My Life Of Becoming A Doctor - 1098 Words

Every man dreams, many aspire to be rich or to be a businessman. Some people desire to become politicians or lawyers. There are others who wish to be a writer, poets or novelists whereas most of us generally want to be a doctor, scientist or a nurse. Also, there are few of those, who have no clear goals in lives and are happy go lucky. As for myself, I do not have any particular ambition in my life, I don’t have any desire to be the richest man in the world nor do I dream of becoming a doctor. The sole purpose of my life is to live a life of simplicity and devote my time making our world a better place for humanity. My parents have always taught me when it comes to deciding my career; I should always choose a career that interests me. Based on these beliefs, I think my experiences in the past best reflects my interest. Growing up in a family of engineers where my father and brother are both successful mechanical engineers motivated me to pursue a career in engineering. During my final year of high school, choosing a career was not the hardest part for me, but rather which field of engineering I should study. I have always been interested in electronics. Even as a kid, I used to break apart my electronic toys or any electronic objects I could lay my hands on which grew my curiosity and my desire to become an electrical engineer. Throughout my school years, I have participated in varieties of projects that involved working with machines. My first encounter with electricalShow MoreRelatedMy Life Of Becoming A Doctor874 Words   |  4 PagesI was a child, I dreamed of becoming a doctor. In my rural hometown, the doctor was respected second only to the mayor. Everyone loved Dr. Ozaki who ran the local clinic. Children – despite their fear of getting flu shots – were happy to see him. In my culture, to be venerated is to achieve the highest possible status in the community. When I grew up, I knew that I wanted to be like Dr. Ozaki. For most of my childhood I was convinced that I wanted to be a doctor. But as I grew older, I beganRead MoreMy Life Of Becoming A Doctor1927 Words   |  8 Pagesbecome a doctor. By the age of 8, I had my life planned out. When my primary school principal asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, I replied â€Å"I am going to be a doctor and an All Black†. Now I realise, although it is not physically possible for me to be an All Black, I am drawing closer to fulfilling my dream of becoming a doctor. This interest in medicine stems from a number of sources. Firstly, I wish to emulate my parents who both have a background in the health sector. Secondly, both of my grandmothersRead MoreBecoming a Doctor Speech Essay854 Words   |  4 Pagesexact time when I decided to become a doctor. I was only eight years old and I was visiting my grandpa who had just had a life risking surgery and came out the other end okay. At this age I really don’t understand what all was going on. All I knew is the doctor had saved my grandpa, and I had more years to spend with him. When I walked into the room the doctor was standing over my grandpa and they were both laughing. That very moment I knew I wanted to become a doctor. I wanted to be the person that wouldRead MoreThe Anatomy Of Dead Insects And How Close I Was A Doctor835 Words   |  4 Pages Too young to remember when my parents moved back to Jamaica, the land of their birth, but old enough to know that there was something strikingly different between living in New York and living in Jamaica. Before entering primary school my dad gave me the Atlas of Human Anatomy, I never cared for the big words then but those pictures peeked my interest even more. I guess my dad figured I was interested in medicine since I always tried to study the anatomy of dead insects and how close I was to ourRead MoreMy First Year At Dunbar Middle Magnet School1231 Words   |  5 Pagesthe emotions that ran through my body during this brief time in my life. Thinking back on the moments in life that assisted in me choosing my career path brings up many mixed emotions. The moment I chose the career path I wanted to go on is my first year at Dunbar Middle Magnet School, sixth grade to be exact. It was the first week of school and all the students in my class had to stand up and introduce ourselves and tell what we wanted to be in life. At that time in life, the option of being a princessRead MoreThe Sociological Imagination Within The Medical School873 Words   |  4 PagesThere are other instances where the sociological imagination takes place in my route to entering medical school. The concept of race is another example of a force that is unforeseen, but plays a role in my life. As Marcy C. Waters describes â€Å"Skin color is an important ascribed characteristic in American society. Less visible are national origin and nationality† (Optional Ethnicities: For Whites Only? 228). Essentially, race and nationality are forces that one does not have control over, but playRead MoreThe Incredible Work Healthcare Professionals961 Words   |  4 PagesIn my life, I have experienced the incredible work healthcare professionals can provide and how lack of access to care can lead to dire consequences. Growing up in my village in Bangladesh, I was first hand witness to this lac k of adequate healthcare. I had to watch my sisters deliver babies without training, I had to witness an aunt suffer in an agony due to the lack of adequate healthcare facility, but my most vivid experience of this lack of healthcare came when I was the victim of an acid attackRead MoreMy First Time Buying A Car890 Words   |  4 Pageschange your life. August 10th, 2015 was my first time in an operating room. However, I wasn’t the patient. I was watching an orthopedic spine surgeon perform a cervical vertebrae fusion. Ever since this moment, I knew I wanted to be a doctor for the rest of my life. The feeling I had while dressed up in my scrubs, surgeon mask and cap was indescribable. While in the operating room, I have learned a lot about the characteristics of a successful doctor and the pressures and stresses a doctor encountersRead MoreMy Memories Of My Life955 Words   |  4 Pagesearly age I knew that I wanted to do something with my life to make other people s lives better. My mom likes to remind me of the time when I was a small child in Washington, DC.Even with all of the awe and sights to see in DC, she said that I could only focus on all of the homeless people. Seeing a homeless person was new to me, let alone seeing hundreds, but my mom likes to remind me about how I wanted to â€Å"make lasagna and feed all of them†. My visit to DC had made it apparent to me that I wantedRead MoreMedicine And Becoming A Doctor785 Words   |  4 Pagesthree years my mother had kept to herself information about her developing anemia, kidney problems due to past kidney stones, chronic back pain, and now arthritic nodes on her fingers. These are some of the symptoms that I see, and am reminded of daily, when I am around my hardworking mother, who has motivated me to pursue a medical degree. My desire to learn about medicine and become a doctor did not start at a young age or even in high school. As a high school graduate going into college, my desire

Descriptive Narrative A Beautiful Day - 852 Words

It was a beautiful day outside. It was perfect. We decided to go to the playground at the end of our street. We rode down the street in my dad s orange 1984 chevy s10 truck. My dad stayed in the truck while my sister and I went to play. As my sister and I were playing, other families started to show up. There were two playgrounds and a basketball court separating the two. So we were one side and the other family was on the other side. My sister told me to stay where I was because it was easier to keep an eye on me. We played for many hours. When I was done, I went to tell my sister I was ready to go home. She told me to throw my trash away from earlier that day. As I went toward the trash can, all I saw is a dog running towards me. All I†¦show more content†¦My first thought when i heard that was â€Å"I’m not gonna be able to live here anymore!† When she arrived, she was not what i was expecting. She had a black nose, gorgeous auburn fur and the prettiest smile when she’s happy. All she ever wants now is scratches, bacon treats, and love. The day after we got Anna was my very first time being alone with her or even a dog. She was already house trained and well behaved. Later that afternoon she needed to go outside. She does this thing where she chases her tale in a circle. We call it the â€Å"potty dance†. Everyone failed to inform me she did that, it scared me. I told her â€Å"NO STOP.† Then she barked so loud; it scared me. She was so exasperated that I finally said â€Å"fine fine let s go outside†. I kept my distance because I did not trust her at all. At that moment, I had never been manipulated by a dog before. She showed me how much of a scaredy cat I was. I realized then that i needed to work on my self confidence with dogs. From steadily working on my confidence, I was able to achieve a spot in an upper choir at my school then later section leader in the choir. Another thing is i m not scared to speak my mind about something or do public speaking. Confidence is a key thing in life. If I had never learned it, I don t think I would be as successful as I am today. It took many years to learn how to overcome many of my fears. I’ve learned that bad experiences won’t scar you but help you to grow as a person. If anything, itShow MoreRelatedNarrative and Descriptive Essay1226 Words   |  5 PagesSegovia January 1, 2014 A narrative essay is about storytelling for a narrative story to work it must capture and hold the audience attention you must give a clear understanding of your story. A descriptive essay lets you describe in detail what the essay is all about using words that appeal to your sense of smell, hearing, see, touch, and taste. A descriptive essay lets you use words that describes a person, place, or object. When I compare the author’s narrative essay â€Å"Are the Rich Happy?† byRead More Descriptive Language and The Lady of Shallot Essay1365 Words   |  6 PagesDescriptive Language and The Lady of Shallot In any piece of lyrical poetry, authors must masterfully use the language of the poem to covey the intended meaning. In order to ensure the meaning is not lost, it is imperative that the author incorporates various aspects of the narrative to escalate the poem past its face value. Alfred Tennyson’s poem â€Å"The Lady of Shallot† is no exception to the rule. From lines like â€Å"blue unclouded weather† and â€Å"the gemmy bridle glitter’d free†, one can drawRead More The poem Two Scavengers in a Truck, Two Beautiful People in a Mercedes is640 Words   |  3 PagesThe poem Two Scavengers in a Truck, Two Beautiful People in a Mercedes is a descriptive poem by Lawrence Ferlinghetti. Night of the Scorpion Two Scavengers in a Truck, Two Beautiful People in a Mercedes The poem Two Scavengers in a Truck, Two Beautiful People in a Mercedes is a descriptive poem where the poet (Lawrence Ferlinghetti) observes two garbage men in San Francisco and two well-paid people in a Mercedes. The poets observation is really about the way the garbage men lookRead MoreStructure and Narrative Technique in Wurthering Heights and Return of the Native1154 Words   |  5 Pagesown decisions and opinions, as we are intended to be fully aware of the bias nature of the majority of her narrators. It is of the utmost importance that it is not the author who tells the story; `Wuthering Heights employs a narrative frame. Nelly Dean tells the story to Mr Lockwood, and he relates it to us. The first person narrator of the novel is therefore far removed from the actual experiences of the story. We begin in 1801, with a first person narrator, Mr Lockwood, whoRead MoreGirl with a Pearl Earring Essay946 Words   |  4 Pagesit explores the theme of sensual awakening. Set in 17th century Delft, Chevalier’s novel explores the deep but forbidden love between a young maid and her master. The author’s clever combination of an intriguing story, remarkable characters and descriptive language allowed her to explore the themes of forbidden love, predators and sexual desires. For hundreds of years people have wondered who is the girl in the portrait Girl with a Pearl Earring, painted by a Dutch artist Johannes Vermeer in theRead MoreThe Day Is Done Poem Analysis1005 Words   |  5 PagesExplication of â€Å"The Day is Done† by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow The poem â€Å"The Day is Done,† by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, discusses an exhausted speaker’s wish to hear the work of a simple poet with the expectation that this will relieve his tired state. The steady, calming pace and slightly wistful tone provide the perfect background for the beautiful imagery of this poem, expressed through similes and figurative language. ‘The Day is Done† includes comments on reputation, life’s struggles, andRead MoreGeorge Orwell s The Perils Of Indifference : Lessons Learned From A Violent Century954 Words   |  4 Pagesindifference, whereas Orwell’s narrative leaves the reader questioning his action. Elie Wiesel born in 1928 is a Jewish holocaust survivor, who later in life won the noble peace prize and published over 40 different books. The speech The Perils of Indifference: Lessons Learned from a Violent Century was given at the white house during the Millennium Evenings. He expressed his gratitude to the president, the army that saved him and the country that sent them. Wiesel is descriptive in his recollection ofRead MoreThe Body Is The Most Holistic Reflection Of Oneself, It Is Raw, Conspicuous And Present Essay1203 Words   |  5 Pageshas infinite complexities while being one of the best exhibits for how societies differ, change and function, anthropologists can either have a field-day or get a headache. Further, the introduction of enhancement technologies have revolutionised how the body functions within society; Ethnographies such as, The Poor Have the Right To Be Beautiful : Cosmetic Surgery in Neoliberal Brazil’ Alexander Edmonds and ‘Medicalization of Racial Features: Asian American Women and Cosmetic Surgery’ EugeniaRead More David Guterson And His Use Of The Theme Of Nature Essay1537 Words   |  7 Pagessource of life, the maintenance of life, and the end of life. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Guterson uses trees as a metaphorical device to portray and predict events in his literary works. He also uses them as literal tools to develop his work, beautiful cedars and elms which are magnificent, full trees with flowing branches that are visually pleasing and familiar to his readers. In â€Å"American Elm†, one of Gutersons short stories, trees are used as a metaphor to screen and sheild the sanitarium fromRead More Comparing A London fete and Composed Upon Westminster Bridge1433 Words   |  6 Pagesis about a man who is standing on a bridge describing the view he sees and how he feels looking at this view. The theme to composed upon Westminster Bridge is firstly about nature and beauty and peace. It describes his view of London to be beautiful and how he feels so calm and relaxed from looking at the view. It’s not an angry poem it’s sensuous. A London fete is about violence and death. It has an unhappy theme as it is about a man getting hanged and how viewers are enjoying and getting

Siberin Tigers Free Essays

Panthera tigris altaica, better know as the Siberian or the Amur tiger lives primarily in eastern Russia, and a few are found in northeastern China and northern North Korea. It is estimated that 150 to 200 tigers exist today in the wild. There are roughly 490 Siberian tigers that are managed in zoos world wide, and an unknown number as to how many exist privately. We will write a custom essay sample on Siberin Tigers or any similar topic only for you Order Now In this century alone, the Siberian tiger has managed to survive four wars, two revolutions, and now the brutal slaughter on their forests. Wild tigers exist in Asian countries China, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Myanmar, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal, By this IUCN status this animal is considered to be Critical, its numbers in the wild have fluctuated from an incredibly low 24 tigers in the 1940s to what IUCN now estimates is 150 to 200 in 1994. There are only three protected areas for these tigers in Russia-the Sikhote-Alin (3,470 km2), Lazovsky (1,165 km2), and Kedrovaya Pad (178 km2) Reserves-inland from the Sea of Japan in the Russian Far East. There have been sightings of these magnificent animals in Changbaishan, near the Chinese border, were it was reported in a Chinese newspaper in 1990, and some are still found along the Russian border. The Cat Specialist Group suggests that there are probably fewer than 50 Siberian tigers in China. It is widely believed that the tigers in Russia will define the future of the species. The other sites are too small to harbor tiger populations large enough for the survival of the species. The Law of the Russian Federation on Environmental Protection and Management of 1992 gave the Siberian tiger legal protection that they deserved. Despite the law of protection, poaching has received a considerable amount of attention in the press today. Authorities say that the killing of tigers is a new enterprise. One reason for the poaching is traditional Chinese medicine. The captive program for Siberian tigers is the largest and longest managed program for any of the subspecies. The Siberian tiger is one of the models for the creation of scientifically managed programs for species in captivity. This program takes place globally in zoos and aquariums. According to the 1994 International Tiger Studbook there are about 490 Siberian tigers managed in zoos 226 of them in Europe, 151 in North America, 93 in Japan, and about 20 more scattered among Asian zoos. This captive population is descended from 83 wild-caught founders. For the most part, the Siberian tiger is considered secure in captivity. With the large genetically diverse gene pool that exists, these animals are considered to be a stable population. The Siberian tigers are the heaviest subspecies, the larger tigers weighting at 500 and more or 225-kg. With the males being heavier than the females, like many other species. The lightest subspecies is the Sumatran; these males weigh at about 250 pounds or 110 kg and the females at around 200 pounds or 90 kg. In order to obtain and maintain this weight these cats have to eat large masses of food, every day. A wild tiger can eat over 60 pounds of meat at one siting. . Despite the tiger†s great power and accurate senses, it dedicates a lot of time to hunting, because only one in ten hunting are calculated to be successful. It mainly preys on deer or wild pig, and fish providing it can catch them. Depending on the subspecies, the head-body length of these tigers is about 41/2 to 9 feet or 1.4-2.8 m. the length of the tail is 3 to 4 feet or 90-120 cm. The footpads vary in size with the age of the animal. This leads to inaccurate estimates when used it in counting the animals in wild populations. This magnificent animal carries the Chinese mark of Wang or king on the forehead. Tigers have round pupils and yellow irises, excluding the blue eyes of white tigers. The tigers have evolved to better vision at night. Due to a retinal adaptation that reflects light back to the retina. This provides to be useful when hunting at night. Tigers have excellent Binocular and color vision. At night, the tiger can see well over 6 times better than humans. The length of a Tigers tail is 3 to 4 feet long, about half as long as its body. They use their tails for balance when running through fast turns. Tigers also use their tails to communicate with other tigers. Like domestic cats, tiger claws are retractable. Like many other animals tigers mark there territory. Tigers mark their territories by spraying bushes and trees with a mixture of urine and scent gland secretions. They will also leave scratch marks on trees. The size of a tiger’s territory depends on the amount of food available, and usually ranges from about 10 to 30 square miles or 26-78 sq. km. Siberian tigers sometimes have unusually large territories, this can be as large as 120 square miles. Although tigers usually live alone, their territories can overlap. A male tiger’s territory usually overlaps those of several female tigers. No one knows exactly why tigers have striped, but some scientists think that the stripes act as camouflage, and aid in tiger†s hunt from their prey. The Sumatran tiger has the most stripes of all the tiger subspecies, and the Siberian tiger has the fewest stripes. Tiger stripes are much like human fingerprints; no two tigers have the same pattern of stripes. Tiger cubs are born blind and weigh only about 2 to 3 pounds or 1 kg, respective to the subspecies. They live on their mother†s milk for 6-8 weeks before the female begins taking them hunting to eat. Tigers fully developed canines in about 16 months of age, but they do not begin making their own kills until about 18 months of age. Young tigers live with their mother until they are two to three years old, then they find their own territories to occupy. The average life span of tigers in the wild is thought to be about 10 years. Tigers that are brought up in zoos can live twice as long or longer. Unlike some other large cats, adult tigers prefer to live their lives in solitude. Except for mother†s tigers who take care of their cubs. This is partly due to the fact a single tiger has a better chance sneaking up and bouncing its prey, more efficiently than a large group of tigers could. These animals and many other animals like them should be reserved. No other living creature surpasses their beauty. As this picture illustrates these animals were truly the masters of their domain. Before humans came and destroyed their homes. This cat is one of the most powerful cats in the world. Weighting in at 500 and change this animal can tear though it†s prey, like a hot knife though butter. How to cite Siberin Tigers, Essay examples

Taxation Law & Practice

Question: Housing affordability is a goal of governments and opposition parties in Australia. A topic of discussion in the media is whether negative gearing combined with the capital gains tax discount (tax concessions) increases speculative activity in the housing market to the disadvantage of the first home buyer.Identify and evaluate key arguments both for and against retaining these tax concessions if housing affordability is to be achieved. In your response you must explain what is meant by negative gearing and how capital gains arising from property investment are treated. You should refer to sections of legislation, tax rulings and cases where relevant. Answer: Introduction The lawful combination of the Capital Gain Tax Discount and negative gearing has distorted the residential property markets. This particular act has encouraged speculations among investors and the individuals having higher incomes to use this law to their advantages for saving tax use this. These are one sort of tax benefits given by the governments and a recent survey by the Australian Institutes has revealed that the Australian government is incurring loss to the tune of $7 billion per year. On the other hand, the same study revealed that the middle class who bear the most of the tax burden does not get many benefits from this legal action. Moreover, about 67% of the benefits are received by the top 20% of the taxpayers, whereas the 4% of the lower income group individuals are benefitted by the scheme. On the other hand, the above combinations are found to boost the number of investments in the Australian residential properties, which in turn is inflating the prices of the housing property. Moreover, the number of genuine ownership of housing is not increasing at genuine ownership of the houses at that rate. The number of investments in the housing finance has increased at a great pace and the concentration of such investments by the financial houses in a particular is raising alarms. Investors in the housing markets can book loss on the rental income and at the same time gain the advantage of tax benefit. Negative Gearing Negative gearing in the taxation parlance, is the advantage that a taxpayer gains from the loss booked from an investment in properties. In case of purchasing a property, the investor uses leveraged money and then puts the purchased property on rent. The taxpayer can claim deduction, when the expenses incurred by the investor is higher than the rental income received by them, then he can claim deduction on the previously mentioned investments. In this case, savings of tax on other incomes can compensate the loss incurred by the company from the investment in housing property and deductible expenses include payments of interest on loans on the investment properties. The investments on the housing properties are considered to be offbeat investments as the loss is met by the exchequers whereas most other investments are typically made to earn profits. On the other hand, the main target of the investments in this particular sector is to make loss and the intentions of the investments in this sector are to get deductions in tax. The investors have found a loophole in the acts, they are misusing the acts, and at the same time, they are speculating on the investments of the housing investments. It is interesting to note that, although the investors are incurring loss, but the value of the property is increasing with each passing day. Capital Gain Tax CGT, stands for the capital gain tax and the when an investor sells the property, it is normally made at a profits. This sort of gain, is termed as a capital gain as per the laws of Australia, it is termed as capital gain taxation. It is calculated as the net value attained on the sale of the assets and the expenses that are incurred by the investors for the maintenance of the property. As per the Australian Taxation office, a taxpayer gets a 50% discount on the capital gains, if the property is hold by the taxpayer for more than 12 months and he is still the owner of the property. The main motive of the agency is to promote the holding period of the assets and allow a discount on the amount of the tax payable of the invested property. As per the current negative gearing theory, the investor is able to deduct the current revenue loss and the at the same time the theory makes the investor helps them to pay taxes on the proportionate gains made by the investor on the sale of property. The catch of the existing rule is that the discount received by the investors helps to collect the total value of the investments, at the cost of the exchequer. Workings of the Act Critics claim that the government is lenient towards the investors of the rental properties and as compared to other developed countries; the country does not set any deductible expense limits that are made by the investors. Moreover, in case of Australian property only half the tax is paid by the investors, the taxpayers are totally sing these in their advantages. On the other hand, it is to be noted that the investors are trying to make loss from the investments and at the same time the value of the properties are being increased by each passing day. Moreover, the capital gains are not levied on the property unless the property is sold. It is to be noted that the capital gearing method helps the taxpayer to levy tax at half the original rates and at the same time after the sale of the property, the taxpayer has the authority of deducting unlimited amount of expenses from the tax. This particular system helps the investors to leverage money for investing in the house property market and do endless speculations on the housing property markets. CGT, Negative Gearing and Housing Affordability Critics claim that with the advent of the negative gearing policy and the CGT taxations, the exchequer is losing a great deal of money from the taxations and at the same time, this method is creating a problem of the housing affordability problems in the whole of Australia. On the other hand, the rampant speculative process is increasing the prices of the property that is beyond the reach of the common citizens and this is creating problems of the affordability in the housing markets. The genuine buyers are not able to buy the houses due to the hike in the prices of the houses due to the speculative purpose and are creating an imbalance in the housing markets. Among all the OECD members this country has the second highest ratio of the housing prices to the income ratios and this factors is becoming a strong reason for the lack of the affordability for the housing markets. On the other hand, it is observed that the prices of the houses are high among all the economically developed countries. Since, 2000 the tax revenues from the housing markets are showing a declining trends. Rents and Negative Gearing The Australian investors of the housing markets are not at all concerned with the rental yields from the markets but they are much bothered about the capital gain taxability of the rental properties. The negative gearing as well as the CGT has formed a nexus among them and the benefits of the nexus is gained by the speculators and at the same time the investors. On the other hand, many of the government officials have suggested the removal of this current system, so that the revenue in the form of taxation increases to the governments exchequers and instead of the speculators and the investors the governments are benefitted from the transactions and the financial conditions improve of the federal governments and the benefits ultimately trickles down to the common public. At the same time, the prices of the housing will decrease largely and the benefit will be accrued to the genuine buyers of the housing who search for the housing facilities for living. On the other hand, the investor s put their rationale in a way that the negative gearing factors is a way of keeping the rent of the houses at a lower price and for this reasons the lower income group is able to afford the housing facilities. At the same time they argue that without the existence of this law, the lower income groups will not be able to afford housing and they in turn are doing a good work by speculating the housing markets and keeping the rentals at a low price. Negative Gearing Facts and Myths Fiction 1: The restriction of the governments on the negative gearing since 1985-19/87 had resulted in a rent increases and the current government must act in a way, so as to decrease the rent and make the housing affordable for the lower income groups as well. Reality: The higher rental income was not the result of the policy undertaken by the government but it was the result of the higher interest rates, boom in the share markets and at the same time, the good condition of the overall market, which has resulted in the higher interest rate. When the market is in the boom phase, there automatically comes inflation in the markets and inflation causes the prices of everything to rise. Rise in the rental income is one of the results of the inflations and the prices automatically increase of all the accompanying factors. Moreover, the inflation in the market led to the rise of the diversification in the markets and the investors shifted from the investments in the housing properties to other greener pastures. Throughout the Australian continent, the rental income rose by 42% and the only exception in the given case was Perth and Sydney. Myth 2: In the recent phase negative gearing prices does not lead to the increase in the rental income, as has been the case of the past two decades Fact: Speculation is the prime reasons for which there has been a rise in the rental prices. Behind speculations, there is always the fact of the negative gearings and it has helped in the housing booms in each cases. In the current phase, due to the rise in the credit facilities, the speculators have enough cash and that has led to the rise in the number of speculations and made things worse for those who genuinely search for the houses. On the other hand, the scheme of giving discounts at the rate of 50% has been a lucrative options for the speculators who intentionally make losses on the ventures to reap the benefits of the deductions available on the capital gains and reduce the expenditures at the same time. Myth 3 Speculators belonging to the middle-income segments reap the benefits of the negative gearing system Fact: The Tax Statistics shows wrong estimates of the assessments after allowing reductions that they are eligible for the capital gains. The profits of the concerns are already reduced by the negative gearing strategies and it does not matters whether they belongs to the lower income segments or the higher income groups. The reality is that most of the households, which belongs to the middle-income segments, actually belong to the upper income brackets and the prices are considered before the deductions, that they are entitled to get. This particular fact creates a disparity in the income brackets and they are confused with the other income groups. A recent study that was conducted revealed that about 10% of the income segments those belongs to the income groups of over $100000 and more than 30% have earned above $500000. This particular statistics clears all the confusions and brings clarity to the all the data. Changes that are to be made in CGT Discounts and Negative Gearings In case of the proposing of the changes to the Capital Gain Tax Discounts and the negative gearings methods, it is of utmost importance for the authorities to retain the good aspects of the current policies and also they should consider the transitional arrangements. Negative gearings have the capability of pushing the sales of the houses and at the same time that will happen at a very small number. On the other hand, the negative gearings must consider the implementations of the act only for a decade and make amendments if required. The investors will find the investments in the new housing sectors to be attractive, the inflows of the capitals will leads to healthy conditions in the housing markets, and slowly the condition of the market will become better. On the other hand, any sort of abrupt policy changes in the market will not be healthy to the markets as they may lead to unsold investments in the markets and it will suddenly to an abrupt changes in the markets. This situation leads to a changes in the price of the housings which will leads to the price instability and at the make the market unhealthy for the housing markets. Conclusions The recent housing policy, which is the brainchild of the Australian government, has stirred much controversy in the markets. People are debating whether the thing is good or bad for the economy and there is a lot of controversy surrounding it. The reason for this is that the speculation varies from person to person and not all of them speculate at that level. This particular fact is very much important for all those who hold investment properties or are in the verge of changing their properties. Few of them may contemplate to move from an expensive area to a lower expensive area or vice versa. In case of fixation of the taxation policies, the governments must consider equity as well as efficiency of the markets. In the given case, governments have failed in both the cases and they must try to rectify their act in the near futures. Reference Crommelin, Laura, "Gentrification: A Working-Class Perspective" (2015) 30 Housing Studies Hanlon, James, "Fair Housing Policy And The Abandonment Of Public Housing Desegregation" (2014) 30 Housing Studies Home Page | Australian Taxation Office (2016) Ato.gov.au https://www.ato.gov.au Muir, Jenny and David Mullins, "The Governance Of Mandated Partnerships: The Case Of Social Housing Procurement" (2015) 30 Housing Studies Oxley, Michael, "Making Progress In Housing: A Framework For Collaborative Research" (2015) 30 Housing Studies Pawson, Hal, "The Tenants Movement" (2015) 30 Housing Studies Stone, Wendy, "Private Rental Housing: Comparative Perspectives" (2015) 30 Housing Studies Worthington, Andrew and Helen Higgs, "Macro Drivers Of Australian Housing Affordability, 1985-2010" (2013) 30 Studies in Economics Finance.

Learning to Be Depressed Essay Example

Learning to Be Depressed Paper Learning to be Depressed Sarah Robertson General Psychology Dr. Melissa Gebbia 12/10/10 Throughout life we all have different experiences whether they be positive or negative. Our hope is that if an experience is negatively affecting us we ourselves have an ability to change it. Generally, most people expect that the outcome of an event is dependent on their actions and that if they behave a certain way, a certain desirable outcome will be produced. This leads us to believe that we have control over what happens to us. This idea is all based on our beliefs of control and power in previous experiences and using them in our everyday life. If we lack personal power or experienced a lack of control in the past, we are then more likely to feel helplessness when approaching new experiences. Martin Seligman, a behavioral psychologist, theorized that our perceptions of power and control are learned from experience (Seligman, 1975). Seligman believed that if someone continually tries to exert force on a situation and fails repeatedly, the individual will stop attempting to exert control all together and may generalize the perception of lack of control to all future situations. He studied this behavioral pattern with dogs as subjects at the University of Pennsylvania (Seligman, 1975). While conducting an experiment on learning, Seligman noticed a surprising conclusion with his dogs. In his original experiment, he exposed the dogs to electrical shocks that they could not control nor escape from. It was demonstrated later on that when there is an escape easily accessed they still failed to escape the shock. This test consisted of a shuttle box which was split in half by a divider. The electricity was only run through one side of the box forcing the dog to escape the shock by jumping over the divider. We will write a custom essay sample on Learning to Be Depressed specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Learning to Be Depressed specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Learning to Be Depressed specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer This behavior is normally learned quickly because it would help the dogs adapt in a real situation. This escape-avoidance behavior should occur even more rapidly when there is a signal to warn the animals of the impending shock so that they can avoid it completely. However, this assumption was proven wrong when Seligman’s dogs who were shocked initially and couldn’t escape, could not escape in the shuttle box (Hock, 1995). His hypothesis now was that the dogs had learned that they were able to control the unwanted stimulus and that control or lack thereof, determined their future experiences. To further research this belief, Seligman and Maier (1995) studied the effect of controllable versus uncontrollable shock on later ability to learn to avoid shock (p. 244). They used 24 dogs, 15-19 inches high at the shoulder and weighting between 25 and 29 pounds. These animals were then separated into three groups of eight dogs, one an escape group, one a no-escape group and one a control group. The dogs were initially placed in harnesses that kept them restrained but not completely unable to move. The dog’s head was held in place with a panel on each side. To move the panel all the dog would have to do is move his head and the same applied for when the electrical shock was administered. As the shocks continued all the dog would have to do is move his head to eliminate them, and learn this behavior for the future (Hock, 1995). The no-escape dogs however, where not as lucky. When the shock was administered to them, no matter what they did the shock continued, teaching them that they had no control over the shocks. The control group of dogs received no shocks at this point. The groups receiving shocks received a total of 64 in a 90-second interval. After one day, all the dogs were placed in shuttle boxes, with lights as 10-second indicators of the impending 60-second shock. The dog could escape the shock completely if he learned to jump over the barrier in those 10 seconds (Hock, 1995). Seligman found that the dogs who were given an escape, easily did so and their times decreased over the 64 shocks. Whereas, the no-escape dogs stopped pressing the panel completely after 30 shocks. This proved that the dogs did learn from their previous experience in the harnesses. Although there were a few dogs from the no-escape group that did jump over the divider, they gave up when they were shocked again. Seligman believed that the dogs reverted to helplessness because their previous learning that their behavior is ineffective prevented the formation of new behaviors, even after successful experience. Likewise for the escape group, their previous learned behavior was tested when they were switched into a no-escape situation. With this, the dogs who were taught to escape would continue and fight even after continuously failing. This demonstrates that there is growth after being subjected to a traumatic event (D’Andrea et al. , 2008). This supports Seligman’s belief that if you are successful in controlling aspects of your life, then in new situations you will try again to have power and that failure is just a temporary setback. Whereas, no-escape dogs view failure as a long-lasting issue and this leads them to undermine anything and everything they do (Seligman, 1975). A recent study that was very similar to Seligman’s was conducted by Elizabeth McLaughlin, Marie-josee Lefaivre and Elizabeth Cummings. They wanted to test the idea of learned helplessness with adolescents with type 1 diabetes. McLaughlin, Lefaivre and Cummings questioned if adolescents with type 1 diabetes would be more at risk for learned helplessness than their healthier peers (p. 405-414). They had 70 participants, 40 females and 30 males all who were in-between the ages of 13-17. The experiment was tested with self-reports of personality along with Behavior Assessment System for Children. They spilt the participants in to three groups like Seligman, one group completed a solvable formation task while the other had an unsolvable task and then there was the control group. On the first test, the individuals with diabetes in the unsolvable task group proved to be no less helpless than the control group. This experiment-induced helplessness was then tested by initially completing pre and post-task performance and attribution ratings. They were then given two sets of anagrams-solving tasks to determine if perceived helplessness on the first task would negatively have an impact on performance on the second, which it did not (Cummings et al. , 2010). Though their study was similar to Seligman’s, it had its distinct differences as well. First, their subjects were human and not canine. Second and most importantly was that their   study was based on induced helplessness, not learned helplessness. Martin Seligman’s experiment was an integral step in behavior psychology because when dealing with depression it was thought that things would not change. With his findings he realized not only that helplessness was learned, but that with enough reinforcement and preventive action it can be avoided. So now all those people in our lives who we sit and think about; â€Å"Gosh, why are they still in that situation? † or â€Å"why is she still with him? †, demonstrate a lack of control and power. Our perceptions of power and control over situations can either strengthen our own character or send us into a downward spiral, and I know for myself that I won’t land in the latter half. References Bjarehed, J. , Sarkohi, A. , Andersson, G. (2010). Less positive or more negative? Future-directed thinking in mild to moderate depression. Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, 39(1), 37-45. Clark, R. (2004). The Classical Origins of Pavlovs Conditioning. Integrative Physiological Behavioral Science, 39(4), 279-294. Hock, R. R. (1995). Forty studies that changed psychology: exploration into the history of psychological research. Englewood Cliffs (N. J. ): Prentice Hall. McLaughlin, E. , Lefaivre, M. , Cummings, E. (2010). Experimentally-induced learned helplessness in adolescents with type 1 diabetes. Journal of Pediatric Psychology, 35(4), 405-414. Peterson, C. , Park, N. , Pole, N. , DAndrea, W. , Seligman, M. (2008). Strengths of character and posttraumatic growth. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 21(2), 214-217. Rothbaum, F. , Morling, B. , Rusk, N. (2009). How goals and beliefs lead people into and out of depression. Review of General Psychology, 13(4), 302-314. Seligman, M. (1975) Helplessness: on depression, development, and death. San Francisco: W. H. Freeman.

Great Powers 1900 essays

Great Powers 1900 essays What makes a major cause of a war is its significance, and its impact on all of the countries involved. According to these criteria there are four main causes of the First World War; Imperialism is a policy of acquiring dependent territories . The Arms Race, and Militarism involved competitions between nations for the better technology, and the imperial consequences, which followed. Otto Von Bismarck was the chancellor in Germany who wanted to keep the peace in Europe, and when he was dismissed from his position, when William II wanted to rule alone, Germanys foreign policy changed dramatically to its disadvantage. The Alliance system featuring two major alliances, the Triple Entente (Russia, France, and Britain), and the Triple Alliance (Germany, Italy, and Austria), this created suspicion and hence tension among the nations. Finally nationalism, this is a feeling of pride towards ones country. All of these were causes of the war as they created a great amount of tension between the major powers in the world, especially in Europe. The Arms Race, and Militarism are basically where nations compete for better technology, in weapons, tactics, and other such things, which would affect the power of a nation, (the Arms Race generally refers to the British, and the Germans). Militarism can provide many jobs to the unemployed, in 1905-1914 the German Tirpitz plan, which was to make more Dreadnoughts than the British (the Dreadnought was the fastest, strongest, and most well equipped ship of its time, making all others virtually obsolete). This sudden increase of demand of steel, and weaponry used to make the ship, consequently required more workers in the factories, lowering the unemployment rate dramatically. New weaponry and interventions can ultimately decide who will win a war . However when too much money and time is placed into creating these weapons, there could be very problematic results, i...

How Cloud Computing Affects the Accounting World Research Paper

How Cloud Computing Affects the Accounting World - Research Paper Example However, in many institutions and traditional computing has been replaced with cloud computing. This is owing to the many advantages that cloud computing has over traditional computing. The superior traits of cloud computing over traditional computing include its elasticity, can be easily managed by the service provider and can be commercialized. In addition to that, cloud computing makes it possible for people to share documents with much ease. Thus, owing to the advantages of cloud computing and advancing in technology, many firms are adopting the system. How does the location independence of cloud computing help Deutche Bank or any other organization? Any organization using cloud computing can allow access to their customers to general transactions. In this case, cloud computing will be helping the organization increase its transparency. A direct effect of transparency is increased sales. Especially in a bank, customers want updates about what their money is being used to do. In a ddition, cloud computing also offers the general public an opportunity to learn about many organizations. Increased exposure will lead to increased sales and gaining of new customers. Location independence allows the organization to control the flow of information (King, 2008). This leads to increased security for the customers. Some banks have reported cases of staff members looting customers. This can be eliminated by cloud computing in that only few people can be granted access to sensitive information. The security of any data is protected from anyone wishing to alter anything. In the bank, this is advantageous as it can avoid losses from opportunistic individuals. Another way through which cloud computing offer services to banks and other organizations is by automated saving of data. Once data is entered, it is automatically saved and access of that data is limited to people who have been cleared to have access. Many firms using traditional computing have suffered from loss of data owing to power or machine failure. However, with cloud computing any server can be used to access the data that was stored. Would cloud computing be useful to your school? Cloud computing is designed for both public and private use. I believe that cloud computing can be useful to our school due to its advantages. These include saving time and money for the school. The school can benefit from information technology infrastructure at minimal costs. Also in cloud computing hardware upgrading is not needed which can save the school a lot of money. The time consumed during hardware upgrades which can result in systems shutdown can be avoided and minimized (Combs, 2012). The school will also save time and money in terms of laborers required. Another advantage that can benefit the school is that cloud computing enhances integration of data. Activities undertaken by the staff can be dealt with within a short period leaving a lot of time to deliver quality education to the students. Ano ther advantage is that with cloud computing, the school gets to be a part of developing technology. This can be beneficial to both the students and faculty especially the ones engaged in computer science and information technology courses. The students benefit from an opportunity to practice within their field which gives them some experience. In business organizations, cloud computing has greatly contributed to easy management of the business. Storage and retrieval of records is cost effective and does not consume a lot

How did we come to be Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4750 words

How did we come to be - Essay Example Where does this power "to will" come from If we observe our own body parts and their movements as if we are looking at a Television program, the reality behind our origins can be realized to a great extent. This is clearly an experiment about which a number of scientists and critical analysts apparently never thought of doing it while entering into their voluminous research on the evolution, nature and logic of origins of man. If this experiment is opted for, only one idea is likely to follow. This will be an objective realization of the power and force of God behind every living and non-living being and entity. This is ultimate wisdom that does not change for there is nothing beyond it. There is a well established social perspective. It is the universally accepted principle of "Change as the law of Nature". This law by itself has never changed! Why If it is true, it must also change with time. However, no one can deny living by this reality of change. What a great predicament The law is there but it cannot be there if it is to continue. Similar situation appears to be existing about the question: How have we humans evolved in the present pulsating form of precious beings So many schools of thought and ways of argument have come up, as it were, "since the beginning of human inquiry into society." Darwinian, Big Bang, Cosmic Evolution, Stellar Evolution, Chemical Evolution, Planetary Evolution, Organic Evolution, Macro Evolution, Micro Evolution and Pragmatism theories vie with one another to solve the apparent mystery of origins of man.1 Despite so much of variety of material and writings available on "How did we come to be" there is utter dearth of rock solid truth about this matter. Evolutionary theorists are generally modern scientists from biology, chemistry and physics. They believe and write about that phenomenon which can be verified through their own microscopes and eyes only. Pragmatists like Charles Sanders Peirce, William James and John Dewey appear to have gone even a few steps ahead of the evolutionary theorists. They as such suggest "rejection of the transcendental approach to truth, logic and inquiry".2 For Peirce, 'pragmaticism' and 'fallibilism' were the essence of all logic. For him, 'metaphysics embraces a theory of cosmic evolution and a theory of causal laws'. There has to be a cause and effect relationship inherent and explicit in an experience. All inquiry - including the question of origins of man - must follow this causal law. William James also picked up 'pragmatist' outlook of Peirce and further popularized these ideas.3 Quite in the similar vain, John Dewey made inquiry, rather than truth or knowledge, the essence of logic.4 Critical Assessment: Indeed, these evolutionary and pragmatist analyses are having their own limitations just as any other approach to a world view may be having. One small aspect is very obvious here. Most of the noted and vibrant minds and great critics generally do not look beyond their own perception. At times, the most obvious argument is ignored for it lies just beneath their feet within their immediate reach. If an analyst wants to be objective and scientific in approach, then one must not ignore the most obvious. When dealing with evolution, origins of man and the power behind human

Video game industry in North America Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Video game industry in North America - Essay Example Interactive game industry is the other term used in reference to the video game industry as it comprises of thousands of disciplines. The industry developed in the 1970s because of curiosity in which their development shifted from a focused market to a mainstreamed one (Huntemann & Aslinger, 2013). Presently, the video game industry is the most profitable component of the North American economy as it the profits generated from the sale of video game merchandise translates to billions of dollars. Ideally, the advancement in the computer or technology industry draws influence from the video gaming sector as the sector has facilitated significant improvements. For instance, the video game industry influenced the development of sound cards as video game players sought to develop the quality of sound produced but video games. Presently, modern games are a demanding lot as they require advanced applications on personal computers hence influencing the purchase of high quality equipment. The refore, this essay will delve on the video game industry in North America while focusing on the benefits and disadvantages of the same on the economy and the population. History of the Video game industry in North America Video games developed in North America contribute at least thirty percent of the games in the video game market. With this attribute, the industry that started almost forty decades ago has attracted the interest of many researchers in terms of their impact on the reality of the game players. Many researches have had their focus on the contents of the video games or the production aspects of the same. Ideally, the video game industry has a correlation with the development of the software industry in the North American continent, but the two industries took divergent paths as time progressed. However, the establishment of the video game industry is a subject that has dotted lines as it is not clear whether it started with Russell Steven with his colleagues or Baer Ra lph as they developed Magnavox Odyssey and Space wars respectively (Yost, 2005). These two individuals are just among the few that the video game industry cites as the developers of video game consoles in North America. In essence, the game console is the most significant aspect of video games as the device is needful in the running of video games. In definitive terms, the game console is a gaming device that can host numerous games that have different contents and display the contents on a television screen. For instance, the Nintendo 64 was the greatest game console to have hit the video game industry with its release in 1997. On the other hand, video game companies emerged in a period between the 1980s and the 1990s, but the game console sector remained as the principal force in the North American continent. Appendices 1: Comparison between the sales of video game consoles and PC game sales Year Console games Net sales Personal computer Game Sales 2006 231.8 Million pieces 1.2 Mi llion pieces 2007 388.4 Million pieces 5.2 Million pieces 2008 628.5 Million pieces 9.3 Million pieces 2009 602.3 Million pieces 8.8 Million pieces 2010 636 Million pieces 17.6 Million pieces The table asserts that sales in video game console are higher as compared to the sales of PC games making this aspect the object of focus for video game publishers and developers (Tremblay, 2007). Essentially, video game consoles are vital in the maintenance of the existing structures of the North American video game industry. Video game structures in North America As part of the regulations governing this industry, the acquisition of a license from the manufacturer is vital before a game development studio creates a game console. The license is an agreement

Malaysia And The Vision 2020 Commerce Essay

Malaysia And The Vision 2020 Commerce Essay Malaysia is one of the earliest countries in the world due to Dr. Mahathir who conceived of Vision 2020 and encouraged all Malaysians to achieve this goal by sharing in this plan. Vision 2020 has come from a personnel vision -Mahathirs vision- and it very quickly became a national Vision due to the excellent communicator of this Vision by the prime minister and his government members. The Vision sets new and higher goals for national aspiration, and this vision contribute dramatically in changing the way Malaysians see themselves and the direction of their shared destiny. No longer are we resigned to the fact that we are a developing country that will, at best, remain second rate. Malaysians are urged by the Prime Minister to strive to be the best and not settle for the second best. There is nothing that we are not capable of doing, if we are prepared to work hard and use our ingenuity and resourcefulness. vision 2020(wawasan 2020): The following text is from the Malaysia vision web site , its explain the vision 2020 presented by Dr Mahathir Mohamed at the Malaysian Business Council. The purpose of this paper is to present before you some thoughts on the future course of our nation and how we should go about to attain our objective of developing Malaysia into an industrialized country. Also outlined are some measures that should be in place in the shorter term so that the foundations can be laid for the long journey towards that ultimate objective. Hopefully the Malaysian who is born today and in the years to come will be the last generation of our citizens who will be living in a country that is called developing. The ultimate objective that we should aim for is a Malaysia that is a fully developed country by the year 2020. What, you might rightly ask, is a fully developed country? Do we want to be like any particular country of the present 19 countries that are generally regarded as developed countries? Do we want to be like the United Kingdom, like Canada, like Holland, like Sweden, like Finland, like Japan? To be sure, each of the 19, out of a world community of more than 160 states, has its strengths. But each also has its fair share of weaknesses. Without being a duplicate of any of them we can still be developed. We should be a developed country in our own mould. Malaysia should not be developed only in the economic sense. It must be a nation that is fully developed along all the dimensions: economically, politically, socially, spiritually, psychologically and culturally. We must be fully developed in terms of national unity and social cohesion, in terms of our economy, in terms of social justice, political stability, system of government, quality of life, social and spiritual values, national pride and confidence. [01] Some policies and strategies of vision 2020 ( wawasan 2020 ): 03-01 the Malaysia economic policy and strategy: This new policy can be considered an add-on document to the NEP; it provides a framework towards Dr. Mahathirs new vision 2020 plan symbolizing the way forward policy towards a developed nation in 2020. This will require the nation to maintain a 7-plus percent growth rates for the next 25 years. Prime Minister Mahathir believes raising workforce quality and developing expertise in sophisticated industries are decisive elements in the countrys road to economic success and development (Brown 1993: 43). In order to facilitate these growth requirements, the NDP has relaxed many of the FDI restrictions imposed by the NEP such as equity and licensing requirements and procedures. The purpose of the Industrial Master Plan which was formulated by the United Nations Industrial.[ 02 ] Malaysia economic policy focuses on some fields to achieve its purposes : Export Facilitation. Import Substitution. Tariff Structure, Strategic Exposure. 03-01-01 Export Facilitation: The economic rationale of Malaysia to promote exports provides the nation with three important advantages. First, it generates foreign-exchange that can reduce the amount of foreign debt needed to fund development. Second, it contributes to developing a competitive industry infrastructure from learning from investors- a move that brings technological excellence leading to higher value-added exports. By the promotion of specific industries, such as the semi-conductor industry, has speeded technology acquisition and enhanced the nations competitive Worldwide positioning. Finally, FDI provides employment in the industry sector, which to a large extent is attracted from the agricultural sector. [ 02 ] 03-01-02 Tariff Structure: As a link to the policy of maintaining a stable economy with past budget strategies of controlling inflation, there have been major reductions and abolition of import duties on goods and services. The 1995 budget proposes a reduction of tariffs imposed on over 2,600 items of which a majority is food items (Budget 1995: 22). Also, tariffs on building materials and household appliances have been reduced. These measures will not only control inflation, but also enhance the quality of life and favor the overall climate for investments. However, Ad Valorem taxes are imposed on imported goods and services (refer to Appendix 4) [ 02 ]. 03-01-03 Import Substitution: Economic development in Malaysia was first built on the basis of Import Substitution, indicated by the large shift of GNP distribution from agricultural sectors to manufacturing sectors. Import substitution has increased in mainly three areas, transport equipment, Industrial chemicals and fertilizers and in Industrial machinery (Onn 1988: 28). However, exports constitute the main source of growth in the manufacturing sector from 1970-1990 (refer to appendix 6). This trend can be explained by economic policy that places great emphasis on improving industrial competitiveness as a vehicle towards vision 2020. [ 02 ] 03-01-04 Strategic Exposure Strategic exposure represents a crucial component in Strategic Trade Theory. The rationale behind lowering barriers to trade and exposing local industry to foreign competition is to create a more competitive domestic industry (Hamilton 1989: 4). Such a Level Playing Field policy will force local firms to increase their competitiveness to survive. Strategic exposure represents a direct link to becoming an industrialized nation by 2020 and the realization of economic goals. Incorporating FDI as a strategic measure to enhance technological know-how can reduce domestic learning and experience curves in selected industries. By giving foreign investors considerable tax deductible incentives in areas such as training of local employees, research and development and in promotion of exports Malaysia has been able to increase World wide competitiveness as demonstrated by increasing exports and GDP (Carrol, Errion 1991: 21). Malaysia aims for the year 2000 to have at least 1.6% of GDP spent on RD and is predicting that at least 40% will come from the private sector[ 02 ] Higher educations policy and strategy : 03-02-01 Universities In Malaysia, with the cooperation of the local universities formulate and create action plans for reforming engineering education in preparation for the professional expectations of the future. As a result, the universities are urged to act and play a leadership role in improving the engineering education. Interaction with local and overseas industries should also be increased. This will facilitate more realistic and relevant joint projects for students and industry professionals. Through this interaction, universities will face a variety of real-world multi-disciplinary problems that are similar to the business operational problems locally and internationally. These problems can be used as test cases for solution approaches. Engineering students could form interdisciplinary collaborative teams to develop effective solutions to such problems. As a result, the desired attributes for the future engineers, for example, the ability to function on multidisciplinary team, the ability to identify and solve engineering problems, the ability to understand the professional and ethical responsibility and the ability to communicate effectively can be achieved. [03]. Infrastructure and Facilities Universities need to establish consensus on relevancy of a set of a new fundamental for engineering education. This may include information technology, bio-engineering, nano-skill-technologies, skills and understanding necessary for effectively leading multidisciplinary-teams, the challenges of framing and addressing large-scale system-of-systems problems, sustainability, lifecycle management of systems, risk-based asset management, and the need of lifelong learning, globalization, demographic realities and need for diversity [ 03 ]. Academician The pedagogy of engineering education must be changed. According to Felder many students in the United States fail to excel with only the support of traditional method used in teaching engineering. Engineering students prefer active teaching method .Therefore; the traditional teaching engineering model must be changed to a new teaching model in line with the engineers of the 21st century. The future engineering education program should include the use of ICT (Information Communication Technology). This idea suggested by many undergraduate engineering students. The ICT genre involves the use of all tools in the forms of software, on-line program and resources to create new and improved conditions for learning, for example the use of e-learning, email, word processor, and web resources (both static information and dynamic interactive information) [03]. Using ICT in Education The concept of ICT in education, as seen by the Ministry of Education of Malaysia, includes systems that enable information gathering, management, manipulation, access, and communication in various forms. The Ministry has formulated three main policies for ICT in education. The first policy is that of ICT for all students, meaning that ICT is used as an enabler to reduce the digital gap between the schools. The second policy emphasizes the role and function of ICT in education as a teaching and learning tool, as part of a subject, and as a subject by itself. Apart from radio and television as a teaching and learning tool, this policy stresses the use of the computer for accessing information, communication, and as a productivity tool. ICT as part of a subject refers to the use of software in subjects such as Invention and Engineering Drawing. ICT as a subject refers to the introduction of subjects such as Information Technology and Computerization. The third policy emphasizes using ICT to increase productivity, efficiency and effectiveness of the management system. ICT will be extensively used to automate and mechanize work processes such as the processing of official forms, timetable generation, management of information systems, lesson planning, financial management, and the maintenance of inventories. [ 04 ] health policy and strategy: The MOHs vision for the future and the strategic objectives are based on its corporate values that incorporate professionalism, teamwork and caring. 03-03-01 Strategic Goals Prevent and reduce the burden of disease Enhance the healthcare delivery system Optimize resources Improve research and development Manage crisis and disasters effectively Strengthen the health information management system 03-03-02 Strategies Improve governance, and adoption of appropriate technology and service Practices to empower individuals, families and communities towards attaining lifelong wellness. Develop skills and competencies to further reduce mortality and morbidity rates in furtherance of strengthening the quality of healthcare delivery. Establish effective business strategies to enhance organizational Performance and the consumption of resources. Increase the use of evidence through research to support all levels of decision making. Elevate the level of preparedness in managing disasters and health-related crises effectively. Upgrade the standards of information and communication technology as well as health informatics to maintain sound health information Management [05]. Biological diversity policy and strategy: 03-04-01 Principles: The vision 2020 (wawasan2020) in biological diversity based on the following principles: The conservation ethic, including the inherent right to existence of all living forms, is deeply rooted in the religious and cultural values of all Malaysians Biological diversity is a national heritage and it must be sustainably managed and wisely utilized today and conserved for future generations; Biological resources are natural capital and their conservation is an investment that will yield benefits locally, nationally and globally for the present and future; The benefits from sustainable management of biological diversity will accrue, directly or indirectly, to every sector of society; The sustainable management of biological diversity is the responsibility of all sectors of society; It is the duty of Government to formulate and implement the policy framework for sustainable management and utilization of biological diversity in close cooperation with scientists, the business community and the public; The role of local communities in the conservation, management and utilization of biological diversity must be recognized and their rightful share of benefits should be ensured; Issues in biological diversity transcend national boundaries and Malaysia must continue to exercise a proactive and constructive role in international activities; The interdependence of nations on biological diversity and in the utilization of its components for the well-being of mankind is recognized. International cooperation and collaboration is vital for fair and equitable sharing of biological resources, as well as access to and transfer of relevant technology; Public awareness and education is essential for ensuring the conservation of biological diversity and the sustainable utilization of its components; in the utilization of biological diversity, including the development of biotechnology, the principles and practice of biosafety should be adhered to [06]. 03-04-02 Objectives To optimize economic benefits from sustainable utilization of the components of biological diversity To ensure long-term food security for the nation To maintain and improve environmental stability for proper functioning of ecological systems To ensure preservation of the unique biological heritage of the nation for the benefit of present and future generations; To enhance scientific and technological knowledge, and educational, social, cultural and aesthetic values of biological diversity; To emphasize biosafety considerations in the development and application of biotechnology;[06] Challenges of establishing vision 2020(wawasan 2020): The first of these is the challenges of establishing a united Malaysian nation with a sense of common and shared destiny. The second is the challenge of creating a psychologically liberated, secure, and developed Malaysian Society with faith and confidence in itself, justifiably proud of what it is, of what it has accomplished, robust enough to face all manner of adversity. The third challenge we have always faced is that of fostering and developing a mature democratic society, practicing a form of mature consensual, community-oriented Malaysian democracy that can be a model for many developing countries. The fourth is the challenge of establishing a fully moral and ethical society, whose citizens are strong in religious and spiritual values and imbued with the highest of ethical standards. The fifth challenge that we have always faced is the challenge of establishing a matured, liberal and tolerant society in which Malaysians of all colors and creeds are free to practice and profess their customs, cultures and religious beliefs and yet feeling that they belong to one nation. The sixth is the challenge of establishing a scientific and progressive society, a society that is innovative and forward-looking, and one that is not only a consumer of technology but also a contributor to the scientific and technological civilization of the future. The seventh challenge is the challenge of establishing a fully caring society and a caring culture, a social system in which society will come before self, in which the welfare of the people will revolve not around the state or the individual but around a strong and resilient family system. The eighth is the challenge of ensuring an economically just society. This is a society in which there is a fair and equitable distribution of the wealth of the nation, in which there is full partnership in economic progress. Such a society cannot be in place so long as there is the identification of race with economic function, and the identification of economic backwardness with race. The ninth challenge is the challenge of establishing a prosperous society, with an economy that is fully competitive, dynamic, robust and resilient. [ 07 ] Discussion Is Malaysia on track to 2020? This is the most important question every time the issue of Malaysia 2020 has been raised. And it is important to measure and evaluate the strategies and policies to keep Malaysia on track to 2020; Siddiquee (2006) [08] indicated that the recent reforms represent Malaysias attempt to remain relevant and competitive in a rapidly changing local and global environment. It is clear that the changes are largely consistent with NPM (National Public Management) principles and they are not only geared towards enhancing efficiency and institutional capacity of the governmental machinery, they also seek to transform it into a dynamic, market-driven and customer-oriented administration. It is true that Malaysia is ahead of other developing countries in terms of ICT infrastructure and its usage, however, there is a long way to go before Malaysia can catch up with other regional leaders like Singapore and South Korea. Presently, not only the number and types of services offered through such channels are limited but also the public access to such services is inadequate. On the one hand, the public awareness about such facilities is relatively low; on the other hand, pilot projects being carried out have exposed a variety of challenges Therefore, the reforms, although generally seen as steps in the right direction, have not brought about dramatic improvements in the public sector. An analysis of the public sector competence of 12 Asian countries from 1999 to 2001/2002 by the Global Competitiveness Report shows that Malaysias ranking has dropped from 46 in 1999 to 65 in 2001/2002. Malaysia has fared poorly compared with neighboring Singapore, which has ranked first for three consecutive years. Measured on a 0-7 scale (where 0 means least competent and 7 means the most competent), Malaysias scores are 2.24, 2.50 and 2.10 against Singapores 4.52, 4.4 and 4.7 during the same period. What is even more surprising is that Malaysias 2001/2002 ranking is below that of Thailand (44), Indonesia (48), and the Philippines (58). The Malaysian experience shows that there is hardly any quick fix to the problems of the public sector and that there is a long way to go before the goals envisioned are realized. Malaysia has, despite its efforts to develop ICT especially in the Multi Media Super Corridor, receded from place 25 (in 1997) on a relative competitiveness scale of infrastructure development to place 38 (out of 49 countries in 2001). Malaysia still implement new ways to achieve its goal The government have started implementing several initiatives to facilitate the smooth development of knowledge economy, particularly in the areas of science and technology (ST), research and development, info structure and financing. Examples of some of these initiatives include the launching of the National IT Agenda (NITA) and the Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC). These initiatives is to position itself in the global-map of knowledge-based economies and to undertake measures in ensuring that equitable access is targeted to all segments of Malaysia society. As a whole, k-economy provides the means to maintain sustainable rapid economic growth and competitiveness in the medium and long term. As mentioned earlier, the private sector will continue to become the engine of growth in k-economy with support from the public sector. At the same time, the objective of social and economic equity will still be a critical element in this new s tage of economic development but with the added responsibility of narrowing the knowledge gap among various groups, between urban and rural communities and across the regions. Hence, having the national policies and plans in place to drive human resources, private and public sector to achieve k-economy, who is responsible for coordinating and administration of the plans, policies and strategies implemented (Abdullah, Rose Kumar (2007))[09]. conclusion Despite Malaysia have achieved many goals from 1981 till now, there are many difficulties that encounter Malaysia for achieving visions 2020 and there are a lot of problems have to be solved such as the following problems: The big gap between Malay and Chinese and Indian citizens between each others whether in communication, dealing, relationships. The non-stabilization in the leaderships of Malaysia government since 2000. Inefficiency to build a new generation to adopt vision 2020 completely. Weakness of awareness of Malaysians society to implement vision 2020. Focusing on development of the big cities like KL, PENANG and disregard the other villages.

William Shakespeare :: essays research papers

William Shakespeare was born in 1564, in Stratford, located in the center of England. His dad, John, was a trained glove maker, who was married to Mary Arden. She was the daughter of Robert Arden, who was a farmer in a nearby village of Wilmcote. John was also served on the town council for many years, becoming mayor in 1568. He was also involved in money lending and he traded wool. After 2 tries of having a child, and failed, William was born. He had 5 other siblings, but one of them died in their early life.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Shakespeare was well set in the year 1592. His high reputation was in London. His earliest plays were â€Å"Henry VI†, â€Å"The Two Gentlemen of Verona†, and â€Å"Titus Andronicus†. In 1594, Shakespeare joined other people, creating a new theater company. Having Richard Burbage as lead actor, for almost twenty years they performed two shows a year on average. The plays included â€Å"Hamlet†, â€Å"Othello†, and â€Å"Lear†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In 1597, Shakespeare’s successes lead him into a wealthy state. His massive income let him purchase the biggest home in Stratford. Even though his career was spent in London, he stayed close to his native town. In 1602, he bought 107 acres of land, also in Stratford.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Shakespeare plays were performed only in London, where the buildings were designed specifically for performing plays. Most of the theaters were tall, and circular in shape. They would be open to the sky, and roofs protecting the galleries. The performances took place in the afternoon, where lighting was at its peak performance. All the roles in the plays were male performers. Even the female role’s, were guys. But the audience was always a mix of the sexes.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In 1599, Lord Chamberlain’s company built the Globe Theater. This theater was mainly associated with his plays, and it was on the south bank of the Thames, in the suburb of Southwark. Two of his plays â€Å"Henry V†, and â€Å"Julius Caesar† were performed here from the time it opened to 1613. During a performance of â€Å"Henry VIII†, a fire broke out and destroyed the theater. It was rebuilt the following year.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Some of Shakespeare’s best work came out in the 1600’s. They included â€Å"Hamlet†, â€Å"Cymbeline†, and â€Å"The Tempest†. He died in his Stratford home on April 23rd, 1616; he was fifty-two. He was buried at Holy Trinity Church, where now, his rest of his family rests in peace.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  William Shakespeare led an exciting life, becoming one of the most famous play writers of all time.

Cop Out

White Water Rafting Site Recommendation Christopher Davis, Liquita James, and Susan Williams ACC/543 August 13, 2012 Linda Miller White Water Rafting Site Recommendation White water rafting is a new sport that has gained popularity in recent years. Because of this popularity the white water rafting business has expanded. Our client is interested in opening a white water rafting business. The client has three states in which they are interested in Alabama, Georgia, and Virginia.The client has requested that the accounting firm research to see which location would be best for their new rafting business. Research must be done of the legal ramifications of real property, personal property, business insurance and environmental issues and regulations for each location in order to make the site recommendation. Real Property and Personal Property Real Property is the land itself and any building, trees, soil, minerals, timbers, plants, and other things permanently affixed to the land.Land an d buildings are purchased and the owner may use, enjoy, and develop the property as he or she sees fit, subject to any applicable government regulation. Buildings that are constructed on the property are also real property. Personal property is tangible property such as equipment, vehicles, furniture, and jewelry, as well as intangible property such as securities, patents, trademarks, and copyrights. Determining if a mobile home can be used for the office on the new location is important to the client.Therefore we would need to know in each location if the mobile home is considered real property or personal property. In Toccoa Georgia real property can be purchased for around $150,000 for 2. 2 acres on the Toccoa River. Placing a mobile home on this land for the office would be considered real property in Georgia as long as the mobile home is titled to the same party that owns the land. The mobile home must be tied down and blocked in to be considered for commercial use.In Cahaba Ri ver City: Mountain Brook, Alabama the tax assessing official makes the differentiation between real property and personal property by considering the manner in which property is attached to or secured at the location and the purpose for which the property is used. Intangible personal property includes an owner’s representation of rights to property such as shares of stock, annuities, patents, market certificates, etc. Intangible personal property owned by businesses is not taxable under the property tax laws of this state.Business personal property is considered Class II property and is taxed at 20% of market value. Market value multiplied by twenty percent equals the assessment value, which is then multiplied by the appropriate jurisdiction’s millage rates to determine the amount of tax due. The State of Alabama publishes a personal property appraisal manual so that basic methods and procedures can be followed in the personal property appraisal process (â€Å"Persona l Property†, 2012). Land in Birmingham, Alabama is roughly around 45,000 an acre.Rappahannock River in Fredericksburg Virginia is a combination of rural and urban life. The river is located off a major highway  leading north and south of the area. It's it also located between  the capital Washington, D. C. and the capital of the state, Richmond. It's a great area for relaxing and family with  a country feel. There are major tourist’s sites such as  war battlefields,  art galleries and antique shops. The mobile home issue as an office would be considered real property in Virginia.Once the home or office t is off the truck and secured on the ground it is considered real property. Lots run from $120,000 up to $700,000. 00 Business Insurance It is also important that we research what each site location business insurance requirements are. Business Insurance will protect our client and their property from damages and any unforeseeable circumstances. For Georgia the following insurances are required for a white water rafting business in Toccoa; vehicle insurance, floater policy, on water liability, and workmen’s compensation.Vehicle insurance for the buses, vans and cars, with low premium rates are based on the seasonal nature of your business, with limits up to $5,000,000, plus Physical Damage coverage; MVR and driver selection program assistance, prompt issuance of ID cards and Certificates. Floater Policy for your rafting and canoeing equipment policies provide physical damage protection for your river equipment – Fire, theft, vandalism, collision, and much more are covered; Low rates make this an important part of your insurance protection program; Office computers and equipment can be included.On Water Liability is professional liability insurance consulting for whitewater rafting, canoe livery industries and outdoor adventure companies. New, lower minimum premiums for the smaller outfitter, along with a liability waiver des igned for you; Limits up to $5,000,000. . Finally Worker’s Compensation Offered in most states – Competitive rates. CBIZ offers professional liability insurance consulting for whitewater rafting, canoe livery industries and outdoor adventure companies.CBIZ is the Preferred Agent for the Paddle sports Industry Association. They offer liability coverage through four programs: K&K, Tudor Insurance (Sattler), the AO endorsed Great Outdoors Program (Gillingham) and Philadelphia Insurance. Additionally, they offer commercial auto through four programs in most states. With full-service professional liability insurance consulting for whitewater rafting, canoe livery industries and outdoor adventure companies from CBIZ, you’re protected while your customers enjoy their outdoor activities: 1.Vehicle Insurance: Stable markets for buses, vans, cars, and trucks; Low premium rates are based on the seasonal nature of your business; Limits up to $5,000,000, plus Physical Damage coverage; MVR and driver selection program assistance, prompt issuance of ID cards and Certificates. 2. Floater Policy for your rafting and canoeing equipment: These policies provide physical damage protection for your river equipment – Fire, theft, vandalism, collision, and much more are covered; Low rates make this an important part of your insurance protection program; Office computers and equipment can be included. . On Water Liability: Get professional liability insurance consulting for whitewater rafting, canoe livery industries and outdoor adventure companies. New, lower minimum premiums for the smaller outfitter, along with a liability waiver designed for you; Limits up to $5,000,000. 4. You also need Worker's Compensation (â€Å"Whitewater Rafting†, 2012). For Virginia liability insurance is required for rafting. Virginia requires that management must have at least three years management experience for acquire an insurance policy.There must be a General liabi lity minimum premium $2,500 for mountaineering experience and ropes courses General liability minimum premium $10,000 for equine exposures – General liability minimum premium $2,000 for water activities. As with Alabama CBIZ offers the most affordable insurance for the area and offers the same vehicle, floater, water liability and workman’s comp insurance. Environmental Issues and Regulations Environmental issues and regulations are important when deciding upon a site for our clients business.These issues and regulations can cause a major problem for our client. At the Toccoa Georgia site the environmental issues that are of concern are that the rivers are being polluted by businesses in the area. â€Å" Polluters can dump garbage into streams, developers can pave over wetlands to build strip malls, and the cops on the environmental beat can’t do a thing about it† I n April, the Environmental Protection Agency took the first major step in decades to prote ct Georgia’s rivers by setting new guidelines to prevent pollution from flowing into our waters. â€Å"Protect Our Rivers†, 2012) Fourteen Alabama environmental groups have officially filed a petition with Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to withdraw Alabama's authority over the water pollution-permitting program because it does not meet the minimum requirements of the Clean Water Act (â€Å"Clean Water Network†, 2012). There are no ongoing environmental issues or regulations for Rappahannock River in Fredericksburg Virginia. Site Recommendation The site recommended for our client is the Alabama site.The insurance requirement is about the same for all three states. Therefore we need to look at the real property and environment to make our decision. The mobile home issue is that it can be used for commercial use in all three of the locations. The mobile home would be considered real property because it will be attached to the location. Land in Alabama is che aper so that makes it a better investment. Finally the environmental issues are about the same with those states having issues with polluted rivers. Alabama like other states is actively pursuing this issue.In conclusion, our client is trying to decide where would be the best location to open a new white water rafting business. First we found three ideal locations for the new business. Then after much research we looked at whether or not they could have a mobile home as an office and if this was real or personal property. Other issue that we looked into was the business insurance and environmental issues. This helped us to decide that the best location for our new white water rafting business was Cahaba River City: Mountain Brook, AL. References Clean Water Network (2012).Retrieved from http://www. cleanwaternetwork. org/news-events/news/clean-water-network-groups-call-epa-take-away-alabamas-authority-over-water-permitt Georgia. (2012). Retrieved from http://www. statues. Laws. com Georgia business license. (2012). Retrieved from http://www. ehow. com Personal Property (2012). Retrieved from http://www. ador. state. al. us/advalorem/sections/personalproperty. htm Protect our Rivers. (2012). Retrieved from http://www. environmentgeorgia. org Whitewater Rafting (2012). Retrieved from http://www. cbiz. com/page. asp? pid=6384

All About Serializing in Visual Basic

All About Serializing in Visual Basic Serialization is the process of converting an object into a linear sequence of bytes called a byte stream. Deserialization just reverses the process. But why would you want to convert an object into a byte stream? The main reason is so you can move the object around. Consider the possibilities. Since everything is an object in .NET, you can serialize anything and save it to a file. So you could serialize pictures, data files, the current state of a program module (state is like a snapshot of your program at a point in time so you could temporarily suspend execution and start again later) ... whatever you need to do. You can also store these objects on disk in files, send them over the web, pass them to a different program, keep a backup copy for safety or security. The possibilities are quite literally endless. Thats why serialization is such a key process in .NET and Visual Basic. Below is a section on custom serialization by implementing the ISerializable interface and coding a New and a GetObjectData subroutine. As a first example of serialization, lets do one of the easiest programs, but also one of the most useful: serializing data, and then deserializing data in simple class to and from a file. In this example, the data is not only serialized, but the structure of the data is saved too. The structure here is declared in a module to keep things ... well ... structured. Module SerializeParmsSerializable() Public Class ParmExample  Ã‚  Ã‚  Public Parm1Name As String Parm1 Name  Ã‚  Ã‚  Public Parm1Value As Integer 12345  Ã‚  Ã‚  Public Parm2Name As String  Ã‚  Ã‚  Public Parm2Value As DecimalEnd ClassEnd Module Then, individual values can be saved to a file like this: Imports System.Runtime.Serialization.Formatters.BinaryImports System.IOPublic Class Form1  Ã‚  Ã‚  Private Sub mySerialize_Click( _  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  ByVal sender As System.Object, _  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  ByVal e As System.EventArgs) _  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Handles mySerialize.Click  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Dim ParmData As New ParmExample  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  ParmData.Parm2Name Parm2 Name  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  ParmData.Parm2Value 54321.12345  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Dim s As New FileStream(ParmInfo, FileMode.Create)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Dim f As New BinaryFormatter  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  f.Serialize(s, ParmData)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  s.Close()  Ã‚  Ã‚  End SubEnd Class And those same values can be retrieved like this: Imports System.Runtime.Serialization.Formatters.BinaryImports System.IOPublic Class Form1  Ã‚  Ã‚  Private Sub myDeserialize_Click( _  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  ByVal sender As System.Object, _  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  ByVal e As System.EventArgs) _  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Handles myDeserialize.Click  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Dim s New FileStream(ParmInfo, FileMode.Open)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Dim f As New BinaryFormatter  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Dim RestoredParms As New ParmExample  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  RestoredParms f.Deserialize(s)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  s.Close()  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Console.WriteLine(RestoredParms.Parm1Name)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Console.WriteLine(RestoredParms.Parm1Value)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Console.WriteLine(RestoredParms.Parm2Name)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Console.WriteLine(RestoredParms.Parm2Value)  Ã‚  Ã‚  End SubEnd Class A Structure or a collection (such as an ArrayList) rather than a Class could also be serialized to a file this same way. Now that we have gone over the basic serializing process, lets look at the specific details that are part of the process on the next page. One of the first things you should notice about this example is the Serializable() attribute in the Class. Attributes are just more information that you can provide to VB.NET about an object and theyre used for a lot of different things.  The attribute in this code tells VB.NET to add extra code so that later on, everything in this class can be serialized. If there are specific items in the Class that you dont want to be serialized, you can use the NonSerialized() attribute to exclude them: NonSerialized() Public Parm3Value As String Whatever In the example, notice is that Serialize and Deserialize are methods of the BinaryFormatter object (f in this example). f.Serialize(s, ParmData) This object takes the FileStream object and the object to be serialized as parameters. Well see that VB.NET offers another object that allows the result to be expressed as XML. And one final note, if your object includes other subordinate objects, theyll be serialized too! But since all objects that are serialized must be marked with the Serializable() attribute, all of these child objects must be marked that way too. Just to be completely clear about what is happening in your program, you might want to display the file named ParmData in Notepad to see what serialized data looks like. (If you followed this code, it should be in the bin.Debug folder in your project.) Since this is a binary file, most of the content isnt readable text, but you should be able to see any strings in your serialized file. Well do an XML version next and you might want to compare the two just to be aware of the difference. Serializing to XML instead of a binary file requires very few changes. XML isnt as fast and cant capture some object information, but its far more flexible. XML can be used by just about any other software technology in the world today. If you want to be sure your file structures dont tie you into Microsoft, this is a good option to look into. Microsoft is emphasizing LINQ to XML to create XML data files in their latest technology but many people still prefer this method. The X in XML stands for eXtensible. In our XML example, were going to use one of those extensions of XML, a technology called SOAP. This used to mean Simple Object Access Protocol but now its just a name. (SOAP has been upgraded so much that the original name doesnt fit that well anymore.) The main thing that we have to change in our subroutines is the declation of the serialization formatter. This has to be changed in both the subroutine that serializes the object and the one that deserializes it again. For the default configuration, this involves three changes to your program. First, you have to add a Reference to the project. Right-click the project and select Add Reference .... Make sure ... System.Runtime.Serialization.Formatters.Soap ... has been added to the project. Then change the two statements in the program that references it. Imports System.Runtime.Serialization.Formatters.SoapDim f As New SoapFormatter This time, if you check out the same ParmData file in Notepad, youll see that the whole thing is in readable XML text such as ... Parm1Name idref-3Parm1 Name/Parm1NameParm1Value12345/Parm1ValueParm2Name idref-4Parm2 Name/Parm2NameParm2Value54321.12345/Parm2Value There is also a lot of additional XML there thats necessary for the SOAP standard in the file as well. If you want to verify what the NonSerialized() attribute does, you can add a variable with that attribute and look at the file to verify that its not included. The example we just coded only serialized the data, but suppose you need to control how the data is serialized. VB.NET can do that too! To accomplish this, you need to get a little deeper into the concept of serialization. VB.NET has a new object to help out here: SerializationInfo. Although you have the ability to code custom serialization behavior, it comes with a cost of extra coding. The basic extra code is shown below. Remember, this class is used instead of the ParmExample class shown in the earlier example. This isnt a complete example. The purpose is to show you the new code that is needed for custom serialization. Imports System.Runtime.SerializationSerializable() _Public Class CustomSerialization  Ã‚  Ã‚  Implements ISerializable  Ã‚  Ã‚   data to be serialized here  Ã‚  Ã‚   Public SerializedVariable as Type  Ã‚  Ã‚  Public Sub New()  Ã‚  Ã‚   default constructor when the class  Ã‚  Ã‚   is created - custom code can be  Ã‚  Ã‚   added here too  Ã‚  Ã‚  End Sub  Ã‚  Ã‚  Public Sub New( _  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  ByVal info As SerializationInfo, _  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  ByVal context As StreamingContext)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   initialize your program variables from  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   a serialized data store  Ã‚  Ã‚  End Sub  Ã‚  Ã‚  Public Sub GetObjectData( _  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  ByVal info As SerializationInfo, _  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  ByVal context As StreamingContext) _  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Implements ISerializable.GetObjectData  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   update the serialized data store  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   from program variables  Ã‚  Ã‚  End SubEnd Class The idea is that now you can (and, in fact, you must) do all of the updating and reading of data in the serialized data store in the New and GetObjectData subroutines. You must also include a generic New constructor (no parameter list) because youre implementing an interface. The class will normally have formal properties and methods coded as well ... Generic PropertyPrivate newPropertyValue As StringPublic Property NewProperty() As String  Ã‚  Ã‚  Get  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Return newPropertyValue  Ã‚  Ã‚  End Get  Ã‚  Ã‚  Set(ByVal value As String)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  newPropertyValue value  Ã‚  Ã‚  End SetEnd Property Generic MethodPublic Sub MyMethod()  Ã‚  Ã‚  method codeEnd Sub The resulting serialized class can create unique values in the file based on the code you supply. For example, a real-estate class might update a the value and address of a house but the class would serialize a calculated market classification as well. The New subroutine will look something like this: Public Sub New( _  Ã‚  Ã‚  ByVal info As SerializationInfo, _  Ã‚  Ã‚  ByVal context As StreamingContext)  Ã‚  Ã‚   initialize your program variables from  Ã‚  Ã‚   a serialized data store  Ã‚  Ã‚  Parm1Name info.GetString(a)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Parm1Value info.GetInt32(b)  Ã‚  Ã‚   New sub continues ... When Deserialize is called on a BinaryFormatter object, this sub is executed and a SerializationInfo object is passed to the New subroutine. New can then do whatever is necessary with the serialized data values. For example ... MsgBox(This is Parm1Value Times Pi: _  Ã‚  Ã‚   (Parm1Value * Math.PI).ToString) The reverse happens when Serialize is called, but the BinaryFormatter object calls GetObjectData instead. Public Sub GetObjectData( _  Ã‚  Ã‚  ByVal info As SerializationInfo, _  Ã‚  Ã‚  ByVal context As StreamingContext) _  Ã‚  Ã‚  Implements ISerializable.GetObjectData  Ã‚  Ã‚   update the serialized data store  Ã‚  Ã‚   from program variables  Ã‚  Ã‚  If Parm2Name Test Then  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  info.AddValue(a, This is a test.)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Else  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  info.AddValue(a, No test this time.)  Ã‚  Ã‚  End If  Ã‚  Ã‚  info.AddValue(b, 2) Notice that the data is added to the serialized file as name/value pairs. A lot of the web pages Ive found in writing this article dont seem to have actual working code. One wonders whether the author actually executed any code before writing the article sometimes.