Critical Reflection on My Next Stage of Learning

Time flies pass so fast. I can still remember I walked unwillingly into the first class of ES1102 and now it is coming to an end with my perception of this module totally changed. I can never forget how Brad encouraged us mentioning we are not inferior to those students who are not required to take this module and how he firmly believed that we deserve the credit for the effort on this module.

Through this module, we learnt many things. Not only the English reading and writing skills, but also beliefs and behaviors towards success. These reading and writing skills will definitely be applicable in the other modules especially the Singapore Studies that I would take in the upcoming semester and work life in the future. Being specific comes to my mind first when I tried to recall what I have learnt from Brad. In English writing, being specific helps to avoid ambiguity. In Scientific reports, being specific signifies the impact. Sometimes I still think too broad and ideal but I will try my best to be as specific as possible in my future studies and works.

We have watched a few clips during the classes. The main take away for me is to be confident. As long as we do not give up, there is still hope. Life is like a drama, there will be up and down for everyone. We should always have faith and when we face problems, we should be confident and "fake it till you become it" just like what Amy Cuddy said.

We have been practicing our writing on different drafts for the essay and through these writing and commenting, I found my weakness was lack of information and vocabulary. In my future English learning, I would read more to broaden the knowledge and at the same time, increase my vocabulary counts. This module might have came to an end but reading and learning will never end.

(At the end, I would just like to say thank you to Brad for making the "supposedly boring" English classes so fun and thank you to the classmates for creating such a comfy environment to improve together.)

Essay 2C-Acid rain, the inevitable outcome of car production

Acid rain, the inevitable outcome of car production

In China today, there are more privately owned cars, especially the middle and upper income families. In order to meet the surging demand for international trades of cars, manufacturers have established numerous factories at the relatively lower income countries such as China to produce cars. These factories have been operating with fossil fuel energy system causing extensive releasing of harmful gases. As a result, acid rain was more frequent than in the past, especially in USA and Canada. However, acid rain is indeed reversible. It might be hard to eliminate it totally but by making advancement to the production system, changing of the car buyers’ life style and implementing certain government policies, acid rain could be reduced to the lowest level possible.

Ever since China switching from traditional agricultural economy to industrial economy, the assembly line has became the main stream of production. As the pace of production increased greatly, China has experienced overwhelming economic boost. The purchasing power of the middle and upper income groups became much higher than those times in the past. These groups of people demanded for more luxury goods such as cars. China currently is following the path that the United State established when its own middle and upper classes became such avid consumers. According to Hays(2008), it is predicted that the number of cars will continue to increase in China and double in twenty years. In order to produce these cars to meet the market demand, there has been a dramatic increase in burning of fossil fuels for production which has resulted in increasing number of sulfuric gases been released. According to NASA Earth Observatory(2011), "since the industrial revolution, emissions of sulfur and nitrogen oxides to the atmosphere have increased." Acid rain contains these sulfuric and nitric gases. Acid rain is a concern to both the directly affected countries and the neighboring countries because it can be easily transported by winds. Acid rain not only affects the land, water, buildings, but also the human health directly. According to United States Environmental Protection Agency(n.d.), the sulfuric and nitric gases react and form small particles in the air and then carried miles away by winds. Inhaling these particles has caused “increased illness and premature death from heart and lung disorders.” Due to the adverse impacts of acid rain that concerning citizens’ life, many nations, especially the US, are keen to mitigate acid rain.

With the rising awareness of the adverse impacts of acid rains, both affected and unaffected nations are trying to solve it. There are a few possible approaches that would be helpful. Firstly, to tackle the major source of acid rain, the manufacturers can change their operating system and research on technology in neutralizing the gases emitted. More environmental friendly energy system such as solar, hydra and wind would definitely reduce the gas emission. However, these systems are only suitable to the factories that are geographically located at the suitable location. Thus, for these factories that have difficulty in switching their energy system, one possible solution is to equip the waste emission system with appropriate technology to neutralize the waste gases emitted. For example, the sulfur dioxide could be filtered with alkaline gases before being released to the atmosphere to minimize its effect. Secondly, the car owners can also help by changing the life styles. For individuals concerned about environment, traveling by bicycle or public transports would mean that the demand for cars would decrease leading to less production of cars. Despite life styles were hard to be changed, the awareness and effort to change life styles is still progressing slowly. Lastly, the Chinese government can help by ensuring the factories follow strictly by the Law on Waste Management. The government can provide subsidies to encourage manufacturers to research and switch to a more environmentally friendly system that suits their geographical location. The state could also construct "bicycle stations" similar to the Mass Rapid Transit (MRT). This would make travelling by bicycle more convenient and reduce demand for cars. However, to establish the system would take time and effort.

In conclusion, it is a fact that acid rain has increased due to production of cars but undoubtedly, it could be mitigated. According to United States Environmental Protection Agency(n.d.),"SO2 emissions from Acid Rain Program sources have fallen from 17.3 million tons in 1980 to about 7.6 million tons in 2008, a decrease in emissions of 56 percent." There might be limitations to the solutions but with every sector making an effort, acid rain could be reduced to the lowest level. 

Reference:

Hays,J.(2008). Automobile Numbers in China. Retrieved October 15,2013,from http://factsanddetails.com/china.php?itemid=314%20=13%20=86#08

NASA Earth Observatory.(2011). Glossary-acid rain. Retrieved October 13,2013,from http://web.archive.org/web/20111213175357/http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Glossary/?mode=all

United States Environmental Protection Agency.(n.d.). Effects of Acid Rain-Human Health. Retrieved October 30,2013,from http://www.epa.gov/acidrain/effects/health.html

United States Environmental Protection Agency.(n.d.).Quick Facts about Cap and Trade. Retrieved October 13,2013,from http://www.epa.gov/captrade/

Essay 2b(removed federal statistics and minor change on APA citing)

In the modern world today, there are more cars owned be the privates, especially the middle and upper income families in China. In order to meet the surging demand for international trades of cars, businessmen established numerous factories at the relatively lower waged countries such as China to produce cars. These factories were mostly operating with fossil fuel energy system which caused extensive releasing of harmful gases. As a result, acid rains were more frequent than in the past, especially in USA and Canada. Furthermore, the dramatic increase in number of cars running on the road also contributes greatly to the acid rains. However, these problems are reversible. It might be hard to eliminate them totally but with different sectors making effort to cooperate, these problems can be kept at the lowest level possible.

Ever since the Industrial Revolution, machinery had became the main stream of production. As the pace of production increased greatly, many countries such as USA and China experienced overwhelming economic boost. The purchasing power of the middle and upper income groups was much higher than those times in the past. Hence, wealthy families demanded more luxury goods such as cars. According to Hays(2008), it is predicted that the number of cars will continue to increase in China and double in twenty years. In order to produce these cars to meet the market demand, there was a dramatic increase in burning of fossil fuels for production which resulted in increasing number of sulfuric gases been released. According to NASA Earth Observatory(2011), "since the industrial revolution, emissions of sulfur and nitrogen oxides to the atmosphere have increased." In addition, the increase in the number of cars owned means more cars are running on the road and according to NASA Earth Observatory(2011), the "transportation sector" is a major contributor to the acid rains as well. This is due to the fact that most cars are still functioning with fuel energy system.

With the rising awareness of the adverse impacts of acid rains, both affected and unaffected nations are trying to solve it. There are a few possible approaches that would be helpful. Firstly, to tackle the major source of acid rain, the factories can change their operating system and research on technology in neutralizing the gases emitted. With a more environmental friendly energy system such as solar, hydra and wind energy system, it would definitely reduce the gas emission. However, these systems are only suitable to the factories that are geographically located at the suitable location. Thus, for these factories that are hard to switch their energy system, one possible solution is to equip the waste emission sector with appropriate technology to neutralize them. For example, the sulfur dioxide could be filtered with alkaline gases before releasing it to the atmosphere to minimize its effect. Secondly, the car owners can also help by changing the life styles. With the individuals concerning about environment, if they travel by bicycle or public transports, it would mean that number of cars on road will decrease and hence releasing less harmful gases such as sulfur and nitrogen oxides. Despite life styles are hard to be changed, it is still progressing slowly. Lastly, the nation can help by Ensuring the factories follow strictly by the Law on Waste Management. The government can provide subsidies or tax relieves to encourage factories to research and switch to a more environmentally friendly system. The state can also construct "bicycle stations" similar to the Mass Rapid Transit (MRT). This makes travelling by bicycle more convenient. However, to establish the system will take time and effort.

In conclusion, it is a fact that acid rains have increased due to international trades of cars but undoubtedly, it could be mitigated. According to United States Environmental Protection Agency(n.d.),"SO2 emissions from Acid Rain Program sources have fallen from 17.3 million tons in 1980 to about 7.6 million tons in 2008, a decrease in emissions of 56 percent." There might be limitations to the solutions but with every sector making an effort, acid rains could be kept at the lowest level. 

Reference:

Hays,J.(2008). Automobile Numbers in China. Retrieved October 15,2013,from http://factsanddetails.com/china.php?itemid=314%20=13%20=86#08

United States Environmental Protection Agency.(n.d.).Quick Facts about Cap and Trade. Retrieved October 13,2013,from http://www.epa.gov/captrade/

NASA Earth Observatory.(2011). Glossary-acid rain. Retrieved October 13,2013,from http://web.archive.org/web/20111213175357/http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Glossary/?mode=all

Essay draft 2

In the modern world today, there are more cars owned be the privates, especially the middle and upper income families in China. In order to meet the surging demand for international trades of cars, businessmen established numerous factories at the relatively lower waged countries such as China to produce cars. These factories were mostly operating with fossil fuel energy system which caused extensive releasing of harmful gases. As a result, acid rains were more frequent than in the past, especially in USA and Canada. Furthermore, the dramatic increase in number of cars running on the road also contributes greatly to the acid rains. However, these problems are reversible. It might be hard to eliminate them totally but with different sectors making effort to cooperate, these problems can be kept at the lowest level possible.

Ever since the Industrial Revolution, machinery had became the main stream of production. As the pace of production increased greatly, many countries such as USA and China experienced overwhelming economic boost. The purchasing power of the middle and upper income groups was much higher than those times in the past. Hence, wealthy families demanded more luxury goods such as cars. According to Federal Highway Administration(2003), the number of cars registered has increased nearly every year since 1960 to 2004 in USA. According to Facts and Details(2008), it is predicted that the number of cars will continue to increase in China and double in twenty years. In order to produce these cars to meet the market demand, there was a dramatic increase in burning of fossil fuels for production which resulted in increasing number of sulfuric gases been released. According to NASA Earth Observatory(2011), "since the industrial revolution, emissions of sulfur and nitrogen oxides to the atmosphere have increased." In addition, the increase in the number of cars owned means more cars are running on the road and according to NASA Earth Observatory(2011), the "transportation sector" is a major contributor to the acid rains as well. This is due to the fact that most cars are still functioning with fuel energy system. 

With the rising awareness of the adverse impacts of acid rains, both affected and unaffected nations are trying to solve it. There are a few possible approaches that would be helpful. Firstly, to tackle the major source of acid rain, the factories can change their operating system and research on technology in neutralizing the gases emitted. With a more environmental friendly energy system such as solar, hydra and wind energy system, it would definitely reduce the gas emission. However, these systems are only suitable to the factories that are geographically located at the suitable location. Thus, for these factories that are hard to switch their energy system, one possible solution is to equip the waste emission sector with appropriate technology to neutralize them. For example, the sulfur dioxide could be filtered with alkaline gases before releasing it to the atmosphere to minimize its effect. Secondly, the car owners can also help by changing the life styles. With the individuals concerning about environment, if they travel by bicycle or public transports, it would mean that number of cars on road will decrease and hence releasing less harmful gases such as sulfur and nitrogen oxides. Despite life styles are hard to be changed, it is still progressing slowly. Lastly, the nation can help by Ensuring the factories follow strictly by the Law on Waste Management. The government can provide subsidies or tax relieves to encourage factories to research and switch to a more environmentally friendly system. The state can also construct "bicycle stations" similar to the Mass Rapid Transit (MRT). This makes travelling by bicycle more convenient. However, to establish the system will take time and effort. 

In conclusion, it is a fact that acid rains have increased due to international trades of cars but undoubtedly, it could be mitigated. Just like what the statistics in Cap and Trade(n.d.) shows, "SO2 emissions from Acid Rain Program sources have fallen from 17.3 million tons in 1980 to about 7.6 million tons in 2008, a decrease in emissions of 56 percent." There might be limitations to the solutions but with every sector making an effort, acid rains could be kept at the lowest level. 

Reference:

  Cap and Trade(n.d.).Quick Facts about Cap and Trade. Retrieved October 13,2013,from http://www.epa.gov/captrade/

Facts and Details.(2008). Automobile Numbers in China. Retrieved October 15,2013,from http://factsanddetails.com/china.php?itemid=314%20=13%20=86#08

Federal Highway Administration.(2003). Highway Statistics 2003. Retrieved October 13,2013,from http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0905125.html

NASA Earth Observatory.(2011). Glossary-acid rain. Retrieved October 13,2013, from http://web.archive.org/web/2011121375357/http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Glossary/?mode=all

Essay draft 1

In the modern world today, due to the economic boost, the overall income of the people has increased as compared to the past. This means the purchasing power of the people has risen and people demand for more luxury goods such as cars. In order to meet the surging demand for international trades of cars, businessmen established numerous factories at the relatively lower waged countries such as China and India to produce cars. These factories were mostly operating with fossil fuel energy system which caused extensively releasing of harmful gases. As a result, acid rains were more frequent than in the past, especially in USA and Canada. Furthermore, the dramatic increase in number of cars running on the road also contributes greatly to the acid rains. However, these problems are not irreversible. It might be hard to eliminate them totally but with different sectors of the people making effort to cooperate, these problems can be kept at the lowest level possible.

Ever since the Industrial Revolution, machinery had became the main stream of production. As the pace of production increased greatly, many countries experienced overwhelming economic boost. The purchasing power of the people was much higher than those times in the past. Hence, people wanted to own more luxury goods such as cars. According to Federal Highway Administration(2003), the number of cars regretted has increased nearly every year since 1960 to 2004. In order to produce these cars to meet the market demand,  more metal production took place. This means there was a dramatic increasing in burning of fossil fuels for the production which resulted in increasing number of sulfuric gases been released. According to NASA Earth Observatory(2011), "since the industrial revolution, emissions of sulfur and nitrogen oxides to the atmosphere have increased." In addition, the increase in the number of cars owned means more cars are running on the road and according to NASA Earth Observatory(2011), the "transportation sector" is a major contributor to the acid rains as well. This is due to the fact that most cars are still functioning with fuel energy system.

With the rising awareness of the adverse impact of acid rains, both people and nations are trying to solve the problem. There are a few possible approaches that would be helpful. Firstly, to tackle the major source of acid rain, the factories can change their operating system and research on technology in neutralizing the gases emitted. With a more environmental friendly energy system such as solar, hydra and wind energy system, it would definitely reduce the gas emission. However, these systems are not suitable to the factories that are not geographically located at the suitable location. Thus, for these factories that are hard to switch their energy system, one possible solution is to equip the waste emission sector with appropriate technology to neutralize them. For example, the sulfur dioxide could be filtered with alkaline gases before releasing it to the atmosphere to minimize it's effect. Secondly, the people can also help by changing the life styles. With the people concerning about environment, if more people travel by bicycle or public transports, it would mean that number of cars on road will decrease and hence releasing less harmful gases such as sulfur oxides and nitrogen oxides. Despite life styles are hard to be changed, it is still progressing slowly. Lastly, the nation can help by Ensuring the factories operate legally such that they follow strictly by the Law on Waste Management. The government can provide subsidies or tax relieves to encourage factories to research and switch to a more environmentally friendly system. The state can also construct "bicycle stations" similar to the Mass Rapid Transit(MRT). This makes travelling by bicycle more convenient but to establish the system will take time and effort.

In conclusion, we cannot deny the fact that acid rains have increased due to international trades of cars but undoubtedly, it could be mitigated. Just like what the statistics in Cap and Trade(n.d.) shows, "SO2 emissions from Acid Rain Program sources have fallen from 17.3 million tons in 1980 to about 7.6 million tons in 2008, a decrease in emissions of 56 percent." There might be limitations to the solutions but with every sector making an effort, acid rains could be kept at the lowest level. 

Reference:

Cap and Trade(n.d.).Quick Facts about Cap and Trade. Retrieved October 13,2013,from http://www.epa.gov/captrade/

Federal Highway Administration.(2003). Highway Statistics 2003. Retrieved October 13,2013,from http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0905125.html

NASA Earth Observatory.(2011). Glossary-acid rain. Retrieved October 13,2013,from http://web.archive.org/web/2011121375357/http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Glossary/?mode=all

Essay Intro

In the modern world today, due to the economic boost, the overall income of the people has increased as compared to the past. This means the purchasing power of the people has raised and people demand for more luxury goods such as cars. In order to meet the surging demand for international trades of cars, businessmen set up numerous factories at the relatively lower waged countries such as China and India to produce cars. These factories were mostly operating with fossil fuel energy system which caused extensively releasing of harmful gases. As a result, global warming and acid rains were more frequent than in the past, especially in USA and Canada. Furthermore, the dramatic increase in number of cars running on the road also contributes greatly to the air pollution as mentioned. However, these problems are not irreversible. It might be hard to eliminate them totally but with different sectors of the people making effort to cooperate, these problems can be kept at the lowest level possible.

Main body:

2nd paragraph- Analyse and evaluate how much economy has boosted since the past and how does it lead to air pollution. How bad is the pollution.Gather data to support it.

3rd paragraph- Solutions to the problems mentioned in 2nd paragraph in terms of the businessmen sector, the consumers/car users sector and the government sector.

Gather data to show the improvements of the situation.Evaluate the limitations of the solution and restate the stand/thesis.

Conclusion:

Reiterate the problems are inevitable but they can be mitigated with the people willingly making changes to cope with these problems.

Globalization Essay idea

Description of situation:
In the globalized world today, countries enjoy a dramatic boost in economy. To achieve this, factories were set up to produce goods in a large scale to meet the surging demand for consumption. In addition, with the income of the people increased, the material standard of living has increased. For example, people choose to travel by personal cars since it is now more affordable.

Identification of problem:
In order to produce more goods, the factories need more energy to operate. Burning fossil fuels for energy will lead to air pollution which results in acid rain and Pollution Standard Index to increase. Since there is no border in the air, it has became a globalized problem instead of individual country's problem. In the consumer's point of view, increased number of travelling by cars also means more air pollution are caused by the release of waste gases.

Description of solution:
At the supplier's level: Developing technology in methods of neutralizing the waste produced. For example, filter the harmful gases and react them with chemicals to reduce or eliminate them if possible. The operators of the factories can also seek other source of energy that is more environmental friendly. If technology and budget allow, they can even switch the whole energy supply system to solar, wind or natural gas systems.

At the consumer's level: Encouraging people to carry out "Reduce,Reuse,Recycle". Travelling by bicycle if the distance is not too far.

At the government's level: Ensuring the factories operate legally such that they follow strictly by the Law on Waste Management. Providing subsidies for those making effort on researching on green energy. The state might want to set up "bicycle stations" just like the current bus or MRT system. These stations operate by renting bicycles to the public with personal "ezlink" cards(Student cards or passion cards with individual's particulars) and people can rent and return bicycles at any station. This will increase the number of travelling by bicycle since it is readily available.

Evaluation of the solution:
The factory operators might not be willing to develop new technology and make changes because normally these new technology will be quite costly at the beginning. It is also hard for the people to change their daily habits and go green. In the developing countries, some governments might not have much budget and time so they tend to be reluctant. The setting up of "bicycle stations" will be not only costly but also time consuming. Thus the developed countries can step in and help since their technology tend to be more advanced. With nations and people cooperating, the problems caused by globalization will definitely be mitigated.