QUESTION:
What are the advantages and disadvantages of a multi-perspective approach to understanding organisations? In answering the question you will need to engage with the nature of the various perspectives and how they enable and limit our understanding of organisations.
For this assignment, we will focus on what in literary analysis is called close reading: analysis of the details of particular scene or episode in The Odyssey as support for a larger argument. This is, in some senses, something that we’ve been working toward in class every day, but in a real writing assignment it will be much more formal and detailed work. Your goals are to show me
that you can make an argument about how to interpret the details of a particular passage (close read), that you can support your interpretation with evidence from the world of the text (rather than simply your own opinion), and that you can organize your argument effectively.
PROMPT:
How do 2 particular scenes, dialogues, or episodes in The Odyssey work within the greater context of the book to persuade the reader to favor a particular set of values, ideas, or world-view?
The central aspect of your essay’s analysis should focus on a close reading of two particular scenes or passages from the text of your choosing. The goal is to get down to details. This close analysis should aim to exhaust all the ways in which your given passage supports your argument: take apart as much of the passage as possible, in as great a detail as possible, right down to individual word choices if necessary. You can choose literally any episode/scene/event that you want – so PLEASE choose something that interests you or that you found particularly compelling.
Your essay should have an Introduction that includes a statement of your thesis, which should explain the particular set of values/etc. that you think The Odyssey seems to reflect through these passages, which your close readings will support through analysis.
The body of the essay should focus on a close reading of your two chosen textual passages. Work on paragraph organization. Each paragraph should have a clear claim statement, and should focus on presenting detailed textual evidence and explaining how it can be interpreted to support your particular claim (and thus, your thesis). Keep in mind that your close reading of any single passage may span multiple paragraphs (i.e., don’t try to cram all of your analysis into one gigantic paragraph — organize paragraphs around clear claims, and divide up your analysis accordingly).
In your Conclusion, I want you to overview other aspects of the work that, in a longer essay, you might use in connection with your close reading as further evidence of your thesis.
Note that it doesn’t have to ‘work’ successfully; you can choose to focus on scenes that seems not to fit the greater pattern of the book, or choose two scenes that seem to suggest conflicting views. Whatever the case, your thesis should be an umbrella argument that your close readings (and their various claims) work to support.
really need a high quality paper, the reference required is contained in the attachment,(need at least 20 references)
the writher should be the one who have wide reading and familiar with the knowledge about management accounting and budget
Introduction
School counselors are required to demonstrate effective leadership roles to facilitate the realization of overall student success. This implies that student counselors ought to apply effective leadership approaches aims at the persuasion of educational goals in an institution. The leadership model should base on shared vision, which guarantees the participation of both the leader and the follower (Hargens, 1999).
Question 1
I have served as a leader under various situations. One of the most outstanding role that I played as a leader was to chair the sales committee of a business enterprise. In this context, I was in charge of ensuring that people usually reported on time and attended to their duties in an orderly manner. This meant that I had to deploy the use of authoritative leadership in order to get things done right and in a timely fashion. Despite basing the leadership approach on authority, I had to lead by example in order to gain the favor of those under me. The use of authoritarian leadership is not appropriate. However the situation demanded the use of authority in order foster effective carrying out of responsibilities (Brown & Trusty, 2005).
Question 2
There are diverse leadership qualities that I possess. One such quality is charisma. Charisma entails gaining a persuasion from those under you. This means that as a leader I had the responsibility to appeal to those under me. Another significant characteristic that I had for effective leadership was integrity. Integrity means that a leader ensures that the organizational values and principles are adhered, in order to realize the goals and objectives of the organization. In addition, I was flexible; this meant that as a leader, I had to adapt to the changing needs of those under me.
Question 3
There are significant aspects of my leadership approach that requires improvement. One of them is the need to incorporate motivational leadership in my leading practice. My leadership approach also lacks the concept of empowering and developing people. Empowering people involves motivating those under a leader towards the realization of both the organizational and individual goals and objectives.
Catrina Response
Catrina is correct when she asserts that that school counselors actually play the role of leaders since they participate in activities such as advocacy for students and ensure collaborations with other parties. It is important to note that school counselors play a significant role in the realization of educational achievement; this in itself is a transformational approach to leadership. As a head of the fundraising committee, the learner assumed the role of leadership through his involvement in various activities that aimed at the realization of the goals and objectives of the committee. In this context, the leadership approach is participative, which involves collective decision-making and the leader’s participation in undertaking the daily activities of the fundraising committee (Brown & Trusty, 2005). With this regard, the learner identified an appropriate situation that she served as a leader. It is important to note the leader has the responsibility of making final decision basing on the views of the members of the organization. Working with Catrina as a co-leader will not be an easy task, because of the way in she associates the decision making model through vesting the authority of the leader to influence the final decision. In the quest co-lead with Catrina, it will be important that the leadership model that we will use should embrace a few elements of participative leadership such as participation in the involvement of organizational activities. Elements such as the leader being imperial in the final decision are not necessary. An integration of transformational and participative leadership is an important approach to leadership since it puts into consideration the needs of the followers without impairing the leadership process (Reese, 2005). This means that the neither the needs of the followers or the leadership process is overlooked at the expense of one another. It is also imperative that Catrina has to improve on her communication skills in order to lead efficiently as a school counselor (Hargens, 1999).
Tammy’s response
Tammy on the other hand argues that leadership entails influencing others in the quest towards the accomplishment of a mission using strategies such as the outlining of mission, direction and using motivation. This concept of leadership is too general, although school counselors to motivate the students in the realization of educational goals can apply it. Tammy suggests that transformational leadership is an effective leadership approach in the case of a group leader for a course, because it primarily aims at improving the educational standards for the group members (Reese, 2005). With regard to effective leadership qualities, Tammy Contends to aspects such as cooperative, motivational and proactive leadership. These approaches are effective in administering leadership that entails motivating a group of people towards the realization of a common objective, which in this case is educational improvement. Co-leading with Tammy will not be difficult, since his leadership strategies are lay more emphasis on the needs of the group. An effective approach to co-lead with Tammy will involve integrating the leadership elements such as motivational strategy with moral leadership. Tammy’s approach to leadership in the context of student counseling is more effective compared to Catrina’s leadership strategies (Hargens, 1999).
Introduction
Workplace safety is one of the significant requirements that an organisation should put into consideration. Safety issues can be viewed from two major perspectives, that is, workplace violence and safety risks associated with the architectural design of the operational workplace making it prone to falls and site accidents. It is therefore imperative for a company that deals with the manufacturing to ensure that there are sufficient policies to ensure workplace safety, especially if it is more involved in outdoor activities (Kun et al, 2009). This paper outlines the plans and policies that the company should implement in order to prevent traumatic injuries because of slips and falls at the company and ways in which the company should address workplace violence.
Prevention of traumatic slips and falls
Traumatic falls and slips are usually due to the intervention design of the workplace, and in some cases, it is caused by ignorance of the workers. The most important approach to controlling the problem is improving the workplace design, putting into consideration the ergonometric parameters that are required for effective working environment that do not put the health of the worker at risk (Kun et al, 2009).
The first effective approach to reducing workplace slips is ensuring that are minimal instances of slippery and wet surfaces. Most of the workplace environment in the company entails walking, and slippery surfaces account for most of the accidents at the workplace. In places where the walking surface must be slippery, there should a warning that is clearly visible to the user of the surface informing of the condition of the walking surface and the appropriate cautionary measures that one should take. Traction in wet areas can be significantly improved through using appropriate anti-skid tapes, use of surface mats that are effective in absorbing moisture, and programs that are aimed for immediate cleaning of spills that may occur (Gallant-Roman, 2008).
The second approach to reducing slips and falls at the workplace is maintaining a proper lighting system. Illumination is required to increase vision response, which is a significant requirement for reducing accidents in less illuminated areas. The switches should be easily accessible, it is also important that appropriate program for repairs and fixtures be implemented (Gallant-Roman, 2008).
The third strategy in reducing slips and fall is avoiding the placement of obstructions in areas that are highly deemed as walkways. Obstacles can result to trips, which in turn can inflict injuries to the person. This can be minimized by avoiding loose and hanging cables that cut across pathways and the carrying out of continuous inspections that check for hazards associated with slips and trips at the working environment (Kun et al, 2009).
Appropriate footwear also plays an important role in minimizing accidents that are associated with falls and trips. Employs are required to put on appropriate footwear that matches the task. Controlling the behavior of the workers also plays an important role in minimizing workplace accidents. Employees should be restrained from using cell phones in work areas that are extremely dangerous, and they should avoid carrying items that might obstruct their vision.
Prevention workplace violence
Workplace violence is primarily caused by human factors. For the case of the microchip company, the most profound workplace violence types are type 1 that is caused by criminals who gain access to the working environment, type 3 that is caused by rows within the workplace and type 4 that is due to outside individuals who are have a relationship with the employee (Baron, 2000).
Eliminating type 1 violence primarily entails the use of methods that are aimed at ensuring that outsider access is limited. This type of workplace violence can be reduced through use of physical barriers for protection. Monitoring activities through video surveillance and the deployment of silent alarms and panic buttons can serve as an effective way of reducing violence that may be inflicted by outsiders. The most effective way of minimizing such a kind of violence is to limit access to the facility through appropriate security and authentication procedures (Baron, 2000).
Workplace violence that can occur within the organisation can be reduced through enhancing organizational culture, which is aimed at motivating the workers that they are an important part of the organisation. It is also important to have a well-written policy concerning the consequences of participation in workplace violence. Setting up an avenue through which employees can report their problems is also important in reducing workplace violence (Baron, 2000).
In trying to understand stars, Hertzsprung –Russell Diagram is the most commonly used tool in stars analysis. Hertzsprung Russell Diagram uses temperature, radii, mass and luminous aspect of stars, in order to find the relationship between their nature and physical elements. In this, the Hertzsprung Russell Diagram uses both magnitude and spectral nature to construct H-R plot diagram. When using H-R diagram, a star may be classified as a main-sequence star, if they lie within the top left hand corner of the H-R diagram and the down right hand side of the H-R diagram. This mean that, the main sequence stars lies within a hydrogen-burning stage and are being generated into helium. A Hertzsprung Russell diagram can also be constructed sing the luminous-temperature elements, that is, by plotting L against T diagram. In this, plot diagram, stars with high temperatures or else hot stars lie at the top left side of the diagram and less hot or cool stars lie at the down right hand side of the diagram or at the near end of the main sequence strip. If the Hertzsprung Russell is constructed by using the luminous and radii elements, stars will be classified on the basis of their size. In this case, they will be termed as giant and supergiant. Research has proven that gigantic and supergiant stars have no hydrogen to burn. Therefore, stars that lie below the main sequence strip are small while those above the man sequence strip are referred to as giant stars or supergiant stars depending on the luminosity and magnitude of the star in the L against M (luminous versus magnitude) plot diagram. Examples of a giant and supergiant star are Aldebran and Betelgeuse respectively.
When the H-R diagram is constructed using the radii, another type of stars are derived from this classification; dwarf stars. Dwarf stars are located below and left of main sequence strip in the H-R plot diagram. They are perceived, to have the same radii as that of the earth, that is, small radii. The dwarf stars are sometimes called, the dead stars since they no longer generate hydrogen and have low temperatures. Another property of dwarf stars is that their luminosity is low and only appears as faint and whitish. An example of dwarf star is Sirius B; its luminosity is perceived to be 8.6 years and a magnitude of 8.5 away from the main-sequence strip (Swamy, 2003).
How a star is born
The formation of a star is usually preceded by an existing mass of gas and dust. It is believed that, these two elements have atoms and nuclei if put under certain force, probably by the force of gravity, they are compressed together. This state of nuclei compression is referred as interstellar medium. The interstellar medium has a gas that fuses the elements atoms. If this state is maintained by both force of gravity and the atom fusion force, a star is creation progresses. However, for these elements to compress to a star, they first need achieve a protostar state. In the protostar phase, a nebula must be in state of collapsing. A nebula is termed as a cloud of gas consisting of both hydrogen and helium gases and some organic molecules. In the protostar phase, the nebula gases components are perceived to have varied density that compresses the organic molecules together. Temperature intensifies in this phase resulting to collapse of the nebula. The hydrogen atoms in the core of the nebula breaks at almost 2,000o C and at 10, 000o C a fusion occurs creating a sun like star now referred as a protostar. After the formation of a star, there must be stability of that star and it is achieved through a stellar equilibrium. The stellar equilibrium is achieved at the final star formation phase, that is, nuclear fusion force and the outward pressure must be greater than the gravitational force for the newly formed star to evolve.
How a star dies
After a star has fully fused its hydrogen atoms into helium, it is possible for the star to die. It is assume that if a star mass is half that of the sun, there is less electron degeneration and starts to exist as a dwarf star. This only happens to stars with low stellar masses. For stars with medium and high stellar mass like giant and supergiant stars, the helium gas fusion sheds off the outer layer of the star’s mass (Seeds, 2008).
Type I and Type II supernovae
White dwarf stars are known to exist in binary form, that is, they could be in type I or type II supernova. Type I supernova occurs, when the white dwarf are made up of carbon and oxygen gases only. There is exception of hydrogen component in white dwarf stars. This type of supernovae occurs during the nuclear fusion, involving high density masses probably from another neutron star. Type II supernovae occur when high mass stars with no nuclear energy explode on their own.
Sharpening the Warriors Edge: The Psychology and Science of Training
Introduction
One of the most imperative skills an army officer should possess is survival and combat practice skills. In his book, Sharpening the warriors edge: the psychology and science of training, Bruce K. Siddle attempts to offer different approaches that are helpful towards making one become an efficient army officer (Siddle 24). Siddle approach to army training laid more emphasis on combat performance and survival strategies. It is important to note that Siddle’s work was based on the studies of prominent sports psychologists. Prior to his research, sports psychologists used variables such as the rate of fluctuations in heart beats to measure the performance, because it is the only measurable biological variable that can be used to evaluate performance. Siddle’s research attempted to shed more light on the concerning the physiological effects that are bound to affect a person’s fear, for instance, increasing heart beat rates and declining skills. Siddle also attempt to explain how instructors can reduce such associated fears (Siddle 34).
According to Siddle, fear significantly determines the survival skills of an individual. This simply means that the way an individual and particular warriors have different strategies of surviving and is subjective to the levels of fear within them (Siddle 40). Siddle views a state of combat as a perceived threat that consequently engages the nervous system to take a reactive action. This is the basis of self-protection for a warrior or an army officer. The way the nervous system responds to a threat situation is autonomous and one has no control over it, except to adjust his fear levels. Survival skills training play an important role in determining the way a warrior responds to a threat situation (Siddle 45). Survival skills usually have a psychological effect on an individual and changes the way in which perceives a threat situation. According to Siddle, there are diverse factors such as increase in heart rate will significantly the way a warrior will respond to threat situation. Physiological factors also play a significant role in determining the visual sensory of an individual (Siddle 56). The visual system is an important element of self-protection and combat. The visual system is basically affected by factors such as the dilation of the eyelids. This results to visual narrowing and therefore impairing the survival skills of a soldier or an army officer. With a narrowed vision, an individual becomes accustomed to using binocular vision rather than using one eyed aiming. Binocular vision is imperative in cases of multiple threats, because the brain always focuses what the visual system reveals as the principal source of threat. Siddle refers to this concept as the light house effect; since a person under threat is subject to reduction of his visual field by approximately 75 per cent (Siddle 67). What this implies that it is important for a soldier to conduct a visual scanning in order to search for other potential opponents before embarking on a combat or self-protection strategy. Army officers should learn to regulate their heart beats; this is because at high heart beat rates, it is difficult to maintain a visual focus on the near environment. An army officer should therefore engage himself in an in depth perception; having a close analysis of the close and far objects. In order to engage oneself in an in-depth perception, an individual has to deploy the use of binocular vision, which tends to enhance in depth perception by approximately 30 per cent. The auditory system is another significant physiological element for an individual under threat. At high heart beat rates, the parts of the brain that is solely responsible for hearing is significantly impaired. The physiological factors also affect the brains; this basically explains why people in a battlefield hardly remember what transpired during a confrontation. The motor skills such as trigger pulling are also significantly impaired (Siddle 78). An overview of the above depicts that the human body experiences physical alterations during threat situations characterized by high stress due to the probability of mortal danger. A warrior should anticipate such physiological and psychological changes and he should be able to identify them when they occur and adequately plan on effective counter strategies to tackle them. Some of the approaches that Siddle proposes are outlined in the following paragraph.
An army officer or a warrior can counter the physiological and psychological factors in a threat situation in various ways. It is worth noting that SSR response to threat environment is autonomous and takes place without incorporating the conscious mind of an individual. One of the most effective ways to maintaining a heartbeat rate is through the use of skill confidence; this can be attained through mental training and in some cases, physical training. Another strategy training strategy that can be deployed is the use of simulation training. Simulation training can enhance ones confidence through making an army officer get used to the stimulus. The training that an individual undertakes should incorporate a realistic environment that is response based. Another important training aspect that Siddle suggest is the use of visualization, which serves as a mental imagery. Enhancing one’s breathing skills is an important martial arts requirement (Siddle 89). As an army officer, it is important have breathing skills. An effective breathing training that an individual should adapt must incorporate a consistent breathing cycle, which aims at reducing the heartbeat rate to about 115-145 beats per minute; this range is the most appropriate for individuals in a threat condition. It is important for a soldier to consider his life as precious, therefore appreciating the value of life. With this in mind, a soldier will put a lot of consideration in securing his life and that of his fellow members. On a similar account, another beings life is of ultimate importance. The morals of an individual are usually directed towards protecting one’s life and the life of a fellow being through avoiding cases of serious injury and death. In a self-defense scenario, an individual has to undermine his moral will and may be compelled to take the life of a fellow being or cause some serious injuries to the opponent. Perhaps, the most important attribute that an army officer should possess is the confidence in the mission. An army must believe on the mission in a manner that the benefits associated with the mission should outweigh the risks. Having that mentality is imperative in ensuring that a soldier can deploy appropriate combat strategies. The faith system of the military unit is also important in facilitating the way a soldier or a warrior will engage in a combat. People will not engage in a combat while the core issues are yet to be resolved. It is worth noting that a faith system that is resilient minimizes the chances and the fear of dying by an army officer. An instance is the September 11 events whereby the terrorists were already willing to die; therefore, they could not jeopardize the mission at hand. In the general sense, combat training should incorporate both motor skills and the various ways of handling psychological and physiological issues that may arise during a threat situation. In a combat situation, an army officer has to enhance his stimulus response time, contrary to the situation a police may find himself on the streets. An army officer must therefore learn a single response that can be applied to diverse situations; this helps in the reduction of a response time required by an army officer to respond to a given stimulus (Siddle 100). It also vital to understand the associated effects of the aftermath of a battle.an army officer should therefore have the necessary approaches that can be used to handle the psychological effects that are always as a result of war. For instance, the loss of a comrade, injuries that may render him not serving in the army and other backlash related effects on the mind.
The twentieth and the twenty first centuries have been marked by many changes in social, religious, political, and social realms, to mention just a few. Religious tolerance is one change that has been evident in most parts of the world. It refers to the condition where by people are allowed to practice their own religion and their religious practices without any hindrance. In such circumstances, religious tolerance is characterized by the practice of many and different religions in a particular area. In the view of the fact that most people are religious in nature, the condition affects almost every person in the society. For instance, the condition affects an individual, a family and other institutions in the society. As an individual, one is affected by the condition since it allows someone to practice a religion of choice without any hindrance. Any outcome of intolerance like violence and conflicts affects an individual negatively. In addition; it enables a person to relate with other members of the society effectively as there is usually no criticism that hinders effective relationship.
There are many characteristics of religious tolerance that can be observed in the community. In a family set up, it is possible to find that children ascribe to a religion that is different from their parents’. In addition, in a work place, it is also possible to find people of different religions. Some organizations which are religious based go the extent of employing people who ascribe to other faiths. According to Banerjee (2008), a study conducted in America indicated that most of the citizens believe that it is possible to ascribe to other faiths and still inherit eternal life. Further studies illustrate that more than seventy percent of those people who were examined agreed that other religions can still lead to eternal life. Therefore, although there has been cases intolerance, such studies are a clear indication of religious tolerance.
As much as religious tolerance is encouraged in United States, there have been a few cases of religious intolerance. For instance, last year, an article appeared in the New York Times with an aim of raising a voice against religious intolerance. The article titled ‘Concern Is Voiced Over Religious Intolerance’ by Goodstein explains that a meeting was held by prominent religious leaders from Jewish, Christian and Muslim faith to solve a case related to religious tolerance. The problem had been caused by the proposal by Muslim religious leaders to build an Islamic Community Center. Worse still, a Pastor from Florida by the name Terry Jones from Florida had planned to burn copies of Koran on 11th September to act as the anniversary of the attacks. However, most of the religious leaders and the state were against the plan as such an act would have led to more violence. Although religious leaders did not voice their position concerning the location of the Muslim Community Center, some religious groups like the National Council of Churches did not show any problem with the proposed location (Goodstein, 2010).
Islam has not only been regarded as a religion of war but also as a religion of intolerance as indicated in the Qur’an. According to the studies of Spencer ( 2005), Islam can be referred to as an intolerant religion because it refers to the Jews and the Christians as the ‘people of the book’ or dhimmis according to the Islamic law. Although they are not treated as pagans or idolaters, they are labeled guilty because of their rejection to Prophet Muhammad and due to the fact that they have distorted the revelations they received from (Allah) God. Despite the fact that non Muslims are allowed to reside in Islamic regions, they are not treated equally. On the contrary, most Christians do not have a problem with them since they allow them to practice their religion without any significant hindrance. Although the issue of religious tolerance can be controversial especially concerning the Muslim faith, evidence from the Islamic law indicates that the beliefs of the Islam faith have not yet embraced religious tolerance.
Introduction
Fraser Office Supplies (FOS) is an example of companies that have been long using conventional methods to mange their businesses and mange their clients. The case of FOS exemplifies a situation where a business entity cannot keep up with the current business practices, technology, emergence of new competition strategies, products etc. perhaps it is unfortunate that FOS management is unaware why their clients are leaving for other businesses at an annual rate of 30 percent. The key reason is that customers are becoming more dissatisfied with FOS products and services, that is, customer needs are ever changing with times. FOS should also appreciate the fact that high retention rates of clients have a positive impact to the business enterprise. Form an already known perspective; retention rates are driven by a desire to improve a business customer service and consequently improve the business bottom line. However, the implication of high retention rates on the financial status of the business has two facets; one is that a lot of financial commitment is called for to harness customer service oriented activities, thus budget allocation for customer’ retention activities area priority. The other implication is that high retention rates targets high valued customers who buy in large quantities. The objective of high retention rate is to improve the financial strength of the business entity. For a business to get new customers, the entity must first know the client’s needs before offering its products and services to them. After understanding the client’s perspective of the right product or service, good marketing skills and product delivery must be applied to win the customers trust and confidence. Perhaps the best approach that FOS should use, in analyzing and strategizing for a new marketing plan is to understand the reason why direct marketing had low response rate and clients. The means to get the attention of customers have changed over time, people are busy in twenty first century, they want to buy at their own time of choice, they are spoilt for choice and they want to have the best. Direct marketing at most uses catalogue marketing and face to face marketing strategy which has been overtaken by technology. Technology has offered an opportunity for clients to shop online at low cost and at their convenience. Anything less than this is non-appealing to clients. FOS realized the above was true when they established a website to market their products and services. Not only will the website be part of mass advertising strategy but people can shop and achieve their ideal product deliver service of their choice. Supplemented by a less than 24 hour delivery service after the clients have placed an order, a website would achieve higher sales than any other mode of advertising. Other than that, a website is an avenue where a range of service and products can be displayed to meet the diverse preferences in clients and hence achieving high retention rate than direct marketing. Customer relation is also highly achievable through a website due to its mechanism of an instant feedback from clients proposals, critics etc. FOS marketing manager Clare Prather would perhaps use $ 46, 700 of the previous annual revenue from the company’s top fifty clients. From this amount of money, she can use 5 % of the revenue in her marketing and customer retention oriented activities. FOS marketing strategy and objective is to grow the business wile at the same using marketing techniques that will increase the rate of client’s retention. In general, FOS marketing strategy was to use direct mail and online advertisement. However, this strategy becomes fruitless with time considering the expenses that were associated with learning the direct mails to existing clients. The other marketing strategy was using a website as a means of mass advertising and online ordering. The cost of operating and maintaining a website is cheaper compared to direct marketing. FOS major strength can be the strategic focusing on the existing customers. FOS use of good customer relationship management is the key to retaining clients and ensuring that heir sales volumes do not decline. However, the weakness element that comes with such a strategy is that, FOS is failing to target new clients and markets by concentrating on their existing clients. This will inhibit the growth and expansion of he company’s expansion in the long term.
Brazil officially called the Federal Republic of Brazil is located in Latin America. It is less in size as compared to the United States and lies on an area of 8,511,965 square kilometers. It is under federal form of government with twenty six states and a federal district with the capital city in Brasilia. President Luiz Inacio Lula Da Silva elected in January two thousand and three was currently replaced by the country’s first female President Dilma Rousseff in 2010 who heads the government and also is the Chief of state. Its economic influence in the region and being the highest in population in South America is very significant making Brazil ready to compete in the global market. It has continuously engaged in agriculture, exploitation of natural resources and industrialization which have developed the country’s economy.
Demography
It contains twenty six states with a population of about 198,739,269 according to the August 2000 Census. The urban population growth is on the increase making Brazil rank first in Latin America and fifth in the world. It comprises of six distinct ethnic groups which includes Portuguese who colonized them, blacks who initially were slaves and other immigrants. The indigenous population comprises of Gurani &Tupi. Intermarriages have resulted into a mixed cultural heritage which has led to social diversity. This has helped manage the issue of racial discrimination in the country in which the United States has contributed to the efforts of achieving equality in all sectors. The population engages mostly in agriculture especially coffee, sugarcane and cattle farming and mining of natural resources such as iron and bauxite. It ranks second in production of soya beans and livestock products after the United States. This has earned the country foreign exchange through exports which in turn has improved the country’s domestic economy.
The age structure of Brazilians contains 26.7% of people aged between zero to fourteen years, 66.8% aged between fifteen to sixty four years and 6.4% of those over sixty five years of age. It has a median age of 28.6 years with a sex ratio of male to female of 0.98 and a population growth rate of 1.199% according to 2009 CIA estimation. Infant mortality rate adds up to 22.58 deaths per 1000 live births. The fertility rate of Brazilian women is 2.21 kids per woman with a life expectancy of the Brazilians being 71.99 years. This indicates that Brazil has a great labor pool which needs to be exploited and this has made it to emerge as the leading country in the region. 73.6% of Brazilians belong to the Roman Catholic while 15.4% are Protestants with a multicultural population containing different ethnic groups similar to the United States such as blacks (6.2%), Asians, Mulatto (53.7%), and Whites (53.7%). The official language spoken is Portuguese since it was colonized. The country has the literate rate for adults as 88.6%. The growth of population in Brazil has offered the necessary workforce that has energized and engineered economic development. However, its high urbanized population (86%) most of which is located in Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro is characterized by unequal income and has continued to increase the cases of crime, social and environmental problems. Brazil’s economic expansion has resulted to jobs for the large population and a reduced unemployment rate of up to 8% in 2008 although a considerable percentage is still below the poverty level (CIA, 2009).