Douglass and Whitman Race and Racism Relations - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 2 Words: 570 Downloads: 5 Date added: 2019/02/05 Category Society Essay Level High school Tags: Racism Essay Did you like this example? Racist and racism are evocative words of a reality that cannot be denied. One of the renowned writers in English literature has given us some solutions to this contemporary problem. Walt Whitman has commonly been professed as one of the few white American writers who excelled the racial attitudes of his time, a great prophet rejoicing the cultural and racial multiplicity and embodying democratic ideals. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Douglass and Whitman Race and Racism Relations" essay for you Create order When I think about Walt Whitman the first thing that comes to my mind is a big part of his poetic philosophy is kind of have a free spirit and treating everyone equally. He is against slavery at the time and against about racism. Even though he had his struggles of being gay at a time when people take that as the end of the world. Comparatively even five to ten years ago people in America had a concept that being homosexual is not the end of the world. But in his time slavery and being homosexual exiles were the same thing and you could be killed or be in prison. But it gives Whitman in his poetry the view of what his ‘his’ person if everyone knew he would be condemned as well. So, he had to live with that. That is why Whitman is considered as the first epic American poet who believes that we should treat each other equal. Frederick Douglass’s writing has also given us the viewpoint about racial judgment remains and which were a substantial problem back then, this must be understood against the contextual of extraordinary progress since decades. And the fact of the matter is that there is mostly no practicable alternative to some form of favorable action if we want to pledge the evil effects of certain forms of insight. Thus, although Whitman’s racist opinions of blacks, shaped in part by the bad science of the day, were inconsistent and at times unsure, his poetic vision stimulated a way past his own conventional limitations toward better justice. His solution to the inconsistency was to avoid racial subjects, much as he would avoid issues about the massacre being committed against Native Americans. He could not even resolve such inconsistencies in his own spirit. Therefore, the first thing I consider as I explore this is the reality that Americans don’t really believe America dar n aware of. In the same way, Douglass was writing for people who are not used to hearing this. He is talking to people through his writing only look at other Americans misconception of slavery today and American slavery was a part of the worldwide system. but by focusing on it he was writing for people who can only think of black people as ‘slaves’ that’s all they can be and that is what civil war was about. People of north say that as human being we can’t deal with the slavery anymore. And then Douglass is coming in and saying why don’t I write and speak to everyone through my writing. As a result, both writers grab the attention of people who would not normally pay them any mind. As we can see for both sides of this issue that people voted is one of the most stressful if we added the likes of Douglass and Whitman into this dialogue and calm people for a second and brought intelligent wisdom into this that might solve a lot of problems.

Investment Management - 13738 Words

1 INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Note: These course notes were written by Professor Virginia Maracine PhD and Professor Emil Scarlat PhD Department of Economic Cybernetics, Academy of Economic Studies Bucharest, using the announced references (see the Course s Syllabus). Chapter 1 Introduction. Basic of Investment 1.1. What Investment it is about? But Investment Management? 1. Investment - concepts and types The word Investment originates in the Latin vestis, meaning garment, and refers to the act of putting things (money or other claims to resources) into others pockets. The basic meaning of the term being an asset held to have some recurring or capital gains. It is an asset that is expected to give returns without any work on the†¦show more content†¦Thus investment is everything that remains of production after consumption, government spending, and exports are subtracted. I is divided into non-residential investment (such as factories) and residential investment (new houses). Net investment deducts depreciation from gross investment. It is the value of the net increase in the capital stock per year. Investment, as production over a period of time (per year), is not capital. The time dimension of investment makes it a flow. By contrast, capital is a stock, that is, an accumulation measurable at a point in time (say December 31st). Investment is often modeled as a function of Income and Interest rates, given by the relation I = f(Y, r). An increase in income encourages higher investment, whereas a higher interest rate may discourage investment as it becomes more costly to borrow money. Even if a firm chooses to use its own funds in an investment, the interest rate represents an opportunity cost of investing those funds rather than loaning them out for interest. Finance Approach In finance, investment = cost of capital, like buying securities or other monetary or paper (financial) assets in the money markets or capital markets, or in fairly liquid real assets, such as gold, realShow MoreRelatedInvestment Management Case Study1305 Words   |  6 PagesBeta Management Company | | |Investment Management case study | Table of contents Backgrounds†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦1 Strategies†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦...1 Background of California R.E.I.T and Brown Group Inc†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦2 Return and risk†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.....†¦2 Summary†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦...4 Appendix†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦...5 Background: BetaRead MoreInvestment Analysis Portfolio Management1583 Words   |  7 PagesHere is the term paper on investment analysis portfolio management from 31st may to 1st august. Now you will see that we have collected stock information and calculate relative things to evaluate our performance. We think that if anybody want to invest in the DSE , this term paper can help them to make decision whether or not they will invest or not and what strategy should they follow. Finally, we are also very much satisfied to have the scope of doing this investment which gave us the practicalRead MoreAn Evaluation Of An Investment Management Process1104 Words   |  5 PagesThe Weebly website defines investment as a commitment of funds made in the expectations of some positive rate of return otherwise emphasizing that expectation of returns in an essential element of an investment (imsmo.weebly.com). Basically, any business investment strategy comprises of a number of facets with some additional assistance from professional fund managers, settlement, dealing and the preparation of reports for clients (imsmo.weebly.com). Investment strategies are broadly divided intoRead MoreInvestment Strategy and Portfolio Management2408 Words   |  10 Pages Investment Strategy and Portfolio Management - Case of study: Kaplan Capital Introduction For organisations operating in unpredictable and competitive markets, it becomes a challenge for fund managers to create an optimal investment portfolio for their companies and their clients. Fund managers are presented with various prospects in emerging markets, equities, real estate, corporate bonds, government bonds, hedge funds, financial derivatives, and other alternative investments optionsRead MoreInvestment Analysis and Portfolio Management10645 Words   |  43 Pagesanticipation of future returns. Investments could be made into financial assets, like stocks, bonds, and similar instruments or into real assets, like houses, land, or commodities. 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Bank sponsored BoB asset management companyltd Can bank investment management services ltd PNB asset management company ltd SBI funds management company ltd C. Institutions GIC asset management company ltd IDBI principal asset management co ltd ILFS asset management co ltd Jeevan bima sahayoge asset management co ltd D. Private sector 1. Indian Benchmark asset management co ltd Read MoreYale Case Solution - Investment Management1027 Words   |  5 Pages1. How is Yale’s investment philosophy reflected in its strategic asset allocation? Yale’s investment philosophy is one of the critical factors that played into the success of the fund’s performance in the past years. The philosophy is based on 5 principles: focus on equity, diversification, opportunities in inefficient markets, outside managers and alignment of manager’s incentives with Yale’s interests. In the paragraphs below I will discuss how each of these principles is reflected in the endowment’sRead MoreBurgundy Asset Management: The Wescast Investment Decision1471 Words   |  6 Pagesï » ¿Burgundy Asset Management: The Wescast Investment Decision Question 1 1. Describe the investment process currently used by Burgundy, and identify the strengths and weaknesses of the methodology. Burgundy Investment’s philosophy involved carefully evaluating the economics of individual companies and their managements. The firm stressed independent research and a long-term, â€Å"bottom-up† value approach to the assessment of individual companies. The firm’s approach was considered contrarian and opportunistic

Digital Identity and Access

Question: What trust relationship must be configured to secure trust relationships that makes users digital identity and access rights available to trusted sites? Answer: A federation trust is required to accomplish this. Once a federation trust is created between two organizations, one organization plays the role of the account partner organization while the other of the resource partner organization, wherein users of the former can send authorization requests through the federation trust to the latter. An AD FS-enabled web server should be present at the Resource Partner Organization. How to use Windows Integrated Authentication and strong authentication technologies. For authentication to Active Directory domain services, Kerberos version 5 authentication protocol is used along with extensions for public key authentication. The Kerberos authentication client is available via the Secure Support Provide Interface (SSPI) as a Security Support Provider (SSP), and is in turn integrated with Winlogon single sign-on architecture; whereas the Kerberos Key Distribution Center works in integration with other Windows Server security services. How to use Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) binding to authenticate users. The authorization state unauthenticated is allotted by default when a client connects to LDAP directory server for the first time. An LDAP client is used to transmit a BIND request to the server which changes the connection state to authenticated. A successful BIND request then changes the state to the distinguished-name in the BIND request. How does the authentication process enable Single Sign-On (SSO) to allow an end user accessing resources within multi-domain forest enterprise without having repeatedly supply their logon credentials. By enabling single sign on, a single credential is created for signing in to multiple servers/resources. Hence, once the sign in process is completed for any one of the account, the need to sign in separately to other services cease to exist. This is achieved by means of the Remote Desktop Gateway (RD Gateway) role service. AD FS requires each server to have a certificate that used for SSL communication. Discuss each task that is involved in issuing an SSL certificate to root CAs authentication process. The Active Directory used the SSL communication for authentication of the client on server using certificate. The certificates are generally self-generated certificated using GPU license, and are provided to client separately. We plan to use all the three services, because they have different roles, and they will help keep the server status healthy and bug free, and reduce the efforts in manual maintenance. Methods Feature Description Does it Require for your Prototype Yes or No Authenticate to a Web Service or Application Integrated Windows Authentication Digest Authentication Provides automatic authentication for connections between Microsoft Internet Information Services, Internet Explorer and other AD aware applications A username/password based authentication method that uses MD5 cryptographic hashing on the username and password prior to transmission on the network. Yes Authenticate within an Active Directory domain Kerberos An authentication protocol that involves manual authentication using symmetric key cryptography and a trusted third party, and public key cryptography as well during some phases. Yes Authenticate to legacy applications NTLM A suite of protocols developed by Microsoft which combines the LAN Manager protocol, NTLMv1, NTLMv2 and NTLMv2 Session into a single package, implemented as a Security Support Provider. No Extend modem authentication protection to legacy systems Extended Protection for Authentication A set of security updates to the Integrated Windows Authentication that help protect user authentication credentials when IWA is used. No Leverage multifactor authentication Smart card support Biometric support Windows devices equipped with a suitable scanner can use either smart card authentication or facial recognition/finger print scanning, or any combination of these technologies to obtain user authentication. No Provide local management storage and reuse of credentials Credential Management Local Security Authority Passwords Yes Secure authentication on the web TLS/SSL as implemented in the Secure channel Security Support Provider Yes

Carbon Fibres and Composite Material Free Sample for Students

Question: Write a Research Paper on a Composite Materials of your Choice used in Medical Application. Answer: Introduction According to Goodman et al. (2011), a composite material refers to a combination of two or more materials that are of different composition, physical property, and morphology. These materials are often combined on a microscopic scale. Depending on the constituent properties, composites are in many cases designed to (or intending to) producing materials with materials aimed at fulfilling specific mechanical, physical, or chemical requirements. As a result, Hofmann (2016) points out that the use of composite materials have progressively increased for the past 40 years and have many uses in the automotive, aeronautic, medical, and naval fields among other industries. Consequently, different composite biomaterials have been tested and studied for use in the medical field and are often commercialized for their advantages of the traditional composite materials that were used before. In the medical field, most human tissues such as skin, bones, tendons, teeth, and ligament are composites made up of single constituents whose distribution, morphology, amount, and properties are the major determinants of the final behavior of the resulting organ or tissue according to Paknikar and Kumbhar (2015). The same study denotes that human-made composite materials can as well be used in making prostheses that are used to mimic these biological tissues with the aim of ensuring thy match their mechanical behavior and restore the mechanical functions of the body tissues that have been damaged. This paper presents the history, structure and synthesis, mechanical properties, possible uses, as well as pros and cons of the carbon-fiber-reinforced, peek (CFR-PEEK) composite material whose use have been studied, tested, and proven fit for medical purposes. History of the Composite Material Carbon Fiber, a polymer that is also known as a graphite fiber, is a very strong material and light in weight. Though stiffer than steel, its light weight makes it suitable for use as a raw material in the manufacturing of other materials (Garry, 2013). The composite material was discovered back in 1879 by Edison Thomas. The scientist backed bamboo silvers and cotton threads at high temperature carbonizing them into a fiber filament of all-carbon. His invention led to the use of high-performance carbon fibers in 1958 in Cleveland. CF-PEEK was then introduced as a matrix where long and short PEEK fibers were used as the composite matrix to ensure the end product had the qualities of both fibers. Despite the fact that they were inefficient, the fibers contained approximately 20% carbon with low stiffness and strength properties. However, the carbon fibers strength potential was realized in 1963 through a new manufacturing process at British research center (David et al., 2014). In the medical field, carbon-fiber-reinforced peek materials range from large scale components such as x-ray application materials to most invisible bolts internally used to support the bones in the body according to Paknikar and Kumbhar (2015). CFR-PEEK materials have for a long time been adopted for use in the medical field in different facets. They are widely used in the orthopedic processes mainly for bone crafts, bone cementing, hip joint replacement, and in the fixation of the bone plates in the body. Hofmann (2016) points out that CFR-PEEK can be fabricated with tensile strength or stiffness in the capability of the bone they replace in the body. As a result, the materials are successfully finding their way into the medical devices as implants to replace the internal body organs and tissues. Historically, many challenges have been faced by implant designers in achieving acceptance from different regulatory agencies globally. However, the uses of carbon-fiber-reinforced peeks are on the rise as a result of technological advancements and innovations. New medical applications and composite materials are gaining popularity and approval in many parts of the US food and drug administration (Garry, 2013). CFR-PEEK are used in the formulation of bone growths for implants such as temporary bone supports and bone screws mainly adopted in the orthopedic repairs. These materials have been adopted for use in the bioresorbable polymers that can safely break down and be absorbed by the body in the rebuilding process of the bone. Sturucture and Synthesis of the Composite In the medical industry, the first synthesis requirement is a performance parameter indicating the relative merits of different designs of CFR-PEEK with the primary knowledge that the growth and micro-motion of bones can be used for different purposes in a clinical view. What follows is a finite element code that determines the strains in the bone used as essential parameters in evaluating the performance of the carbon fiber. The CF-PEEK composite is manufactured by the use of a hybrid fabric composing of PEEK and carbon fiber as a matrix that is then modified and treated by low temperature and oxygen plasma. The process is then followed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Fourier transformation attenuated total reflection infrared spectroscopy (FTIR-ATR), and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) that are essential I relating the functionality and roughness of the carbon fiber surface with the PEEK interfacial adhesion strength. The plasma treatment is aimed at increasing the roughnes s of the carbon fiber surface while the prolonged treatment results into the smoothing. Figure 1: The structure of carbon According to Duraccio, Mussano, and Faga (2015), the structural properties of a composite material are determined by the length, volume, and alignment of the carbon fiber it contains. Apart from being strong, carbon fibers have high tensile strength and stiffness but with low weight. It also has a high chemical resistance and is often tolerant to high temperature and excessive heat but with a low thermal expansion as denoted by Garry (2013). Mechanical Properties According to Cano and Guilemany (2016), the mechanical property of a composite material can be determined by the mechanical properties of CFR-PEEK. Carbon fibers consist of strong and thin crystalline carbon filaments for the strengthening of other materials. David et al. (2014) denote that the fibers can be thinner than the human hair but gets its strength when the fibers are twisted and laid over a coated and molded into plastics or resin. For these mechanical properties, carbon fiber is adapted for use not only in the medical field but many industries such as the military, automotive, and aerospace. There are two main forms of carbon fiber incorporation used in composites for medical applications. Short CFR-PEEKs that consist of short carbon fibers randomly aligned and are mostly less than 0.4 mm, used as producers of the homogeneous material property for the implant. Long CFR-PEEK consists of carbon fibers essentially running the entire width of most composite materials. The long CFR-PEEK has a tensile strength that is greater than 2000 Mpa when compared to the 170 Mpa which is of the short carbon fiber (Aspenberg, 2014). As a result, their controlled alignment of these carbon fibers hence helps in providing a broad range of anisotropic properties that can be controlled for specific functions depending on there the composite material that needs to be made and the use. Figure 2: A summary of the mechanical nature of carbon-fiber-reinforced peek Advantages and Disadvantges of Carbon Fibers Ajioka et al. (2016) denote that carbon-fiber-reinforced peek material is engineered to produce a varying degree of stiffness and strength based on the number and orientation of the carbon fibers used. It is hence easier to help the manufacturer match the elasticity of the bone to be replaced with the composite implant material that will be fixed. On the other hand, Paknikar and Kumbhar (2015) also denotes that using carbon fibers as composite materials is easier since, before their innovations, manufacturers were facing challenges from modulus mismatch of the then used metal implants. For instance, the mismatch was often producing stress shielding; alter loading, and a periprosthetic bone remodeling process that was often detrimental. Commercially available carbon fiber composite materials have been tested in several ways for fatigue cycles but have always proven to be effective and resistant. Nayeri (2014) denotes that the average strength for a 4.5mm implant plate is 19.1 Newton meters while that of a similar 4.5mm stainless steel compression plate is 17.8 Newton meters. The bending strength of available 10-mm CFR-PEEK is averagely 80.3 Nm, while an 11-mm titanium tibial plate bending strength is 43 Nm. This has proven that the testing for wear debris of the implants is significantly lower than the wear debris strength of titanium plates made from the steel as pointed out by Goodman et al. (2011). The same study denotes that the healing and fracture reduction are available for a standard radiograph. The absence of both MRI and computed tomography means that CFR-PEEK for the composite implants has applications for infections, spine, and for oncologic cases. Even though there are several advantages of using the carbon-fiber-reinforced peek composite implants for medical reasons, there are also some specific disadvantages. For instance, they cannot be contoured hence making their use in fracture fixation limited to straight diaphyseal hence calling for a specific locking screw technique anatomically designed for the specific fracture Utech and Boccaccini (2016). At the same time, stiffness can be beneficial to the receiver, but the too much flexibility is as well dangerous as it can lead to pseudarthrosis. The increased fatigue strength of the implants helps in decreasing any possible risk to fatigue failure. However, the radiolucent nature of the carbon-fiber-reinforced peek used in the manufacturing of the implants precludes directly hence visualizes radiography. Possible uses of Composite Implant In his study, Hofmann (2016) denotes that all biomaterial composites intended for use in the body of any living organism have to meet certain conditions, regulatory requirements, and criteria. These include; The material should not release any harmful components into the living system of the organism Must be biocompatible such as tissue or blood compatible, nontoxic, or non-carcinogenic The physical and mechanical properties of the material such as durability, stability, and elasticity must be suitable and appropriate for the intended application. The mechanical properties of the material have to last for the projected life of the implant or the medical device A sterilizable material by a standard method Carbon-fiber-reinforced peek have found a wide application and use in different facets of the medical sectors. These include bone cementing, bone grafting, hip joint replacements, bone fixating plating, and other forms of bone replacements (Asghari et al. 2017). In the manufacturing and design of prosthetic composite implants used for the replacement of the central bone and the combined joint, the primary objective is often to arrive at an implant with a higher bone growth stimulus but slightly lower that the titanium alloys implants that are currently used (Egger et al. 2017). From the CFR-PEEK innovations, patients can easily get access to rapid and easier proper implant fixation and bone replacement. Achieving these objectives requires the synthesis and structure of the composite implants to consist of three primary elements. In his study, Soboyejo (2017) points out that CFR-PEEK includes bio-glass-ceramic, xenograft, and allografts often used in joint replacements and tissue engineering. They are often made of different layers of long and short carbon fibers; the final product often combines the properties of both the materials used. The resulting product is often mechanically strong but lightweight at the same time. Saleh (2016) also denotes that the materials have low density and can easily resist corrosion. The use of composite body implants has several advantages when compared to the metallic devices that were used before their inventions. It modules if elasticity and fatigue strength makes the CFR-PEEK an ideal composite implant material for bones plates and nails. Environmental Impacts The disposal of CF-PEEK is becoming a major issue since the different carbon fiber reinforced composite materials are reaching the end of their live services. According to Schinner, and Brandt (2011), over 27 000 tons of CF-PEEK have produced annually. As a result, grinding up the waste material and sending it to landfills or disposing of it through incineration has little appeal to the environment since it is non-biodegradable. With global warming and climate change policies affecting every global industry, incineration is not the best method of disposal of the material as it will lead to the production of greenhouse gasses as well as smoke, thus leading to pollution. Disposal into landfills also reduces the aesthetic value of the environment turning the areas into wastelands and creating environments for disease-predisposing factors such as stagnant water collection points for mosquito and bilharzia breeding when it rains. As a result, different recycling methods such as pyrolysis have been adopted that strips away the epoxy resin from the fibers while leaving the original properties undamaged. Conclusion The medical industry is driven and guided by the demands of the medical profession that seeks constant improvements and device innovations for better medical care. Consequently, different composite biomaterials have been tested and studied for use in the medical field and are often commercialized for their advantages of the traditional composite materials that were used before. Carbon fibers have found a wide application and use in different facets of the medical sectors. These include bone cementing, bone grafting, hip joint replacements, bone fixating plating, and other forms of bone replacements. References Ajioka, H., Kihara, H., Odaira, C., Kobayashi, T., Kondo, H. (2016). Examination of the Position Accuracy of Implant Abutments Reproduced by Intra-Oral Optical Impression.Plos ONE,11(10), 1-12. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0164048 Asghari, F., Samiei, M., Adibkia, K., Akbarzadeh, A., Davaran, S. (2017). Biodegradable and biocompatible polymers for tissue engineering application: a review.Artificial Cells, Nanomedicine Biotechnology,45(2), 185-192. doi:10.3109/21691401.2016.1146731 Aspenberg, P. (2014). Alendronate-eluting polyglucose-lignol composite (POGLICO).Acta Orthopaedica,85(6), 687-690. doi:10.3109/17453674.2014.979724 Bailey, S. R. (2009). DES Design: Theoretical Advantages and Disadvantages of Stent Strut Materials, Design, Thickness, and Surface Characteristics.Journal Of Interventional Cardiology,22S3-S17. doi:10.1111/j.1540-8183.2009.00449.x Cano, I., Guilemany, J. (2015). Cold spray as an emerging technology for biocompatibility of Carbon Fibers: state of art.Journal Of Materials Science,50(13), 4441-4462. doi:10.1007/s10853-015-9013-1 David, J., Cyril M., Seligson, D., Bennie L. (2014). Use of Carbon-Fiber-Reinforced Composite Implants in Orthopedic Surgery, Journal of Orthopedics, 37 (12): 825-830 Duraccio, D., Mussano, F., Faga, M. (2015). Biomaterials for dental implants: current and future trends.Journal Of Materials Science,50(14), 4779-4812. doi:10.1007/s10853-015-9056-3 Egger, J., Gall, M., Tax, A., cal, M., Zefferer, U., Li, X., ... Chen, X. (2017). Interactive reconstructions of cranial 3D implants under MeVisLab as an alternative to commercial planning software.Plos ONE,12(3), 1-20. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0172694 Garry, P. (2013). Self-tapping ability of carbon fibre reinforced polyetheretherketone suture anchors.J Biomater Appl. Epub ahead of print. doi:10.1177/0885328214535274 Goodman, B., Stuart, S., Kelsey, G. Deborah, J (2011). Composite Implant for Bone Replacement. Journal of Composite Material, vol. 261, pp.63-81. Hofmann, A. (2016). Surface Functionalization of Orthopedic Titanium Implants with Bone Sialoprotein.Plos ONE,11(4), 1-23. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0153978 Kumbhar, J. (2015). Applications of bacterial cellulose and its composites in biomedicine.Applied Microbiology Biotechnology,99(6), 2491-2511. doi:10.1007/s00253-015-6426-3 Paknikar, K., Kumbhar, J. (2015). Applications of carbon fiber and its composites in biomedicine.Applied Microbiology Biotechnology,99(6), 2491-2511. doi:10.1007/s00253-015-6426-3 Saleh, M. M. (2016). Biodegradable/biocompatible coated metal implants for orthopedic applications.Bio-Medical Materials Engineering,27(1), 87-99. doi:10.3233/BME-161568 Schinner, J. Brandt, H. (2011). Recycling carbon-fiber-reinforced thermoplastic composites, J Thermoplast Compos Mater, 6(9), pp. 239245 Soboyejo, W. (2017). Polymeric composite devices for localized treatment of early-stage breast cancer.Plos ONE,12(2), 1-11. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0172542 Utech, S., Boccaccini, A. (2016). A review of carbon-based composites for biomedical applications: enhancement of hydrogel properties by addition of rigid inorganic fillers.Journal Of Materials Science,51(1), 271-310. doi:10.1007/s10853-015-9382-5

Defending gay marriage

Human rights and equality A. Full faith and credit clause: The full faith and credit clause as specified in Article four of the US constitution requires states to respect judicial proceedings, records and public acts from different acts.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Defending gay marriage specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More This means that they should be given the same credit and faith that they possessed in the same courts or states that they were created. Since some states recognize same sex marriages then other states ought to respect decisions made outside their boundaries based on the full faith and credit clause. B. 14th amendment: The first section of the 14th amendment states that all people born in the US and governed by the US jurisdiction shall be protected from any state laws that will undermine their immunities and privileges. That law also states that all people shall not be denied liberties without due process. Marriage for same sex couples forms part of these liberties and privileges mentioned in the fourteenth amendment. Banning gay marriages therefore contradicts this clause and denies same sex couples equal protection under the law. C. Same rights as heterosexuals: homosexuals deserve the same rights that heterosexuals enjoy because outlawing their unions is tantamount to discrimination. Many lesbians and gays are not accorded the same civil rights that heterosexual couples enjoy. Any two consenting adults should be granted the right to marry because the same principle operates in heterosexual unions. In fact, prohibiting gay marriages imposes a kind of special disability on homosexuals who cannot fully enjoy their lives like other couples can. Religion A. Outdated excerpts from the bible: many opponents of gay marriages claim that gay marriages should not be legalized because they go against Christian or biblical teachings. They believe that the bible treats same sex rel ationships as sinful.Advertising Looking for essay on social sciences? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More However, these opponents are relying on outdated excerpts. The bible itself tolerates incest in certain circumstances and even fully accepts polygamy yet these very unions are unacceptable in the Christian community today. Consequently, same sex opponents need to realize that the definition of marriage is changing and should not be governed by such a traditional document which is never wholly applied by those very Christians. B. Not everyone is of the same religion: When people oppose gay marriages based on religious premises then they are basically saying that everyone in the country holds the same religious views. The country has so many atheists so it is quite unfair to subject them to values that they do not adhere to. Marriage is a cultural rather than a religious institution. C. God loves and accepts all: If Christians strongly believe in the teachings of the bible then the God described in the bible should be able to love and accept everyone regardless of their preferences and values. Shouldn’t God accept all his people and let them be happy regardless of whether they are sinners or not? Family life Adoption rates: Adoption rates have gone up after gays were allowed to adopt children. This is definitely a good thing for society because it has been shown that children’s psychological and physical well being greatly improves when they grow up in a family unit. Research has also shown that there are minimal differences in children’s outcomes when children grow up with heterosexual or homosexual parents. Because of this, gay marriages should be accepted.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Defending gay marriage specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Promotion of equality and acceptance in gay families: Families are th e foundation upon which societies are built so if gay marriages are promoted then they will solidify communities by offering children important values such as equality and acceptance. Financial stability for gay couples: Gay couples suffer tremendously during medical crises because they cannot offer insurance for their partners and may have to rely on family members. They also have to pay more in terms of insurance unless their employers fall in the minority 18% that accord gays insurance benefits. They also, lack power of attorney, inheritance rights and pay more taxes even if they live with each other for decades. Failure to acknowledge same sex marriages therefore leads to financial instability in same sex relationships. This essay on Defending gay marriage was written and submitted by user Javion E. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Commemorative speech on Michael Jackson Essays

Commemorative speech on Michael Jackson Essays Commemorative speech on Michael Jackson Paper Commemorative speech on Michael Jackson Paper Essay Topic: A Hunger Artist The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin My Favorite idol SPECIAL PERSON, ONE OF THE GREATEST CONTRIBUTOR TO AMERICAN POP MUSIC INDUSTRY. INFLUENCED BILLIONS OF PEOPLE WORLDWIDE WITH HIS MANY SELF-COMPOSED SONGS AND DANCE MOVES FAMOUSLY KNOWN TO HAVE CHANGED HIS SKIN COLOUR WON TOTAL OF 13 GRAMMY AWARDS (8 IN ONE NIGHT DURING THE 1984 GRAMMY AWARD CEREMONY WHICH EARNED HIM AN ENTRY IN THE GUISNESS WORLD RECORD ) A CONTROVERSIAL FIGURE. BUT LET’S JUST FOCUS ON HIS ACHIEVEMENTS AND HIS HUMANITARIAN EFFORTS. MAKE A GUESS? 1. As a musician remarkable vocalist ACHIEVEMENTS   STARTED OFF AS A LEADING VOCALIST IN JACKSON 5 AT THE AGE OF 5. (REMARKABLE RANGE EMOTION) AT 13, LAUNCHED OFF AS A SOLOIST WHILE CONTINUE TO BE MEMBER OF JACKSON 5. BY 20, HIS INCREASED FAME AND ESTABLISHMENT AS A RISING STAR ALSO HELP HIS BAND â€Å"THE JACKSONS† TO SELL MORE THAN A MILLION COPY FOR THEIR ALBUM â€Å"TRIUMPH† IN 1980. ONE OF HIS GREATEST ACCOMPLISHMENT IN HIS MUSIC CAREER WAS THE SONG â€Å"TRILLER†, WHICH STAYED ON THE CHART FOR 80 WEEKS AND NO. 1 SPOTS FOR 37 WEEKS, IN WHICH HE WAS LABELLED â€Å"KING OF POP† FOR HIS WIDE INFLUENCES AND LEGACY IN THE POP MUSIC WORLD. VOCALIST AND MUSIC STYLES FROM A SOPRANO-TURNED TENOR, HIS VOICE RANGE REMAINED HUGE FROM F2, AND TO THE EFLAT KEY ONE OCTAVE ABOVE THE MIDDLE C. USED THE TECHNIQUE OF â€Å"VOCAL HICCUP† – LIKE GASPING FOR AIR (UNQIUE METHOD) HIGHER TENOR RANGE COULD EASILY SLIDE INTO THE FALSETTO RANGE BETWEEN DIFFERENT GENRES OF SONGS, HE USES DIFFERENT FORM OF EXPRESSIONS WISELY (E. G. FAMOUS HEAL THE WORLD AND BILLIE JEANS, YOU COULD HEAR DIFFERENT STYLES. IN BILLIE JEANS HE WAS HEARD SCREAMING AND USING THE VOCAL HICCUP METHOD MORE THAN IN HEAL THE WORLD WITH HIS PRODUCED A MORE ROUND AND  THICK AND MELANCHOLIC VOICE). GOOD RENDITION CONVEYS HIS IDEAS AND FEELINGS THROUGH HIS COMPOSITIONS (FOR EXAMPLE, EARTH SONG DEALT WITH ENVIRONMENTAL AND ANIMAL WELFARE) (FOR EXAMPLE, HEAL THE WORLD TALKS ABOUT NEED TO IMPROVE THE LIVES OF CHILDREN) (FOR EXAMPLE, BILLIE JEANS WAS WRITTEN IN DENIAL OF HIS FATHERHOOD OF A CHILD BY A LADY WHOM SHE MET) 2. As a dancer CONCURRENT WITH HIS SINGING CAREER, MICHAEL ALSO TRADEMARKED SOME HIS UNIQUE DANCE MOVES ACCOMPANIED BY SOME OF HIS SONGS LIKE â€Å"BILLIE JEANS† AND â€Å"GHOSTS†. THOUGH I AM NOT A DANCER, I AM ABSOLUTELY AWED BY HIS  DANCE MOVES SUCH AS THE MOONWALK, CIRCLE SLIDE, THE PELVIC THRUST AND THE SPIN, ALL OF WHICH SERVES AS A TRADEMARK ICON TO HIM. NO DOUBT, MANY DANCERS ALL OVER THE WORLD HAD BEEN GREATLY INSPIRED BY MICHAEL AS WITH THE MANY SINGERS AND MUSICIANS. E. G. MOONWALK, CIRCLE SLIDE, PELVIC THRUST, THE SPIN 3. As a Humanitarian NO DOUBT AS A WELL ACCOMPLISHED ENTERTAINER, HOWEVER, MICHAEL’S EFFORT AS A HUMANITARIAN SEEMS TO BE RELATIVELY UNKNOWN TO THE PUBLIC AT LARGE. HIS CONTRIBUTION AND EFFORTS IN SUPPORTING GOOD CAUSES EARNED HIM GUISNESS  WORLD RECORD FOR THE MOST CHARITY SUPPORTED BY A POP SINGER. SOME OF THESE EFFORTS INCLUDE Setting up the ‘Heal the World’ Foundation which aims at providing medicine for children and fighting world hunger, drug and alcohol abuse, and child abuse Michael supported the efforts of the NAACP, to fight prejudice against black artists. Raised $3. 3 million dollars during ‘Michael Jackson and Friends’ concerts in Korea and Germany for the humanitarian agencies ‘UNESCO’, ‘Nelson Mandelas Childrens Fund’ and the ‘International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies’. Conclusion DESPITE HIS DEATH SOME 5 YEARS AGO, MICHAEL CONTINUES TO INSPIRE ME AND MANY OTHER PEOPLE WITH HIS MUSIC LEGACY AND HIS HUMANITARIAN EFFORTS THROUGH HIS PERSONAL PHILOSOPHY â€Å"MAKING THE WORLD A BETTER PLACE, FOR YOU AND FOR ME AND THE ENTIRE HUMAN RACE† View as multi-pages TOPICS IN THIS DOCUMENT Billie Jean, Disco, Human voice, Michael Jackson, Pop music, Singing, The Jackson 5, Vocal range RELATED DOCUMENTS Michael Jackson Michael Jackson: Man In The Mirror Michael Jackson is arguably the most well know celebrity figure in the world today. Michael Joseph Jackson was born in August 1958, in Gary, Indiana. Jackson has spent almost his entire life as a public performer. He was a member of the Jackson Five at the age of four, soon becoming the groups lead vocalist and front man. Onstage, he modeled 623 Words | 4 Pages READ FULL DOCUMENT Informative Speech on Michael Jackson Informative Speech Purpose: To inform or educate the audience about a topic of your choice. Time: 4-6 minutes Topic: Choose a topic that interests you and would probably interest your audience (the class). Consider what your audience already knows about this topic and what their attitude about this topic will be. Do not inform us of something we already know tons about. You may not choose something that could be done as a demonstration speech. 623 Words | 18 Pages READ FULL DOCUMENT Michael Jackson Maya Kirk Ms. Bork Sophomore English 17 April 2013 Michael Jackson, a man of many talents, had 13 #1 singles, 17 Grammy Awards, and sold over 1 billion albums across the globe since his solo debut in 1972. Michael had a big effect on the world. He influenced many people through his music. His dance moves created a new and innovative way for people to express themselves. His videos were a whole new experience for most people in the music industry. 623 Words | 4 Pages READ FULL DOCUMENT Commemorative Speech ? Said Sidiqi Comm 2200 Professor Butler Commemorative Speech – Benjamin Franklin Benjamin Franklin once said, â€Å"If you would not be forgotten, as soon as you are dead and rotten, either write things worth reading, or do things worth the writing†. He was a man certainly worthy of praise as he did both. He lived those words by writing and doing as much as he could. He wrote volumes and volumes of papers, almanacs, journals, and even an autobiography that proved to be 623 Words | 2 Pages READ FULL DOCUMENT Michael Jackson who inbraced the goodness of children and humanitarian work. He was the King of Pop. He was Michael Joseph Jackson. Born on the 29th of August 1958, in Gary, Indiana, Chicago, Michael was the eighth of ten children to an African-American family. He attended Montclair college prep, his elementary, where he gained interest in music. Michael had a troubled relationship with his father. In an interview Michael admitted that 623 Words | 3 Pages READ FULL DOCUMENT Michael Jackson Michael Jackson, referred to as the â€Å"King of Pop†, was an American recording artist, singer-songwriter, dancer, and musician. He has been acknowledged as the most successful entertainer of all time. His contribution to music, dance and fashion, along with a much-publicized personal life, made him a global figure in popular culture for over four decades. Through stage performances and music videos, Jackson popularized a number of dance 623 Words | 3 Pages READ FULL DOCUMENT Michael Jackson Composition 1001 Monday June 10, 2014 Michael Jackson â€Å"Thrills† the World in 1982 T. S. Eliot stated, â€Å"only those who will risk going too far, can possibly find out how far they can go,† (Crum). That is exactly what Michael Jackson did in the year I was born, 1982. Jackson was born as the seventh child to an African-American family in Gary, Indiana on August 29, 1958. He went on to debut on the professional music 623 Words

GREAT IDEAS Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

GREAT IDEAS - Assignment Example ut the nature of reality for instance, taking things as they appear to an individual without having to commit his senses to understanding them more by unlocking the hidden aspects through reading between the lines: At which point an individual ascends progressively to higher or best knowledge. In broadest terms, Plato’s allegory not only reveals how the cave is analogous with the physical world, but also how ultimately elements of philosophy progressively develop into the best grade of knowledge with the ability, according to Plato, to form the best individuals suitably refined by this knowledge to occupy and perform their duties in different levels of society according to their talents. Using the allegory of the cave, Plato sets out to explain a kind of ascent into knowledge, where an individual enters and emerges from the lowest and illusory grade of knowledge, and climbs to the level of the best knowledge of understanding reality. Thus the cave and all it represents is analogous to the physical world where an individual’s earlier judgments are seen to be mostly superficial by experience. However by and large, through his interaction with science and the realities of how things work, the body of knowledge gained becomes a prerequisite of improving and making better earlier impressions. This progressively leads to higher knowledge and the discovery of eternal ideas and forms like Justice, Truth, and Beauty which help in creating essential structures and basis for citizen’s capacity building in a state. Ascending into higher grade of knowledge is important and will equip an individual with a greater power of understanding and thus a refined capacity to make the best of any given situation. But certain aspects and problems require specific and specialized attention, for instance a critically ill patient. Besides leadership require certain individual characteristics and qualities that the knowledge of philosophy alone may not bequeath an

Women in Male dominated jobs Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Women in Male dominated jobs - Essay Example In the United States, job positions that are iconic representation of male-domination include positions of Secretary of State and directorship of federal institutions. Since US gained independence in 1776, 68 persons have occupied the Secretary of State’s office (Smith, 23). Expectedly, 3 out of the total 68 occupants were female, while the rest were male. In this context, a ration of 65:3 in terms of male and female office occupants respectively is a symbol of female underrepresentation in executive fields. Technically, underrepresentation of women in high positions is not without causes. Among the common causes of female underrepresentation include gender discrimination, and limited self affirmation within the female population. Traditionally, sex and power have an intricate relationship. Every society believes that women are emotionally weak, and lacks capability for objective judgments. This misconception explains why in the United States, women were not allowed to work and were expected to remain at home performing household chores. After the feminism period in the 1960s, the American society reluctantly invited women into the nation’s workforce (Lindsey and Martin, 90). Because of the structured gender discrimination, women lacked adequate education; hence could not be promoted into leadership positions. This element of inadequate education caused a corresponding limited self affirmation among women. In this regard, the synergistic effect of gender discrimination coupled wi th limited self affirmation propagated subordination of women in the labor force to date. Fortunately, liberation of women not only invited the female gender into workplaces but also laid the foundation for progressive transition of women in male dominated fields. Inasmuch as women are still underrepresented today, it emerges that the female gender has moved up the leadership ladder with time. Gradual entry of

Interpretation of the Bible. How the critical reading of John assists Essay

Interpretation of the Bible. How the critical reading of John assists in the interpretation of the gospel - Essay Example The book presents an account of the ministries of Jesus in the public1. The book opens with witnesses and affirmation of John the Baptist and it concludes with the crucifixion, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. The book follows the three synoptic including Mathew, Mark and Luke. Reading the gospel of John therefore, aids in the interpretation of the Gospel because of the information or rather the summary it relays and the various factors that the author put into consideration. II. Interpretation of the bible Interpretation of the bible can be done on the major purpose of the gospel. The book on its entirety can be interpreted on what the author wanted to pass to the audience2. Reading the book, it demonstrates that the author wanted people to believe in Jesus Christ to be able to have life, salvation and eternal life. The book recounts many of the miracles that Jesus did and how he overcame death. These accounts demonstrates clearly to the believers and non-believers that indeed, th ere is God and therefore, by trusting in His name, we are assured of eternal life. John through the book aspires to reach out to the believer and his intention is to strengthen their faith in the gospel3. Going through the book, it is evident that Jesus performed all his miracles in the presence of his disciples. He wanted them to bear witness that indeed he had the power to perform miracles as directed by the Almighty Father in Heaven. John in John 2:11, mentions the effect of first sign.4 Furthermore, there are various omissions that John omits in his book probably because of the fact that some of the issues are covered in the synoptic gospels. Therefore, much information on the background of the narratives is omitted in the book. Omissions include various events and characters that happened in the New Testament and the life of Jesus Christ. The gospel’s last chapters themes from John 13-17, may not have any impact to the nonbelievers5. These chapters talk about Jesus final instructions to his disciplines, his priestly prayers and the last super that he shared with his disciplines. Non-believers may not be encouraged and motivated to change their beliefs based on these chapters. Going through John 20:31, John evangelizes the gospel of Christ through very strong words6. He tells the readers that it is written that Jesus Christ is the son of God and therefore, whoever that believes in him will have eternal life. This is a very strong message that John is passing to the readers. The verse, send a very strong message to the nonbelievers as well as believers to accept salvation to be able to inherit the kingdom of God. Reading John helps us to understand the gospel as well as other three books of the gospel. The book continued to put emphasis on witnessing and this is illustrated through various episodes such as the Samaritan at the well and John the Baptist7. Therefore, the book helps the readers both the unbelievers and believers to have and strengthen t heir faiths. There is enough evidence that is provided about the deity of Jesus through the claims of Jesus as well as many miracles that Jesus did during his life. The synoptic gospels; Mathew, mark and Luke, have also addressed some of the issues or events that are presented in John but the way they are presented in John is precise and concise hence fostering easy understanding8. John selects specific material, which he uses to fulfill his themes and purpose, and this has made the gospel to be clear and

Vodafone Business Marketing Analysis Marketing Essay

Vodafone Business Marketing Analysis Marketing Essay Vodafone is a well-known mobile network operator headquartered in Newbury, England. It is recognized as the largest telecommunications network company all over the world on the basis of its turnover. Currently, the company has equity interests in twenty-five countries and Partner Networks in another forty-one countries (Vodafone 2011). It is the second largest mobile telecom group throughout globe after China Mobile. The firms success is due to its strategic capabilities and their link with significant external and internal factors. Nowadays for surviving in an intense competition, it is essential that firms must be innovative but it is also essential to identify what makes a firm innovative. As well, it is also vital to identify that what are the resources that make a substantial contribution in a firms innovation capabilities. In regard to business these innovation capabilities are also known as a firms strategic capabilities. The success of a firms strategic capabilities depends on its ability to link it with its internal and external factors that influence the setting of its business objectives and policies. In the light of resource based theory, the strategic capabilities of Vodafone can be assessed by identifying its current resources and capabilities as a successful player in telecommunication network industry (Ordanini Rubera 2008). Subsequently, the effects of its key resources on its strategic capabilities need to be identified in relation to its link with external and internal factors. Throughout company long history and success its resources are classified in two categories that are: Tangible resources: The company tangible resources can be classified into four categories that are financial, physical, organisational structure and technological resources. Intangible resources: Intangible resources can be classified into people-dependent and people-independent resources (Bakar Ahmad 2010). All these resources are not having same importance to company strategy as financial, structure, technological are highly important whereas physical resources is having ordinary importance to it. On the other hand, people dependent and people-independent resources like human and innovation resources and reputation and organisational culture all are having high importance to Vodafone strategy. In regard to these resources, the company is significantly able in developing several strategic capabilities that can be analyzed with the help of its value chain activities that are primary activities and support activities (Bakar Ahmad 2010). Activities or organisational functions direct its employees towards the development of capabilities so it is essential to identify capabilities in regard to companys primary and support activities. One of the substantial strategic capabilities developed by Vodafone in regard to its operations is providing telecommunication services at low cost with guaranteed quality. In regard to technological development, the company have become able to exploit technological opportunity and developing and applying technologies (Donaldson OToole 2007). For handling human resource management, it has developed its capabilities in concern of recruiting and training competent personnel for technological innovation and motivating compensating all employees for more and more technological innovation (Dodourova 2003). In regard to its infrastructure related activities, it has developed capabilities like recognizing and promoting the aspect of innovation, financing and planning for technological innovation, integrating all functional departments, evaluating technological innovation, legal support to it, and attaining essential government support to finance and protect its technological innovation (Dodourova 2003). The discussion of company strategic capabilities and resources depict that almost all its strategic capabilities are grounded on technological innovation that are highly supported by its innovation-friendly tangible and intangible resources. Due to this extreme association between resources and capabilities, the company have become able to handle its external and internal environment that can be understood with subsequent tools like PEST and SWOT analysis: PEST analysis Political factors: Several political factors related to regulations, infrastructure, and health issues affect Vodafone business objectives and policies but with its strategic capability of recognizing, financing, planning, integrating, assessing, and legal and government support it become able to effectively deal with these external issues and develop effective business strategy as per the industry trends and environment (Donaldson OToole 2007). Economic factors: Economic factors like high cost of licences, the bidding war for 3G and constant price wars between providers also critically affect company and its business plans but with its strategic capabilities of technological innovation Vodafone has become able to serve its customers with more surprising and advanced services (Dodourova 2003). Its technological development operations related capabilities are significantly assisting it in resolving economical issues from its external environment. Social-cultural factors: Socio-cultural factors like health issues, demographics and social trends also affects company operations that it critically handled with the help of technological innovation in regard to its human resources and technology development (Lynch 2006). Technologies offered by Vodafone are assured and approved that assist it in handling health related issues and its employees are highly dedicated and committed for technological innovation that assist in handling changing demographics and social trends. Technological factors: Technology related issues that affect company operations and business plans are excessive technological change in mobile phone industry, the introduction of 3G and several other advanced aspects (Dodourova 2003). All these external environment related issues are handled by Vodafone with its technological innovation capability that has been developed by exploiting technological opportunity and developing and applying technologies. SWOT analysis: Another contribution of Vodafone strategic capabilities is in concern to the management of its internal environment that is highly essential to link it up with external environment. With the help of its strategic capabilities, the company has become able to maximize its strength and existing opportunities like global experience, establish itself across several countries, exploring new technologies related to telecommunication and mobile, and increase its size of the market and as well as its market share (Bakar Ahmad 2010). As well, due to its technological innovation capability it has also become able to establish itself at a good global platform, standardized customer relationship management and attaining high operations margin (Dodourova 2003). In addition to this, the company has also become able to minimize its weaknesses and threats to external environment like high capital expenditure, huge RD and infrastructural costs, legal issues, selection of appropriate technologies, political and social regulations, and increasing competitors (McLoughlin Aaker 2010). It has all become possible due to its strategic capabilities developed throughout its different primary and support activities and continuous support from its tangible and intangible resources. All the above identified strategic capabilities assist firm in handling its external as well as internal factors that in turn assist it in the development of appropriate business objective and plans for present and future success of the company. Critical Appraisal of Vodafones Business Performance since 2008 Vodafone is one of the worlds largest mobile communications companies on the basis of revenue. From, its inception it is operating with a vision to become communication leader in a significantly connected world (Capon 2008). In its initial year, it confronted substantial difficulties throughout its business performance but in last some years it has attained immense success due to its several distinct strategic initiatives (Sandbach 2009). Since 2008, the company is doing quite well but still it confronted several failures related to intense competition, emergence of advances communication technologies, and continuous changes in customer preferences (Lynch 2006). For handling failures related to competition the company adopted three generic strategies for competitive advantage. For handling excessive competition and market pressure, the company made use of cost leadership strategy and differentiation in spite of focus strategy. In regard to its problem of competition, the company cost leadership strategy was highly helpful. One critical success attained by the company in this period was to become a firm with truly international customer base (Sandbach 2009). It become possible for Vodafone due to its appropriate strategies like differentiation and cost leadership strategy. In present also, this strategy is highly helpful for the company in dealing with the issues that may arise with number portability. Number portability means customers can switch to anyone who provides a reliable and cheapest service (Vodafone Annual Report 2010 2011). By competing on its cost leadership, Vodafone can direct itself towards higher unit profits that in turn will help it in attaining competitive advantage through decreasing costs. Another imperative success that company has attained in last 3 years is a good global platform which integrates its existing future network systems and heightens its ability to launch products with a concentration on both market speed and the ability to deliver it throughout all group network (Lynch 2006). It is done with a strategic initiative of differentiation. The differentiation along with marketing strategy and effective marketing mix helped Vodafone in serving its customers with added value through their wide range product features and quality that is significantly different from its competitors (Curwen Whalley 2010). The company strategic initiatives and their success and failures can also be understood effectively with the help of BCG matrix that depicts the companys market share and growth rate: Relative Market Share (Cash Generation) High Low Stars Multimedia messaging Question Marks 3G Vodafone Live Cash Cow SMS Dogs Analogue services High Market growth rate (Cash Usage) Low Vodafone BCG Matrix The BCG matrix depicts Vodafones portfolio that in turn demonstrates its products stand. Boston matrix represents the companys portfolio according to where the products and services stand in regard to market share and growth (Johnson 2008). This matrix shows that the company is operating by attaining a balance. Although, it has also confronted troubles in some last years in regard to 3G and Vodafone live that can also be depicted as a problem child or question marks. For effective future success in regard to the existing problems, the company should decrease its investments into its analogue services and in its place it should make use of money from cash cow SMS to reconstitute the problem child and maintain the star multimedia messaging in the high market share/high market growth area (Lynch 2006). In addition to these strategy models, the company performance since 2008 can also be understood with the help of different tools of financial analysis. By analysing subsequent financial ratios in terms of liquidity profitability, efficiency and return to investors it will become easy to identify that how well company managed its performance: Liquidity Ratios Current Ratio: The current ratio for Vodafone decreased from 5.40 to 5.00 in 2009 and 4.99 in 2010. It depicts that in terms of liquidity this period was not as good as throughout these years the company capability to pay its liabilities has decreased (Vodafone Annual Report 2010 2011). Quick Ratio: Vodafones quick ration fall from 5.38 in 2008 to 4.98 in 2009. This in turn also decreased slightly with 4.97 in 2010. This decrease shows that since 2008, the company ability to pay current liabilities without depending on the sale of inventory has also not attained any improvement (Luetjen Maatwk 2011). Profitability Ratios Gross Profit Margin: Vodafones gross profit margin over the three years has fallen slightly from 38.30% in 2008 to 37.00% in 2006 to a further 33.80%. It is the result of uninterrupted rise in the cost of sales. Although company margins are falling but its ratios are much better than its competitors that demonstrate that industry is at its matured stage and regularly the company is making use of new marketing strategies to bring down its cost. Operating Profit Margin: The company operating profit margin has fallen from 28.32% in 2008 to 14.28% in 2009 that in turn again rose to 21.32% in 2010. This was due to company approach towards market trends and existing competitors moves (Luetjen Maatwk 2011). Net Profit Margin: The company net profit margin has fallen initially from 19.4% in 2008 to 7.51% in 2009 and afterwards it improved to 19.38% in 2010 that was due to companys use of appropriate generic strategies and marketing strategy (Vodafone Annual Report 2010 2011). Return on Equity: The return to equity was also fallen from 8.83% in 2008 to 3.63% in 2009 but again with appropriate strategies it was increased to 9.49% in 2010. Efficiency Ratios Stock Turnover: The company stock turnover has increased continuously in the three years from 85.08 in 2008 to 99.56 in 2009 and 102.71 in 2010. This shows that throughout this three years period the company has effectively converted its stocks into revenue and as well it also made an effective use of its working capital that is critical for attaining success in present intense competitive environment (Luetjen Maatwk 2011). Debtor Turnover: The debtor turnover of the company has fallen slightly from 5.42 in 2008 to 5.35 in 2009 and 5.06 in 2010. It depicts that Vodafone is having high efficiency in regard to credit management. Asset Turnover: The asset turnover of the company is almost similar in three years as it was 0.28 in 2008, 0.27 in 2009 and again 0.28 in 2010. This ratio of company depicts its performance in generating sales from the assets at its disposition. Investment Ratios The Company earning per share has confronted both the increase and decrease from 2008 as in 2008 it was 12.56. In 2009 it reached at 5.84 and in 2010 it reached at 16.44. In addition to this, its price earning ration also confronted increase and decline. In 2008, it was 2.52 that increased to 3.14 in 2009 and again decreased to 1.35 in 2010 (Vodafone Annual Report 2010 2011). The companys use of appropriate strategies in comparison to its competitors assisted it in attaining this position. With the analysis of different financial ratios of the company, it can be said that the company performance since 2008 was a mix of success and failures. In this period the company did not confronted any severe failure in spite of just some minor business and competition related troubles (Wilson Gilligan 2005). Also, the company efforts made throughout this period were highly effective as due to this only it become able to make an effective use of its working capital. Development of a Potential Future Strategy for Vodafone With detailed discussion of company strategic capabilities and performance since 2008, it becomes apparent that company is doing very well but several times it is also troubled with intense competition and several other factors like increasing costs, emergence of advance communication technologies and changing preferences of customers (Dibb Simkin 2010). Till now, the company made use of cost leadership and competitive strategy that significantly helped it in attaining its specific business goals and objectives but it also need to be updated continuously. In regard to grow its position in international and global markets it is vital that the company operate with a potential future strategy that can be developed effectively with the help of Porters Diamond that in regard to Vodafone is as follows: Porters five forces Subsequent five forces make a direct effect on Vodafones strategic competitiveness that in turn will assist in determining a potential future strategy for the company: Competitive rivalry: In telecommunication market in which Vodafone operates competition is quite high and basically it comes from its competitors O2, Orange, T-Mobile and Virgin. In this market rivalry is high and there is no brand loyalty that exhibits that there exist little differentiation in spite of price (Dibb Simkin 2004). For handling this rivalry and growing in international markets the company should expand its operations in more and more developing nations. Buying power: In the market Vodafone is operating buying power is quite high and it could be understood with the measures of number of customers that disconnect throughout a year. This also depicts that rivalry in industry is high. Customers have several choices and new packages in regard to new tariffs and new phones (Hitt, Ireland Hoskisson 2009). For surviving in this kind of market it is vital to have continuous upgrade and expansion in developing countries for maintaining company position at global level. Power of suppliers: In addition to high buyer power, the telecommunication market also operates with strong suppliers power. In this regard, as Vodafone is a cost leader, it operates with margins higher than their competitors. This assist it to attract price increases from its suppliers more comfortably than its competitors (Dibb Simkin 2010). Being an extensive, leading competitors of the mobile telephone industry, Vodafone is able to hold its supplier cost down and attain profit but this situation would not remain in long-term if company is not able to main its position in global and international markets. For this it is vital to enter different developing countries. Threat of substitutes The company threat of product substitutes is low and it is due to its focussed cost leadership strategy. This strategy makes it difficult for others to produce similar products and services at a lower rate with same economies of scale (Fransman 2002). Threat of entry Although the threat of new entrants in industry is low but this situation need to be maintained by Vodafone by reducing its cost below of its competitors. This could be done by maintaining eminent level of efficiency and extending its place and position in different international and global markets (KÄÂ ±mÄÂ ±loÄÅ ¸lu, HNasÄÂ ±r NasÄÂ ±r 2010). With the help of this porters diamond analysis, it becomes evident that the most potential future strategy that can be adopted by Vodafone is expanding or concentrating more on developing countries. This analysis assists in identifying the suitability of selected potential future strategy. With this analysis it becomes evident that in present, Vodafone is able to maintain its position and attain significant competitive advantage with the help of focussed cost leadership strategy but the situation will not remain same in future. In future competition will get more intense and in that environment a firm that have strong international level presence will be able to operate. So, it is quite helpful for Vodafone to operate with a strategy of concentrating more on developing countries (KÄÂ ±mÄÂ ±loÄÅ ¸lu, HNasÄÂ ±r NasÄÂ ±r 2010). This strategy will also assist the company in increasing its profitability and cost-benefit that is related to the acceptability of a strategic option. Until or unless a strategic option s not acceptable it is not beneficial to use it. With this future strategy, the company will become able to reduce its costs and increase its benefits and shareholder value (Hitt, Ireland Hoskisson 2009). In addition to the suitability and acceptability of this future strategy, adoption of this strategy is also feasible. As in present also company is operating in several global locations so it is not so difficult for it to concentrate more on developing nations (Dibb Simkin 2004). It serves its customers with low prices that would also be beneficial for it to expand in developing nations. In this way, it can be concluded that concentrating more on developing markets is a quite effective potential future strategy for Vodafone and for its assured future success.

Networking Computer Systems :: Computer Networks

Networking Computer Systems A network is a group of two or more computer systems sharing services and interacting in some manner. In most cases, this interaction is accomplished through a shared communication link, with the shared components being data. Put simply, a network is a collection of machines that have been linked both physically and through software components to soothe communication and the sharing of information. To make the communications between two or more computers work, several things need to be in place. First, some type of physical connection mechanism has to exist between the computers involved. Normally, this mechanism is a wire or cable of some kind or a transceiver that can both transmit and receive information attached to or built into your computer. The idea of computer networking is new to some people and almost always seen as a highly technical and rapidly evolving process. Every day, computer professionals are called upon by their employers to evaluate, judge, and implement t he technologies necessary for the rapid communication of dissimilar groups in order to enhance productivity or lessen complexity within the organization's processes. Most see the task as a formidable one, and many feel they are not qualified or fully prepared to drive the creation of a Local Area Network (LAN) or Wide Area Network (WAN). The type of network you can create is often determined by the network operating system you use. Like a regular operating system for your PC, a network operating system coordinates how all the individual software application on a network work and how the network interacts with the hardware attached to it. Sharing data is made much easier when a network is involved. People are more productive because several people enter data at the same time and can also evaluate and process the shared data. The effective use of networks can turn a company into an agile, powerful, and creative organization, giving it a long-term competitive advantage. Networks can be used to share hardware, programs, and databases across the organization. They can transmit and receive information to improve organizational effectiveness and efficiency. They enable geographically separated workgroups to share documents and opinions, which fosters teamwork, innovative ideas, and new business strategies (Stair, Reynolds 269). Getting computers connected and speaking the same language may be somewhat interesting for some people, but it’s really just a necessary evil to get to the good stuff.

The Future of Marriage in America

http://marriage. rutgers. edu/Publications/SOOU/TEXTSOOU2007. htm The State of Our Unions The Social Health of Marriage in America 2007 Essay: The Future of Marriage in America David Popenoe  © Copyright 2007 Introduction In this year’s essay, David Popenoe argues that long-term trends point to the gradual weakening of marriage as the primary social institution of family life. More Americans today are living together, marrying at older ages or not at all, and rearing children in cohabiting or solo parent households. Overall, the U. S. trends are following the far-advanced trends toward nonmarriage in Northwestern European nations, albeit at a slower and more uneven pace. Popenoe attributes the weakening of marriage to a broad cultural shift away from religion and social traditionalism and toward faith in personal independence and tolerance for diverse life styles – otherwise known as â€Å"secular individualism. † This cultural shift is a central feature of modern societies and therefore unlikely to be reversed. Compared to Europeans, moreover, Americans are more libertarian and thus may be more susceptible to harshly negative consequences of secular individualism on family life. As Popenoe concludes, it will probably require a cultural awakening, perhaps prompted by rational self-interest, to avoid such an outcome. We will have to adopt the view that personal happiness depends on high-trust and lasting relationships and that such relationships require constraints on short-term adult interests in order to foster long-term commitments to children, and thus to the future. Barbara Dafoe Whitehead THE FUTURE OF MARRIAGE IN AMERICA David Popenoe Almost a decade ago, in our first annual State of Our Unions Report in 1999, the lead essay was â€Å"What’s Happening to Marriage. † The picture we painted was hopeful, if not especially optimistic. Marriage, we reported, â€Å"is weakening but it is too soon to write its obituary. † In this, our ninth annual report to the nation, I want to summarize what has been happening to marriage in recent years and peer into the future. One question in particular is compelling: Is marriage in America headed in the direction of the European nations, where it is an even weaker social institution than in the United States? Or are we, as in other areas of our national life—such as our higher level of religious participation and belief—the great exception to the seemingly entrenched trends of the developed, Western societies? This raises, in turn, another intriguing question: Is America still a single nation in family terms, or are we becoming more divided by region and class? Marriage and Family Trends of the Past Decade There can be no doubt that the institution of marriage has continued to weaken in recent years. Whereas marriage was once the dominant and single acceptable form of living arrangement for couples and children, it is no longer. Today, there is more â€Å"family diversity:† Fewer adults are married, more are divorced or remaining single, and more are living together outside of marriage or living alone. [The most recent data are available in the second half of this report. Today, more children are born out-of-wedlock (now almost four out of ten), and more are living in stepfamilies, with cohabiting but unmarried adults, or with a single parent. This means that more children each year are not living in families that include their own married, biological parents, which by all available empirical evidence is the gold standard for insuring optimal outcomes in a child’s development. In the late 1990s quite a bit was written about a â€Å"marriage and family turnaround,† or a reversal of the many family weakening trends. Most negative family trends have slowed appreciably in recent years; they have not continued in the dramatically swift trajectory upward that prevailed in the 1970s and 1980s. Much of this may be due simply to the slowing of social trends as they â€Å"mature. † The only major family trend that has actually reversed direction is divorce. After rising steeply, beginning around 1965, the divorce rate has dropped gradually since the early 1980s, apparently mainly the result of adults becoming better educated and marrying at a later age. Other possible reasons for the decreasing divorce rate are the rise of non-marital cohabitation and a decline in second and subsequent marriages. Divorcees, for example, have become more likely to cohabit rather than remarry, thus avoiding remarriages that have always had a disproportionately high risk of divorce. The Marriage Gap One surprising development of recent years is the growth of a marriage and divorce â€Å"gap† between differently educated segments of the population. People who have completed college (around a quarter of the population) tend to have significantly higher marriage and lower divorce rates compared to those with less education. Among those married in the early 1990s, for example, only 16. 5 percent of college educated women were divorced within ten years, compared to 46 percent for high school dropouts. Indeed, most of the recent divorce rate decline has been among the college educated; for those with less than a high school education, the divorce rate actually has been rising. 1) The weakening of marriage and the resultant growth of family diversity thus is found much more prominently among those with less education and associated lower incomes. The underlying reason for this may be as simple as the fact that the personality and social characteristics enabling one to complete college are similar to those that foster today’s long-term marriages. Or, that delayed entry into the adult world of work and childbearing, and the incr ease in income and knowledge that college typically fosters, better allows mature values and financial security to undergird choice of partner and family life. Whatever the reasons, this marriage and divorce gap has been a major contributor to the growing economic inequality in America. Some expect the marriage gap to grow larger in the future because children tend to follow the family behavior of their parents. Children of the educated and financially comfortable are better socialized to marry successfully and to contain childbearing within marriage, whereas children of the lower classes often do not have this advantage. But it is doubtful that this gap will have much effect on the over-all drift of marriage in America. The increase in the college-educated portion of the population has been slowing appreciably. And the fertility of college-educated women has dropped. Twenty-four percent of college-educated women aged 40-44 were childless in 2004, compared to only 15 percent of women that age who didn’t finish high school. (2) On a national scale, the continuation of this fertility discrepancy could seriously counteract any beneficial family effects of higher education. The European Direction No matter how weak it has become, however, compared to other modern nations marriage remains at the center of American life. About 85 percent of Americans are expected to marry sometime in their lives, compared to less than 70 percent in a number of European nations. Only ten percent of Americans in an international survey agreed that â€Å"marriage is an out-dated institution,† compared to 26 percent in the UK and 36 percent in France. (3) Only about ten percent of American couples are cohabiting outside of marriage, compared to almost one third in Sweden. And our commercial wedding industry certainly has become huge. Yet an overriding question is whether marriage and family trends in every modern society are headed in a common direction. In other words, is there a set of family trends endemic to modern (urban, industrial, democratic, and still mostly Western) societies that supercedes economic, cultural, and even religious differences among regions and nations? If so, the current family system in the United States is not an exception but merely a laggard; we will gradually be swept up in the tide. Up to now, the pacesetters in most contemporary marriage and family trends—all moving in the direction of a non-marriage culture—have been the nations of Northwestern Europe, especially the Nordic countries. They have the latest age at first marriage, the lowest marriage and highest non-marital cohabitation rates, and the largest number of out-of-wedlock births. The nations in Southern Europe such as Spain, Italy and Greece, with less cohabitation and fewer out-of-wedlock births, tend to look more like the United States. Family traditionalism remains stronger in these southern nations, and young people live longer in their childhood homes, often until they marry, rather than living independently or in cohabiting unions. The United Kingdom and the Anglo-settler nations, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, typically stand somewhere in between the two extremes. But with respect to each of the dominant family trends of recent decades the other modern nations have been moving, albeit at varying speeds and not without some temporary lapses, in the Northwest European direction. The percentage of people getting married has been going down, the number of people cohabiting outside of marriage has been increasing, and the out-of-wedlock birth percentage has been skyrocketing. Between the early to mid 1990s and the early 2000s, for example, the marriage rate dropped twelve percent in Italy, 14 percent in Spain, 22 percent in Canada, 28 percent in New Zealand and 24 percent in the United States. At the same time, the non-marital cohabitation percentage (of all couples) climbed 23 percent in Italy and Australia, 53 percent in the United Kingdom, and 49 percent in the United States. The nonmarital birth rate jumped 24 percent in the United States, 48 percent in the United Kingdom, 96 percent in Italy, and a whopping 144 percent in Spain. 4) In one major respect the United States has long been the pacesetter and not the laggard. For generations, we have had the highest divorce rate. Yet even this is now changing. The U. S. rate has been dropping for several decades, while the divorce rate in many European nations has stayed the same or been climbing. The number of divorces per one thousand married women in the United Kingdom in 2002 was 14. 4, not too far from the United States rate of 18. 4. In the past, the incidence of family breakup was closely aligned with the incidence of divorce, but this is no longer the case. Because more people now cohabit in place of marrying, when a cohabiting couple breaks up it is not registered as a divorce would be. Unfortunately, we have no standard reporting system for the breakup of cohabiting couples, but all empirical studies show that cohabiting couples breakup at a much higher rate than married couples. While only ten percent of American couples cohabit, some 20 percent of British couples do. So if we are considering total family breakup, it is likely the case that Britain plus a number of other European nations now surpass us. There is one other important respect in which America has been in the vanguard of family trends—we have the highest percentage of mother-only families. Many European nations have a much higher percentage of out-of-wedlock births than we do, but the great majority of these births are to unmarried but cohabiting couples. In America, much more often, children are born to a lone mother with the father not in residence and often out of the child’s life. Nearly half of all extramarital births in America were of this nature in 2001, according to the latest available data. 5) One reason is our relatively high percentage of births to teenagers, 80 percent of which are non-marital and more than half of those to lone mothers; another is that 70 percent of all unwed births to African Americans are to lone mothers. However, the gap in mother-only families between the United States and other nations of the West is also in the process of diminishing. Being born to a lone mother is onl y one route to living in a mother-only family. Another route is through the break-up of parents after the child is born, which is far more common among parents who cohabit compared to those who marry. With parental break-up rates in other nations climbing rapidly, thanks largely to increased non-marital cohabitation, many of these nations are catching up with us in the alarming statistic of mother-only families. Even by the early 1990s, according to the calculations of several scholars, New Zealand had caught up with the United States with nearly 50 percent of children expected to experience single parenting by age 15, and the figure for Canada and five European countries exceeded 33 percent. (6) These percentages would probably be much higher if they were recalculated today using more recent data. So if we are moving in the direction of the more negative family trends of other modern nations, and they are moving in the direction of our negative trends, where does this leave us? Aren’t we all in a common basket, destined to witness an institution of marriage that is ever weakening? Before considering this, let us first have a look at the possibility that America is becoming increasingly bifurcated into two distinct cultures. Could it be that only one part of America is moving in a European family direction? The American Red-Blue Divide The recent family trends in the Western nations have been largely generated by a distinctive set of cultural values that scholars have come to label â€Å"secular individualism. † It features the gradual abandonment of religious attendance and beliefs, a strong leaning toward â€Å"expressive† values that are preoccupied with personal autonomy and self-fulfillment, and a political emphasis on egalitarianism and the tolerance of diverse lifestyles. An established empirical generalization is that the greater the dominance of secular individualism in a culture, the more fragmented the families. The fundamental reason is that the traditional nuclear family is a somewhat inegalitarian group (not only between husbands and wives but also parents and children) that requires the suppression of some individuality and also has been strongly supported by, and governed by the rules of, orthodox religions. As a seeming impediment to personal autonomy and social equality, therefore, the traditional family is an especially attractive unit for attacks from a secular individualistic perspective. On average, America has been moving in the direction of secular individualism, as can be seen in the general drift of our family trends. But the â€Å"on average† covers up some very substantial variations, some of which account for why, looked at internationally, we are a nation with relatively conservative family values. A recent National Cultural Values Survey (7) found that American adults usefully can be split into three groups, based on the degree to which they have embraced secular individualism, ranging from the Orthodox to the Progressives, with Independents in the middle. The survey found 31 percent of the population in the religiously Orthodox category, 17 percent in the secular Progressive category, and 46 percent as Independents. The Orthodox category is far larger than one finds in Western Europe and the other Anglo nations, and the Progressive category (i. e. , secular individualist) is considerably smaller, and therein lies the major basis for American family exceptionalism. One thing that makes these categories so prominent in American culture is that they are strongly expressed geographically. As analyzed by demographers at the University of Michigan, the two extremes are reflected in the so-called Red (Republican) and Blue (Democratic) state distinction frequently made in recent national political analysis. 8) The more Progressive Blue states are principally those of the Northeast, the Upper Midwest, and the West Coast, while the more Orthodox Red states are found in the South, the lower Midwest, and the Mountain region of the West. Reflecting their different ideologies, the Blue states tend to have lower marriage and higher cohabitation rates, along with lower fertility, while the Red states are more t raditional in their family structure. [See box in the second half of this report. The ideology and family behavior found in the Blue states resembles that of the other Western nations, although not quite as far down the path of Progressivism. If one were referring only to this part of America, one would not be talking about American exceptionalism. The large Orthodox population of the Red states, however, does give the United States a unique configuration in the modern world. If it were not for this population, we would not be having a â€Å"culture war† and we probably would not even be having a national conversation about the weakening of marriage. There is no such conversation about marriage in the Northwestern European nations, despite the fact that the institution of marriage is considerably weaker there than it is here. It is clear that the family structure of America is exceptional in some respects. The question is, are we so exceptional that we can resist the modern trend of marriage and family decline? So far the answer is no—we have been headed down the same path as every other modern, Western society toward ever-increasing secular individualism with its associated family structures. If this trend continues, the family structure of the Red states will come to look more and more like today’s Blue states, and the Blue states will look ever more like Europe. The Prospect for Cultural Change To reverse this trend of marriage and family decline would take a cultural transformation of some kind, and it is interesting to consider and evaluate what this might look like, and what could bring it about. One potential source of change would be a significant expansion in influence and authority of today’s orthodox, anti-individualist religions. Much has been written in recent years about the weakening of secularization, pointing out that modernization no longer necessarily means the demise of religion. The evidence for this comes from the newly modernizing countries of the world, however, where orthodox religions have actually been gaining, rather than losing, strength. There is no evidence that anything like this has been happening to date in the Western European and Anglo nations. Quite the opposite; with each passing year these nations—including the United States—are more secular than ever before. The National Cultural Values Survey noted above found that regular churchgoing has dipped below 50 percent and only 36 percent believe â€Å"people should live by God’s principles,† concluding that â€Å"America no longer enjoys cultural consensus on God, religion, and what constitutes right and wrong. â€Å"(9) A powerful indicator of future trends are the beliefs and attitudes of today’s young people, which are unmistakably more secular and individualist than those of their elders. A recent study concluded that emerging adults (ages 18-24) in America, compared to their earlier counterparts and their older contemporaries, are more disaffected and disconnected from society, more cynical or negative about people, and have moved in a liberal direction. (10) A Pew Foundation national survey found that 20 percent of today’s young people (18-24) say they have no religious affiliation or are atheist or agnostic, nearly double the percentage of the non-religious found in that age group less than 20 years ago. In the same time period the percentage of young people who did not agree that they had â€Å"old fashioned values about family and marriage† jumped from 17 percent to 31 percent. (11) A study in Britain, starkly pointing up the entrenched nature of this generational shift, found that a child with two religious parents has only a 50 percent chance of being religious, while a child with one religious parent has 25 percent chance of being religious. 12) Another cultural transformation that could move the family in a more traditional direction is widespread immigration. In combination with low birthrates, massive immigration is capable of changing the culture, social experiences, and self-identity of a population—including the ideologies of secularism and individualism. This possibility is beginning to be discussed in Europe, where birthrates in many nations remain well below replacement level and immigration, mostly from orthodox Muslim countries with high birthrates, is h igh and growing. The percentage of foreign born in many Western European nations is now similar to that in America, around twelve percent, but the birthrates of these groups are typically far higher than the indigenous populations. Projections are that the percentage of people of â€Å"foreign origin† may reach as high as one third in some European nations by 2050, and far higher than that in the major cities. (13) What is not known is how these new immigrants ultimately will react to secular individualism and the other cultural beliefs and practices of modern, Western democracies. As many have noted, because of long-standing antipathies between peoples of the Muslim faith and those of Christianity, often violent and going back well more than a millennium, it does seem possible that Europe faces the prospect of a major cultural transformation sometime in the future through immigrants who, rather than assimilate, will pull the culture in a new direction. The immigration situation in the United States, however, is different, and it does not seem as likely that in the foreseeable future immigrant groups will be able to seriously shift our culture in a more traditional direction. The most likely candidate for cultural change, of course, is the growing Hispanic population. The percentage of Hispanics is projected to reach 25 percent of the total population by 2050, when non-Hispanic Whites will make up only a slim majority. (14) But unlike Europe we are already a nation made up of many different immigrant groups; many Hispanics have been here for years, and they share a common religious heritage in Christianity. Thus Hispanics don’t pose the same threat of not assimilating to Western culture as do the Muslims. Indeed, to date, Hispanics seem to have assimilated into the American culture of secular individualism more than the reverse. For example, the unwed birth percentage among Hispanics has jumped from 19 percent in 1980 to 48 percent in 2005 and stands well above the percentage for the non-Hispanic White population (25 percent). Hispanics have the same divorce rate as non-Hispanic Whites, and in recent years their rate of non-marital cohabitation has grown faster than that of any other immigrant group. These trends contradict earlier expectations that Hispanics might bring this nation a new wave of family traditionalism. The prediction of the continued growth of secular individualism within modern cultures rests on some powerful facts. So far in the Western experience, at least, the dominant sociological factors associated with secular individualism are that the higher the educational and income levels of a population, and the more urbanized it is, the greater the degree of secular individualism. Is it likely that any time in the near future educational, income, and urbanization levels in America will drop? They have been increasing inexorably for three centuries, so a turnaround would most likely occur only in the event of some catastrophe, either natural or man-made. Absent such a catastrophe (which certainly can not be ruled out in today’s world), the most likely future scenario is that secular individualism will increasingly dominate the cultures of the West. The best prospects for cultural change, therefore, rest on the possibility that, at some time in the future, new generations of secular individualists themselves will undergo a change of heart. One way this might occur is through the growth of new, non-orthodox religious ideologies that remained compatible with secular individualism but take it in new directions. Unfortunately, the new religious strains that have emerged in recent decades, so-called New Age religions, have been profoundly individualistic. None has shown any interest in preserving marriage and family solidarity. Indeed, they seem part and parcel of the secular individualist movement, albeit with a more â€Å"spiritual† bent. The same seems to hold true for today’s rapidly growing â€Å"green† movement, which itself shows signs of becoming a new quasi-religion in which the environment has replaced God as a focus of almost divine adoration. So far there is little evidence that â€Å"pro-green† translates into â€Å"pro-marriage† or â€Å"pro-family,† although it is conceivable that somehow the conservation of nature could become translated into the conservation of the family. Any widely accepted â€Å"new morality† that might change family behavior would probably have to be compatible with secular individualism’s motivating force—rational self-interest. The self-interest of today’s young people still includes the desire to have strong intimate relationships and to want to do best by their children. And there is every reason to believe that these interests will continue into the future because they are, in fact, an intrinsic part of being human. The task that lies ahead, then, is to help young people to see the importance of marriage and strong families as the best way to achieve these interests; to help them realize that a better and more meaningful way of life, both for themselves and for their children, involves a commitment to long-term marriage. What Can be Done? As a first step, the institution of marriage needs to be promoted by all levels of society, particularly the families, the schools, the churches, the non-profit sector, and the government. The great majority of American high school seniors still want to get married, with 82 percent of girls and 70 percent of boys recently saying that â€Å"having a good marriage and family life† is â€Å"extremely important† to them. These percentages, in fact, represent a slight increase from the late 1970s. 15) But as high schoolers reach young adulthood, when the attraction of cohabitation and careers gains strong currency, making the actual commitment to marriage is not easy. Young people need, therefore, to be made continually aware of the many benefits married life brings, both for themselves and for their children. The empirical evidence is now strong and persuasive that a good marriage enhances personal happiness, economic success, health and longevity. This ev idence should become a regular part of our educational programs and our public discourse. Yet successful marriage promotion requires more than empirical evidence. Marriage has fallen by the wayside, in part, because it receives less and less social recognition and approval. Any norm of behavior requires for its maintenance the continuing support of the community, including active social pressures to uphold it. When social approval and pressures wither, the norm weakens. Today’s young people have been taught through the schools and in their communities a strong message of tolerance for â€Å"alternative lifestyles. † â€Å"Thou shalt not make moral judgments about other people’s family behavior† seems to have become a dominant message in our times. The reason for this is completely understandable; children and young people come from ever more diverse family situations which are not of their own doing, and they should be fully accepted and not be penalized. The problem is that this moral message is carried on into adult life, where it is applied not to children and young people but to adults who do have choices about how they shape their lives. In an effort not to judge much less stigmatize any adult life style, we have all too often become virtually silent about the value and importance of marriage. This silence is extremely damaging to the promotion of a pro-marriage culture. The widespread promotion of marriage is directed at only half of the problem, however. Getting people to marry is one thing, helping them to stay married is something else entirely. Helping people to stay married is the main focus of an important set of programs known as marriage education. Typically conducted in group settings rather than counseling situations, marriage education programs focus on developing the knowledge, attitudes and skills needed for making a wise marital choice and having a successful marriage. Although marriage education has been around for many decades, it recently has been thrust into the limelight thanks to widespread publicity and government financial assistance. The importance of marriage education is magnified by the fact that the marital relationship today is so different from what it was in the past. Marriage is now based almost entirely on close friendship and romantic love, mostly stripped of the economic dependencies, legal and religious restrictions, and extended family pressures that have held marriages together for most of human history. Until fairly recent times marriages had little to do with romantic love, sexual passion, or even close friendship; they were functional partnerships in the intense struggle of life. Today, a successful marriage rests almost entirely on how well one gets along, intimately and for the long term, with someone of the opposite sex. The â€Å"relationship knowledge† this requires has never been part of formal education, but there is no reason to believe that it can not effectively be taught to married couples and those about to be married, as well as to younger people as part of the high school curriculum. Indeed, the initial empirical evaluations of marriage education programs conclude that they are both well-received and have generally positive outcomes. Marriage promotion and marriage education are essential steps, but in order fully to rebuild the institution of marriage there would probably have to be a cultural shift of a more fundamental nature. Modern cultures would need to pull back from the now dominant thrust of secular individualism—the excessive pursuit of personal autonomy, immediate gratification, and short-term personal gain—and give greater emphasis to issues of community and social solidarity. This could come about through a growing realization, based on rational self-interest, that our personal happiness and sense of well-being over the long course of life are less affected by the amount of independence, choice, bodily pleasure and wealth we are able to obtain than by the number of stable, long-term and meaningful relationships we have with others. (16) And through a greater recognition of the fact that short-term adult interests can be in conflict with the long-term health and wellbeing of children, and that our children’s welfare has everything to do with the future of our nation. Conclusion America is still the most marrying of Western nations, but nevertheless we are caught up in the prevailing trends of modernity that lead toward an ever-weakening institution of marriage. Marriage rates have been dropping and cohabitation and out-of-wedlock birth rates have been rising, thanks in large part to the growing influence of secular individualism in all modern cultures. The negative effects of this are felt most profoundly by our children, who are growing up in family situations that are less and less optimum from a child-development perspective. As we move in the direction of the weaker family structures of Europe it is important to remember that we lack many of the welfare â€Å"safety-nets† found there, and therefore the negative effects of marital decline on children are likely to be heightened in this country. We are not a unified nation in family terms. We have a marriage gap, whereby the college-educated have a stronger marriage culture than the less well-educated. And we have a Red state/Blue state divide, whereby the nation is geographically split up into areas of family traditionalism and non-traditionalism. Yet these divisions remain peripheral to the overall waning of marriage in America. The rebuilding of a stronger marriage culture is possible. In addition to the heavy promotion of marriage built around the self-interest of today’s young people, it will probably require a cultural shift of some magnitude, one in which stable, predictable, and long-term relationships with others come to be viewed as the best foundation for adult personalities, childrearing, and family life. Footnotes 1. Steven P. Martin, â€Å"Trends in Marital Dissolution by Women’s Education in the United States,† Demographic Research 15-20 (December 2006), 537-560. 2. Jane Lawler Dye, â€Å"Fertility of American Women: June 2004. † Current Population Report, P20-555, Washington, DC: US Census Bureau (2005),Table 7. 3. Reported in Betsey Stevenson and Justin Wolfers, â€Å"Marriage and Divorce: Changes and their Driving Forces,† unpublished manuscript, Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania (2007). 4. Unless otherwise indicated, all calculations are by the National Marriage Project from published international data sources. . Lisa Mincieli and Kristin Moore, â€Å"The Relationship Context of Births Outside of Marriage: The Rise of Cohabitation,† Child Trends Research Brief 2007-13 (May 2007). 6. Patrick Heuveline, J. M. Timberlake, and F. F. Furstenberg, Jr. , â€Å"Shifting Childrearing to Single Mothers: Results from 17 Western Countries,† Population and Devel opment Review 29-1 (March 2003), 47-71. 7. Culture and Media Institute, Alexandria, Virginia (2007). 8. Ron J. Lesthaeghe and Lisa Neidert, â€Å"The Second Demographic Transition in the U. S. : Exception or Textbook Example,† Population and Development Review December 2006), 32-4. 9. Executive Summary, op. cit. 10. Tom Smith, â€Å"Generation Gaps in Attitudes and Values from the 1970s to the 1990s,† in R. A. Settersten, Jr. , F. F. Furstenberg, Jr. , and R. C. Rumbaut (eds. ), On the Frontier of Adulthood: Theory, Research, and Public Policy (Chicago: Univ. of Chicago Press, 2004). 11. The Pew Research Center, â€Å"A Portrait of Generation Next,† Washington, DC, 2007. 12. Alasdair Crockett and David Voas, â€Å"Generations of Decline: Religious Change in the 20th Century,† Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion (December 2006), 45-4. 3. David Coleman, â€Å"Immigration and Ethnic Change in Low-Fertility Countries: A Third Demographic Transition, † Population and Development Review 32-3 (September 2006), 401-446. 14. Philip Martin and Elizabeth Midgely, â€Å"Immigration: Shaping and Reshaping America,† Population Bulletin 58-2 (June 2003), p. 22. 15. Data from Monitoring the Future surveys, reported in this second half of this report. 16. For an important statement about this, see John Ashcroft and Phil Caroe, â€Å"Thriving Lives: Which Way for Well-Being? † Relationships Foundation, Cambridge, England (2007). SOCIAL INDICATORS OF MARITAL HEALTH AND WELLBEING TRENDS OF THE PAST FOUR DECADES Marriage Divorce Unmarried Cohabitation Loss of Child Centeredness Fragile Families with Children Teen Attitudes About Marriage and Family THE RED/BLUE AMERICAN FAMILY DIVIDE The Red State/Blue State divide has become a familiar theme in national politics. In a series of recent presidential elections, the so-called Red states have tended to vote Republican and the Blue states have voted Democratic. The Red states consist of the South (e. g. Alabama), the lower Midwest (e. g. Oklahoma), and the Mountain Region of the West (e. g. Montana). The Blue states are those of the Northeast (e. g. Massachusetts), the upper Midwest (e. g. Minnesota), and the West Coast (e. g. California). Less well known is the fact that the Red and Blue states also differ significantly in family terms, and this may help to explain their politics. The Red states typically have a more traditional family structure than the Blue States; people in the Red states marry younger and in larger numbers, cohabit outside of marriage less, and have more children. This is in large part because Red Staters are likely to be more religiously observant and to belong to denominations that profess allegiance to more conservative social values. However, the Red states also have higher divorce and out-of-wedlock birth rates than the Blue states, and these rates can hardly be considered indicators of traditionalism, much less religiosity. A closer look at the actual demographic differences among the states can help us to better understand the nature and causes of the Red/Blue American family divide. Red states have significantly higher marriage rates. The national marriage rate was 41 marriages per 1000 single women in 2005. Some of the highest marriage rates are found in the South, with Arkansas (77) and Alabama (54) leading the pack, and in the Mountain states of Idaho (66), Wyoming (60) and Utah (58). The lowest marriage rates, in contrast, are found in the Northeast with Pennsylvania (24), New Jersey (27), Delaware (28) and Connecticut (28) at the bottom. a) Higher marriage rates are associated with less non-marital cohabitation, and this also clusters geographically along Red/Blue lines. The national rate of unmarried partner households (as percent of all couple households) was 10% in 2005. States in the South and Midwest have the lowest percentages: Alabama (6%), Mississippi (8%), Kansas (8%), and Arkansas (8%). At the opposite pole are the states in the Northeast and Northwest: Vermont (14%), Maine (13%), Oregon (12%) and Washington (12%). (b) Statewide fertility rates fo llow a similar Red/Blue geographic distribution. The national fertility rate was 67 births per 1000 women ages 15-44 in 2005, but it was in the 70s in a number of Red states, Idaho (77), Kansas (70), and Georgia (70), and only in the 50s for Vermont (51), Maine (54) and Massachusetts (56). In addition to family traditionalism, the fertility rate in a number of southwestern States is greatly affected by the higher-fertility Hispanic population. (c) Put all together, these demographic characteristics add up to more married couples with children in the Red states and fewer in the Blue states, and this is ne of the biggest reasons for the Red/Blue political divide. Married people with children have tended disproportionately in recent presidential elections to favor the Republican Party. Indeed, for recent elections the correlation between married-with-children and voting Republican is one of the highest ever found between demographic factors and voting behavior. (d) Yet the Red states also, interestingly, have the highest out-of-wedloc k birth percentages and divorce rates. While 37% of all births in the U. S. ere out-of-wedlock in 2005, the unwed birth percentages for the Red states of Mississippi (49%) and Louisiana (48%) are far ahead of the Blue states of New Hampshire (27%) and Minnesota (30%) A closer examination, however, shows that this Red/Blue geographic pattern of unwed births is heavily dictated by the racial and ethnic make up of each state, as well as by educational and income levels. States such as Mississippi and Louisiana are at the top partly due to the extremely high unwed birth percentages for Blacks (77%) and Hispanics (50%). The state with the highest overall unwed birth percentage is New Mexico (51%), owing mainly to the contribution of its large Hispanic population. If one removes Blacks and Hispanics from the equation and looks just at unwed births among Whites, a geographic pattern more influenced by family traditionalism emerges. For the White population only, the unwed birth percentage in Mississippi (26%) is lower than for the White population in New Hampshire (27%). Unwed birth percentages below the national average of 25% for Whites are also found in the Red states of Alabama (21%), North Carolina (23%), and Georgia (23%). In contrast, above average unwed birth percentages for Whites are found the in secular and cohabitation-high Blue states of Vermont (32%) and Maine (35%) and Oregon (29%). (e) The picture is further complicated, however, by the fact that marriage, cohabitation, and unwed birth rates are so strongly affected by income and educational levels. In general, people with lower incomes and less education tend to marry less, cohabit more, and have more births out-of-wedlock. While professed traditional family values may help to generate fewer unwed births, they do not seem to provide much protection against divorce. The highest divorce rates are found in the more religiously-based Red states such as Arkansas (25), Oklahoma (25), and West Virginia (23), in striking contrast to more secular Blue states such as Pennsylvania (11), and Massachusetts (11). The national divorce rate was 16 divorces per 1000 married women in 2005. (f) Level of educational achievement is the single factor that probably best explains the geographic distribution of divorce. The lower the educational (and associated income) level, the higher the divorce rate, and educational levels are substantially lower in the Red states than in the Blue states. The Blue states of the West Coast stand as an exception to this education-based pattern, however, with the divorce rates for highly-educated Oregon and Washington being above the national average (probably California, too, but unfortunately divorce rates for that state are not available). In addition to education, therefore, another important causal factor in divorce may be the level of geographic mobility in a state, making the more recently settled and more transient populations of the West Coast and Mountain states more vulnerable to divorce. Mobility levels may also help to account for another geographic exception: the long-settled Red states of the Central Plains (e. g. Iowa and North Dakota) have very low divorce rates, comparable to those of the East Coast states. Footnotes: a. Calculations by the National Marriage Project obtained using data from the Current Population Surveys, March 2005 Supplement, as well as Births, Marriages, Divorces, and Deaths: Provisional Data for 2005, National Vital Statistics Report 54:20, July 21, 2006, Table 3. The exceptionally high marriages rates in Nevada and Hawaii are not considered here because so many out-of-staters go to these states to get married. b. Calculations by the National Marriage Project using data downloaded from the American Community Survey, 2005. c. Fertility rates from â€Å"Births: Preliminary Data for 2005,† National Vital Statistics Reports, Vol. 55, No. 11, December 28, 2006. d. Ron J. Lesthaeghe and Lisa Neidert, â€Å"The Second Demographic Transition in the US: Exception or Textbook Example? ,† Population and Development Review 32:4 (December, 2006). e. Unmarried mother birth data from â€Å"Births: Preliminary Data for 2005,† National Vital Statistics Reports, Vol. 55, No. 11, December 28, 2006. f. Calculations by the National Marriage Project obtained using data from the Current Population Surveys, March 2005 Supplement less population in CA, GA, HI, IN, LA and MN to match unreported divorces in these states. Divorce counts from Births, Marriages, Divorces, and Deaths: Provisional Data for 2005, National Vital Statistics Report 54:20, July 21, 2006, Table 3. The highest divorce rate, of course, is found in Nevada (38. ), and not considered here because of the out-of-stater problem. MARRIAGE Key Finding: Marriage trends in recent decades indicate that Americans have become less likely to marry, and the most recent data show that the marriage rate in the United States continues to decline. Of those who do marry, there has been a moderate drop since the 1970s in the percentage of couples who consider their marriages to be â₠¬Å"very happy,† but in the past decade this trend has swung in a positive direction. Americans have become less likely to marry. This is reflected in a decline of nearly 50 percent, from 1970 to 2005, in the annual number of marriages per 1000 unmarried adult women (Figure 1). Much of this decline—it is not clear just how much—results from the delaying of first marriages until older ages: the median age at first marriage went from 20 for females and 23 for males in 1960 to about 26 and 27, respectively, in 2005. Other factors accounting for the decline are the growth of unmarried cohabitation and a small decrease in the tendency of divorced persons to remarry. The decline also reflects some increase in lifelong singlehood, though the actual amount can not be known until current young and middle-aged adults pass through the life course. The percentage of adults in the population who are currently married has also diminished. Since 1960, the decline of those married among all persons age 15 and older has been 13 percentage points—and 25 points among black females (Figure 2). It should be noted that these data include both people who have never married and those who have married and then divorced. In order partially to control for a decline in married adults simply due to delayed first marriages, we have looked at changes in the percentage of persons age 35 through 44 who were married (Figure 3). Since 1960, there has been a drop of 20 percentage points for married men and 18 points for married women. (But the decline has not affected all segments of the population. See the accompanying box: The Marriage Gap. ) Marriage trends in the age range of 35 to 44 are suggestive of lifelong singlehood. In times past and still today, virtually all persons who were going to marry during their lifetimes had married by age 45. More than 90 percent of women have married eventually in every generation for which records exist, going back to the mid-1800s. By 1960, 94 percent of women then alive had been married at least once by age 45—probably an historical high point. (1) For the generation of 1995, assuming a continuation of then current marriage rates, several demographers projected that 88 percent of women and 82 percent of men would ever marry. 2) If and when these figures are recalculated for the early years of the 21st century, the percentage of women and men ever marrying will almost certainly be lower. It is important to note that the decline in marriage does not mean that people are giving up on living together with a sexual partner. On the contrary, with the incidence of unmarried cohabitation increasing rapidly, marriage is giving ground to unwed unions. Most people now live together before they marry for the first time. An even higher percentage of those divorced who subsequently remarry live together first. And a growing number of persons, both young and old, are living together with no plans for eventual marriage. There is a common belief that, although a smaller percentage of Americans are now marrying than was the case a few decades ago, those who marry have marriages of higher quality. It seems reasonable that if divorce removes poor marriages from the pool of married couples and cohabitation â€Å"trial marriages† deter some bad marriages from forming, the remaining marriages on average should be happier. The best available evidence on the topic, however, does not support these assumptions. Since 1973, the General Social Survey periodically has asked representative samples of married Americans to rate their marriages as either â€Å"very happy,† â€Å"pretty happy,† or â€Å"not too happy. â€Å"(3) As Figure 4 indicates, the percentage of both men and women saying â€Å"very happy† has declined moderately over the past 25 years. (4) This trend, however, is now heading in a positive direction. 1 Andrew J. Cherlin, Marriage, Divorce, and Remarriage (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1992): 10; Michael R. Haines, â€Å"Long-Term Marriage Patterns in the United States from Colonial Times to the Present,† The History of the Family 1-1 (1996): 15-39. 2 Robert Schoen and Nicola Standish, â€Å"The Retrenchment of Marriage: Results from Marital Status Life Tables for the United States, 1995. † Population and Development Review 27-3 (2001): 553-563. 3 Conducted by the National Opinion Research Center of the University of Chicago, this is a nationally representative study of the English-speaking, non-institutionalized population of the United States age 18 and over. Using a different data set that compared marriages in 1980 with marriages in 1992, equated in terms of marital duration, Stacy J. Rogers and Paul Amato found similarly that the 1992 marriages had less marital interaction, more marital conflict, and more marital problems. â€Å"Is Marital Quality Declining? The Evidence from Two Generations,† Social Forces 75 (1997): 1089. THE MARRIAGE GAP There is good news a nd bad news on the marriage front. For the college-educated segment of our population, the institution of marriage appears to have gained strength in recent years. For everyone else, however, marriage continues to weaken. Thus there is a growing â€Å"marriage gap† in America, between those who are well educated and those who are not. Recent data indicates that, for the college educated, the institution of marriage may actually have strengthened. It once was the case that college-educated women married at a lower rate than their less educated peers. Indeed, marriage rates for college-educated women were lower well into the late 20th Century. Since around 1980, however, this situation has reversed. College-educated women are now marrying at a higher rate than their peers. Not only that, but the divorce rate among these women is relatively low and has been dropping. This may be due partly to the fact that college-educated women, once the leaders of the divorce revolution, now hold a more restrictive view of divorce than less well educated women. b The out-of-wedlock childbearing of college-educated women has always been well below that of other segments of the population. Now, among those who delay marriage past age 30, this is the only group becoming more likely to have children after marriage rather than before. c There is more good news. The marriages of the college educated have become more egalitarian than ever, both in the sense that husbands and wives are matched more equally in their educational and economic backgrounds, and that they hold more egalitarian attitudes about marital gender roles. d As icing on the cake, all of this may add up to greater marital happiness. The percentage of spouses among this group who rate their marriage as â€Å"very happy† has held fairly steady over recent decades, whereas for other parts of the population the percentage has dropped significantly. In large numbers, therefore, the college educated part of America is living the American dream—with happy, stable, two-parent families. There is one problem, however, and it is a serious one for the future of the nation. College-educated women aren’t having enough children to replace themselves. In 2004, for example, twenty four percent of women 40 to 44 years old with a bachelor’s degree were childless, com pared to only fifteen percent of those without a high school degree. f For the non college-educated population, unfortunately, the marriage situation remains gloomy. Marriage rates are continuing to decline, and the percentage of out-of-wedlock births is rising. In the year 2000, fully forty percent of high-school drop-out mothers were living without husbands, compared with just twelve percent of college-grad mothers. g Because of the many statistically well-documented benefits of marriage in such areas as income, health, and longevity, this gap is generating a society of greater inequality. America is becoming a nation divided not only by educational and income levels, but by unequal family structures. a Joshua R. Goldstein and Catherine T. Kenney, â€Å"Marriage Delayed or Marriage Foregone? New Cohort Forecasts of First Marriages for U. S. Women,† American Sociological Review 66-4 (2001): 506-519. b Steven P. Martin and Sangeeta Parashar, â€Å"Women’s Changing Attitudes Toward Divorce: 1974-2002: Evidence for an Educational Crossover,† Journal of Marriage and Family 68-1 (2006): 29-40. c Steven P. Martin, â€Å"Reassessing Delayed and Forgone Marriage in the United States,† unpublished manuscript (2004), Department of Sociology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD. Robert Schoen and Yen-Hsin Alice Cheng, â€Å"Partner Choice and the Differential Retreat from Marriage,† Journal of Marriage Family 68-1 (2006): 1-10; Arland Thornton and Linda Young-DeMarco, â€Å"Four Decades of Trends in Attitudes Toward Family Issues in the United States: the 1960s Through the 1990s,† Journal of Marriage and Family 63-4 (2001): 1009-1037. e Calculation by the Na tional Marriage Project of data from The General Social Survey, conducted by the National Opinion Research Center of the University of Chicago. f Jane Lawler Dye, Fertility of American Women: June 2004, Current Population Report, P20-555, Washington, DC: U. S. Census Bureau (2005): Table 7. g David T. Ellwood and Christopher Jencks, â€Å"The Uneven Spread of Single-Parent Families,† in Kathryn M. Neckerman (ed. ) Social Inequality (New York, NY: Russell Sage Foundation, 2004), 3-77. |   | |Figure 1. Number of Marriages per 1,000 Unmarried Women Age 15 and Older, by Year, United States (a) | | |Year |Number | | | |1960 |73. |(b) | | |1970 |76. 5 | | | |1975 |66. 9 | | | |1980 |61. 4 | | | |1985 |56. | | | |1990 |54. 5 | | | |1995 |50. 8 | | | |2000 |46. 5 | | | |2005 |40. | | |a We have used the number of marriages per 1,000 unmarried women age 15 and older, rather than the Crude Marriage Rate of | |marriages per 1,000 population to help avoid the problem of compositional changes in the population, that is, changes which stem| |merely from there being more or less people in the marriageable ages. Even this more refined measure is somewhat susceptible to | |compositional changes. |b Per 1,000 unmarried women age 14 and older. | |S ource: U. S. Department of the Census, Statistical Abstract of the United States, 2001, Page 87, Table 117; and Statistical | |Abstract of the United States, 1986, Page 79, Table 124. Figure for 2004 was obtained using data from the Current Population | |Surveys, March 2004 Supplement, as well as Births, Marriages, Divorces, and Deaths: Provisional Data for 2005, National Vital | |Statistics Report 54:20, July 21, 2006, Table 3. http://www. cdc. gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr54/nvsr54_20. pdf) The CPS, March | |Supplement, is based on a sample of the U. S. population, rather than an actual count such as those available from the decennial | |census. See sampling and weighting notes at http://www. bls. census. gov:80/cps/ads/2002/ssampwgt. htm | |Figure 2. Percentage of All Persons Age 15 and Older Who Were Married, by Sex and Race, 1960-2005 United Statesa | | |Total Males |Black Males |White Males |Total Females |Black Females |White Females | | | | | | | | | |1960 |69. 3 |60. 9 |70. 2 |65. 9 |59. 8 |66. 6 | |1970 |66. 7 |56. 9 |68. |61. 9 |54. 1 |62. 8 | |1980 |63. 2 |48. 8 |65. 0 |58. 9 |44. 6 |60. 7 | |1990 |60. 7 |45. 1 |62. 8 |56. 9 |40. 2 |59. 1 | |2000 |57. 9 |42. 8 |60. 0 |54. 7 |36. 2 |57. 4 | |2006 |56. 3 |40. 9 |58. 5 |53. |34. 3 |56. 3 | |a Includes races other than Black and White. | |b In 2003, the U. S. Census Bureau expanded its racial categories to permit respondents to identify themselves as belonging to more than | |one race. This means that racial data computations beginning in 2004 may not be strictly comparable to those of prior years. | |Source: U. S. Bureau of the Census, Current Population Reports, Series P20-506; America's Families and Living Arrangements: March 2000 and| |earlier reports; and data calculate d from the Current Population Surveys, March 2006 Supplement. | |Figure 3. Percentage of Persons Age 35 through 44 Who Were Married by Sex, 1960-2005, United States | | | | | | | |Year |Males |Females | | |1960 |88. 0 |87. | | |1970 |89. 3 |86. 9 | | |1980 |84. 2 |81. 4 | | |1990 |74. 1 |73. 0 | | |2000 |69. 0 |71. | | |2006 |67. 9 |69. 5 | |Source: U. S. Bureau of the Census, Statistical Abstract of the United States, 1961, Page 34, Table 27; Statistical Abstract of | |the United States, 1971, Page 32, Table 38; Statistical Abstract of the United States, 1981, Page 38, Table 49; and U. S. Bureau | |of the Census, General Population Characteristics, 1990, Page 45, Table 34; and Statistical Abstract of the United States, 2001,| |Page 48, Table 51; internet tables (http://www. ensus. gov/population/socdemo/hh-fam/cps2005/tabA1-all. pdf) and data calculated | |from the Current Population Surveys, March 2006 Supplement. Figure for 2006 was obtained using data from the Current Population | |Surveys rather than data from the census. The C PS, March Supplement, is based on a sample of the U. S. population, rather than an| |actual count such as those available from the decennial census. See sampling and weighting notes at | |http://www. bls. ensus. gov:80/cps/ads/2002/ssampwgt. htm | |Figure 4. Percentage of Married Persons Age 18 and Older Who Said Their Marriages Were â€Å"Very Happy,† by Period, United States | | | | | |Period |Men |Women | |1973-1976 |69. |68. 6 | |1977-1981 |68. 3 |64. 2 | |1982-1986 |62. 9 |61. 7 | |1987-1991 |66. 4 |59. | |1993-1996 |63. 2 |59. 7 | |1998-2004 |64. 4 |60. 4 | |Source: The General Social Survey, conducted by the National Opinion Research Center of the University of Chicago. The trend for| |both men and women is statistically significant (p