Alien Nation or Conspiracy Theory free essay sample

Science is Extraordinary Since I was a little boy I’ve been interested in the vast field of science. I love everything from DNA analysis to looking into the far galaxies. When introduced to the theory that we (as in humans) were not the only life-forms on this planet, I was instantly hooked. Watching shows on the discovery channel about alien mimicry blew my mind every time I saw them. By the transitive property, the universe is infinite, therefore the amounts of planets are infinite, and therefore the amounts of life-forms are infinite. The one thing I hated about the study of aliens was that there was never hard evidence, only fuzzy stories from â€Å"wack-job† farmers. So when I found an article containing information about the Roswell UFO incident and other stories, I instantly wanted to use this article as my analysis for class. UFO Info Many accounts of people seeing UFOs have been heard of. We will write a custom essay sample on Alien Nation or Conspiracy Theory or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page They have been heard from all kinds of different places from all over the world. The Roswell UFO Incident is a case in which an object crash landed on a ranch on July 2, 1947, approximately 75 miles northwest of Roswell, leaving a large field of debris. A rancher claimed to find pieces from an alien spacecraft near his property. Eventually the USAAF (United States Army Air Force) said that the crash was from an experimental weather balloon. Some people believe that this was an actual spacecraft; some believe that a Japanese spyplane crashed. The Roswell Incident was right around the time of a huge rate of growth of technology in the United States. Some people believe that aliens helped humans and shared their technology, which is why we had the technology boom. One person who believes these theories is a man named William Cooper. He tries to proof that aliens do exist in his article UFO Cover-Up: Alien Nation Or Conspiracy Theory? Cooper’s First Encounter Cooper grew up in a military family. He served for the United States Air Force and the United States Navy for quite a long time. Knowing this, one should know he traveled all over the world serving. He had always heard stories of UFOs from other servicemen but never believed them. Cooper saw his first UFO while on his submarine, the U. S. S. Tyroot, which at the time was on transit between Portland/Seattle area and Pearl Harbor. Cooper was effective in his claim that he saw a UFO. He used so much detail describing the saucer; it was the size of a Midway class carrier which tumbled on its axis about 2. 5 nautical miles from his submarine. He even gave the exact name of his officer, Ensign Ball, who also saw the saucer again minutes later. He even makes a great claim stating that it was definitely not from this earth, because no man-made machine can fly in the air then seconds later effectively fly beneath the sea (William Cooper, UFO Cover-Up, abovetopsecret. om). Cooper Finds More Shortly after his first encounter on the submarine, Cooper was sent to Vietnam as a patrol boat captain. His job was to patrol the area around the DMZ. He then discovered that there were also reports of UFO activity in Vietnam, as well. He noticed that messages of attackers were reported as ‘enemy helicopters. ’ He knew that the North Koreans did not have any helicopters; they used guerilla warfare tactics. They defini tely did not have helicopters after the first U. S. air raids (abovetopsecret. com). Cooper’s claim was effective because he was an intelligent soldier describing soldier terminology. Any civilian would have not questioned a message of ‘enemy helicopters’ in Vietnam, but because Cooper was a soldier he knew the North Vietnamese did not have any. This shows a major flaw in the terminology used and shows that something was trying to be covered up. He even recalled that he knew for sure one entire village disappeared in one night (abovetopsecret. com). Cooper is absolutely sure that UFOs/aliens are among this world, in our time. Roswell Plus More Cooper continues to say that he received documents that were so unbelievable it took him a while to realize that they were real (he refers to the documents reporting alien activity) (abovetopsecret. com). He then makes a statement about the messages he receives â€Å"Occasionally we would get messages . . . and it would be coded in such a way that all you had were answers to questions which you didn’t know what the questions were so you really didn’t know what the message was all about† (abovetopsecret. com). Cooper then says he finds out about Project Grudge and Operation Majority. Grudge contained history of alien involvement since the mid 1930s and talked about the German Nazis trying to duplicate the technology they found in a crashed UFO around that time (abovetopsecret. com). He then brings up what people hold to be the biggest UFO mystery of time: the Roswell UFO Incident. He claims Russian and U. S. Scientists rebuilt a downed spacecraft in Roswell, New Mexico. He claims there were aliens (one alive and the rest dead) recovered from the craft; he saw photographs of live aliens, of autopsies, internal organs, and of the alive alien ‘E. B. (where it died June 2, 1952) in its captivity (abovetopsecret. com). At first he was ineffective in his claim because his own credibility is being questioned by himself. He blatantly says that the messages he received couldn’t always be decoded, which shows that the information he is giving could be made up. However, when he mentions Project Grudge (which really is real) and the Roswell UFO Incident, his claim was instantly effective about these incidents that he mentioned because these are well-known cases in which the Discovery Channel and other stations do reports on countless numbers of times. It’s much harder to deny evidence someone has seen with explicit detail than to deny a regular claim of a myth. One Short Shock One key idea Cooper talks about is hidden technology hidden among us today. He says that a lot of our development technology has been swapped out with Area 51 since the end of WWII on a regular basis and confidently claims that â€Å"We had technology way beyond the limits of what we have been told† (abovetopsecret. com). Cooper is effective in this claim because even if one believes in aliens or not, this is known to be true from the current supply and demand rule. The government releases little bits of technology at a time while constantly updating in secret. Area 51 has also been heard to stockpile technology, which also helps Cooper’s theory that we have technology beyond us hidden somewhere. Citing Oberth Cooper gives support to his own cause by citing Professor James Oberth, who was a well-known rocket scientist around the time of this technology boom. Cooper cites that Oberth addressed the public with the statement [about technological advancement]: â€Å"Gentlemen, we cannot take credit for all the technological developments that we have had in the last decade. We have had help† (abovetopsecret. com). He stopped there, implying that a more superior force helped them with the technological advancements. Oberth’s claim implies that there aliens/UFO among the human race at this time. Cooper’s source was effective in his claim that aliens are among us. Unless there are secret human geniuses that propelled the country into technological advancement, there has to be a more intelligent force helping the rocket scientists. The only explanation for this intelligence is intelligent beings not of this world. This reason definitely help’s Cooper’s argument that aliens do in fact exist. Project Redlight Cooper goes on to talk about Project Redlight. This project was to be carried out at Area 51, code name Dreamland, which was ordered to be built by President Eisenhower. The mission was to test/fly alien craft. This went well until an explosion was seen over a three-state area killing the pilots (abovetopsecret. com). Cooper then says that aliens supplied us with three aliencraft and helped U. S. pilots learn to fly. One of Cooper’s key claims to the fact that aliens do exist follows as such from a statement â€Å"The project is ongoing and we now have not only alien craft that we are flying, we have craft we have built, using the captured technology, and some of the UFO’s that people report seeing in the United States, and maybe even elsewhere, are flown by United States personnel† (abovetopsecret. com). Cooper was extremely effective in his claim that aliens do exist. Not only did he name the specific project name and mission for evidence, he used a direct quote (from an unknown source) that United States personal now have the ability to fly aliencraft. This strong argument certainly amazes me. The only thing that could make this claim ineffective is the fact that Cooper did not list who made that statement. The speaker should be noted for a reader to judge the credibility of the claim. Strength In Numbers William Cooper brings up the Billy Goodman show in Las Vegas. He says it’s the only show that multiple callers can call in and talk to each other for a designated time period as long as there is no profanity. The reason he brings this up is because a couple people said they saw aliens at a place called Groom Lake. Eventually one hundred people kept watch on the first night after this was heard. Shortly after these hundred people kept watch, the same one hundred people said they saw four aliencraft fly, doing things that no airplane and no helicopter could do (abovetopsecret. om). One hundred people certainly strengthen Cooper’s idea that aliens/UFOs do in fact exist. These one hundred people’s claims were very effective in strengthening Cooper’s argument that aliens do exist because there is definitely strength in numbers. This is a time that a story is way more believable because it is not the typical drunk farmer [stereotype] who claims to see an aliencraft zip by in the night. Government Secrecy Cooper continues t o claim that the government has known about aliens for a long time. Cooper knows the story will eventually come out and everyone will know aliens are real. He claims the government is desensitizing the people so that the people aren’t shocked when they find out that aliens are real; if the people were shocked the society as the people know it would collapse, the religious structure could fall to pieces, or the stock market could go insane (abovetopsecret. com). Cooper was very effective in his claim that the government knows about aliens and it’s gradually leaking information to avoid mass panic among the people. Such a sudden burst of high quality news could send the negative actions listed above spiral into action. Analyzing Logos, Ethos, and Pathos Cooper used a balance between logos and ethos throughout his argument, without using any pathos. When one would analyze Cooper’s use of logos, one would see he used clear, precise definitions in his arguments. He used quotations and cited information from his officers and known professors. He gave detailed opinions and reasons behind them. When analyzing his use of ethos, one could see that Cooper used appropriate language to his audience anyone who would read). He didn’t use complicated words and broke his argument down to a level that a lower age group, as well as a high age group, could understand. Cooper did not use any pathos at all. It is probably best that he did not use any pathos because he couldn’t have exactly argued a case debated for hundreds of years based off of his personal emotions. Overall Summary Throughou t reading UFO Cover-Up: Alien Nation Or Conspiracy Theory? , I thought William Cooper had a very thorough and effective argument that aliens do exist. He lists multiple personal experiences of himself seeing aliencraft and finding clues to alien existence. I enjoyed his explicit detail Project Grudge, Operation Majority, the Roswell UFO Incident, and Project Redlight. He used an appropriate amount of logos and ethos, and did a good job not being emotional and using pathos. Conclusion If I could meet William Cooper I would ask him questions in more detail that what has already been asked such as questions dealing with alien energy efficiency and speed travel. I am curious to know what really lies outside our solar system. Maybe it’s possible that aliens were once humans but mutated into a separate society. I will continue to watch shows on the Discovery Channel about alien encounters and stories and I will continue to believe in other life forms the universe is infinite, therefore the amounts of planets are infinite, and therefore the amounts of life-forms are infinite. Maybe sometime I might even try to go to Area 51 if I get a top-secret clearance from. If that does not happen, hopefully the government secrecy of aliens will cease to exist and the world will know of another race. It would be very interesting to see for myself the collections and data the United States Government/military has stockpiled away from society.

20 Creative Presentation Topics on Online Education

20 Creative Presentation Topics on Online Education Online education otherwise known as e-learning has come to stay and its mainstream acceptance by the corporate and educational industry gives it the legitimacy needed to attract individuals planning to further their education. Today,   majority of the higher institutions in the United States offer online courses to the public and, more importantly, credit in some of these courses are now been recognized by brick and mortar colleges across the world. Interest in online education is at an all-time high because students from every quota of life can now further their education following personal schedules, while professionals can also enroll for courses that help their professional development and attend the corresponding virtual classes after work hours. The phenomenal growth of online education has seen it become a subject matter to be studied and discussed in traditional classrooms. Therefore, once in awhile students may be tasked with drafting a presentation on online education and if you happen to fall into this category, here are 20 cool presentation topics on online education: The State of E-Learning in Higher Education Profitable Uses of Online Education in Government Departments Online Education and its Role in Corporate Learning Online Education as a Catalyst for Reforming Higher Education How Ivy Colleges are Using Online Education Discussing the Emerging Trends in E-Learning How Online Learning Can Reduce the Cost of Higher Education How Online Education Impacts Corporate Training The Impact of Online Learning in Adult Education Online Education vs Traditional Education: The Pros and Cons How Online Education Bridges Learning Gaps Gender Considerations in Online Education The Global Race for Online Learning How Online Education Aids Professional Development Online Learning: A 21st Century Approach to Education How Online Education aids distance learning Busting the Myths Associated with Online Education The Worlds Most Rapid Growing E-Learning Markets Reviewing the Tools that Make Online Education Tick Exploring Gamification as a Teaching Tool in Online Education So we come to the end of the 20 topics you can choose from when writing a presentation or research paper on the topic of online education. Going through the list, I believe you would agree with me when I say these are some cool presentation topics right? If you do, then do not hesitate to read the sample paper based on one of the listed topics above as well as to check on our 10 facts on online education and guide for a creative presentation. How Online Learning Can Reduce the Cost of Higher Education The cost of receiving higher education in the United States has skyrocketed to impossible heights and this has led to questions on the relevance of pursuing a professional course of study through traditional educational channels. The latest numbers on student loan debt puts the overall debt owed in the US at a trillion dollars and this figure does not include loans taken by students currently studying in our Nations Institutes. As student loan debts continue to rise to new heights due to payment defaults and the circle of new students seeking loans, online education is being currently discussed as a mean of reducing the cost of securing an education. To this end, a majority of traditional education institutes have integrated online learning as a means of studying at your own pace while minimizing the money spent in securing an education. This move by traditional institutions has led to a decrease in the cost of receiving higher education as can be seen from the example of Georgia Institute of Technologys online Computer Science masters degree program which costs approximately $35,000 less than the comparative on-ground program. The reasons given for its massive fee reduction includes the fact that students will not have access to on-ground facilities such as libraries, cafeterias, accommodation and utilities which means the University will not need to pay anything for their upkeep and physical comfort. Other reasons include not taking up the time of college professors who will be free to pursue other responsibilities and facility sharing between the University and provider of the Learning Management Systems (LMS) platform to be used. Concern on the cost of receiving higher education led to the formation of the National Center of Academic Transformation (NCAT) which tasks itself on developing policies that simplify education as well as the cost of obtaining one. In order to meet its goals, the NCAT has successfully introduced a paradigm shift in over 100 institutions on how popular courses are taught. The method employed is quite simple and involves the redesign of courses with multiple sections by introducing a single master course that covers every section in record time. The NCATs policy which has received financial support from major organizations including the Sloan Foundation and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, has been quite successful for to the integration of IT techniques and online learning tools. The use of online education by the NCAT has played a huge role in redesigning courses and the sharing of these master courses materials across multiple institutions online platforms. Thereby reducing the cost of higher education as well as the time needed to complete the popular courses most students participate in. Lastly, it is important to also note that as online education and its teaching tools become widely accepted or used in institutions of higher learning, a domino effect will occur and it would lead to a reduction in the fees students pay to enroll at traditional colleges in the near future. References: Justin, F. (2013). 10 Unique Facts about Online Learning. learndash.com/10-unique-facts-about-online-learners/ 8 Battaglino, T. Haldeman, M. and Laurans, E. (2011). The Costs of Online Learning. The Thomas Fordham Institute. http:// www.edexcellencemedia.net/publications/2012/20120110- the-costs-of-online-learning/20120110-the-costs-of-onlinelearning.pdf. Lee, Jr., M. (2011). The College Completion Agenda 2011 Progress Report. College Board Advocacy and Policy Center. http://completionagenda.collegeboard.org/sites/default/files/reports_pdf/Progress_Report_2011.pdf. Babson Survey Research Group: Tracking Online Education in the United States www.onlinelearningsurvey.com/reports/gradechange.pdf Santosh, K. (2013). Surprising Facts about Online Education. http://edtechreview.in/data-statistics/787-surprising-facts-about-online-education-infographic 41 Surprising Facts about Online Students on the Internet.collegeatlas.org/41-surprising-facts-about-online-students.html Kaplan Open Learning: The Facts about Online Education.careerealism.com/facts-online-education/

Current Events and U.S. Diplomacy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 3

Current Events and U.S. Diplomacy - Essay Example ion, in deed brought about transformation of the whole world’s politics resulting into a reformulation of economic, political, and military alliances in the entire world. This is evident from the current events and diplomatic relation that has improved between US and Russia since the end of the cold war. The objective of this paper is to explore the current relationship between US and Russia since the end of the cold war. The paper will also discuss the current US diplomatic approach to Lithuania, a former Soviet nation and provide a comparison of the relationships. Finally, the paper will summarize how the US has changed it relates to other countries over the past 20 years. The climax of Cold War gave Russia and United States a new chance to corporate. In fact, Russia took over the permanent seat which previously had been held by Soviet Union at the United Nations Security Council. It was also invited to join G-7, the world’s largest economic powers making it G-8. This has given Russia, and US and opportunity to cooperate in securing loose ties in the former Soviet Union. Trade has also improved between US and Russia. For instance, it is noted that Russia is the biggest producer of hydrocarbons, which US is the biggest consumer. The two nations have also developed a common bilateral corporation in missile defense as a way of ensuring security in the world (American Association for Advancement of Slavic Studies, American Council of Learned Societies and Ohio State University, 2009). However, U.S and Russia still lock horns in certain diplomatic matters. For instance, the United States has tried to push hard for further economic and political reforms in Russia, something that Russia sees as meddling in its internal affairs. The other area that has raised eye brows is the fact that US has invited other former Soviet Union countries to join NATO, an issue that Russia is opposed to. The two nations have also differed on the approach that should be used to

Career in Financial Planning Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Career in Financial Planning - Essay Example To be able to deliver that effectively, the scope that requires thorough understanding is listed below. A good financial planner understands investments, taxes, estate planning issues and strategies. In order to acquire adequate expertise, financial planners must be familiar with legal restrictions and laws concerning retirement plans, tax shelters, insurance, and trusts. There are several journals and other reliable sources that provide details which planners need to be aware of; few of the sources have been listed in forth coming sections. In order to succeed in financial planning one not only needs to know the details of various investments, tax law, estate planning strategies, but also needs to be an active listener, good at marketing oneself, above average interpersonal skills with an analytical mind that can work with numbers and budges, understand complicated financial and legal documents. In addition, they should be articulate, persuasive, and have fairly decent selling ability. While associating myself in knowing the significant elements of financial world, I have also kept myself engaged in developing the required skills. 4. Target Clients - High Net worth Individuals are a Key Target A growth area in financial planning and money management is targeting the high net worth individual. PSI, a financial services consultant, estimates that over 4 million US households have a net worth in excess of $1 million, which is encouraging enough to dwell more on this crowd to explore more opportunities for business and sales. 5. Sources There is benefit of attending local chapter meetings of financial planner organizations. The best way to find out the identity of a local chapter is through any of the three national financial planner organizations: (1) Institute for Certified Financial Planners (2) International Association for Financial Planning or (3) National Association of Personal Financial Advisors. I also plan to be updated from top trade magazines including Today's Realtor and Mortgage Banking Magazine and online at Inman News, the leading electronic broadcast service in real estate Informally I will also keep track of all the blogs veteran certified financial planners maintain, to develop some kind of competitive intelligence and be better facilitated with facts about the sector as a whole. Websites of leading firms that hire Financial Planners like AIG, Ameriprise Financial, Edward Jones, John Hancock. Primerica also will provide enough insights about the

Impact of Absenteeism on Productivity

Impact of Absenteeism on Productivity Employees of different establishments are entitled to a given number of leaves like sick and local leaves among others according to the law. Therefore, all organisations can expect a certain degree of absence and illness. However, it can be observed that more and more people in organisations are having frequent absences and many cases of illness have been recorded. In 2007, Confederation of British Industry/AXA Absence Survey has set the cost of absence to employers in the UK at more than  £13 billion a year, while cost per employee is  £659 annually. According to Williams (2003), in Canada also billions of dollars are lost each year due to absenteeism. Sickness absenteeism and sickness is therefore a growing major global problem affecting thousands organisations. High level of absenteeism is a serious problem for both large and small organisations, since they are costly to both individual establishments and economy as a whole and adversely affecting efficiency, productivity, and profitability. Sickness absenteeism and sickness can be an indication of fundamental organisational problems. Therefore, it is important to establish the cause and find out solutions through the examination of organisations policies and activities. There are several reasons why employees might be absent or fall sick. These reasons might be poor working conditions and relationship with management, no motivation, and no scope of self-development, a culture within the organisation and no career opportunities, too much stress at work among others. Thus, it is recognised that it is becoming necessary to find social and institutional remedies. When employees are absent and ill, it leads to poor productivity. And therefore, costs of the organisation rises as the goods and services are of poor quality. In the United States according to the Commonwealth Fund, about $260 billion are loss in output due to health-related problems. Hence, it is crucial for an organisation to understand the causes of sickness absenteeism and sickness and their impact on the organisation. Therefore, it is both the legal and morale duties of the employer to prevent people in the organisation from being made ill with their respective jobs. This is because, a healthy worker in both public and private organisations is important, as the corporate objective of organisations largely depends on health and as well non-health issues of its population. That is, happy employees are efficient and productive employees. Problem Statement The problem of high level of sickness absenteeism and sickness at work is an existing problem at Air Mauritius, affecting productivity. These are most frequent among staffs working on shift hours. The sickness absenteeism rate at Air Mauritius is illustrated as follows: Year Sickness Absences (man-days) 2006 12457 2007 14654 2008 17323 2009 15418 Out of the sickness absences recorded, an average of 23.5% is registered on week-end. In addition, a research of the non-communicable screening exercise carried out at the Head Office and the SSR International Airport among 1100 employees illustrates that an average of 50% of the persons are pre-diabetic or diabetic, have high risks of suffering from cardiac arrest and are either obese or overweight. Therefore, the above information gives a clear indication that the prevalence of health problems, absenteeism problem which is quite pronounced among employees of Air Mauritius Ltd. That is why, absenteeism and health issues have to be closely monitored and supported else it would have a serious effect on the performance of employees. Hence, the study will be based on finding the reasons of a high sickness absence rate and find ways to help employees to remain in good health. 1.3 Research Objectives Identify the causes of sickness absenteeism and sickness at Air Mauritius Ltd. Does sickness absenteeism and sickness impact on productivity at Air Mauritius Ltd. Give Air Mauritius Ltd employees incentives to be more productive and regular at work. Establish an absence management policy at Air Mauritius. 1.4 Proposed Methodology Data collection includes primary sources and secondary sources. The primary source includes an interview with the Human Resources department and the Health Safety department to find out the rate of absenteeism and sickness reports in the ground operations, engineering and cabin operations departments. Discuss with employees and collect data through questionnaire which will be administered to a sample of employees. Secondary sources consist of data collected from the companys website, magazine articles, journals records like Emerald, EBSCO among others and various books about human resources absenteeism and productivity. 1.5 The layout of the dissertation The subject under study will be presented as follows: Chapter 2: Literature Review Under this chapter, a literature review has been done concerning the nature of sickness absenteeism, sickness and productivity, their costs, the factors leading to sickness absenteeism and sickness and the possible solutions to reduce sickness absenteeism and sickness and increase productivity at work. Chapter 3: Company Profile This chapter set an overview of the company Air Mauritius Ltd. The business in which it operates, its products and its customers are described. Its work environment, management and staff population and its evolution are as well presented. Chapter 4: Research methodology This chapter explains the methodology that has been used to get an insight in the subject and discuss the limitations of this project. Chapter 5: Survey findings and analysis Here the findings that have been generated from the survey are presented using graphs, charts and they are analysed in relation to this project. Chapter 6: Recommendations and conclusion After the survey findings are analysed the shortcomings in the project are noted and recommendations are made. Annex 1: Sample questionnaire given to employees. 2 Literature Review 2.1 Definitions 2.1.1 Absenteeism In general absenteeism is defined as the failure to show for work or any other habitual duty. This usually disrupts work schedules adding workloads to those who are at work which might lead to low morale among employees. Therefore, absenteeism obstructs the good functioning of production and efficient running of an organisation. Lokke A.K, Eskildsen. J and Jesen. T. W (2007) similarly reported that the traditional definition of absence is about not being physically present at the place and time the employee is expected to be. Davey. M.M, Cummings. G, Newburn-cook. C. V, and Lo. E. A (2009) have defined absenteeism as the failure to appear to work when planned, and according to them absence is measured by frequency or amount of work days missed. The Entrepreneur (http://www.entrepreneur.com/encyclopedia) described absenteeism as an employees deliberate or habitual absence from work. Everybody misses a day of work now and then. But its a problem when an employee misses too many days of work. Not showing up for work can cause serious problems when other employees have to cover for the missing worker or, worse, the work simply doesnt get done. Another definition by Nicholson (1977, p. 237) said that Absence, in the language of economics, is an unpredictable variation in the firms labour supply and in labour-intensive and technologically primitive settings which can produce costly concomitant variations in output. Furthermore, Harvey and Nicholson (1993), p. 841 recognized that absenteeism was the major cause of lost productivity in business and industry. In a similar vein, Buschak. M, Craven. C and Ledman. R (1996) stated that absenteeism is a difficulty that every organisation or business faces creating costs and productivity problems. Thus, leading to a heavier work load on the majority of employees who have shown up for work. This type of situation tends to create dissatisfaction, frustration, stress and fatigue among employees 2.1.2 Types of Absenteeism There are two main types of absence voluntary and involuntary. Hackett and Guion, (1985) have defined voluntary absences as what is in the control of the employee. These can take form of short-term, casual and illegitimate absences which is based on the motivation of the employee. On the other hand, involuntary absences are what are beyond the control of the employee; they are usually due to sickness or family responsibilities. 2.1.2 Sickness Reijenga. F. A. (2006) defined sickness as all types of health problems or disabilities. As mentioned before there are two types of sickness, short term sickness for example influenza and long term sickness such as diabetes which is classified as a chronic disease. Tabaluyan, T., Kuswadji, S (1996) reported that sickness absence is defined as not being able to work due sickness or injury, that is, the incapability to work. In the same way, Employers Organisation, (2005) elaborated that sickness absence should include industrial injury, part days absence, and other self-certificated absence which is not explicitly ascribed to be an acceptable reason other than sickness. However, M. Borritz, R. Rugulies, K. B Christensen, E. Villadsen and T. S Kristensen (2005) indicated that sickness absence is a complex phenomenon that can be caused by individual, work related, organisational, and societal factors. Sickness absence has been discussed as a consequence of ill health,  a coping mechanism, behaviour of social equity, a reaction to organisational injustice, or a consequence of exposure to adverse work-environment factors. Furthermore, Whitaker S. also agreed with the fact that sickness absence is influenced by many factors like social causes other than health issues. 2.1.3 Productivity In an economist point of view productivity is a ratio of some measure of output to some index of input use, according to Eatwell and Newman (1991). Therefore, productivity is nothing more than the arithmetic ratio of amount produced to amount of any resources used in the course of production. An online definition by http://business.yourdictionary.com, stated that productivity is the efficiency with which output is produced by a given set of inputs. Productivity is generally measured by the ratio of output to input. An increase in the ratio indicates an increase in productivity. Conversely, a decrease in the output/input ratio indicates a decline in productivity. However, definitions of productivity in the above context are meant to the manufacturing sector. 2.1.3.1 Productivity in the Service Sector Rutkauskan. J and Paulaviciene. E (2005) have studied the concept of productivity in the service sector and they aroused that productivity, efficiency and effectiveness are terms that should be used together. This is because to be productive one should be both efficient and effective. The analysis of productivity is a difficult task in the service sector. As the productivity concept in the service sector involves both the organisation and the customer. According to Tolentini (2004) productivity depends on the value of the products and services and the efficiency upon which they are produced and distributed to the customers. Similarly in the research work of Maroto-Sanchez. A (2010) productivity is about being both efficient and effective. He described effectiveness as to how an organisation meets the active needs and expectations of its customers. Hence it can be seen that, to be productive in the service sector employees have to be both effective and efficient. Therefore, employers have to ensure that their employees are effective and efficient enough to provide a good service to their customers. 2.2 Causes of sickness absenteeism and sickness There are various factors that affect sickness absence and sickness. Factors affecting sickness absence in the aviation sector can be classified as health related issues such as injury at work such as musculoskeletal pains stress and fatigue and so on, and non-health related issues like organisational commitment, job satisfaction among others since according to Whitaker. S. research, sickness absenteeism is influenced by a variety of factors non-related to health. Testimonials that have been gathered among employees at Air Mauritius have proved that sickness absenteeism is mostly related to the non health-related issues. However, it is only after the analysis of the questionnaires that we will be able to understand the real causes of absenteeism and its impact on productivity. 2.3 Non Health-related issues 2.3.1 Organisational Commitment Organisational Commitment is typically measured by items tapping respondents willingness to work hard to improve their companies, the fit between the firms and the workers values, reluctance to leave, and loyalty toward or pride taken in working for their employers (Maume, 2006, p. 164). Similarly, Boolaky. M and Gokhool. D, p. 73 defines organisational commitment as the degree to which a person is committed to the organisation he or she is working for. The person is proud to be associated to the organisation and is committed to work towards the objectives and goals of the organisation. Many studies have reported that there is a relationship between organisational commitment and absenteeism. Gellatly, 1995 and Somer, 1995 studies have concluded that organisational commitment is negatively related to absenteeism. That is, when an employee is not committed to its organisation, this will tend to impact negatively on absenteeism. A research carried out by Meyer and Allen (1991) reported that commitment comprises three components namely affective, continuance and normative. Where affective commitment refers to the individuals emotional attachment to the organisation her/she is working, that is the individual participates in the organisations activities because he/she wants to. Continuance commitment is when someone realises that too much energy or time have been devoted to leave the organisation or that they would not be able to find another job. And normative commitment is when an individual feels that he/she has an obligation to participate in the activities of the org anisation and that it is the right thing to do. Meyer (1997) found that affective commitment was strongly linked to absence behaviour. However, normative commitment according to Meyer (1993) was negatively related to absenteeism on the other hand Somers (1995) has found no relationship between the two. And at last, Mayer and Schoorman (1992) concluded that continuance commitment did not have a strong relation with absenteeism. 2.3.2 Job Involvement Job involvement commonly includes identifying with the job,   actively participating in the job, and perceiving job performance to be important   to self-image (Blau. G. J, 1985; Rabinowitz Hall, 1977). Robbins (1998) defines job involvement as the degree to which a person identifies with his or her job, actively participates in it, considers his or her performance important to self-work. That is, job involvement refers to the extent to which one is committed and participates in his or her job. The direct relationship of job involvement to absenteeism is very ambiguous. Blau. G. J (1986) review of the studies carried out at that time, found that the studies had different conclusions; this is because there are differences in the measurement and samples taken. Taunton et al. and Cohen (2000) showed that there is a negative relationship between job involvement and absenteeism. However, job involvement and productivity have a positive relationship. That is, as job involvement increases, productivity increases and vice versa. According to W. H. Weiss (2006) employees who are involved in their jobs, that is, they have the know-how of why they need to carry out certain tasks and how does these contribute to the organisations goals are the most productive workers. Therefore, it can be noted that job involvement is necessary to increase productivity of employees. 2.3.3 Job Satisfaction Job satisfaction refers to an emotional state of mind that reflects an affective reaction to the job and the work situation, whereas the focus of organizational commitment is on a more global reaction (emotional or non-emotional) to the entire organization (Dipboye et al., 1994; Farkas and Tetrick, 1989; Lance, 1991; Russell and Price, 1988). (Falkenburg. K and Schyns. B, 2007, p. 710) Job satisfaction is defined as the extent to which people like (satisfaction) or dislike (dissatisfaction) their jobs (Spector, 1997, p. 2). This description implies that job satisfaction is a broad or global emotional reaction that individuals hold about their job. Researchers and practitioners have evaluated different facets or dimensions of satisfaction. Examining these facets is usually useful for assessing employee satisfaction with critical job factors. Traditional job satisfaction facets consist of: co-workers, pay, job conditions, supervision, nature of the work and benefits  (Williams). Studies have found that job satisfaction can also be an independent variable affecting both productivity and absenteeism. (Boolaky. M and Gokhool. D, p. 75). There have had many theories on the relationship between job satisfaction and absenteeism. Most of these studies concluded that as job dissatisfaction increases, self-reported absenteeism increases (Taunton et al. 1885, Drago and Wooden 1992). In 1982, a study made by the Business Roundtable stated that job dissatisfaction affects absenteeism to a great extent. Employers should understand that the companys goals and quality supervision are necessary for job satisfaction. It has also been noted that as size of job increased, job satisfaction decreased. Furthermore Hinze et al. (1985), report that identified the relationship between absenteeism and job satisfaction describe that absenteeism was lower among those who had strong cohesiveness that is, team spirit, and when management criticised workers for being absent it was observed that absenteeism was lower, employees who regarded their work as mentally inspiring had fewer absences. Moreover Hausknecht, Hiller and Vance. (2008), defined job satisfaction as the sense of enjoyment that individuals derive from their experiences on the job and within the team they work with. Therefore, according to this report high attendance is expected in working environment where there is high satisfaction. This is because, the members of the team have this feeling of belonging and support among themselves. Moreover, it can be observed that in a working environment where there is high satisfaction it increases the level of productivity. P. Valdes-Flores and J. A. Campos-Rodriguez (2008) describe job satisfaction as a set of favourable or unfavourable feelings for the employees to perceive their work and that determine the possibility of a major disposition to achieve higher performance, consequently, job satisfaction refers to an individuals general attitude towards his or her job. Link between involvement and commitment Blau (1986) had developed the interaction of job involvement and organisational commitment and how this affected absence behaviour. Moreover, Blau and Boal (1987) refined the idea. The study reported that there are four level of contribution of high and low of job involvement and job commitment. When job involvement and job commitment are high, employees are not likely to be absent and if they happened to be absent this could be due to genuine sickness. This type of employees is called institutional stars. Those who experience a low job commitment but high job involvements are absent because of career prospects or due to working environment, these persons are called lone wolves. Individuals with low job involvement and high organisational commitment called the corporate citizen respect their co-workers and also abide to the norms and goals of the organisation they work for. Those could be absent from work in according to the organisations lawful absence rules. And lastly the apatheti c employees identify themselves having a low job involvement and organisational commitment, they have highest rate of absence. Link between organisational commitment and job satisfaction Many studies have reported the association between organisational commitment and job satisfaction (Meyer et al, 2002). According to Levison and Moser, (1997) employees tend to be lethargy without job satisfaction, which reduces organisational commitment. Furthermore, a study carried out by Steers and Rhodes (1978) stated that job satisfaction and organisational commitment play a big role in determining employee attendance. Griffeth et al (2000), indicated that organisational commitment was a better predictor of absenteeism than job absenteeism. However, as job satisfaction is more about the emotional state of mind, it is influenced by daily events rather than organisational commitment which cover the organisation as a whole and develops over time (Sagie, 1998). Link between job satisfaction and job involvement Wegge. J, Schmidt. K, Parkes. C and Dick. R. V (2007) found that events at work impact on how employees feel at work thus determining job satisfaction. Furthermore, job involvement measures the importance of the job to ones self opinion and therefore represents personality differences. Job satisfaction is situational variable and job involvement personality in our reasoning. Thus, they both interact. That is, if job satisfaction is low, job involvement will negatively affect absenteeism. However, when job satisfaction is high in any situation it will overcome the impact of job involvement on absence behaviour. Job satisfaction therefore has a moderate impact on job involvement and absence. To be more precise, when job satisfaction is low, job involvement is negatively related to absenteeism whereas, when job satisfaction is high, job involvement is not associated to absenteeism. 2.3.4 Organisational Culture Morgan. G has described organizational culture as: The set of the set of beliefs, values, and norms, together with symbols like dramatized events and personalities, that represents the unique character of an organization, and provides the context for action in it and by it. Another definition of organizational culture by Schein. E a pattern of shared basic assumptions that the group learned as it solved its problems that has worked well enough to be considered valid and is passed on to new members as the correct way to perceive, think, and feel in relation to those problems.   Norms influence everyone in an organisation; they are unwritten and usually tell things like they are influencing everyones perception in the organisation and they contribute to the norms and support them. Nowadays, we live in an absenteeism culture. According to Smit (2000), absenteeism and culture are negatively related. That is, employees encouraged and supported by the society to call a sick leave. However, employers do support absenteeism as a cultural phenomenon. That is, when people take sick days when they are not sick, employers accept this as a cost to the organisation. (Allen. R. F, Higgins M. 1979) 2.3.5 Motivation Robbins and Coulter (1999) have defined motivation as the willingness to exert high levels of effort to reach organizational goals as conditioned by that efforts ability to satisfy some individual need. Luthans (1998) stated that motivation is the process that arouses, energizes, directs, and sustains behaviour and performance. That is, it is the process of stimulating people to action and to achieve a desired task. One way of stimulating people is to employ effective motivation, which makes workers more satisfied with and committed to their jobs. Money is not the only motivator. There are other incentives which can also serve as motivators. Steers Rhodes (1978), developed the most common model of absenteeism. They depicted that attendance is determined by the employees motivation to go to work. However, Lee (1989) evaluated the theoretical facts of the Steers Rhodes Model (1978) and found that motivation is not strongly related to attendance. Nevertheless, the study of Burton. J. P, Lee. T. W, Holtom. B. C (2002), claimed that sickness absenteeism was related to ones motivation to attend work. That is, according to some theories sickness absenteeism is not only due to illness but it may be voluntary, Brooke (1986). Employees might use sickness as an excuse not to go to work, where there are other causes of this particular behaviour, Martocchio (1996). Moreover, the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) suggested that in order to reduce absence, the best way was to ensure that employees are well-motivated by their jobs. And to motivate employees, employers have to keep them informed of their behind-the-scenes strategies for survival during recession, Anne Fairweather (2009), head of public policy at an organisation. Motivated employees can be productive employees. Recognition, working environment and work achievement are factors that can keep employees motivated thus highly productive. Employees who achieve the goals directed by their supervisor are usually well-motivated. And expect recognition after the long hours of hard work, for instance an increase in salary, bonuses or promotions. According to a research carried out by Personnel Today (2008), employees were more productive when they received recognition for their work and praise from management. Working environment is another factor to motivate employees in being productive and need to be provided with a pleasant environment to work. Therefore it can be noted that motivation is necessary to increase productivity. Personal Issues Every employee in any organisation has to go through personal issues. It can be observed that facing these issues most of the time and energy of that particular person is focused on their personal issue they are dealing with. Personal issues can take the form of family problems, ill parents or young children to take care of, drug abuse, drinking problems, sexual orientation and many more distracting one from his or her job. According to Ericson (2001) issues like child and eldercare, single-parent families are those characteristics that might lead to an impact on absenteeism at any level in an organisation. Furthermore, Goff et al. (1990) found that when ones work and family issues are conflicting there is a greater frequency of absenteeism. It has also been noted that management in most organisations are lenient, staffs make excuses of being sick so as not to attend work, consequently, recording a sick leave. This is also common in the aviation sector especially among staffs having odd working hours; they find it easier to register for sick leave so as to be able to manage their own issues. Shift work influence the working choices of parents and to be able to retain shift workers child-care services should be offered, P. D. Brandon and J. B. Temple (2007). Employees have to make sure that they do not bring their personal issues into the office. Therefore, organisations must be able to provide a pleasant environment where employees would not think about their personal issues instead of concentrating on their work. Some company might also provide psychological help to their staffs. As personal problems can lead to a fall in productivity. Health Related Issues Health promotion seems to impact positively on employees health, morale, level of sickness absenteeism and productivity. Unfortunately it is noted that the necessary structures and facilities to promote health are not available at Air Mauritius, however, management has shown its intention to change the situation and has establish wellness and fitness centres. Chronic Diseases Chronic diseases do have an impact on employees sickness absence and sicknesses at work, example of chronic diseases are diabetics, cancers among others. The productivity of the organisation is also affected when the employee is ill. For example an employee suffering a particular form of cancer will have various complications and might not be able to attend work for a few days. This will lead to a lack of staff, thus increasing the workload of others. Therefore, organisations can exercise some control over illnesses by ensuring a safe and healthy workplace, proper ergonomic design, health and safety management 27policies/practices to address absenteeism in the workplace (Ericson, 2001). These can facilitate healthier working environments and provide favourable conditions to reduce absenteeism and enhance satisfaction and productivity. Fatigue and Stress According to the New Grolier Webster International Dictionary of English Language fatigue is defined as the tiredness of a persons physical or mental energy. More precisely it is described as a specific reaction of our central nervous system and muscular system due to exertion (S. L. Smith et al., 2009). That is, the exhaustion of strength due to continued stress. Stress on the other hand is identified as factors causing mental or emotional strain or tension to a person (New Grolier Webster International Dictionary of English Language). Khodabakhsh Ahmadi and Kolivand Alireza, (2007) stated that stress is often used to describe the bodys responses to demands placed upon it, whether these demands are favourable or unfavourable. In this context however, stress is related to the work place where due to unsatisfactory work organisation, management, environmental design and differences between the efforts put into work compared to the rewards received (S. L. Smith et al., 2009). The level of work-related stress has increased consequently during the past few years in the aviation sector. C. Kelleher S. McGilloway, 2005, claimed in a research carried out for an Irish airline that the level of work-related stress among stress is high. Khodabakhsh Ahmadi and Kolivand Alireza, 2007, have found that the level of work stress among military pilots has also increased. The report of the ITF 2009, indicated that there has been a serious increase in stress and fatigue since 2000. There are various causes of work-related stress and fatigue in the aviation sector. The odd and long hours of work which usually results in overtime, drain staffs both emotionally and physically. Fatigue and stress is also caused due to the lack of rest. Airline staffs working in different time zones and odd hours are the ones experience chronic sleep deprivation. A rise in the level of flights and passengers has led to uncontrollable work load due to high work demands causing stress and fatigue among staffs. The tradition of overbooking flights in almost all airlines is the cause of various problems. Passengers who find themselves left behind due to the lack of seats on the flights are usually furious and tend to shout at staffs using abusive language thus stressing them. People working in the aviation sector have experience a consequent rise in the stress level at work (S. L. Smith et al., 2009). Hence this impact on sickness absenteeism and sickness thus affecting the productivity level of employees. Injury at work An organisation must make sure that it provides the proper safety equipment to its employees. This is because accidents can happen where employees could be injured. This would cause sickness absenteeism due to the employees inability to attend work, leading to a fall in productivity due to the lack of employees and increased work load on those present at work. Also the costs

Acids, Bases and Natural Indicators Essay

Nowadys, indicators have become technologically advanced and can be used for the main purpose of indicating whether something is acidic, basic or neutral. This is possible because in solutions of different pH, the colour of the inidcator will change simultaneously with pH change. This is made possible by pigments in the indicators. Hand made indicators include universal indicator, methyl orange, phenolphthalein and many more. Acids and bases are diverse in this world. They are everywhere ranging from foods to trees to rocks and many more. Indicators can be used to determine whether these substances are acidic, basic or neutral. Manufactured indicators are one type and the second type is natural indicators. Believe it or not, the majority of fruits, vegetables and flowers contain pigments which may be used as acid-base indicators. For example, Red cabbage contains within its leaves a red pigment called anthocyanin. This is present in many other vegetables such as capsicum, carrot, tulips and many more. This anthocyanin has the ability to change colour in a variety of pH due to certain chemical reactions that take place involving H+ and OH- ions. Read on to discover the chemistry involved in these reactions. Anthocyanins are complex molecules that have the ability to add and/or subtract hydroxide (OH-) ions. When anthocyanin is added to acidic solutions, hydroxide (OH-) ions will leave the anthocyanin molecule. On the other hand, when anthocyanin is added to basic solutions, the OH- ions from the water will attach themselves to the anthocyanin molecule.Therefore, anthocyanin is general name given to a series of similar compounds each with a different number of OH- ions attached. Anthocyanin is an indicator for the reason that each form of the compound reacts with light differently so that each form is a different colour Anthocyanin can be extracted from natural plants and vegetables in many ways. A very common way of extracting anthocyanin form plants is to place the  plant in low boiling point alcohols which have been acidified with HCl and boiling for a while. There are other methods of extracting anthocyanin from vegetables. One very common method is boiling the vegetable in distilled water and waiting till boiling starts. The water reacts with the anthocyanin pigment which allows wxperimenters to use this water as the indicator. Anthocyanin presents many vegetables such as beets, berries, cherries, fiji apples, eggplant, grapes etc with the red-purplish colour. Anthocyanin gives colour to plants for a reason. This colour of plants and flowers helps attract pollinating animals to the flowers and aslo animals which help in seed dispersal.

Dissolved Oxygen Essay

Oxygen in Liquids (DISSOLVED OXYGEN) Dissolved Oxygen – the amount of dissolved oxygen in a body of water as an indication of the degree of the health of water and its ability to support a balanced aquatic ecosystem. Oxygen – is a clear, colorless, odorless, and tasteless gas that dissolves in water. Small but important amounts of it are dissolved in water. OXYGEN: Aquatic Life Depends on it Plants and Animals depend on dissolved oxygen for survival. Lack of dissolved oxygen can cause aquatic animals to leave quickly they are or face death. Factors Affecting Oxygen Levels Temperature Rate of Photosynthesis Degree of Light Penetration (turbidity & water depth) Degree of Water Turbulence or Wave action The amount of oxygen used by respiration and decay of organic matter Oxygen in the Balance Dissolved Oxygen levels that are at 90% and 110% saturation level or higher consistently considered healthy or good. If the Dissolved Oxygen are below 90%, there may be large amounts of oxygen demanding materials. What Is Dissolved Oxygen In Water? Dissolved oxygen in water is vital for underwater life. It is what aquatic creatures need to breathe. Why Is Dissolved Oxygen Important? Just as we need air to breathe, aquatic organisms need dissolved oxygen to respire. It is necessary for the survival of fish, invertebrates, bacteria, and underwater plants. How Is Dissolved Oxygen Measured? Dissolved oxygen concentration can be reported as milligrams per liter, parts per million, or as percent air saturation. Polarographic Cell It is very similar to the galvanic cell. However, the polarographic cell has two noble-metal electrodes and requires a polarizing voltage to reduce the oxygen. The dissolved oxygen in the sample diffuses through the membrane into the electrolyte, which usually is an aqueous KC1 solution. If there is a constant polarizing voltage (usually 0.8 V) across the electrodes, the oxygen is reduced at the cathode, and the resulting current How is proportional to the oxygen content of the electrolyte. This current flow is detected as an indication of oxygen content. Galvanic Cell All galvanic cells consist of an electrolyte and two electrodes (Figure 8.43c). The oxygen content of the electrolyte is equalized with that of the sample. The reaction is spontaneous; no external voltage is applied. In this reaction, the cathode reduces the oxygen into hydroxide, thus releasing four electrons for each molecule of oxygen. These electrons cause a current flow through the electrolyte.. The magnitude of the current flow is in proportion to the oxygen concentration in the electrolyte. Flow through Cells In the flow-through cells, the process sample stream is bubbled through the electrolyte. The oxygen concentration of the electrolyte is therefore in equilibrium with the sample’s oxygen content, and the resulting ion current between the electrodes is representative of this concentration. These types of cells are usually provided with sampling consisting of (but not limited to) filtering and scrubbing components and flow, pressure, and temperature regulators. Thallium Cell Thallium cells are somewhat unique in their operating principle and cannot be classified into the category of either galvanic or polarographic cells. At the same time, they are of the electrochemical type. One thallium-electrode cell design is somewhat similar in appearance to the unit illustrated on Figure 8.43c except that it has no membrane or electrolyte. This cell has a thallium outer-ring electrode and an inner reference electrode. When oxygen contacts the thallium, the potential developed by the cell is a function of  the thallous ion concentration at the face of the electrode, and the ion concentration is in proportion to the concentration of dissolved oxygen. Fluorescence-based Sensor In this case, a compound containing ruthenium is immobilized in a gas-permeable matrix called a sol-gel. Sol-gels are very low-density, silica-based matrices suitable for immobilizing chemical compounds such as the ruthenium compound used in this measurement technique. Effectively, the sol-gel is equivalent to the membrane in a conventional DO sensor. Using fiber optics, light from a light-emitting diode is transferred to the backside of the sol-gel coating. The emitted fluorescence is collected from the backside of the sol-gel with another optical fiber and its intensity is detected by photodiode. A simplified sensor design is shown in Figure 8.43g. If no oxygen is present, the intensity of the emitted light will be at its maximum value. If oxygen is present, the fluorescence will be quenched, and the emitted intensity will decrease. Twinkler Titration The Winkler Method is a technique used to measure dissolved oxygen in freshwater systems. Dissolved oxygen is used as an indicator of the health of a water body, where higher dissolved oxygen concentrations are correlated with high productivity and little pollution. Temperature Effects Pressure Effects Salinity Effects Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD) Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD) is a measure of the oxygen used by microorganisms to decompose this waste. If there is a large quantity of organic waste in the water supply, there will also be a lot of bacteria present working to decompose this waste. In this case, the demand for oxygen will be high (due to all the bacteria) so the BOD level will be high. As the waste is consumed or dispersed through the water, BOD levels will begin to decline. Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) is a measure for the quantity of oxygen required for the biodegradation of organic matter (carbonaceous demand) in water.It can also indicate the amount of oxygen used to oxidise reduced forms of nitrogen (nitrogenous demand), unless their oxidation is prevented by an inhibitor. A test is used to measure the amount of oxygen consumed by these organisms during a specified period of time (usually 5 days at 20 ÌŠÌŠÌŠÌŠC). Classification: BOD is devided in two parts which is Carbonaceous Oxygen Demand and the Nitrogenous Oxygen Demand. Carbonaceous Oxygen Demand – it is the amount of oxygen consumed by the microorganisms during decomposing carbohydrate material. Nitrogenous Oxygen Demand – it is the amount of oxygen consumed by the microorganisms during decomposing nitrogenous materials. Relationship of DO and BOD If the Dissolve Oxygen (DO) of a water is high, the Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD)is low. If the BOD of the water is hight, the DO is low.Therefore DO and BOD is inversely Proportional to each other. Why we should need to know BOD? BOD directly affects the amount of dissolved oxygen in rivers and streams. The greater the BOD, the more rapidly oxygen is depleted in the stream. This means less oxygen is available to higher forms of aquatic life. The consequences of high BOD are the same as those for low dissolved oxygen: aquatic organisms become stressed, suffocate, and die. Knowledge of oxygen utilization of a polluted water supply is important because: 1. It is the measure of the pollution load, relative to oxygen utilization by other life in the water; 2. It is the means for predicting progress of aerobic decomposition and the amount of self-purification taking place; 3. It is the measure of the oxygen demand load removal efficiency by different treatment process. Factors that contributes to variations in BOD The Seed Is the bacterial culture that affects the oxidation of materials in the sample. If the biological seed is not acclimated to the particular wastewater, erroneous results are frequently obtained. pH The BOD results are also greatly affected by the pH of the sample, especially if it is lower than 6.5 or higher than 8.3. In order to achieve uniform conditions, the sample should be buffered to a pH of about 7. Temperature Standard test condition calls for a temperature of 20 ÌŠC (68 ÌŠF). field tests often require operation at other temperatures and, consequently, the results tend to vary unless temperature corrections are applied. Toxicity The presence of toxic materials may result increase in the BOD value as a specific sample is dilluted for the BOD test.Consistent value may be obtained either by removing the toxic materials from the sample or By developing a seed that is compatible with the toxic material in the sample. Incubation Time The usual standard lab test incubation time is 5 days, results may occur at a flat part or occur at a steeply rising portion.Depending on the type of seed and the type of oxidable material, divergent result can be expected. Nitrification In the usual course BOD test, the oxygen consumption rises steeply at the beginning of the test owing to attack on carbohydrate materials. Another sharp increase in oxygen utilization occurs sometime during 10th to 15th day in those samples containing nitrogenous materials. How we determine or measure BOD? Five-Day BOD Procedure The BOD test takes 5 days to complete and is performed using a dissolved oxygen test kit. The BOD level is determined by comparing the DO level of a water sample taken immediately with the DO level of a water sample that has been incubated in a dark location for 5 days. The difference between the two DO levels represents the amount of oxygen required for the decomposition of any organic material in the sample and is a good approximation of the BOD level. Test procedures: 1. Take 2 samples of water 2. Record the DO level (ppm) of one immediately using the method described in the dissolved oxygen test. 3. Place the second water sample in an incubator in complete darkness at 20oC for 5days. If you don’t have an incubator, wrap the water sample bottle in aluminum foil or black electrical tape and store in a dark place at room temperature (20 ÌŠC or 68  °F). 4. After 5 days, take another dissolved oxygen reading (ppm) using the dissolved oxygen test kit. 5. Subtract the Day 5 reading from the Day 1 reading to determine the BOD level. Record your final BOD result in ppm. Note: Generally, when BOD levels are high, there is a decline in DO levels. This is because the demand for oxygen by the bacteria is high and they are taking that oxygen from the oxygen dissolved in the water. If there is no organic waste present in the water, there won’t be as many bacteria present to decompose it and thus the BOD will tend to be lower and the DO level will tend to be higher. At high BOD levels, organisms such as macro  invertebrates that are more tolerant of lower dissolved oxygen may appear and become numerous. Organisms that need higher oxygen levels) will NOT survive. Extended BOD Test Continuation of BOD test beyond 5 days shows a continuing oxygen demand, with a sharp increase in BOD rate at the 10th day owing to nitrification. The latter process involves biological attack on nitrogenous organic material accompanied by an increase in BOD rate. The oxygen demand continues at a uniform rate for an extended time. Manometric BOD Test In the manometric procedure, the seeded sample is confined in a closed system that includes an appreciable amount of air . As the oxygen in the water is depleted, it is replenish by the gas phase. A potassium hydroxide (KOH) absorber within the system removes any gaseous carbon dioxide generated by bacterial action. The oxygen removed from the air phase results in a drop in pressure that is that is removed with a manometer. This fall is then related to the BOD of the sample. Electrolysis System for BOD The measuring principle for all electrolytic respirometers is quite similar. As micro-organisms respire they use oxygen converting the organic carbon in the solution to CO2 gas, which is absorbed to alkali. This causes a reduction in the gas pressure, which can be sensed with various sensors or membranes. A small current is created in electrolysis cell and this generates oxidation/reduction reactions in the electrolysis cell and oxygen is formed at the anode. Electrolysis of water can supply oxygen to a closed system as incubation proceeds . At constant current, the time during which electrolysis generates the oxygen to keep the system pressure constant is a direct measure of the oxygen demand. The amount of oxygen produced by the electrolysis correlates with the amount of oxygen consumed by bacteria. Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) Is the standard method for indirect measurements of the amount of pollution in a sample of water that cannot be oxidized biologically. Is based on the chemical decomposition of organic and inorganic contaminants, dissolved or suspended in water. Why Measure Chemical Oxygen Demand? It is often measured as a rapid indicator for organic pollutant in water. Normally measured in both municipal and industrial wastewater treatment plants and gives an indication of the efficiency of the treatment process. It is measured on both influent and effluent water. Standard Dichromate COD Procedure A sample is heated to its boiling point with known amounts of sulfuric acid and potassium dichromate. The loss of water is minimized by the reflux condenser. After 2 h, the solution is cooled, and the amount of dichromate that reacted with oxidizable material in the water sample is determined by titrating the excess potassium dichromate with ferrous sulfate. Dichromate consumed is calculated as to oxygen equivalent for the sample and stated as milligrams of oxygen per liter of sample (ml/l). Factors preventing the concordance of BOD values to COD values: Many organic materials are oxidizable by dichromate but not biochemically oxidizable, and vice versa. For example, pyridine, benzene, and ammonia are not attacked by the dichromate procedure. A number of inorganic substances such as sulfide, sulfites, thiosulfates, nitrites, and ferrous iron are oxidized by dichromate, creating an inorganic COD that is misleading when estimating the organic content of wastewater. Although the factor of seed acclimation will give erroneously low results on the BOD tests, COD results are not dependent on acclimation. Chlorides interfere with the COD analysis, and their effect must be minimized in order to obtain consistent results. The standard procedure provides for only a limited amount of chlorides in the sample. This is usually accomplished by diluting the sample to achieve a lower chloride concentration and interference. This can be a problem for low COD  concentration samples, as the dilution may dilute the COD concentration below the detection level or to levels at which accuracy and repeatability are poor. COD Detector The term COD usually refers to the laboratory dichromate oxidation procedure, although it has also been applied to other procedures that differ greatly from the dichromate method but which do involve chemical reaction. These methods have been embodied in instruments both for manual operation in the laboratory and for automatic operation online. They have the distinct advantage of reducing analysis time from days (5-day BOD) and hours (dichromate, respirometer) to minutes. Automatic On-Line Designs Takes a 5 cc sample from the flowing process stream. Injects it into the reflux chamber after mixing it together with dilution water (if any) agents. One ozone-based scheme enriches dilution water with and with two reagents: dichromate solution and sulfuric acid. The reagents also contain an oxidation catalyst (silver sulfate) and a chemical that complexes chlorides in the solution (mercuric sulfate). The mixture is boiled at 302 °F (150 °C) by the heater. Vapors are condensed by the cooling water in the reflux condenser. During which the dichromate ions are reduced to trivalent chromic ions, as the oxygen demanding organics are oxidized in the sample. The chromic ions give the solution a green color. The COD concentration is measured by detecting the amount of dichromate converted to chromic ions by measuring the intensity of the green color through a fiber-optic detector. The microprocessor-controlled package is available with automatic zeroing, calibration, and flushing features. Sampling and Traditional Parameter Parameter Limit Value Sampling: pH, Standard Units 6.0 – 9.0 Traditional Parameters: Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD) ≠¤ 30 ppm Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) ≠¤ 200 ppm COD has a large value than BOD because BOD measurement is based only in decomposition of organic matter while COD measures the decomposition of both organic and Inorganic compound. Sources of Error Cause of using nonhomogeneous sample is the largest error. Use of volumetric flasks and volumetric pipettes with a large bore. Oxidizing agent must be precisely measured. Make sure that the vials are clean and free of air bubbles. Always read the bottom of the meniscus at eye level. Total Oxygen Demand (TOD) The quantitative measurement of the amount of oxygen used to burn the impurities in a liquid sample. Thus, it is a direct measure of the oxygen demand of the sample. Measurement is by continuous analysis of the concentration of oxygen in a combustion process gas effluent. A quantitative measurement of all oxidizable material in a sample water or wastewater as determined instrumentally by measuring the depletion of oxygen after high-temperature combustion. BOD and COD have long time cycles. COD use corrosive reagents with the inherent problem of disposal. Analysis is faster, approximately 3 min, and uses no liquid reagents in its analysis. Can be correlated to both COD and BOD. Unaffected by the presence of inorganic carbon. Also indicate noncarbonaceous materials that consume or contribute oxygen Since the actual measurement is oxygen consumption. Reflects the oxidation state of the chemical compound. TOD Analyzer The oxidizable components in a liquid sample introduce into the combustion tube are converted to their stable oxides by a reaction that disturbs the oxygen equilibrium in the carrier gas steam. The momentary depletion in the oxygen concentration in the carrier gas is detected by an oxygen detector and recorded as a negative oxygen peak. Sample Valves Sliding Plate Upon a signal from a cycle timer, the air actuator temporarily moves the valve to its â€Å"sample fill† position. At the same time, an air-operated actuator moves a 20-ul sample through the valve into the combustion tube. A stream of oxygen-enriched nitrogen carrier gas moves the slug of sample into the combustion tube. Rotary Sampling Valve A motor continuously rotates a sampling head, which contains a built-in sampling syringe. For part of the time, the tip of the syringe is over a trough that contains the flowing sample. 2 or more cam ramps along the rotational path cause the syringe plunger to rise and fall, thus rinsing the sample chamber. Just before the syringe reaches the combustion tube, it picks up a 20-ul sample. As it rotates over the combustion tube, it discharges the sample. Oxygen Detectors Platinum-lead Fuel Cell Fuel Cell – Generates a current in proportion to the oxygen content of the carrier gas passing through it. Before entering the cell, the gas is scrubbed in a potassium hydroxide solution, both to remove acid gases and other harmful combustion products to humidify the gas. The oxygen cell and the scrubber are located in a temperature-controlled compartment. The fuel cell output is monitored and zeroed to provide a constant baseline. The output peaks are linearly proportionate to the reduced concentration of oxygen in the carrier gas as a result of the sample’s TOD. Yttrium-doped Zirconium Oxide Ceramic Tube Coated on both sides with a porous layer of platinum. It is maintained at an elevated temperature and also provides an output that represents the reduction in oxygen concentration in the carrier gas that is a result of the sample’s TOD. The operation of these oxygen detectors involves the ionization of oxygen in both a sample and a known reference gas stream. When the sample and reference gas streams come in contact with the electrode surfaces, oxygen ionizes into O-2 ions. The oxygen ion concentrations in each stream is a function of the partial pressure of oxygen in the stream. The potential at each electrode will depend on the partial pressure of oxygen in the gas stream. The electrode with higher potential (higher oxygen concentration) will generate oxygen ions, whereas the electrode with lower potential (lower oxygen concentration) will convert oxygen ions to oxygen molecules. Calibration Analysis is by comparison of peak heights or areas to a standard calibration curve. To prepare this curve, known TOD concentrations of a primary standard (KHP) are prepared in distilled and deionized water. Standard solutions are stable for several weeks at room temperature. Water solutions of other organic compounds can also be used as standards. Several analyses can be made at each calibration concentration, and the resulting data are recorded as parts per million (ppm) TOD vs. peak height or area. Applications: Correlation: Many regulatory agencies recognize as the basis for oxygen-depleting pollution control only BOD or COD (preferably BOD) measurements of pollution load, because they are concerned with the pollution load on receiving waters, which is related to lowering the DO due to bacterial activity. If other methods described are to be used to satisfy legal requirements of pollution load in effluents or to measure BOD removal, it is important to establish a correlation between the other methods and BOD or COD (preferably BOD). Salient Features: a measurement of property of the sample, i.e. the amount of oxygen required for bacterial oxidation of bacterial food in the water, the BOD dependence of the oxygen demand on the nature of the food as well as on its quantity dependence of the oxygen demand on the nature and amount of the bacteria Another extensive study concluded the following: (1) A reliable statistical correlation between BOD and COD of a wastewater and its corresponding TOD can frequently be achieved, particularly when the organic strength is high and the diversity in dissolved organic constituents is low. (2) The relationship is best described by a least squares regression with the degree of fit expressed by the correlation coefficient (3) The observed correspondence of COD-TOD was better than that of COD-BOD for the wastewaters. (4) The BOD-COD ratio of an untreated wastewater is indicative of the biological treatment possible with the particular wastewater. Comparison: COMPARISON BOD COD TOD Definition The oxygen required when a population of bacteria causes the oxidation reaction in a population of bacteria. The oxygen equivalent when the oxidation is carried out with a chemical oxidizing reagent such as potassium dichromate. The oxygen equivalent when oxidation is caused by heating the sample in a furnace in the presence of a catalyst and oxygen. Analyzer Utilize bacteria to oxidize the pollutants Measured through chemical oxidation and catalytic combustion techniques Oxidize the sample in a catalyzed thermal combustion process and detect both the organic and inorganic impurities in a sample Response-Range 5 days – 30 mg/L 2 hours – 250-500 ppm 3 minutes – 100-100,000 mg/L Inaccuracy-Cost 3 – 20% / $500 – $20,000 2 – 10% / $8,00 – $20,000 2 – 5% / $5,000 – $20,000