Friday, March 13, 2020

Causes of Depression in the 1890s

Causes of Depression in the 1890s Synopsis This paper provides acumen into the occurrence of the global depression of the 1890s. It is founded on the words of Henry Lawson ‘there is no prison like the city for a poor man.’ The introductory section provides a general explanation of the occurrence of the depression.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Causes of Depression in the 1890s specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The background information expounds on the various situations that led to the economic instability that resulted in a crisis. The rest of the paper then explains the specific causes of the depressions and its effects on white men and women. Introduction The 1890s marked a significant shift that caused a prolonged period of economic instability all over the world. The depression had severe implications on the lives of many communities globally. According to Rockoff, employment became a palpable problem due to the closure of gold mi nes and industries in various parts of the world such as Australia, Canada, and the United States1. Floating markets and flooding of both local and export products changed the trends of industrial production since consumers offered incredibly low prices in exchange for commodities. A variety of factors led to the depression of the 1890s. Generally, the depression led to global trade and industry volatility that broke many business interrelationships among nations. Inspired by the depression, Henry Lawson wrote ‘there is no prison like the city for a poor man’. In the light of these words, this paper reveals the causes of the depression in the 1890s and the effects it had on the white women and men. Background of the Depression During the last half of the 19th century, the world underwent a series of technological advancements that played a great role to change the way people lived. Himmelberg unveils that the advancement of the whaling industry together with the inventi on of petroleum revolutionised industrial activities2. This situation led to significant developments in mining and agricultural industries between 1870s and the late 1880s. Countries developed strong interrelations with the British and the European colonies whose financial support enabled the expansion of industries3.Advertising Looking for essay on history? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The enormous expansion of the mining industry attracted many people. For instance, the Chinese people immigrated to Australia to seek job opportunities in the gold mines. The discovery of gold resulted in the gold rush era that amplified the interest of other countries in Australia and the United States. Similarly, the agricultural sector also expanded. Production accelerated in textile industries, thus leading to increased exports to Britain, Europe, and other countries that formed huge markets for the growing industries. Some in dustrialising countries, especially Canada, the United States, and Australia gained significant global reputation after enjoying social, economic, and political stability. By the third quarter of1880s, developed economies had entered important business interrelations with these countries. Foreign investments in these countries became evident as alien powers ventured into the most significant economic sectors. British and European colonies continued to fund industrial activities that took place in Canada, America, and Australia. Generally, colossal developments in industrial technology and the acquired financial stability led to overproduction. As a result, export products flooded international markets. This situation reflected a decreasing demand for the products and a similar decrease in price. Apparently, debt was becoming a liability for industrialising countries. By the onset of 1890s, the foreign debt had exceeded the asset base. This situation marked the beginning of depressio n4. The British and European colonies withdrew the financial support they had been offering to support industrial production. Largely, they drained all their bank accounts and demanded repayment. The economic state of affairs worsened to the extent that the debtor nations could not repay the loans it had borrowed from the British and European capitals. What caused the depression? Causes of Depression in the 1890s Overdependence on Foreign Capital Although many developments occurred in the 1870s and the late 1880s, capital remained a problem to many countries. This situation led to borrowing across countries to satisfy the capital demands for the growing sectors of the economy. Many countries were still expanding their production capacities. For instance, Australia relied heavily on foreign capital from the British colonies.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Causes of Depression in the 1890s specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The Australian government needed money to expand the gold mines and/or boost the agricultural sector. Mining and agriculture were the main economic activities in Australia. They surpassed production in similar sectors in the United States. To resolve financial shortcomings, Australia borrowed hefty sums from the British colonies to fund the then ongoing industrial developments. Garrett, Kozak, and Rhine disclose that by 1893, the Australian debt exceeded its assets5.The government could not repay the overgrown debt to the British. As a result, British colonies withdrew their financial support from Australia. This situation did not only happen in Australia but also in the United States. The United States had inadequate capital to establish transport networks and gold reserves. As a result, the country relied heavily on European colonies for capital. The Europeans also ventured into the gold investments. By 1892, they had big shares in the gold market. The Europeans established their own banking systems in the United States to ease capital and profits transfer. However, the situation worsened as the United States debt increased to the point of no return. It could not pay back the loans to the European colonies. Consequently, the European investors withdrew the financial support and started exhausting the gold resources in a bid to have their capital paid back. By 1893, the United States entered a period of depression because of overreliance on foreign capital. Both conditions led to the depletion of gold mines in Australia and the United States. According to Himmelberg, the consequences of depleting the gold mines in both countries led to serious depressions that posed panic to the perpetuation of the economies6. Closure of gold mines became inescapable as both economies fell below production capacities. Many people lost their jobs and some foreigners began to flee back to their own countries while others migrated to other countries to seek employments. In dustrialisation and Overproduction Many countries underwent industrial transformation during the 1880s. Successful economies such as Europe and Britain overfunded the growth of industries and other developments in the lesser economies7. This favour led to overgrowth of industries. Due to technological innovation together with foreign fund, companies could handle higher production capacities. The dependency on foreign capital facilitated the ability of establishing more factories and mine plants. Mining was the most significant sector during the colonial period. The gold mines in Australia and the United States expanded significantly, thus attracting more foreign investors. The existence of many mining fields led to overexploitation of gold in Australia and America.Advertising Looking for essay on history? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Similarly, the abrupt expansion of the agricultural industry led to the flooding of agricultural products in both the local and foreign markets. Farmers used this opportunity to borrow massive loans to purchase efficient farm machinery that could handle commercial farming duties. Apparently, farmers used these foreign grants to enrich their farms with fertilisers and crop varieties. The use of advanced farming methods in the agricultural industry resulted in increased production of cereals such as wheat and maize for both local consumption and export markets. Similarly, the sugar industry experienced similar agricultural developments, with the United States leading in sugar production. Beef farming agricultural industries overstocked cattle. Overstocking led to the adverse degradation due to overgrazing. Livestock-related products also flooded the market. With many countries experiencing overproduction, many products from the industries flooded the local and the international market . This situation led to incredibly high supply of products with less customer demand. Despite the increased production of agricultural and mine products, countries suffered significant losses since both the local and export markets were flooded with products. The demand for products fell. This occurrence led to insignificant profits. In 1893, the booming business abruptly collapsed, thus resulting in an adverse depression8. Property Speculation Rainey reveals that the nature of business relations that existed between countries up to the late 1880s was highly speculative. The European and British colonies heavily funded investments in localities such as United States and Australia with the aim of reaping more profits in return. The invention of gold mines convinced the booming economies to fund vulnerable economies with foreseeable benefits. However, the anticipation of donor countries did not materialise in the 1890s. The speculative business led to blind funding by the European and British colonies without taking into account the future economic state of the productive countries. Despite the market fluctuations that existed during 1891, financiers provided enough running capital to ensure that the mine factories operated as usual. Sustained availability of capital led to increased supply of gold in the flooded markets, thus reducing the value of gold in the mid-1891. In 1892, the booming economic structure preceded the closure of many gold companies in Australia and the United States. The aftermath of the closure of companies let to the termination of many businesses that dealt with gold merchandise. The closure of the mine companies caused the fall of the North Queensland, Standard, and National Bank9. Further speculative ideals continued as banks were required to fund the ongoing projects, such as the construction of roads and railway lines. This decision marked a financial collapse that indicated a serious depression of the economy. Fragile Banking Structu re The banking system that existent prior to the 1890s depression suffered fragility10. The banking industry grew at the same time with the increase in economic activities. However, the banking system lacked insurance policies that could cover losses in case investors claimed abrupt repayment. The shifting economic state of affairs drastically manoeuvred the way banks operated. The rapid growth of industries in 1880s created a quick pace of development for the banks. Garrett, Kozak, and Rhine reveal that smaller banks had developed alongside the establishment of the National and Standard Bank in various parts of the world11. These banks literally offered unsecured loans at reasonable interest rates that farmers acquired easily. Therefore, the banking system enabled farmers expand production means. However, this trend directly matched the production levels that existed during the 1890s. The value for money deteriorated as a pool of commodities overcrowded local and export markets. Th e gold and silver standards caused monetary inflexibility in the banking system. The value for gold or silver determined the amount of other variables within the stock market. This inflexibility had a very poor implication on business transactions of the 1890s. Speculation of prices led to big losses for the banks. Unaccountable amounts of money that banks released to perpetuate circulation created severe banking instability. Bigham reveals that the significant decline of gold reserves in the United States led to the fall of the treasury. Many investors withdrew all their money from bank accounts. This occurrence led to the fall of many volatile banking institutions. Moreover, in the 1890s, banks and other moneylenders offered very low interest rates in a bid to persuade businesspeople and foreign countries to borrow loans. Garrett, Kozak, and Rhine state that most banking institutions believed that the circulation of loans meant big profits for investors since they would broaden th eir capital base, and in return borrow more loans12. This fiction had very severe implication on the economy. The circulation of loans did not eventually imply an increment in the gross domestic product. Instead, the strategy contributed to the fall of currency value and flooding of the export market, which was a clear indicator of a depressed economy. Poor Governance Perhaps, the overall cause of the depression of the 1890s was poor governance. The rarity of democracy shaped meagre governments. Corruption and lack of concern to state affairs led to irregularities in many sectors of the economy. Mostly, influential leaders and tycoons colluded to invest in the gold and silver mines. Individualistic interest in the high-profit gold and silver merchandise aggravated the urge to source for foreign capital. Governments strove to put high amounts of money into circulation without projecting the effect it had on the demand for future credit13. According to Grant, the effect of corporate g overnance across the globe had highly contributed to the fall of the economy14. The United States, Australia, and Canada engaged in hefty capital bonds with the European and British colonies. Peltzman accentuates that the government decisions led to disproportional growth of the economic sectors that eventually resulted in unbalanced international trade15. Government ignorance also contributed to the depression of the 1890s. For instance, Grant unveils a case in the United States whereby the National Bureau of Economic Research warned of a possible economic decline by the in 189316. However, the government was not concerned with the warning. Ignorance together with the lack of cooperation amongst government officials grouped them according to opinion. The situation resulted in the execution of half-baked decisions that led to economic flux. Effects of the Depression on White Women and Men Underemployment and Unemployment The state of prolonged economic instability led to underemploy ment. Many industries were forced to scale down the wages of their workers in an attempt to resolve the financial stalemate that was getting out of control. The rapid influx of new immigrants from foreign countries increased the population, especially the white settlers who had immigrated to seize job opportunities in gold and silver mines. Initially, the availability of workers weakened the power of bargaining that led to poor salaries. However, the continued depression resulted in unemployment as companies continued to close down. Eventually, governments closed down major sectors of the economy that led to loss of employment for many people17. According to Bigham, over five hundred banks across the world were closed while fifteen thousand other businesses terminated their operations18. The rate of unemployment surpassed ten-percent during the depression period. White women who had acquired jobs in the textile industry lost their jobs after the crash of the cotton market. McMahon a rticle gives an elaborate picture of the status of white women during the depression19. On the other hand, white men worked mostly in the gold and silver mines. The gold and silver market fell drastically with the decreasing demand for export products. Evictions Prior to the 1890s depression, Spencer and Huston confirm that the white settlers characterised the gold fields and arable farms around the world20. White women and men who had settled on foreign lands in search of employment began living in the fear of violent reactions from the natives. White tenant farmers were evicted from the farms. During the start of the depression, many white settlers who worked in the mine industries and banks lost their jobs after the closure of such business activities. This situation compromised their way of living in foreign lands since they could not afford to pay rental fees. Tenants threatened to close down apartments since most of the tenants were unable to raise rental charges. The worst ex periences happened to the white women who had accompanied their husbands in search of a living in the gold-rich localities. During the depression, many women had conflicts with the apartment owners and police. After the eviction from the farms, women struggled to seek food and shelter for their children21. The situation marked the growth of slum settlements that were quite affordable. Incapacity to Support Family The depression made life more difficult for families22. Parents who had lost their jobs in the terminated businesses could not provide adequate basic needs for their families. The situation was worse on women than on men. As Kendall confirms, white women who mostly worked in the farms had no other alternative than to stay at home to take care of the children23  24. Faced with unemployment, many white families disintegrated as men left their families to search alternative means of survival. Some women engaged in prostitution and extramarital relationships with wealthier me n to take care of their children. In addition, the harsh climatic conditions predisposed children and their mothers to diseases. Because of poverty, the kids suffered childhood diseases such as kwashiorkor and marasmus. Their mothers could not afford hospital services. Conclusion Although there is adequate documented literature on the cause of the 1890s depression, there remains unanswered questions about the control measures that previous governments had set in place to regulate the economic growth. The crisis was neither the first nor the last in the world history of economic depressions. Despite the six-year economic fall, governance did not change significantly. Perhaps, similar political opinions led to the Great Depression. However, the notorious times heightened social thoughtfulness as people became interested in modern civilisation. Leaders, especially in the United States, Canada, and Australia, began exercising liberalism on major economic business activities. The conside ration of public opinion in formulating government decisions began to make sense in the economic sector. Banks adopted better ways of money lending and investment. Nevertheless, the situation never improved as every person had thought. The product markets remained unpredictable, with elements of poor leadership flourishing in an unstable economic state. Bibliography Bigham, Darrel. Epilogue: From the 1890s to the Great Depression. Ohio River Valley: University Press of Kentucky, 2005. Garrett, Thomas, Andrew Kozak, and Russell Rhine. â€Å"Institutions and Government Growth: A Comparison of the 1890s and the 1930s.† Review 92, no.2 (2010): 109-119. Grant, Roger. Self Help in the 1890s Depression. Ames: Iowa State University Press, 1983. Himmelberg, Robert. The Rise of Big Business and the Beginnings of Antitrust and Railroad Regulation, 1870-1900. New York, NY: Garland, 1994. Kendall, John. Poverty and Government in America: A Historical Encyclopaedia. Reference Reviews 24, n o.5 (2010): 26-27. McMahon, Kathy. The Invisible Women of the Great Depression. Web. Merrett, David. â€Å"The Australian Bank Crashes of the 1890s.† Business History Review 87, no.3 (2013): 407-429. Peltzman, Sam. â€Å"The Growth of Government.† Journal of Law and Economics 23, no.2 (1980): 209-287. Rainey, Sue. Challenges and Triumphs The 1890s and Beyond. Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press, 2013. Rockoff, Hugh. â€Å"The Great Fortunes of the Gilded Age and the Crisis of 1893.† Research in Economic History 28, no.3 (2012): 233-262. Spencer, Roger, and John Huston. â€Å"The ‘Taylor Rule’ and Three Monetary Regimes. Studies in Economics and Finance 20, no.2 (2002): 78-101. Footnotes 1 Hugh Rockoff, â€Å"The Great Fortunes of the Gilded Age and the Crisis of 1893,† Research in Economic History, 2012, 233. 2 Robert Himmelberg, The Rise of Big Business and the Beginnings of Antitrust and Railroad Regulation, 1870-1900 (New York: Ga rland), 1994. 3 David Merrett, â€Å"The Australian Bank Crashes of the 1890s,† Business History Review 87, no.3 (2013): 407. 4Himmelberg, 13 5 Thomas Garrett, Andrew Kozak, and Russell Rhine, â€Å"Institutions and Government Growth: A Comparison of the 1890s and the 1930s,† Review 92, no.2 (2010): 110. 6 Himmelberg, 24 7 Merrett, 413 8 Rockoff, 237 9 Garrett, Kozak, and Rhine, 114 10Roger Spencer, and John Huston, â€Å"The ‘Taylor Rule’ and Three Monetary Regimes, Studies in Economics and Finance, 2002, 81 11 Garrett, Kozak, and Rhine, p. 114 12 Ibid, p. 115 13Spencer, and Huston, 79 14 Roger Grant, Self Help in the 1890s Depression (Ames: Iowa State University Press, 1983), 54. 15 Sam Peltzman, â€Å"The Growth of Government,† Journal of Law and Economics 23, no. 2 (1980): 209. 16 Grant, 55 17Garrett, Kozak, and Rhine, 113 18 Darrel Bigham, Epilogue: From the 1890s to the Great Depression, (Ohio River Valley: University Press of Kentucky, 2005) , 34 19 Kathy McMahon, The Invisible Women of the Great Depression 20 Spencer, and Huston, 81 21Sue Rainey, Challenges and Triumphs The 1890s and Beyond (Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press, 2013), 219. 22Spencer and Huston, 79 23John Kendall, Poverty and Government in America: A Historical Encyclopedia, Reference Reviews, 2010, 26 24 McMahon, Para. 2

Wednesday, February 26, 2020

Always a Bridesmaid Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Always a Bridesmaid - Essay Example As she endeavours to make sense of her life, Davenport interviews elderly women who never married and her own mother who once was much sought after. Their stories provide the hilarious part as well as the drudgery in the film. The topic is all about marriage. The documentary is told from the filmmaker's point of view. Growing 30, she is terrified of ending up alone. Working as a wedding videographer, Nina confronts her fears, all the while asking why in the first place she has complicated her life with a noncommittal boyfriend who is five years younger. She cross-examines love interests that died down, interrogates fidgeting brides, including her increasingly nervous boyfriend and gathers advice from many quarters. Coming to terms with her deeply conflicted feeling towards weddings, she feels greatly that she is meant for spinsterhood, but has a burning lust for the opposite sex. Seeing weddings now and then as a videographer only reminds her of this internal battle. This film may be analyzed using the theory of Relational Dialectics. The theory of Relational Dialectics is that of intimate communication taking place in close relationships. Baxter and Montgomery developed this theory in the late 1980's and the early 1990's. The dialectical perspective is that the partners are constantly adjusting to the presence of oppositional, relational forces (Montgomery, 1993). There are many different aspects o

Sunday, February 9, 2020

Juvenile delinquency Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Juvenile delinquency - Research Paper Example Statistics showed that the young people are the ‘most active part of the population involved in illegal activities’ based on different forms of risks factors such as peer pressure, lack of parental or adult guidance, etc. thus, resulting into different forms of crimes such as substance abuse, and even murder in the most serious case scenarios (2005). Juvenile delinquency is an issue that affects both the legal and social aspects of the society. Although the problems related to delinquent behaviors can be rooted to the biological risk factors and parental supervision, the solutions undertaken by the society transcends the boundaries of personal and family life. The legal aspects and the establishment of the juvenile justice system can be considered as the main intervention established by the social and political leaders to resolve the problems related to juvenile delinquency. Juvenile justice is directly related to juvenile delinquency on the precept of finding solutions to the problems related to the latter. The main focus of juvenile justice includes the crimes that are committed and/or affected the youth. These cases had been recorded through history and each period had established certain rules and guidelines to handle these types of problems but the cases of problematic youth still continue. Based on the work by William Sanders in 1970, it had been de noted that juvenile offenders of the law had been recorded for 1000 years and such problems had been known even earlier (Shoemaker and Wolfe, 2005, p.3). The juvenile justice had started prior to the formal establishment of juvenile courts. During the early part of history, e.g. the era of feudalism, social control can be considered as the most stringent in every aspect of the society. Due to the social structure, the family was considered as the basic unit of social control. But

Thursday, January 30, 2020

Career Paper Essay Example for Free

Career Paper Essay Professor Jane Andrews Success in College Career Paper A police officer is something I have always had an interest in becoming. Law enforcement is an exciting career that can open many doors to different jobs, from patrolling the streets to protecting important political figures. Police officers are an essential part of the communities in our nation, offering citizens protection from criminals, preventing crimes, and serving the members of their community. A police officers duties, among other things, include patrolling a specific district or beat, writing citations when necessary, offering escorts for convoys, responding to citizens emergency calls, severing warrants and subpoenas, and writing incident reports after a crime has been committed. 1 An essential characteristic of a police officer is physical stamina, physical and mental endurance, and the ability to keep a calm head. These are just a few of the many duties and essential characteristics of a police officer. A police officers work environment can vary greatly, either being out on patrol or in an office, either writing reports or viewing bulletins. Out on patrol, an officers work environment is his or her patrol car. A patrol car has all the devices necessary for an officer to execute his or her duties. It will contain a radio, a mobile laptop, which is used to run license plates, do background checks, and receive directions to the locations of 911 calls, and weapons, such as a shotgun, to be used in hostile situations. A police officers work environment will vary depending on his or her pecific duties. Becoming a police officer is a physically demanding process. Many people choose to first obtain a college degree in criminal justice or sociology, because it can help you become a higher rank and opens the options to work for higher authority agencies. The basic requirement for becoming a cop are to be free of any felony convictions, be a citizen of the United States, be at least 18 years of age, undergo background checks, and be free from any physical, emotional, or mental condition which might adversely affect the exercise of power by the peace officer. These requirements may vary slightly from state to state, but one that is consistent is that everyone must attend police academy. Police academy is an essential step in becoming a police officer. By graduating from police academy, a person becomes post certified, which is a requirement to become a police officer anywhere. 3 At the academy, a person will take courses on firearms training, patrol techniques, crimes scene procedures, and brain training courses, which train an officer on how to react mentally in certain situations. Physical fitness tests are an essential part of the academy, with strict requirements for both male and female requirements. Being a police officer requires both mental and physical toughness. A career in law enforcement can bring a variety of pay amounts. A standard patrol officer makes on average $34,000 a year. 4 Working for different agencies can bring different pay ranges, anywhere from $25,000 a year to $100,000. A police chief will earn towards the upper end of this range. All police officers will be members of a police union, the largest being the International Union of Police Associations, or the IUPA. 5 Being a member of a union brings benefits such as higher wages, health insurance, and a pension plan. Being a police officer is not one of the highest paying jobs staring off, but with the right promotions, one can earn a very high salary. Being a police officers is a career that is always in demand. In 2010, there were over 750,000 jobs for police officers.

Wednesday, January 22, 2020

Im Not Really Like That, Am I? :: Men Women Female Male Macho Essays

I'm Not Really Like That, Am I? Once upon a time . . . Who am I kidding? It was yesterday. I was reading the article "I'll Explain It to You," by Deborah Tannen. Now I'm a male and I'll have to admit, I feel like I've been persecuted. She claims men can be macho, dominating, and self-centered with a woman during a conversation. I feel this is a horrible stereotype to give us. We don't really act like that. To prove my point I'll use a conversation I had with three other people: two girls and another guy. Now this conversation will clearly prove that we (men) aren't how Tannen describes us in her article. Before I describe the conversation, I should begin by talking about some of the situations that led up to it. For instance, I came up to the group of people wanting to speak to my friend. He wasn’t doing much of anything, besides sitting on a couch. So I sat down beside him and I started to have a conversation with him. Now I noticed that the two girls, who were sitting on the couch beside him, were attractive so I began to speak a little more openly. This encouraged the girls to join in (my plan was just starting). They became interested in what we were talking about and began to give their opinions on what we were discussing, which leads into the discussion . . . The topic of this conversation was relationships. When the girls became interested they asked, "What are you guys talking about?" My friend answered, "Women, and how they play with our minds." Now see, two guys can have a perfectly meaningful conversation without degrading anyone. Of course, I then asked one of them if she would like to play with my mind, but that just got us off track of the conversation. Oh, no! I just proved one of Tannen's point's by making a joke. Not only a senseless joke, but a macho joke. Tannen claims that men tend to tell more jokes than women during conversation. According to the article, telling jokes can be a way of negotiating status (266). The article also claims that because women do not care if they hold center stage in a group, they are less likely to use jokes as a form of getting their audience's attention. So, I guess by telling my flirtatious joke, I demonstrated how men like to hold control of a conversation.

Tuesday, January 14, 2020

Deforestation in Amazonia

The Amazon rainforest is the world's largest rainforest situated in Brail of South America and consequently suffers the most deforestation in the world. Deforestation is the cause for the destruction of the Amazon and rapidly becoming the most reliable method for access to resources such as wood. The countries of Amazonia are poor, less developed countries that rely on the resources of the Amazon rainforest to become richer, more developed countries. However, some people think that they can only do this by destroying the rainforest forever. The trees of the rainforest can be sold for wood (timber). This timber is in great demand in economically developed countries like Britain, Japan and USA. Accordingly, as it is in great demand, there are many advantages as well as disadvantages of the deforestation of the trees in the Amazon. There are many people that have an interest in the rainforest such as the large companies in the developed countries who buy the raw materials such as the wood from the rainforest. The business of trade of the materials would most likely improve the developing countries like Peru and Brazil as the government would profit exceedingly and could use the money to build roads or provide the materials for buildings and schools or hospitals as a way to improve the country. As the company will be a transnational company, there will be many, many jobs created in both the developing and developed countries involved in the business thus improving the standard of living for many people in both types of countries. Nevertheless, the destruction of the rainforest will be vast and this use of the rainforest will not protect the forest. Other types of people that might be interested in the rainforest are the owner and workers of a saw mill. The owner would gain from his business and would also place many local people in employment. This would improve the local people's standard of living however, the mill would not help the entire country to become more developed. Similarly, this use of the rainforest will not help protect the rainforest however, the destruction of it would not be on such a large scale as the large companies' use of the forest. Landless farmers would be under the impression that they would also benefit from the deforestation of the forest land. One of the government's plans to improve the country is to give landless farmers a way of living by encouraging them to set up small farms on land which has been deforested. The landless farmers accept the land as the government provides it for the cheaply. However, as a result of deforestation, the land has become useless as the soil is infertile and vulnerable to erosion due to the equatorial climate. This means that Brazil would not become more developed because the landless farmers will not have the land suitable for growing crops therefore their standard of living will remain poor, adding to the poverty of the developing country. Subsequently, Brazil is left with the destruction of deforestation and useless soil that cannot be recovered in addition to the problem of damaged scenery, all of which does not protect the Amazon rainforest. One point to be considered is that the jobs created will economically develop the country because tax will be introduced and the government could benefit from the tax money to improve the country by building schools and hospitals etc. so in one way, the poor countries would become more developed. If the land that has been deforested due to timber being in great demand economically is turned into cattle ranches and plantations, local people would benefit from this as many jobs will be created. Workers will improve their standard of living from this as plantations will allow vital crops such as sugar, coffee and rubber plants to be grown. These raw materials can be sold to economically developed countries, however, growing these crops will be a slow process and the workers would not benefit straight away. On the other hand, the local tribes like the Kayapo would be against the deforestation of the rainforest completely as their way of living and cultural traditions are destroyed because they are forced off the land to make way for new developments resulting in loss of homes and therefore poor standards of living ensuing again in the poverty of the country. Natural conservationists and tourists would be against this use of the rainforest because rare animal species would become extinct, as well as rare plant and tree species being destroyed. For this use of the rainforest to be sustainable, far less trees would have to be destroyed. Statistically, approximately one in twenty trees is of economic value, while the rest are destroyed for no reason, leading to the extinction of rare species of plants and trees, which the natural conservationists would be against. To maintain sustainability of the rainforest by using it for the timber, large companies who buy the raw materials could only cut down the trees of economic value rather than destroying others. Also, removing the deforested trees results in other plant life to be destroyed as roads have to be built and vehicles have to be brought into the rainforest to remove the trees. Residents of the forest are aware of the circumstances and have found others ways to remove the trees without destroying others. Buffaloes have been used to drag the trees out, without the need to build roads. However, using buffaloes to remove the trees would be slow development for the government so a few roads could be built. Another use of the rainforest is for valuable minerals. Under the forest lie huge amounts of valuable minerals like iron ore, bauxite and gold, some of which are vital to daily life. These valuable minerals are sold to economically developed countries. The developing country would profit from the sale of the minerals to more economically developed countries for the reason that the demand for the minerals is high from developed countries as they are so vital. Not surprisingly, deforestation is the method used to access these minerals, causing masses of destruction. Nevertheless, large companies in the developed countries who buy the raw materials from the rainforest will still favour the use of the rainforest to extract valuable minerals. Besides destroying the land under which the minerals lie, room has to be made for the power stations needed. Extracting valuable minerals such as bauxite which is aluminium need hydro-electric power from these power stations. One advantage of this use of the rainforest is that electricity can be provided for the local people as well as for the extraction of minerals. This therefore helps part of the country to become more developed as many homes would have the basic amenities that a home in the developed country would have. Another advantage of this use of the rainforest is that again, many jobs will be created for the local people to work at the sites. Jobs will be created in order to build the power stations, to build roads so that access to the rainforest is easy as well as for the removal of the trees. Jobs will imply a better standard of living for the people of the country. However, there are many disadvantages of the use of the rainforest in this method. The deforestation process leaves the soil useless as it becomes infertile and insecure. This is because the roots of the trees once held the soil together, to prevent it from collapsing, and a lot of the nutrients in the soil were also provided by the trees. In this way landless farmers are once again left not benefiting from this use of the rainforest. Deforestation also adds to the problem of the destruction of the scenery which natural conservationists and tourists of the rainforest would be against, and also because of the extinction of a variety of different species of animals and plants. The deforested land could then be used for cattle ranches which a few local people would profit from because jobs would be created on the ranches. There would also be one problem that the workers would face on the cattle ranch. As the land has been deforested it will be unlikely that grass will grow which is vital to the cattle for grazing. Therefore the cattle would not be as healthy and the food produce from the cattle would not be as appealing to the richer countries. . However, this problem is only small scale and the grass would grow back eventually. For that reason, workers on cattle ranches would be in favour of this use of the rainforest. On the other hand, workers on plantation farms would find it difficult to grow fundamental crops such as sugar, rubber, and coffee plants as the soil would be infertile. Similarly, the local tribes of Amerindians would be against this use of the rainforest as they do not benefit from deforestation because of their traditional, cultural and social way of living from the trees in medical ways as well as having animals to hunt for food. To maintain sustainability in the rainforest using this method of extracting minerals from the rainforest extraction of the minerals could take place in parts of the rainforests which have already been deforested as a result of timber trade rather than deforesting new areas of the rainforest. Another way is that when the soil is dug up after the extraction, people could find a way to return the nutrients back into the soil for example by using artificial fertilisers. However, this proves to be tremendously costly for the government as millions of acres of land would need to be covered and this would not benefit the country if the money was used on the fertilizers rather than developing it into a richer country. One other use of the rainforest is for tourism. The rainforest can be kept as it is and used as a tourist attraction. Visitors from the richer, developed countries would visit to see the great variety of plants and animals. As opposed to the other uses of the rainforest, this use of the rainforest will not be favourable to many of the different types of people interested in the forest. As the tourists would like to see the forest in its natural habitat, they would be against the idea of abusing the rainforest's nature by taking advantage of the land it covers and the crucial resources it provides. However, some deforestation would need to take place in order for the tourists to see the rainforest. Roads would have to be built to provide access to the forest. Lodges would have to be built for the tourists to stay in, which will have to include the basic amenities such as electricity and hot water. In order for these to be provided water and electricity systems will need to be accessible in the rainforest which could cause some deforestation. Local people would benefit to some extent from tourism because they could sell food products such as fruits and meat etc. from the forest to the tourists or provide the tourists with places to stay and this could improve their standard of living slightly. However as the scale of tourism in a natural place such as the rainforest is extremely diminutive, it is highly likely that the local people would not benefit as much from the use of tourism in the rainforest as using the rainforest to extract valuable materials or for selling timber. Many people such as the owner and workers of a saw mill, landless farmers, and owners of cattle ranches alongside the large companies in the developed who would want to buy the raw materials from the forest would be against this idea of conserving the forest for its natural purposes because they would not profit from this whatsoever. The rainforest land would have to be kept undisturbed. This use of the rainforest will not help the developing country to become more developed as tourism of the rainforest is of such a small scale that the whole country will not benefit from it. On the other hand, tourism of the rainforest does help protect the Amazon since people want to tour it in its natural condition. The idea of ecotourism introduces sustainability of the rainforest, however to maintain this sustainability of the rainforest, tourism would have to be limited. If the tourist industry were to grow in the rainforest, much more land would need to be deforested to make way for developments such as hotels, roads, shops etc. as this would attract more visitors from richer countries. This would also bring out the multiplier effect which is when an economic activity creates extra employment, expanding more economic development. This is also a method that could help to improve developing countries. In my opinion, for the development of the rainforest to be sustainable in order to allow many uses of the rainforest to gain access to the resources of the rainforest without destroying it forever, all of the above uses should be limited to a certain amount. Total neglection of the devastation done to the rainforest is not the solution. There is also the problem of the change in the climate caused by deforestation, for whatever reason, whether it is to extract minerals or to sell timber, to be considered when dealing with the issues of deforestation. However as timber is such a vital resource for everyday life virtually everywhere in the world, deforestation cannot come to an end immediately because of the timber being such a reliable source. My opinion suggests that limitations should be introduced so that deforestation can be easily managed, for example, restrictions should be made on how much land can be deforested each year and which areas of the rainforest deforestation can occur. If the area contains many rare species of trees and animals then deforestation here should not be allowed, to prevent the species from becoming extinct. To make this idea even more sustainable, the government should consider replanting in the areas deforested after making sure not too much damage was caused to the soil. As well as timber being an essential resource taken from the rainforest, minerals also have a particularly great impact on our everyday lives as these minerals are turned into valuable substances such as aluminium and priceless gold for jewellery. Again, destruction of the rainforest cannot be completely stopped in this situation because of the essentiality of the minerals, nevertheless, it can be limited. Areas can be restricted from mining sites to decrease destruction. Many people could argue here that more land would be needed if all the minerals in that area have been extracted. Interestingly, the solution to this has already been introduced and encouraged by many: recycling. Most of the materials can be recycled such as aluminium from the bauxite extracted as well as the iron and this environmentally friendly method could cause less destruction of the rainforest. My idea also suggests that although ecotourism is the most eco-friendly and causes the least destruction, this should also be controlled. To maintain sustainability of the rainforest without entirely abandoning ecotourism, restrictions should be made on exactly how much development of the tourist industry should be allowed in the rainforest. Although the country will become further developed with many jobs created and tourists from developed countries staying in hotels many shops set up profiting from tourism etc, problems such as the destruction of the rainforest will arise from this. More land will be required for this sort of development and this will cause more devastation of the rainforest, making it unsustainable. Therefore restrictions would preserve the sustainability of the uses of the rainforest without causing future harm to the rainforest itself. Fencing off areas that have restrictions from extracting minerals and slashing trees for timber is another way to make sure that ecotourism will be persistent in the rainforest as they fenced off areas will be preserved for the tourists, plus natural conservationists will be satisfied as well. In conclusion, my proposition is better than others as my solution maintains the development of many of the uses of the Amazon rainforest without causing too much destruction because I have made limitations to each use of the rainforest to maintain the sustainability of the rainforest's natural environment.

Monday, January 6, 2020

Random Science Facts and Trivia

Everyone knows a few fun random facts they can pull out as a party trick or a conversation icebreaker. Here are a few more to add to your collection. Although some of these facts are strange and obscure, they are 100% verified, so rest assured that youll be sharing solid information at that party. Rotation of Earth Did you know that the Earth rotates a full 360 degrees in 23 hours, 56 minutes, and 4 seconds, not 24 hours? Cataracts Sometimes the crystalline lenses of elderly people become milky and cloudy. This is called a cataract, and it causes partial or complete loss of vision. Berry Interesting Did you know that pineapples, oranges, and tomatoes are actually berries? Pure Gold Pure gold is so soft that it can be molded with your bare hands. Real Life Dragons The Komodo dragon is a renowned giant, with the average male measuring around 8 feet long; some exceptional individuals reach 10 feet long. It is the heaviest lizard of all, with an average weight of 130 pounds and some reaching nearly 180 pounds. Thats So Nuclear The word nuclear is related to the nucleus of an atom. It is often used to describe the energy produced when a nucleus is split (fission) or joined with another (fusion). Hes Lost It Did you know that a cockroach can live for nine days without its head  before it starves to death? He Said No Did you know that the physicist Albert Einstein refused the job of president of Israel? Einstein was asked to be the president when the Israeli president died in 1952. Old Guys The earliest cockroach fossil  is about 280 million years old, 80 million years older than the first dinosaurs. Newts Are Neat Newts are members of the salamander family. They are found in North America, Europe, and Asia. A Little Lithium in Your 7UP? The original formula for 7UP contained lithium citrate, a chemical used today as a treatment for bipolar disorders. The ingredient was removed by 1950. How Many Lightbulbs... The tungsten filament inside an incandescent light bulb reaches a temperature of 4,664 degrees when turned on. Blue as Turquoise Traces of copper  are what give turquoise its distinctive blue color. Brainless Starfish, like many radially symmetric animals, do not have brains.