The Benefits of Algae :: Environment Nature Ecology Essays Papers

The Benefits of Algae How often also does a human use or eat algae in his daily life? When most people think of algae, they probably think of something that is slimy, gross, and dirty. Algae may irritate people because it grows in unwanted places like swimming pools and boats. Algae can be toxic and it is slimy, but algae benefits people in all aspects of life. Humans obtain algin from algae to help make ice cream, pudding, face cream, and shoe polish. Algae is present in hamburgers, yoghurt, and cakes. Algae also helps make explosives, insulation, and paint. Algae produces most of the oxygen that animals breathe and without it the world would suffocate. Also, according to Helen Challand, "It is now believed that the oil and gas formed millions of years ago in the ground were created by algae" (20). What if the world could find a way to dispose of sewage, produce food, and purify bodies of water at the same time? The Aztecs have proven that this idea is possible. Lake Texcoco flowed near the Aztec civilization. The Aztecs disposed of their waste in the lake. The human waste added nitrogen to the water. The nitrogen helped algae to grow, and then the algae performed photosynthesis. Photosynthesis gives off oxygen, and oxygen purifies polluted water. The Aztec's also abstracted the algae from the lake and used it for food. Certain types of algae like red and green algae are edible. Many cultures have eaten seaweed for centuries. Wendy O'Leary Dunn states, "They think of seaweed as a vegetable and eat it as we eat broccoli or spinach" (18). Therefore, when humans dispose of their waste in bodies of water, they help algae grow. Then, the algae cleans the water and they can eat the algae. The process of disposing waste, producing food, and purifying bodies of water is useful today. For example, communities that live in the desert, like in the southwestern United States and in the Middle East, can use this process to farm and survive. They can use the newly purified water for their crops or for their own consumption. In addition, when algae purifies water, it releases oxygen.

Value of Codeswitching in an Interaction

MZUZU UNIVERSITY FACULTY OF EDUCATION DEPARTMENT OF LANGUAGES AND LITERATURE TO : MR NTHALA FROM : ELEANOR MACHESO (BAE/2A/53/09) COURSE CODE: EEN 4703 COURSE TITLE: LANGUAGE CONTACT AND BILINGUALISM QUSTION : EXPLAIN THE VALUE OF CODE SWITCHING AMONG BILINGUALS IN TRANSACTION DUE DATE : 6th MAY 2013 In linguistics, code switching is changing between two or more languages, or language varieties, in the context of a single conversation. Multilinguals sometimes use elements of multiple languages in conversing with each other.Thus, code-switching is the use of more than one linguistic variety in a manner consistent with the syntax and phonology of each variety. According to Weinreich (1953), in the 1940s and 1950s, many scholars considered code-switching to be a sub-standard use of language. Since the 1980s, however, most scholars have recognised it is a normal, natural product of bilingual and multilingual language use. With this recognition in mind, Muysken (2005), states that switchi ng is not an isolated phenomenon but rather a central part of bilingual discourse.With regards to this view, this essay will examine the value of code switching among bilinguals in transaction. There are a number of different reasons why people code switch and thus code switching holds value for bilinguals. Firstly, during a transaction, code switching is of value because it can be used by bilinguals to show identity with a group. For example, (Di Pietro,1977) reports that Italian immigrants would tell a joke in English and give the punch line in Italian, not only because it is better said in Italian but also to stress the fact that they all belong to the same minority group, with shared values and experiences.Very often, people code switch both consciously and unconsciously to act or talk more like those around them. Code switching therefore allows the establishment of rapport among bilinguals involved in a transaction. With this rapport established it becomes easy for bilinguals t o participate in a transaction easily. Secondly, during a transaction, code switching is of great semantic significance. Gumperz (1982), stresses that switching at a particular moment conveys semantically significant information. It is a communicative resource that builds on participant’s perception of two languages.Lexical choice conveys meaning during code switching. Gal (1979) reinforced this view by stating that listeners interpret codes witching as an indicator of the speaker’s attitude, or communicative intents and emotions as code switching is a tool for conveying appropriate linguistic and social information. By the same token, David (2003) describes a range of speech acts like reprimands, directives, requests, and warnings that are conveyed by using different intricate strategies to show the semantic significance in certain specific situations.Another reason why code switching is of great value to bilinguals is that, it can be used when there is the need of ma king a point, that is, to emphasize or highlight the significance of a given word or topic in the speech event. These reasons may bear pedagogic significance because in many cases it is the use of emphasis or the intent of assigning importance to a word or a topic that directly correlates with the extent of a respondent’s knowledge about a given topic and his or her choice of language.For example Gal (1979) reports several instances in which code switching at the end of an argument not only helps to end the interaction but may also serve to emphasize a point. She has taken an example from English-German code switching and stressed that switching from English to German is a means of adding more force to the final statement. Lastly, code switching has the value of communicating the mood of a speaker during a transaction. According to Malik (1994), usually when bilinguals are for example tired or angry, code switching takes place with a new dimension.This means that, when the sp eaker is in the right state of mind, he or she can find the appropriate word or expression in the base language. Very often he or she knows exactly the word in both the languages that he or she is competent in but the base language may be more available at the point of time when the speaker has a disturbed mind. Such circumstances may create a hurdle in getting the appropriate word or phrase in the language in which the speaker may be more proficient if he or she is not mentally agitated.For example a bilingual competent in Tumbuka (base language) and Sena may use Tumbuka expressions more than Sena when he or she is angry. It can therefore be concluded that there are many values of code switching in particular social contexts. The ability of the interlocutors who are able to speak more than one language fluently plays an important role during their interaction. This essay has shown that the ability of bilinguals to use more than one language in a transaction is of certain value to t he speakers BIBLIOGRAPHY David, M. K. (2003). The Pakistani Community in Machang, Kelantan: Reasons for Language Shift.International Journal of the Sociology of Language, 161, pp47-53. Di Pietro, R. (1977). Codes witching as a Verbal Strategy Among Bilinguals. Washington, DC: Hemisphere Gal, S. (1979). Language Shift: Social Determinants of Linguistic Change in Bilingual Austria. New York: Academic Gumperz, J. J. (1982). Conversational Code switching in Discourse Strategies. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. Malik, L. (1994). Sociolinguistics: A Study of Code switching. New Delhi: Anmol. Weinreich, U. (1953). Languages in Contact. The Hague: Mouton

The Exploration Of Uncharted Lands - 1066 Words

Michael A. Brooks ENGH 340 Paper #1 February 13, 2015 The exploration of uncharted lands is how the modern world today came to be known. The United States even has a national holiday named after one of the world’s most famous navigators and colonists, Christopher Columbus. Columbus is heralded for his achievements in exploration as his explorations have paved the way for the colonization and development of previously unknown lands outside of Europe. On the one hand, finding new lands can be a wondrous event because it makes the world larger, opens up the door for new resources to be used, and bridges the geographical gap between mankind. On the other hand, it can be quite the daunting experience for the native inhabitants already present†¦show more content†¦Another important factor that gave European explorers and settlers a tremendous advantage over natives from the Americas were domestic animals. Domestic animals provided European with superior technology, better than the natives could have imaged. F or example, Europeans could utilize their domestic animals for plowing, farming, and milking which gave them the food excesses necessary to support large sedentary populations which could develop increasingly advanced technology both to outwit their neighbors and increase their own wealth in war and trade. No other well-known explorer has more infamously acted out this above mentioned traits and sensibilities than Christopher Columbus. In Christopher Columbus’ â€Å"Letter of Columbus to Various Persons Describing the Results of His First Voyage and Written on the Return Journey† the tone is very condescending and arrogant. This is because upon reaching the various islands Columbus discovered, the native’s reaction to he and his men are in awe and astonishment. Because of their look, clothing, and technology, the natives â€Å"believed [Columbus] and his men came from heaven† which ultimately gave Columbus a God-like complex. This is extremely different from other first encounters between Europeans and natives in the Americas because it was so personal for Columbus, opposed to it being a coup for the