5 Causes of the Death of a Tree

Trees have an extraordinary ability to withstand many damaging agents that are ever-present in their environment. Trees have evolved over millions of years to ward off many stressors that bite and burn and starve and rot their roots, trunk, limbs, and leaves. It is amazing how a tree compartmentalizes itself to seal off dead wood and disease, defoliates to reduce the effect of drought and bleeds to extract harmful insects. We know that all trees do eventually die. There are many hundreds of seedlings and saplings that succumb for every mature tree left in the forest. All ages of trees eventually die to the same agents and only the most adaptive (and often lucky) individuals make it to old age. There are 5 factors to which a tree eventually succumbs: death from its environment, death from harmful insects and diseases, death from a catastrophic event, death from age-related collapse (starvation) and of course, death from harvest. In most cases, death is the result of several, if not all of these conditions taking place simultaneously. Lets take a look at each of these. Adverse Environment Ground and site conditions on which a tree lives ultimately determines the environmental stressors placed on that tree. If a drought-sensitive tree lives on a dry site during drought conditions, it may indeed die from lack of water. But that same tree can also be more susceptible to every other life-threatening factor placed upon it. For example, a disease that appears to be killing the tree may in effect be only a secondary issue to the initial environmental problem. Examples of adverse environments to trees are poorly draining soils, salty soils, droughty soils, air and ground pollution, extreme sun heating or cold spots and many, many others. It is particularly important to understand a tree species genetic tolerance to environmental conditions when planting. Many trees adapt very well to poor sites, but you need to understand which species fits where. Harmful Insects and Disease Virulent diseases like Dutch elm disease and the chestnut blight have caused sudden death to entire forests in North America. However, the most common diseases are more subtle in their work, killing many more trees in total than virulent types and cost forest and yard tree owners billions of dollars in forest product and specimen tree value. These common diseases include three bad ones: Armillaria root rot, oak wilt, and anthracnose. These pathogens invade the tree through leaves, roots and bark wounds and damage a trees vascular system if not prevented or treated. In natural forests, prevention is the only economic option available and is a significant part of a foresters silvicultural management plan. Harmful insects are opportunistic and often invade trees under stress from environmental problems or disease. They not only can directly cause tree death but will spread harmful disease fungi from a host tree to surrounding trees. Insects can attack a trees cambial layer by boring for food and nesting cavities, or they can defoliate a tree to the point of death. Bad insects include pine beetles, the gypsy moth, and emerald ash borers. Catastrophic Events A catastrophic event is always possible in a vast forest as well as in an urban setting. All property, including trees, are subject to being damaged or destroyed. In many cases, trees are not killed but are damaged to the point where their vigor is lost, and insects and disease take advantage of a trees loss of resistance. Significant tree losses can occur during a forest fire or when exposed to tornado-strength winds. Trees take a terrible hit when heavy ice is deposited on species sensitive to limb weight which results in breakage. Floods that do not recede quickly can cause root oxygen levels to diminish to the point where tree damage can occur. Extraordinary drought makes quick work of moisture-loving tree species and can harm all trees when extended over a long period. Old Age For trees who beat the odds and live through maturity to old age, there is a slow dying process that may take centuries to complete (in long-lived species). The modular tree compartmentalizes around damage and infected areas and continues to grow. Still, growth starts slowing after a tree matures, the ability of the plant to support itself diminishes and incurs the loss of adequate foliage for hydration and food. New immature branches, called epicormic sprouts, try to assist in maintaining an old trees vigor but are weak and are insufficient to sustain life for very long. A mature tree slowly collapses under its weight and crumbles to become the nutrients and topsoil for future trees. Timber Harvests Well remind you that trees do die to the ax. Trees via their wood have supported humankind and civilization for millennia and continue to be a necessary part of the human condition. The practice of forestry through professional foresters work continually with much success to provide a sustained flow of available wood volume and at the same time, ensure a surplus of trees. Some consider deforestation a growing global crisis.

The Things They Carried By Tim O Brien - 900 Words

Often times, the role of infantry is whitewashed when being presented to a civilian. Whether it’s John Wayne storming the beaches of Normandy in The Longest Day or Soap MacTavish and John Price defeating an entire army in Call of Duty Modern Warfare, infantry are often painted more herculean than human. But there is an often overlooked technical side to war that is just as, if not more, important than the general ideas of inspired heroics and valorous combat. It is the hours of marching and the plethora of equipment. It’s the boredom before a battle and the grateful numbness after. Most importantly, it is the fear of death and the violent will to survive. In Tim O’Brien’s short Story, The Things They Carried, the author does an excellent side of illustrating this rarely discussed side of warfare. Instead of focusing on the exploits of individual soldiers, O’Brien draws our attention to what necessitates, creates and forms the solider, his environmen t. Because setting is used to illustrate this immense physical and emotional burden, The Things They Carried realistically portrays the challenges and duties of a solider. One way this is achieved is the emphasis placed on the physical objects the soldiers carry. Because the story takes place in Vietnam during the Vietnam War, why the characters carry what they carry becomes an important part of the story. Every item must serve a purpose. They carry rifles to kill. They carry helmets and rain ponchos for protection. They carryShow MoreRelatedThe Things They Carried By Tim O Brien892 Words   |  4 PagesThe Vietnam War was a long, exhausting, and traumatic experience for all of the soldiers and those who came with them. The Things They Carried, by Tim O Brien illustrates the different affects the war had on a variety of people: Jacqueline Navarra Rhoads, a former nurse during the Vietnam war, demonstrates these effects within her own memoir in the book, The Forgotten Veterans. Both sources exemplify many tribulations, while sharing a common thread of suffering from mental unpredictability. DesensitizationRead MoreThe Things They Carried By Tim O Bri en1377 Words   |  6 Pageslove to have it as good as we do. Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried discusses many veterans who experience the burden of shame and guilt daily due to their heroic actions taken during the Vietnam War. The book shows you how such a war can change a man before, during, and after it’s over.     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   As I reflect on the many conflicts America has been a part of, none can compare to the tragedies that occurred in The Vietnam war. As told in The Things They Carried (O’Brien), characters such as NormanRead MoreThe Things They Carried By Tim O Brien1457 Words   |  6 Pagesthe theme pertains to everyone regardless of their background. It conveys the same ideas to people from all across our society. Lastly, a classic is timeless, which means it has transcended the time in which it was written. In Tim O’Brien’s novel, The Things They Carried, he offers a new, intriguing way to view war or just life in general and also meets all of the crucial requirements mentioned above to qualify it as a book of literary canon. Though this book is technically a war novel, many peopleRead MoreThe Things They Carried By Tim O Brien1242 Words   |  5 Pagesâ€Å"Tim O’Brien is obsessed with telling a true war story. O Brien s fiction about the Vietnam experience suggest, lies not in realistic depictions or definitive accounts. As O’Brien argues, absolute occurrence is irrelevant because a true war story does not depend upon that kind of truth. Mary Ann’s induction into genuine experience is clearly destructive as well as empowering† (p.12) Tim O’s text, The Things they Carried, details his uses of word choice to portray his tone and bias. Tim O’BrienRead MoreThe Things They Carried By Tim O Brien1004 Words   |  5 Pages Tim O’Brien is a veteran from of the Vietnam War, and after coming home from his duty he decided to be a writer. His work â€Å"The Things They Carried† is about a group of soldiers that are fighting in the Vietnam War. The first pa rt of the story talks mostly about physical items that each soldier carries, and also mentions the weight of the items as well. Though, there is one exception to the list of physical things. Lieutenant Cross is a character of the story, and Tim O’ Brien quickly states theRead MoreThe Things They Carried By Tim O Brien1169 Words   |  5 Pagesbut are set in the past and borrows things from that time period. A story that fits this genre of literature is The Things They Carried. The story is about Tim O Brien, a Vietnam veteran from the Unite States, who tells stories about what had happened when he and his team were stationed in Vietnam. He also talks about what he felt about the war when he was drafted and what he tried to do to avoid going to fight in Vietnam. The Things They Carried by Tim O Brien was precise with its portrayal of settingRead MoreThe Things They Carried By Tim O Brien896 Words   |  4 PagesTrouble without a doubt is what First Lieutenant Jimmy Cross c arried around his shoulders because he was out in war, where mistakes happen. Lost and unknown of his surroundings he had to lead his men into safety, while destroying anything they found. First Lieutenant Jimmy Cross only holds onto one thing for hope and that is Martha, the woman who he hopes is a virgin to come back to. Tim O’ Brien introduces symbolism by adding a character that has a meaning of purity and a pebble, which symbolizesRead MoreThe Things They Carried By Tim O Brien Essay832 Words   |  4 PagesSummary: â€Å"By and large they carried these things inside, maintaining the masks of composure† (21). In Tim O’brien’s The Things They Carried, the American soldiers of the Vietnam War carry much more than the weight of their equipment, much more than souvenirs or good-luck charms or letters from home. They carried within themselves the intransitive burdens—of fear, of cowardice, of love, of loneliness, of anger, of confusion. Most of all, they carry the truth of what happened to them in the war—aRead MoreThe Things They Carried By Tim O Brien1369 Words   |  6 PagesMany authors use storytelling as a vehicle to convey the immortality of past selves and those who have passed to not only in their piece of literature but in their life as an author. In Tim O’Brien’s work of fiction The Things They Carried, through his final chapter â€Å"The Lives of the Dead,† O Brien conveys that writing is a matter of survival since, the powers of s torytelling can ensure the immortality of all those who were significant in his life. Through their immortality, O’Brien has the abilityRead MoreThe Things They Carried By Tim O Brien1407 Words   |  6 Pages       Our introduction stated that in â€Å"The Things They Carried,† author Tim O’Brien tells us not directly of the soldiers of Vietnam, or the situations they find themselves in, but about the things they carry on their shoulders and in their pockets. These â€Å"things† identify the characters and bring them to life.   I find that to be true as the author unfolds the stories about war and the uncommon things one carries in to war both inadvertently and on purpose.  Ã‚  Ã‚  As it was noted: Stories about war –

Descriptive and Inferential Statistics2 Free Essays

Descriptive and Inferential Statistics The world of science would find itself lost without research. Research alone however, oftentimes will not answer the questions or solve the problems that scientists set out to solve. Statistics is where research becomes applied and scientists can make educated guesses about future outcomes. We will write a custom essay sample on Descriptive and Inferential Statistics2 or any similar topic only for you Order Now â€Å"Formally, statistics is a branch of mathematics that focuses on organization, analysis, and interpretation of a group of numbers† (Aron, Aron, and Coups, 2006). There are two main branches of statistics that we will explore; descriptive and inferential statistics. The main relationship between descriptive and inferential statistics is that they all include numbers from either actual given information or inferred assumptions that try to draw a conclusion or complete given data. Descriptive Statistics Descriptive statistics is a method of research used by psychologists. Descriptive statistics make statistics understandable and describes a group of numbers for a research study (Aron, Aron and Coups,2006). Descriptive statistics are used in summarizing large sets of quantitative or numerical information. If there is a large amount of information for measurement, the best way to show the information is by a graph (Boerre, 2005). Descriptive statistics provide a simple summary about the sample and the measurements. Descriptive statistics describes the data; it allows the researcher to understand a large amount of numbers or data in a simple way (Social Research, 2009). Central tendency refers to the idea that one number can summarize the entire set of measurement. This is a number that is in some way central to the set (Boerre, 2005). The mode is the measurement that has been found to be the most frequent. Although the mode, or greatest frequency number, is not used very often, it is useful when differences are rare or non-numerical (Boerre, 2005). The median is the number which is half of the measurement, or midpointof the numbers. The median is a good measurement of the centrality of the numbers and is a better measurement in centrality that the mean when the data is skewed (Boerre, 2005). The mean is the average. The mean is the sum of all the measurements, divided by the numbers of the measured. Mean is often used in central tendency (Boerre, 2005). Descriptive statistics may be used in measuring a person’s IQ. When intelligence testing is done, some of these tests are then shown in descriptive statistics. Descriptive statistics might also be used in showing the GPA or grade point average of a class. Descriptive statistics makes information clear, concise, and easy to read (Social Research, 2009). An example of descriptive statistics would be tables and graphs which are used a lot in medical research studies. Descriptive statistics allow a researcher to describe or summarize their data. For example, descriptive statistics for a study using human subjects might include the sample size, mean age of participants, percentage of males and females, range of scores on a study measure, descriptive statistics are often briefly presented at the beginning of the Results†, according to, (Statistically Significant Consulting, LLC, 2003-2010). Inferential Statistics Conclusio n Statistics gives form to research in that it organizes, analyzes, and interprets the data collected. Descriptive statistics often describe groups or populations researched, whereas inferential statistics help its users draw conclusions about future events. Both of these statistical methods play valuable roles in science. References Aron, A. , Aron, E. , Coups, E. (2006). Statistics for Psychology (4th ed. ). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall. Statistically Significant Consulting, LLC, (2003-2010). Statistics Overview. Retrieved from http://www. statisticallysignificantconsulting. com/statistics101. htm How to cite Descriptive and Inferential Statistics2, Essays

To what extent do the opportunities presented by China outweigh the threats free essay sample

Justify your answer with reference to your own research and the item above. China is considered to be a leading emerging market in the world of business. Because of this, China can offer a sum of opportunities, such as a promising youthful demographic and a bourgeoning middle class, who have an increasing disposable income. However, with this range of opportunities come potential threats also. These may include the problem of facing increased competition from large firms entering China or correctly understanding the Chinese culture in order to compete with local companies. Lego for instance has made extensive use of their USP which is so important to the company that their basic â€Å"plastic brick† product has remained unchanged with no need to adapt it to different markets, meaning other firms find it hard to compete against such a competitor. Following this, Lego were able to achieve an impressive 35% growth in Asia within six months in 2013, however this is largely down to the huge number of children within Asia at the present moment in time, meaning they were taking advantage of Chinas beneficial demographics, but this may well change in the future which may result in Lego seeing a decline in demand. We will write a custom essay sample on To what extent do the opportunities presented by China outweigh the threats? or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page To an extent the opportunities presented by China do outweigh the threats. For example, China can offer a positive range of demographics. This range of demographics can range from a prospective workforce for the future or the chance to target a certain criteria of consumers. In the case of Lego, they targeted Asia’s huge number of children; this benefited them so far as they believe this large target market contributed to their 35% growth in Asia. Another company who has taken advantage of Chinas demographics is the car manufacturer, Jaguar. Chinas bourgeoning middle class attracted Jaguar as there was more demand from these consumers for luxury cars. Because of this, Jaguar’s market sales are expected to double in six years from 1. 1 million to an impressive 3 million units. China’s demographics can prove to be a huge opportunity for companies. By identifying a potential target market within the population a business can attain a first move advantage and pursue these consumers. Moreover, by being the first to target these consumers, you have a greater chance of developing a product which is relatively price inelastic, meaning you could increase the price of the product and it would have little effect on the demand for it. Moreover, another significant opportunity proposed by China is that Chinese consumers are very enthusiastic about global products. This means that they like to buy overseas when travelling or via the internet when they can. However this also benefits companies moving in China, for example Lego being the world’s 2nd biggest toy manufacture means they appeal to Chinese consumers as they essentially deliver a product which is recognised worldwide. This could attribute to Lego’s success in the Asian market. Moreover, one of the most searched for luxury brands in China is Audi. This company, which provides consumers with luxury cars, sold 1. 58 million vehicles in 2013 in China and their sales rose 21% whilst they declined by 0. 9% in Europe. This evidence suggests that China holds a better future for global brands such as Audi and Lego. This increased interest in global products means larger firms are finding it easier to access consumers in China, meaning they can enter China and almost immediately benefit from increased sales and demand for their products. However, to some extent opportunities presented by China don’t necessarily outweigh the threats. As China is seen universally as an emerging market, it means that there is a significant increase in the amount of companies entering markets within China as they all see the potential it holds. This means that competition in some markets can be very competitive. Lego for instance, have found that kids are becoming a harder market to deal with as toys have to change all the time to keep up with changing trends coming from new firms entering RD and releasing new products. One company that has found competing against big competitors hard in China is Tesco. Since entering China Tesco has had to compete against rivals such as sun Art Retail Group and Wal-Mart, both hold a lot of power in China. Ever since arriving in China in 2008 they have encountered negative growth and found that China is a highly competitive and fragmented market for retail operations. Due to the heavy initial cost of $3. 1 billion and only receiving $10 billion over a 5 year period, the company had no choice but to sell a majority of its Chinese stores to a local retailer – CRE. This is because the local retailer holds a greater competitive advantage then Tesco did alone. Local companies can pose a huge threat to companies entering the Chinese market, as they already possess a large market share and have had the chance to build on consumer loyalty. Moreover, they are likely to identify consumer trends more easily than a foreign company. Furthermore, large global companies, such as Wal-Mart find it a lot easier to compete in such a market as they have sufficient funds to spend excessive amounts in order to succeed. Following this, another threat posed by China are the regulations that have to be overcome to sell in such a market. China’s government introduces regulations which can make it hard for global firms to operate within China itself. These regulations can range from internet restrictions to having to test new beauty products on animals. This proved a hard barrier to pass for cosmetic manufacturer L’Oreal in 2013. The firm is barred by European Union rules from testing on animals within the EU, whilst China’s government requires such trials for every new beauty product which of course means L’Oreal cannot pursue their expansion in China. Additionally, internet-based companies such as Amazon found it hard to experience much growth in China due to internet restrictions which meant consumers in the most case couldn’t access their website. These regulations mean that firms may have to entirely re-negotiate their market strategy when entering China, or in some cases may physically stop particular companies from entering China due to restrictions. In conclusion the opportunities presented by China do outweigh the threats to some extent. The increasingly large population within China means there is likely to be a huge target market for a particular product(s) which firms can take advantage of and if done so efficiently they could encounter a significant increase in demand and growth. Following this, Chinese consumers are known to be enthusiastic about global products, meaning consumers aren’t likely to just shop with local companies, instead they’ll be interested in diverting to foreign firms, and meaning companies entering China may not have to invest so much cash into their marketing efforts.