Chimney Sweep Essay Essay Example for Free

Chimney Sweep Essay Essay The Chimney Sweeper William Blake addresses the political issue presented at the time: the morality of the children sweepers. Blake attempts to describe the working conditions through two perspectives, one being through the eyes of an experienced chimney sweeper and the other through the eyes of the innocent. In the eyes of the experienced, the conditions described are explicit whereas the one through the eyes of the innocent are implicit. The innocence is represented by Tom Dacre. His thoughts, which are seemingly longer than that of the other poem, are unaware of the oppression that is taking place. The diction can reveal this in the sense that the innocent has proven to be darker and more cynical whereas the second poem seems happier and optimistic. For example from the first poem is, Hush, Tom! Never mind it, for when your heads bare, you know that the soot cannot spoil your white hair. (Line 7) However Tom’s dream of freedom characterizes the theme that purity still exists but also shows us the ugly reality. The second poem, the eyes of the experienced, understands that he is a victim. Blake in fact satirizes the second poem accordingly in the line â€Å"And because I am happy, and dance and sing,† (Line 9) for the sole purpose that the reader understands how miserable the victim actually is. The second poem also carries repetition which proves to be meaningful because it affirms that deeper level of the tone. The lack of repetition in the first poem sends a message to the reader that the narrator, Tom, truly believes the cruelty will end. While both poems have significant oppositions, both must be read in order to understand the other. Both emphasize religion and government and how they impose cruel treatment while enhancing lives of others. The two poems also have a rhyme scheme, implying that they are both happy, which is not the case. Both poems demonstrate the actions of cruelty and inhumanity imposed on the children, and through literary devices Blake is able to expose these problems within society. Finally, although the viewpoints in each poem differ, both show the difficulties of the chimney sweepers and while one represents hope and the other anger, the reader must acknowledge the betterment Blake is trying to enact.

Contemporary Globalization Essay Example for Free

Contemporary Globalization Essay Are you a forerunner of the so called Contemporary Globalization or in your view point do you adhere to Global Diversity? This short paper is to review globalization developments and their impacts or consequences whether is it a threat to human dignity in terms of providing a safer work place and leisure to man and will it promotes democracy and justice for all (Johnston, Mont 2000)? Globalization began in the 70’s and reaches all the corners of the world through the creation of IMF, the World Bank and, WTO. Globalization was also brought about by the advance communication technology and collapse of communism (Johnston, Mont 2000). According to the Canadian Union Council (CUC), â€Å"globalization does not account of the right of conscience, and democracy is only hearsay. Trade fundamentalist works with corporate lawyers to develop trade rules which expressly exclude consideration of the environment and human rights in favor of return on investments, consideration on the rights of others are only taken into consideration only in extraordinary circumstances†. For this reason, the Council created seven principles of the UUs covenants to counter act or to balance the wave of globalization which is detrimental to the Unitarian way of thinking in which it firmly believes that uniqueness of every person must be reverently acknowledge preserving his culture. It is in diversity that a genuine human society is born. Globalization spread the culture of homogenous market and consumerism; it limits human choices because human values are dictated by market values. Manfred Steger further stated globalism in his book A New Market Ideology as â€Å"globalony†. Consequences or impacts of Globalization: Neoliberals or the globalist supported their claims on the following ideology: Globalization is market integration, inevitable and irreversible, none is in-charge and it would benefit everyone, and will further spread democracy. These are strategies in order to promote private interests of dominant few to be supported by the general public. These claims were carefully examined by Steger as he insisted that we need to critically understand what are globalism, ideology, and globalization which are a process of globalism. He also pointed out that it is not only enough to examine its economic outcome but its ideas and values (Walker 2003). It is a hard truth to accept that the human will are dictated by market trends which mean that human values are being replaced by market value or the limiting of our choices which is contrary to the free act of man. Corporations have extended on a global scale, 51 among top companies are run by the wealthiest 100 multinationals (Carmichael 2002). Steger asserted that it is undemocratic because the influence of the supranational bodies will decrease the ability of national governments to regulate multinational corporations. Wiwa in his audience with law students declare that The governance are no longer for the benefit of the citizens, as it should be, but for corporate profit. Decisions reflect only what corporations want (Carmichael 2002)†. Anything that gets in their way must be removed at all costs, no wonder there could be a time that man will be replaced by robots. For man to survive, diversity is needed but regimes like the WTO has modeled globalization which resulted into a homogenous culture of consumerism. It sees that diversity is an impediment to the free trade. One example is the over-produced food that flooded the developing countries; it forces small farmers to abandon their farms to work for Nike and other corporations. Mexican farmer’s earnings have declined by 40%. Poverty radically increases while the stocks of multinationals increases. Ken Wiwa a physician and an author of the book â€Å"Dance the guns to Silenceâ€Å"was hanged in November 1995 for his crusade against globalization and today it is his brother Owen who continues by addressing a political science class at the University of Toronto about the consequence of globalization saying You have that paradox whereby an increase in transnational corporations in the south will increase the poverty and conflict and wars in that country and Ten years from now you may be working in these corporations and governments so it is up to you to make an influence â€Å"(Carmichael 2002). Shell Corporation and the Ogoni people faced the dilemma between the clearing of its oil spills and the MOSOP Movement of the Ogoni People for Survival in the 1990s. Oil extraction in their country is to the detriment of its inhabitants. Sickness related to air and water pollution like asthma and other diseases outnumbered the hospital built in 1993. Though the company has left the premises they have not really removed their pipelines nor cleaned up and paid compensation to their workers. The company remained quiet and the military was no longer engaged but arrest started Wiwa stated (Carmichael 2002). Based on the above consequences, Steger’s touches the tenets of his argument that it is the human will and choices that must create market models and not the goods or the reverse wherein market limits suppressed human choices. His argument was based on the historical facts that man lords over the earth and that no society have emerged without knowing how to take care of its own. Society degrades or falls when only a privileged few are protected, when dominance is instilled prejudices and other sisters of greed appears. The value of human work diminishes and man begins to serve only his appetite and whims. Indeed, we must account for the gifts we received such as the talents endowed to us. There is a need of strengthening our world communities to use collective power to develop alternatives to Globalization and Corporate Rule. We must examine and challenge ourselves what is behind each ideology and must patronize products and services that are truly for the benefit of mankind. We must put our best efforts that wealth is distributed equitably and for the common good. We must learn to scrutinize the use of worldly goods and sharpen our values to preserve the world and the future of the next generation. References Mel Johnston, Alastair Mont, Philip Symons Calgary, Alberta 2000, the CUC Policy on Globalization, [Electronic Version]. Retrieved 01 February 2008 from, http://www. cuc. ca/social_responsibility/globalization. htm Teresa Walker 2003, Globalism: The New Market Ideology by Manfred Steger, [Electronic Version]. Retrieved 01 February 2008 from, http://www. logosjournal. com/walker. htm Stefanie Carmichael (2002). Owens Wiwa tackles consequences of globalization [Electronic Version]. The Manitoban. Retrieved 02, February 2008 from, http://www. themanitoban. com/2001-2002/0403/news_8. shtml

Impact of Seismicity on Performance of RC Shear Wall

Impact of Seismicity on Performance of RC Shear Wall Impact of Seismicity on Performance and Cost of RC Shear Wall Buildings in Dubai, UAE Mohammad AlHamaydeh, P.E., M.ASCE [1]; Nader Aly, S.M.ASCE [2]; and Khaled Galal, P.Eng., M.ASCE [3] ABSTRACT Unfortunately, available probabilistic seismic hazard studies are reporting significantly varying estimates for Dubai seismicity. Given Dubais rapid economic growth, it is crucial to assess the impact of the diverse estimates on performance and cost of buildings. This research investigates and quantifies the impact of the high and moderate seismicity estimates of Dubai on the seismic performance, construction and repair costs of buildings with 6, 9 and 12 stories. The reference buildings are made up of reinforced concrete with special shear walls as their seismic force resisting system. The seismic performance is investigated using nonlinear static and incremental dynamic analyses. Construction and repair costs associated with earthquake damages are evaluated to quantify the impacts. Results showed that designing for higher seismicity yields significant enhancement in overall structural performance. In addition, the higher seismicity estimate resulted in slight increase in initial co nstruction cost. However, the increase in initial investment is outweighed by significant enhancements in seismic performance and reduction in earthquake damages. This resulted in overall cost savings when reduction in repair and downtime costs are considered. Keywords: Seismic Hazard, RC Shear Walls, Seismic Vulnerability, Seismic Performance, Earthquake Losses. Introduction and Background The economy of UAE and specifically Dubai has been rapidly growing over the past few decades. Significant investments are taking place in the various sectors, especially in the real estate sector. In addition, in November 2014, Dubai was announced to be the hosting city of the coming EXPO 2020. As a result, substantial growth is taking place in the real estate sector. Several residential, commercial and hotel buildings are going to be designed and constructed to accommodate the increase in population size. This region suffers from considerable uncertainty in its seismicity level and the design guidelines that should be followed (AlHamaydeh et al., 2012). The seismicity level of UAE and Dubai has been the matter of several research studies, such as Abdalla and Al-homoud (2004), Aldama-Bustos et al. (2009) and Khan et al. (2013). Nevertheless, unfortunately there is not much consensus in these research studies about the seismicity levels that should be designed for in UAE. This could b e attributed to the lack of in-depth seismological data and historical recordings of ground motions in this region. Such data would have been useful in providing comprehensive and sound seismic design guidelines (AlHamaydeh et al., 2013). The minimum seismic design requirements set by the local authorities in Dubai are based on the 1997 Uniform Building Code (UBC97). However, the municipality has been proactive in adapting to tremors that were felt and measured in UAE in April, 2013. They sent a circular to consulting offices in May, 2013 raising the minimum requirement to zone 2B for buildings higher than nine stories and zone 2A for buildings between four to nine stories. Therefore, the unprecedented growth in the number of buildings in Dubai combined with the lack of consensus on seismic design criteria complicate the vulnerability to earthquakes. It is generally believed that the UAE has low seismicity. Nevertheless, over the past few years, a significant number of regional seis mic activities, originating from faults surrounding the UAE, has been recorded by Dubai Seismic Network (DSN). Additionally, DSN has recorded some local seismic activities over the period from 2006 to 2014. UAE seismicity is affected by earthquakes originating from near-fault and far-field seismic sources (Mwafy, 2011). The most recent seismic hazard study for UAE, available to the authors, was published in 2013 by Khan et al. (2013). The study provided a comprehensive probabilistic seismic hazard assessment and spectral accelerations for the entire UAE. Furthermore, it implemented a standardized earthquakes catalogue for UAE compiled from United States Geological Survey (USGS), National Geosciences of Iran (2015) and the National Center of Meteorology and Seismology of UAE (NCMS) (2015) that dates back to 110 years. Furthermore, Khan et al. (2013) have used seven different ground motion prediction equations incorporating three next generation attenuation equations due to the lack of specific equations for UAE. They attributed UAE seismicity to the seismic source zones shown in Figure 1. In addition, the seismic hazard study by Shama in 2011 highlighted several local crustal faults in U AE that might affect its seismicity level. These faults are Dibba, Wadi El Fay, Wadi Ham, Wadi-Shimal, Oman and West Coast fault (Shama, 2011). Unfortunately, the level of seismicity is not clearly set since there is no strong consensus among researchers about the exact seismic level of UAE or Dubai. On the other hand, reviewing the available probabilistic seismic hazard studies conducted for UAE and Dubai clearly shows that there are significant variations in the estimated seismicity levels. In fact, results vary from no seismic hazard to very high seismicity. Table 1 shows a summary of Peak Ground Accelerations (PGA) from several probabilistic seismic hazard studies. The reported PGAs vary from less than 0.05g to 0.32g. This is attributed to the differences in the used source zonation, recurrence parameters, earthquake catalogues and ground motion prediction equations. The differences are mainly due to the lack of detailed seismological measurement and data in this region and such data is required to provide a comprehensive and sound seismic hazard study (AlHamaydeh et al., 2013). The variation in seismicity was a driving factor for many research studies related to the impact on design of buildings in Dubai, such as (AlHamaydeh et al., 2010; AlHamaydeh et al., 2011; and AlHamaydeh and Al-Shamsi, 2013). The objective of this paper is to investigate the impact of the seismicity hazard level on the performance, construction, repair and downtime costs of reinforced concrete (RC) shear wall buildings in Dubai. In this regard, six RC shear wall buildings are designed and detailed following the 2012 International Building Code (IBC12) standards. The reference buildings are 6-story, 9-story and 12-story. They are chosen to target the main sectors of buildings inventory in Dubai, UAE. These buildings are designed for two different seismic hazard levels that represent high and moderate seismicity estimates of Dubai. The different designs are compared based on their seismic performance, construction and repair costs in order to investigate and quantify the impact of the seismic design level. The seismic performance is evaluated following the methodology outlined in FEMA P695, which is a technical publication aiming to establish standard procedures for quantifying the seismic performance facto rs of buildings (Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), 2009). The assessment methodology is based on nonlinear pseudo-static and dynamic analyses. The nonlinear response history analyses are performed using a set of ground motion records selected and scaled to represent the highest possible seismic activity in Dubai. As such, this would highlight the implications on design, seismic performance, construction and repair costs of RC shear wall buildings designed for different seismic hazard levels in Dubai, if the high seismicity estimate turns to be the most realistic. In addition, total construction cost is estimated considering structural and non-structural components. Finally, the repair cost is evaluated based on the structural and non-structural damage percentages adapted from SEAOC blue book (Structural Engineers Association of California, 1999). Details of the Reference Buildings The six reference buildings considered in this paper are intended to represent typical office buildings located in Dubai, UAE. The buildings have number of floors ranging from 6 to 12 stories to represent the majority of common buildings in Dubai. They are made up of RC and have a typical floor plan as shown in Figure 2. The plan consists of five 6m (20ft) bays and total dimensions of 30mx30m (100ftx100ft). Furthermore, the overall structural height varies between 24m to 48m (78ft to 156ft); with a typical floor height of 4m (13ft). The lateral force resisting system consists of special RC shear wall placed along the perimeter of the building. This arrangement ensures that center of mass is close to center of rigidity, hence it avoids inherent torsional effects. In addition, placing the walls along the perimeter boosts the building torsional resistance and reduces the shear demands on walls due to accidental torsion effects. The gravity system consists of RC square columns, while the floor system comprises of cast-in-situ flat plate. However, the gravity system is not designed to be part of the lateral force resisting system. It is only designed to support vertical loads and to satisfy the deformation compatibility requirement. For design purposes, concrete compressive strength () is assumed to be 28MPa (4.0ksi) for columns and slabs, and 38MPa (5.0ksi) for shear walls. Additionally, the yield strength (fy) of reinforcement is assumed to be 420MPa (60ksi). Super Imposed Dead Load (SDL) is 3.6kPa (75psf), excluding the self-weight of the concrete slabs. This SDL value is a conservative estimate commonly used for office buildings in Dubai. The breakdown of this estimate is as follows: 2 kPa (for 100mm of leveling screed and flooring tiles), 1 kPa for partitions (usually movable partitions) and 0.6 kPa allowance for mechanical, electrical and plumping overhanging services. Curtain wall (cladding) load on th e perimeter of each floor is 0.72kPa (15psf). Moreover, for office buildings the typical floors live load is 2.4kPa (50psf) and the roof live load is 1kPa (20psf) as per ASCE7-10. The six reference buildings are designed and detailed according to IBC12 requirements for two different seismic hazard levels representing high and moderate seismicity estimates in Dubai. The selection of the two seismic design levels is driven by the existing uncertainty in seismic loading and the substantial variability in reported seismic hazard levels for UAE and Dubai. Therefore, it is deemed a reasonable choice for the objective of this paper to consider the highest and moderate seismicity levels. This would allow investigating the consequences of the possible alternative seismic loading levels available to designers. The highest seismicity level represents the upper bound, and it is obtained from USGS (2015). The USGS seismic hazard level for Dubai estimate is selected in this study (i.e. Ss = 1.65g and S1 = 0.65g). Moreover, the moderate seismic design level represents Abu Dhabi International Building Code 2011 (ADIBC11) estimate for Dubai. The elastic design response spectra for the two considered seismicity levels along with the ASCE7-10 estimated fundamental periods of the studied six buildings are presented in Figure 3. As shown, at each seismic design level, three buildings with 6-stories, 9-stories and 12-stories are designed with special RC shear walls. Summary of all buildings details including response modification factors (R and Cd), design spectral accelerations and elastic fundamental time periods, and approximate periods upper limit are given in Table 2. It is worth mentioning that the ground motion input parameters (Ss and S1) of the two seismicity levels (high and moderate) result in Seismic Design Category (SDC) D for the six considered buildings. Consequently, ordinary RC shear walls are not permitted by the design code (i.e. ASCE7-10). Thus, all buildings are required to have special RC walls. Furthermore, choosing special detailing for both seismicity levels would allow investigating the direct impact of the seismic design level on th e cost and performance of walls with same level of detailing requirements. The buildings are given a legend showing its ID (i.e. Building1 to Building6), number of stories (i.e. 6Story, 9Story or 12Story), seismic design level (i.e. High or Moderate) and shear wall type (i.e. Special or Ordinary). A site class D is assumed for the six reference buildings. This assumption complies with IBC12 recommendations. Design Summary The buildings are designed and detailed in accordance to IBC12 standards which refers to ASCE7-10 for minimum design loads and ACI318-11for structural concrete requirements. The designs implement the state of the art practices in design and construction followed in Dubai, UAE. For the design purposes, elastic analysis is done using 3D models on CSI ETABS commercial package (ETABS, 2015). To determine the majority of the seismic mass, the gravity system is designed first and fixed for the three buildings. The gravity system is designed to resist axial forces from all vertical loads in addition to the moments and shears induced from deformation compatibility requirements. In order to ensure the structural stability of gravity columns, they are designed to resist the induced actions (bending moments and shear forces) from the deformations that will be imposed by earthquake excitations on the building. The bending moments and shear forces are estimated based on the maximum allowable inter-story drift by IBC12 which is 2%. The stiffness of the columns is estimated using ETABS by applying a force at the top and bottom of the considered story and by getting the corresponding displacement. The shear forces are then calculated by multiplying the maximum allowable displacement by the stiffness of each column. Then from the shear force, the moment is calculated as shown in Equations (1) and (2). (1) (2) Where V is shear force, d is displacement (calculated using ETABS), M is bending moment and L is column height. It should be noted that concrete shear capacity is found sufficient to resist the shear forces due to imposed deformations by applied seismic forces. Therefore, minimum lateral reinforcement (i.e. column ties) is provided in columns with reference to clause 7.10 in ACI318-11. The gravity system components (i.e. flat plates and columns) are designed in accordance to ACI318-11 provisions using in-house design spreadsheets. For an optimized design, following common design trends in UAE, columns cross sections and reinforcement are grouped and changed every three floors. The gravity system is common between buildings with the same number of floors. The gravity columns design details for the six reference buildings are summarized in Figure 4. Figure 4 (a), (b) and (c) show the dimensions and reinforcement details of the 6- , 9- and 12-story buildings, respectively. On the left s ide of each Figure, the columns cross section dimensions are provided over each group of floors. The right side shows the vertical and horizontal reinforcement of the different columns (i.e. columns around the opening and remaining columns) in each group of floors. The minimum required slab thickness is calculated such that it satisfies ACI318-11 Table 9.5(c) minimum requirements. For the longest clear span of 5.3m, the minimum required thickness is 177mm. This figure is rounded up and 200mm thick flat plates are used. The flat plates are reinforced with T16 reinforcement bars spaced at 125mm, top and bottom in both directions. Additional T20 reinforcement spaced at 125mm (2m long) are added on top of columns in both directions. The lateral system is designed to resist the seismic lateral loads determined according to IBC12 Static Equivalent Lateral Force (SELF) method. The SELF method is permitted for all the six reference buildings. This is because the total height for all buildings does not exceed 48m (160ft), the SDC is D and no structural irregularities exist according to ASCE7-10, Table 12.6-1. Linear static analysis is performed using ETABS to evaluate the induced forces and displacements from seismic forces. Then, shear walls are designed to satisfy strength and drift requirements. Inter-story drift ratios are controlled within code, IBC12, limits (2%) by varying the shear wall stiffness through changing its in-plan length. Strength requirements are satisfied by designing the shear walls for the induced bending moments and shear forces by the seismic actions using Quickwall software (Quick Concrete Wall, 2015). Shear walls thickness and reinforcement are changed every three floors to optimize the des ign and to match common design practices in Dubai. However, walls in-plane length is kept constant throughout the buildings height to avoid any vertical structural irregularities. The need for specially detailed boundary elements is checked every three floors using the displacement-based approach. The use of displacement based approach for checking the boundary elements vertical extent is preferred over the use of stress-based approach. This is because the latter approach was proven to provide highly conservative requirements for the special detailing (Wallace and Moehle, 1992) and (Thomsen IV and Wallace, 2004). For practical constructability, boundary elements are designed to have the same wall thickness. Additionally, to comply with ACI318-11 minimum thickness requirements and conform to typical design practices in the UAE, an aspect ratio of at least 25.4mm: 304.8mm (1in: 12in) is maintained between wall thickness and length. The walls minimum thickness depends on the unsupporte d height and length. Therefore, as the walls unsupported heights across the different buildings are constant (i.e. limited by the typical story height), it is necessary to impose a practical criterion on the walls thickness as we change the length from building to building. This approach guarantees that the different designs are subjected to the same guidelines, especially for sizing the walls cross sections. This would result in a fair response comparison among all designs as they follow similar basis that imitates typical design practices in the UAE. During initial dynamic analyses of the 12-story buildings, B5-12S-H-S and B6-12S-M-S, it was observed that the critical section was not at the walls base. This is contradicting the code assumption of having a single critical section at the base of cantilevered shear walls. The critical section resulting in the dynamic analysis was actually shifted from the wall base to the bottom of the lowest floor in upper quarter of the building (1 0th floor). The initiated failure mechanism was governed by higher modes effects and the formation of plastic hinges at upper floors. The optimization done initially to the design by reducing dimensions and reinforcement for upper floors magnified the impact of higher modes effects. As a result, it triggered the failure and plastic hinge formation to be initiated at the reduced cross section. Therefore, the critical section became located at the weak spot at higher levels, which resulted in an unfavorable premature collapse mechanism. This observation has been highlighted by previous researchers, such as Tremblay et al. (2001), Bachmann and Linde (1995), and Panneton et al. (2006). It was also experimentally proven by shake table and cyclic loading tests (El-Sokkary et al., 2013). As an example, the modal analysis of the 12-story building, B5-12S-H-S, is shown in Table 3. It can be seen that there are clear separations between the individual modes characteristics (periods and modal masses). This is generally expected in a flexural cantilever structural type (i.e. shear walls). The first mode effective mass is usually ranging from 50% to 70% and the second mode period is approximately one sixth of the first mode. This is consistent with many research studies which investigated the effects of higher modes on response of cantilever shear walls (e.g. Humar and Mahgoub, 2003 and Tremblay et al., 2001). Furthermore, it is clear that relative modal weights (%) and modal participation factors are relatively high at 7th, 8th and 12th vibration modes which highlights the impact of higher modes. As a result, the design was revised by keeping the cross section and reinforcement constant for the upper half of the 12-story (B5-12S-H-S and B6-12S-M-S) and 9-story buildings (B3-9S-H-S and B4-9S-M-S). For 6-story buildings (B1-6S-H-S and B2-6S-M-S), a single cross-section was used for all floors with terminating boundary element at third floor. This conforms to the state-of-ar t design and construction practices in Dubai, UAE. It also matches the design philosophy adopted in other 12-story and 9-story buildings by keeping the same cross section and reinforcement for upper six floors. Summary of the shear walls design details is shown in Figure 5. Nonlinear Modeling The six reference buildings are modeled using lumped plasticity formulations on IDARC-2D (Reinhorn et al., 2009). Since the buildings are symmetric, mass participation of torsional modes of vibration are low. Therefore, torsional effects are negligible and a two-dimensional model is sufficient to simulate the buildings response. The shear walls are idealized using macro-models by representing the structural members with equivalent elements possessing all nonlinear characteristics. The members nonlinear characteristics depend on distribution of plasticity and yield penetration. A lumped plasticity model consisting of two nonlinear rotational springs located at the ends and an elastic member is used for the shear walls. The nonlinearity is concentrated at the locations of the nonlinear rotational springs. The flexural and shear deformations of the shear walls are modelled using the tri-linear (three parameter) hysteretic model developed by Park et al. (1987). The tri-linear hysteretic models allow controlling the stiffness degradation and strength deterioration due to ductility and energy. In addition, the axial deformations of the shear walls are considered by a linear-elastic spring. For the shear walls, the moment-curvature and shear-distortion are calculated using the fiber elements procedure of IDARC2D. The wall cross section is divided into number of fibers and then subjected to increments of curvatures. From strain compatibility and equilibrium, the strains are calculated and used to compute the resulting axial forces and bending moments in the section (Reinhorn et al., 2009). Results and Discussion The buildings seismic performance is evaluated following FEMA P695 methodology (2009). FEMA P695 approach is based on nonlinear pseudo static (pushover) analysis, Incremental Dynamic Analysis (IDA) and fragility analysis. Pushover analysis is used to validate the nonlinear model and estimate the period based ductility of the buildings. Then, IDA analysis is performed using a suite of far-field ground motion records to estimate the median collapse intensity and collapse margin ratio. The far-field ground motion records are scaled to match the MCE response spectrum of the highest seismicity estimate in UAE. This seismicity hazard level is as estimated by USGS (2015) for Dubai (Ss = 1.65 g and S1 = 0.65 g). The selected scaling level simulates the worst, yet possible seismic hazard scenario from distant sources (e.g. Zagros thrust or Makran subduction zone) as highlighted by Sigbjornsson and Elnashai (2006). Thus, it allows assessing the consequences of the selected seismic design level (i.e. high or moderate) on the seismic performance, construction and repair costs of RC shear wall buildings in Dubai. The calculated collapse margin ratios from the IDA are adjusted to account for uncertainties in design basis, test data, nonlinear modeling and to consider the spectral shape of the ground motion records. The spectral content is accounted for based on the calculated period based ductility. Adjusted IDA results are finally used to calculate exceedance probabilities for ASCE-41 (2013) performance levels, Collapse Prevention (CP), Life Safety (LS) and Immediate Occupancy (IO). Nonlinear Pseudo-Static (Pushover) Analysis Pushover analysis is performed using an inverted triangle displacement profile as a pushing function for all buildings. The intensity is increased monotonically until the ultimate base shear degrades by 20%. The results are used to construct capacity curves (back-bone) for the reference buildings in the form of roof drift ratio versus base shear coefficient (i.e. base shear normalized by seismic weight). Pushover capacity curves are used to assess the buildings deformation and strength capacities. The capacity curves of the three buildings designed for the high seismicity estimate (i.e. B1-6S-H-S, B3-9S-H-S and B5-12S-H-S) are shown in Figure 6. Normalized base shear capacities are 0.57, 0.5 and 0.46 for B1-6S-H-S, B3-9S-H-S and B5-12S-H-S, respectively. As expected, base shear capacity is higher for the shorter building (6-story). This is attributed to the higher design forces which resulted from the relatively higher initial stiffness of squat shear walls compared to their slender counterpart. B1-6S-H-S reached a maximum roof drift ratio, prior collapse, of 6.5%, while B3-9S-H-S reached 6% and B5-12S-H-S reached 7.25%. The three buildings have period-based ductility calculated as recommended by FEMA P695 greater than 8. It can also be observed that in the three high seismicity designs, the capacity curves do not experience severe degradation in strength or deterioration in stiffness. This matches the expected behavior of well detailed special RC shear walls with confined bou ndary elements. It is noticed from the final damage states of the buildings, at 20% strength degradation, that static pushover analysis resulted in a failure mode at the base of the shear walls conforming to the design code assumed critical section. The overall structural damage index reported by IDARC-2D is 0.359, 0.426 and 0.618 for B1-6S-H-S, B3-9S-H-S and B5-12S-H-S. It is worth mentioning that these damages are concentrated at first floor shear walls. Established capacity curves for buildings designed for moderate seismicity (B2-6S-M-S, B4-9S-M-S and B6-12S-M-S) are presented in Figure 6. From shown capacity curves, normalized base shear capacities are 0.31, 0.26 and 0.24 for buildings B2-6S-M-S, B4-9S-M-S and B6-12S-M-S, respectively. Similar to the high seismicity design, the 6-story building has the highest normalized base shear capacity. This is due to its lateral system (shear walls) relatively higher stiffness which resulted in higher demands. Maximum drift ratios, prior collapse achieved by B2-6S-M-S, B4-9S-M-S and B6-12S-M-S are 9.25%, 8% and 3.5%, respectively. The three designs have period-based ductility greater than 8 calculated as recommended by FEMA P695. The overall structural damage index reported by IDARC-2D is 0.371 for B2-6S-M-S, 0.455 for B4-9S-M-S and 0.359 for B6-12S-M-S. These damages are triggered at the first floor shear walls only. Therefore, similar to high seismicity designs, the pseudo static pushover analysis results of moderate seismicity designs suggests a single critical section at the wall base. This conclusion matches with design code recommendation for regular buildings permitted to be designed following the static method (SELF) by ASCE7-10. Nonlinear Incremental Dynamic Analysis (IDA) The seismic performance of the reference buildings is investigated under the random nature of earthquakes. Standard nonlinear pseudo-static analysis does not inherently fully capture the higher modes effects which usually govern the response of tall and irregular buildings. Consequently, the use of nonlinear dynamic analysis is more appropriate in such cases. IDA provides better insight of the expected structural response from the linear range through the nonlinear response and until it losses stability and collapse (Vamvatsikos and Cornell, 2004). The IDA in this case is performed using a very fine increment of 0.1g for the spectral accelerations. The increments are increased until all ground motion records caused the buildings to collapse or exceed the CP maximum drift ratio limit of 2% as specified by ASCE-41. However, the maximum spectral acceleration for all the records is not increased more than 2.5g. The total number of dynamic analysis runs performed for each reference buildi ng is around 1100 (22 records x 2 components x 25 scale factors). Figure 7 presents the resulting IDA curves for high seismicity designs, B1-6S-H-S, B3-9S-H-S and B5-12S-H-S. The structural response derived from IDA curves can depend to some extent on the characteristics of the particular accelerograms used. Thus, the performance is judged based on a suit of ground motion records to segregate this effect. On average, at low drift ratios (approximately up to 1%), the three designs (B1-6S-H-S, B3-9S-H-S and B5-12S-H-S) exhibit a linear behavior. The same linear behavior is resulting from some of the ground motion records up to the MCE spectral acceleration. At higher spectral accelerations, the structural response starts to vary showing several patterns of nonlinearities, such as softening, hardening and weaving. For only few records, the structure seems to soften and move to large drifts rapidly until it reaches collapse. Collapse in these curves, whether resulting from convergence issues, numerical instabilities, or very large drift ratio, is repre sented using a drift ratio of 10% and a flat line in IDA curves. Majority of the earthquake records caused severe hardening and weaving around the elastic response. The weaving observation conforms to the common equal displacement rule stating that inelastic and elastic displacements are equal for structures with relatively moderate time periods (Vamvatsikos and Cornell, 2002). In addition, for some records, the hardening phenomenon in which the structure seems to perform better at higher intensities is somewhat against the common expectation (Vamvatsikos and Cornell, 2002). This is because generally the time and pattern of the time-history governs the response more than just the intensity. Moreover, the upward scaling done to the records makes the less responsive cycles at the beginning of the time-history strong enough to cause damage and yielding of the structural elements. Therefore, some strong ground motion records at some intensity might cause early yielding of a specific flo or, usually a low floor. This floor acts as a sacrificial fuse which reduces the response of higher floors (Vamvatsikos and Cornell, 2002). Another very interesting observation that is clearly seen in IDA curves shown in Figure 7 is what is called Structural Resurrection. This phenomenon has been observed by Vamvatsikos and Cornell (2002) and is defined as a severe hardening behavior. In structural resurrection, the building moves all the way to complete collapse (numerical instability or convergence issues) at some intensity. Then at higher intensities it shows a lower or higher response, but without collapsing. This happens because the time and pattern of the ground motion record at a particular intensity might be more damaging than at higher intensities. In other words, this particular intensity causes the stru

European Social Classes :: essays research papers

An unknown poet in the medieval times described the three social classes of European society of his time in this way: â€Å"One toils, one prays, and one defends.† Let us examine these social classes, their lives and what part they played in building their Europe. One Toils   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The common place peasants were referred to as toilers, because they held the base positions of workers (farmers, welders, herders, barbers). Their lives consisted of ever changing working assignments that were dictated by season and need by superior officials (clergy or political). Their homes were of simple design made of wood frames, which were stuffed with straw and rubber then plastered over with clay. The roof was simply thatched together. Homes of the poorer had but one room, while others consisted of two, one for eating and activities and one for sleeping. Their food was adequate if resources permitted, grown from their own backyard and meat was only consumed on special occasions because it was not readily available. An interesting fact was that the bread that the peasants grew was highly nutritious because it contained not just wheat and rye but it was also made with barley, millet, and oats. These grains served another purpose as well, they were used to m ake ale. Ale was the poor man’s liquor, and according to records a large sum was consumed and was responsible for a lot death tolls in medieval court records. All in all the â€Å"toilers† were a simple people, but in their simplicity were the foundation of European for who sewed the clothes together to clothe the superiors and who grew the food that was fed to the superiors. One Prays   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  This is an obvious description of the clergy of Europe. A strong example of how important religion was to Europe was and still is the Gothic Cathedral, it ascended stretched out to the heavens, symbolic of the people’s passion for God. The cathedral was build through the hands of everyone in the community, some by using their architectural skills, others by donating the needed funds for completion of the project. Sound management by the popes, along with new characteristics of religious life, made the Catholic church a forceful authority in every area of European citizen’s life. One Defends   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The defenders of Europe, her soldiers, ever changing the flow of their motherland. The role of solders was clear. As seen in the many battles that formed Europe.

Clubfoot Essay -- essays research papers

CLUBFOOT   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Clubfoot is defined as a congenital foot deformity characterized by a kidney shaped foot that turns inward and points down. The forefoot is curved inward, the heel is bent inward, and the ankle is fixed in planter flexion with the toes pointing down. Shortened tendons on the inside of the lower leg, together with abnormally shaped bones that restrict movement outwards cause the foot to turn inwards. A tightened achilles tendon causes the foot to point downwards. The medical term for clubfoot is talipes equinovarus . It is the most common congenital disorder of the lower extremity. There are several variations, but talipes equinovarus being the most common. Clubfeet occurs in approximately 1 in every 800-1000 babies, being twice as common in boys than girls. One or both feet may be affected.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The history of clubfeet began as far back as 400 B.C. Hipocrates was the first to describe it. He used bandages to treat it. As time progressed so did the treatment methods. In about 1743 gentle stretching was recommended. During that same century, a mechanical device resembling a turnbuckle was used to help stretch the tendons. By this time clubfoot was pretty well known around the world, using the typical stretching and splinting methods. In the 1800’s plaster of paris was first introduced, and later that same century, the introduction of aseptic technique and anasthesia diminished, but not eliminated infection. As...

Fate in A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens Essay -- french revolut

Charles Dickens captures the aura of the French Revolution so poetically it is almost as if he was there. Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities is a thrilling novel originally printed in the newspaper, explaining the cliffhangers at the end of many a chapter. One of the elements that makes the story so thrilling is his incorporation of the theme of fate. Dickens incorporates innumerable symbols to enforce this theme. The echoing footsteps, the storm, and the water are all symbols that reflect the theme of fate by demonstrating the inevitability of your fate. The echoing footsteps written in the novel are meant to inspire the idea of all of the people that are going to come into the characters’ lives. Dickens’ character Lucie Manette is listening to a storm with her friends when she says, â€Å"I have made the echoes out to be the echoes of all the footsteps that are coming by-and-by into our lives† (Dickens 78). This quote indicates that Lucie has some premonition of people who will enter her life. While Lucie may think she has some idea of what and who are coming into her life, she has no idea what direction fate will take her. She does not know if she will meet good people or bad people, and all she can do is wait and be patient. Patience is a virtue when it comes to fate, because fate plays out on its own. Further into the conversation Charles Darnay asks of Lucie, â€Å"Are all these footsteps destined to come to all of us, Miss Manette, or are we to divide them among us?† (78). Mr. Darnay, like all humans , is curious about his fate. Humans are extremely curious about their future, otherwise fortune-tellers would not be in business. The reason for this is most likely a mix between people’s curiosity and their obsession with control. People hav... ... brings up the idea that one cannot change their fate through his symbols, and his inclusion of water as a symbol reinforces this notion. The theme of fate is represented by the echoing footsteps, the storm, and the water with the idea that one cannot stop their fate from proceeding. Dickens uses many symbols throughout A Tale of Two Cities that aid in the promotion of the theme of fate. These three symbols demonstrate the idea that one’s fate is unchangeable and there is a reason for that. The symbols used in this book to expose the theme of fate indicate that Dickens believes that fate is powerful force not to be messed with. Dickens relays the theme of fate being unchangeable in an effective and exciting way that captivates readers and makes A Tale of Two Cities a marvelous read. Works Cited Dickens, Charles. A Tale of Two Cities. N.p.: Dover, 1999. Print.

Influence on the General Motors Corporation Essay

This report analyzes the primary internal and external influence on the General Motors Corporation and the influence of changing political environment on policy making and response of the corporation. Then the report discusses the changing political environment in and its influence. The influences of political environment on policies and decision making to the corporation are analyzed. The corporation response to the political environment changing is critically evaluated. At last, some improvement suggestion for the corporation in the response of the changing political environment is demonstrated. IntroductionGeneral Motors Corporation is the largest automobile manufactures in the world. The corporation, which is located in Detroit, employs more than 260 millions people and sells cars and trucks in about 35 countries. The corporation has a dominant influence in automobile market in the United States and other developed market such as the United Kingdom, Canada and so on. The corporation also enjoys a large market share in the rapid growing market of developing countries such as China and Brazil. However, the corporation is in face of changing internal and external environment. Discussion and AnalysisIn the first part of the report, the primary internal and external influence is analyzed following the SWOT Matrix, which is a modern tool for analysis of internal and external environment. In the SWOT Matrix, the S stands for strengths, W for weaknesses, O for opportunities, and T for threats. The strengths and weaknesses are the analysis of internal influence while the opportunities and threats stand for the influence of external environments. In the following part of the report, the strengths, weakness, opportunities and threats that have influence of the organization is discussed one by one. Internal influence: Strengths This section analyzes the internal strengths of the corporation. The General Motors are rich in brands and product lines. The General Motors Corporation acquired and mergers many brands and auto companies in the early stage of its history. The General Motors Corporation acquired Buick and Oldsmobile after it is founded. Then it brought Cadillac, Elmore and Oakland and so on. As a result, the corporation owns many brands  which are fit for different segmented markets. Comparing to Ford’s only providing black Model T cars in the early years the General Motors Corporation provides various models, colors and brands for different markets. For example, the practical and economical Chevrolet are designed for entry level consumers, the Buick are make for middle class buyer and luxury Cadillac for high end consumers. (Warell, 2008) The advantage of multi brands strategy is to satisfy the needs and wants of different group of consumers to enter more segmented markets. The multi brands make GM a giant automaker and enjoys large market share. The General Motors Corporation has the strength that it governs the advance technology and has an influencing power in the distribution channel. The General Motors Corporation has developed for a century since it is founded in 1908. During the time, the technology and channel influence is accumulating and increasing. The technology is of great importance in the motor industry, but the technology accumulating needs a long period. The General Motors Corporation now governs the advanced technology that it can make more sophisticated automobiles which are more durable, more safety, and have a rapider speed. On the other hand, the General Motors Corporation has a dominant power in the distribution channel. The General Motors Corporation has been the top automobile manufacturer for a long time accordingly it has a strong bargaining power in the distribution channel. The corporation can distribute it product in the United States and all around the world. The technology and distribution chan nel can be a great assistant in the further development of the organization. Internal influence: Weaknesses This section analyzes the internal weaknesses of the corporation. One of the most significant weaknesses is that the cost of production is too high. The Japanese automakers such as Toyota are dangerous competitors for the General Motors Corporation and the have scrambled for quite a large part of market shares if the GM in America and the global markets. The Japanese competitors cut down the cost tremendously by lean production. However, the production cost is still high in the General Motors Corporation. And the inefficiency of production cause the high price of its automobiles and the market share shrinks accordingly.  (Coffey, 2005) Especially in face of the financial crisis, the General Motors Corporation has much to learn form lean production to cut down its production prices. The bureaucratic culture is another weakness in the corporation. The General Motors Corporation employs more than 260 millions staff, which composes a huge and complex organization. The General Motors Corporation had taken the lead in organization. For example, the corporation had injected into matrix organization that combined the functional and project patterns of department in the same corporation in early years. The General Motors Corporation also organized with strategic business unit that classified products and product lines in the same independent business department in ahead of other corporations. The decentralization makes each department a profit centre. However, after ages of development the departments and business units concerns more on their own benefits and become bureaucratic. The well defined division of departments and united became deficiency and resistance to change. Formal and informal networks formed in the corporation. The bureaucratic culture is accumulating and hander the further development of the corporation. External influence: Opportunities This section analyzes the external opportunities of the corporation. The emerging markets of developing countries provide a great opportunity for the General Motors Corporation. The market of developed countries is fully covered and closed to saturation in the modern days. For example, in the United States there are two cars in a family in average so the market can not keep a rapid growing rate. On the country, market in developing countries shows their potential. The sales volume in China and Brazil is second only to the market of the United States. Many international automaker groups are scrambling for these markets. The large and potential markets of developing countries will provide opportunities for the corporation. The achievement in technology is a great opportunities for the General Motors Corporation. The technology makes breakthrough achievement in fields of information, manufacturing, fuel and so on. The advance of information  technology and implementation of management information system make it possible to collect and analysis accurate data and information all around the huge organization. The computers and instant communication tool help the corporation to organize and manage the supply chain. The new methods in manufacturing, such as lean production, can increase the efficiency of production while cutting down the cost. The leading edge achievement on fuel and new energy engine can promote the upgrade of automobiles. The General Motors Corporation is huge enough to afford the cost of R&D center and the implement of new technology, which in turn can raise the competency of the corporation. (Sengi et al, 2004) External influence: Threats This section analyzes the external threats of the corporation. The increasingly growing price of petroleum is a threat to the General Motors Corporation. On the one hand, consumers turn to other transport tools when they can not afford the high petro price. On the other hand, they want to purchase energy saving automobiles. Many products of the General Motors Corporation are large in size and heavy in weight and they are high fuel consumption motors. The fluctuation of oil price has a negative effect on the sales volume of the automobile of the General Motors Corporation. Some political affaires such as wars and conflictions in the Middle East, the â€Å"oil shock† caused by OPEC with economic and political purpose, the environment protection organizations anti-automobile movement and so on, enhance the threats of oil price turbulence. The competition, both in the United States and the global market, is a vital threat to the General Motors Corporation. There are three automaker giants in the United States. They are the General Motors, Ford, and Daimler Chrysler. They compete fierce in the United States and in global market. In the Europe, there are strong competitors such as BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Peugeot etc. In the 1970s, with the raising of oil price, some Japanese automakers gradually seized the automobile market shares. The low cost and energy saving cars, such as Toyota, Honda and so on became world famous brands. More and more automobile brands enter into the United States and they also scramble the global automobile market. (Loomis, 2006) They compete and try to meet consumers’ different needs and wants with lower production cost. The competition in and abroad America is fierce and threats the  survival of the General Motors Corporation. The following is the second part of the report. This section of the report discusses the changing environment in and aboard the United States. First, the influences of political environment on policies and decision making to the General Motors Corporation will be analyzed. Second, the corporation response to the political environment changing will be critically evaluated. At last, some improvement suggestion for the corporation in the response of the changing political environment will be demonstrated. Influence on policies and decision makingThis section analyzes the influence of political environment change on the policies and decision making of the corporation. The political environment has great influence on the operation of the General Motors Corporation. One of the key political influences of the General Motors Corporation and automobile industry is the increased protectionism for fear of the decline of employment in the industry. The major automakers employ so many employees that the decline of automobile sales volume will cause the significant increase of unemployment in a country. As a result, many governments tend to support the automobile industry, no matter in the form of fund assistant, protective tariff or quota. The government of the United States has a tradition of protecting its automobile industry. For example, the America government used high protective tariff to protect the automakers from the competitors from Europe and Japan in the last century. The government also gave financial assistant to the automaker that is at the verge of bankruptcy such as Chrysler. In the modern time, the automakers fall into trap again and the financial crisis enhance the tendency. The America government aims to give a large quantity of money to the automakers and use other protection methods to protect the automobile industry. It can be seem that the changing of political environment has significant influence on the policy and decision making of the General Motors Corporation. (Bowler et al, 1996) However, different presents and its government in the United States may have different attitudes on the protectionism of the Automobile industry. The General Motors Corporation should take serious consideration on the change of political environment and make full use of it. The Country Alliances and Economic Blocs and other regional cooperation organizations are another main tendency of the political environment. The competition extends form national to blocs, even global. (Cho, 1998) The North American Free Trade Agreement, which including the United States, Canada, and Mexico, formed in 1994 with the purpose of freeing the trade, eliminating tax barriers and promoting fair trade in the North America. The NAFTA also extended to Free Trade Area of the Americas, which including country in the North America, Latin America and Caribbean countries. Many European countries ally with each other to form the European Union. After years of development, the union own 27 membership countries and creates a common economic area, in which people move and trade freely. There are many other Country Alliances and Economic Blocs such as Association of Southeast Asian and so on. The political tendency of regional cooperation requires the top managers of the General Motors Corporation to consider and resolve the benefit conflicts between one power countries blogs and another when making decisions and policies. The Country Alliances and Economic Blocs and other regional cooperation organizations provide opportunities for the automobile manufacturers but the organizations in other area also became threat to the United States. The decisions and policies makers of the General Motors Corporation have to make strategy to cope with the tariff and nontariff barriers within and between the Country Alliances and Economic Blocs. The corporation should rethink its strategy. (Tay, 2007) The structure of the corporation according to different regional cooperation organizations should be considered when making decisions and policies. (Sastry, 1997) The new staffing and leading methods to deal with culture diversity also influence the policy and decision making of the Genera l Motors Corporation. The labor union, environmental organization and other political groups are gaining more and more power. The United Auto Workers is a key labor union in the automobile manufacturing industry. The union fights for the benefits of workers such as less working hours, more salaries, health insurance and pensions and so on. The labor union cause the high cost of the General Motors Corporation. The total expense on employees is almost twice as much as the workers in other industry in the United States, and much more than  the employees in competitors’ factories, such as Honda and Toyota. (Benders and Morita, 2004) The union is blamed as the reason of the uncompetitive of the General Motors Corporation and the crisis of the automobile industry. However, the methods to deal with the strong political power are the problem to the policies and decisions makers of the General Motors Corporation. In 2007, the United Auto Workers went on a strike against the General Motors Corporation, which causes tremendously negative effects on the General Motors Corporation. So the policies and decisions of the corporation should balance the interest of the employees. The environmental organizations are gaining more and more power. With the increasingly dangerous environment problems, many green groups, which become independent and influencing political power, claim for the protection of the earth. Motor vehicle exhaust is considered as the main effects of the greenhouse effect. Some green groups are against the using of automobiles, which cause the decline of the automobile sales volume. As the increasing of environment protection power and the widely acceptance of the green opinion, the managers should make new policies and decisions such as designing alternative fuels vehicles. Evaluation of GM’s responseThis section critically evaluates the corporation’s response to the changing political environment. In face of the dynamic changing political environment, the General Motors Corporation makes some responses accordingly. The General Motors Corporation makes full use of the protectionism policies and financial assistance of the government to maximize its benefits. In order to be more influence in political, the General Motors Corporation spends a lot of money on political contributions. Statistics shows that the General Motors Corporation spent quite a lot of money as the political contribution for both the Democrats and the Republicans. The spending on lobbying the members of parliament is also quite large. Besides the political contributions, the General Motors Corporation also spends plenty of money on charities. For example, the General Motors Corporation is the exclusive financial source of â€Å"Safe Kids Buckle Up† program, which p rotect the children through education and inspection. The political and charitable contributions are positive and active response to the changing political environment. On the one hand, the General Motors Corporation strengthens its influence and enhances the  connection with the government. On the other hand, the corporation undertaken its social responsibility, which wins the corporation positive reputation so the General Motors Corporation can easily get the support when in crisis and consumers tend to purchase automobiles of the corporation. In the behavior of giving political and charitable contribution, the General Motors Corporation well response to the political change and gain more political influence, which helps the corporation get protection from the government. The Country Alliances and Economic Blocs and other regional cooperation organizations are a main political change these decades. In order to minimize the hindrance and the conflict between different Economic Blocs, the General Motors Corporation makes trade strategy, ally with other automaker group, and establish joint venture in some countries. For example, the United States and China have different ideologies and economic situations and they belong to different Country Alliances and Economic Blocs. The Chinese government forbids the wholly foreign owned subsidiary in the automobile industry. The China customs also charge tariff on the automobiles. In order to enter the market of other Country Alliances and Economic Blocs, the General Motors Corporation establishes joint venture with Chinese company. The Shanghai GM joint venture is created by the General Motors Corporation and a Chinese company, in which the automobiles of China’s market were manufactured. The General Motors Corporation brings advance technology, operation experience to the venture. The joint venture employs local workers whose salaries are quite low comparing with the workers of the United Auto Union. The joint venture brings profits for both sides and the General Motors Corporation avoids the high tariff and nontariff protection between different countries and different Economic Blocs. The General Motors Corporation makes an effective response to cover the gap between the Country Alliances and Economic Blocs. The labor union and environmental organization become increasingly influencing political powers. The General Motors Corporation tries hard to response properly to the increasingly strong power of the labor union. The United Auto Union is blame as the cause of uncompetitive of the General Motors Corporation for the members’ salaries in the union are much higher than its foreign competitors. The General Motors Corporation tries to cut down costs of the workforces in face of the financial crisis and problem of the automobile industry. The General Motors Corporation makes a policy of eliminating the lifetime health benefits of the white collar retirees. It is a hard decision after negotiation to response the political environment change and the automobile industry crisis. The General Motors Corporation has a long way to go, but it has taken a constructive step to response to the changing of political environment. In response to the political force of green groups, the General Motors Corporation designs energy saving vehicles which implement alternative fuels and electric. The corporation researches and designs some alternative technology vehicles and some flex fuel burning vehicles. The General Motors Corporation also builds an automotive battery laboratory to research on battery for the electric vehicles. The hybrid electric vehicles are a more practicable automobile in the future. The General Motors Corporation introduced the hybrid concept vehicle in 2005. Up to now, the corporation owes several hybrid electric automobile models and even all electric vehicles. The General Motors Corporation does a good job in developing alternative fuels and electric vehicles in response to the environment protection political power. Areas for improvementThis section demonstrates some areas for improvement of the corporation. The General Motors Corporation does well in response to the challenge of changing political environment. However, there are still some areas for improvement for the corporation. The most important improvement area is to raise the manufacturing efficiency. The average cost of manufacturing in the General Motors Corporation is high comparing with its main competitors such as Toyota. The Toyota is scrambling the market share of the GM little by little in the United States and all around the world. The competitiveness of Toyota come form the low cost caused from lean production. The core spirit of lean product is more value with less work. The purpose of production is to provide value to the final consumers. The expense for other goals is considered as a waste, by which the waste of resource is eliminated and the manufacturing efficiency promoted. It can introduce advance assembly line and reorg anize the logistic department,  through which the supply chain is organized. (Kochan, 2003) The lean production and be combined with six sigma quality and total quality management to maximize the efficiency and cut down the cost. (Dahlgaard and Dahlgaard-Park, 2006)The General Motors Corporation can make a reform on culture. It can build a harmonious culture as in Japanese automobile manufacturing factories to coordinate the relationship and benefits between managers and workers. On the one hand, the harm of the Union Auto Workers can be minimized and the cost of manufacture can be cut down. On the other hand, the harmonious culture can promote the efficiency of manufacturing. The General Motors Corporation also needs to fight against the bureaucratic culture. The organization structure can be reformed and reconstructed break out the barriers between different departments and stimulate the cooperation of different profit centers. Different methods can also be implemented to motivate confidence, communicate and collaborate between staff in different level. ConclusionThis report analyzes the internal and external environment of the General Motors Corporation in the first paragraph and then discusses the changing political environment of the corporation. In analysis, the strengths of branding strategy and advantage in technology and channel, the weaknesses of high production cost and bureaucratic culture, the opportunities of emerging markets and achievement of technology, and the threats of petroleum price fluctuation and strong competitors are analyzed with the SWOT model. In the second part of the report, the influence of political environment change is discussed in three perspectives. They are the protectionism from government, the tendency of Country Alliances and Economic Blocs, and the growing in strength of labor union, green groups and other political groups. Their influence on policies and decision making and the response of the corporation are analyzed and critically evaluated. Then some suggestions are given on several areas for improvement of the corporation. Recommendations As is analyzed in above, the General Motors Corporation can improve in two ways. First, the corporation can introduce new manufacturing methods, such as the lean production, the six sigma quality and total  quality management and so on. By implementing advanced manufacture methods, the corporation can promote its efficiency in manufacturing while reducing the cost. Second, the corporation can build a harmonious culture and fight against the bureaucratic culture, through which the barriers between different departments are broken while the staff in the corporation is motivated. Reference: Benders, J. and Morita, M. (2004), ‘Changes in Toyota Motors’ operations management’, International Journal of Production Research, 42(3), pp: 433-45. Bowler, S. et al. (1996), ‘The growth of the political marketing industry and the California initiative proces’ European Journal of Marketing, 30(10/11), pp: 166-78. Cho, D.S. (1998), ‘From national competitiveness to bloc and global competitiveness’ Competitiveness Review, 8(1), pp: 11-23. Coffey, D. (2005), ‘Delineating comparative flexibility in car assembly: the problem of wide selection’ International Journal of Automotive Technology and Management, 5(1), pp: 18-31. Dahlgaard, J.J. and Dahlgaard-Park, S.M. (2006), ‘Lean production, six sigma quality, TQM and company culture’ The TQM Magazine, 18(3), pp: 263-81. Kochan, A. (2003), ‘GM creates flexible assembly line at its Ellesmere Port plant in the UK’ Assembly Automation, 23(1), pp: 32-5. Loomis, C.J. (2006), ‘The tragedy of General Motors’, Fortune, 153 (3), pp: 31-45. Sastry, M.A. (1997), ‘Problems and paradoxes in a model of punctuated organizational change’, Administrative Science Quarterly, 42(2), pp: 237-75. Sengir, G.H. et al (2004), ‘Modeling relationship dynamics in GM’s research-institution partnerships’, Journal of Manufacturing Technology Management, 15(7), pp: 541-59. Tay, H.K. (2007), ‘Rethinking competition in the world auto market: cultural determinants, strategic’ Strategy & Leadership, 35(4), pp: 31-7. Warell, A. (2008), ‘Multi-modal visual experience of brand-specific automobile design’ The TQM Journal, 20(4), pp: 356-71.