-banking platform could facilitate a key shift of the bank’s outlets from all-round functions to sales-orientated services, and gives it a firmer foothold in a market with intensifying foreign competition. ICBC officials said the 58-function brand-name allows â€Å"almost all services a traditional banking outlet offers† to be processed by the client on the computer, including 24-hour any-amount transfers of funds or remittances, securities and foreign currency trading as well as collateralized loans. Figure 3. 4: Internet Services provided by the 4 state-owned commercial banks Name Website URL Language Internet Services The Agricultural Bank of China (ABC) www. abocn. com – Chinese – Simplified Banking industry news and website news, Regulation for foreign currency deposits Link to online banking Bank of China (BOC) www. bank-of-china. com – Chinese Simplified – English Link to branch offices in other cities and provinces Link to E-banking services Cash management Information on the bank and its activities Information on credit card deposits online and phone banking, loans and remittances. China Construction Bank www. ccb-on-line. com – Chinese Simplified – English Links to exchange rates, stock quotes, deposit rates, loan rates, bank fees. Link to branch offices in other cities and provinces Credit card information International Operations such as financing, merchant banking, international settlements, currency exchange, treasury services, credit investigations Information on oversea branches and domestic branches that conduct international transactions Foreign currency deposit, multi-currency remittances, account settlement and term deposit. Link to online banking and payment The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) www. icbc. com. cn – Chinese Simplified – Chinese Traditional – English Link to branch offices in other cities and provinces Link to online bank services: personal banking, corporate Banking Information on E-banking Online financing Links to exchange rates, stock quotes, deposit rates, loan rates, bank fees. Foreign Banks and Their Online Banking Services Citibank claims that they are the 1st foreign bank in China that obtained approval from the People’s Bank of China (PCBC) to offer Internet banking services in China to both domestic and international corporations, as well as consumers. Its Internet banking services provide clients with convenient, easy-to-use, and secure access to banking transactions, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, over the Web. Offering its CitiDirect corporate banking service for cash management, the bank has developed an internet-based payments system specifically for the country. The system enables corporate clients in China to make local currency (renminbi) payment transactions to beneficiaries in over 7000 locations. The system, called Citibank Easy Payments, also delivers various payment and collections reports for clients to view or download into their computers. Its Internet-based banking services available in China for corporate and consumer clients include: CitiDirect(r) Online Banking is Citibank’s Web-based delivery channel for corporate clients, designed to securely deliver online an ever-expanding array of Citibank transaction products. CitiDirect(r) Online Banking provides access to account information, payment initiation capabilities, collections data, trade finance transactions, and import/export file integration capabilities. CitiDirect(r) replaces traditional electronic banking applications with a single Web-based delivery channel, thereby improving efficiency and reducing costs to clients. Available in 90 countries and 20 languages including traditional and simplified Chinese, CitiDirecti Online Banking gives clients the benefits of real-time processing, robust security and integration with their in-house treasury systems. * Citibank Easy Payments, an Internet-based payment system that allows corporate clients in China to make local currency (Renminbi) payment transactions to beneficiaries in over 7000 locations in China. This system was specifically developed for the China market. Citibank Easy Payments also delivers various payment and collections reports for clients to view or download into their computers. Citibank Easy Payments supports interface with all major Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) packages such as SAP, Oracle, BPCS as well as locally developed Chinese accounting packages.   Citibank. com. cn, an Internet banking portal that allows corporations and consumers to manage their accounts online, make online enquiries or transactions, view customize and personalize pages as well as get online tools and real-time global market information. Global banking group HSBC, Hang Seng Bank and Bank of East Asia received online-banking license and launched online banking service in China on January 2003. This new service allows their customers to check their balances, transfer funds, make time deposits and account enquiries, check interest and foreign exchange rates, and send remittance instructions through Internet. It is said that more foreign banks, like London-based Standard Chartered Bank, have also received approval to launch online banking services in China, but it is not clear when the emerging market specialist would offer such service.

Peace Psychology

As much as America has developed over the past hundred years, violence has grown to be a very critical part of today’s society; domestic violence, workplace violence, school violence, gang violence and etc. The rate of violence is enormous and as sad as it is to say, it starts with the young children in our society. Children are growing to be a very significant part of the high violence rates today. People may wonder where children learn violence at such an early age, although many of it is learned in your own house, or at school, the biggest source of violent information is learned from the media.Children’s television such as cartoons who portray violence to be a positive act of entertainment, or video games in which the main objective is to steal, kill and hurt others in order to advance through the game and even movies which pan out a long sequence of various acts of crime and violence. Violence is ultimately everywhere, and it is hard to avoid, especially as a child in today’s growing age, as hard as it is to avoid as a child, it is even harder to not imitate what is seen in the house, or on TV or in particular video games. Albert Bandura is famous psychologist who is most know for his social learning theory.Bandura believed that all behavior was learned through imitation rather than genetic factors. He believed that social influence such as what is seen on TV, movies and videos games is primarily responsible for children’s growth and behavior. Albert Bandura’s (1961) famous Bobo Doll experiment is a prime example of how children will indeed imitate what they see done by an elder person such as a role model. Selected kids who were chosen as participants for this study sat behind a window and watched as their parents walked into a room and intentionally punched and kicked a bobo doll and harshly beat it.Then as the kids proceeded into the room with the bobo doll, they imitated their parents every move by kicking, punching a nd beating the bobo doll just like their parents just did minutes prior. Although this experiment has been debated for various reasons in the past, it is still a very powerful and informative experiment that goes to show how vital it is for kids to be exposed to the proper material in order to keep them from disruptive behavior.Frequent exposure to violent television shows and video games can really affect a child’s upbringing, it begins to desensitize children as well as affect their moral development as they begin to believe that violence and crime are part of the norm, and these immoral acts won’t deviate them from society. According to Funk, Buchman, Jenks and Bechtoldt (2003), â€Å"The possibility that exposure to violent video games will result in desensitization and subsequent impairment of the processes involved in the moral evaluation of aggression and violence has not yet been studied.However, violent video games condone, promote, and justify the use of vio lence while concealing realistic consequences. When playing a violent video game, the player first observes repeated demonstrations of violent actions. To succeed, the player must then identify and select the violent strategies built in by the game designers. Choosing not to apply the authorized violent tactics results in defeat or obliteration. Players who prudently choose violent strategies experience cycles of practice coupled with positive reinforcement for their astute decisions.In violent video games, violence is acceptable because it is not real; therefore, ‘‘victims’’ do not really suffer â€Å"(2003, P. 416). Although their hasn’t been sufficient studies done on the direct desensitization of video games and TV on children, it still has a profound impact on children as they are positively reinforced consistently for the violent acts in video games and as an affect of doing so, it begins to take a toll on their moral development seeing in whi ch they are being rewarded for their immoral acts. Desensitization to violence involves changes in both emotional and cognitive responsivity. Changes in emotional responsivity are seen in the blunting or absence of emotional reactions to violent events, which would commonly elicit a strong response. Cognitive changes are demonstrated when the customary view that violence is uncommon and unlikely is transformed to the belief that violence is mundane and inevitable.Empathy and attitudes towards violence are components of the process of moral evaluation that may reflect both emotional and cognitive desensitization, with empathy decreasing and proviolence attitudes being strengthened† (Funk, Buchman, Jenks and Bechtoldt, 2003, P. 416-417). As kids become desensitized to violence, their emotional and cognitive responses become altered. In a violent situation where a child would normally be threatened by what’s going on, when a child’s emotional esponsivity is altered, they will react differently to a violent situation and won’t be as threatened or feared by what’s going on. When an innocent bystander has a gun pulled on them, it will elicit a strong response of fear and terror, a child who has become desensitized to violence and has been emotionally altered, they won’t be as prone to eliciting that same response but would rather be much more calm and collective in the same situation. A child who has become cognitively altered will expect violence and when it occurs, won’t be as threatened by it.In the same situation when a innocent bystander has a gun pulled on them, they will be shocked and terrified because they would have never expected for such a act of violence and crime to occur, but in the same situation with a cognitively altered child who has become cognitively desensitized, they won’t be as shocked by it because they expected it and believed it would happen and that it is common. Becoming desensitized at an early age can have a very negative effect on children as they begin to age, they will see crime and violence as an acceptable cause rather than an immoral act of indecency.Video games have become a very powerful representation of crime and violence to young children all over the world. The acceptance of these immoral acts in these video games have altered the representations of these acts in many children’s minds, before where they may have been seen as negative, may now be seen as positive. According to Funk, Buchman, Jenks and Bechtoldt (2003), â€Å"Exposure to violence in video games may influence the development of proviolence attitudes because, in such games, violence is not only justified and rewarded, it is presented as fun.In contemporary violent video games violence is at the same time both realistic and unreal, negating the suffering of victims. Playing violent video games encourages fantasizing about aggression and cognitive rehearsal of aggressive acts; t his may not only strengthen proviolence attitudes but also, through cognitive priming, increase the accessibility of aggressive behaviors in real life (Eron, 2001)† (2003, P. 418).If children begin to believe that violence and criminal activities are fun and exciting and worthwhile, they will me much more prone to doing these acts and feeling more comfortable while performing and or being around these immoral acts. Many people don’t understand how powerful the media just is, parents put their children in front of the TV screen and believe that as long as they are preoccupied they will be ok, but they regret to realize how much of an impact television and especially the media can have on children, ‘‘Media is the most ubiquitous source of violence encountered by the majority of children’’ (Groves 1997, p. 72). Media violence is everywhere for children to view, in books, video games, magazines, newspapers, school, television, from friends and even from family, violence is ultimately everywhere, and children are exposed to it today then they have ever been before. According to Erwin and Morton, â€Å"Young children and their families don’t have to leave their homes to witness violence; it is brought directly into their homes on a daily basis.Before young children even enter kindergarten they are exposed to over 4,000 h of television viewing (American Psychological Association 2005) and by the time they leave elementary school children will have witnessed 8,000 murders and 100,000 acts of violence on just television alone (Levin 1998). Nearly 1,000 children’s television programs were analyzed in Britain and results revealed that 39% contained violence including 4,000 violent acts involving shootings and other forms of physical assault (Gunter and Harrison 1997).In a study examining violence in over 2,700 television programs across 23 channels of broadcast networks, public broadcasting, and cable, Wilson et al. ( 2002) found that nearly 7 out of 10 children’s shows contain some type of physical aggression and that, within a typical 1 h children’s program, a child is likely to witness one violent act every 4 min. In comparisons between children’s and other types of television programming, the study authors concluded that ‘‘violence is more prevalent and concentrated in programs specifically targeted to viewers under age 13’’ (p. 7). The amount of violence in shows specifically aimed at young children is inexcusable. Incredibly, the average American child spends approximately 1,023 h per year watching television which is greater than the 900 h children spend in school each year (National Center for Children Exposed to Violence 2003)† (2008, P. 105). These numbers are enormous considering the time children spend watching TV is greater than the amount of time children spend in the classroom.Although the classroom is meant for learning, the med ia has become a very powerful source of information itself and has become a strong means of learning for many children today. According to reports by the Surgeon General’s Scientific Advisory Committee on Television and Social Behavior, which was created in 1969, as well as the National Institute of Mental Health, the three primary effects of media violence on children are (a) reduced sensitivity to the pain and anguish of others, (b) increased fearfulness, and (c) greater aggressive or violent behavior toward others (American Psychological Association 2005).In addition, The American Psychological Association (2005) maintained that existing research suggests that exposure to violence in the media leads to increased acceptance of aggressive attitudes and behavior in children† (Erwin and Morton, 2008, P. 107). The three primary effects by the media are all critical components in violent criminals that exist today, reduced sensitivity to the pain and anguish of others help s criminals do immoral acts without feeling any sympathy for the people they are doing it to.Increased fearfulness makes them more aggressive people who feel confident corrupting the lives of others, and finally greater aggressive or violent behavior which is the vital component of being a violent criminal. â€Å"Research suggested that television violence does increase children’s real-life aggressive behavior, beliefs, and attitudes (Boyatzis and Matillo 1995; Gentile et al. 2003; Paik and Comstock 1994; Wood et al. 1991). In a 15-year longitudinal study, Huesmann et al. (2003) found that exposure to media violence in childhood is not only associated with aggressive behavior, but is also a predictor of violent behavior.There is also a greater tolerance for aggression in others when children are exposed to television violence (Molitor and Hirsch 1994). In addition to researchers, early childhood advocates argue that witnessing media violence can have a negative impact on chi ldren’s perceptions of reality. Children under the age of eight are not prepared for or developmentally capable of discriminating reality from fantasy or understanding the subtleties in communication, action or motivation (NAEYC 1994).Because children are still developing emotionally and cognitively they are likely to imitate what they see on television without distinguishing reality from fantasy thus becoming more indifferent and less empathetic about aggression in the real world (Groves 1997; Kirsh 2005). Re-enacting in play what is seen in the real world is how children begin to make sense of the world around them. Imaginative play, which is a necessary and vital part of early childhood learning, is negatively impacted as the result of frequent exposure to violence in the media (NAEYC 1994). Media violence also demonstrates to young children that aggression is an cceptable and viable option for solving problems, abuses of power are necessary in interpersonal relationships, and a distorted appeal of war (Carlsson-Paige and Levin 1988)† (Erwin and Morton, 2008, P. 107). This current research goes to prove how critical and important it is for parents to realize the impact the media can have on their children. The more children are exposed to the crime and violence that occurs in the media, the more aggressive and violent they become, it has a significant effect on their moral development as well as their tolerance for violence crime.It also explains how children imitate what they see on TV and as they begin to believe that violence and crime are socially accepted by the media, they will me more prone to committing acts of violence and or crime. Ultimately the media has a very influential impact on young children, and if parents do not become more aware of this, our youth will continue to grow into to a violent and criminally fulfilled society. References American Psychology Association. (2005). Violence in the media:Psychologists help protect chil dren from harmful effects. Retrieved April 4, 2005, from APA Online: ttp://ww. psychologymatters. org/mediaviolence. html. Bandura, A. , Ross, D. , & Ross, S. A. (1961). Transmission of aggression through imitation of aggressive models. Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 63, 575-582. Boyatzis, C. J. , & Matillo, G. M. (1995). Effects of ‘the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers’ on children’s aggression with peers. Child Study Journal, 25(1), 45–57. Carlsson-Paige, N. , & Levin, D. (1988). Young children and war play. Educational Leadership, 45(4), 80–84. Eron, L. D. (2001). Seeing is believing: How viewing violence alters attitudes and aggressive behavior.In A. C. Bohart, & D. J. Stipek (Eds. ), Constructive and destructive behavior: Implications for family, school and society ( pp. 49–60). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. Erwin, E. J. , &Morton, N. (2008). Exposure to media violence and young children with and without dis abilities: Powerful opportunities for family-professional partnerships. Early Childhood Education Journal, 36, 105-112. Funk, J. B. , Buchman, D. D. , Jenks, J. , Bechtoldt, H. (2003). Playing violent video games, desensitization, and moral evaluation in children. Applied Developmental Psychology, 24, 13-436. Gentile, D. A, Linder, J. R. , & Walsh, D. A. (2003, April). Looking through time: A longitudinal study of children’s media violence consumption at home and aggressive behaviors at school. Paper presented at the Biennial Conference of the Society for Research in Child Development, Tampa, FL. Groves, B. (1997). Growing up in a violent world: The impact of family and community violence on young children and their families. Topics in Early Childhood Special Education, 17(1), 74–102. Retrieved February 8, 2005 from the Academic Search Premier. Gunter, B. , & Harrison, J. (1997).Violence in children’s programmes on British television. Child Society, 11, 143†“156. doi:10. 1111/j. 1099-0860. 1997. tb00022. x. Huesmann, L. R. , Moise-Titus, J. , Podolski, C. , & Eron, L. D. (2003). Longitudinal relations between children’s exposure to TV violence and their aggressive and violent behavior in young adulthood: 1977–1992. Developmental Psychology, 39(2), 201–221. Kirsh, S. J. (2005). Cartoon violence and aggression in youth. Aggressive and Violent Behavior, 11(6), 547–557. doi:10. 1016/ j. avb. 2005. 10. 002. Levin, D. (1998). Remote control childhood: Combating the hazards of media culture.Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children. Molitor, F. , & Hirsch, K. W. (1994). Children’s toleration of real-life aggression after exposure to media violence: A replication of the Drabman and Thomas studies. Child Study Journal, 24(3), 191–208. National Association for the Education of Young Children. (1994). NAEYC position statement on media violence in children’s lives. W ashington, DC: Author. National Center for Children Exposed to Violence. (2003). Statistics: Violence in the media. Retrieved May 7, 2004, from: http://ww. nccev. org/violence/statistics-media. html. Paik, H. & Comstock, G. A. (1994). The effects of television violence on antisocial behavior: A meta-analysis. Communication Research, 21, 516–546. doi:10. 1177/009365094021004004. Wilson, B. J. , Smith, S. L. , Potter, W. J. , Kunkel, D. , Linz, D. , Colvin, C. M. , et al. (2002). Violence in children’s programming: Assessing the risks. The Journal of Communication, 52(1), 5–35. doi:10. 1111/j. 1460-2466. 2002. tb02531. x. Wood, W. , Wong, F. Y. , & Chachere, G. (1991). Effects of media violence on viewers’ aggression in unconstrained social interaction. Psychological Bulletin, 109, 371–383. doi:10. 1037/0033-2909. 109. 3. 371.

Myths and Misconceptions About Tree Roots Explained

Myths and Misconceptions About Tree Roots Explained The root system of a tree  is seldom on the radar for forest owners and tree lovers. Roots are rarely exposed so misconceptions about how they grow and function can influence tree managers into bad decision making. You can grow a healthier tree if you understand its root system. Here are several tree root myths that  may change how you perceive your tree and correct the way you plant and grow the plant. Myth 1: All Trees Have Single Tap Roots Most trees do not have tap roots after the seedling stage. They quickly produce water-seeking lateral and feeder roots. When a tree is grown in deep, well-drained soil, these trees will develop many deep roots directly surrounding the trunk. They should not be confused with what we think of as a taproot similar to other vegetable plants like carrots and turnips or the tap roots of tree seedlings. Shallow, compacted soils will eliminate deep roots altogether and you will have a feeder root mat with very few deep roots. These trees get most of their water above the water table level and are subject to damaging windthrow and severe drought. Myth 2: Tree Roots Will Grow Only to a Tree's Dripline There is a belief that roots tend to stay under a trees leaf canopy. That seldom happens. Trees in a forest have roots reaching well beyond their individual branches and leaves in search of water and nutrients. Studies have shown that roots actually grow laterally to a distance equal to the height of the tree. One report from the University of Florida extension says Roots on trees and shrubs planted in a landscape grow to 3 times the branch spread within 2 to 3 years of planting. Trees standing together in a forest send roots beyond their individual limbs and intermingle with the roots of neighboring trees. Myth 3: Damaged Roots Result in Canopy Dieback on the Same Side This does happen, but it should not be assumed as a foregone conclusion. University of Florida extension says that Roots on one side of trees such as oaks and mahogany generally supply the same side of the tree with water and nutrients. Dieback of individual branches and limbs will occur on the damaged root side. Interestingly, maple trees do not seem to show injury and drop leaves on the side of root injury. Instead, branch death may occur anywhere in the crown with some tree species like maples. Myth 4: Deeper Roots Secure Water and Nutrients On the contrary, the feeder roots in the top 3 inches of soil supply your tree with water and food. These delicate finer roots are concentrated in that upper soil and duff layer where immediate nutrients and moisture are quickly available. Minor soil disturbances can injure these feeder roots and remove a large portion of the absorbing roots on a tree. This is can significantly set a tree back. Major soil disturbances due to construction and severe compaction can kill a tree. Myth 5: Root Pruning Stimulates Root Branching When planting a trees root ball, It is very tempting to cut back on roots that are circling the ball. It is very often thought that a dense root ball will stimulate new feeder root growth, but that is not the case. Dont worry about encircling roots as they will correct that on a new site. Most new root growth occurs at the end of existing roots. Root pruning is often done at the nursery to accommodate packaging and to resume growth before the final sale. If you are planting the tree at its final site, it may be best that you gently break up the root ball but never prune root tips. Source Gilman, Edward. Dispelling Misperceptions About Trees. University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Extension, Aug. 2011.

Compare and contrast perfect competition and monopolistic competition Essay

Compare and contrast perfect competition and monopolistic competition. Also Explain how equilibrium is determined in the Keynesian Income Expenditure - Essay Example nother very important characteristic of the Monopolistic competition is that each firm tries to create difference in its product from the other by advertising, propaganda, attractive packing, nice smile, etc. The entry of new firms in the monopolistically competition industry is relatively easy. There are no barriers of new firms to enter the product group or leave the industry in the long run. In perfect competition model, it was assumed that there was large number of firms producing homogenous product. In the case of monopoly, there was only one seller of a product. Both these models were thus polar extremes and were considered satisfactory for the market price analysis in economic theory. Under perfect competition, the demand curve which an individual seller has to face is perfectly elastic, i.e. it runs parallel to the base axis. The competitive seller being unable to affect the market price sells its output at the prevailing market price. Hence marginal revenue equals the price of the product. The average-revenue is identical to its marginal revenue. Thus under perfect competition MR=AR=Price and the three curves coincide and are perfectly elastic. This is, however, not the case under monopoly. The monopolist is the sole supplier of a product in the market. He has full powers to make decisions about the pricing of his product. He is a price taker. If he lowers the unit price of his product, his’ sale is increased, if he raises the price, he will not lose his entire sale (Lawrence). The simple Keynesian income expenditure model builds two main suppositions: 1. Prices, incomes and the attention rate are all settled 2- production is demand determined –extra capability will be employed by firms to provide as a great deal output as clientele desire to

Russia In Central Asia Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Russia In Central Asia - Essay Example e themselves under the tag of â€Å"Central Asia† and rejected their traditional Soviet designation â€Å"Srednieia Aziia I Kazakhstan† (i.e., â€Å"Middle Asia and Kazakhstan†) (Rosset and Svarin 245). The declaration was the first step of these states towards establishing own identity and reduce the Soviet influence. However, economics and politics have been strongly interwoven in the rich historical relationship between Central Asia (Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Kazakhstan) and Russia, which couldn’t separated so easily (Rosset and Svarin 245-247). The current active political involvement of Russia in Central Asia is based on various political and economical interests. The purpose of this paper is to analyze Current Russia’s role in Central Asian region, historical background, political structure, issues, and Russian policies towards Central Asia. Russia’s political interests in Central Asia over the last 20 years can be distinguished into three basic periods. During the initial period, i.e. from the collapse of Soviet Union in 1991 to the mid-1990s, Russia had neither any interest in Central Asian region nor any foreign policy to deal with the Central Asian states. The negligence towards Central Asia was economical, political, cultural, and even ideological (Oliphant 3). The second period, from the mid-1990s to the late 1990s, witnessed a change in Russia’s approach and was highly influenced by the Primakov’s principle to reestablish Russia’s influence in the former Soviet states (Oliphant 3). This policy was partially successful. The third period can be categorized from the beginning of Putin administration in 2000 till the present, focusing on the Russia’s active engagement in Central Asia (Oliphant 3). Russia’s growing involvement in the region has political, security, and economi c dimensions. Massive numbers of Russian armed forces were presented in the Central Asia during the early 1990s. All newly created Central