Reading Theories Essay Example for Free

Reading Theories Essay Reading theories Of the two approaches mentioned in reading research and literature, the bottom-up approach focuses on language elements such as grammar, vocabulary and cohesion, while the top-down approach includes a focus on background knowledge about content and organization, generally referred to as content and formal schemata respectively. A combination of these two approaches is generally known as the Interactive Model of Reading. The pedagogy in this study was based on the Schema Interactive Model of Reading (Simonsen and Singer, 1992). 7 able 1: Approaches and strategies Approaches Top Down Strategies # Generating questions from title Skimming questions Bottom Up for content, based generated# Skimming # on for writer’s thesis # Guessing meanings of words from context (vocabulary) use of modals, tenses Schema discourse) Interactive (text as # Concepts of cohesion and coherence and connections between paragraphs Text purpose and purpose at paragraph level # the # Understanding how language functions in context. E. g. Metaphorical models of reading Specific models of reading. Bottom-up models Top-down models Interactive models Interactive compensatory model( nature inner knowledge) if there’s lack u should compensate it Word recognition model Simple view of reading model Dual coding model (2languages) Psycholinguistic guessing game: activate prior knowledge .. student is giving an aim for reading Reading strategies : . specifying a purpose for reading ? Planning what to do and what steps to take ? Previewing the text ? Predicting the contentes of the text or section of text ? Reflecting on what has been learned from the text ? Checking prdictions ? Posing questions about the text ? Finding answers to posed questions ? Connecting test to background knowledge ? Summarizing infor ? Makin interferances ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? Connecting one part of the text to another Paying attention to text structure Rereading Guessing the meaning of new word from the context Using discourse makers to see relationships Checking comprehension Identifying difficulties Taking steps to reapir faulty comprehension Critiquing the author Critiquing the text Judging how well purposes for reading were met (where you reached the aim of reading or not ) Reading is not decoding but building concepts Read is to acquire lge in order to know special notes In order to write u need positions + definitions Learning can happen without reading There is implicit relationship betwwen l1 and l2 It is natural to use L1 in L2 reading.. L1 IS The basis of L1 To accomplish this goal, instructors focus on the process of reading rather than on its product. ? ? ? They develop students awareness of the reading process and reading strategies by asking students to think and talk about how they read in their native language. They allow students to practice the full repertoire of reading strategies by using authentic reading tasks. They encourage students to read to learn (and have an authentic purpose for reading) by giving students some choice of reading material. When working with reading tasks in class, they show students the strategies that will work best for the reading purpose and the type of text. They explain how and why students should use the strategies. ? ? ? ? They have students practice reading strategies in class and ask them to practice outside of class in their reading assignments. They encourage students to be conscious of what theyre doing while they complete reading assignments. They encourage students to evaluate their comprehension and selfreport their use of strategies. They build comprehension checks into in-class and out-of-class reading assignments, and periodically review how and when to use particular strategies. They encourage the development of reading skills and the use of reading strategies by using the target language to convey instructions and course-related information in written form: office hours, homework assignments, test content. They do not assume that students will transfer strategy use from one task to another. They explicitly mention how a particular strategy can be used in a different type of reading task or with another skill. By raising students awareness of reading as a skill that requires active engagement, and by explicitly teaching reading strategies, instructors help their students develop both the ability and the confidence to handle communication situations they may encounter beyond the classroom. In this way they give their students the foundation for communicative competence in the new language. ‘ SLA: Second-language acquisition or second-language learning is the process by which people learn a second language. Second-language acquisition (often abbreviated to SLA) also refers to the scientific discipline devoted to studying that process. Second language refers to any language learned in addition to a persons first language; although the concept is named second-language [1] acquisition, it can also incorporate the learning of third, fourth, or subsequent languages. Secondlanguage acquisition refers to what learners do; it does not refer to practices in language teaching. The academic discipline of second-language acquisition is a subdiscipline of applied linguistics. It is broad-based and relatively new. As well as the various branches of linguistics, second-language acquisition is also closely related to psychology, cognitive psychology, and education Is to acquire lg without effort : classroom/real life.. in natural way L2 reading is a reading problem. is not letter decoding†¦when you read l2 text you activate your prior knowledge †¦l2 readers who are able to turn a txt into paragraph are better reader==) read faster/remember more There is no reading without : -phonological representation /guess meaning/ prior knwldge Implicit knowledge That we learn unconsciously Automatic knowledge The explcit will turn into implicit Output: what u speak input: what u read learn Explicit knowledge we can verbelize.

Development of Sediment Reference Sample for Toxicity Tests

Development of Sediment Reference Sample for Toxicity Tests Development of sediment reference sample for toxicity testing using Microtox Solid Phase test and Metal Fractionation using single extractions Abstract Chemical characterisation of pollutants using fractionation techniques and bioassays are useful monitoring tools for sediment quality assessment. However, a common criticism of sediment bioassays is the lack of an appropriate reference sediment sample which sample sediment toxicity can be comparatively assessed. In this study an approach of obtaining a reference sediment sample by cleaning the sediment samples with metals was tested. Metal fractionation was carried out by applying single extraction techniques modified from a sequential extraction scheme proposed by Tessier et al (1979). The total metal concentrations were characterised using nitric acid digestion. The sediment samples before and after the extractions were analysed using the Microtox Solid Phase Test (SPT). Comparison of total metal concentration with various sediment quality guidelines suggests that the sediments are polluted due to higher concentrations of Cu , Ni , Pb , Cd and Zn. The fractionation studies reveal t hat metals are contained mainly within Fe-Mn Oxide phase.The comparison of the results of the SPT with various sediment classification methods suggests that the sediments are moderately toxic to non toxic. However, the results of changes in the toxicity of sediment residues obtained after each extraction compared to unprocessed sediment toxicity results are not statistically significant. But the comparison of toxicity results of sediment residues obtained after HNO3 and NaOAc digestion with the toxicity value of replicate1 of unprocessed sediment suggests a marginal decrease in the toxicity of sediments while the comparison of toxicity values of MgCl2 , NH2OH.HCl, HNO3+H2O2 indicates an increase in the toxicity of sediment residued. The comparison of toxicity values of all sediment residues with that of replicate2 of unprocessed sediment indicates an increase in the toxicity of the sediments after extractions. Get wisdom, get understanding. Wisdom is supreme; therefore get wisdom. Though it costs all you have, get understanding (Proverbs 4: 5,7). Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free (John 8: 32). CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION Background: With the growing interest in the rules that govern the fate of pollutants in urban environments, the sediments of urban rivers pose a particularly challenging scientific problem as many persistent contaminants (e.g. metals, persistent organic pollutants (POPs)) tend to concentrate in river bed sediments. Therefore, the assessment of sediment quality is recognised as a critical step in understanding the risks associated with man made pollution in the riverine system (De Miguel et al , 2005). Depending upon the conditions in the river, pollutants bound to sediment may become bioavailable and impose toxicity on aquatic organisms. Chemical analysis alone is not adequate to explain effects of chemicals present in the sediment (Beg and Ali, 2008) as they do not prove that adverse effects are occurring (Luoma et al , 1995) , thus for optimal characterization and assessment of pollution , issues concerning both concentration and toxicity should be addressed (Mowat et al , 2001). Therefore, because of the need to establish a cause -effect relationship between the concentration of pollutants and consequent environmental damage and to measure the possible synergistic effect of complex mixture of chemicals(Girotti et al , 2008), Microbial toxicity tests based on bacteria have been widely used in environmental toxicity screening due to the similarity of complex biochemical function in bacteria and higher organisms (Mowat et al , 2001) .Among the bioassays solid phase tests are useful and widely used as test organisms are exposed to whole sediments which include water soluble and non polar substances and thus offer a high relative realism for toxicity assessment of sediments. However, sediment toxicity tests require reference sediment exclusive of contaminant with similar physico chemical characteristics as the test sediments (Guzzella , 1998). The microtox test based on bacterial bioluminescence which uses V. Fischeri bacteria as test organism represent one of the most suitable test for sediment toxicity assessment as it can be used on extracts as well as directly to the sediment (solid phase test) ( Calace et al , 2005). As it is now widely recognised that the total concentrations of Heavy Metals indicate the extent of contamination, but they provide little information about the forms in which Heavy Metals are present, or about their potential for mobility and bioavailability in the environment (Lake et al , 1987) , knowledge on metal speciation in the sedimentary environment may be of more importance for hazard assessment than the total metal concentrations( Farkas et al , 2007). For this reason, sequential extraction procedures are commonly applied because they provide information about the fractionation of metals in the different lattices of the sediments and other solid samples (Margui et al , 2004). It is against this background that an investigation into establishing a reference sediment sample for solid phase bioassays was undertaken in relation to Microtox solid phase test utilising single extractions of metal fractions using -same conditions and procedures described in the sequential extraction procedure mentioned in Tessier et al 1979 . Aims and Objectives: The main aim of the study is to assess whether the approach of cleaning the sediment with metals using single extraction steps of sequential extraction is an appropriate alternative to develop a sediment reference sample or not. In order to obtain a reference sample exclusive of metals, the following procedure was adopted: Each extraction step described in the Tessier scheme was applied to separate aliquots of sediment samples using the same extraction conditions and chemicals described in the scheme (see section 3.8 for details). After the extraction step washed and dried residue sediment samples were analysed for toxicity using the Microtox solid phase test. A reduction in the toxicity could be expected as the metals were removed using chemicals. Microtox solid phase test was also conducted on unprocessed sediment so that a relative comparison between toxicity measurements could be made. The objectives of the investigation are summarised as follows : To characterise the sediments for total bio available metal concentration for eight heavy metals (Cd, Cr, Cu,Fe,Mn,Zn,Pb,Ni) using nitric acid digestion method. To characterise various fractions of metals as described in the Tessier Scheme using single extraction procedures. To determine the level of toxicity associated with unprocessed and processed sediment sample using the Microtox solid phase test. CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Urban River Sediments and Pollution: Urban rivers have been linked with water quality issues since the nineteenth century when it was usual practice to discharge untreated domestic and industrial waste into water courses. Since then the situation has been improved due to e.g. the management curtailment of pollution at sewage treatment plants. However, because of high population densities in urban areas due to variety of sources of pollution the degradation of urban rivers is still important today (Goodwin et al , 2003). When released into the river environment many anthropogenic chemicals bind or adsorb on to particulate matter and depending upon river morphology and hydrological conditions such particulate matter along with associated contaminants can settle out along the water course and become part of the bottom sediments(Vigano et al , 2003). Thus , sediments are considered as repositories for physical and biological debris and for many pollutants (Calmano et al , 1996). Further more , under various physical , biological and chemical conditions (e.g. aqueous solubility ,pH, redox , affinity for sediment organic carbon , grain size of sediments , sediment mineral constituents and quantity of acid volatile sulfides) these contaminants may become bioavailable and result in a toxic impact on aquatic biota(Ingersoll et al , 1995). Nowdays, escalating evidence of environmental degradation have been confirmed where water quality guidelines for contaminants are not surpassed but, still organisms in or near the sediments are adversely affected (Ingersoll et al , 1995). Thus, with a vision to protecting aquatic biota, improving water quality and managing problems of resuspension and the land deposition of dredged materials, sediment quality assessment has been a crucial scientific and legislative issue in recent years. ( Calmano et al 1996 ; Nipper et al 1998). 2.2 Water Framework Directive (WFD) : The European Unions(EU) Water Framework Directive (WFD) which came in effect on 22 December 2000, is one of the most important pieces of environmental legislation and is likely to transform the way water quality is being monitored within all member states ( Allan et al , 2006). The main objective of the Directive is to improve, protect and prevent further deterioration of water quality across Europe and it aims to achieve and ensure good quality status of all water bodies throughout Europe by 2015. Thus the necessity of addressing water quality issues associated with urban rivers has been increased within Member States(Goodwin et a, 2003). Under the WFD , three modes of monitoring strategies are specified and at each strategy level chemical monitoring , biological/ecological assessment , physico-chemical and hydro morphological tools have been covered to assess the water quality status of the body(Allan et al,2006). In the WFD, EU commission places emphasis on establishing quality standards related to the concentrations of priority substances and substances which may cause harm in water , sediment or biota . (Crane , 2003). 2.3 Sediment and Pollutants Sources in Urban Rivers : Urban river system is much more complex in its sediments and pollutant sources. Sediments may be released into urban rivers due to erosion of land surface through variety of physical and chemical processes, the rapid run off from impervious surfaces, routing through drainage network, retention tanks and winter gritting roads (Goodwin et al, 2003). These sediments may contain or associated with pollutants such as hydrocarbons , garden and animal wastes , fertilisers , pesticides , oils , detergents , deicing chemicals , street litter (Hall, 1984 ; Chapman, 1996) and trace and heavy metals (Collins et al, 2007). Moreover, Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) events also augment the pollutant and sediment load due to its own contaminant load and the erosion and wash out of in-sewer sediments (Fierros et al , 2002). Due to the wide variety of sources and river dynamics there exist a wide spatial and temporal variation in the properties of sediments. 2.4 River Sediment Composition and dynamics : River sediments are mainly composed of mineral particles originated from the parent rocks due to erosion process, particulate organic matter adsorbed on mineral particles or particle sized organic matter which originates from plant detritus and animal debris, adsorbed nutrients and toxic inorganic and organic pollutants (Chapman , 1996). However , with respect to their behaviour in nature , sediments can be classified in two distinctively different groups a) fine sediments with particles smaller than 50m (i.e silt and clay) and b) coarse sediments with size exceeding 50m ( i.e. sands and gravels) (Salomons et al , 1984). The erosion, transportation and deposition of sediment is a function of river flow velocity, particle size, water content of the material (Chapman , 1996) , channel structure and degree of turbulence(Goodwin et al , 2003). Under certain hydraulic conditions sediments can be transported in suspension or by traction along the bottom which is often called Bed Load. The suspension mechanism initiates the movement of fine particles while the Bed Load causes the movement of coarse particles (Chapman , 1996). More over, within urban catchments rapid runoff and CSO events trigger river flow events with short peak times and high peak flows which step up transport of sediments and associated pollutants (Goodwin et al , 2003). 2.5 Sediment Quality Assessment: Historically, the assessment of sediment quality has often been limited to chemical characterisation. It helps to classify what are the contaminants and what is their concentrations(McCauley et al , 2000) and it provides information about the condition of sediments and processes within them(Wolska et al , 2007). However, quantifying contaminant concentration alone can not provide enough information to evaluate adequately potential adverse effects, possible interaction among chemicals or the time dependent availability of these materials to aquatic organisms ( Ingersoll et al , 1995) because it is impractical to analyze all the compounds and their synergistic/antagonistic effects contributing to toxicity(Plaza et al , 2005). As the bioavailability of pollutants to aquatic biota and their effects on the biota is the key concern in sediment risk assessment , ecotoxicological testing (bioassays) of sediments which study the toxic effects of sediment contaminants on living organisms ( e.g . fish , plants , bacteria , algae) has been extensively used ( Rand et al , 1995). Thus, to understand the fate of pollutants in sediments and their impacts on aquatic biota , a tiered biological and chemical assessment methods have been implemented (Calmano et al , 1996) . The sediment quality triad methodology, one of the most widely used tiered approach based on weight of evidence combines 1) Identification and quantification of contaminants (i.e. chemical analyses ) , 2) Measurement and quantification of Toxicity based on bioassays (toxicity tests) and 3) Evaluation of in situ biological effects(e.g. Benthic community structure) (Calmano et al , 1996 ; McCauley et al , 2000 ). Principal advantages are that it can be used for any sediment type (Calmano et al ,1996) and as both biological and chemical components are used , environmental significance of contaminated sediments is addressed (McCauley et al , 2000). However the cause -effect relations are not always identified due to the synergistic/antagonistic effects of chemicals causing toxicity in sediments (Calmano et al , 1996 ; McCauley et al , 2000) . Furthermore, the assessment is very site specific and does not allow empirical calculations of chemical specific guidelines ( Mc Cauley , 2000). 2.6 Metals in Urban Sediments and Sources : Metals are natural components of biosphere (Luoma , 1983) and they are introduced in to the aquatic environment through many lithogenic and anthropogenic sources(Zhou et al , 2008). Chemical leaching of bedrocks , water drainage basins and run off from banks are considered as the major lithogenic sources of metals (Zhou et al , 2008) while emissions from industrial processes ( e.g. mining , smelting , finishing , plating , paint an dye manufaturing) (Rand et al , 1995) and through urban sewage, house hold effluents, drainage water, business effluents , atmospheric deposition and traffic related emissions transported with storm water (Karvelas et al , 2003) are the major anthropogenic sources of metals in the aquatic environment. Upon discharge to the aquatic environment metals are partitioned between solid and liquid phase (Luoma , 1983) and eventually as a result of settling metals associated with solid phase accumulate in bottom sediments(Farkas et al , 2007).Thus , sediments are m ain sink of metals in aquatic environment(Morillo et al , 2002). A comparison of typical concentration of metals in urban river sediments is presented in the Table 2.1. Table 2.1 : Concentration of metals in urban river sediments(g/g) (reproduced from De Miguel et al , 2005) Cr Cu Fe(%) Mn Ni Pb Zn River Henares, Spain (97-180) (7-270) (0.8-3.16) (150-445) (11-128) (17-1280) River Seine , France 84 2.91 162 429 River Sowe , UK 47.9 164 411 786 Semarang , Indonesia (12.3-448) (5.2-2666) (53.7-1257) Danube River, Austria 43.5 53.9 187 Tiber river , Italy (18.2-54.2) (13.3-45.5) (3.6-33.5) (12.4-43.1) (53.4-417.6) River Po, Italy (118-223) (45.2-179.9) (4.5-5.2) (355-1159) (99-237) (39.3-71.8) (127-519) River Sherbourne 38 71 2.9 481 19 118 196 River Manzanares (18-1260 (11-347) (1.9-9.1) (305-1276) (5-47) (42-371) (70-591) In brackets : minimum- maximum values ; in italic :arithmatic mean values 2.7 Toxic metals and their forms in sediments : Although some metals are essential micronutrients (e.g. Mn, Fe, Cu,Zn) , almost all metals are toxic to aquatic organisms and human health if exposure levels are sufficiently high (Luoma , 1983). Among the toxic metals cadmium, chromium, copper, lead, nickel, zinc, mercury and arsenic are of prime importance due to their association with anthropogenic inputs. Under different physical, biological or chemical conditions the toxicity of metals in sediments is a matter of bio availability (Jennett et al ,1980). Thus in order to estimate the bio availability of metals and their potential toxicity it is desirable not only to determine the total concentration but also the different chemical forms or ways of binding between metals and sediments(Albores et al , 2000). In sediments depending upon various physical, chemical and biological conditions , metals partitioned into different chemical forms associated with a variety of organic and inorganic phases (Farkas et al , 2007).In river sediments metal can be bound to various compartments e.g. adsorbed onto clay surfaces or iron and manganese oxy hydroxides, present in lattice of secondary minerals such as carbonates, sulphates or oxides, occluded within amorphous material such as iron and manganese oxyhydroxides, complexed with organic matter or lattice of primary minerals such as silicates (Gismera et al , 2004). Due to natural and anthropogenic environmental changes these associations can be altered and metals can become more or less bio available or mobilized within different phases. These influential factors include pH, temperature , redox potential , organic matter decomposition , leaching and ion exchange processes and microbial activity(Filgueiras et al ,2002). Thus in relation to their mobi lity and bioavailability, in order of decreasing interest the major metal fractions are : 1) Exchangeable ,2) Bound to carbonates , 3) Bound to Fe-Mn Oxides , 4) Bound to organic matter and 5) Residual . 2.7.1 Exchangeable Metals : In this fraction , weakly adsorbed metals retained on the solid surface by relatively weak electrostatic forces that can be released by ion exchange processes in the sediment are included(Filgueiras et al , 2002). These metals are considered the most available form of metals present in the sediments (Morrison , 1985). 2.7.2 Metals Bound to Carbonates : Metals in this fractions are co-precipitated with carbonates which exist as cement and coating (Morrison , 1985) and this phase can be an important adsorbent for metals in the absence of organic matter and Fe-Mn oxides (Filgueiras et al , 2002). 2.7.3 Metals bound to Fe-Mn Oxides : Metals in this fraction are associated with Iron and Manganese oxides which exist as nodules , concretion and cement between particles or simply as a coating on particles. Iron and Manganese oxides are considered as excellent scavengers of metals and are thermodynamically unstable under anoxic conditions (Tessier et al , 1979). 2.7.4 Metals bound to organic matter : In this fractions metals associated with various forms of organic materials such as living organisms, plant and animal detritus or coatings on mineral particles are included. This fraction is considered to be less mobile due to their associations with humic substances of higher molecular weights(Filgueiras et al , 2002). 2.8 Sequential Extractions : A sequential extraction procedure (SEP) also known as sequential extraction scheme (SES) can be used to determine above mentioned binding fractions of metals in the sediment. In this process, given sediment sample is subjected to a series of increasingly strong , phase specific reagents under controlled condition which extract our metals from the particular physic-chemical phase of interest(Bird et al , 2005). Depending upon target fractions, a wide variety of chemical extractants can be used (see fig.2.1) and thus in the literature various sequential extraction schemes are available which differ in the use of extractant, target phase and the order of attack to separate particular form of metals. The majority of the schemes are variants of a scheme proposed by Tessier et al (1979). Many researchers have reported difficulties in comparing the results of SES due to their wide variation in the use of chemicals and target phase. Thus, in an effort to harmonize the different methodologies and to make the comparison of results easier , Community Bureau of Reference (BCR) proposed a three step extraction procedure along with a reference sediment material to certify the protocol (Mossop and Davidson , 2003). 2.9 Advantages and problems of sequential extractions : The application of sequential extraction techniques , though time consuming provide valuable information about the origin , mode of occurrence, biological and physic-chemical availability , mobilisation and transport of metals within the sedimentary matrices(Tokalioglu et al , 2000).However, since their initial development, sequential extraction schemes have been criticized for the lack of selectivity of reagents, issues of re adsorption and redistribution of metals solubilised during extraction and changes in speciation due to sample pre- treatment and its general methodology ( Gleyzes et al , 2002). In the sequential extraction scheme, the reagents are expected to attack only the target phase without solubilising the other phases. However, it has been found that the reagents are not selective and may affect other phases also. Thus the sequential extractions are termed as operationally defined fractionation techniques. This lack of selectivity may cause re-adsoprtion and re distribution of metals among the target phases. Moreover, incomplete dissolution of some phases and changes in pH may also lead toward re adsorption and redistribution problems (Gleyzes et al, 2002). Various researchers have reported the problem of re adsorption and redistribution for many sequential extractions for each phase. Despite these limitations sequential extractions are widely accepted for metal fractionation in sediment samples to assess the mobility and bioavailability of metals . 2.10 Single Extractions : To reduce lengthy procedures and thus making sequential extractions a part of routine analysis, various alternatives(e.g. microwave heating and ultrasonic shaking) to conventional extraction procedures have been employed (Albores et al , 2000). One of the alternatives to reduce the lengthy and laborious sequential process is to use single extractions. In single extractions the same reagents and operating conditions as the sequential extractions are applied to different sub- sample (Albores et al ,2000) and, except for first step , the metal concentrations in each individual step can be obtained by subtracting the results obtained in two successive steps(Filgueiras et al , 2002). Initially this technique was suggested by Tack et al (1996) in which first three steps mentioned in Tessiers Scheme were extracted simultaneously while, for organic matter bound metals, it was suggested that the sample should be extracted first for reducing metals and should then be re treated with hydrogen p eroxide step to remove organic matter and thus release metals bound to this phase. 2.11 Bioassays : A useful monitoring tool Bioassays measure changes in physiology and behaviour of living organisms resulting from stress induced by biological or chemical toxic compounds which can cause disruption of e.g. metabolism. Thus, bioassays help to establish cause / effect relationship between the concentrations of pollutants and consequent environmental damage (Girrotti et al , 2008). Historically fish and macro invertabrates bioassays are the first in the series of toxicity bioassays involving animals. As these bioassays were found useful in assessing the acute toxicity of chemicals and effluents and often predicted their effects of aquatic biota and habitat, they have been extensively used in the screening of chemicals and regulatory compliance monitoring (Blaise et al , 1998). However , these conventional bioassays require longer test duration along with additional time(e.g. acclimatisation) for preparations of the test (Ribo and Kaiser , 1987). Moreover toxicity was found a trophic level property and thus it was realized that protection of aquatic resources could not be ensured by conducting bioassays solely at macro organism level (Rand et al , 1995). Therefore an urgent requirement of cost effective , multi trophic and faster bioassays was strongly felt which led to development of micro scale testing procedures involving bacteria , protozoa , micro algae and micro invertabrate (Blaise et al , 1998). Distinct advantages of microbial testing procedures include :1) ease of handling ,2 ) short testing time , 2) reproducibility of results (Mowat et al , 2001) and 4) cost effectiveness (Wadhia and Thompson , 2007). 2.12 Sediment Toxicity Tests : As Van Beelen (2003) stated, toxicity is not a substance property only , but it is the c

The Existing System For Payslip Generation

The Existing System For Payslip Generation The purpose of the proposed project is to automate the Payslip generation process which replaces the traditional system of Payslip generation that used to print the employee salary details onto a paper. This project includes a single user who is authorized to initiate the application. The privileges are given only to the individual in a department who is responsible for generating the PaySlips for the employees. The application takes in the Excel Spreadsheet as input and generates an encrypted PDF PaySlip for each employee. This PDF PaySlip is mailed to the respective employee by using their mail-id which is provided in the Excel sheet. This application generates PaySlips of each employee every month. The PaySlip spreadsheet is uploaded to the system. The application uses an excel parser to read this spreadsheet. The excel parser parses the excel sheet in a row-wise fashion and generates an xml string for each row. This xml string contains the salary data of each employee. The salary data is converted into a password-protected PDF document as per a pre-defined template. These salary statements (in PDF) are emailed to respective users. The email process is logged. 1.2 Existing System: The existing System for PaySlip generation includes manual entry of the pay details of all the employees in an excel sheet and converting them to word document. Each row from the excel sheet is taken and then converted into the word document. This word document contains the Pay details of the employee. This document is printed on to a paper and then distributed to all the employees. The Existing System requires manual effort in converting the excel sheet data into the word document. The word document which contains the salary details should be generated for all the employees which in turn delays the whole process of distributing the payslips. As the paper is used in distributing the payslips this even includes the wastage of paper. This is till the part of generation of pyslips itself. When talking about distribution each and every paslip has to be signed by the authority, stamped and then folded which is placed in the envelope.this has to be distributed to all the employees near the desk has to take an acknowledgement that the employee has received by signing on paper. If the employee is not at the desk or out of station then distribution has to be postponed for that employee till he is available. That is he cant check it immediately after its been issued. Making it remotely accessible is also another aspect of it. 1.3 Proposed System: The proposed System for generating the PaySlips is a Web based Automated System for generation and distribution of PaySlips. Proposed System is efficient enough as it includes Less Manual effort. Manual effort is needed in only logging into the application and uploading the appropriate excel sheet into the application. Just a click on the upload button is sufficient, then the application itself will generate the payslips and distribute them to the respective employees mailid. Optimal performance of the application is achieved as delay is reduced in generation of Payslips with the existing system. Paper conservation is achieved, as the PaySlips are sent to the employees through mails, This makes the payslip remotely accessible 2.1 Functional Requirements Modules: Authentication/Authorization Upload File Excel Parser PDF Generation Email Module Description: Authentication/Authorization Module: This application is used to generate payslips of the employees for every month. Payslips, that depict all the salary details, is very confidential and hence this work should be carried out by an authorized person. For this purpose the user is presented with a login and is granted access to the application only after supplying a valid username and password. This needs database connectivity that stores all the details of the users who can use the application with their password. This module is implemented using Struts. As this partitions the presentation and implementation the login UI is built using Java server pages. When the user submits the user name and password the servlet gets invoked handling the process that connects to the database, verifies and accordingly an action is taken that forwards to another UI. Upload File: This module uploads the Excel spread sheet into the application in which details of all the employees are present with the present months salary details. The details of the employee includes the name, empid, designation etc .The Excel spread sheet that is needed to be uploaded should be in a specified format i.e., all the details should be in the same chronological order according to the specifications. The uploaded spread sheet will not be saved any where as the data in the Excel sheet is very confidential. This module is implemented using Struts. The File Upload UI is built using Java server pages. When the user uploads an Excel file a servlet gets invoked handling the process that directs an action. Excel Parser: This module takes the uploaded excel sheet as input and parses it in a row wise fashion, organizes the data in xml format For this a special software tool is used In this module we also retrieve the employee-id, mail-id and month for which the payslip is generated. The software tool used for parsing the Excel document is POI. This needs a POI.jar added in the library where some predefined methods are defined. The POI consists of APIs for manipulating various file formats based upon Microsofts OLE 2 Compound Document format, and Office OpenXML format, using pure Java. In short, you can read and write MS Excel files using Java. In addition, you can read and write MS Word and MS PowerPoint files using Java. POI is your Java Excel solution (for Excel 97-2007). However, we have a complete API for porting other OLE 2 Compound Document formats and welcome others to participate. OLE 2 Compound Document Format based files include most Microsoft Office files such as XLS and DOC as well as MFC serialization API based file formats. Office OpenXML Format based files include the new (2007+) xml based file formats, including Microsoft office files such as XLSX, DOCX and PPTX. PDF Generation: This module creates a PDF file per employee based on pre-defined template and a randomly generated Password is used to encrypt the PDF file. This password is used by the employees to retrieve the PaySlips. The template is designed using XSL independently and values are taken from the Excel and filled into PDF using java. The PDF is encrypted using a random generated password and the password is attached to the mail. The encrypted PDF document is mailed to the employee. The software tool used for generating a PDF document is XSL-FO. XSL-FO is a language for formatting XML data . XSL-FO stands for Extensible Stylesheet Language Formatting Objects . XSL-FO is a W3C Recommendation . XSL-FO is now formally named XSL . XSL-FO is an XML-based markup language describing the formatting of XML data for output to screen, paper or other media. Styling is both about transforming and formatting information. When the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) made their first XSL Working Draft, it contained the language syntax for both transforming and formatting XML documents. Later, the XSL Working Group at W3C split the original draft into separate Recommendations. XSLT, a language for transforming XML documents . XSL or XSL-FO, a language for formatting XML documents. XPath, a language for navigating through elements and attributes in XML documents. This is more advantageous because this seperates the presentation or template of the PDF and the implementation how the data is filled in. Email Module: This Module emails the Payslips (Password protected PDF files) to the respective employee by using their mail id. The mailing details are saved in a batch log with the time and date at which the mail is sent to the employee for verification. This module sets the mail attributes like the subject, from_address, to_address and message body. Also a partial random generated password is sent in the mails which need to be personalized by the employee. This module also inserts values into the email log with the details of mailing. The Protocol used for mailing the PDF document to a particular employee is SMTP. The JavaMail API provides a platform-independent and protocol-independent framework to build mail and messaging applications.This is binded with Simple Mail Transfer Protocol for mailing. 2.2 Non-Functional Requirements Accessibility This application is easily accessible by the user who is authorized to use the system for generating PaySlips every month. Performance This system can generate PaySlips for any number of employees considering the same speed. Reliability This system is consistent and performs required functions under stated conditions. Security Unauthorized access to the system and its data is not allowed. The person who wants to access the system is authenticated against a username and password. The PaySlip mailed to the employee is also password protected. This ensures unauthorized access of the PaySlip. Usability This system enhances usability by incorporating well structured user interfaces, end-user interactions, informative error messages etc. 2.3 System Requirement Specification: Software Requirements: Language: Java/J2EE Operating system: Win 2000/XP or higher Web Server: Apache Tomcat Server Excel Parsers: POI(Poor Obfuscation Implementation) PDF Generator Tools: XSL-FO(Extensible Style sheet Language-Formatting Object) Back End: MySQL Database Hardware Requirements: Processor: P4 or higher RAM: 1 GB or higher Hard disk: 10 GB 3.1 Technical Architecture A Technical Architecture breaks down operational (business) processes into functional components and capabilities. It describes the structure and behaviour of the technology infrastructure of an enterprise, solution or system. The following diagram depicts functional components of the application. Browser Web Container (Tomcat) MySQL PaySlip Generation System The web container in detail handles the following operations as depicted in the following diagram As the web container receives the request from the browser it invokes the parser functionality and does the excel parsing row-wise and generates an xml String. The string data is used in generating the PDF. These PDFs which are generated are mailed to the respective employees by the mailer component. The entire email process is logged in a file. Once the application is deployed in the server we can access it locally or from remote using public IP or giving some domain name to the application. 3.2 Software Architecture Software architecture alludes to the overall structure of the software and the ways in which the structure provides conceptual integrity for a system. In the simplest form software architecture is the hierarchical structure of program components (modules), the manner in which these components interact and structure of data that are used by these components. The software architecture of a program or computing system is the structure or structures of the system, which comprise software components, the externally visible properties of those components, and the relationships between them. 4.1 Design Objectives: Design is the first step in the development phase of a process or system in sufficient details to permit its physical realization. Without design specifications, the design will be unguided. It is difficult to know when the process is complete and to measure the progress. Design is used to plan what information needs to be displayed and entered and how it relates to other information. Design is the only way to translate the requirements into a finished system. A well designed program will be easier to implement, distribute and maintain. 4.2 UML Diagrams 4.2.1 Usecase Diagram: 4.2.2 Class Diagram: 4.2.3 Sequence Diagram: 4.2.4 Collaboration Diagram: 4.2.5 Activity Diagram: 4.3 Data Flow Diagrams: Level 1 4.4 Database Design: 4.4.1 E-R Diagrams 4.4.2 Database Tables: Database Tables: 5.1 Pseudo Code Login Module Login form: public class LoginForm extends ActionForm { /**Declare two string variables that holds the username and password values entered in the form Define getter and setter methods **/ } Login Action: public class LoginAction extends Action { Public ActionForward execute(ActionMapping mapping, ActionForm actionForm, HttpServletRequest request, HttpServletResponse response) throws Exception { /**Create an object to the login form Retrieve the username and password entered in the form and save in some variables Create an object for the implementation and call the function validate() with the retrieved username and password as arguments Savetoken() Depending on its return value forward the action to success page or failure page**/ } Login Interface: public interface LoginDAO { /**Declare th method validate(string , string)**/ } Interface Implementation: public class LoginDAOimpl extends BaseDAO implements LoginDAO { Constructor() { } Validate () { /**Declare two string variables that holds the values of the username and password from he database Get the connection to the database using the predefined method in java Retrieve the username and password from the database using a SQL query(select) Compare both username, password from form and database Return a Boolean value according to the comparision**/ } } Login.jsp: CTE Pay Slip Generation System Employee Login function validateLogin(){ if(document.loginForm.username.value!=""&& document.loginForm.password.value!="") { return true; } else { alert("Please Enter UserName and Password."); return false;} } Login UserName : Password : Copyright  © 2009 Cambridge Technology Enterprises. All rights reserved. Upload File Module: Upload form: public class UploadForm extends ActionForm { /**Define a variable file of type file Also define the getter and setter methods **/ } Upload Action: public class StrutsUploadAction extends Action { public ActionForward execute ( ActionMapping mapping, ActionForm form, HttpServletRequest request, HttpServletResponse response) throws Exception { /** If the token is valid then Create an object for upload form to retrieve parameters like contentType, fileName, fileSize. Create an object to interface to all the method parseExcel(file) Return success Else Return failure **/ Upload.jsp CTE Pay Slip Generation System Employee Login function isFileName() { var fileName = document.forms[0].theFile.value; // uploadform is the form name if (fileName =="") { alert("Please select a file"); return false; } Else { if(fileName.substr((fileName.length)-3,fileName.length) == "xls") { document.forms[0].action = "FileUpload.do"; document.forms[0].method = "post"; document.forms[0].submit(); return true;} Else { alert("Please Upload an Excel file"); return false; }}} File Upload value= > Select File Copyright  © 2009 Cambridge Technology Enterprises. All rights reserved. window.NREUM||(NREUM={});NREUM.info={"beacon":"bam.nr-data.net","licenseKey":"de6e6cfad9","applicationID":"221047987","transactionName":"bl0HMhMFDEYCWhJeWlcXMBQISwdGEFgfRBpYShEPAggHGxNRFg==","queueTime":0,"applicationTime":1,"atts":"QhoERFsfH0g=","errorBeacon":"bam.nr-data.net","agent":""} Upload interface: public interface PaySlipDAO { declare a method parseExcel() } /**Upload interface implementation(Excel Working and PDF Generation Modules **/ ) public class PaySlipDAOImpl extends BaseDAO implements PaySlipDAO { Constructor() { } public String parseExcel(String fileName) throws Exception { Define a String array str[]={sno,month,NoofDays,empid,empname,desg,Basic,HRA,à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦} That defines the sequence in which Excel file should be in. /**Define a string variable that holds the root tag declare an input stream and initialize it to null now define a new input stream and initialize it to file (Excel file) initialize POIFSFileSystem to inputstream define a new HSSFworkbook get the sheet count get the sheet with count zero iterate the rows if the sheet has rows then iterate the cells from that retrieve the 4th,2nd and 21st cell values. 4-mployeeid 2-month 21-Email id For every cell value append the opening tag using the string array**/ /**According to the cell value get the value Like Numeric Formula String After adding the value append the closing tag Like wise iterate till all the cells are completed At the end append the closing root tag With this we are ready with our xml string. Using this xml string as the argument make the call to the generatPDF() Return empids of employees for whom the mail is sent and to whom the mail is not sent with a # appended in between.**/ } PDF Generation Module: public int genPDF( HSSFCell empid, HSSFCell mailid, HSSFCell monthyear, String xmlStr ) /**Set the path of the base directory to the current directory Define a file in which we save the xslt file that is used in designing the payslip Also define a PDF file with parameters like where to save(current directory),with what name(employee-id) and with what extension(.pdf) Create new instances for fop factory and fo user agent Get the random generated password which is of six characters length Now define two random numbers and retrieve th characters at that ndex in the employee id Append these two characters to the random generated password Encrypt the pdf using method PDFEncryptionParams() and set the Boolean parameters like allow print, allowCopyContent, allowEditContent, allowEditAnnotations and also the keys to encrypt configure foUserAgent as desired. Setup output. Construct fop with desired output format Setup XSLT Setup input for XSLT transformation Resulting SAX events (the generated FO) must be piped through to FOP Start XSLT transformation and FOP processing**/ /**Call the sendmail method by creating its object Save the returnvalue in a variable If that is equal to one then save that email id as sentmailid and append all other of this kind in the Excel sheet to this**/ /**If thats is equal to zero save that email id as failedmailid and append all others of this kind in the Excel sheet to this After mail is sent save that in the log using the user defined method insertIntoEmailLog (mailid, monthYear,status)**/ } private void insertIntoEmailLog(HSSFCell mailid, String monthYear, int status) { /**Get the data base connection Insert into table the values of status,month nd the mailed**/ } public static String getPassword(int n) { /**Generate n random characters may it be alphabets(upper and lower),numbers and symbols Return a string of length n characters**/ } MailService Module: public class MailService { MailService (); { } /**Define the host, transport_protocol, authentication needed, debugging needed etc.**/ public int sendMail(String empId,String monthYear,String emailid,byte[] pdfBytes,String randompwd,int randomposition1,int randomposition2) { /**Set the parameters like frommail, tomail, subject, messagetext, content type etc Define a new mail session Declare a new MIMEmessage() for this mail session set the source to PDF bytes send that message as mail to the tomailid**/ } } Failure.jsp CTE Pay Slip Generation System Employee Login response.setHeader(Cache-Control,no-cache); //HTTP 1.1 response.setHeader(Pragma,no-cache); //HTTP 1.0 response.setDateHeader (Expires, 0); //prevents caching at the proxy server response.setHeader(Cache-Control,no-store); //HTTP 1.1 %> Invalid username or password Please Try Again Copyright  © 2009 Cambridge Technology Enterprises. All rights reserved. Uploadsuccess.jsp CTE Pay Slip Generation System Employee Login response.setHeader(Cache-Control,no-cache); //HTTP 1.1 response.setHeader(Pragma,no-cache); //HTTP 1.0 response.setDateHeader (Expires, 0); //prevents caching at the proxy server response.setHeader(Cache-Control,no-store); //HTTP 1.1 %> File Successfully Uploaded EMail sent to: String maildata = (String)request.getAttribute(emailEmpId); int splitCount= maildata.indexOf(#); String sentEmailIds=maildata.substring(0,splitCount); String failedEmailIds=maildata.substring(splitCount+1,maildata.length()); %> EMail failed to:

Notes of a Native Son Essay -- James Baldwin

Notes of a Native Son â€Å"Notes of a Native Son† is an essay that takes you deep into the history of James Baldwin. In the essay there is much to be said about than merely scratching the surface. Baldwin starts the essay by immediately throwing life and death into a strange coincidental twist. On the 29th of July, 1943 Baldwin’s youngest sibling was born and on the same day just hours earlier his father took his last breath of air from behind the white sheets of a hospital bed. It seems all too ironic and honestly overwhelming for Baldwin. From these events Baldwin creates a woven interplay of events that smother a conscience the and provide insight to a black struggle against life. â€Å"He had been ill a long time-in the mind† (65) was the way Baldwin remembered his father. It is because of his father’s illness, that his paranoia is aimed at the world. The contradiction here is that his father is a preacher. Trust and all other forms of hope in human kind have been vanquished from him. He despises the world he lives in, the one that held his ancestors in fields working for rich white gentry. He looks to God for answers and preaches an angry version of lord’s sermons. Baldwin was pulled in the same direction as his father except he couldn’t truly hold the meanings of the words after long and lost aspirations of preaching. â€Å"It was said in the church, quite truthfully, that I was ‘cooling off’† (80) in his interest to the service of preaching and gained it in a service of writing. The way Baldwin describes his relationship with his father shows an overall concern of the family. With eight brothers and sisters, the poor preacher had little money to support their mouths let alon... ...hey actually did talk. His father asked if he wanted to write rather than preach. Baldwin answered yes and that was the end of it. Even though he was such a cold figure to look up to in Baldwin’s life he realized that it was a figure to look to. He leaves the reader with a question or perhaps two answers to a question. He realizes that he had leaned on the hatred and used it to shape his life and outlook. Now that it is gone, he feels unbalanced and inquisitive to how he will handle life. He looks to find a way to rise against the struggle of black people. Opposing forces lay present throughout the entire essay and the most interesting part about it is that Baldwin can cloak these contradictions. Works Cited Baldwin, James. â€Å"Notes of a Native Son.† 1955. James Baldwin: Collected Essays. Ed. Toni Morrison. New York: Library of America, 1998. 63-84.

Puritan :: essays research papers

US History Essay During the seventeenth century, the Puritans landed in New England to form the Massachusetts Bay colony. John Winthrop, the first Governor of the colony, saw the place as a political and religious refuge. He described it as â€Å"a city upon a hill.† In England, the Puritans were not free to practice their faith and were persecuted by the Anglican Church. The Puritans wanted to create an ideal society where they could practice religion at will. These people risked everything just so they could freely practice their faith. Their sole purpose in settling in America was to sustain and practice their religion.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Massachusetts Bay colony was very different from their counterpart, Jamestown. Jamestown colonists consisted of mainly single men who came to the New World to merely make money. These money-hungry profiteers were interested in milking the land for cash crops and other sources of revenue. The Puritans, on the other hand, formed communities where they could closely practice their faith together. They had a big focus on families and community worship. The Puritans also created a government, which was based on the idea of the rule of the majority. The Jamestown colony was not interested in making communities. The Puritans’ priorities were centered on their religion and the teaching of it. This is clearly shown in their focus of education. The purpose of education to them was to teach the children religious and moral values. This would prove to be a very good way to. Every community of 50 families had a teacher and every community of 100 families had a school. The Puritans emphasis on religious education supports the fact that they had moralistic plans for the New World. The Jamestown colonists, however, were not as concerned with education. Although the Puritans came to the New World for religious freedom, they did not accept people whose religious beliefs differed from those of the Puritans in the community. Anne Hutchinson, a religious reformer, held meetings at her house to read the Bible to puritan men and women.

Poverty in India vs Poverty in the United States Essay

According to the general description of poverty, a person is considered poor if he or she finds it difficult to meet the minimum requirement of adequate living standards (Economy Watch). At present, inequality and poverty have been undoubtedly existent for the largest part of the world’s nations and people. Poverty has diverse characteristics, varying across time and from place to place. Unfortunately, the more global and profound causes of poverty are time and again less examined. With this concern, this paper examines and summarily compares the causes of poverty between two diverse nations, the United States and India. Poverty in India Since India’s independence, the problem of poverty in the country has remained a prevailing concern. In 2007, government estimates revealed that there were almost 220. 1 million residents in India living below the poverty line or unable to meet the basic standards of living (Economy Watch). Nearly 15 percent of the urban population and 21. 1 percent of the entire rural population of India lives in this difficult financial and physical dilemma, and this condition is aggravated by few job opportunities in the urban areas and low wages, which are usually paid in grains (Economy Watch). Several factors are to be blamed for India’s poverty problem. For instance, the Indian family unit is on average tremendously large, which further intensifies the effects of poverty. Moreover, rural populations are mostly dependent on agriculture, and have a high level of reliance on primitive techniques of agriculture, such as the monsoon season and rain patterns. Accordingly, improper irrigation facilities and inadequate rain can evidently cause no, or in a few fortunate cases, low production of crops. In addition, the caste system still prevails in India and this significantly causes poverty in the country’s rural areas. Like the movie â€Å"Slumdog Millionaire,† when the 18 old Jamal Malik was having an answering streak on the game show â€Å"Who Wants to Be a Millionaire,† those associated with the show as well as the public, questioned how some boy who grew up in the slums of Mumbai is performing extremely well than others who are wealthier and more educated than him. Apparently, people from the lower castes are normally discriminated and deprived of several opportunities, causing inequalities and ultimately growing poverty to the enormous population. Poverty in the United States In 2005, the United States Census Bureau confirmed that there are about 37 million â€Å"poor† Americans. Apparently, some of these impoverished communities in the country have been the result of deindustrialization; as various blue-collar jobs that necessitate little education but paid well have been outsourced. Moreover, low-income Americans generally believe that too many immigrants, too many single-parent families, as well as excessively few jobs, medical bills, and drug abuse are the common causes of poverty in the country. However, on a closer look on the millions of people classified as â€Å"poor† by the Bureau reveal, only few of them fit the global description of poverty. Although material destitution does occur in the country, yet it is limited in severity and scope, as most of them survive in material conditions that would be considered as well-off or comfortable just a few generations ago. Taken as a whole, the common poor American has a microwave, a clothes washer and dryer, a stove, a refrigerator, air conditioning, and a car. Moreover, America’s poor can afford medical care, and an adequate house that is not overcrowded. Conclusion/Recommendation The term poverty is a multifaceted concept seeing that it is exceptionally complicated to draw a demarcation line between poverty and affluence. However, with a few apparent distinctions, poverty as a whole in India and the United States is principally a consequence of unemployment and low productivity. Then again, while poor Americans’ life is considered impoverished, yet it is far from the popular images of the dreadful poverty in India as conveyed in the movie â€Å"Slumdog Millionaire. † Nevertheless, in order to truly eradicate the problem of worldwide poverty, greater private and public organizations partnership along with efficient and committed bureaucratic machinery is required to take on the alarming problem. Reference Economy Watch. (n. d. ). Poverty in India. Retrieved June 8, 2009, from http://www. economywatch. com/indianeconomy/poverty-in-india. html

Moving To Foriegn Land Essay

The idea of leaving the life behind you had lived for 19 years and moving to another country and start your life from scratch never attracted me. Looking back 3 years ago before leaving my home country, Pakistan and moving to Singapore my life was very different. When my father first disclosed the news that we will be moving to Singapore I remember how excited everyone in my family was, except for me. I was living a life that I always wanted and loved, surrounded by most loving grandparents and relatives, growing up with my best friends, and studying in Fashion School. The fact that I had to leave everything behind and start up new, moving to unknown city, unfamiliar to the culture, unknown traditions, making new friends, inter cultural communication barriers, how will I fit in new school scared me. I always had this idea in my head that starting up new is impossible for me and I was not self-motivated for the change Moving from high-context culture to low-context culture is a big change. First thing I did after moving, I started comparing everything to how it is back home. Then I could not get in fashion school, which caused having low self-esteem in me. I was not very familiar to the culture as well, new places, new challenges and new people. All this led me to isolating myself and being pessimist about everything. After my family successfully convinced me to take a Diploma in Business I got admission in one of the private institute, few early weeks I was the shy and quite student in the class, there were a lot of things going on in my head and because I was not self-motivated I never initiated to talk to people or make friends. After a while I became friends with these 2 girls in my class (both belonged from different culture). Both of them were very helpful and understanding. From there I started being open and interacting with people from different other countries and culture. Dwyer (2013a, p. 117), defined culture as â€Å"shared views of people belonging from to that society†. Dwyer (2013b, p. 118) I realized, just like me most the students in my class were immigrants too and pretty much have been through the same difficulties and experience. They all were unknown to my culture (Language, religion, social culture etc.) as  I was unknown to theirs. All of them were away from their homeland and some of them were also living without their families. As time passed I started realising positive aspects of this experience. Growing up in a certain culture means you become customized to those beliefs, values and norms they appear very normal – everyday activities, behaviors, and you do not think about them as part of a culture. Singapore is a land of multi cultures, due to which I have made friends from different countries, with time I started soaking up culture references, trying different foods, learning different languages, known to different religions, celebrating different cultural and religious festivals, trying their clothes, sharing the customs and traditions. I found myself eager to learn about it and not only me but my class mates where equally interested in my culture. After a while I realized I started adopting the habits I never thought I would embrace. I got to know myself better because there were things I used to believe in which was just the cultural heritage of the society I grew up in and not my own beliefs. Furthermore, as I had an art background, studying business for the first time was also a new experience for me and had some difficulties in the beginning but with the help of my teachers I managed to clear my concepts. When a person has lived a part of their life in another country especially their teenage, it is a challenge moving to different country and starting from the scratch but now after spending 3 years in Singapore I have realised how it was one of the best decision of my life. What I wanted was to spend my whole life in a shell and never let myself think outside the box. I can say that I was the one making this process difficult for myself, it all depends on a person’s will. Since the day I got to know about moving I was being hard on myself and never let myself think positively about it. It certainly is difficult to start all over again when our lives already exists elsewhere but It depends on a person to overcome the change and make it comfortable. It is all a process of learning, expecting the unexpected and fighting through the challenges. . I never knew before that I could be flexible with the changes and see this as an opportunity one day. Through this transformation of experience, I can conclude that after moving from my homeland to Singapore, I may have faced difficulties in adjusting with the culture and other challenges in the beginning but looking at  positive side I have only learnt from it and came out of it as a better and mature person intellectually and more exposed toward the cultures. This experience helped me in learning so many new and different things, about myself, about other than my own culture which I never knew even existed, and that is one of the best parts about leaving your home country and moving to a foreign land. It has been a life-changing experience for me and I will never go back to how I was. And now I can say that I’m ready to face further challenges in my life. References: Dwyer, J 2013a, Communication for business and the professions: Strategies and skills, 5th ed., Pearson Australia. – 2013b, Communication for business and the professions: Strategies and skills, 5th ed., Pearson Australia.