Hybrid electric vehicle Essay Example for Free

Hybrid electric vehicle Essay Americans today do not realize that hybrid cars are not cost efficient to buy. This is caused by many factors, many having to do with price of production and gas prices. The cost of production for many hybrid cars is too high causing the car to be to expensive for consumers to buy. They end up paying so much more for a car that promises to save them money. These cars turn end up not fulfilling that promise and leaving people short on cash. It is true that a hybrid car will save money at the pump, but not enough to cover the cost of buying and maintaining the car itself. Gas prices are another reason why these cars arent worth it. The prices of gas today are around 3 dollars which is nearing a record high. Even with prices this high, people will not save enough money with less gas consumption to cover the extra costs of owning such a high maintenance and highly complex car. The math works out that spending more on a hybrid car over a similar small car will end up costing the owner more money. The only way to make the car cost efficient would be to own it for an abnormally long period of time, which most people do not do. Many people are not willing to pay this extra money on a car that is supposed to be good for the environment, but some people do. Hybrid cars are better for the environment because they produce less greenhouse gasses. These are the emissions that specifically hurt the layers of the atmosphere and are among other emissions that are bad for our earth. Hybrid cars burn less fuel and they burn it cleaner, so they produce less exhaust that can potentially cause smog in cities like Chicago, or that can hurt the atmospheric layers such as the ozone layer that so many people talk about being in danger. To some people, the extra cost of owning one of these vehicles is worth helping the environment, but to most it is not. People want fast cars that are fun to drive and that get decent gas mileage. Or a mom might want a van that can haul a lot of people and weight and still get decent gas mileage. A dad would want a truck that can pull a heavy load and do the heavy duty work and wouldnt care about gas mileage. All of these are reasons why people dont want a small, meek, gas sipping hybrid. The first thing that makes most people shy away from buying a hybrid car is the price tag. They see that extra five or six thousand dollars and they say, NO! People want a durable car that gets good gas mileage and has room for a family and that is safe. All of these features can be purchased on a regular car that costs much less than a hybrid. The perfect example for this is the Honda Civic. This car comes in many trim levels, one for each type of consumer, minus the person looking for the truck. The Civic Sedan, a four door car with room for five people, starts at 15k and is the perfect car for a small family. This car gets 30mpg city and 40mpg highway which is very good by todays standards. The Civic Hybrid, the same size as the Civic Sedan, costs 22k, thats 7 thousand more, and gets an increase of only 19mpg city and 11mpg highway. This means that they would not save enough money on gas to cover the 7k increase in price in under 10 years. Since the car gets better gas mileage, one would go to the pump less, but not enough to save that much money. The third is the Civic Si, this is the sporty version of the Civic that only comes with a manual transmission and is very quick. This car costs 21k, one thousand less than the hybrid. It is much faster is only has two doors. This car gets 23mpg city and 32mpg highway, not much worse than the Civic Sedan or hybrid, and is much faster and more fun. Why would a student pay one thousand dollars more for a car that is slower and more boring when the mileage increase isnt that much, they wouldnt. People want fun cars that get the job done and the Civic does that with great gas mileage and a low price, without having to be a hybrid car. Another example of this concept is the Toyota Camry. This is the best selling family sized sedan in the United States. This car comes in many trim levels but the ones we will look at are the base Camry and the base Camry Hybrid. For 2007 this car got a gorgeous remodel as well as a new engine in the base Camry and they added the Hybrid model. The base Toyota Camry costs 18k and has many features needed for a small family to fit in the car along with a lot of luggage. Do not be confused though, this car can be seen driving down the road pimped out with 20 (thats really big) rims and banging sound systems by college guys. It can also be seen with pick stickers and fuzzy dice in the window being driven by a couple college girls on the way to the beach. This is a very pretty, versatile car. The base Camry gets 24mpg city and 34 mpg highway. This is very good for a full sized car and will get the owner a long distance before having to refill the tank. The Camry Hybrid costs a pretty penny, but some say its worth it. This car gets 16mpg more city and 4mpg more highway than the base Camry. The huge gain in city mileage is due to the way Toyota makes their hybrid cars. They have the ability to switch fully from electric to gas power whereas the Honda Hybrid drive train can only go from minimal usage of each, but never fully switches. Toyotas is called Hybrid Synergy Drive and uses the electric engine most when accelerating and charges the batter when braking. The braking actually charges the battery more than the gas engine, so the car is able to shine when driving around the city because of the constant starting and stopping, the car uses almost fully the electric engine. This is why the Toyota Camry Hybrid gets such good gas mileage in the city. Lets face it though, a car that big wont be found driving around the city, most people will be office executives taking long drives from offices to home or to customers and they will not benefit as much. The Camry Hybrid only gains 4mpg over the base Camry on the highway so many people do not agree with spending eight thousand dollars more for the hybrid. This is definitely not cost efficient for the owner. People will like the 18k price of the base Camry because it comes with so many standard options and is ready to fulfill any soccer moms fantasy. When talking about Hybrid cars, there is one that stands above the rest in durability, functionality, style, price, and ability to save gas. That car is the Toyota Prius. This car could be the only argument one could make against this paper. It costs 22k and it does not come with a non hybrid counterpart. This car does cost more than say, a Corolla, but it has more room than a Corolla, and slightly less room than a Camry. It is in a class of its own and its only close competitor is the Honda Insight. The Prius is able to get 60mpg city and 51mpg highway. This is the best mpg rating of any production car and it actually is selling. You can see a Toyota Prius on just about any trip that you take and it does have unique styling that always turns heads. Although it costs more, the mpg rating of this car are almost double that of the nearest non hybrid competitor making it almost worth the extra price tag. However, the cost of maintaining such a highly complex car is greater than that of the base Civic or Corolla and will end up costing more. The Honda Insight, the other close competitor, costs 21k and gets 60mpg city and 66mpg highway. Those numbers were only the estimated numbers and consumers found them to be too high and actually got less mileage than that. Also, Honda doesnt make this car anymore so a customer would only be able to buy it used. These cars all shown, people will not save money on buying a hybrid car. The gas prices right now are not high enough to allow people to save money at the pump if they own a hybrid car. They will get better gas mileage and they will go to the pump less but they are only saving a small amount of money each year. If somebody spends 30 dollars every two weeks on gas in a regular car, that would cost them about 780 dollars a year. A hybrid car could probably go an extra week without needing gas so that would cost them 520 dollars a year on gas. They would be saving a mere 260 dollars a year on gas. If the hybrid car costs 7k more, then they would need to have the car for about 26 years to cover the extra cost of the car. No way would somebody own a car for that long this day and age. That is only covering the cost of the actually sticker price and not the extra costs of owning the vehicle, like fixing it and stuff, which would have to be done since the car would need to get fixed in the 26 year period. Many websites do a calculation of the cars which would be the lowest true cost to own. One website listed the Prius and the Camry Hybrid under their list of cars costing around 25k that would be the lowest true cost to own. This is excluding how long one would own the car for and how high the gas prices are. Also they did not list any hybrid under the coupes which are lowest cost to own and they dont say customer reviews on how fun these cars are to drive. The fact is that most people do no see it necessary to buy a car that costs so much more when they could get a car for less money that will cost them less money in the long run. People also want fun cars that will cost the same, but be much more fun to drive, even though they arent amazing at gas mileage, they still succeed in getting decent gas mileage, so people buy them. Also the hybrid drive train is not good for hauling heavy loads that is why there arent many pickup truck hybrids out there if any. Hybrid cars may cost more causing people to shy away from buying them, but they are better for the environment. People dont realize that driving a car can be the largest form of pollution. We drive by a paper mill and see all the smoke coming out of the stacks and say to ourselves how bad that must be for the air. Meanwhile we are sitting in a car, that when grouped up with many cars, is much worse than the thing we are complaining about. Pollution from cars causes smog, which deteriorates the ozone layers closest to us. This can cause for major extremes of hot and cold in the seasons. The atmosphere helps moderate the temperatures on earth by holding in heat during the winter and shielding out heat during the summer. Big cities have problems with smog which is a constant haze in the air caused by so many cars in one place emitting gasses bad for the environment. Cars also have toxins in their exhaust that can cause acid rain or global warming, and even cause cancer in some people. The water supply on earth is never growing or shrinking, the water we have is all that we get. When there is acid rain, that water has to go somewhere and may sometimes end up in drinking water or people who have wells might take showers in it. This is how it can cause cancer in as many as 1,500 people a year. There are many bad gasses that come from motor vehicles, but the three main ones are hydrocarbons, nitrogen oxides, and carbon monoxide. Hydrocarbons react with nitrogen. The best times for this to happen are in the summer when there is lots of sunlight and really high temperatures. This reaction causes something called ground level ozone. This is a type of gas that is supposed to be in the atmosphere but is in our breathing air. This can cause many things such as eye irritation, wheezing, and even permanent lung damage. Nitrogen Oxides also cause the formation of ground level ozone and are major factors in causing acid rain and water pollution. Finally, carbon monoxide, which is an odorless and invisible gas, causes a slowing of oxygen in the bloodstream which can impair ones senses and cause permanent mental damage. Cars are responsible for around 90 percent of the carbon monoxide in the air in most urban areas. All of these gasses can be reduced by driving a hybrid car, but the best way to reduce them is public transportation. Studies show that a person who uses mass transit, such as buses or subways, for a year, instead of driving to work, can keep about 9. 1 lbs of hydrocarbons, 62. 5 lbs or carbon monoxides, and 4. 9 lbs of nitrogen oxides from being put into the air (Emissions). Other ways of reducing pollution from cars in the air are things such as driving at steady speeds, buying newer cars that have fewer bad emissions, keeping your car in good running condition, or even not topping off at the pump. People can help the environment by buying a hybrid car, but that isnt the best way. Using public transportation or even riding a bike if possible, would do a lot more good, and save somebody a lot of money. By using public transportation and by carpooling, people can save an estimated three thousand dollars a year (Emissions). Other numbers show that idling and stop and go traffic alone use 753 millions of gallons of gasoline per year (Emissions). People dont realize how much better it would be to just use public transportation. Instead, we want to go on our own schedules and have the freedom to go where we want when we want, and that costs money and causes pollution. The cost of a hybrid car over a regular car is too much. People will not buy a hybrid car when they can get a vehicle with very good gas mileage for much less money. They can get all the bells and whistles of a hybrid but spend around seven thousand less. Teenagers dont want a slow gas sipping car, they want a fast car with a loud exhaust. They cant get this from a hybrid car so they wouldnt spend the money to buy a slow hybrid when they could have a fast sports car. A dad needs his truck to haul stuff around and hybrid cars dont offer that. The mom needs the van to have a safe car for her family that can fit them and their luggage. The cost of gas prices right now is not nearly high enough to benefit the consumer who owns a hybrid car. There is some small benefit, about 300 dollars a year, but that would take 20 years to equal just the increased price of owning a hybrid, not to mention the added costs of the upkeep of such a complex car. People want the lowest price with the best package, and hybrid cars dont offer that. While they do offer benefits to the environment, people dont realize how important the environment is and they wont spend the extra money for benefits they wont see in their lifetime. Overall the hybrid car is not worth buying because the cost is just too great. Not only is it not worth it, but people are not buying them enough to make a difference to the environment anyways, further diminishing their value. Hybrid cars are not worth buying right now and will not be for many years to come.

Use of Tone to Create Mood in D.H. Lawrences The Rocking-Horse Winner

D. H. Lawrence uses tone to create a mood in his short story "The Rocking-Horse Winner." His ability to create tone allows us to understand the characters of the story, and enables us to actually feel as if we are in the story by creating such a vivid mood. Lawrence uses the eyes of the main character, Paul, to show how he feels about the events taking place, and this in turn helps the reader empathize with the boy and understand the story. Lawrence also establishes a theme by allowing the audience to feel his story. He creates a mood that is conducive to the story and allows the reader to experience what is going on inside the house. Through the use of tone and mood Lawrence creates the theme, allowing the reader to realize that there are much more important things in life than money. Lawrence uses the emotions of the main character of the story, Paul, to help the reader understand the child's mood. He uses Paul's eyes to help give the reader a feel for his disposition when different events in the story take place. The story begins with Paul receiving a rocking-horse for Christmas. The child becomes interested in horse races, and the gardener helps him to place a bet on one of the races. The child wins the bet and becomes very focused on betting at every race. When Paul realizes how much money that he is making with these bets, he soon becomes obsessed with not just horse racing, but the money that he brings in. The reason for this obsession stems from the feeling that there is never enough money in the house. Paul soon turns ill from the stress that he places on himself to win more money for his mother. A few days before Derby, a very important race that Paul has bet on, he is found rocking violen... ...ster, you're eighty thousand to the good, and a poor devil of a son to the bad. But, poor devil, poor devil, he's best gone out of a life where he rides his rocking-horse to find a winner" (Lawrence, 980). In this final sentence Lawrence conveys the idea that the mother has gained much money, but has lost her son. Within this sentence he also states that the son is better off dead than in this household where money is of greater importance than the ideals a family should display. Works Cited Juan, Jr., E. San. "Theme Versus Imitation: D.H. Lawrence's "The Rocking-Horse Winner"." The D.H. Lawrence Review. 136-140. Lawrence, D. H. "The Rocking-Horse Winner." The Tales of D.H. Lawrence. London: Martin Secker, 1934. 967-980. Martin, W.R. "Fancy or Imagination? "The Rocking Horse-Winner"." College English. 64-65.

Sources of Demo Data

The issue of population and development has increasingly evolved into the ‘population, environment, and development nexus. In the face of this mandate for research on population and environment dynamics, different theoretical frameworks are brought on board. Ester Boserup was one of the scholars who have contributed to these theoretical frameworks hence this essay will attempt to expound Ester her theory of population growth and demonstrate how applicable the theory is to Africa. Later on, the weaknesses of the theory will be brought in with reference to the African context.Lastly a conclusion will summarize the whole essay. A theory is defined as a set of facts, propositions, or principles analyzed in their relation to one another to explain phenomena. (Chambers dictionary, 2005) Population growth is defined as the total number of people who inhabit an area, region, or country, or the number of people in a particular group who inhabit an area. Ester Boserup (May 18, 910 â€⠀œ September 24, 1999) was a Danish economist, writer. She studied economical and agricultural development, worked at the United Nations as well as other international organizations, and she wrote several books.Her most notable book is The Conditions of Agricultural Growth: The Economics of Agrarian Change under Population Pressure. (Aldine, 1965) This book presents a â€Å"dynamic analysis embracing all types of primitive agriculture. The work undoes the assumption dating back to Malthus’s time (and still held in many quarters) that agricultural methods determine population (via food supply). Instead, Boserup argued that population determines agricultural methods. A major point of her book is that â€Å"necessity is the mother of invention†.It was her great belief that humanity would always find a way and was quoted in saying â€Å"The power of ingenuity would always outmatch that of demand† in a letter to Northern Irish philosopher T S Hueston. She also influ enced debate on the role of women in workforce and human development, and the possibility of better opportunities of work and education for women. (Jain, 2005) According to Malthusian theory, the size and growth of the population depends on the food supply and agricultural methods. In Boserup’s theory agricultural methods depend on the size of the population.In the Malthusian view, in times when food is not sufficient for everyone, the excess population will die. However, Boserup argued that in those times of pressure, people will find ways to increase the production of food by increasing workforce, machinery, fertilizers, (Jain, 2005) Bosarupian theory focuses on the relationship between population, environment, and technology. Her concept of ‘population,’ encompasses population density as well as absolute size and growth. Her concept of environment refers mainly to land resources and related factors such as climate and soil quality.Since her focus is historical civilizations or developing countries, ‘technology’ for Boserup refers mainly to the tools and inputs used in agriculture, the primary productive activity in these societies. In arraying relationships between population, environment, and technology, Boserup proposes that it is generally agreed that successive change in technology has an important influence on the population size. The opposite side of the interrelationship, the influence of population size on technology, has attracted less attention (Boserup, 1981, p. ). In response, Boserup focus her attention on exploring the role of population as an independent variable that influences both the development of agricultural technology which, in turn, shape the productive capacity of resources. Boserup argues that in the short-term a period of sustained population growth would lower output per man hour. This occurs more intensive methods mean more hours of work on the part of the agriculture laborer. The ratio of output to labour cost, thus, deteriorates in the short run.In the long run, however, workers would become more efficient at the tasks required by the new intensive regime. More importantly, the growing population would stimulate more efficient production by allowing division of labor. Therefore, a growing population or increased population density leads ultimately to long run increase in output that outweigh short run declines (Boserup, 1965, p. 39-42). Boserup also states that for small populations with low density it is not worthwhile switching to more intensive regimes that require more labor inputs and that entail short-term productivity losses.She asserts that density must increase to a certain level before it is worthwhile accepting short term declines in labor output and the â€Å"hard toil of intensive agriculture† (Boserup, 1965, p. 51). Once higher densities occur, however, it becomes imperative for the population to undertake the increase labor investment of more intensi ve systems for the sake of the long term advantage of increased output. Boserup asserts that reliance on food imports to meet the gap between the growing populations food needs and production has undercut the ressure for domestic intensification of agriculture. By offering food aid and subsidized and concessionary food imports, the developed world has made it more attractive for many sub-Saharan African countries to import food rather than increase domestic production. She asserts that food imports also play a role in the continued lack of investment in rural areas. Dependence on food production lessens the need for investment in the domestic food production. This allows all resources to flow into the production of crops for export or urban industrial sector.This type of flow correspond with the major development models of export-led growth promoted by international organizations, such as world bank, in sub-Saharan Africa (Boserup, 1981, p. 202) The theory has been instrumental in u nderstanding agricultural patterns in developing countries, although it is highly simplified and generalized. The theory can be applied in Africa in the following ways; Boserup sees sub-Saharan Africa as historically a sparsely populated continent relative to other regions. As a result, subsistence agriculture and low-technology predominate in the region.Boserup states that â€Å"because past rates of population growth were much lower in Africa than in other parts of the world, extensive land-using subsistence systems, that is, long-fallow agriculture continue to be much more prevalent than elsewhere. In large parts of Africa, there is more land than the sparse population needs for growing crops† (Boserup, 1990, p. 258). Boserup’s theory can also be demonstrated in the Case study of Mauritius. Mauritius is an island country of 1860  km2 in area, located off the east coast of Africa.Farming and fishing are its main ventures, with agriculture accounting for 4. 6% of it s GDP. This is comprehensible since it has fertile soils and a tropical climate. Its exports are divided into four main categories: sugar (32%), garments (31%), plastics (32%) and others (5%). (Jain, 2005) Its population in 1992 was 1,094,000 people. For 2025, the estimated population is 1,365,000. This would mean a growth rate of 1. 45%, with a doubling time of 47 years. Its fertility rate was of 2. 17 children per woman. Jain, 2005) It is possible to notice how uneven population growth has been in Mauritius. At first it was a maintained at a more or less constant level, because there were almost equal values of birth and death rates. Around the 1950s, the birth rate increased significantly (from 35 per thousand to more than 45 per thousand). The death rate declined from 30 to 15 per thousand shortly afterwards. (Jain, 2005) The rate of natural increase was very great, and there was a great pressure on the country for resources because of this increasing population.It was then that the government had to intervene. It promoted family planning, restricted early marriage, provided improved health care and looked to improve the status of women. The government also worked on diversifying agriculture, invested in industry and improved trading links. With time, there were changes in general attitude toward family size and people were getting married later. As well, there was an improvement in educational and work opportunities for women (in 1975 employment of women was 22. 3%, by 1990 it had increased to 35. 5%). Many transnational companies came to Mauritius because of tax incentives, the Freeport at Port Luis, the large number of educated residents, a considerable amount of cheap labour and the good transport. This would assert to us Boserup’s theory that â€Å"necessity is the mother of invention. † Because the population had risen, the government had to take measures to adapt to this growth. It had to improve and diversify agriculture, so proving a gricultural intensification and that â€Å"population growth cause’s agricultural growth. (This idea is presented in The Conditions of Agricultural Growth: The Economics of Agrarian Change under Population Pressure; 1965. ) It also suggests that a country must improve its technology to be able to support the growing population, and that many technologies will not be taken advantage of if the population is not large enough. Mauritius had to build a Freeport and improve transportation to be able to maintain its population. (Jain, 2005) Chitemene system in Zambia is also one example of how Buserup’s theory is applicable to Africa.Chitemene system is a method of farming practiced in the Northern Province of Zambia in which fields are cleared by cutting down trees in order to make the soil fertile. This system was introduced as a result of population increase in Northern Province of Zambia. As population density increased, there was need for more food production, this led discovery of an agriculture system which could make land more fertile hence increasing food production for the growing population. Despite Boserup’s theory being considered as the optimum population theory it as some weaknesses in the African context.Some of these weaknesses are explained in this part of the text. Boserup did not put the law of diminishing returns into consideration when formulating her theory. Increasing labor at a fixed potion of land (increasing population density) would lead to an extent where each addition unit of labor would be adding less to output than what the previous unit added, this would reach a point where output starts decreasing. Most African countries have limited technology and hence increasing population density would lead to diminishing returns in agriculture. (Obadan. 004. P. 99) Another weakness in Boserup’s theory is lack of consideration of ecological factors that arise as a result of increase in population density which affect agriculture negatively. For example in Africa, Nigeria in particular, agriculture contributed more than 75 percent of export earnings before 1970. Since then, due to population growth, however, agriculture has stagnated, mostly due to ecological factors such as drought, disease, and reduction in soil fertility. By the mid-1990s, agriculture’s share of exports had declined to less than 5 percent.Once an exporter of food to nearby countries, Nigeria now must import food to meet domestic demand (keet, 1994: p. 55). It is clear that certain types of fragile environments cannot support excessive numbers of people in Africa for example the Barotse flood plains in Zambia. In such cases, population pressure may not lead to technological innovations as Boserup suggested. Boserup’s theory does not adequately account for lack of the impact of subsidization of agriculture production by developed countries on African.Subsidization of agricultural products by developed countries lea ds to African agriculture products fetching low prices at the international market which in turn discourages farming in Africa despite an increase in population density. Fontanel and Touatam (2004, p. 31) gave an example of trade in cotton. Without financial subsides from the government, the price of cotton production in the United States would be three times higher than the cotton production in most sub-Saharan Africa.Because of subsides to cotton producers in the United States and European union in 2001/2002, Africa had lost in that period US $920 million (Miroudot, 2004: 47). Boserup’s theory does not also account for the comflicts in some African states which hinder agricultural activities such as farming hence making them depend on foreign aid rather than domestically produced products. Ayttey (1998, p. 193) writes that in 1996, more than 20 million of Africans were refugees. These people, who have lost their homes, jobs, and possessions, should be the ones to go to scho ol, grow food, or work in factories and government and business administration.This has greatly contributed to the low food output levels in these countries. Boserup’s idea is based upon field studies in south east Asia and she developed her idea based on the number of assumptions, her ideas are not much applicable in Africa which the population is sparse since her field work was conducted in places with very high population densities like india. In conclusion, Boserup’s population theory may not alone fully explain the relationship between population growth, environment and technology but most importantly it has offered a complementary perspective to other theories.The theory has offered applicable solutions on the relationship between population growth and resources especially in Africa. BIBLIOGRAPHY Ayittey, G. 1998. Africa In Chaos, St. Martin’s press. New York Boserup, E. 1965. The Conditions of Agricultural Growth. Allen and Unwin, London. Boserup, E. 1981 . Population and Technological Change. Chicago press, Chicago. Boserup, E. 1990. Economic and Demographic Relationships in Development. The John Hopkins University press. London. Ehrlich, P. 1968. The Population Bomb: Ballantine. New York. Fontanel, J. and Touatam, A. 2004. The Rift. African Geopolitics. No. 13. Paris. OR. IMA INTERNATIONAL.Pp. 29-42. Keet, D. 1994. Systematic Destruction – IMF/World Bank Social Engineering in Africa. Track Two. The centre for intergroup studies. Vol. 2. No. 1. Pp. 10-11. Obadan, M. 2004. The External Debt Crisis: Strategies and policies. In African Development and Governance strategies in the 21st century. London . Zed Books. Pp. 140-164. Simon, J. 1981. The Ultimate Resource: Princeton university press. New Jersey. Aldine. (1965, 08 03). Women, Development and the UN. Retrieved 03 15, 2012, from wikipedia: http://www. wikipedia. com Jain, D. (2005, 03 16). ester buserup. Retrieved 03 15, 2012, from enotes. com: http://www. enotes. com Sources of Demo Data The issue of population and development has increasingly evolved into the ‘population, environment, and development nexus. In the face of this mandate for research on population and environment dynamics, different theoretical frameworks are brought on board. Ester Boserup was one of the scholars who have contributed to these theoretical frameworks hence this essay will attempt to expound Ester her theory of population growth and demonstrate how applicable the theory is to Africa. Later on, the weaknesses of the theory will be brought in with reference to the African context.Lastly a conclusion will summarize the whole essay. A theory is defined as a set of facts, propositions, or principles analyzed in their relation to one another to explain phenomena. (Chambers dictionary, 2005) Population growth is defined as the total number of people who inhabit an area, region, or country, or the number of people in a particular group who inhabit an area. Ester Boserup (May 18, 910 â€⠀œ September 24, 1999) was a Danish economist, writer. She studied economical and agricultural development, worked at the United Nations as well as other international organizations, and she wrote several books.Her most notable book is The Conditions of Agricultural Growth: The Economics of Agrarian Change under Population Pressure. (Aldine, 1965) This book presents a â€Å"dynamic analysis embracing all types of primitive agriculture. The work undoes the assumption dating back to Malthus’s time (and still held in many quarters) that agricultural methods determine population (via food supply). Instead, Boserup argued that population determines agricultural methods. A major point of her book is that â€Å"necessity is the mother of invention†.It was her great belief that humanity would always find a way and was quoted in saying â€Å"The power of ingenuity would always outmatch that of demand† in a letter to Northern Irish philosopher T S Hueston. She also influ enced debate on the role of women in workforce and human development, and the possibility of better opportunities of work and education for women. (Jain, 2005) According to Malthusian theory, the size and growth of the population depends on the food supply and agricultural methods. In Boserup’s theory agricultural methods depend on the size of the population.In the Malthusian view, in times when food is not sufficient for everyone, the excess population will die. However, Boserup argued that in those times of pressure, people will find ways to increase the production of food by increasing workforce, machinery, fertilizers, (Jain, 2005) Bosarupian theory focuses on the relationship between population, environment, and technology. Her concept of ‘population,’ encompasses population density as well as absolute size and growth. Her concept of environment refers mainly to land resources and related factors such as climate and soil quality.Since her focus is historical civilizations or developing countries, ‘technology’ for Boserup refers mainly to the tools and inputs used in agriculture, the primary productive activity in these societies. In arraying relationships between population, environment, and technology, Boserup proposes that it is generally agreed that successive change in technology has an important influence on the population size. The opposite side of the interrelationship, the influence of population size on technology, has attracted less attention (Boserup, 1981, p. ). In response, Boserup focus her attention on exploring the role of population as an independent variable that influences both the development of agricultural technology which, in turn, shape the productive capacity of resources. Boserup argues that in the short-term a period of sustained population growth would lower output per man hour. This occurs more intensive methods mean more hours of work on the part of the agriculture laborer. The ratio of output to labour cost, thus, deteriorates in the short run.In the long run, however, workers would become more efficient at the tasks required by the new intensive regime. More importantly, the growing population would stimulate more efficient production by allowing division of labor. Therefore, a growing population or increased population density leads ultimately to long run increase in output that outweigh short run declines (Boserup, 1965, p. 39-42). Boserup also states that for small populations with low density it is not worthwhile switching to more intensive regimes that require more labor inputs and that entail short-term productivity losses.She asserts that density must increase to a certain level before it is worthwhile accepting short term declines in labor output and the â€Å"hard toil of intensive agriculture† (Boserup, 1965, p. 51). Once higher densities occur, however, it becomes imperative for the population to undertake the increase labor investment of more intensi ve systems for the sake of the long term advantage of increased output. Boserup asserts that reliance on food imports to meet the gap between the growing populations food needs and production has undercut the ressure for domestic intensification of agriculture. By offering food aid and subsidized and concessionary food imports, the developed world has made it more attractive for many sub-Saharan African countries to import food rather than increase domestic production. She asserts that food imports also play a role in the continued lack of investment in rural areas. Dependence on food production lessens the need for investment in the domestic food production. This allows all resources to flow into the production of crops for export or urban industrial sector.This type of flow correspond with the major development models of export-led growth promoted by international organizations, such as world bank, in sub-Saharan Africa (Boserup, 1981, p. 202) The theory has been instrumental in u nderstanding agricultural patterns in developing countries, although it is highly simplified and generalized. The theory can be applied in Africa in the following ways; Boserup sees sub-Saharan Africa as historically a sparsely populated continent relative to other regions. As a result, subsistence agriculture and low-technology predominate in the region.Boserup states that â€Å"because past rates of population growth were much lower in Africa than in other parts of the world, extensive land-using subsistence systems, that is, long-fallow agriculture continue to be much more prevalent than elsewhere. In large parts of Africa, there is more land than the sparse population needs for growing crops† (Boserup, 1990, p. 258). Boserup’s theory can also be demonstrated in the Case study of Mauritius. Mauritius is an island country of 1860  km2 in area, located off the east coast of Africa.Farming and fishing are its main ventures, with agriculture accounting for 4. 6% of it s GDP. This is comprehensible since it has fertile soils and a tropical climate. Its exports are divided into four main categories: sugar (32%), garments (31%), plastics (32%) and others (5%). (Jain, 2005) Its population in 1992 was 1,094,000 people. For 2025, the estimated population is 1,365,000. This would mean a growth rate of 1. 45%, with a doubling time of 47 years. Its fertility rate was of 2. 17 children per woman. Jain, 2005) It is possible to notice how uneven population growth has been in Mauritius. At first it was a maintained at a more or less constant level, because there were almost equal values of birth and death rates. Around the 1950s, the birth rate increased significantly (from 35 per thousand to more than 45 per thousand). The death rate declined from 30 to 15 per thousand shortly afterwards. (Jain, 2005) The rate of natural increase was very great, and there was a great pressure on the country for resources because of this increasing population.It was then that the government had to intervene. It promoted family planning, restricted early marriage, provided improved health care and looked to improve the status of women. The government also worked on diversifying agriculture, invested in industry and improved trading links. With time, there were changes in general attitude toward family size and people were getting married later. As well, there was an improvement in educational and work opportunities for women (in 1975 employment of women was 22. 3%, by 1990 it had increased to 35. 5%). Many transnational companies came to Mauritius because of tax incentives, the Freeport at Port Luis, the large number of educated residents, a considerable amount of cheap labour and the good transport. This would assert to us Boserup’s theory that â€Å"necessity is the mother of invention. † Because the population had risen, the government had to take measures to adapt to this growth. It had to improve and diversify agriculture, so proving a gricultural intensification and that â€Å"population growth cause’s agricultural growth. (This idea is presented in The Conditions of Agricultural Growth: The Economics of Agrarian Change under Population Pressure; 1965. ) It also suggests that a country must improve its technology to be able to support the growing population, and that many technologies will not be taken advantage of if the population is not large enough. Mauritius had to build a Freeport and improve transportation to be able to maintain its population. (Jain, 2005) Chitemene system in Zambia is also one example of how Buserup’s theory is applicable to Africa.Chitemene system is a method of farming practiced in the Northern Province of Zambia in which fields are cleared by cutting down trees in order to make the soil fertile. This system was introduced as a result of population increase in Northern Province of Zambia. As population density increased, there was need for more food production, this led discovery of an agriculture system which could make land more fertile hence increasing food production for the growing population. Despite Boserup’s theory being considered as the optimum population theory it as some weaknesses in the African context.Some of these weaknesses are explained in this part of the text. Boserup did not put the law of diminishing returns into consideration when formulating her theory. Increasing labor at a fixed potion of land (increasing population density) would lead to an extent where each addition unit of labor would be adding less to output than what the previous unit added, this would reach a point where output starts decreasing. Most African countries have limited technology and hence increasing population density would lead to diminishing returns in agriculture. (Obadan. 004. P. 99) Another weakness in Boserup’s theory is lack of consideration of ecological factors that arise as a result of increase in population density which affect agriculture negatively. For example in Africa, Nigeria in particular, agriculture contributed more than 75 percent of export earnings before 1970. Since then, due to population growth, however, agriculture has stagnated, mostly due to ecological factors such as drought, disease, and reduction in soil fertility. By the mid-1990s, agriculture’s share of exports had declined to less than 5 percent.Once an exporter of food to nearby countries, Nigeria now must import food to meet domestic demand (keet, 1994: p. 55). It is clear that certain types of fragile environments cannot support excessive numbers of people in Africa for example the Barotse flood plains in Zambia. In such cases, population pressure may not lead to technological innovations as Boserup suggested. Boserup’s theory does not adequately account for lack of the impact of subsidization of agriculture production by developed countries on African.Subsidization of agricultural products by developed countries lea ds to African agriculture products fetching low prices at the international market which in turn discourages farming in Africa despite an increase in population density. Fontanel and Touatam (2004, p. 31) gave an example of trade in cotton. Without financial subsides from the government, the price of cotton production in the United States would be three times higher than the cotton production in most sub-Saharan Africa.Because of subsides to cotton producers in the United States and European union in 2001/2002, Africa had lost in that period US $920 million (Miroudot, 2004: 47). Boserup’s theory does not also account for the comflicts in some African states which hinder agricultural activities such as farming hence making them depend on foreign aid rather than domestically produced products. Ayttey (1998, p. 193) writes that in 1996, more than 20 million of Africans were refugees. These people, who have lost their homes, jobs, and possessions, should be the ones to go to scho ol, grow food, or work in factories and government and business administration.This has greatly contributed to the low food output levels in these countries. Boserup’s idea is based upon field studies in south east Asia and she developed her idea based on the number of assumptions, her ideas are not much applicable in Africa which the population is sparse since her field work was conducted in places with very high population densities like india. In conclusion, Boserup’s population theory may not alone fully explain the relationship between population growth, environment and technology but most importantly it has offered a complementary perspective to other theories.The theory has offered applicable solutions on the relationship between population growth and resources especially in Africa. BIBLIOGRAPHY Ayittey, G. 1998. Africa In Chaos, St. Martin’s press. New York Boserup, E. 1965. The Conditions of Agricultural Growth. Allen and Unwin, London. Boserup, E. 1981 . Population and Technological Change. Chicago press, Chicago. Boserup, E. 1990. Economic and Demographic Relationships in Development. The John Hopkins University press. London. Ehrlich, P. 1968. The Population Bomb: Ballantine. New York. Fontanel, J. and Touatam, A. 2004. The Rift. African Geopolitics. No. 13. Paris. OR. IMA INTERNATIONAL.Pp. 29-42. Keet, D. 1994. Systematic Destruction – IMF/World Bank Social Engineering in Africa. Track Two. The centre for intergroup studies. Vol. 2. No. 1. Pp. 10-11. Obadan, M. 2004. The External Debt Crisis: Strategies and policies. In African Development and Governance strategies in the 21st century. London . Zed Books. Pp. 140-164. Simon, J. 1981. The Ultimate Resource: Princeton university press. New Jersey. Aldine. (1965, 08 03). Women, Development and the UN. Retrieved 03 15, 2012, from wikipedia: http://www. wikipedia. com Jain, D. (2005, 03 16). ester buserup. Retrieved 03 15, 2012, from enotes. com: http://www. enotes. com

The Issue Of Divorce Over The Years - 903 Words

Definitional Argument Essay According to the CDC and the Census Bureau, a lot more of marriages have been ending in divorce over the years. Why have the rates for divorce changed so much throughout the years? Over the years, everything from hairstyles to phones has changed, including marriage. Marriage is the legally recognized union of a man and a woman as partners in a personal relationship and should be one of the biggest decisions in someone’s life. Although nowadays, it seems as if people take it a lot less seriously as they took it twenty to thirty years ago. Of course some people do not think that the idea of marriage has changed at all. That is, until they look at all of the statistics on how long marriages last now†¦show more content†¦When did society stop looking down on divorce? When did it become okay to change your mind on your love for your significant other just because things started to get a bit difficult? Society used to be completely against the thought of divorc e, but lately not so much. Now, society would rather two people get a quick and easy divorce instead of trying to work it out or go to couples therapy just because it is easier. Outside sources. Things such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, etc. have caused quite a stir in a lot of marriages as well. Social media has made not staying faithful very simple. All it takes is the click of a button to do something and a click of a button to erase it. It is hard to trust your significant other now because of all of the temptations there are online. In the 1800’s and early 1900’s, the internet had not been created yet so there were a lot less options and it was a lot easier to get caught. Another reason that rates of divorce have gone up so much is because of divorce attorneys. Now a days, divorce attorneys are making it seem as if separation is the only option for couples that are unhappy in their marriages. 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