Pros and Cons of Uk Joining the European Union Essay Example

Pros and Cons of Uk Joining the European Union Essay Will the United Kingdom Join the Euro Club? When the euro was introduced in January 1999, the United Kingdom was conspicuously absent from the list of European countries adopting the common currency. Although the current Labor government led by Prime Minister Tony Blair appears to be in favor of joining the euro club, it is not clear at the moment if that will actually happen. The opposition Tory party is not in favor of adopting the euro and thus giving up monetary sovereignty of the country. Public opinion is also divided on the issue. Whether the United Kingdom will eventually join the euro club is a matter of considerable importance for the future of the European Union as well as that of the United Kingdom. If the United Kingdom, with its sophisticated finance industry, joins, it will most certainly propel the euro into a global currency status rivaling the U. S. dollar. The United Kingdom for its part will firmly join the process of economic and political unionization of Europe, abandoning its traditional balancing role. Investigate the political, economic, and historical situations surrounding British participation in the European economic and monetary integration and write your own assessment of the prospect of Britain joining the euro club. In doing so, assess from the British perspective, among other things, (1) potential benefits and costs of adopting the euro, (2) economic and political constraints facing the country, and (3)the potential impact of British adoption of the euro on the international financial system, including the role of the U. We will write a custom essay sample on Pros and Cons of Uk Joining the European Union specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Pros and Cons of Uk Joining the European Union specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Pros and Cons of Uk Joining the European Union specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer S. dollar Answer: If UK adopts Euro it will have a Lower transaction costs for firms and consumers and a Greater certainty for firms as benefits but the cost would be the Loss of independent monetary policy, Loss of ability to depreciate currency in recession and No Lender of Last Resort. The main constraint would be that countries joining the Euro signed up initially to the fiscal stability pact which limited the scale of government borrowing to 3% of national income. The economics of monetary union suggests a better deal and wider choice for consumers because of intensified competition through increased trade. There should be greater investment by businesses because of the reduction of exchange rate risks and the likely reduction in the cost of capital through the integration of financial markets. There should also be greater efficiency in production through the exploitation of economies of scale. Growth should be higher through the consequent raising of the likely trend increase in capacity. Although there may be continued instability in some regional asset markets

Iraq Government, Facts, and History

Iraq Government, Facts, and History The modern nation of Iraq is built upon foundations that go back to some of humanitys earliest complex cultures. It was in Iraq, also known as Mesopotamia, that Babylonian king Hammurabi regularized the law in the Code of Hammurabi, c. 1772 BCE. Under Hammurabis system, society would inflict upon a criminal the same harm that the criminal had inflicted upon his victim. This is codified in the famous dictum, An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. More recent Iraqi history, however, tends to support the Mahatma Gandhis take on this rule. He is supposed to have said that An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind. Capital and Major Cities Capital: Baghdad, population 9,500,000 (2008 estimate) Major cities: Mosul, 3,000,000 Basra, 2,300,000 Arbil, 1,294,000 Kirkuk, 1,200,000 Government of Iraq The Republic of Iraq is a parliamentary democracy. The head of state is the president, currently Jalal Talabani, while the head of government is Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki. The unicameral parliament is called the Council of Representatives; its 325 members serve four-year terms. Eight of those seats are specifically reserved for ethnic or religious minorities. Iraqs judiciary system consists of the Higher Judicial Council, the Federal Supreme Court, the Federal Court of Cassation, and lower courts. (Cassation literally means to quash - it is another term for appeals, evidently taken from the French legal system.) Population Iraq has a total population of about 30.4 million. The population growth rate is an estimated 2.4%. About 66% of Iraqis live in urban areas. Some 75-80% of Iraqis are Arabs. Another 15-20% are Kurds, by far the largest ethnic minority; they live primarily in northern Iraq. The remaining roughly 5% of the population is made up of Turkomen, Assyrians, Armenians, Chaldeans and other ethnic groups. Languages Both Arabic and Kurdish are official languages of Iraq. Kurdish is an Indo-European language related to Iranian languages. Minority languages in Iraq include Turkoman, which is a Turkic language; Assyrian, a Neo-Aramaic language of the Semitic language family; and Armenian, an Indo-European language with possible Greek roots. Thus, although the total number of languages spoken in Iraq is not high, the linguistic variety is great. Religion Iraq is an overwhelmingly Muslim country, with an estimated 97% of the population following Islam. Perhaps, unfortunately, it is also among the most evenly divided countries on Earth in terms of Sunni and Shia populations; 60 to 65% of Iraqis are Shia, while 32 to 37% are Sunni. Under Saddam Hussein, the Sunni minority controlled the government, often persecuting Shias. Since the new constitution was implemented in 2005, Iraq is supposed to be a democratic country, but the Shia/Sunni split is a source of much tension as the nation sorts out a new form of government. Iraq also has a small Christian community, around 3% of the population. During the nearly decade-long war following the US-led invasion in 2003, many Christians fled Iraq for Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, or western countries. Geography Iraq is a desert country, but it is watered by two major rivers - the Tigris and the Euphrates. Only 12% of Iraqs land is arable. It controls a 58 km (36 miles) coast on the Persian Gulf, where the two rivers empty into the Indian Ocean. Iraq is bordered by Iran to the east, Turkey and Syria to the north, Jordan and Saudi Arabia to the west, and Kuwait to the southeast. Its highest point is Cheekah Dar, a mountain in the north of the country, at 3,611 m (11,847 feet). Its lowest point is sea level. Climate As a subtropical desert, Iraq experiences extreme seasonal variation in temperature. In parts of the country, July and August temperatures average over 48 °C (118 °F). During the rainy winter months of December through March, however, temperatures drop below freezing not infrequently. Some years, heavy mountain snow in the north produces dangerous flooding on the rivers. The lowest temperature recorded in Iraq was -14 °C (7 °F). The highest temperature was 54 °C (129 °F). Another key feature of Iraqs climate is the sharqi, a southerly wind that blows from April through early June, and again in October and November. It gusts up to 80 kilometers per hour (50 mph), causing sandstorms that can be seen from space. Economy The economy of Iraq is all about oil; black gold provides more than 90% of government revenue  and accounts for 80% of the countrys foreign exchange income. As of 2011, Iraq was producing 1.9 million barrels per day of oil, while consuming 700,000 barrels per day domestically. (Even as it exports almost 2 million barrels per day, Iraq also imports 230,000 barrels per day.) Since the start of the US-led War in Iraq in 2003, foreign aid has become a major component of Iraqs economy, as well. The US has pumped some $58 billion dollars worth of aid into the country between 2003 and 2011; other nations have pledged an additional $33 billion in reconstruction aid. Iraqs workforce is employed primarily in the service sector, although about 15 to 22% work in agriculture. The unemployment rate is around 15%, and an estimated 25% of Iraqis live below the poverty line. The Iraqi currency is the dinar. As of February 2012, $1 US is equal to 1,163 dinars. History of Iraq Part of the Fertile Crescent, Iraq was one of the early sites of complex human civilization and agricultural practice. Once called Mesopotamia, Iraq was the seat of the Sumerian and Babylonian cultures c. 4,000 - 500 BCE. During this early period, Mesopotamians invented or refined technologies such as writing and irrigation; the famous King Hammurabi (r. 1792- 1750 BCE) recorded the law in the Code of Hammurabi, and over a thousand of years later, Nebuchadnezzar II (r. 605 - 562 BCE) built the incredible Hanging Gardens of Babylon. After about 500 BCE, Iraq was ruled by a succession of Persian dynasties, such as the Achaemenids, the Parthians, the Sassanids and the Seleucids. Although local governments existed in Iraq, they were under Iranian control until the 600s CE. In 633, the year after the Prophet Muhammad died, a Muslim army under Khalid ibn Walid invaded Iraq. By 651, the soldiers of Islam had brought down the Sassanid Empire in Persia  and began to Islamicize the region that is now Iraq and Iran. Between 661 and 750, Iraq was a dominion of the Umayyad Caliphate, which ruled from Damascus (now in Syria). The Abbasid Caliphate, which ruled the Middle East and North Africa from 750 to 1258, decided to build a new capital closer to the political power hub of Persia. It built the city of Baghdad, which became a center of Islamic art and learning. In 1258, catastrophe struck the Abbasids and Iraq in the form the Mongols under Hulagu Khan, a grandson of Genghis Khan. The Mongols demanded that Baghdad surrender, but the Caliph Al-Mustasim refused. Hulagus troops laid siege to Baghdad, taking the city with at least 200,000 Iraqi dead. The Mongols also burned the Grand Library of Baghdad and its wonderful collection of documents - one of the great crimes of history. The caliph himself was executed by being rolled in a carpet and trampled by horses; this was an honorable death in Mongol culture  because none of the caliphs noble blood touched the ground. Hulagus army would meet defeat by the Egyptian Mamluk slave-army in the Battle of Ayn Jalut. In the Mongols wake, however, the Black Death carried away about a third of Iraqs population. In 1401, Timur the Lame (Tamerlane) captured Baghdad  and ordered another massacre of its people. Timurs fierce army only controlled Iraq for a few years  and was supplanted by the Ottoman Turks. The Ottoman Empire would rule Iraq from the fifteenth century through 1917  when Britain wrested the Middle East from Turkish control and the Ottoman Empire collapsed. Iraq Under Britain Under the British/French plan to divide the Middle East, the 1916 Sykes-Picot Agreement, Iraq became part of the British Mandate. On November 11, 1920, the region became a British mandate under the League of Nations, called the State of Iraq. Britain brought in a (Sunni) Hashemite king from the region of Mecca and Medina, now in Saudi Arabia, to rule over the primarily Shia Iraqis and Kurds of Iraq, sparking widespread discontent and rebellion. In 1932, Iraq gained nominal independence from Britain, although the British-appointed King Faisal still ruled the country and the British military had special rights in Iraq. The Hashemites ruled until 1958  when King Faisal II was assassinated in a coup led by Brigadier General Abd al-Karim Qasim. This signaled the beginning of a rule by a series of strongmen over Iraq, which lasted through 2003. Qasims rule survived for just five years, before being overthrown in turn by Colonel Abdul Salam Arif in February of 1963. Three years later, Arifs brother took power after the colonel died; however, he would rule Iraq for just two years before being deposed by a Baath Party-led coup in 1968. The Baathist government was led by Ahmed Hasan Al-Bakir at first, but he was slowly elbowed aside over the next decade by Saddam Hussein. Saddam Hussein formally seized power as president of Iraq in 1979. The following year, feeling threatened by rhetoric from the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the new leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Saddam Hussein launched an invasion of Iran that led to the eight-year-long Iran-Iraq War. Hussein himself was a secularist, but the Baath Party was dominated by Sunnis. Khomeini hoped that Iraqs Shiite majority would rise up against Hussein in an Iranian Revolution-style movement, but that did not happen. With support from the Gulf Arab states and the United States, Saddam Hussein was able to fight the Iranians to a stalemate. He also took the opportunity to use chemical weapons against tens of thousands of Kurdish and Marsh Arab civilians within his own country, as well as against the Iranian troops, in blatant violation of international treaty norms and standards. Its economy ravaged by the Iran-Iraq War, Iraq decided to invade the small but wealthy neighboring nation of Kuwait in 1990. Saddam Hussein announced that he had annexed Kuwait; when he refused to withdraw, the United Nations Security Council voted unanimously to take military action in 1991 in order to oust the Iraqis. An international coalition led by the United States (which had been allied with Iraq just three years earlier) routed the Iraqi Army in a matter of months, but Saddam Husseins troops set fire to Kuwaiti oil wells on their way out, causing an ecological disaster along the Persian Gulf coast. This fighting would come to be known as the First Gulf War. Following the First Gulf War, the United States patrolled a no-fly zone over the Kurdish north of Iraq to protect civilians there from Saddam Husseins government; Iraqi Kurdistan began to function as a separate country, even while nominally still part of Iraq. Throughout the 1990s, the international community was concerned that Saddam Husseins government was trying to develop nuclear weapons. In 1993, the US also learned that Hussein had made a plan to assassinate President George H. W. Bush during the First Gulf War. The Iraqis allowed UN weapons inspectors into the country, but expelled them in 1998, claiming that they were CIA spies. In October of that year, US President Bill Clinton called for regime change in Iraq. After George W. Bush became president of the United States in 2000, his administration began to prepare for a war against Iraq. Bush the younger resented Saddam Husseins plans to kill Bush the elder and made the case that Iraq was developing nuclear weapons despite the rather flimsy evidence. The September 11, 2001 attacks on New York and Washington DC gave Bush the political cover he needed to launch a Second Gulf War, even though Saddam Husseins government had nothing to do with al-Qaeda or the 9/11 attacks. Iraq War The Iraq War began on March 20, 2003, when a US-led coalition invaded Iraq from Kuwait. The coalition drove the Baathist regime out of power, installing an Iraqi Interim Government in June of 2004, and organizing free elections for October of 2005. Saddam Hussein went into hiding  but was captured by US troops on December 13, 2003. In the chaos, sectarian violence broke out across the country between the Shia majority and the Sunni minority; al-Qaeda seized the opportunity to establish a presence in Iraq. Iraqs interim government tried Saddam Hussein for the killing of Iraqi Shiites in 1982  and sentenced him to death. Saddam Hussein was hanged on December 30, 2006. After a surge of troops to quell violence in 2007-2008, the US withdrew from Baghdad in June of 2009  and left Iraq completely in December of 2011.

ARTICLE CRITIQUES Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

ARTICLE CRITIQUES - Essay Example Another aspect covered by the article is sources of information for the recognition of potential threats arising from hazardous materials. These include location and site occupancy; placards, labels and other markings on mode of transportation, buildings and containers; as well as information about the physical and chemical properties. All these information provide HAZMAT professionals with knowledge and guidance in the handling of hazardous materials and in responding to HAZMAT incidents. Finally, the article tackles personal protective equipment or PPE’s which help reduce risks from hazardous materials encountered by HAZMAT professionals. All the initial information provided in the article should be well-known to the emergency responder of incidents involving hazardous materials. Moreover, all the inputs provided by the article should be further studied by individuals who deal with these materials. Lack of appropriate knowledge about hazardous materials not only run the risk of exacerbating the incident but also fatal risks for the HAZMAT professionals. They should be well-versed in the laws and regulations concerning such materials to be able to prevent untoward incidents. Emergency responders should also be able to recognize the presence of these materials and must know how to safely handle them. Additionally, in responding to emergency situations involving hazardous materials, HAZMAT professionals should be equipped with appropriate PPEs and should be well-trained in their use. The article provides an introduction to laws, regulations and regulating bodies concerned with hazardous materials. It gives examples of regulating bodies such as the EPA, OSHA, DOT, NFPA; as well as examples of regulation such as SARA-EPCRA, HAZWOPER, and NFPA standards. Even from the examples presented, the reader is made to realize that many entities are concerned with safety as related to hazardous materials. Although the examples are not explained at length, mere mention

Marshall Fisher. What is the right supply chain for your product Assignment

Marshall Fisher. What is the right supply chain for your product - Assignment Example Fisher argues that in some instances, performance has significantly worsened as a consequence of costs rising to unprecedented levels (Fisher, 1997). Based on his ten years’ research on the topic of supply chain in different industries ranging from fashion, food and apparel to automobile, Fisher devised a framework aimed at assisting managers to settle on the best supply chain for their specific products and situations. Fisher’s article aims at assisting managers comprehend the nature of the demand of their products and services and create a supply chain, which can best suit this demand. Fisher begins by arguing that a lot of brain power and technology has been applied with the view of improving supply chains. Organizations have the capacity o acquire and retain the voices of their customers using sophisticated marketing tools. The primary aim of a successful supply is to accurately identify and respond to market demands. According to Fisher, the first and perhaps most important step in developing and effective supply chain strategy is to appreciate the nature of demand for one’s company’s products. In order to attain this objective, companies typically make use of agile manufacturing, automated warehousing and mass customization (Fisher, 1997). However, these efforts continue to prove ineffective as supply chains worsen with each passing day. A notable symptom of this problem is the notable excess of one product and the scarcity of another. This begs the questions of why firms are unable to develop the performance of their supply chains and how these problems can be tackled in an effective manner. Fisher shows that if an individual classifies products and services on the basis of their demand patterns, these products fall into two major categories: the products are either primarily innovative or functional. Each of these categories calls for a distinctly unique form of supply chain. A primary problem arises from the mismatch between the type of product category and form of supply chain utilized. Therefore, an effective supply chain must first identify the type of product through criteria such as demand unpredictability and lifecycle. Functional products fulfill basic needs and have long lifecycles and stable and predictable demand. Innovative products have short lifecycles and it is relatively difficult to predict their demand since they depend on prevailing fashion and lifestyle causing uncertain market reactions. Fisher argues that after ascertaining the type of product being supplied, a company should determine whether the company’s supply chain is responsive to the market or physically efficient before using a matrix to determine the ideal supply chain strategy (Fisher, 1997). Functional products typically need effective supply chain processes while innovative products require responsive processes. Companies dealing in functional products are presently realizing the detriments of focusing on cost re duction, which causes diminishing returns. Consequently, firms are shifting towards sustaining coordination with corporate stakeholders such as distributors and suppliers who play a pivotal role in the supply chain processes. This coordination presents growing opportunities especially in light of the development of electronic networks, which enable closer coordination. However, companies often use the cooperative and competitive strategies to their detriment since the two approaches need dramatically diverse behaviors (Fisher, 1997). On the other hand, companies dealing in innovative products seek systems that provide high levels of product availability

Health of the Population of Ohio: An Analysis

Health of the Population of Ohio: An Analysis Health of an Ohio Population The health of a particular population and the main concerns each is faced with is an important first step in correcting or helping a community. Populations of a community consist of infants, children, young adults, adults, senior citizens whether healthy or disabled in some way. This poses a challenge alone, but then add mixed ethnicities with different ideals and it poses a bigger challenge yet. Each person, or group of persons, in a community has a various degree of risk for different conditions as well based on different behaviors, ethnicities and such. Conveying the general idea to promote health and explaining the initiatives that are created and providing support to the community at the same time is a must. Let us look at Stark County in the state of Ohio to gain a better understanding of the population break down, health concerns facing children in the county, and what is being done to combat them. Stark County, Ohio Population Breakdown Stark County, Ohio has an overall population of 375, 432 persons and is broken down into many smaller towns and villages that consist of various age groups and ethnicities (U.S. Census Bureau, 2010). Majority of the population is female with 51.5% and males making up the other 48.5% (U.S. Census Bureau, 2010). The population breakdown by age and percentage is shown in the table below. (U.S. Census Bureau, 2010) Health Concerns Facing Children of Stark County, Ohio Children make up a large portion of Stark County’s population, after adults aged 18-64, with a total of 103,618 children all together. Two major health concerns facing children today in Stark County, and the United States as well, are childhood obesity and mental health wellness. These concerns were identified in 2012 as part of the Stark County Community Health Improvement Plan as priority number one and three. Childhood Obesity Research into the Community Health Improvement Plan for Stark County (2012) revealed that, â€Å"34.1% of Stark County third graders were either overweight or obese in 2009-2010† according to the CDC. Obesity is measured using the body mass index scale which is done utilizing a weight to height ratio with a measurement over 30 kg per meter squared being considered obese (Russell-Mayhew, McVey, Bardick, Ireland, 2012). This only represents a small number of children, which for the category, has a high percentage. Obesity can lead to other health concerns and issues such as diabetes, heart problems, joint problems, depression, etc. and is associated with nearly $60 million a year in health care costs and lost productivity (NACS, 2013). Initiatives put into place to help combat childhood obesity in the county include wellness seminars at schools, promote physical activity and nutrition programs, and increase funding to Stark County schools to help create more programs and awaren ess (Stark County Health Department, 2012). The state of Ohio itself, which is ranked 12th for childhood obesity, also has launched an early childhood obesity prevention grant that will fund high-need communities and build upon other programs in communities as well (NACS, 2013). Mental Health Wellness The second area of health concern facing children is mental health wellness. According to Athena Health (2014), the rate of children being diagnosed with mental health conditions is continuing to rise with a recent increase of twenty-three percent with ADHD, anxiety and depression being the leading mental health diagnoses. The Ohio Youth Survey utilized in making the Community Health Improvement Plan (2012) indicated that 26.6% of students were sad or hopeless more often than not during the day for a period of two weeks in a row and as a result they stopped participating in activities they previously enjoyed and became withdrawn. Increasing awareness of mental health wellness promotion and substance abuse programs and their usage by implementing seminars, creating education programs and activities, performing screenings and making resources available are all part of the initiatives in place by the Stark County Health Department to combat this health concern facing children and others . Health Screening Tool for Risks Childhood Obesity and Mental Health Wellness both have initiatives created that use screening tools to help identify risks and how to prevent the health concern from occurring as one part of the solution. The following is an example of a health risk assessment taken and the information that may be provided to help decrease likelihood of getting a disease. A series of questions is asked about behaviors, demographics, health and such which is then compiled into a result that determines the risk into seven categories for this particular assessment relating to stroke risk: very much below average risk, much below average risk, below average risks, average risk, above average risk, much above average risk, and very much above average risks. The assessment explains what put the person taken the assessment at a much below average risk for a stroke such as not smoking, healthy blood pressure, exercising and not consuming alcohol in abundance. (Convergence Health, 2014) Following that section, there is a recommendation section. The recommendations for a much below average risk person regarding stroke is to continue healthy behaviors, maintain a lower weight, avoid passive smoke increase fruit and vegetable intake, and incorporate fish into diet on a weekly basis (Convergence Health, 2014). The recommendation section points out areas that may already be known but helps to reinforce what is necessary for better health and increase chances of avoiding future illnesses. This information is useful when creating a personal plan to becoming a better, healthier person to achieve any long term goals while reminding one to take care of their body and what we ingest directly affects one’s health and to be a positive role model for future generations. Conclusion Understanding a population and what the associated health risks are for that particular group helps create an effective improvement plan to successfully increase their health. Issues facing children such as childhood obesity and mental health wellness not only impact today, but the future as well. Teaching children how to be healthy now will help them to be more productive, healthy adults and help curb the same issue for their children as they are the role models being seen. States, counties and townships must ban together to help create and continue programs that are aimed to offer support and resources to create healthier communities. In the words of Gandhi, â€Å"It is health that is real wealth, not pieces of gold and silver† (Brainy Quote, 2014, p.1). References Athena Health. (2014). Rising mental health issues facing our children, in five charts.  Retrieved from http://www.theatlantic.com Brainy Quote. (2014). Health Quotes-Gandhi. Retrieved  http://www.brainyquote.com Convergence Health. (2014). Stroke Risk Assessment. Retrieved from  http://christianhospital.privatehealthnews.com NACS Online. (2013, June). Ohio launches new childhood obesity initiative. Retrieved from  http://www.nacsonline.com Russell-Mayhew, S., McVey, G., Bardick, A., and Ireland, A. (2012). Mental Health, Wellness,  and Childhood Obesity. Journal of Obesity (2012). Doi: 10.1155/2012/281801   Stark County Health Department. (2012). Stark County Community Health Improvement Plan.  Retrieved from www.starkhealth.org U.S. Census Bureau. (2010). 2010 Demographic Profile Data-Stark County. Retrieved from  http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/

City-States in Lower Mesopotamia :: Ancient Egypt Egyptian History

City-states in Lower Mesopotamia Factors that contributed to the emergence of city-states in Lower Mesopotamia and the influence the landscape played in the formation of the civilization which emerged. For this essay I considered the question of what factors contributed to the emergence of city-states in Lower Mesopotamia and the influence the landscape played in the formation of the civilization which emerged. Through my research on this topic I found that there is much evidence to support the claim that landscape was a very large influence on the emergence of civilization and that most of the contributing factors were, in some way, linked to geography. In order to fully understand the topic, I first explored what the definition of civilization is. The first criterion for civilization, that I could think of, is domestication and an agricultural economy capable of producing a stored surplus. From this, I felt the need to examine the origins of Mesopotamian agriculture. With the glacial retreat after the last ice-age (roughly 10000 BC) the Mesopotamian climate improved and many modern plants and animals began to become concentrated in specific areas. Around 9000 BC the vast majority of Mesopotamian peoples were hunter-gatherers. With the concentrations of plants and animals being in specific areas these hunter-gatherers soon began to domesticate those plants and animals and a sedentary village farming pattern arose. This became the predominant way of life around 6000 BC. This change from food collecting to food producing was one of the major transformations in human history. Early peoples no longer had to live the nomadic life of hunter-gatherers but could settle down in permanent housing and produce their own food. It also began an economic change that altered social and political institutions, religion, etc. Domestication is the process of altering plants and animals so that they are no longer bound to the natural habitats of their wild ancestors. In essence they become more productive and useful to people. This process sometimes even includes changes in the genetics of the domesticated plant or animal. In Mesopotamia the major domesticated species of plants were wheat, barley, chickpeas, peas, grapes, olives, walnuts, almonds, pistachios, apricots, dates, and figs. The major domesticated species of animals were cattle, sheep, goats, and pigs. Some of the genetic changes brought about through domestication and the careful breeding of plants and animals include plants that were bred to have more and bigger useful parts and animals that were initially bred to be smaller and less aggressive, and only later to have more of their useful parts.

Best Convention Venue in Singapore

Being the main convention venue in Singapore, the Sands Expo and Convention Center has held more than 700 events in its first year of opening. With its construction, the Sands is a turning point in Singapore’s MICE industry. While the Singaporean government heavily positions the destination to be a tourism and event hub, thanks to this concrete stepping stone, Singapore has successfully climbed up the ranks to second on the â€Å"Top international meeting countries† list according to UIA (2010). With this honor, Marina Bay Sands is definitely an important attraction that could not be missed. Secret of Marina Bay Sands: perfect locationAs the biggest MICE facility in Singapore, the Sands Expo and Convention Center locates only approximately 20 minutes from the Changi International Airport and 10 minutes from the city center, which makes good connectivity to be one of its strengths. As location is a crucial determinant to whether a convention center can be successful or n ot, proximity to city center and airport give valid reasons for the Sands to be one of the best locations for convention. Diversified infrastructure adds value to the convention center What impress me the most are the infrastructure and environmental elements in the Marina Bay Sands complex.To be a successful convention center, these two elements serve as other crucial determinants and the Sands Expo and Convention Center has fully displayed its strength in these aspects. While the convention center locates within the complex of Marina Bay Sands, on the way to Marina Bay Sands, one would pass one of the most historical accommodations in Singapore – the Fullerton. The historical feeling starts a wonderful journey into the Marina Bay Sands. Not to mention the iconic landmark of the three-tower design with a ship on top of the Sands Hotel and the lotus-like ArtScience Museum which adds ultural essence to the area, the SkyPark on top of the 57 storey-high building is another magn ificent location for special events. Imagine hosting a cocktail party after a long day of convention located directly opposite to the complex of hotel building, the SkyGarden gives delegates a chance to embrace a panorama view of the whole city of Singapore. This sensational experience would surely impresses and stays in the hearts of every delegate. The Sands also satisfy the green conscious new generation by surrounded by lots of green trees and grassland, the sustainable greenery also steps from the whole image of Singapore.While Marina Bay Sands provides stunning views of the water, first class attractions, relaxed atmosphere, tasteful accommodation and a state-of-art convention center, what more can we ask for? The Sands Expo and Convention Center has strategically located in a perfect area of Singapore and with its outstanding design and comprehensive infrastructure, it has all the things MICE development is looking for, no wonder Singapore could be the â€Å"Top Internationa l meeting City† (UFI, 2011). I would be very proud if Hong Kong could develop such mega integrated resort combined with attractions, hotels and landmark.