The Role of Federalism in Education Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

The Role of Federalism in Education - Essay Example Civil rights leaders, such as Evers and King, publicized the unfair treatment of African Americans and other people of color, and the spotlight turned on education reform (Allen, 1996, p. 162). Since 1965 many further efforts have been made to update and improve the education system, but it's similar to plugging up leaks in a dam--eventually, the dam will fall apart through lack of structure and foundation. The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, signed into law by George W. Bush, is the present administration's effort to rebuild the dam before it's too late, but will politics and business interests create invisible cracks during implementation Is this Act the ultimate answer and does it take into consideration the global issues that presently exist in the 21st century As America continues to evolve as a nation, the influence of the Internet on communication between countries makes it clear that education must include multicultural education, not specifically from the viewpoint of Americans with no knowledge of other cultures, but with input from those who can share their native language and their way of life with others. We live in a country of immigrants, but somewhere along the line we chose to establish a nation based on white, Anglo-Saxon, protestant tenets, ignoring the rich mix of cultures that make us who we are. According to Sonia Nieto, "Multicultural education cannot be understood in a vacuum but rather must be seen in its personal, social, historical, and political context" (1996, p. 1). Addressing Education Reform During the 1950s in the United States, the family unit seemed solid and pediatrician Dr. Benjamin Spock gave mothers credit for knowing instinctively how to raise their children. This was in contrast to behaviorist John Watson's method of rigid discipline, and Spock's book The Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care (1946) was so popular it led to gradual erosion of the rules of behavior. In the meantime, a 1954 Supreme Court ruling that public schools must be integrated was virtually ignored until 1957 when nine black students were enrolled at a previously all-white school in Little Rock, Arkansas. This was the beginning of the public's introduction to cultural differences, and it was compounded by what was known as the "Red Threat," or communism. When the Soviet Union launched Sputnik first, it was decided that American children needed a better educational foundation, especially in math and science. This created what was called at the time an "informational flood" with children a nd their reading becoming the focus of big business. With this increased production, "children's books became less a branch of literature and more a gainful product" (Allen, p. 132). The increasing focus on children's education made its shortcomings more evident, and it was clearly necessary to address segregation and unequal educational opportunity due to poverty. The problems inherent in the education system as it existed in the 1960s called for drastic measures. Francis Keppel, dean of Harvard Graduate School of Education, was appointed U.S. Commissioner of Education and crafted the ESEA of 1965 in an effort to address the issues that extended

To determine the concentration Essay Example for Free

To determine the concentration Essay To determine the concentration of unknown standard sodium hydroxide solution and the enthalpy change of neutralization between different pairs of acid-base used (Thermometric titration) Principle of method: Neutralization is the reaction between an acid and a base, which is an exothermic reaction. In this experiment, two methods are used to determine the concentration of sodium hydroxide solution and the enthalpy change of neutralization. H+(aq) + OH-(aq) H2O(l) Method 1 is to measure the temperature change of the reaction mixture when different definite ratio of acid and base are reacted. There are totally 7 ratios. For each ratio, the initial temperature of acid and base is recorded. When they are mixed, the final temperature of the mixture is recorded so that: Let Va, Vb, Ta, Tb, T be the volume of acid, volume of base, initial temperature of acid, initial temperature of base and final temperature of mixture if they are not reacted (which is actually the initial temperature of mixture before reaction) respectively. Thus, Final temperature of the mixture after reacted T = Temperature change due to reaction. Method 2 is to measure the temperature of the reaction mixture when each small portion of acid are added to a fixed amount of base solution with using titration of acid against base. For both of the method, different pairs of acid and base are used and compared. To find the concentration of sodium hydroxide solution, the volume ratio of acid to base which makes the maximum temperature change(which means the reaction is most complete) should be found out and so: (Since the basicity of both acid and base is 1) By conservation of energy, the enthalpy change of neutralization = heat change of solution The density and specific heat capacity of solution are assumed to be equal to those of water since the differences between them are negligible. Results: Method 1 Using nitric acid: (A graph is attached at page 6) Volume of HNO3(aq) (cThis result was acceptable since it was consistent and close to the actual value. The enthalpy change of neutralization using nitric acid was found to be -47. 65kJ and -51. 48kJ respectively by method 12. The enthalpy change of neutralization using ethanoic acid was found to be -48. 24kJ and -61. 11kJ respectively by method 12. The enthalpy of neutralization found out in this experiment was not reliable because the result was not consistent for method 12 and there were great errors in the experiment. The most significant evidence that shows the result was not reliable was that theoretically, the enthalpy change of neutralization between ethanoic acid and sodium hydroxide should never be higher than that between nitric acid and sodium hydroxide. This is because nitric acid is a strong acid while ethanoic acid is just a weak acid that it only slightly ionized in water. Therefore extra energy was needed to ionize the ethanoic acid molecules so that the enthalpy change of neutralization of ethanoic acid should be less negative than that of nitric acid. However the result of this experiment contradicted with the above statement, so that the results of this experiment were not reliable. The most significant error in this experiment was heat loss to surrounding. Although foam cup was already used in the experiment, the upper surface of solution also produced great heat loss to the atmosphere. Also, there may still be heat loss through the cup. This error was more significant in method 2 since a period of time was used to titrate the solution. During the time of titration, a lot of heat can be transferred to the air and thus the recorded temperature would be decreased. As a result, the calculated enthalpy change of neutralization would be lower than the actual one. To reduce this error, a Styrofoam cup instead of a polystyrene cup can be used since Styrofoam is a better insular of heat than polystyrene. Some cotton wool can be used to wrap the cup in order to further reduce the heat loss to surrounding. Also, a lid can be used to cover the upper mouth of the cup in order to reduce the heat loss to surrounding. However, the lid should allow the thermometer to stir the solution and also allow the burette to add acids into it in method 2. Obviously, the titration in method 2 must be carried out quickly in order to minimize the time for the heat to be lost from surrounding, and thus reduce the above error. The second error was the fluctuation of room temperature. In method 1, the initial temperature measured and the temperature of the solution just before reaction might be different. This was because of the change in room temperature since it would affect the temperature of solution by thermo equilibrium. In method 2, the room temperature before the titration and during the titration might be different. This would lead to an error on the measurement of temperature as the same case in method 1. To reduce this error, a more constant temperature in the laboratory can be constructed by an air-conditioner. This can reduce the error brought from the fluctuation of room temperature. In the experiment, method 1 is more suitable to determine the enthalpy change of neutralization since the temperature was measured just after the reaction in method 1 but the temperature was measured for several times in method 2 and this lead to error in the measure of temperature. However, method 2 is more suitable to determine the concentration of sodium hydroxide solution since the number of times of measuring the temperature of solution was much more than that in method 1. Then the peak of the graph can be found out more accurately. Thus the volume of acid used with the highest temperature change can be more accurate. Based on the results of this experiment, the enthalpy change of neutralization was more negative with weaker acids, having same base. However, this statement was obviously wrong since in weaker acids, some energy was used to ionize the acid molecules. Theoretically, the enthalpy change of neutralization should be more negative with stronger acids. This was not shown on the results in this experiment since the error was too large. Conclusion: The concentration of the sodium hydroxide solution was successively found out and it was acceptable, but the enthalpy of neutralization found out was not reliable since it was not consistent and it contradicted to the theoretical values. On the whole, the results was not acceptable and so the objective of this experiment was not fulfilled. Reference: http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Styrofoam http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/polystyrene.

How does Shelley present relationships between men and women? Essay

How does Shelley present relationships between men and women? Shelley present relationships between men and women in various ways but they all have an inter-linking message within them. This is that women are dependent on men in the majority of relationships. Shelley uses characters as examples of different relationships; for example Caroline and Alphonse’s relationship is a very loving one. All that Frankenstein says of his parents his good things, for example he says, â€Å"Active spirit of tenderness that animated both,† the majority of descriptions of their relationships is similar to this. Their relationship effectively creates a benchmark with which to compare all the other relationships with. None of the others is anywhere nears as perfect as theirs is described. In comparison to their relationship Walton’s relationship with his sister is significantly less passionate. Walton expresses his love for his sister occasionally, he says, â€Å"I love you very tenderly,† he is however not in touch with the emotional turmoil you would expect his sister to be going through. Emotionally Walton is naive; their relationship is long distance, and it is clearly obvious Walton has no experience in communicating his feelings. Their relationship is an unsure one. The main relationship between Victor and Elizabeth is of great contrast, especially between them. As the novel goes on it is apparent that Victor stands for evil, he is selfish, lets an innocent die and his self-piteous as well as ignorant. Elizabeth on the other hand stands for love, caring and is completely unselfish. They are two complete opposites, but they are supposedly in love. There is huge contrast between them, and their relationship is quite rocky... ...sonality. Again in the way that Shelley has presented the relationships between men and women, she has expressed her feminist opinion on how women are forced to give in to men. This is where the role of the monster comes in, it wants a female for companionship, a woman as an equal. The monster represents the relationship that feminists want; he doesn’t want to dominate a relationship, where the woman has to depend on the man. The way Shelley presents relationships seem very feministic, men are portrayed as selfish and ignorant, while women are portrayed essentially as the heroines, for example Justine. She dies with honor, while Victor is portrayed as self-centered. S well as feminist opinions being expressed, there is a general feeling that relationship will eventually fail and are often painful. Shelley uses relationships to express her opinions.

The Importance of Crime Scene Investigation

Crime scene investigation is often a challenging and difficult line of work for even the most experienced law enforcement agent. There are some crimes that are more difficult to handle spiritually and emotionally than others. Crimes against children and the elderly are often most difficult to excuse and most difficult for crime scene investigators to process psychologically (Swanson, Chamelin & Territo, 1999: 313). Such investigations often result in tremendous psychological burden with time (O'Hara, 2003: 178). Homicide in generally is often difficult to recover from emotionally, and often requires the investigator become deeply involved in the forensics model or inner workings of the mind of the criminal to help solve a case (O'Hara, 2003). This can result in increasing psychological stress with time. This paper will review a recent criminal investigation of homicide to two young children and the psychological and emotional effects the crime had on the family of the victims and the criminal investigator. In this case the researcher probes into how a crime scene investigation can result in significant emotional, spiritual and in some cases physical trauma to both the victims family and the crime scene investigator. Here the crime scene demonstrates how emotionally vulnerable crime scene investigators are, much like crime victims in many circumstances. In this particular case two children were murdered by their mother who suffered from severe PPD or post partum depression. The event occurred in the middle of the night and was not revealed until 24 hours later when the father returned from a late night work shift and morning binge. The crime was reported to authorities immediately upon discovery. In this case the two boys, twins, appeared to be suffocated by the mother while sleeping one night. The crime scene was not overly violent. The victims home appeared unkempt however, with trash piling up in the kitchen and littering other rooms of the house. The children were dressed in unclean clothing and the house looked as though it had not been cleaned or attended to in several months. Walking into the family area there was a noticeable lack of children's toys. There were multiple bottles of alcoholic substances and other paraphernalia suggesting one or both of the parents suffered from substance abuse problems. This crime had a particularly devastating effect on me, as I could imagine what it would be like if my family had suffered a similar crime, if my brothers or sisters had been murdered by a family member. Homicide is never an easy crime to cope with. In this case multiple law enforcement agents that were also present at the crime scene had a difficult time coping with the tragic loss of two unique and innocent lives. Not helping the fact were family members that were present wailing and crying out regarding the injustices of the world. Each of the family members present was blaming him or herself for the crime, having recognized the potential for disaster early on but taking no action to prevent it. The father in this case once located and grandparents appeared noticeably distraught. The grandparents were particularly upset, blaming themselves for the incident. The father seemed to waffle between disbelief, shock and terror. The father clearly suffered some sort of substance abuse problem and reportedly was at work when the murders occurred (he works a night shift). Spiritually I found myself questioning how this could happen to two innocent children. The children were not more than a year old. Both were tiny and innocent victims and for moments I considered these parents unworthy of such blessings. Emotionally I wondered what such a tragedy might do to my own family, possibly destroying my motivation for living. There is some indication that the father in this case might be placed on suicide watch, suffering psychologically from these deaths and the death of his wife (who it seems from the investigation took a lethal dose of prescription pills after suffocating the children). The individual lost his life partner but also his children. This crime is in no way justifiable and reveals just how cruel the world can sometimes be to even the most innocent of victims. Even in cases where evidence exists that the perpetrator of a crime was not of sound mind or spirit, there is little justification in cases of homicide. There are in many cases explanations for individual's behavior, as may be the case in this particular instance. The crime scene investigation here suggests that there is evidence to support the idea that the mother in this case was not psychologically fit for parenting at the time in question. There is also evidence to suggest she lacked the support necessary to cope with a difficult situation. That does not excuse her actions nor her substance abuse behavior, but does help explain how a crime like this could have happened. If I were in this particular case I would have ensured early medical intervention and increased familial support to prevent the severe depression that ensued and forced the mother to kill herself and her children. Clearly she was also suffering emotionally and physically, and did not feel she had the resources or support necessary to seek help and solve her problem without resorting to drastic measures. It is possible she suffered from some sort of psychosis. In this case other family members should have stepped in to facilitate earlier intervention and prevent this horrendous crime from occurring. Crime scene investigations are often difficult for crime scene investigators to handle emotionally and psychologically. While the job seems straightforward at first, with time crime scene investigators come to realize how difficult managing the psychological, spiritual and emotional aspects of the job are. Of particular challenge are homicide investigations. It is vital when handling such cases that the investigator separate himself from the investigation so he or she does not associate what is going on in the investigation with any personal situations or circumstances. This can exacerbate the stress experienced by a crime scene investigator. Fortunately there are a number of support mechanism in place that can help crime scene investigators cope with the devastating and trying scenes they encounter from day to day. It is important that these resources be made readily available in the cases where crime scene investigations involve violent criminal activity. While familial support is encouraging and helpful, support among peers and even counselors may be warranted to help crime scene investigators deal with the day to day. Stress management and other relaxation inducing techniques also may help alleviate some of the burden crime scene investigators face when handling difficult or violent cases.

Book and Popular Essay

1. Introduction Popular Holdings is a Singapore-based company that is listed on the Singapore Exchange. Popular is best known for its chain of Popular Bookstores under the Retail and Distribution unit. The Group currently carries out its publishing activities through subsidiaries operating in countries such as Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan and Canada. Its bookstore operations have a network of over 90 Popular Bookstores and 360 Popular managed bookstores with its core businesses in retail, distribution, publishing and e-learning. 2. History of the Company |1924 |Popular started in Singapore under the trade name of Cheng Hing Company, established by the late Mr Chou Sing Chu. It distributed | | |Chinese storybooks. | |1930 |Established World Book Company in Singapore to distribute Chinese books and later moved into the publishing business. | |1936 |Established Popular Book Company in Singapore to sell Chinese books. | |1949 |Incorporated World Publishing Company in Hong Kong to publish magazines and Chinese books for both local and Asian markets. | |1952 |Set up United Publishing House Pte Ltd in Singapore and Malaysia to publish textbooks. | |1975 |Started offering English titles in Singapore and was positioned as â€Å"The Bilingual Bookshop†. Business grew dramatically. | |1984 |Opened the first bilingual bookshop in Malaysia. | |1990 |Introduced the POPULAR Card to cultivate customer loyalty. | |1993 |Expanded the business scope by retailing music products and audio accessories under the brand name of â€Å"CD-RAMA†. | |1997 |Listed Popular Holdings Limited (â€Å"POPULAR†) on the Singapore Exchange. | |2000 |Set up joint venture, EdnoLand (HK) Limited, to provide interactive learning programmes to preschool children. This signified the start | | |of the Group’s e-learning initiatives. | |2002 |Entered the e-learning market of Mainland China | |2003 |Incorporated a wholly-owned subsidiary, Popular Digital Products (Shenzhen) Ltd in January, leaving the first footprint in Mainland | | |China’s publishing market. | |2003 |Ventured into Taiwan publishing market. | |2006 |Successfully organized the inaugural BookFest@Singapore and BookFest@Malaysia, drawing over 400,000 visitors. | |2008 |Successfully organized the inaugural BookFest@Hong Kong 2008. | |2009 |Launched â€Å"UrbanWrite†Ã¢â‚¬â€a lifestyle stationery concept store that goes beyond the basics. | |2009 |Opened a new concept bilingual bookstore { prologue } at ION Orchard. | |2010 |Celebrated the 5th anniversary of BookFest@Singapore and BookFest@Malaysia. Both BookFests managed to achieve record turnouts of over | | |half a million visitors each. | 3. Management Structure Popular Holdings has a centralized organizational structure. Mr Chou Cheng Ngok is the Executive Chairman of the Board. In view of the Group’s single leadership structure, Mr Vangatharaman Ramayah was appointed as the Independent Director to lead and coordinate the activities of non-executive directors in circumstances where it would be inappropriate for the Chairman to serve in such capacity. The Independent Directors, Mr Vangatharaman Ramayah and Mrs Lim Soon Tze ensure that there is a good balance of power and authority to enable independent exercise of objective judgement of corporate affairs. All major decisions made by the Chairman are reviewed by the Audit Committee (chaired by Mr Vangatharaman Ramayah). The Nominating Committee (chaired by Mrs Lim Soon Tze) reviews his performance periodically and the Remuneration Committee (chaired by Mr Vangatharaman Ramayah) reviews his remuneration package. Hence, the Board believes that there are adequate safeguards against an uneven concentration of power and authority in a single individual. For management purposes, the Group is organised on a worldwide basis into business units based on their products and services, and has four operating segments as follows: Retail and Distribution, Publishing and E-Learning, Property Development and Corporate. Ms Lim Lee Ngoh and Mr Poon Chi Wai Ponch are the Executive Directors who are in charge of the performance of the businesses. [pic] 4. Markets Served 4. 1 Countries Served As of 30 April 2012, Popular had 148 bookstores – 63 in Singapore, 70 in Malaysia and 15 in Hong Kong. Popular is the biggest book retailer in Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong (Chairman’s Statement, Annual Report 2012). Popular is making fast and extensive inroads into the Greater China market, especially in China and Taiwan. There have been marketing offices and subsidiaries set up in Beijing, Shenzhen, Guangzhou and Taipei. 4. 2 Customer Groups Served Due to the various branches in its core business and the variety of products offered at retail stores, Popular serves different customers of all ages, including students who constitute a large portion of their customer base. Popular’s customers range from individual consumers to corporate groups. 5. Products Offered Popular has its core businesses in retail, distribution, publishing and E-learning. As stated in the 2012 Annual Report, â€Å"though the book business is often labelled a sunset industry, retail and distribution [of books] are one of Popular’s strong core businesses†. Popular’s bookstores have products such as books (textbooks, assessment books, storybooks, reference books), CDs, DVDs, educational software, computer accessories, art materials, stationery, electronics, toys, games and gifts. 6. Recent Performance of the Company Popular Bookstore has been achieving increasing turnovers for 3 consecutive years. As seen in Fig 1. 1, Popular achieved a turnover of S$439 million in 2011 in its Retailing and Distribution sector, improving from the past results of 2010 and 2011. The increase in turnover in the Retail and Distribution segment is mainly due to 9 new outlets opening in various locations in Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong and the book voucher programme held in Malaysia, where Malaysian students were each given a book voucher worth RM$200 each as part of Malaysia’s government budget in the education sector. Also, the increased turnover is due to reduced costs – In 2010, Popular reduced costs by reducing its retail store space from15200m2 in 2009 to 13700m2 in 2010. Its Publishing and E-Learning sector is doing well as well, with its turnover increasing from S$69 million in 2011 to S$72 million in 2012. Go-Easel is one of Popular’s initiatives which led to this increase in turnover. Go-Easel features digitalised assessment books which provides instant marking and step by step solutions. It gained popularity among students and parents due to its convenient and effective way in helping students academically. [pic] Profits before tax (PBT) in the Retail & Distribution of Popular Bookstore experienced a positive growth as shown in Figure 1. 2, with PBT of S$29 million in 2012, improving from S$19. 1 and S$10. 9 million in 2011 and 2010 respectively. However, there was a drop in PBT in the Publishing & E-Learning sector, decreasing about 24. 7%, from S$9. 7 million in 2011 to S$7. 3 million in 2012. This was due to the closing of one of its magazine distribution business due to restructuring. However, because this closure is only a one-off cost, the prospects of the Publishing & E-Learning sector in Popular Bookstore still remains hopeful for future growth and greater profits. [pic] 7. Macro-Environment Analysis 7. 1 Political Forces Education policies implemented by the government can improve Popular’s sales. For example, in Malaysia, as part of the budget allocated by the government in 2012, every student in Malaysia received a one-time book voucher worth RM$200. This policy led to greater spending in bookstores by the Malaysian community. Popular was the biggest bookstore company with 70 bookstores in Malaysia, and so Popular experienced an increased turnover in 2012. However, governmental regulations may limit demand and reduce profit for Popular Bookstore. The Media Development Authority in Singapore prohibits any import of books, publication, audio materials that contains content that may be â€Å"objectionable on moral, racial or religious grounds, or deemed detrimental to Singapore’s national interest. † (MDA, 2011) Thus, Popular Bookstore is restricted in their range of books and media as it has to comply with these regulations, causing it to lose some of its competitive edge to online E-books retailers. Book readers in Singapore may be able to purchase the restricted materials from these retailers, as these retailers are based overseas and are not restricted by the Singapore law. 7. 2 Economic Forces The relatively high inflation rate in Singapore (4. 1%) and Hong Kong (4. 0%) in 2012 and the bleak global economic outlook is fortunately, not much of a stumbling block for Popular Bookstore, with it achieving positive growth in its Retail and Distribution sector. This could also be attributed to the items that Popular sells, which are mostly books (Eg. Assessment books, textbooks)and stationery. The demand for these items has a small, positive value of income-elasticity because they are necessities and normal goods for students. Hence, a decrease in incomes due to poor economic conditions results in a less than proportionate decrease in demand for Popular’s books , thus Popular has not been badly affected. 7. 3 Social Forces In today’s world, many deem education as an important tool towards a better paying job and a better life. Thus, the spending on education, which includes spending on textbooks, stationery and assessment books, is increasing. For example, in Singapore, the consumer spending on education has been increasing at a steady rate, from US$ 84. 1 million in 2008 to US$155. 4 million in 2011. (GMID,2012). This shows that Singaporeans are increasing willing to spend on education-related items, such as textbooks and assessment books, to supplement the learning. As a bookstore with a niche product market of assessment books and textbooks, Popular Bookstore is able to benefit from this trend of increased spending in education. With the relatively high inflation rates, especially in Singapore and Hong Kong, consumers are becoming more value conscious. Popular Bookstore has done well to cater to the demands of the consumers and projecting a ‘value for money’ image, by offering membership cards and promotions on their items on a regular basis. One of such promotions is the back-to-school promotion, allowing students and their parents to purchase stationery and books at discounted prices. 7. 4 Technological Forces The increasing connectivity of the Internet island wide (e. g. 4G mobile network and OpenNet in Singapore) has led to more online consumers. The size of the online shopping market is large, reaching S$1. 1 billion in 2010, and is expected to reach S$4. 4 billion in 2015. (Techinasia, 2011). This could possibly mean that customers who usually purchase from brick-and-mortar shops like Popular would now shop at online bookstores such as Amazon or Barnes & Noble. While Popular does have an online bookstore, it is not well-known or often-used. Thus, the presence of well-established international online bookstores become a substitute to Popular Bookstores. Also, the affordability of e-books can pose a threat to Popular’s sales of hardcopy books. The price of Kindle Fire, an e-book reader manufactured by Amazon, dropped to US$159, making it more affordable for consumers. Amazon uses the pricing strategy of loss leader, which involves setting the price of Kindle Fire at cost price, and making significant profit from the sale of e-books. Therefore, e-books have now become a substitute of hard-copy books, such as those sold by Popular. 7. 5 Legal Forces The introduction of the Lemon Law in Singapore in September 2012 could affect Popular Bookstores. With the lemon law, consumers can ask for an exchange or even a full refund if goods â€Å"do not meet standards of quality and performance. † (CASE, 2012). This could mean decreased earnings for Popular Bookstore if consumers keep returning to the bookstores to exchange their purchased goods. Without proper enforcement or monitoring, the Lemon Law could even be abused by consumers who repeatedly demand for an exchange or refund, leading to a loss of efficiency and profits. However, Popular is unlikely to be threatened by the Lemon Law, as it already has an exchange policy in place, where it allows its customers to exchange faulty products within 7 days of purchase. 7. 6 Impact of Macro-Environment Forces on Popular Bookstores Popular Bookstore still remains a strong name in the book industry. The fact that it has the majority of the market share in Singapore and that the company’s PBT has been steadily increasing proves that the company has been staying competitive despite the huge number of macroenvironment factors it faces. 8. Market, Industry and Competitive Analysis for Book Buyers in Singapore Our selected market is the market of book buyers in Singapore. These include customers who buy books from both physical bookstores and online bookstores. 8. 1 Market Size The market for book-buyers is that of an oligopoly, with few incumbent firms. Hardcopy book format is still a multi-million dollar industry in Singapore going strong in the face of stiff competition from online book stores. The total market size of brick-and-mortar stores is worth around $165million. In 2011, Popular Bookstores hold about 62. 5% of the total market share, with Kinokuniya (25%) and Times Bookstores (12. 5%) as Popular’s main competitors. 8. 2 Market Trends. Popular Bookstores is still experiencing a growing trend as its value sales grew from $4,106 million in 2006 to $5,107 million in 2011. This may be due to the growing affluence of the Singaporean population, resulting in higher demand for books for both leisure reading and education. However, this trend might not continue in the future. This is in light of stiff competition faced from e-books and online stores such as Amazon, Book Depository. Fortunately, Bookstores like Borders and Page One have all exited the Singapore market and thus there is less competition from these large, well-established firms with Popular Bookstores. 8. 3 Industry SWOT Analysis for Book Buyers in Singapore | |Positive Effect |Negative Effect | |Interna|Strengths |Weaknesses | |l |Popular has a widespread chain of stores throughout Singapore, |Low variety of books as compared to other bookstores such as | |Factors|especially in the heartlands. This makes it very accessible and |Kinokuniya | | |convenient for the customers. |Lack of awareness of its online bookstore | | |Wide range of textbooks and stationery with very strong monopoly power |â€Å"Limited choice† of books on its online bookstore (e.g. Twilight, | | |over assessment books and textbooks |Lord of the Rings, Animal Farm) | | | Existence of { prologue } and Epilogue ( a book cafe located in { |â€Å"Poor interface† (Survey, 2012) of online bookstore | | |prologue } ) to provide an alternative book-buying experience: ‘a novel|Absence of a proper feedback system on its online bookstore | | |brand of book retail therapy, distinctively designed to give a bespoke |Under-utilization of Facebook page resulting in inactivity and | | |multifaceted lifestyle experience’. |unresponsiveness | | |{ prologue } was awarded the Premium Service GEM Award for the Books | | | |and Stationery Category by the Singapore Retailers Association in | | | |recognition of POPULAR’s effort in delivering excellent customer | | | |service. (Chairman’s Statement, Annual Report 2012) | | |Externa|Opportunities |Threats | |l | Growing incomes of book-buyers lead to greater demand for books for  |Local brick-and-mortar competitors such as Kinokuniya are trying | |Factors|leisure and education |to improve their presence by setting up a fourth store in Jurong | | |Many of the target audience are tech-savvy but have yet to purchase |East MRT (JEM) to reach out to more customers. | | |e-book readers such as Kindle or Nook |Due to technological advancement, the Popularity and accessibility| | |Well-established firms like Borders and Page One have previously left |of online bookstores (Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository) and| | |the Singapore market, reducing the amount of competition |e-books is decreasing the demand for hardcopy books at physical | | | |stores | | 8.  4 Detailed Industry Analysis of Bookstores | | |Physical Stores |Online Stores | | |Kinokuniya |Second-hand Bookstores |Amazon/Barnes & Noble |Book Depository | |Description |Kinokuniya bookstores are located in central city |Various second-hand bookstores in Singapore |Both Amazon and Barnes & Noble are American online retail |Book Depository is a UK-based | | |locations, with its flagship store located at Ngee Ann |sell many classic and contemporary titles at |giants specialized in selling books in both hardcopy and |independent online bookstore | | |City. Kinokuniya offers a wide range of titles and also a |extremely cheap prices. |e-book formats. They are grouped discussed together in this |which sells mainly hardcopy | | |cafe within its store. |There are many second-hand bookstores in Bras|table due to their similar characteristics. |formats. | | | |Basah Complex. (Eg. Evernew Bookstore, Pro | | | | | |Saint Bookstore, Book Point, Knowledge Book | | | | | |Centre) | | | |Strengths |Offers a wide selection of titles in various languages | Extremely cheap prices will attract |They own an ecosystem of their own through their Kindle and |Provides free shipping services, | | |including English, Chinese, Japanese, French, and German |consumers looking for a good read. |Nook tablet products that allow readers to buy e-books and |which allows prices of books to | | |Successfully marketed itself as a premium bookstore in |Good for casual reading, if the reader is not|download it to their tablet reader immediately. |remain cheap | | |Singapore with majority of its stores in the city area. |looking for a particular title |Online stores result in decreased operational fixed costs such|Occasional discounts of up to 90%| | |Niche market focus on casual book readers | |as rental charges and staffing costs compared to |makes books very cheap | | | Premium membership strategy i.e. More expensive membership| |brick-and-mortar stores. Therefore, they are able to sell | | | |card ($21) offering limited discounts to entice consumers | |both e-books and hardcopy formats at a discounted rate. | | | |to purchase more titles to get back their money’s worth. | |Extremely wide collection of titles. | | | | | |It is easy to search for titles because the search process is | | | | | |automated. | | |Weaknesses |Books are priced higher than its competitors due to its |Limited range of titles, especially newer |Penetration of their respective ecosystems are not widespread |It is relatively unknown to the | | |premium branding and higher rental costs in the city |titles, consumers looking for specific books |in Asia |crowd in Singapore. | | |Limited market penetration due to its limited number of |may not be able to find what they want. |Shipping costs and waiting time negates the benefits of online| | | |stores. | |shopping as price of shipping from America is usually high. | | | | | |Asian titles are not as diverse / rich as they are | | | | | |America-based. | | 8. 5 Competitive Analysis –Using Porter’s Five Forces 8. 5. 1 Threat of New Entrants The threat of new entrants in the physical bookstore industry is relatively low because there are low barriers to entry. This is due to strong customer loyalty to established players like Popular and Kinokuniya dominating the market, high sunk costs and economies of scale setting in late. Also, the book industry is also deemed as a â€Å"sunset industry†, which is less attractive to firms as this is associated with low profitability, so firms are less likely to enter the market. However, these low barriers to entry only apply to the industry of physical bookstores. Popular still faces a different kind of competition from online bookstores, which are close competitors with physical bookstores. 8. 5. 2 Degree of Substitutes There is a high degree of substitutability. In terms of physical bookstores, book buyers in Singapore have many alternatives to turn to – such as big industry players like Kinokuniya and Times and second-hand stores at Bras Basah Complex. Kinokuniya and Times are strong competitors because they offer a greater variety of books from different countries, and have marketed themselves as premium bookstores due to their location in the city area. Second-hand bookstores at Bras Basah Complex (Eg. Evernew Bookstore, Pro Saint Bookstore, Book Point, Knowledge Book Centre) are also a threat because they offer very cheap books. Besides physical stores, online bookstores like Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Book Depository are dominating the book-buying market in Singapore. These online bookstores offer a quick and easy way to purchase books without being physically at the store, and the benefit of having purchases delivered to customers’ doorsteps. E-businesses can also offer more competitively-priced books than Popular because there is no need to pay for rental, which takes up a huge proportion of fixed cost. For example, Amazon sells a book titled â€Å"Act of Valour† at $9. 99, whereas Popular sells the same book at $17. 00. Furthermore, with an increased access to fast and free internet services such as those offered by Wireless@SG, and the availability of safe and convenient electronic payment, e-businesses are becoming closer substitutes to physical bookstores than ever before. 8. 5. 3 Bargaining Power of Buyers The bargaining powers of buyers are relatively low in terms of physical book stores. They have little access to information such as the prices of books, because physical bookstores do not openly publish their prices online, except when there are promotions. Also, most bookstores located in a certain region would sell books at similar prices, so customers who are unwilling to travel would have a low tendency to switch to other physical bookstores if the switching cost exceeds the savings gained from only slightly cheaper books. However, the increased popularity of online bookstores is likely to increase the bargaining power of buyers. Buyers become less dependent on existing channels (ie. Physical bookstores) and can now switch to purchasing books online instead. 8. 5. 4 Bargaining Power of Suppliers There is low bargaining power of suppliers. In terms of the book-buying market, Popular Bookstores’ suppliers are mainly publishing firms. Because there are many suppliers in the market that engage in publishing work, there is a low supplier to firm ratio. This means that Popular Bookstore can switch suppliers easily. Furthermore, there is low switching costs for Popular because they can easily turn to their own subsidiaries such as Novum Organum Publishing House Pte Ltd and Educational Publishing House Pte Ltd. Also, there is low supplier competition because it is hard for suppliers to vertically integrate and sell the products to buyers directly. Therefore, suppliers have a low bargaining power, which strengthens Popular’s position and authority. 8. 5. 5 Degree of Market Rivalry Amongst Existing Competitors There is a strong intensity of market rivalry amongst existing competitors like Times, Kinokuniya, and second-hand bookstores. This is because there is a lot of room for differentiation in terms of the four elements in the marketing mix. Product differentiation can come in the form of the variety of books, in terms of the subject matter and country of origin. Price differentiation can also be present as some bookstores have higher priced books due to their well-known brand name or location. Place differentiation can be in terms of the store environment and store location, while promotion differentiation can be in terms of level of advertising, frequency of discounts, customer access to publicity materials and staff service standards. Therefore, bookstores face much competition amongst themselves because there are so many ways that they can differentiate themselves in providing the optimal book-buying experience for book-buyers in Singapore. 9. Customer Analysis and Segmentation for Book Buyers in Singapore 9. 1 Customer Profile: Book Buyers in Singapore The selected market of focus for Popular is book buyers in Singapore. Potential book buyers are any literate customers in the country, from 6 years-old onwards (Stuart, 2010). This customer base is continuously growing, albeit at a slow rate due to the low fertility rate in Singapore (Wong, 2012). Majority of Singaporeans are literate (Department of Statistics Singapore, 2012) as they have basic primary education which is mandatory for all citizens (Ministry of Education Singapore, 2011). In addition, an influx of foreign talents from other countries to support Singapore’s infrastructure and economy (Yeoh & Lin, 2012) also increases the number of book buyers in Singapore. The incomes of book buyers can be inferred from the Singapore Department of Statistics. The average monthly household from work including employer CPF contributions among resident employed households in 2011 was S$9,618, while the average monthly household income from work per household member including employer’s CPF contributions among resident employed households was S$2,925. These incomes have a generally increasing trend from past years, and were the highest in 2011, reflecting the increasing affluence of book buyers. Because books are normal goods, an increasing income of customers would increase the demand for books. However, since the selected market of focus is solely referring to individuals, businesses or organizations are not included and revenues are not considered. To develop an effective marketing strategy, it is essential to understand the targeted customer base and its segments. Comprehensive profiles of a company’s target customers are often required, and this is done by expending resources to segment these target customers. Book buyers can be segmented according to demographic and psychographic factors. 9. 2 Demographic Segmentation Popular segments its market by key variables such as gender, age, education, race, nationality and the family life cycle. For the identification variable of gender, books relating to beauty and the domestic sphere such as recipe books cater more to women, while the genre of sports and cars appeal more to men. In terms of age, segmentation is characterized by one’s life cycle, as exemplified by pre-school books, children books, teenage fiction and magazines, adult fiction and self-help books, etc. The company’s philosophy of knowledge and education (Chua, 2010) has been manifested in the common sentiment that Popular’s niche is in assessment books and textbooks (Survey, 2012) and is a large portion of the customer base of book buyers. This demonstrates how the market is segmented by education, as books are tailored to the needs of students in each stage of education – primary, secondary and tertiary, and also for students in different disciplines – business, finance, management, etc. The market is also segmented by race, as there are books in different languages such as English, Chinese, Malay and Tamil. The variety of books in the Singapore & South East Asia and Asian Collections also show that the market is simultaneously segmented by nationality as well. Finally, the family life cycle is also an important variable as Popular’s books cater to the needs of different families at different parts of the cycle, providing books on sports and leisure for families without children, and books on parenting and health for families with children, etc. 9. 3 Psychographic Segmentation The identification variables of personality, lifestyle and social class also come into play for the selected market of book buyers. Based on the variety of genres provided by Popular such as fiction, classics and literature, comics and humour, astrology and new age and self-improvement, it can be seen that Popular designs its catalogue to appeal to different people with distinct personalities. Likewise, in the culturally diverse Singapore with an inherent cosmopolitan lifestyle, Popular recognizes the importance of suiting the needs of various individuals by offering a selection of books for every lifestyle, such as books on cooking or food and wine, outdoors and nature, photography, travel, etc. The different social classes have also led  to Popular’s expansion in the market, as illustrated by the novel brand of book retail therapy seen in { prologue } (Popular Holdings Limited, 2009) to cater to the higher-income class, which has an â€Å"upscale identity† that is â€Å"quite different from the family-oriented, fluorescent-lit heartlander look and feel that Popular bookstores have come to embody† (Lui, 2009). 10. Marketing Objectives Popular’s main objective is to establish a strong regional presence by becoming a Central Clearing House for both English and Chinese books in the Asia Pacific Region (Popular’s Strategic Vision 2012). As such, their marketing objective is to offer a wide variety of books with relevant, unique, and good quality content at value-for-money prices. (Popular’s Strategic Vision, 2012). Next, Popular aims to differentiate itself from both brick-and-mortar bookstores and online bookstores which both serve the same book-buying market. This is especially important because Popular is in an oligopolistic market and faces strong competition. These brick-and-mortar bookstores include the well-established Kinokuniya, Times and Big Bookshop, and second-handbook stores, while online bookstores include Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Thus, Popular’s marketing objective is to capture a larger market share through differentiation. Lastly, in terms of the variety of books, Popular aims to be the largest and most innovative publisher of bilingual books (Popular’s Strategic Vision, 2012). It attracts publishers like Seashore Publishing (M) Sdn. Bhd. to Singapore, which dominates the market for bilingual cookbook and general-interest Mandarin books. Through its books, Popular also intends to promote the Chinese language, heritage and culture. For instance, Popular organised the National Chinese Creative Reading Competition during the BookFest@Singapore 2011 to ‘make students more aware [of] and stimulate their interest in Chinese culture and heritage through creative reading’ (Chairman’s Statement, Annual Report 2012) 11. Marketing Strategy / Mix 11. 1 Branding and positioning Popular portrays an image that it is a one-stop station where consumers are able to find whatever they need. This image is especially relevant since Popular’s main target group is the masses who usually read best-selling books written by well-known authors. To capture a larger consumer market and establish a strong regional presence, Popular has also ventured into overseas markets such as Malaysia, Mainland China, Taiwan and Hong Kong. 11. 2 Price Popular has adopted different pricing strategies for Popular and Prologue. Prologue has adopted a premium price position for their products. This strategy of prestige pricing is appropriate as Prologue is targeted at the higher end consumers who would be willing to pay higher prices. On the other hand, Popular has adopted mainstream price position for their products. The products offered by Popular is at a rather affordable price since it is mainly targeting the majority of the population. Furthermore, Popular offers products at competitive prices compared to other bookstores. With its membership card, Popular offers further discounts on the prices of its products and this further enhances its competitiveness in the industry. In addition, Popular’s membership card can be acquired at a low cost (e. g. $20 for 3-year membership for students), as compared to other bookstores, such as Kinokuniya ($55. 60 for 3-year membership). 11. 3 Product  Popular believes that in order to stay relevant with changing consumers’ taste and preferences, they should continue to innovate by selling new products. Hence, in 2009, Popular opened ‘UrbanWrite’ and ‘{ prologue }’. UrbanWrite, â€Å"a lifestyle stationery concept store that goes beyond the basics†, offer slightly different products such as scrap book materials, stationaries that are not available at Popular Bookstore. With new concept stores under Popular, such as { prologue } and UrbanWrite, it is pertinent to ensure that Popular does not lose its identity as a one-stop station to avoid confusion amongst its consumers.      

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Globlization 2 - Assignment Example In the case of a global curriculum, the financing and cooperation of the countries and other stakeholders, to develop curriculum in the education sector. The curriculum development of the people will be achieved through stakeholder involvement and the development of the necessary skills of the company. The curriculum development in a global perspective still faces challenges in the process Table of Contents Executive summary 2 Table of Contents 3 Introduction 4 Stakeholders in global curriculum development 4 Trend in education development 5 Issue of research 7 Reference 9 Introduction Globalization and curriculum development have been the main focus of the curriculum developers. Globalization is viewed to positively affect curriculum development and facilitate the development of the reliability of education in industrial workforce requirement. Abrams & Kreiner (2003) describe Industrial analysis as a market evaluation tool intended to provide a company with an idea of how complex a s pecific industry is. In case of higher institutions of learning in the UK, it involves reviewing the economic, political and market factors that influence the way the industry develops. There have been different techniques developed to evaluate complexity levels in different industries. Some of the techniques used are strategic group mapping and the Michael Porter’s five forces framework. Strategic group mapping according to Porter (1998) is an analytical tool that is used in business to display competition and then illustrate how industry changes could affect the particular business. On the other hand, Michael Porter’s Five Forces Framework is an outline that can be used to analyze any industry and establish the intensity of the competition in the particular industry resulting to a vivid picture of the state of the particular industry (Burgers 2008). The development of an inclusive curriculum is dependent on the contribution of stakeholders. The major stakeholders in curriculum development are the states or governments with the participation of the local communities. Curriculum development and globalization are tied because of the changing global labor requirement. Stakeholders in global curriculum development The major challenge in global curriculum development is on the different types of curriculum employed by the countries both in the western nations and Africa. The developing nations do not have a major problem because the majority of the curriculum is developed from the western education systems. Despite the differences in the curriculum, the major stakeholders are the governments or states who develop the guidelines for the curriculum. For a global curriculum to be developed, several issues must be addressed, which includes the needs of the society and the global population. An effective curriculum must factor in the global needs of the society and must be relevant to the labor and industrial needs. The main issue is the creation of inter national guidelines. Current settings in the international guidelines illustrate the difference in the curriculum development and the needs of the various countries in terms of work force. The development of a global curriculum may not be possible in all the educational programs and subjects but mathematics can be a major breakthrough because of the standard operatives involved in the subject. The main stakeholders in c

Limited Liability Partnerships Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Limited Liability Partnerships - Essay Example While a limited company is formulated as a legal entity where limited liability exists, this was not so in the case of partnerships, which were not legal entities and thereby made partners legally liable for all the firm's debts. The Limited Liability Partnership has the following features (a) it has a separate legal personality (b) liabilities of individual members are limited to the amount they agree to pay in the event of an insolvency (c) partners are expected to adhere to the duties and obligations currently imposed upon Directors of Companies (d) the LLP is not expected to hold AGMs or observe the rules for shareholder protection set out in the Companies Act and (e) agreements about how the affairs of the LLP will be run are left to the discretion of individual members, but partners are entitled to share in the management of the firm on an equal basis (Davies, 2001). Dr. Michael Twomey, a partnership lawyer, points out the advantages of a partnership. Firstly, it allows the partners the freedom and flexibility to conduct the Company's affairs as they wish and are not subject to the provisions of Company law. Secondly, they are not required to file accounts; hence their accounts are not publicly scrutinized. Thirdly, since a partnership is not a legal entity, hence no partnership tax is levied and the firm does not pay tax, only the partners do(MOE, 2002). But this singular advantage offered by partnerships, of privacy in the manner in which internal operations of the firm are conducted, is eliminated by way of the LLP, because such privacy can no longer be retained when LLPs are required to file audited accounts at the Companies House and to also disclose information about profits and the share of profits accruing to the highest earning partner (Davies, 2001). As a result, the financial affairs of partnerships will now be brought under public scrutiny and partners will be required to divulge details of profits accrued as well as shares of such profits that are being routed to the partners. One of the reasons why the LLP has been advanced is to mitigate the legal liability of partners for the debts of the firm. This need was especially highlighted in the aftermath of scandals such as Enron, where the Arthur Anderson partners who were not theoretically related to the Enron case, could still be held liable for repayment of debts. But in practice, companies in Britain have not demonstrated any eagerness in coming forward to be incorporated as LLPs. As pointed out by Towmey (MOE, 2002), Clifford Chance, the biggest law firm in London, chose to become an LLP based in America rather than an LLP based in Britian, because in effect, the LLP in Britain has lost all the advantages of financial privacy and flexibility of a partnership. While a partnership was earlier not taxed, most of the principles of Company law have now been applied to it under the LLP format, as a result of which it has to function as if it is a Company rather than a partnership. Thus, it may be noted that the LLP has failed to address one of the most pressing reasons why it was introduced, i.e., the need to ensure that partners are not held liable for the firm's debts. This aspect was vital especially in the case of small businesses where incorporating as a Company is not a feasible option because it involves too much expense and

Teen Pregnancy Leads to Adoption Essay Example for Free

Teen Pregnancy Leads to Adoption Essay Teen Pregnancy is a problem in todays society. There appears to be a lack of support and teen mothers dont know their options. I feel that many teens today are unaware of the dangers of unprotected sex and what the outcomes are in this process. To bring another life into this world without proper care and attention that they need is not a good thing at all. Keeping the child is a big step but is also a benefit at times. It’s only beneficial when the teen mom is one hundred percent sure that they are ready for this new life to come into their world and to give them the attention they need. Because teen pregnancy is so common in the United States there needs to be a solution to people that have no support for the child. People that have no support after having the child, should consider adoption for the best of the child. Babies are great. They are all loving, cute and make the best cuddle buddy but who knew taking care of a baby would be so much work. Most teens don’t think of a baby being so hard to take care of a child at sixteen years old because they have never taken care of one all by themselves before, but it’s more work than you could ever expect. Babies take so much energy to take care of from waking up every three hours, changing diapers, feeding them, buying them the things the need to giving them all you attention. Being a teen mom you must give your full attention to them, this is why most teens fail at being a teen mom because teens are young and like their attention on other things. Most teens get pregnant because they have lack of knowledge of birth control and protection. Most teens don’t discuss these things with their partner, that’s why teen pregnancy is so popular now days. By age fifteen, thirteen percent of teens have had sex at least once, could be more. Almost half of the United States have had sex by age fifteen some even at fourteen (Friedman). Most teens can talk to anybody about sex besides their partners or their parents, which parents and partners are the most important people to talk to in this situation. You have to be open and willing to talk to absolutely anyone so you feel comfortable. Some teens think that their crushes are true love and that’s when unprotected sex happens because you don’t know the other person as well as you think you do. When teens get pregnant they have multiple risk factors. Some factors are growing up in a single-parent family, living in poverty or high-poverty neighborhood having low attachments to school, and having parents with low educational attainment to teach their children on their own (Mayard). Most teens normally grow their children up in a very poor place because they have no money to support the child. This happens to a lot of teens in the world today. Just about every year about one million teenagers in the United States become pregnant at a very young age and out of these only thirteen percent are planned pregnancies (Mayard). The whole reason for open adoption is to offer opportunity to learn, without someone teasing you because you don’t have any parents if you’re an adopted child (DeMatteo). Some people love the whole adoption thing and want to bring new kinds in to have a home and to feel loved, but you need to get licensed for being a foster parent to be able to take these kids in. To become a foster parenet you need to get a license and to do that you need to attend an open house, which is where you do background checks and assessments to see if your place and family is safe enough for a child. Then you have to have thirty hours of training for ten weeks. After doing this they determine if you get your license or not. If you do, your license are good for two years so after your two years are up you need to renew them (DeMatteo). Becoming a foster parent is really important these days because there are a lot of kids that don’t have homes. Throughout the entire state statistics show that there are four thousand one hundred and forty eight kids in a foster or other care today. Children in foster homes â€Å"age out† or become too old to be in foster care when they turn eighteen because they are officially a legal adult and have their own choices to make. When these kids come out of foster care and they tell people that they are adopted and do not know their biological family, some kids find that bad, but it’s not. People think those kids that are adopted are different from everyone else but they are not any different. They do the same exact stuff as us and function just as well. Most kids are proud to be adopted because they know their biological parents wanted the best for them. The children know their parents will still be there for them but just thought that open adoption would be the best possible solution. Open adoption is probably the best way to go not closed adoption. Open adoption allows the biological parents and child to see and talk to each other but closed adoption doesn’t. Open adoption lets the parents see who their child is going to and closed adoption just puts the child somewhere. Parents in open adoption tend to have better health towards this than the parents in closed adoption. They don’t go through a lot of grief for years they may have grief for maybe 5 months at the most (Silber). The adoptive parents and birthparents gain trust in each other over the years. In open adoption the adoptees has their questions answered right away because they adoptive parents have access to anything. In closed adoption those kids with questions are left there clueless because they have no access to records or anything. The children in open adoption love to hear that their birthparents are coming to see then but in closed adoption those words hurt the child because they don’t know the true story why they got put up for adoption. In closed adoption it may take seven to ten years to adopt a child and in open adoption it could take a couple of days (Silber).

Causes of Concrete Failure

Causes of Concrete Failure Concrete and steel are materials commonly used in building construction. Concrete is formed by mixture of aggregates which are sand and stone, and bonded together by water and cement with the proper ratio of 1:2:4 or 1:3:6 which is commonly used. Steel is a material that is manufactured under carefully controlled condition by which its properties are determined in a laboratory. Combining concrete and steel gives increased strength to resist heavy loads to increase the lifetime of the structure. Even though concrete and steel give many advantages on building, they can also cause failure to the structure thru the impropriate procedure work, and lacks of efficient control and monitoring mechanism (A.M. Neville, 2002),which happen to the concrete column at the building of University of Technology Mara (Ismail M, 2005). The list of previous dissertation topics by building surveying students shows that there has never been a study or research done on concrete failure in the Industrial Zone. Due to the importance of awareness and understanding of concrete failure, the dissertation topic on The Causes Effects of Concrete Failure on Residential Building Surrounding Industrial Zone is chosen for research and case study. The idea on this topic also came when conducting condition survey on the Shah Alam Commercial building where it is important to understand the effects of the emissions produced from industrial area to the concrete structures in order to prevent concrete failure. The aim of dissertation is to give an insight on the causes of the defects, share what measures are taken by the building authority to prevent it and to find the result on the majority causes of the failure and its effect in real case study. The objectives of dissertations are: To study the causes and effects of concrete failure to the building structure To investigate and study the causes and effects of concrete failure of the real life cases i.e buildings in the industrial areas To come up with recommendations to prevent or minimise the concrete failure The scopes of the dissertation are: Literature review on concrete, type of cement and causes of the concrete failure. Case study on the affected residential buildings surrounding industrial zone at section 25 Shah Alam, Klang Valley, and Petaling Jaya. Produce questionnaire and conduct interviews with the contractors, clients, consultant or building maintenance personnel. Analysis of the results based on site observations, reports and interviews To give recommendations based on the result to prevent or minimise the concrete failure on structure. Below shows the procedures to reach the goal for my dissertation. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY CASE STUDY FINDINGS ANALYSIS RESULT (Goal) RECOMMENDATION The dissertation consists of 6 chapters. The dissertation starts with the introduction of the project which includes scopes, objective, and the aims of the project which are stated as chapter 1. Chapter 2 is a literature review on concrete. This includes description on the history of concrete and cement, different types of cement, sources and causes of concrete failure and the main theories of the concrete failure. Chapter 3 discusses the analysis and results of the interviews and questionnaires on concrete failure. The experiences of the relevant people interviewed will be shared in this chapter. Chapter 4 gives the detailed report of the case study including the site condition surveying results which consists of the study of building condition. The investigation and site observation on the causes and sources of defects and the remedies will be discussed. The analysis of the findings and the results of the case study will be captured in chapter 5 which include graphs and discussions. Based on the results, the effectiveness of the remedies will be evaluated in this chapter. The last chapter will conclude the case study and gives recommendations which includes the procedures on preparation and designing a building. Literature Review Introduction There are several impact which carried to the failure of the building. Basicly, failure to the structure such as piling, foundation, ground soil and etc which end up to the disaster or collapsion to the building where blamed appointed to the engineer in-charge and question that unable to explained. In the end, discussion for solving the problem is issue which has proven to the collapsion of Pulbic Work Department at Petaling Jaya (Star Biz, 2009). Therefore, the problems to the concrete which causes by human error during development procedure can be classified as four (4) categories as follow(Zarina Isnin, 2010) :- Design deficiencies Construction error Material defect Maintenance deficiencies However, the purposed of the study is only concerned on the causes and effects to the concrete failures without any concerning specific on the structure ability. Literature review on this chapter which started with the description on the history of concrete and cement and follow by the classification of cement. The objectives of this chapter is to explained the behaviour of the concrete such as sources of failures and its effects based on the facts of previous study and research. History of Concrete and Cement. In around 2,500 BC, Pyramids was the first recorded structure to used cement. The ancient Egyptian constructed Pyramid by mixing mud with straw to bind dried bricks and by adding gypsum cement and lime.Then, the Greek and the Roman found that by adding lime and water, sand and crushed stone or brick and broken tiles, its produce compressional strength and created the first structural material known as concrete. The Pantheon in Rome, was recorded the first structure used concrete mixture and proven of the success of Roman invention which still standing until today. In 1756, concrete was modernise by the British engineer, John Smeaton by mixing powered brick into the cement and adding pebbles as a coarse aggregate. In 1824, Portland Cement was invented by the english inventor, Joseph Aspdin by burning ground limestone and clay together which change the chemical properties of the materials and produce high quality of cement. It became the first true artificial cement ever produce and re mained its production until today. 20 years later, the parisian inventor, Joseph Monier invented reinforce concrete, which are the combination of concrete and steel which produce the tensile or bendable strength of metal and the compressional strength of concrete to withstand heavy loads (C.L. Page And M.M. Page, 2007). Classification of Cement Cement are categorise as two (2) categories which are Hydraulic Cement and High Alumina Cement. Hydraulic Cement is the cement that set and hardened under chemical reaction. Its can be classified into Natural Cement, Aluminious Cement and Portland Cement. The most used or well known is the Portland Cement (PC) which is high demand in market that are used in the construction and building industries or use as solution to problems for engineer. By changing or reducing or increasing the chemical properties of the compenent can produces another different types of PC and different purposed in construction industry (V.S. Ramachandran, 1984). However, theirs several types of PC are used in malaysia construction industry. Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC) at figure 2.3 (a) is the most important type of cement which commonly used in construction and building industries which can be purchase at the local building supply store. The OPC was classified into three grades, namely 33 grade, 43 grade and53 grade depending upon the strength of the cement at 28 days when tested as per IS 4031-1988. But the actual strength obtained by these cements at the factory are much higher than the specifications. In the other hand, the production of Rapid Hardening Portland Cement (RHPC) at figure 2.3 (b) is similar to Ordinary Portland Cement (ORC). This cement develops its strength rapidly which give advantages in construction industry where its development at the age of three (3) days, which give the same strength of seven (7) days development to ORC. Although, the RHPC set its development in short period, it is not known as Quick-Setting Portl and Cement (QSPC), but it is well known as High Early Strength Cement because of its development product. The RHPC are widely used in construction industry as Industrial Building System compenent such as prefabricated concrete construction where the formwork is required to be removed in early stage for other use. In other purpose of RHPC are used for road repair works, and in cold weather concrete where the rapid rate of development of strength reduces the vulnerability of concrete to the frost damage (Dr. Hanizah A.H, 1997). Fact showing that OPC is low resistance of the attack of sulphates which produces in ground soil and other particular action. Sulphate Resisting Portland Cement (SRPC) at figure 2.3 (c) give protection to the concrete from chemical attack. Therefore, it is high demand cement which hardly found at the local store rather then OPC. Their normally used at the high concentration of sulphate such as at marine condition area, in foundation and basement, fabrication of pipes which likely buried in sulphate bearing soils, and in sewage treatment or repairs works. Sulphate attack occur during the frame work of hardened cement paste which results the expansion on the paste and produce defect such cracks and subsequent disruption. Attack of the Sulphate is greatly accelerate by alternate wetting and drying which normally takes place before and after the building development which result in the future (Dr. Hanizah A.H, 1997). Quick Setting Portland Cement (QSPC) at figure 2.3 (d) indicates sets very early where setting of property is brought out by reducing the gypsum content at the time of clinker grinding. It is required to be mixed, placed and compacted at early stage and mostly used under water construction and repair work where pumping is involved which has been use during the construction of smart tunnel in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia figure 2.3 (f). Use of QSPC in such conditions reduces the pumping time and makes it economical. QSPC may also find its use in some typical grouting operations. For manufacturing various Colored Portland Cements (CPC) at figure 2.3 (e), either white cement or grey Portland cement is used as a base because of white cement is costly. Basicly, the CPC is generally use as decorative work and its production is from mixing several percentages of pigment with portland cement which form to grey or red or brown (Dr. Hanizah A.H, 1997). Theories about concrete failure Knowledge and understanding the behaviour of the concrete or in other words Durability of Concrete are most important to the engineer or developer to prevent the concrete fail to serve its purpose as durable material. Durability of concrete is defined as its resistance to deteriorating influences which may through inadvertence or ignorance reside in the concrete itself, or which are inherent in the environment to which it is exposed.(Wood H, 1968). Previous study, proved that their are several theories causing the concrete to reduce its strength and its capability which can be either external or internal factor. The behaviour can be either physical, chemical, or mechanical which can damaged the concrete indirect or direct processes (A.M Neville, 2002). Therefore, the physical theory which causes the concrete loss its performanance which either by the effect of the high temperature or differences in thermal expansion of aggregates. Infact, the alternating freezing and thawing of concrete and the associated action of de-icing salt are the combination of physical and chemical processes which likely as contraction and expansion process where normally takes long periods of time to give its result. However, the chemical process normally take places at external area where the chemical attack mainly from the aggressive ions likely as chlorides, sulphates, or carbon dioxide, which mainly produces by the natural or industrial. Other theory was the mechanical process which either made by the abrasion, erosion, cavitation or loads impact (A.M. Neville, 1995). But however, sources of the concrete failure can be considers into two (2) factors (C.L. Page And M.M. Page, 2007):- The environment factors The production factors. The Environmental factors The environment is one of the sources which something that cannot be controlled by human or in other words known as the act of God. Therefore, these factors can be categorise as (Edward A. Noy, 2005) :- Abrasion and Erosion, Climatic Condition, Atmospheric Pollution, Biological Attack, and Chemical Attack. Abrasion and Erosion Abrasion is the running surface or namely as landslide that cause by rain which are either direct or indirect fall to the unprotected surfaces which happen on high land area. However, the definition for the erosion is commonly similar with abrasion but different in process where it occur on force motion. Therefore, these two factors can occur either by human action or forces of nature (Edward A. Noy, 2005). Climatic Condition Commonly, the most effected surface on concrete are at the exterior area on building. Therefore, the design of the concrete at exterior area must be able to withstand the conditions that produced such as the weather or temperature changes, both daily and seasonal. The processes normally end up with cracking and spalling that may cause by expansion and contraction where the process takes long period of time to produce its result(Edward A. Noy, 2005). Atmospheric Pollution Atmospheric Pollution is one of the environment source which is not a new problem where the prevention was made since King Edward II of England in 12 century until today. Therefore, world new era of technology for economical purposed which made rapid growth of industrialized buildings for instance, factories where developed without realizing the impact to the environment such as emission of acidic and alkaline agents into atmosphere that is pollutant. These two compenent can cause failures to concrete where the aggressive reaction of both agents can overtake the compenent of the concrete which result in reducing the value of the concrete and causing corrosion problem in reinforced concrete bar. These problem not only effected the failures to concrete, but its also effected the human health which can cause illness, athsma, running nose, red eyes, and also can cause death (Harris,Samuel Y, 2005). Biological Attack Generally, every building will produce this type of problem which result in the growth of algae, fungi and bacteria to the concrete. These cause by the temperature different between internal and external of building where the temperature meet at dew-point and produce moisture to the concrete which to the growth that be solve by maintenance or temperture controlled (Edward A. Noy, 2005). Chemical Attack Chemical attack is the source that made the failures to concrete where the process involve the changing of the concrete compenent either by adding or increasing or reducing its compenent. The chemical attack which produce by rain and ground soil are carried acids and sulphate compenent. Chemical attack normally react during development where reaction of acids and soft water with the hardened cement, reaction of sulphates with aluminates in concrete, and reaction of alkalis with reactive aggregates in concrete (Ransom W.H, 1981). The Production Factors The production factor is involvement of human to controlled the concrete quality. To produce quality concrete, it can be categories as followed (Edward A. Noy, 2005):- Type of cement Type of aggregates Degree of compaction Water / Cement ratio. Type of Cement At chapter 2.3 are the several types of cement and its charactistic which are use in malaysia. The proper choice of cement use is important to produces concrete to protect its compenent from overtake by other deficiencies. However, by accurate measurement or calculation, can help the concrete to serve its ability without concerning its maintenance. Table 2.1 below show the measurement or calculation of cement which has been done by previous study (Edward A. Noy, 2005). Type of Aggregates Researcher proven that durable concrete can produced by good quality aggregates that are clean and free from impurities. Aggregates is used to decribe the gravel, crushed stones and the other materials which are mixed with cement water to make concrete. These can be classify as High Density aggregates, Normal aggregates and Light Weight aggregates. High-Density aggregate are classified as high specific gravity which are likely required in exceptional circumstances. However, Normal Density Aggregate specificed gravity between about 2.5 and 3.0 such as crushed rock, sand and gravel and broken bricks which happened in natural (Concrete Society, 1989). For the Light Weight Aggregate are the partical density or dry loose bulk density of less than 2000 kg/m3. Therefore, materials which can be considers as light weight aggregate are pumice, foamed lava, volcanic tuff and porous limestone which happened naturally. However, materials required processing which occurs naturally such as expanded clay, shale and slate are also consider as light weight aggregate. Other material which still consider as ligth aggregates such as sintered pulverised fuel ash (fly ash) aintered slate and colliery waste, foamed or expanded blast furnace slag that produce from industrial (Edward A. Noy, 2005). Degree of compaction Compaction or Vibration to the mixing concrete before drying process in progress are very important to prevent the failure not only to the concrete which also to the structure. The purposed of these method are to reduce the air which trapped during placing the concrete and to prevention of honeycomb on the concrete surfaces. Air contained inside concrete is about 5% every 75mm slumped and concrete with a 25mm slump may contain as much as 20%. If fully compaction or proper vibration procedure is made, concrete can result in strong, impermeable and durable otherwise, durability will be drastically reduced due to air voids in the concrete. As calculation was made, every 1% air contain in the concrete can reduce more than 5% loss of strength to the concrete and also reducing the bonding between concrete and reinforcement (A.M Neville, 2002). Water/Cement ratio As the engineering done the practice on the workability which are commonly conducted before applying it to the building as it compenent. One of the workability factor was water cement ratio which proven the most improtant part in producing quality concrete. Mixing of concrete should be applyed with lowest w/c ratio as possible and tested with compaction methods as mention previously inorder to produces durable and ability concrete. In engineering researches in german labratory, the practicles of the ratio give different spaces. The higher w/c ratio give more workability to the concrete compared to the lowest w/c ratio. Although, the high w/c ratio gives advantage on workability but it can reduce the concrete ability and effecting the hardening process at the early stage which can produce deficiencies to the concrete in the future. Therefore, figure 2.5 shows the differences spacing between cement practicles in different w/c ratio. Defect on Concrete As mention before, the sources of the concrete failure are from the environment factor and the production factor that been described at 2.4 and 2.5. The effects of these factor gives defect to concrete which are majority resulting in cracks. Some of the defects can be identified immediately and some cannot be recognised. As building surveyor, recognising defect and decision making on the problems are difficult part mostly to unidentify defect or unexplainable problems. Some of the solving method can be costly such as defect occured on foundation which effecting the structure compared to the defect occur to the concrete which can be easily done by owner himself. Figure 2.6 shows the identification of typical types of cracking to concrete surfaces which cause by this factors which has been study before. Deformation of the Surface Three defects cause deformation of the concrete surface, but may not exhibit any other symptoms. The first is curling or warping. This is the deformation of the edges and corners of a slab-on-ground in the absence of any loads. When caused by moisture, this deformation is called warping; when caused by temperature, it is called curling. The second defect is the delamination of surface mortar from underlying concrete. It is difficult to visually observe a delamination before it becomes dislodged from the surface. However, in small discrete locations, the surface may exhibit convex rising called blistering. Blisters are generally isolated, but may be closely spaced and can combine to form a large blister or delamination. A third defect occurs when isolated low spots on the surface collect water and have no means of drainage. These surface water pools are known as birdbaths. Cracking of the Surface Cracks appear in concrete for many reasons. Some cracks can appear as secondary symptoms of other defects, such as a long rounded crack following the structural failure of a warped slab. Discussed here are cracks that are primary symptoms of distress, caused by volume changes and structural failure. Shrinkage cracks have many different looks and can be e difficult to distinguish from cracks caused by other mechanisms. Discreet, parallel cracks that look like tearing of the surface are caused by shrinkage while the concrete is still fresh, called plastic shrinkage. Fine random cracks or fissures that may only be seen when the concrete is drying after being moistened are called crazing. This defect may also become evident when a translucent coating is applied to the concrete surface. Cracking that occurs in a three-point pattern is generally caused by drying shrinkage. Large pattern cracking, called map-cracking, can be caused by alkali-silica reaction within the concrete. Structural failure cracking may look like many other types of cracking; however, in slabs they are often associated with subsequent elevation changes, where one side of the crack is be lower than the other. Disintegration of the Surface Disintegration of the surface is generally caused by three types of distress. When laitance forms on the surface, it is called dusting. This can be caused by a number of reasons, which include carbonation of the surface by unventilated heaters or by applying water during finishing. Raveling or spalling at joints occurs when aggregates or pieces of concrete from the joint edges are dislodged. The last form of disintegration is the breaking of pieces from the surface of the concrete generally caused by delaminations and blistering. Popouts are conical fragments that come off the surface, typically leaving a broken aggregate at the bottom of the hole. Popoffs, or mortar flaking, is similar to popouts, except that the aggregate is not broken and the broken piece is generally smaller. Flaking of the concrete surface over a widespread area is called scaling. Types of cracks Popoffs, or mortar flaking, is similar to popouts, except that the aggregate is not broken and the broken piece is generally smaller. Flaking of the concrete surface over a widespread area is called scaling.