Prosecution and Judicial system on Witches Essay Example for Free

Prosecution and Judicial system on Witches Essay The central Europe was full of panic and rumors about witch and witchcrafts during it early modern period. Witch-hunt dragged the society into conducting trials so as to torture and even death or execution to those who are believed to be a part of the witch crafting practices. About this statement, it is stated that the rate of women who are executed or those who are believed as witches are mostly on females (Levack). As Levack wrote to his observations data, the age of the women inclined in witchcraft were those who are older than that of a 50 year-old. He also conducted a survey on regional studies and figured out that there were indeed estimated about 110,000 witch trials (Levack). Levack paid his focus on the recorded conducted trials instead of focusing on the executions made. He explained that among all those trials for the witch cases, there have been about 48% which definitely resulted into execution that makes about 60,000 of witches who died (Levack). Levack stated that this prosecutions and torture-making were made for the alleged practices of doing a believed harmful magic and that people on those period believed that witch’s practices is done to worship the darkness or the devil (Levack). In Levack’s book, he mainly focused on the events where the witch-hunting started. He explained that that witch-hunting is an act in which certain hunters hunt those individuals who are believed to be involved in a certain magical secret kinds of activities (Levack). Levack discussed that the main cause of this hunting activity is the multi-casual approach, which sought the innovation of new ideologies about such witches and the changes is judicial system. These two innovations brought severe changes in religious aspect and also aroused a lot of tension to the society (Levack). The ideology of the hunts are based on such that witches were the individuals who had a certain pack with the devil therefore they are involved in such practices that is considered as barbaric. Witchcraft is conceptualized as an evil act into which the power and magic came from the devil whom they worship as everyone believes (Levack). According to Levack’s discussion through his work, certain individuals would sell their own souls to Satan in order to obtain a good life or which they considered as the gift of well being. In addition to this, witches are believed to have a Sabbath where they tend to give praise and worship to the devil. They are also said to be an organization which people believed in of doing infanticide incest practices (Levack). Another that contributes to the basis of the hunters is the idea that witches do fly, this idea or belief came from the people’s assumption that witches fly in order to attend to their Sabbath meetings without being noticed (Levack). The kind of prosecution made in England and the role of women being the witnesses is considered as a process of cultural complexity according to Holmes. He discussed that the popular beliefs are the harmful factors which implies that a certain woman is involved in witchcrafts (Holmes). The elites in the year 1563 created a system of prosecution against witchcrafts. The victims then had the opportunity to prosecute their assailants through the constructed systematical procedures of the judicial court (Holmes). According to Holmes, there are two distinctive ways for a certain witness to testify as a victim of witchcrafts such as they could directly testify that they are possessed into which they would say that they are controlled by the devil through the crafts of the witch and secondly, assumed victims could report sought physical searches that will be an evident or proof of the witch’s connection with the devil (Holmes). In both ways the accused will be subjected into the belief that she is indeed a witch and is inclined with witchcrafts. This is supported by theologians and lawyers who state that women are more susceptible or vulnerable of temptation which will cause them to tend to involve themselves to a pact with the devil (Holmes). In addition to this, Clive Holmes said that the women witnesses rose up from 38 to 53 percent during the last existing years of Queen Elizabeth. This indicates that women are the ones who contribute actively in creating negative reputations among others by making gossips (Holmes). Discussion As the hunt went through continuously in the 16th century, the system of jurisdiction reduced clerical means of jurisdiction and focused more on the secular concerns. The reason for this change is the definition of the witchcraft as a mean of secular crime (Levack). These said factors led to a high rate of witch hunting in Scotland hence other countries obtained a reduction in the number of cases to be prosecuted because of the ecclesiastical means of jurisdiction over the crime (Levack). There were said to be complex types of hunts which is brought during the time where witch-hunts were made in Europe, the small hunts in Europe basically focuses on seeking for malefactors, the medium type consists of at least five to ten victims, and the large hunts consists about ten to hundred witches which caused an explosion of panic and hysteria (Levack). According to Levack, there are there are four certain relatively factors to this witch-hunt. The first one depends on the nature of the witch beliefs in a certain place or region with the consideration on the strength to which they were being held (Levack). The second factor is the intensity of hunts. It is explained that not all countries execute torture method. Lastly, is the extent where the central judicial officers have their control to each trial (Levack). Conclusion In my own understanding witch-hunt, malice accusations, tortures, and executions are not justified by the early England period’s basis which is considered gossips or hearsays. I am not convinced about the foundation of the witch-hunt act because they do not provide an accurate reason or evident for them to do such an act against a certain person who is accused of being witch. Basing on Holmes’ work, a certain witness could just testify that a certain person is a witch and therefore make that person be subjected to court trials, another is that whenever a person testify that the accused is having a certain mark or physical searches which will prove that she is a witch then she is believed to be a witch and will also be subjected to trials or worse is execution. This kind of basis as the primary foundation in witch-hunting is generally an immoral act and a lack-of-evidence case into which people experienced hysteria and panic for a reason that is not reliably true or considered as alleged case. Therefore the explanations about the reasons of the outburst of witch-hunting is definitely cruel, lack of consideration, and inhumane act against fellow human beings who are accused but unproved of being a witch and practicing certain witch acts. Works Cited Holmes, Clive. Women: Witnesses and Witches Witch-Prosecutions in Early Modern England. 1993. Kaplan, Steven Laurence. Understanding Popular Culture: Europe from the Middle Ages to the Nineteenth Century. 1984. Levack, Brian P. The Witch-Hunt in Early Modern Europe 2006. Sharpe, J. Instrument of Darkness: Witchcraft in England 1550-1750.

What is the marketing mix

What is the marketing mix What is the Marketing Mix The marketing mix of Product, Price, Promotion, and Place was introduced to marketing education by McCarthy (Yudelson 1999). First formulated as a pedagogical tool, the concept of the 4Ps represents a comprehensive way to describe the main tasks of marketing managers. (Goldsmith 1999). It is utilised to implement corporate planning after having researched and audited the marketing environment, identified and understood the customer, established a strategy and decided which market(s) or market segments to serve, or want to serve (Anonymous 2006). The Marketing Mix has its origins in the 60s: Neil Borden (1964) identified twelve controllable marketing elements that would result to a profitable business operation. Jerome McCarthy (1064) reduced Bordens factors to a simple four-element framework: Product, Price, Promotion and Place. Practitioners and academics embraced the Mix paradigm that soon became the established and essential element of marketing theory and operational marketing management. (Constantinides 2006) The 4Ps were a suitable framework for the 1960s environment which was characterised by profit making consumer manufacturing companies who were concerned with reaching their customers in an age of emerging mass media and national mass markets. (Anonymous 2006) Eventually the 4Ps of the marketing mix became an unquestionable paradigm in academic research, the validity of which was taken for granted. (Grà ¶nroos 1994). There are voices though from academics and researchers which shout that the Marketing Mix in the fo rm of the 4Ps is not able to face the latest marketing challenges. The components of the Mix Product Since its the consumers perception that should be the centre of product policy, the product should not be defined as just the set of its own physical properties. The perceptions are influenced by different parameters, such as any associated services, the image, the brand name, even the social and cultural connections, or the perception of its own differentiation from competition. A product is a mixture of tangible and intangible attributes, including functional, social and psychological utilities or benefits (Anonymous 2006). Price Price is the only revenue generating element of the marketing mix; the other elements consume resources. There are three basic pricing strategies that all organisations can pursue for existing products: pricing above the market (higher than similar competitve products), pricing below the market (lower than competition) and pricing at the market (almost at the price of competition) (Anonymous 2006). Promotion One long-term purpose of promotion is to influence and encourage buyers to accept or adopt goods, services and ideas. Potential buyers go through a psychological or behavioural process before purchasing a product. AIDA, which is an acronym for Attention, Interest, Desire and Action incorporates psychological processes: attention is a cognitive process, interest and desire are affective processes and action is a manifest behaviour process (Anonymous 2006). Place Place, or distribution strategy concerns the routes by which marketers of products and services can ensure that these reach their intended market. We normally refer to these routes as marketing channels, which include those intermediaries that products and services pass through from the point of production to the point of final use (Anonymous 2006). Criticism TQM and Relationships Management: Adaptation, not Revolution Yudelson (1999) identified six major marketing developments that challenged the 4Ps since the introduction of the Marketing Mix. Focus on the customer via the Marketing Concept (1960s); Broadening of marketing to include not-for-profits, services, causes, and even politics (1970s); Identification of the exchange transaction as the core of marketing (1970s); Introduction of Total Quality Management with its emphasis on customer satisfaction (1980s); Extension from transaction marketing to relationship marketing (1990s); Identification of the firm as a member of a complete value chain (1990s). Since the 80s, the definition of Product as anything offered is challenged due to the new perspective that organisations face: The success depends on the ability to transform satisfaction to delight. Customer satisfaction is identified as the new driving force, and that is one of the foundational ideas of TQM. Place is expanded to include the entire distribution system, which creates time and place utility and may incorporate specific systems such as just-in-time delivery as part of channel management. During the 1990s, another significant shift occurred. The role of relationships in the marketing activities of the organisation replaced the transaction perspective of earlier times. Price is no longer the amount of money paid to acquire a single Product but the lifetime costs associated with the acquisition, use, and ultimately disposal of the benefits attained during a period of time. Place is no longer just the point of exchange since that fails to communicate the interactions that occur as the product changes ownership and utility from conceptualisation to final disposal. Yudelson suggests that after nearly 40 years, the 4Ps need to let go because, as shown, the terminology has not managed to handle the challenges of developments in marketing thought and practice. However, no commonly agreed or satisfactory replacement has appeared and anyone who grew up on the concept of marketing mix (customers, marketing professionals and academics) would face significant dissonance if the key paradigm were dismissed. So, he suggests that the best strategy is Adaptation and not Revolution. His proposed adaptation focuses on the essential aspects of marketing as exchange driven behaviour, maintains the simplicity and familiarity of the 4Ps, recognises the concerns of past critics, and is capable of applying to both single instance transactions and long-term strategic relationships. Product should be redefined as all the benefits (present or anticipated) that the buyer or acquirer obtains from the exchange. It is recommended that Product be renamed as Performance to communicate the sense of benefit to the customer. Price should be redefined as everything that the acquirer gives up to obtain the benefits. It is suggested that we refer to the second P as Penalty to signify those things that the customer would have to give up or seek to minimize while obtaining the benefit or Performance associated with the exchange. Promotion should be redefined to include all of the information that is communicated between the parties to the transaction in keeping with the current thought on Integrated Marketing Communications. The purpose of the communication or information is to influence or encourage each party to enter into the transaction/ relationship. This is accomplished by providing information regarding the costs and benefits of the transaction-or better-the Perception of the Performance and Penalty. Place can be now defined as all that is done and required to facilitate or bring about the exchange and therefore, Yudelson proposes its redefinition as Process. Relationships Marketing A paradigm shift Grà ¶nroos (1994) believes that a paradigm shift is taking place in marketing. One of the main reasons lies beneath the nature of marketing mix. The marketing mix is a list of categories of marketing variables. A list never includes all relevant elements, it does not fit every situation, and it becomes obsolete. Moreover, the 4Ps represent an oversimplification of Bordens original concept, which was a list of 12 elements not intended to be a definition at all. This list would most probably have to be reconsidered in any given situation. Grà ¶nroos believes that McCarthy either misunderstood the meaning of Bordens marketing mix or his followers misunderstood McCarthys intentions. Probably Bordens original idea of a list of a large number of marketing mix ingredients that have to be reconsidered in every given situation was shortened for pedagogical reasons and a more limited number of marketing variables seemed to fit typical situations observed in the late 1950s and in the 1960s. T he 4Ps were never applicable to all markets and to all types of marketing situations. The development of alternative marketing theories (interaction/network approach to industrial marketing and the marketing of services, customer relationship economics) demonstrates that even from a management perspective, the marketing mix and its 4Ps became a problem. Gronroos concludes that in industrial marketing, services marketing, managing distribution channels and even consumer packaged goods marketing itself, a shift is clearly taking place from marketing to anonymous masses of customer to developing and managing relationships with more or less well-known or at least somehow identified customers. Other Reviews and Criticism Constantinides (2006) undertook a literature review on the status of Marketing Mix at the 21st century. He discovered that many researchers express serious doubts as to the role of the Mix as marketing management tool in its original form, proposing alternative approaches: adding new parameters to the original Mix (e.g. 7Ps for services) or replacing it with alternative frameworks altogether. Some of the weaknesses of the 4Ps identified in the study are domain specific: ignoring the human factor, lack of strategic dimensions, offensive posture and lack of interactivity. Two limitations however seem to be common in all reviewed categories: The models internal orientation: The lack of explicit market input in the framework which sources from the fact that the Mix was originally developed as a concept suitable for marketing of consumer products in the mass-oriented US manufacturing sector of the 60s The lack of personalisation: Significant shifts of consumer behaviour such as individualisation, diminishing brand preference, value orientation, increasing sophistication etc. have undermined the effectiveness of the impersonal one-way communication and the mass marketing approaches. Hyman (2004) undertook a similar study on the criticism of the Mix. According to that, some marketers contend that the scope of the 4Ps is insufficient from a pedagogical or applied perspective. To address this limitation, they updated the schema by refining the current Ps, adding new Ps, broadening its perspective, or adapting it to specific industries. Moreover, he summarised previously published criticism of the 4Ps: Inadequate theoretical grounding Not formally integrated into the exchange paradigm Fails three of the five requirements for a sound classification schema Overly focused on consumer goods, yet is production rather than marketing-concept oriented Cannot account for the full range of marketing management activities Ignores strategic marketing Focuses only on the acquisition stage of consumption Contains an increasingly catch-all (i.e. atheoretically focused) promotion category Fails to account for interactions between Ps or boundary-spanning topics Is incompatible with the relationship-marketing paradigm van Waterschoot and Van den Bulte (1992) in their own research identified five key limitations of the 4Ps model: It focuses on what marketers do to customers rather than for them. It is externally directed and ignores the internal market. It says nothing about interactions between the mix variables. It takes a mechanistic view about markets. It assumes a transactional exchange rather than a relationship. The Xbox 360 Marketing Mix The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft, and was developed in cooperation with IBM, ATI, and SiS. The Xbox 360 is the successor to the Xbox, and competes with Sonys PlayStation 3 and Nintendos Wii as part of the seventh generation of gaming systems (usually called next-gen) (Wikipedia 2007). Product Name and Concept The term 360 represents a circle and is inline with the concept of the product. The customer is placed at The centre of the experience. Its a videogame and an entertainment system that integrates music, picture, games and movies. Everything revolves around the customer.(Porcaro 2005) Classification Xbox 360 belongs to the shopping consumer products category, which includes products purchased after the consumer shops around to find the best deal based on comparisons of price, quality, style, durability and other product attributes that are felt to be important. Although due to shortage at its launch many consumers were making effort to find one and others were forced to buy from eBay at inflated prices, 3 months after the launch the console could be purchased with smaller effort. Therefore, a classification of Speciality is not justified. Product Mix The total set of products a company sells is called its product mix, which consists of its component product lines. The product mix of Microsoft regarding console gaming consists of the following product lines: Xbox 360 consoles, the Xbox Live Services (Marketplace, Video and Arcade), console accessories and Microsoft Games. Xbox 360 Product Line During launch only two configurations were available; the Core and the Premium versions. Over time, the product line length rose to 3, in an Up-Market Stretch move from Microsoft, by introducing a high end version (Elite). Product Positioning Microsoft targets both casual and hard-core gamers. The Core and Arcade versions seem attractive to the former, while Premium and Elite are more appropriate to the latter. Product Levels The five levels of customer value hierarchy are as follows (Kotler and Keller 2006): Core benefit: The benefit that the customer is really buying. The buyer of the Xox 360 is buying video gaming. Basic Product: The Xbox 360 includes a video games console and a controller. Expected product: A set of attributes and conditions the buyers normally expect. Gamers expect from the seventh generation of gaming systems good graphics and sound performance, a wireless controller, digital connection with the HD TV and the amplifier, online gaming with friends through the internet and the ability to listen to music and watch videos. Augmented product: The level in which the product exceeds customer expectations. The Xbox 360 through its Xbox LIVE service lets the customers download purchased or promotional material. This includes game demos, movie and game trailers, Arcade games as well as add-on game content (items, costumes, levels, maps etc). Potential product: All the possible augmentations and transformations the product might undergo in the future. Even before the launch of Xbox 360, Microsoft was researching ways to create a video store accessible through the console, as well as a TV service which would add IPTV functionality. One year after the launch of the console, the Xbox Video Marketplace was introduced in the United States, and the Microsoft TV service under development. Pricing The following table summarises competition pricing during their respective launch. Note that Playstation and Wii launched at November 2006, almost a year later than Xbox. The Xbox 360 was the first next-gen console to enter the market. Generally, if the product is an innovation, then the initial price is usually set quite high (Anonymous 2006), but this is not the policy that Microsoft followed. Microsoft used the strategy of Price penetration, in an effort to take as much market share as possible. In fact, it was reported that Microsoft was losing $126 per unit sold (Joystiq 2005). Robbie Bach, president of Entertainment and Devices Division, said that the Xbox 360 business will become profitable in 2008 and that the profit to make is not on the hardware itself, but rather on Live service subscriptions, accessories and games (Gamedaily 2007). In August 2007, Microsoft dropped the prices by à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ 20 à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ 50. In October 2007, they introduced the Arcade version and priced it exactly the same as the Wii, that is At the market. Odd-even pricing assumes product sales benefit from prices such as  £99.99 rather than  £100.00, because customers will think the product is a good deal (Anonymous 2006). As we saw, Microsoft followed this policy, as all next-gen competitors did. Promotion Microsoft utilized the following Marketing Communications Mix for the launch of the console system. Advertising The advertising campaign took place via television, magazines and internet sites. The tag line was Jump In, which was in complete accordance with the name and the concept of the product (the center of the experience). The ads were introducing the idea that its more fun to play when youre part of a community, that games have always been more fun when you play with friends (Porcaro 2005). Sales Promotion The sales promotion took place through online contests and websites. OurColony.net offered challenges to its community, rewarding solutions with cropped pictures of the console and game screenshots. OrigenXbox360.com was offering visitors an opportunity to enter in various contests for a chance to attend promotional pre-launch events. Hex168.com hosted a number of images that appeared to perpetuate obscure conspiracy theories, but sometimes contained oblique references to Xbox 360. The campaign was later revealed to be a U.S. contest that offered participants a chance to win one of three hundred and sixty Xbox 360 console bundles six days before the official launch (Wikipedia 2007). Marketing Public Relations In order to assist the launch and to increase awareness, Microsoft made use of Marketing Public Relations. The official unveiling of the Xbox 360 occurred on May 2005 on MTV in a program called MTV Presents: The Next Generation Xbox Revealed (Wikipedia 2007). Elijah Wood hosted the show which featured a musical performance by the band The Killers. Ten days later the Xbox 360 was featured on the cover of TIME Magazine along with an associated article. Obviously, the viewers of MTV belong to the target market, while the cover of TIME magazine was a huge boost to the hype. Events Microsoft is one of the major exhibitors in the annual E3 Media and Business Summit which is considered as the biggest annual event in the video game industry. The announcements regarding future development are taking place at the Microsoft keynote event, which is highly anticipated by the worldwide video game media and community. Microsoft is also a frequent sponsor to gaming events. In association with adidas and EA Sports, they sponsored the Xbox World Cup, which received a lot of publicity by the gaming community. Gamers who qualified through national preliminary rounds were given an all-expenses paid trip to Berlin to take part in the competition representing their nations in matches that took place in an 8,500 seat stadium. Microsoft managed to identify with the target market as well as increase awareness and express commitment to the community. Place (Distribution) As mentioned earlier, the product suffered from shortages during its launch, due to huge demand and slow production. However, three months later the problems had been bypassed and it is worth noted that in its first year on the market, the system launched in 36 countries, more countries than any console has launched in a single year. Microsoft chose to distribute the products through the Producer >> Wholesaler >> Retailer >> Consumer channel. For the countries where Microsoft has physical presence, the Wholesaler intermediary part was played by the regional division. The Xbox 360 is distributed intensively, which means that all available outlets are used for distributing it. Conclusion The marketing mix of Product, Price, Promotion, and Place was introduced to marketing education during the 1960s. Practitioners and academics embraced the paradigm that soon became the established element of marketing theory and operational marketing management. Eventually the 4Ps of the marketing mix became an unquestionable paradigm in academic research, the validity of which was taken for granted. However, many researchers and academics object. Yudelson believes that the Mix requires adaptation to the challenges of the era (TQM and the role of relationships) and proposes redefinition of the components. Grà ¶nroos argues the 4Ps was never intended to become a paradigm and started as a simple list which was an oversimplification of a larger list. He states that the 4Ps were never applicable to all markets and to all types of marketing situations, and that we have started to experience a paradigm shift towards relationships marketing. Other studies also conclude that the marketing m ix of the 4Ps is getting old and cannot address complex environment issues, such as management of personalisation. The application of the marketing mix model to the Xbox 360 gaming console system revealed that model managed to incorporate some of the major marketing planning activities of Microsoft under its 4Ps components. However, Yudelsons model seems to apply better. Xbox 360 is not just about the actual console product, but through its integration with other products and services its about the Performance of the entertainment experience. Its Promotion is inline with the current thought on Integrated Marketing Communications. And finally, its Place (distribution) is more about the Process of distribution, from which Microsoft actually suffered during the launch. Also, the marketing mix model failed to incorporate the personalisation component of the product. That is, through the LIVE services each user is uniquely identified. Microsoft has access to personal information, such as favourite games, music and movies and is able to propose similar content to the customers upon request. Unfortunate ly, the 4Ps did not manage to capture this aspect of Xbox 360 marketing. We conclude that the marketing mix is a tool which has performed well in the past and may still do in many cases. However, the increasingly complex environment demands adaptation and expansion. Personalisation for example is a very important component and should be incorporated under the umbrella of the new XPs, whatever number the academia decides that X should be. References Anonymous (2006). Strategic Marketing Module Book Edition 10, Management Centre, University of Leicester. Borden, N.H. (1964), The concept of the Marketing Mix, Journal of Advertising Research, June, pp 2-7 Constantinides, E. (2006), The Marketing Mix Revisited: Towards the 21st Century Marketing, Journal of Marketing Management 2006, 22, pp 407-438 Gamedaily, http://www.gamedaily.com/articles/features/bach-xbox-business-profitable-next-year/70371/?biz=1, [15 December 2007] Goldsmith, R. E. (1999), The personalised marketplace: beyond the 4Ps, Marketing Intelligence Planning 17/4, pp 178-185 Grà ¶nroos, C. (1994), From Marketing Mix to Relationship Marketing: Towards a Paradigm Shift in Marketing, Management Decision, Vol. 32 No. 2, 1994, pp. 4-20 Hyman, M. R. (2004), Revising the structural framework for marketing management, Journal of Business Research 57, pp 923- 932 Joystiq, http://www.joystiq.com/2005/11/23/microsoft-losing-126-on-every-sold-xbox-360/, [15 December 2007] Kotler, P. and Keller, K. L. (2006), Marketing Management 12e, Pearson Prentice Hall McCarthy, E.J. (1964), Basic Marketing, a Managerial Approach, Homewood, Ill.: Richard D. Irwin, Inc.. Porcaro, J. (2005), Xbox 360 Marketing, http://www.johnporcaro.com/2006/03/xbox_360_market.html, [15 December 2007] van Waterschoot, W. and den Bulte, C. (1992). The 4P classification of the marketing mix revisited, Journal of Marketing 56 (October), pp 83-93. Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xbox_360, [15 December 2007] Yudelson, J. (1999), Adapting Mccarthys Four Ps for the Twenty-First Century, Journal of Marketing Education 21, pp 60-67

Challenges and Techniques of the Oil Industry

Challenges and Techniques of the Oil Industry The Oil Sand Energy availability and economic progress go hand in hand. It is not possible to achieve economic progress in the absence of cheap, reliable energy availability. The use of energy on the part of society has increased systematically over the past two centuries, since the time of the industrial revolution. And there is no end in sight to the increase in the consumption of energy. This will continue because as global population continues to increase and especially in some of the emerging countries like China and India, the consumption of energy is bound to increase exponentially. In the past fifty years, global energy consumption has increased monotonously and how is this demand satisfied? This demand is being meet primarily with crude oil. Crude oil has been the largest energy component since 1960 and grew very rapidly in the 1970s and ever since, has grown less rapidly. Though oil has been losing ground but nevertheless, it remains the most important source of energy, second being coal, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA). Oil is a fossil fuel and the world is about 80 to 85% dependent on fossil fuels for our energy supply. This is a challenge because when fossil fuels are burnt, they emit CO2 in the atmosphere and since CO2 is a greenhouse gas, it contributes to global warming Oil is a mix of hydrocarbons that are liquid under atmospheric conditions. The fact that they are liquid allows for easier processing, transportation, storage, and has a higher content of energy per volume. These are the greatest advantages that oil has over other energy resources.   However, there are scenarios where the oil is not trapped in a cap rocks and forces it way out to the surface, or very close to the surface of the ground, at which point, the lighter molecules evaporate into the atmosphere and what is left are heavier molecules, which are normally called extra heavy oil or bitumen. This is known as Oil sands or Tar sand and it is made up of a mixture of sand, water, clay, and bitumen[1]. Oil sands or Tar sand are found in various countries throughout the world, but the vast quantities of oil sand reserves are found in Canada and Venezuela, according to EIA. Alberta, Canada, is estimated to have about 1.7 to 2.5 trillion barrels of oil sand reserve, thus, represent ing the largest single reserve of oil in the world.[2] Accordingly, Canada produced about 3.8 million barrel per day of crude oil, in 2014 alone. Of this, 2.2 million barrel per day was produced from the oil sands.[3] About 10% of the worlds oil reserves are located in the Alberta oil sands and about 96 percent of Canadas total oil reserves are contained in the oil sands.[4] Moreover, Canada is said to be the leading supplier of crude oil and refined oil products to the United States and the trend continues to grow in terms of percentage of US oil imports. About 60 percent of Canadas production capacity from oil sand, about 1.34 million barrels per day is exported to the US.[5] Energy as found in nature needs to mined, processed, refined and transported before it is available for end use. Unlike oil produced by conventional oil drilling which is generally less dense than water, extracting oil from oil sands is more complex. There are two methods for getting bitumen out of the ground and turning it into usable products in-situ and open pit mining. The extraction method used will depend on how deep the oil sand deposits are below the surface. Both methods are complex, energy-intensive and expensive processes. In-situ (in place) In-situ extraction process is used to mine bitumen that lies deep below the surface of the ground (greater than 75 meters underground). According to studies, about 80% of oil sands reserves in Canada are accessible via in-situ techniques.[6] The in-situ method normally uses a process called Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage (SAGD). This method requires the drilling of two horizontal wells; one is used for injecting steam into the oil sand deposit to heat the oil sand making the bitumen to become more fluid and easy to flow more easily. The second well is used to pump out the flowing bitumen to the surface.[7] Open-Pit Mining Like the conventional oil mining Open-pit mining is used when mining oil sand reserves that are closer to the surface of the ground (less than 75 meters below the ground). According to industry report, 20% of oil sand reserves in Canada are extracted using this mining technique.[8] With this method, trees and top layer of soil are cleared, large shovels are used to scoop the oil sand, which is mix of sand, water and bitumen into large trucks and then moved it to onsite processing facility, where hot water is added to this mixture of sand, clay, bitumen, in a large separation vessel. Bitumen froth is forced to rise to the surface, during the separation process and then removed and diluted with chemicals.[9] Normally, the spent sand and other materials that are recovered during this process is then returned to the mines to fill in empty space that has been mined as a way of reclamation Upgrading Once the Bitumen is recovered from either through open-pit or from in-situ operation, the viscous substance is then processed in order to make it easier to transport through pipelines to various refinery, where it is to be used as feedstock. This process is called upgrade. The purpose of upgrading is to transform bitumen into synthetic crude oil, a high quality, light sweet crude oil, by removing carbon and adding hydrogen and chemical to bitumen.[10] Typically the upgrading process comes in two phases namely primary and secondary upgrading. The primary upgrading involves breaking down the heavy molecules of bitumen into lighter and less viscous molecules. The secondary upgrading is used to further cleanse and purify the bitumen attained from primary phase. This phase involves removing other impurities such as nitrogen, Sulphur, and trace metals and get it ready for oil refineries.[11] Refining The bitumen is finally delivered to through pipelines the refinery through pipelines. The SCO product is then sent to a downstream refinery for conversion into final product.[12] Here the oil is processed and converted into final products like gasoline, jet fuel, diesel, plastics, asphalt and other consumer and industrial products. Environmental Challenges The mining and processing of oil sands present a variety of environmental impacts, such as global warming and greenhouse gas emissions, disturbance of land structure, and air and water quality. It also may have significant social and economic impactson local communities. Another major concern is related to the tremendous amount of water required for oil sands development -extraction, upgrading and refining. It is estimated that the process requires an average of three barrels of water for one barrel of oil produced,[13] though some of the water are be recycled. The major environmental challenges to oil sand extraction among others are land, water, air: Land Development of oil sand crate concern about the accumulation of large amounts of residual waste known as tailings. Tailing, which contain a mix of water, clay, un-recovered bitumen, and dissolved chemicals, including some organic compounds are considered to be extremely toxic and very hazardous to the environment. Moreover, the tailings are stored in large ponds and causes seepage into the surrounding landscape, though the water released from the ponds can be recycled and reused, however, most still remains as mud almost indefinitely. The massive activities associated with oil sand project are also known to create tremendous structural disturbances of the landscape including seismic exploration and construction of wells, roads pipelines etc. negatively impact the environment and endangers the wildlife. Water Since oil sand is made up of a mixture of sand, water, clay and bitumen, a hot water process is required to separates the bitumen from the associated sand, water, clay and minerals. The process takes enormous amount of water of fresh water to produce a barrel of bitumen from mined oil sands. In many cases, the water is sourced from ground water aquifers. Rapid expansion of oil sands projects are causing great strains on fresh water resources, which leads to ecological and environmental problems.[14] Also, since bitumen is denser than water, it can be harder to clean up when there is a spill. Additionally, oil sands mining operations produce huge amounts of toxic waste, known as tailings, which consist of water, sand, silt, clay, hydrocarbons and contaminants.   The contaminates may contain various levels of naphthenic acids, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, phenolic compounds, ammonia and mercury etc., some of which, according to International Agency for Research on Cancer an d the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, are known to be cancer-causing agent.[15] Even worst, the tailings are mostly stored in ponds or man-made dams, thus causing the tailing to leak into ground water and surrounding water resources. It is estimated that about four billion liters of tailings leak each year, thereby triggering immense environment devastation.[16] Air Extracting Oil sands require a substantial amount of energy in processing to process, upgrading and refining bitumen to the final products suitable for market. The entire development process is so energy intensive that it contributes immensely in carbon emissions. Reports suggest that the oil sand industry is among the highest contributors of national air emissions in Canada. Oil is produced to be consumed, more than half of the oil consumed in the world is for transportation fueling societys unquenchable demand for mobility. More than 50 percent of oil produced is used for transportation needs.[17]. As the worlds population grows, so will the global passenger mobility, global freight and transportation volumes. Additionally, the current global rise in urbanization, the global economic growth, as well as high level of economic development are other important factors prompting the increase in demand for oil. As fossil fuel, final oil products are burnt for energy through the various applications for which they are used. When burnt, they emit high amounts of harmful emissions, including nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide, and particles that drift into the atmosphere and contribute to air pollution. Carbon dioxide and water vapor, along with other gases such as ozone and nitrous oxide, are known greenhouse gases and the increasing amounts of these greenhouse g ases in the atmosphere are linked to global warming and could have disastrous environmental consequences.[18] However, since the business of producing oil from oil sand is base generally on oil price, chances are that there will be some slowdown in sand oil operations around the world, as oil prices decline. Due to the recent downward trend of oil prices, the economic viability and financial attractiveness of oil sands projects have also declined. Financial analysts including those from Goldman Sachs and Total have concluded that oil sands projects require long-term prices in excess of $80/barrel to break even[19]. Deutsche Bank and BP, among others, have raised doubts about the future of investing in oil sand and Shell Oil has significantly scaled back its oil sands plans[20]. If these phenomena should continue, it might be the preeminent way in reducing and mitigating the environmental degradation being caused by oil sand. [1] http://www.canadasoilsands.ca/en/what-are-the-oil-sands/recovering-the-oil [2] http://www.nrcan.gc.ca/energy [3] lbid [4] www.oilsandsmagazine.com/technical/oilsands-101 [5] Kenny Bruno, Bruce Baizel, Susan Casey-Lefkowitz, Elizabeth Shope, and Kate Colarulli, Tax Sands Invasion: How Dirty and Expensive Oil from Canada Threatens Americas New Energy Economy (May 2010) [6] http://www.suncor.com/about-us/oil-sands [7] http://www.canadasoilsands.ca/en/what-are-the-oil-sands/recovering-the-oil [8] http://www.nrcan.gc.ca/energy [9] http://www.canadasoilsands.ca/en/what-are-the-oil-sands/recovering-the-oil [10] http://www.nrcan.gc.ca/energy [11] lbid [12] http://www.oilsandsmagazine.com/technical/oilsands-101 [13] http://www.nrcan.gc.ca/energy [14] lbid [15] Kenny Bruno, Bruce Baizel, Susan Casey-Lefkowitz, Elizabeth Shope, and Kate Colarulli, Tax Sands Invasion: How  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   Dirty and Expensive Oil from Canada Threatens Americas New Energy Economy (May 2010) [16] lbid [17] https://www.iea.org [18] Kenny Bruno, Bruce Baizel, Susan Casey-Lefkowitz, Elizabeth Shope, and Kate Colarulli, Tax Sands Invasion: How Dirty and Expensive Oil from Canada Threatens Americas New Energy Economy (May 2010) [19] lbid [20] lbid

The Verdict on Albert Camus’s The Fall Essay example -- Literature The

The Verdict on Albert Camus’s The Fall As if to mock the crumbling principles of a fallen era, â€Å"The Just Judges† preside over a solemn dumping ground of earthly hell. This flimsy legion of justice, like the omnipresent eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, casts a shadow of pseudo-morality over a land spiraling towards pathos. But Albert Camus’s The Fall unfolds amidst the seedy Amsterdam underground--a larger, more sinister prison than the Valley of Ashes, whose center is Mexico City, a neighborhood bar and Mecca for the world’s refuse. The narrator and self-proclaimed judge-penitent, Jean-Baptiste Clamence, presides over his subjects every night to â€Å"offer his services,† although partially dissembled and highly suspect, to any who will listen. More artfully than a black widow preying on her unsuspecting mate, he traps us in his confessional monologue, weaving a web so intricate and complete that no one can escape its clutches. Clamence points out that â€Å"Holland is a dream†¦of gold and smoke† whose residents are â€Å"somnambulists in the fog’s gilded incense† who â€Å" have ceased to be† (13-14). Peopled by the living dead, where â€Å"hundreds of millions of men†¦painfully slip out of bed, a bitter taste in their mouths, to go to a joyless work,† â€Å"Amsterdam’s concentric canals resemble the circles of hell,† as in Dante’s Inferno (144, 14). Holland’s lost souls are the forsaken ones, machines who go through the motions of life but never really live, the modern men, who fornicate and read the papers, with good intentions and bourgeois dreams never realized. These are the men capable of tolerating the â€Å"Liebestod† and the Holocaust in the same breath, who wait for something to happen, â€Å"even loveless sla... ...risk your life. You yourself utter the words that for years have never ceased echoing through my nights and that I shall at last say though your mouth: â€Å"O young woman, throw yourself into the water again so that I may a second time have the chance of saving us both!† (147) For Clamence it was too late, will always be †(t)oo late, too far† for him (70). But we are not he. We do not need to suffer from the paralysis of inaction. We need not relive unlucky Hamlet’s indecision each and every day nor question whether to dare disturb the universe. We have a choice—we will always have a choice. It is never too late for us, for we are endowed with freedom, and more importantly, a responsibility to be free. By all means, â€Å"Do not go gentle into that good night,/ Rage, rage against the dying of the light† (Dylan Thomas). Works Cited: Camus, Albert. The Fall.

Stagecraft :: essays research papers

Sunrise in my Pocket, an American folk drama originally written by Edwin Justus Mayer, but adapted by Jeffrey Hayden for the Playmakers Repertory Company recounts the epic adventure of Davy Crockett, Tennessee statesman and frontiersman and his subsequent journey to Texas. Davy Crockett, portrayed effortlessly by Playmaker’s leading actor, Kenneth P. Strong, is accompanied by his faithful companion, Crawling Caterpillar, the gallant ex-pirate Hardin, the woman hating Thimblerig, and the man-hating Annie; each part was played respectfully by Douglas Spain, Mike Regan, Jeffrey Blair Cornell, and Jamie Rose.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The success of Jeffrey Hayden’s production should be attributed to the talented cast and their professional zeal that was evident in each individual performance. The main plot, the actual journey and the carefully woven sub-plots, between for example Thimblerig and Annie became the foundation for fun-loving adventure and perhaps in the imagination of the audience greater adventure upon arrival in the Texas.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The audience and thus the play greatly benefited from the use of the thrust stage, extending beyond the proscenium arch, the stage was surrounded on three sides by the audience. The thrust stage moved the action into the crowd; the audience became an extra, part of the play, no longer an audience removed, but an audience part. The stage was also raked, or maintained a permanent slope atop a level auditorium floor. The sloped stage increased the effectiveness of the thrust stage, further projecting the action into the audience.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The task of simulating the American frontier was given to scene designer Narelle Sissons and lighting designer Mary Louise Geiger. Sissons created a beautifully naked set, backed by a grove of trees that was brought to life by Geiger’s gentle moonbeams, water reflections, and campfire light. Not nearly as empty as Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot; however, both sets allow the imagination to improvise and individually interpret the play. Sissons and Geiger created an appropriately classy set and lighting scene that added to the plays performance.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Costume Designer, Marianne Custer, continued with the idea of simplicity while selecting the worn frontier clothing. Annie became the notable standout however, with her tight fitting buckskins. The costume only added to the character, a frontier feminist, Annie could compete with the bravest of males, but was still very feminine and had the beauty only a woman could.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Sound Designer, M. Anthony Reimer, provided the audience with a subtle, yet effective portrayal of backcountry sounds.

Essay for kirklands class Essay

I believe that the state should not by itself have the power to declare war on another nation or country without the consent of the national government. the reason behind why I think this is because I believe that the government itself has enough power to keep the branches and there paper works in order and to do what is needed and expected of them to do nothing easel over that or under. I also believe that we south Carolinians if we do not like what north Korea is doing we should just stay out of it unless north Korea brings us into it and the reason I think this is because, us south Carolinians declaring war on north Korea just because we don’t like what they are doing is pretty stupid to me. I believe we are smart enough to figure it out without declaring war on a country or a nation. If south Carolina is having problems maintaining their drinking water supplies, and if the government has attempted numerous times to correct the problem, but has repeatedly failed, I believe that the government should problem get help form a nether government or help from whoever can fix this problem because we need water and without water we will die. I believe that the national government should beagle to take action because it is a life or death situation so yes I think that the government of South Carolina also known as the local government should be able to get help from the national government and take the measures needed to fix this problem. I believe that the local government should try to figure it out before getting help from the national government, and if the national government can’t fix it then I think that the national government should beagle to ask another government for help to fix this life or death situation. But if they need to shut down the factory then they should do it because if the south Carolinians don’t have any water they could die and they need water because water was made to keep us alive just like food was made to keep us alive without water you can’t take a shower either and so everyone would stink. If the local chemical factory is causing this problem then they need to shut the chemical  factory down and move it to a different area so it can’t cause anymore problems to our water systems and we would need to move it to a place where it can’t contaminate anything that could herm us or bother us like were its not close to a farm food supplies or water supplies.

Reaction Papers Essay

INDIGENOUS PEOPLE REACTION PAPER WOW! After the symposium, I realized how lucky I am to be in a concrete house, not worrying if the strong wind will take it with all its might; to live in a more comfortable house with comfortable clothes on. Indigenous people’s always stressing the hell out of them searching for food everyday, they can’t even apply for a stable job here in the city or at least away from secluded areas where they live. On the other hand, I salute them for they’re always active every now and then†¦ to supply their needs everyday. The father’s always into the needs and protecting his family whilst the mother is the one who’s responsible for taking good care of their kids. Unlike people living in urban areas, well I’m talking generally, both of the parents is always working not giving enough attention on their offspring. Indigenous people’s family is the ideal family everyone would want. Even if they don’t have gadgets with them all day long, still they’re giving enough attention and sharing conversations with each other. They’re living their lives simple yet contented, and that’s what makes them happy. =)) Jia Yray Fajardo BSA-I DRUGS REACTION PAPER Using Drugs is not healthy for anyone of us. I’m not speaking of the physical damage that it may cause, but the psychological causes that may occur, like Mental illness such as depression, Inability to connect with others, lack of friends, Poor performance at work or school, and poor stress coping skills. A person who is using Drugs may act abnormal, they may hurt people. A drug addict may have times that they feel guilty and remorseful and decide to get help. In these times, the drug addict will normally continue using. The reason why some people are using drugs is because of Enjoyment,  curiosity, and other people that are suffering from anxiety, but there are some people are just using drugs because of entertainers using drugs and being rationalize that they can do it too. While some people are using drugs to cover up painful memories in their past, some thinks that drugs may help them fit in. Drug addiction is a condition that upsets the physical and mental well being of a person. It is neither an untreatable condition nor a malignant phenomenon. The addicts are aware of what is in store for them. Yet, they resume with the activities and build up a strong resistance to these agents in no time.