Lab Report I

Determining the Stoichiometry of Chemical Reactions Mrs. Farrales Nikita Pandya October 23, 2012 December 3, 2012 INRODUCTION In the method of continuous variations the total number of moles of reactants is kept constant for the series of measurements. Each measurement is made with a different mole ratio of reactants. A mole ratio is ratio between the amounts in moles of any two compounds involved in a chemical reaction.Mole ratios are used as conversion factors between products and reactants in many chemistry problems. The optimum ratio, which is the stoichiometric ratio in the equation, form the greatest amount of product, and, if the reaction is exothermic, generate the most heat and maximum temperature change, Double replacement reactions are generally considered to be irreversible. The formation of an insoluble precipitate provides a driving force that makes the reaction proceed in one direction only.In a double reaction, the two reactants which are aqueous solutions (which can be broken down), can form two products one also an aqueous solution, and another which can be a precipitate, water, or a gas, which cannot be broken down, therefore making the reaction irreversible. The objective/goal of this laboratory is to find the optimum mole ratio for the formation of a precipitate in a double replacement reaction and use this information to predict the chemical formula of the precipitate. How can the products of a double reaction be predicted?How will it be determined if a product is aqueous or a precipitate? How will the method of continuous variations help determine the mole ratio of the two reactants? METHODS Materials: 1. Copper (II) chloride solution, CuCl2, 0. 05 M, 210 mL 2. Iron (III) nitrate solution, Fe(NO3) 3, 0. 1 M. 110 mL 3. Sodium hydroxide solution, NaOH, 0. 1 M, 320 mL 4. Sodium phosphate, tribasic, solution, Na3PO4, 0. 05 M, 210 ml 5. (14+) Test tubes (some graduated, some without graduations) 6. Black Marker 7. Marking tape 8. (2) Stirring rods, large 9. Pipets 10. (2) Test tube racks 1. (2) Pairs of gloves 12. Lab goggles 13. Lab apron 14. Timer 15. Para film Procedure The lab was set up, as it is seen in figure 1, with seven test tubes in a test tube rack. Using a clean 10mL graduated cylinder, the appropriate volume of iron(III) nitrate solution was taken from its container and transferred/added to each test tube using a pipet. Using a another clean 10mL graduated cylinder, the appropriate volume of sodium hydroxide solution was taken from its container and transferred/added to each test tube, which already contained iron(III) nitrate, using a pipet.Before the timer was started, each of the solutions in the test tube was stirred/mixed with a large stirring rod. This ensured that both the reactants mixed properly. After stirring the solutions, observations were noted for any signs of chemical changes. The mixtures were to be left for 10 minutes (a timer was used) to sit undisturbed, because any movement of the test tube could cause a hindrance in the settlement of the precipitate. Though each test tube was left undisturbed for 10 minutes, final observations were made after the solutions were left to sit undisturbed for 24 hours.After the 24 hours of settling, the volume of the precipitate in each test tube was measured and recorded. For test tube with graduations, seeing the numbers at eye level made the calculations, but for test tubes with no graduations a different method was used to measure the volume of the precipitate. First another test tube of the same size was found, then using a pipet, 1ml of water was measured in a 10mL graduated cylinder, and then poured into the similar size test tube. Using a black marker graduations were written on the test tube. Graduations up to 5mL only were made.After the graduations were complete the â€Å"graduated† test tube was held side by side with the similar size test tube with no graduations, and the precipitate was measured using this metho d. The same procedures were repeated with the reactants of the second table, CuCl2 and Na3PO4 Figure 1: The set up of the lab, the test tubes were labeled 1-7 RESULTS Data Table 1: Ratio between Fe(NO3)3 and NaOH are presented in this table along with the amount of precipitate that was produced in each of the test tube. Test Tube | 1| 2| 3| 4| 5| 6| 7| Fe(NO3)3, 0. 1M, mL| 1| 2| 4| 3| 2| 5| 4|NaOH, 0. 1M, mL| 11| 10| 16| 9| 5| 10| 6| Fe:OH Mole Ratio| 1:11| 1:5| 1:4| 1:3| 2:5| 1:2| 2:3| Volume of Precipitate (mL)| 1 mL| 2. 8 mL| 3 mL| 0 mL| 0 mL| 0 mL| 0 mL| Data Table 2: Ratio between CuCl2 and Na3PO4 are presented in this table along with the amount of precipitate that was produced in each of the test tube. Test Tube | 1| 2| 3| 4| 5| 6| 7| CuCl2, 0. 05 M, mL| 1| 4| 4| 6| 6| 8| 5| Na3PO4, 0. 05 M, mL| 5| 8| 6| 6| 4| 4| 1| Cu:PO4 Mole Ratio| 1:5| 1:2| 2:3| 1:1| 3:2| 2:1| 5:1| Volume of Precipitate (mL)| 1 mL| 4 mL| 3. 75 mL| 4 mL| 2. 5 mL| 3. 2 mL| 1 mL|RESULTS PARAGRAPH – PO ST LAB QUESTIONS Observations: Fe(NO3)3 and NaOH 1. Start time: 12:07 Separated instantly. After 3 minutes separated halfway End time: 12:17 Precipitate is 1/5 of test tube color is light orange 24 hours later: Same results 2. Start time: 12:11 Separated a little End time: 12:21 The precipitate takes up 2/5 of the test tube & is orange 24 hours later: Same results 3. Start time: 12:15 Instant separation End time: 12:25 Liquid still a little cloudy. Precipitate is ? of test tube color is light/dark orange 24 hours later: Same results 4.Start time: 12:19 Separating VERY slowly End time: 12:29 There is no precipitate just yet. Very cloudy. 24 hours later: Same results 5. Start time: 12:22 Separation did not occur instantly End time: 12:32 There is no precipitate just yet. Very cloudy. 24 hours later: Same results 6. Start time: 12:24 Separation did not occur instantly End time: 12:34 There is no precipitate. Very Cloudy. 24 hours later: Same results 7. Start time: 12:27 Separation did not occur instantly End time: 12:37 There is no precipitate just yet. 24 hours later: Same results CuCl2 and Na3PO4 1.Start time: 12:36 Separated quickly End time: 12:46 Precipitate ? of test tube. Color is light blue 24 hours later: Same results 2. Start time: 12:37 Separated quickly End time: 12:47 Precipitate is ? of test tube. Color is regular blue 24 hours later: Same results 3. Start time: 12:39 Separated quickly End time: 12:49 Precipitate is ? of test tube. Color is regular blue. 24 hours later: Same results 4. Start time: 12:41 Separated only a little bit in the first two minutes End time: 12:51 Precipitate is ? of test tube and color is light blue 24 hours later: Same results 5.Start time: 12:42 Separated only a little bit in the first two minutes End time: 12:52 Precipitate is 2/5 of test tube and color is light blue 24 hours later: Same results 6. Start time: 12:43 Separated only a little bit in the first two minutes End time: 12:53 Precipitate is 3/5 of test tube and co lor is light blue 24 hours later: Same results 7. Start time: 12:45 Separated only a little bit in the first two minutes End time: 12:55 Precipitate is 1/5 of test tube and color is light blue In the observations mentioned above, estimates using numbers (fractions) were made.These fractions basically estimate the amount of precipitate that was formed in each test tube, or the lack of a precipitate. Observations were made after the ten-minute mark, and then left under the fume hood for 24hrs due to the fact that time fell short; observations were made then also. The observations also show that in the test tube where it was recorded that the separation between the compounds was instant, there was a precipitate formed. Respectively the observations also show that in test tubes where it was recorded that separation between the compounds was not instant, there was no precipitate formed.These observations describe the color of the solution/precipitate, and tell the transparency of the sol ution. Lastly these observations elaborate on the slow or fast process of how each solution separated into a precipitate, or didn’t, based on their specific mole ratio. It justifies how the different mole ratio produced the different precipitate amount. Figure 2: Fe(NO3)3 and NaOHFigure 3: CuCl2 and Na3PO4 These pictures show a visual of the seven test tubes in each experiment. In some of them the precipitates are present, in other test tubes there are no precipitates present, which means that they are still solutions.The test tubes with graduations, that had precipitates present were measured by reading the number at eye level. But test tube with no graduations, that had precipitates present, a special method that was mentioned in the procedures were used. Since in experiment two, all of the test tubes had a precipitate present there was a clear distinction in colors, the blue and clear, they were heterogonous mixtures. But in experiment one, only three of the seven test tub es had precipitates present, in those three test tubes there is a distinction in color, the red-ish orange and clear, they were heterogonous mixtures.But in the other four test tubes, since they are solutions it is a homogenous mixture where the entire solution has one consistency and color. DISCUSSION By conducting the experiment, and analyzing the results, the optimum mole ratio for the formation of the precipitate in a double replacement reaction was found, and the chemical formula of the precipitate was found, the initial purpose of the experiment. At the beginning of the experiment two questions were proposed. ANSWER QUESTIONS ERRORS CONCLUSION LITTLE BIT FROM DATA AND DISCUSSION PARAGRAPH.

Cost Information for decision making Essay

Two common costing systems used in business are traditionally cost accounting system (job costing, process costing and operating costing) and activity-based costing system (ABC). There are some similarities and differences between these systems. Regarding the similarities, both accumulate product costs throughout the production process and assign those costs to individual units of production. Additionally, product cost under two costing systems consists of direct materials, direct labor and manufacturing overhead. In terms of differences, they are different in the way how the overhead costs are allocated. For conventional costing, it assigns manufacturing overhead based on a single volume based cost driver such as direct labour hours. In contrast, ABC approaches cost from the perspective that products do not cause costs. It requires activities which are the causes of all costs incurred so it allocates manufacturing overhead according to the activities needed to produce the products. Therefore, it highlights the existence of non value added activity which is not existed under traditional method. ABC also differs from conventional costing in the use of several cost pools when allocating the overhead costs. For instance, traditional costing uses only one cost pool to distribute the overhead whereas there are many cost pools involved under ABC. Furthermore, ABC employs both volume-based and non-volume-based cost drivers while conventional costing utilizes only volume-based cost drivers. Another difference is that conventional approach complies with the GAAP so it can be used to satisfy conventional financial reporting requirements. On the other hand, accounting standard board does not accept ABC to prepare financial statements so it can be useful for internal management decision. Under conventional system, there are similarities between job costing, process costing and operating costing. Firstly, they accumulate product costs throughout the production process and assign those costs to products. Secondly, these costing systems calculate the product costs which comprise direct material, direct labour and manufacturing overhead. Lastly, the cost flows for three systems is from raw material to work in process to finished goods and then to costs of goods sold. These first two systems can be distinguished by the following differences. First, job costing system is used by the company which produces unique products or products based on customer orders. Conversely, process costing is for the firms which produce one or a few homogenous products and often have continuous mass production. Second, each individual product costs are traced easily under job costing while process costing makes no attempt to track individual product costs. Thirdly, under job costing, the transfer from one job to another does not take place whereas the production from one process is transferred to next one till the product is full completed under process costing. Next, process costing accumulates product costs in each production department throughout the period while job order costing accumulates product costs to specific units. Operating costing for company which has a mix production system that produces in large quantities but then is customized the finished product. Therefore, operating costing is a combination of process costing and job costing. However, it differs from job and process costing which includes more than two types of cost pools in overhead allocation process. The cost pools are designed to match the separate processes that may be allocated to batches of products. Comment about the quality of your work: According to the assessment criteria, my answer for the question should be marked 7. This is for the following reasons. Firstly, the answer is well-organized into five paragraphs which consist of differences between conventional costing and ABC costing. For instance, the first and second paragraphs demonstrate the similarities and differences between conventional costing and ABC. Apart from this, the answer also points out the similarities and differences between job costing, process costing and operating costing.

Praxis Paper Business Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Praxis Business - Research Paper Example 1.2 Introduction Many business environments are appreciating the importance of technology at the work place. Before, processes were manual, but today automated systems have been integrated in almost every business unit. In turn, practices, which are conducted by business, have improved. This is the reason why SUPERVALU has come up with an information system, which is comprehensive. Evolution of information systems greatly improves processes. In order to obtain competitive advantage, information systems should be planned for strategically. Before new systems are purchased, managers must first make decisions based on the capability of the system (Laudon & Laudon, 2009). 1.3 Profile of the people interviewed at SUPERVALU The people, interviewed for this research, work at SUPERVALU in managerial capacities. Greg Harness is in charge of the Information technology Department. He assumes the title of the Project Manager of IT. Harness is well educated and his experience is vast. He has expe rience in information technology having worked in this field for twenty years. The other person interviewed is Susan Morris, who is in charge of customer experience at SUPERVALU. She is well informed about matters, which concern the company. Her experience in management is vast and is aware about the functions of the IT department. 1.4 Competitive advantage achieved from using and Implementing Information Systems Customer satisfaction is the reason why they had to improve their systems. In order to achieve efficiency and accuracy at the company, it makes use of Radio Frequency systems. In turn, it is able to monitor profitability and customer satisfaction. According to Morris (2011), the operative movements at the store are accountable, due to the effectiveness of the system. The system also ensures that optimum efficiency is achieved as evaluation and monitoring of information occurs (Friedman & Hoffman, 2001). The stocks, which are at the stores, are known through a process known as ambient area. The latter is achieved as a result of the existing system (Laudon & Laudon, 2009). This means that problems do not arise when delivery by suppliers is late. Also, there is premium product availability, due to the existing system. She believes that this system has improved the process as the store and in turn, customers are extremely satisfied. According to Harness (2011), the teams at the various stores are happy about the introduction of the new systems. Their work environment has improved greatly, and everyone feels that work has become more accommodating. The terminals, which have been out in place, are extremely user friendly. One does not have to be an expert in computers to use the terminals. Since the system is reliable, the teams working at the stores are loyal to the company. Expansion has been made easier by the system, as customers in their Northern Ireland, stores are served well. In turn, many customers have praised and commented about the service being offered (Britt, 2010). They have witnessed an improvement in various aspects at the stores. Other competitive advantages, which have occurred, are availability of products, and delivery has become extremely accurate. Job enhancement has occurred, due to Information systems implementation. Tasks are now prioritized and time saving takes place. The system handles matters concerning information and data handling. The latter was previously done by

Molecules and Processes of Life Activity 6 - Cellular Respiration and Lab Report - 1

Molecules and Processes of Life Activity 6 - Cellular Respiration and the Effects of Pollutants on Its Rate - Lab Report Example s carried out using yeast and the focus of the experiment was given to the amount of gas that was being produced to determine amount of carbon dioxide in the produced gas. The gases are produced after the yeast cells carry out respiration. The experiment looked at how carbohydrates affect respiration that occurs in cells. This was investigated by addition of sugar to the yeast after the first test was carried out. The addition was aimed at production of more gas especially carbon dioxide which determined that the rate increased in cellular respiration. Pollutants in the experiment were expected to have an effect on the cellular rate of transpiration (Audesirk, Audesirk & Byers, 2006). More different pollutants were added to the yeast and the amount of carbon dioxide that was produced measured to determine the effect of the pollutants on cellular rate of transpiration. The main aim of the experiment was to determine the role of cellular respiration in the processes of life. Respiration in cells is defined as the course of energy from chemical in food is obtained and then converted to an energy form that can be utilized by living organisms in the course of living. The objectives of the experiment were to determine how the rate of cellular respiration is affected by the incidence of carbohydrates and also whether the rate was affected by pollutants (Jà ¸rgensen & Fath, 2008). Hypothesis of the experiment was that an organism will be exposed to a higher rate of cellular respiration with availability of carbohydrate than when there is no carbohydrate. Another hypothesis was that an organism will have a lower rate of cellular respiration with a source of carbohydrate and a  pollutant than when there is a source of carbohydrate and without source of pollutant. The pollutants are thought to play a role in interruptions that occur in cellular respirati on. There are two types of cellular respiration which both depend on energy. The two types of respiration include aerobic

Criminology Assignment 4-Stanford Prison Experiment Essay

Criminology Assignment 4-Stanford Prison Experiment - Essay Example They were to be compensated $ 15 for a period of less than two weeks. The volunteers were then randomly chosen to either play the role of the prison guard or the role of the prisoners. The prisoners were placed in a nine by six foot cell. There were three cells, one solitary cell, prison yard and other rooms were used by prison guards and the prison warden. Prisoners would remain in their prisons for 24 hours. Guards on the hand worked on eight hour shifts and could be allowed not allowed to go home. Phillip and his team were observed the behavior of the group using hidden microphones and cameras that were placed strategically. The prisoners were arrested normally and booked the way a normal suspect would be booked. They were then blindfolded and taken to the prison. They were given prison clothes and were referred to by their prison number at the back of their clothes. The guards on the other hand were given dark glasses to minimize eye contact with the prisoners. The guards would harass the prisoners and enjoy it. Prisoners were dehumanized and given boring tasks to accomplish. The prisoners were soon taking sides and telling tales on each other to the guards in order to win favors from the guards. The guards were in total control and held the prisoners in contempt. Prisoners became submissive. As time went by the guards became more aggressive and this forced the prisoners to be more submissive. After 36 hours one prisoner was released as he showed signs of early depression. Within the sixth day the experiment had to be closed down as Phillip feared the prisoners would be mentally or physically damaged. The purpose of the study was to show that abusive prison behavior was caused by inherent personality possessed by prisoners and guards. The experiment demonstrated the role that a powerful role plays in human behavior. When the guards were given powerful roles they found themselves behaving in ways that surprised them. They treated the

An investigation of the role that the Libyan government and civil Essay

An investigation of the role that the Libyan government and civil society organization can play in facilitating the humanitarian activities of the Libyan red crescent - Essay Example The research is based on the challenges that are faced by LRC or Libyan Red Crescent in terms of providing quality service to all those victims who are affected. The Libyan Red Crescent in the recent years has been deprived of many such facilities that were provided by the civil society organizations. This in turn has resulted into more serious issues for LRC as they are finding it difficult to maintain their humanitarian activities. This study would be focused towards identifying the key issues along with the probable solutions so that the organization can achieve the stage of sustainability in its business operations. The Libyan Red Crescent organization was incorporated in the year 1957 and it comprised of 34 branches in total across Libya. The Libyan government and even the civil society organization of Libya have made the operations of this voluntary aid organization LRC worsen due to lack of support and negligence on their behalf. The primary functions of this organization have greatly been affected due to the unavailability of resources and support that was required to be extended by the Libyan Government. The research study would not be based on the total LRC organization but it would focus majorly on one branch that is Zintan branch. This branch is selected mainly because the researcher is the indigene of the town so it would enable the researcher to gather more appropriate information about the challenges faced by the organization. The major aim of this research study is to identify the possible solutions that would help the organization to enhance their activities by means of leveraging the civil society as well as Libyan government.

The Business Environment of European Union Research Paper

The Business Environment of European Union - Research Paper Example With the formation of the European Union, all the member states are required to follow the EC 92 as the Single European Act. The single European act was a step closer to the goal of economic integration. Economic integration has revolutionized all the laws and regulations and has changed the whole business environment in most of the member states. With the dismissal of the trade barriers the European act also proposed an array of commercial policies including single European standards for goods produced. This has given rise to difficulties for the companies producing below the standards as they are faced with the challenges of technology upgrade and quality advancement while keeping the prices competitive due to increased competition. For example in the Italian textile industry producers are struggling to keep under priced clothes from flooding the Italian market, designer label brands are waging another battle - against imitations, or "knockoffs", as they are known in the trade. (Italian designers, 2005) Most of the fakes come from China or other Asian countries with low labor costs and no concern for social services, welfare and pollution control. Although the Italian sector is currently facing unprecedented challenges these challenges can be faced only by innovation. These include the abolition of quantitative restrictions (quotas) which took place on 1st January 2005. These challenges are occurring in a period of marked slowdown in economic activity, which has a significant impact on sectors such as textiles and clothing. Furthermore, at the same time, the Euro has shown a significant upward trend against the US dollar. All in all, every segment of textiles and clothing production, from spinning and weaving to garment make-up, has in one way or the other suffered from the impact of the developments of the last few years. (Textiles and clothing sector in the EU-25) The years 2001-2004 have been particularly difficult for the industry. After substantial falls in production and employment in the previous three years, it is estimated that in 2003 production fell by a further 4.4% and employment by 7.1% (EU-25, source: Eurostat). The trade deficit (EU-25) amounted to 29.4 billion in 2003, the trade in textiles reaching a surplus of 3.7 billion and the deficit in clothing 33.1 billion. The European Union was expanded in May 2004 having 25 members. The aim of the creation of the union was to create the most competitive and dynamic knowledge-based economy in the world, capable of substantial economic growth with more, and better, jobs and greater social cohesion (Elizabeth Hunt Recruitment). All the member states of the EU have to follow common trade and employment laws, which on the one hand provided them with the ease of free trade and larger availability of workforce and a vast product market on the other.

Sergei Eisenstein's Theory of Montage Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Sergei Eisenstein's Theory of Montage - Essay Example His film theories have been assimilated by collecting and analysing drop by drop the essence of knowledge ranging from Pavlovian psychology to linguistic theories of that period to constructivist ideas on visual arts and sculpture in particular and to the bio-mechanics theory evolved by Mayerhold in the field of acting. Also his film theories had been nourished by the fountains of Hegelian dialectics, various schools of Europian art and basic conceptions of Europian music and literature. (Harcourt, 1974, p.37) Eisenstein’s major film theories are weaved around a basic concept in film making, namely montage. Montage is a French word and the meaning of this word is merely editing. The process of joining together the pieces of film is the idea that is conveyed by this word. The beginning of the history of montage can be summed up in these words; â€Å"Edwin. S. Porter discovered the possibility of creating narrative structure by inter-cutting sequences, thereby allowing different elements of story to coexist in an illusion of simultaneity. D.W. Griffith further developed and refined the technique, â€Å"invented† the close up and perfected parallel montage, the fundamental element of film narrative construction in which two events separated in space but co-existing in time are paralleled to one another for contrast, suspense and tension.† ( Kolker, 1983, p.15). The American film director D.W.Griffith was the first to make a powerful use of montage in films. His film, â€Å"The great train robbery† produced in 1903 was a classic and powerful example of montage editing. In this film, when persons went out of a door in one location and then another shot was shown in which they entered another location, the viewer arrived at the infere nce that they entered directly from one to the other location. Thus for the first time film showed that space and

Global Sourcing - Critically analyse Globshops management of Essay

Global Sourcing - Critically analyse Globshops management of outsourcing and the future challenges. Will they be successful Why or why not - Essay Example The rise and growth of global outsourcing are supported by cost benefits analysis since most Multinationals and business empires work on cutting and reducing the production costs. It is to realize and maximizes huge turnover at the end of every financial year. In addition, the technological and industrial improvement that are noticed as time advances improves and stir the need to pool resources with other related companies and businesses to offer adequate and competitive skills. Likewise, the human resources allied with corporate strategies and level of quality improves the value anticipated. The strategy executed by management establishes the efficacy of its resolutions such that setting up the entire plan inclusive of adequate capitalization, funding and monitoring the firm’s probabilities for prosperity in the new environment (Contractor et. al.2010, pg.1428). To ensure a cost reduction, relations must be created, developed and upheld first, since a competitive business aff iliations is the basis of achievement for any enterprise client, customer and the associates (Ã…gerfalk et. al. 2008, pg.7).Therefore,  cost promotes the need for outsourcing while affiliation development provides a conducive and enabling environment for achieving cost reduction and other related benefits such as profit maximization. India is recognized as the main outsourcing target in Asia. India has advantages over other nations. It is because its incentives are more attractive to cost- efficacy business strategy with competitive telecommunications industrial sector enhanced by manpower and skills. Additionally, it has technological and industrial resources that are accessible to the nations and other surrounding Asian nations such as Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, China, and several others. GlobShop is a Multinational Billion Dollar empire that utilizes India companies and businesses concentrating on Information technology to expand its

Questioning Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Questioning - Assignment Example In any case, the ultimate aim of a question is to collect information from another person or to test the knowledge of another person. In academic world, questions have more importance than anything else. In fact according to the modern educational philosophies, the teacher should ask questions to the students and the students should give answers to that. When the student fails to answer the question, the teacher should guide him to find out the answer. Curiosity is necessary for the students to learn a topic well. In order to develop curiosity, the teacher should ask interesting questions to the students. These questions should be asked in particular patter; easy to difficult. Initial questions should be easy so that the student may answer it easily. However the last questions should be difficult so that the students fail to answer it. In other words, the teacher should create a scenario in which the students were guides from a known situation to an unknown situation. Only in such an unknown situation, the students develop interest or curiosity in the topic and will attend the class properly. Questions are asked i n classes in order to: To develop interest and motivate students to become actively involved in lessons; To evaluate students’ preparation and check on homework or seatwork completion; To develop critical thinking skills and inquiring attitudes; To review and summarize previous lessons; To nurture insights by exposing new relationships; To assess achievement of instructional goals and objectives; To stimulate students to pursue knowledge on their own (Cotton, n. d. p.1). The teacher normally asks two types of questions to the students; high and low level questions. Low level questions are intended to test the knowledge level of the students whereas the high level questions may test the understanding level of the students. For example, who is the president of America is a low order question which tests only the

Ophelia can be viewed as an insignificant minor character Essay Example for Free

Ophelia can be viewed as an insignificant minor character Essay Ophelia can be viewed as an insignificant minor character in the play through the way she is used as an unwitting pawn in schemes of those who have control over her, as revealed in Act 2 Scene 2 where Polonius says I will loose my daughter to him when he and Claudius plan how they will test Hamlets madness. The word loose objectifies Ophelia, portraying her as an animal used as bait for Claudiuss own objectives; spying on Hamlet. Ophelias character does not have a say in the matter, and through her absence in this particular scene, Shakespeare is able to emphasise her insignificance in the play. Ophelias lack of appearance in the play also portrays her character as minor and insignificant, as Shakespeare only uses her character in 5 scenes. For the majority of these scenes, Ophelia has little contribution to the dialogue and her spoken lines are often responses to questions and commands by others who dominate the play, for example in Act 1 Scene 3 Ophelias responses are short in comparison to her fathers and brothers dialogue, most of which contains instructions on how Ophelia is expected to act; Do not believe his vows Look tot I charge you. Come your ways. The use of imperatives in this scene show how Ophelia is dominated by others and is therefore highlight her insignificance in the play. This is further portrayed in Ophelias responses, such as I shall obey, my Lord. The use of my Lord reveals her inferior status and through minimalistic speech we are able to gain a sense of her unimportance to the action of the play. Another way in which Ophelia may be viewed as insignificant is in her marriage prospects. Her brother Laertes, who suggests that she is not good enough for Hamlet, condemns her relationship with Hamlet, who tells her to regard Hamlets love as something unlikely to last and potentially dangerous: Fear it my dear sister. Hamlet is a prince and therefore Ophelias status makes her inferior in comparison and as a result, an unsuitable wife. Both her brother and father tell Ophelia how to behave, for example Polonius instructs Ophelia to spend less time with Hamlet; Be something scanter of your maiden presence. This dominance over Ophelia, as well as her subservience, again presents her of an insignificant status in the play. Ophelia does not say or do anything to indicate she is unhappy about the instructions given to her by her brother or father. However, another interpretation of Ophelias subservience is that obedience is a role she plays. She is expected to act as a loyal daughter and responses such as But as you did command suggest she is carrying out orders to keep her father content. Shakespeare reveals a weak Ophelia in Act 4 Scene 5 in which she is in a state of madness, through her songs about death, chaos and unrequited love. The poignancy of her songs (He is dead and gone lady, he is dead and gone) as well as the reactions of other characters (Alas sweet lady), induce a piteous reactions, allowing the audience to sympathise with a character who has become so weak it has led to madness. In contrast to her minimalistic speech, in Act 1 Scene 3, Ophelia has dominated the speech. This may suggest that Ophelias character is only of significance when she is in a state of madness. The taboo nature of her songs reveals a character stepping out of the bounds of her social status and this contrasts to how her father has ordered her to act. The death of Polonius may be a cause of Ophelias madness and this is evident when Claudius says Oh this is the poison of deep grief; it springs all from her fathers death. This may suggest that Ophelia becomes weak without the presence of the dominant male authority. Her father is dead, her brother is absent from the country and she has been rejected by Hamlet; without them Ophelia collapses. Shakespeare presents Ophelia as weak in Act 4 Scene 7 where she is unable to save herself: As one incapable of her own distress. The suggestion that Ophelia has committed suicide may have been used by Shakespeare to imply that Ophelias weak state did not allow her to go on living. Shakespeare uses Ophelias character to portray many aspects of Hamlets character, for example Shakespeare is able to reveal Hamlets capability of staggering cruelty through his treatment of Ophelia in the nunnery scene. Shakespeare presents this cruelty through the use of brutal commands and insults such as Get thee to a nunnery. In Act 2 Scene 1 Ophelia presents herself as a victim of Hamlets rough treatment; He took me by the wrist, and held me hard, revealing Hamlets capability of cruelty. There is also evidence of Hamlets cruelty when he embarrasses Ophelia in public, asking her Do you think I meant country matters? Hamlets wit enables him to belittle or mock other characters and the fact that there is little sign of Ophelias character reinforces the idea that she is a minor character. Another thing that is revealed about Hamlet through Ophelia is Hamlets judgment of women. In the nunnery scene, Hamlet accuses Ophelia; You jig, you amble, and you lisp, you nickname Gods creatures, and your make your wantonness your ignorance, revealing his disgust towards women. Shakespeare lists the deceptions to reinforce Hamlets repugnance towards the women in his life. Once again Shakespeare has revealed Hamlets feelings through his words to Ophelia. Ophelias character is also used to portray ideas about other characters, for example when handing out flowers to other characters, Shakespeare develops ideas about the nature of other characters through the type of flower that Ophelia gives to them. For example, one of the flowers she gives out is a daisy, which represents deception an act that could be linked to Claudiuss character. By doing this, Shakespeare is using Ophelia in this scene to indirectly criticise the characters, and the connotations associated with the various flowers would be widely understood by the audience in Shakespeares day. It could be argued that Ophelia is chiefly interesting for reasons other than what she reveals about Hamlet, for example Ophelia is important in the manner in which she illuminates discussion of some of the plays central themes, one of which is the oppression of women in society. Shakespeare presents Ophelia as oppressed through her lack of opinion and contribution in the play. The mere fact that she can be viewed as insignificant shows the audience that Ophelia is oppressed by male authority in the family. Polonius tells Ophelia that she speaks like a green girl, implying that she is nai ve, and this comes across to the audience as patronising. The alliteration of green girl emphasises Poloniuss condescending tone. By belittling Ophelia, he is able to gain control of the conversation. Ophelia is told to think herself a baby, suggesting that she is constrained from using her own mind and must follow the orders given to her. Ophelias character is presented as one with no point of view; as she says I do not know my Lord what I should think. Through statements such as this, Shakespeare reveals an oppressed Ophelia who is unable to think for herself due to the strict control by men in her life. The fact that Ophelia is being used as a pawn in mens political affairs is also a sign that she is being oppressed. When Polonius offers to loose Ophelia, he is taking advantage of her by offering her as a service without her consent. This also portrays Ophelia as a possession that belongs to Polonius. On the other hand, it could be argued that Ophelias character is not oppressed, but in fact in need of male control. In Act 1 Scene 3 Ophelia says I shall theffect of this good lesson keep as watchman to my heart. The use of good implies that the advice is necessary for Ophelias well being and is taken on by her with a positive attitude. When asked by Laertes to remember what she has been told, Ophelia responds by saying Tis in my memory locked, and you yourself shall keep the key of it. This statement also shows Ophelia is willing to take on her brothers advice. This argument can be supported by the idea that Ophelia collapses without her father or brother, and that she in fact benefits by being in their command. Ophelia is also significant as her character is crucial for the plot and setting the scene in the play, for example, in part it is her death that motivates Laertes to take revenge on Hamlet. Another example of the importance of Ophelia in the plot is that her death is used by Shakespeare as a catalyst for confrontation between Hamlet and Laertes.

Health And Safety In Metal Workshops Environmental Sciences Essay

Health And Safety In Metal Workshops Environmental Sciences Essay According to the ILO, some 2.3 million workers around the world die due to work-related accidents or diseases every year. That is an average of around 6000 deaths daily. There are also around 340 million cases of occupational accidents and 160 million victims of work-related illnesses each year and frequent estimates have show an increase of accidents and ill health. 1.1 Health and safety in metal workshops Metal works has proved to be a necessity in the manufacturing, construction and other such industries. Since prehistoric times till this modern era, metalwork has evolved into a massive industry and gained a large influence on the global economy. Metals are used in a huge range of products in this modern time. Their use is largely dependent on their properties. For example aluminium is used in manufacturing of automobiles, whereas iron is used in the construction sector. In this modern world, no one can say that he does not have a piece of metal at home or has never been in need for some metal work at any occasion. Metal consumption in the world, as the other resources is rising rapidly. This is due to the growth in population and rising wealth (Norgate T.E and Rankin W.J, 2002). This increase in demand has led to an increase in the number of metal workshops around the globe. Its effect can also be felt in Mauritius. Metal workshops have grown up like mushrooms all around the island, to meet the demand of the market for more metal works. How many people have ever wondered how and in what conditions metal work is being performed? Most formal enterprises abide by the current legislations governing the health and safety in Mauritius, the Occupational Safety and Health Act 2005 also known as the OSHA-2005 and its other relevant regulations. The employers make use of good safety and health practices and this has been proved to be an enriching experience. The has been considerable decrease in the number of absenteeism and number of accidents, resulting in less money loss in terms of non-payment of injury leaves, compensation, work days lost and any other legal suits. In Mauritius, there are many small metal workshops. Those are operated by people having little or no concept of health and safety at work. The workers are often working alone and in some cases students are employed to work during school holidays. The people working therein are more concerned about having their salary at the end of the month with giving much attention to their personal safety, but what would happen if the latter is injured or if they become so ill due to exposure to any substance that become bed ridden or even die? What would be the impact on the latters family? 1.2 Wastes in metal workshops During machining in a metal workshop waste is generated. Most of the waste is from the raw material which is the metal being fabricated. The metal wastes that are generated vary greatly in form. They have different shapes and sizes ranging from large unusable pieces of metal to dust particles. Other sources of wastes are used oil, grease, wood, chemicals, paint containers, grinding discs, used electrodes (from arc-welding), solvents and other office products such as paper. Accumulation of these may pose as a hazard to health and safety of the workers present in the workshop and also affect the environment. 1.3 Problem statement: The alarming rise in the number of accidents in working environment shows some lacking in the management of health and safety at the workplace. A metal workshop is a place full of hazards and if precautionary measures are not taken, these may result in incidents or accidents. Also if wastes are not being managed properly, it may cause harm to the environment and for the enterprise itself it is money lost in terms of unused material and it requires a place to be disposed of. Some employers have no idea about how to dispose of the materials and in informal sectors some enterprises dump all the wastes that are not taken by the municipal waste carriers. 1.4 Aims: The study will firstly provide an analysis of how health and safety is being managed in metal workshops and will provide remedial measures so as to decrease the number of accidents. The second purpose of the study is to give an understanding of how wastes from metal workshops are being managed and to provide recommendations so as to improve the efficiency in the waste management practices. It will focus mainly on the wastes generated in the metal workshops only. 1.5 Objectives: Identify the sources of health and safety hazards, wastes Identify the impacts of health and safety hazards on the employees and, waste on the environment Identify how the health and safety and, wastes are being managed Assess the level of awareness related to Health and safety, and Waste management Evaluation of health and safety management and, waste management Provide recommendation on better ways to manage health and safety and, waste management Chapter two 2.0 Literature review 2.1 What is health and safety? Health and safety is basically the provision and maintenance of a safe and sound working environment. 2.2 Health and safety in the informal sector For this study, safety and health in metal workshops can be classified as part of the informal sector. The ILO introduced the concept of informal sector around 25 years ago. In 1972, an ILO employment mission report in Kenya found that migration from countryside to cities resulted in urban unemployment. This is the reason why rural migrants and urban dwellers find employment in the small scale and micro-level production and distribution of goods and services. These largely unrecognised, unrecorded and unregulated small-scale activities constitute the informal sector. According to the ILO, the informal can be characterised as a range of economic units in the urban areas, which are mainly operated and owned either in partnership with members of the same family or by individuals alone. It employs one or more employees on a continuous basis in addition to unpaid family worker and/or casual workers. The employer-employee relationship is often not in written and informal with no or little appreciation of workers rights industrial relations. The works performed are mainly labour intensive and require low-level skills. Typically they operate on a small-scale with no or very little level of organisation. They are engaged in the production and distribution of goods and services with main objective of generating employment and basic income. In Mauritius, all organisations that are known and registered as forming part of the formal sector, have to comply with the norms and procedures established for them by the different authorities. They are subjected to regular inspections by the various institutes to monitor their level of compliance and in case of abnormalities; they may subjected to fines and other types of penalties. On the other hand, unregistered organisations form part of the informal sector. So, you can imagine that the small metal workshop at the corner of the street where you live forms part of the informal sector and its existence may not even be known to the authorities. Have you ever thought about how many such workshops are in Mauritius? The number of persons working therein and the level of safety? 2.3 The norms Section 5 of the OSHA-2005 stipulates that an employer has the responsibility to ensure so far as is reasonably practicable the safety, health and welfare at work of all his employees. It also includes the following; The employer shall provide and maintain a working environment and any plant or system of work and ensure that any place of work is under his control, including access and egress therein. He should ensure the safety and health of the workers during use, handling, storage or transportation or materials and substances. He should provide and maintain facilities and arrangements for the welfare at work of his employees. He should ensure the provision of information, instruction, training and supervision as required for the safety and health of the employees. He shall also ensure that any person not in his employment is not exposed to any risk to his safety and health. Section 13 of the OSHA-2005 stipulates that any self-employed person shall conduct his work in such a way so as to ensure the health and safety of his workers and any other persons who may be affected. 2.4 Compliance with the norms The creation of a safe working environment starts by oneself. Health and safety is present in Mauritius but was not paid a heed few years ago because many persons were not even aware of its existence. It is now that people are becoming more aware about it. Non-compliance with OSHA-2005 means contravention and is an offence which is punishable by Law. According to the Act, any offence under the Act may be punished by a fine of not more than Rs.75, 000 and an imprisonment of not more than one year. Although the terms of the Act are set out in simple English, it is very difficult to implement it as requires heavy investments and the employer become less willing to invest because they find it annoying and not profitable to abide by set standards. The registered enterprises are frequently visited by relevant authorities that see to it that the norms are being respected. 2.5 Metal fabrication process Metal fabrication processes involve raw materials and range of tools to give shape to desired metal products. These processes can be categorized into cold, warm and hot working based on the temperature they are being processed. Hot working is the process that depends on control heat applied to change the physical properties of the metal piece and cold working is the application of direct physical pressure (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), 1995). Metals are present in the daily basic objects such as paper clips, computers, bolts, nails, and automobile parts, parts used for instruments and machinery and numerous other products and to transform metals in these objects, metals pass through a series of manufacturing procedures such as cutting, forming, and finishing, bending, punching, drilling, turning, grinding and threading. (Johnson, 2008) The main procedures in metal fabrication are as follows: 2.5.1 Metal Forming Forging: is the process of working metal with applying force to give shape to the metal, this include the use of forging hammer or drop hammer, press forging, forging machine such as drop hammer, screw press, crank press, hydraulic press. Rolling: is the process whereby compressive force is applied on long metalwork to reduce the thickness its cross section, this cane be done either by hot rolling or cold rolling procedures. Extrusion: is the process where high pressure is used to force a metal block or billet to flow through o die orifice whereby the metal is reduced in cross section. Extrusion is used to give cylindrical shaped or hollow bars of metal. The amount of forced required during the process is huge so metals are generally hot extruded. Bending: is a flexible process to deform metal changing its shape, the metal is stressed beyond the yield force but lesser than its tensile strength which is done by of applying force through hydraulic, pneumatic and electrical machines.   Spinning: is a process that produces rotationally symmetrical hollow parts, hemispheres, cones and cylinders shapes. Generally metal spinning is a cold process done by manual, automated or hydraulic equipment. 2.5.2 Shearing Conventional shearing: is the process used to cut straight lines on flat metal sheet stock. Turret Punching: is a Computer Numerically Controlled (CNC) process use to make hole in metal sheet. This is a cold process where the metal properties are unchanged since they are not exposed to thermal impact. 2.5.3 Material Removal Sawing: is the process whereby a tool with tooth blade is use to cut metal. This is a basic way of cutting metals into desired pieces and with time the simple handsaw has been designed into different saws such as horizontal band saws, vertical band saws, pivot arm band saws, plate/block band saws, steel circular saws, non ferrous circular saws, and power hacksaws. Turning: is the process where the diameter is reduced by removal of the outer part of a rotating metal work piece. Drilling: is the process to pierce hole in metal work piece n accordance to the specification of the desired bore or ream. Milling: is the process where a rotating cutter is use to cut the metal which is fed against the rotating cutter. Grinding: is the process whereby there is removal of metal by abrasion from bar or billet stock surfaces. 2.5.4 Advance Methods Laser cutting: is the process where metal is vaporized in a well defined area; the cutting source is very small which allows small cut widths. The laser beam can be use to cut very hard or abrasive metals and is very cost effective since there is a low operating and maintenance cost. Waterjet Machining: in this process a water jet cutter is used as tool to slice metal with a jet of water under a high velocity and pressure. The cutter is generally place at the nozzle where water will be ejected under high pressure, bombarding the metal cutting it with the high water speed. Electrical Discharge Machining(EMD): is the process which is also known as spark erosion, whereby electrical energy is used to remove metal this result in shapes that cannot be produced by other machining process on thin metal piece. Wire Discharge Machining (WEMD): is a more precise process of cutting metal where electrical energy and a small diameter cooper or brass wire is used. Generally it is a computer numerically controlled (CNC) process. 2.5.5 Welding and Joining Arc Welding: is the process where a welding power is established between an electrode the metal that need to be welded. During welding a shielding gas (inert or semi inert gases) or filler metals are used as a protection. The fusion process takes place to bond the desired parts of metals by high intense heat, whereby the metals melt on heating to mix together and on cooling they solidify to form a metallurgical bond. Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW): in this process a stick welding is used which is coated whit flux that produces the gas shield as protection. Here also the fusion of the metal is done by melting produced by the heat of the arc between the coated electrode and the metal piece. Laser Beam Welding (LBW): is the process whereby metals are radiated by a concentrated beam of coherent light to melt the desired parts. As in arc welding it is protected by inert gases. Gas-metal Arc welding(GMAW)or (MIG) : a process which is mostly known as Metal Inert Gas welding done with the use of a wire and electrode where a an electric arc is generated to melt the wire to feed the weld puddle. A flow of inert gas is use as shield. Fluxed cored Arc welding (FCWA): the process commonly known as fluxed cored uses a long continuous solid wire incorporated in the welding gun. The wire is coated with flux that produces the arc, additives to weld and slag. The shield is a mixture of carbon dioxide and inert gas and large amount of fume is produced. Gas Tungsten Arc Welding (GTAW): the process involve the use of tungsten electrode to produce the electric arc. In this process the electrode is not consumed as in (SMAW). The gas shielding is a mixture of argon and helium and no metal filler may be use. Electroslag Welding (ESW): in this process the joining of the metal is done by passing electric current in a molten conductive slag that heat up the filler and metal. This process is generally use to join very thick metal 2.6 Health effects Hazardous materials are likely to be found in a metal fabrication. These can directly or indirectly affect the health of the workers either by contact or absorption in the body. Moreover when assessing the potential health effects with those materials that the workers are exposed to, it is important to understand the difference between toxicity and hazards. 2.6.1 Toxicity: Toxicity is the ability of a particular substance to produce an unwanted effect when the chemical has reached a sufficient concentration at a certain part of the body. 2.6.2 Hazards: Hazards is the possibility that this concentration of the chemical in the body will likely to occur. However, a material can be very dangerous but not hazardous to its exposure. It all depend whether it is properly handled and not contacting with the body. On the other side, a material can be low toxic but very hazardous to health and safety. 2.7 Routes of entry: The four common routes of entry are as follows: Inhalation via respiratory track Skin contact via dermal contact Ingestion through the digestive system Injection 2.7.1 Inhalation via respiratory track: It is a situation where the body is taking materials in the body by breathing. This is the most common mean by which chemical particles enter the body. These contaminants are likely to have both acute and chronic effects. Breathing in of these toxic substances in most cases is likely to cause damage to the mucous membrane of the mouth, throat, lungs and circulatory system. These can happen for example during welding where fumes are generated. 2.7.2 Skin contact via dermal contact: The skin is known to be the largest organ of the human body and provides protection against radiation, heat and abrasion and acts as a barrier to chemicals and bacteria. Skin contact is known as the primary route of entry into the body. Contact with hazardous substances may damage the skin. There are a number of conditions that may be caused by exposure to the different substances ranging from minor irritations to ulceration and cancer. 2.7.3 Ingestion through the digestive system: This is the least common type of exposure in occupational environment, but can happen as a due to carelessness or poor personal hygiene i.e. when the workers eat or drink in the workplace or without washing their hands. In metal workshops the workers are likely to ingest the metal particles that can be found on their hands or deposited on their food. 2.7.4 Injection: This occurs when substances are absorbed directly through cuts or injury with contaminated sharp objects. In metal workshops cuts and bruises are most likely to happen during handling of the materials. In most cases, these small incidents are normally not taken into consideration due to its nature as the works are not affected by it, but the danger is that by not taking care of it, an infection may occur having significant impact on the workers health, hence affecting work as well. 2.8 Physical hazards 2.8.1 Noise Sound is a vibration that can be perceived by ear similarly noise is perceived by the ear but as an unwanted sound. A more appropriate definition noise is any disturbance produced within a range of frequency (NIOSH, 1991). Noise arises during most activity done by human, when measuring the impact on human health noise is categorized under occupational noise or environmental noise (WHO, 2004). Noise is generated by almost every equipment, machine or tool used in metal fabrication industry example motors, gears, belts and pulleys, point of operation during cutting, welding and vibrations of footing and equipments or piece of metal being worked. Noise can be controlled by being in line to the hierarchy of control, in first instance by good maintenance of machines, equipments and tools and by applying engineering controlled such as isolation, stabilizing and damping. To further reduce noise segregation control may be opted so that a minimum number of employees may be affected, the equipments may be enclosed so as much of noise is absorbed or reflected within barriers. Hearing protection equipment may be provided to employees depending on the nature of the operations such as protection for metal grinder, welding and sheet metal fabrication. Last but not the least it is the management responsibility to ensure and implement an effective hearing conservation program. ( AmTrust Fi nancial, n.d) 2.8.2 Heat stress Heat stress is said to be a serious type of physical hazard that should be considered in metal workshops especially during summer seasons. It occurs when workers do some operations in high air temperatures, high humidity or when they are having physical contact with hot objects. While working in these conditions, workers have to wear protective clothing which is likely to cause heat stress. (Reese, C.D, 2001) 2.8.3 Cold stress According to NIOSH, cold stress arises when workers who are expose to cold or working in a cold environment. When temperature goes down, thus the body maintains its temperature by reducing blood flow through the skin. The most extreme effect that the workers may get is on the extremities (fingers, toes, earlobes and nose).when fingers become cold they become numb and insensitive and this may increased the possibility of having accidents in the workplace.(Reese,C.D,2001) 2.8.4 Radiation Radiation can be classified according to the effects that it produced to the matter. There two types of radiation which are ionizing and non ionizing. (ILO, n.d)Ionizing radiation is produced by high voltage devices which can be present in metal workshops which can affect the workers. (NIOSH.n.d). Non ionizing radiation is a form of electromagnetic radiation that can have various effect on the body, which depend on the on the particular wavelength of the radiation being involved. (Reese, C.D, 2001) 2.8.5Vibration Vibrating tools and the equipment that are being used at frequencies between 40 and 90 hertz can cause damage to the circulatory and the nervous systems. One of the most common Cumulative Trauma Disorders (CTDs) results from vibration is the Raynauds Syndrome. It is the most common symptoms leading to numbness and tingling in the finger that is the skin turns pale, ashen and cold, and thus this leads to eventual loss of sensation and the control in the fingers and hands. (Reese, C.D, 2001) 2.8.6 Confine space In 1979, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) published a Criteria Document providing recommendations for working in confined spaces where it defines confine space as a space where the design has limited openings for the entry as well as for the exit. The examples of confine space are tunnel, manhole, utility vaults, storage tanks and silos. There are different fatalities that may occur in a confine space where death may occur from different causes such as asphyxiation, the inhalation of toxic gases or vapors, drowning, falling, from explosions, or contact with either mechanical or electrical energy. 2.9 Ergonomic hazards Working posture is very important when workers are doing their jobs in a workplace. Poor working posture is said to be an ergonomic hazards as it can cause fatigue, discomfort and injury risk in the working environment when workers are doing repetitive work, the use of force and also the duration of the work. Some examples are outstretched arms, twisting, and fixed postures. (HSE, n.d). 2.10 Biological hazards Biological hazards include vermin, insects, molds, fungi, viruses, and bacterial contaminants. Workers may get infections and parasitic diseases when they are exposed to insects or by drinking contaminated water. Dusts present in the metal workshops may contain many kinds of allergenic materials that can affect their health. (Reese, C.D, 2001) 2.11 Chemical hazards Chemical hazards arise from the excessive airborne concentrations of mists, vapors, gases or solids that are present in the form of dusts and fumes. These can be source of danger to the body for example these materials may act as skin irritants or may be toxic by absorption through the skin.(Reese,C.D,2001) In metal workshops there are metal fluids that are used for some kind of processes. There are different kinds of oil product which are used in metal workshops. 2.12 Other types of hazards 2.12.1 Electrical hazards Electricity has long been recognized as a serious workplace hazard, exposing employees to electric shock, electrocution, burns, fires, and explosions. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the United States, in 1999, 278 workers died from electrocutions at work, which accounts for almost 5 percent of all on-the-job fatalities that year. Thus, they relate that most of these fatalities could have been easily avoided. 2.12.2 Mechanical hazards Mechanical hazards are created by the powered operation of apparatus or tools. The applied power which is applied can be of either electrical or human.( Holt, Rinehart and Winston, n.d) Machinery, its parts, tools, objects and materials processed or used in the work process are often said to be a source of mechanical hazards leading to severe injuries. Machinery, along with power supply systems, can also create electrical hazards, leading to severe or fatal accidents. 2.13 Hierarchy of control The occupational safety and health administration requires employers to protect their employees from workplace hazards such as machines, work procedures, and hazardous substances that can cause injury or illnesses. There are different ways that are used to control hazards. 2.13.1 Elimination Elimination of the hazard is the most effective means to control the hazard in the workplace. Thus, in the workplace it is important to remove the dangerous machines to ensure a proper working environment for the workers. (Work Cover NSW, 2010) 2.13.2 Substitution It is the second most effective way to control the hazard present in the workplace by replacing the dangerous equipment with a safer one. If there is an existing process, major changes in equipment and procedures may be required to eliminate or substitute for a hazard. (NIOSH, n.d) 2.13.3 Engineering control Engineering controls are used to remove a hazard present in the workplace or place a barrier between the worker and the hazard. (NIOSH, n.d).There is safety guards that are present to protect the workers while using dangerous machines. (Work Cover NSW, 2010) 2.13.4 Administrative control It is used to control the hazard through the administrative directives. (Reese C.D, 2001). In the workplace the workers are trained how to use the machines safely and precautions need to be taken when operating dangerous machinery. 2.13.4 Personal protective equipment Personal protective equipment (PPE) is the last resort that can be used in the workplace. There are variety of devices and garments that are used to protect the workers from injuries. There are PPE that are designed to protect the eyes, face, head, ears, feet, hands ,arms and the whole body.(Reese,C.D,2001) 3.0 What is waste? According to the Basel Convention, waste is any substance or material that is disposed or which is intended or required to be disposed of. The material in itself is of no use for the generator. Wastes may be produced during extraction and processing of raw materials into final products and also during the use of the final products and other human activities. (United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD), n.d) Hence from the above definitions we can say that materials which are of no use to us can be considered as being waste. 3.1 Waste management in metal workshop In metal workshops, as in the other industries, waste is likely to be produced. Improper management of these wastes may result in problems. According to the Environment Protection Act 2002, all metal workshops need to have a Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) license which clearly states the processes being undertaken and the direct and indirect impact on the environment and any action which they propose to minimize, mitigate or control the impacts. Once they have obtained the license, the workshop is visited on a regular basis by the relevant authority to ensure compliance with the terms in the EIA license. As mentioned earlier in this study, there are various sources of waste in metal workshops. The most considerable waste is from the material being used for processing, which is the metal itself. In Mauritius, all waste except the metals are sent in the municipal solid waste management system. The metal are collected by scrap metal carriers and sent for recycling. The sad part is that this is not the case for all the metal workshops. The formal sector abides by this practice but the informal sector sometimes indulges in dumping activities to dispose of the metal waste. Metal is a natural resource which is undergoing heavy extraction. The Club Report and other energy crisis have lead to the fear of not being able to cope with the need in worlds metal demand (Radezki, 1975). It is important to make a distinction between resource and reserve. A resource is a naturally occurring material in the earths crust whereas a reserve is the part of an identified resource which can be extracted or produced at the time of determination. World reserves of aluminium and iron are estimated at 3,910 and 65,000 Mt respectively, while the world resources of these metals are estimated at 11,000 and 230,000 Mt respectively (Norgate T.E and Rankin W.J, 2002 cited Dzioubinski and Chipman, 1999; US Bureau of Mines, 1995). According to the World Bank document, the reserves for iron ore would last for around 50 years and for copper and bauxite 29 years (Dr. Diederen A.M, 2009;Radetzki, 1975). This has led to an increasing concern for resource conservation and also environmental protection as the waste tends to pollute the environment. Thus, the concept of recyclability of materials is used to recycle the metal. It is to be noted that no study has been carried out so far to evaluate how waste is being managed in metal workshops in Mauritius. Hence, we dont have much information available in this field; this is among one of the reasons why we chose this study. This research can also be used as a foundation for other people conducting research in the same field. CHAPTER 4 Methodology Research methods are the different modus-operandi that is used in a research. (Rajasekar et al, 2006). They include theoretical procedures and experimental studies among many others. Choosing and applying a proper research method is vital as it will help to evaluate and use the research results which can be valuable to local or international organisation or countries as well as its the method chosen that will help us to meet with our objectives and consequently come up with vital discussions which may improve things. Research Approach and Design: According to Burns and Grove (1993: 777), a quantitative research can be defined as a formal and systematic process to describe the test relationships and examine cause and their interactions on variables. Furthermore, a survey is used to collect data from a large populat

The Effect Of Financial Constraints On Small And Medium Enterprises Finance Essay

The Effect Of Financial Constraints On Small And Medium Enterprises Finance Essay CHAPTER 1 Introduction The relation between financial constraints and the survival and growth of the SME has been document across Africa and world. The researcher will look at the economy of Kenya and make evident of the financial constraints that are facing the small and medium enterprise hence affecting the survival and growth of small and medium size enterprises. There is a need to research in this field since the SME are the backbone of the Kenyan economy. In fact with the growing inflation, not to mention the difficulties the SME have in accessing the financial aids they are barely making it to the second birthday. Overview of the Context Kenyan is a developing country in Africa. The increasing role of the SME sector is confirmed by the recently completed Kenya 2003 Economic Survey, According to the survey, total employment recorded in the informal sector increased from 3.7 employees in 1999 to 5.1 million in 2002, while the formal sector increased only from 1.74 million to 1.76 million employees during the same period. However, the growth of the informal sector in number of employees does not necessarily reflect growth and high productivity of the enterprise itself, as the number of informal sector companies grew largely because of the depressed formal economy and under employment in the formal firms. Having said that, the SME in Kenya faces a lot of challenges and one of them is the financial constrains which really inhibits its growth and survival. Hence the call for this research paper. The researcher will use the research methodologies to extract evidence that really financial constraints is a major factor that affect the growth and survival of the SME in Kenya. Statement of the problem. In Kenya, SME have little access to finance, which thus hampers their emergence and eventual growth and survival. Financial constraint remains a major challenge facing SME in Kenya Wanjohi and Mugure (2008) and this will be evidence in this research paper. Their main sources of capital are their retained earnings and informal savings and loan associations, which are unpredictable and not very secure. SME can rarely meet the conditions set by financial institutions, which see them as a risk because of poor guarantees and lack of information about their ability to repay loans. The financial system in most of Africa is under-developed however and so provides few financial instruments. The researcher has come up with some of the reasons why SME find it hard to access finance in Kenya: High interest rates by the financial institutions Delay in the loan processing due to lack of securities and other requirements by the financial institutions. Some of the SME do not have a good track records hence most of the local banks fear to give them the unsecured loans. Banks are particularly nervous of smaller businesses due to a perception that they represent a greater credit risk. Kariukis (1995) study of bank credit access in Kenya illustrates this point further. A survey of 89 small and medium-scale firms in manufacturing and service industries, combined with secondary information from commercial banks, found that from 1985 to 1990 the average real volume of credit for the sample firms fell, except for the year 1986 which showed a marginal increase of 1.5 per cent. Small scale borrowers were found to be faced with higher nominal interest rates at higher inflation rates in the latter half of the 1980s. Moreover, the explicit transactions costs of borrowing were found to be high in relation to interest costs. Because the information is not available in other ways, SME will have to provide it when they seek finance. They will need to give a business plan, list of the company assets, details of the experience of directors and managers and demonstrate how they can give providers of finance some security for amounts provided. The researcher recognized that in the current context of the most severe financial and economic crisis in decades, various factors such as increased risk aversion, decreased liquidity, bleak prospects for economic growth, etc. are having or are expected to have a highly negative effect on SME and entrepreneurs access to short and long term financing. Small firms are particularly vulnerable because: It is more difficult for them to downsize since they are already small. They are individually less diversified in their activities. They have weaker financial structures or lower capitalization. They have lower or no credit ratings. They are heavily dependent on credit. They have fewer options for finance, especially in financial markets. With this in view, the measures that most governments are taking or planning to take to counteract the effects of the crisis and stimulate their economies should include easing SME and entrepreneurship access to finance. Numerous money lenders in the name of Pyramid schemes comes up, promising hope among the SME that they can make it to the financial freedom through soft borrowing. The rationale behind turning to these schemes among a good number of entrepreneurs is mainly to seek alternatives and soft credit with low interest rates while making profits. Objectives The general objective of the research is to establish the effects that the financial constraints have on the survival and growth of the small and medium enterprises in Kenya. Some of the specific objective that the researcher will bare in the study will evolve around the small and medium sized enterprises in Kenya. To establish effect of economic activities on the survival and growth of the SME in Kenya. To assess the impact of high interest rates by local commercial banks on the survival and growth of the small and medium sized enterprises in Kenya. To establish the effect of commercial banks lending policies and access to credit on the growth and financial performance of SME in Kenya. To establish the effect of the firm capital structure on the growth and survival of the small and medium enterprises in Kenya. To establish the impact of government policies in Kenya on the economic growth on the survival and growth of the small and medium business. 1.5 Research Questions How do high interest rates affect the survival and growth of the firm in Kenya? What effect do the banks lending policies and access to credit have on the growth and survival of the SME in Kenya? How do the government policies in Kenya on the economic growth affect the survival and growth of the small and medium sized business? What effect do the external borrowings have on the survival and growth of the small business enterprises in Kenya? How the economic activities affect the growth and survival of the firm in Kenya? 1.6 The significance of the study. Small and medium sized enterprises are the backbone of virtually all economies in the world. However, the process has long been constrained by the limited availability and accessibility of financial resources to meet a variety of operational and investment needs within the SME sectors. SME and entrepreneurs play a significant role in all economies and are key agents of employment, innovation and growth. A significant number of entrepreneurs and SME could use funds productively if they were available, but are often denied access to financing, thus impeding their creation, survival and growth. Although SME form a broad spectrum as far as their relative size, sector of activity, seniority, location and performance are concerned; there is a vital need for innovative solutions for their financing in particular for innovative and high- growth SME in a globalised knowledge-based economy. The researcher however will be interested to know how does this financial constraints really affect the growth and survival of SME and she will undertake the study t establish the necessary fact that make the growth of SME restrained in Kenya. 1.7 The scope of the study. The Kenya government is commitment to foster the growth of SME emerged as one of the key strategies in the 1986 report Economic Management for Renewed Growth. It was reinforced as a priority in the 1989 report, The Strategy for Small Enterprise Development in Kenya a document that set out the mechanisms for removing constraints to growth of the SME sector. In 1992, the government published the SME policy report, Sessional Paper No. 2, Small Enterprises and Jua Kali Development in Kenya. This report was reviewed in 2002, leading to a new policy framework that provides a balanced focus to SME development in line with the national goals of fostering growth, employment creation, income generation, poverty reduction and industrialization SME in Kenya have not seen much development since Kenyan independence due to financial constraints and other factors that are not going to be discussed on this research paper. Small enterprises have a potentiality of boosting a kenya economy. Although they are faced by many challenges, they still have opportunities to grow. These include linkage with multinational companies, networks with other businesses, diversification of market and products, enabling environment and franchising opportunities which is geatly being encouraged the coalition government that is currently running the government of Kenya although the impact has yet to felt on the small and medium enterpeises due to its size and limied resources. CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Introduction. Kenya being a developing country, the researcher will borrow some of empirical research done by experts in other developed and developing countries. A large number of empirical studies have addressed the issue of financial constraints, mainly in order to study the relation between the firms investments and the availability of internal and external funds. Under perfect capital markets, internal and external sources of financial funds are perfectly substitutable Modigliani and Miller (1958), so that the availability of internal funds should not affect investment decisions. Small firms cannot exploit economies of scale in the same way as large firms can they face more financial constraints. Since young companies have not accumulated sufficient cash flow and are unable to rely on bank financing, they have to depend on the equity investments. The analysis of the effects of financial constraints on the firm survival and growth therefore is important. 2.2 Theoretical account of financial constraints The financing constraint literature has been the first to recognize that partitioning firms helps to provide important insights into their behaviors. The pioneers in this field have undoubtedly been Fazzari, Hubbard and Petersen (1988) who point out the fact that firms are definitely not homogeneous. They classify firms according to their dividend payout ratio. Their main aim in doing this is to show that firms that have different dividend payout ratios and therefore belong to different categories, have differential access to finance. Some firms are financially constrained while others are not. Following Fazzari, Hubbard and Petersen (1988), a number of studies have tried to distinguish between various categories of firms. For instance, Whited (1992) uses measures of indebtedness, interest coverage, and whether or not a firm has a bond rating to discriminate among firms. Kaplan and Zingales (1997) use both quantitative and qualitative data to distinguish among firms.Bond et al (1999) classify firms according to whether a firm operates in a bank-based or market-based system.Cleary (1999) uses a financial constraint index to differentiate between firms, which takes into account a number of factors such as firm liquidity, leverage, profitability, and growth. Carpenter and Guariglia (2003) use the number of employees to distinguish between large and small firms. However, the factor common to all these studies is that they have tried to discriminate only within firms that have access to capital markets. A high percentage of Small and Medium Scale Enterprises remains in the informal sector with limited opportunities for growth. Africa has one of the largest informal sectors in the world, World Bank, (2006). In Kenya the availability of finance tends to be extremely limited and difficulty to get external financing as researcher came to find out on this quest on the Kenya town and from the SME managers. The SME financial resources are usually restricted to equity capital and bank debt to those who are able to access it. As the business establishes itself, however, it gains access to resources from its own productive activity and sources of external finance. According to Aghion (2007), access to external finance improves market selection by allowing small firms to be more competitive. Additionally, financial accessibility significantly facilitates the growth of firms. Unlike large firms, SME are restricted in their funding options. Therefore, a new hierarchy of sources of finance for SM E can be defined. In this new hierarchy of sources of finance for SME there are three sources of finance, internal finance, debt finance and new capital contributions. Large firms that have access to capital markets are able to issue equity; however, SME do not normally have access to this form of finance of new capital contributions Cost of new debt financing Cost of internal finance 2.3 The Financial constraint variables According to many studies, small firms do not even recognize their own growth potential Scott Rosa (1996).This is more evident in the research since most of the managers of the small and medium size enterprises are more concerned about the survival of the firm rather than the growth of the firm in most Kenya region. This research however will look at some of the variables that help to clarify this phrase in the Kenyan market. 2.3.1 The effect of government policies. Similar evidence regarding the lack of importance given by small scale enterprises to tax policies is also found in Southern Africa, including Niger, Botswana, Swaziland, Lesotho, Malawi, and Zimbabwe Mead (1994). Studies for these locations found little concern for government regulations, except from those enterprises concentrated in targeted locations and specific sectors such as food processing. Instead the greatest concern for the majority of those surveyed was the lack of access to working capital, credit and finance. 2.3.2 The effect of commercial bank lending rates and access to credit. According to Holmes and Kent (1991), SME are characterized by 2 factors: they cannot issue equity and are concerned about ownership and control. Small firms usually do not have the option of issuing additional equity to the public. Even if they were able to issue private equity, managers of SME would restrain from doing so as issuing equity would lead to a dilution in ownership and control. Therefore, managers of SME will usually prefer to go for debt financing, mainly comprising of bank financing. On the other hand, managers of larger firms usually consider a broader range of funding options. As Steel (1994) highlights, high transactions costs and risks associated with small loans, a lack of collateral and an historical orientation towards larger enterprises, continue to restrict small scale enterprise access to formal credit. This no different from Kenya where access to credit is really issue and Kariukis (1995) study of bank credit access in Kenya illustrates this point further. 2.3.3 The impact of government policies Data on the SME sector in Kenya is scarce, although the National SME Baseline Survey provides comprehensive and reliable information; it has not been updated since 1999 and does not contain information for medium-sized firms. The survey indicates that the contribution of the SME sector to GDP increased from 13.8 percent in 1993 to 18.4 percent in 1999.Thia shows that the government policies put in place in Kenya also do affect the growth and survival of the small and medium size enterprises. 2.3.4 The effect of internal capital structure. It should be noted that growth is not the objective of all firms. For example, when firms are faced with serious difficulties during periods of economic downturns, they may shift their objective from growth to survival waiting for better economic conditions to expand. This has been observed in crisis economies where firms downsize and try to keep their costs as low as possible until the economic situation improves. Some firms may choose to remain small if their entrepreneurial capabilities are inconsistent with large size because financial constraints force the poor to start small business, the lack of firm growth could result in social immobility where the small firms remain poor. On the other hand, if small firms have the potential of becoming large, poor firm owners could become rich as their firms expand. Moreover, firm growth in Africa, where technology is usually labour intensive, is usually associated with job creation, which in turn is the key to poverty reduction. Therefore, whether firms have potential to grow or remain small has important policy implications. Slow growth of firms in Africa has been explained as being the result of the lack of access to financial resources McCormick et al. (1997) and Biggs and Srivastava, (1996). This is particular to developing economies where financial markets are under-developed. 2.4 Conceptual Framework. The financial constrained as outlined above is a diverse business phenomena that need to be researched since its the back bone of any business growth and survival may it be a small business in the slums or a major manufacturing business. The researcher is mainly focused on the small and unquoted firms in Kenya. The local commercial banks have a role to play in all this and so is the government. The firm own capital structure also do contribute a lot to the survival and growth of the firm. In Kenya the economic activities that are carried out also influence a lot the GDP of the country hence the economic growth. CHAPTER 3 METHODOLOGY 3.1 Introduction The researcher will mainly use secondary research methodology although the tertiary methodology or the search tool will also be used for the purpose of this research. This will include books, magazines, newspapers to collect data and information regarding the topic. The researcher will also make use of the internet to obtain information about SME and other related information. Secondary data are data that have been collected for some other purpose. Secondary data can provide a useful source from which to answer the research question(s). Punch (1998) mentions several advantages of using existing data. Expenditure on obtaining data can be significantly reduced and data analysis can begin immediately, so saving time. Also, the quality of some data may be superior to anything the researcher could have created alone Thomas (2004). On the other hand, the chosen research method also has several disadvantages such as data that have been gathered by others for their own purposes can be diffic ult to interpret when they are taken out of their original context. It is also much more difficult to appreciate the weak points in data that have been obtained by others. 3.2 Research Area The propose research area is the SME in Kenya. The length of time within which to finish this project will be estimated one month since time and resources might be a major constraint. The researcher proposes to choose at least 15 major towns in Kenya since Small business are all over the country and do research in a at least 10 firms in each town, so as to capture the operation of financial reporting in the country so as to ascertain whether financial constraints are really a major constraint in the survival and growth of small and medium size business in Kenya. As a mean of testing the hypothesis of the study, the researcher will apply the methods below of data collection. 3.3 Observation To judge the effect of financial constrains on survival and growth of a small business in Kenya. The researcher will have to visit the local banks and financial institutions and find out how ones access to finance limits the growth of the business. I propose to use time-series method to judge the observation. The observation will assist me to ascertain that the formal financial sector has provided very little or no service to small business men hence they are unable to finance their small business. 3.4 Interview This will be conducted individually. Structured and unstructured questions will be used to collect information on the subject under investigation. This is to help the researcher obtain responses to questions like; in your view is business growing? How best can it be financed? ,and others. I propose to conduct the interview in such a manner that each sector will have equal probability of being selected. Interviews will enable me to do most of the qualitative part of my research, and the information gained here is usually more realistic. 3.5 Questionnaire I will prepare systematic and well organized questions that will enable me; have responses to the questions raised in the introduction and moreover test the hypothesis of the research. This is demonstrated in Chapter 1 where several questions to this effect have been formulated. 3.6 Data Analysis I will not only rely solely on the information from the various responses from the varied sectors but, also the statistical publications from international organization in Kenya who have done a similar research on SME. I propose to make a thorough analysis of the official and unofficial data received. I will propose the use of quantitative and the qualitative analysis. REFRENCES Punch, K F. (1998), Introduction to social research: Quantitative and qualitative approaches. Kariuki N (1995) The Effects of Liberalization on Access to Bank Credit in Kenya, Small Enterprise Development, 6 (1), 15-23 Central Bureau of Statistics, International Center for Economic Growth, and K-Rep Holdings, National Micro and Small Enterprise Baseline Survey, 1999. Central Bureau of Statistics, Ministry of Planning and National Development, Economic Survey, 2003 Wanjohi, A.M. and Mugure, A.(2008). Factors affecting the growth of MSEs in rural areas of Kenya: A case of ICT firms in Kiserian Township, Kajiado District of Kenya. Republic of Kenya (1992). Sessional Paper No. 2 on Small Enterprises and Jua Kali Development in Kenya. Government Printer, Nairobi Biggs, T. and Srivastava, P. (1996) Structural Aspects of Manufacturing in Sub-Saharan Africa: Findings from a Seven Country Enterprise survey, World Bank Discussion paper No. 346. Modigliani, F. and Miller, M. (1958), the cost of capital, corporation finance and the theory of investment. Aghion, P., Fally, T. and Scarpetta, S. (2007): Credit constraints as a barrier to the entry and post-entry growth of firms, Economic Policy, vol. 22 (52): 731-790. Savignac, F. (2008): The impact of financial constraints on innovation: what can be learned from a direct measure? Economics of Innovation and New Technology, Volume 17 (6):553-569. Petersen, M. and Rajan, R. (1994): The benefits of firm-creditor relationships: Evidence from small business data, Journal of Finance, 49, 3-38. Aghion, P., Fally, T. and Scarpetta, S. (2007): Credit constraints as a barrier to the entry and post-entry growth of firms, Economic Policy, vol. 22 (52): 731-790. World Bank. (2006) Doing Business in 2005. The World Bank. Washington D. C., USA. Scott, M. Rosa, P. (1996). Opinion: Has Firm Level Analysis Reached its Limits? Time for a rethink. International Small Business Journal 14, 4, 81-89. Mead D (1994) The legal, regulatory and tax framework and small enterprises, Small Enterprise Development, 5 (2), 10-17 Steel W (1994) Changing the institutional and policy environment for small enterprise development in Africa, Small Enterprise Development, 5 (2), 4-9 Kaplan, S. and L. Zingales (1997), Do investment-cash-flow sensitivities provide useful measures of financing constraints? Quarterly Journal of Economics, 112, pp169-216. Whited, T. (1992), Debt, Liquidity Constraints and Corporate Investment:Evidence from Panel Data, Journal of Finance, 4 ,pp1425-1460. Kaplan, S. and L. Zingales (1997), Do investment-cash-flow sensitivities provide useful measures of financing constraints? Quarterly Journal of Economics,112, pp169-216. Carpenter R.E and A. Guariglia (2003), Cash Flow, Investment and Investment Opportunities: New Tests using UK panel Data, Unpublished. Fazzari, S., G. Hubbard, and B. Petersen (1988), Financing Constraints and Corporate Investment, Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, 1, pp141-95. Holmes, S. and Kent, P., (1991), An Empirical Analysis of the Financial Structure of Small and Large Australian Manufacturing Enterprises, Journal of Small Business Finance, 1 (2), pp141-154. QUESTIONNAIRES. Why did you choose to start a business in this area? Does your business follow the government policies in regard to paying taxes Yes â‚ ¬Ã‚  No â‚ ¬Ã‚  What is the number of the employees in your business? How is the business in this area affected by the economy trends preferring at the moment? Who is the highest ranking member of your business? What is the annual turnover of your business? Where does your business get the initial capital to start it up? What is your source of financing? What form of financial instruments do you have in place? Which banking or financial sectors do you operate in your business? How do the interest rates affect your business? What are some of the difficulties do you experience when getting bank access? What can you say is the reason for your business failure to grow? How is the government policies put in place in Kenya helping you achieve your financial goals? What are the major issues does your enterprise face when accessing credit facilities in the banking sectors in the Kenya? What would you say is the challenge facing the small business in Kenya in terms of finances?

Julius Caesar Essay -- essays research papers

Cassius If there were to be a villain in the Tragedy of Julius Caesar Cassius would be it. Cassius is the character who first thought up of the conspiracy against Julius Caesar. His motives weren’t as noble as Brutus’ but he made Brutus believe they were. Cassius did whatever it took to get Brutus to join in the conspiracy. We can clearly see Cassius’ true nature by what he does and says in the play. Cassius is a sly, deceitful and an untrustworthy character. Caesar described him best. He said (act1, scene 2, line 195), â€Å"Yond Cassius has a lean and hungry look; He thinks too much. Such men are dangerous†. Cassius is very superstitious. This is shown when he says (act 5, scene 1, line 75) â€Å" you know I held Epicurus strong, and his opinion. Now I change my mind, and partly credit things that do presage†¦Ã¢â‚¬ . He believes in omen and signs that foretell events to come. Cassius is conceded. This is shown when he says to Brutus (act1, scene 2, line 116), â€Å" And this man is now become a god, and Cassius is now a wretched creature, and must bend his body if Caesar careless but nod on him†¦Ã¢â‚¬ . Cassius continues on saying about times when he saved Caesar from drowning and when he saw Caesar with a fever and he started to shake. All this tells us that Cassius thinks he is just as good or even better than Caesar. Cassius first shows his character of deceit when he put false notes from people in the window of Brutus. This was so Brutus would think a lot of people would be with him if he ...