Transnational Crime Essay Example for Free

Transnational Crime Essay The documentary Life and Debt portrays a true example of the impact economic globalization can have on a developing country. When most Americans think about Jamaica, we think about the beautiful beaches, warm weather, and friendly people that make it a fabulous vacation spot. This movie shows the place in a different light, by showing a pressuring problem of debt. The everyday survival of many Jamaicans is based on the economic decisions of the United States and other powerful foreign countries. The film opens with camera shots portraying Jamaica as the beautiful and carefree place that most Americans view it as. The vast majority are oblivious to the fact that the delicious food they indulge in on their voyage probably came off a ship from Miami. In the 1970s, the countrys former Prime Minister signed a loan agreement which ultimately led Jamaica to owe over four billion dollars in debt to the World Bank and IMF. This ultimately caused a sinking economy of low valued imports and to sweatshops destroying local businesses and agriculture. In the video, we see workers who are working gruesome six-day-a-week work schedules to receive the legal minimum wage of only $30 in US money for the entire week. Many have protested against the poor compensation, and have been fired from their jobs; having been placed on blacklists which prevent them from ever getting work again. Many have turned to crime as a means of income. What Globalization Means Globalization is not a recent concept. It means that the worldwide, virtually instantaneous interdependence about many aspects of economic and cultural life within a nation or state has expanded across borders either intentionally or unintentionally. Now this nation or a states independence to control events within its borders is challenged by international corporations, economic globalization, trade, transnational crime and the increase in global communications and developments in technology. Ways in Which Globalization Increases Crime Streeten defined the components of globalization’s effects on the fundamental change in our lives as below: †¦additionally to economic interdependence in terms of trade, finance, direct investment, there are technological, educational, cultural, ideological, and environmental, legal, military, strategic and political incentives that are rapidly spread throughout the world. Money and goods, images and people, sports and religions, guns and drugs, diseases and pollution can now be moved quickly across all over the world. Although people in many places seem prepared to die for the better option, we can say that there is no absolute model of the state. While we are talking about the state and globalization, we face the same dilemma while discussing the family characteristics in the West. In other words, the traditional Western family model and marriage has lived through many changes, and faced irreversible damages. We cannot state how the family will be in the future. The only thing we can do is keep up old and traditional values. Similarly, states are seeing considerable elements of traditional statehood being eroded. Main Components The sum of the various elements of globalization has caused sovereign state less and less a locus of policy and control under some organizations such as the WTO, the EU, NAFTA. Those organizations have become more significant players in the world politics arena. Indeed, it will be increasingly difficult for our future civil servant to define what national and international dimensions of problems are. Main Actors More than 190 countries now take place in the political arena with a larger number of powerful non-sovereign and at least partly (and often largely) independent actors that at least partly, varying from corporations to non-government organizations (NGOs), from terrorist groups to drug cartels, from regional and global institutions to banks and private equity funds. The sovereign state is affected by them causing better or worse as much as possible. The monopolistic power once enjoyed by sovereign entities is now being eroded.

The Information Age †Broadening the Gap between the Have’s and the Have Not’s :: Exploratory Essays Research Papers

The Information Age – Broadening the Gap between the Have’s and the Have Not’s The rise of computer technology and the internet has had drastic impacts on how society now functions; it has become a major force in almost every aspect of society, from business, to entertainment, to education. The digital divide’s impact on education has completely changed the way students conduct their work, which has opened doors of knowledge for students that were once never considered possible, making the computer and internet an essential (and often the most important) tool for any student. But the rise of the availability of the computer and the internet has not been equally spread across the population, drastically disadvantaging some section, while giving other portions a somewhat unfair advantage. This is what is known as the digital divide, which is heavily present throughout North America , putting certain demographics at a disadvantage, while favouring others. The digital divide is formally defined as â€Å"the gap in Internet and computer usage between [the] rich and poor; anglos and minorities† (Straubhaar & LaRose, 5). This term became popular in the mid 1990’s, the same time as computers and the internet began to enter into mainstream society (Digital, 2004). The main minorities that are affected by the digital divide in North America are visible ethnic minorities, low-income families, the disabled, and the elderly. One of the main principles of the digital divide focuses on the every widening gap that is becoming more and more present across North America in the access and availability to computers and the internet. The reason why it is important to be aware of this gap is because the computer and the internet have become such an essential piece of what is now considered to be a ‘everyday’ technology. In developed countries, such as Canada and the United States ( North America ) computers and the internet have grown to become an almost essential technology. More and more jobs now require some sort of computer related knowledge or skills, especially in the professional field. Minorities are already under-represented in professional jobs, and the digital divide will help to continue that trend. If a certain minority group has little access to and knowledge of computers and the internet, they will be less likely to embrace it, and more likely to fear the technology, pushing them further down the ladder of ‘upward mobility’.

Png Lenor Case Study Analysis

Recommendations * Relaunch the 3:1 concentrate temporarily, but invest heavily in R&D for a more permanent solution * Aggressively re-launch 3:1 concentrate. * Advertise and emphasize on its environmental benefits due to reduced packing materials. * Focus on generating more sustainable solutions * Invest in R&D for adapting real eco-friendly solutions. Rationale * This form of product was already launched previously and has proven to be successful (people bought it for a 10 times higher price). It costs lesser to re-adapt to an older version. * People are more used to this version of packaging and can accept it better * Cost Savings can be re-directed to R&D to obtain a more sustainable solution * Doy Pouches and wax-coated cartons do not create an eco-friendly image * These new packaging's may create expectations of similar packaging for other products * These packages are not exactly sturdy and durable (leakage problems). The carton refill package resembles the milk carton packagin g which could face regulatory complications. Action Plan * Advertisements about 3:1 concentrate highlighting its supreme efficiency (maybe include some tangible R;D results to drive home the message) * Create awareness about the environmental benefits due to 45% package saving. * Invest heavily in R;D to develop eco-friendly degradable material (e. g..Bioplastics) * Create hype about the money saved by opting for the Lenor concentrate pack, being re-directed towards development of green packaging material that might be adapted not only across P;G products but across all plastic packaging. * Promote slogans and campaigns about P;Gs efforts to care for the environment * Create the image that by buying P;G products, people are indirectly investing in protecting the planet * Conduct feasibility analysis and take efforts to implement the new fully-degradable material across all products

The Invention and Development of Clocks and Watches

Clocks are instruments that measure and show the time. For millennia, humans have been measuring time in various ways, some include tracking the movements of the sun with sundials, the use of water clocks, candle clocks, and hourglasses. Our modern-day system of using a base-60 time system, that is a 60-minute and 60-second increment clock, dates back to 2,000 B.C. from ancient Sumeria. The English word clock replaced the Old English word  daegmael  meaning day measure. The word clock comes from the French word cloche meaning bell, which enters the language around the 14th century, around the time when clocks started hitting the mainstream. Timeline for the Evolution of Timekeeping The first mechanical clocks were invented in Europe around the start of the 14th century and were the standard timekeeping device until the pendulum clock was invented in 1656. There were many components that came together over time to give us the modern-day timekeeping pieces of today. Take a look at the evolution of those components and the cultures that helped develop them. Sundials and Obelisks Ancient Egyptian obelisks, constructed about 3,500 B.C., are also among the earliest shadow clocks. The oldest known sundial is from Egypt it dates back to around 1,500 B.C. Sundials have their origin in shadow clocks, which were the first devices used for measuring the parts of a day. Greek Water Clocks An early prototype of the alarm clock was invented by the Greeks around 250 BC. The Greeks built a water clock, called a clepsydra, where the rising waters would both keep time and eventually hit a mechanical bird that triggered an alarming whistle. Clepsydras were more useful than sundials—they could be used indoors, during the night, and also when the sky was cloudy—although they were not as accurate. Greek water clocks became more accurate around 325 B.C., and they were adapted to have a face with an hour hand, making the reading of the clock more precise and convenient. Candle Clocks The earliest mention of candle clocks comes from a Chinese poem, written in 520 A.D. According to the poem, the graduated candle, with a measured rate of burn, was a means of determining the time at night. Similar candles were used in Japan until the early 10th century. Hourglass Hourglasses were the first dependable, reusable, reasonably accurate and easily constructed time-measurement devices.  From the 15th century onwards, hourglasses were used primarily to tell time while at sea. An hourglass comprises two glass bulbs connected vertically by a narrow neck that allows a regulated trickle of material, usually sand, from the upper bulb to the lower one. Hourglasses are still in use today. They also were adopted for use in churches, industry and in cooking. Monastery Clocks and Clock Towers Church life and specifically monks calling others to prayer made timekeeping devices a necessity in daily life. The earliest medieval European clockmakers were Christian monks. The first recorded clock was built by the future Pope Sylvester II around the year 996. Much more sophisticated clocks and church clock towers were built by later monks. Peter Lightfoot, a 14th-century monk of Glastonbury, built one of the oldest clocks still in existence and continues to be in use at  Londons Science Museum. Wrist Watch In 1504, the first portable timepiece was invented in Nuremberg, Germany by Peter Henlein. It was not very accurate. The first reported person to actually wear a watch on the wrist was the French mathematician and philosopher,  Blaise Pascal (1623-1662). With a piece of string, he attached his pocket watch to his wrist. Minute Hand In 1577, Jost Burgi invented the minute hand. Burgis invention was part of a clock made for Tycho Brahe, an astronomer who needed an accurate clock for stargazing. Pendulum Clock In 1656, the pendulum clock  was invented by Christian Huygens, making clocks more accurate. Mechanical Alarm Clock The first mechanical alarm clock was invented by American Levi Hutchins of Concord, New Hampshire, in 1787. However, the ringing bell alarm on his clock could ring only at 4 a.m. In 1876, a mechanical wind-up alarm clock that could be set for any time was patented (No. 183,725) by Seth E. Thomas. Standard Time Sir Sanford Fleming  invented standard time in 1878. Standard time is the synchronization of clocks within a geographical area to a single time standard. It developed out of a need to aid weather forecasting and train travel. In the 20th century, the geographical areas were evenly spaced into time zones. Quartz Clock In 1927, Canadian-born Warren Marrison, a telecommunications engineer, was searching for reliable frequency standards at Bell Telephone Laboratories. He developed the first quartz clock, a highly accurate clock based on the regular vibrations of a quartz crystal in an electrical circuit. Big Ben In 1908, the  Westclox Clock Company has issued a patent for the Big Ben alarm clock in London. The outstanding feature on this clock is the bell back, which completely envelops the inner case back and is an integral part of the case. The bell back provides a loud alarm. Battery-Powered Clock The Warren Clock Company was formed in 1912 and produced a new type of clock run by batteries, prior to that, clocks were either wound or run by weights. Self-Winding Watch Swiss inventor John Harwood developed the first self-winding watch in 1923.