The Ecological Impact Of Coal Mining Environmental Sciences Essay

The Ecological Impact Of Coal Mining Environmental Sciences Essay The goal of coal mining is to economically remove coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content, and since the 1880s is widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from iron ore and for cement production. Coal is the most important fossil fuel around the world and vital for its energy security. In the process of development, coal mining is one of the major industries, which is contributing accidentally towards the pollution of the environment. The power sector is the bigger consumer followed by industrial sector (steel and cement manufacturing units). It also assures the energy supply which is important for any countries development. Coal is still remains essential in producing a diverse and balanced energy mix. It is a major fuel generating electricity worldwide. Coal is poised with different toxics which effect the environment and one of the key challenges coal industries is facing today. Coal is less effective and energy efficient compared to other fossil fuels and pollutes more as well. The main concerns is to focus at the regional level to do with the environmental impacts on air, water, land, forest, climate and the costs of mitigating these. Even with these concerns coal will remain a future mainstay. The coal mining industry finds it difficult to meet current needs as a bridge to meet future goal through the enhancement of knowledge and technology. The challenge is to apply the right technology in the most efficient and environmentally friendly way [1]. . Environmental Issues Most of the mining operations carried out underground and opencast mines like drilling, blasting, extraction transportation and crushing. These operations damage the environment and ecology to an unacceptable extent. Sometimes rapid and unchecked activities results in air, water and noise pollution, land degradation, health hazards, loss of forest wealth and agriculture land, drying of wells, rehabilitation problems lending to large scale environmental deterioration [2]. Environmental issues should observe and controlled by appropriate planning and study. A balance is required between mining and environment. In addition, due to excessive mining, chances of accidents increase which lead to misery and tragedy [2]. Impact of Mining on Air Quality Air pollution happened in mines due to the runaway emissions of particulate matter and gases including methane, sulphur dioxide, oxides of nitrogen and carbon monoxide. Mining operations produce a lot of dust. The drilling, loading, transporting, blasting, hauling, and crushing mainly produce dust in major operations. They dust sources in mines can be categorized as primary sources that generate the dust and secondary sources, which disperse the dust and carry it from place to place called as fugitive dust [2]. Opencast mining has severe impact on air pollution as compared to underground mining. In underground mining men suffer from dust inside underground mine workings. But opencast mining create much more air quality deterioration in respect of dust and gaseous pollutants. It creates air pollution problem not only within the mining premises but also in surrounding residential area affecting abundant air quality. High levels of suspended particulate matter increase respiratory diseases such as chronic bronchitis and asthma cases while gaseous emissions contribute towards global warming besides causing health hazards to the exposed population [2]. The dust which is uncontrollable creates serious health hazards and also affects the productivity creating poor visibility, increased maintenance cost, breakdown of equipment and ultimately deteriorates the ambient air quality in and around the mining site. The dust can also pollute nearby surface waters and stunt crop growth by shading and clogging the pores of the plants [2]. Besides polluting the environment, the generation of dust means the loss of fines, which act as road surface binders. The vehicular traffic on haul roads has been identified as the most important cause of fugitive dust emissions [2]. The increase in the earths surface temperature due to the presence of certain gases in the atmosphere called greenhouse effect [3]. These gases are building up by human activities by extracting various minerals from the earth. The combustion of coal produces CO2 like other fossil fuels, this gas affect the greenhouse effect which is linked to global warming. The coal combustion produces gaseous emissions of nitrous oxides (NOx) and sulphur dioxide (SO2) that produces ground level ozone and acid rain. SO2 and NOx gases react in the atmosphere with oxygen, water and other chemicals to form acidic compounds. Ground level ozone (O3) is mainly responsible for smog that forms a brown haze over cities. Ground level ozone is formed when NOx gases react with other chemicals in the atmosphere and is enhanced by strong sunlight [3]. Emissions of SO2 and NOx are termed trans-boundary air pollution because the environmental impacts from the production of these gases are not restricted by geographical boundaries [2]. Impact of Mining on Water regime Mining activities not only use a lot of water but it also affect the hydrological regime in the region and can affect the water quality. Disturbance to hydrologic regime The deep and large opencast mines have greater impact on the hydrologic regime in the region. With deforestation over the mine leasehold and changes brought about in the watershed characteristics, water flow in many streams in mining regions, is known to have dwindled and some perennial streams have turned into seasonal streams and others have receded [2]. The most important impact in large and deep opencast mine is on the ground water regime of the region. The water seeping into the mine and collected in the mine sump is partly used up in the mine and the excess amount is discharged into the surface drainage system [1]. The water used up in the mine for spraying on haul roads, conveyors, at loading and unloading points, bunkers etc. are lost by evaporation. A deep mine is likely to have longer haul roads requiring more spraying water. The water used for green belts and plantation areas are also lost by evapo-transpiration [2]. A part of the water discharged into the surface drainage system seeps into the ground and partially replenishes the loss of ground water caused by mine seepage but the proportion is generally very low. Many countries face the problem of over exploitation of ground water resources results in alarming lowering of water table [2]. The major focus is taken to estimating the water need and the mines for future to apply constraints on water use and discharge. The opportunity to re-use the water for drinking or agriculture purposes from surface and underground mines. Women in particular should be protected from potentially diminished water supplies. Mining companies should be a partner with the community in integrated water management. If mining diminishes the local water supply, then that water needs to be replaced [2]. To reduce the impact on the surface water bodies and surface drainage system, the surface layout for the underground and opencast should be planned and well managed. Underground and opencast mines should be planned with provisions for the development of underground and surface water bodies so that in the post mining period water in sufficient quantity is available for various uses [2]. In both the opencast and underground mines water is pumped out of the mines. This water should be planned for treatment so that the requirement for domestic and industrial uses can be met. Acid Mine Drainage Acidic water damages the water severely and produces water pollution problems. Acid Mine Drainage (AMD) refers to distinctive types of waste bodies that originate from the weathering and leaching of sulphide minerals present in coal and associated strata [2]. Environmental effects of AMD include contamination of drinking water and disrupted growth and reproduction of aquatic plants and animals. Effects of AMD related to water pollution include the killing of fish and loss of aquatic life and corrosion of mining equipments and structures such as barges, bridges and concrete materials [1]. AMD is the most persistent pollution problems in mines of North Eastern Coalfield. Generally, water quality characteristics of acidic mine water reflect high acidity and high hardness along with high iron and sulphate contents [2]. Various toxic trace/ heavy metals become soluble in acidic water and may be presenting significant to concentration levels depending upon their availability in the source material [1]. Fortunately the considerable majority of coal mining areas are safe and only in a few localized areas problem of AMD exists. AMD cripples the economy of mines due to compliance of stringent environmental standards and involves huge cost burden in its management [2]. Augmentation of pumped out mine water from coal/Lignite mines The mining industry has to discharge millions of litres of water every day to the adjacent watercourses and thereby may cause water pollution in and around the mining areas [2]. This water, otherwise a valuable water resource because of acceptable quality, becomes contaminated with various domestic and industrial trade effluents and subsequently is just wasted while putting on an extra cost burden on the underground mines [2]. Further costs are incurred on abstraction of water from adjoining surface water bodies containing this water and additional costs are required for the treatment to meet the water quality objective criteria [2]. It is emphasized here to augments and protects this precious ground water availability of nearly acceptable quality to meet various water demands particularly drinking water of already affected mining population [2]. Augmentation of pumped out mine water from coal/Lignite mines for various water supplies particularly for potable purpose should be the pri me goal of the concerned mining authority in the already drought prone thickly populated mining areas [2]. Heavy Metal Pollution The heavy metals are important component of pollutants which not only cause phytotoxicity but also enter into food chain causing hazardous impacts on human health and animals. Human biology is full of instances where heavy metals toxicity has led to mass death [2]. Heavy metal pollution is quite prevalent in acidic mine water situations. Mining and Milling operations, together with grinding, concentrating ores and disposal of tailings, provide obvious sources of contamination in the surface environment, along with mine and mill waste water. As a result, elevated levels of heavy metals can be found in and around metalliferous mines due to discharge and dispersion of mine wastes into nearby agricultural soils, food crops and stream systems [2]. Eventually, they may pose a potential health risk to residents in the vicinity of mining areas. The extent and degree of heavy metal contamination around the mines vary depending upon geochemical characteristics and mineralization of tailings. Water Pollution from seepage, waste dumps and mine benches Major water pollution problem occurs due to erosion of mine benches, overburden and reject dumps and failing dams [2]. The soil particles are carried away during the heavy rains due to deforestation and baring of ground. The blasted material in overburden and mine benches contain fine particles, which are also carried away by the rainwater [1]. Many chemicals also enter the water streams in dissolved state. These sediment-carrying effluents are responsible for siltation of agricultural fields and chocking of streams and rivers on the downstream. Surface and ground water pollution, is a common feature of mining and associated processing activities [2]. Runoff from dumps and exposed mine surface carries fine sediments in suspension, which is deposited on downstream valleys and agricultural fields. Impact of Coal Mine Fire Most of the coal mines are affected by fires which leads the steady destruction of energy resource. The reason for mine fires presumably involves the phenomenon of spontaneous heating through two interrelated processes viz., the oxygen coal interaction or oxidative process and the thermal process [2]. If the fire remains uncontrolled, it can spread further through the pathways and crack in the strata. Mine fires give hike to several environmental problems besides economic losses and safety hazards. Apart from direct losses due to burning of coal, the other associated hazards encountered are [2]: Gas poisoning Difficult geo-mining conditions Sterilization of coal Hindrance to production Explosions Damage structure and adjacent properties The adverse impacts of mine fires are observed on all the four basic components of the environment viz. Air, water, land and population. Mine fires pollute the atmosphere to a greater extent and have a bad impact on air. The effects are severe on air once the fire becomes surface fires. The pollutants released from mine fires mainly comprise of gases like carbon monoxide (CO), carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrogen oxides (NOx), sulphur dioxide (SO2), saturated and unsaturated hydrocarbons, hydrogen sulphides (H2S) and other photosensitive oxidants apart from particulate matter [2]. Un-burnt hydrocarbons in presence of NOx and other oxidants produce eye irritation. Impact of Mining on Land The type of mining operation used for extracting coal, mining constantly results in enormous land disturbance- e.g. large scale excavation, creation of derelict land, removal of top soil, dumping of solid wastes, cutting of roads, etc [1]. The mining industry is not eager to re-handle the overburden material for economic reasons but you can see in few cases they planned to re-handle the material to fill the empty space created at the end of mining, and probably this practice will become more common and spread in future. Opencast mining has bigger impact on land compared to underground mining. With new and improved technology, opencast coal mining is used commonly because it is cost effectiveness and productivity in large-scale land disturbance. Underground mining has considerably less impact than opencast mining on land [2]. The surface settling impose several damages to engineering structures such as bridges, highways, buildings and drainage besides interfering with ground water regime. Impact of Mining on ecology The mining results the significant area of land devalued and existing ecosystem are replaced by unwanted wastes. The extraction process of mineral drastically alters the biological and physical nature of the mining area. Commonly practiced strip-mining to recover coal reserves, causes extensive soil damage, destroys vegetation and destroy and alter microbial community. In the process of removing desired mineral material, the original vegetation is inevitably destroyed and soil is lost or buried by waste [2]. We are usually confronted with a complete absence of soil, in either a pedagogical or a biological sense, and what is left is just a skeleton full of limiting factors. Strip-mining can cause compaction, changes in soil texture, loss of soil structure and reduced water infiltration. In addition, steep-sided soil piles are prone to erosion [1]. The landscapes that emerge are devoid of supportive and nutritive capacity for biomass development. Several microbial processes such as nitrogen and carbon cycling, humidification and soil aggregation are practically non-functional posing scientific challenges in the restoration of rhizosphere productivity and fertility [2]. The devalued land does not posses suitable surface soil to provide bedding layer for anchorage of plant and to support the biomass. Also the plant growth is not supported due to presence of toxic materials gradual increase in such landscapes due to intensive mining activity endangers not only the agro forestry productivity but also the aquatic eco-systems [2]. Impact of Noise and Vibrations from Mining The mining activities produce enormous noise and vibration which establish a disturbance in the source. The blasting of hundred of tones of explosive is identified as prostrate noise in the mining area. In pit crushing system with mobile crusher and large capacity materials handling plants are being installed to facilitate speedy handling of large quantities [2]. All these activities are major sources of noise vibrations in and around the mining complexes. The major implication of noise is the potential hearing loss of human ear. The noise also produces other health effects, influence to work performance and makes communications more difficult. The wildlife in the forests and other areas surrounding are also affected by noise. The wildlife is more sensitive to noise and vibration as compared to human beings. Select all potentially noisy construction equipment and then consider the sound power level of the equipment and comply with the need to limit the noise in the mining area. If the operations have the potential to beak the specified noise limits or barrier then effective measures needs to be taken to ensure the sound power level is within the limits either by using different equipments which has less noise and while constructing the plant noise attenuation materials should be used to reduce the effective noise.

The Four Main Purposes Of Communication English Language Essay

The Four Main Purposes Of Communication English Language Essay Communication has been defined as the transfer of information and understanding from one person to another through the use of common symbols. Communication can flow upward, downward, and laterally, that is, from subordinates to superiors, from superiors to subordinates and from peer to peer. Most people want to be understood; they want to understand others; and they want to gain acceptance of their ideas. Rarely would a person deliberately not want to be understood; but even so, misunderstandings, incorrect communications, and failure to communicate can create confusion on a regular basis. Good communication is crucial to the success of both the individual and the organization. It doesnt matter how good a worker you are or how much you understand about the business if you cannot communicate properly. Objective 1. List the four main purposes of communication. We want to be understood; we want to understand others; we want to gain acceptance for ourselves and our ideas; and finally, we want to produce action. What does the phrase: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦as soon as you can get to it mean? Does it mean right now or as soon as you finish what you are doing right now or what? If your meaning and the other persons meaning are not the same, you may have the makings of a communications breakdown. Everything we say has at least three messages: What we meant, what we said, what the other person understood. Unfortunately, these three are not always congruent. An accountant made a mistake and he apologized thusly: I read 4, wrote 5, meant 6, and it should have been 7. Objective 2. Describe the six-step communication model and elaborate on each of its points. There are many different models of communication and each has its particular value. The model you have on page 66 of DuBrins book (10th edition) is a good one, but I would like to use another model because it has several things that are really valuable as we look at communication. We will refer back to DuBrins model a little later on. The model I want to present to you has six steps: ideation, encoding, transmission, receiving, decoding, and action. Notice in the comic strip that communications must start with a concept, that is, an idea, thus the term ideation. This first step takes perhaps a fraction of a second; and we can almost ideate and speak at the same time. Ideation requires imagination and experience because the more of each you have, the easier it is to ideate a message. The second step is encoding. This step requires putting the idea into some type of intelligible form so it can be transmitted. Writing a letter, framing a statement in your mind, determining (or even not determining) to communicate non-verbally-all these represent encoding. Consider the importance of education to encoding. Transmission is the third step; and it is the most visible and recognizable aspect of communication. Speaking, writing, and even non-verbal communication are examples of this step. The fourth step is receiving; and it is done by reading the letter, hearing the words, or sensing the non-verbal communication. Decoding, the fifth step, is the counterpart of encoding except that it is done by the receiver. Decoding requires taking intelligence from the message as it is received. This step is responsible for the majority of communications problems. The sixth step is action; if a message is received, then action of one sort or another must follow. Bear in mind that taking no action is one way of acting. M2.1 will help you understand this concept. Objective 3. Identify the different ways of communicating and list their advantages and disadvantages. Lets take the following means of communicating and discuss their advantages, disadvantages, and perhaps some suggestions for improving the communication in each medium. If you have additional contributions, we can discuss those as well. Telephone Written (memo, letter, instructions) Telephone (including voice mail) E-mail Face-to-face Objective 4. Explain the importance of non-verbal communication. Just as regular communication can take a variety of forms, so can non-verbal communication. We can identify several different kinds of non-verbal communication and each one may have some sub-categories. Here are some of the more common types of non-verbal communication: A local radio personality in Tyler, Texas, was hawking a used car lot and his statement was: I bought my last car from them. The obvious interpretation is that the last car he bought was from that dealer. What if he had put increasing emphasis on the last three words? Then it would sound like he would never buy another car from them. There are two main types of non-verbal communication: paralanguage and kinesics. Paralanguage is like language, that is, it communicates something, but not in words. It includes emphasis, vocalization, and pauses (or silence). You already know how adding emphasis to a statement (or parts of a statement) can add urgency to the message or even change the meaning. For example, if someone says, What do you think about it? he is speaking emphatically to you. Vocalization is an audible (or sometimes inaudible) component of a statement that carries meaning. For example, a laugh, a groan, or even clearing the throat can qualify as a vocalization if it carries meaning. A well placed pause can add a great deal to the message, such as when someone says, Im not saying he is dishonest, he is just (pause) creative in his dealings. Can you see the meaning the pause adds? Sometimes a question or a comment can be met with steely silence indicating displeasure with the message: Dad, can I go over to Joes house and smoke some marijuana? Kinesics includes deliberate gestures and other movements which might not be deliberate, such as stroking the chin, slumping, facial expressions, eye movement or body language. Please note that laughing, sighing, pausing, stroking the chin, or eye movement may be nothing other than what it seems. In order to be classified as non-verbal communication, the action must be a communication whether deliberate or non-deliberate. Some gestures might be perfectly acceptable in one culture and highly offensive in another. A television mini-series in 1986 entitled, On Wings of Eagles showed the daring rescue of some EDS executives held hostages in Iran. The man responsible for getting them out of Teheran told them, We need to get a ride, but do not stick out your thumb because that is an insulting gesture. The V sign can mean victory (as from Winston Churchill; it can mean peace, as with the 1960s peaceniks; or it can also be an insulting gesture in some European countries. Shifty-eyed is a label we would put on some gangster or someone not to be trusted. You can probably identify a number of other kinesics examples that add meaning or contradict meaning. Proxemics is communicating by space. Middle Eastern people prefer to get very close while communicating, but most westerners prefer a certain distance between themselves and the fellow communicator. Can you imagine what would happen if two people from these two cultures were trying to communicate and neither was aware of the proxemics preference of the other? Objective 5. Describe several ways you can improve your communications through using or not using non-verbal means. How Non-verbal Communication Helps How important is facial expression and eye contact in communication? You probably have heard the phrase, He can lie to you while he is looking you in the eye. It implies that the person is a skilled liar and that normally if a person is lying, he wont look you in the eye. Alternately, when someone says, I looked him in the eye and told him what I thought, that means he had the boldness to say what he really thought. Looking people in the eye is important because it conveys honesty and openness. Did you know that only 7% of your message is conveyed by words, while 38% is conveyed by your tone, and a whopping 55% is conveyed by body language. Did you know you cant turn your transmitter off? Even if you try not to communicate non-verbally, you are still communicating non-verbally. Read the document entitled, How to Understand Woman Talk. This is a set of hilarious definitions about how women communicate with men with paralanguage. You dont need to respond to this assignment; I just thought you would enjoy a good example of non-verbal communication. Recall our discussion of emotional intelligence in Module 1. The same general principle applies to improving communication by being aware of our non-verbal communication. If you are aware of what messages you might be sending, you can correct, delete, strengthen, or alter the message to suit your needs. I have been challenged in a meeting by a colleague who said, I can see by his facial expression that Tommy does not agree with this, but if he will hear me out, he may understand how my ideas will work. By the same thinking, if you can read non-verbal communication, you might know when to push or when to back off. Skilled negotiators know this very well, and you can gain an advantage in knowing what the other person is saying in addition to his words. Objective 6. Describe various ways to improve communications with superiors, subordinates, and peers. There is a concept called 3-D communication which describes how you communicate up, down, and sideways, that is, to superiors, subordinates, and peers. Consider the difference: Many people speak with a different style and a different tone depending on whether the receiver is a superior, subordinate, or peer. It seems reasonable to speak with respect to your superiors, but consider what would happen if you used the same degree of respect when you are communicating with subordinates Some wise person has said that one of your jobs is to keep your bosss boss off your bosss back. That is true enough and it is good advice. Here is a valuable tip that can enhance your relationship to your boss when you take a problem to your boss: State the problem. Provide some options. Make a recommendation about which option you recommend. Ask for his suggestions. Look what this process does: It shows respect for the boss by keeping him informed about the situation. It brags on you because it shows you have done your homework and you are not just being a whiny baby complaining to the boss. It shows your insight regarding a possible solution and your assertiveness in recommending it. At the same time, it shows respect for the boss by acknowledging the possibility that he might have a better idea or preference. Avoid Sarcasm Don Rickles has made a fortune by being sarcastic, but aside from him, no one benefits from sarcasm. Sarcasm is designed to hurt the other person. It serves no useful purpose, but it does inhibit communication by straining relationships unnecessarily. I cannot overemphasize the importance of respect and courtesy in communicating with others Objective 7. Describe the importance of feedback and how to cultivate it. DuBrin (10th edition, page 66) defines feedback as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦the message sent back from the receiver to the sender. That is a good, workable definition, but it is also limited. Certainly the idea of feedback implies sending something back, but you can get feedback on the quality of your work or someones idea of a new procedure. Even though different definitions exist about feedback, its importance cannot be denied. How do you give and receive feedback? Ask for it. This assumes that you have a relationship with the people from whom you are requesting feedback that they feel. Provide for it and be sensitive to it. Sometimes feedback is subtle; an employee might not be as friendly and as open as normal and you may suspect that some feedback is lurking in there somewhere so you may have to go back to #1. React honestly but diplomatically. Thats the dumbest thing I ever heard, will probably not get you the Supervisor of the Year Award. Listen to the feedback. It may be dumb, but you should not allow the employee to know you think that. Express appreciation and act on it. This does not mean that you must satisfy the employees desire, but it does mean you must do something and let the employee know. If you cant do anything, then also let the employee know that as well. Objective 8. Explain the term grapevine and distinguish it from rumor. The grapevine is an informal communications network. As a manager, you should not try to kill the it because you cant; and besides, it provides a good release of tension. Good or bad, grapevine is most active when formal communications are not forthcoming. You have probably experienced the grapevine via your e-mail. A large number of interesting things are spread indiscriminately that may have some truth, but to a large extent are not nearly as wonderful or as catastrophic as they first appear. I saw one recently about a giant oil and gas reserve in western North Dakota that was supposed to solve our energy need for the next 40 years, but the environmentalists have blocked its development. It turns out there is a oil reserve there, but it is not nearly as expansive as the grapevine had it. It wasnt a trillion barrels; it is more like 3-4 billion barrels and that amount would curtail imports for about one year./p> Rumor is different from the grapevine. Rumor is unsubstantiated hearsay and it does get put on the grapevine. Rumor has several characteristics: It is usually interesting Its source not identifiable and it is unverifiable It is somewhat ambiguous It usually has an element of truth What to do about rumor? Dont pass it along. Check it out. Provide honest and open communication. http://www.analytictech.com/mb119/grapevine-article.htm Susan Heathfield is a management consultant with strong credentials in corporate communications. She offers the following recommendations about rumor and gossip: Expect a certain amount of gossip; people want to know what is going on in their workplace, and they like to discuss work issues. The key is to know when the gossip is out-of-hand. You need to act if the gossip is: disrupting the work place and the business of work, hurting employees feelings, damaging interpersonal relationships, or injuring employee motivation and morale. If rumors and gossip seem to be rampant, you might want to look at them to see if there are recurring themes. It may be that you are not sharing enough information with them, or perhaps they dont trust you and are afraid to ask about important topics. Objective 9. Explain why listening is such a significant problem. Hearing is a physiological process involving sound transmission, nerves, the ears, and the smallest bones in the body: the ossicles, comprised of the malleus (the hammer), the incus (the anvil), and the stapes (the stirrup). Listening is a psychological process which requires focus as well as understanding, processing, and evaluation. Listening is work and many times we hear things, but we dont listen to them. You have heard the phrase, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦in one ear and out the other? That is an example of hearing but not listening. Most people think they are good listeners, but a study has shown that a 10% listening effectiveness rate is not rare at all; 25% is common; and anyone who thinks he listens at a 60% effectiveness rate is fooling himself. Listening is the first thing children learn but it is the last thing taught, if at all. We emphasize reading and speaking in our schools, but listening skills traditionally have not been taught at all. That is changing somewhat because people are beginning to realize the importance of good listening skills. Have you ever met someone and five minutes later you couldnt remember his name? Sounds like a memory problem, doesnt it? It is not a memory problem, it is a listening problem. You were so intent on presenting a pleasing personality and putting the best foot forward that you didnt have any room left for listening. Actually, you do have the room, but you have to give it some concentration and focus on listening to the persons name. Discuss situations in which listening was not done properly and situations in which good listening skills paid off and report the best examples. Poor listening skills is one of the biggest problems in business and industry today. Poor listening causes low productivity, low morale, broken relationships with peers, subordinates, and bosses. Most of us listen at about a 25% level of effectiveness. Thats not very good. Even when we really try, the best we can do is about 60%. Listening is one of the most important things that any of us-workers, parents, bosses, whatever-can do to improve relationships and to get the job done. Do you like people? Other than a few soreheads, most of us would say yes. If you like people, then you need to like to listen. Even though you may be rushed, even though you think you may not have time to listen, listening is absolutely vital to getting the job done and maintaining relationships with your co-workers. Listening problems include the following: Listening is work and most of us are somewhat lazy. If you dont work at listening, you will not listen well. Having said that, you cannot work too hard or you will be concentrating so hard on listening that you will not listen well. Listening implies passivity and compliance to many people and they want to be in control. Sometimes our listening consists of grudgingly remaining silent until we get our turn to speak. Emotions get in the way of listening. When someone says something that pushes our hot button, we can become so charged up that we dont listen. Objective 10. Explain the process of active listening. You may have heard the term active listening which is the same thing as reflective listening. This concept is a listening tool and a human relations tool. Reflective listening is based on the idea that if people keep talking, sooner or later they will see the solution to their own problems. In addition to that, it helps both speaker and listener to be sure that what was spoken was the same as what was heard. The process works by the listener (the supervisor, perhaps?) listening carefully, then paraphrasing back to the speaker what he heard, or in some cases just asking for more information or clarification. Heres how it works: a team leader complains to the supervisor about his teams failure to follow through on their assignments. That bunch of dipsticks; they never do anything right. Sounds like youre pretty upset with them. You bet I am. I cant get them to follow instructions. What Im hearing is that they wont do what you tell them, is that right? Sometimes using reflective listening makes the speaker compare the reflection with what he said. That may require the speaker to revise his statement to more accurately reflect what he meant. Here are some typical reflective listening phrases: What Im hearing you say isà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ It sounds like you thinkà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ So youre just wondering ifà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ You sound really disappointed. Reflective listening should not be used to diagnose the problem or to offer solutions. Additionally the listener should not make interpretations as to what he thinks the speaker is saying. The only thing the listener should do is offer a paraphrase of what the speaker is saying. Objective 11. Describe the keys to effective listening. Find areas of interest. You should make a decision when you are listening to someone. Either that person has something to say that you need to know or perhaps you should leave if you can do it diplomatically. Judge content not delivery. Sometimes people are not as articulate or as organized in their communications as they should be. It might be important to overlook the delivery shortcomings and focus on the message being sent. Hold your fire. People can really set you off by pushing your hot buttons. As a disciplined listener, you can deliberately choose not to get angry and just continue to listen. That does not make you a doormat because you can deal with the issues in an assertive, yet tactful way when it comes your turn to speak. Listen for ideas, not just information. Could the words be hiding something important? Later we will discuss the hidden agenda; and how you can deal with it. Work at listening. As we discussed earlier, listening is work and we need to know how much work to put into the job of listening. Remember that listening is faster than speech. Most people speak at about 150 words per minute (WPM). You can easily listen to speech at 450 WPM or even more with no loss in comprehension. That leaves a time differential that allows you to daydream and perhaps lose the train of thought or you can use the extra time to compare what the other person is saying to what you know, identify advantages and disadvantages, and identify the big picture and the supporting facts. Share your experiences on listening in M2.2. Objective 12. Describe why the concept of the hidden agenda is so important in communication. A hidden agenda is a matter which a person cannot or will not bring up, but which is causes him to do certain things or not do certain things. Examples of hidden agenda President Bush has been accused of having a hidden agenda with respect to the Iraq war. His critics say the real agenda was his desire to invade Iraq and get rid of Saddam Hussein; or for some, the real agenda was to seize Iraqs oil assets for the United States. The agenda he presented to the world was the imminent threat of Saddams weapons of mass destruction. Con artists are masters of hidden agenda; they gain your confidence and try to convince you that they are your friend, that they want to help you, but the real agenda is to steal your money. During the Viet Nam War, a leader in the anti-war movement said, If the Viet Nam War did not exist, we would have had to invent it. The hidden agenda here is, We must have something to protest or we dont exist. How should you handle a hidden agenda? First, you have to suspect it is there. If there is evidence that what the person is telling you is not what they really want to tell you, you can reflect back what they are saying.

Comparing Robert Frost and Emily Dickinson Essays -- Comparison Poetry

Comparing Robert Frost and Emily Dickinson as Poets Often, the poets Robert Frost and Emily Dickinson try to convey the themes of the meaning of nature, or that of death and loneliness.   Although they were born more than fifty years apart their poetry is similar in many ways.   Both poets talk about the power of nature, death and loneliness.   However, Dickinson and Frost are not similar in all poetic aspects.   In fact, they differ greatly in tone. Emily Dickinson and Robert Frost both talk about the power of nature in their poetry.   Dickinson uses this theme in her poem " `Nature' is what we see -."   The power of nature is strongly portrayed in this poem by Dickinson's articulation of what the speaker see's in nature.   " `Nature' is what we see -... / Nature is what we hear -... / Nature is what we know -" (277 lines 1,5,9).   Nature is everything to a person, it appeals to all senses.   Dickinson also says in this poem, "So impotent Our Wisdom is / To her Simplicity" (277).   The speaker is saying that nature has such great power that one can't even comprehend her simplest ways. In comparison ... ...89.   p466. ----- "Birches."   American Literature. New York:   Scribner Laidlaw.   1989.   p472,473. ----- "Fire and Ice"   American Literature. New York: Scribner Laidlaw.   1989.   p466. Freeman, Margaret. "Metaphor Making Meaning: Dickinson's Conceptual Universe." Journal of Pragmatics 24 (1995): 643-666. Nesteruk, Peter. "The Many Deaths of Emily Dickinson." Emily Dickinson journal 6.1 (1997): 25-44. White, Fred D. "`Sweet Skepticism of the Heart': Science in the Poetry of Emily Dickinson." College Literature 19.1 (Feb 1992): 121-128.

Analysis of Bulgaria :: Essays Papers

External historical events often changed Bulgaria's national boundaries in its first century of existence, natural terrain features defined most boundaries after 1944, and no significant group of people suffered serious economic hardship because of border delineation. Postwar Bulgaria contained a large percentage of the ethnic Bulgarian people, although numerous migrations into and out of Bulgaria occurred at various times. None of the country's borders was officially disputed in 1991, although nationalist Bulgarians continued to claim that Bulgaria's share of Macedonia--which it shared with both Yugoslavia and Greece--was less than just because of the ethnic connection between Macedonians and Bulgarians. In 1991 Bulgaria had a total border of about 2,264 kilometers. Rivers accounted for about 680 kilometers and the Black Seacoast for 400 kilometers. Ridges in mainly defined the southern and western borders high terrain. The western and northern boundaries were shared with Yugoslavia and Romania, respectively, and the Black Sea coastline constituted the entire eastern border. The Romanian border followed the Danube River for 464 kilometers from the northwestern corner of the country to the city of Silistra and then cut to the east-southeast for 136 kilometers across the northeastern province of Varna. The Danube, with steep bluffs on the Bulgarian side and a wide area of swamps and marshes on the Romanian side, was one of the most effective rivers boundaries in Europe. The line through Dobruja was arbitrary and was redrawn several times according to international treaties. In that process, most inhabitants with strong national preferences resettled in the country of their choice. Borders to the south were with Greece and Turkey. The border with Greece was 491 kilometers long, and the Turkish border was 240 kilometers long. Bulgaria covers approximately 110,550 square kilometers. Its topography is mostly hills combined with plateaus, with major flatlands to the north and the center of the country. Its main mountain ranges Balkan and Rhodope include two major ranges, Pirin and Rila. The climate is divided by mountains into continental and Mediterranean. The rainfall is very variable, with largest amounts in higher elevations. Its population estimate is 8,989,172. Its 1990 growth rate was negative .35 percent, and its population density eighty-one per square kilometer. Bulgaria’s official state language is Bulgarian. There is also a main national minority language witch is Turkish. Bulgaria has many different ethnic groups. The country is made up of 85% Bulgarians, 8.5% Turks, 2.5% Gypsies, 2.5% Macedonians, 0.

Retirement Revamping Essay -- essays research papers fc

Social Security is a major concern in American society today. Social Security first started in 1935 under President Roosevelt when he signed the Social Security Act that provided the elderly with guaranteed retirement income. In 1939, benefits for spouses, dependent children of retirees, and survivors of workers who die before retirement were implemented by congress. In the 1950’s, disabled workers were also given benefits. Now days, Social Security is under close scrutiny. Funds are depleting, and Social Security is in need of some serious revamping. Many solutions have come forth, but the most workable plan is to create privatized investment accounts that allow individuals to have more influence over their own money for retirement. (Weisman) In 2000, $402 billion dollars were spent to give over 45 million people benefits from Social Security. 63%, or $348 billion dollars, went to retired workers while the other 37%, or $54 billion dollars, was distributed among disabled workers and their families. As of 1950, there were 16 people paying Social Security taxes to every one retiree receiving benefits. Now, the ratio is at a dismal 3.4 tax payers to every one recipient. (Clayton) Projectionists are saying that with the current taxes and the current spending, more money will be paid out than brought in by the year 2016. In fact, some say the deficit will reach numbers totaling $17.4 billion in 2016. More over, if this trend continues, debt will reach $99 billion by the year 2020 and $271 billion in 2030; projections show that funds will be completely dried up by 2038 if nothing has still been done. (Weisman) Economists have several different proposals for how to fix the problem. Some say that individuals should have complete control over their money to invest in the stock market as they choose. They see investing some of Social Security in the market as the only way to eliminate the deficit. They say the deficit will soon increase with the baby boomers generation primed to retire in the next 12 years, and they believe the market is the country’s best bet to keep Social Security afloat. (Weisman) Others believe that just a few minor adjustments are needed to fix the problem. Ideas, such as the raising of maximum wages subject to a payroll tax and investing 15% of Social Security’s surplus in stocks, have been proposed to combine in the aid of eliminating the de... ...e implemented in the younger American generation. This will save social security for its future recipients and create a better foundation for the upcoming generation. The fact of the matter is, Social Security will change, and it must change or else retirement for all will cease to exist. Works Cited Clayton, Gary E. Economics Principles & Practices. Columbus, OH: Glencoe McGraw   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Hill. 2003. Feldstein, Martin. â€Å"Privatizing Social Security: The $10 Trillion Opportunity.† Social Security Privatization. 11 Nov. 2004. . Ferrara, Peter. â€Å"A Plan For Privatizing Social Security.† Social Security Privatization. 11 Nov. 2004. . Ferrara, Peter. â€Å"The Failed Critique of Personal Accounts.† 8 Oct. 2001. 11 Nov. 2004. . Orszag, Peter R. â€Å"Costs of Voluntary Individual Accounts for Social Security.† 5 May 2000.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  15 Nov. 2004. Rechtman, Yigal. â€Å"The Idea of Privatization.† Social Security and Privatization. 11 Nov. 2004 â€Å"Strengthening Social Security.† The White House. 11 Nov. 2004   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Weisman, Jonathan. â€Å"Bush Pushes for Overhaul; Others Say Go Slow, If at all†. USA   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Today.

Interpretation and discussion of results Essay

A. The Correlation Matrices: A. 1. The Pearson Correlation Matrix for the Combined Sample Data: Leadership, as defined and measured in the Baldrige Criteria (Peacock, 2006) is related to the other items which could be interpreted as priorities or concerns of the respondents surveyed. In other words, the sub-items defining Leadership such as Organizational Leadership and Social Responsibility were significantly correlated with the sub-categories (Peacock, 2006) under the other items including Strategic Planning (questions 11 to 16), Customer and Market Focus (questions 17 to 21), Measurement, Analysis, and Knowledge Management (questions 22 to 28), Human Resource Focus (questions 29 to 39), Process Management (questions 40 to 50), and Business Results (questions 51 to 63). Those questions are contained in Appendix A. Under the Baldrige Criteria (Peacock, 2006), there are 10 indicators defining Leadership including visible involvement in managerial activities such as goal setting, directing and performance audit; communicating values and customer focus; behavior modeling and motivating and empowering personnel; which fall under the sub-item Organizational Leadership. Governance concerns such as accountability, transparency, disclosure and stakeholders’ interests; appropriateness and effectiveness of leadership system; addressing adverse social impacts of products, services and operations; monitoring ethical behavior throughout the organization and community involvement; meanwhile fall under the sub-item social responsibility. These indicators serve as basis for measuring the leadership scores in the Baldrige Criteria (Peacock, 2006). Despite the significant correlation of Leadership with the other major items in the Baldrige Criteria (Peacock, 2006); however, the data set evaluated was combined for both the Others Group and the Leaders Group. There were thirty-seven (37) samples from the Others Group and seven (7) samples from the Leaders Group. The correlation tests conducted tended to support the hypothesis that individuals who scored high in Leadership, Item 1, also score high in the other items, from Item 2 to Item 7. The results suggested that Leadership, as defined and measured in the Baldrige Criteria (Peacock, 2006) is related to the other items which could be interpreted as priorities or concerns of the respondents surveyed as shown by Table 1. Table 1. The Pearson Correlation Matrix for the Combined Data Leader-ship Strategic Planning Customer And Market Focus Measure-ment, Analysis, and Know- ledge Manage-ment Human Resource Focus Process Manage- ment Item 1 Item 2 Item 3 Item 4 Item 5 Item 6. Strategic Planning, Item 2 0. 510 0. 000 Customer And Market Focus, Item 3 0. 341 0. 023 0. 237 0. 121 Measure-ment, Analysis, and Knowledge Manage-ment, Item 4 0. 656 0. 000 0. 575 0. 000 0. 291 0. 056 Human Resource Focus, Item 5 0. 718 0. 000 0. 449 0. 002 0. 259 0. 090 0. 590 0. 000 Process Manage-ment, Item 6 0. 518 0. 000 0. 730 0. 000 0. 334 0. 027 0. 738 0. 000 0. 536 0. 000 Business Results, Item 7 0. 387 0. 009 0. 409 0. 006 0. 413 0. 005 0. 196 0. 202 0. 271 0. 075 0. 353 0. 019 Cell Contents: Pearson correlation p-value Although the Pearson correlation test conducted tends to support the hypothesis of correlation of Leadership with the other items for the combined data set of the Others Group and the Leaders Group; however this does not tell us if there is any difference between the Others Group and the Leaders Group. Hence, Pearson correlation test was then conducted separately; one, for the Others Group and another, for the Leaders Group. A. 2. The Pearson Correlation Matrix for the Others Group: For the Others Group, the statistical test showed that Leadership, Item 1, had significant correlations with all the items from Strategic Planning, Item 2 to Business Results, Item 7 except for Customer and Market Focus, Item 3. Leadership, Item 1, had the highest correlations with Measurement, Analysis, and Knowledge Management, Item 4 (r = 0. 705) and Human Resource Focus, Item 5, (r = 0. 725), Table 2. Table 2. Excerpt from the Pearson Correlation Matrix for the Others Group Leadership Item 1 Item Strategic Planning, Item 2 0. 508 0. 001 Customer And Market Focus, Item 3 0. 316 0. 057 Measurement, Analysis, and Knowledge Management, Item 4 0. 705 0. 000 Human Resource Focus, Item 5 0. 725 0. 000 Process Management, Item 6 0. 562 0. 000 Business Results, Item 7 0. 333 0. 044 Cell Contents: Pearson correlation p-Value.

Australian Elections Essay

Institutional factors: Institutional factors relate to the type of the electoral system used in an election. Institutional factors that can influence the election include compulsory voting, the type of ballot, gerrymanders and malapportionment. Compulsory voting ensures 95 per cent of Western Australians participate in elections. However, it has been echoed by some academics that compulsory voting favors major parties. This is due to few people doing their own research into political parties and voting for parties they recognize through the media. The type of ballot used in an election has the most influence on the outcome. In a preferential ballot a seat has to be won by an absolute majority. Which gives an advantage to major political parties. However, in proportional voting a candidate has to get a derived quota to be elected. This means that a small party or independent can get elected with as little as 20% of the vote. Gerrymanders are also another major factor that can influence an election. Gerrymanders allow governments to redistribute electoral boundaries. Governments are then able to win more seats by reducing vote wastage in safe seats and shifting the wasted votes into marginal seats therefore giving them a better chance to win the marginal seats. This tends to favor the government because they have majority support to change electoral boundaries. Malapportionment is another institutional factor which may affect the election outcome. Malapportionment is a calculation used to even out an uneven distribution of population. This is done by increasing the power of votes in smaller districts. The problem with malapportionment is that it tends to favor the party or independent who exploits the weakness in the electoral system. Sociological factors: Sociological factors relate to the values and attitudes voters believe in. When voters are attracted to a particular party this is because they tend to support relatively the same values and attitudes. This will often lead the voter to vote for the party they are attracted to. The values and attitudes people obtain are often related to experiences the voter’s life. The biggest influence on values and attitudes of voters is their family. The fundamental sociological factors include socioeconomic profile, ethnic background, religion, geographical location, age and gender. Socioeconomic factors relate to a person ‘social class’. Social class structures of persons are generally divided by education achieved, employment category and income. Due to the recent blurring of policy in major political parities, voters have not been significantly polarized by the above three particulars. Therefore, socioeconomic factors don’t greatly affect election outcomes. Ethnic background relates to migrant origins. Origins of ethnic groups tend to reflect in political opinion. Trends suggest that ethnic communities that come from oppressive regimes vote on the left wing -Labor-. However, ethnic communities that migrate from democratic countries tend to vote right wing -Liberal-. Religion has become less of a factor in the outcome of an election. In the past religion has played a major role in Australian elections. This is due to mainly European migrants being either protestant or catholic. This division of religion ended in the 1940’s possibly due to World War Two. However, religious people generally cast a stronger conservative vote, relative to people with limited or no assimilation with religion. Geographic location in Western Australia has caused strong political divides. These strong political divides exist between the rural areas and the city. This division is due to different political and economic requirements needed by rural and city Western Australia. These different requirements have been around since foundation so the political division has always been prevalent. Age is an important aspect of the sociological factors. Mature age voters often support conservative right wing political parties. Where as, younger voters tend towards voting for left wing political parties. This trend for younger voters to elect left wing parties has been around since the 1970’s. Some of the early young voters stay loyal to left wing political parties. Gender in the last 30 years has played a prevalent role in Australia’s politics. This is due to the social revolution of the role of women. Women’s votes tend to be for a conservative party. Some psychologists believe this is because women reject change more then men. However, history has seen that women’s votes seen to have been arbitrary and lacking in trends. Political factors: Political factors fundamentally relate to the ability of political parties to make successful decisions. Political factors that may affect the election include the government’s record, opposition performance, economic management, leadership, the electoral campaign and media. The government’s record is an integral part of the party being re-elected. This is because re-election is a test to see if governments have avoided great controversy and delivered on performance. The examiners for the test are the voters. Great controversy can cause a government to lose an election. This is especially true when the controversy relate to money. This is because voters are scrupulous about were the money is being spent in the community. Performance of a government can be measured by how much they have delivered on pre election policy. If voters are disappointed about how much the government has delivered on policy they often wont trust the government for another term. Opposition performance relates to how weak or strongly the opposition party has performed. In order for an opposition party to gain votes and possibly win an election. The opposition party must successfully identify a policy weakness of the existing government. The opposition party must then develop alternative policy options for the voters. However, if an existing  government is clearly going to be defeated in the next election. The best tactic for an opposition would be to make few policy commitments. Economic management is possibly the greatest factor in elections. Economic stability and profitability in a government is fundamentally one of the most important issues. Profitability is more than just a government being in an account surplus. It also includes the ability of a government to provide successful funding to public systems. Stability refers to no great economic fluctuations. Voters lose confidence in governments if economic conditions are always changing. Leadership is important for a party. This is because often people look at the figurehead of the party, rather then the party as whole. Spin doctors or image consultants work on many factors of a leader’s profile. This is to make them as appealing to the public as possible. Leadership also includes how well the leader can hold the party together. This demonstrates a sign of strength to the voters. Strength alludes to the factors of authority and power. The electoral campaign decisions a party has to make include timing to start the campaign, advertising campaigns and areas to target. Timing to start an electoral campaign is important. If a campaign is to close to the election date key policy may not be heard by voters. If the campaign is announced too quickly it will give the opposition time to criticize the policy of the governments. Advertising is expensive and if it is done wrong it can be costly, however, if it is done correctly it can win an election. In recent times Mass media is a great way to advertise this is due to its impact and coverage. However, mass media advertising has to be carefully constructed, this is to minimize any chance of a mistake. Where to target advertising can also be an important decision. Parties often tend to heavily advertise in marginal seats, however, this policy has been costly. This is because other seats have lost support for the party and swung to another party. Media is seen as one of the greatest influences on modern politics. Due to the introduction of television and radio news about politics is always being  articulated. This is because people use media as the main medium to decide on political parties. However, recent pools suggest that media being so influential is overrated. This is due to free to air media needing to gain ratings to sell advertising. Thus, if a political party is unpopular it would not be in the media’s best interest to support the party. As the media could potentially lose ratings. It is echoed by John Willmott that media doesn’t set political opinion it just merely enforces it.