The Death Penalty Is Not A New Practice Essay - 1741 Words

For every unlawful deed, there is a consequence; and under the law of the state of Florida, death is an option for those who commit capital punishment crimes. In fact, Florida was the first state to reinstate the death penalty after the Supreme Court case Furman v. Georgia, and consequently, it was the first state to perform an actual execution after the court case settled. Though many citizens and politicians consider the state of Florida harsher than most states concerning the death sentence, it still falls short in one respect: gender bias. Literature Review Issuance of the death penalty is not a new practice in the United States, especially not in Florida. The death penalty has been a highly respectable; though criticized and controversial, form of punishment in the United States for almost 400 years. This punishment was first introduced in Virginia in 1622. Throughout most of the 20th century, the majority of states in the country permitted execution of convicted criminals. The practice dates back to early English common law, where virtually any person convicted of a felony offence faced a mandatory death sentence, but the practice has always been much more widespread in the US than in the United Kingdom, which abandoned capital punishment in 1973. For much of US history, capital punishment was extended beyond the crime of murder to include multiple offences. Among some of these were robbery, murder, rape, possession of unauthorized firearms and kidnapping inShow MoreRelatedThe Death Penalty Is Not A New Practice Essay1740 Words   |  7 Pagesconsequence; and under the law of the state of Florida, death is an option for those who commit capital punishment crimes. In fact, Florida was the first state to reinstate the death penalty after the Supreme Court case Furman v. Georgia, and consequently, it was the first state to perform an actual execution after the court case settled. Though many citizens and politicians consider the state of Florida harsher than most states concerning the death sentence, it still falls short in one respect: genderRead MoreCapital Punishment : An Effective Tool1493 Words   |  6 Pagessince the time the practice of the death penalty was implemented into the legal system. With the number of historical occurrences, it was widely acknowledged that the administration of capital punishment remains to be an imperfect embodiment of governmental power. Many studies in the context of criminological analysis have provided statistics, although inconclusive, regarding capital punishment as an effective tool in terms of deterrence. It was generally assumed that the death penalty is likely to deterRead MoreDeath Penalty Essay1355 Words   |  6 Pages History: Death Penalty according to britannica.com is the execution of an offender sentenced to death after conviction by a court of law of a criminal offense. Death penalty is different from extrajudicial executions because death penalty is carried out with the due process of law but extrajudicial killing is not and death penalty is only prescribed by the judgement of a judge in court after a case trial.The death penalty can be traced back to the biblical times because Jesus Christ was sentencedRead MoreCapital Punishment : The Death Penalty1644 Words   |  7 Pages Death Penalty in America Death penalty, which is often described as capital punishment, is pronounced on offenders who have committed extremely heinous crimes. It is an ancient practice but in the United States it has faced several controversies in the latter half of the twentieth century (Robertson, 14). Does the death penalty serve any purpose in our current judicial system? Criminal executions were first implemented in our society as a crime deterrent to ensure that the offenders cannot engageRead MoreThe Death Penalty : An Effective Reliable Tool904 Words   |  4 Pagesthe death penalty has been a frequent topic of discussion, as our recent technological advancements have evidently led individuals to consider the â€Å"new found† legitimacy of our court systems, as statistics display that our previous racial bias and the apparent morality of the practice itself have a miniscule impact on our conviction rate. Both the advancements and ethics that the death penalty provides become apparent through the utilization of anecdotes and statistics, as the death penalty has prevailedRead MoreDeath Of The Death Penalty1517 Words   |  7 PagesDeath, a word of sorrow, of pain, and of joy. Death happens to everyone eventually but what if it wasn’t your choice? What if someone else held your life in their hands? The Death Penalty dates back as far as the Eighteenth Century B.C under the ruling of King Hammurabi of Babylon(DPIC Staff). He was the first noted person to begin using the death penalty. The origin of death revolved around him and now the people of today feel that they are able to dictate how people die. Death is a prize to themRead MoreThe Death Penalty Should Be Abolished1691 Words   |  7 PagesThesis: The death penalty has to be abolished if American society wishes to progress. I. Introduction The death penalty, or capital punishment, is an archaic and barbaric practice; a fallacy of the criminal justice system. II. In the history of death penalty tells the accounts of the dramatic change over four centuries III. Counter argument A. Justice is the leading argument of supporters of capital punishment B. Supporters of the death penalty argue that the death penalty provides retributionRead MoreCapital Punishment Of The United States964 Words   |  4 PagesThe lawful infliction of death of an individual is what is referred to as death penalty. Majority of the countries in the world have abolished the practice, however, there is no cord that has been officially formed by world countries against its use (Cole, 25). China, which is the most populous country in the world, leads as it executes thousands of inmates yearly. United States of America still practices it even when it is perceived the most democratic republic on earth. As of today, 84 countriesRead MoreThe Death Penalty: The Case of Carlos DeLuna Essay1321 Words   |  6 Pagesand sentenced to death in 1989. Deluna protested that he did not commit the crime, however, he was arrested. He even went further, he named the culprit, a violent criminal named Carlos Hernandez. However, the chief prosecutor believed that Hern andez did not exist; he was only a â€Å"figment of DeLunas imagination.† About four years later the execution of Carlos Deluna, Hernandez admitted his crime of killing Lopez. Would everything be different if Deluna was not sentenced to death, but just imprisonedRead More The Death Penalty Contradicts Jesus Teaching Essay1143 Words   |  5 PagesIn the 21st century, Christians are faced with countless choices every day. The death penalty, a modern moral issue, is a choice that determines life or death. With reference to the New Testament and Catholic bishops and popes, the Christian perspective on Capital punishment is investigated. The Catholic Church has spoken out passionately about the need to protect human life. The fifth commandment, ‘You shall not kill’ relates directly to the dignity and worth of human life. This taking of

Computer Keyboard Essay Sample free essay sample

In calculating. a keyboard is a typewriter-style device. which uses an agreement of buttons or keys. to move as mechanical levers or electronic switches. Following the diminution of punch cards and paper tape. interaction via teleprinter-style keyboards became the chief input device for computing machines. A keyboard typically has characters engraved or printed on the keys and each imperativeness of a cardinal typically corresponds to a individual written symbol. However. to bring forth some symbols requires pressing and keeping several keys at the same time or in sequence. While most keyboard keys produce letters. Numberss or marks ( characters ) . other keys or coincident cardinal imperativenesss can bring forth actions or computing machine bids. Despite the development of alternate input devices. such as the mouse. touch screen. pen devices. character acknowledgment and voice acknowledgment. the keyboard remains the most normally used and most various device used for direct ( huma n ) input into computing machines. In normal use. the keyboard is used to type text and Numberss into a word processor. text editor or other plans. In a modern computing machine. the reading of cardinal imperativenesss is by and large left to the package. A computing machine keyboard distinguishes each physical key from every other and studies all cardinal imperativenesss to the commanding package. Keyboards are besides used for computing machine gambling. either with regular keyboards or by utilizing keyboards with particular gambling characteristics. which can hasten often used key stroke combinations. A keyboard is besides used to give bids to the operating system of a computing machine. such as Windows’ Control-Alt-Delete combination. which brings up a undertaking window or close down the machine. Keyboards are the lone manner to come in bids on a command-line History While typewriters are the unequivocal ascendant of all key-based text entry devices. the computing machine keyboard as a device for electromechanical informations entry and communicating derives mostly from the public-service corporation of two devices: teletypewriters ( or teletypes ) and keypunches. It was through such devices that modern computing machine keyboards inherited their layouts. Equally early as the 1870s. teleprinter-like devices were used to at the same time type and convey stock market text informations from the keyboard across telegraph lines to stock heart machines to be instantly copied and displayed onto heart tape. The teletypewriter. in its more modern-day signifier. was developed from 1903–1910 by American mechanical applied scientist Charles Krum and his boy Howard. with early parts by electrical applied scientist Frank Pearne. Earlier theoretical accounts were developed individually by persons such as Royal Earl House and Frederick G. Creed. Earlier. Herman Hollerith developed the first keypunch devices. which shortly evolved to include keys for text and figure entry kindred to normal typewriters by the 1930s. The keyboard on the teletypewriter played a strong function in point-to-point and point-to-multipoint communicating for most of the twentieth century. while the keyboard on the keypunch device played a strong function in informations entry and storage for merely as long. The development of the earliest computing machines incorporated electric typewriter keyboards: the development of the ENIAC computing machine incorporated a keypunch device as both the input and paper-based end product device. while the BINAC computing machine besides made usage of an electromechanically controlled typewriter for both informations entry onto magnetic tape ( alternatively of paper ) and informations end product. From the 1940s until the late sixtiess. typewriters were the chief agencies of informations entry and end product for calculating. going integrated into what were known as computing machine terminuss. Because of the deficiency of gait of text-based terminuss in comparing to the growing in informations storage. processing and transmittal. a general move toward video-based computing machine terminuss was affected by the seventiess. get downing with the Datapoint 3300 in 1967. The keyboard remained the primary. most incorporate computing machine peripheral good i nto the epoch of personal computer science until the debut of the mouse as a consumer device in 1984. By this clip. text-only user interfaces with thin artworks gave manner to relatively graphics-rich icons on screen. However. keyboards remain cardinal to human-computer interaction to the present. even as nomadic personal calculating devices such as smartphones and tablets adapt the keyboard as an optional practical. touchscreen-based agencies of informations entry. [ edit ] Keyboard types One factor finding the size of a keyboard is the presence of extra keys. such as a separate numeral keyboard. for convenience. Further the keyboard size depends on the extent to which a system is used where a individual action is produced by a combination of subsequent or coincident key strokes ( with modifier keys. see below ) . or multiple pressure of a individual key. A keyboard with few keys is called a computer keyboard. See besides text entry interface. Another factor finding the size of a keyboard is the size and spacing of the keys. Decrease is limited by the practical consideration that the keys must be big adequate to be easy pressed by fingers. Alternatively a tool is used for pressing little keys.

The Education System Essay Example

The Education System Essay This point has caused one of the main criticisms of looking at cultural deprivation as the reason for working class underachievement. Critics have argued that working class parents seem less interested and less encouraging because of their situation and circumstances. They want to show their children what life is like realistically for the working class, that high occupational status is a dream. Another criticism of cultural deprivation has been by those who feel that material factors are more important. These critics are structuralists, and think that it is important to focus on what parents can provide materialistically that would encourage their children to do better at school, for example a quiet room for homework and appropriate books. If there is not enough money for books, the student has to get a part-time job which is likely to result in less time spent on schoolwork, thus not doing well in exams. There are other critics of cultural deprivation who feel it is important to look at factors of the school which affect the performance of different social class students. For example, there are subcultures (anti-social, anti-school) which working class students are more likely to be drawn into, and so their educational performance is obviously affected. The next explanation was a criticism of the last one material deprivation, or material factors. These theorists believe the students homes background influences and affects them the most. This is very much a structuralist view. The argument is that working class parents cannot afford the materials necessary for their children to do well. We will write a custom essay sample on The Education System specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on The Education System specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on The Education System specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer The children are likely to share bedrooms with other siblings and dont have a quiet place for study, and my have to get a part-time job if their parents are not financially secure. Working class parents are also less likely to be able to attend parents meetings because they have a clash of time with work. Working class students are less likely to continue to higher education because their parents simply cannot afford tuition fees and the extra necessities of university. All these negative aspects of material deprivation are why many sociologists argue that material factors are why working class students are relative failures in the education system. However, as with inheritance and heredity, and cultural deprivation, material factors have also been criticised. Those who do not believe in material deprivation focus more on in school factors and how these affect performance. They argue it is more important to look at how the school can provide materialistically, but overriding this, culturally. For example, they look at the dominant culture and value system of teachers. In school, teachers have authority and students of working class, in particular, feel intimidated and do not want to do well. This often results in a case of teacher versus student values debate. Where the teacher may encourage the benefits of education, the student may feel that the teachers authority and nagging is discouraging. There are many other in school factors that sociologists have put forward, which became the next explanation interpretivist arguments. The interpretivist explanation for working class underachievement focuses on in school factors. They believe there are many things that happen inside school which prevent working class students performing as well as middle class students. One of these factors is subcultures, both anti-school and anti-social. Working class students find themselves easily drawn into these subcultures, often with excuses such as the teachers picking on me so Im not going to his/her lesson. Peer pressure is also a major issue in anti-school subcultures. When one student decides that school isnt for them and does not attend, they need somebody or several fellow students to truant with. Students who may have previously conformed do not want to be left out and join the anti-school feeling. Two important in school factors of the interpretivist argument are teacher labelling and streaming. Labelling is where a teacher prejudges a working class student, labelling them as useless, thus giving middle class students more attention and support. This drives working class students away in anti-school subcultures and holds them back from educational success. Streaming is where students are split and taught in groups of their perceived ability. David Hargreaves, an interactionist, claimed streaming created an increased amount of feeling inferior as lower stream boys progress to more mature ages. This affects how they feel towards education and more than often results in poor exam performance. As older students feel inferior and join anti-school subcultures, younger students find themselves without role models and in turn feel anti-school. Both labelling and streaming involve teachers stereotyping students of all social classes, which can lead to discrimination, e. g. sexism and racism. Again, interpretivists have also found themselves being criticised for their views. The critics are structuralists who feel it is more important to look at out of school factors and the students home background, in other words material and mainly cultural factors at home. Focuses are on things such as the values of and attitudes to education at home, and religious and cultural values. Critics argue that parents of working class students have very different values and attitudes to education than middle class parents. For example, working class parents may find it important to emphasise survival as key in their childrens futures, whereas middle class parents could believe in encouraging their children to aim as high as possible and achieve all they possibly can. Religious and cultural values are also important in the structuralist view. Where features of religion may interfere with how students are taught, their parents may choose to pull them out of the education system. A current example of this is the banning of the Muslim scarf in French schools. It is a vital aspect of Islam for females to wear a scarf, so where I has been banned, huge protests have been held and many Muslim parents have taken their children somewhere Islam can be practised and the children can be educated. Critics of interpretivists also think peer pressure in the area where the student lives is important. If there is an anti-school subculture in the area, the student is extremely likely to be a part of it as it its where they spend most of their time. As time has passed, each of the explanations offered for working class underachievement have become more developed, and have also faced more criticism. The first sociologists to look into this issue believe intelligence is inherited and measurable, and middle class parents are generally more intelligent. They also believe in IQ tests and think they are an excellent way of measuring intelligence. However, there are opponents to this suggestion who believe IQ tests are unfair and cannot be used to test member of different social classes and people of subcultures within social classes and ethnic groups. There are many weaknesses and not many strengths to the argument of inheritance and heredity. Though the sociologists argue that intelligence is inherited from parents, there has not been a study to prove that this is so, i. e. no evidence has been provided to back up this idea. They do, on the other hand, not deny that there are less intelligent middle class students and more intelligent working class children. I agree with the critics who claim that IQ tests are unfair because when an IQ test is created, it will in some way be biased to a certain group (usually the middle class). There would be questions on the test that working class children would not be familiar with, thus failing to perform well and being labelled unintelligent. This is an extremely unfair way to explain why working class students are relative failures in the education system. Cultural deprivation was offered by those sociologists who felt working class children were brought up in a culture where people around them placed a lower value on education and where their parents were much less interested in their schooling than middle class parents. I agree with the critics who say that it is unfair to say working class parents are uninterested in their childrens education because it is their circumstances that put them in that position. A weakness of this argument is that although a researcher may have looked into a working class family and found that their argument was proven correct, not all working class families are this way and many do encourage academic success. As a reason for working class underachievement, cultural factors are important to look at but do not apply to all working class families. The sociologists who argue that material deprivation at home is the cause for working class underachievement have a strong argument. They claim that working class parents are unable to afford the materialistic requirements of school and that this forces their children to fall behind and perform badly. Though this is a very valid argument, it is important to look at other factors as well as materialistic factors at home. For example, material and cultural factors at school are equally important, and should all be taken into consideration. The interpretivist argument focused on in school factors and how these affected the performance of students. The sociologists looked at things such as anti-school subcultures and teacher labelling and streaming. Like the sociologists who agree with material factors, interpretivists fail to look at other factors. They see in school factors as the sole reason for working class underachievement, which is not correct. Though it is also a valid argument like material deprivation, it should not be forgotten that the home background of a student is equally important to look at as well as the state of the school. I think that inheritance and heredity do not cause working class underachievement, but that a combination of cultural and material factors both at home and at school cause working class students to be relative failures in the education system. Where each individual theory counts out the others as valid reasons, I think this is wrong and that all count equally towards working class underachievement.

Free Essays on Essence

Free Essays on Essence I've always believed in numbers, in the equations and logics that lead to reason. And after a lifetime of such pursuits I ask, what truly is logic? Who decides reason? My quest has taken me through the physical, meta-physical, the delusional and back. And I have made the most important discovery of my career. The most important discovery of my life. It is only in the mysterious equations of love that any logical reasons can be found. I'm only here tonight because of you. You are the reason I'm. You are all my reasons. Thank you......

Research Method - Feasibility Study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Research Method - Feasibility Study - Essay Example As one of the most common mental health disorders, it is important for nursing staff to have a good understanding of bipolar disorder and how it affects the patient and their health. The most common pharmacological treatment for bipolar disorder is lithium salts, used as a mood stabilizer (Peacock, 2000). However, one of the most common side effects of taking lithium is that it increases appetite and thirst, and thus can cause significant weight gain in some patients. Some patients therefore request medication for their bipolar disorder that is not linked to weight gain, and thus the following PICO question (Chiappelli, 2010) was formatted: P – patients with bipolar disorder worried about weight gain I – other medication used in the treatment of bipolar disorder that are not associated with weight gain C – weight gain using lithium salts for bipolar disorder treatment O – control psychiatric symptoms whilst reducing the likelihood of weight gain The purpos e of this investigation is to search the existing literature on bipolar disorder and various medications to see if there are any that can be used to reduce mania, depression and weight gain. Discussion The literature chosen for this topic was found using the databases MEDLINE and OVID, two well-respected databases providing access to detailed and current nursing information. To complete the search, the search terms ‘bipolar disorder AND treatment AND weight gain’ were chosen, because this returned results providing the information necessary to complete the task. The search returned 6642 results, ordered by relevance. The five articles chosen were selected because they each discussed how a type of medication used for the treatment of bipolar disorder (not lithium salt based) affected patient weight and their symptoms of the disorder. As the search results were ordered by relevance, so results at the top were assumed to be the best for the research of weight gain and bipo lar disorder, although it would be impossible to brose 6642 results to ascertain whether this was the case. A search using ‘bipolar disorder AND medication AND weight gain’ was also conducted but the results from this search were not used because it returned many more results (over 10,000) and the returned results seemed to be irrelevant or all secondary sources. It seems that it would be extremely possible to complete a dissertation on this topic. The fact that 6642 results were returned from these two databases suggests that there is existing research on the topic that can be used to answer the PICO question in detail. It also suggests that the topic is of interest to those working in clinical situations, and that the weight gain aspect of lithium salts is bothering to many patients. The five articles suggested each describe a different type of treatment and how they can be used for bipolar disorder and how they affect the metabolism and weight changes within the body , and there were many more describing different treatments that may possibly be equally effective in treating bipolar disorder but avoid weight gain issues. The fact that there were so many resources in the literature also means that information can be found easily and used to the advantage of a dissertation. There were issues when conducting the search. There do not seem to be comparisons within the literature between lithium salts and the other types of medication suggested

Maynard Constructs A School Web Page Case Study

Maynard Constructs A School Web Page - Case Study Example administration can develop new websites and technologically relevant platform for the communication with the participant community and the stakeholders under flexible and friendly circumstances. The effective and full implementation of this approach will ultimately lead to the improvement of the administration of the institution and the improvement of the general performance of the respective institution. The case gives an in depth blend of how the approach combines tacit knowledge and a wealth of effective theoretical approach for the development of successful means of communication with entities both internal and external to the institution, means of building and maintaining stable relationship with the political and social capital and the best means of translating the above stated values into positive changes in the school set up and for the purpose of development and improvement(Kowalski, 2004). Through the exploration of the above themes the case looks into how the development of new and effective technologies can help in the success of an institution. The study has comprehensively factored in issues that affect the real world and ensured that for the development of a successful module in the institutions, the best practicable approach and technology has to be applied. In conclusion, the case has ensured that there is the need of harnessing technology to meet the needs of the public and the comprehensive factoring in of collection of data, public opinions and regular

Taiwan: Business Environment and Investment Opportunities

Taiwan: Business Environment and Investment Opportunities AN ANALYSIS OF THE BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT AND INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITIES IN TAIWAN HISTORY Pre 20th Century History Little archaeological evidence remains from Taiwans early history. People probably from Austronesia are though to have inhabited the island since 10,000 BC with migration from China in the 15th century. In 1517 Portuguese sailors reached Taiwan and named it Ilha Formosa (Beautiful Island). The Dutch invaded in 1624 and built a capital at Tainan two years later they lost the island to a Spanish invasion but returned the favour by booting the Spanish out in 1641. During the 1660s the Ming and Manchu (Qing) dynasties arrived on the scene, kicking out the Dutch and wrestling one another for control of the island. The Manchus eventually won, making Taiwan a county of Fujian province and triggering a flood of Chinese immigration. At the end of the 19th century, the Japanese decided to weigh in as well: Taiwan was ceded to them in 1895 following Chinas defeat in the Sino-Japanese War. The Japanese quashed a republican rebellion organised by the local Chinese population and went on to establish a military base on the island and to promote education and economic development. After Japans defeat in at the end of WWII, Taiwan was handed back to China. Modern History When Communist forces took control of China in 1949, the president, General Chiang Kai-shek and his Nationalist Party, the Kuomintang (KMT), fled to Taiwan to plan their reconquest of the mainland. Theyre still planning. One and a half million Chinese also left the mainland for Taiwan when Mao took control. The leaders of both Communist mainland China and the Republic of China (Taiwan) claim to be the voice of all China, but the international community has, almost without exception, chosen the mainland. In 1971 the KMT lost the Chinese United Nations seat, and in 1979 the USA withdrew its recognition of the Republic. When Chiang Kai-shek died in 1975 and was replaced by his son Ching-kuo, Taiwanese started muttering the word dynasty, and criticism of the one-party system rose. In 1986, those opposed to Chiang formed the Democratic Progressive Party and were granted seats in the legislature. Two years later Chiang died and was replaced by the first native-born president, Lee Teng-hui. Taiwanese politics is divided among those who want reunification with China (the KMT line), those who want Taiwanese independence, and those who want the status quo preserved. In 1995 relations between the two Chinas, always chilly, plummetted to a new low. Lee Teng-huis high-profile visit to the United States brought mainland China out in a rash of nervous jealousy. Determined to isolate Taiwan and sway the minds of its voters, China held intense military exercises near the Taiwanese coast. In response, the United States donned its global cop hat and sent a couple of warships to monitor the situation. Despite the regions sudden high concentration of itchy trigger fingers, the first direct presidential election was held without incident, and Lee Teng-hui was returned to office. Taiwans fortunes took a turn for the worse in September 1999 when a massive earthquake hit the island, the largest in its history, leaving over 2000 islanders dead and a rubble-strewn country. Even in this time of crisis, however, the snippy relationship between mainland China and the wannabe republic continued. A defiantly sulky China demanded that any country entering Taiwan to offer earthquake relief get permission from the Chinese government first: a demand that was met with less-than-hearty agreement from humanitarian organisations and other countries around the world. Recent History In March 2000, Taiwan elected its next president Chen Shui-bian, the candidate of Taiwans Democratic Progressive Party, who believe in a formal declaration of independence for the island. The upset ended 55 years of Nationalist rule and alarmed China, which regards Taiwan as a rebel province. In 2004, Chen Shui-bian was re-elected by a narrow margin following a possibly-dubious assassination attempt on him only hours before the election. In a concession to political opponents and a country fearful over its constant Chinese threat, Chen Shui-bian vowed to forge closer relations with China and leave the volatile issue of Taiwans sovereignty off the political reform agenda. BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT IN TAIWAN To adjudge whether or not a country is suitable for investment opportunities we must use certain parameters these can range from descriptive tools like reports available from various established organizations like The World Bank or The IMF. Else we can make use of diagnostic tools like PEST analysis which we will employ to analyse the business environment of Taiwan and look at the possibility of investment opportunities. PEST ANALYSIS (P)OLITICAL SCENARIO The political status of Taiwan is a controversy over whether Taiwan, including the Pescadores (Penghu), should remain the effective territory of the Republic of China (ROC), become unified with the territories now governed by the Peoples Republic of China (PRC), or become the Republic of Taiwan. Taiwans political status is complicated by the controversy over the Republic of Chinas existence as a state. Currently, Taiwan, Kinmen (Quemoy), Wuchiu (Wuciou) and Matsu off the coast of mainland Fukien, and Taiping (Itu Aba) and Pratas in the South China Sea effectively make up the entire state known as the Republic of China. The ROC government has in the past considered itself to be the sole legitimate government over Taiwan, as well as its former territories on the continent that include mainland China, Outer Mongolia and Tannu Uriankhai (part of which is present day Tuva). This position started to be largely ignored in the early 1990s, changing to one that does not challenge the legitimacy of PRC rule over mainland China, although the ROCs claims have never been renounced through a constitutional amendment. Different groups have different concepts of what the current formal political situation of Taiwan is. In addition, the situation can be confusing because of the different parties and the effort by many groups to deal with the controversy through a policy of deliberate ambiguity. The political solution that is accepted by many of the current groups is the following perspective of the status quo: that is, to unofficially treat Taiwan as a state and at a minimum, to officially declare no support for the government of this state making a formal declaration of independence. What a formal declaration of independence would consist of is not clear and can be confusing given the fact that the Peoples Republic of China has never controlled Taiwan since its founding and the fact that the Republic of China, whose government controls Taiwan, considers itself a de jure sovereign state. The status quo is accepted in large part because it does not define the legal status or future status of Taiwan, leaving each group to interpret the situation in a way that is politically acceptable to its members. At the same time, a policy of status quo has been criticized as being dangerous precisely because different sides have different interpretations of what the status quo is, leading to the possibility of war through brinkmanship or miscalculation. Hence we can say that Taiwan has a volatile political situation but is stable currently. (E)CONOMIC SCENARIO Taiwan has a dynamic capitalist economy with gradually decreasing guidance of investment and foreign trade by government authorities. In keeping with this trend, some large government-owned banks and industrial firms are being privatized. Exports have provided the primary impetus for industrialization. The trade surplus is substantial, and foreign reserves are the worlds third largest. Agriculture contributes less than 2% to GDP, down from 32% in 1952. Taiwan is a major investor throughout Southeast Asia. China has overtaken the US to become Taiwans largest export market. Because of its conservative financial approach and its entrepreneurial strengths, Taiwan suffered little compared with many of its neighbors from the Asian financial crisis in 1998. The global economic downturn, combined with problems in policy coordination by the administration and bad debts in the banking system, pushed Taiwan into recession in 2001, the first year of negative growth ever recorded. Unemployment al so reached record levels. Output recovered moderately in 2002 in the face of continued global slowdown, fragile consumer confidence, and bad bank loans; and the essentially vibrant economy pushed ahead in 2003-04. Growing economic ties with China are a dominant long-term factor, e.g., exports to China of parts and equipment for the assembly of goods for export to developed countries. A FEW RELEVANT STATISTICS GDP purchasing power parity $576.2 billion (2004 est.) GDP real growth rate 6% (2004 est.) GDP per capita purchasing power parity $25,300 (2004 est.) GDP composition by sector agriculture: 1.7% industry: 30.9% services: 67.4% (2004 est.) Inflation rate (consumer prices) 1.7% (2004 est.) Labor force by occupation agriculture 8%, industry 35%, services 57% (2001 est.) Unemployment rate 4.5% (2004 est.) Budget revenues: $67.41 billion expenditures: $76.7 billion, including capital expenditures of $14.4 billion (2004 est.) Industries electronics, petroleum refining, armaments, chemicals, textiles, iron and steel, machinery, cement, food processing, vehicles, consumer products, pharmaceuticals Industrial production growth rate 12.2% (2004 est.) Oil consumption 988,000 bbl/day (2001 est.) Agriculture products rice, corn, vegetables, fruit, tea; pigs, poultry, beef, milk; fish Exports $170.5 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.) Exports commodities computer products and electrical equipment, metals, textiles, plastics and rubber products, chemicals (2002) Exports partners China, including Hong Kong 37%, US 16%, Japan 7.7% (2003) Imports $165.4 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.) Imports commodities machinery and electrical equipment 44.5%, minerals, precision instruments (2002) Imports partners Japan 26%, US 13%, China, including Hong Kong 11%, South Korea 6.9% (2003) Debt external $55.5 billion (2004 est.) Investment (gross fixed) 18% of GDP (2004 est.) Public debt 32.4% of GDP (2004 est.) Current account balance $21.16 billion (2004 est.) Reserves of foreign exchange gold $246.5 billion (2004 est.) Hence after having a look at the economic structure we can say that a few indicators like the availability of labour forces, growth rates, inflation rates point to the fact that Taiwan is a stable economy and hence suitable for investment opportunities. (S)OCIAL SCENARIO Although the majority of the people residing in Taiwan (84%) are descended from 17th century migrants from China, the political power (and a substantial part of the economic power) of the island has been, until recently, almost exclusively held by less than one-fifth of the population. A population who fled to Taiwan in 1949 after the communist takeover of the mainland. Almost a half-century of co-residence has seen an integration of these two populations to some degree, with both pride in Chinese heritage and culture and national pride in being a resident of Taiwan, combining successfully to date. Taiwan is a society that supports strong Confucian values, reflecting the islands predominantly Chinese heritage (the native aborigines of Taiwan make up only 2% of the population). European influences have also made their mark, in the form of trading links (and some colonial aspirations) from the Spanish and Dutch in the 17th and 18th centuries. Japan has also had a more recent influence over the character of Taiwan: the island was occupied by Japan from 1895 to 1946, but this occupation although repressive at times was also a period of prosperity for Taiwan. Taiwan today is a vibrant and prosperous patriarchal society, which maintains the family as its basic foundation. Multi-generational households are the norm, with age being respected and children prized. The people are reserved, respectful and humble, although individual achievement and a hearty entrepreneurial attitude is found throughout the Taiwanese society. The practice of religious tenets, more so than pure belief alone, influences the Taiwanese character. Approximately 24% of the population is Buddhist, 16% is Taoist (Confucian) and 3% Christian. Much like other Chinese societies, respect and formality mark social relationships, and guanxi (guanji) is quite strong in Taiwan. Open conflict or direct criticism is avoided, as is any other action which could create embarrassment. Boasting or loud behaviour is to be avoided, although compliments are appreciated but usually denied. While many educated Taiwanese speak English, the national (and commercial) language is Mandarin Chinese, with many also speaking the local Taiwanese (Chinese) language. Varying degrees of English is spoken by many of the younger generation and the internationally educated. Taiwan is one of the most urbanised nations in Asia with over 60% of the population living in cities. Taipei, the capital, houses nearly 13% of the population, or approximately 2.75 million. Other major cities include Kaohsiung and Keelung. The people of Taiwan are well educated and have relevant knowledge of subjects like English and science. The society is a peaceful one and not very different from other South East Asian countries. The cities are well developed and the working conditions are conducive to conducting business. Hence investments with respect to the social structure will be a safe bet. (T)ECHNOLOGICAL SCENARIO Measures accompanying Science Technology (ST) development include the four main aspects of educating, training, recruiting, and rewarding ST manpower; the ST research environment; technology diffusion, intellectual property rights, and standards; and international ST cooperation. The goal of manpower training is to establish superior ST research and development manpower, which may be considered a RD software input. The goal of common research facilities is to provide the infrastructure needed for research, and this infrastructure may be considered a RD hardware input. Superior RD outputs can be obtained only after these two inputs are appropriately matched with funding. 1. Manpower education and training The education and training of ST development manpower includes the three aspects: (1) education in colleges and universities, (2) advanced studies in Taiwanese institutions and overseas for personnel selected by government agencies, and (3) training by vocational and professional training institutions. In addition, the Executive Yuans Implementation Regulations for Commendation of Outstanding Scientific and Technological Personnel, Executive Yuan and the Academia Sinicas Topical Research and High-level Manpower Training Program both serve to actively promote key ST research and train ST manpower. Apart from education in universities and colleges, the government also promotes the training of ST manpower via advanced studies or research in Taiwan and overseas for personnel selected by government agencies, and training by vocational and professional training institutions. A total of 37,945 students received Ph.D. or masters degrees in the natural sciences, engineering, medicine, agriculture, or the humanities and social sciences from domestic universities during the 2003 academic year. This number represented an increase of 16.3% over the 2002 academic year from this total 35,981 persons, or 94.8%, received masters degrees. See Table VI-1 for an overview of the various advanced ST manpower training and technical skills education training systems and their results in 2004. 2. Manpower recruiting In order to meet shortages of ST manpower, the government has implemented a number of policies and programs to train domestic high-tech manpower and recruit outstanding overseas manpower to work in Taiwan. It has established long-term targets for ST manpower recruiting, training, and utilization. The government has adopted simultaneous long- and short-term approaches to the recruiting of ST manpower. The Academia Sinica recruits overseas post-doctoral research personnel, foreign consultants, specialists, and scholars, and the NSC funds the recruiting of ST manpower, the hiring of post-doctoral researchers, the recruiting of research scholars, and the invitation of scientific and technological figures from China to participate in research in Taiwan 3. Rewarding Personnel The government offers a variety of grants and awards aimed at encouraging ST personnel to engage in academic research, technology development, and invention. Relevant honors include the Outstanding Achievement in Science and Technology Award, Academic Award, National Lectureship, Outstanding Research Award, and the Ta You Wu Memorial Award. Hence we can say that technologically also Taiwan is very superior and backed by Government. Technologically there should be no problems with investments in Taiwan. Therefore after doing a PEST analysis we can conclude that weighing all options Taiwan is a relatively safe place to invest resources. Now let us have a look at the various industries in Taiwan and try to zero in on an industry or a sector where a investments are a possibility.