Which reflections of Islam are in the tale of Maruf the Cobbler Essay

Which reflections of Islam are in the tale of Maruf the Cobbler - Essay Example Muslim believes that Allah is the provider of everything, and they should ask him the things they want. In respect to this belief Maaruf had to pray the dawn prayer to ask Allah to save him from the wrath of his wife by providing a piece of cake before evening. Muslims have their special court known as the kadhi court in which they should settle their matters. Maafur was falsely accused by his wife before the Kadhi court. The two were Muslim, and they could not take their problem before the court of law and, as a result, the wife took the matter before the Kadhi who settled the issue and restored peace between the two (Scheherazade 12). One aspect of Islam is giving a charity to the poor and helping the oppressed. In the tale, the aspect of charity is seen where Maaruf could not get the money to buy the cake but went to the shop, and the cake seller agreed to give him on credit. The cake seller agreed to help Maaruf and give him the cake on credit until when Allah will provide him with money. Upon reaching home, the wife did not accept the cake because it was not covered with bees honey, and this brought up trouble. The neighbours played a role of brining back peace in the home since Muslims should help the oppressed. When Maaruf went away from Cairo after being reported by his wife, he came across a man who took him and gave him everything. When the Kazi was settling the dispute, he made sure he maintained peace between the wife and husband by giving Maaruf the cake to give it to the wife (Scheherazade 4). Muslims are supposed to pray Allah five times a day and in the tale Maaruf is praying most of the time. The Islam faith requires believers to pray in the mosque and Maaruf went to the mosque to pray meaning that he was a true Muslim (Scheherazade 7). Maaruf was a prayerful man and this made Allah to make him Sultan. When the wife of Maaruf (princes

How Transgenics has helped to shed light on a disease model Diabetes Essay

How Transgenics has helped to shed light on a disease model Diabetes - Essay Example The technique helps in the betterment of human and animal genes, while helping r educe diseased conditions and accentuating positive features. It improves nutritional value in plants and advances the yield of crops. It also helps in the treatment of genetic disorders and in the study of DNA fingerprinting, which can help the forensic department in punishing or acquitting an individual. The Recombinant DNA technique was engineered by Stanley Norman Cohen and Herbert Boyer in 1973. They published their findings in a 1974 paper entitled "Construction of Biologically Functional Bacterial Plasmids in vitro", which described a technique to isolate and amplify genes or DNA segments and insert them into another cell with precision, creating a transgenic bacterium. [www.wikipedia.com] This technology has helped in the creation of genetically healthy animals, who are devoid of any flaw characteristics. The genetic errors and flaws have been replaced and altered using this technology of artificial DNA and has paved way for flawless genes in animals. These transgenic animals have indeed become a landmark in biological studies. They are useful in carrying forward the species, without any threat of becoming extinct.

Indian Child Workers And Poverty Sociology Essay

Indian Child Workers And Poverty Sociology Essay As I visit my country- Pakistan, I see children on the streets begging, some selling flowers and newspapers to the people on the road. When I pass a car mechanic shop, I see boys as young as 5 years old covered in car grease fixing engines. While passing a street restaurant, I see young boys taking orders from customers. At the rubbish disposal site, I see young boys scavenging through waste to find food sometimes, or scrap metal. As I visit my relatives back home, I see Elizabeth, a twelve year old working as a domestic servant in the house, mopping floors and cleaning bathrooms. Child workers are everywhere in Pakistan, the critics of this claim need to open their eyes and heart to feel the troubles of their less privileged fellow countrymen. The factors contributing to child labor are interconnected; however it is mainly due to poverty and lack of education, that children are coerced into the labor force. In the Human Development Report, conducted under the United Nations Development Program, the human development index was measured to compare Pakistan to other countries in the world. According to the Human Development report (2009), The HDI provides a composite measure of three dimensions of human development: living a long and healthy life (measured by life expectancy), being educated (measured by adult literacy and gross enrolment in education) and having a decent standard of living (measured by purchasing power parity, PPP, income). The index is not in any sense a comprehensive measure of human development. It does not, for example, include important indicators such as gender or income inequality nor more difficult to measure concepts like respect for human rights and political freedoms. What it does provide is a broadened prism for viewing human progress and the complex relationship between income and well-being. In 2007, among the 182 countries examined, Pakistan was the 141th r egards to the HDI value. This clearly indicates the grave economic situation of Pakistan. According to the CIA World Fact book (2010), Pakistan has a GDP per capita of $2,600 and it is ranked 171 compared to other countries. With poverty rates as high as 24% and unemployment rate 15.2%, marked as 153 compared to the world, it is obvious that Pakistan is going through an economic downturn. According to Unicef (2009), Food and economic crises have increased food insecurity. Prices of essential food items rose over 35 per cent in 2007-08, compared to an 18 per cent increase in labour wages, the ongoing struggle to make ends meet is breaking the back of the poor. With a population of 175 million people, Pakistan is ranked 6th around the world in terms of population. 36% of the population of Pakistan lives in cities, the rest of the 64% lives in the rural parts of the country. Chaudhry, Malik and Hassan (2009) have examined that Punjab, one of the four provinces of Pakistan constitutes 5 6% of the countrys population and a 36% of Punjabs population is accounted being poor. Poverty is one of the main contributing factors of child labor in Pakistan, with almost a quarter of the nations population struggling to make ends meet, the children of poverty stricken families are left to no resort, but to mend their lives by helping their families in earning a living. ADB (2010) considers poverty the main source of child labor in Pakistan. According to Unicef (2009), it is estimated that Pakistan has about 3.3 million children aged under 14, working as child laborers. However, according to the United States Bureau of International Labor affairs (2010), it is stated that the rough estimate of child laborers in Pakistan could be from 2 million to a staggering 19 million. This could be due to the inability to address the issue of child labor and not performing surveys to determine up to date statistics. Ahmed (July 13, 2008) cites this issue by commenting that the latest survey o n child laborers was conducted 14 years ago and the population has increased by 30 million since then. Child laborers have their childhood stolen away from them; forced to work for long hours, these children dont have time to play or study as other privileged children of Pakistan. The United States Bureau of International Labor affairs (2010) cites the state of child laborers working in carpet industries which thrive on the nimble hands of these children, The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan states that work units in rural areas have more child labor than urban areas. In these village units, the children are mostly girls, some only six or seven years old; boys are barely eight. Working conditions are poor, lighting and ventilation inadequate, hygienic conditions substandard, and the work area hot and humid. Workers complain of coughs and sickness. The workers usually work 10-hour days, with no holidays and are paid on a piece-rate basis. Child workers pay is as low as 10 rupees ( approximately 37 cents) per day; teenagers, however, earned 20-30 rupees (74 cents to $1.13) per day, and can even get 50 to 75 rupees ($1.87 to $2.81) per day for superior quality carpets. With a meager amount of wages and the vulnerability of getting sick, these child laborers plights fall on deaf ears. Frequently abused and punished by their employers over small mistakes or delays in handling the work, these poor childrens miseries are never ending; Child weavers suffer work-related injuries and illnesses, such as injuries due to sharp instruments, respiratory tract infections, and body aches. They also remain uneducated, 42 percent never having attended school and 58 percent having dropped out (ILAB, 2010). One of the old and the harshest realities of bonded child labor is that the child laborer is indebted to its master till the bondage debt is repaid. Although bonded child labor is prohibited by the Pakistani law, but people find loopholes to find their way out. According to I LAB (2010), Bonded labor has long been a feature in brick kilns, carpet industries, agriculture, fisheries, stone/brick crushing, shoe-making, power looms, and refuse sorting. The Bonded Labor Liberation Front estimates that eight million children are bonded in Pakistan. Half a million are allegedly bonded in the carpet industry alone. Silvers (1996) writes that the hypocritical masters of the bonded child laborers use exploitive methods to employ these children, it is compliance, long productivity hours and inexpensiveness that make theses children a lucrative deal. A documentary by SPARC, a NGO working to raise the plight of child laborers shows Hyderabad, a city famous for its glass bangles. However, little is known that these bangles are made in factories that employ children. These child laborers work up to 16 hours a day for less than a dollar, in front of the scorching heat of the furnaces. Consequently, they develop diseases such as asthma, Bronchitis and TB. In another scen e, Javaid- a scavenger ploughs through rubbish to pick anything he finds valuable enough to sell and earn a living off; he says his parents find it difficult to support the big family, thats why he feels an obligation to help out with the earnings (SPARC, 2008). Silvers (1996), writes that children in rural parts of Pakistan are indoctrinated to work to help the family. The mindset of bondage is embedded in to the young minds at a very early age, thus these children dont find it wrong, but rather look up to it, unaware of what lies ahead of them. A twelve year old girl named Irfana worked under bondage before being set free; she reported that her master would treat them like livestock. Girls were often raped and the boys were severely beaten. Bonded labor is usually owned by feudal land owners and in Pakistan; most of these feudal landowners are working in the government or have a very strong backing. Bokhari (July 24, 1996) states, If bonded labor has a long history, it also has st rong political backing in Pakistan. Many critics claim that almost two-thirds of the members of the federal parliament in Islamabad and the four provincial legislatures are landowners who would resist any plans that are seen as hostile toward their fellow landowners. Most of the members of parliament in the Sindh [provincial] assembly belong to the Zamindar [landowners] class and it is in their interest not to raise their voices against the bonded labor, says Ali Hasan, a journalist à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. Poverty is one of the factors that root from illiteracy. Unicef (2009) states that HYPERLINK javascript:void(0);PakistanHYPERLINK javascript:void(0);HYPERLINK javascript:void(0);s per capita expenditure on health is only US$18, of which US$4 is public expenditure, compared to the recommended US$45. Less than 2.5 per cent of GDP is spent on education, compared to HYPERLINK javascript:void(0);the recommended 2.8 to 3.6 per cent. According to the Unicef , from the year 1998 to 2007, only 1% of the central government expenditure was allocated to health, 2% to education and 16% to defense (2009). Poor access to quality education in the weak primary education system contributes to child labor. Primary education has been made compulsory in Provinces like Punjab, Sindh and NWFP, little is done to enforce the law. Either there are not proper facilities to accommodate children or lack of teachers in some areas. The most affected by this dilemma are the inhabitants of the rural parts of the cou ntry; primary school gross enrollment is 71%, with a large dropout rate (Unicef, 2009). According to Levi (1971), à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦poverty has frequently been cited as a cause of primary school dropouts both because poor families can- not afford school fees or other expenses and because it is necessary for children to work to help support the family. The extent of the traditional agricultural sector may better reflect the need for child labor than does GNP per capita. Countries which have a greater segment of their population in the subsistence sector may have both lower incomes and a greater need for child labor. This proves the mindset of the parents who take their children out of schools or who dont send them to school at all. The main reason behind it being, that they cannot afford to run large family expenses on their own. High birth rate is considered an asset for the families, who look forward for the child to grow up and help out with family expenditures. In a survey conducted on Punjab, a total 3,708 questionnaires were filled in 309 households. Literacy of the household, irrelevant of the degree of literacy has a negative effect on child labor in the family (Siddiqi, 2009). In another analysis from the Pakistan Integrated Household Survey, conducted under the patronage of the World Bank in 1991, as a part of Living Standards Measurement Survey; 4,800 households were covered in 300 communities, divided between rural and urban localities. It was found that the cost of primary schooling is Rs 126 a year for a child who doesnt work and Rs 165 for a child who works. Lower school attendance was accounted for high transportation costs. In comparison to working and non-working children, the factors contributing to child labor were found to be lack of education among adults, less landownership and low per capita expenditure. It was also found that greater the distance of a community from other populated areas, the higher the chances of child labor. Among the sa mples, 61% had attended schools. From the total number of boys sampled, 81% has attended school at some stage and out of the girls proportion sampled, on 39% had ever attended school. In the final analysis, the primary schooling cost was directly proportional to the probability of the child working and indirectly proportional to school attendance. Education and child labor are interconnected, The International Labor Organization considers improvement in access to schools and school quality to be the most effective way of reducing child labor in less developed countries (Hazarika and Bedi, 2003) The Employment of Children Act of 1991 prohibits the use of child labor in hazardous works and environments. The Bonded Labor Act of 1992 abolished bondage labor and any bonded labor before the law was ordered to be set free. According to ILAB (2010), In Pakistan, a child is defined as a person younger than fifteen. The legal minimum age for employment is 14 for shops and commerce, industry, and work at sea, and 15 for mines and on railways. Though the laws are present, the enforcement has not been adequate enough to tackle the problem. Enforcement of child labor laws in Pakistan is hampered by the lack of manpower and expertise in the Department of Labor and a general acceptance of child labor, according to Professor Omar Noman (Ibid). The plights of the child workers usually go unheard, Tariq, a Bondage Labor Liberation Front worker inspected a carpet factory where bonded child laborers as young as eight and nine year olds work. The findings were then reported to the Police sergean t in charge, Tariq told him about the conditions in the workshop, about the children. The sergeant was perplexed. Is this a crime? he asked. No one has ever complained before. What do you want us to do about it? Tariq suggested sending officers to investigate, along with a medical-services crew for the children. The sergeant left to consult his superior. Two minutes later he returned with the superintendent, a gracious, mustachioed man of fifty. We are not unsympathetic to your complaint, the superintendent informed Tariq. But the place you describe is registered as a home enterprise. It is run by a small landowner, and the workers are his immediate family. Family businesses are exempt from the labor laws. This enterprise is not illegal. The superintendent opened a binder and showed Tariq the workshops registration certificate. Tariq attempted to correct him, but the superintendent said, What you say may or may not be true. Unfortunately, our jurisdiction does not include child labo r. I have no authority to investigate a private workplace. I have no evidence that the children are working there against their will or that their lives are in jeopardy. The mechanism for doing what you ask simply does not exist here. (Silvers, 1996) Police, with bureaucrats are involved in corruption and turn a blind eye on the child labor issue in Pakistan. Although the laws are present against it as the government lauds, but very little action is taken to enforce it. The lack of acknowledgment from the government and people is the result of the situation regarding child labor in the country. Some economists argue that the third world nations benefit from sweatshop jobs, by offering worlds poor release from malnourishment and destitution. Low wage factories that employ children to make clothes and shoes for foreign market are a first step towards prosperity in developing countries. However, these sweatshop workers are paid low wages for long working hours. They dont have any labor rights or unions to discuss their rights. Often child workers are abused so to force them to work for long hours. Prosperity is not measured by the low earnings from these sweat shops, it is by educating the child. Although, the child laborer brings little money back home, however, the child is deprived off its right of education and the right of living a normal childhood. It is the responsibility of the government to ensure that all children get basic education and their human rights should not be violated. Bringing prosperity to a developing country is by uprooting corruption, which lets child laborers take this step to trade their childhood and innocence with the burdensome labor for petty wages. Due to a combination of factors, such as ignorance from the parents of not educating their children, selling them as bonded labor, poverty, corruption of the government and the employers. Child labor is detrimental to the society of Pakistan. It robs the child off its right of education and hence getting higher paying jobs. Child labor is a temporary solution to poverty and not the ultimate solution.

Comparing Female Characters in Euripides Medea and Sophocles Oedipus

Comparing Female Characters in Euripides' Medea and Sophocles' Oedipus the King and Antigone      Ã‚  Ã‚   In the times of the ancient Greeks, women had an unpretentious role. They were expected to do take on the accepted role of a woman.   In most cases, a woman's role is restricted to bearing young, raising children, and housework. In Sophocles' Oedipus   the King, Antigone, and Medea, the dominant female characters impacted upon men with authority and political power.   It is an inescapable fate that one of these characters will fall, and that the Gods have control over everyone's fate.   Each dominant female character portrays her willpower and commitment to their beliefs.   This is what leads to the inevitable tragedy.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In Oedipus the King, Jocasta, is Oedipus' wife and the sister of Creon. She became a part of doomed Theban dynasty when she married Laius, the King of Thebes.   As a result, the marriage had brought together two branches of the family of Cadmus and seemed to guarantee political strength.   She became disappointed because she was unable to produce an heir to the throne.   Seeking a solution, Lauis went to the oracle at Delphi and asked how the proble might be overcome.   Instead, the oracle proclaimed that the son born to Jocasta would be his murderer.   Upon hearing the prophecy, Lauis rejected all women.   This infuriated Jocasta and she had gotten Lauis drunk, and slept with him.   This proves that Jocasta refuses to be outdone, even by her husband.   When Jocasta had given birth to a baby boy (Oedipus), Lauis had it sent away by a messenger to die of exposure high in the mountains.   A shepherd discovered the boy ... ...crowd of subservient women. Works Cited and Consulted Euripides.   "Medea."   The Norton Anthology of World Masterpieces.   Ed. Sarah Lawall.   New York and London:   W. W. Norton & Company, 1999.   McDermott, E A (1989) Euripides' Medea: The Incarnation of Disorder. Pennsylvania State University:USA Woodard,   Thomas.   Sophocles: A Collection of Critical Essays, Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1966. Sophocles. Antigone. Exploring Literature: Writing and thinking About Fiction, Poetry, Drama, and the Essay. Ed. Joseph Terry. New York: Addison-Wesley Educational Publishers Inc, 2001. Sophocles.   "Oedipus Rex."   An Introduction to Literature, 11th ed.Eds. Sylvan Barnet, et al.   New York: Longman, 1997. Watling, E. F.. Introduction. In Sophocles: The Theban Plays, translated by E. F. Watling. New York: Penguin Books, 1974.

Burger King Expansion

1. By mid-2009, Burger King was not in any of the following five countries: France, India, Nigeria, Pakistan, and South Africa. Compare these countries as possible future locations for Burger King.These countries all have large populations but are not in close proximity to the BK headquarters in Miami. How well do these five countries identify with the Burger King brand? It is hard entering foreign markets where consumers are loyal to previously established brands. Is there even enough beef to go around? Burger King will have their work set out for them to be successful in these markets and many not have franchising opportunities to rely on.France: the concern with France is how much of the population actually consumes beef.India: Burger King may have recently ruined their chances for sending their business to India. There are no beef in the McDonalds located in India. Hindu does not eat beef and that is approximately 80% of the population. Burger King thought it was a good idea to p lace an ad of Lakshmi, the Indian goddess of wealth, about to eat one of the beef burgers, which are forbidden under Hindu religion. Why? Other than that bad business move Burger King is faced with re-inventing their menu.Nigeria- Restaurants like Tantilizers has had plenty of success in Nigeria and service similar food products to Burger King. Well, at least they sell hamburgers. Yet, it all depends on how well Burger King can re-invent meat pies and other popular Nigerian foods. I think Nigeria will be a much better location than that of France and India and it has less competition.Pakistan- McDonalds seems to found success in Pakistan and serves many beef products, chicken, and fish. Burger King can have similar success from a product/menu standpoint. However, will it be enough to compete with an already established fast food base who serves similar products and have a loyal consumer base. However, the market is big enough for an additional player because of the population.South Africa- South Africa willIf I was on the Burger King Management team then I would definitely try to enter into Nigeria, Pakistan, and South Africa. I do not think that France is the type of market that Burger King will do exceptional well but maybe average. India, I would not even look any further into trying to bring the BK brand.2. When entering another country, discuss the advantages and disadvantages that an international restaurant company, specifically Burger King, would have in comparison with a local company in that market.The advantages of Burger King entering into new markets are: The disadvantages of Burger King entering new markets are:3. About two-thirds of Burger King’s restaurants and revenues are in its Americas region (United States and Canada) and one-third elsewhere. Should this relationship change? If so, why and how?The relationship should not change. America is only 5 percent of the world population but consumes 25% of beef. However, Burger King could sw itch up their menu but I do not think that will bring success. The fish and chicken products do not produce enough variety in international markets in my opinion.4. The case mentions that Burger King prefers to enter countries with large numbers of youth and shopping centers. Why do you think these conditions would be advantageous?5. How has Burger King’s headquarters location influenced its international expansion? Has this location strengthened or weekend its global competitive position?The location has weakened Burger King international expansion. Almost three fourths of all Burger restaurants are either in the United States or Latin  America. Latin America because of its convenience makes up 25 percent of global operations. However, because of the small populated countries only 1/8 of the revenue comes from the same 25 percent of the international restaurants. The wealthy European countries are not6. Evaluate Burger King’s strategy of using the Brazilian experien ce to guide its entries into Russia.http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/india/5786561/Burger-King-apology-to-Hindus-for-advert.htmlhttp://www.ran.org/fileadmin/materials/education/factsheets/fs_beef.pdf

Mobile Learning

Mobile Learning Mobile learning can be defined as any sort of learning which employs wireless handheld technology. The recent development in mobile technology allows students to access information and learning materials from anywhere and at any time. With some great benefits, mobile learning is becoming more important in the current educational system. However, there are some limitations which cannot be omitted. One major advantage of mobile learning is its high flexibility. This mainly stems from the advances of size and weight of mobile devices.Compared to books and personal computers, mobile devices are easier to hold and have higher portability [1]. According to Kukulska-Hulme and Traxler [1], learners are able to use mobile devices in dissimilar learning settings, ranging from informal situations to more formal situations. In other words, students can use their phones during spare moments. Boyes [4] believes that this property can allow them to make good use of ‘dead timeà ¢â‚¬â„¢ for studying. In addition, the touch screen display, as the main interface by which students control the mobile devices, might improve their efficiency of study.However, this could as well be a shortage of mobile learning, which will be mentioned afterwards. Last but not least, the mobile devices can be useful tools for assisting disabilities in studying. Although mobile technology is developing rapidly, there is no specialized device which is designed for learning. Ally [3] indicates that mobile devices are mainly designed for occupational purposes but not educational and training purposes at present. Consequently, these tools may not satisfy all the educational needs.For instance, the small screens of the devices, with poor readability, are inconvenient for students to read articles. In the meanwhile, long term usage can possibly cause serious health problem, such as short sight and blood-brain barrier. According to Boyes [4], battery consumption and storage capacity are a lso inevitable limitations of mobile devices. Moreover, Ally [3] thinks that connectivity might be another considerable hindrance to mobile learning. With limited bandwidth and wireless capabilities, learners can hardly access learning materials on mobile devices.The good capability is another compelling advantage of mobile learning. Nowadays, mobile devices are compatible with audios, images and even videos. Ally [3] maintains that learning materials in multimedia format are more stimulating for learners. To put it differently, these elements probably improve the originality of students. Besides, including multimedia components prevents the learning materials to be too dull. This can increase the motivation of students. Additionally, students can easily find numerous supportive applications using their devices.For example, students can find and learn some difficult words with the help of dictionary applications. Furthermore, online search engines are excellent assistants for inform ation collection. All the above mentioned tools can improve learning efficiency. Even though mobile learning has tremendous benefits due to its high flexibility and multimedia compatibility, it poses an underlying problem at the same time – lack of communication. In real life lectures, students are doing face to face interaction with the lecturers.They may raise questions or give feedbacks instantly while they do not have the same opportunity in virtual lessons. O’Driscoll [5] suggests that this may cause a suppression of creative thinking and developed ideas. Moreover, as noted by Kukulska-Hulme and Pettit [2], it can be easy for students to get distracted. Furthermore, as one-way communication does not promote mutual understanding between people, misunderstanding and conflicts may easily occur. This deficiency can lead to poor team work. Also, mobile learning cannot help improve specific skills, especially presentation skills.This is because students must practice th is skill in front of audience in real life. In conclusion, the high flexibility and excellent capability are two advantages of mobile learning. Some aspect of learning can be improved through implementing this innovative learning method. Nevertheless, some substantial limitations show that it is definitely impossible for mobile learning to replace the traditional learning. Instead of a replacement, mobile learning should be considered an integral to the current educational system. In my opinion, mobile learning is important presently.However, there is room for improvement. Battery consumption and health problem might be ameliorated by the future technologies. Mobile devices should adapt to the needs of learners, in order to be an ideal tool for education. Apart from that, infrastructures for high bandwidth and wireless capabilities have to be built to enhance connectivity for better access. References 1. A. Kukulska-Hulme and J. Traxler, Mobile Learning: A handbook for educators and trainers. New York, NY: Taylor & Francis Inc, 2005. 2. A. Kukulska-Hulme and J.Pettit, â€Å"Practitioners as Innovators: Emergent Practice in Personal Mobile,† in Mobile Learning: Transforming the Delivery of Education and Training. Canada: AU Press, Athabasca University, 2009, ch. 7, pp. 135-156. 3. M. Ally, Mobile Learning: Transforming the Delivery of Education and Training. Canada: AU Press, Athabasca University, 2009. 4. M. Boyes. (2011, Dec 17). 24 benefits of mobile learning. [Online] Available: http://insights. elearningnetwork. org/? p=507 5. N. O’Driscoll. The Disadvantages of One-Way Communication. [Online] Available: http://www. ehow. com/info_8307652_disadvantages-oneway-communication. html Mobile Learning Mobile Learning Mobile learning can be defined as any sort of learning which employs wireless handheld technology. The recent development in mobile technology allows students to access information and learning materials from anywhere and at any time. With some great benefits, mobile learning is becoming more important in the current educational system. However, there are some limitations which cannot be omitted. One major advantage of mobile learning is its high flexibility. This mainly stems from the advances of size and weight of mobile devices.Compared to books and personal computers, mobile devices are easier to hold and have higher portability [1]. According to Kukulska-Hulme and Traxler [1], learners are able to use mobile devices in dissimilar learning settings, ranging from informal situations to more formal situations. In other words, students can use their phones during spare moments. Boyes [4] believes that this property can allow them to make good use of ‘dead timeà ¢â‚¬â„¢ for studying. In addition, the touch screen display, as the main interface by which students control the mobile devices, might improve their efficiency of study.However, this could as well be a shortage of mobile learning, which will be mentioned afterwards. Last but not least, the mobile devices can be useful tools for assisting disabilities in studying. Although mobile technology is developing rapidly, there is no specialized device which is designed for learning. Ally [3] indicates that mobile devices are mainly designed for occupational purposes but not educational and training purposes at present. Consequently, these tools may not satisfy all the educational needs.For instance, the small screens of the devices, with poor readability, are inconvenient for students to read articles. In the meanwhile, long term usage can possibly cause serious health problem, such as short sight and blood-brain barrier. According to Boyes [4], battery consumption and storage capacity are a lso inevitable limitations of mobile devices. Moreover, Ally [3] thinks that connectivity might be another considerable hindrance to mobile learning. With limited bandwidth and wireless capabilities, learners can hardly access learning materials on mobile devices.The good capability is another compelling advantage of mobile learning. Nowadays, mobile devices are compatible with audios, images and even videos. Ally [3] maintains that learning materials in multimedia format are more stimulating for learners. To put it differently, these elements probably improve the originality of students. Besides, including multimedia components prevents the learning materials to be too dull. This can increase the motivation of students. Additionally, students can easily find numerous supportive applications using their devices.For example, students can find and learn some difficult words with the help of dictionary applications. Furthermore, online search engines are excellent assistants for inform ation collection. All the above mentioned tools can improve learning efficiency. Even though mobile learning has tremendous benefits due to its high flexibility and multimedia compatibility, it poses an underlying problem at the same time – lack of communication. In real life lectures, students are doing face to face interaction with the lecturers.They may raise questions or give feedbacks instantly while they do not have the same opportunity in virtual lessons. O’Driscoll [5] suggests that this may cause a suppression of creative thinking and developed ideas. Moreover, as noted by Kukulska-Hulme and Pettit [2], it can be easy for students to get distracted. Furthermore, as one-way communication does not promote mutual understanding between people, misunderstanding and conflicts may easily occur. This deficiency can lead to poor team work. Also, mobile learning cannot help improve specific skills, especially presentation skills.This is because students must practice th is skill in front of audience in real life. In conclusion, the high flexibility and excellent capability are two advantages of mobile learning. Some aspect of learning can be improved through implementing this innovative learning method. Nevertheless, some substantial limitations show that it is definitely impossible for mobile learning to replace the traditional learning. Instead of a replacement, mobile learning should be considered an integral to the current educational system. In my opinion, mobile learning is important presently.However, there is room for improvement. Battery consumption and health problem might be ameliorated by the future technologies. Mobile devices should adapt to the needs of learners, in order to be an ideal tool for education. Apart from that, infrastructures for high bandwidth and wireless capabilities have to be built to enhance connectivity for better access. References 1. A. Kukulska-Hulme and J. Traxler, Mobile Learning: A handbook for educators and trainers. New York, NY: Taylor & Francis Inc, 2005. 2. A. Kukulska-Hulme and J.Pettit, â€Å"Practitioners as Innovators: Emergent Practice in Personal Mobile,† in Mobile Learning: Transforming the Delivery of Education and Training. Canada: AU Press, Athabasca University, 2009, ch. 7, pp. 135-156. 3. M. Ally, Mobile Learning: Transforming the Delivery of Education and Training. Canada: AU Press, Athabasca University, 2009. 4. M. Boyes. (2011, Dec 17). 24 benefits of mobile learning. [Online] Available: http://insights. elearningnetwork. org/? p=507 5. N. O’Driscoll. The Disadvantages of One-Way Communication. [Online] Available: http://www. ehow. com/info_8307652_disadvantages-oneway-communication. html