Contemporary Latin America Politics Research Proposal

Contemporary Latin America Politics - Research Proposal Example While Venezuela is not presently engaged in any attritional conflict with its neighbors, its relationship with the United States has declined steadily over the recent past. The escalating tension between the United States and Venezuela is attributable to both ideological and material reasons. On the side of ideology, Venezuela is presently led by Hugo Chavez, a highly popular Socialist Party member. His party and its policies derive from Marxist doctrines, which are anathema to the capitalist economic organization seen here in the United States. Moreover, Mr. Chavez is not hesitant to openly condemn American leadership and its alleged hegemonic impulses. A diplomatic flashpoint occurred during the United Nations General Assembly of 2006 when Hugo Chavez cited American leftist intellectual Noam Chomsky’s book ‘Hegemony or Survival’ to support his criticism of high handed foreign policy measures of the United States government. The speech is unprecedented in terms of its audacity and confrontational tone, which almost no diplomatic goodwill was left between the two nations ever since (Tinker-Salas, p.52). Adding to the Venezuelan problem is the open and tacit support that it receives from Latin and Central American nations. For example, Venezuela’s attempt to garner a UN Security Council seat was supported by several countries with influence in the General Assembly, including China, Russia, Malaysia and India. American trading partners in the region such as Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay and Chile are also likely to back Venezuela. If Venezuela’s bid should succeed in the future, then it will give a new thrust to the Non-Aligned Movement, by shifting its headquarters out of New York and into a city in the hemispheric South such as Brasilia, Havana or Caracas (Tinker-Salas, p.53). If this does become a reality in the near future, it will be a huge

Response Week 11 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Response Week 11 - Essay Example As noted from this event, he does not only have a lot of money and techniques to bribe law enforcement officials from both sides of the border, he also has supporters who are not hired by him. It is not hard to see why ordinary Mexican citizens would be supporting him if he has been keeping their streets safe from other drug cartels members. This just shows the level of insecurity that the Mexican citizens are facing, since they would rather have a drug lord protecting them than law enforcement agencies. This also proves that it would be hopeless not to have El Chapo extradited to United States. Even though most people who have lost their loved ones to death because of this man are happy to see him behind bars, Salazar is right to point out of the harsh reality. This man is still too powerful. Supposedly the Mexican government manages to extradite him, which I believe is necessary, there will still be a problem. As noted by Patricia Adler, Peter Alder and O’Brien (2012), page 390, the war on drugs exists because people fail to see their harmful effects. This means that even if both governments decide to sentence him to death, drug smuggling, human trafficking and people will still be killed by other drug smugglers. When a CEO from a company gets fired, the company does not stop its operations because other CEOs get hired. As much as the two governments want the man gone for good, it is important for law enforcement agencies to remember one thing. The solution to the war on drugs is ultimately a structural one where people will learn that they are part of what it takes to defeat the war. Hastings, D. (2014, February 27). Hundreds march in Mexico for release of drug lord Joaquin El Chapo Guzman. New York Daily News. Retrieved from

Culture Shock and Poor Adjustment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Culture Shock and Poor Adjustment - Essay Example The discussion can be put into perspective by considering the altering trends in the pantheon of cultural research. In the 19th century, the problem of cultural group independence was introduced for the first time by Sir Francis Galton in his work over correlation (Bird and Fang, 2009, p. 139). Galton stated that the cultural groups could not be considered entirely independent of each other because of the strong relationships created by the processes of cultural transfusion. As a result, the focus of research became cultures in toto and little work was done to draw comparisons across cultures. During the 1950s, the cultural change had attracted a lot of scholarly attention which led to the evolution of cultural ecology as a response to the natural environment (Steward, 1955). During the 1970s, there occurred rapid theoretical development in the field of anthropology’s cultural research. Keesing (1974) differentiated between the ideational theory of culture in which culture is visualized as the structural, symbolic, and cognitive systems, and the ecological theory of culture in which culture is visualized as an adaptive system. Efforts were made to deal with the complex matter of culture by â€Å"cutting . . . the culture concept down to size†¦[into] a narrowed, specialized, and†¦theoretically more powerful concept†.In order to understand the effect of internationalization of the telecommunications organization that is currently based in the UK, there is need to explore the country differences in the culture of organizations. â€Å"The effect size of country at the individual and organization levels, while not expected to be the same, is expected to be related, if it is accepted that differences in individual level characteristics (e.g. cultural values) of organizational members do, to some degree, translate into organization level differences in culture† (Gerhart, 2008, p. 264). Nelson and Gopalan (2003) conducted a large-scale mu lti-country research to measure the organization culture. To achieve this, they collected the data of a total of 288 organizations based in three countries with very different cultures i.e. India, the United States, and Brazil. The researchers first obtained the organization culture profiles for each of the three countries and then determined the extent to which the cultures complied with the national culture profiles for the countries from which the organizations were selected. Nelson and Gopalan (2003) found that the culture of 79 per cent of the organizations was not isomorphic with their respective national cultures of the countries. Another research on the country based differences in

Vietnamese History in the 20th Century Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Vietnamese History in the 20th Century - Essay Example Vietnam, however, suffered more internal repression as it was internally isolated because of continued cold war. With the helm of President Dwight Eisenhower and John Kennedy, Vietnam was able to make economic policy reforms, that have made it enjoy marked economic growth and reduced political repression, but corruption was still evident. The leadership styles of these leaders have had both effective and ineffective qualities. Vietnam was under the rule of France, for the better part of the 20th century. Geneva conference of 1954 left Vietnam divided, with the North being ruled by Ho Chi Minh of the communist government and the South being ruled by Ngo Dinh Diem, who was supported by the US. Between 1954 and 1975, the 2nd Indochina War between Vietnam’s Peoples Army and Vietnam Congress from the North brought Vietnam unification but under communist rule, with the south being supported by the US. With US military support, the southerners were able to maintain their independence. Two years later, US forces withdrew and South Vietnam fell again to the communists. During the times that the US were involved in the war, it is estimated that 3 million people lost their lives while 4 million were seriously injured. In 1978 to 1989, the international isolation of Vietnam extended its relations with the United States. The US barred normal ties with Vietnam for as long their forces remained in Cambodia, besides citing its minimal cooperation so as to account for Americans missing in action, as an obstacle to their relations.  

What role does assessment play in the teaching and learning of Essay

What role does assessment play in the teaching and learning of Mathematics - Essay Example n the universe understands the progress that they have to make in learning and they can only improve on their learning capabilities if they receive the support that they need in this process (DCSF 2008, p. 3). Ideally, many students consider mathematics to be one of the hardest subjects within a learning curriculum hence influencing the need for motivating students to improve on this perceived weak subject. The assessment process, especially on mathematics can be on a daily, transitional or on a periodic basis in which the findings of the assessment may be shared between the students, parents and the teachers (CERI 2008, p. 1). With this, this essay will delve into the roles in which assessment plays in the teaching and learning of mathematics through the formative and summative assessment strategies. Further, the focus of the essay will also be on exploring the relationship between teaching practice, policies and theories while applying views of the various stakeholders in the learning process. Ideally, formative assessment tends to be a variety of assessment tools in which teachers apply within the learning process as a way of improving the results of the students in teachers may have to making changes to their teaching curricula. The most principle aspects in this assessment form is that it makes use of feedback rather than the scores of the students whose main objective is focusing on the course contents and improved performance of the students (Sammons 2009, p. 110). On the other hand, summative assessment refers to the assessment tool in which learners have to sit for tests after a period of time in which the teacher marks the test and gives scores as per the performance of the learners (Kennedy, Tipps & Johnson 2008, p. 105). The basic component in this is that summative assessment tends to summarize the learnt aspects up to the point of testing and does not influence the improvement of the performance of the students. `Learning tends to draw influence

Impact of currency devaluation output growth in the long run Research Paper

Impact of currency devaluation output growth in the long run - Research Paper Example The other group of researchers argues that continuous depreciation or devaluation is an indicator of economic weakness therefore; in the long run this relationship is no longer positive. In order to evaluate the early research work that studies the relationship between currency devaluation and output level, the literature review has been created. In this section, the research work of various researchers will be discussed and their methodologies and findings will be also reported to gain a significant insight to the topic under investigation. Various economic models such as Keynesian model argue that devaluation of currency has an expansionary impact on domestic output (Lai & Chang, 1989). According to the orthodox view devaluation has a positive impact and has a very significant role in the balance of payments stabilization whereas, the New Structuralist School argues that currency devaluation has a contractionary impact (Agà ©nor, 1999). The depreciation of currency improved the demand of exports and shifts the aggregate demand curve to the right, thereby, increasing the real GDP (Lee, 2002). Christopoulos (2004) studied the impact of currency devaluation on output expansion in Asian countries for the period 1968-1999 by using panel data unit root tests and cointegration tests and found that currency devaluation affects output growth in the long run. Huang, Hsu and Kang (2010) used an empirical model and econometric methodology to study the impact of current devaluation on output in Asian countries and their empirical results showed a positive relationship between currency depreciation and output growth in Asian countries. On the other hand various researchers found the relationship between currency devaluation and output level negative, neutral or positive in the short term. Krugman and Taylor (2002) studied the contractionary impact of currency devaluation

Basketball Case Essay Example for Free

Basketball Case Essay Introduction   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Basketball, a game that was born in nineteenth century with the purpose to provide an â€Å"athletic distraction† to the students at the School for Christian Workers in Springfield, soon became a successful sport. More than 300 million people play basketball worldwide. The History of Basketball Invention and Rules   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Basketball was invented by Dr. James Naismith, physical educator at YMCA Training School in Springfield, Massachusetts, USA.   He has four degrees in the diverse fields of Philosophy, Religion, Physical Education and Medicine. Naismith’s investigations in sports physiology and sports science helped him to create really successful game.    The concept of basketball was borrowed from the simple child’s game â€Å"duck-on-a-rock†, which involved attempting to knock a duck off the top of a large rock by tossing another rock at it. â€Å"James Naismith needed a game that could be played indoors in a relatively small space. The first game was played with a soccer ball and two peach baskets used as goals†. [1]   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   James Naismith devised a set of thirteen rules of basketball, through which you can look in enclosure 1 of this paper.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In 1959, James Naismith was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame (called the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame.) Evolution of the game   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Since invention basketball was greatly changed: Equipment. The early baskets were with the bottom and someone had to retrieve the ball. Later they were transformed into the metal rim with a net hanging below, and in 1906 people began opening the netting to let the ball fall through. The first basketballs were made from panels of leather stitched together with a rubber bladder inside. The molded basketball was introduced in 1942. Rules. Beginning in 1910 a player could dribble the ball, but could not shoot after dribbling. In basketballs early days, a players second foul would mean removal from the game until the next field goal was made. If a team committed three consecutive fouls, the opposition would be awarded a field goal. Beginnings in 1894 players were given a free throw when fouled. Beginning in 1908 players who committed five fouls were disqualified from the game. Based on the severity of the foul, the rules were soon amended so that players were awarded either two shots or one shot plus a bonus shot, which was attempted only if the first shot was made. The rules also determined that an offensive player could commit a foul by playing too aggressively.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In 1892 basketball was introduced to women by Senda Berenson Abbott. The rules of women’s basketball were modified (the court was divided into three equal sections, with players required to stay in an assigned area; players were prohibited from snatching or batting the ball from the hands of another player; and players were prohibited from holding the ball for longer than three seconds and from dribbling the ball more than three times.)   Ã‚  Ã‚   In May 1901 several schools, including Yale and Harvard universities and Trinity, Holy Cross, Amherst, and Williams colleges, formed the New England Intercollegiate Basketball League.   Ã‚  Ã‚   In 1915 the Amateur Athletic Union of the United States (AAU), the NCAA, and the YMCA formed a committee to standardize rules.   Ã‚  Ã‚   The first national collegiate tournament was held in Kansas City, Missouri, in 1937.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Professional basketball began in 1896 at a YMCA in Trenton, New Jersey. A dispute between members of the YMCA team and a YMCA official led to the players forming a professional team and playing for money. In 1898 a group of New Jersey newspaper sports editors founded the National Basketball League (NBL). The NBL consisted of six franchises from Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Stars of this league included Ed Wachter, who played in about 1,800 professional games, and Barney Sedran, who played on 10 championship teams in 15 years.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The first successful national professional league was the American Basketball League (ABL), which lasted from 1925 to 1931.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In 1926 a national tournament for women’s teams was formed. Notable players from this era of womens basketball include Babe Didrikson, Alline Banks Sprouse, and Nera White, who was one of the first two female players elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame. In 1938 the three-court game was changed to a two-court game, with six players on a team.   Ã‚  Ã‚   In the mid 1930s another National Basketball League (NBL) was founded and 1946 in a year of foundation of Basketball Association of America (BAA). Later four strongest teams in the NBL joined the BAA. Then the NBLs six teams also joined the BAA, forming a three-division league that was renamed the National Basketball Association (NBA).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In the late 1940s and early 1950s, the Minneapolis Lakers, led by center George Mikan and coached by John Kundla, won five NBA championship titles (1949, 1950, 1952-1954). In the 1950s guard Bob Cousy and forward Bob Pettit had the greatest individual impact on professional basketball.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   For two decades after its founding, the NBA was the only major professional basketball league. But in 1967 the American Basketball Association (ABA) was formed. In the late 1970s, the NBA experienced a crisis of popularity but in March 1979 the public interest had revived.   Ã‚  Ã‚   In the late 1960s some rules in women’s basketball had changed: unlimited dribbling became legal, five-player team and full-court game became official.   Ã‚   The law called Title IX (1970s) prohibited discrimination on the basis of gender in educational institutions receiving federal aid, meaning that womens athletic programs had to be treated as equal to mens programs. In 1978 the AIAW championship was televised, and the same year a professional league called the Womens Basketball League (WBL) was founded.   Ã‚  Ã‚   Beginning in the late 1980s basketball became so popular that students began leave schools and colleges before graduation and go to NBA to play for large sums of money. So in 1995 the league enacted a limit on the amount of money a rookie could earn.   Ã‚  Ã‚   Following the 1997-98 season NBA owners and players could not agree on rules regarding a salary cap and several other issues, and the NBA owners instituted a player lockout. The dispute cancelled all league play until an agreement was reached in January 1999, resulting in a strike-shortened, 50-game season followed by a regular playoff schedule and championship series. NBA Legends 1950s and 1960s –     Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain 1980s – Larry Bird, Magic Johnson 1990s – John Stockton, Karl Malone, Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen.    Records of NBA Highest score. 370 when â€Å"Detroit Pistons† defeated â€Å"Denver Nuggets† 13 December 1983. The largest number of victories per season. 72 times per season (1995-1996) won â€Å"Chicago Bulls.† The largest number of games. Robert Perish played 1611 matches during 21 seasons. The youngest player.   Germen O’Neal was in the age of 18 years and 53 days when debuted in NBA. The oldest player.   Robert Perish from â€Å"Chicago Bulls† played in the age of 43 years 231 days. The highest player  Ã‚   George Maureshan   from â€Å"Washington Wizards† has a height 2.31 meter. Conclusion   Ã‚  Ã‚   During more then hundred years basketball had greatly developed and changed, experienced a lot of difficulties, but it is still one of the most popular games in the world. Of course basketball as any other sport has a lot of problems today (e.g. U.S. team does not have a national program for international competition, devalues the World Championships and does not develop fundamentals), but it has a large potential and great future.       The Bibliography Laughead, George. â€Å"History of Basketball†. Kansas Heritage Group. 2004. University of Kansas. 15 Sep. 2005. http: //www.ku.edu/heritage/graphics.people/maismith.html Bellis, Mary. â€Å"Basketball – James Naismith (1861 1939)†. 15 Sep. 2005. http://www.inventors.about.com/library/inventors/blbasketball.htm                                  Enclosure 1.   Naismith’s rules of basketball: The ball may be thrown in any direction with one or both hands. The ball may be batted in any direction with one or both hands, but never with the fist. A player cannot run with the ball. The player must throw it from the spot on which he catches it, allowance to be made for a man running at good speed. The ball must be held in or between the hands. The arms or body must not be used for holding it. No shouldering, holding, pushing, striking or tripping in any way of an opponent. The first infringement of this rule by any person shall count as a foul; the second shall disqualify him until the next goal is made or, if there was evident intent to injure the person, for the whole of the game. No substitution shall be allowed. A foul is striking at the ball with the fist, violations of Rules 3 and 4 and such as described in Rule 5. If either side make three consecutive fouls it shall count as a goal for the opponents (consecutive means without the opponents in the meantime making a foul). Goal shall be made when the ball is thrown or batted from the ground into the basket and stays there, providing those defending the goal do not touch or disturb the goal. If the ball rests on the edge and the opponents move the basket, it shall count as a goal. When the ball goes out of bounds, it shall be thrown into the field and played by the first person touching it. In case of dispute the umpire shall throw it straight into the field. The thrower-in is allowed five seconds. If he holds it longer, it shall go to the opponent. If any side persists in delaying the game, the umpire shall call a foul on them. The umpire shall be judge of the men and shall note the fouls and notify the referee when three consecutive fouls have been made. He shall have the power to disqualify men according to Rule 5. The referee shall be the judge of the ball and decide when it is in play in bounds, to which side it belongs, and shall keep the time. He shall decide when a goal has been made and keep account of the goals with any other duties that are usually performed by a referee. The time shall be two 15-minute halves with five minutes rest between. The side making the most goals in that time shall be declared the winners.† [1]