Impact On The Natural Environment Construction Essay

Impact On The Natural Environment Construction Essay The building sector has a significant impact on the natural environment. It consumes almost 33 of the worlds natural resources, including 40 of its energy and up to 12% of its water. These estimates do not consider embodied energy (i.e. the energy used to obtain, manufacture, use and dispose of building materials), which can represent a significant proportion of a buildings lifetime energy consumption. The building sector is also responsible for 40% of global green-house gas (GHG) emissions and 40% of the waste which ends up in the landfills (World Green Building Council, 2006). The consumption of natural resources, particularly none-renewable energy sources, is an important factor in the economy of many nations. Authorative reports show such trends in many parts of the world. In the United Kingdom, for instance, the building sector consumes almost 50% of all the countrys energy. While in the United States, about 40% of the total national energy production and almost 70% of electrici ty production is used in the building sector, as well as 28% in transportation a factor which is partly influenced by urban design. The building sector in China currently accounts for 19% of the countrys total energy consumption. This relatively small percentage is due to energy intensive industrial production. The same scenario occurs in the rich oil-producing areas of the Gulf Corporation Council Countries (GCCC). For example, the building sector in Kuwait account for nearly 45% of the yearly electric energy consumption, whilst in Saudi Arabia this sector consumes about 70% of the total electricity consumption. In Bahrain, the smallest country within the GCCC, buildings account for 83% of the national consumption of electricity (EIA, 2010). Apart from its energy consumption, the building sector is also one of the largest contributors to changes in the environment and atmosphere: firstly, building construction, raw material processing and product manufacturing overall are the largest sources of GHGs. They account for some 40% of the world GHGs emissions. The building sector creates the most waste, habitat destruction and is responsible for the most pollution. Second, GHGs, particularly CO2, are the main by-product of fossil fuel energy consumption, and as buildings are, in total, among the largest consumers of energy, they are also the major contributor to the increase in CO2 emissions and hence global warming. While most available data related to these contributions are for the developed world, reports show that, on the whole, these contributions are worse in developing countries such as the GCCC. These countries have become major GHGs emitters. According to the International Panel of Climate Chang (2007), the GCCC are amongst the top countries in terms of CO2 emissions per capita. Recent statistics show an increase of CO2 emissions due to excessive energy consumption in different GCCC sectors, particularly the building sector. The increase in CO2 emissions had been within the range of 30-35% between 1997 and 2006. The GCCC are found to contribute two and half per cent of the global GHG emissions (United Nations Statistic Division, 2007). One of the main principles of the GCCC is to enhance the economic and environmental actions related to the adoption of policies and unifying environmental laws as well as the conservation of natural resources (GCC, 2008). Within this context a two-fold policy aims at promoting energy regulations and sustainable developments has been adopted. A major role has been given to the building sector, with a special focus on the important role that efficiency regulations can play in reducing energy consumption and protecting the environment. On the ground, some actions have been taken by the GCCC in order to achieve sustainability in buildings, such as the implementation of green building regulations. Most of these regulations are based on the USAs Green Building Councils (US GBC) Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system, with modifications made to account for the local environmental conditions. In terms of green construction, many attempts have been made in different parts of the GCCC. Examples can be seen in the Bahrain World Trade Centre in Manama, the large-scale Masdar City in Abu Dhabi, the campus of King Abdullah University of Science and Technology in Saudi Arabia and the Energy City in Qatar. These projects incorporate several efficiency techniques and green materials. A consideration of these huge, costly projects shows that three parties can benefit from such developments: governments and owners can save energy and protect the environment, thereby gaining a favourable image; contracto rs and suppliers can sell green products and developers can use the affirmative image as a positive marketing tool. However, in his article The Business of Green Elsheshtawy (2010) claims that some green and LEED certified buildings in the GCCC end up consuming much more energy than the evaluators predicted due to poor energy practices. Coupled with this is the economics of energy efficiency and green buildings. Cost of building green A great number of available projects, such as those mentioned above, shows that if building green is a target at the outset of the design process and material selection then the cost of the green building is competitive. In a commercial setting, such projects can result in reduced energy consumption, saved environment, improved occupant health and comfort and reduced capital costs. Many rigorous assessments show that the overall cost of these projects is no more than that of any equivalent conventional project. Increases in first cost are reported within the range from five-ten per cent. During the construction phase the use of the green strategies, such as downsizing of costly mechanical, electrical and structural systems can increase the saving in initial costs, while during the first two decades the increases due to the use of green technologies will result in a savings of at least ten times the initial investment in operation costs for utilities such as electricity. In rental pro perties, owners are concerned only with the initial cost, especially in the cases where tenants are paying the bills. Governments and some owners, however, can realise the energy savings and so are willing to pay more for minimising the operation cost and reducing the environmental impact. The trade-off between economic costs and environmental benefits can stimulate people on the basis that adoption of green technologies will have environmental and social benefits outside the margin of cost consideration. Although the concept of eco-efficiency, in many cases, does not take into account the social benefits, such an approach can balance environmental design with cost-effectiveness. To achieve eco-efficiency in the building sector, it is necessary to apply an integrated approach with the assistance of a team of professionals across different areas. This is realised in what is called the whole building approach. This approach represents a key factor in the design and construction of green buildings, especially with the advance of technology and increased complexity of constructional systems. The incorporation of the whole building approach at the projects conceptual design phase enables the evaluation of a buildings design, materials and systems from the perspectives of all the project team members as well as from the perspectives of owners and occupants. A principal advantage of this approach is the coordination and mutual dialogue between project team members, which represent a cornerstone for any successful projects. By applying the whole building approach initial and other cost savings can be realised, energy efficiency evaluated and environmental impact asse ssed. The role of cladding systems in making buildings green Green buildings are generally designed and built in an ecological and resources-efficient manner. They often respond to their local environment and, therefore, different building designs are found in different regions. In any region, however, the ultimate target of green buildings is to provide a comfortable environment in an economic way. The buildings skin, particularly building facade, represents the connection between the internal environment and the outside conditions, and hence a key function of the building facade is to reduce the need to modify the indoor environment as little as possible in response to the environmental load from the outdoor climate. Sometimes, a building facade fails to meet its objective due to one or more reasons, such as the insufficient design of wall systems or the inappropriate selection of cladding materials that probably make it impossible for any specific level of comfortable environment to be achieved. Then, it is necessary to rely upon electrical and mechanical systems to achieve comfort. This reliance leads to higher cost which is translated into bigger capacity requirements for lighting and mechanical equipment and higher capital costs for such equipment as well as larger amounts of energy consumption by the lighting system and heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) system. In contrast, efficient environmental design and appropriate selection of green cladding materials can result in a comfortable inside environment, reduced project initial and running costs and a building that is energy and resource-efficient with lower operating costs than conventional buildings. Practitioners have demonstrated that the implementation of green strategies contributes to a buildings comfort, economic and energy performance. The use of green cladding systems, in particular, is able to make a significant impact on the thermal and operational performance of green buildings. Reports show that when green cladding systems are taken in to account at the conceptual design phase, significant improvements in the energy performance can be achieved (Radhi and Sharples, 2008). Aside from their influence on building operational energy, the external wall systems and cladding materials are major contributors to changes in the natural environment. The production of construction materials such as precast and aluminium increases atmospheric concentrations of GHGs. The environmental impact starts with the chemical reactions during the production phase, where such materials represent one of the largest source of CO2 emissions and other GHGs. Then, the transportation of the materials to construction sites consumes considerable amounts of primary energy and generates high levels of GHG emissions. At the installation phase these materials generate different types of waste, whilst at the operation phase some of them influence the interior and exterior spaces by producing unhealthy components into the air. Some construction materials have relatively short useful lives and, consequently, the disposal and manufacture of replacement materials occurs, thereby generating mo re GHGs and waste. Research experts have shown that a careful selection of low environmental impact components and materials reduces the CO2 emissions by up to 30%. Some cladding materials are reported to have the capacity to reduce ozone emissions and other sources of pollutants such as CO2 (Radhi, 2010). How can the eco-efficiency of cladding systems be measured? The World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD, 2000) terms eco-efficiency as the synthesis of economic and environmental efficiency in parallel. Within this context, eco-efficiency in the building sector can be determined by three broad objectives: Reduce natural resources consumption by minimising the use of embodied and operational energy, raw materials, water and land as well as enhancing recyclability and material durability Reduce environmental impact by minimising GHGs emissions, waste disposal, water discharges and the dispersion of toxic substances, as well as encouraging the use of renewable resources. Increase the value of materials and systems by providing more benefits through material functionality, flexibility and modularity. In the light of these objectives the important question is how the eco-efficiency of cladding systems can be measured. Significant scientific work has been addressing this issue by introducing suitable assessment methodologies and rating systems. This is best seen in the environmental life cycle assessment (LCA) and life-cycle cost (LCC) approaches developed by the international standards for LCA principles and framework ISO 14040 (ISO14040, 2006). Assessment is performed in four phases, including goal and scope definition, inventory analysis, impact assessment and interpretation. Two main approaches are available to classify and characterise environmental impacts. The first is the problem-oriented approach (mid-point). The second is the damage-oriented approach (end-point). A great number of methods have been developed under these two approaches such as the critical volumes (weighted load) and ecological scarcity (eco-points) systems in Switzerland, environmental priorities system in Sweden, eco-indicator 99 in Netherlands and the environmental problems system in the United States. The use of such methods makes it possible to select building systems and materials that achieve the most appropriate balance between environmental and economic performance based on certain values of the building team. Case study: assessing eco-efficiency of cladding systems in Bahrain The current assessment, based on the LCA of residential buildings (Radhi and Sharples, 2012), is performed to characterise the eco-efficiency of cladding systems in Bahrain. Bahrain is chosen as many of its building construction approaches and techniques are typical of those found in the GCCC. The production, construction, use and disposal of a 75 m2 front facade of a typical Bahraini house (Fig. 24.1), formed the basis of this assessment. Technically, the building facade consisted of two main components that included the wall system and cladding layers. The wall system is generally classified as cavity wall, barrier wall or mass wall (National Institute of Building Sciences, 2012). The cavity wall (sometimes called the screen wall system) is the preferred method of construction in many climatic regions due primarily to its ability to achieve pressure-equalisation. The barrier wall is an exterior wall system of assembly. The principal difference of this system is its ability to integ rate the surfaces of outermost exterior wall and construction joints, which can offer resistance to bulk moisture ingress. The mass wall relies principally upon a combination of wall thickness and storage capacity. Some fundamental differences exist among these systems such as the thermal performance, fire safety, moisture protection, acoustics, maintainability and material durability, and so consequently their impact on the environment. In terms of cladding, it is the exterior finish layer that is installed to cover wall systems and/or support structures. This finish layer serves several functions, including improving appearance, optimising thermal and environmental performance and keeping undesirable outdoor elements away. Today cladding systems are available in many forms and materials, which are often chosen based on economic and aesthetic factors. Structurally, the use of any alternatives of cladding determines the type of wall system and vice versa. The mass wall system, for example, can form structural elements or finished cladding systems. This system is commonly associated with plaster and masonry cladding systems. On the other hand, the barrier wall is used with precast concrete spandrel panels and some types of metal cladding systems such as composite and solid metal plate as well as with exterior insulation and finish systems (EIFS). With the advance in building technology and construction materials, many alternatives of cladding systems are now available in the market. Examples are studied in the current work, namely, stucco, masonry veneer, marble, ceramic tile and the EIFS. Stucco is a hard, dense, thick and non-insulating material, such as cement plaster, that can be used to cover exterior wall surfaces. Both Portland cement and masonry cement are used with sand for the base and finish coats of stucco exterior walls. Unlike the ordinary stucco system, the EIFS (also known as synthetic stucco) is a lightweight synthetic wall cladding that includes foam plastic insulation and thin synthetic coatings. The masonry veneer is made from a mixture of Portland cement and aggregates under controlled conditions. It provides cladding and resists transferring wind and heat loads to the building support structure. The marble cladding system is a natural stone, while the ceramic tile cladding system consists of a mixture of clay and other ceramic materials. To improve environmental and thermal performance, recycled windshield glass is often added to the ceramic mix (Brookes and Meijs, 2008). These five cladding systems are assessed under real construction and thermal scenarios with the same wall system (mass wall), as illustrated in Fig. 24.2. To provide each scenario with the basic systems quantities per functional unit, the existing facade parameters and wall materials of the typical house are considered as a reference scenario, in addition to the operational aspects that are influenced by the building facade. Data inventory of cladding systems The LCA method and LCC technique are integrated to deliver a complete and detailed assessment of the overall potential impact of the typical house. An important point to note is that system and material selection based on a single impact could obscure other factors that might cause equal or greater damage. Therefore, the adopted LCA methodology takes a multidimensional life-cycle approach, in which multiple environmental impacts are considered over the entire life of the assessed cladding systems. To balance the assessment, the LCC is performed over a 60 year life span, and is based on published data and methods outlined in (Radhi 2010). Categories of expenditure typically include costs for purchase, installation, maintenance, repair and replacement. Measuring the economic performance is relatively straightforward by using real cost data collected through a field study. The data in question are the real cost data that occur and the subsequent cost, which will occur in the future. Normalisation is carried out in this work in order to present a more useful scale of measurement and to make comparisons of various systems simpler. Normalisation is an optional step in impact assessment and can be described as a form of benchmarking, where the flows of each environmental impact are first summed and then divided by fixed Bahraini scale impact values. This can yield measures that are placed in the context of Bahraini activity contributing to that impact. The placing of each measure in the context of its associated Bahraini impact measure makes it possible to reduce different values to the same scale and allows the comparison across impacts. The resulting performance measures are, thus, expressed in non-commensurate units. For credibility, the commercially available BEES model (National Institute of Standards and Technology, 2007) for building construction materials coupled with the international inventory data (Hammond Jones, 2011) were used to compare and check. The BEES model is generally used to measure the environmental and energy performance of building products and facade materials using the life cycle assessment approach outlined in ISO standard 14040. Environmental impact assessment Given the desire to link environmental and economic performance through the concept of eco-efficiency, the ideal way is to base the eco-efficiency indicators on international agreement as far as possible. According to the framework of the United Nations (2006), the assessment of eco-efficiency includes various generic environmental issues such as energy use, global warming contribution, water use, ozone depletion substance and waste. From these indicators, energy consumption and CO2 emissions, water use and ecological toxicity are of the greatest relevance for this study. Fig. 24.3 compares these indicators with respect to the five studied cladding systems. Some of these systems, such as the marble cladding, have significant impacts on water use but moderate impacts on global warming and embodied energy. Other systems, such as stucco, have a significant impact on both the energy consumption and global warming but a minor impact on water use. The others, such as the EIFS, have a minor impact on different generic environmental issues. From the illustration, the EIFS system seems to be the best performer, followed by the ceramic tiles, marble and finally the brick. Stucco is found to be the least effective system in terms of energy consumption and ecological toxicity as well as in relation to CO2 emissions. This can be related to the large amounts of CO2 emissions during cement production, which is the main component of the plaster cladding system. Environmental versus economic When the overall environmental impact of the examined systems is considered, a different scenario occurs. The overall environmental performance is illustrated in Fig. 24.4. Two main observations can be highlighted: firstly, the overall environmental performance ranking of the five systems is different from single measures such energy use and global warming. The EIFS cladding system is the best environmental performer, whilst the ceramic tile system is the worst performer. The difference is more than 24 points. As systems with lower scores are greener, the EIFS cladding system is greener because it contributes, on average, 0.1% of annual per capita Bahrain environmental impacts, whilst the marble contributes a larger share, 0.35%. Secondly, the environmental performance ranking is different from that of the economic performance. The illustration shows that the economic impacts of cladding systems are various and different from the environmental impacts. For example, the stucco claddin g is illustrated as the best economic performer, but it is not in terms of the environmental performance. The difference in score is significant, being almost 11 points. This can be also seen in the case of the ceramic tile cladding. In contrast, the marble cladding achieves a high overall environmental performance and a low economic performance with a difference that reaches almost 21%. The EIFS cladding seems to have a balanced environmental and economic status. The same ranking occurs when both environmental and economic performance are estimated. By using the multi-attribute decision analysis technique, environmental indicators and the economic performance are combined into an overall performance measure (National Institute of Standards and Technology, 2007). It is important to mention that the overall performance scores in this work are not indications of absolute performance. Rather, they are reflecting proportional differences in performance and representing relative performance among system alternatives. By following this procedure, these scores can be changed when the number of system alternatives are increased or reduced. The potential overall performance of the studied systems shows different scenarios when compared with the environmental and economic performances. The stucco cladding seems to be the most eco-efficient systems in spite of its poor environmental performance, followed by the EFIS system with a score of 29%, with the masonry veneer coming next. In contrast, the ceramic tile cladding is found to be the wor st with almost 50%, in spite of its moderate economic performance. Overall, different cladding systems have different environmental and economic performances. Some cladding materials improve the environmental performance, but provide a moderate influence in terms of economic performance, and vice versa. Others positively improve the environmental performance and can optimise the economic performance. Therefore, a careful eco-efficiency assessment should be undertaken in selecting wall cladding systems. Such an assessment can benefit the appraisal of green cladding systems and hence into the design decisions made in developing various scale of green buildings. Conclusion Todays modern buildings systems, particularly cladding system, are often selected and assessed based on aesthetics and cost rather than their environmental performance or their overall potential impact. The concept of eco-efficiency introduced in this book balances the environmental performance with economic aspects. This chapter presented a systematic eco-efficiency assessment of cladding systems and explored its role progressing a green future in the building sector. The interrelation between environmental indicators and economic performance was examined by comparing various cladding systems, considering both overall environmental impact indicators and life cycle cost. The differences in environmental indicators of various cladding systems, namely, stucco, masonry veneer, marble, ceramic tile and the EIFS systems, are generally significant. The ranking of these systems in terms of environmental and economic performance are different. Some of the cladding systems, such as the marble cladding, reduce energy consumption and CO2 emissions, but provide a minor reduction in terms of the life cycle cost, and vice versa. Others, such as the EFIS system, impact positively upon the environmental indicators and can optimise the overall potential impact. This system has the ability to reduce energy consumption and CO2 emissions; however, other aspects, such as maintenance and life expectancy, should be considered at the time of system selection. The scope of the current study focused on the eco-efficiency of representative residential cladding system in a developing country. Consequently, the outcome of this assessment may not be applied to buildings in countries with different economic and environmental situation. In spite of this shortcoming, this assessment approach may provide useful quantitative and qualitative information for cladding design decisions. Therefore, it is important to highlight some general notes: New green building technologies, such as the exterior insulation and finish systems (EIFS), are effective cladding systems in promoting a green future in the residential building sector. To improve the overall potential impact, wall cladding systems in desert climate regions, such as Bahrain, can be designed as exterior insulation and finish systems. Every building is unique in both design and operation. Academic experts and practitioners benefiting from this work should consider the impact of related variables, and therefore a careful assessment must be performed during the selection process in order to achieve eco-efficiency in the building sector. In addition to its ability to assess building cladding systems, the eco-efficiency concept can be used with various other systems, materials and innovative applications. It can yield a precise assessment in the case of multifunctional problems in relatively short times and at relatively low cost. In the near future the concept of eco-efficiency will become more important in the context of the green built environment in order to show which design process, building systems and renewable technologies are more favourable than other alternatives.

Entertainment as Politics Essay

As time goes by, many changes have been observable in the world. The various events that are happening show the development of different aspects in the society. One of the most observable modifications is the development of the perspective or frame of mind of people with regard to their opinion about the issues that affect them. Political concerns are still among the primary subject matter that people usually engaged themselves in. This interest is mostly evident in the older generation because the young members of the population tend to show little interest up to the point of apathy with regard to such matter. Most of the youth of today are more concerned with the latest video games, fashion style, and different trends rather than politics. However, the improvement in technology especially in the field of communication has made it possible to reach out to this younger generation in order to encourage them to actively participate in political matters that greatly affect their lives. However, the technological advances in communication are not the only factor that contributes to encouraging the young adults to engage themselves in political matters because creativity and innovativeness also play an important role. The different programs in television especially talk shows and comedy shows are the outcome of the utilization of communication technology and creativity as well as innovativeness. The people behind these programs are responsible for conceptualizing a medium that would attract the attention of the masses. They create programs that would aid their viewers to have fun and at the same time be enlightened about the current events that are taking place with their respective countries, especially in the field of politics. These commendable talents are supported by the power of modernity that enables them to broadcast this kind of programs and reach the TV sets in the living room of every household. The use of entertainment in relation to political engagement is considered as a non-traditional form of political communication with the people. The uniqueness of this kind of medium actually adds up to its appeal. Before, there is a distinction between news and entertainment. News programs are the ones which handle serious matters and reports the recent events in society. This kind of programs usually focuses on topics that concern the economy, status of the society, and the field of politics. On the other hand, entertainment usually involves programs that provide people a break from the hassles of everyday life. Entertainment programs are usually hosted by stand-up comediennes who tend to crack jokes or impersonate other personalities. There also entertainment programs that involve singing and dancing. Nevertheless, even the field of media is also evolving because the distinction between news and entertainment has already been transcended. At present, there are existing shows that provide entertainment by using political issues. There are programs that tackle political concerns by means of impersonating the officials in the government. In this kind of programs, the hosts of the show could make commentaries or criticisms towards politicians in a fun and light-hearted manner. This new type of entertainment program is greatly exemplified by Saturday Night Live. Saturday Night Live, or known simply as SNL, is a late-night comedy show. It is an American sketch comedy and variety show that runs for 90 minutes on a weekly basis. The program started on October 11, 1975 at New York City. There is a regular set of hosts who are usually the rising actors in the field of comedy. They are joined by a guest host as well as a featured musical act. The show is broadcasted live at the Studio 8H in the GE Building at New York’s Rockefeller Center (NBC Universal, n. d. ). Saturday Night Live made a huge impact in the last election in the United States. The program usually featured different politicians that were running for a position in office. These include presidential and vice presidential candidates such as Barack Obama and John McCain, among others. The impersonation of the hosts of the show with these various political figures not only provided entertainment to the general public but more importantly, it was able to enlighten the people about the personalities, platforms, and the respective stand of these candidates regarding numerous political issues. Creation of Politics Using Humor The Saturday Night Live comedy show was able to spoof numerous political candidates for the last election. However, the most noticeable and controversial among all of them was when they imitated the Governor of Alaska, Sarah Palin. The program was able to apply the humorous nature of the show in order to focus on the political skills of Sarah Palin. In doing so, one of their hosts, Tina Fey, who has this unusual resemblance with Governor Palin, imitated her every move from the way she dresses, her manner of speaking, and mannerisms. Aside from the physical features, Tina Fey also used the famous quotes that Palin made in her interviews as well as the debate that she participated in. Being the comedian that she is, Tina Fey was able to make her imitation of Palin very hilarious. In this situation, Saturday Night Live was able to exemplify how the show could actually mix entertainment with politics. Gender, Power, Class In relation to this, the skit about Sarah Palin also focused on other important issues like gender, power, and class. This is most observable in the episode wherein Tina Fey acted as Sarah Palin together with another one of her co-hosts that imitated Hillary Clinton. In this scene, even though they were making funny remarks, the commentaries that they give actually pertain to the real issues that are taking place in the country. Both the actresses were able to point out the topic of gender wherein they said that it was time that women take key roles in the White House. They also stated that politicians should not be discriminated based upon gender, and that sexist remarks should be prevented. In terms of the idea of power, the two actresses stated that it was timely that women should actively participate in shaping the future of the United States by giving them the opportunity to be elected. The concept of intellectual class difference was also explored when they made it very obvious that Hillary Clinton knows more about politics than Sarah Palin. This is proven when the one who was imitating Clinton commented that â€Å"I do not agree with the Bush Doctrine† and Tina Fey replied in a very Palin kind of fashion that â€Å"I do not know anything about it. † Thus, through this comedy act, it is very evident that there is an intellectual disparity between these two individuals. Comedy as a Space for Critical Engagement Saturday Night Live was able to use comedy in order to criticize the weaknesses of Sarah Palin as a candidate for the vice-presidency. Pointing out the flaws of an individual is not an easy thing to do especially if it is done under the watchful eye of numerous people. Certain factors have to be taken into consideration especially the sensitivity of the person that is being scrutinized. However, by means of humor, one can easily make commentaries that would not be seen in a bad light if it is done seriously. Humorous comments allow other people to notice the criticisms made in a good natured manner. Laughter has its way of making people take things lightly regardless of whether the remark is positive or negative. This is proven in the skit involving the imitation of Palin and Clinton. The impersonator of Hillary Clinton stated that she believe that diplomacy should play an important role in U. S. policy. On the other hand, Tina Fey who portrayed the role of Sarah Palin said, â€Å"I can see Russia in my front porch. † This only shows the criticisms that people have with Palin’s lack of knowledge with foreign policy and diplomatic affairs. Saturday Night Live has the capability to attack sensitive issues and scrutinize famous and powerful individuals unlike ordinary news programs. Humor plays an important part in the ability of shows like Saturday Night Live to tackle important subject matters like the lack of capability and competency of a particular candidate to hold a seat in the White House. They could explicitly show that Sarah Palin proved that this notion is true when she participated in the Saturday Night Live. She even joined in the hilarious jokes and some of the skits, even if it involves the mockery of her own personality and capacity. The program successful achieved the objective of making its viewers take notice of the weaknesses of Sarah Palin as vice-presidential candidate by playing with her personality. The skits, jokes, and impersonation of her were essential in order for the hosts to make the public aware of the flaws of this particular candidate. Using humor was very effective in capturing the attention of the audience and making them aware of sensitive issues that cannot be easily discussed in a regular program. The people behind this entertainment show were able to incorporate the idea of having fun together with political criticisms. The efficiency of Saturday Night Live and other similar programs, as compared to the usual traditional program, is its employment of humor in their commentaries and criticisms. In relation to this, the important technique that was used by the program is the employment of satire, a literary tone that is implemented in order to make fun or ridicule a person with the intention of correcting him or her (Mali, n. d. ). As such, it could tackle important and sensitive issues especially in the political realm without being too serious about it. This genre of entertainment is an effective setting for critical engagement because it allows people to openly express how they think and feel with regard to a particular person or concern. They do not have to be too formal or to lay things nicely as they can easily say what is on their minds. Moreover, a study conducted by Nojin Kwak (2004), an assistant professor from the Department of Communication Studies in the University of Michigan, and his associates shows that entertainment programs greatly influence the political engagement of young adults. The â€Å"use of television entertainment shows, particularly late-night talk show programs,† was found to reinforce political efficacy, political trust, and political understanding among the public especially among young adults (Kwak, Wang, & Guggenheirn, 2004, p. ii). This only proves that entertainment talk shows with the same format as Saturday Night Live are an effective avenue for political engagement. Political Economic Structure of Saturday Night Live The nature of the program of Saturday Night Live that uses satire in relation to important social concerns enables it to acquire numerous viewers for the show. Television companies, like any other business organization, is also after the accumulation of profit. NBC is the television network that handles Saturday Night Live. This network aims to increase the profit of its company through the programs that they have. Television shows normally gain profit through the various commercials and advertisements of different companies that avail of the network services. These services get even more expensive when the company wants to show their ads during the primetime shows especially the high-rating ones. In this process, televisions companies gain profit from these television shows. Nevertheless, like in any other industry, NBC also has its competitors. There are quite a number of other television companies that also air similar programs like those that NBC has, but Saturday Night Live has a different approach in comedy that makes it one of the most high-rating shows in America. Entertainment Programs as a Space for Social Change Primetime programs also have a strategic advantage as compared to other shows that are aired at a different time. This is due to the fact that most people, especially the American public, are already at home during that time. After a busy day at work or in school, this is the specific part of their day wherein they could relax and do whatever they want, and this usually includes watching television. Being the case, this is the most appropriate time for them to take notice of other things aside from their everyday responsibilities. Saturday Night Live is taking advantage of the free time of these people in order to entertain them and at the same time inform them of the present situation of the country and the people that are directly involved in it. They give their viewers relaxation through laughing and making fun of other people in a good-natured manner. At the same time, they do not simply make satire comments about anything under the sun; rather, they focus on important ones that actually affect the lives of the viewers who patronize their programs. This late-night comedy show enlightens the people with regard to different issues like political matters, whether they are consciously or unconsciously aware of it. It epitomizes the very idea of learning while having fun. The new genre of entertainment programs such as Saturday Night Live is responsible for creating an innovative space for social change. This kind of shows gives one of the most important factors in social engagement, and that is the concept of awareness. It informs the general public of the pressing issues that will eventually affect their way of life. Saturday Night Live’s imitation of Governor Sarah Palin clearly proves how this program can discuss political concerns as well as the flaws of influential personalities. Thus, having this necessary knowledge can eventually aid the citizens of the country to take action. It is observable that the people indeed seriously consider the lack of political capacity that Sarah Palin has, which the show highlighted because she did not win in the election. The popularity of the Saturday Night Live increased due to the recent campaign period and election that took place. The show was able to focus on the current situation of America. Due to this, the interest of the people to get involved in political issues and participate in the exchange of thoughts as well as debates regarding this issue was heightened. Entertainment programs are a good avenue for social change because people could easily express their opinions, thoughts, feelings, and even their sentiments in this kind of setting without being afraid that they might offend other people. The freedom that they have in this kind of medium entails greater participation from the people especially for young adults, particularly during this time when communication technology is very influential. The discussions above clearly prove that entertainment is indeed an effective avenue for critical thinking, empowerment, and social change. Entertainment talk shows and comedy programs like Saturday Night Live is capable of enhancing the critical thinking of the public through the skits, jokes, and hilarious commentaries that they make. Whenever an individual watches the show, he or she becomes aware of a particular flaw of a personality, including political figures like Governor Sarah Palin. Hence, through such programs, the public is encouraged to analyze rationally why such criticism and mockery are taking place. This allows them to think beyond what these personalities are projecting and carefully study what their real intentions are, as well as their capacity in the position that they are running for. In this manner, critical engagement is already taking place because the people are exerting the effort to give attention to the particular concern the show is featuring. People are also empowered by entertainment shows because this gives them the freedom to express what they want. The hosts of the program represent the common people and their opinions and stand regarding a certain issue or a particular personality. They stand as the voice of the masses because they can explicitly express the public’s perspective on various matters. Moreover, people can always send an e-mail to these television networks in order to give their opinion and suggestions about their shows. In doing so, they are already taking part in the whole process of media awareness. Lastly, this genre of entertainment program is an effective avenue for social change. It influences people, especially young adult, to get involved with important issues like political concerns. This is due to the fact that entertainment programs enable political understanding, political efficacy, and political trust among those people who watch them. Moreover, programs under this genre provide a setting conducive for social modifications because they use the value of humor and laughing about problems that would normally drag people down. Thus, their new approach in dealing with issues makes entertainment programs an effective way to effect changes in the society. References Kwak, N. , Wang, X. , & Guggenheirn, L. (n. d. ). Laughing All The Way: The Relationship Between Television Entertainment Talk Show Viewing and Political Engagement among Young Adults. Retrieved November 25, 2008, from http://www. umich. edu/news/Releases/2004/Aug04/Kwak. pdf. Mali, T. (n. d. ). Satire. Retrieved November 25, 2008, from http://www. tnellen. com/cybereng/lit_terms/satire. html. NBC Universal. (n. d. ). Saturday Night Live. Retrieved November 25, 2008, from http://www. nbc. com/Saturday_Night_Live/about/.

Definition and Examples of Synchronic Linguistics

Synchronic linguistics is the study of a language at one particular period (usually the present). It is also known as  descriptive linguistics or general linguistics. Key Takeaways: Synchronistic Linguistics Synchronistic linguistics is the study of a language at a particular time.In contrast, diachronic linguistics studies the development of a language over time.Synchronistic linguistics is often descriptive, analyzing how the parts of a language or grammar work together. For example: A  synchronic  study of language is a comparison of languages or  dialects—various spoken differences of the same language—used within some defined spatial region and during the same period of time, wrote Colleen Elaine Donnelly in Linguistics for Writers. Determining the regions of the United States in which people currently say pop rather than soda and idea rather than idear are examples of the types of inquiries pertinent to a synchronic study.State University of New York Press, 1994 Synchronistic views look at a language as if its static and not changing. Languages continually evolve, though its slow enough that people dont notice it much while its happening. The term was coined by Swiss linguist Ferdinand de Saussure. That for which he is now most known was just a portion of his contributions to academia; his specialty was the analysis of Indo-European languages, and his work generally studied languages over time, or diachronic (historical) linguistics. Synchronic vs. Diachronic Approaches Synchronic linguistics is one of the two main temporal dimensions of language study introduced by Saussure in his  Course in General Linguistics (1916). The other is diachronic linguistics, which is the study of language through periods of time in history. The first looks at a snapshot of a language, and the other studies its evolution (like a frame of film vs. a movie). For example, analyzing the word order in a sentence in Old English only would be a study in synchronistic linguistics. If you looked at how word order changed in a sentence from Old English to Middle English and now to modern English, that would be a diachronic study. Say you need to analyze how historical events affected a language. If you look at when the Normans conquered England in 1066 and brought with them a lot of new words to be injected into English, a diachronic look could analyze what new words were adopted, which ones fell out of use, and how long that process took for select words. A synchronic study might look at the language at different points before the Normans or after. Note how you need a longer time period for the diachronic study than the synchronic one. Consider this example: When people had more opportunities to change their social class in the 1600s, they started using the words thee and thou less often. If they didnt know the social class of the person they were addressing, theyd use the formal pronoun you to be safely polite, leading to the demise of thee and thou in English. This would be a diachronic look. A description of the words and how they were used at the time in comparison to the pronoun you would be a synchronic description. Before Saussure, it was considered that the only true scientific study of a language could be diachronic, but both approaches are useful. In the third edition of Synchronic English Linguistics: An Introduction, the authors explain the types of historical linguistics:   As it is necessary to know how a system works at any given time before one can hope to understand changes, the analysis of language at a single point in time, i.e. synchronic linguistics, now usually precedes the study in terms of diachronic linguistics. (Paul Georg Meyer et al.,  Gunter Nar Verlag, 2005) Synchronic studies look at what associates with what (how parts interact) at any given time. Diachronic studies look at what causes what and how things change over time. Examples of Synchronic Study Synchronic linguistics is descriptive linguistics, such as the study of how parts of a language (morphs or morphemes) combine to form words and phrases and how proper syntax gives a sentence meaning. In the 20th century the search for a universal grammar, that which is instinctive in humans and gives them the ability to pick up their native language as an infant, is a synchronic area of study. Studies of dead languages can be synchronic, as by definition they are no longer spoken (no native or fluent speakers) nor evolving and are frozen in time.

exam 1 - 2121 Words

Study4Finals: Bio 97 ADL 10 ADL 11 Homework - Googleæâ€"‡æ ¡ £ ç ¬ ¬1é ¡ µ å… ±11é ¡ µ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1G8cf7cZrQbRDH7UG05fGtBUmSJ... Study for Bio 97 Notes for Finals (ADL HW 10) Item #1 Recombination occurs when combinations of alleles not found in either parent are placed into gametes during meiosis in the F generation. The F can be thought of as having been formed 1 1 from two haploid â€Å"input† gametes. In this case, the F is a dihybrid with AB on one chromosome and ab on the other 1 chromosome. You can tell this by looking at the parents. The F1 hybrid got AB from one parent and ab from the other parent (AB/ab). A dihybrid that is AB/ab can produce four possible â€Å"output† gametes through meiosis. Output gametes that match one of the†¦show more content†¦Item #2 Part A: Two genes that are separated by 10 map units show a recombination percentage of 10%. = (TRUE) because one map unit is equal to 1% recombination between two genes; 10 map units would be equal to 10% recombination between the genes. (*map unit =mu) Part B: Genes X, Y, and Z are linked. Crossover gametes between genes X and Y are observed with a frequency of 25%, and crossover gametes between genes Y and Z are observed with a frequency of 5%. What is the expected frequency of double crossover gametes among these genes? = 1.25% Correct The probability of a double crossover is the product of the probabilities of the single crossovers: 0.25 x 0.05 = 0.0125, or 1.25%. Part C: Assume that the genes from the previous example are located along the chromosome in the order X, Y, and Z. What is the probability of recombination between genes X and Z? = 30% Recombination frequencies between linked genes along a chromosome are additive, so the recombination frequency between genes X and Z is 25 + 5 = 30. Item#3 Part A: To construct a mapping cross of linked genes, it is important that the genotypes of some of the gametes produced by the heterozygote can be deduced by examining the phenotypes of the progeny. =TRUE To construct a mapping cross of linked genes, it is important that the genotypes of all of the gametes produced by the heterozygote can be deduced by examining the phenotypes of the progeny,Show MoreRelatedEXAM 1 926 Words   |  4 Pagesï » ¿SSD IV MOD 2 EXAM 1 WHAT IS MENTORSHIP? A VOLUNTARY DEVELOPMENTAL RELATIONSHIP THAT EXISTS BETWEEN A PERSON OF GREATER EXPERIENCE AND A PERSON OF LESSER EXPERIENCE CHARICTORIZED BY MUTUAL TRUST AND RESPECT 1 WHAT ARE THE PRINCIPLE WAYS IN WHICH LEADERS DEVELOP OTHERS? 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