Construction of gender and sexual identities Essay

Construction of gender and sexual identities - Essay Example It has aptly been observed that every culture of the world maintains some specific characteristics and traits, which distinguishes it with the rest of the cultural groups and communities at large prevailing within the same natural and physical phenomena. This distinction is generally dependent of several sub-cultures existing under one culture, which not only divide the individuals into factions and groups, but also provide them with identification on the basis of their likes and dislikes, and priorities and aversions as well. Consequently, the sub-cultures of society work in an active and effective way by not only uniting the like-minded people under one platform, but also helping them in respect of winning their rights and privileges particularly at the time when the majority of the population appears to be standing at the opposite side, censuring and condemning the minority group in one way or the other. It is especially the case with the homosexuals, which have established their specific sub-culture, and have invented and introduced particular terms and jargons in order to convey their messages to their community members on one hand, and conceal it from the members of outer groups on the other (Warren 1998). The present paper aims to concentrate upon the gender and sexual identities with reference to the homosexuals in order to get acquainted with their sub-culture and mode of communication while living in the societies, an imperative majority of which still regard same-sex relations as perversion and deviant behavior (Macionis 2007). Sexual identity and the terms related to it, according to Ponse (1978), are applied in quite a different way in gay and lesbian environment to the dominant mainstream social set up. In addition, there also exists a sub-culture within the gay environment, which could only be comprehended with by the members of homosexual community, as well as the individuals interested in the same. As a result, an imperative proportion of the m ajority population remains almost unaware of the terms to be applied in order to express some specific action, performance or identity in general. For instance, the term gay had frequently been applied in order to demonstrate the individuals carrying jolly and care-free disposition in past; though, the same adjective has become entirely confined to defining homosexual males and females, and the previous usage of the word focusing jovial people has ceased to exist in main culture and homosexual sub-culture as well (Sherwin 2006). However, some of the terms are exclusively applied to identify homosexuality. Unger & Crawford (1993) argue that the feminists have articulated various terms in order to make division between sex and gender, determining the biological characteristics, and social traits and qualities of the homosexuals respectively. For instance, the notion lesbian explains a female engaged in a homosexual relationship, though in past it was donated to the individuals belongi ng to the Greek island Lesbos (248). Similarly, the notion active simply describes a vigorous and energetic person, though in homosexual acts, the same defines the person playing dominant part in homosexual relationships by penetrating into the recipient or passive partner; the terms dominant and top also define the penetrating partner, while submissive and bottom signify the receiver respectively. Hence, Ponse (246-47) appears to be justified in her claim that the terms used by the majority of the population are applied interchangeably in gay culture, and hence display the meanings that are quite different to the actual application of the same in their nature and scope. On the contrary, the essentialists strictly confine sexual behavior on the basis of the biological characteristics of males and females. As a result, males and females should always play dominant and submissive roles as per the demand of their sex organs and biological traits.

Sometimes a lie is better than the truth Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Sometimes a lie is better than the truth - Essay Example example, American troops in Pakistan earlier convince the Pak authorities that they will never undertake any mission inside Pak territory without the permission from the Pak authorities. However, they secretly conducted a mission and killed Osama Bin Laden. The Pak authorities came to know about this mission only after the mission. In this case, nobody can blame American troops for telling lies since the ultimate aim of this lie was to kill a terrorist and save the innocent people. Former American President George Bush convinced the world that Saddam or Iraq possesses weapons of mass destruction. He has taken approval for conducting military strikes in Iraq from United Nations with the help of this lie. It should be noted that UN would never grand permission to attack Iraq, had they know the intentions of Bush prior to the attack. At present, it is crystal clear that President Bush was lying and his intention was to destroy Iraq and Saddam since Saddam humiliated his father Bush Sr. in an earlier encounter. The execution of Saddam created mixed response in the world. Some people criticized this execution whereas others, especially the Kurds, who suffered a lot from the hands of Saddam, welcomed the execution of Saddam. In other words, Kurds believe that Bush’s lie helped them in one way or another. Lies will be justified when the life is in danger. Imagine an American was caught by the Taliban. Nobody can blame the American if he tells some lies to escape from the hands of Taliban. â€Å"Police officers adopt ruses when trying to catch criminals. Spies do it to serve their nations. Military forces do it to achieve victory on the battlefield† (Akin). In these cases, telling lies help people in one way or another. It should be noted that it is the duty of the police officers to catch criminals and to protect the life of innocent people. In order to save the life of many innocent people, police officers may tell some lies to catch the criminals which are justified.

Development of Controlled Drug Delivery for Animals

Development of Controlled Drug Delivery for Animals INDUDTRIAL CHALLENGES : The production of, controlled release drug delivery technologies are same, both in, humans and animals, but, the reasons for developing them are not same. In humans and animals, the controlled drug delivery permits safe, effective and easy handling for the user. In humans, to develop a drug into long acting one, the reasons to be considered are, less dose frequency, more patient compliance and to improve the well being of the patient. However, in animals to develop a drug into long acting one, the reasons to be considered are, minimum animal handling, low cost of treatment and small time for the administration of the drug. In human field, main focus is on the health of the patient, but, in animal arena, main focus is on the low cost of treatment, easy administration by the farmer and minimum animal handling. In veterinary industry, these reasons challenge the production of controlled drug delivery technologies. (1). The challenges in a veterinary drug industry, for the development of controlled drug delivery for animals are small commercial market, low profits and money spent on the research is less. The price of the finished product depends on the selection and price of the excipients, polymers, methods used for manufacturing and marketing team responsibilities (1). The major challenge is cost of the finished product and it depends on the method of design, type of excipient and polymer used and how many excipients used during the formulation (1). Marketing team responsibilities is another challenge. Poor marketing is responsible for decreased efforts to develop a new product (1). Another challenge is farmed animals. There are, large number of physiological differences between the species and within the species. One example for physiological difference is body weights, Beef cattle weighs 266-641kg, dairy cows weighs 600-700 kg and sheep weighs 54-66 kg. Animals, throughout their life cycle shows different weights. Due to these differences, dosage forms should be developed with different strengths and volumes. Due to this challenge scientist faces a problem, whether dosage is to be developed per animal or weight of the animal. If the dosing per animal is considered, the challenges are measures of drug safety. If the dosing is as per the body weight, the challenge is design is design of a flexible delivery technology that covers wide range of animals and the animals that are growing. An example is, CIDRÂ ® intra vaginal inserts for sheep, pigs and cattle. The intra vaginal inserts for sheep and cattle are having same shape, but, different in size. These inserts for pigs are different in shape compared to sheep and cattle. Basically, same technology is used for the preparation of these three inserts. (1). Another challenge is, drug or residues exist in the food. To overcome this challenge wide absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion (ADME) studies are conducted and also characterization techniques are developed. These studies, depends on the cost of the final product. In veterinary industry, new polymers and excipients for controlled release are rarely used. (1). Another challenge in the veterinary industry, is administration of dose. In animal field, the dose should be administered manually, for this suitable applicators are to be designed. The designed applicators should facilitate easy use by the end user (1). The challenges faced by the veterinary industry are many. The developed products must have safety, stability and efficacy. These profiles are built into each product and additional challenges are also to be addressed i.e. the presence of residual drug at the site of administration. Safety profiles are applicable to both animals and users. For efficacy profiles different breeds, different seasons and different geographical locations are considered. Chemical stability of drugs is major challenge. Farms lack areas for the storage of pharmaceuticals. Physical stability of the drug is another challenge. Farmers show less interest towards efficacy profile, how to use, method of administration, residual drug in the tissue etc. scientists should improve the features like method of administration, acceptable safety and efficacy profiles and during the storage drug should not be altered. (1). Another challenge is influence of delivery technique on the environment. The new delivery technology should not show any impact on the ecosystems. (1). Major challenge in the near future is reduction of carbon compounds for the development of drug delivery technologies, because, carbon dioxide and methane are considered as green house gases. In the future, specialized controlled release dosage forms will be developed (1). Another challenge is market. Identification of need is one and another is identified need that can bring profits that are spent on research. For the well being of animal health, several products are used, they are, feed additives, pharmaceuticals, vaccines and nutraceuticals. The challenges associated with these products are different physicochemical properties and different formulation approaches. In the last decade, less money is spent on the research. In UK, 1986, 70% of veterinary products are introduced into the market for live stock, but, 45% of sales were reported in 2008. However, companion sector had grown to 52% in UK, due to increased use of vaccines and novel medicines. The companion animal industry is employing formulation scientists, those are having experience in human product development rather than formulation scientists, who is a farmed animal specialist (1). Regulatory needs is the future challenge. Manufacturing GMP requirements are same for the final products, both in, animal and human arenas. (1). In recent times, the curious challenge is seen in farms of certain species like swine and chickens. If these farms do not buy the new products developed by the pharmaceutical companies, they are showing less interest for the investment. This type of challenge is seen in USA (1). INDUSTRIAL OPPURTUNITIES :- Now a days, several opportunities are there for veterinary pharmaceutical industry. Compared to market of the human pharmaceuticals, veterinary pharmaceutical products is shorter. By taking this advantage, employing an experience team, quickly complete the development activities. Due to the short time for the market, income comes quicker, more profits can be achieved before patent expires (1). Availability of animals for research, rather than humans is another opportunity. In food producing animals, ADME studies are conducted at early stages, which help in the formulation development. This kind of opportunity favours the experimentation on target species (1). Human drugs are first tested on animals ( dogs ), this creates an opportunity for veterinary industry. Due to this, pharmacological data of a particular drug is available. In companion animal market, this data is useful in reformulation of human serotonin selective reuptake inhibitors and monoamine oxidase-B for anxiety and cognitive disorders for dogs (1). The clinical trials, that are done on animals also provides data of environmental assessment, for the development of formulation. This data helps in understanding of degradation process of the drug due to temperature, pH and light (1). At present, veterinary market lacks new APIs, however, some reports are showing that new compounds are reaching the market. The existing drugs life can be increased by developing controlled release drug delivery technologies (1). Reference (1) Rathbone M, Brayden D. Controlled release drug delivery in farmed animals: commercial challenges and academic opportunities. Current drug delivery 2009;6 (4):383-390.

The Blue Jean as Cultural Metaophor :: Exploratory Essays Research Papers

The Blue Jean as Cultural Metaophor It may seem odd to consider items of clothing critical components of ‘popular culture’. Contemporary clothing is a key element in the construction of personal identity; it is used to denote an individual ‘style’ and a personality unique to its wearer. Yet from the corset to miniskirt, such items serve not only as practical coverings, but also as indicators for the current values and belief systems of a society. Thus I wish to examine what has become a most popular article of clothing – the ‘blue jean’1 [1] - in an attempt to unearth some of the socio-cultural phenomenon that is ‘popular culture’. According to Raymond Williams’ definition, the ‘blue jean’ qualifies as an object of popular culture due to its (a) wide-spread accessibility, (b) popularity, and (c) construction as an object intended to be popular.2 [2] But perhaps the ‘blue jean’ is not only a product, a piece of commercialism. I assert, rather, that this cultural icon has become a gauge of changing interpretations of masculinity in mainstream American culture. The ‘blue jean’, symbolically, is the white, middle-class, ‘All-American’ man. I would like to examine what, specifically, makes the ‘blue jean’ stereotypically ‘masculine’. Historically, fashion has upheld socially constructed notions of gender: the corset, for example, helped contain a woman’s ‘uncontrollable’ body, while the suspender maintained coverage of a man’s ‘unmentionables’. Similarly, from its design as a durable work pant for working men and laborers (farmers, railroad men, gold and coal miners, etc.), 3[3] the blue jean is closely associated with a muscular, super-virile ‘He-Man’.4 [4] First made wildly popular by the Western films of the 1930s, jeans became identified as a standard item of apparel worn by the ‘cowboy’.5 [5] Even mainstream advertising for these durable denim pants featured ‘manly’ rangers, taming their horses and lassoing the competition (image 1a). The concept of a heroic, blue-jeaned ‘Lone-Ranger’-esque cowboy seems to have remained in popular American psyche, as it is nostalgically associated with a notion of ‘old-fashioned’, well-mannered, moral man (image 1b). Authentic cowboys wearing Levi’s at this time were elevated to mythic status, and the pant was now associated more with a rugged American, symbolized by John Wayne. 6[6] (Wayne, for example, always seemed ‘ready for action’ with a holster comfortably around his jeans [image 1c]).

The Host Chapter 12: Failed

It's impossible! You've got it wrong! Out of order! That can't be it!† I stared into the distance, sick with disbelief that was turning quickly to horror. Yesterday morning I'd eaten the last mangled Twinkie for breakfast. Yesterday afternoon I'd found the double peak and turned east again. Melanie had given me what she promised was the last formation to find. The news had made me nearly hysterical with joy. Last night, I'd drunk the last of the water. That was day four. This morning was a hazy memory of blinding sun and desperate hope. Time was running out, and I'd searched the skyline for the last milestone with a growing sense of panic. I couldn't see any place where it could fit; the long, flat line of a mesa flanked by blunt peaks on either end, like sentinels. Such a thing would take space, and the mountains to the east and north were thick with toothy points. I couldn't see where the flat mesa could be hiding between them. Midmorning-the sun was still in the east, in my eyes-I'd stopped to rest. I'd felt so weak that it frightened me. Every muscle in my body had begun to ache, but it was not from all the walking. I could feel the ache of exertion and also the ache from sleeping on the ground, and these were different from the new ache. My body was drying out, and this ache was my muscles protesting the torture of it. I knew that I couldn't keep going much longer. I'd turned my back on the east to get the sun off my face for a moment. That's when I'd seen it. The long, flat line of the mesa, unmistakable with the bordering peaks. There it was, so far away in the distant west that it seemed to shimmer above a mirage, floating, hovering over the desert like a dark cloud. Every step we'd walked had been in the wrong direction. The last marker was farther to the west than we'd come in all our journeying. â€Å"Impossible,† I whispered again. Melanie was frozen in my head, unthinking, blank, trying desperately to reject this new comprehension. I waited for her, my eyes tracing the undeniably familiar shapes, until the sudden weight of her acceptance and grief knocked me to my knees. Her silent keen of defeat echoed in my head and added one more layer to the pain. My breathing turned ragged-a soundless, tearless sobbing. The sun crept up my back; its heat soaked deep into the darkness of my hair. My shadow was a small circle beneath me when I regained control. Painstakingly, I got back on my feet. Tiny sharp rocks were embedded in the skin on my legs. I didn't bother to brush these off. I stared at the floating mesa mocking me from the west for a long, hot time. And finally, not really sure why I did it, I started walking forward. I knew only this: that it was me who moved and no one else. Melanie was so small in my brain-a tiny capsule of pain wrapped tightly in on her herself. There was no help from her. My footsteps were a slow crunch, crunch across the brittle ground. â€Å"He was just a deluded old lunatic, after all,† I murmured to myself. A strange shudder rocked my chest, and a hoarse coughing ripped its way up my throat. The stream of gravelly coughs rattled on, but it wasn't until I felt my eyes pricking for tears that couldn't come that I realized I was laughing. â€Å"There was†¦ never†¦ ever†¦ anything out here!† I gasped between spasms of hysteria. I staggered forward as though I were drunk, my footprints trailing unevenly behind me. No. Melanie uncurled from her misery to defend the faith she still clung to. I got it wrong or something. My fault. I laughed at her now. The sound was sucked away by the scorching wind. Wait, wait, she thought, trying to pull my attention from the joke of it all. You don't think†¦ I mean, do you think that maybe they tried this? Her unexpected fear caught me midlaugh. I choked on the hot air, my chest throbbing from my fit of morbid hysteria. By the time I could breathe again, all trace of my black humor was gone. Instinctively, my eyes swept the desert void, looking for some evidence that I was not the first to waste my life this way. The plain was impossibly vast, but I couldn't halt my frantic search for†¦ remains. No, of course not. Melanie was already comforting herself. Jared's too smart. He would never come out here unprepared like we did. He'd never put Jamie in danger. I'm sure you're right, I told her, wanting to believe it as much as she did. I'm sure no one else in the whole universe could be this stupid. Besides, he probably never came to look. He probably never figured it out. Wish you hadn't. My feet kept moving. I was barely aware of the action. It meant so little in the face of the distance ahead. And even if we were magically transported to the very base of the mesa, what then? I was absolutely positive there was nothing there. No one waited at the mesa to save us. â€Å"We're going to die,† I said. I was surprised that there was no fear in my rasping voice. This was just a fact like any other. The sun is hot. The desert is dry. We are going to die. Yes. She was calm, too. This, death, was easier to accept than that our efforts had been guided by insanity. â€Å"That doesn't bother you?† She thought for a moment before answering. At least I died trying. And I won. I never gave them away. I never hurt them. I did my best to find them. I tried to keep my promise†¦ I die for them. I counted nineteen steps before I could respond. Nineteen sluggish, futile crunches across the sand. â€Å"Then what am I dying for?† I wondered, the pricking feeling returning in my desiccated tear ducts. â€Å"I guess it's because I lost, then, right? Is that why?† I counted thirty-four crunches before she had an answer to my question. No, she thought slowly. It doesn't feel that way to me. I think†¦ Well, I think that maybe†¦ you're dying to be human. There was almost a smile in her thought as she heard the silly double meaning to the phrase. After all the planets and all the hosts you've left behind, you've finally found the place and the body you'd die for. I think you've found your home, Wanderer. Ten crunches. I didn't have the energy to open my lips anymore. Too bad I didn't get to stay here longer, then. I wasn't sure about her answer. Maybe she was trying to make me feel better. A sop for dragging her out here to die. She had won; she had never disappeared. My steps began to falter. My muscles screamed out to me for mercy, as if I had any means to soothe them. I think I would have stopped right there, but Melanie was, as always, tougher than I. I could feel her now, not just in my head but in my limbs. My stride lengthened; the path I made was straighter. By sheer force of will, she dragged my half-dead carcass toward the impossible goal. There was an unexpected joy to the pointless struggle. Just as I could feel her, she could feel my body. Our body, now; my weakness ceded control to her. She gloried in the freedom of moving our arms and legs forward, no matter how useless such a motion was. It was bliss simply because she could again. Even the pain of the slow death we had begun dimmed in comparison. What do you think is out there? she asked me as we marched on toward the end. What will you see, after we're dead? Nothing. The word was empty and hard and sure. There's a reason we call it the final death. The souls have no belief in an afterlife? We have so many lives. Anything more would be†¦ too much to expect. We die a little death every time we leave a host. We live again in another. When I die here, that will be the end. There was a long pause while our feet moved more and more slowly. What about you? I finally asked. Do you still believe in something more, even after all of this? My thoughts raked over her memories of the end of the human world. It seems like there are some things that can't die. In our mind, their faces were close and clear. The love we felt for Jared and Jamie did feel very permanent. In that moment, I wondered if death was strong enough to dissolve something so vital and sharp. Perhaps this love would live on with her, in some fairytale place with pearly gates. Not with me. Would it be a relief to be free of it? I wasn't sure. It felt like it was part of who I was now. We only lasted a few hours. Even Melanie's tremendous strength of mind could ask no more than that of our failing body. We could barely see. We couldn't seem to find the oxygen in the dry air we sucked in and spit back out. The pain brought rough whimpers breaking through our lips. You've never had it this bad, I teased her feebly as we staggered toward a dried stick of a tree standing a few feet taller than the low brush. We wanted to get to the thin streaks of shade before we fell. No, she agreed. Never this bad. We attained our purpose. The dead tree threw its cobwebby shadow over us, and our legs fell out from under us. We sprawled forward, never wanting the sun on our face again. Our head turned to the side on its own, searching for the burning air. We stared at the dust inches from our nose and listened to the gasping of our breath. After a time, long or short we didn't know, we closed our eyes. Our lids were red and bright inside. We couldn't feel the faint web of shade; maybe it no longer touched us. How long? I asked her. I don't know, I've never died before. An hour? More? Your guess is as good as mine. Where's a coyote when you really need one? Maybe we'll get lucky†¦ escaped claw beast or something†¦ Her thought trailed off incoherently. That was our last conversation. It was too hard to concentrate enough to form words. There was more pain than we thought there should be. All the muscles in our body rioted, cramping and spasming as they fought death. We didn't fight. We drifted and waited, our thoughts dipping in and out of memories without a pattern. While we were still lucid, we hummed ourselves a lullaby in our head. It was the one we'd used to comfort Jamie when the ground was too hard, or the air was too cold, or the fear was too great to sleep. We felt his head press into the hollow just below our shoulder and the shape of his back under our arm. And then it seemed that it was our head cradled against a broader shoulder, and a new lullaby comforted us. Our lids turned black, but not with death. Night had fallen, and this made us sad. Without the heat of day, we would probably last longer. It was dark and silent for a timeless space. Then there was a sound. It barely roused us. We weren't sure if we imagined it. Maybe it was a coyote, after all. Did we want that? We didn't know. We lost our train of thought and forgot the sound. Something shook us, pulled our numb arms, dragged at them. We couldn't form the words to wish that it would be quick now, but that was our hope. We waited for the cut of teeth. Instead, the dragging turned to pushing, and we felt our face roll toward the sky. It poured over our face-wet, cool, and impossible. It dribbled over our eyes, washing the grit from them. Our eyes fluttered, blinking against the dripping. We did not care about the grit in our eyes. Our chin arched up, desperately searching, our mouth opening and closing with blind, pathetic weakness, like a newly hatched bird. We thought we heard a sigh. And then the water flowed into our mouth, and we gulped at it and choked on it. The water vanished while we choked, and our weak hands grasped out for it. A flat, heavy thumping pounded our back until we could breathe. Our hands kept clutching the air, looking for the water. We definitely heard a sigh this time. Something pressed to our cracked lips, and the water flowed again. We guzzled, careful not to inhale it this time. Not that we cared if we choked, but we did not want the water taken away again. We drank until our belly stretched and ached. The water trickled to a stop, and we cried out hoarsely in protest. Another rim was pressed to our lips, and we gulped frantically until it was empty, too. Our stomach would explode with another mouthful, yet we blinked and tried to focus, to see if we could find more. It was too dark; we could not see a single star. And then we blinked again and realized that the darkness was much closer than the sky. A figure hovered over us, blacker than the night. There was a low sound of fabric rubbing against itself and sand shifting under a heel. The figure leaned away, and we heard a sharp rip-the sound of a zipper, deafening in the absolute stillness of the night. Like a blade, light cut into our eyes. We moaned at the pain of it, and our hand flew up to cover our closed eyes. Even behind our lids, the light was too bright. The light disappeared, and we felt the breath of the next sigh hit our face. We opened our eyes carefully, more blind than before. Whoever faced us sat very still and said nothing. We began to feel the tension of the moment, but it felt far away, outside ourself. It was hard to care about anything but the water in our belly and where we could find more. We tried to concentrate, to see what had rescued us. The first thing we could make out, after minutes of blinking and squinting, was the thick whiteness that fell from the dark face, a million splinters of pale in the night. When we grasped that this was a beard-like Santa Claus, we thought chaotically-the other pieces of the face were supplied by our memory. Everything fit into place: the big cleft-tipped nose, the wide cheekbones, the thick white brows, the eyes set deep into the wrinkled fabric of skin. Though we could see only hints of each feature, we knew how light would expose them. â€Å"Uncle Jeb,† we croaked in surprise. â€Å"You found us.† Uncle Jeb, squatting next to us, rocked back on his heels when we said his name. â€Å"Well, now,† he said, and his gruff voice brought back a hundred memories. â€Å"Well, now, here's a pickle.†

Globalization, Australia and the Asia-Pacific Essay

In terms of international relationships, â€Å"the end of the second millennium and the start of the third are characterized by two developments of major importance†¦ the successful conclusion of the most ambitious round of multilateral trade negotiations in the history of humankind [and the] proliferation of regional trading arrangements unprecedented at any period in history. † Through it all, Australia has been a major participant in these agreements. Owing to the steady progress of Australia’s economy and politics, it has been involved in all of the international policy-making in that span in history. However, due to these numerous activities, there are different circumstances that require variations of these treaties. Multilateral trade treaties are trade agreements made between multiple nations, over multiple regions, at one time. Although multilateral treaties are generally complex and difficult to negotiate and implement, these treaties are very powerful when all interested parties agree on it. The primary advantage of multilateral treaties is the equal treatment, at least relatively, of all parties, regardless of size or power. Examples of these are Australia’s â€Å"Protocol of 1988 relating to the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea†, â€Å"United Nations Convention on Conditions for Registration of Ships† and â€Å"Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against the Safety of Maritime Navigation†. Regional trade treaties are parallel to multilateral trade treaties. Both are generally complex and involve multiple countries. However, they do institute a condition that has both advantages and disadvantages. Regional trade treaties are confined to countries within a certain geographic area, such as the Americas, the Atlantic or, in Australia’s case, the Asia-Pacific region. This comes from the perspective of â€Å"conceiving of the world in terms of structures is what some analytical perspectives in international relations and the social sciences more generally suggest. † according to Breslin. The obvious disadvantage of regional trade treaties is that it would exclude other countries from the agreement. There are, however, advantages that outweigh this negative aspect. Regional agreements would be easier to negotiate since countries within a certain geographic area generally have similar or related economic products, conditions and concerns. Such agreements would also mean that the general concerns of that certain area are given due consideration when viewed by the rest of the international community. Examples are the â€Å"Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific Region† and â€Å"South Pacific Regional Trade and Economic Cooperation Agreement†. Bilateral trade treaties are the simplest and most basic agreements. These are the agreements negotiated exclusively between to countries. Simple they may be, however, â€Å"the pursuit of discriminatory trading agreements is arguably the most dramatic development in intergovernmental relations in the western Pacific since the financial crises of 1997-98†, in Jayasuriya’s view. An example of this is Australia’s â€Å"Treaty between Australia and the Republic of Austria concerning Extradition† Australia resides in the South Pacific area but has a mixed economy in the pattern of many Western countries. Its main exports are coal, gold, coal, gold, meat, wool, alumina, iron ore and wheat. It has strong relations with countries in Asian, notably Japan and Korea, and Western countries such as Germany and the United States. Bilateral agreements would ensure mutually advantageous situations for Australia and its partner countries. This would go a long way in cementing international political relations as well as economic strength. However, bilateral agreements are limited in their potential to affect great international change. Regional trade agreements would prove to be more advantageous to Australia and the Asia-Pacific region. Their interests would be represented and protected in the international arena. However, the full potential to affect significant change is not realized when only a few countries are involved. Ideally, Australia should prioritize multilateral trade agreements because these are the ones that have to greatest potential to affect positive change in the international community. These are also the agreements the ones that require the most planning and negotiation and should be kept at the forefront for the process to be as quick as possible. BIBLIOGRAPHY Sampson and Woolcock, Regionalism, multilateralism and economic integration: The recent experience United Nations University Press, 2003 Amadeo, Kimberly, US Economy (2005) [http://useconomy. about. com/od/glossary/g/ multilateral. htm] accessed 06/04/08 Treaty Database DFAT online database, accessed: 06/07/08 [http://www. info. dfat. gov. au/info/treaties/treaties. nsf/WebView? OpenForm&Seq=2] Breslin, Shaun et al. , New Regionalism in the Global Political Economy: Theories and Case London: Routledge, 2002 Jayasuriya, Kanishka, Asian Regional Governance: Crisis and Change New York: Routledge, 2004

The Art of Teppan-yaki Cooking essays

The Art of Teppan-yaki Cooking essays Metal Spatulas and salt n peppershakers fly through the air and are caught behind the back. Sharp silver knives cut through filet mignon steaks, boneless chickens and Tristan da Cunha lobsters. Soy sauce and seasoning is added as the portions are divided onto plates of the gazing hungry customers. This is the art of teppan-yaki cooking. Teppan-yaki cooking is a Japanese term for cooking on the grill. This tabletop form of cooking is a popular tourist attraction that combines knife skills and an entertaining presentation. It is the Japanese form of barbecue and consists of a flat wide grill with a pit where the chef stands as the customers surround him. It is not merely just cooking, it is also about performance. They come here to be entertained. Its also all about the cutting techniques, said Jet Mupas, a teppan chef at Tanaka of Tokyo restaurant. Mupas has been a chef at TOT for close to four years. It takes six months to get everything, he said. Prior to TOT, Mupas worked at La Merenda, a restaurant in the Hyatt hotel in Guam. Mupas said there is a big difference between regular dine-in restaurants compared to teppan-yaki restaurants. You work more hours and the timing is different. Here, your always in the rush, always flying, said Mupas. After the servers take the order they turn in the table map to the kitchen. On the table map, it shows exactly which customer ordered what so the chef could properly place the food in the individual plates. The food is prepped in the kitchen and brought out onto the carts that are in the pit. The next chef in line takes his tools, which consists of a wet towl to wipe his knives and spatula with, a grill scrub, silver spatula, and two small nine-inch wooden baton-like salt n pepper shakers used not for seasoning but for the shaker show at the end of the meal. Once the chef enters the pit, he greets ...