Precis for two articles or write a good topic you think Essay

Precis for two articles or write a good topic you think - Essay Example The most vulnerable areas can be acquired and be managed at a cheaper cost compared the involved costs for all reserve regions. This is because of lower prices in the regions and the total cost for the threatened regions is estimated at $ 4 billion as compared to the total $ 30 billion for protection of all reserve areas. Protecting the areas is also feasible because most of the pressure to the threats is external. This means that change in domestic policies by the affected nations can facilitate protection. Demands by external forces such as the World Bank and International Monetary Fund are examples of the forces that enhance irresponsible domestic activities to degradation of biodiversity. The institutions promote depletion of resources. The authors also recommend centralization of conservation research and management centers because of the success that such centrally managed institutions have achieved in developed countries. An integrated approach of protection and minimization o f harm is recommended as a solution in the environment where information on biodiversity and involved threat is available but the society has still failed to protect the environment from degradation. The article therefore offers a concern and immediate need for environmental conservation with hope of success (Pimm, et. al. 2207, 2208). The authors suggest possible extinction in the contemporary world because of the suspected interference with the environment whose adverse effects to biodiversity can be compared to previously five extinctions over the past 540 million years. Human activities whose effects include killing of biotic factors and variation of climate and habitats cause this and recovery is likely to take millions of years. Even though historical data, from fossils, and contemporary data are however biased and inaccurate and can misinform positions on extinction, a mass decrease in number of species, 75

Politics in Comparative Perspective Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

Politics in Comparative Perspective - Essay Example Through the internet, talk shows and television, the media has taken a central role in contemporary politics. Politicians are now able to voice their agendas through new forms of social media. In the liberal democracies, the legislature has vital roles in which the primary role is in the formulation of laws. This paper will discuss the role of parliaments in modern democracies with reference to various countries. The concept of multi-level governance and its significance in understanding policy-making will be discussed. The paper will discuss the functions of constitution and critically appraise the role of media in modern politics as well as make comparisons of parliaments in two liberal democracies. Moreover, the paper will discuss media in contemporary politics and legislature in liberal democracies. The role of parliament in modern democracies The parliament has several duties in modern societies. The parliament plays a fundamental role as a state organ. The parliament appraises the legislative proposals during the process of their passage. It also supervises the responsibilities of the executive and acts as a watchdog on activities of the government. The parliamentary committee framework allows the legislators to devolve their labor and focus on specific area of expertise. The parliamentary committee systems are crucial structures for legislative mechanisms often referred to as miniature legislatures or microcosms of their progenitor parliamentary bodies. Most countries tend to depend on such committees to perform legislative duties. Bangladesh for instance, adopts the parliamentary system of government. The parliament wields all legislative authority. Bangladesh’s parliamentary system had been replaced with single party presidential system due to political differences between parties and government party, which exercised immense power and failed to recognize the formal opposition party in parliament. However, the military took over and abolished th e one-party presidential system in 1975. Bangladesh had been under civil-military regime dominated by the military for 17 years. Parliament policies adopted during this period served the interest of the regime. However, the parliamentary system of governance was revived in 1991 after civil unrest erupted (Mahiuddin 2009). Mahiuddin (2009) observed that the Bangladesh parliamentary committees tended to participate more in supervising activities of government rather than appraising policy matters. Political parties tend to influence the functioning of the parliamentary committees within the context of conflicting politics. This implies that the parliamentary committees tend to be dysfunctional when there is lack of collaboration between various parties involved. Notwithstanding such limitations, the parliamentary committees tend to nurture training environment for legislators to enhance their parliamentary norms and knowledge of regulations. Bangladesh’s parliament had been uni cameral since the promulgation of constitution in 1972, which entrusted all legislative power to Jatiya Sansad or one-chambered parliament. The president was the chief of nominal executive while the prime minister wielded real executive power. This system is similar to the cabinet government of UK. The discretion of prime minister and cabinet towards the legislature was mutual. Parliamentary committees were adopted from the British. The standing and select committees

Virtues of Saint Monica and Rebekah Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Virtues of Saint Monica and Rebekah - Essay Example Saint Monica of Hippo is a Christian saint and the mother of Saint Augustine (Bohol Philippines Travel Guide). Saint Monica was a Berber descent, the indigenous people of North Africa, but she has never showed an attitude of an unschooled, undisciplined person. Instead, she grew to be virtuous despite the many temptations to be proud and rebellious (Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.). Saint Monica’s virtues were highlighted in her marriage. Although she was brought up a Christian but her parents married her to an older pagan, Patricius, who was also occupying an official position (Pope Hugh). The character of her husband was a true test to her faith. His temper was said to be violent and he was observed to have been of dissolute habits, making Monica's married life far from being a happy one (Pope Hugh). Patricius was also written to have given to adultery while married to Monica. Patricius was written to have been annoyed with Monica’s alms deeds and habit of prayer (Bohol Philippines Travel Guide). Saint Monica also received quite an amount of hurts from her mother in-law who seemed to dislike her (Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.). Monica was living in a society with prevalent domestic violence, but something in Monica made her different from the rest of the women and she enjoined them to follow her steps. What made Monica survive the tests of faith and why she was able to convert her husband and her children to faith in Christianity? During the difficult times that Monica was facing, she did not rebelled against God. Her situation seemed to have brought her closer to God rather than away from him. "Monica attended church daily and cultivated the virtue of patience" (Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.). Her advice to the other advised other wives, who were beaten was to hold their tongues around their husbands, rather than proudly withstand them (Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.). Her virtue was that of submission of obedience, as Saint Augustine, her son said that although domestic violence was prevalent that time, her mother was never beaten by his father because of her obedience (Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.). Specifically, she was quoted saying "If you can master your tongue, not only do you run less risk of being beaten, but perhaps you may even, one day, make your husband better" (Bohol Philippines Travel Guide). These virtues and wisdom, in addition to her sweetness and patience made her exercise a veritable apostolate am ong the wives and mother in her community. Monica bore her burdens patiently that's why even though her husband was causing her pain, their life together was relatively peaceful (Women for Faith & Family). She also continued with helping other people despite the resistance from her husband. It was because she exercised the power of prayer that she was able to withstand the temptations to be in despair and to rebel against her husband. Through much prayer, she was able to convert her husband into Christianity a year before he died. It took her 30 years to pray for her husband (Bohol Philippines Travel Guide). It was such a marvellous victory for Saint Monica. More victoriously, she was also able to win her mother-in law through her gentleness, respectfulness and patience (Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.). Aside from being patient, gentle, obedient, respectful and fervent in prayer, Monica showed persistence in asking help for her son. It was written that Monica asked help from a bishop who also used Manichaean before he became a Christian for several times although she was always rejected. In the end, the bishop consoled Monica saying, "the child of those tears shall never perish" which she took as a sign from God (Women for Faith & Family). Monica's persistence was shown more dramatically when she followed her wayward and dissolute son

Fast Food Nation Essay Example for Free

Fast Food Nation Essay One thing that most people don’t seem to understand about fast food restaurants is the harmful and unethical practice that comes with an order of a double cheeseburger with a side order of medium fries and a drink. Eric Schlosser, the author of â€Å"Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal,† had made several negative interpretation about the functionality of fast food corporation. Such interpretation can be in relations of what a typical Marxist would complain about, such as the fact that fast food corporation tends to do whatever means possible to reach the end of making a substantial amount of profit. In â€Å"Fast Food Nations: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal,† Schlosser targeted on the unethical practices of producing profit which includes the fabrication of sediment phrases, the systematic of mass production, and the management of poor quality with emphasis of large quantity. Some of the claims that Schlosser made can be viewed similarly to the aspects of Karl Marx and his believers, the Marxists. Many Marxists can strongly support Schlosser’s claim with a Marxist interpretation of an accusation of Capitalism. Marxist is known as a group of socialist and they believes that the government’s economy should be equally shared amongst all working classes. Without a doubt, Schlosser had exposed the fact that corporations like McDonalds, Carl’s Jr, Burger King, and so forth had made great profits from exploiting the nation’s vulnerable workers who are willing to work at any cost. These vulnerable workers can be just about anyone from teenagers to first generation immigrants. All in all, Schlosser had made a strong argument to persuade the nation from supporting profit-hungry Corporation by revealing of its unethical practices that may be a convincing factor for the nation to think twice before entering another fast food restaurant. One of the many reasons why fast food restaurants are successful is because they know how to market themselves properly with small sentimental message that appeals to the community. Sentimental message might not mean much, but when families of the community are convinced that the restaurant cares about them, they will be inclined to support their business. It’s a shame that the community does not see the irony in their sentimental messages. Example of the irony would be Mcdonalds creating the Ronald McDonald House of Charity to ask customers for additional donations, in which all proceeds of that donation will help other counties hospital. The irony of this all is that fast food is also the reason why kids are unhealthy. It is also common knowledge that fast food is the leading cause of obesity and obesity can lead to various amount of health-related problem. Another reason why fast food restaurants are successful is because fast food industries target a younger audience such as children. Their techniques on children are simple, because children love collecting toys and items that relates to cartoon figures that they are familiar with. Therefore, these corporations would purchase patents and the rights to use their cartoon figure or icon on their product, which typically sells efficiently with kids. These items are not just popular amongst the children’s age group, but â€Å"many adult collectors have also bought Teenie Beanie Baby Happy Meals, kept the dolls, and threw away the food† (Schlosser 48). These cross promotions between brands has done two things; strengthens ties between fast food industries and companies and also create an irresistible addiction between collectors and the industries. Another marketing strategy that these fast food industries utilize is to slightly modify the collectible’s colors or parts to attract customers to spend a fortunate collecting a whole set of the same kind of toys. The surface of the fast food industries may be deceiving to the general public, but it certainly is not easily deceitful to the workers who dealt with jobs within a fast food industry. While the economy continues to look like steep slide, workers are becoming more willing to work at any jobs in order to financially support their family and themselves. These very same workers that work for fast food industries, are typically teenagers or first generation immigrants because fast food industries knows that these two candidates are perfect for exploitation. Also, because they are less likely to form unions, complain about conditions, and complain about long hours. Fast food industries, like most Marxist-invaded counties, know how to exploit their workers at their fullest potential. They hire the uneducated youth with the least potential to start a union. They view workers as cheap objects that they can be hired and fired at the will of their employers. Unlike a business firm, these fast food industries rarely give raises to their employees, but instead they ould motivate their workers with encouragements or compliments. Since these workers are uneducated and don’t know their rights enough to argue, they would simply respond to their employer’s encouragement or compliment with better performances. Aside from the wages, these jobs are more than often dangerous. It is not certain whether these companies have spent enough money to properly train workers to diligently use the restaurants equipment which would prevent health inc idents and work injuries. Reasons being that these companies are profit-focused. They will try to minimize their spending as much as possible to make sure that they maximize the profit. Some of these jobs are even done by illegal immigrants or anyone desperate enough for a job at a later night shift, because it’s extremely dangerous and companies do not want to risk going into law suits or paying for higher life insurances for their workers with all means to maximize their profit. Schlosser had mentioned a story about Kenny Dobbin, as an example of a worker who was a victim of such unethical offense. Kenny was an uneducated man with no literacy skills, but was tall and strong. He was hired by Monfort, a meat-packing plant company, whom took advantage of Kenny’s kindness and abused him by placing him in dangerous working condition. After sixteen years of pure dedication, Kenny was fired because of his severe injuries from work, because the company does not want to pay for a higher insurance coverage for him. Kenny was â€Å"once strong and powerfully built, he now walks with difficulty, tires easily, and feels useless as though his life were over. He is forty-six years old† (Schlosser 190). Kenny, however, is still considered to be one of the fortunate one because he is able to get his story out unlike many other victims who weren’t able to get their stories out because they are still working with the injuries that they have attained from work. Some of the reasons that explain why they don’t complain about their injuries are because they don’t want to be fired and stress the difficulties of finding another job. These are just some of the examples of the inhumanely acts that fast food industries had commit to their workers. Workers might understand the cruelty that lies within their job, but they might not know what kind of quality the management has selected for the product that they are working with. Aside from managing workers and their wages, fast food industries also manages their food supplies to ensure the greatest amount of profit. By doing so, managements of fast food industries would choose the cheapest quality of meat that’s barely edible, refrozen fries that have been made with preservatives, and also wheat from a wheat field that have been sprayed with pesticides on a regular basis. Many fast food critics, including Schlosser, argued that fast food industries are more concern about the superficial image and the smell of the product rather than the natural healthy content of the product. Schlosser had mentioned that the â€Å"Food and Drug Administration does not require flavor companies to disclose the ingredients of their addictive, so long as all the chemicals are considered by the agency to be generally regarded as safe,† which means that the government had betrayed the consumers and had gave fast food industries the additional power to make substantial amount of profit. Most fast food restaurant took advantage of the governments’ lack of responsibility and would spend as little as possible on meat. This course of action might be good for business, but it is absolutely terrible for the consumers who invest their health in these fast food products. In the early years of fast food industries, many fast food restaurants have been criticized for their contaminated burgers because of the hospitalized and illness trend that consumers are recognizing prior to eating their burgers. The fast food industries did not know how to react to such immense pressure, so they attempt to shift the blame to the farmers. Eventually the government realized the decline of fast food industries and initiated the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to run a federal inspection test for all the meat packaging industries of the fast food industries. This might have been a good sign of improvement for the government, until the government decided to be secretive about their findings and had agreed with fast food industries to not reveal the details about the company’s distributed meat. Today, Fast food industries is still one of the largest marketing industries across nation, but let’s not forget about the labor policies, marketing strategies, and agricultural techniques that comes within their products. Schlosser had made enough strong argument about the business tactics that are responsible for the success of fast food industries. Such tactics that targets children and families with collectibles and sentimental values, hiring workers that are more willing to work with minimum wages, and also managing a horrible quality of food supplies. These factors might be great for the industries because they prospering a substantial amount of profit, but it are unhealthy for the consumers across the nation. Hopefully in the near future, United State’s Department of Agriculture would interfere with regulations that would prevent fast food industries from exploiting the community of its self-motivated individuals. Schlosser also believed that the government should create a federal agency that promotes â€Å"more safety laws that could also reduce the number of slaughterhouse workers who get hurt† (Schlosser 264). With the worker’s safety conditions controlled, it would also be the nation’s best interest to end obesity, by controlling the establishment of fast food restaurants allowed per community and to open up healthier restaurants. Now on a more practical basis, students and the community should raise awareness of the unethical practices of fast food industries, and promote healthier eating habits within their community. With this practical practice, fast food industries will be prone to being eliminated, and the community will live a longer and healthier life.

Ajuga Orientalis L Anatomy Studies

Ajuga Orientalis L Anatomy Studies The anatomical studies of medicinal taxon Ajuga orientalis L. (Lamiaceae) from Turkey Abstract. Ajuga orientalis[a1], with a wide distribution area in Turkey, is traditionally used medicine in the treatment of some skin diseases in Anatolia. The aim of this study is to determine the anatomical characteristics of the root[a2], leaf, petiole, calyx and corolla of medicinal taxon [a3]A. orientalis in cross sections. As a result of the study, it was found that the pith rays of root are composed 3-4 rowed cells and stem was quadrangular[a4]. There were glandular and non-glandular hairs on the surface layers on stem, leaves, petiole, calyx and corolla. Starch particles were also identified[a5] in the cortex cells of stem. The stomata were diastic[a6] and the leaf was bifacial. There were one big vascular bundle in the center and 4-5 small vascular bundles on each corner of the petiole. It was also determined that adaxial epidermis cell shapes of corolla are papillose type. Key words: Ajuga orientalis, anatomy, medicinal plant, Turkey INTRODUCTION The Lamiaceae is a large family showing natural distribution. Most of species belonging to this family are shrubby and herbaceus, and trees are extremely rare (Heywood, 1978). The family with its more than 250 genera and approximately 7000 species, has a cosmopolitan distribution (Thorne, 1992). According to BaÃ…Å ¸er (1993), Turkey is accepted as a gene center for this family. Many species of this family are aromatic and are often used as herb spices, folk medicines and fragrances (Werker et al., 1985). With their pleasant fragrance, many species of Lamiaceae have been used as herbal teas in Turkey. Many of species are used as raw material in the cosmetic industry. Some species are traditionally used as medicinal plants (Baytop, 1984). It was reported that some Ajuga L. and Salvia L. species are cultivated as ornamental plants (Baytop, 1984; Ãâ€"zdemir and Ã…Å ¾enel, 2001; Akà §in et al., 2006). In addition to this, Lamiaceae has great importance due to its economical valu e and its variety of species. The genus Ajuga L. belongs to Lamiaceae family. Ajuga L. is represented in Turkey by 13 species and 22 taxa, six species and one subspecies being endemic (Davis et al., 1982-1988). Ajuga species are used in folk medicine in different parts of the world for the treatment of rheumatism, gout, asthma, diabetes, malaria, ulcers and diarrhea and have antibacterial, antitumor, antifeedant, and vulnerary properties (Chen et al., 1996; Ben Jannet et al., 2000). Baytop (1999) reported that some Ajuga species generally known as â€Å"mayasÄ ±l otu† in Turkey have been widely used for their aromatic, diuretic, antipyretic, tonic, diaphoretic, astringent, bitter and homeopathic properties in the Turkish folk medicine. Ajuga orientalis L. one of the species of Ajuga genus is used against some skin diseases by hug on the skin in Anatolia (Koyuncu et al., 2010). Although many species of Lamiaceae family are investigated anatomically (ÇobanoÄÅ ¸lu, 1988; Uysal et al., 1991; Ãâ€"zdemir and Altan, 2005; AktaÃ…Å ¸ et al., 2009) there is no anatomical study of A. orientalis L. in literature. Due to its medicinal importance mentioned above in this study, the purpose of this study is to determine the anatomical characteristics of A. orientalis L. MATERIALS AND MEDHODS In the present study, the plant specimens of A. orientalis were collected during the flowering period and natural populations in A5 Amasya (in the vicinity of Direkli village, open areas, at 1800 m, June 2012, Ä °Ãƒâ€"ztà ¼rk ÇalÄ ± 461) which is a city in the Black Sea region of Turkey. Its taxonomical description was carried out according to Davis (1982). Anatomical investigations were performed using an average of fresh specimens kept in 70% alcohol. Cross sections of root, stem, laeve, petiole, calyx and corolla were taken from 30 specimens of A. orientalis and 50 measurements were conducted for each parameter. Transverse sections were made by hand using commercial razor blades and stained with Sartur reactive (ÇelebioÄÅ ¸lu and Baytop, 1949). Measurements in the sections were performed under a Leica ICC50 HD binocular light microscope by using a Leica Digital Camera and objectives used were x10 and x40. Photographs were taken with a Leica ICC50 HD binocular light microscope and a Leica Digital Camera. RESULTS In cross-sections taken from the root, stem, leaf, petiole, calyx and corolla of A. orientalis , the following significant properties were observed below. In the transverse section of the root, there was a periderm which was the outermost layer of the root of A. orientalis (Figure 1). The periderm had 8-9 layers. The dimensions of periderm cells were 15 – 60 X 15 – 57.5  µm (Table 1). Beneath the periderm, there was the multi-layered cortex, composed of ovaidal and parancyhmatic cells. The cortex was 9-10 layers. The cambium, composed of 3-4 layered, was located between the xylem and the phloem. Beneath the cambium, there were xylem tissue (7.5 – 15 X 7.5 – 20  µm) composed of regular trachea and tracheid cells. Xylem cells were also present in the center, so the pith is not seen in the center. There were 3-4 layered primary pith rays between the secondary xylem cells. A. orientalis, as a typical characteristic of the Lamiaceae, had a 4-angle stem. Its epidermis usually had one layer composed of ovoidal cells (12.5 – 42.5 X 17.5 – 50  µm). The upper surface was covered with a cuticle (1.25 – 2.5  µm). There were glandular and non-glandular hairs on the epidermis (Figure 2). Transverse section of the stem revealed 9-10 layered collenchyma placed on the corners. The cortex was composed of 6-7 layered paranchymatous cell. The dimensions of paranchymatous cells were 27.5 – 75 X 15 – 55  µm (Table 1). Starch particles were also observed in the paranchymatous cells of stem (Figure 3). There were 2-3 layers of sclerenchyma in the outer side of phloem. Right beneath the phloem, there was a 1-2 rowed cambium layer. The xylem tissue existing beneath the cambium was composed of regular trachea and tracheid cells. The vascular bundles were bigger on the corner than other parts of stem. Between the corners there were als o numerous small bundles in the A. orientalis stem. The vascular bundles were collateral (Figure 2). The pith was wide and consist of flat cells with intercellular spaces. There was a cavity in the centre of the pith. In the leaves, the epidermis was single layered on upper and lower surface. There were glandular and non-glandular hairs on epidermis. The cuticle was 2.5 – 5  µm thick. Just beneath the upper epidermis cells, there were 2-3 rowed palisade parenchyma cells (Figure 5). The dimensions of the palisade parenchyma cells were 12.5 – 25 X 25 – 50  µm (Table 1). The 2-3 rowed spongy parenchyma existed beneath the palisade. The spongy parenchyma covered less space than does the palisade parenchyma. The collateral vascular bundle was located in the midrib region (Figure 5). There were sclerenchyma cells in the outer side of phloem. All vascular bundles in the leaves were surrounded by bundle sheet cells. The stoma was diastic and the leaf was bifacial (Figure 4 and Figure 5). The stoma presented on upper and lower surfaces of the leaf (Figure 4). Both adaxial and abaxial epidermis cells were single layered in the petiole (Figure 6). The dimensions of the adaxial epidermis cell were 15 – 45 X 17.5 – 27.5  µm while those of the abaxial epidermis one were12.5 – 27.5 X 15 – 17.5  µm (Table 1). There were a lot of glandular and non-glandular hairs on epidermal cells which were ovoidal-rectangular shapes. Parenchymatic cortex cells were 10-11 layered. There was one big vascular bundle in the center and 4-5 small vascular bundles at each corners of petiole. The vascular bundles were surrounded by sclerenchymatic cells (Figure 6). There were parenchmatic bundle sheets on the all vascular bundles. The type of vascular bundle was collateral (Figure 6). There were 2-3 layered collenchyma in the area between the corners. In the calyx, the adaxial epidermis cells were smaller than abaxial epidermis cells. The dimensions of adaxial cuticle were 1.25 – 2.5  µm whereas the those of the abaxial cuticle is 2.5 – 3.75  µm (Table 1). Parenchymatic cells were flat ovoidal. There were glandular and non-glandular hairs on the epidermis (Figure 7a). In the cross-section of corolla, cuticle was present on both abaxial and adaxial epidermis cells covered by glandular and non-glandular hairs. The shapes of adaxial epidermis cells were papillose type (Figure 8). Beneath the adaxial epidermis, there were the parenchyma cells with intercellular spaces (Figure 7b). There was a vascular bundle in the midrib. DISCUSSION The present study provided useful information on the anatomy of A. orientalis. Few studies on the species A. orientalis had been found in literature (Sajjadi and Ghannadi, 2004; Koyuncu et al., 2010). But, the measurements and observation of anatomical characters belonging to the medicinal taxon A. orientalis were reported for the first time in the present paper. Metcalfe and Chalk (1972) determined some imported anatomical information about root anatomy of Lamiaceae family. They stated that the pith rays of roots of the family are 2-12 or more rowed cells. It was found that the pith rays of A. orientalis were composed 3-4 rowed cells. These findings were consistent with those of Metcalfe and Chalk (1972) and those of some studied species of Lamiaceae (Baran and Ãâ€"zdemir, 2006; Ãâ€"zkan and Soy, 2007; Baran and Ãâ€"zdemir, 2009). Metcalfe and Chalk (1972) also stated that the members of Lamiaceae family have quadrangular with well-defined collenchyma in the four angles and scleranchymatous tissue surrounds the phloem groups of vascular bundles. In the transverse section of A. orientalis, the stem of this species was quadrangular with well-defined collenchyma in the four angles. It was also determined that there were 2-3 layers of sclerenchyma in the outer side of phloem in this study. Quadrangular stem with well-defined collenchyma in th e four angles and scleranchymatous tissue surrounds the phloem groups of vascular bundles were observed in other members of Lamiaceae family (Metcalfe and Chalk, 1972; Kandemir, 2003; Baran and Ãâ€"zdemir, 2006; Kahraman et al., 2010). The vascular cambium located between the phloem and the xylem was 1-2 rowed layer in the stem of A. orientalis. The vascular cambium was seen in the cross-sections of other members of Lamiaceae family (Dinà § and Ãâ€"ztà ¼rk, 2008; Baran and Ãâ€"zdemir, 2009). There were big vascular bundles on the corners of A. orientalis stem whereas a lot of small bundles between the corners were observed in the present study. There were also starch particles in the paranchymatous cortex cells of stem. The leaf of A. orientalis had 2-3 layered palisade parenchyma and 2-3 layered spongy parenchyma cells. Baran and Ãâ€"zdemir (2009) also stated that Lamium lycium which is the member of Lamiaceae family has 2-3 layered palisade parenchyma and 2-3 layered spongy parenchyma cells as well. These results were parallel to our results mentioned above. On the other hand, the stoma type of A. orientalis was diasitic and the leaf was bifacial. According to Metcalfe and Chalk (1972), diasitic stoma type was most common in Lamiaceae family. Diasitic stoma and bifacial mesophyll type were also observed on the leaf of Ajuga chamaepitys and Ajuga reptans (Akà §in et al., 2006). The stomata were observed on both upper and lower surfaces of the leaf. Metcalfe and Chalk (1972) stated that the structure of the vascular bundles in the petiole of the species in the Lamiaceae could be used as a diagnostic character. The structure of petiole shows differences between genera and species. In addition to this, useful petiole anatomical characters are determined in designated taxonomical structures of some species (Shaheen, 2007; Eric et al., 2007). In the petiole of A. orientalis, there was one big vascular bundle in the center and 4-5 small vascular bundles at e ach corner of the petiole. Akà §in et al. (2011) found that Ajuga reptans has a total of nine vascular bundles: one big bundle in the middle and 4 vascular bundles at each corner. The vascular bundles of leaf were surrounded by sclerenchymatic cells. Collenchyma in the petiole is 2-3 layered at the each corners. In the cross-section of calyx and corolla, both adaxial and abaxial epidermis cells were covered with cuticle. In addition to this, there were a vascular bundle in the midrib of calyx and corolla. The adaxial epidermis cells of corolla were papillose type. The most distinguishing characteristics of the species in the anatomical structure were the presence of glandular hairs on the surface layers on stem, leaves, petiole, calyx and corolla. Like other other members of the Lamiaceae, A. orientalis had both glandular as well as non-glandular trichomes. Glandular trichomes were mainly observed on calyx and corolla, but non-glandular ones were found on the stem, leaf surface and petiole. According to Metcalfe and Chalk (1972), having glandular and non-glandular trichomes are important anatomical characters. Glandular trichomes significant taxonomic character and act imported role for pollination in the Lamiaceae family (Navarro and El Oualidi, 2000). As a result, anatomical characters of medicinal taxon A. orientalis were studied for the first time in this paper. According to the results mentioned above, the anatomical features of root, stem, leaf, petiole, calyx and corolla provided useful characteristics for distinguishing species in Ajug a genus. REFERENCES Akà §in OE, Ã…Å ¾enel G, Akà §in Y (2006). The morphological and anatomical properties of Ajuga reptans L., and Ajuga chamaepitys (L.) Schreber subsp. chia (Schreber) Arcangel. var. chia (Lamiaceae) taxa. Pak. J. of Biol. Sci. 9(2): 289-293. Akà §in Ãâ€"E, Ãâ€"zyurt MS, Ã…Å ¾enel G (2011). Petiole anatomy of some Lamiaceae taxa.Pak. J. Bot. 43(3): 1437-1443. AktaÃ…Å ¸ K, Ãâ€"zdemir C, Ãâ€"zkan M, Akyol Y, Baran P (2009). Morphological and anatomical characteristics of Salvia tchihatcheffii endemic to Turkey. Afr. J. Biotechnol. 8(18): 4519-4528. Baran P, Ãâ€"zdemir C (2006). The morphological and anatomical characters of Salvia napifolia Jacq., in Turkey. Bangladesh J. Bot. 35(1): 77-84. Baran P, Ãâ€"zdemir C (2009). The morphological and anatomical properties of Lamium lycium (Lamiaceae), endemic to Turkey. Nord J Bot. 27: 388-396. BaÃ…Å ¸er KHC (1993). Essential oils of Anatolian Lamiaceae: A profile. Acta Hortic. 333: 217-238. Baytop T (1984). Tà ¼rkiye’de bitkiler ile tedavi. Ä °st. ÃÅ"niv. Yay. No: 3255, Istanbul. Baytop T (1999). Therapy with medicinal plants in Turkey, Past and Present. (2nd ed.) Nobel TÄ ±p Press. Ä °stanbul, Turkey. Ben Jannet H, Harzallah-Skhiri F, Mighri Z, Simmonds MSJ, Blaney WM (2000). Responses of Spo- doptera littoralis larvae to Tunisian plant extracts and to neo-clerodane diterpenoids isolated from Ajuga pseudoiva leaves. Fitoterapia. 71: 105-112. Chen H, Tan RX, Liu ZL, Zhang Y, Yang L (1996). Antibacterial neoclerodane diterpenoids from Ajuga lupulina. J. Nat. Prod. 59(7) 668-670. ÇelebioÄÅ ¸lu S, Baytop T (1949). A new reagent for microscopical investigation of plant, Publication of the Institute of Pharmacognosy, No. 10, 19: 3001, Ä °stanbul. ÇobanoÄÅ ¸lu D (1988). The morphological and cytological properties of Salvia palaestina Bentham (Lamiaceae). Turk. J. Bot. 12: 215-223. Davis PH (1982). Flora of Turkey and the Aegean Islands. Vol. 7. Edinburgh Univ. Press. Edinburg. Davis PH (1982-1988). Flora of Turkey and the east aegean islands, Vol 7, 10, Edinburg University Press. Dinà § M, Ãâ€"ztà ¼rk M (2008). Comparative morphological, anatomical and palynological studies on the genus Stachys L. sect. Ambleia Bentam (Lamiaceae) species in Turkey. Turk. J. Bot. 32: 113–121. Eric TJ, Michael VA, Linda WE (2007). The importance of petiole structure on inhabitability by ants in Piper sect. Macrostachys (Piperaceae). Bot. J. Linn. Soc. 153(2): 181-191. Heywood VH (1978). Flowering Plants of the World. Oxford, Oxford University Press. Kahraman A, Celep F, DoÄÅ ¸an M (2010). Anatomy, trichome morphology and palynology of Salvia chrysophylla Stapf (Lamiaceae). S. Afr. J. Bot. 76:187–195. Kandemir N (2003). The morphological, anatomical and karyological properties of endemic Salvia hypargeia Fich. mey. (Lamiaceae) in Turkey. Pak. J. Bot. 35: 219-236. Koyuncu O, YaylacÄ ± Ãâ€"K, Ãâ€"ztà ¼rk D (2010). Risk categories and ethnobotanical features of the Lamiaceae taxa growing naturally in Osmaneli (Bilecik/Turkey) and environs. Biodivers Conserv. 3(3): 31-45. Ãâ€"zdemir C, Ã…Å ¾enel G (2001). The morphological, anatomical and karyological properties of Salvia forskahlei L. (Lamiaceae) in Turkey. J Econ. Taxon. Bot. 19: 297-313. Ãâ€"zdemir C, Altan Y (2005). Morphological and anatomical investigations on endemic Scutellaria orientalis L. subsp. bicolor (Hochst) Edmund and subsp. santolinoides (Hausskn ex Bornm). Pak. J. Bot. 37(2): 213-226. Ãâ€"zkan M, Soy E (2007). Morphology, anatomy, hair and karyotype structure of Salvia blecharoclaena Hedge and Hub.-Mor. (Lamiaceae), endemic to Turkey. Pak. J. Biol. Sci. 10: 893-898. Metcalfe CR, Chalk L (1972). Anatomy of the dicotyledons, vol. II. Oxford University Press, Oxford. Navarro T, El Oualidi J (2000). Trichome morphology in Teucrium L. (Labiatae), a taxonomic review. Anales Jard. Bot. Madrid. 57:277–297. Sajjadi SE, Ghannadi A (2004). Volatile oil composition of the aerial parts of Ajuga orientalis L. from Iran. Z. Naturforsch. C. 59: 166-168. Shaheen AM (2007). Characteristics of the stem-leaf transitional zone in some species of Caesalpinioideae (Legumuninosae). Turk. J. Bot. 31: 297-310. Thorne RF (1992). Classification and geography of the flowering plants. Bot. Rev. 58: 225-348. Uysal Ä °, Ãâ€"ztà ¼rk M, Pirdal M (1991). Morphology, Anatomy and Ecology of Endemic Species of Sideritis trojana Bornm. Turk. J. Bot. 15: 371-379. Werker E, Ravid U, Putievsky E (1985). Structure of glandular hairs and identification of the main components of their secreted material in some species of the Labiatae. Israel J. Bot. 34: 31-45. 1 [a1]Should add faimly of this plant which is â€Å"Lamiaceae† [a2]Should add stem to be root, stem [a3]Remove â€Å"medicinal taxon† [a4]Should mention pith shape in the stem [a5]Better to be other world†detected† [a6]Should be â€Å"diastatic†

baseball history :: essays research papers

A Brief History of Baseball: Part I: Origins of the Game Unlike professional basketball and football, interest in baseball has not been sweeping the globe . Declining participation at the amateur level and protracted labor problems at the professional level have thrust "America's Pastime" into an era of uncertainty. Despite this current adversity, baseball will always occupy an important place in American culture. This column starts a three part look at the history of baseball. Most cultures have some sort of stick and ball game, cricket being the most well-known. While the exact origins of baseball are unknown, most historians agree that it is based on the English game of rounders. It began to become quote popular in this country in the early 19th century, and many sources report the growing popularity of a game called "townball", "base", or "baseball". Throughout the early part of that century, small towns formed teams, and baseball clubs were formed in larger cities. In 1845, Alexander Cartwright wanted to formalize a list of rules by which all team could play. Much of that original code is still in place today. Although popular legend says that the game was invented by Abner Doubleday, baseball's true father was Cartwright. The first recorded baseball contest took place a year later, in 1846. Cartwright's Knickerbockers lost to the New York Baseball Club in a game at the Elysian Fields, in Hoboken, New Jersey. These amateur games became more frequent and more popular. In 1857, a convention of amateur teams was called to discuss rules and other issues. Twenty five teams from the northeast sent delegates. The following year, they formed the National Association of Base Ball Players, the first organized baseball league. In its first year of operation, the league supported itself by occasionally charging fans for admission. The future looked very bright. The early 1860s, however were a time of great turmoil in the United States. In those years of the Civil War, the number of baseball clubs dropped dramatically. But interest in baseball was carried to other parts of the country by Union soldiers, and when the war ended there were more people playing baseball than ever before. The league’s annual convention in 1868 drew delegates from over 100 clubs. As the league grew, so did the expenses of playing. Charging admission to games started to become more common, and teams often had to seek out donations or sponsors to make trips.

Eskimo Pie

Eskimo Pie Case Part 1 â€Å"As an advisor to Reynolds, would you recommend the sale to Nestle or the proposed IPO? † Subpoints: 1. The managers of Eskimo Pie wanted to find an alternative to Nestle’s acquisition offer for one main reason: Eskimo pie would lose its independence. If Nestle went through with the acquisition, Eskimo would not continue its tradition of being a stand-alone company in Richmond with this meaning that its headquarters and management staff would probably be replaced too.Fundamentally, Eskimo was reluctant to being acquired by Nestle because it felt it would be an aggressive takeover of the company. It would ruin a 70-year long business to take advantage of its tax conditions and it would probably transform the business similar to a traditional integrated manufacturing and marketing approach. 2. David Clark knew that Goldman Sachs had a long-standing relationship with both Reynolds and Nestle. This meant that GS had a conflict of interest in this acquisition.The solution that would best satisfy GS’s interests would be to sell Eskimo to Nestle but this might not be the best solution for Eskimo. So David Clark is dealing with Wheat First Securities instead of Goldman Sachs because he wanted to find an alternative to Nestle’s offer. Since Wheat First Securities had no long-standing relationship with neither Reynolds nor Nestle, it had no conflict of interest in this acquisition. It could see with more objectiveness which acquisition is the best for Eskimo.Furthermore David had personal interest in dealing with WFS because his own position could be put at risk by a Nestle acquisition. 3. IPO alternative: Bulls| Bears| * Good IPO market conditions, in terms of number of deals and value| * No exploitation of possible synergies with competitors, confirmed by Nestle as the major bidder| * Updated forecasts containing results (Sales, Net Income, Capex) better than expected| * Timing – an IPO offer would take a l onger time than a private sale| * Proceeds from the sale at least equal to Nestle’s offer in the worst hypothesis ($14 share rice)| * Uncertainty – related to price and future market conditions| * Less complications- no terms, provisions, negotiations, or compromises| * Lack of expertise of Wheat First Securities| * Social Benefits – saving a local company and jobs| | * Reynold would be able to get liquidity| | Part 2 1. Considering the DFCF model with the projections of Wheat First and growth of FCF of 5%, the equity value of the firm is $47. 286 million. Thus the offer from Nestle of $61 million is appealing for Reynolds, aiming to sell the company.Also the proceeds from the IPO proposed by the management and Wheat First Securities are able to adequately compensate Reynolds. Assuming a price range within $14 – $16, the net proceeds for Reynolds would be $51. 652 and $57. 230 respectively, still higher than the considered equity value. As a matter of fac t the private sale to Nestle is still the most convenient to Reynolds. 2. To value Eskimo Pie using multiples method we should decide whether to use the transaction multiple, available from the Drumstick deal, or business and market based multiples. The implied value on sales from Drumstick transaction can be used to assess the value of the company only if the two companies and deals are significantly comparable. In this case accurate information are not available and the peculiar business model of Eskimo Pie, based on licensing, makes this method not highly reliable. * Multiples based on business and market data imply the use of realized or projected values. The management of Eskimo Pie forecasts higher sales in the future years, thus using realized data to calculate the value of the company could lead to mispricing.Therefore the information of 1991 is used to implement the method. * Looking at comparable companies, two firms are operating in the same business, Empire of Carolina, Inc. and Steve's Homemade Ice Cream. Since multiples based on operating measures such as EBIT or EBITDA depend less on firm leverage and cash than those based on Earnings and we have relevant information available from those two companies, multiples like EV/EBITDA or Firm Value/EBIT seems to be most accurate. Considering the calculations in Exhibit 7 based on the Firm Value/EBIT multiple, Reynolds should sell Eskimo Pie for an amount not less than $56. 68 million. The offer from Nestle is consistent with this valuation of the company, whilst the proceeds from the IPO are sufficient to adequately compensate Reynolds only if the share price is higher than $15. 66. Notwithstanding, if we take into account the implied price using the P/E multiple or transaction multiple, the threshold to sell the company is even higher ($82. 891 and $73. 200 respectively). Thus, neither the IPO option nor the Nestle offer are appealing to Reynolds. 3. The theory says that multiples only work if the comp arison group is sufficiently comparable in all other respects.In order to know if we could use other companies’ multiples or the average of them we must see if they are sufficiently comparable to Eskimo, in other words we must see if the value drivers of the firms are approximately the same. The eligible companies in terms of business model and structure are Empire of Carolina, Inc. and Steve’s Homemade because they both market ice cream and license their formula. All the other companies having a different business model and structure will not be taken into consideration as comparable companies.As a first comparable driver we will use the operating profit margin. Eskimo has a 6,83% operating profit margin calculated on data of 1990 (exhibit 1). Carolina and Steve instead have respectively 15,38% and 11,11% operating profit margins. This tells us that†¦ The tax rate is the same for all companies therefore it is not a relevant driver in making a choice on which comp arable company to use. Since we don’t have the cost of capital and the cost of debt, we will compare the risk class and leverage among the considered companies.We can see that Carolina and Steve have very different risk classes, one is a C and the other is a BBB, Eskimo on the other hand is a BBB because to calculate the WACC we used a cost of debt correspondent to long-term bond in the BBB risk class. So this means that†¦ The leverage of the three companies are 0,07 (Eskimo), 0,08 (Steve) and 1,747 (Carolina). Carolina has a very high leverage because its debt is more than 1,5 times its equity, instead the other two have a debt which is inferior to their equity.So even if the two companies have similar business models, through a deeper analysis we found that Eskimo is effectively similar to Steve but very different respect to Carolina. Steve has a closer operating margin to Eskimo’s than Carolina. It also is in the same risk class, and its leverage is alligned wi th Eskimo’s. Carolina on the other hand has more than double of Eskimo’s operating margin. Its in a riskier class and its leverage is much higher than Eskimo’s. Therefore it was correct to use Steve’s Homemade Ice Cream as a comparable company.The only case in which we would use an average, instead, would be if the two companies were both very similar to Eskimo. 4. The fact that DFCF approach gives a lower value for the company than multiples-based approaches depends on market drivers. In particular, the case can be that the DFCF model implies a WACC that does not reflect the cost of capital and implied risk perceived by the market. As a matter of fact the market overvalues future growth opportunities, leading to high multiples on EBIT and Earnings.