This personal essay was written for my english class free essay sample

Health communication Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Wellbeing correspondence - Essay Example I can make more noteworthy progress in the group through difficult work to beat the pressure. I lean toward feeling to deduction. The fundamental purpose behind this is the need to keep up relational associations with others. I generally pick individual worries about the government assistance of others over indifferent realities and target standard since it considers the perspectives of people engaged with a circumstance. ‘Feeling’ empowers one to keep up agreement and consider people’s values, dissimilar to ‘thinking’, which requires the use of standards. In light of the article, the higher commonness of â€Å"feeling† people in nursing is a direct result of the requirement for congruity in the work environment. Those with an inclination for ‘thinking’ persevere through less worry than those with an inclination for ‘feeling’ (Nash, 2011). Nursing expects one to advocate for human-focused qualities that are in accordance with the way that individuals respond and feel. It empowers one to make singular exemptions for singular cases, rather than speculation, which expects one to stand firm to sketched out standards and hold firm to approaches. I concur with Anthony Espinoza that one can deal with pressure splendidly, contingent upon the circumstance. What's more, stress decreases a person’s level of center, and it might prevent collaboration exercises that require coordination of endeavors. Sentiments regularly supersede thinking in light of the fact that about the need to keep up relational connections. For example, an attendant ought to be minding to patients, and they frequently accomplish this through a presentation of sentiments, regardless of the pressure they suffer in their long and debilitating work hours. I concur with Angela Bregstrom that a large number of worry from better places is hard to deal with. For example, in the event that one encounters worry at the working environment, it is just right that they ought not encounter worry at home or at school. The capacity of worry to emerge from practically all parts makes it a variable that requires most extreme consideration before its

Ace These Most Frequently Asked MBA Interview Questions

Ace These Most Frequently Asked MBA Interview Questions In a recent article published in U.S. News World Report, the warning business school applicants dread to hear is clear:If you tank your MBA interview, your odds of admission plummet. You can help ensure that doesnt happen to you by thoroughly preparing for the exchange and the hardball questions that await. Some schools are known for asking their applicants out-of-left-field questions such as, If you were a tree, what kind would you be?U.S. News World ReportIf you were a tree, what kind would you be? Its questions like this that throw MBA applicants off in their interview and create uncomfortable, unprepared moments. Photo by Todd Quackenbush on Unsplash.The article goes on to explain the five most difficult MBA interview prompts that often get asked of unsuspecting interviewees. These are:What is your biggest weakness?Tell me about a time you failed.Describe a poor manager youve had.Tell me about an ethical dilemma you faced.Tell me about yourself.So, lets look at the best way to ace the prompts when you encounter them in an MBA interview, and consider some others that also tend to be asked often.What is your biggest weakness?Before you answer this one with I work too hard or Im too much of a perfectionist, stop. Dont. Its not an honest answer and the reason the interviewer is asking it is to see how honest your response is. Obviously, you dont want to answer with I have a drinking problem or I am always late, but there are still options that will give the interviewer the sincerity he or she is looking for, as well as give you an opportunity to show that you believe in personal improvement and evaluation.The best way to answer this question is to use the moment of weakness to show your parallel strength(s). For example, if youve had a less than stellar academic record, you might say, I struggle with test taking, so my grades in undergrad have suffered. But Ive learned a few strategies that help since then and I dont foresee this being an issue in my MBA prog ram. By admitting to your weakness, youve a) answered a red flag that the committee had already noted anyway, and b.) showing that you work on improving yourself and are determined.Tell me about a time youve failed.In much the same way a question relating to your biggest weakness provides an opportunity for sincerity and showing your strengths, tell me about a time youve failed is a tricky one to answer. The interviewer is wanting a specific moment that you experienced failure, so its best to approach this one with an anecdote that youve prepared beforehand (rather than being caught off guard and on the spot).For example, you might explain about the time you needed to prepare an important presentation at work but waited until the last minute and was unable to pull it together in time, thus embarrassing your boss. Explain within in that same story the consequences you faced for that failure, and how it taught you an important lesson about having enough time to prepare something thoro ughly. Be sure to accept responsibility for your failure without pinning the blame on someone else, since this is a quality your interviewer will be looking for in you.Describe a poor manager youve had.Whether in life or in academia, you will always encounter colleagues and peers who underperform or who are difficult to work with. MBA interviewers understand this and want to see how professionally you handle yourself in these circumstances, so they ask questions like this one.The most important thing to keep in mind is that even though it might seem like it, this is not the opportunity to bad-mouth someone youve worked for in the past, so dont use it as one. To answer the question honestly, youll need to explain why someone was difficult to work with, but you should still remain as objective and professional as possible in doing so.For example, your answer might be something like this: A particular manager I had when working at [XZY company] was rarely on-site and didnt understand h ow things worked. The few times she did visit, it was rushed and she was on her phone for most of it instead of speaking with employees. I was consistently asked to bring her up to speed on things she could have learned from being on the job daily and her lack of physical presence started to become an issue for everyone in the department, especially when she gave them negative reviews.You might then follow up that story with something along these lines: I realize that her duties might have kept her from having a physical presence in the department, but it taught me that circumstances like that are not conducive to a healthy working environment.Tell me about an ethical dilemma you faced.According to the article, Situations that rest in the gray area are most effective with this sort of question, as those circumstances require leadership, nuance and maturity. This means that you need to avoid discussing any ethical dilemmas youve faced that have clear-cut answers to them, as these sho uld not have been a dilemma in the first place. For example, if your manager has sexually harassed you in the past, the harassment should have been quickly reported. There is no gray area to this situation; your manager was in the wrong.Your interviewer will want to see that you know how to approach true gray-area situations with maturity and professionalism. For a similar example, if youve been in a situation in which your employer was accused of sexual harassment by multiple women but you were never harassed, you might explain it like this:There were accusations within the department that my manager had sexually harassed multiple women. I had never been harassed by him personally but a good friend of mine had, and I believed her story. So, when I was interviewed by the investigating committee about the accusations, I clearly stated that I had never felt any level of harassment from my manager and that he seemed to perform his duties well and with integrity, from my point of view. However, I did tell them that I had heard of the allegations from accusers who I trusted to tell the truth, but I did not see the harassment take place.Tell me about yourself.With an open-ended question like this one, its easy for applicants to get off track or forget the intent of the question. Think of this question as an invitation to hear your two-minute elevator pitch as to what makes you a qualified candidate for the MBA program and what your immediate and long-term goals are. You can throw in a bit of information about your hobbies and passions in life, but rememberâ€"only hit the highlights and keep it under two minutes. Plan out this pitch before you go to your interview and know exactly what youll highlight when you give it.Plan out your elevator pitch before you go to your interview and know exactly what youll highlight when you give it. Photo by Austin Distel on Unsplash.More questions to prepare forAs promised, lets look at a few more frequently asked questions for MBA program applicants, along with some suggestions for how to respond. Here are some more of the top ones, along with ideas to clarify your answer:Why have you decided to apply to business school? (Show that youve had a solid career trajectory toward this moment and choice.)Why does this particular program appeal to you? (Do your research! Give solid, precise reasons why youre choosing this program over others.)Why should we admit you instead of someone else? (Dont be humble here, let them know what you believe it is about yourself that stands apart from others trying to get into the program.)How do you plan to use your MBA? (Have a list of both your short- and long-term goals ready for when they ask this question. You need to be able to articulate exactly what you plan to do with your degree, both while you are earning it and afterwards, including your intended career trajectory.)If you are admitted to our program, what do you think your biggest challenge will be? (Let them know that you understand exactly how challenging an MBA program will be and how you plan to overcome those challenges.)How would your colleagues describe you? (Dont use this as simply an opportunity to brag; rather, be sincere and relate some of the professional and personal qualities those who know you and work around you are likely to list. It will be an opportunity for the interviewer to see you as a person instead of just another number on his or her list of applicants.)Do you have any questions for me? (Never bypass this opportunity to find out more about the program, its history, or its direction. This shows that you are paying attention and that you have a curious mindâ€"two important and necessary qualities to make it through any MBA program.)

How The Internet Affects The Human Brain Changes Its...

Rough Draft Are you on the connected to the internet every day? If so, your brain’s way of functioning is changing, for better or for worse. After five days of accessing the internet, the human brain changes its pathways and alters how it retains information. When a person uses the internet repeatedly, their brain remembers facts based on where to find the information instead of the actual information. Depending on the age of the person using the internet and how frequently they use it, the brain function and social skills normally being learned through face to face contact is altered as well as memory. As we continue to use the internet as a form of external memory, we are starting to rely on it much like the Greeks started to rely on†¦show more content†¦Since the use of the internet is still a new mode of accessing information, there is very little we know about the effects it has on our brains. Even what we are finding now could be interpreted for or against internet use. In the article â€Å"Neuroscience: Browsing and the Brain,† the authors analyze two books written by experts in the field that have opposing views. Both see similar information, but one interprets it as positive effects and the other sees them as negative. Since the topic is still relatively new, we don’t have enough evidence to make a definite statement in either direction. Nicholas Carr’s book The Shallows, according to the authors in the article, takes a negative view on the research available. He sees the activity of using the internet as a negative experience because the changes it causes the brain may lead to loss of other ways of processing information. In Nick Bilton’s I Live in the Future sees the use of the internet as solely positive, creating new possibilities for the human brain to function, allowing the brain to adapt and explore the new possibilities. The information both of the books are based on is an MRI study that is explained in â€Å"Y our Brain on Google: Patterns of Cerebral Activation during Internet Searching.† The study was taken to understand how the human brain functions with differing levels of internet use. A test is administered to

Strategies For Reform Throughout Managed Health Care

Aubrey Runnels 9/28/15 Summary Form #2 Group focus: Strategies for reform in managed health care Reading Sections: Chapters 34 (MW), Chapter 2 (C,CC), Chapters 3, 4,5 (J), and Ted Talks: Aaron Huey: America’s native prisoners of war 1. Summary of each assigned reading and video: Ted Talks: In the Ted Talks video of Aaron Huey, Huey makes the point that the Lakota people are now suffering due to the damage that the U.S. has done over many years. This damage includes the following: The Wounded Knee Massacre, which was when the U.S. killed 300 â€Å"Prisoners of war†. When the Lakota people felt like prisoners on their own land when they were forced to live on the Pine Rich Reservation which is known as a war camp, most unemployed†¦show more content†¦What has nature ever done for us?: Chapters 3,4,5 Chapter 3: Plants and animals are very important to human life. Plants and animals developed natural forms of protection against biological attacks. Unfortunately, when we modify plants some can’t fulfill their normal duties. We need to keep our plant and animal life as pure and natural as possible. Chapter 4: In this chapter the author stresses the importance of creatures that pollinate such as insects, birds, bats, and bees. Bees are the primary source of pollination for much of our plant life. Without bees we wouldn’t have plants and the dropping numbers of the bee population is negatively affecting our food production. Chapter 5: This chapter starts off talking about the drop of numbers of vultures in India. Most of which became extinct. This was due to a new anti-inflammatory drug that was given to sick animals. Vultures eat dead carcasses which was a good thing for everyone. After the vultures fed on the bodies of other animals that had been given this drug they died. Without vultures, the bodies of the animals were buried or burned. Not to mention that the bodies of the dead animals sitting in the sun was a public health hazard. When the population of vultures disappeared, the population of feral dogs increased. This was a bad thing. This brought on multiple diseases with one of them being rabies. Noted in the chapter ( 47,395-48,886 additional deaths from rabies). Ultimately, what

Cement Lifecycle Review Free Essays

string(68) " and water are utilized to cool the temperature \(Anonymous 2012\)\." Life Cycle Review of Cement and Concrete Manufacturing Table of Contents Introduction3 Concrete Overview3 Life Cycle Stages4 Portland Cement4 Raw Material Extraction5 Crushing Process5 Kiln Processing6 Clinker Cooling and Storage7 Clinker Grinding7 Packaging and Shipping7 Concrete Processing8 Recycling and Landfill8 Environmental Considerations Throughout Life Stages9 Inputs: Consumption9 Outputs: Waste10 Air Quality and Pollution11 Land Quality and Biodiversity12 Alternative Suggestions in Minimizing Environmental Impact13 Solutions for Minimising Ecological Footprint13 Solutions for Improving Air Quality13 Solutions for Minimising Land Degradation14 References15 Introduction A life-cycle assessment (LCA), as described by the US Environmental Protection Agency, is â€Å"a technique to assess environmental impacts associated with all the stages of a products life from cradle-to-grave†(USPA 2010). Therefore, an assessment of a product’s life cycle endeavors to analyze its existence from raw material extraction, to manufacturing, through to disposal. This report will not provide adequate data for the purpose of undertaking an LCA, however, it is aimed at â€Å"thinking† about the life cycle, and collecting information from past LCA studies to undertake a report on concrete production, particularly focusing on the life-cycle of cement, a critical component of concrete. We will write a custom essay sample on Cement Lifecycle Review or any similar topic only for you Order Now Therefore, the following â€Å"life cycle thinking† review will endeavor to utilize previous LCA studies in order gain an insight about the major environmental impacts throughout each lifestage, chiefly centering on cement manufacturing. Correspondingly, it will also discuss alternative strategies of delivering cement and concrete as a building material with fewer environmental impacts. Concrete Overview Concrete is a multifaceted construction material, which is assembled mainly from cement, water and aggregate (Reding et al 1977). Concrete is one of the most durable building materials, which allows it to exhibit many functions, including; precast elements, underwater construction, infrastructure formation and residential housing. In view of the fact that the life cycle stages and environmental impacts differ between manufacturing for each function concrete withholds, this report will focus on concretes function as a building material for residential housing and apartments (Anonymous 2012). Concrete is labeled one of the most durable building materials; therefore concrete structures withhold an elongated service life (Reding et al 1977. As a result of this, concrete is the most extensively used construction material in the world and has contributed momentously to the built environment throughout history. Life Cycle Stages In a straightforward description, as mentioned above, concrete consists of three basic components, including cement, aggregates and water. Although there are various cement blends used for different purposes, this lifecycle review will focus particularly on Portland cement manufacturing, which is frequently utilized for industrial purposes (Anonymous 2012). In observing a life cycle of concrete manufacturing, the production of cement generally takes place separately, which is then transported to the selected building location, where water and aggregates are added to bind all components into one homogenous material – concrete (Anonymous 2012). Although there are obviously procedures in obtaining the water and aggregate for concrete production, the life-cycle discussed in this report will focus primarily on Portland Cement production (Reding et al 1977). Portland Cement The major raw materials extracted for cement production include limestone, sand, shale and clay. These feedstock ingredients provide calcium carbonate, alumina, silica and ferric oxide, which are critical elements of cement (Anonymous 2012). Figure 1: Proportion of cement components (CCAA 2010) Raw Material Extraction The initial stage of Portland cement production is the extraction of the raw materials by either quarrying or mining (Anonymous 2012). This withholds an adverse risk to land quality, potentially effecting fauna and flora within close proximity. Quarrying and mining are undertaken by operations such as drilling, blasting, excavating, handling, loading, hauling, and crushing (Reding et al 1977). The fragmented material, which can reach meters in length, is then transported via dump trucks to the cement plant, which is generally located nearby (Anonymous 2012). Crushing Process When transferred to the plant, the rock material is fed through a primary crusher, which breaks it down into smaller pieces up to six inches in size (Anonymous 2012). Subsequently, the rock is then transported via a conveyor to the secondary crushing stage, which accordingly, crushes the rock down to sizes of three inches or less. Following these essential crushing processes, all raw material undergoes a mixing and grinding process, where additional silica and iron may be added (Anonymous 2012). Within this stage, particulate emissions are profoundly emitted into the atmosphere. The mixing process can either be wet or dry, depending on the plant, however, the Cement Industry Federation states in their most recent Environmental Report that wet process plants in Australia now only account for less then 15% of total production, as wet processes have momentous water consumption (CIF 2010). In the instance of a wet mixing and grinding process, large impact dryers completely dry out the materials whilst grinding is undertaken, however if a wet process is embarked on, water is added during the grinding process which turns the mix into the form of a â€Å"slurry† (Anonymous 2012). Kiln Processing This process involves the slurry or the finely ground dry material to be fed into a high-temperature, cylindrical rotary kiln, heated to about 2700 degrees F (Anonymous 2012). Kilns are mounted with the axis slightly inclined from the horizontal and can reach up to 180m long, with a six meter diameter, thus it can take up to two hours for the material to travel through. The upper end of the kiln provides the entrance for the material, whereas the lower end comprises a roaring blast of flame, fueled by either coal or natural gas. During this process, any water contained in a â€Å"slurry† mix is lost through evaporation (Reding et al 1977). Ultimately, as the mixture travels through the kiln, it transforms both physically and chemically into grey pebble-like substances called clinker (Anonymous 2012). During kiln processing, particulate and GHG emissions are released. This stage also consumes the most energy, as fossil fuels are incinerated to provide extreme heat. Clinker Cooling and Storage The clinker is expelled from the lower end of the kiln and is then transported onto a conveyer through a cooling system where large fans and water are utilized to cool the temperature (Anonymous 2012). You read "Cement Lifecycle Review" in category "Essay examples" The United Kingdom Environmental Agency state in their Environmental Performance Evaluation, that the vast majority of cement plants around the world now transfer the heated air from the coolers back towards the kiln as a means of saving fuel (UKEA 2010). Once the clinker is cooled, it is deposited into a storage area where it awaits until it is required for it’s final stage of grinding. Clinker Grinding The clinker is finally transported via a conveyor to its final crushing stage and is ground into a fine powder. This is carried out by steering the product through rotating tube mills with rolling crushers, which grind the cement into a fine powder. During this stage, other materials conveying analogous characteristics are added. Gypsum is also combined with the mix, as it assists in regulating the setting time of the final concrete product (Anonymous 2012). The continuous rolling assists in distributing the materials and gypsum throughout the cement evenly, and also separates the cement particles according to size (Reding et al 1977) . The material that has not been ground to the adequate size is deflected through the system again, however the final product is guided to the final storage silo (Anonymous 2012). Packaging and Shipping The final product is either mechanically or hydraulically hauled out from its storage silo and is either packaged in paper sacks or supplied in bulk where it is then transported via truck, rail car or ship to the location of utilization (Anonymous 2012). Transportation must still be taken into consideration in contributing to the manufacturing air emissions. Concrete Processing Once transported to the building location, the addition of water to the cementitious material forms a thick cement paste, through the method of hydration (Anonymous 2012). Both fine and course aggregates; consisting of natural gravel, sand and soft stone are also commonly added to the cement paste, to create bulk and a strong, high resistant concrete (CCAA 2010). Aggregates are granular materials such as sand, gravel or crushed stone, which are usually dredged from a river, lake, pit or seabed (CCAA 2010). Prior to combining the aggregate in the cement, it undergoes a washing process to remove any unwanted silt, dust, clay or organic matter that could potentially interfere with the bonding reaction with the cement (Cement Industry Australia 2003). Similarly to the cement manufacture process, the aggregate is also sorted into different granular sizes (Anonymous 2012). This is undertaken by passing the material through a screen containing different size openings. Once arranged into adequate sizing, the aggregate is transported to the building site where it congregates with the cement (CCAA 2010). Thorough combining of cement, water and aggregate is crucial for the invention of high quality, uniform concrete, therefore equipment and methods such as cement trucks and on site mixers are utilized (CCAA 2010). Once all the constituents are thoroughly combined, it is molded or positioned as anticipated and then left to harden. Recycling and Landfill When a concrete building structure reaches the end of it’s life, either recycling or landfill is an option (CCAA 2010). The process of demolition of a concrete structure involves pulling it down either mechanically or manually through the utilization of excavators or bulldozers (Chen et al 2010). Larger buildings however, may require more powerful equipment. Following, the shattered concrete fragments are either transported by trucks to landfills for disposal or collected from the annihilation site and transported to a crushing facility, where it is fed through a crushing machine to be broken down and used for aggregate of new concrete (Cement Australia 2003). In conjunction with quarries, landfills also hold significant environmental consequences, as it can destroy or alter species habitat. Environmental Considerations Throughout Life Stages Inputs: Consumption The Cement Industry Federation (CIF) states in their 2003 environmental report, that the cement manufacturing process is extremely energy and resource intensive, therefore, it withholds a significant environmental footprint (CIF 2003). As displayed in the life-cycle diagram (figure 2), raw materials, energy and in some instances water, are the chief inputs associated with the manufacturing process, therefore, their consumption levels are predominantly to blame for the industries heightened environmental footprint (Anonymous 2012). Cement Australia (2010) states that on average, water utilization of a modern dry cement plant is between one hundred to two hundred litres per tonne of clinker produced (Cement Australia 2010). This water consumption is primarily used for cooling heavy equipment and exhaust gas. Although this appears quite high, Chen et al (2010) mentions that it is a dramatic improvement from earlier, yet still subsisting wet process cement plants (Chen et al 2010). The addition of water in cement to create the final product of concrete also consumes a large quantity of water. Similarly, the cement industry is highly energy intensive, especially during the kiln life stage (CIF 2003). Generally, cement plants today use natural gas, heavy oil and coal for fuel (Chen et al 2010). However, as coal accounts for almost 40 per cent of manufacturing costs, the utilization of fossil fuels in cement production has decreased since 1990 and has been partly substituted by alternative fuels (CIF 2003). The impact the high consumption of fossil fuels possesses on the environment is accelerated greenhouse releasement into the atmosphere, thus contributing to global warming (Chen et al 2010). Therefore, environmental consideration of adequate selection of alternative fuels is crucial in minimizing the environmental footprint. Outputs: Waste Furthermore, the outputs within each life stage also exhibit environmental issues throughout the entire cycle, from resource extraction through to landfill (Chen et al 2010). The outputs fluctuate and vary between atmospheric emissions, waterbourne wastes, solid wastes and other co-product releases (CIF 2003). These outputs, in conjunction with the reasonably high input consumption, are the causes of the evident impacts the industry posses on the environment. Lemay Leed (2011), mention in a broad perspective that air emissions leading to climate change, resource depletion, water consumption, ecotoxicity, eutrophocation, human health criteria, habitat alteration, smog formation and acidification are the main documented impacts that occur throughout the cement manufacturing process, whether it be instant or over time (Lemay Leed 2011). Although there is clearly a vast array of impacts associated with cement manufacturing and concrete assembly, the impact on air quality and land quality appear to be considered by numerous LCAs to be a vital issue associated with manufacture, therefore they will be analyzed in more thorough detail. Air Quality and Pollution Air pollution is highly likely to occur throughout each life stage of cement production, whether it is a result of fuel combustion or particulates from raw and finished materials (CIF 2003). Eco Tech (2011) mentions in its Cement Industry Report, that the uttermost crucial impacts associated with air pollution include; hydrocarbons and particulates which posses a threat to human health and environmental quality, and greenhouse gas emissions accelerating climate change (EcoTech 2011). In relation to Greenhouse gas emissions, Chen et al (2010) scrutinized in his Cement Plant Evaluation, that different Portland cement plants around the world is under close inspection these days because of the large volumes of CO2 emitted (Chen et al 2010). The report also continues to address that almost one tonne of CO2 is released for every one tonne of cement produced in the industry, which appears to be momentous considering in the year 2010, the world produced approximately 3. 6 billion tonnes of cement (Rosenwald 2011). Contrary to greenhouse gas emissions, dust emissions are at their highest peak at the initial quarrying stage and the final building demolition stage, as a result of forceful blasting and obliterating (Chen et al 2010). Other sources of dust emissions, however, are raw mills, kilns/ clinker coolers and cement mills. The Cement Industry Federation (2003) states that transportation of raw materials from the quarry to the site and stockpiles of raw materials contribute significantly to dust emissions (CIF 2003). Overall, the dust emissions released throughout the different life stages impact momentously on air quality, thus it threatens human health and overall environmental quality. Dust is the most common and extensive air pollutant from a quarry (CIF 2010). It has different origins in a quarry site such as mechanical handling operations that include crushing and grading process; haulage with which is related to the vehicle, and the nature and condition of the way; blasting; additional manufacturing operations and wind blow from paved areas, stockpiles (Chen et al 2010) . Land Quality and Biodiversity The central issue of cement production upon land quality comes from quarrying, atmospheric deposition, disposal of wastes and storage of raw material (CIF 2003). These issues, predominantly atmospheric deposition, arise from merely every life stage of cement manufacturing; therefore it is an issue that must be taken into great consideration (Chen et al 2010). Quarrying and landfill have both direct and indirect environmental impacts on land and its surrounding biodiversity (Chen et al 2010). The direct impacts include habitat destruction thus biodiversity loss, dust inhalation and noise from rock drilling and blasting (CIF 2010). Subsequently, the effects of cement works on habitats are difficult to quantify, however the potential harm is much greater in vulnerable areas. The US Environmental Protection Agency (2002), states in their report that two large operating cement plants in England are located on the edge of National Parks, therefore site selection must be considered in depth prior to implementation (USEA 2002). On the other hand, indirect impacts can potentially cause different catastrophes such as landslides and flashfloods in and around quarry sites (Chen et al 2010) . Furthermore, dust particulate has physical effects on plants, such as damage and blockage to the leaf surface, which may lead to death if photosynthesis is unable to occur (Chen et al 2010). Chemical effects on the other hand, can potentially produce changes in soil chemistry, which ultimately leads to changes in the long term associated with plant chemistry alterations, species competition and community structure (CIF 2010). Dust particulates from quarrying and wastes also affect waterways, as supplementary sedimentation may cause nearby reservoirs to dry out or flood (Chen et al 2010) . Alternative Suggestions in Minimizing Environmental Impact Solutions for Minimising Ecological Footprint Due to the significant amount of energy consumed in cement manufacturing, the cement industry has considerably focused over a long period on escalating plant efficiency and decreasing energy consumption. Cement Australia (2010) affirms that the Australia Cement Industry has seen a 23% decrease in CO2 emissions in the period between 1990-2009 (Cement Australia 2010). Although this is a significant decrease, further methods could potentially be utilized to further cutback consumption. Firstly, energy could be more efficiently recycled and transferred within the plant system. For example, excess heat from the clinker cooler being transferred back to the kiln stage to prevent energy waste should be implemented in all modern cement plants (Lemay Leed 2011). Secondly, alternative fuels should be enhanced, especially in clinker manufacture. Alternative fuels may include items such as tyres, oils and tarrow. Solutions for Improving Air Quality As mentioned earlier, air emissions for GHG release has improved over the last decade as a result of utilization of alternative fuels. This however, has the potential to be further improved, therefore complete replacement of fossil fuels to alternative fuels could potentially take place to completely eradicate GHG releasement (Lemay Leed 2011). In addition, the Cement Industry Federation (2010) asserts that improvement techniques for dust collection such as baghouse dust collectors has also been implemented over the past century (CIF 2010). Although there have been improvements, likewise, the potential for further development still remains. Perhaps aspects of the layout design could be improved, as a means of stockpile design and transportation throughout the system. Containment of conveyors could be implemented and perhaps pipelines, which substitute transport to and from the quarry to the plant, could be considered to prevent particulate emissions being released (Lemay Leed 2011). In addition, the moistening of the raw material throughout the crushing stages via sprays could also potentially to instigated to minimize dust release (CIF 2010). Filters and collectors could also be applied within each stage so the dust gathered can be sent through to the kiln for clinker production Solutions for Minimising Land Degradation Unfortunately quarrying and landfill in any form will impact on land quality, however methods such as buffer zones between workings and alternative habitats for defined species could be considered in an attempt to conserve biodiversity within or around the sites (Lemay Leed 2011). Rehabilitation programs to restore once existing biodiversity on site could also be considered when the quarry material is completely exploited. Additionally, as displayed in the life cycle review, recycling of the final concrete material is an option as opposed to landfill. Perhaps the promotion of further cement and concrete recycling could be considered to avoid the amount of quarrying required. This would also minimize the amount of product discarded into landfill, thus retaining natural habitat. References Abdul-Wahab S. 2006. â€Å"Impact of fugitive dust emissions from cement plants on nearby communities†. Ecological Modelling. Vol: 195. Issue: 3-4. Page 338-348. Anonymous. 2012. â€Å"How Portland Cement is Made†. Portland Cement Association. Available: www. cement. org/basics/howmade. asp. (Last Accessed 7/10/12) Cement Australia. 2010. Environmental Performance†. Cement Australia. Available: www. cementaustralia. com. au/wps/wcm/connect/website/cement/home/sustainable-development/environmental-performance (Last Accessed 10/10/12) Cement Concrete and Aggregates Australia (CCAA). 2010. â€Å"Sustainable Concrete Materials†. CCAA. Available: www. concrete. net. au/sustainability/documents/documents2. pdf. (Last Accessed 7/10/12) Chen C, Habert G, Bouzidi Y, Jullie A. 2010. â€Å"Environmental impact of cement production: detail of the different processes nd cement plant variability evaluation†. Journal of Cleaner Production. Vol: 18. Issue: 5. Page 478-485 Lemay L, Leed A. 2011. â€Å" Life Cycle Assessment of Concrete Buildings†. Concrete Sustainability Report. Available: www. nrmca. org/sustainability/CSRO4%20-%Life%20Cycle%20Assessment%20Concrete. pdf (Last Accessed 10/10/12 Nisbet M. 1996. â€Å"The Reduction of Resource Input and Emissions Achieved by Addition of Limestone to Portland Cement† Research and Development Information. Portland Cement Association. Canada Obajana Cement Project. 2005. â€Å"Social and Environmental Impact Assessment† Obajana Cement Project. Available: www. jaspers. uropa. eu/attachments/pipeline/1191_social_eia_en. pdf (Last Accessed 10/10/12) Park L, Tae S, Kim T. 2012. â€Å"Life Cycle CO2 Assessment of Concrete by Compressive Strength on Construction Site in Korea† Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. Vol: 16. Issue: 5. Pages 2940 – 2946. Reding J, Muehlberg P, Shepherd B. 1977. â€Å"Industrial Process Profiles for Environmental Use† The Cement Industry. Chapter 21. Available: http://www. inece. org/mmcourse/chapt6. pdf. (Last Accessed 7/10/12) Rosenwald M. 2011. â€Å"Building a Better World with Green Cement†. Science and Nature. Available: http://www. smithsonianmag. com/science-nature/Building-a-Better-World-With-Green-Cement. html (Last Accessed 10/10/12) The Energy Conservation Center (ECC). 1994. â€Å"Output of a Seminar on Energy Conservation in Cement Industry†. United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO). Available: www. unido. org/fileadmin/import/userfiles/puffk/cement. pdf. (Last Accessed 10/10/12) US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA). 2010. â€Å"Defining Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). US Environmental Protection Agency. Available: www. gdrc. org/uem/lca/ (Last Accessed 11/10/12) How to cite Cement Lifecycle Review, Essay examples

Programmer Alan Turing Essays - Computability Theory,

Programmer Alan Turing Alan Turing was born in London on 23 June 1912. He was the son of Julius Mathius Turing and Ethel Sara Stoney, the youngest of three children, he was born to a distinguished family. His family background includes diplomats and engineers, three of which succeeded to the Royal Society. Alan turing was educated at Sherbourne school, from 1923 to 1931. After which he studied mathematics at Kings College, Cambridge, graduating in 1935 with a B.A. He was elected a fellow of the college on the strength of his paper "On the Gaussian error function", it won a Smiths prize for mathematics in 1936. Turing was brilliant and slightly headstrong, he discovered the central limit theorem for himself, after it had been already discovered and proved. Later in 1936 he went to the United States of America to study at Princeton University for two years with Alonso Church. Turing worked on the theory of computation and in 1937, he presented the paper for which he was to become famous, to the London Mathematical Society. The paper "On computable numbers with an application to the Entscheidungsproblem", proved that a class of mathematical problems existed which could not be solved by automatic machines and introduced the concept of a theoretical "universal" computing machine (the Turing machine). Turing was awarded a Ph.D. degree for this paper by Princeton University. Alan Turing returned to Kings College in 1938 and when war broke out in 1939, he began work for the government code and cipher school at Bletchley Park. In 1946 Turing was awarded an O.B.E. for designing machines to break the German Enigma codes. After the war Turing declined ffer of a lectureship at Cambridge, to join the mathematics division of the National Physics Laboratory at Teddington, where he began to design the general computer called the Automatic Computing Engine (ACE). In 1948 Turing was appointed reader in the theory of computation at the University of Manchester and made assistant director of Manchester Automatic Digital Machine (MADAM). Two years later Turing published a paper in "Mind" entitled "computing machinery and intelligence". In the paper Turing concluded that by his definition of thinking, it was possible to make intelligent machines. uring's last years were spent working at home. In 1952 he published the "Chemical basis of morphogenesis", it applied mathematical and mechanical theory to biology. Alan Turing died from self administered poisoning on 7 June 1954. Alan Turing's place in history was earned by his theory of computation which he worked out in 1936 and 1937.

The effects of the evolution of the tennis racquet Essay Example

The effects of the evolution of the tennis racquet Essay Example The effects of the evolution of the tennis racquet Paper The effects of the evolution of the tennis racquet Paper The game has changed dramatically over the last 30 years with the advancement of racquets being the major factor, of which most of the tactical techniques are finally being based around. This is because the racquet technology is increasing the power at which players can hit the ball which is changing the game in terms of technique hugely. This has in particular helped the service dominate matches, often leading to very little break of serve; simply because the services can be so powerful that its near impossible for a player to return them at all/with any accuracy. The power at which the ball can now be hit is the major factor in terms of tactical changes by players and coaches in tennis, as in the 1980s players were struggling to reach 110mph yet with the modernization of the tennis racquet players are aiming to serve at 130-150 mph; which is obviously a dramatic increase and will obviously have to play a part in the tactics of the game.  A big change which has been noticed as new players have been coming through to be successful are the lack of serve volleyers, in particularly on the grass court. The only real successful player using the serve volley at the last Wimbledon was Tin Henman. This is because the players can hit the ball so hard from the baseline and get convincing and aesthetically pleasing winners that they dont need to serve and volley; then players who do try and use the serve volley tactics can easily be beaten by powerful shots from the baseline players. In particularly recently you can see the base line players coming out on top in all the tournaments and the over all rankings. For example in the rankings at the moment we can only really see one player ranking inside the top 10 that uses the serve volley tactic effectively; which is A. Agassi, although in comparison to players such as Tin Henman he uses the tactic rarely. The baseline players such as Federer, Safin, Ferrero and Roddick are dominating the tennis scene at the moment with their powerful services and powerful base line shots. Many people today argue that the evolution of the tennis racquet has gone too far and has made the sport too easy to win in very shot rallies and thus making it very boring in terms of a spectator sport. This is because the players can generate so much power and speed due too the advanced size, shape and materials of the racquet design that its now much easier for players to get aces or play shots which will easily pass the opponent. The introduction of rollers also benefits players massively as they work by distributing the force of the ball throughout the string bed rather than just he direct strings which had been struck by the ball; almost making the string bed act like one large string striking the ball rather than a bed of them. The string bed compresses much farther when the ball strikes it, this is said to make the string bed livelier; this not only increases the power of the shot but also reduces the effort of the shot and also the shock of this shot. The players have to keep up with the technology of the new racquets else they will be left at a distinct disadvantage to players who are utilising the technological advances. Although many people argue that some rules and regulations should be laid down to stop any further development of the tennis racquet as they argue that the game is becoming to boring to watch as the rallies are usually over in a 1, 2 or 3 shots. While this may be down to player skill its more likely that it is down to the development of the tennis racquet as in the 1980s and 1990s the average shots per rally were much higher than they are nowadays. To make the mens game in particular more exciting to the viewing public measures should be taken in order to reduce the power at which the ball can be hit; this will reduce the big servers advantage and make serve returns easier and thus making the rallies average length increase again. This could be done by putting limitations on the racquets which would cause a lot of complications and would be hard to standardise the racquets to meet each players need but still make them less powerful. Another much easier way of effectively slowing the game down and making it more aesthetically pleasing would be to change the type of balls used; as this would be simple to test and put into use in comparison to trying to change all the racquets which would cost much more money and cause a lot more hassle for tennis players and governing bodies. For example they could make the balls more absorbent and so absorbing some of the power from the racquet and making it travel slower and bounce less. Bibliography http://news.bbc.co.uk/.

French Exclamative Adverbs - Adverbes dexclamation

French Exclamative Adverbs - Adverbes dexclamation Exclamative adverbs are placed in front of clauses to indicate shock, disbelief, awe, or some other strong emotion felt by the speaker. There are five French exclamative adverbs: commequequest-ce quece quecombien Comme means how, though many English speakers are likely reword the sentence to use so instead:  Ã‚  Ã‚  Comme il fait beau  !  Ã‚  Ã‚  How nice the weather is! The weather is so nice!  Ã‚  Ã‚  Comme cest difficile  !   Ã‚  Ã‚  How difficult it is! Its so difficult!  Ã‚  Ã‚  Comme tu es grand  !  Ã‚  Ã‚  How tall you are! Youre so tall!Que is more or less interchangeable with comme:  Ã‚  Ã‚  Quil fait beau  !  Ã‚  Ã‚  How beautiful the weather is!  Ã‚  Ã‚  Que cest difficile  !  Ã‚  Ã‚  How difficult it is!  Ã‚  Ã‚  Que tu es grand  !  Ã‚  Ã‚  How tall you are!Que de is used in front of nouns to stress so much or so many of something:  Ã‚  Ã‚  Que dargent  !  Ã‚  Ã‚  So much money!  Ã‚  Ã‚  Que de monde  !  Ã‚  Ã‚  So many people!  Ã‚  Ã‚  Que de difficultà ©s  !  Ã‚  Ã‚  So many problems!Que followed by a subjunctive clause creates an indirect command.Informally, quest-ce que and ce que can replace comme and que:  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ques t-ce quil fait beau  ! Ce quil fait beau  !  Ã‚  Ã‚  The weather is so beautiful!  Ã‚  Ã‚  Quest-ce que cest difficile  ! Ce que cest difficile  !  Ã‚  Ã‚  Its so difficult!  Ã‚  Ã‚  Quest-ce que tu es grand  ! Ce que tu es grand  !   Ã‚  Ã‚  Youre so tall!Combien means how much or how many and must be followed by an adverb or by de noun:  Ã‚  Ã‚  Combien plus dà ©nergie que jai  ! Combien plus dà ©nergie ai-je  !   Ã‚  Ã‚  How much more energy I have! (I have so much more energy)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Combien dargent que tu dà ©penses  ! Combien dargent dà ©penses-tu  !  Ã‚  Ã‚  How much money youre spending! (Youre spending so much money!Note: The clause that follows the modified noun requires either inversion or que.Combien means how much/many or so much/many and may be followed by a clause, an adverb, or de noun:  Ã‚  Ã‚  Combien il a changà ©Ã‚  !   Ã‚  Ã‚  How he has changed! (Hes changed so much!)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Combien en a-t-on vus  !  Ã‚  Ã‚  How many we saw! (We saw so many!)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Combien de fois ne lui a-t-on pas rà ©pà ©tà ©Ã‚  !  Ã‚  Ã‚  How many times have we told him!  Ã‚  Ã‚  Mais combien plus noble si les hommes mouraient pour des idà ©es vraies  !  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  (Henri Louis Mencken, Extrait de Prà ©jugà ©s)  Ã‚  Ã‚  But how much more noble if men died for real ideas!

Effective leaders_WK4 Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Effective leaders_WK4 - Research Paper Example Furthermore, given that majority of transportation infrastructure investments are federally funded even though locally implemented, such a piecemeal method halts constrains smooth assimilation of local and state policies with those of the federal government. This then hinders the President and transportation secretary to offer synergies across projects. Furthermore, the existing federal NextGen transportation policies, are steered by the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, and Efficient Transportation Equity Act (SAFETEA-LU), which does not help the President to deal with the utilization of economic analysis for the transportation decision-making (Weiner, 2013). Given that the transportation program does not have a greater standardization or lucidity, the President cannot be able to come up with an executive-level modification without substantive legislation. Najeeb Halaby is an example of an effective leader in public administration, since in 1965 as administrator of the independent Federal Aviation Agency; he proposed the creation of Department of Transportation (2013). He saw this as a means of securing decisively the US transportation policy expansion. Thanks to his efforts, the agency has done tremendous job over the years by being part of the executive departments which integrated other administration transportation programs. Secondly, Samuel K. Skinner, a former transportation secretary appointed by President Bush senior, initiated the formation of the National Transportation Policy, as well as the extension of the department responsibility in crisis management reaction. Hence, the handling of subsequent natural and human induced disasters, such as Lockerbie plane bombings in 1988 and Exxon Valdez oil spill in 1989 were made easier by his policies of maintaining and developing the national transportation system, and to ensure that it

Early Computers Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Early Computers - Research Paper Example Conventional desktop and laptops have extreme efficiency and storage. Apart from these they have blended in our vehicles, aircrafts, security systems, houses and industries to name a few. The computers we use today are a result of progress and innovation for almost three quarters of a century. The early developments are discussed in detail; 2. The First Computer Konrad Zuse was a German engineer who made Z1, the first programmed digital computer in 1936 (Copeland 5). The computer used electromechanical process to relay data. His original design was based on Vacuum Tubes, but due to lack to funds he could not implement the technology in his design. Because of the electromechanical processing his computer is not considered by many to be the first fully electronic computer (â€Å"Who Invented the Computer† 2). However, Zuse continued work on his computer and in 1941 introduced Z2 and Z3. The machines used telephone relays for sending and receiving data. The breakthrough, however, came from John Atanasoff, who introduced ABC Computer in 1942. According to Null and Lobur, John Atanasoff is credited with the construction of â€Å"first completely electronic computer† (19). The computer used vacuum tubes for relaying data. ... 3. Early Developments 3.1 Vacuum Tubes Vacuum Tubes were the most critical development and the major step towards the development of modern computers. These were used to deliver electric current in a vacuumed environment. The current was passed through the tubes and amplified. These were used for electrical signals by varying the amount of current. Vacuum Tubes were used in different devices and varied as per functionality. The tubes were replaced by transistors for use in computers. They were power efficient than the tubes and were responsible for shrinking the size. Furthermore, they significantly improved reliability of these early systems (Rojas and Hashagen 85). 3.2 Storage The Vacuum Tubes were used to relay data. They could not store data and were very unreliable. The first real storage was by F.C. Williams (Lavington 19). It was simply a charged phosphor film that recorded the pulse from the tubes. The pulse was recorded as a binary with the values differing with the strength of electric signal. The pattern of binary was recorded on the film and could be later used for regeneration. The equipment was known as Williams Cathode Ray Tube and was an electrostatic storage technology. 4. Operation Binary Number System was used for calculations. Programs were based on arithmetic and it was interpreted in binary code for the computer to process any calculation (Introduction to Computers 8). The Binary System has only two values that are 1 and 0. The computers interpret electric signals as 1 and dim signals as 0. The Vacuum Tubes were used to relay the signal and the storage films were used to record the information for later use. These components made the computers extremely big and difficult in

Movie: One Flew Over The Cuckoos Nest :: One Flew Over Cuckoos Nest Essays Film

Movie: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the movie, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's nest, there was a character named McMurphy, played by Jack Nickolson, who was admitted into a mental institution for medical testing after having been convicted of statutory rape. It was obvious that he was only faking and he thought that he could get off from having to serve his sentence in a work camp. He pretty much saw everything and everyone as a joke but the only person who he didn't fool was nurse Ratchet. He thought that he would be able to leave in a couple of months, the time of his sentence in the work camp, until he found out that he wouldn't be allowed to leave.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  After a few days he began to see the patients as a group that needed more enjoyment in their lives and he wanted to try to find some way that they could get out and go to a bar and watch the world series. The nursing staff seemed uncaring to their lack of enjoyment to life and basically refused to allow the patients to even watch the game on the TV during their chores even after having took a vote where a mute patient nicknamed 'Chief' for the first time communicated that he wanted to watch the game. McMurphy had befriended Chief and later discovered that he was not deaf and dumb but was only faking his muteness and they planed to escape together.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  McMurphy later found out that many of these patients were here only because they put themselves here and didn't want to leave even though they had the option to. He tried his best to bring some life to these patients such as teaching them to play poker and gambling for cigarettes. He even went so far as to escape over a fence only to open the gate and to get the patients onto a nearby bus and drive them to the docks where he took them on a fishing trip. Also he arranged for his girlfriend and a prostitute to come to the institution at night with some alcohol and had a little party for them before he decided he was going to escape. The next morning one of the patients who was suicidal was found by the nurses in bed with the prostitute. Nurse Ratchet told him that he would tell his mother what he had done and the patient was found later dead on the floor from having had slashed his own throat.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  McMurphy never did leave and he was given a form of therapy called ECT,

NCMMOD4CA

The Far East business communication differs from European and American styles. Culture, religious traditions and unique Eastern values have a great impact on the personal style of negotiators and their behavior patterns. Different nations stress different aspects of the negotiations. Some of them underline substantive issues directly related to the agreement while others stress relationships. Martin et al (1999) identify four main stages of negotiation process: â€Å"relationship building;  Ã‚   exchange of information, persuasion and compromise, and concessions and agreement†. At the beginning stage of negotiations, the unique issues of the Far East business communication are importance of detailed information about business partners, asking probing questions, importance of socializing and exchange of information. Asians prefer to spend time asking questions about financial, market, manufacturing, and personal issues relevant to the negotiation. Before the meeting, Asians spend time searching for infomation about the business partner and his business relations. â€Å"The Japanese admire people who are well informed, sincere, honest, and serious about their work† (Paik, Tung 1999). Socialization involves development of personal relations with business partner. In contrast to American businessmen, Asians logic is based on spiral or non-linear bases, holistic and cyclical approaches. â€Å"Asian managers tend to analyze issues in a more systemic, circular, and interactive way as compared with American managers who often examine issues based on linear causality† (Paik, Tung 1999). In contrast to Europeans and Americans, Asians do not use argumentation and persuasive reason during negotiations.   For Asians, time is â€Å"nonlinear, repetitive and associated with events†. For Americans, time is â€Å"monochronic, sequential, absolute and prompt† (Paik, Tung 1999). For Asian businessmen, working to a common goal is the most important feature of the negotiations. This means the development of a long-term relationship. Japanese conduct negotiation in a nonlinear manner and in a distinctive style. The difference is found in motivation and the purpose of negotiations. For Americans, signing of a contrast means the final stage of negotiations while for Asians signing of a contrast implies â€Å"the beginning of a long and productive relationship† (Paik, Tung 1999). At the final stage, Japanese businessmen are concerned with the end-results and relations rather than the length of negotiations. These variables shape the values and the behavior of Asian employees and enable researchers to explain differences in the way different countries conduct their business affairs. Also, â€Å"Asian managers find the constant rotation of people involved in the negotiation process as disruptive and confusing† (Paik, Tung 1999). In spite of great differences between American and the Far East styles, researchers prove that the personal style of Asian businessmen is a mixture of Europeans business norms and practices based on unique Eastern values and religion, psychological characteristics and cultural traditions. The Far East negotiator is patient and silent, introvert and tolerant, well-informed and friendly. He follows â€Å"an indirect and harmonious style†, oriented on the end results. Sometimes, his reasoning and argumentation seems illogic to Americans. They reflect emphasis on personal relations and strategic goals, importance of seniority and organizational hierarchy. For Asians, ‘listening’ attributes are the most important. â€Å"The primary persuasive tactics in the Japanese business negotiations appear to consist of volunteering of more information and the use of silence† (Martin et al 1999). Verbal communication is on the second place. Asians use both oral and written communication during negotiations. They can involve annual reports or press releases, provide a great deal of information about the type of project they want to launch. Oral communication helps to enhance task accomplishments; second, to make sense out of content; and third, to supply the bridge between parties. The first level involves cognitive meaning, which focuses on either/or choices. â€Å"Listening’ attributes take about 45 % of negotiations time while Verbal communication takes about 20%. Non-verbal communication involves handshaking and expression of emotions. During negotiations, many Asian businessmen use â€Å"extensive non-verbal means†. Europeans and Americans rely on empirical information, logical reasoning and argumentation (verbal communication) while Asians rely on sensitivity and intuition, non-verbal signs and facial expressions. For instance, â€Å"Nunchi refers to an ability to silently understand what the other party is thinking by reading non-verbal cues, a process similar to that used in a game of poker† (Paik, Tung 1999). The vast majority of nonverbal behaviors is intuitive and is based on normative rules. Except for behaviors such as good manners or etiquette, little formal training is provided for nonverbal communication. In Asian meetings, verbal communication is highly structured and is reinforced through an extensive formal and informal learning process. There is no clear-cut linguistic structure for nonverbal communication even though researchers have found some consistencies in how Asian people interpret nonverbal behaviors. It is possible to say that for Asians the process of negotiations is ceremony which helps to establish long-term relations and business partnership. In sum, national culture and culture of business relations have an influence on communication styles, interaction and behavior patterns of the Far East businessmen. The fundamental value is the dualistic existence innate within the Asian culture and a short-term view in many interventions. While mental representations certainly are not identical, particularly in cross-cultural interactions, message producers and receivers both add meaning to communicative exchanges. Spoken words of friendly greeting in another's language might well be translated properly by interpreters, yet cross-cultural communicators will still need to know the cognitive meaning of a friendly smile in contrast to a lascivious one. An understanding of how representations are formed is first required in order to acquire the necessary cognitive tools to make sense of cross-cultural communicative exchanges in Asia. Works Cited 1.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Martin, D., Herbig, P. Howard, C., Borstorff, P. At the table: Observations on Japanese Negotiation style. American Business Review. West Haven: Jan 1999, 17 (1): 65-71. 2.  Ã‚   Paik, Y., Tung, R.L. Negotiating with East Asians: How to attain â€Å"win-win† outcomes. Management International review. Wiesbaden: Second Quarter 1999, 39 (2): 103-122.

The Term Structure Of Bond Market Liquidity Finance Essay - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 18 Words: 5351 Downloads: 5 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Fashion Essay Type Analytical essay Did you like this example? Previous studies of Treasury market illiquidity span short time-periods and focus on particular maturities. In contrast, we study the joint time-series of illiquidity for different maturities over an extended time sample. We also compare time series determinants of on-the-run and off-the-run illiquidity. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "The Term Structure Of Bond Market Liquidity Finance Essay" essay for you Create order Illiquidity increases and the difference between spreads of long- and short-term bonds significantly widens during recessions, suggesting a flight to liquidity phenomenon wherein investors shift into the more liquid short-term bonds during economic contractions. We also document that macroeconomic variables such as inflation and federal fund rates forecast off-the-run illiquidity significantly but have only modest forecasting ability for on-the-run illiquidity. Bond returns across all maturities are forecastable by off-the-run short-term illiquidity but not by illiquidity of other maturities or by on-the-run bond illiquidity. Thus, short-term off-the-run liquidity, by reflecting macro shocks first, is the primary source of the liquidity premium in the Treasury bond market. Ruslan Y. Goyenko, McGill University, 1001 Sherbrooke St. West, Montreal, Quebec H3A 1G5. E-mail: [email  protected]/* */ Avanidhar Subrahmanyam, Goldyne and Irwin Hearsh Chair in Money and Banking, UCLA Ande rson School of Management, [email  protected]/* */ Andrey D. Ukhov, Kelley School of Business, Indiana University, 1309 E. Tenth Street, Bloomington, IN 47405. E-mail: [email  protected]/* */ We thank Yakov Amihud, Michael Fleming, Tyler Henry, Paul Irvine, Tao Shu, Chris Stivers, Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh, Ginger Wu, and participants in a seminar at the University of Georgia, and at the 2007 Conference on Financial Economics and Accounting at New York University for valuable comments. Abstract Previous studies of Treasury market illiquidity span short time-periods and focus on particular maturities. In contrast, we study the joint time-series of illiquidity for different maturities over an extended time sample. We also compare time series determinants of on-the-run and off-the-run illiquidity. Illiquidity increases and the difference between spreads of long- and short-term bonds significantly widens during recessions, suggesting a flight to liquidity phenomenon wherein investors shift into the more liquid short-term bonds during economic contractions. We also document that macroeconomic variables such as inflation and federal fund rates forecast off-the-run illiquidity significantly but have only modest forecasting ability for on-the-run illiquidity. Bond returns across all maturities are forecastable by off-the-run short-term illiquidity but not by illiquidity of other maturities or by on-the-run bond illiquidity. Thus, short-term off-the-run illiquidity, by reflecting macro shocks first, is the primary source of the liquidity premium in the Treasury bond market. Introduction U.S. Treasury Bond Markets are crucial for asset allocation purposes as well as in the setting of benchmark riskless rates used by corporations in capital budgeting. Indeed, average daily trading volume in Treasury markets is about $500 billion, compared to only about $100 billion on the NYSE. This trading activity allows for price discovery, and Brandt and Kavajecz (2004) argue that the extent of price discovery in the Treasury bond is intimately linked to the markets liquidity. Further, events such as the 1998 bond market turmoil have heightened concerns about bond liquidity crises. Hence, understanding the dynamics of bond market liquidity is of clear academic and practical importance. The attribute of liquidity is also important because it influences expected returns by way of a liquidity premium embedded in bond prices (Amihud, Mendelson, and Pedersen, 2005). Notwithstanding the importance of understanding liquidity dynamics there remain critical gaps in the literature on b ond market liquidity. These lacunae arise because the bond market is not homogeneous but its constituent securities vary by maturity and seasonedness (i.e., on-the-run status). For example, while the presence of a liquidity premium in bond prices was first established for off-the-run bonds (Amihud and Mendelson, 1991), the previous literature mostly focuses on the dynamics of on-the-run liquidity. Thus, off-the-run liquidity dynamics, which are empirically the most relevant for bond pricing, have not yet been studied. Moreover, while the pricing implications of illiquidity in the stock market have been explored in the time-series and on different cross-sections of stock portfolios, the pricing implications of bond liquidity across different maturities are still unexplored in the literature. We contribute on both the preceding dimensions by making use of a long time-series of bond liquidity data. The time span of the analysis is important because it allows us to subsume a variety of economic events. As Shiller and Perron (1985) and Shiller (1989) show, increasing the number of observations by sampling more frequently while leaving the total time span of the data unchanged may not increase the power of tests very much. We thus consider an extensive time period that spans November 1967 to December 2005. For this period, we consider the joint dynamics of liquidity and returns across seasonedness and three different maturity classes: short, medium and long. To our knowledge, there is no previous study that uses such a long time-series and describes the dynamics of liquidity and returns across maturities and on-the-run status within a unified framework. Our analysis allows us to address the following issues, which are as yet un-examined in the literature: Previous research (Brunnermeier and Pedersen, 2006, and Chordia, Roll, and Subrahmanyam, 2005) suggests that macroeconomic variables and price volatility may impact bond market liquidity by affecting marke t-making costs. Do such variables differentially impact on- and off-the-run market making costs, and in turn, liquidities? Are bond returns forecastable from liquidity levels, i.e., is there evidence of liquidity premia in the bond market? How are liquidity shocks transmitted in the bond market? Are they reflected first in the relatively less active off-the-run issues or the more active on-the-run ones? If the liquidity of certain bonds forecasts those of other bonds by reflecting liquidity shocks first, then it may forecast returns not just in the own-market but in other markets as well. This is because liquidity levels in the own-market provide information about future liquidity, and liquidity premia in other markets. This leads us to the question: How does the predictive power of liquidity for bond returns vary across maturity and off-the-run status? We find that liquidity conditions in the bond market are affected by the economic environment. For example, bond spread s increase during recessions. Moreover, the difference between spreads of long- and short-term bonds significantly widens during recessions, suggesting that investors shift funds into short-term bonds during this time, thus creating liquidity. This is consistent with flight-to-quality and flight-to-liquidity phenomena. Our Granger-causality results indicate that short-term liquidity causes long-term liquidity and that there is no evidence of reverse causality. This indicates that liquidity shocks are transmitted from the short end to the long end. We also find that off-the-run liquidity can be predicted by a larger set of macroeconomic and market variables than on-the-run liquidity. Thus, shocks to inflation and monetary policy tightening, associated with positive shocks to the federal fund rate, increase off-the-run liquidity across all maturities, consistent with the notion that these macroeconomic variables affect order processing and inventory holding costs. However, for on-t he-run liquidity, the predictive power of the macro variables is considerably reduced. This is consistent with the notion that active trading in on-the-run bonds mitigates the impact of macro variables on inventory holding costs. We also find that positive shocks to bond returns across different maturities decrease off-the-run bond liquidity and shocks to volatility increase liquidity. These results are consistent with those for the stock market described by Chordia, Roll, and Subrahmanyam (2001), who show that up-market moves have a positive effect on liquidity, and with models of microstructure which argue that increased volatility, by increasing inventory risk, tends to increase market liquidity (Ho and Stoll, 1983, and OHara and Oldfield, 1986). The liquidity premium has been previously attributed to the yield difference between equivalent instruments but different levels of liquidity. For example, Amihud and Mendelson (1991) compare the yields on Treasury notes and bills with the same time to maturity and find a significant yield differential. Krishnamurthy (2002) studies the price difference between the on-the- run and the most recent off-the-run 30-year bond and concludes that the yield difference results from a demand for liquid assets. Longstaff (2004) compares the yield differential between zero-coupon Treasury and Refcorp bonds and also finds evidence of a large liquidity premium. Most of these studies are limited by short time-spans where high frequency market microstructure data are available. In contrast to previous literature we look directly at the effect of liquidity on bond returns over the long run in a variety of economic conditions. We use vector autoregression analysis, which allows us to account for joint dynamics between liquidity and returns across different maturities. We find that short-term off-the-run liquidity is priced across returns of short, medium, and long-term bonds while medium and long-term liquidity has no signif icant impact on prices in a joint dynamic framework. On-the-run liquidity is not priced, either. This finding is consistent with our previous results: short-term bond liquidity is driven by a larger set of economic variables and it transfers the shocks to the liquidity of other maturities. This result is new and it suggests that liquidity of the off-the-run short-term issues is a source of liquidity premium in the Treasury bond market. The rest of the paper is organized as follows. The next section provides the economic arguments that motivate our study. We describe the data and the liquidity measure in Section II. Section III describes the results of time series analysis of the illiquidity series, economic variables, and bond returns. Section IV concludes. I. Economic Motivation This section delineates the questions our data have the opportunity to address. These issues span the behavior of bond liquidity across different states of the macroeconomy, the effect of macroeconomic variables on liquidity, and how the liquidity premium varies across maturities and seasonedness. First, the behavior of illiquidity during recessions and expansions is of interest. In particular, lower liquidity during recessions due to increased risk premia (Dumas, 1994) can exacerbate market declines as agents demand higher required rates of return (Amihud and Mendelson, 1986). Our data allow an explicit comparison of illiquidity across different macroeconomic regimes. It also is often suggested (see, e.g., Brunnermeier and Pedersen, 2005) that tighter collateral constraints during recessions may result in a flight to liquidity wherein agents flee to more bonds with lower trading costs. Our comparison of illiquidity in off-the-run and on-the-run bonds of different maturities dur ing recessions allows an analysis of this issue. Next, the impact of macroeconomic variables on the bond market across the term structure spectrum is an unexplored issue. While Chordia, Sarkar, and Subrahmanyam (2005) show that monetary policy impacts financial market liquidity, the issue of whether it is primarily through the demand side (by the actions of traders) or the supply side (because of alterations in dealer financing costs) remains unexplored. We argue that if the impact occurs on the supply side it should be more evident in the less-liquid off-the-run issues because that is where dealers have to hold positions for longer periods, on average. There may also be a tradeoff involving bond maturities. For example, if dealer inventory costs are indeed higher in the off-the-run market, they may be more relevant in those maturities with greater order imbalances because that is where inventory would take on more extreme values. It is possible that short-term off-the-run bonds with more volume may also have more extreme order imbalances. On the other hand, an offsetting effect is that long-term bonds have less volume and thus involve a greater time for which dealer positions must be held. This may increase the influence of macro variables on inventory carrying costs and thus, illiquidity in long-term bonds relative to short-term bonds. Thus, the issue of how the influence of macro information varies across on-the-run status and maturity is an empirical one that we are able to explore. The preceding arguments also have implications for the nature of the liquidity premium in bond prices. For example, if it is indeed the case that short-term illiquidity reflects macro information first, then, by signaling changes in bond market liquidity and liquidity premia across the term structure spectrum, it may also forecast illiquidity as well as returns for other maturities. By examining the return forecasting ability of various bonds according to their on-the-run status and maturity, we are able to shed light on this issue as well. II. Basic Statistics II. A The Data We measure liquidity in the Treasury market with relative quoted spreads. This is a standard measure for the Treasury market. The simple bid-ask spread measure, based on widely available data, is highly correlated with price impact, which otherwise is difficult to estimate over a long time horizon basis due to data limitations (Fleming, 2003). The quoted bid and ask prices are from the CRSP daily Treasury Quotes file from November 1967 to December 2005. The file includes Treasury fixed income securities of 3 and 6 months, 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 10, 20 and 30 years to maturity. Once issued, the security is considered as on-the-run and the older issues are off-the-run. The quoted spread for the Treasury bond market is computed as , where Ask and Bid are quoted ask and bid prices for a particular day (using only two-sided quotes for the calculation). The monthly average spread is computed for each security and then equally weighted across different assets for each month. We use six bond liquidity series across three maturity classes and seasonedness status. The first maturity class is short-term liquidity computed for T-bills with maturity less than or equal to 1 year. The second is the liquidity of the medium-maturity assets obtained from the quotes on 2-to-5 year bonds. The third is the liquidity of the 10-year note, a traditional benchmark. We study the three series separately for on-the-run and off-the-run issues. II.B The Impact of Recessions Table 1 provides descriptive statistics for the illiquidity series. For the whole sample (Panel A) the spreads for medium- and long-term bonds tend to be wider for off-the-run issues than the on-the-run bonds. For short-term bonds, spreads of on-the-run issu es are on average wider for the whole sample (Panel A). During non-recessions (Panel C), the average spreads of short-term bonds tend to be very close in magnitude for on-the-run and off-the-run issues. However, both short-term on- and off-the-run spreads increase by more than a factor of two during NBER recessions (Panel B). Medium- and long-term spreads also increase during recessions compared to non-recessions, but the percentage increase is less dramatic than that for short-term bonds. Thus, spreads are higher during recessions and their increase is especially pronounced for short-term maturities. Table 2 reports the difference between long- and short-term spreads for the whole sample and for sub-samples. The difference is positive, as the spreads are higher for the long-term bonds. For both on-the-run and off-the-run issues the difference is significantly higher during recessions. This suggests that investors may shift into short-term bonds in recessionary periods. Figure s 1 and 2 present graphs for the illiquidity of on-the-run and off-the-run issues, respectively, by maturity. Higher values correspond to higher transactions costs. Gray bars denote NBER recessions. For the on-the-run bonds, as Figure 1 Panel A shows, the illiquidity of short-term bonds almost always increases during recessions. This pattern is less pronounced for long-term bonds, Panel C, and is nearly absent for medium-term bonds, Panel B. In contrast, for off-the-run bonds, Figure 2, an increase in illiquidity during recessions is observed across all maturities. This pattern points toward a heterogeneity in liquidity dynamics across on-the-run and off-the-run bonds, which we explore in detail below. III. Vector Autoregression Analysis Our goal is to explore the intertemporal associations between bond illiquidity of different maturities, returns, volatility and macroeconomic variables which affect bond prices and can also have an impact on illiquidity. In particular, we are interested in determining what forces drive the dynamics of illiquidity of on-the-run and off-the-run issues and what relations hold between illiquidity of different maturities and bond returns. We run our analysis separately for on-the-run and off-the-run issues. III.A The Explanatory Variables We use adjusted time series of illiquidity after removing a time trend and the square of the time trend. Earlier work (e.g., Chordia, Roll, and Subrahmanyam, 2001), argues that returns may influence future trading behavior, which may, in turn, affect liquidity. For instance, the portfolio-rebalancing arguments of Merton (1971) imply return-dependent investing behavior, and such order imbalances in response to a price change may strain liquidity. Thus, as our first set of explanatory variables, we use returns of three maturity ranges: short, medium, and long. To capture price variation in the short-maturity range, we use the return on 3 month T-bill (RET1). Returns on 5-year and 10-year notes represent medium (RET5) and long (RET10) maturity, respectively. All returns are from the CRSP Treasury monthly file. In addition, Benston and Hagerman (1974) suggest a role for volatility in causing illiquidity by indicating that increased volatility implies increased inventory risk and hence, a higher bid-ask spread (see Duffie, Gà ¢rleanu, and Pedersen, 2007, for a similar argument). We thus include return volatility as an explanatory variable. To measure the volatility in the Treasury market we use the volatility of a 10 year note. The volatility is obtained as monthly standard deviation of daily returns available from CRSP daily Treasury files. Among other variables, we use inflation, because inflation surprises have a large effect on the level of the entire yield curve (Ang and Piazzesi, 2003). Campbell and Ammer (1993) argue that bond returns are driven largely by news about future inflation. Positive inflation shocks may drain trading activity out of the bond market, reducing liquidity. Such shocks may also signal a shift in future monetary policy (i.e., the expectation that the Federal Reserve may raise interest rates to dampen inflation) and thus can affect liquidity by portending a shift in inventory financing costs. Inflation is obtained as the growth rate in the consumer price index. The data are from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. Further, Fama and French (1993) argue that term and default spreads capture a lot of variation in Treasury bond returns. Moreover, term and default spreads as proxies for business cycles can be important drivers of illiquidity since, as Figures 1 and 2 show, spreads tend to widen during economic downturns. We therefore add term and default premiums to the vector of state variables. The term premium (TERM) is defined as the difference between yields on a 10-year T-note and three-month T-bill. The default premium (DEF) is the difference between yields on long-term BAA-rated and AAA-rated bonds. There are also reasons to expect a strong relationship between monetary policy and illiquidity in our sample. Empirically, there is overwhelming evidence highlighting the effect of macroeconomic news on illiquidity of Treasury bonds for intraday data of on-the-run issues (Fleming and Remolona, 1997, 1999, Balduzzi, Elton, and Green, 2001, and Green, 2004). Also, a loose monetary policy may decrease illiquidity and encourage more trading by making margin loan requirements less costly, and by enhancing the ability of dealers to finance their positions (Chordia, Sarkar and Subrahmanyam, 2005). Monetary conditions may also affect bond prices through their effect on volatility (Harvey and Huang, 2002) and interest rates. Therefore, as indicators o f the monetary policy stance, we include the federal funds rate (FED). Since the unit root test indicates nonstationarity in FED, the subsequent analysis uses first differences. The data are from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. We use vector autoregression (VAR) analysis to study joint dynamics of the variables. In accordance with the AIC and Schwarz Bayesian Information Criterion, we estimate the VAR with one lag. Table 3 reports pairwise Granger-causality tests between the endogenous variables in the VAR. For the null hypothesis that variable i does not Granger-cause variable j, we test whether the lag coefficients of i are jointly zero when j is the dependent variable in the VAR. The cell associated with the row variable and the column variable shows the Chi-square statistics and corresponding p-values in parentheses. III.B Granger Causality Tests The results for illiquidity are presented in Table 3, Panel A. For both on-the-run and off-the-run issues, illiquidity of short-term bonds Granger-causes illiquidity of other maturities. For off-the-run bonds the causality goes in one direction only, while for on-the-run ones, the causality occurs in the reverse direction only for medium-term bonds to short-term bonds. The evidence indicates that illiquidity shocks are largely transmitted from the short end to the long end. Beber, Brandt and Kavajecz (2007) find that liquid Euro-area bonds attract more order flow, presumably both informed and uninformed. This suggests that the illiquidity of short-term bonds, as the most liquid asset class, may reflect information before other maturities. Our results are consistent with this notion. Panels B and C present the results for causality tests between illiquidity and other endogenous variables for on-the-run and off-the-run issues, respectively. For brevity, we focus on causation involving the liquidity variables. We also find that all four macro variables (DEF, TERM, FED, and INFL) cause short-term of f-the-run illiquidity. The last three also cause on-the-run short-term spreads. The impact of these variables on longer-term spreads is a bit mixed. Overall, though, macroeconomic variables do forecast bond market illiquidity, especially at the short-end of the term structure spectrum. We find that volatility has a causality effect only on illiquidity of on-the-run issues. We will re-examine these findings in the next subsection when we present impulse response functions. For off-the-run bonds, we find that illiquidity of all maturities Granger-causes the return on short-term bonds and volatility. Also, the illiquidity of short-term bonds causes the return of medium-term bonds. The effect of on-the-run illiquidity on bond returns is far less pronounced. Overall, the evidence for off-the-run illiquidity supports the literature on liquidity premium in the Treasury bond markets (Amihud and Mendelson, 1991). Note that the Granger causality results are based on the analysis of the coefficients from a single equation, and do not account for the joint dynamics implied by the VAR system. A clearer picture can potentially emerge if we use impulse response functions (IRFs). The IRF traces the impact of a one-time, unit standard deviation, positive shock to one variable on the current and future values of the endogenous variables. Since innovations are correlated, they need to be orthogonalized. They are computed using standard Cholesky decompositions of the VAR residuals and assuming that innovations in the variables placed earlier in the VAR have greater effects on the following variables. Thus, one approach is to order the variables according to the order in which they influence the other variables. We place macroeconomic variables in the beginning of the VAR ordering since while financial markets respond to monetary policy, the latter is relatively exogenous to the financial system. There are precedents for putting monetary policy instruments before financia l variables in the VAR ordering (Thorbecke, 1997, and Chordia, Sarkar and Subrahmanyam, 2005). The ordering of macroeconomic variables (INFL, FED) is based on conventional practice in the macroeconomic literature. They are followed by the business cycle variables, TERM and DEF. Relying on prior evidence (Chordia, Sarkar and Subrahmanyam, 2005), we order the rest of variables as follows: Volat, RET1, RET5, RET10, Bond-Short, Bond-Medium and Bond-Long. The conclusions about IRFs are insensitive to the ordering of market variables. III.C VAR Innovations: Correlation Matrix Before proceeding to impulse response analyses, it is of interest to examine contemporaneous relations between innovations in the variables. Accordingly, Table 4, Panels A and B, reports the contemporaneous correlation matrix of the VAR innovations for on-the-run and off-the-run illiquidity, respectively. Again, we focus only on the correlations involving the liquidity variables. Correlations in innovations of illiquidity across maturities are positive, but significant only for off-the-run illiquidity. Shocks to TERM are negatively correlated with innovations in illiquidity. Thus, an increase in the term spread, which is commonly attributed to a monetary policy expansion (e.g., Patelis, 1997), is accompanied by an improvement in bond market liquidity. Shocks to volatility are generally positively correlated with innovations in illiquidity, with the exception of the on-the-run bond-medium illiquidity which has an anomalous negative correlation. Innovations in FED are positively correlated with illiquidity of on-the-run and off-the-run issues. Monetary policy tightening is associated contemporaneously with an increase in bond spreads. We find that shocks to off-the-run short-term illiquidity are negatively correlated with the returns across all maturities. This is consistent with the results of Amihud (2002) for the stock market: positive shocks to spreads are accompanied by a contempora neous decrease in prices. This also suggests a special role of the off-the-run short-term bond illiquidity in affecting bond prices across all maturities. We now shed more light on these economic relations by examining impulse response functions. III.D Impulse Response Functions: Illiquidity Figure 3, Panel A illustrates the response of short-bond off-the-run illiquidity to a unit standard deviation change in a particular variable, traced forward over a period of 24 months. In the figures, month 0 gives the contemporaneous impact and months 1-24 plot the effect from +1 to +24 months. Bootstrap 95% confidence bands are provided to gauge the statistical significance of the responses. The figure indicates that short-bond illiquidity increases in response to inflation shocks as well as well as monetary tightening associated with a positive shock to FED. This suggests that an increase in inventory-holding and order processing costs due to inflation is reflected in higher transactio n costs. TERM and DEF do not have an immediate impact on short-term bond illiquidity. An innovation in short- and medium-term bond returns results in a reduction in bond illiquidity, while a shock to volatility predicts an increase in short-term illiquidity. These results are consistent with those for the stock market of Chordia, Roll, and Subrahmanyam (2001) who show that up-market moves have a positive effect on liquidity, and with models of microstructure which argue that increased volatility, by increasing inventory risk, tends to increase market illiquidity. Short-bond illiquidity increases contemporaneously in response to its own shock, with the response decaying rapidly from month to month. The effect of illiquidity of other maturities on short-bond illiquidity is insignificant. Panels B and C present the impulse response functions for medium- and long-bond illiquidity, respectively. Similarly to short-bond illiquidity, a shock to inflation increases long-bond illiquidi ty (Panel C). However, inflation shocks have no significant impact on medium-bond illiquidity (Panel B). As for short-bond illiquidity, a shock to FED increases medium- and long-bond illiquidity. Thus, monetary policy tightening appears to have an effect across illiquidity of all maturities. TERM and DEF have no significant impact on illiquidity. While innovations in returns have no significant effect on medium-bond illiquidity, innovations to short- and medium-term bond returns decrease long-bond illiquidity. Volatility increases bond illiquidity across all maturities with a very short-lived effect for long-bond illiquidity. Across illiquidity series, while medium-bond illiquidity is only exposed to its own shock, long-bond illiquidity increases in response to its own positive shock as well as to the shocks in short- and medium-bond illiquidity. Shocks to illiquidity to short- and medium- end are transferred into the illiquidity of long end and but the reverse is not true. The r esults for on-the-run illiquidity can be summarized as follows. Inflation, TERM and DEF have no significant impact on on-the-run illiquidity. In contrast to off-the-run illiquidity, a shock to FED increases illiquidity of short-term bonds only. Bond returns have no immediate significant impact on illiquidity, while shock to volatility increases illiquidity across all maturities. Thus even though in the Granger-causality results, volatility Granger-causes only the on-the-run illiquidity, in the more complete impulse response analyses, we obtain the result that volatility forecasts illiquidity across all maturities for both on- and off-the-run bonds. Overall, we conclude that the dynamics of on-the-run illiquidity seem to be driven by a relatively narrow set of economic variables compared to off-the-run illiquidity. While inflation, FED, bond returns and volatility are significant determinants of off-the-run illiquidity, on-the-run illiquidity seems to be affected mainly by volatil ity. The results are consistent with the notion put forth in Section I that macroeconomic variables affect inventory costs and hence, illiquidity. Apparently, however, active trading in the on-the-run bonds shields market makers from increases in inventory costs due to inflation and tighter monetary policy. III.E Impulse Response Functions: Returns Figure 4 presents impulse response functions of bond returns in the VAR system with off-the-run bond illiquidity. Focusing on return forecastability from liquidity, we find that the illiquidity of off-the-run short-term bonds is useful in forecasting medium and long-term bond returns. This effect is positive and significant for the first lag for medium-bond return and for two lags for long-bond return. Thus, the contemporaneous effect of short-bond off-the-run illiquidity on medium and long-term bond returns is negative and significant (Table 4, Panel B) and the lag effect is positive and especially persistent for long-bond returns. As Amihud (2002) indicates, while higher expected market illiquidity makes investors demand higher expected return and causes ex ante returns to rise, prices should fall contemporaneously with an unexpected rise in illiquidity. However, the lag effect of liquidity on returns should be positive. Our analysis indicates that the effect of illiquidity on bond returns is more pronounced in the more illiquid longer-term bonds. From the standpoint of economic significance, we find that a one standard deviation shock to the illiquidity of the off-the run short-term bonds has an annualized impact of 80 basis points on returns of the medium term bonds, and 124 basis points on returns of the long-term bonds. These are economically significant magnitudes. The other impulse responses indicate that returns are more strongly affected by macro variables at the short-end of the term structure spectrum. Thus, active trading in short-term bonds may cause this market to be more responsive to mac ro innovations. In addition, returns are affected by volatility innovations for all maturities which is consistent with the traditional risk-return argument. In unreported results we find that on-the-run illiquidity has no effect on bond returns. Our findings therefore draw attention to the illiquidity of off-the-run short-term bonds: bond returns contain an liquidity premium emanating from off-the-run short-term issues. This can be explained as follows. Our findings demonstrate that illiquidity shocks are transferred from the short end to the long end of the term structure. Specifically, short-term off-the-run illiquidity absorbs market and macroeconomic shocks first and then transmits them into the illiquidity of long-term bonds. Thus, as proposed in Section I, an increase in short-term illiquidity, by portending an increase in illiquidity at other maturities, raises the required return on longer-term bonds. Overall, our results indicate that the liquidity premium in the Treasu ry bond market found by Amihud and Mendelson (1991) is largely driven by short-term off-the-run illiquidity. IV. Conclusion U.S. Treasury markets are critical for asset allocational purposes, and also provide indicators for benchmark riskless rates in the economy. Since bond liquidity influences the efficacy of asset allocation, and aids interest rate discovery, it is important to understand the dynamics of bond market trading costs. Using extensive time-series that span over thirty-five years, we analyze Treasury market illiquidity across maturities and seasonedness. Our aims are to explore whether illiquidities across these attributes are differentially affected by macroeconomic conditions, and to understand variations in the illiquidity premium across bonds. We find that illiquidity increases in recessions across all maturities. However, the increase is especially pronounced for short-term bonds. The difference between spreads of long- and short-term bonds also increases during recessions for both on-the-run and off-the-run issues. The evidence suggests that investors may shift into short-term bon ds during recessions and invest in both on-the-run and off-the-run bonds. Our results are consistent with the notion that the effect of macro variables on dealer costs are most relevant in the less liquid off-the-run sector. On-the-run illiquidity across all maturities is materially affected only by volatility. However, off-the-run illiquidity is driven by inflation, monetary policy surprises, bond returns and volatility. Overall, off-the-run illiquidity is affected by a larger set of economic variables. Our Granger causality results indicate that shocks are transferred from the illiquidity of the short end to the illiquidity of the long end of term structure. Specifically, short-term illiquidity Granger-causes illiquidity of other maturities while the reverse is not true. We also explore pricing implications of on-the-run and off-the-run illiquidity of different maturities. We find that off-the-run short-term illiquidity forecasts returns across all maturities, but that the r eturn forecasting ability of either on-the-run illiquidity, or illiquidity at other maturities, is limited. Similar to the effect of stock illiquidity on stock returns (Amihud, 2002), short-term off-the-run illiquidity has a negative contemporaneous impact on bond returns and a positive lag effect. The lag effect persists longer for more illiquid bonds. Our results suggest that short-term off-the-run illiquidity is the primary source of return forecastability (and thus, the liquidity premium) in the Treasury market.