Research on Pulau Ubin in Singapore

HH2001 Singapore: The Making of A Cosmopolitan City-State Research Paper Ong Wei Xiu Janine U1230453D Introduction The purpose of this essay is to find out how Pulau Ubin played a significant role in the development of Singapore since the late 1800s until today. I shall begin by giving a brief introduction of Pulau Ubin and go on to elaborate about how the island played a significant role in helping Singapore’s development in various aspects. This topic shall be investigated according to two main categories – granite quarrying and adventure island.I will then conclude the essay by commenting about whether Pulau Ubin will continue to play a significant role in Singapore’s development in the near future. Brief Introduction On Pulau Ubin Shaped like a boomerang, Pulau Ubin is the second largest offshore island of Singapore. Measuring a distance of about 7 kilometres across and about 2 kilometres at its breadth with area of around 10 square kilometres, the island lie s towards the northeast of the city-state in the Straits of Johor.It is a stone island mainly â€Å"composed of igneous rocks of granite that are believed to be more than 200 million years old. † Since the founding of Singapore by the British, the island has been known for its vast resource of granite. The first two lighthouses of the country were built with granite from Pulau Ubin. Subsequently, granite was fashioned for various purposes throughout the city-state’s history, including the building of the iconic HDB flats on mainland Singapore.The exposure to sea, abandoned quarry lakes and secondary forests make Pulau Ubin a â€Å"natural choice for training†. The trend of adventure training on the island took flight when the Outward Bound School set up its first site on the island while answering the government’s call for the creation of a â€Å"rugged society† that could withstand the rigours of sudden nationhood in 1967. Other adventure campsite s and facilities were later developed around the island to cater to the needs of outdoor adventure enthusiasts. Granite QuarryingAfter the British founded Singapore, vast amounts of granite were found on Pulau Ubin. Works began in 1848 to extract the granite for building Singapore’s first lighthouse located in Pedra Branca, a small island 56 kilometres to the east of mainland Singapore. Captain James Horsburgh, a hydrographer who surveyed and chartered seaways and large bodies of water, realised that as Pedra Branca was a small rocky island that was not easily recognizable from a distance and it made the island a hazard for ships passing by.Hence, John Turnbull Thomson, a British civil engineer, built the Horsburgh Lighthouse (named after Captain James Horsburgh) in 1847 using bricks and mortar. However, it was not strong enough and could not last. Thomson then turned his eyes onto the granite stones of Pulau Ubin and had it fashioned in 1848 by stonebreakers and cutters to b e used for the construction of the lighthouse. This helped Singapore to also claim ownership of the island that was often disputed for by the surrounding region.Subsequently, a second lighthouse located in Pulau Satumu, the Raffles Lighthouse, was also built using granite from Pulau Ubin to mark the southernmost tip of Singapore’s territory. It proved to be of huge importance as it served as a safety marker for â€Å"one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes† in the â€Å"narrowest section of the Singapore Strait. Apart from these two lighthouses that helped to mark out significant territorial points of Singapore, the granite from Pulau Ubin was also used for the construction of the Causeway between Singapore and Malaysia over a pan of 5 years from 1919. With more quarrying works to be done because of the large amount of granite needed by the British to build infrastructure on mainland Singapore, population started to rise on Pulau Ubin. Soon, the island became a major supplier of granite for the building industry. The local Malays also tapped onto the resources and started â€Å"selling polished granite slabs, stone tombs and granite grinders. † The British constantly saw the need for an in-depth study about the vast amounts of granite that could be extracted for construction and roadworks.They eventually came up with a â€Å"[r]eport on the availability of granite on Singapore and the surrounding islands† in 1950 to find out exactly where and how much granite could be extracted on the various parts of Singapore (of which, more than twice the number of areas identified were from Pulau Ubin). There are a total of five granite quarries on Pulau Ubin. Despite having quarries like Aik Hwa Granite Quarry which produced about 160 to 180 tonnes of granite per month and support up to 40 percent of what was needed for the construction works in Singapore, there was a shortage in granite supply in the early 1990s.This caused the grani te suppliers to think of ways to increase their productivity. Resources Development Corportation (RDC), one of the quarries on Pulau Ubin, even looked into installing a new crusher plant. Eventually, all the quarries on Pulau Ubin and mainland Singapore was made to close down by the Public Works Department (PWD) in order to protect the natural environment as well as to free up the land â€Å"for better economic use. † Adventure IslandIn 1967, Dr Goh Keng Swee, the then-Minister for Defence and Interior asked for the setting up of an Outward Bound School (OBS) to build a â€Å"rugged society† in light of the challenges faced by a young nation that was just denied of being a part of a large domestic market. By putting participants through trainings on land and at sea, OBS hoped to train and help them to realize the value in themselves and others, as well as discover their strengths in order to be free from fear and self-doubt.The ‘rugged nature’ of the wild terrains on Pulau Ubin was a natural choice for it to become an optimal site for OBS. Having the capacity to train 23,000 people (comprising children, youths and adults) a year and having been â€Å"pivotal in the training of young Singaporeans to meet the changing needs of society†, OBS has made an impact in the nation of Singapore through running its range of programmes on its two Pulau Ubin campsites.Apart from bringing out the best in the people of Singapore, the experience of training in OBS was also vital in training budding leaders of the country. Singapore’s current Prime Minister, Lee Hsien Loong (the son of the then-Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew), had much to testify for when he spoke of his fond memories of how he blended in with everyone else, realized that he could â€Å"push himself to the limit, and do things [he] never thought he could do† during an OBS’ course back in 1967.He went on to praise the OBS for being â€Å"one of the best Outwar d Bound centres in the world†. All these could not have been possible, if not for the initial efforts of volunteers who passionately set up the logistics and ran the courses ceaselessly on Pulau Ubin. The Ministry of Education (MOE) also realized how Pulau Ubin was an ideal location to place two major campsites for promoting a rugged lifestyle in training student cadets from National Cadet Corps (NCC) and National Police Cadet Corps (NPCC).Dr Tay Eng Soon, the Senior Minister of State (Education) then, announced the plans to build these two sites back in 1990, citing that the reason for doing so was to get children â€Å"out of their flats and come closer into contact with nature, as Singapore is now highly urbanised. † The government had plans of developing Pulau Ubin as an â€Å"Adventure Island† since 1990. The island was suitable in supporting an array of outdoor activities, residential amenities and adventure facilities while putting disturbance to the natur al environment to the minimum.Singaporeans have also demonstrated an interest towards a life of adventure on the island of Pulau Ubin, creating a kind of ‘top of mind awareness’ about the island being the iconic site for adventure-enthusiasts currently and in the future. Conclusion Having put down its status as one of the major granite suppliers for Singapore since the 1990s, Pulau Ubin has transformed its image from being an island that churns out tonnes of granite for construction on the mainland to being an ideal sanctuary away from the bustling city with a holistic variety of adventure activities waiting to engage the city dwellers of all ages.Whether it is the experience of being a part of the nation-building process during the heydays of granite quarrying or the memories forged by having attended various camps and outdoor activities conducted on the island, Pulau Ubin seems to have played a significant role in the development and progress of Singapore as a nation, as well as in the hearts and minds of Singaporeans in general. However, the future of Pulau Ubin may not be anything like its past.In the government’s concept plan presented in the parliament, there seems to be plans of linking Pulau Ubin to the mainland through MRT line extensions as well as developing the island in light of the situation of land scarcity on mainland Singapore. Though these were just some of the hints gathered from a book by the Government’s Concept Plan back in the 1990s, one cannot deny that Pulau Ubin has always maintained an important status in the minds of the state’s planners, and will probably always be, in the years to come. Reference: The Causeway, A Great Engineering Work Completed.. † The Straits Times, June 27, 1924. Alexander, FES. Report on the availability of granite on Singapore and the surrounding islands. Singapore: Government Publications Bureau, 1950. Chua, Ee Kiam. Pulau Ubin: Ours to Treasure. Singapore: Simply Gree n, 2000. Boonzaier, Jonathan. â€Å"Raffles remains beacon of light in Singapore Strait. † Trade Winds, April 13, 2013. Yum, Shoen Liang. â€Å"Govt should study further its plan for Ubin and Tekong. † The Straits Times, The Sunday Times edition, sec.Forum, March 02, 1991. â€Å"Granite quarry owners seek to resume blasting. † The Business Times, June 18, 1990. â€Å"Granite suppliers step up production to meet demand.. † The Business Times, , sec. Business Times Singapore, September 13, 1990. â€Å"Keep Ubin as it is, says Chok Tong after touring ‘Adventure Island'. † The Straits Times, The Sunday Times edition, October 09, 1990. â€Å"Long-term development plans for Tekong and Ubin revealed. † The Straits Times, The Sunday Times edition, sec. Home, February 25, 1991. Of Courage and Character.Outward Bound Singapore: The first 40 years. Singapore: People's Association, 2007. â€Å"Two big campsites to promote the rugged life on the c ards. † The Straits Times, The Sunday Times edition, sec. Home, June 01, 1990. Waller, Edmund. Landscape planning in Singapore. Singapore: Singapore University Press, 2001. http://books. google. com. sg/books? id=L5kLBHwUwfEC;pg=PA48;lpg=PA48;dq=hdb quarry;source=bl;ots=EEUo_IR_5h;sig=twpNwCT89Xnc30TpJrtKsk3zxxI;hl=en;sa=X;ei=d8dqUbvvMu-ViQeC8oD4DA

Once Upon a Time Nadine Gordimer Essay

In Nadine Gordimer’s â€Å"Once Upon a Time†, Gordimer discusses the consequences of the family’s actions due to paranoia of the outside world. In the extract, Gordimer paints a picture of how the couple had taken extreme measures, erecting physical barriers around them to protect themselves from the purported dangers of their external environment, until they are unaware about the dangers that these barriers pose to themselves. Hence, the extract underlines the dangers that prejudice poses for oneself and the futility of trying to protect oneself from the infinite dangers lurking. In the above extract, Gordimer employs the use of the third person narrative, which â€Å"reveals the thoughts of the family members†. The reader is allowed a bird’s eye view into the reasons why safety was paramount to the couple and the measures taken by them to keep their house safe. Also, with the third person narrative, details that foreshadow the grisly fate awaiting the little boy are made more apparent. Moreover, without any names pegged to the characters, Gordimer leads the reader to believe that the incident seems typical, which conversely allows the reader to be provoked into a stronger reaction towards the devasting effects that prejudice brings and the possibility that it can happen to almost anyone. Therefore, with the third person narrative, Gordimer not only manages to invoke the reader’s incredulity towards the extreme measures taken by the family in protecting themselves, but also foreshadows the unhappy ending for a supposed fairytale. The purposeful omission of the boy at the start of Gordimer’s narration in the above extract foreshadows that the boy would not be living â€Å"happily ever after†. The story’s structure is a reversal of a classic fairytale’s structure, by stating that â€Å"a man and his wife who loved each other very much and were living happily ever after† at the beginning. The story begins with the premise that the couple is living happily ever after, but only introduces their child later, which breaks the conventional fairytale’s structure, foreshadowing an unhappy ending. Thus, Gordimer foreshadows that the boy was unable to live happily at the end of the story with a reversed fairytale’s structure and the deliberate separation of the boy from his parents. Gordimer also makes use of imagery and irony to emphasise the extreme prejudice that the family harbours and the effects of prejudice that they would later experience. In the extract, the plaque to deter intruders had â€Å"the silhouette of a would-be intruder† which â€Å"was masked† which â€Å"therefore proved the property owner was no racist† a s one could not tell if the would-be intruder â€Å"was black or white† . The image of a silhouette already conjures up a black person in one’s mind, which adds an ironic element when one continues reading that â€Å"people of another colour were quartered† and â€Å"not allowed into the suburb† . The colour of a silhouette has one linking the intruder with black people as it is dark. This further adds on to the irony with the panic that the wife experiences that the black people might â€Å"open the gates and stream in†, as the family was concerned about protecting themselves from people who were already barred from their suburb merely due to their race. One could not tell a person’s race merely from a silhouette, which emphasises how narrow-minded and racially biased the community is. Thus, Gordimer points out the absurdity of actions carried out due to a person’s racist outlook and foretells the disastrous consequences in store for the family. Gordimer also uses diction to convey the absurdity of the protective measures as taken by the family. She writes that anyone who â€Å"tried to open the gates† and â€Å"pulled off the sign† is oddly required to â€Å"announce his intentions† with the installation of gates meant to keep intruders out. With the word â€Å"announce†, Gordimer highlights the futility of the security measures taken by the family, because no intruder will request for permission to break in and underlines the ludicrousness of trying to be protected from intruders. The irony is that the intruder is now depicted as a civilized individual who would await permission before intruding. Additionally, the gates were meant to keep intruders at bay, not to serve as a warning to the family before the house was broken into. Thus, Gordimer allows the reader to rethink the effectiveness of the security measures employed by the family and the futility of such measures, as one cannot prevent someone who just wants to break in. Word Count: 762 words

Narrative and United States Respond Essay

Directions: Imagine yourself as one of the children in the liberation photograph. Complete the three paragraphs as a first-person narrative from his or her point of view. Paragraph 1: Why were you persecuted? Paragraph 2: Where did you go? Describe your experience at the camp. What happened to your family? How did the United States respond to your experience? Paragraph 3: What will your future bring? Predict what you think will happen to you now that you have been liberated. How has the world changed since your imprisonment? How have you changed? In your narrative, be sure to: recount historical facts accurately use course terms when appropriate cite any outside sources The Nazi’s came into power, and that’s when everything changed. Famailies were broken,homes were destroyed,and businesses were ruined. We were the targets for this burtla attack. The Jews. My name is Lauren and my family and I have been taken to a camp. We are in Amersfoort in the Netherlands. This camp is a transit and prison camp. I have been hearing it is less harsh then the other camps, such as extermination camps. We have been here since June 23, 1944. It is small, yet it contains about 35,000 prisoners. The Dutch Jews that resign here right now are slowly being sent away. My dad won’t tell me where, but I know it’s to extermination camps. It is very warm here, which makes sleep uncomfortable at night†¦not that we get much of it anyways. I am thankful I am still with my parents though, it is just us. The food here isn’t good either. Don’t supply enough. I can feel myself getting weak and it has only been one day†¦how much longer can I last? The Dutch Red Cross and Canadian Army is supposed to be sent here sometime soon. Oh, I hope it is soon. This is horrible. April,1945: The point of light has come. The Canadian Army has taken seige and is setting us free! Oh I am so thankful. Now that the war is ending, my family and I can only hope for more good to come. The future will be difficult, for I know it’ll be hard to get over the trauma and pain we have all experienced. Those who have survived will be forever scarred. The world is different now. Everything seems black and grey. Everyone is sad and gloom, yet they should be. Many people have been hurt and killed nd seperated. Not only the Jews, but the countries involved are hurting. I am a stronger person now. I hope to shine my strength upon others around me. I know that when I grow up I will make a difference in these people’s life and show them to not hold a grudge, though it may be hard, but to forgive so that they may life eternally forever.

Group project Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Group project - Essay Example However, Google was able to perform a higher business transformation than Yahoo in the last decade. Transformation is about developing strategies, which are designed to create a â€Å"forward thinking† business that keeps in touch with emerging technologies, consumer needs, and creates goals for the future. Such a process involves devising specific company’s staff, programs and policies which aid in the achievement of those goals. Google is considered a transformed e-business. Yahoo provides the same products and resources. However, it is not considered a transformed e-business mainly because it has not achieved an understanding of consumer trends and has not been able to incorporate consumer trends into their goals and strategies (Mills, 2007). The process of transformation that Google has orchestrated for its company is explained in this study. Google grew steadily since its inception in 1998 and made many improvements to its search engine, such as the Google Directory, Search through Wireless Devices, several language versions for those users who preferred to search in their own language, and Google Toolbar. These enhancements propelled Google to become the most popular search engine. At the same time, Google increased its revenue stream through a carefully devised â€Å"Keyword Targeted Advertising program,† and partnership deals with the world’s largest portals, like China’s NetEase and Japan’s BIGLOBE. Another device to attract small businesses was the AdWords program (â€Å"Google Corporate History,† 2007). At the end of 2000, Google was attracting more than 100 million search queries every day. Google continued with its partnerships and innovation to widen its user base. By the end of 2001, and Google had become a profitable company. Google’s search capacity has been evolving every year and it now includes the File Type search, Google Image Search, and Google Catalog Search. It also provides a Google Search

Martins Four Subsidiary Philosophical Questions Essay

Martins Four Subsidiary Philosophical Questions - Essay Example In this view, then it emerges that the idea put across is about knowledge of things. Therefore, the communist has the tendency of assuming that God is not intelligent enough to create the universe. The idea brings about the theory of knowledge that presupposes that man knows all thus limiting the human knowledge. According to Martin (2006), epistemology undermines an office as shown by the way of life compelled by injustices. The axiological view of the communist is that man has the value and capability to challenge the masterworks of creation. The axiological view associates with the theory of value that has an interest in the study of goodness in philosophy. There are the values themselves and the value judgments in question for the communist. According to Martin (2006), simply implies ultimate value. In other words, it is what is naturally good? Lastly, the communist teleological views concern the purpose of a person in life. Teleological life entails the destiny of a person, goal, and purpose in life. According to martin, (2006), there are two very fundamental approaches to life. Martin strongly argues that the concept of work has greatly evolved from every day’s

Critically analyse what is meant by the New Third Way as a political Essay

Critically analyse what is meant by the New Third Way as a political ideology - Essay Example These ideas are very progressive and necessary at first sight. The matter is that these ideas were formulated in the end of the 20th century, and the political situation was not the same as today. The ideas of the Third Way are of liberal views which are in great crisis today. The world community is facing a lot of new challenges, especially after September 11, 2003. Most of them are related to the global world terrorism and numerous terrible actions made by terrorists throughout the world. Many challenges are connected with WMD proliferation and drug trafficking. The twentieth century was a century of capitalism and socialism ideas realization, but now in the beginning of the 21st century the ideas of pure capitalism (when profit is the main value, and all problems must be overcome by free entertainment) and socialism (when state is the main power in economic life) are become outdated, as practice shows. So, the leaders of the most powerful countries offered a new decision, so-calle d The Third Way.

Responsibility and brand advertising in the alcoholic beverage market Essay

Responsibility and brand advertising in the alcoholic beverage market (Context of Business) - Essay Example There is considerable criticism on brand advertising in alcoholic beverage, and there are calls for more regulation in industry-sponsored responsibility messages. They are constantly criticized as mere public relations activities that are morally suspect. What are recommended are those moderation campaigns initiated by public health educators and organizations. Media advocacy efforts are also offered as a logical step. So, what should be given importance are industry-sponsored responsible drinking campaigns and media advocacy. These two will play a major role on alcoholic drinking advocacy in the future. Kotler (2003, qtd. in Ringold) refers to social marketing that characterizes public health education, whose key objective is to reduce the psychological, social, and practical obstacles hindering beneficial consumer behavior. Wallack (1990, p. 153, qtd. in Ringold) says that social marketing â€Å"provides people with accurate information so that they can take steps to improve their health†. Efforts in social marketing to effect positive health behavior provide valuable information for a desired behavior. Ringold cites the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) in its promotion of â€Å"responsible drinking†, which was supported by government agencies, organizations and industry groups. The context strategy was, â€Å"If you drink, drink responsibly, and here’s how†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Media advocacy seeks to change the ways in which problems are understood as public health issues (DeJong and Atkin 1995; Wallack 1990, qtd. in Ringold). Health behavior problems are the sole responsibility of individuals but producers, wholesalers, and retailers of alcoholic beverages also have the role to play in informing members of society about responsible drinking. Ringold cites Wallack as saying that â€Å"a strategy might be developed to stimulate media coverage of the ethical and legal culpability of alcohol companies that promote deadly

A) what are the main attractions of an import substitution strategy Essay

A) what are the main attractions of an import substitution strategy B)how do you explain that several developing countries have not suceeded to deepen the proc - Essay Example Proponents favour the export of industrial goods over primary products. The strategy may be adopted as a matter of economic policy and to attain industrialisation. In such context, Wikipedia (2006) said: â€Å"Import substitution industrialization (also called ISI) is a trade and economic policy based on the premise that a developing country should attempt to substitute products which it imports, mostly finished goods, with locally produced substitutes. The theory is similar to that of mercantilism in that it promotes high exports and minimal imports to increase national wealth.† It further said, the policy has three major tenets: (1) an active industrial policy to subsidize and orchestrate production of strategic substitutes, (2) protective barriers to trade (namely, tariffs), and (3) a monetary policy that keeps the domestic currency overvalued. Hence import substitution policies are not favoured by advocates of absolute free trade. The failure of several developing countries of not having succeeded to deepen the process of import substitution into its second and third phase could be attributed to the defect of the strategy as determined by results. The experiences of several developing countries are thus cited below to explain the failure. We will start with the Latin American countries, followed by East Asia and then we will discuss the cases of Malaysia and the Philippines. Wikipedia (2006) said: â€Å"Import substitution policies were adopted by most nations in Latin America in the 1930s and 1940s because of the Great Depression of the 1930s. In the 1950s the Argentine economist and UNECLA head Raà ºl Prebisch was a visible proponent of the idea. Prebisch believed that developing countries needed to create forward linkages domestically, and could only succeed by creating the industries that used the primary products

GOVT 480 DB7 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

GOVT 480 DB7 - Essay Example nd especially those pertaining to terrorism started and even fusion centers were set up by the Department of Homeland Security to ensure this is taken with the seriousness it deserves. The purpose of the local law enforcers is to report to the state and fusion offices suspicious cases of terrorism activities or other national intelligence from the local level and then work together from there (Cordner and Scarborough, 2010). Not all information on the progress and the step by step measures to be taken should be shared with the local law enforcers by the state. This is so because there are some of the local enforcers who are supporters and followers of the terrorists and act as their moles hence providing them with important security and intelligence information and if this happens to be the case then it may jeopardize the intelligence and action to terminate the terrorism activities. In this regards therefore, national intelligence information provided to the local enforcers should be limited to the basics and not specifics in as much as their help is appreciated. Cordner, G. and Scarborough, K. (January, 2010). â€Å"Information Sharing: Exploring the Intersection of Policing with National and Military Intelligence.† Journal of the Naval Postgraduate School Center for Homeland Defense and Security, vol. VI (1). Retrieved from:

Represent men and women Essay Example for Free

Represent men and women Essay Through the course of British history, the group in power has had control over communication. In this case and most it is the male gender that maintains control of communication, which is why there are many injustices in the English language towards the way that men and women are represented. There are language injustices towards gender, which include, forms of address, generics and derogatory terms as well as loaded language and gender based suffixes. Since we have simply inherited this sexist language instead of creating it, we should surely not be perpetuating out-of date archaic language. Many of these issues need to be addressed if we are to avoid gender stereotypes and maintain equality amongst both sexes. The issues can be noted in such minor parts of grammar such as pronouns but these are quite important in representing gender. A perfect example of this is in phrase his and hers (normally referring to something such as bath robes belonging to a couple). Here the masculine pronoun his is placed before the feminine pronoun. Many could say that this is sexist but it simply is due to the history of male domination in the English language. This proves the Reflectionist model, which said that language was a symptom rather than a cause of social divisions. However, in some ways language could also be a cause of social divisions. This would only be the case after language was a symptom of Social divisions. For example, the female under-representation in language is caused by the male control (symptom). However, the language therefore makes women feel excluded (cause). Brooks (1983), Dayhoff (1983), Hyde (1984) all researched the reaction to the idea of the generic he, where the default assumption is that someone is male or masculine. Their research suggests that men feel included and women feel excluded, in some cases alienated. The generic he is the theory that he has gained common usage through history. However, the common usage of this term can cause women to feel excluded by the term, men to feel subject to prejudicial treatment by language (i. e. when talking about criminals, drug-users etc), men to be seen as the standard by which we must assess everything (default assumption). Furthermore, gender stereotypes will carry on existing unless the generic he and default assumption are changed to reach a more neutral standpoint. This is why one has to specify when not following the default assumption, such as in the cases of male nurses and lady doctors. Mackay and Fulkerson also noted in 1979 that women rarely judged sentences, which contained the generic he although they referred intentionally to women. This was even the case when the examples suggested female such as a nurse must frequently help his patients out of bed. In some ways this suggests that many women have become accustomed to the idea of the generic he. However, one done a year earlier by Moulton, Robinson and Elias contradicted this research theory. They asked a number of students to write brief stories about people mentioned in stimulus sentences. On some of the students they used a sentence containing the generic he and on the others they used a sentence, which didnt. They found that the ones who read the sentence containing the generic he more often wrote about male characters than the others. However, when I performed this experiment along with my class we found no real difference. This original theory could be wrong, but I think that they have simply over-generalised since the effect of the generic he can depend on the person or people in question. What is important, however, is that the generic he is offensive to both men and women and so it usage should therefore be restricted or prevented. Many believe that the best option should be too avoid offence by not using single sex terms where necessary and try to be politically correct towards language representation. However, although political correctness is intended to be polite and respectful it can seem to be parodic and often hyperbolic. Thus, there are often mockeries of politically correct language, which suggest that some people are unwilling to inherit it. For example, sometimes words such as camerawoman deliverywoman are used in order to seem politically correct. Unfortunately, both seem humorous as the syllabacy (in the case of deliverywoman) or the usage (in the case of camerawoman) seems unusual and slightly ridiculous. People have become so familiar with the use of -man on the end of many words that it is pronounced as m(a)n instead of m(ae)n. Subsequently, some people believe that -man is a suffix and not a word because of the change in pronunciation. For many this is why -woman sounds inappropriate as -man has had a pronounced change to form a suffix whereas -woman is already said as wom(a)n so it will be harder for it to change in to a suffix. This seems to be why the feminine suffixes -ess and -ette as in actress and usherette. However, these sort of terms can seem derogatory and diminutive because they are following the generic he and therefore have to create feminine term for such unisex occupations as actors, ushers and authors. Surely, the first male term should be kept and applied to both sexes. Some professions already have a universal name such as in the case of Doctors and writers although when describing a female in one of these professions, some may say lady doctors or women writers. There are also the odd occasions when man is a prefix such as in mankind. In reality this word should be adapted to humankind to maintain a neutral meaning Furthermore, it is important to use neutral words in this society to maintain equality between the two sexes. Therefore, words such as chairman should be changed to chairperson or chairholder and fireman should be changed to fire fighter. The supreme effability principle states that language can convey any thought or meaning, which humans may want to communicate. This is why vocabulary is constantly being developed to reflect new ideas advances. This would mean that people would begin to use more neutral words and phrases as the stress for gender equality continues in modern society. This idea of course feeds back to Edward Sapir and Franz Boas Reflectionist model in that the language will become more neutral towards gender as society does. However, forms of address still seem to be archaic in modern day society and only recently have people attempted to rectify it. For example, the female title Ms was introduced quite recently to create a female term with the same semantics as the male equivalent Mr. Before the creation of this word, women had to use the terms Mrs or miss. These would signify the womans marital which was unfair when the men only had one single term so they could hide their own marital status. So, the phrase Mr and Mrs is pejorative to the woman, as they have to show their marital status yet their husband does not. An alternative to this phrase would be Mr and Ms. The phrase ladies and gentlemen is also unjust as it refers to women in a neutral way and men in a complimentary, hyperbolic way. To combat this an alternative would be Lords and ladies or something to a similar effect. The couplet of words master and mistress used to have equal meanings when established but now the masculine word master has developed connotations of power and control (this explains the verb to master) whereas the feminine word mistress has had a semantic change and developed sexual connotations. This phrase should simply be avoided since it has been used for centuries and will soon be archaic as the meanings of the two words are so different. As Shirley and Edwin Ardener researched, the male gender have been in a position of power and so have developed injustices in the English language such as the abundance of words describing which have sexual connotations. D. Bolinger did a test to compare the connotations of words that described men and women. I followed this idea and found out that about 50% of the words chosen for women had sexual connotations whereas it was only about 25% for men. Words like slut tart babe were copious in the list of words describing women This shows that womens sexuality is over-represented in language whereas forms of address for women are seriously limited On the other hand mens sexuality is under-represented in language whereas forms of address for men are almost over-represented. This is all due to the fact men held the power to control language through English history. In truth more words with positive connotations will begin to spring up which describe women as the weight of equality shifts to the middle. However, part of the reason that there are still so many words describing womens sexuality is because the media still include many derogatory terms relating to womens sexuality. The television, radio, newspapers, films and magazines still include the sexuality of women since it includes loaded language relating to sex that interests the public. On the other hand, newspapers should avoid infanticization by using derogatory terms like sex kitten when describing women. This seems to unjust since these types of terms would not be used on men since these terms fit the female stereotype. They are normally infanticizing diminutives, which also have sexual connotations. Furthermore, less words describing men as the dominant sex should be used and newspapers should avoid using words describing mens sexuality that are almost complimentary such as a stud. English language does have many gender injustices, according to forms of address, affixes, pronouns and generic descriptions. These all have words that portray men in a more positive light than women. However, unlike most other romance languages, English is far more neutral in the fact that words do not have gender. This means words cannot be associated with a certain gender only their meaning can. Furthermore, most of the problems can be easily fixed as the language evolves.

Mergers and Acquisitions in Pharmaceutical Industry

Mergers and Acquisitions in Pharmaceutical Industry Businesses grow externally by acquiring, or combining with, other ongoing businesses. When two companies combine, the acquiring company generally pays for the acquired business either with cash or with its own securities, and the acquired companys liabilities and assets are transferred to the acquiring company. A merger is technically a combination of two or more companies in which all but one of the combining companies legally cease to exist and the surviving company continues in operation under its original name. A consolidation is a combination in which all of the combining companies are dissolved and a new firm is formed. The term merger is generally used to describe both of these types of business combinations. An acquisition is also used interchangeably with merger to describe a business combination. 1.1 Types of Merger Mergers are generally classified according to whether they are horizontal, vertical, or conglomerate. A Horizontal merger is a combination of two or more companies that compete directly with one another. A vertical merger is a combination of companies that may have a buyer-seller relationship with one another. A conglomerate merger is a combination of two or more companies in which neither competes directly with the other and no buyer-seller relationship exists. 1.2 Form of Merger Transactions A merger transaction may be a stock purchase or an asset purchase. The acquiring company buys the stock of the to-be-acquired company and assumes its liabilities. In an asset purchase, the acquiring company buys only the assets (some or all) of the to-be-acquired company and does not assume any of its liabilities. Normally, the buyer of a business prefers an asset purchase rather than a stock purchase, because unknown liabilities, such as any future lawsuits against the company, are not incurred. 1.3 Joint Ventures Some companies who dont want to merge are choosing an option of joint ventures. In joint venture two (unaffiliated) companies contribute financial and/or physical assets, as well as personnel, to a new company formed to engage in some economic activity, such as production or marketing of a product. 2.0 Pharmaceutical MA Mergers are not new in the pharmaceutical industry; however, in last few years there is lot of heat at the level of pharmaceutical merger activity and many firms are using joint ventures and strategic partnerships to develop and market new products. The pharmaceutical industry is highly regulated, extremely complex, and filled with financial and economic challenges and points of interest. Finance managers in the industry are faced with many issues including; managed care, insurance, reimbursement, patents and generic competition, licensing, royalties, co-promotions, joint ventures, co-marketing rights, high risk and high cost research and development, parallel import issues, and international regulations. These issues need to be explored in an effort to understand the reasons for the industrys current structure and how that structure is driving increased consolidation through mergers and acquisitions. The pharmaceutical industry is by most standards a mature industry and highly profitable for those companies lucky enough to develop blockbuster medical treatments which are patent protected for lengthy periods to help companies recover their research and development investments. The pharmaceutical industry has experienced a high rate of MA activity in the 1980s and 1990s. Most of the leading firms in 2003 are the result of one or more horizontal mergers for example, GlaxoSmithKlines merger includes GlaxoWellcome and SmithKline Beecham; Pfizer is the combination of Pfizer, Warner-Lambert, and Pharmacia, which included Upjohn. 3.0 Reasons for MA To increase market share   To gain control of a blockbuster drug   existing or potential   To gain entry into a high growth therapeutic area   To enhance RD productivity   Access to new technology platform   To expand Geographic scope Patent expiration Pipeline Stuffing At pharmaceutical firms both large and small, profits are under constant pressure because blockbuster drugs that have made immense profits for many years eventually lose their patent protection and face vast competition from generic versions. In the U.S., generic drugs now hold between a sixty and seventy percent market share by volume. This puts pressure on large research based drug firms to develop new avenues for profits. One such avenue is partnerships with and investments in young biotech companies, but profits from such ventures will, in most cases, be slow to appear. Meanwhile, the major, global drug firms are investing billions in-house on biotech research and development projects, but new blockbusters are elusive. For example, Pfizer historically invested about $7.8 billion yearly on RD. That money is invested in carefully designed research programs with specific goals. As of early 2010, Pfizer had about 500 projects in development, with 133 of those in Phase I trials or beyond. Biologic drugs accounted for 27 projects under development, and they were part of the firms invest to win areas that focus on potential blockbuster drugs. Much of the future success for the worlds major drug companies will lie in harnessing their immense financial power along with their legions of salespeople and marketing specialists to license and sell innovative new drugs that are developed by smaller companies. There are dozens of exciting, smaller biotech companies that are focused on state-of-the-art research that lack the marketing muscle needed to effectively distribute new drugs in the global marketplace. To a large degree, these companies rely on contracts and partnerships with the worlds largest drug manufacturers. In addition to money to finance research and salespeople to promote new drugs to doctors, the major drug makers can offer expertise in guiding new drugs through the intricacies of the regulatory process. While these arrangements may not lead to blockbuster drugs that will sell billions of pills yearly to treat mass market diseases, they can and often do lead to very exciting targeted drugs that can produce $300 mi llion to $1 billion in yearly revenues once they are commercialized. A string of these mid-level revenue drugs can add up to a significant amount of yearly income. One of the most obvious reasons to merge or acquire is a shortfall in the RD pipeline. This was the position Glaxo faced in 1995 when Zantac, the worlds best-ever selling drug at the time was coming to the end of its lifespan. Following its timely acquisition of Wellcome, the company renewed its pipeline to create a substantial and innovative asset, which included drugs like Seroxat still in the global top ten seven years after the deal. Astra and Zeneca achieved geographic expansion and increased critical mass and, above all, shored up two increasingly vulnerable portfolios with their 2000 merger. 4.0 Risks of MA The payoff of growth resulting from a merger can be enormous for pharmaceutical companies. However, some statistics about mergers and acquisitions across industries and in general communicate the inherent risks in choosing to proceed with the integration of two different companies. Some of the researched statistics, noted in Pharmaceutical Executive in January 2001, are as follows: 75% of large mergers fail to create shareholder value greater than industry averages Productivity drops 50% following the announcement of a merger Leadership attrition soars to 47% within three years following a merger Employee satisfaction drops 14% following mergers 80% of employees feel senior management cares more about economics than about product quality or people 5.0 History of Pharmaceutical MA In 1927, Merck merged with Powers-Weightman-Rosengarten, which used to produce antimalarial quinine. In 1959, Johnson Johnson acquired McNeil laboratories and added Tylenol to its product list. In 2000, Pfizer acquired Warner- Lambert Company and Lipitor was added to Pfizers portfolio.The trend continues till today with Sanofi and Aventis and last year, we saw mega mergers like Pfizer acquired Wyeth for $68 billion and after six weeks of the mega merger, Merck acquired Schering Plough for $41.1 billion. Moreover, Roche inked a deal of $47 billion deal with Genentech and small player Biotech heavyweight Gilead (GILD) also paid $1.4 billion for CV Therapeutics (CVTX). 5.1 Merck and Schering-plough Merger Merck has entered into a definitive merger agreement with Schering-Plough. According to the agreement, Merck and Schering-Plough has combined, under the name Merck, in which the surviving entity is Schering plough and because of that the merger is known as reverse merger transaction. This transaction valued at approximately $41,100 million ($41.1 billion) payable in cash and stock. Under the terms of the agreement, Schering-Plough shareholders receive 0.5767 shares and $10.50 in cash for each share of Schering-Plough. Each Merck share will automatically become a share of the combined company. In the merger, Merck shareholders own approximately 68% of the combined company, and Schering-plough shareholders own 32%.The aggregate consideration will be comprised of a combination of approximately 44% cash and 56% stock. This merger had benefited Merck in several ways. It added up to 18 products in Mercks pipeline. This merger is structured in an unusual manner, this is generally done for tax saving purposes but here is some other reason. Schering Plough and Johnson and Johnson has contract over the sale of Ramicade and Sympony. The contract said that if ownership of any of the company changes then the other company is entitled for both the products but as the merger is reversely structured and Schering Plough is the surviving corporation the chances to breach the contract is less; though the surviving corporation as the name Merck . Then also Johnson Johnson has filed for arbitration over the contract. The legislation is still in the process and Merck is having the advantage of both the products. 5.2 Pfizer and Warner-Lambert merger Pfizers hostile bid for Warner-Lambert resulted from Warner-Lamberts attempt to merge with American Home Products. Actually, Pfizer was not looking at taking over Warner-Lambert and was happy with them as an independent company. However, Warner-Lamberts actions put the company at play. The result of the hostile merger resulted in Pfizer as the clear leader of the two companies. The difficult merger included the trading of stock for stock and the breaking up of the other deal. Warner-Lambert was also happy as an independent company. However, even though the merger was hostile, Warner-Lambert did seem to like Pfizers products, reputation, and values. Prior to this merger, basically all of the industry mergers of the past decade failed to increase, or even maintain, market share and value. As a result of ongoing productivity initiatives and cost savings from the Warner-Lambert integration, Pfizers operating margin has improved more than eight full percentage points since 1995. This is o ne of the best performances in the industry. 5.3 Sanofi-Aventis Merger On January 26, 2004, Sanofi-Synthelabo announced an unsolicited exchange offer for shares of Aventis Pharmaceuticals. They offered fifty five billion dollars, or forty-seven billion euros for Aventis shares. This offer price came along with estimation that they could create two billion dollars in synergies by combining the two firms. They also reaffirmed that the offer was based on the total portfolio, and that they didnt intend on divesting any products that didnt have any anti-trust conflicts. The Supervisory Board of Aventis unanimously rejected the bid from Sanofi responding that it was not in Aventis shareholders and employees best interest to allow Sanofi to acquire Aventis shares. French newspapers buzzed with rumors that several firms might step up and try to be a white knight to Aventis. Those firms included Johnson and Johnson, Pfizer, and Novartis. Sanofis management was confident that they would not have to increase their offer for Aventis since most firms would not be in a position to merge with Aventis. It was also rumored that if Sanofi was not successful in buying Aventis, that they would be subject to an acquisition from another firm. Glaxo was rumored to be interested in buying Sanofi for their pipeline. Aventis had been repeatedly rejecting the offer from Sanofi arguing that the bid is severely undervaluing their company. Aventiss management believed that they were better off as a stand-alone firm so that they can focus on organic growth. Aventiss chief executive, Igor Landau, openly disputed the offer from Sanofi saying that they would have to improve the bid by at least forty or fifty percent to make Aventis interested. However, Aventis tried to find a white knight to enter into a friendly merger with to fend off Sanofi. The potential white knight that showed the most interest was Swiss drug maker Novartis Pharmaceuticals. Novartis said that they would be interested in entering merger negotiation with Aventis, if the French government would remain neutral. Sanofi wasnt too concerned about any white knight scenarios being that they had the support from the French government. In late April, Novartis agreed to enter into talks with Aventis regardless of the French governments public opposition to a Swiss firm ruining their chances for a French national champion. Rumors were circulating that Novartis was prepared to offer a bid of up to eighty-three billion dollars, or seventy billion euro. This would be a significant improvement for the shareholders compared to the Sanofi offer. These rumors caused the French government to encourage talks between Sanofi and Aventis board members. Finally on April 26, Aventis accepted an improved bid from Sanofi to create the third largest drug company in the world. The improved bid is valuing Aventis at sixty-four billion dollars, or fifty-four billion euros. The improved stock and cash offer was approximately a fourteen percent increase from the original takeover offer. This is the conclusion to three-month takeover battle between these two companies. Aventis has been trying to defend their company against Sanofi for the past three months. They both entered into a cooling off period after three months of publicly sniping at each other and filing lawsuits. On April 27 the European Commission approved the planned merger, followed by the Federal Trade Commissions approval on July 29. By early August it was known that the tender offer had been a success leading to the birth of Sanofi-Aventis on August 20. 6.0 Ten-Year Data on Pharmaceutical Mergers and Acquisitions During the 10 years ended December 31, 2009, a total of 1,345 mergers and acquisitions of pharmaceutical assets and pharmaceutical companies were announced, with disclosed prices totaling more than $694 billion, according to DealSearchOnline.com. GlaxoSmithKline was responsible for the largest of the pharmaceutical mergers and acquisitions. GlaxoWellcome announced a $74 billion merger with SmithKline Beecham in 2000, resulting in the entity now known as GlaxoSmithKline. Pfizer, Inc. announced two of the largest pharmaceutical mergers and acquisitions of the decade, including its $68 billion acquisition of Wyeth, Inc. in 2009 and its $56 billion acquisition of Pharmacia Corporation in 2002. Five of the pharmaceutical companies that were acquired in the past 10 years posted revenues in the tens of millions at the time of acquisition: SmithKline Beecham, Wyeth, Aventis, Pharmacia and Schering Plough. Further, in all but one of the 55 largest pharmaceutical mergers and acquisitions announced during the past decade, each of which is valued at a price exceeding $1.5 billion. Most of the 25 largest pharmaceutical mergers acquisitions announced in the past 10 years feature an acquirer that made five or more deals during the decade ended December 31, 2009, including Pfizer. In addition to Pfizer, these pharmaceutical acquirers include Abbott Laboratories, Johnson Johnson, Bristol-Myers Squibb and Teva Pharmaceutical Industries. Teva Pharmaceutical acquired Barr Pharmaceuticals for $8.96 billion in 2008 and Teva Pharmaceutical acquired Ivax Corporation for $7.96 billion in 2005. Abbott Laboratories acquired Solvay Pharmaceuticals for $7.6 billion in 2009 and Abbott Laboratories acquired Knoll Pharmaceutical for $7.2 billion in 2000. Johnson Johnson acquired Pfizers consumer health care unit for $16.6 billion in 2006 and Johnson Johnson acquired ALZA Corporation for $12.3 billion in 2001. Three of the top 25 pharmaceutical mergers and acquisitions announced in the past decade were announced during 2009, In addition to Pfizers acquisition of Wyeth and Abbott Laboratories acquisition of Solvay Pharmaceuticals, 2009 saw Merck Co.s acquisition of Schering-Plough Corporation for $41.1 billion. The mega-deals that comprise the top 25 pharmaceutical mergers and acquisitions of the past decade were announced at the rate of one or two per year from 2000 to 2004, but from 2005 to 2009 increased to the rate of three to four per year. Other notable deals announced in 2000 through 2009 include Sanofi-Synthelabos $65.5 billion acquisition of Aventis in 2004 and Bayer AGs $21.5 billion acquisition of Schering AG in 2006. Pharmaceutical Mergers and Acquisitions, 2000 to 2009 Year  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Dollar Total  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Number of Deals 2000  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   $97,424,934,321  Ã‚   41 2001  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   $27,749,309,161  Ã‚   87 2002  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   $66,093,147,595  Ã‚   147 2003  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   $23,625,371,126  Ã‚   173 2004  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   $95,213,138,700  Ã‚   171 2005  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   $46,553,632,500  Ã‚   128 2006  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   $74,806,033,300  Ã‚   138 2007  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   $71,600,790,685  Ã‚   180 2008  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   $40,664,107,740  Ã‚   140 2009  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   $147,237,047,186   140 10-Year Total   $690,967,512,314   1,345 Its been a busy decade for pharma dealmaking. During the 10 years that ended Dec. 31, 2009, a total of 1,345 mergers and acquisitions of pharmaceutical assets and companies were announced, with disclosed prices totaling more than $694 billion, according to DealSearchOnline.com. The biggest deal: GlaxoWellcomes $74 billion merger with SmithKline Beecham in 2000 that created GlaxoSmithKline. That year, pharma did more than $97 billion worth of deals. 7.0 Future of MA from CEO perspective    Former Schering-Plough Corp. Chief Executive Officer Fred Hassan, who presided over the companys $41.1 billion sale, last year, said he expects to see more consolidation in the pharmaceutical industry. Large drugmakers will need to merge in order to fund expensive, complex areas of research, such as Alzheimers disease. Smaller companies also will be forced to sell themselves as they run out of cash in the tight credit markets. One reason deals are necessary is because the innovation investments are becoming larger and larger and it makes it easier when people can combine their resources to make the big, deep bets that you need to make for difficult diseases, Hassan said. That is why you are going to see more of these deals. 8.0 Top MA activity in 2010: While things have cooled off a bit in big pharma, there is still some major acquisition action going on in 2010. Though year 2010 was not of big mergers but there were still some MA activity have seen. List of 2010 MA is shown in table 3. 8.1Teva- Ratiopharm Teva, the generics giant bought Ratiopharm for just under $5 billion, beating out  Pfizer  and Actavis for the German company.  Ratiopharm is Germanys second largest generics producer and the sixth largest generic drug company worldwide. The Ratiopharm purchase marks the biggest takeover in the generic drugs market since Teva bought Barr Pharmaceuticals for $7.46 billion in 2008. The combined entity will hold the leading market position in 10 European markets, including the U.K., Hungary, Italy, Spain, Portugal and the Netherlands, as well as a top three ranking in 17 countries, including Germany, Poland, France and the Czech Republic. Teva also expects its sales to nearly double in Canada as a result of the deal. Shlomo Yanai, Tevas president and CEO, said during an investors call that the acquisition was key component in its 2015 strategy. By that time, the company expects $31 billion in revenue and $6.8 billion in net income. Pfizer had been very interested in Ratiopharm, but wasnt prepared to put significantly more than 3 billion on the table, according to the  Wall Street Journal,  citing sourcesSources say that Pfizer might cast its eye on Stada, another German generics maker. Stadas stock shot up 2 percent to an 18-month high after news of the Teva-Ratiopharm deal broke, according to  Reuters. 8.2 Merck-Millipore Merck completed the acquisition of life science company Millipore on Feb. 28.   Millipores products and services are used for drug discovery, process development and drug manufacturing. Merck acquired Millipore for approximately $7.0 billion.The companies decided on a price of $107 that was paid in cash per share for Millipores common stock.   Table 1: Top 20 MA deals since 2000 Rank Partners Date Value, US$m 1 Pfizer Warner Lambert Feb 00 $90,000 2 Pfizer Wyeth Jan 09 $68,000 3 Sanofi Aventis Apr 04 $65,000 4 Pfizer Pharmacia Jul 02 $60,000 5 PG Gillette Jan 05 $57,000 6 Roche Genentech Jul 08 $46,800 7 Merck Schering-Plough Mar 09 $41,000 8 Boston Sci. Guidant Dec 05 $27,000 9 Bayer Schering AG Mar 06 $21,500 10 Dow Rohm Haas Jul 08 $18,800 11 JJ Warner Lambert Jun 06 $16,600 12 AstraZeneca MedImmune Apr 07 $15,600 13 Amgen Immunex Dec 01 $14,800 14 Schering-Plough Organon Mar 07 $14,500 15 Merck KgaA Serono Sep 06 $13,300 16 Novartis Alcan Apr 08 $11,000 17 Fisher Sci. Thermo Elec. May 06 $10,600 18 JJ Alza Mar 01 $10,500 19 General Elec. Amersham Oct 03 $9,500 20 Takeda Millennium Apr 08 $8,800 Table 2: Top MA deals 2009 Rank Partners Date Value, US$m 1 Pfizer Wyeth Jan 09 $68,000 2 Roche Genentech Mar 09 $48,000 3 Merck Schering-Plough Mar 09 $41,000 4 TPG IMS Health Nov 09 $5,200 5 GSK Stiefel Apr 09 $3,600 6 Dainippon Sepracor Sep 09 $2,600 7 BMS Medarex Jul 09 $2,400 8 Sanofi-Aventis Chattem Dec 09 $1,900 9 Watson Arrow Group Jun 09 $1,750 10 Varian Agilent Jul 09 $1,500 11 Gilead CV Therapeutics Mar 09 $1,400 12 Abbott Adv. Med. Optics Mar 09 $1,300 13 JJ Cougar May 09 $970 14 Lundbeck Ovation Feb 09 $900 15 Onyx Proteolix Oct 09 $850 Table 3: Top MA deals 2010 Rank Partners Date Value, US$m 1 Novartis/Nestle Alcon Aug 10 $28,300 2 Sanofi Genzyme Aug 10 $18,500 3 Merck KgaA Millipore Feb 10 $7,000 4 Teva Ratiopharm Mar 10 $4,925 5 OSI Astellas May 10 $4,000 6 Reckitt SSL Jul 10 $3,900 7 NBTY The Carlyle Group Jul 10 $3,800 8 Abbott Piramal May 10 $3,700 9 Pfizer King Oct 10 $3,600 10 Grifols Talecris Jun 10 $3,400 11 Biovail Valeant Jun 10 $3,300 12 Celgene Abraxis Jun 10 $2,900 13 Covidien ev3 Jun 10 $2,600 14 Crucell JJ Sep 10 $2,300 15 McKesson US Oncology Nov 10 $2,000 16 Wuxi C. River (term.) Apr 10 $1,600 17 Cardinal Kinray Nov 10 $1,300 18 Aspen Sigma (term.) May 10 $1,240 19 Qualitest Endo Sep10 $1,200 20 Inventiv Thomas H Lee May 10 $1,100 21 3M Cogent Aug 10 $943 22 Boehringer Ing. SSP Feb 10 $913 23 BMS ZymoGenetics Sep 10 $885 24 Perrigo PBM Holdings Mar 10 $808 25 Avid Eli Lilly Nov 10 $800

Walt Whitman and Dostoyevsky: The human identity

Walt Whitman and Dostoyevsky: The human identity The portrayal of the human identity in the poems of Walt Whitman and Dostoyevsky: Literature plays an important role in the society that is not only related to the level of entertainment. Through the various genres of literature, we can represent ideas to the society through the specific thematic issues raised within the fabric of the texts. Poetry serves the same purpose in the society. Through the use of beauty in the language such as the symbolic sound give the genre an entertaining perspective. Aside from the entertainment, the ideas of the poet about the society are equally presented. The opinions of the writer about a specific subject such as the personal identity and its implication in a society are possible views that can be intertwined in the themes texts. The poems of Walt Whitman and the novella by Dostoyevsky are no exceptions. It is possible that the authors' use of the thematic issues is a portrayal of their opinions about the society. Here, I examine the possible difference or similarity in the portrayal of human identity in the works by the tw o authors. Specifically the works that are selected for this analysis are the poems A noiseless patient spider, the song of myself and A Sight in Camp all by Walt Whitman. Notes from the underground are the work by Dostoyevsky that will be looked at here. Thesis: Non-conformity and independence are used as the major formulators of personal identity in the works of Walt Whitman and Dostoyevsky. Non-conformity is taken in this paper to mean the lack of respect or appreciation for societal expectations. It means that the social obligations and the desire to be free from societal expectation will make a person have the propensity to be independent. This independence is the key factor that will shape the identity of persons in a society. When a child asks the persona about grass in the poem song of myself, the persona could not give an answer about the same question. This sends him wondering in thought in a journey that takes him through the continent of America (Whitman, 56). His epic journey in thought makes him fall in love with nature and he does believe that there is nothing bad that will not contribute to a positive outcome in the system that is nature. Transcendental philosophy and the freedom of thought, in this case, is what informs the persona's identity. The persona develops an opinion of the world through the examination of the different aspects of the society in thought. the cause this is that it is easier to construct the possibilities of the society through the mind. In notes from the underground, the author's intent is to show that through the use of conscious thinking, the personality of an individual can be formed. The narrator, in this case, informs us that the ability to take revenge is in fact not a possibility to him. This is driven by his ability to construct and analyse the possibilities of the action. He believes that the consequences of his actions could lead to other disasters that can be of even more consequences. As a result, the persona opts to do simply nothing but imagine things in the society. This makes him unable to confront his colleagues despite the fact that they have clearly shown that they despised him. The norm in any society is that if anything is wrong, the obligation is on the people living in this society to make changes to the same effect. The use of imagination and the resultant utopia created by the imaginations can also be seen as shaping the identity of the persona in notes from the underground. The persona believes that he could escape from the overall boredom created by work and interpersonal relation through the use of a mental process or imagination on the same. This position can be taken from the fact that the main desire of the persona is to be independent of any external forces that shape the relationships that he had in society. In the poetic works of Whitman especially the A Noiseless Patient Spider, the persona envisions his soul wandering in a vast open space of the ocean while he stands on a promontory (Whitman, 405). The idea that is being projected in the text here is the independence and the lack of influence of any other societal factors like interpersonal relationships. In reality, the possibility of the existence of no factors to influence the thinking or the actions of an individual is a societal impossibility. The author, therefore, uses a level of lack of conformity and adherence to societal norms in these works. The only possibility of the lack of any interference in the society is if there is no individual living with the persona in the same society. A Sight in Camp is also a poem that is used by Whitman to further the ideal of wishful thinking and independence from the social norms. In this poem, the author knows that it is possible for members of different ages and sex to experience suffering occasioned by disease. Still, the author deliberately talks of a faceless perfection and lack of suffering even in a medical camp (Whitman 276). The author's intent is to make us imagine that there is a society in which all the suffering is not present and that people do not recognise each other from a physical perspective. The assumption that the author is also driving here is that there is a possibility of achieving the level of equity that appreciates all beings as perfectly similar regardless of age and social standings. In notes from the underground, the author takes a different approach to dealing with the society, suffering and utopia. The author opines that it is possible that the level of suffering brought about by the different factors in a society could be the norm. However, the use of science and the rationality is a major cause for the deviation of the norm. The persona argues that through suffering, it is possible to have an individual to receive honour or ennoblement. This ennoblement or honour could be what the normal individual would want for themselves and identity. The deviation from this normal point and the lessening of suffering by scientists and rationalists is the cause of a strive towards a utopian society. The argument that the author proposes here is also related to the independence of choice. In a society that the realists and the scientists are constantly working towards making life better, the common man is left with no other choice. The desire to experience anything in life like work and social life is constantly challenged by the idea that are floated by the members of these bodies. The result is that everyone is whipped away from what they so desire and instead moved towards what other people think is ideal. The result is that their personal identity is changed through conforming to these norms but their independence to choose is denied. In conclusion, the main area of discussion in this article concerned the use of non-conformity to societal norms and the level of effect of independence in the creation of personal identity. A review of the works by the two authors reveals a level of similarity in approaches given to the subject of identity in the texts. In all the works, transcendental philosophy underpins the formation of the identity of the persona of the work. According to Dostoyevsky, the use of imagination or conscious thinking has led the persona not to act in any way to change the situation that is prevailing. Despite him realising that it could be wrong or the situation is not right, the consequences of the action hold the persona back. It also affects the level of independence that the author has regarding the ability to make choices on the actual desires like escaping from boredom. Whitman also uses the same philosophy in determining the identity of the persona in most of the works. According to the author , the epic mental journey that is provoked by a Childs question about grass (Whitman 56) has led to a lot of discoveries. The nature of the personal self is among the things that the persona has discovered in the process. Much of the idea that, therefore, shapes the identity of the persona are therefore brought out in a transcendent way. The only difference is in the way the authors handle the concept of the ideal society and the independence to choose a personal identity. In notes from the underground, the persona opines that the choice of the members of the society is not independent. It argues that the choice is as a result of the scientific view of a utopian society. Whitman in contrast feels that it is highly necessary to have a utopian society where everyone is equal, there is no suffering. This idea is explicitly projected in A noiseless patient spider (Whitman 405). It is, therefore, important to conclude that both the authors employ the use of non-conformity and independence as the major formulators of the identity of individuals. Works cited Dostoevsky, Fyodor. Notes from the Underground. Broadview Press, 2014. Whitman, Walt. The Complete Poems of Walt Whitman. Wordsworth Editions, 1995.

Invisible Man :: essays papers

Invisible Man Invisible Man: Ralph Ellison Ralph Waldo Ellison was born in Oklahoma on March 1, 1914. From 1933 to 1936, Ellison attended Tuskegee Institute, intent upon pursuing a career in music. Like the protagonist in the novel, Ellison grew up in the south, then later moved to New York City. In New York he met the leading black figures of that day, such as Richard Wright and Langston Hughes, who he said encouraged his own writing ambitions. Ellison became associated with the Federal Writer's Project, where he published short stories and articles in such magazines as New Challenge and New Masses. Since 1970, Ralph Ellison has been professor of the humanities at New York University and has lectured extensively on black folk culture. The influences of his early interests in music helped to create a richly symbolic, metaphorical language of his novels, which he is most known for. In his works, Ellison well-spokenly describes the problems of American racism that continue to plaque the country in all areas today. In 1952, Ralph Ellison's novel The Invisible Man gave voice to the feelings of many black Americans who felt that they were not "seen" by American society. The novel won the National Book Award in 1953 and was also published two years before the Supreme Court ruled the Brown vs. Board of Education to outlaw separate but equal education in America. While the Civil War freed the slaves, it did not integrate blacks into the American mainstream. As did so many from this generation, the nameless protagonist of Invisible Man leaves the South for New York City. Here he becomes a pawn for a political group, and he discovers he is not seen as an individual human being. After becoming involved in a Harlem riot, he realizes that he must deal with people of both races. He also realizes that many people see him as a Black Man, and therefore his real nature is unseen by them-- this makes him "invisible". Many times, people, often introverted and alienated from the rest of society, have found themselves in situations in which they are on the outside looking in. These people often have a feeling of being "invisible" and unidentified to the rest of society and therefore undergo a need to search for their identity in order to be recognised and have a place at the "social table". In this particular novel, our character which calls himself the "invisible man", is faced with the challenges of being a young African American male from the south, living in the north, who encounters a number of baffling experiences while on the road to self-discovery.

Quentin Tarantino :: essays research papers

Social workers play a vital role in many aspects of our society, from the court system to the correctional facilities in which they work. The lives of the incarcerated clients, in addition to those who have been released, and the members of our society as a whole can contribute something to society. According to California’s Occupational Guide â€Å"correctional Social Workers work with juvenile or adult offenders to determine and correct the causes of anti-social behavior. They may work with youth groups or gangs. They conduct pre-hearing and pre-sentencing investigations and present social histories to the courts. Parolees and probationers readjust to society† (California Occupational Guide, On-line). The social worker that works in a correctional institute has an immense responsibility which includes rehabilitation, and the prevention of recidivism of each client.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The development of social workers originated early as specific organizations of society that noticed underprivileged people needed assistance with their problems and did so by addressing their needs in various ways. As The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia states â€Å"The development of Social work as a profession out of the early efforts of churches and philanthropic groups to relieve the effects of poverty, to bring the comforts of religion to the poor, to promote temperance and encourage thrift , to care for children, the sick, and the aged, and to correct the delinquent†(2003). The early efforts of these groups gave the poverty-stricken community a voice to be heard and aided society by recognizing that there was a social problem that needed to be addressed in serving these urgent needs. In 1874 the National Conference of Charities and Correction (now called the National Conference on Social Welfare) was organized in the United States.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The evolution of the independent sector, now known as social work, from the broad category of the social sciences was a gradual process which began in the late nineteenth century. Public relief and private philanthropic efforts remained largely matters of local and state concern until after 1930, when the federal government entered the field of social work on a large scale to cope with the effects of the great depression (2003). The government became more aware of the need for social workers to have their own programs to attend to the needs of society’s less fortunate. In addition, three authors Miller, Hollis and Taylor respectively stated, â€Å"In these early years, those who saw themselves as â€Å"social workers† were often intimately involved with the criminal justice system and with juveniles sentenced to reform schools and youth facilities at the times.