Ethanol Fuel Essay Example for Free

Ethanol Fuel Essay Ethanol is regarded as an attractive alternative to gasoline and other fossil fuel-based automotive energy sources because they can assist in ending dependence on foreign-based oil imports, a dependence which reaches 140 billion gallons a year in the United States alone.Gal Luft, a director of the Institute for the Analysis of Global Security, asserts that oil dependence is problematic not just for economic reasons, but for political ones as well, maintaining that the relationship between the United States and the oil-producing Muslim nation states is strained at best (as well as noting that this political tension is probably of greater concern than any purported political instability are said to plague these oil-producing nations. )   As such, oil dependency constitutes a political liability. Furthermore, geologists have argued that oil prices are not going to get any better, what with the increasing costs of drilling current oil reserves, and ethanol is therefore an economically sound alternative. However, ethanol is not without its critics. Critics charge that the ethanol boom in the United States, which relies primarily on corn for feedstock has resulted in dramatic increases in food prices (and it is worth noting that many non-corn based food commodities utilize corn syrup). Farmers have begun to see the ethanol boom as lucrative incentive for corn production, which in its most positive sense has raised their incomes and â€Å"given new hope to flagging rural economies.† This translates to a diversion of grain-based agriculture towards fuel production, imposing dramatic impacts upon the costs of maintaining food supply for both the world’s hungry and the world’s well fed. Grunwald maintains that â€Å"the grain it takes to fill an SUV tank could feed a person for a year.†   Furthermore, research presents that the rapid expansion of corn agriculture to feed the ethanol boom holds environmental consequences. Environmental journalist Richard Manning charges that industrialized agriculture is detrimental to soil fertility.Mindy Lubber concurs, maintaining that massive land conversion of lands towards the production of corn could recreate the conditions of The Great Dust Bowl, a period in the American heartland which saw hundreds of thousands of would-be wheat farmers plow the soil to death to profit from golden grain. However, ethanol proponents are careful to remind us that it is also a renewable fuel source. Because it is derived from grain and other starch crops, and may also be obtained from cellulosic biomass such as crop residue, sugar cane bagasse and old newspapers, it is essentially a sustainable resource insofar production is concerned. Additionally, its energy potential, while being significantly less than that of gasoline, is endowed with a high octane level that gives it the power that is crucial to the operation of high compression engines such as those found in high performance automobiles. Furthermore, Khosla argues that the trajectory of ethanol development will result in continuously increasing potential for energy density and engine efficiency that would rival that of gasoline. While opponents of corn-based ethanol have charged that the energy yield barely exceeds the amount of energy used in its production, developments in cellulose-based ethanol have been promising, which may lead to a future in which the biomass and waste of any municipality could be used for ethanol production. Beyond the direct effects on corn prices, the corn-based ethanol boom also affects the price of various food commodities. Grunwald notes that the soybean market is affect to such an extent as to jack up the price of soybeans. Also, increased production of sugarcane-based ethanol, combined with sugar quotas in the U.S. ensure that domestic prices of sugar continue to inflate. As such, producers of high fructose corn syrup such as the agribusiness giant Archer Daniels Midland benefits in a situation where the price demand for high fructose corn syrup remains inelastic, simply because they are able to charge more for without fearing that sweetener-dependent companies will retaliate by switching to sugar.Even the price of a Starbucks latte is not immune to the effects of the corn-based ethanol boom, as diversion of crop grown to fuel production takes it away from the mouths of dairy cattle. Furthermore, the demand for ethanol has effects that reach as far as the Amazon rainforest, where the resulting expansion is leading to its deforestation. This is an overwhelmingly negative development as the rainforest is a highly biodiverse region. Grunwald reports that scientists believe that this could essentially reduce the Amazon to a savanna, or worse, a desert. Ethanol is not just an alternative fuel, but a complex distillation of political, economic and environmental issues. As such, it is difficult to reduce it to a simple either/or issue, let alone endorse it wholeheartedly as the silver bullet that will solve problems of climate change and fossil fuel dependency.

Baltimore Believe Campaign :: essays papers

Baltimore Believe Campaign The Baltimore Believe Campaign was started in April of 2002. It is a city wide campaign aimed to reduce the amount of drug use in the city. The idea of the â€Å"Believe† campaign has never been tried before. The campaign calls for Baltimore to believe, believe that drugs can be eliminated off of the streets, and drug dealers to be punished. Since the start of the campaign the idea has expanded around the country. Mayor Martin O’Malley has spread his idea around. The Believe Campaign surfaced in April of 2002. By April 14, 2002 the â€Å"Declaration of Independence from Drugs† was released in The Sun Newspaper (Wilber, The Sun). The Baltimore Police Foundation funds the campaign. All around the city there are billboards, trashcans, and bumper stickers with the word â€Å"BELIEVE† on them. The first hearing of the campaign was on April 6th, 2002. In October of 2003 Mayor O’Malley when on a trip to London, he was there to discuss the Baltimore Believe Campaign. London was interested in starting a campaign based on the believe campaign. The campaign is an ongoing part of the Baltimore City Community’s everyday actions. Mayor Martin O’Malley put the idea into motion. As said in a letter from Thomas D. Vicino, from the New York Times, â€Å"Mayor Martin O'Malley's efforts should be applauded. He has conquered the first obstacle in fighting urban decay: recognition of a problem. Keep on believing, Baltimore, because if we don't, how can anything change?† (Vicino, New York Times). There is really no other way to summarize all of the things Mayor O’Malley has done for the campaign. Another important role is the Baltimore Believe Leadership. This group works with the help number, 1-866-BELIEVE, and the campaign by setting up fundraisers and other events. Mayor O’Malley and the Baltimore Believe Leadership hold press conferences to inform the people about what goes on with the Believe Campaign’s progress and areas of concern regularly so the community stays informed on the progress. The community is another big role in the campaign. The communities of Baltimore Ci ty have taken the campaign in and â€Å"believe† it will have a positive affect on their communities. On April 6th, 2002 Mayor O’Malley announced his campaign to clean the streets of Baltimore. The Mayor had acknowledged a huge problem in the city, the drugs on the street were becoming out of control.

Empress Theodora Eulogy

Then our beloved Empress rose in political power and married Emperor Justinian. Some people called our Empress lazy and a burden, but she wasn't close to that. She was the empress hat defended and protected our nation, and influenced Emperor Justinian into keep Our nation during the Nick Revolt! She was the empress who wouldn't leave her purple and her people no matter what! She is the empress who would be the role model for future empresses!Now that our Empress has deceased she will still be respected and will be learned about for generations to come. Also, we can't forget our Empress's accomplishments during her years in power. Firstly, she has given women more rights than any other civilization. She gave women the power to own land and she allowed owed women to take income from land to pay for children needs. She also has influenced our Emperor to stay during the Nick Revolt, and take care of our Empire.Lastly, our Empress had laws expanded to protect the Neophytes, and prostitute s so they could start their lives anew. Monopolistic was a form of Christianity that believed that women should have more rights. Our Empress was the most important out of other empresses due to her influence and her outstanding accomplishments. In all, our Empress has accomplished more than any other empress achieved and without Empress Theodore the Byzantine Empire would have fallen long ago.

Female Circumcision Free Essay Example, 1500 words

Research has also identified that female circumcision is considered as an aspect of cultural identity. Notably, female circumcision to girls younger than 18 years in the United States is considered illegal. However, there is evidence that nurses in different health care institutions have handled patients who have undergone female circumcision (Berggren, Bergstrà ¶m, & Edberg, 2006). More specifically, there are reported cases of female circumcision affecting women’s reproductive functions. In the case of infibulation, childbirth becomes a difficult process, a factor that may compel medical practitioners to consider caesarean section. Nurses should Carry out Research of Cultures of Communities that Practice FGM In accordance with concepts developed by Madeleine Leininger, transcultural nursing promotes delivery of health care that conforms to the patient’s culture (Leininger, 2005). This compels nurses to undertake a rigorous study of different cultures in an effort to understand why female circumcision is a common practice. Transcultural nurses need to have diverse education on the cultural and religious beliefs that promote female circumcision. Although the practice has been considered a contravention of human rights, there is a salient need for transcultural nurses to understand the cultural views of communities that practice female circumcision. We will write a custom essay sample on Female Circumcision or any topic specifically for you Only $17.96 $11.86/pageorder now This is especially the case when nurses are handling patients who have developed complications from the procedure, but are in full support of their cultural practices (Heatherly, 2000). Developing a clear understanding of the culture of the communities that carry out female circumcision will help nurses have a different view of their patients who have been exposed to the procedure. Moreover, nurses need to understand the complications that result from the procedures. There is evidence that many nurses are unfamiliar with complications resulting from female circumcision. This explains why they have been unable to deliver efficient care. The purpose of the transcultural nursing is to ensure that patients receive efficient care that does not contradict their cultural beliefs. Moreover, cultural belief systems determine how individuals in that society view healthcare. Individuals from societies that practice female circumcision often present unique needs that are uncommon with other patients (Heatherly, 2000). This places emphasis on the need for nurses to acquire diverse knowledge and information concerning female circumcision if they are to practice transcultural nur sing.