Wednesday, July 31, 2019

Compare and Contrast the Way Rupert Brooke and Wilfred Owen Approach the Subject of War Essay

The title of this poem is very powerful. It tells the reader that this is a very sad poem and that by going to war death is almost certain. Sassoon has done this to give the reader an idea of war, and, as the reader reads the poem their insight into the brutality and the sorrow of war increases. The first paragraph of this poem tells of the slow death of a soldier as the sun rises. Sassoon has skilfully manipulated language and his choice of words in order to create a visual image that is slowly sculptured as the first four lines are read. Dark clouds are smouldering into red while down the craters morning burns the dying soldier shifts his head? To watch the glory that returns† The first half of the second paragraph speaks of the patriotism of soldiers for their countries and how they â€Å"want† to die for their land. This can be observed in the line â€Å"Hankering for wreaths and tombs and hearses†. The final half of the second paragraph tells of how the soldier faces his destiny with courage. Writing has always been a tool for reflecting and commenting on society. During the 20th century many poets reacted to problems in the world with highly emotionally charged poems. The horror of war and the spiritual degradation it inflicts is evident in the work of the World War I poets. Wilfred Owen (1893-1918) and Siegfried Sassoon (1886-1967) were both soldiers and poets. Their poems reflect the loss of innocence and the horrible mental and physical toll World War I inflicted on the world. ?Both Sassoon and Owen wrote war poetry to inform people of the realities of war. Sassoon’s efforts to publicly decry the war were stunted when the military announced he suffered from shell-shock and sent him to a hospital to recover. His poetry became the means of sharing his opinion that the war had â€Å"become a war of aggression and conquest,† (Norton 1832). He wanted to share with the public the true cost of war. His poem â€Å"They† reflects the common assumptions of the people at home about what the soldiers will be like when they come home. He wipes away all the illusions and shows that â€Å"you’ll not find/A chap who’s served that hasn’t found some change† (lines 9-10). In the poem, the soldiers don’t return better and brighter. Instead, Sassoon shows how they return less whole by describing their injuries.? Sassoon met Owen while both were in the hospital recovering. Both men’s greatest achievements as poets dealt with the war. Sassoon’s poems about the war were, â€Å"deliberately written to disturb complacency,† (Poets 855). He called them â€Å"trench-sketches† and wrote about what he witnessed while fighting with detail and honesty. Many of his war poems are highly satirical. While at home during the war, he was disturbed by the public’s opinion of the war. Poems such as â€Å"Blighters† show his anger toward the civilian world:? I’d like to see a Tank com down the stalls,? Lurching to rag-time tunes, or â€Å"Home, sweet Home. â€Å"? And there’d be no more jokes in Music-halls? To mock the riddled corpses round Bapaume. (5-8)? While Sassoon wrote war poetry to express his anger about the war, Owen’s main influence on his writing was not just a desire to show what war was actually like, but also an expression of the horrors he saw in many aspects of life. His poetry was heavily influenced by nightmares he experienced since his childhood which were only worsened by his experiences in battle. While in the hospital, Sassoon helped Owen with his writing. At first, Owen used many of the same â€Å"shock tactics† used by Sassoon, but he eventually found his own voice. After helping Owen with final editing process of â€Å"Anthem for Doomed Youth,† Sassoon wrote that he, â€Å"realized that his verse, with its sumptuous epithets and large-scale imagery, its noble naturalness and the depth of meaning, had impressive affinities with Keats, whom he took as his supreme expemplar. This new sonnet was a revelation . . . It confronted me with classic and imaginative serenity (Poets 750). Owen’s poems, such as â€Å"Anthem for Doomed Youth† and â€Å"Apologia pro Poemate Meo† were not just inspired by war or dreams, but were also written as replies to other authors, the latter in response to a remark by Robert Graves. Own was not only powerful in his subject matter, but also technically, which is why Sassoon, Graves, and other poets admired his work. His use of para-rhyme added greatly to his poetry because it, â€Å"produces effects of dissonance, failure, and unfulfilment that subtly reinforces his themes,† (749).? Both poets wanted to express their views and feelings about the war. Their experiences in battle, although horrible, inspired them to write better poetry than they did before the war, and in Sassoon’s case, even after the war. Owen seems to be a more psychologically complex person. His poems are often melancholy and reach people on a deeply emotional level. Sassoon’s poems also affect people, but they do not leave a lasting impression. Sassoon’s goal as a war poet is to shock, while Owen’s goal is to make people experience deep emotion. It is obvious from Sassoon’s own remarks about Owen that even he felt the extreme emotional and lyrical power of Owen’s poems. The work of each poet serves as a reminder of the awfulness of war and the effect war has on people’s lives. Dulce Decorum Est The poem â€Å"Dulce Decorum Est† was written by Wilfred Owen. This poem illustrates how poetry can be influenced by the subject of the words rather than the words influencing the topic. The poem uses various literary devices to show that dying for one’s country can be a very ugly and horrible thing; putting this idead into a poem, makes poetry a very ugly thing. Wilfred Owens makes use of many devices, but one of the first ones used in the poem is a simile. â€Å"Bent double, like old beggars under sacks. This allows one to imagine a group of people hunched over, to malnourished and beaten to even stand up straight. Another example is â€Å"flound’ring like a man on fire or lime. † The man described has been poisoned by gas, but he looks as though he is running around trying to put out a fire on himself. The simimle illustrates the suffering of the man and his hopelessness. The author also utilizes words that have definite negative connotations in order to give the reader a feeling of unease and malady. Words such as â€Å"sludge,† â€Å"fatigue,† â€Å"guttering,† â€Å"froth-corrupted,† â€Å"vile,† and â€Å"incurable,† all have negative connotations. The words taken from the context of the poem still do not, and likely could not have any possible positive images or ideas associated with them. By choosing such words Owen condemns his poem to being sorrowful, sad and ugly. This is likely the author’s intent as he sees war, sorrowful, sad, and ugly. Owen uses these literary devices and others to reach a single end. A sensory image of watching a man, in service of his country, die a terrible death. These include, the images of hunched men traveling through mud, hearing gas shells and putting on masks, a man drowning in gas, and the horrible ghastly death of that man. Owen incorporates sound with â€Å"the blood Come gargling† which enhances the horror felt by the reader. Wilfre Owen uses all these techniques to illustrate a simple point, that the phrase â€Å"Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori,† or translated to english, sweet and honorable it is, to die for the fatherland, is a lie. His poem tries to make real to the reader how horrible death is even when in the service of one’s country. The statement is often made to children in search of adventure, but Owen makes clear that it is indeed a falsehood.

Tuesday, July 30, 2019

Why Do We as a Society Need a Criminal Justice System

Why do we (as a society) need a criminal justice system? Introduction As a society there is need for a criminal justice system, as it is essential to have laws throughout the population. We have these laws so people cannot use money or power to benefit themselves. The laws also establish that each person should understand their and everyone else’s rights and obligations within the community. The criminal justice system, is a system of laws and rulings which protect community members and their property. Therefore, the laws determine which acts are criminal and how the offender is punished. (Sallmann, P. nd Wills, J. 1984 Criminal Justice in Australia, Oxford University Press, Melbourne. ) The criminal justice system in Australia formed centuries ago, with new forms of punishments added along the way. From then till now Australian judges have interpreted, applied and developed these laws, the Australian parliaments have also added to them through legislation. (Sallmann, P. and W ills, J. 1984 Criminal Justice in Australia, Oxford University Press, Melbourne. ) Why we need a criminal justice system There are three main divisions in criminal justice system, which exists of Police, Courts, and Corrections. Firstly, Police have the responsibility to investigate and apprehend criminals. Secondly, Courts are responsible for fair trial and sentencing. Thirdly, Corrections are responsible for imprisonment and supervision. The main purpose of this system is to manage public safety. In Australia we have nine legal systems, comprising eight State or Territory systems and one federal system. Most of the administration of courts, the legal profession and legislation occurs in the States and Territories. Therefore, each State and Territory is responsible to carry out the laws and rulings for the criminal justice system. Attorney-General's Department (AGD) 1995, The Justice Statement, AGD, Canberra. ) The criminal justice system's goals are to ensure that legislation and the law is upheld at all times. For example, protecting the innocent, punishing the guilty, preserving order and peace and protecting victims from further anguish. Another goal the criminal justice system seems to be focusing on i s education for the public regarding crime and rehabilitation of offenders. This method is achieved by deterring offenders or preventing crimes from spreading. Therefore, the goals of the criminal justice system are to balance criminal activity and crime revention. There is an abundance of people, who think the criminal justice system is not really a system, and that it has always been flawed. It fails to deliver true justice and is expensive and incompetent in determining cases. On the other hand there are many people who firmly defend the system against such criticism, viewing it as only needing little change. As always, the truth lies somewhere in between the two arguments. The criminal justice system is subject to continual criticism. Many of its qualities, such as the wearing of gowns and wigs, are seen to imitate a system which is outdated, hiding in old traditions and rocedures and out of touch with the society of today. As a society we need to understand that the police alon e can’t overcome all crimes therefore, it can’t deal with every criminal. The criminal justice system introduced community based programs and institutions to help build safer communities. Examples of these programs and institutions are, Neighbourhood Watch and Community Corrections. Firstly, Neighbourhood Watch is a community based program, which aims to minimise crime within the community. This program requires both the community and the police working together to accomplish his goal. (Neighbourhood Watch, http://www. nhw. com. au/Home) Secondly, Community Corrections is an institution which manages and supervises offenders on community based supervision orders such as Probation, Parole, Home Detention, Community Work and Bail. This institution requires the community, Courts and the Parole Board to all work together, to achieve the optimum result. (Community Corrections http://www. nt. gov. au/justice/corrservices/community_corrections/index. shtml) The criminal justi ce system is a complex social tree, the branches of this tree combine social and economic causes. It is often these other causes that determine the crimes committed and the response of the criminal justice system. These creators of crime can be sorted into two main groups: environmental risk factors and individual risk factors. Environmental risk factors include the physical, social, family, community, economic, cultural and political environments in which an individual lives For example, higher rates of unemployment can have an impact on levels of crime, which in turn will affect all sectors of the criminal justice system. Individual risk factors include mental and physical health status, demographic and ocioeconomic characteristics, attitudes and beliefs, and lifestyles and behaviour. These individual risk factors must also be considered when looking at the broader context of the criminal justice systems. (The National Criminal Justice Statistical Framework, Jul 2001. ) Various researches have addressed different outlooks to explain why some people have a criminal tendency. Exa mples of these outlooks are by Cesare Lombroso and Sigmund Freud. Firstly, Lombroso states that criminals have stigmata, and that these stigmata consist of abnormal dimensions of the skull and jaw. Lombroso even claimed that different criminals have different physical characteristics which he could discern. (Cesare Lombroso. (2009). Secondly, Sigmund Freud hypothesized that the most common element that contributed to criminal behaviour was faulty identification by a child with her or his parents. The improperly socialized child may develop a personality disturbance that causes her or him to direct antisocial impulses inward or outward. The child who directs them outward becomes a criminal, and the child that directs them inward becomes a neurotic. (Sigmund Freud (1961). Conclusion For a society to work it needs to have a level of structure, that is applied and understood by everyone. Laws within the criminal justice system create that structure and regulate the way in which people and organisations behave. If we did not have a criminal justice system, there would be a lot of chaos, within the systems of management and crime control. Therefore, if there is no threat for punishment, the level of crime within the society could be quiet high. The major goals in criminal justice tend to be creating a helping hand in reducing crime, through bringing major offences to justice, or raising the communities confidence. Along with others the justice system works towards preventing crime or helping offenders turn away from committing a crime. (Goldsmith, Israel and Daly 2006) Therefore, the criminal justice system is to create balance throughout society. We as a society need this system, to protect people within our communities from crime and preventing crime. Is the system fair? No. But the criminal justice system can only be as fair as human beings are capable of making it. References 1. Sallmann, P. and Wills, J. 1984 Criminal Justice in Australia, Oxford University Press, Melbourne. 2. Attorney-General's Department (AGD) 1995, The Justice Statement, AGD, Canberra. 3. (Neighbourhood Watch, http://www. nhw. com. au/Home) 4. (Community Corrections http://www. nt. gov. au/justice/corrservices/community _corrections/index. shtml) 5. The National Criminal Justice Statistical Framework, Jul 2001. 6. Cesare Lombroso. (2009). New World Encyclopaedia. 7. Freud, S. (1961). The Complete Works of Sigmund Freud (Vol. 19). London: Hogarth. 8. Goldsmith, Israel and Daly 2006, Crime and Justice: An Australian Textbook in Criminology (3rd Edition) Sydney: Lawbook Company. Why Do We as a Society Need a Criminal Justice System? WHY DO WE AS A SOCIETY NEED A CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM? Introduction The criminal justice system is comprised of a basic formation, the law enforcement agencies, the courts, and the correctional services. This system has existed since ancient times and although the three facilities haven’t completely been replaced over the centuries, there has been a lot of change and amendment to how the system is used to investigate, deter, and keep order and control in today’s society. It is a fundamental part of our society and we know that comprehensive, effective, and nondiscriminatory implementation of criminal justice system powers is essential to ending violence, both for freeing individual and for ending the worldwide epidemic of violence against one another. Although the system has evolved over the years to adjust and accommodate people of different status, class and provide a multicultural aspect to society, just as any other system there will always be some impediments and inconsistencies such as, financial restraints, inequality, selective law enforcement and public influence such as media ideas and images of crime. Why we need a criminal justice system It would be unrealistic of people in society to believe every crime could be prevented and every criminal caught and incarcerated. Its however not unrealistic to expect to live in a safe society that is provided with equality, fairness, and is reliable and respected. Without the criminal justice system the entire society would disintegrate and it would be overrun with crime and wrong doing. The law enforcement, the courts and the correctional arms of the system each take on a responsibility to follow procedures laid down by the government, who determine what society needs more or less of at any particular time. From the data below (Government expenditure by sector 2004-2005) we can quite clearly see how the criminal justice system has changed in order to meet the needs of society; this is an example of how the government prioritises the needs of society at any particular time. The education sector of the chart is obviously the highest in priority which shows that government is now trying a different perspective as was used years ago by now educating the public and society on how to help prevent crime themselves and teaching parents how to help prevent their children from deviating against them, and becoming another statistic. Coming in second to education is the health expenditure which shows that there is quite a high need for medical and health attention for those that come in contact with the criminal justice system. The government is becoming more aware of the need for chances of rehabilitation for mentally ill and suicidal persons, where these issues are not now seen as a crime but now as a personal issue and the government is now taking it extremely seriously the need for a solution and not punishment to their mental states which may have led them to their criminal ways instead of punishing them for their illness. As we see community services are the next most important thing the government is seeing as a need in the criminal justice system. The law enforcement, courts and correctional facilities only deal with the law and order in society and maintaining social control, but without the community services (Eg: Housing, education, financial services, legal services) the people going into and coming out of the criminal justice system would have nowhere to go for support. The community services is a crucial element to the criminal justice system for the individuals of crime, the families and everyone affected, by providing the additional support needed. The system for punishment has changed many times over the decades the criminal justice system has been around, from corporal punishment (whipping, removing of hands for theft and even execution), to lighter punishments such as community services, probationary periods, and parole for less serious offences to prison terms for more severe offences. The less serious of offences such as vandalism by a juvenile will more than likely obtain a community service punishment to remove or fix the damage caused there by ridding the community of the vandalism and educating the convicted, in turn the convicted is less likely to reoffend. So in most cases such as theft, vandalism, and minor assault cases, if the case is finalised in court by conviction (typically by a defendant's entering a plea of guilty to the offence or to a less serious offence), the defendant may receive a non incarceration sentence such as parole, community service or probation. From this narrowing of cases Daly et al. (2006) p 275 found from a large number experienced by victims to a trickle of defendants convicted and sanctioned has the appearance of a funnel and saves resources and space in prisons and other correctional facilities for the more serious defendants. As the above pie chart (Composition of government expenditure on criminal justice 2006-2007) shows us the police services are at the head position of the overall expenditure of the three arms of the criminal justice system. The government is aware of the vast need for more funds into the policing sector, for the fact this arm is the division that provides the law and order and is out there addressing the issues that are affecting society and apprehending the criminals in, to ensure the criminal justice system continues to function in a fair and equally sufficing way. The police have moved to further advance their policing techniques, from general law enforcement to ‘Community policing’, which focuses more on ‘conciliatory rather than a coercive approach to police work’, which involves the community and individuals in playing a co-participatory role in the act of crime prevention. In conclusion the overall principle of the criminal justice system is to provide justice for everyone in society and to keep society safe and in order by convicting the criminals and rehabilitating them not to offend again, and to support them as the re-enter society. The criminal justice system works with other organisations to help prevent crime and bring those who to offend to justice and also educating society and keeping them involved in ways they can help. Even with the inconsistencies and impediments, without a criminal justice system, societies all over the world would be overrun with chaos and society would cease to function. In order to keep society smooth running and the people safe maintenance of the criminal justice system is vital for social order and control. References Composition of government expenditure on criminal justice [image] (2006-2007). Retrieved 26 December 2011, from http://www. aic. gov. au/statistics/criminaljustice. aspx Daly, Kathleen; Israel, Mark ; Goldsmith, Andrew John. (2006) Crime and Justice: A guide to criminology, 3rd Ed. Sydney: Lawbook Co. Ch. 13 Daly, Kathleen, â€Å"Aims of the Criminal Justice system† p275 Government expenditure by sector [image] (2004-2005). Retrieved 26 December 2011, from http://www. aic. gov. au/statistics/criminaljustice. aspx Perrone, S. , ; White, R. (2010) Crime Criminality ; Criminal Justice (1st Ed. ) Oxford: Oxford University Press Why Do We as a Society Need a Criminal Justice System? Why do we (as a society) need a criminal justice system? Everyday, society is the respondent to rules and procedures that shape the way we interact with one another. Perhaps the most defining rules and procedures are those that deal with criminality and criminal justice. This paper will firstly look at the goals of the criminal justice system and how the criminal justice system tries to achieve them. Secondly, this essay will examine how the criminal justice system functions and whether this is effective in achieving the goals it sets out. Perhaps the most obvious goal of the criminal justice system is to respond to crime. This goal is fulfilled through the apprehension of those who perpetrate crimes, and the subsequent punishment of these offenders. However, when looking at the full scope of the functions of the criminal justice system, it further aims to prevent crime and promote personal and community safety (Pink, 2007). In summary, the basic function of the criminal justice system is social control (Bryett, Crasswell, Harrison, Arch, & Shaw, 1993). Social controls dictate what behaviours are acceptable in society, so as to ensure the best interests of society as a whole are maintained (Bryette, et. al. , 1993). While the criminal justice system is not the only form of social control, it is perhaps the most obvious formal control. The government criminalizes activities and behaviours that are deemed to be harmful to society. This government then gives the criminal justice system the power and resources to enforce these laws and punish those who do not conform (Bryett, et al. , 1993). This formal control is used to reinforce informal social controls such as family, education, peers and mass media: which, on their own are generally quite effective social controls. However, informal controls alone cannot be relied upon to enforce criminal justice processes, therefore the state imposes the powers of the criminal justice system to regulate society. The Australian criminal justice system is based on the belief that all people are treated equally in the eyes of the law. Concepts such as separation of powers, judicial precedent and fair procedures are key to the Australian riminal justice system (http://www. dfat. gov. au/facts/legal-systems. html). In Australia, each state and territory governs its own set of criminal laws, enforcement, adjudicative and correctional systems (Earle, Sarre, & Tomaino, 1999), with the federal government making laws on trade and commerce, taxation, defense, external affairs, and immigration and citizenship (http://www. dfat. gov. au/facts/l egal-systems. html). While there are some central legal themes, this arrangement leads to differing definitions of offences and appropriate sentencing (Earle, Sarre, & Tomaino, 1999). Each of these state and federal governments are comprised of 3 separate branches of government: legislative, executive and judicial. The legislative arm of the government makes laws, while the executive government administers the laws, and the judiciary independently interprets these laws and applies them (http://www. dfat. gov. au/facts/legal-systems. html). This concept is known as the separation of powers, and was employed to prevent one group having the power to be judge, jury and executioner in the criminal justice process (Hayes & Prenzler, 2009). The criminal justice system is also made up of three core elements: police, courts and corrections. Police are the first response in the criminal justice system and are responsible for crime prevention and detection, maintaining public order and providing emergency assistance. They are also responsible for apprehending suspects to be processed through the next phase of the criminal justice system, the courts (Hayes & Prenzler, 2009). It is the role of the criminal courts to adjudicate cases brought before them. It is here that the guilt or innocence of the defendant is determined (Pink, 2007). If guilt is found, the defendant is moved on to the corrective services, which administers the sentence brought down by the court. This can result in being taken into custody, community work, or rehabilitation (Pink, 2007). While these three systems are connected to each other, they also have their own agendas, leading many to query the phrase ‘criminal justice system’ (Daly, 2006). Daly (2006) describes an accurate definition for the term ‘system’ as a collection of interdependent agencies’, each having its’ own function. Prenzler & Sarre (2009) note that the current criminal justice system shows very little systematic or authoritative co-ordination between the various agencies. This is mainly due to the fact that these agencies have differing aims. For example, the police perform necessary duties to capture and detain suspects, while the courts work to protect the rights of the defendant, in some cases going so far as to discredit the police if they fail to follow correct procedures (Daly, 2006). These differences sometimes lead to what is seen to be lenient sentencing, and can reduce public confidence in the criminal justice system (Hayes & Prenzler, 2009). However, while some people may believe that the components of the criminal justice system as we know it are contradictory and in some cases inefficient, the alternative would not protect people from the abuses of state power (Daly, 2006) through corruption, bias and a monopoly of power. As stated earlier, the aim of the criminal justice system is to prevent crime, respond to crime, punish crime and protect the community in a fair and just manor to all people. While the phrase ‘criminal justice system’ may cause debate about its accuracy in defining the criminal justice process that Australia adheres to, the concept of the criminal justice system is important to achieving the goals that it has set out. In fact, the same notion that encourages people to report that the criminal justice system is not a system, is the very notion that allows the criminal justice system carry out its’ objectives. The criminal justice system as we know it is a strong formal social control and, in conjunction with informal social controls, is essential to provide a moral and democratic society. References Australian Government: Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. (2011). About Australia. Retrieved 20 December 2011 from http://www. dfat. gov. au/facts/legal_systems. html Bryett, K. , Crasswell, E. , Harrison, Arch, & Shaw, J. (1993). An Introduction to Policing: Vol 1: Criminal Justice in Australia. Sydney: Butterworths. Daly, K. , Isreal, M. , & Goldsmith, A. J. (2006). Crime and Justice: A Guide to Criminology (3rd Ed. ). Sydney: Lawbook Co. Prenzler, T. & Sarre, R. (2009). The Criminal Justice System. In H. Hayes. , & T. Prenzler. (Ed. ). (2009). An Introduction to Crime and Criminology (2nd Ed. ). New South Wales: Pearson Education Australia. Pink, B. (2007). National Criminal Justice Statistical Framework. Canberra: Australian Bureau of Statistics. Sarre, R. , & Tomaino, J. A. (1999). Exploring Criminal Justice: Contemporary Australian Themes. Adelaide: South Australian Institute of Justice Studies.

Lessons from the Locker Room Essay

A new chapter began in my life on the first day of ninth grade. That day, I went to my first day of freshman football practice. Although I knew a little about the game, I had never played football before, so I was somewhat apprehensive about what might happen. The coaches guided us through a series of tests designed to place us into the appropriate positions, although most of the guys already knew where they would be playing. I did everything the best I could, and was soon assigned to Coach Green and the linemen. Through that year I never got to start a game, but the things that happened both on and off the field with the other players made me very interested in what would come in the future. The experiences of that year set the stage for my entrance into varsity high school football, an experience which would shape much of my life. Before anyone can join the varsity football team, he must complete a series of tests. However, these tests are not like those at many schools. Coach has a philosophy that anyone who is willing to â€Å"pay the price† should be allowed to be on the team. Based on that philosophy, numerous criteria are presented to all the would-be players at the beginning of preparation for the season. When I first saw these criteria, I thought that they sounded very simple. They consisted of such things as getting into bed by a specified time each night, eating healthy, coming to five workouts in the summer, and not missing a practice for any reason other than family emergency. Little did I know, they would, in the end, be much more costly than I originally thought. After our freshman season was over, some of the players on the team were given the opportunity to â€Å"move up† to the varsity team for the playoffs. I took advantage of the opportunity, and quickly found myself in the middle of a close-knit family. At that point, I understood very little of what was happening. However, I knew for sure that I wanted to learn more. That season ended at our rival’s field in defeat on a cold night in late November. In the locker room after the game, most of us cried as we realized what this meant for the seniors of that year and for that team. For the first time, I watched guys cry and hug each other as they used their love for each other to pull themselves through the feelings of disappointment. Coach called together those of us who would comprise the team of the following year, and  told us to prepare for plenty of hard work in the off season. The first day back in January, I had my first official test. This test would be the benchmark by which each player would judge his progress in the off season. The test tested our speed and strength, but the workouts would test our heart and our commitment. The next day, we had our first official workout. We spent the first week with coaches giving us demonstrations on proper technique in weight lifting. Within two weeks though, we had begun in earnest. Fridays were reserved for â€Å"special† workouts. I still remember my first one. It was supposed to be an upper body lifting day, and the youngest of us were rather confused when we were told to leave the upper body room and go into the locker room. We all dreaded what might be waiting for us. All we actually did through the whole thirty minute workout was what seemed like a thousand pushups, but that day began a special bonding process. Within five minutes of beginning, most of us were already extremely tired and ready to quit . I am not sure that I ever knew who was speaking, but all that I can remember was intensly painful muscle cramps and the encouragement being shouted by my teammates. At that moment when failure seemed just one more pushup away, we began to develop a sense of responsibility to one another. All that I knew was that we had to work together if we were going to have a chance to be what we could be. The one voice I can remember was a teammate of mine. I remember him lying three guys over, sweating and straining as he struggled to keep his body off the ground. At the moment when I felt that I could not go on any longer his eyes met mine. He quietly told me to never give up and to fight as long as I had the chance. I merely nodded to him and decided that I had to make it through. After several more torturous minutes, Coach told us to â€Å"get in our half mile† before we leave. As I jogged around the track, I thought to myself about how difficult varsity football was going to be. As the workout ended I thought to myself, â€Å"just bury me right here.† I decided, however, that I would be able to make it through with the help of my teammates. We had several more â€Å"special† days, but whenever I would think that I could not go any longer, I would remember my teammates going through the same thing and be strengthened. Very quickly, the summer was upon us. At first I thought that the summer workouts would be a carbon copy of the ones which we had during school, but I would  soon find I was wrong. The first thing that I noticed was that attendance at summer workouts was optional. However, this proved to be more beneficial. Because people were not required to come everyday, most days only people who wanted to be there would come. There were always some guys who could be counted on to be there. These guys were the ones who eventually formed the core of our team. Friday was once again reserved as a day for a different kind of workout. The first Friday of that summer I was introduced to a superset. In a superset, Coach would decide on a series of exercises, and we would go through the circuit as many times as possible in the time available. These undoubtedly were seen as something of a competition to see who could do the most, but eventually we would all get tired and slow down. Coach noticed our slowing pace and our fatigue, and he asked us why we had been slowing down. Of course he knew the answer, and he quickly asked us another question. His next question though, was much more difficult. He brought up a hypothetical situation in which we had reached the fourth quarter of a game and were all very tired. Coach asked us if, when the fourth quarter came, we were going to quit and take the easy way out. Of course we all answered that we would play with everything that we had. Then he made a very simple statement. Coach told us that if planned on being able to give things our all in a game, we had to practice fighting past the pain. According to him, to do anything less would be selling ourselves short of the potential that we had. From that time on, we gave all that we had in every opportunity we had. We fought through the summer workouts together, and gradually became more and more dependent on each other. We began to realize that we would have to put together everything that we had learned and practiced all summer if we were to survive the last two weeks before school started. The last two weeks before school started is known as Camp. Camp is the last hurdle to be cleared before someone is an official team member. We practiced from one till nine for two weeks that year. By the end of the two weeks, we were all strained physically, mentally, and emotionally. Each night, I would come home, shower off, and slump into bed. Then, I would proceed to coat my legs in a layer of Flex-All. While there were moments when some of us likely  wondered if the end of Camp would even come, it did eventually arrive. However, eventually the end of the two weeks came. I vividly remember the last night of Camp. We practiced until our regular time, but then a team meeting was called at the fifty-yard line. Coach congratulated us for making it through and told us it was time for story time. We spent the next twenty minutes running from coach to coach at different places on the field, and listening to stories about something that had happened on that spot of the field. All of the stories told were based on â€Å"what it means to be a part of the team.† Through these stories, the coaches painted vivid portraits of past team members who had been willing to go beyond the call of duty for the team. I do not remember the details of many of the stories very well, but I do remember the story told by another coach. He told the story of a guy from a team several years removed who had really shown what it meant to be a mustang. According to the story, the quarterback had thrown an interception when the team was already down by a touchdown in the fourth quarter. One of the quarterback’s teammates, a guy who had never really been a standout player, was not willing to let the opposing team score as a result of the interception. He ran from the opposite side of the field and was able to tackle the guy ten yards short of the goal line. Coach claimed the player had never run as fast as he did on that night. Spurred on by the effort of their teammate, the defense made a strong stand, and the team fought back to win that game. I expected to hear a lesson about giving it all you had, but instead, Coach had something different in mind. He told us about the importance of picking up the slack for everyone else. He reminded us that in the time we would spend together, not everyone would be perfect on every play, but that we would still be alright if we all did the best we could. This year has been a very interesting one. As a senior captain on the team, I have had a responsibility all year long to help lead the team. During the workouts, I would often find myself shouting encouragement to the younger players as they struggled. Many of the seniors have gone beyond their responsibilities for the sake of the team. But these lessons do not stay confined to the field and the locker room, for I often find them having an  effect on me outside of the football environment. Coach has taught us that we are examples everywhere that we go. Any time there is a decision that I must make, my thoughts inevitably bring me to the question, â€Å"Is this something worthy of a Mustang football player?† I believe that my experiences in football were critical to me successfully overseeing a class day as junior class president while I was short handed. I think I would have been tempted in the past to just give up. I was so intent on not giving up and on doing everything I could possibly do for the â€Å"team† (in this case, the class) though that I knew I had to depend on some other people and, with their help, work everything out.

Monday, July 29, 2019

Australia Mini Country Culture of Society Research Paper

Australia Mini Country Culture of Society - Research Paper Example The way this affects communication and the media is that the media can have more freedom to say what they think is the truth. Australia falls in the midrange in the power distance index, falling lower than that other developed countries such as the United States of America. For instance, Australia scores 36 on the power distance index as compared to the United States of America which scores 40 on the same scale. This is a much lower score, as compared to other countries, especially Arab countries such as Malaysia, Egypt and Philippines which score over 90 on the power distance index scale. According to Nisbett & Miyamoto (467-473) Asians and seem to engage in cultural practices in a different way than westerns who regard issues in a context-independent manner. The main reason why the power distance in Australia is low may be the fact that there is equality in wealth distribution in comparison with other states like the United States where the wealth gap in continually increasing, leaving a thin middle class and a large part of the population being poor while a small percentage owns much of the wealth. Australia also scores a 90 for individualism and a 61 for masculinity. As Ihator (38) says, this kind of individualism is most likely to be seen in first world countries like America and not in countries in Africa. Masculinity, as measured in the Hofstede’s Power Distance Index, is a measure of the factors that are considered to be masculine such as power, materialism, assertiveness, etc. According to Kimmel (90) society with a high masculinity score on the Hofstede’s Power Distance Index is an indication that males in that country are more likely to be more assertive on their rights and are more likely to have their own choices and not be dominated. These are people who are not easily affected by public opinion and are not likely to accept power roles are meted for them.  

Sunday, July 28, 2019

Argument essay about triffic light camera Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Argument about triffic light camera - Essay Example She argues that these cameras help to record any misbehavior by police officers such as corruption of mistreatment. In addition, Mangu (3) supports the idea that these cameras can aid in security investigations. For instance, in London, camera footage led to speedy identification of July 2005 bombers. Eggers and Tushnet (1) say that a camera is a â€Å"crime fighting tool† to support the idea that security cameras help the police in protecting the public. They dismiss the idea that these cameras interfere with personal privacy on the ground that cameras are used everywhere including in supermarkets and bank ATMs and no one complains about privacy. Richard says that cameras must be â€Å"properly used and monitored† if they have to be effective in fighting crime (1). The implication is that the information from the cameras must be used for the right purpose to protect the privacy of the public. He cautions against abuse of information collected from cameras by the author ities. The three authors seem to agree that security cameras are necessary for public security. Another group of scholars has criticized the use of surveillance cameras arguing that this violates the private rights of the public. Steinhardt (6-7) argues that surveillance cameras gather information that is private to the public and that those who use the information are not necessarily security bodies. Therefore, there is abuse of information collected by the surveillance cameras. He states that â€Å"cops - not cameras - fight crime† to show that the surveillance cameras are unnecessary tools in fighting crime (2). The New York Civil Liberties union (1) says that these cameras collect information that is â€Å"more than required† for fighting crime. This information can be shared, hence exposing the people’s privacy. The suggestion of this group is that the use of cameras be regulated to balance between public privacy rights and safety.

Saturday, July 27, 2019

International strategy operation Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 2

International strategy operation - Coursework Example As a small-scale company in Austria, AGRANA had to compete with other larger and similar companies. Prior to 1989, AGRANA encountered a lot of business challenges before it was able to successfully compete in the global markets. Regional integration is referring to the process in which companies located in different regional states are actively interacting with one another in order to promote both economic and political security1, 2 whereas global integration is pertaining to the process in which the company is able to benefit from the act of combining the different business activities that are located in different countries around the world3. Through regional and global integration, AGRANA was not only able to gain benefits from economies-of-scale but also created more competitive advantage. Ever since the CEE decided to open its market to other regions and in the world market, the scope of AGRANA’s target market also increased significantly. Through foreign direct investment (FDI), AGRANA took the opportunity to expand its manufacturing plants in different regional and international sites4. Since AGRANA was selling homogenous products, its target buyers can easily purchase the same item from other companies. Back when the scale of AGRANA was small, the bargaining power of its buyers was high. Therefore, the company was determined in searching for ways on how they can effectively cut down its operational costs without sacrificing the quality of the products. To compete in the market, the company had no other choice but to improve its marketing and production strategies to create cost and differetiation advantages5. It means that through product differentiation, market segmentaion, the use of generic strategies, and continuous reduction in the actual fixed costs of the busienss6, AGRANA was able to keep up with the tight market competition. For example, instead of

Friday, July 26, 2019

Nigel Slacks transformation process model Essay

Nigel Slacks transformation process model - Essay Example However, this was only the first Dimension of the whole project. In fact, a second Dimension follows in which should answer the following question: what the relevant technology could offer to the transformation of resources in the particular firm. More specifically, the business process technology would improve the firm’s resources mainly offering a framework for the increase of their productivity. If such a target could not be achieved by the above procedure then the firm should avoid the transformation of its processes by first instance. On the other hand, the value of the business process technology for the completion of the business transformation process would be examined thoroughly before the implementation of the relevant technology. Finally, the role of business process technology in the whole procession would be evaluated in terms of its importance for the achievement of the targets set by the firm attempting the transformation of its processes.The effectiveness of th e relevant procedure was examined by Slack et al. (2005) with a specific reference to five firms: a fashion clothing retailer, a retail bank, a full-service airline industry, a food company and a company operating in the area of laboratory services. Their research led to the following results: a) the market performance opportunities associated with BPT (business process technology) are far broader than the traditional narrow focus on cost reduction; as a result, any evaluation of BPT must reflect its impact.

Thursday, July 25, 2019

International Business in the News Write-Up Article

International Business in the News Write-Up - Article Example Information provided in this article blends well with the issues covered in class about the EU debt crisis in general. MAIN IDEAS IN THE ARTICLE In this article, Tzortzinis explores the current economic crisis in Greece since its inception, the role played by its ratification to the European Union Agreements and attempts that have been made to rescue the situation including political changes and proposed in the EU agreements. RELATION OF THE ARTICLE’S IDEAS TO MATERIALS DISCUSSED IN CLASS Tzortzinis provides an in-depth analysis of the economic situation in Greece and the actions that have been taken and currently being contemplated in rescuing the country’s economy from the eminent collapse. The author discusses the country’s economic crisis that has brought the Greek’s government down, increased social unrest, and eventually threatened not only the country’s future in the EU but also the future of the euro. This information closely relates to the video entitled â€Å"Greek Debt Crisis Adds New Gravity to U.S. Deficit.† Information of particular interest in this article revolves around the current attempts by the new Greece government to re-negotiate the bailout agreements reached by the previous government with the EU economic giants such as German and France. Tzortzinis discusses the debt restructuring deal reached by EU officials in March 2012 in which the private sector lenders are greatly involved. The discussion supports the discussion on the implication of the Greece economic crisis on the U.S. economy because the deal poses significant threat to the U.S. economy due to its economic interest within the Eurozone. It is argued that the debt restructuring deal does not have the potential to solve the country’s economy crisis. This is because the deal exposes opens the journey for the country to languish in a chain of debts with limited economic growth prospects. In the video, â€Å"Greek Debt Crisis Adds Ne w Gravity to U.S. Deficit.† Jacob Kirkegaard, one of the respondents to Judy Woodruff’s questions, expresses significant concerns on the restructuring deal reached by the European officials in which he says that it is likely to trigger a situation in the country’s economy similar to that of the U.S. 2008 financial crisis. According to Kirkergaard, the proposed bond issue strategy has far- reaching implications to the global financial system including the U.S. economy. As asserted by the economists in the video discuss, any default experienced in the Greek domestic banking system is likely to be experienced in other countries like Spain, Portugal and Ireland. These views are clearly expressed by Tzortzinis in his article. He expresses views that support the argument presented by Kirkergaard, in which the steps taken by the troika are unlikely to resolve the economic crisis in Greece simply because the country’s debts will continue to grow at the expense of the troika’s interests. Therefore, most of the information presented in the selected article tends to provide a strong background support to the ideas presented in the video watched in class and the class discussions on the potential impact of the Greek debt crisis on the U.S. economy. In the video featuring Professor David Cameron on the EU debt crisis, views similar to those presented by Tzortzinis arise in which the debt crisis faced by EU members

Wednesday, July 24, 2019

Public Sector Budgeting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Public Sector Budgeting - Essay Example In this respect, the conventional debate that rages on regard the amount of control measures that should be allowed in the execution of the budget amid the need to ensure accountability The challenge arises in the manner various agencies feel that they should be given the flexibility to operate effectively in the present dynamic world. However, Congress on the other hand, feels that giving much flexibility would be tantamount to the failure to perform its constitutional prerogative of implementing the rules that govern the budget process. It is felt that the smooth realization of certain objectives require a given amount of flexibility that is often disregarded by the public and policy implementers. Inasmuch as public funds should be safeguarded, it is imperative to realize that certain programs must always be undertaken with a given amount of flexibility contrary to which they are bound to fail. For instance in the department of defense (DOD), certain radical decisions have to be ma de in times of urgent need. In such a case, too many regulations might prove to be quite disastrous in the event challenges are realized in the process. Often, agencies are forced to utilize the full allocation they receive without the need to save any funds for future use. This normally arises out of the imminent fact that in the event of returning unused funds, they receive less in future allocations and are even scolded for asking for more if they could manage with less. One of the most challenging issues under budget execution is normally on the aspect of authorization (McCaffery & Mutty 2003). Indeed, before the disbursement of any funds, proper authorization must be done in order to ensure the funds are used appropriately. However, it is normally challenge given that the authorization stage normally involves s lot of bureaucracy and red tape. The manner some of the programs take a lot of time to get authorized clearly serve to demonstrate the very challenges created by too muc h regulations at the expense of the need for timely undertakings. In most instances, the execution process kicks off with the authorization from the Congress, before other subsequent steps follow. Therefore the timely execution of projects in the economy depends much on the speed of Congress in its deliberations (McCaffery & Mutty 2003). However, it rarely happens that Congress does the authorization on time. Being the initial stage of the process, delayed authorization finally translates into the lateness of all the subsequent stages so that execution of the program is delayed a great deal. The authorization of contingent programs normally creates much inefficiency to the execution of other projects in operation. In that regard, it becomes important to rectify some of the regulations that create the sense of commotion. In the same way the authorization should be done in a timely manner that enhances the fast execution of the projects. It is disheartening to seen the manner in which most government programs seem to stall out of the fact that their allocation has not yet been ratified by the authorities in order allow the disbursement of the funds. In a world of challenges and new realities, congressional managers must be faced to encounter the very limiting issues that normally characterize the implementation process (1999). However the rules,

American Civil War Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

American Civil War - Essay Example Certain reasons fueling the rebellion charges by the confederate stood out in the Civil War. Among the most conspicuous charges chanted by the rebellion was the continuation of slavery among the Confederate States of America. Whereas the United States indicated its intentions to abolish slavery through well calculated moves and policies, the Confederates held the opinion that abolition would be a socioeconomic disaster for the country. Many abolitionists hailed from the north, and secession from the south was taken as an insult to the integrity of the American dream of equality for all Americans (Davis et al. 23). Slavery was concentrated in the south, and its expansion into the north was seen as a looming socioeconomic danger to the Union and compelling the abolitionists to declaration war. The call to secede was also a move against the election of Abraham Lincoln as president in 1960. Apparently, Lincoln was instrumental in antislavery campaigns and the Confederate States knew that his administration would not support their opinion on a slave labor-driven economy. As an illustration, among the 996 electoral counties from which secession was demanded, Lincoln only managed to win two counties. Secession was fueled by the fear that Lincoln would impose his position on slave labor, thereby endangering the economy of the Confederate States as well that of the United States. By the establishment of controls in respect of slavery and its eventual abolition in 1820 across the world, the United States pledged its support for a free world, and, therefore, had to act to eliminate slavery across all member states. In addition, nearly all of the southern states had common ways of getting slaves; through purchase or conquest. In view of the diversity of the southern states in terms of their heterogeneity with the rest of the states, conflicts always cropped up. Among the most prevalent conflicts was the territorial uncertainty by the subjects. Despite the fact that the iss ue of economic reliance on slave labor characterized the tension, certain acquisition techniques did not resolve identity crises for certain groups of people. Common slaveholding characteristics of the southern nations posed a major threat to entry into the Union. New entrants into the Union had to reorganize and adapt to the northern cultural and political environment, or find a way out, leading to the confusion (Garraty 56). Lincoln’s insistence on strength for all border states and oneness in the Union throughout the campaign provided enough support for the Union’s victory. The initial intention of the confederation rebellion was to spread its slavery ideologies to back the economy, but the resistance at the border front effectively facilitated defeat for the Confederate States. Whereas the crashing of the nucleus of the secessionist movement was key in the deliberation of the relationship between the two blocs, Lincoln knew that its neutralization at the neighborin g countries was vital to the realization of success. The war broke between the two States’ blocs, and despite the huge population advantage as well as industrial resources held by the north compared to the south, it was a difficult battle to win. Abraham Lincoln led the Union to war, and the initial onus was the mobilization of the military into the war. However, it appeared to be a difficult war. Despite the numerical disadvantage held by the south in the war, the

Tuesday, July 23, 2019

Jack Welshs Leadership Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Jack Welshs Leadership - Essay Example He set up a priority of getting GE to occupy the #1 or #2 spot. Hence, he worked on massive changes to be implemented. Firstly, he sold almost 200 businesses of GE. He disposed off, the non-working, plagued businesses and acquired 370 acquisitions. He made the staffing 'lean and agile'. He also scrapped the strategic planning system and made it much simpler and focused. Besides this, he also took down massive downsizing, by removing employees who did not play an important role or contribution. He thus, retained only those employees who added value to the company. He also deleted the eight-level hierarchal system, reducing it to just half of it. 2. What is Welch's objective in the series of initiatives he launches in the late 1980's and early 1990s What is he trying to achieve in the round of changes he put in motion in that period Is there a logic or rationale supporting the change process Welsh clearly defined his objectives in the second phase of changes initiated. All the changes and activities he undertook had the underlying goal of creating a specific workplace culture. His intention was to create a culture that would be reflective of the company's brand image. More than this, the culture would give every employee the freedom to voice his opinion. His aim was to motivate a close-knit culture, where everyone could interact and work in cooperation and coordination for the best interest of the company. He also steered clear of the unnecessary bureaucratic pressure, in order to bring about a more focused work approach. He aimed at a decentralized method of work, with the building of small teams. However, he also believed in accountability. Welsh also took up the aspect of building a global business, as against a global company, in the wake of globalisation. This he did by strengthening and base and then moving across . Strenthening the quality of leadership in the organization was important, since teams had to function properly, for a collective overall work procedure. Every team was the micro unit of the whole macro company. In addition to this, a boundaryless functioning across the globe, with a collective and unified work culture was his vision. Hence, evidently, Welsh's strategies were aimed at changing with the changing times, especially in the wake of globalisation, without compromising on the company's culture and policies. 3. How does such a large, complex diversified conglomerate, defy the critics and continue to grow so profitably Have Welch's various initiatives added value If so, how GE has been a surprise spinner for many an on-looker. The critics continue to be surprised by its progress and innovation. Welsh's initiatives have always been towards

Monday, July 22, 2019

Comparision between a dolls house and a glass menegarie Essay Example for Free

Comparision between a dolls house and a glass menegarie Essay Nora Helmer in â€Å"A Doll’s House† and Amanda Wingfield in â€Å"The Glass Menagerie†, are both iconic figures that play an important role in their respective plays. These characters are similar as well as different in comparison. Both Nora and Amanda are seen as a very good mother. They also are not in touch with the reality. The difference between Nora and Amanda is that Nora wanted the freedom from her husband, whereas on the other hand, Amanda felt helpless after she lost her husband. Another difference between Amanda and Nora is that Amanda does not really think about herself that much, whereas, Nora is very obsessed with herself. It is seen that Nora and Amanda are both, loving mothers. In â€Å"A Doll’s House†, this is seen when Nora plays with her kids and talks in a child like manner with them. It is also seen when she think about the future and then says, â€Å"No, it’s quite impossible†. She says this after Krogstad had left, and after she had a conversation with Anne-Marie. Amanda is seen as a good and a loving mother when she thinks about the future for her daughter Laura. She tells Tom to find a good gentlemen for her, and tries to make a better future for them. Amanda has faith that some gentleman might come for Laura, which shows the confidence she has in her daughter. Amanda as well as Nora lives in a world where they are not really in touch with reality. For Amanda, when situations become bad, she recalls the days of her youth when she lived at Blue Mountain and had seventeen gentlemen callers in one Sunday afternoon. Indeed, this story has been told so often that it is no longer an illusion and instead has become a reality. She likewise indulges in playful games so as to escape the drudgery of everyday living. She tells Laura, You be the lady this time and Ill be the darky. She refuses to acknowledge that Laura is crippled and instead refers to her as having only a slight physical defect. She refuses to accept the fact that Tom is quite different from her and that he, like his father, will someday leave in search of adventures. This is seen when Tom views his life with his family and at the warehouse as a kind of coffin—cramped, suffocating, and morbid—in which he is unfairly confined. And finally, Amanda lives perpetually in the world of the gentlemen callers who will appear any day for Laura. In â€Å"A Doll’s House†, Nora thought that everything will work out the way she has planned. Nora lives in a very unrealistic world, where she behaves like a doll, and does all the unrealistic things. This is seen when she does not take her life seriously, like forging a signature, which in turn could lead to a lot of problems. In â€Å"A Doll’s House†, in the end, we see that Nora leaves behind her house, her husband as well as her children, whom she loved a lot. This means that she is very selfish and only thinks about herself. According to Nora, she will be who she is if she leaves Torvald. She thinks that being with him, she is a completely different person, from reality. This is seen at the end, when Torvald gets to know the truth Whereas, on the other hand, it is completely opposite in â€Å"A Glass Menagerie† with Amanda. After she lost her husband, she felt completely helpless and did not know how to figure things out. In â€Å"A Doll’s House†, Nora is seen very self-obsessed, whereas, on the other hand, in â€Å"A Glass Menagerie†, Amanda does not really care about herself, and is seen more concerned about her children, and about their future. Nora considers herself like the most prettiest women and keeps on obsessing about herself and thinks about her own future the most. This is also seen when both, Nora and Amanda think that they have some lovers or gentlemen. The only difference between the both of them is that Nora knew that she did not have any lover, and she just dreamt of having one. Whereas, Amanda thought there were gentlemen for her, even though, in real, there weren’t any. Thus, in both these plays, â€Å"A Doll’s House†, and â€Å"A Glass Menagerie†, Nora and Amanda have similarities as well as differences. This similarity between both of them is that both of them care about their kids, and both of them are not in touch with reality. And the difference between them is that Nora finds freedom after leaving her husband, whereas, on the other hand, Amanda kind of feels handicapped after she lost her husband. Another difference seen between Amanda and Nora is that Nora is very self-obsessed, whereas Amanda is not.

Sunday, July 21, 2019

Does Foreign Financial Aid Work Economics Essay

Does Foreign Financial Aid Work Economics Essay The current world is categorized into industrialized and developing countries. The chief difference between these countries is the sum of money applied by the governments in their important sectors like health, commerce, and education. A developing nation or a less-developed nation is any country with a significantly lower lever in terms of her material well-being. There is no internationally recognized definition of a developing country. The development levels may vary greatly within the developing nations with some having high average living standards. A developed nation on the other hand is any nation allowing all her citizenry the right of enjoying healthy and free life in a considerably safe environment (Sullivan Sheffrin 471). Aid, or overseas aid, foreign aid, or international aid is a free resources transfer from one nation to the other with the aim of benefiting recipient nation. Giving of aid is a social responsibility of the rich nations and is not just a mere obligation or duty. It entails an element of morality as the rich nations have a moral duty of redressing the diverse economic inequalities, which they have created across the world (Fajardo 184). Majority of the poorer countries are masked in debts due to their unbalanced finances reflected in weak international trade, unstructured system of education, and failed health care. Due to this vicious cycle, the wealthy nations have shown interest in reducing the global economic differences by taking more responsibility towards assisting the unfortunate nations (Sunstein 163). However, this paper wishes to critically examine giving of aid to the poorer nations and take a stand supporting that such aid should not be given. In this, the paper shall examine the fact that foreign financial aid does not work for the poorer nations; the rich nations should not give aid to the poorer ones; and giving aid leads to dependency of the poorer nations. The paper shall also examine the need for refurbishing of the internal issues instead of relying on international aid, whether there are better ways of helping the poorer nations other than giving aid to them, and the reasons why the poorer natio ns should be denied aid from the international community. Today, people and nations across the world are more closely linked. This has seen an increment in trade as well as peoples movement between nations in greater levels than ever. However, millions of individuals still live in much poverty, with the gap between the rich and poor widening in many places. Thus, there are numerous reasons for assisting the poor nations with humanitarian reasons topping the list. Just like the individuals who give towards charity, many nations consider it their social, moral, or religious obligation/duty to assist people in the other nations suffering from drought, famine, diseases, or war. However, a good number of rich nations also make donations for diplomatic or political reasons. This is aimed at maintaining a dependency relationship with the recipient countries governments, or simply to manipulate such government and/or the countries direction. Another factor facilitating giving of aid to the poorer nations is for economic issues. Donors may wish to c ontrol supply of commodities like oil, wheat, or water. Alternatively, such rich nations may wish to ensure readily available markets for their products, whether they are shoes, computers, or planes (Sustein 162-163). However, foreign aid is not automatically the most effective means of helping a nation. One reason for this is that millions of dollars obtained from such aid is often misappropriated or goes missing into the inefficient administration and corrupt governments. Secondly, most foreign-aided projects are inappropriate for the target nation. Numerous agencies construct huge industrial projects or dams, which fail after some few years. Worse still, some of those projects ignore the local people and fail to involve them in the project yet it is meant for them. Furthermore, much of such aid proceeds to the donor in form of expensive experts and specialized equipment from such a donor nation (Birdsall, Rodrik Subramanian 137). Should the Rich Nations Give aid to the Poor Nations? Considering Vietnam and Nicaragua, the two nations are poor with their economies primarily being agriculture-based. The two have suffered due to prevalence of conflict and have also benefited from significant foreign aid. However, only Vietnam has minimized her poverty level dramatically as well as enjoyed a steady economic growth (5% per capita since the year 1988). On the other hand, Nicaragua has floundered in terms of economic performance with her per capita growth being too modest to cause a real dent towards the population of poor people. Until 1994, Vietnam faced an embargo from the US and the nation is still not adopted as a WTO (World Trade Organization) member. Regardless of such obstacles, the nation has found reliable markets for its coffee exports as well as other agricultural products. In addition, the nation has started diversifying her economy into manufacturing sector, especially of textiles. In comparison, Nicaragua benefits from the preferential access of the lucra tive markets of the US and had a huge debt waved off in 1990s. However, her clothing and coffee export industries lag much behind those of Vietnam (Birdsall, Rodrik Subramanian 137). Why does Nicaragua fall some few steps from Vietnam yet they have been exposed to international aid? Answers to such a question are internal: political and economic institutions and history have trumped the other factors in determination of economic success. The access to the American market as well as the donors largesse has not had powerful impacts to overcome the history of Nicaragua in terms of economic and social inequality. In addition, power and land in Nicaragua have been concentrated in hands of some few elites with the government notable in failing to invest substantially in public welfare and infrastructure. Experiences of numerous other developing nations confirm the significance of the specific internal factors. Just like Vietnam, neither India nor China- the two emerging economic powerhouses of the later quarter of the 20th century- has accrued much benefits from international aid and trade preferences. Neither of these two nations has received much international aid compared to the nations in Central America and Africa. Their success is attributed to enactment of creative domestic reforms within their governance systems leading to their notable prosperity as well as plunging of their poverty levels (Hardin 2). Most of the African nations have not managed to match the success of Vietnam despite being more agrarian or no poorer. True, health and education indicators have improved notably in Africa with some countries having achieved higher levels of macroeconomic stability. However, even within the best-performing nations, productivity and growth remain modest with their investment initiatives depending solely on international aid infusions. It could be luring to ascribe some rare African successes such as in Mauritius and Botswana to the high international demand for their garments and diamonds respectively, but limited explanation has been offered so far. Obviously, the two nations could be considerably poorer if they had no access to the international markets. What distinguish these nations is not the external advantages they enjoy, but their ability to exploit these advantages. (Birdsall, Rodrik Subramanian 138) Many developing nations have been hurt by their natural resource endowments . For instance, diamond has hardly conjured images of prosperity and peace in Sierra Leone while oil has been a blessing in disguise for Nigeria, Angola, Equatorial Guinea, and many others. Mexico is a perfect example of how foreign aid can be detrimental in development. The nation has an advantage of bordering the US (a strip of about 2,000 miles), which is the greatest economic power across the world. Since the enforcement of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in 1994, the US has given goods from Mexico a duty-free access into its markets, has continued absorbing thousands of Mexicans into its labor-force, and has made large investments into the Mexican economy. In the course of peso crisis of 1994-95, the United States Treasury underwrote the financial stability of Mexico an implication that outside economic assistance gets no better. Since 1992, the economy of Mexico has grown at barely 1% per capita on annual average rate. This figure is far much below the rates exhibited by the growth superstars of Asia. In fact, this is a fraction of the nations own growth rate of 3.6% on annual basis in the 2 decades, which preceded her debt crisis of 1982. Access t o external resources and markets has not given Mexico a platform of making up for her internal problems (Sunstein 163). The membership of the European Union (EU) is a remarkable exception to limitations of international assistance. By offering their poorer southern and eastern neighbors not just market access and aid transfers but also the hope of joining their union, the European Union has stimulated far reaching institutional changes and policy as well as impressive growth rates in around 20 nations. Unfortunately, accession to EU or even to any other such major power is a nightmare for majority of the poorest economies across the world. In addition, increasing the trading opportunities and financial solutions for the poorest nations is an insufficient substitute (Birdsall, Rodrik Subramanian 138). Which is the Best Way of Helping the Poorer Nations? There exist numerous ways of helping the poor nations as opposed to giving them aid. Some of the mechanisms include opening up the existing trade barriers, removing subsidies to facilitate easier and fair competition of the imported products from poorer nations, or forgiving their international debts. In fact, most of the poor nations economic performance is maimed by the huge interest repayments imposed on their old loans. The requirements of the poorer nations may seem obvious but there is need of examining their real needs as well as implementing solutions, which will benefit them as well as the donors. Material and economic help is essential towards the poor nations that are victims of sickness and famine though it is only a short-term solution. The rich nations should assist the poorer ones but it is a rather utopian idea to envisage that their aid will never be affected in diverse ways by political corruptions in the poorer nations. Furthermore, helping them is a paradoxical action since the political and economic system impoverishes these countries. The best solution could be changing the exchange between needy and wealthy nations, as it is not right to continue living in the current system with so many individuals dying due to the inequalities that have been created (Andre Velasquez Para 2-3). There are many kinds of aid ranging from food aid, to humanitarian emergency assistance, military assistance, etc. The developed nations have for long recognized development aid as vital to assist the poor developing countries to grow out of their poverty. The worlds richest nations in 1970 agreed to offer an annual 0.7% of their Gross National Income (GNI) as an official foreign development aid. Since then, regardless of the billions given out each year, the rich countries have hardly met their promised targets (AJWS 7). For instance, the United States is the largest donor but is rated amongst the lowest when it comes to meeting the agreed upon 0.7% target. International financial aid has always come with some costs towards the developing countries. The first one is that such aid is mostly wasted on the conditions since the recipient nations are required to use overpriced commodities and services from the donor nations. The majority of such international aid does not go to the most needful countries, which would need it most. Thirdly, the aid are often dwarfed by the rich nation protectionism, which denies access of international markets to the products of the poor nations, while the rich ones use aid as levers of opening markets of the poor countries for their products. Finally, massive grand strategies or large projects often fail to assist the vulnerable in such nations as money can easily be embezzled away. Presently, the international system of trade has a wide range of inequities. Rich nations place high tariffs on the imports like agriculture and garment products, which are vital to the economic performance of the developing nations. These tariffs escalate with increase in processing level; hence discourage industrialization within the poor nations. Besides, multilateral trades negotiations are short of transparency hence exclude the developing nations from real action. Employing the procedures of WTO in settling trade disputes and other anomalies needs technical expertise and money, which the poor nations lack. However, saying that such flaws are serious deterrents of development in the struggling economies would qualify as overlooking the notable and outstanding success of China and Vietnam over the preceding two decades in exportation of manufactured products, Chiles wine and salmon exportation, and services exportation in India. All these nations have realized success in exportat ion regardless of the impediments. In fact, barriers on the manufactured exports sourced from the developing nations were higher when Asian tigers arrived on the international scene in 1960s and 1970s (Sullivan Sheffrin 145). Why Deny aid to the Poor Nations? Some ethicists claim that wealthy countries are under no obligation to help the poor ones. They claim that their moral duty is acting in manners, which will maximize happiness of the people as well as minimize their suffering. Aiding the poor countries, in the long term, will produce more suffering compared to the one it will alleviate. Countries with the highest poverty incidence have the highest rates of birth also. One-report estimates 90% of the total population growth of the world by 2025 will happen in the developing nations. Provision of aid to such nations will only facilitate survival and reproduction of more of these people, placing greater demands upon the limited food supply of the world. And as these countries populations swell, more individuals will be forced into the environmentally fragile and marginal lands, resulting into widespread degradation of land, which will further reduce the available land for food production. Increase in the demand of the limited supply of food combined with a reduction in food production will certainly threaten the future generations survival (Andre Velasquez Para 4). Other ethicists argue that little benefit, even within the short-run, is accrued from offering aid to the poor countries. The aid offered to the developing nations hardly reaches the individuals intended to benefit. On the contrary, it is utilized by the oppressive governments in subsidization of their military or on projects, which benefit the local elites only, or even end up on black market. Over 80 percent of the 596 million-food aid offered to Somalia was channeled towards the military as well as other public institutions within 1978 and 1984. Worse still, El Salvador channeled 80 percent of the US dry-milk-aid into the black market (World Bank 17). These illustrations imply that giving aid to the poor nations undermines any form of incentive on these nations part in their efforts of becoming self-sufficient via the programs, which would be of great benefit to their citizenry. Such programs include the ones that would help in controlling population growth or increasing productio n of food. Food aid, for instance, depresses the local prices of food; hence discourage local production of food as well as agricultural development. The poor dairy farmers from El Salvador found themselves facing stiff competition against the US-free milk. Consequently, many nations, such as Sudan, Zaire, and Haiti have become dependent on international aid. There are also some other ethicists who maintain that principle of justice dictates against giving aid to the poor countries as justice needs a fair distribution of both the benefits and burdens among peoples. Countries that have laid out effective plans for the requirement of their citizens through regulation of food production in order to foster an adequate supply of food for the present and a surplus in case of emergencies, as well as the countries, which have implemented programs for limiting population growth ought to enjoy their foresight benefits. Majority of the poor countries have irresponsibly failed adoption of policies, which would stimulate production and development of food. On the contrary, their resources are spent irresponsibly on military regimes or lavish projects. Consider the air-conditioned cathedral worth $200 million, constructed just recently in the impoverished Cote DIvoire nation. Worth consideration is also the 1986 fact that the developing nations spent a bout 6 times, of what they received as foreign aid to strengthen their armed forces (WCED 12). These nations failed the test of acting responsibly and should thus bear their consequences. Therefore, it is unjust for such nations to ask the others that acted responsibly to assume their burdens. All people are entitled to a basic right of freedom that includes the right of using all the resources acquired legitimately as they desire. The UN has somehow coerced the wealthy countries to offer financial and other humanitarian aid to the poor countries, which is a violation of their right of using their resources freely. Thus, aiding the poor nations is not obligatory but is praiseworthy. Summary International or foreign aid is essential towards the social, economic, and political issues facing the poorer nations. In fact, such aid has been significant in the humanitarian crisis faced by numerous nations, including the rich ones such as Japan, and this paper does not refute that fact. Moreover, a good number of rich nations also make donations for diplomatic or political reasons in the poorer nations. Most of the African nations seek international aid to sponsor their elections or referendums as was the case in Kenya in 2010 during the nations urge for a new constitution. However, the paper has shown that there are so many funds that are channeled into inappropriate programs and projects especially the ones favoring the governments receiving them. In addition, the donors (the rich nations) attach strings to their aid and the poorer nations benefitting from their aid must agree with their conditions. The paper has also shown that international aid is not essentially the only means of developing the poorer nations. Increasing market access and aid for the poor nations makes sense but do not have that much effect in terms of such nations development and economic performance. The wealthy countries should push some other measures, which could be more rewarding. Such measures could include giving the poor nations more control towards their economic policy, opening labor markets, as well as financing new technologies that are development-friendly. It is also clear that the rich countries should avoid giving aid to the poorer nations and give them space for their individual economic development. An illustration is the state of Vietnam, which has flourished without market preferences from the leading economic centers or much international aid. One essential means of developing the poorest nations across the world is giving their producers an effective access to the international markets, especially in America and Europe. Foreign development assistance or aid is viewed as being wasted on some corrupt recipient governments, or too much despite the good intentions from the donor nations. In reality, both quality and quantity of such aid have been quite poor and the donor countries have rarely been held accountable. Assumptions by the developed nations that the poor and/or the developing nations can only be developed via aid ignore some key lessons learnt over the past couple of years as well as the ones of economic history. Develop ment can only be determined to a large extent by the poor nations themselves while outsiders can only play a limited role. The developing nations have emphasized this stand but the rich ones often overlook it. Thus, it is true that financial aid as well as the further expansion of the wealthy nations markets are tools possessing only a small ability of triggering growth in such poor nations. This paper concludes that the poorer nations should not be given foreign aid as a means of developing their economies. The nations should rather look into their internal political and economic institutions to foster their governance, which could in the long-run boost their economic performance, development, and independence.

Design of Wind Turbine Control

Design of Wind Turbine Control ABSTRACT The main objective of this report is the design and analysis of the control of the wind turbine. In order to ensure an efficient energy capture from the wind and at the same time the mitigation of loads at natural frequencies, it will be designed the operating strategy of the machine. Furthermore, the control of the wind turbine will be also designed in order to ensure a stable performance of the system given the stochastic nature of the wind. As a last task, it will be analysed the differences and importance of having a system with a good or reduced crossover frequency. Introduction The exploitation of wind energy is undoubtedly the most popular tool for the tackling of climate change all over the world. The development of wind turbines has led to a variable speed pitch regulated configuration that aims to extract energy from the wind as efficiently as possible. As the penetration of wind energy becomes more and more significant in modern power systems, there is a need to meet certain criteria and quality of generation in order to maintain the reliability and security of supply above certain levels. In order to achieve an optimize energy capture and prevent the machine from excessive loads, the design of both operating strategy and controller of the plant need to be carried out. The difficulty of the design relies on the stochastic nature of the wind, so a carefully and detailed approach is needed. Also, as the controller of the turbine is the heart of its operation, the design of this will become more and more difficult with the size of the turbine [1]. The larger the turbine, the more structurally flexible the mechanical parts will become and it is at this point where the fatigue loads become a major concern, as they are closely related to the operating life of the machine and also to the operational and maintenance costs. The purpose of this report is to highlight the importance of the controller and the contribution to the energy capture, as well as the design of a suitable operating strategy that maximized the reduction of loads while ensuring an efficient performance. 2.1 Baseline and procedure The main objective of the control design of any wind turbine is to obtain a good trade-off between energy and loads. In variable speed pitch regulated turbines it is controlled both pitch and torque. The former is controlled to limit the aerodynamic power in above-rated power (hence, the loads), while the latter is primarily used to control the transmission torque in above rated wind speeds and to maximize energy capture below the rated power region. The operating strategy must be carefully design in order to achieve maximum power capture while limiting the aerodynamic loads in the mechanical parts of the wind turbine, as they are critical aspects of the lifetime of the machine. Therefore, the design of the operating strategy must include load reduction as an explicit objective. In this report, the design of the operating strategy has been carried out with a special focus on the control of the tower and drive train resonances, as well as the mitigation of the blade loads. In order to design the operating strategy, it has been provided a model of a 1.5 MW variable speed, pitch regulated turbine. In the model, it was obtained the mechanical characteristics of the machine (Blade length, Gearbox ratio and so on), along with the power coefficient values for below rated operation, where the pitch of the blades was -2 degrees and is fixed for below rated operation. With the above data, it was possible to set the Cp-ÃŽÂ » curve of the machine. This type of curves are used in wind turbine design to obtain rotor power for any combination of rotor and wind speed. By building this curve it is possible to obtain the maximum power capture. This is given by the power coefficient Cp, that it is a relationship between the power in the wind stream and the power generated by the turbine [2]. The desired operating strategy must try to achieve the maximum power capture, and hence the maximum value of Cp, and such operating point determines the optimum tip speed ratio ( ÃŽÂ »), which is the ratio between the rotor speed and the wind speed. Once the optimum point of power extraction is set, it is possible to build the model of the machine. For this machine, the generator will operate in a range between 1 rad/s and 170 rad/s. Therefore, having the gearbox ratio, it is possible to obtain the rotor speed given the following equation: By obtaining the range of rotor speeds of the machine, it can now be calculated the necessary wind speed for each rotor speed with the following equation: Where ÃŽÂ » represents the optimum tip speed ratio of the machine, which corresponds to a value of 8.4 in this design (for a Cpmax of 0.47). This range of wind speeds is used to obtain the aerodynamic torque, which is a function of the rotor speed and wind speed (when the pitch angle is fixed). Therefore, it is possible to derive the aero torque by the following equation: Where the values of and correspond to the optimum operating point. That is, for a given wind speed and rotor speed, the objective is to produce a torque such that the power extraction from the wind is maximum. Thus, the above equation will provide the torque values for the maximum energy tracking region. On the other hand, it is necessary to obtain the generator torque, as this will be used in order to determine the end of the first and second constant speed (To and T1). As it can be seen in the equation below, the damping losses have been considered. For this design, a damping of 5 has been assumed. The generator toque can be obtained by the following equation. Now it is possible to obtain the power generated in the machine by having an efficiency of 95% in this machine: And the torque at rated power of the machine is given by: The point where the rated power curve crosses with the second constant speed line, will determine the torque which will be generating at above rated operation. Finally, it has been calculated the values for the constant speed curves of the operating strategy. It has been applied equation 2.3, setting the wind speed constant (from 4 m/s to 12m/s) and calculated the torque for the different values of Cp and ÃŽÂ ». The resulting operating strategy will be such that will cross every constant wind speed by the point at which is the optimum power extraction point (Cpmax). 2.2 Operating strategy process Several factors must be considered in an operating strategy design. Having obtained the values in the previous section, it is possible to plot the maximum power extraction curve. The design must have special focus on the natural frequencies of the tower and blades. For this design, it has been provided the natural frequencies of both components. For the tower, the side-side and fore-aft frequencies. For the blades, the edge and flap frequencies were provided. Based on this, it must be analysed and compare those frequencies with the rotor speed (P), the 3P and the 6P component. It is desirable to design an operating strategy that avoids operating at multiples of the structural frequencies, as they are critical points of operation where the mechanical loads increase and the lifetime of the turbine can be reduced due to fatigue loads. Besides, the strategy must ensure a smooth switching at the first and second constant speeds with the operating curve. This has been achieved by setting both constant speed lines with a minimum length, in such way that the controller of the turbine is switching the to different operation modes excessively, as this could reduce the efficiency of the machine. Another important aspect to look at when designing the operating strategy, is to ensure that the wind turbine operation is not close to the stall front. The stall front curve is the curve that connects the maximum point of the constant wind speed curves. It determines the beginning of the stall region where the blades will be exposed to high loads and the power extraction will not operate efficiently. Based on the above, the design of the operating strategy was carried out. The first constant wind speed was set at 1.2 rad/s, avoiding a 6P frequency in the blades (flap natural frequency) that would appear at approximately 1 rad/s. As the design of the operating strategy must be a trade-off between energy capture and reduction of loads, it was decided the above as the best option for this machine. Rotor speed (rad/s) Generator torque (Nm) Aerodynamic Torque (Nm) Fist constant speed region (end) T0 1.2 1432.923 163076 Second constant speed region (beginning) T1 2.02 4640.24 462004 Rated torque 2.02 10137 853106 Table 2.0 generator torque at constant speed switching point The beginning of the second constant speed region is determined by the maximum generator speed which has been set at 170 rad/s (2.02 rad/s at the rotor side). It can be seen in Figure 2.0 the operating strategy curve of the machine, where it can be appraised that the operating strategy has avoided the 6P natural frequency stated above. The stall region is far enough from the operating region of the machine, ensuring a good performance and better efficiency. Figure 2.0 Aerodynamic torque-rotor speed diagram. Operating strategy curve of the wind turbine 2.3 Discussion of results In general terms, the design of the machine has been successfully carried out, as it can be seen in Figure 2.0, covering the following critical aspects of any operating strategy of a wind turbine: After carefully analysed the natural frequencies and compared with the 3P and 6P resonance frequencies, it has been set the cut-in speed of the machine at 1.2 rad/s. Also, this strategy will ensure that the damping losses in the machine do not have excessive effect on the power generated, as at very low rotor speeds the losses can overcome the power generated. The operating strategy ensures that the turbine will operate between the desired wind speed range. In this report, it has been set the wind speed range between 4m/s and 25m/s. It has been secured a smooth switching transient between the two constant speed regions and the maximum power tracking curve by establishing a reasonable size of the constant speed regions. It could be arguable whether this operating strategy is the most efficient or there are better options that would adapt to this wind turbine. The truth is that there are multiple options and different strategy plans depending on the preferences of the design. In this report, the aim has been to find a trade-off between load reduction and efficient power capture. 3.1 Baseline and procedure In order to achieve an efficient operation of the wind turbine, the control must play an important role in the operating strategy. An appropriate wind controller design will allow for a better wind energy capture as well as the mitigation of fatigue loads, as they considerably reduce the lifetime of the machine. Hence, the control task of a wind turbine is to maintain the appropriate operational state as the wind speed condition change, as well as enhancing its dynamic properties. In this report, the main goal is to design the operational controller, which is divided in two different regions, below rated and above rated power. At below rate conditions, the aim is to extract as much power from the wind as possible. This will be achieved by varying the reaction torque by measure the rotor speed or the output power. The second task of the controller is to ensure a smooth transition between the 1st constant speed region and the maximum power tracking curve. At above rated operation, the performance of the turbine will be carried out by pitching the blades. By doing so, it will allow the turbine to maintain the generation at the rated power value, take action to alleviate the increased loads at different parts of the wind turbine and to keep the desired stability margins of operation. For the above rated controller, it will be used a PI pitch controller along with an extra pole and zero and the set gain of the transfer function, resulting the transfer function as following: The nonlinearity nature of the wind turbine operation leads to a nonlinear control design. The gain scheduling is the most used control technique to accommodate the nonlinearities [3]. The performance of this technique is to continuously change the structure of the controller according to the local set points, such as aerodynamic torque, rotor speed and pitch angle. For instance, as the torque sensitivity varies nearly linear with pitch angle, it can be compensated by varying the overall gain of the controller linearly with pitch angle. As the design of the above rated controller is normally more tedious, it will be first designed the above rated controller and then, by varying the gain, redesign the below rated controller. Besides, when designing the controller of variable speed pitch regulated wind turbine, it must be paid special attention to the damage caused by the vibrations on the drive train, as it produces serious risks of failure. It has been noted that for the case of the wind turbine in this that the first drive train mode need to be actively damped, in order to alleviate the large torque transients at 13 rad/s. To obtain the transfer function of the drive train filter, it will be the general form of a band pass filter: The block diagram with the filter integrated can be seen in Figure 3.0. The design of the filter will be designed such that the filter feeds back only the oscillations at the resonant frequency. Figure 3.0 Plant with the drive train filter implemented As the drive train filter is located at the feedback loop, the equivalent transfer function of the plant and the filter will be given by the following equation: 3.2 Drive-Train Filter and Controller Design Drive Train Filter Design In order to damp to suppress the peak at the first drive train mode, it has been designed the transfer function of the filter. To do so, three parameters have been set in the transfer function. The gain (k), the frequency at which it is aimed to amplify in the feedback loop () and a scaling factor (n), which is used to set the frequency of the poles in the transfer function. After a trial and error procedure in MATLAB, the transfer function designed is the following: In Figure 3.1 is shown the Bode diagram of the system with and without drive train filter. It can be appraised that the peak in the drive train mode has been successfully damped, reducing the mechanical loads in the machine and hence, improving the lifetime of the turbine. Figure 3.1 Bode plot with the effect of the drive train filter in the system Controller Design for Above and Below Rated operation To control rotor speed and torque it is necessary to use pitch of the blades at above rated wind speeds. It has been designed a complete controller for the turbine for smooth switching between different operating modes. Apart from the pitch-PI controller, the gain scheduling technique has been applied to the design for the non-linear design section. The controller must assure a gain and phase margins above certain levels (4 dB and 30 degrees respectively) when checking the stability using the open loop functions, providing stability for the closed loop system. The aim is to provide good disturbance rejection at low frequencies, the required bandwidth at 1 rad/s, and good high frequency roll-off. With these main objectives, the transfer function designed for the given wind turbine is the following: It is shown in Figure 3.2 the Bode diagram of the controller, where it can be appraised the effects that the poles, zero and gain have on the systems. The proportional gain of the transfer function sets the initial gain value (20 log10 (|k|) and remains constant with the frequency. The proportional gain does not contribute to the phase of the transfer function.   Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   Figure 3.2 Bode diagram Above Rated Controller The pure integrator , produces constant gain contribution of -20 dB/dec from an infinite frequency. It also produces a constant phase of -90 degrees. The pole in the transfer function contributes to the gain with a negative 20dB/dec slope at its frequency of operation (1.95 rad/s). With respect to the phase, it contributes with a -45 deg/dec between a decade after and a decade before its frequency. That is, for a frequency of 1.95 rad/s, it starts to contribute at 0.195 rad/s and will end at 19.5 rad/s. The zero in the transfer function contributes to the gain with a positive 20 dB/dec slope and with a positive 45 deg/dec slope for the phase. Analogous to the pole, the phase contribution starts and ends one decade before and after the frequency of the zero. Knowing the above concepts and after a trial and error procedure, the gain scheduling technique was implemented and the design of the controller has been successfully completed. It can be seen in Figure 3.3 and 3.4 the differences between the effect of gain scheduling. It has been designed the controller for the plant dynamics at speeds of 12m/s,15m/s and 25m/s and applies for the same system with and without gain scheduling. Figure 3.3 Bode diagram of the plant without gain scheduling Figure 3.4 Bode diagram of the plant with gain scheduling It can be appraised that the system with the effect of the gain scheduling becomes stable, while without the gain scheduling system the gain and phase margins do not meet the requirements stated above for a feasible strategy. The design of the controller gives a positive gain and phase margin to the system at 1rad/s, ensuring the rejection of disturbances above these frequencies [4]. Once the above rated controller is designed, it has been carried out the design for the above rated operation. It has been tested for below rated wind speeds of 4m/s and 10m/s (resulting roughly the same response) and as it can be seen in Figure 3.5, the system has been successfully integrated as the phase and gain margin meet the specified requirements. As part of the gain scheduling implementation, the transfer function of the controller for below rated condition will just adjust the gain of the transfer function. After a trial and error procedure the transfer function obtained is given by the following equation. Figure 3.5 Bode diagram of below rated operation (with drive train filter) Note that for the below rated system analysis, there must be included the drive train filter at the feedback loop. 3.3 Discussion of results Based on the results, the design of the controller by applying gain scheduling technique has been successfully completed. As in any controller design, it must be aimed for good stability margin, both phase and margin, otherwise the system could destabilize and therefore cause high load fluctuations. Both below and above rated controller have been designed accordingly to these requirements and the phase and gain margin meet the minimum stablished (4dB for gain margin and 30 degrees for phase margin). 3.4 Effect of wind turbine size in the controller design. An important aspect of the controller design of a wind turbine is the size of the aforementioned. The wind turbine industry is going towards an increasingly bigger size of the turbines, which brings out new challenges when it comes to the design of the controller of the machine. As the rotor is continuously interacting with a very complex wind field, the prediction of the behaviour of the machine will become more difficult with an increase in size. In other words, as the size of the machine increases, it might be extremely difficult (when not impossible) to achieve the desired margins of stability, as the structural elements will become more flexible and dynamically more active. This does not necessarily mean that the system will become unstable with a bigger turbine, but proposes that controller need to be designed and tuned more carefully as the gain and phase margins will reduce. 4.1 Baseline and procedure As stated in section 3, the importance of the controller remains at the stability of the system. A system with low crossover frequency will present more fluctuations and a poor stability in terms of power generation, rotational speed or generator torque. The aim of this section is to give a better understanding of the design of a system with acceptable crossover frequency and also the importance of the drive train filter design, which as it was shown in the previous section, will help to damp the first drive train mode and therefore considerably reduce the mechanical loads. The will be compared for variables of the wind turbine for both above and below rated operation. The first tasks have been the comparison between the system with good crossover frequency and the system with no drive train filter. In order to do so, it has been compared the power output of the machine, the generator speed, generator torque and the pitch angle. For simplicity on the interpretation of the results, it will be compared the simulations at 15m/s of wind speed (above rated operation), and 9m/s of wind speed (below rated operation). For each wind speed, different turbulence of the wind field has been analysed. The second tasks have consisted on the comparison between a system with a good cross over frequency and a reduced cross over frequency. Again, to give the reader an easier understanding of the simulations, it will be compared the different systems at a wind speed of 15m/s. 4.2 Investigation of the controller performance Comparison between the good cross over frequency and no drive train filter systems It can be appraised in Figure 4.0, the power output of the turbine for wind speeds of 15 m/s and 9m/s. It is immediately apparent that for each speed, the higher the fluctuation, the higher the disturbance and therefore the less efficient energy production of the turbine. The mean production for 15m/s and higher disturbance accounts for 4.83MW and for 9 m/s is 2.8 MW. Compared with the wind field with small disturbance, the differences are not very noticeable, as the production accounts for approximately 4.7MW and 2.4 MW respectively. With respect to the comparison between the different systems, the figures show negligible differences between the system response at different disturbances. This is because both systems have a crossover frequency of 1 rad/s. Besides the reason why the system with no drive train filter seems to have no effect on the system is because as stated in section 3, the aim of the filter is to damp the drive train mode at a certain frequency. As it is being plotted the response over time, the slightly differences at the frequency of damping cannot be appraised in these figures. Figure 4.0 Power output of the turbine for 15m/s and 9m/s In terms of the generator speed (Figure 4.1), the same pattern than in the power output has been acknowledge. The higher the turbulence intensity in the wind, the more difficult the control of the generator speed, and therefore the higher the fluctuations. In terms of mean values, the 15 m/s wind speed produces a mean generator speed of approximately 120 rad/s for a high turbulence intensity, and 111 rad/s at 9m/s of wind speed. Figure 4.1 Generator speed of the turbine for 15m/s and 9m/s Talking about the generator torque, it presents the same patterns than the previous simulation, as it can be seen in Figure 4.2, where there are no apparent differences between the two systems, and the turbulence intensity influence the variation of generator torque. The mean values for the higher turbulence intensity are 26.2KNm and 42.4KNm for 9m/s and 15m/s respectively. For the lower fluctuation of wind, the mean values of torque account for 22.7KNm and 42.7KNm. Figure 4.2 Generator torque of the turbine for 15m/s and 9m/s As a final analysis, it has been plotted the pitch angle for the different system at different speeds. It can be appraised in Figure 4.3 that the pitching of the blades does not perform at 9m/s, except when the turbulence intensity is significantly high, in which case it might overpass the above rated wind speed and therefore the pitching start to act. By contrast, for the 15m/s simulation speed, the pitching angle varies constantly trying to absorb energy from the wind more efficiently. Figure 4.3 Pitch angle of the turbine for 15m/s and 9m/s Comparison between reduced and good crossover frequency It has been simulated the response of the two system with good and reduced crossover frequency. The good crossover system has a crossover frequency of 1 rad/s while the reduced crossover system is 0.5 rad/s. The results are shown in Figure 4.4 and 4.5, where some differences can be noticed. The reduced crossover frequency system has a more unstable generation of power for both turbulence intensity scenarios. As stated in Section 3, the system with a reduced crossover frequency will have a poorer performance under disturbances and will reject those more inefficiently than the one with a good cross over frequency. Figure 4.4 Power output and generator speed of the turbine for 15m/s and 9m/s Figure 4.5 Generator torque and pitch angle of the turbine for 15m/s and 9m/s Having designed and analysed the different aspect of a wind turbine controller, it can be concluded that the design has been carried out successfully, ensuring a stable performance of the system with an efficient mitigation of loads. It can be argued whether the design of both operating strategy and controller are the best option in terms of performance, but the main objective of this report is to give an understanding of the performance of the machine and the control system operation, as well as to understand the new challenges that the increasingly size of the wind turbines might bring to the design of the control strategy. [1] E. A. Bossanyi, The Design of Closed Loop Controllers for Wind Turbines, Wind Energy, vol. 3, pp. 149-163, 2000. [2] T. Burton, Cp-lamda performance, Chichester, Willey, 2011, pp. 173-174. [3] A. P. Chatzopoulos, Full Envelope Wind Turbine Controller Design for Power Regulation and Tower Load Reduction, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, 2014. [4] H. D. B. A. R. J. M. Fernando D. Bianchi, Control of Variable-Speed Variable-pitch Wind turbines Using Gain Scheduling Techniques, in Wind turbine control systems, London, Springer, 2007.