The Facts Behind Distracted Driving Debate Essay

The Facts Behind Distracted Driving Debate - Essay Example But not for the better it seems. According to a nationwide insurance study, 20 percent of drivers are either sending or receiving text messages while at the wheel of a moving vehicle. Even more startling is the information that these numbers increase to 66 percent when the driver is within the age range of 18 to 24 (Schulte). A sector of our society believes that teenagers are unfairly targeted in these experiments simply because they are young and often impulsive in their actions when at the wheel of their cars. But the reality of the situation is that these figures accurately describe the driving habits of some teenagers within the aforementioned age bracket. In fact, during a simulated test conducted by Car and Driver Magazine, the results of the distracted driving tests showed that when driving unimpaired, a person (regardless of age) requires at least .54 seconds to brake, while it took an average of 36 additional feet for a driver who is reading an email while at the wheel to c ome to a full stop. But more worrisome is the fact that an additional 70 feet of braking room is required by a driver who is composing a text while navigating a car (Austin). People who consider themselves experts at texting while driving claim that they always keep the additional space between them and the next car in order to allow for the required braking distance in the event of an emergency. However, this safety measure becomes irrelevant and useless considering the fact that these people still maintain their normal driving speed while multitasking at the wheel. These road hazards compose 73 percent of the distracted drivers on the road according to statistics from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration – a statistic that results in 89 percent of road accidents involving other cars per the collated data from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (â€Å"Facts about Using Cellphones While Driving†). Those drivers who consider themselves at multitask ing are not familiar with the five second rule. It only takes five seconds for one to take his eyes off the road and end up in a fatal accident with another car. That translates to at least 23 percent of all vehicular accidents caused by drivers whose eyes were taken off the road in order to respond to or read a text message. We can explain it in more visual terms this way: a car can travel 70 miles an hour, the equivalent of 100 yards, or the length of a football field. A distracted driver can cover that distance in 5 seconds (Wilkins). Most teenagers view their lives with a sense of invulnerability. They are adventurous and always willing to push their limits just to see what they can get away with. The most adventurous kind tends to think in terms of â€Å"It can never happen to me† when it comes to possible life altering situations. One of these cautionary tales is from a widely publicized 2008 texting while driving fatal car accident. Writer Bret Schulte retells the stor y as (â€Å"Outlawing Text Messaging While Driving†): A fiery crash made headlines in June when five female friends died in a collision with a tractor trailer just a week after graduating from their suburban Rochester, N.Y., high school. Police discovered the teenage driver had been texting moments before the crash. Similar accidents are happening with increasingly regularity nationwide. The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety further solidifies the sense of invincibility carried by most of the teenagers with

Incremental Advances in WTO Negotiations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Incremental Advances in WTO Negotiations - Essay Example Agricultural Export Subsidies and Cotton The final declaration requires elimination of agricultural export subsidies by 2013, a date agreed to the European Union (EU). The EU is important to be considered here as it accounts for about 90 percent of such spending. The US along with the developing countries were thinking on lines of 2010 as a deadline as they believed it could suffice better progress. The declaration requires elimination of export subsidies on cotton maximum by 2006. this issue is particularly important for West Africa. The U.S. Congress is likely to repeal U.S. cotton export subsidies already, in order to come in line with an adverse WTO dispute-settlement panel ruling. It would accord them duty-free, quota-free access to cotton from the lesser developed countries. However, this can practically only take effect once implementation starts on any final agreement reached in the Doha negotiations. It states as an objective that any negotiated cuts in domestic support spending for cotton farmers in countries that have such programs would have to go deeper and be put into practice faster than any other domestic agricultural subsidy cuts. The U.S. delegation worked intensively with mediators from Burkina Faso, Benin, Mali, Chad and Senegal; countries that had threatened to block any Doha agreement without acceptable resolution of the cotton issue. Everyone wants to reduce subsidies and eventually eliminate subsides in agricultural goods, was the general impression at the conference. But here was the argument whether this should be true for all agriculture except cotton, or otherwise. Ultimately, cotton has finally been placed with the rest of its agriculture fraternity. Duty-Free, Quota-Free Market Access The declaration requires the provision of duty-free and quota-free market access for most products from the 32 least-developed countries by 2008 or no later than the start of the implementation period of any agreement. It requires such access for at least 97 percent of products as that fall in line with the tariff schedule. The United States had pressed for exceptions to duty-free, quota-free for specific products that already trade competitively on the global market. The United States has not decided on what products it might exclude from duty-free, quota-free treatment.Sugar may or may not be one possibility.Earlier in the week it was suggested that other possible exclusions, including certain competitive textile products from Bangladesh and Cambodia may be considered. The Doha negotiations have languished almost since they were launched in 2001, with an impasse over politically difficult agriculture issues blocking most other progress. By the end of 2006, they are scheduled to conclude a deadline of sorts for the United States, which has trade negotiating authority from Congress only until

Blue Jeans - American Cultural Artifact Essay Example for Free

Blue Jeans American Cultural Artifact Essay Blue jeans in the last thirty years have attained such world wide popularity that they have come to be considered an American icon. However jeans have not always been held in high stead, but rather have had a troubled history including its beginnings within the working class movement, being considered unsavory by religious leaders and also seen as a rebellious statement about ‘western decadence’. According to the University of Toronto, no other garment has served as an example of status ambivalence and ambiguity than blue jeans in the history of fashion. Throughout this essay I will discuss how jeans have become such a common treasured and even expensive item crossing over class, gender, age, regional, and national lines as reflected by the many changing political views and acceptance from various social classes over the past 50 years. History of Blue Jeans According to the University of Toronto, blue jeans were originally created for the California coal miners in the mid-nineteenth century by the Morris Levi Strauss, a Bavarian immigrant who relocated to New York in 1847. Mr Strauss’ fate and the history of clothing changed forever when in 1872 he received an offer from Jacob Davis, a tailor from Reno Nevada. Mr. Davis, in order to improve the durability of the pants that he made for his clients, had been adding metal rivets to the highly stressed seams. The idea was successful and he wished to patent it, but due to financial constraints required a partner and hence Levi became the financial backer and partner. In 1873, the new partners received a patent for â€Å"an improvement in Fastening Pocket-Openings†, and thus the history of blue jeans as we know them began. Blue jeans were originally called â€Å"waist overalls† by Levi Strauss and Co and in the 1920’s these were the most widely used worker’s pants in America. The name of these trousers changed to â€Å"jeans† in the 1960’s when Levi Strauss and Co. recognized that this was what the product was being called by the young, hip teenage boys. The history of waist overalls continues as the history of blue jeans. Jeans is now generally understood to refer to pants made out of a specific type of fabric called denim (Fashion Encyclopedia). Blue Jeans through the decades The popularity of blue jeans spread among working people, such as farmers and the ranchers of the American West. According to the Encyclopedia of Fashion, in the 1930’s jeans became so popular among cowboys that Wrangler formed just to make denim work clothing for those who rode the range. Jeans have tended to follow along in popularity with popular culture as evident with the popular Western films which found adventure and romance in the adventures of the cowboys who rode horses, shot bad guys, and wore blue jeans. Those who wished to imitate the casual, rugged look of the cowboys they saw in films began to wear jeans as casual wear (Fashion Encyclopedia). This effect is not hard to understand, as even today fashion trends are greatly influenced by what highly publicized celebrities choose to wear. During World War II blue jeans became part of the official uniform of the Navy and Coast Guard, and became even more popular when worn as off-duty leisure clothing by many other soldiers. In his book, â€Å"Jeans: A Cultural History of an American Icon†, James Sullivan states that the rise of the popularity of jeans after the WWII can greatly be attributed to the influence of the film and music industry, during the 1950s many young people began to wear jeans when they saw them on rebellious young American film stars such as Marlon Brando and James Dean. By 1950, Levi’s began selling nationally and other brands started emerging, such as Lee Coopers and each with its own particular fit (Sullivan 287). According to the University of Toronto, in the 1960’s and 1970’s jeans were embraced by the nonconformist hippie youth movement, and the history of blue jeans even gets linked to the downfall of communism. Behind the iron curtain, jeans became a symbol of â€Å"western decadence† and individuality and as such were highly sought. Jeans had become extremely popular, but were still mainly worn by working people or the young. In the 1980’s through to the 1990’s jeans were no longer seen as rebellious or a source of individuality, but they were transformed as the term ‘designer jeans’ was discovered. Many designers such as Jordache and Calvin Klein came on board to create expensive jeans and some jeans even reached haute couture status (Fashion Encyclopedia). In the new millennium denim is seen on designer catwalks and there are now hundreds of styles, types and labels available and of various price ranges. Changing Popularity According to Peter Beagle in his book â€Å"American Denim: A New Folk Art†, the popularity of jeans can be attributed to the fact that jeans can be seen to embrace the American democratic values of independence, freedom and equality. Some Americans even consider jeans to be the national uniform. Blue jeans have evolved from a garment associated exclusively with hard work to one associated with leisure. What began as work clothes has transformed into one of the hottest items available on the consumer market today. What was once apparel associated with low culture has undergone a reversal in status. Blue jeans were the first to accomplish a rather revolutionary cultural achievement bringing upper class status to a lower class garment. Conclusion At one point or another throughout history, blue jeans have been the uniform of many groups and are considered the one garment of clothing that has remained hip for over a century and has survived everything from World War II to the eighties. For half a century blue jeans have helped define every youth movement, and every effort of older generations to deny the passing of youth. Fifty years ago America invented the concept of teenager, and it is probably no coincidence that the enduring character of blue jeans, claiming independence and the right to self-expression, can be traced to the same time. Jeans were once seen as clothing for minority groups such as workers, hippies or rebellious youth, but are now embraced by the dominant American culture as a whole.

Historical Background Of Lokoja Environmental Sciences Essay

Historical Background Of Lokoja Environmental Sciences Essay If a legal institution has life, it is delivered when an urge for public discipline begins to overtake events SALVATORE .J.NATOLI. Zoning was born out of such a concern for the unplanned and undisciplined growth of cities, zoning has become almost as ubiquitous as cities themselves. Over time, and through past prudent land planning decisions, thats the topographic organization of the campus has influenced the location of various campus functions. Though the sectors are interrelated, each has unique characteristics and specific planning priorities. A successful university campus embraces the physical context in which it resides, understands the various forces that shape its edges and mould its core, and incorporates community representation and constituencies into its planning processes. Land use zoning for institutions has been seen in the past to foster successful interactions with all who use it and simultaneously convey unity in its visual appearance with a sense of adventure and discovery. University should be cohesive in its organization while remaining open and inviting at its perimeter. By zoning, the environment communicates the importance of university in our society through its unique sense of place and academic traditions and provides the critical con tinuity between the past and future. University should convey a sense of dignity while celebrating the nobleness of its purpose. In supporting the basic missions of the university and providing a variety of venues for numerous events and other activities, the distinctive qualities of the physical environment are meant to provide an atmosphere conducive to intellectual discovery and interaction as well as repose and contemplation. A well planned campus should promote curiosity, discovery, and inspiration. The interest for this study is to balance the needs of Federal University Lokoja. Studies have shown that the initial visual impression of a campus has notable influence on prospective students when making decisions about attending a university. Perceptions of the campus environment depend on the qualities of the landscape, buildings, and the spaces between them. The research study intends to look on how land use zoning contribute in providing mechanism for the coherency of purpose and direction, which will result into an efficient, safe, and visually attractive campus environment with a view to convey and celebrate a sense of arrival for members of the campus community as well as for visitors. The role of land use zoning in improving the qualities of the physical environment of an institution, as a unity of visual character, a unique sense of place, and the activities that are encompassed on the main campus , which will provide an exceptional asset to the city, the region, and Nigeria as a whole. The contribution of higher education institutions to regional development is a theme which has attracted increasing attention in recent years. Currently, it is expected that the role of the institutions is not only to conduct education and research, but also play an active role in the development of their economic, social and cultural surroundings. In view of this, land use zoning for Federal University Lokoja permanent site cannot be compromised. This study attempt to make a proposal of land use zoning of permanent site of the Federal University Lokoja using map produce with the use of geographical information system and computer aided design to harmonize the activities of land use in the institution in order to mitigate the spillover effect of the existing land uses in the surrounding environment. 1.2 Statement of problems As population and human aspirations increase, land use zoning for institutional uses is seen as an important tool to mitigate the negative effects of land use and to enhance the efficient use of resource with minimal impact on future generations. An effective zoning system promotes the future of physical development of a University which makes it to be sympathetic and respectful of the residents, business establishments, and other interests that surround it. Due to the dire urge for a rapid development, the Kogi State Government through the Ministry of Environment and Physical Development now Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development empowered the Ministry to embark on the preparation of various Layout plans and Planning Scheme. This is to address critical planning issues in Lokoja, like housing supply for both private and public use or acquisition, provision of office accommodations, through the identification of land area that are most suitable for such needs. Hence the resultant Layout plan and planning schemes spread across the metropolis. However, some of the planning schemes have either been distorted or abandoned due to the fact that most of the basic infrastructural facilities such as roads, drainages, electricity supply e.t.c within these schemes are left unaddressed. Due to the rapid urban growth of the town, there are many un-planned rural-urban fringe within Lokoja. This un-controlled land use has resulted in illegal construction of houses and construction on drainage channels and other areas not fit for residential construction. This is common in places like Felele, Adankolo and SarikinNoma areas among others. The stress can be displayed on the traffic congestion usually along the Okene-Abuja Express road; this congestion is associated with the already existing Kogi State Polytechnic and Lokoja International Market. The road over the years has become too narrow, with no space enough for cars to pull off the road (i.e., park) and the space for pedestrian (walk way) is almost disappearing. This congestion is further compounded when luxurious buses and tankers travel through the roads which also house the permanent site of the Federal University. Noise pollution is a major factor in the study area due to the quarry activities carried out along the Crusher Village by the Gitto Construction Company. They create a lot of negative impact on the environment due to the effect of blasting of rock by the Company. Disturbance in various forms is associated with this zone and makes the environment unfriendly. As a result of the impact highlighted above, these call for concern in order to mitigate the spillover effect of the land uses associated with the surrounding environment of the institution. 1.3 Aim and Objectives Aim The aim of this study is to prepare a proposed land use zoning plan for Federal University Lokoja permanent site in order to mitigate the spillover effect of the existing land uses. Objectives The objectives of the study include the following, To ensure that the proposed land use zoning fit in with existing situation of the site and the surrounding environment. Make provision for future development that will key in into the aim and objectives of establishing the institution. Integrating the four categories of land uses relating to an institution (the civic administrative core, the academic zone, the student residential zone and the staff residential zone) to be functionally efficient and logically organized in accommodating a variety of needs and users. Make recommendation that will enhance the functionality of the institution regarding to the proposed land use zoning. 1.4 Scope of study The scope of this project is to prepare a proposed land use zoning for Federal University Lokoja permanent site, located along Okene-Abuja Road Felele covering the entire area and integrating the four categories of land uses relating to an institution (the civic administrative core, the academic zone, the student residential zone and the staff residential zone).In order to make recommendation that is aimed at improving the growth and development of the institution, the study shall be limited to the permanent site of Federal university of Lokoja which falls within 16km radius of Lokoja with a total land area of 798.52 Hectares. 1.5 Justification There are significant reasons why this research is justifiable, the point of call is to serve as a guideline to those involved directly or indirectly with the development of campus. The institution being newly established, different proposals will spring up as to what the institution would look like in terms of planning. In view of this, a proposed land use plan for the permanent site of the university will go a long way in guiding the institution as to what kind of land use zoning pattern in terms of planning the institution would like, broaden their horizon as to what facilities and services, is suitable for a particular area and what are the prospect of sitting it there. This research will go a long way in addressing issues regarding to land use zoning for institutions, due to the fact that most institution are usually faced with following zoning problems that includes, what type of land use zoning is required, is it adequate to address the requirement, is there a system for land use zoning, is it aimed at reducing risk while accommodating future growth and what is the institutional mechanism for implementation of zoning. 1.6 The study area 1.6.1 Historical background of Lokoja Lokoja is one of the ancient towns in Nigeria. The town assumed metropolitan status from pre-independence days, harboring many Nigeria ethnic groups. It is both the administrative and commercial capital of Kogi state, the most centrally located state in Country. The state is located between Latitude 70 47 N and Longitude 60 46E.Wth an annual growth rate of 2.5% raised the population by 1996 to 49,258. The original settlers of Lokoja were the Bassa-Nge arriving in 1831 and followed by the Oworos in 1970, Akamisoko (2002). Since then, different ethnic groups have peopled the town. The present Lokoja comprises of, in addition to the Bassa-Nges and Oworos, the EgbirraKoton, Hausa and several Nupe language groups, Kakanda, Kupa and Egan. Other Nigerian ethnic groups found in Lokoja include Yoruba, Igbo, Tiv and Igala as well as, many slave aborigines of Sierra Leone origin (being a former slave depot); Alaci (2009), Lokoja is therefore cosmopolitan in nature. The socio-political prominence of Lokoja dates back to the 18th century British exploration, culminating in the arrival of Williams Balfour Balkie to the Lokoja in 1860. Lokoja has since been an important commercial settlement which compose of liberated Africans, immigrant settlers and indigenous populations who were encouraged to move down the top of mount Patti, thus Lokoja was transformed from a transit trading point to a viable commercial center for European firms in the early 1860s. The ancient town was originally ceded in 1841 to the British by the Attah [King] of Igala and was selected to be the first British Consulate in the interior (1860-1869) and subsequently, the Military headquarters for Sir George Goldies Royal Niger Company (1886-1900). With this status, the town witnessed an upsurge of diverse ethnic groups who settled in Lokoja to exploit the benefits acquired from European activities. Lokoja therefore, became a melting pot for a collection of diverse ethnic groups. Lokojas fame however, began to decline in 1904 when its military headquarters status was moved to Zungeru, which was further north but was restored when Lokoja became capital of the British Northern protectorate and remained a convenient administrative town for the British colonial government after the amalgamation of Northern and southern protectorate into one nation called Nigeria in 1914. The first Governor General, Lord Frederick Lugard therefore ruled the new nation of Nigeria from Lokoja. Formerly the capital of Kabba province, it was later a Divisional and Local Government Headquarter in Kwara State. Lokoja remained part of Kwara State up to 1991. During these periods several layout plans were prepared to suit Lokojas status and most of these plans were known as Town planning Schemes (TPS) or layout plans (LP).Preparation of the schemes was centered on areas known as Government Reserved Area (GRA), where most top government officials and Europeans lived. By the 27th of August 1991, the status of Lokoja was boosted when new states were created and Lokoja became the capital of the new Kogi state. This necessitated the enacting of an edict declaring Lokoja Metropolitan Area; this was put at 16km radius around the town centre marked by the General post office as the centre of the radius. C:UsersbilyyPicturesloja.PNG FIG 1.1; MAP OF NIGERIA SHOWING KOGI STATE (source: internet) C:UsersbilyyPicturesloja2.PNG FIG 1:2: MAP OF KOGI STATE SHOWING LOKOJA L/GOVERNMENT (source: internet) 1.6.2 Geography of Lokoja Climate: The site has a tropical climate that comprises of two season namely dry and wet seasons. The wet seasons starts from the month of April and ends in October, while the dry season starts from November and continues till March. The two seasons are affected by the south-westerly winds coming from the Atlantic Ocean and north-easterly winds which come from the Sahara Desert. Another weather phenomenon (micro climate) is associated with the presence of inselbergs. This feature exerts an influence on local weather greater than their size. Wind Dust: Two major air masses dominate the climate of the study area. These are the Tropical Maritime air mass and the Tropical continental air mass. The Tropical Maritime is formed over the Atlantic Ocean to the South of the country and is therefore warm and moist. It moves inland generally in a South-West to North-East direction. The Tropical Continental air mass is developed over the Sahara Desert and is therefore warm and dry and blows in the opposite direction, (north-east to south-west). The oscillation between these two air masses produces high seasonal characteristics of weather conditions in the country. The Tropical Continental air mass is associated with the dry season and the Tropical Maritime air mass creates wet season. Rainfall:s There are two seasons, dry and wet; the dry season lasts between October and April in each year while the wet season lasts between May and September. The annual average rainfall ranges between 1000 mm and 1500 mm while the mean annual humidity is about 70%. Humidity and Temperature: The highest temperatures in the study area always tend to occur at the end of the dry season close to the spring equinox. Thus March has the highest temperature of about 34.5o C , while the lowest temperature occur in the middle of the dry season in December/January, when outgoing radiation is encouraged by low humidity, clear skies and longer nights. The temperature at this time falls as low as 22.8o C. In the dry season there is a decrease in relative humidity from south to north in the study area caused by the higher elevation in the north. In the rainy season, this variation disappears and associated with the high relative humidity is an extensive cloud cover over the region. Geology: The geology are dominated largely by rocks of basement complex which consists of the varied assemblage of coarse grained porphynitic granites, dissected by pegamateric dykes and reins, iolite-horn which has undergone varied degrees of metamorphosis. Vegetation: The vegetation of the study area falls within the Guinea Savanna belt of Nigeria. This vegetation type has many variants, affecting both the floristic diversity and the structural appearance of the plant communities. Equally, there are several Forest Reserves in the study area and some of the notable economic trees that can be found in the reserves include Iroko, Mahogany and Obeche. Human activities have however altered drastically the natural vegetation especially in the central zone where urbanization and mining activities predominate. Since Lokoja became an administrative headquarters of Kogi state in 1991, it has been experiencing an explosive population increase which had also led to expansion with significant changes in its physical landscape-land use cover types over the years. The built-up area, vacant land, cultivated land and other land use types increased in the study area at the expense of vegetation cover. For example in 1987, the vegetal cover was about 42. 21km2 and by 2005, it had reduced to 8.41km2. (Alaci and Amujabi). Soil: The soil within the study area is mostly loamy having composition of silt, sand and clay. The surrounding hilly area like Mount Patti is composed of igneous and metamorphic rocks belonging to the basement complex. Out of this majority is composed of mica-schist gneisses and Meta sediments. Weathering of these materials from the plateau gives them a thin soil cover that is being washed down by erosion to give medium aggregates particularly desired by the building/ construction industries. Topography: The dominant physical features of the study area in the western axis are largely mountains coupled with a number of intermittent valleys and rivers crossing the breadth of the subject area. Mount Patti which is the highest point has a height of about 458 meters above sea level and gently reduces in height till it reaches river Niger at the height of 45 meters above sea level. On the other hand, the territory on the East of river Niger is relatively flat but perforated by the presence of low leveled rocks and tributary rivers to rivers Niger and Benue. 1.6.3 History of Federal University Lokoja (FUL)  ¹ Federal university Lokoja was established along with other eight new Federal Universities on the 16th of February, 2011 following a pronouncement by President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan to cater for the increasing demand in the Educational sector. Soon afterwards, a vice chancellor and Registrar in the persons of Professor Abdulmumini Hassan Rafindadi and Mrs. HabibaAnavozaAdeiza were appointed. The university is sited at Lokoja, the capital city of Kogi State of Nigeria, in the North central political zone. The motto of the university sic itur ad astra, this Latin phrase means THE SKY IS THE LIMIT. The University presently have two faculties running, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences with five degree awarding courses: Economics, English and Literary Studies, Geography, History, and Political Science and Faculty of sciences with six degree awarding courses: Biological Sciences, Chemistry, Computer Science, Geology, Mathematics and Physics, with a total of 443 students for the first matriculation for 2012/2013 academic session starting with 185 staff. Presently the total staff strength of the University is hard to define due to the series of interview still going on for employment at different levels. With the temporary site located within Lokoja city centre at Adankolo and the permanent site recently allocated along Okene- Abuja Road Felele. C:UsersbilyyDocumentshope.jpg FIG 1:3 GOOGLE EARTH IMAGE SHOWING PERMANENT SITE(FUL)  ¹, EXISTING LAND USE AND RELIEF FEATURES C:UsersbilyyPictureshi.PNG FIG 1:4; DIGITIZED MAP OF LOKOJA SHOWING THE LOCATION OF PERMANENT SITE (FUL)  ¹ Definition of Terms Spillover: Seen as the side effect of existing land uses of an area. Effect: A changed state occurring as a direct of action by somebody or something else. (FUL)  ¹: Federal University of Lokoja. CHAPTER TWO 2.0: REVIEW OF LITERATURE 2.1 INTRODUCTION This chapter reviews some of the recent literature on land use zoning for institutional uses with particular attention to the ways in which it has contributed to the development of institutional vision and transformation. This chapter will be organized as follow, the conceptual framework while the second will talk about literature review. 2.2.0 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK 2.2.1 Euclidean Zoning The term Euclidean Zoning  refers to the conventional mechanism of applying different regulations to parcels of land by creating districts that segregate land into various classes of uses such as residential, commercial, and industrial. A zoning ordinance based on Euclidean Zoning specifies for each class of uses, called zoning districts, activities permitted as a use by right and those activities permitted conditionally by obtaining a special use permit from the local government. Typically, in a residential district only single or multi-family residences are allowed as a use by right, whereas only retail and office uses are allowed in a commercial district. Euclidean Zoning is a nickname derived from the 1926 U.S. Supreme Court decision in  Village of Euclid (Ohio) v. Ambler Realty Co., 272 U.S. 365 (1926), which affirmed the validity of comprehensive zoning. Thus, the term refers to the city where a challenge to the legality of zoning first resulted in the affirmation of zoning as a valid police power of local government. Euclidean zoning, like all forms of zoning, runs with the land, not the owner. That means when a property is sold the zoning of the property does not change. The new owner is subject to the same class of allowable uses for the property as the previous owner. Any special conditions, such as variances or special use permits, still apply and the new owner does not need to get reauthorization for the use. A Euclidean zoning ordinance is comprised of a zoning map and a schedule of regulations in text form. The zoning map depicts the zoning district that applies to each parcel of land in the community. The specific regulations that apply to a particular zoning district are then explained in the text of the zoning ordinance. Under Euclidean zoning, the use of private land is the activity that is principally regulated, followed by the regulation of the density of structural development, and the dimensions or bulk of buildings on lots. Specific regulations typically found in a Euclidean zoning ordinance include the use of the property, minimum parcel size, minimum size of structures on the property, maximum height of structures, minimum setback of structures from property lines, and maximum lot coverage of structures, among others. Euclidean zoning  regulates development through land use classifications and dimensional standards. Typical land use classifications are single-family residential, multi-family residential, commercial, institutional, industrial and recreational. Each land use must comply with dimensional standards that regulate the height, bulk and area of structures. These dimensional standards typically take the form of setbacks, side yards, height limits, minimum lot sizes, and lot coverage limits. The traditional planning goals associated with  Euclidean zoning  are providing for orderly growth, preventing overcrowding of land and people, alleviating congestion, and separating incompatible uses (such as insuring that a noisy factory cannot be built near a residential neighborhood). 2.2.2 Performance Zoning Performance zoning uses performance standards to regulate development. Performance standards are zoning controls that regulate the effects or impacts of a proposed development or activity on the community, instead of separating uses into various zones. The standards often relate to a sites development capability. In agricultural areas, for example, performance zoning could be used to limit development on prime agricultural soils and allow development on lower quality soils. Performance zoning is closely tied to the planning process because the local government must identify planning goals and then write regulations that specifically achieve those goals. Performance zoning is often used in industrial zoning to control impacts such as noise, odors, smoke, and other side effects from industrial activity. Performance zoning is an alternative to traditional land use zoning. Whereas traditional land use zoning  specifies what uses  land can be put to within specified districts, performance zoning  specifies the intensity  of land use that is acceptable. In other words, it deals not with the use of a parcel, but the performance of a parcel and how it impacts surrounding areas. A key goal of zoning codes is to limit conflicting and incompatible uses. Traditional  Euclidean zoning  does this by regulating land use and bulk.  Performance zoning, however, regulates the effects  or impact of land uses through performance standards. Performance standards usually concern traffic flow, density, noise and access to light and air. Developers can build almost any building that meets the performance standards for that district. Therefore,  performance zoning  allows for a great deal of flexibility. This level of flexibility makes it a very useful tool. 2.2.3 THE RELEVANCE OF THE THEORIES TO THIS STUDY Looking at the potential spillover effect of the adjacent land uses with the existing opposite uses of Federal University Lokoja, such conflicts need to be remedied or minimized through land use zoning. These theories provide guidelines in mitigating the effect of traffic and other external effects such as noise associated with the surrounding of the campus through the use of standards to ensure adequate Landscaping, buffering, and screening to minimize the negative effects. 2.2.4 Advantages of the theory Protect and preserve natural features in the environment by evaluating the directly the impact. Promote public health and safety. Manage traffic. Provide for more orderly development and density. 2.3.0 LITERATURE REVIEW 2.3.1 Spillover effect and the Environmental Quality of an institution Externalities Spillover effects of land use for which initiator is not held accountable (traffic congestion; run off; smoke, gases, and particle emissions; noise; urban sprawl; disorderly extension of urban infrastructure) (Katherine Mau, Real estate principle, chapter 5). Advocates of environmental protection express exasperation with local decisions that permit developments whose adverse effects spillover to the rest of the region (Reilly, 1973). This gives rise to at least two issues. The first has it that competition among municipalities for commercial and industrial property will create a race to the bottom in environmental quality, causing the environment of both the community and its region to be degraded. The second issue concerns itself with relations between the community and its immediate neighbors. It is commonly asserted that communities pursue a beggar thy neighbor policy by zoning land on municipal borders for such unlovely uses as landfills, shopping centers, sewage plants and industrial parks. Because such policies may invite retaliation, the story goes; beggar they neighbor also reduces the quality of the regional environment. I shall treat them in reverse order. The ratio of evidence to assertion of the beggar-thy-neighbor idea is re markably small. Sewage plants are, by casual observation, often close to municipal borders, but that is most likely because water runs downhill. The least costly place to put such a plant is at the lowest point in the community, and that is often the point at which a river leaves the jurisdiction and enters another. (As I tell my undergraduates, if it were practicable to require municipalities to take in drinking water downstream and release sewage in the same river upstream, each community would have the optimal incentives to treat its sewage. For less fanciful, common-law approaches to disputes among municipal neighbors, see Ellickson, 1979.) But it is worth unpacking this proposition because of the light it may shed on intercommunity relations and their consequences for environmental issues. Imposing unilateral costs on ones immediate, permanent neighbors is perhaps one of the least profitable activities in the world, as any homeowner knows. The reason is that one has to live for a long time with such neighbors and, over the long run; there will be many opportunities for the neighbor to retaliate. The retaliation at the municipal level could be unfavorable treatment along other borders, but it more likely would be lack of cooperation in other inters municipal activities. They include mutual aid agreements for fire and police protection, cooperation for specialized school programs and coordination of regional development activities. This does not mean that all inter municipal spillover will be internalized by a self-interested spirit of neighborliness. But self-neighborliness is observed often enough in other activities that it would be strange to rule it completely out in the municipal land-use context. Where one would expect it not to succeed is when the costs can be imposed on a highly diffuse and remote group of communities. Upper-atmosphere and large-river pollution would not necessarily rise to being an affront to ones immediate neighbors. But hardly a nyone disputes the idea that such spillovers require the attention of larger-area governments, and that most of the controls should be aimed at the activity that gives rise to the pollution, not the specific location of the polluter. The race to the bottom claim is a more common and more important criticism of local land-use autonomy (Esty, 1997). There is little doubt, as an empirical matter, that municipalities do seek to have commerce and industry located within their borders in order to promote local employment and improve the local tax base (usually property taxes). Because many communities do so, it is likely that some of the competition takes the form of relaxed environmental standards, if one understands such standards to include all conceivable infringements on residential amenities. Much of the criticism of this process comes from those who at least assert that any public sacrifice of environmental quality in exchange for other goods is unacceptable. It is generally agreed that some forms of exchange are desirable and that the presumption of a catastrophic race to an environmental Armageddon is not warranted (Oates and Schwab, 1988; Revesz, 1992). But less extreme criticisms of regulatory federalism are possible. The more plausible anxieties focus on failures of the local political process to value the foregone amenities (Esty, 1997). Within the homeowner-dominated community, one would expect that amenities would be capitalized in the value of homes. Lower property taxes (or other ongoing fiscal benefits from firms) increase their home values, but the disamenities of firms that pay the extra taxes would tend to lower them. Several theories hold that this trade-off provides efficient incentives in the homogenous homeowner community in which the median voter prevails (Fischel, 1975; Fox, 1978). The implication of this view is, incidentally, that most property rich communities have in fact paid for the fiscal benefits of an industrial tax base in forego ne amenities; the larger tax base is not a windfall. This does not mean, of course, that homebuyers in such communities received no gains from the exchange; only that redistribution of tax bases would cause some regret (and capital losses) among communities that had been willing to accommodate industrial uses (Gurwitz, 1980; Ladd, 1976). All of this is not to suggest that there are no asymmetries in the local process. Voters who are renters might be indifferent to improvements captured in property values, so they might be more inclined to vote for land use policies that increased their wages even if property values shrank. (This could be partly offset by rent control, which gives renters a stake in property value changes.) On the other hand, compensatory payments by firms may be inhibited by the transaction costs of working through the public sector, thus biasing the result towards a residential status quo. The more troubling issue

Global Public Health Essay -- Public Health Care Essays

After 150 years of public health research and intervention, there are bound to be many lessons to draw upon which can provide the insight to guide public health professionals and institutions as they design and implement specific strategies, policies, and measures to increase global resilience for â€Å"complex health emergencies†. Identifying both the modifications to public health systems and looking closely from the history of managing environmental and other threats to the public health sector increases the world’s adaptive capacity to more effectively cope and manage with public health emergencies. Major advances have been made during the past decade in the way the international community responds to challenges of complex emergencies. The public health and clinical response to disease of acute epidemiological potential has improved dramatically based on prior knowledge of success and failure. Every year, new public health campaigns are started in efforts to change health outcomes and improve health behavior, but it must be understood public health is always changing and we must use what we have learned over the years to combat the ever so changing health world. Throughout public health’s history we have witnessed success stories and unfortunately witnessed failed initiatives. One way to better understand how to deal with any public health crisis is to look at the experience in dealing with other public health issues, especially those where there has been progress made. From the eradication of smallpox and potentially the most important public health achievement in American History---the chlorination of drinking water all the way to the current crises of malaria, obesity, TB and HIV/AIDS we see the realization of what a true ca... ...ainly call into question the credibility of the public health profession, as did the collapse of the disastrous malaria eradication effort. Works Cited 1)"Obesity Statistics." The Obesity Society. The Obesity Society, 2010. Web. 12 Dec 2010. . 2) Henderson, Donald. "Eradication: Lessons from the Past." Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (1999): 16-22. Web. 12 Dec 2010. 3) Hung, Less Shiu. "The SARS epidemic in Hong Kong: what lessons have we learned?." Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine 96.8 (Aug 2003): 374-378. Web. 12 Dec 2010. . 4) Ruger, Jennifer. "Global Tobacco Control: An integrated approach to global health policy." Palgrave MacMillan (2005): 65-69. Web. 12 Dec 2010. . Global Public Health Essay -- Public Health Care Essays After 150 years of public health research and intervention, there are bound to be many lessons to draw upon which can provide the insight to guide public health professionals and institutions as they design and implement specific strategies, policies, and measures to increase global resilience for â€Å"complex health emergencies†. Identifying both the modifications to public health systems and looking closely from the history of managing environmental and other threats to the public health sector increases the world’s adaptive capacity to more effectively cope and manage with public health emergencies. Major advances have been made during the past decade in the way the international community responds to challenges of complex emergencies. The public health and clinical response to disease of acute epidemiological potential has improved dramatically based on prior knowledge of success and failure. Every year, new public health campaigns are started in efforts to change health outcomes and improve health behavior, but it must be understood public health is always changing and we must use what we have learned over the years to combat the ever so changing health world. Throughout public health’s history we have witnessed success stories and unfortunately witnessed failed initiatives. One way to better understand how to deal with any public health crisis is to look at the experience in dealing with other public health issues, especially those where there has been progress made. From the eradication of smallpox and potentially the most important public health achievement in American History---the chlorination of drinking water all the way to the current crises of malaria, obesity, TB and HIV/AIDS we see the realization of what a true ca... ...ainly call into question the credibility of the public health profession, as did the collapse of the disastrous malaria eradication effort. Works Cited 1)"Obesity Statistics." The Obesity Society. The Obesity Society, 2010. Web. 12 Dec 2010. . 2) Henderson, Donald. "Eradication: Lessons from the Past." Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (1999): 16-22. Web. 12 Dec 2010. 3) Hung, Less Shiu. "The SARS epidemic in Hong Kong: what lessons have we learned?." Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine 96.8 (Aug 2003): 374-378. Web. 12 Dec 2010. . 4) Ruger, Jennifer. "Global Tobacco Control: An integrated approach to global health policy." Palgrave MacMillan (2005): 65-69. Web. 12 Dec 2010. .

Space Exploration :: Space Exploration Essays

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  People have been venturing out into the universe for many years now. In addition to satellites, both women and men astronauts have traveled into space to collect data about the universe. The first human being, the first animal, and the first spacecraft in orbit, were all achievements of the Soviet Union.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In 1958 a group known as The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) was founded. The first probe to escape Earth's gravity was the Soviet LUNA 1, launched on Jan. 2, 1959. It passed the Moon and continued into interplanetary space. The U.S. probe Pioneer 4, launched two months later, followed the same path. Later Soviet probes either hit the Moon or passed it and took photographs of the hidden far side, relaying them back to Earth.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The first man to travel to space was Yuri Gagarin. History was made on April 12, 1961, when he successfully orbited the earth in the Votsok 1. His flight lasted one hour and 48 minutes and as he circled the earth, his speed was about 17,000 mph on the Votsok 1. Following this mission, Gagarin was killed in a test airplane crash .   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Neil Armstrong was the first person to ever land on the moon. Born in Wapakoneta, Ohio, he graduated from college in 1955 and joined the NASA team. In 1962, he became the first civilian to enter into an astronaut training program. In 1969, Armstrong headed the Apollo 11 mission, becoing the first human being to set foot on the moon. Other astronauts the accompanied Armstrong on this mission were Edwin E. Aldrin, Jr., and Michael Collins. In 1971, Armstrong became a professor of aerospace engineering at the University of Cincinnati.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Valentina Vladimora Nikolayeva Tereshkova was the first woman to enter into space. She joined a Soviet training program in the year 1961 and two years later she successfully orbited the earth 48 times in the Votsok 6.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Sputnik 1 was the first artificial satellite to orbit the earth. It was an aluminum sphere, 58 cm (23 in) in diameter, weighing 83 kg (184 lb). Its orbited around the earth lasted 96.2 minutes. At the end of 57 days the satellite returned to earth's atmosphere and was destroyed by aerodynamic frictional heat.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 were both spacecrafts that were launched to Jupiter. Voyager 2 was launched on August 20, 1977, and Voyager 1 was launched 2 weeks later on September 5, 1977.

Humanism and the Meaning of Life Essay

In his piece â€Å"What is Humanism†, Fred Edwords explains humanism as a type of philosophy that emphasizes reason, scientific inquiry, and human fulfillment in the natural world, and often rejects the importance of belief in God. He describes the different categories of humanism that are common and the beliefs they hold. In Richard Taylor’s â€Å"The Meaning of Life†, thoughts are given on where meaning comes from in life if a meaning is even present. He explores the story of Sisyphus to illustrate how a life could be meaningless and then explores the idea that everyday life today is ultimately meaningless as well. The degree to which the article by Taylor fits the description of Humanism in the Edwords’ piece is to a pretty good degree. Many of the ideas about humanism that Edwords poses in his piece reflect in the way Taylor explored the meaning of life in his article. Edwords describes humanism with a list of points, the first being that a Humanist isn’t afraid to challenge and explore any area of thought. Generally, the meaning of life is a topic that has the tendency to frighten many people away due to the nature of inquiry required to even scratch the surface of any answer to the question. Therefore, Taylor fits that aspect of humanism since his goal in his work was to explain his ideas on the matter in a well thought out manner. Edwords’ second point is that humanism focuses on human means for comprehending reality with no claim to have any type of transcendent knowledge, and another one of his points is that humanism is a philosophy of imagination. These points are evident in Taylor’s article as he tries to make sense of life using rational imagination to approach each side of the topic. Another one of Edwords’ points is that humanism is more concerned with the here and now rather than life after death. Taylor’s main focus was touching on meaningless in life and finding contentment in whatever one finds themselves doing in life. There wasn’t much to say about life after death, so this point stands true in Taylor’s article. Edwords’ summary point in his list was that humanism is a philosophy for those in love with life. The way he described this point is very relatable to Taylor’s article in that Taylor didn’t want to settle with prefabricated answers, but instead dove into the open-endedness that comes with trying to reveal the meaning of life. Taylor fits into the category of Modern Humanism as described by Edwords. Edwords explained that this section of Humanism â€Å"rejects all supernaturalism and relies primarily upon reason and science, democracy and human compassion. † The points about humanism described in the first paragraph above were labelled as what the Modern Humanist philosophy is about in Edwords’ writing. So throughout Taylor’s article, he showed a good deal of the qualities Edwords described for a modern humanist. Taylor’s positon on the question of the meaning of life does seem like a Humanist-type position. Taylor explored a broad topic that could have an unlimited spectrum of different answers and wasn’t afraid to dive into the controversial issues associated with it. He was in pursuit of finding new knowledge and sharing it with his readers. He was also very realistic and looked at things from a logical standpoint. Taylor explains that our lives could have meaning if we have a keen and unappeasable desire to be doing just what we find ourselves doing (this is what he says of Sisyphus, which could also be applied to us). Our life wouldn’t be changed, but it would still have a meaning. He says it is irrational because the desire itself would be only the product of substance in our veins, and not any that reason could discover, but a meaning nevertheless. Taylor also looked into the difference between us and other living beings like insects in New Zealand caves, for instance. He explained that we are conscious of our activity. Our goals are things of which we are at least partly aware and can therefore in some sense appraise. Men have a history as other animals do not, such that each generation does not precisely resemble all those before. The meaning of life comes from the things to which we bend our backs day after day once we realize one by one our ephemeral plans are precisely the things in which our wills are deeply involved and precisely the things in which our interests lay. The day is sufficient to itself, and so is the life. A human being no sooner draws its first breath than he responds to the will that is in him to live. He no more asks whether it will be worthwhile or whether anything of significance will come of it. The point of his living is simply to be living, in the manner that it is his nature to be living. Edwords looks at writings from other humanists that explain, for example, that humanism teaches that â€Å"it is immoral to wait for God to act for us. † Humanists believe that the responsibility lies within a person to determine what kind of world they will live in. One must take it upon themselves to act upon what they deem correct and desirable. Edwords essentially said that life could have a type of meaning, and basically pointed towards the meaning of life being whatever you make of it. The meaning comes from your own actions and intents. You have the right to choose whatever path you see fit and act freely, to open new doors and accomplish great things. Edwords’ description is similar to what Taylor said about the meaning of life. Taylor explained that if you love what you are doing, you will feel like you were made to do that, therefore creating meaning in your life. Edwords explains it in a similar way that meaning in your life comes from your heart basically. Whatever you are passionate about becomes what your life is about, and that is essentially the meaning you will find in your life.