Activated Carbon Cadmium

Sample details Pages: 17 Words: 5008 Downloads: 7 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Statistics Essay Did you like this example? Introduction Environmental pollution by metals is a serious threat today due to increased industrial revolution and has become extensive. The current worldwide mine production of various heavy metals such as Cu, Cd, Pb, and Hg is very high (Pinto et al., 2004). These heavy metal sources include a number of diverse anthropogenic sources (textile, tannery and other industrial effluents, industrial solid wastes, urban runoff, sewage treatment plants, boating activities, agricultural fungicide runoff, domestic garbage dumps, and also by mining operations). Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Activated Carbon Cadmium | Sciences Dissertations" essay for you Create order Metal toxicity and its effect on the growth and metabolism in higher plants is a subject that has a wide economical and ecological interest and also have been widely reviewed and gaining importance on several occasions over the last few decades (Brown and Jones, 1975; Foy et al., 1978; Ernst et al., 1992; Das et al., 1997; SanitÃÆ'Â ¡ di Toppi and Gabrielli, 1999; Hall, 2002; Clemens et al., 2002). Another interesting reason for this is out of the ninety naturally occurring elements fifty-three are heavy metals (Weast, 1984). Few metals are found to be essential for growth of plants, while few are found to be toxic for the growth of plants. Some of the heavy metals dont interact with the plant metabolism directly but decreases the level of soil microbes, affecting the growth of the plants (Niess, 1999). However, the accumulation in the soil has become a worldwide problem leading to the loss of agricultural productivity (Hasan, 2007). Among the heavy metals Cd is of special concern because of its potential toxicological profile even at lower concentration (Das Samantray, 1997). Cadmium is a toxic trace pollutant for humans, animals and plants, which enter the environment from various industrial processes, phosphate fertilizers and other anthropogenic activities, which then enters the food chain (Wagner, 1993). It has been estimated that more than 45% of all cadmium is used in electroplating, and that of 10% of total industrial cadmium use ends up in wastewater streams. Interests in the ecological effects of heavy metals has been growing recently, and assessing the phytotoxicity of cadmium is one of the most important criteria being used to avoid environmental risks, before these effluents can be recycled back for agricultural irrigation after some remediation or treatment processes. So it is inevitable that we should cope with the environmental damages induced by increased concentration of cadmium. The removal of cadmium (II) from wastewater stream therefore is of great importance as it can directly contaminate the ground water, aquatic organisms, agricultural lands and also the productivity. The global threat of reduction of uncontaminated ground water is also increasing exponentially with the scientific, industrial and technological developments (Tchobanoglous et al., 1991). Although various other techniques such as precipitation are most commonly used, to clean up the Cd contaminated water, the drawbacks of using those techniques, increases the need for an alternative technique which is more effective, reliable and also economically viable (USEPA, 1984). Cadmium being a highly toxic metal pollutant of soil inhibits root and shoot growth and yield production, affects nutrient uptake and homeostasis, and is frequently accumulated by agriculturally important crops including soybean with a significant potential to impair animal and human health (Sanita di toppi and Gabrielli, 1999). In plants such as pea, a number of toxic effects of Cd on metabolism has been reported, such as decreased uptake of nutrient elements (Sandalio et al., 2001), inhibition of various enzyme activities (Obata et al., 1996) and induction of oxidative stress (Lozano-Rodriet al., 1997, Romero-Puertas et al., 1999, Sandalio et al., 2001) including alterations in enzymes of antioxidant defense system (Dalurzo et al., 1997, Sandalio et al., 2001). However only little is known about the biochemical mechanisms underlying the intraspecific variation in the sensitivity versus tolerance to Cd in plants (Ashraf et al., 2005). Understanding the connections between a plants initial responses and the downstream events that constitute successful adjustment to its altered environment is one of the next grand challenges of plant biology (Ruth Grene, 2002). One of the common characteristics of these heavy metals such as cadmium is the induction of oxidative stress generating active oxygen species (AOS). Plants have evolved various protective defense mechanisms to eliminate or reduce these AOS species. One of them is the enzymatic or non-enzymatic antioxidant system, including peroxidase, Super oxide dismutase, catalase, glutathione peroxidase etc. Each of these parameters has physiological function under non-stressed conditions, but their activity or quantity is increased under oxidative stress (Sara Erdei, 2002). This study becomes more important because legume crops are less tolerant to Cd toxicity than cereals, grasses and frequently encounter strong inhibition of biomass production even at the less than micro molar range of cadmium (Inouhe et al., 1994). No much of the studies have been reported in the effect of cadmium in reproductive stage of soybean plant. Especially studies on the response of plants can very much help in increasing productivity, improving biomass, and reducing the green house gases, and also in the identification of Cd tolerant plants. Research studies on Cd effect on the economically important soybean crop may also be helpful to meet the increasing demand for soybean in India. The increasing global demand for soybean, oil and other products, rise in price at the international level particularly after the usage of soybean for biodiesel production, made us to select soybean as the plant of our research interest in this study. With the increasing scarcity for water and increasing pollution of ground water the irrigation of the legumes has become a big problem, in addition to the contaminated and less fertile soil for the farmers. Hence it is very essential to derive mechanisms to clean up technologies to remove the contaminants form wastewater and reuse of it for irrigation of legumes. Activated carbon absorption has been used successfully for the advanced treatment of municipal and industrial wastewater. Adsorption occurs when molecules adhere to the internal walls of pores in carbon particles produced by thermal or acid chemical activation (US EPA, 2000). Production of activated carbon from an easily available agro waste makes this technique more apt to adapt in a large-scale level. Also the reduction in the production cost by modification of already available techniques is very important and makes this process economically very feasible. Hence in our study we have selected the agricultural waste, shell from Anacardium occidentale L., a member of the Anacardiaceaefamily, of which the cashew is by far the most important economically. Anacardium occidentale L., is cultivated commercially in 32 countries on over 7.5 million acres. Cashew is now the #1 tree nut crop in the world, since its production surpassed that of almond in 2003. Average yields worldwide are about 600 lbs/acre. And India ranks second in its production contributing to 25% of the total production worldwide. Anacardium occidentale L produce 2 additional products of commercial value from their fruit: cashew apples and cashew nut shell liquid. After the CNSL is taken, the left out biological waste shell is thus considered for the production of low cost activated carbon in our study, which is available in higher quantity at a very cheaper price. Hence this study may be increasing one more commercially important product from the waste of Anacardium occidentale L. Objectives of The Study The major objectives of this research project are Use of the left out agro waste shell of Anacardium occidentale L., for the production of low cost activated carbon, in turn increasing one more commercially important product from the waste of Anacardium occidentale L., this also may be helping to improve the production of activated carbon in India to meet the increasing global need in the activated carbon industry. Development of an activated carbon process as the cleaning technology for removing heavy metal cadmium, from the Cd contaminated water Reuse of the treated water for growing economically important legume soybean and studying the response of soybean grown with the cadmium contaminated water before and after treatment. Specific Aims The specific aims of this study are as follows Study of the effect of Cd on the growth, stress and antioxidant metabolism of Glycine max (L.) Merr. Plants by petriplate and pot culture studies. Production and characterization of low cost activated carbon from the agro waste nut shell of Anacardium occidentale L. Batch mode experiments for the optimizing the conditions for maximum removal of Cd by the activated carbon from the biological waste nut shell of Anacardium occidentale L. Application of the treated water for irrigation and study of effect of Cd contaminated water after treatment on the growth, stress and antioxidant metabolism of Glycine max (L.) Merr. Plants by petriplate and pot culture studies. Evaluation of the effect of treated water on the growth on the growth of soybean over the treated water. A study on uptake and localization of cadmium by various parts of soybean Experimental Design and Salient Findings The experimental protocols are deduced and the work is designed in order to fulfill the objectives of the study and was carried out in eight phases, following standard protocols wherever necessary. PHASE-I: Collection of Seeds, Soil and Biological Waste Sample A. COLLECTION OF SEEDS, SOIL AND AGRO WASTE: Co-2 variety soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr] seeds were collected from Millets and New Area Farm, Centre for Plant Breeding and Genetics, Tamilnadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, and used for the study. The biological waste of shell of Anacardium occidentale L.was collected and the activated carbon is produced by the acid activation process. B. PREPARATION OF SYNTHETIC EFFLUENTS: The synthetic effluents with concentrations varying from 5, 10, 15, 20 and 25 ppm concentration of cadmium were prepared by using cadmium chloride, by calculating the level of cadmium in CdCl2 and used for growing the plants during germination, pot culture studies and for Cd adsorption studies. Distilled water is used as the control for all the experiments. C. COLLECTION OF THE SOIL AND SOIL STUDY Red soil was collected from the agricultural fields of Coimbatore, the composition is checked, and used throughout the study. The soil parameters checked includes, Moisture (%), pH, Electrical conductivity, Total nitrogen, Total phosphorus, Total potassium, Organic carbon, C / N ratio, Available Nitrogen, Available Phosphorus, Available potassium, Exchangeable calcium, Exchangeable Magnesium, Exchangeable sodium, Calcium, Magnesium, Sulphate, Chloride, Cadmium. Findings: The above parameters were checked to ensure that the soil is suitable for the growth of soybean. The Cd level was determined using Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy and found to be below non detectable limit and hence used for the study. PHASE-II Effect of Cadmium On Germination of Soybean (Petriplate Study 10 Days) The plants were grown in six groups as follows, and five plants were selected for checking germination parameters. GROUP-I NORMAL WATER TREATED SOYBEAN GROUP-II 5 ppm Cd CONTAMINATED ARTIFICIAL EFFLUENT TREATED SOYBEAN GROUP-III 10 ppm Cd CONTAMINATED ARTIFICIAL EFFLUENT TREATED SOYBEAN GROUP-IV 15 ppm Cd CONTAMINATED ARTIFICIAL EFFLUENT TREATED SOYBEAN GROUP-V 20 ppm Cd CONTAMINATED ARTIFICIAL EFFLUENT TREATED SOYBEAN GROUP-VI 25 ppm Cd CONTAMINATED ARTIFICIAL EFFLUENT TREATED SOYBEAN Parameters Checked: The parameters checked on 10th day includes Germination percentage, Root length, Shoot length, Length of whole plant, Fresh mass of whole plant, Dry mass of whole plant, Dry mass / fresh mass ratio, Relative seed germination, Root length, Shoot length percentage, Germination index, Seed vigor index, Tolerance index, Germination rate Percentage. Findings of Germination Study Germination of soybean., seedlings was drastically affected by the increasing concentration of cadmium in the effluents. A significant decrease in germination percentage, root length, shoot length, fresh mass, dry mass of whole plant, relative seed germination, root length, shoot length percentage, germination index, seed vigor index, tolerance index and germination rate percentage was observed. Also a significant increase in dry mass / fresh mass ratio was observed. With these preliminary results obtained the work was extended to red soil study using pot culture. PHASE -III Pot Culture Studies EFFECT OF CADMIUM ON SOYBEAN OBSERVED ON 20TH DAY AND 40TH DAY: The plants were grown in six groups as follows, and five plants were selected for checking all physical parameters and all biochemical estimations were made on three plants selected as replications. GROUP-I NORMAL WATER TREATED SOYBEAN GROUP-II 5 ppm Cd CONTAMINATED ARTIFICIAL EFFLUENT TREATED SOYBEAN GROUP-III 10 ppm Cd CONTAMINATED ARTIFICIAL EFFLUENT TREATED SOYBEAN GROUP-IV 15 ppm Cd CONTAMINATED ARTIFICIAL EFFLUENT TREATED SOYBEAN GROUP-V 20 ppm Cd CONTAMINATED ARTIFICIAL EFFLUENT TREATED SOYBEAN GROUP-VI 25 ppm Cd CONTAMINATED ARTIFICIAL EFFLUENT TREATED SOYBEAN III.A. GROWTH PARAMETERS CHECKED ON 20TH DAY The parameters checked on 20th day includes Root length, Shoot length, Plant height, Relative root length percentage, Relative shoot length percentage, Tolerance index, No of leaves, trifoliate, fresh weight, dry weight, Dry mass/fresh mass ratio, Leaf mass ratio, Stem mass ratio, Root mass ratio, Total dry matter yield under cadmium stress, Percentage weight gain, Seed vigor index, Leaf area measurements, Leaf area index, Leaf weight fraction, Specific leaf area, Leaf area ratio. FINDINGS: In the observations made with five plants in each group on 20th day, the following results were observed. The growth parameters such as root length, shoot length, plant height, relative root length percentage, relative shoot length percentage, tolerance index, no of leaves, trifoliates, fresh weight, dry weight were found to be decreased significantly with increasing concentrations of cadmium level in the effluents when compared to control. Also dry mass/fresh mass ratio, stem mass ratio, root mass ratio were found to be increased, while the other parameters such as leaf mass ratio, total dry matter yield under cadmium stress, percentage weight gain, seed vigor index, leaf area measurements, leaf area index, leaf weight fraction, specific leaf area, leaf area ratio were also found to be decreasing when compared to control group plants, with increasing levels of cadmium in the effluents. III.B. GROWTH PARAMETERS CHECKED ON 40TH DAY The parameters checked on 20th day includes Root length, Shoot length, Total plant height, Relative root length percentage, relative shoot length percentage, tolerance index, Number of leaves, trifoliate, nodules per plant, fresh weight, dry weight of individual organs, and whole plant, Dry mass/fresh mass ratio of individual organs, Leaf mass ratio, Stem mass ratio, Root mass ratio, Total dry matter yield under cadmium stress, Percentage weight gain, Seed vigor index, Leaf area measurements, Leaf area index, Leaf weight fraction, Specific leaf area, Leaf area ratio, Absolute growth rate, Crop growth rate, Unit leaf rate, Net assimilation rate, Relative growth rate, Leaf area duration FINDINGS: In the observations made with five plants in each group on 40th day, the following results were observed. The growth parameters such as root length, shoot length, plant height, relative root length percentage, relative shoot length percentage, tolerance index, number of leaves, trifoliates, nodules per plant, fresh weight, dry weight of individual organs, and whole plant, leaf mass ratio, total dry matter yield under cadmium stress, percentage weight gain, seed vigor index, leaf area measurements, leaf area index, leaf weight fraction, specific leaf area and leaf area ratio were found to be decreased significantly. The dry mass/ fresh mass ratio, stem mass ratio and root mass ratio were found to be increasing with increase in the concentration of cadmium. The growth parameters connecting the observations made on 20th and 40th day observations such as absolute growth rate, crop growth rate, unit leaf rate, net assimilation rate, relative growth rate, leaf area duration values showed a significant difference from the values of control group plants. III.C. BIOCHEMICAL PARAMETERS ESTIMATED ON 20TH DAY IN ROOT AND SHOOT TISSUES: The various biochemical estimations made includes, i. GROWTH PARAMETERS Chlorophyll a, b, total chlorophyll, Total carbohydrate, Starch, total Protein ii. ENZYMES: Amylase alpha, beta and total, Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase iii. STRESS MARKERS Total free amino acids, Proline, TBARS iv. NON ENZYMATIC ANTIOXIDANTS Vitamin E, Vitamin C, Reduced Glutathione v. ENZYMATIC ANTIOXIDANTS Superoxide dismutase, Catalase, Peroxidase, Glutathione Reductase, Glutathione Peroxidase. FINDINGS: The levels of growth parameters such as Chlorophyll-a, b and total Chlorophyll were significantly found to be affected with the increase in the cadmium concentrations in the effluents. The levels of Total Carbohydrate, Starch and Total Protein were also estimated in root and leaf tissues and were found to be significantly decreased with increasing concentrations of cadmium. The decreasing levels of Amylase, Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase were also observed with increasing concentrations of cadmium, when compared to control in both root and leaf tissues. The stress markers like Total Free Amino Acids, Proline and Thiobarbituricacid reactive substances (TBARS) were also found to be increased with increase in the concentrations of cadmium in both leaf and root tissues. The non enzymatic antioxidants such as Vitamin E, Ascorbic acid, and Reduced Glutathione were found to significantly varying with the varying concentrations of cadmium. The enzymatic antioxidants such as Catalase, Peroxidase, Glutathione Reductase, Glutathione peroxidase were found to be decreased in their levels with increasing concentration of cadmium. Superoxidedismutase was found to be increasing with increase in the Cd concentration. PHASE-IV PRODUCTION AND USE OF LOW COST ACTIVATED CARBON FOR REMOVAL OF CADMIUM FROM CONTAMINATED EFFLUENT ADSORPTION STUDIES. COLLECTION OF THE BIOLOGICAL WASTE. ACTIVATED CARBON PRODUCTION BY ACID ACTIVATION. PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF ACTIVATED CARBON FTIR ANALYSIS OF ACTIVATED CARBON BEFORE ADSORPTION SEM ANALYSIS BEFORE ADSORPTION FINDINGS: The agricultural waste, shell from Anacardium Occidentale L., were collected, and the activated carbon is produced, the activated carbon of size less than 125 micron was selected and its physical parameters were determined, and is found to be suitable for removal of cadmium from waste water. Fourier Transform Infra Red spectroscopy and Scanning Electron Microscopy analysis were done for the prepared activated carbon. PHASE-V BATCH MODE ADSORPTION STUDIES Batch mode adsorption studies were done for the following parameters EFFECT OF EQUILIBRIUM TIME EFFECT OF pH EFFECT OF VARYING CARBON CONCENTRATION EFFECT OF VARYING CADMIUM CONCENTRATION EFFECT OF TEMPERATURE FINAL PERCENTAGE REMOVAL OF CADMIUM FROM VARIOUS CONC OF Cd SOLUTIONS. FTIR ANALYSIS OF ACTIVATED CARBON AFTER ADSORPTION SEM ANALYSIS AFTER ADSORPTION FINDINGS: The batch mode experiments were performed for adsorption studies and the optimum equilibrium time, optimum pH, effects of varying carbon concentration and varying carbon concentration and temperature were done and the carbon to cadmium ratio was determined. The final percentage of cadmium removed successfully after treatment with optimum concentrations was determined using Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy. The carbon collected after adsorption was analyzed using Fourier Transform Infra Red spectroscopy and Scanning Electron Microscopy. PHASE-VI EFFECT OF CADMIUM TREATED WATER ON GERMINATION OF SOYBEAN (PETRIPLATE STUDY 10 DAYS) The plants were grown in six groups as follows, and five plants were selected for checking germination parameters. GROUP-I NORMAL WATER TREATED SOYBEAN GROUP-II 5 ppm Cd CONTAMINATED ACTIVATED CARBON TREATED ARTIFICIAL EFFLUENT TREATED SOYBEAN GROUP-III 10 ppm Cd CONTAMINATED ACTIVATED CARBON TREATED ARTIFICIAL EFFLUENT TREATED SOYBEAN GROUP-IV 15 ppm Cd CONTAMINATED ACTIVATED CARBON TREATED ARTIFICIAL EFFLUENT TREATED SOYBEAN GROUP-V 20 ppm Cd CONTAMINATED ACTIVATED CARBON TREATED ARTIFICIAL EFFLUENT TREATED SOYBEAN GROUP-VI 25 ppm Cd CONTAMINATED ACTIVATED CARBON TREATED ARTIFICIAL EFFLUENT TREATED SOYBEAN GROWTH PARAMETERS CHECKED: The parameters checked on 10th day includes Germination percentage, Root length, Shoot length, Length of whole plant, Fresh mass of whole plant, Dry mass of whole plant, Dry mass / fresh mass ratio, Relative seed germination, Root length, Shoot length percentage, Germination index, Seed vigor index, Tolerance index, Germination rate percentage FINDINGS OF GERMINATION STUDY: Although the test groups showed a reduction in parameters when compared to control group, a highly significant improvement in the germination of soybean seedlings grown using with the increasing concentration of cadmium in the effluents after treatment. A significant improvement in germination percentage, root length, shoot length, fresh mass, dry mass of whole plant, relative seed germination, relative root length, shoot length percentage, germination index, seed vigor index, tolerance index and germination rate percentage were observed when compared to before treatment plants. Also a significant variation in dry mass / fresh mass ratio was observed. With these significant preliminary results obtained for treated effluents, the work was extended to red soil study using pot culture. PHASE- VII EFFECT OF CADMIUM ON METABOLISM AND ANTIOXIDANT STATUS OF SOYBEAN ON 20TH DAY AND 40TH DAY: The plants were grown in six groups as follows, and five plants were selected for checking all physical parameters and all biochemical estimations were made on three plants selected as replications. GROUP-I NORMAL WATER TREATED SOYBEAN GROUP-II 5 ppm Cd CONTAMINATED ACTIVATED CARBON TREATED ARTIFICIAL EFFLUENT TREATED SOYBEAN GROUP-III 10 ppm Cd CONTAMINATED ACTIVATED CARBON TREATED ARTIFICIAL EFFLUENT TREATED SOYBEAN GROUP-IV 15 ppm Cd CONTAMINATED ACTIVATED CARBON TREATED ARTIFICIAL EFFLUENT TREATED SOYBEAN GROUP-V 20 ppm Cd CONTAMINATED ACTIVATED CARBON TREATED ARTIFICIAL EFFLUENT TREATED SOYBEAN GROUP-VI 25 ppm Cd CONTAMINATED ACTIVATED CARBON TREATED ARTIFICIAL EFFLUENT TREATED SOYBEAN VII.A. GROWTH PARAMETERS MEASURED ON 20TH DAY The parameters checked on 20th day includes Root length, Shoot length, Plant height, Relative root length percentage, Relative shoot length percentage, Tolerance index, Number of leaves, Trifoliate, Fresh weight, Dry weight, Dry mass/fresh mass ratio, Leaf mass ratio, Stem mass ratio, Root mass ratio, Total dry matter yield under cadmium stress, Percentage weight gain, Seed vigor index, Leaf area measurements, Leaf area index, Leaf weight fraction, Specific leaf area, Leaf area ratio FINDINGS: The following observations were made with five plants in each group grown with treated effluents, on 20th day: The growth parameters such as root length, shoot length, plant height, relative root length percentage, relative shoot length percentage, tolerance index, number of leaves, trifoliates, fresh weight, dry weight were found to be decreased when compared to control. But a highly significant improvement was seen in all these parameters, when compared with the values of plants grown with effluents before treatment. Also dry mass/fresh mass ratio, stem mass ratio, root mass ratio were also found to be varied than the before treatment plants. The other growth parameters such as leaf mass ratio, total dry matter yield under cadmium stress, percentage weight gain, seed vigor index, leaf area measurements, leaf area index, leaf weight fraction , specific leaf area, leaf area ratio were also found to be improved when compared to before treatment plants, although it is decreasing when compared to control group plants. VII.B. GROWTH PARAMETERS MEASURED ON 40TH DAY The parameters checked on 20th day includes Root length, Shoot length, Plant height, Relative root length percentage, Relative shoot length percentage, Tolerance index, Number of leaves, trifoliate, nodules per plant, Fresh weight, Dry weight of individual organs and whole plant, Dry mass/fresh mass ratio of individual organs, Leaf mass ratio, Stem mass ratio, Root mass ratio, Total dry matter yield under cadmium stress, Percentage weight gain, Seed vigor index, Leaf area measurements, Leaf area index, Leaf weight fraction, Specific leaf area, Leaf area ratio , Absolute growth rate, Crop growth rate, Unit leaf rate, Net assimilation rate, Relative growth rate, Leaf area duration FINDINGS: In the observations made with five plants in each group on 40th day, the following results were observed for the plants grown after treatment of Cd containing waste water: The growth parameters such as root length, shoot length, plant height, relative root length percentage, relative shoot length percentage, tolerance index, no of leaves, trifoliates, nodules per plant, fresh weight, dry weight of individual organs, and whole plant, leaf mass ratio, total dry matter yield under cadmium stress, percentage weight gain, seed vigor index, leaf area measurements, leaf area index, leaf weight fraction, specific leaf area, leaf area ratio were found to be increased significantly when compared with the before treatment plants. The dry mass/ fresh mass ratio, stem mass ratio and root mass ratio were also found to be varying with concentration of cadmium after treatment. The growth parameters connecting the observations made on 20th and 40th day observations such as absolute growth rate, crop growth rate, unit leaf rate, net assimilation rate, relative growth rate, leaf area duration values showed a significant improved performance when compared to the plants gr own with the cadmium contaminated waste water before treatment. VII.C. BIOCHEMICAL PARAMETERS ESTIMATED ON 20TH DAY ON ROOT SHOOT TISSUES OF SOYBEAN: The various biochemical estimations made includes, i. GROWTH PARAMETERS Chlorophyll a, b, total chlorophyll, Total carbohydrate, Starch, Total Protein ii. ENZYMES: Amylase alpha, beta and total, Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase iii. STRESS MARKERS Total free amino acids, Proline, TBARS iv. NON ENZYMATIC ANTIOXIDANTS Vitamin E, Vitamin C, Reduced Glutathione v. ENZYMATIC ANTIOXIDANTS Superoxidedismutase, Catalase, Peroxidase, Glutathione Reductase, Glutathione Peroxidase. FINDINGS: The levels of growth parameters such as Chlorophyll-a, b and Total Chlorophyll were significantly found to be improved with the increase in the cadmium concentrations in the effluents after treatment. The levels of Total Carbohydrate, Starch and Total Protein were also found to be increased significantly when compared to before treatment plants in both root and leaf tissues. Although a decreasing levels of Amylase, Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase were observed with increasing concentrations of cadmium, when compared to control, a significant increase in their levels was observed when compared with the plants grown before treatment in both root and leaf tissues. The stress markers like Total Free Amino Acids, Proline and Thiobarbituric Acid Reactive Substances(TBARS) were also found to be decreased in both leaf and root tissues when compared with the plants grown using effluents before treatment. The non enzymatic antioxidants such as Vitamin E, Ascorbic acid and Reduced Glutathione were found to significantly varying with the varying concentrations of cadmium after treatment. The enzymatic antioxidants such as Catalase, Peroxidase, Glutathione Reductase, and Glutathione Peroxidase were found to be significantly increased in the plants grown after treatment. Also level of Superoxide dismutase was found to be reduced than the level found in plants grown using effluents before treatment. PHASE-VIII UPTAKE AND LOCALIZATION OF CADMIUM BY SOYBEAN PLANTS BEFORE TREATMENT The level of cadmium uptake was measured by atomic absorption spectrophotometer in the tissues of root, shoot, leaves, and pod of soybean grown using Cd contaminated water before treatment. AFTER TREATMENT The level of cadmium uptake was measured by atomic absorption spectrophotometer in the tissues of root, shoot, leaves, and pod of soybean grown using Cd contaminated water after treatment. FINDINGS: The uptake and localization of cadmium levels and correlated to the results obtained in biochemical and physical parameters. Conclusions The results obtained from the present study indicates The effect of Cd on the growth, stress and antioxidant metabolism of Glycine max (L.) Merr. Plants by petriplate and pot culture studies were studied and are found to be significant. The production of low cost activated carbon from agro waste of Anacardium occidentale L.., and the removal of Cd from the waste water by the low cost AC are significant. Use of the treated water for irrigation and its effect on the growth, stress and antioxidant metabolism of Glycine max (L.) Merr. Plants by petriplate and pot culture were studied. The results may be helpful in better understanding of the various growth, metabolic and defense response mechanisms of the Glycine max (L.) Merr. plants, grown with Cd contaminated water before and after treatment using activated carbon. The effect of treated water on the growth over the non-treated water was evaluated and the results show the efficiency of the treated Cd contaminated waste water for irrigation. The results also suggest that this method may be useful as a secondary treatment method in the water treatment plants involved in treatment of sewage wastewaters. 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Sara Erdei, Attila Hegedus, Gabor Hauptmann, Jozsef Szalai, Gabor Horvath., Heavy Metal Induced Physiological Changes in the Antioxidative Response System., Acta Biologica Szegediensis., 46(3-4): 89-90, 2002. Tchobanoglous, George and Burton, Fraklin L., Waste Water Engineering Treatment Disposal, Reuse., Metcalf and Eddy Inc., 3rd ed., 1991. USEPA, Granular Activated Carbon Systems Problems and Remedies, USEPA 800/490/9198, US EPA, Washington DC., 1984. Wagner G J., Accumulation of Cadmium in Crop Plants and its Consequences to Human Health. Adv Agron, 51: 173-212, 1993. US EPA, Waste Water Technology Fact Sheet, United States Environment Protection Agency, USEPA 832-f-00-017, US EPA, Washington DC., 2000. Weast RC, CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics. 64th Edn. CRC Press, Boca Raton, 1984.

The Birth Of Republic By Edmund Morgan - 1440 Words

In the book, the birth of republic, Edmund Morgan showed the challenge of British taxation imposed on Americans and the quest for search of constitutional principles so as to protect their freedom leading to revolution. In this book, the author portrayed how the experience of the founders of the nation shaped the convictions and how these elements were fit into the constitution and governmental legislatures. â€Å"In 1649, as Harrington saw it, the people who owned the property of England deposed the kind and began to take charge of the government. Their action proved premature. Monarchy and Aristocracy turned out to be stronger than Harrington had supposed, but he gave the people (or at least those who owned property) the nerve to think that†¦show more content†¦In our case it was the other way round: we struck for independence. And were thereby stirred into nationality; our nation was the child, not the father, of our revolution† In the US, the weaving of ideas about constituent power and representation let, in Edmund Morgan’s phase, to ‘inventing the people’; Republican and representative government marched and hand-in-hand, although it look more than a century before the people impose themselves on the senate through seventeenth amendment . Although the predecessors in the US were English, but an increasing nationalism emerged in the US and this is prevalent in the history of Europe, Asia and Africa that the people tend to form tribes and greater communities and societies that are transformed into nations. The American civil war revolution set the foundation of the typical US liberty that resulted in the formation of the US constitution. In this book, the New Colonial Policies after 1763 were reviewed that were the main source of revolution. The revolution as portrayed in Morgan book was revolt against England whereas the internal dispute among colonies had the secondary importance as compared to revolt against England .The driving force of the revolution was to form an independent government that is free from the rule of Britain, so it was considered as a revolt against the English. There were

Ayala Museum Free Essays

Little did we know, when we were sent on a field trip to the Loyal Museum, what we would see there. All that we were told was that It was an â€Å"educational field trip† and something to do with Flanagan. Net’s advocacy of anything and everything Filipino. We will write a custom essay sample on Ayala Museum or any similar topic only for you Order Now So, we were really in for a treat when we set foot on the fourth floor of the museum and a short film started to play the moment we stepped inside the sliding doors. â€Å"Gold of Ancestors: Crossroads of Civilization†, it began, and went on to show some gold artifacts that had been found on archaeological digs all over the country. We were mesmerism’s from the very first one. Then, Just beyond the small chamber where we were viewing the film, we caught sight of the display cases containing the very artifacts that were now flashing on the screen. After that, we could hardly Walt to go and see them up close We saw golden bangles, rings, and necklaces, earrings, tiaras and studs, belts, bowls, cups and hilts of weapons. I was fascinated when I saw the burial masks, with stylized features engraved In the gold. I thought: forget ancient Egypt, It turns out the Philippines has its own! Aside from the burial masks, there were also â€Å"orifice coverings†, shaped like the eyes, the nose and the mouth. I guess If the dead couldn’t afford a whole mask, they could just go for the important parts! Whew! Move over, King -rut! Aside from the burial masks, I was also fascinated with the Kina, a small vessel shaped like a mythical woman-bird, who appeared to be holding some kind of Jug. Her eyes looked serenely out at the people who had come to see her. There was also the bluntly, an anthropomorphic plaque depleting the head of a lady with what seemed like an elaborate hairdo or headdress. I also drooled over a cuff or wrist ornament, as wide as a sleeve and intricately worked, so that the gold mesh was like lace. The information on it said it weighed 204 grams. Heavy! There were also earrings so big and so heavy that we all wondered how the owner could possibly have worn It without getting his or her ears torn. My personal favorite, however, was a beautiful belt (l know someone’s snickering while reading TLS! ). Catalog No. 81. 5175, weighing 575. 1 g, measuring 68. Xx CM. Circa 10th 13th century. It was made of fine mesh, with a zigzag design running along its length, and two golden plaques ornamented with granules of gold painstakingly arranged into stylized designs. Oh, I could have stood there and stared at it forever! Then, there was the piece De resistance: the UAPITA or Sacred Thread, weighing almost 4 kilos (yeah- peeve! ), strikingly similar to one depicted In the 16th century Boxer Codex, said to be the earliest description of the people of the Philippines In a Western language. Copy of which can be found in the exhibit. The UAPITA was supposed to be draped around the neck then attached to the wrist. Wow, the person who wore that must’ve been pretty strong! What was striking about these artifacts was that they seemed so Pinto to me. There were at least two necklaces or bracelets that were woven banging- Tyler: take four flat strips of gold and weave a fifth one back and forth across it, the reminded me of the legs of a modern armchair made of into because it h ad the same basket-weave technique. Some of the other items were decorated simply by poking holes in the gold to create a lacy pattern. The tiaras were created by cutting a sort of fringe in a strip of gold, then bending them back and forth to make a crown-like design. Seeing the exhibit made all of us walk a little taller and prouder. We had always read about the treasures of other lands, like Egypt and Troy; now we know that we have our own! Mayhap nag Philippians! How to cite Ayala Museum, Papers

Diet Analysis Essay Example For Students

Diet Analysis Essay Since my childhood, I have always had an aggressive appetite, and obviously, not all the meals I ate were healthy and nutritious. For a long time, I did not care much about what I ate and how my food choices and eating habits influenced my health. However, recently, I have started to pay more attention to my daily diet. In particular, I decided to track my daily meals for a week, write down everything I eat and prepare my diet analysis based on calorie intake and the amount of protein, fats, and carbohydrates consumed. It has helped me find out what my organism lacks and, on the contrary, what is redundant. While analyzing what the foods I typically eat every day are and how my eating choices change over the days, I have found out that there are some negative tendencies in my daily diet that I definitely need to change. At the same time, there are also certain eating habits that need to be further encouraged and maintained. What have I found out? First of all, my diet analysis has revealed that I consume not enough water. I thought that I drink much, so the result was a shock to me. Over the days, I systematically drank less than 1 l of plain water or a bit more. The rest of the consumed liquid was mainly tea or coffee. I know that it is important to drink more water as water can help with hair and skin. Besides, in general, drinking water makes the body work properly. If I want to make a change in my daily diet, I definitely need to increase the amount of plain water drunk every day and eliminate the amount of coffee, juices, and sodas consumed. Speaking about my overall calorie intake, it was rather unstable during the week of my diet analysis. While on some days, it was normal, on other days, it was either excessive or insufficient. For example, on Monday, my calorie intake was 648.5, while on Sunday, it was 2343.6. The matter is that on working days, I often have no time for eating. Sometimes, I choose eating at fast foods, although I know that such eating habits can lead to severe health problems. At the weekends, I have more time and can prepare meals by myself. It is important to stabilize my calorie intake and consume the required number of calories to keep my body in shape and not put on weight. Apart from the need to stabilize calorie intake, my diet analysis has also revealed some other issues. I understand that tracking my eating habits just for one week is not enough to make conclusions as over the days; my eating choices can significantly change. Still, my diet analysis can help me identify the negative tendencies and try to establish a healthier diet on a daily basis. Vitamins as integral part of the healthy life An important aspect of my diet analysis research was vitamin intake and my vitamin D level in particular. After I had reviewed my vitamin intake, I understood that the foods I ate did not include many vitamins. My vitamin D level is particularly low. It can be understood because it is winter now, and that is why my exposure to sun is low. However, not only the change in the weather can help increase my vitamin D level. One of the main sources of vitamin D is milk, and I almost never drink milk. As I do not have any allergies, I can include milk to the foods I consume every day. My favorite drink is coffee, and sometimes, I drink it too often. Instead, I can drink milk or water. Besides that, there is a possibility to eat vitamin D supplements to increase my vitamin D level. I realize that I need to do something about my eating choices and eating habits to ensure the required level of vitamin D in my organism. .u09604941c3b0e72000fff27eca49c0e1 , .u09604941c3b0e72000fff27eca49c0e1 .postImageUrl , .u09604941c3b0e72000fff27eca49c0e1 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u09604941c3b0e72000fff27eca49c0e1 , .u09604941c3b0e72000fff27eca49c0e1:hover , .u09604941c3b0e72000fff27eca49c0e1:visited , .u09604941c3b0e72000fff27eca49c0e1:active { border:0!important; } .u09604941c3b0e72000fff27eca49c0e1 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u09604941c3b0e72000fff27eca49c0e1 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u09604941c3b0e72000fff27eca49c0e1:active , .u09604941c3b0e72000fff27eca49c0e1:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u09604941c3b0e72000fff27eca49c0e1 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u09604941c3b0e72000fff27eca49c0e1 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u09604941c3b0e72000fff27eca49c0e1 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u09604941c3b0e72000fff27eca49c0e1 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u09604941c3b0e72000fff27eca49c0e1:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u09604941c3b0e72000fff27eca49c0e1 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u09604941c3b0e72000fff27eca49c0e1 .u09604941c3b0e72000fff27eca49c0e1-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u09604941c3b0e72000fff27eca49c0e1:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: The Lottery Persuasive EssayWhile working on my diet analysis project, I realized that I even though I lead an active lifestyle, I do not exercise enough. Bringing more exercising into my life will definitely help me to stay in shape. In particular, I am going to add jogging to my daily routine. As the sun is the source of vitamin D, jogging will also help me to increase my vitamin D level. My research met the results My diet analysis research has shown that in general, my vitamin levels are very low. It can be explained by the fact that I eat not many vegetables and fruit. That is why based on my research; I decided to make a change in my daily diet and add more vegetables and fruit to the foods I eat. I believe that it will also help regulate my calorie intake at large. In particular, my daily diet includes almost no fruit. For example, over the days, I ate fruit just a few times. On Thursday, I drank a smoothie, and the only fruit I ate that day were the ones added to this smoothie. Another significant problem in my diet is eating too much fat. As during the week, I often eat at fast foods, it means that I eat the foods that contain trans-fat and saturated fat almost every day. For example, my overall intake of saturated fat over a week was 28.7, and this number is huge. I need to exclude fast food from my daily diet as eating too much trans fat, and saturated fat can not only lead to obesity but also provoke serious health problems. To sum up, I should say that my diet analysis research has turned out to be very helpful and useful for me. With its help, by tracking my eating habits and the foods I eat for a week, I identified the key problems in my daily diet and made some significant decisions. For instance, I found out that I drink not enough water. I decided to work on it and develop a habit of drinking the required amount of plain water every day instead of drinking too much coffee. Water is essential for the overall health and well-being, and thus, drinking enough water will be my priority. Besides that, I understood that my vitamin D level is rather low. I will do everything to increase this level by drinking milk and eating other foods that contain vitamin D. Also; my diet analysis showed that all my vitamin levels are low because of consuming not enough fruit and vegetables. I do not like fruit very much, but I will try to add as many of them as is needed for my daily diet to stay healthy and ensure vita min intake. What is more, I eat too much trans-fat and saturated fat, and I want to change my eating habits and eliminate the number of fats consumed in my daily diet.

Graphic Design in Society Essay Example

Graphic Design in Society Essay EPARTS 191 – DESIGN IN SOCIETY ASSIGNMENT TASK 2 Essay Graphic design is the art of communication. The designer takes an idea and creates a visual experience to communicate an idea, or to send a specific message to the responder through both printed and electronic means. Imagine a world without graphic design, you may not realise it right now but graphic design is everywhere. It’s what attracts you to a product or business and forces you to understand the message at the point of its creation. If the message is not clear then the graphic designer has failed. In this essay I will be discussing the history of graphic design, notable and popular styles, and the age old debate of computer versus the creative process, what the future holds and in turn proving that graphic design is the most important design discipline in our society. Graphic design has always existed, it has always been there for artists to express themselves and documents show that it goes back to the late 19th century at least but in my opinion graphic design never became more important and known until the Bauhaus was opened in 1919. The Bauhaus or House of Building was an art school in Germany which pioneered simplistic design and became a style of design itself, although it only existed for 14 years. The style is still heavily popular today within examples such as Ikea who produce simplistic furniture, advertisements, accessories etc and sell unfathomable amounts each year. This couldn’t happen and continue to happen if it wasn’t for successful graphic design and the elegant Swiss style I talk about below. We will write a custom essay sample on Graphic Design in Society specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Graphic Design in Society specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Graphic Design in Society specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer With each era a new style emerged to match the changes in society, throughout the 1960’s when the hippy lifestyle was adopted it was shown heavily through the art produced. Posters were full colour, bright and flowing and colour theory was well used. The responder’s eyes were immediately drawn to the swirling and often unorthodox patterns which assisted in making it unique. The American ‘Big Idea’ style became popular in around 1950’s and is still used today. In brief this style is generally a provocative or stimulating mage with short headline over the top; it was also known as the ‘picture is worth a thousand words’ approach (Heller Balance 2001). Another notable style is the Swiss approach which also uses simplistic techniques as well as symmetry and gridlines (which made most designs produced relatively predictable) to produce more logical designs as opposed to emotional or subjective. Why is it that in these modern times everything is computer based, computer done or needs a computer to begin it but does that take away from ones creative thinking? It’s debatable whether the speed and efficiency of computers stops graphic designers from studying their project/s in finer detail and thus not providing as higher results as hand drawing or rendering. In my opinion nothing can ever make lead up sketches obsolete, putting a pencil to paper and loosely drawing ideas is umpteen times faster than computer aided design (although using a tablet may increase speed). From my experience drawing on paper first allows you to relax and not concentrate as hard, in which ideas come about more freely than if you were to concentrate into drawing on a computer program such as Illustrator. Graphic design is innovation and advancement; it documents the growth of society and the changing of views, ideals, opinions and any other kind of free speech a person can express. If you look around, you can pinpoint most graphic designer’s styles down to someone work prior, be it taking inspiration or taking tips it becomes somewhat of a building block. With newer technology comes newer ways to do things but traditional methods will never go out of style, how can you say a design discipline that has successfully been around for roughly 100 years can die out? In conclusion, what a boring and colourless life we would live in without graphic design; who would be there to trick us into purchasing and believing things. Heller, S. Balance, G. (2001). Graphic Design History. Allworth Communications Inc.

Author Website Design Inspiration 5 Ideas to Build the Perfect Website

Author Website Design Inspiration 5 Ideas to Build the Perfect Website Author Website Design Inspiration: 5 Ideas From Bestselling Authors Author websites are the one place readers get to judge a book by its cover†¦ or in this case, the webpage. We’ve already written an extensive piece with tips for building an effective author website: 10 Tips to Build The Perfect Author Website,  but we thought we could go even further and offer you some actual  inspiration  and ideas to get started on yours.The main goal of your website is to allow you to connect with your readers, and help convert them into loyal customers. It’s obvious that authors are masters of language, but when it comes to the web, some don’t deem it necessary to have a strong internet presence. And that’s exactly where a dedicated reader can be made†¦or lost.  So the author website design inspiration you'll find in this post will be geared towards one main goal: creating loyal readers. Idea  #1: Adding teasers to your author websiteOnce an avid reader has finished a great book, they immediately want to read another; it’s an addiction. So when they make their way to your author website, the first thing they should see on your homepage is a feature on what you’re working on next. Readers want some exclusivity!Nothing is worse than finishing your new favorite book or the first book in a series and going to the author’s website to find out when the next one will be published and there’s absolutely zero information. It’s simply heartbreaking coming from a reader’s eyes and also from a marketing perspective.Case in point? If you're a loyal reader of George R.R. Martin's  A Song of Ice and Fire series (aka  Game of Thrones), you probably want to know when  Winds of Winter is going to be finished. So you head to the author's website, and†¦ you see this.We understand that being a published author means that you’r e extremely busy working on your next book, but creating a separate email account for the sole purpose of receiving feedback from your followers is extremely controlled and feasible. (And if you’re having a bad day, reading a little fan mail should cure that!)Similarly, designing the website so that the "Contact" page is immediately available from the menu is crucial. If people want to get in touch with you, your design should make  it as easy for them as you can.Also, if you’re feeling sociable, make it easy for your readers to find you on social media - Twitter, Instagram, Facebook  - with the help of push buttons. It will be easier to â€Å"like† what they tweet or tag you in and  if they tweet positive feedback, they’re marketing for you!Or you can try Nick Stephenson’s approach to staying in touch: homing pigeons 😉Idea  #4:  Make the best first impressionA reader coming to your website usually wants one thing: to know more about you. The first thing they'll do is click to your "bio" page. We know writers hate writing about themselves (unless you're a memoir writer!), but  you gotta give readers what they want, so feel free to  indulge yourself with  some healthy bragging.But  how do you write the ultimate author bio? The trick is to write more than one. As a writer, rewriting and re-editing comes with the territory. Write multiple versions of your bio blurb until you’ve broken down your shyness barrier and created a bio that truly defines you not only as an author, but also as a person. And continuing our point in idea  #2, continue to keep it fresh by updating it as you move along in your career.Now, since you're here for some inspiration, take a look at  Lindsay Buroker's bio page. It's  a great case in point  for being genuine and true to your  work. She’s honest, witty, and real in her bio blurb.Idea  #5:  The website as  an extension of your bookThere is one question we haven't addressed yet: how do you get  as many  readers as possible to actually go to your website?  The first thing  is to write a really really good book. The better the book, the more the author will want to learn more about you and your other work, and head to your website for that.Then, you need to make sure that you actually link to your website at the beginning and end of all your ebooks. You also need to make sure you pick a simple URL, like "firstnamelastname.com" or "seriesname.com." That way, your website will likely show up as the first result on Google when readers Google you.But the ultimate way to get authors to check out your site is to turn it into an extension of your book, by linking it to one of your characters, or places, or adding more to the story.  Not sure what we mean by that? You'll find some inspiration in ML Banner's story:"I had a character in the book who was a scientist and I thought: it’d be really cool if he had this res earch institute. So I created a persona for him online: a G+ profile, a Twitter account, and a website for the CMER Institute. The key was really to think from my character’s standpoint and see what I would do, in his place, to get the word out about this phenomenon that endangers the world.The beautiful thing about eBooks is the connectivity: you can embed hyperlinks. So I linked to this CMERI website where my character actually offered a free ebook called â€Å"The Apocalypse Survival Guide†. And I actually got over 1,200 downloads of that book. Some people even seem to believe that the CMERI is real, as I got a couple of media inquiries!"You have all the best practices in one: link to the website in the book, social media, free additional content, and a website that truly takes the story to another level. Of course, your author website's design should match the "branding" of your book or series, and ideally  feature  some of the imagery used on the cover. Our b est advice for that is to put  your author website design in the hands of a Reedsy professional.What are your favourite author websites out there? Which ones do you turn to for design inspiration? What other tips would you add to this list? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

Western Civilization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Western Civilization - Essay Example This brief analysis will consider the similarities as well as the divergence that is exhibited by these two authors as a function of the books they wrote and the views they espoused. Although a great many factors can be said to differentiate the understandings of Erasmus and Machiavelli, perhaps the greatest one revolves around the root â€Å"good† that each of the authors is hoping their leadership will effect. Machiavelli puts forward that the ultimate â€Å"good† is to achieve and maintain power. As a means to this end, the nature of moral choices that are undertaken become of a secondary nature. What this means is that to Machiavelli, the ultimate goal is the expansion and retention of the leader’s power. This can be effected through a variety of means that Machiavelli discusses. However, for the purposes of brevity, these means can be broken down into the nature of being feared versus being loved. To Machiavelli, humanity is duplicitous and untrustworthy. As such, Machiavelli believes that it is necessary for a leader to exhibit fearful attributes so that the subjects will seek to honor his will to power based on a healthy amount of fear for the different types of punitive actions the leader might effect. Although Machiavelli states that the leader should be feared and loved, this is oftentimes not entirely possible to exist at the same time for the same leader. In this way Machiavelli upholds to the reader that the most important concept to uphold would be that of overall fear due to the fact that of these two mechanisms, only fear has the ability to increase power of the ruler of the notions of fealty that love might induce. Conversely, Erasmus approaches the issue from a different perspective entirely. Rather than choosing to argue with Machiavelli over which of the two functions most dramatically increase the power of the leader in question, Erasmus chooses to focus instead on which approach entails the higher application of morali ty; or the greater good with reference to the Christian virtue. Obviously, with respect to Erasmus Christian humanism, the answer to this question is concentric around the â€Å"love of the leader†. In this way, Erasmus seeks to maximize the good while minimizing the evil. In a contrasting way to Machiavelli, Erasmus’ point of view is concentric upon the ways in which the leader can work to improve their kingdom both morally and spiritually. In this way, it is morally reprehensible for Erasmus to consider a point of view that employs devious or â€Å"evil† means to satisfy a given end. Although it is not the point of this analysis to break down Machiavelli’s approach into one that can be described by the simple â€Å"ends justifies the means† cliche, it does help the reader to gain a firm handle on the subject matter and attempt to understand the nuances of how Erasmus and Machiavelli both approach the same subject matter with widely different inte rpretations of how the leader can maximize his ultimate utility based upon these. Says Erasmus of the moral imperative that he attempts to relate to the reader, â€Å"If you cannot defend your realm without violating justice, without wanton loss of human life, without great loss to religion, give up and yield to the importunities of the age† (Erasmus 17)! Such a view is of course contradicted by the very realistic utilitarian methods that Machiavelli puts forward in his own treatise. Says Machiavelli, â€Å"Whenever you have to kill someone, make sure you have a suitable excuse and an obvious reason; but, above all else, keep your hands off other people’s property; for men are quicker to forget the death of their father than the loss of their inheritance. Moreover, there are always reasons why you might

Managing Financial Resources Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Managing Financial Resources - Assignment Example Usually, the concept of opportunity cost is not recorded in the books of accounts. Then also it is a significant factor in the decision-making process also. Decision making is the fundamental nature of the management of an entity. It is necessary to collect, analyze and present the accounting information in an appropriate manner to meet the requirements of various interested groups. Stakeholders of the company mean those groups of persons who are interested in the organizational functions and affairs. The stakeholders of the company mean the shareholders, lenders, employees, suppliers, customers, competitors, Government as well as the public as a whole. Moreover, the balance sheet of a company is giving focus on the changes that have taken place in the accounting year. The ultimate object of financial statements is that of evaluating the financial strength and weaknesses of the firm.Capital budgeting means planning for capital assets. The decision about capital budgeting means a deci sion as to whether or not the money should be invested in long term projects. The term budget is a device which helps the management in planning and control of business activities. It is a statement relating to future plans. Budget is essential for business because it provides management with a plan of operation to be followed during a specified future period. Not only this but also it is possible to plan and control the income and expenses. A business might have a cash budget, sales budget, purchase budget, etc.The concept of variance analysis is an important concept in standard costing. Variance means the difference between actual cost and standard cost. Variance point out to the management that whether the costs are under their control or beyond? It may be either favorable or not. If the actual cost is less than the standard, the difference indicates that there is a positive variance, but reverse on the other hand. Variance analysis is the procedure of evaluating variances by sub dividing the total variances in such a way that the management can assign responsibility for poor performance. Generally, the variances may be of cost variance and sales variance. Among them, the cost variance is significant and which may be of three types, material variance, labor variance, and overhead variance.  

Personality or behavior - Organizational Behavior HRM Case Study

Personality or behavior - Organizational Behavior HRM - Case Study Example The concept of personality has a broad definition from a psychological perspective. Nonetheless, the most reasonable definition asserts that personality is the personal characteristics that result in a consistent pattern of behavior, thoughts, and emotions (Ajzen, 2005; Stuart-Kotze, 2006). Specifically, personality is an arguably permanent aspect of an individual influenced by culture, family, life experiences, group membership, and beliefs. Consequently, personality is consistent, impacts behaviors and action, and expresses multiple concepts such as thoughts and feelings.On the other hand, a behavior is the action resulting from our values and beliefs. From a psychological viewpoint, a behavior is a response to external and internal stimuli that produce externally visible outcomes influenced by experience and a change in attitude. Therefore, personal behavior is flexible as affected by organizational culture and ethical beliefs supported by a company (Ajzen, 2005). Consequently, th e difference between behavior and personality is that the latter is rigid and permanent while the former is flexible and changeable to fit in a particular culture. Specifically, this is because changing the substance of personality such as attitudes, principles, philosophies, and ambitions is difficult (Stuart-Kotze, 2006).The Big Five personality model is a combination of broad domains of personality Specifically, this model is essential as it aids in understanding different trait in personality without overlapping.

Essay on Fundamental Rights and Duties

Essay on Fundamental Rights and Duties Rights and duties play an important part in the development of a nation or the growth of an organization. Rights on the one hand give an individual an opportunity to be a part of development process while duties on the other hand make an individual obliged to play a part in the development. As a citizen of a democratic country we all are privileged to have some fundamental rights. But, apart from these rights we also have fundamental duties which we rarely talk about. Moreover responsible citizenship is not just about enjoying the fundamental rights and performing the fundamental duties mentioned in our constitution but it is about going beyond those duties. We always harp on our rights where ever we can and neglect the duties we generally have. As a citizen of our country we enjoy the rights of a privileged citizen and often we complain of the governments inability to provide services. Similarly in an organization, as an employee or a student in an institute we complain about the inadequacies of the system. But when it comes to our duty for the nation or institute, most of the times we are not aware at all. For instance as a responsible citizen, we have the duty of protecting the public properties, which we do not hesitate to destroy while protesting or demanding our rights. Destroying street lamps, burning tyres and vehicles, disrupting traffic are the common phenomena seen at the protest sites. Do we really need to do this? Have we ever realized the losses we cause to our country or organization in this manner? Do we ponder for a moment, how much effort it takes to build those structures? As countrymen we also have a duty to be patriotic towards the country and be humanitarian towards our country men. We also have a social responsibility as a good citizen. But do we perform all these duties? The answer is either a clear No, or partial Yes. We do not pay taxes in time and some of us also try to avoid taxes by questioning its worthiness while being more selfish. We expect government to do everything, without us contributing anything. Most of the unpaid electricity and telephone bills even by people who can well afford to pay those few bucks are a bit astonishing. When we feel our values to be endangered we draw in the attention by retaliating in a particular way. Take for instance, the case of attack on the girls in a pub in Bangalore by some self proclaimed flag bearers of Indian culture who thought that their (girls) presence in the pub was against the Indian culture. But they forgot that women have always been regarded and have a special place in Indian society and u sing force against them is not encouraged in Indian traditional culture. Respecting elders, honesty, veracity, non violence are some of the values of Indian Culture and these as such becomes a duty on the part of us to follow them if we really are conscious of our right to protect the Indian culture. The incident mentioned above just shows how careful we are about our rights and not our duties. The topic is basically about being a responsible citizen; its about deserving first and demanding later. The selection of this topic is slightly influenced by the speech made by our former president Mr. Abdul Kalam Azad YOU say that our government is inefficient. YOU say that our laws are too old. YOU say that the municipality does not pick up the garbage. YOU say that the phones dont work, the railways are a joke, the airline is the worst in the world, mails never reach their destination. YOU say that our country has been fed to the dogs and is the absolute pits. YOU say, say and say. What do YOU do about it? Take a person on his way to Singapore. Give him a name YOURS. Give him a face YOURS. YOU walk out of the airport and you are at your International best. In Singapore you dont throw cigarette butts on the roads or eat in the stores. YOU are as proud of their Underground Links as they are. You pay $5 (approx. Rs. 60) to drive through Orchard Road (equivalent of Mahim Causeway or Pedder Road) between5 PM and 8 PM. YOU comeback to the parking lot to punch your parking ticket if you have over stayed in a restaurant or a shopping mall irrespective of your status identity. In Singapore you dont say anything, DO YOU? YOU wouldnt dare to eat in public during Ramadan, in Dubai. .. YOU would not dare to speed beyond 55 mph (88 kph) in Washington and then tell the traffic cop, Jaanta hai sala main kaun hoon (Do you know who I am?). I am so and sos son. Take your two bucks and get lost. YOU wouldnt chuck an empty coconut shell anywhere other than the garbage pail on the beaches in Australia and New Zealand. Why dont YOU spit Paan on the streets of Tokyo? Why dont YOU use examination jockeys or buy fake certificates in Boston? We are still talking of the same YOU. YOU who can respect and conform to a foreign system in other countries but cannot in your own. You who will throw papers and cigarettes on the road the moment you touch Indian ground. If you can be an involved and appreciative citizen in an ali en country why cannot you be the same here in India So lets put a full stop in complaining about the system. This system is created by us what and we are the system. Lets look at what that can be done by us and what not. Everyone has a duty to be a responsible citizen. But unfortunately, not everyone takes this responsibility seriously. There are plenty of people the world over who do not know what being a responsible citizen means and they are the people who destroy our communities. For being a responsible citizen results in a happy and harmonious community if everyone else does the same. 2. Responsible Citizen Being a responsible citizen covers many areas some of them legal obligations, some social and some moral. So of course, because not all of them are legal obligations, being a responsible citizen is not as easy as staying within the law. In fact, to be a truly responsible citizen, we sometimes must go out of our way to do things which help our society give a little of our time and effort for the greater good. 2.1 Legal Obligations No one can be a responsible citizen without staying within the law. It is as simple as that. Criminals, by their very nature, are not behaving as responsible citizens. Laws exist to protect citizens, the communities they live in and their property. So to be a responsible citizen, we must respect these laws and abide by them. Harming others or others property does not equate to being a good citizen. 2.2 Social Obligations Social obligations really form the bulk of being a responsible citizen and what this means. To be a responsible citizen, we should help our communities and those who live in them. So, being a responsible citizen can encompass things such as volunteering. Volunteering, the third sector is worth billions to our economy and even more to those who are helped by volunteering. But in the interests of being a responsible citizen, this could include smaller things too. So, volunteering for the Samaritans is a noble job to do and one which is certainly needed. But the elderly lady who lives alone may need someone to do her shopping and this demonstrates responsible citizenship just as much as volunteering in an organisation. Other social obligations of being a good citizen can include things such as helping local businesses. This may means buying the meat for Sunday dinner from a local butcher rather than a supermarket, or using a small local bookstore rather than the internet. Being a responsible citizen also means being involved in our communities. This may be demonstrated by being on the school parent teacher association or the village hall committee. It may be as simple as attending events organised by these people. 2.3 Moral Obligations Moral obligations of being a responsible citizen are harder to pin down because different people have different moral codes. But one place we can all start is in helping the environment. The environmental problems society is facing are of our own making and we all have a moral obligation to do what we can to change this. So by living as environmentally friendly life as possible, we can help fulfill our moral obligations of being a responsible citizen. Taking recyclables to be recycled and using a compost bin are two easy ways and there are many more. And they can be linked in with other obligations. For example, if you have a compose bin but no plants to use the compost on, you could give it to people who have plants but live alone, making them less likely to generate a huge amount of compost themselves. Being a responsible citizen should not be a hard thing but it should be something which occasionally requires a little extra effort. This is because being a responsible citizen is, at its core, about being a less selfish person, and putting the needs of society before your own needs. It does not means you have to sacrifice all your free time to volunteer or help others, but it does means taking a little time to think about the impact of your actions on others. A NATION IS HELD TOGETHER BY SHARED BELIEFS AND SHARED ATTITUDES. THAT IS WHAT ENABLES THEM TO RISE ABOVE THE CONFLICTS THAT PLAGUE ANY SOCIETY. THAT IS WHAT GIVES A NATION ITS TONE, ITS FIBER,ITS INTEGRITY, ITS MORAL STYLE, ITS CAPACITY TO ENDURE. -JHON GARDNER 3. Beyond Fundamentals: 3.1 Voting: India as we know is one of the youngest country of the world. More than 50% of its total population is between 20 30 age group, so it has immense probabilities of becoming a global powerhouse. As a country of energy, a country of youthfulness as a country of vibrant young engineers, dynamic technocrats, promising scientists, enthusiastic sportspersons, India has become the cynosure of world. But this country of youths has another face as well. Imagine a case where we are sitting in our drawing room and watching the morning news ..the media persons showing some of our well known leaders taking money for supporting other party or for any other malicious reason. The first thing we do is we start blaming our political system, we never think even for a while that have we played any role in strengthening this system? Have we not contributed in establishing this system of power politics? Have we not chosen these cunning politicians? Werent we influenced by the inflammatory speeches that were deliberately made to create some fire? The modern political system is all about power and money. If we see the profile of a recently elected MPs we will find that almost 300 members are billionaires. Do they really represent the India whos 22% of population is still below poverty line? Arent they the product of this power politics? Isnt the modern Indian politics driven by selfishness instead of the interest of social service? Dont we prefer going according our interest in spite of national interest According to a recent survey majority of the Indian youth especially those living in cities dont go for voting. They prefer going to cinema or watching television. instead of going to polling booths. This is certainly not going to change the scenario. If we really want to change the country, If we really want the tradition to change we have to participate in the elections or at least we have to make sure the person we are going to chose as our representative should be a person of will and a person having an intension to work f or the society, for the country. So the youth of the country and the rich class need to show interest in voting and deciding the future of the country. 3.2 Respecting National Emblems Bertrand Russell once said, Love for your country should be of an extreme nature. Modern era is the era of cut throat competition, an era of hectic schedule, a lifestyle of burgers and pizzas, an age of pubs and discos. The young India is lost somewhere in this euphoric illusion. We hardly remember the martyrs, the independence or republic day is like a holiday for us, we dont even bother to stand up in respect of our national anthem. Our national tricolour doesnt make us feel proud any more. We boastfully talk about patriotism but when it comes to show it we deliver a little. Our attitude comes in between !!! The time is to respect the national heritage, the pluralistic culture of our country and more importantly respecting the people of India. 3.3 Cleanliness/Showing Right Attitude We always cry about the prevailing sanitation problems in our cities. The piles of garbage around our houses and for this we doom the municipality, again comes the famous word system that has been saving our faces to be unveiled and have saved us from disgrace. Do we ever think about the way we behave in our daily life? Do we ever evaluate our attitude? Most of us have the habit of spitting on road while walking, putting garbage on roads in stead of dustbins, we spit on the platforms, in the corners of our offices, classrooms, we dont look for a dustbin after having a coffee or after having a chocolate, we scribble on our benches in our classrooms, we make ourselves immortal by writing on our monuments and finally making them dirty and ugly. We go to our pilgrimages with an immense sense of respect and make them dirty with sheer ignorance !! The solution is that we should always try to change our habit in a positive way. Instead of waiting for the municipality to work we should take the responsibility to make our neighborhoods clean. Its all about changing our attitude. As William James has rightly said The greatest discovery of my generation is that human beings can alter their lives by altering their attitude of minds So what if the municipality is not working properly, its our neighborhood and finally its our responsibility. if we become sincere about our duty everything will be fine. A famous quote goes like this. You improve, the world will get improved. So if we want this world around us to improve, if we want the system to be perfect and smooth we have to take the responsibility. 3.4 Following Traffic Rules One of the common instances in our daily life we see or we do as well is that not following the traffic rules. We dont stop for the red lights and when we are caught we try to settle it down by bribing the policeman. If we have been in Germany we would have stopped for the red light even at the mid night. If we follow the rules in Germany cant we do it in our country? We need to respect the signals. If one starts before the green signal, others will automatically follow him, saying no one is following the rules. Why cant we be the one to follow it? We complain that the traffic police always ask for bribe, why do we allow ourselves to be caught in such a scenario (Exceptions apart)? Few easy things that one can follow Stop for Red signal Start only when Green signal is on Using seat belts while driving Parking our cars only in the designated area Not overtaking on bridges or wherever it is mentioned not to. Wear a helmet when we drive a two wheeler. Dont use mobile phone while driving Dont drink and drive(so that you save your life and others life as well) Avoid overloading or riding three persons on bikes 3.5 Pirated CDs and Books We always cry for the prevalent adulteration in the food stuffs and other daily use stuffs, we often complain about the duplicity of the products available in the market. But we hardly bother when it comes to buy a CD cassette or a book and what is the reason? it is cheap in the veil of this statement we hide our crime. Dont we support crime when we go for this kind of shopping? So make sure when you go to buy a CD cassette or a book doesnt buy a pirated one. By this you are contributing in nation building and at the same time you are paralyzing the system of duplicity and cheating and finally you motivate creativity buying a pirated edition of a book is a kind of insult to the author, so make sure we dont insult the creativity when we buy any book next time. 3.6 Respecting Values The one thing every Indian is proud of is Indian culture, Indian values. We boastfully talk about the culture of sacrifice and forgiveness, respecting elders, honesty and truth, non violence etc. we proudly talk about our ethics but sadly gone are the days .we no more respect our so called Indian heritage of honesty and truth and these are being derided in this culture of i-pods and 3g technology the cut throat competition and our willingness to succeed provokes us to use short cuts and we call it smartness so what exactly we need to do? We need to stand firm for a cause; we need to compromise with the compromise this time we need to kill the devil inside that motivates us to use shortcuts for success. As Henry Fielding has rightly said Let no man be sorry he has done well; because others have done evil! If a man has acted right, he has done well, though alone; if wrong the sanction of all mankind will not justify him. 3.7 Corruption and its birth: Now take a glance on our view on Corruption. We might have at some part of time or other complained of corruption all around and talked in great detail in a board room. But in reality do we really fight against this evil in society. Mostly the politicians are blamed for corruption and using unfair advantage of their position. But it is not just the politicians the evil is rooted deeper in the society. A tree cannot nurture without the roots and the roots of this corruption are we the common man. Firstly, we are allowing it to grow. As Edmund Burke says- For evil to flourish, good people have to do nothing and evil shall flourish. Secondly we are ourselves involved in corruption to get an unfair advantage or as a shortcut to our path. For instance, when we are caught for first time in a traffic violation we offer the police person on duty a lesser amount in lieu of a greater official fine according to traffic rules. As responsible citizens, do we not have the right to fight against an d root out corruption? If these politicians are blamed are we not responsible for their election? The question then arises why we elect such people. May be we are not interested in nation building or we might be looking for our narrow minded goals or short term advantages. The leaders if not responsible will lead to failure of the team as whole. So why not be good leaders and enter politics and make a difference in the society? Why not show the way to others. Thomas Carlyle says-Make yourself an honest man and then you may be sure there is one 4. Conclusion: Rights and duties go hand in hand. Before we complain of the inadequacies of the system and claim our rights we must also consider our responsibility and fulfill the duties. As the famous saying goes- Great power brings great responsibilities. Change has to happen but might take some time and we have to wait for it. Change in an organizations or nations culture is a continuous process, it will happen over a period of time and it will take a consistent effort on the part of individuals. Beginning is always tough, we can elaborate it by this example; imagine a case when you are following two way traffic, one fine day this road becomes one way. It will be very difficult to get accustomed to this new change. Later it becomes part of our life; we are not going to think about this option and we become habitual of it. This applies to all these soft duties as well.

Blacks In Film Essay -- essays research papers

Film is one of the most influential means of communication and a powerful medium of propaganda. Race and representation is central to the study of the black film actor, since the major studios continue to reflect and reinforce the stereotyps of our times. The depiction of blacks in Hollywood movies reinforce many of the misconceptions of the white majority rather than objective reality, limiting black actors to stereotypical roles. The movie "Soul Food" proved to be the inspiration for African-Americans hungry for balanced, realistic depictions of blacks in America The film is about a Chicago family who airs out its tribulations over Sunday dinner. It depicts well educated African Americans in lavish suburban homes and high ranking job titles. Yet, comedic films, such as "Booty Call," or violent dramas, such as "Dead Presidents" or "Next Friday," still seem to be the norms for black films in Hollywood. There are no gun-toting ruffians in "Soul Food," no over-the-top streetwise caricatures. Instead, the film serves up real-life characters grappling with real-life familial problems. That's why it seems to resonate with black audiences -- and why it was considered risky to make. "Soul Food" resonates with blacks because, as with whites, the most evocative films present idealized visions of their real lives. Unfortunately, films such as â€Å"Soul Food†, â€Å"Love Jones†, and â€Å"The Best Man†, rarely receive the credit in which they deserve due to the lack of promotions and viewership by mainstream society. In witness of this truth, the American public is faced with the guilt of perpetuating the historical images of Sambo and Mammy with the new depictions of aggressive, streetwise, and comedic caricatures. In recent years, much of the debate around racial inequality in the United States has focused on Representation. That is: how peopleare imagined, portrayed, and often stereotyped by the mass media. Integrally linked is the question of how these depictions in the world of media contribute to social discrimination and personal self-esteem in the real world. No medium is a more powerful disseminator of images and stereotypes than television, and no citizens have suffered more from misrepresentation in this country than minorities. However, too often the debate about race and represen... ...he 80s. It seemed TV and film pioneer Bill Cosby had finally broken through the stereotype ceiling, depicting the life a strong black middle class family and projecting it into the living rooms of blacks and whites throughout the United States and the world. But just a few short years after Cosby, television's way of dealing with portraying black life was simply not to. For years none of the major networks were creating programming for black audiences. UPN, Warner Brothers Network and Fox Network shrewdly tried to fill that void. However the succession of black shows created by these networks seemed not to be a result of a sincere social consciousness, but rather an attempt to appeal to an untapped revenue market. And so blacks have come full circle as it is this market and its hopes for something better than images of domestics and mammies that first spawned the blaxploitation craze. There is no argument that blacks in film have made significant advancements since the days of popular blaxploitation film such as Shaft. However there is also no argument that blacks have far to go in receiving a fair and honest portrayal in movies and television. Blacks In Film Essay -- essays research papers Film is one of the most influential means of communication and a powerful medium of propaganda. Race and representation is central to the study of the black film actor, since the major studios continue to reflect and reinforce the stereotyps of our times. The depiction of blacks in Hollywood movies reinforce many of the misconceptions of the white majority rather than objective reality, limiting black actors to stereotypical roles. The movie "Soul Food" proved to be the inspiration for African-Americans hungry for balanced, realistic depictions of blacks in America The film is about a Chicago family who airs out its tribulations over Sunday dinner. It depicts well educated African Americans in lavish suburban homes and high ranking job titles. Yet, comedic films, such as "Booty Call," or violent dramas, such as "Dead Presidents" or "Next Friday," still seem to be the norms for black films in Hollywood. There are no gun-toting ruffians in "Soul Food," no over-the-top streetwise caricatures. Instead, the film serves up real-life characters grappling with real-life familial problems. That's why it seems to resonate with black audiences -- and why it was considered risky to make. "Soul Food" resonates with blacks because, as with whites, the most evocative films present idealized visions of their real lives. Unfortunately, films such as â€Å"Soul Food†, â€Å"Love Jones†, and â€Å"The Best Man†, rarely receive the credit in which they deserve due to the lack of promotions and viewership by mainstream society. In witness of this truth, the American public is faced with the guilt of perpetuating the historical images of Sambo and Mammy with the new depictions of aggressive, streetwise, and comedic caricatures. In recent years, much of the debate around racial inequality in the United States has focused on Representation. That is: how peopleare imagined, portrayed, and often stereotyped by the mass media. Integrally linked is the question of how these depictions in the world of media contribute to social discrimination and personal self-esteem in the real world. No medium is a more powerful disseminator of images and stereotypes than television, and no citizens have suffered more from misrepresentation in this country than minorities. However, too often the debate about race and represen... ...he 80s. It seemed TV and film pioneer Bill Cosby had finally broken through the stereotype ceiling, depicting the life a strong black middle class family and projecting it into the living rooms of blacks and whites throughout the United States and the world. But just a few short years after Cosby, television's way of dealing with portraying black life was simply not to. For years none of the major networks were creating programming for black audiences. UPN, Warner Brothers Network and Fox Network shrewdly tried to fill that void. However the succession of black shows created by these networks seemed not to be a result of a sincere social consciousness, but rather an attempt to appeal to an untapped revenue market. And so blacks have come full circle as it is this market and its hopes for something better than images of domestics and mammies that first spawned the blaxploitation craze. There is no argument that blacks in film have made significant advancements since the days of popular blaxploitation film such as Shaft. However there is also no argument that blacks have far to go in receiving a fair and honest portrayal in movies and television.