Life In A Temperate Grassland

Life In A Temperate Grassland As much as one-fifth of the Earths surface is covered in wild grasses in biomes known, aptly, as grasslands. These biomes are characterized by the plants that grow there, but they also attract a unique array of animals into their realm.   Savannas and Grasslands: Whats the difference? Both are dominated by grass and few trees as well as hooved animals that can run fast from predators, so whats the difference between a grassland and a savanna? Essentially a savanna is one type of grassland found in tropical regions. It generally gets more moisture and therefore has a few more trees than grasslands in the rest of the world. The other type of grassland - known more simply as a temperate grassland - experiences seasonal changes throughout the year that bring hot summers and cold winters. Temperate grasslands receive just enough moisture to support the growth of grasses, flowers, and herbs, but not much else. This article will focus on the plants, animals, and regions of the worlds temperate grassland biomes. Where in the World Are Grasslands Found? Temperate grasslands are characterized by their  hot summers, cold winters, and very rich soils. They  can be found throughout North America - from Canadas prairies to the plains of the midwestern United States. They are also found in other parts of the world, albeit they are known here under different names. In South America, grasslands are called pampas, in Hungary they are called pusztas, whereas in Eurasia they are known as steppes. Temperate grasslands found in South Africa are called veldts. Plants in the Grassland: More than just grass! As you might expect, grasses are the predominant plant species growing in grasslands. Grasses, such as barley, buffalo grass, pampas grass, purple needlegrass, foxtail, rye grass, wild oats, and wheat are the main plants that grow in these ecosystems. The amount of annual rainfall affects the height of the grasses that grow in temperate grasslands, with taller grasses growing in wetter areas. But thats all there is to these rich and fertile ecosystems. Flowers, such as sunflowers, goldenrods, clover, wild indigos, asters, and blazing stars make their home among those grasses, as do several species of herbs. Precipitation in grassland biomes is often high enough to support grasses and a few small trees, but for the most part trees are rare. Fires and erratic climate generally prevent trees and forests from taking over. With so much of a grass growth occurring underground or low to the ground, they are able to survive and recover from fires more quickly than shrubs and trees. Also, the soils in grasslands, while fertile, are typically thin and dry, making it difficult for trees to survive. Temperate Grassland Animals There are not many places for prey animals to hide from predators in grasslands. Unlike savannas, where there is a large diversity of animals present, temperate grasslands are generally dominated by just a few species of herbivores such as  bison, rabbits, deer, antelope, gophers, prairie dogs,and antelopes. Since there are not many places to hide in all of that grass, some grassland species - such as mice, prairie dogs, and gophers have adapted by digging burrows to hide from predators such as coyotes and foxes.  Birds such as eagles, hawks, and owls also find lots of easy prey in grasslands. Spiders and insects, namely grasshoppers, butterflies, crickets, and dung beetles are in abundance in temperate grasslands as are several snake species. Threats to Grasslands The primary threat faces by grassland ecosystems is the destruction of their habitat for agricultural use. Thanks to their rich soils, temperate grasslands are frequently converted to farm land. Agricultural crops, such as corn, wheat, and other grains grow well in grassland soils and climate. And domestic animals, such as sheep and cattle, love to graze there. But this destroys the delicate balance of the ecosystem and removes the habitat for the animals and other plants that call the temperate grasslands their home. Finding land to grow crops and support farm animals is important, but so are grasslands, and the plants and animals that live there.

Activity Based Costing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Activity Based Costing - Essay Example Conventional costing methods have caused problems in their implementation in most companies. This is because of the constant change in technological advancement which requires the use of modern methods of costing. The use of the ABC system creates difficulties in the separation and allocation of some overhead costs on a product unit. For instance, the Chief Executive Officer’s salary does not provide the management with the appropriate reports on costs. The ABC method allocates business cost on a proportionate basis to products or based on assumptions (Lawrence, 2004). This makes inaccurate reports on costs to be generated to the management. Some of the traditional methods of costing ensure accuracy of information which can lead to a competitive advantage. ABC is a costly method as compared to the traditional methods, but it is the most efficient. In planning implementation of ABC method, it is important to identify key purposes of the information that the method will provide. A well designed ABC method can form the basis of improved budgeting and capacity of resource planning (Lawrence, 2004). Organizations need to understand their cost structures and have a cost management system that supports the understanding. Effective management of both ABC and the conventional methods may have greater profitability to the

Sainsbury's Case Study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Sainsbury's Case Study - Essay Example From the auspicious events in the 1970’s to the menacing 21st century, the company stakeholders had to remain on their toes being susceptible to the fluctuating financial position of the company. Impact of the problems and the solution strategy on the Investors: It was all going favourable for the company investors till the start of 2002 when the situation began to worsen. The profit position of the company deteriorated in 2004 which initiated the warning signals for the investors. The fact that half of the Board of Directors and some of the executives had resigned created a bleaker picture for the financers of the company and hence shook the investor confidence. This must have created immense problems and communication gaps between the two parties involved. This situation demanded a huge drive towards relationship management in the company. The company management and executive board needed to minimize the communication gap and that could have been done by calling company meet ings and putting up issues in the annual general meeting of the company (Kehoe 2011). To boost the investor confidence the company would have to work on promotion efforts in the public sector. On the other side, the management had started to form negative connotations of the Sainsbury family’s efforts. ... There were also discrepancies in the financial matrices of the company that created a lot of misconceptions for the investors. The strategies that were later used by the company also impacted the investors. For example, the management spent ?3bn on IT systems which certainly alarmed the investors in such troublesome times. In these times the company management badly needed to find policies that could create motivation in the investors and revise cordial relationships between the company stakeholders. All measures that had to be implemented impacted the investor directly or indirectly. Even the policy of finding a target market had implications for the investors (Shah 2012). The executives of the company had to use this concept as a yardstick in the process of decision making and strategic planning. From the case study we can easily identify that the investors wanted rapid profits at this time which obviously was not feasible. Impact of the problems and the solution strategy on the Bo ard of Directors: The entire scenario under discussion posed serious questions on the viability of the company that should have been very worrisome for the company directors. The strategic decision making in these tough times was very difficult and each decision could have created a do or die situation for them. Hence prudence in each implementation step was needed to a lot of extent. The problems such as that of weakening financial position of the company must have led to people pointing fingers at the directors. The directors would have faced pressures not only from the investors but also from the employees. The point of losing market share must have popped up concerns

Influence of Money and Media on Elections

Influence of Money and Media on Elections During elections, electoral networks drive the â€Å"every vote counts† campaign, but the voter appeal is lost due to the high value placed in high-proficiency media and the conniving, slick interest groups that use propaganda to persuade voter turn-out. There lie many problems in the world of politics. Nasty campaigning and slamming ones opponent have become a commonplace in todays society. The root of these distinct problems doesnt stem directly from the candidates themselves, but rather the national committees for the Republicans and Democrats that represent them. The money which is spent by the massive institutions to their partys candidate in each election is overwhelming, but also impacts the public persona which is seen through the exorbitant and high-priced media campaigns that seduce public interest There are very specific rules that are governed rigidly regarding campaign financing. However the major national committees for the Republicans and Democrats have found ways around this system. The campaign financing rules are simple. Individual people are permitted to give $1000 per candidate per election, whereas interest groups are allowed to donate up to $5000 per candidate per election. In comparison to the hundreds of millions of dollars spent by both major parties, these are relatively small amounts of money. These national committees of the major parties use non-federal accounts to accumulate what is known as â€Å"soft money.† There are no limits on how much a party can spend at local levels for grass roots party building. The money in the non-federal regulated accounts is funneled to states, which are used to endorse or bash one of the candidates. Each major political party spends soft money in places where they have available seats in office and where they know they can retain them. This allows them to ensure more political influence in Congress. If a party feels they cannot steal a seat from the other party, the committee is less likely to spend soft money to keep up. The significance of this is that the candidate who spends the most money often wins. Though the large corporations and interest groups are the source of the influence, the political candidate is the face that the American people see to represent their party. This reality has caused voters to doubt whether their individual vote even counts. With each election, more Americans feel that the ultimate cause of who wins is determined by the amount of political wealth and media attention they have acquired. The solution to the problem is simple reform of the laws which govern campaign financing. While the answer may be simple to achieve, the solution is quite a different story. The major parties control the lawmaking body of the United States. Many of these congressmen owe their political position to what is known as soft money. This soft money comes from interest groups and major corporations; leaving the legislators in a very tough position. However if they were to reform the laws, the roles of these interest groups and the money of these corporations would be greatly diminished. It would provide a level playing field in all congressional districts around the nation. Eliminating soft money from politics would be to restore purity in a sense to the political process. Reforming the laws would ensure that political parties can not influence elections through money. It would also prevent interest groups and large corporations from controlling large aspects of todays government. For instance, the new law could set limits on how much money can be spent on television and radio advertisement. When this amount of money has been reached, the candidates could use no more political money for this type of advertisement. By the same token any amount of money could be spent on pamphlets and brochures. Educating voters on the issues and specific candidates stance on those issues is more alluring than oppressing and berating ones political opponent through media advertisement. This would allow the American people to decide based mainly on the issues presented, not through biased media influence. Campaign finance reform is a very hot topic. It seems that many people are jumping on the bandwagon hoping for some good press when a law is finally passed. With our most recent 2008 election, the candidates were undoubtedly fighting for votes in a close election, since the two of them set a record in soft money spent during an election. We need to fight to make politics about prevalent issues and leadership once again and take our country back from large corporations and interest groups that have assumed control through their large resources and persuading media influence.

The Impact of Keynesian Theory on Roosevelts New Deal :: Economy

The Impact of Keynesian Theory on Roosevelt's New Deal The crash of the stock market brought many hard times. Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal was a way to fix these times. John Stuart Mill and John Maynard Keynes were two economists whose economic theories greatly influenced and helped Franklin D. Roosevelt devise a plan to rescue the United States from the Great Depression it had fallen into. John Stuart Mill was a strong believer of expanded government, which the New Deal provided. John Maynard Keynes believed in supply and demand, which the New Deal used to stabilize the economy. Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal is the plan that brought the U.S. out of the Great Depression. It was sometimes thought to be an improvised plan, but was actually very thought out. Roosevelt was not afraid to involve the central government in addressing the economic problem. The basic plan was to stimulate the economy by creating jobs. First Roosevelt tried to help the economy with the National Recovery Administration. The NRA spread work and reduced unfair competitive practices by cooperation in industry. Eventually the NRA was declared unconstitutional. Franklin D. Roosevelt then needed a new plan. Keeping the same idea of creating jobs he made many other organizations devoted to forming jobs and in turn helping the economy. One of those organizations was the Civilian Conservation Corps. This corps took men off the streets and paid them to plant forests and drain swamps. Another of these organizations was the Public Works Administration. This organization employed men to build highways and public buildings. These were only some of the organizations dedicated to creating jobs. Creating jobs was important because it put money in the hands of the consumer. This directly affected the supply and

Multicultural Psychology

Multicultural Psychology Multicultural Psychology Multicultural psychology is the study of human behavior and mental processes through multiple cultures. The focus of this field of psychology incorporates theories on culture-specific issues and behaviors. Study models can be used as comparisons in understanding ethnic identity in viewing similarities and differences of the structure of the culture. In recent years, the original concept of one size fits all psychology has changed to include multicultural psychology that focuses on specific cultures and uniqueness within the culture. The study focuses on how a culture varies from other cultures to how they are similar. â€Å"It is apparent that the â€Å"old rules† in psychology have moved away from monoculture to a multicultural premise and that these â€Å"new rules† recognize both an appreciation of differences as well as an understanding of the inherent ambiguity and complexity in psychological practice† ( Pack-Brown & Williams, 2003). Defining Multicultural Psychology Multicultural psychology can be defined as â€Å"the systematic study of behavior, cognition, and affect in settings where people of different backgrounds interact† (McGraw-Hill, 2009). The focus on multiculturalism started in the 1960s as minority issues became more prevalent in society, especially in the Anglo dominated countries such as North America. Multicultural was primarily defined in association to race or ethnicity. The focus has broadened to include age, gender, religion, sexual preferences, and social class. Much of the focus on multicultural issues was directed toward issues in society regarding equality; many were caused and generated by political biases, programs, and policies. Nagayama Hall (2010) stated, â€Å"Multicultural psychology is the study of the influences of multiple cultures in a single social context on human behavior† (p. 8). Brief History of Multicultural Psychology The study on human behavior labeled as psychology, has been traced back as far as the Greeks and into the medieval period of history, studing language, human behavior, and various human traits. In the early 1800s Darwin’s theory focused on an explanation of the evolution of humans and focused on the transformation of mankind. Throughout time numerous psychologists such as Freud, Kant, Mach, Hegel and Galton, to name a few, focused their studies on human behavior. The focus of these early psychologists’ studies relied primarily on a monoculture focus of human behavior. Cultural diversity has been overlooked for centuries and only in the past two decades has a stronger focus begun on how cultures vary from each other in their influences on human behavior currently are incorporating cultural trends. â€Å"During the 1980s, the percentage rate of articles in psychology on people of color remained at 3%. There was a percentage increase in the 1990s but the percentage rate has remained at about 4. 5% throughout the 2000s† (Nagayama-Hall, 2010). Opinions on the reason for such low percentages primarily focus on the lack of cultural (diverse) backgrounds of the psychologists. In 2002, the American Psychological Association Council approved and released a document of guidelines titled â€Å"Guidelines on Multicultural Education, Training, Research, Practice, and Organizational Change for Psychologists† (APA, 2002, p. 1). This document has provided a guideline for psychologists to refer to as the concepts of multicultural psychology continues to evolve and emerge into a specialized area of study in psychology. With APA guidelines in place more focus on the variety of cultures and the similarities and differences within cultural groups will create awareness of cultural diversity and increase educational efforts targeted toward a greater understanding of various ethnic groups. Rationale for the Establishment of a Subspecialty for Multicultural Psychology Although ethnic diversity is growing in North America and in many other countries there is also needs to have a growth in psychologists trained on multicultural issues to expand the focus to a broader spectrum of study. The need to encourage and recruit individuals with diverse ethnic backgrounds into the field of psychology has become crucial and providing educational opportunities to support the development of the field of multicultural psychology needs to continue to support the future of psychology. Many business organizations are expanding their focus to international levels that will increase a new level of human resources issues that will need to be considered and developed. With the development of international business along with cultural influences continuing to grow in the United States more multicultural research studies will be needed and the results recorded and published to maintain successful on various levels. Greater understandings of the variance in cultures need to be created and known by business professionals expanding their businesses abroad. The needs for multicultural professionals are growing and psychological research will be vital on many levels. For example, many businesses are required through the guidelines instituted by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to recruit a specific percentage of individuals from different ethnic backgrounds. The EEOC has placed guidelines when hiring and firing individuals and serves as a protection agency for possible issues and concerns of discrimination because of diversity or ethnic differences. â€Å"The U. S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is responsible for enforcing federal laws that make it illegal to discriminate against a job applicant or an employee because of the person's race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy), national origin, age (40 or older), disability or genetic information† (2010, EEOC). Through an improved focus on multicultural psychology, stronger guidelines can be set in place for education, the workforce, institutions . and society all that involve the interaction of a multitude of multicultural environmental backgrounds. Nagayama Hall (2010) stated â€Å"Rather than ignoring, neglecting, or reacting to cultural diversity, as has been the tradition of mainstream psychology, multicultural psychology is proactive and is helping to shape the discourse on race, ethnicity, and culture† (p. 19). Now is the time to grow diversity and eliminate the â€Å"cookie cutter† approach to the field of psychology. With the growing number of ethnic groups from so many countries, the make-up of society is constantly changing. Schools, businesses and entire neighborhoods are continuously changing as more ethnic groups integrate into these areas. The guidelines set forth by the APA provide psychologists strategies to work with society to educate and remove barriers that can come from the unfamiliar and lack of understanding of those individuals from different cultural backgrounds and ethnicities. The concept of monoculture in psychology must be eliminated and replaced with an active focus on multicultural issues in psychology to continue to evolve within society on a personal and professional level. References About the EEOC: Overview. (2010). U. S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Retrieved on April 2010, from http://www. eeoc. gov/eeoc/index. fm Guidelines on Multicultural Education, Training, Research, Practice, and Organizational Change for Psychologists. American Psychological Association. (2002) Retrieved on April 14, 2010 from http://www. apapracticecentral. org/ce/guidelines/multicultural. pdf Nagayama Hall, G. C. (2010). Multicultural Psychology (2nd ed. ). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall Pack-Brown, S. & Williams, C. Ethics is a multicultural context. (2003). Psych Board. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications What Is Multicultural Psychology? (2009) Retrieved April 14, 2010, from http://highered. mcgraw-hill. com/sites/dl/free/007338271x/591940/Chapter1. pdf

A Study Case For Renewable Resources - 981 Words

Energy generation in Hawaii is a noteworthy issue in context of the islands bound region and nonappearance of neighborhood resources. The state needs tons of petroleum and coal for power, yet late exercises have expanded utilization of renewable resources. There are numerous distinctive hotspots for renewable vitality that could unravel our vitality use issue, despite the fact that impressive measures of sun based photovoltaic and wind power use have actuated force value issues which have made Hawaii a study case for renewable resources. We are looking at Algae fuel and solar and wind power as additional sources to help with this power issue. The run of the mill expense of power in the introductory nine months of 2012 was $0.34 per kilowatt-hour, more than twofold the expense in the going with most fundamental state, New York at $0.16, and more than triple the US common of $0.10 per kilowatt-hour. Renewable sources gave 10.5% of total electric power in 2010. Hawaii organized third among U.S. states in geothermal centrality and seventh in went on sun power. In January 28, 2008, the State of Hawaii and the US Department of Energy indicated a redesign of understanding and reported the Hawaii Clean Energy Initiative, which has an objective to utilize renewable assets, for occasion, wind, sun, sea, geothermal, and bioenergy to supply 70 percent or a more significant measure of Hawaii s criticalness needs by 2030 and to decrease the state s reliance on imported oil. The StateShow MoreRelatedMotives of the Renewable Energy Policies in Resource Rich and Non-Democratic Countries1230 Words   |  5 PagesThis section will focus on the motivators of oil rich countries in the renewable energy field. Renewable energy can be defined simply as energy that comes from resources which are continually replenished by a period of time. 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