Building Information Modelling Dissertation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 13750 words

Building Information Modelling - Dissertation Example The potentiality of Building Information Modelling (BIM) in the construction companies operating in the West Midland region is undertaken in this research. The study is undertaken to assess the ability of the construction companies towards the emerging technological options in the construction sector. Though most of the companies have heavily invested in the basic software tools necessary for their operations, the impact of high-end solutions that would ensure enhanced flexibility and a significant reduction in the rework needs to be investigated. Most of the industries in the West Midlands region are small scale with very limited expansion potential and hence such a study alone could help to obtain deeper insight into the reasons of acceptability of BIM in the construction sector. The data collection exercises adopted included survey process using a detailed questionnaire and also personal interview based on a prepared set of questions. The results obtained from the study showed int eresting results on the BIM implementation. The small construction companies understand the significant operational advantages that could be attained from using BIM software. Most of the industries prefer the collaborative use of the technology due to the inability to invest such large amounts and hence prefer to have shared use of the technology. Also, it is interesting to note that they all have realized the limitations of conventional software and understand that significant client advantage is being offered in comparison the conventional practices of project delivery. ... The potentiality of Building Information Modelling (BIM) in the construction companies operating in the West Midland region is undertaken in this research. The study is undertaken to assess the ability of the construction companies towards the emerging technological options in the construction sector. Though most of the companies have heavily invested in the basic software tools necessary for their operations, the impact of high-end solutions that would ensure enhanced flexibility and significant reduction in the rework need to be investigated. Most of the industries in the West Midlands region are small scale with very limited expansion potential and hence such a study alone could help to obtain deeper insight into the reasons of acceptability of BIM in the construction sector. The data collection exercises adopted included survey process using a detailed questionnaire and also personal interview based on a prepared set of questions. The results obtained from the study showed intere sting results on the BIM implementation in small construction companies. The small construction companies understand the significant operational advantages that could be attained from using BIM software. Most of the industries prefer collaborative use of the technology due to the inability to invest such large amounts and hence prefer to have shared use of the technology. Also, it is interesting to note that they all have realized the limitations of conventional software and understand that significant client advantage is being offered in comparison the conventional practices of project delivery. They have also realize the limits of the present software solutions. The architects and designers are of the opinion that most of the conventional CAD software

Research paper (How to Prepare a News Broadcast) Essay

Research paper (How to Prepare a News Broadcast) - Essay Example Selection of area to be addressed in the news is the first and foremost step of the planning process, that follows the decision. News needs to be planned at least one day in advance of the broadcasting time. The reporter should make effort to seek information about the topic selected from the most reliable sources available. In the planning phase, the reporter chooses the course of action that he/she would adopt to reach the sources of information. The reporter proceeds to know when and at what time the sources can be approached so as to cause minimum inconvenience both the reporter and the personnel representative of the sources. If required, the reporter has to seek an appointment with a department weeks in advance of the day of meeting. In addition to that, it is the responsibility of the reporter to prepare the questions he/she intends to ask the concerned authority prior to meeting him/her in person. Lack of former knowledge of queries can ruin the meeting and render it useless. The data collected needs to be organized appropriately so as to convey maximum information in minimum time, while retaining the quality of presentation. The report necessarily begins with a title that adequately reflects all that is to follow it. After the title, the first sentence is of prime importance because a listener decides whether to listen further or not on the basis of initial wording. â€Å"A good lead-in "teases" the viewer without giving away the story.† (Salvatore, 2009). Therefore, it should be interesting enough to make the audience curious to know further. It is extremely important to ensure that the report formulated answers who did what, when, where, why and how. These questions are commonly referred to as the â€Å"Five W’s and H Rule.† (White 32). A report that answers these questions is thought to be adequately equipped with all the information

The Presidential Election Of 1880 Politics Essay

The Presidential Election Of 1880 Politics Essay Throughout the history of United States Presidential Elections, there have been many memorable campaigns and races for the right of one citizen to become the next President of the United States of America. These elections have been filled with gripping scandals, nail-biting finishes, unforgettable blunders, and their fair share of mudslinging. The Presidential Election of 1880 was of no exception, and encompassed all of the aforementioned aspects and more. It is at this pivotal time in 1880 that the country was continuing to mend itself from the self-inflicted wounds of secession and of a controversial presidency stemming from the election of 1876. With Rutherford B. Hayes foregoing a second term in office, the stage was set for a memorable election year, one fought amongst both some new and familiar faces. It would be the candidates partys views on some crucial issues, along with the pageantry of the candidates themselves, that would decide the outcome of this election. Up until the last day of campaigning, both Democrats and Republicans believed that their respective nominees would win the executive branch. However, after much time and effort, only one man would become President. Ultimately, the office of the presidency would come at a price no party could have predicted. The candidates that would eventually emerge as the front-runners for their parties werent favored much as the campaigns for the presidency began in 1880. At the start of the campaign, the Republican Party was divided into 3 distinct factions: the Stalwarts, the Reformers, and the Half-Breeds. The Stalwarts were conservatives who opposed civil service reform, conversely supported the patronage system, favored protectionist tariffs, and endorsed a third-term for former-President Ulysses S. Grant. The Reformers were liberals who advocated civil service reform and free trade. The Half-Breeds were moderates who accepted some degree of civil service reform, implemented piecemeal over time.  [1]   By May 1880, former-President Grant was probable to win the nomination of the Republican Party. However, James Garfield, an Ohio representative and former Union general, was gaining recognition as a possible surprise candidate. At this time in the campaign, Garfield was actually supporting John Sherman, the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury. The two men had struck a deal earlier in which Garfield was to campaign for Sherman because he had helped Garfield become a senator-elect recently. When the time had come, Garfield, along with his fellow Ohioans, made the trek to Chicago for the Republican National Convention, which was set to begin on June 2, 1880. It is here that Garfield would become part of one of the most thrilling party conventions ever. He began his climb towards nomination by being elected the head of the Committee on Rules shortly following the commencement of the convention. After a riveting, impromptu speech before the convention, support for Garfield hit a new high. In f act, his popularity was so great that Roscoe Conkling, a prominent Republican figure who was attending, remarked: New York requests that Ohios real candidate and dark horse come forwardà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ã‚  [2]   This support would carry over into the nomination when on the 34th ballot, seemingly out of nowhere, Wisconsin awarded her 16 votes to Garfield. This, in turn, started a stampede among the Half-Breed and other anti-Grant supporters in favor of Garfield. On the 36th ballot, James Garfield was nominated with 399 votes, a monumental upset for those who predicted the nomination of Grant, the Half-Breed leader James G. Blaine, or even John Sherman. Mystery still surrounds the fact whether Garfield planned to usurp the nomination the way he did, seeing as though entries from his personal journal are left blank during the Republican National Convention, which would give insight to his inner thoughts and ambitions. Nevertheless, Chester A. Arthur was chosen to be Garfields running mate in an attempt to secure the support of the Stalwarts and to win New York for the Republicans. The nomination of the Democrats was hardly less inspiring. In the early stages of the campaign, U.S. Senator Thomas Bayard was the likely candidate to be nominated and had much support in the South. As of May 1880, though, General Winfield Scott Hancock was drawing attention in the Deep South. Although for the most part they were convinced that the movement towards Hancock was insignificant, the shadow of another general on horseback continued to alarm some of Bayards supporters.  [3]  Perhaps those wary Bayard supporters had a reason to be distressed, for at the Democratic National Convention in Cincinnati, a fiery, Irish delegate from Pennsylvania named Daniel Dougherty made a rousing speech in favor of Hancocks nomination. Mayhem ensued as thousands of delegates began cheering for Hancock. In fact, after the second ballot, Hancock was nominated with the incredible amount of 705 votes. The former favorite, Bayard, only got 2. Quickly after, William H. English was chosen to be t he vice-presidential nominee. The choice of English was based on sound political logic. Hancock, as it was argued, by uniting Irving Hall and Tammany Hall would carry New York, and Indiana would certainly follow English, her own native son. Thus Indianas 15 electoral votes and New Yorks 35 in addition to the solid Souths 138 would spell victory for the Democrats for the first time since 1856.  [4]   At these same conventions where the two primary candidates were selected by their parties, the party platforms were also revealed. The Republican platform stressed the need for protective tariffs that would disproportionately benefit American labor, a reformation of civil service through the use of a series of tests to ensure qualifications for applicants, restricted immigration from China, and separate, non-public funds to pay for the establishment of sectarian schools. The platform commended President Hayes, a Republican, for his service to his country and proceeded to shame the Democrats by comparing them to the rebels of the Civil War.  [5]  The Democratic platform, in turn, recalled the Great Fraud of 1876, the name given by some to the event in which Rutherford B. Hayes was elected President after losing to Democrat Samuel J. Tilden in the popular vote and winning the electoral vote by one through a potentially shady agreement. Furthermore, the Democratic platform called fo r a less powerful central government, a cease to all Chinese immigration, civil service reform, lower tariffs, and free trade.  [6]  The platform also included that there would only be a tariff for revenue only. In time, this last plank of the platform would prove to be the bane of Candidate Hancocks existence. During this election, the impact of major third parties was minimal. All three of the major third parties nominated their choices for president in June/July of 1880 and all three of their nominees were military generals. The Greenback party, the most influential of the three third parties, stood for labor reform (shorter hours, better conditions, no child labor), for economic reform (payment of debts, restrictions on monopolies, regulated currency), restriction on Chinese labor, and for the end of sectional disunity. It can be argued that this platform wouldnt have been found too unreasonable. However, the Greenbackers made a critical blunder when they invited Socialists into their convention, which no doubt lost them some votes. The other two third parties were the Prohibitionists and the Anti-Masons. The Prohibitionists were against the consumption of alcohol and its party platform explicitly revealed the dangers of it. The Anti-Masons believed their mission was to expose, withstan d, and remove secret societies, Free masonry in particular, and other anti-Christian movements, in order to save the churches of Christ from being depraved.  [7]  Having such a narrow objective hurt the Prohibitionists and Anti-Masons. In the end, the only way that a third party could have any impact on the election was if its votes were absorbed by either the Democrats or the Republicans. Among the foreign and domestic issues brought to light during this presidential campaign, those of Chinese immigration, sectionalism, and protective tariffs were the primary ones contemplated. By 1880, an overwhelming number of Chinese immigrants had traveled to the west coast of the United States in search of jobs. These Chinese workers worked for less than an American would and many westerners worried for their own job security. This disdain for immigrants was felt most in California. Although both party platforms called for restrictions to such immigration, many Californians were wary of Candidate Garfields sincerity to the cause. This was due to the fact that a year and a half earlier Garfield had voted against a bill that was inconsistent with the Burlingame Treaty of 1868, a treaty which provided limitless Chinese immigration. Later, Garfield tried to reassure western states that he would handle the immigration issue with their concerns in mind, though many doubted his sincerit y. The issue of sectionalism reemerged when Republicans once again began waving the bloody shirt, a reference to the Souths secession some 20 years earlier. Numerous pamphlets and songs were created by Republicans to associate the southern and more Democratic states, as well as Hancock himself, with secession. One such song included the lines: A Union General leads, my boys Secession on the field Well meet it with brave deeds, my boys: Once more foredoomed to yield!  [8]   These pieces of propaganda were made to make people believe that if Hancock were elected, he would give all power to the former-rebellious southern states. Democrats believed that this accusation was simply absurd. Nevertheless, these actions taken by the Republican Party showed that almost two decades after the Civil War started, reunification was still a delicate issue. Lastly, tariffs were, arguably, the most important issue. Both parties had different stances on the matter. The Republicans argued for a protective tariff. They believed that by protecting American business, wages for workers would remain at a high level. The Democrats, however, believed in a tariff for revenue only. This would open the doors for free trade. Critics of this idea believed that American manufacturing would crumble and that this action would spell disaster for the wages of laborers. American laboring men were everywhere solemnly warned by signs, handbills, documents, and newspapers that, unless they wished to be reduced to the pittance that Europeans called wages, they had better vote the Republican ticket.  [9]  Among these three issues discussed, the tariff issue would no doubt play a huge role in deciding who won the election. The way in which each campaign was conducted and the various major events that occurred during them created momentum swings at different times for each candidate. Garfield more or less conducted a type of front porch campaign. This campaign consisted of him welcoming voters into his home in order to become more familiar with their needs and to appear concerned. He actually had his campaign managers and fellow Republicans do much of his work across the nation. These Garfield supporters would wave the bloody shirt issue and poke at Hancocks inexperience in politics. Mockery pertaining to the latter was shown in a Republican pamphlet called A Record of the Statesmanship and Political Achievements of General Winfield Scott Hancock. This particular pamphlet included only blank pages. Following an early defeat in the Maine state elections, Republicans began to channel immense sums of money in order to step up the campaign effort. After all, the Democrats had presumably spent $100,000 in Ma ine in just one week! Large businesses were eager to help the Republican cause, as they had an interest in its success. After Secretary of State Carl Schurz made speeches in San Francisco almost exclusively regarding business interests, it became clear that economic issues would take precedence over all other concerns. In addition to the efforts made by Secretary of State Schurz, Senator Conkling and former-President Grant also campaigned for Garfield; at one rally in Warren, Ohio the two spoke to a crowd of approximately 40,000 people! The Democrats, for the most part, tried to remind the public of the corrupt Election of 1876 in which President Rutherfraud had been elected. However, these actions were put on hold temporarily as Hancock struggled to make clear his views on the tariff issue. His knowledge on this subject was questioned so greatly that he was made fun of in a cartoon by the famous Thomas Nast. The cartoon depicted Hancock on a speakers platform whispering in a companions ear, Who is Tariff and why is he for revenue only?'  [10]  At a major Democratic rally sponsored by Tammany Hall in New York, Hancock asked Senator Bayard to discuss the tricky tariff issue for him, a somewhat acknowledgement of his own inability to do so gracefully. When the Democrats could afford to take the offensive, Garfields character was within their crosshairs. Two very big scandals gave them significant amounts of ammunition against Garfield: The Credit Mobilier Scandal and the Morey Letter. During the construction of the Union Pacific Railroad, the leading directors of the Union Pacific Railroad Company hired themselves out to a fake company that they had created, named Credit Mobilier, in order to keep the remaining surplus money. Many Congressmen were given bribes in the form of stock in this fake company in order to keep quiet. On February 18, 1873, a committee found that Garfield had received a check for $329 for dividends from his share of stock. During the campaign, Democrats marked numerous buildings with the number 329 in order to remind voters of Garfields doubtful past. A second scandal to rock the Republican campaign was that of the Morey Letter. On October 18, 1880, a letter supposedly written by Garfield to H.L. Morey of Ma ssachusetts was discovered on the desk of the publisher of New York Truth. Its contents contained convincing evidence that Garfield supported Chinese immigration. It included that he felt that individuals or companies have the right to buy labor where they can get it cheapest and that the United States has a treaty with the Chinese Government which should be religiously keptà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ã‚  [11]  Although it was later proved to be a forgery, some of Garfields credibility was lost. It certainly didnt do him any good to wait a whole week before openly denying it! Thus the Democrats were able to gain support by attacking Garfield throughout their campaign. This onslaught of Garfields character abruptly came to a stop when Hancock made a severe political blunder just a little over a week before the election. In an interview with the Paterson Daily Guardian, Hancock attempted to clarify his tariff for revenue only. While stating the case that he would in fact favor American businesses, he concluded by saying that the tariff question is a local question. Although he was correct in context, this statement made it appear as though he was out of touch and not concerned with everyday working men. This had an adverse impact on his campaign with little time to recover. Nevertheless, as both partys campaigns winded down and the candidates braced for Election Day, each candidate firmly believed that he had won the Presidency. The news of 3 A.M. is fully justified by the morning papersà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦We have at least 212 electoral votes, a small majority in the House and the Senate nearly or quite a tie.  [12]  Thus were the words written by James A. Garfield in his journal on November 3, 1880 when he learned he was to be the 20th President of the United States. When the official results were revealed, Garfield had won 214 electoral votes to Hancocks 155. By these numbers, Garfield seemed to have won easily; however, the popular vote was extremely close with Garfield possessing roughly 4,453,337 votes to Hancocks approximate 4,444,267 votes. The difference between these two tallies was the equivalent to .1% of the total population. To date this is the closest margin of victory in the popular vote in any U.S. Presidential Election. Not only was this election the closest in the popular vote, but it also had one of the highest voter turnouts in United States history, 79.4%. This percentage is only passed by the turnout in the elections of 1840, 1860, and 1876 (notably all previous elections). In recent years, the voter turnout has been significantly lower. In the last five Presidential Elections, voter turnout has ranged from 49.08% to 57.48%. For the past 20 years, on average only about 53% of the total population has been involved in choosing our President. This is certainly not healthy for our republican form of government, in which an active population must remain involved politically in order for greater representation of the masses. At least in the Presidential Election of 1880, the people accepted their responsibility as citizens and participated in a remarkable fashion to choose the next President. President James Garfield owed much of his victory to the battleground state of New York. New Yorks 35 electoral votes were ultimately the difference in the election. The solid South had given her 138 votes for Hancock, as can be seen in the electoral map that follows: http://profbutler.watermelon-kid.com/images/maps/HIST1302_Part_1/800px-1880_Electoral_Map.gif This left him with only 47 more votes to secure in order for him to become President. Unfortunately, Hancock could only muster 17 additional votes; a combined 8 from California and Nevada, no doubt influenced by the Morey Letter, and 9 from New Jersey, the only northern state to go for the Democrats. The Democrats failed to carry New York in part due to the divisions between Irving Hall and Tammany Hall. At the time, there was also speculation that New York might have gone Republican for another more sinister reason. In July of 1880, George W. Atkins, a friend of Garfields, had written him about the idea of bringing 3,000 voters from Vermont, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania along with 6,000 Canadians to New York to vote for the Republicans. No evidence was ever found that Garfield had used this strategy. However, many Democrats swore that they had been deceived. Nevertheless, Garfield received a superfluous amount of congratulatory letters, including one peculiar letter from Willie M adden of Number One, Hanson Place, Brooklyn, New York: I am a little boy five years oldà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.I am sorry Arthur has to be President when you die. I would like to know whether you are a bad man or a good oneà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.If not, I think Arthur must take your place.  [13]   This prophetic letter would prove no more eerie than on July 2, 1881. On that fateful day, President Garfield was on his way to celebrate his 25th college reunion and was standing at the Baltimore and Potomac Railroad Station in Washington, D.C. when he was shot twice. His assailant was the Stalwart Charles Guiteau, who was upset with the President after he had been denied the position of U.S. Consul in Paris on six different occasions. Guiteau thought that it was unfair that many Half-Breeds had received government jobs (ie. James Blaine had been chosen Secretary of State), and the Stalwarts appeared to have been denied these rewards. After being rushed to safety, doctors tended to the President. Alexander Graham Bell used a primitive form of the metal detector to try to locate one bullet in Garfields back, but to no avail. After 80 days of suffering, President Garfield died. This assassination drew much sympathy from the public for their fallen President and much loathing for the S talwarts. Chester A. Arthur would now become President. Although there was much speculation on how he would act as President, from an early stage he made it known that he supported the movement towards the adoption of the merit system of awarding government jobs to those most competent. As for Guiteau, he was hanged on June 30, 1882. Although the Presidential Elections of 1880 and 2012 occurred 132 years apart, certain aspects of each have made a comparison of the two possible. One major campaign factor that is unique to both election years is the use of money on the campaign trail. During the Presidential Election of 1880, James Ford Rhodes, a historian of the day, wrote that in Indiana money was used to an extent hitherto unknown in American politics.  [14]  He was referring to the use of money to buy votes for either candidate. In fact, at one time Garfield was told that there were 30,000 merchantable votes in the state [Indiana],à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦which side will manage to buy the most of them is the question.  [15]  This new era of corruption in politics through the use of money indeed snuck its way into the Presidential Election of 1880. In 2012, a new era in campaign spending has likewise occurred. In 2010, Citizens United [a political action committee (PAC)] sued the Federal Election Commission in the Supreme Court on the basis of unfair campaign spending restrictions. Citizens United won its suit. The ruling established that as long as the free use of money is considered the same as free speech, then corporations and unions have the right to give unlimited amounts of money to presidential candidates. In 2012, campaign spending has hit a new high and shows no sign of stopping in years to come. Another comparison to be made between these two election years is the issue of immigration. In 1880, Americans on the west coast of the United States were concerned with the influx of immigration coming from China. Americans were alarmed that these Chinese workers would steal jobs away from them. In the Presidential Election of 2012, Hispanic immigration was one subject of controversy. The Republicans have tended to believe in harsher immigration laws, whereas Democrats for the most part believe in altering laws to accommodate immigrants. The main difference between the immigration issue of 1880 and 2012 is that in 1880, there was the call to restrict the legal immigrants from China. In 2012, there have been pleas from many to stop the illegal immigration from the Hispanic countries to the south. Another difference that is important to note is that the positions of the two parties have relatively switched sides since 1880. Back in 1880, the Democrats, and not the Republicans, were th e ones proposing stricter immigration laws. The last comparison between these two elections is that both sets of campaigns have consisted of substantial amounts of mudslinging. In the Presidential Election of 1880, both candidates attempted to paint the other in a bad light. Garfield poked at Hancocks inexperience in politics while Hancock attempted to discredit Garfield by bringing up scandal after scandal. In 2012, television viewers have been bombarded with commercials detailing flaws in the candidates. One ad supporting President Obama connected Mitt Romney with the death of a woman who had not been able to afford healthcare after her husbands workplace was shut down by Romneys company, Bain Capital. Likewise, pro-Romney ads have attacked Obamas government spending and business experience as well as his handling of the economy. While some might think its wrong to attack ones opponent so openly, these two elections have shown that it takes an aggressive, offensive strategy to sway the masses. In retrospect, the Presidential Election of 1880 was one of the most exciting to date. From Garfields surprise nomination to Hancocks plight regarding the tariff issue all the way to Garfields eventual narrow victory in the popular vote, the Presidential Election of 1880 proved to be especially intriguing. It seems ironic, as it would be, that Garfield would fall victim to the bullets of an assassin shortly into his term as President. Garfields legacy lived on though through Chester A. Arthur, who, as mentioned previously, upheld Garfields policies. Perhaps Garfield said it best when he wrote in his journal: Some civil service reform will come by necessity after the wearisome years of wasted presidents have paved the way for it.  [16]  We will never know how the world would have turned out had Garfield survived or if it would have even made a difference. However, we can take some comfort in knowing that todays politicians have the luxury of analyzing previous elections so that th ey can be knowledgeable of the past while still looking forward to the future. By Joseph San Nicolas Notes

Home Schooling Essay -- essays papers

Home Schooling The debate over home schooling has been a hot topic for many over the past few years. Home schooling can be defined as, â€Å"to teach school subjects to one’s children at home† (Merriam-Webster Online, 2003). However, the main debate is not over whether or not children should be taught at home; rather, the question debated is if home-schooled children are as prepared socially as those children who are traditionally schooled. Although opponents of home schooling claim that children who are educated at home do not develop their social skills at the same rate as their peers who attend traditional schools, research findings indicate that students who are home-schooled develop socially at the same rate as those who are traditionally schooled. Home schooling originated in a time when there were a small number of schools. Even when more public and community schools became available, traditional groups like the Seventh Day Adventists and Mormons, chose to school their young children at home. The Amish society kept their older children out of the public schools and chose to educate them through life in the community. The movement for home schooling has become more prevalent in modern day education. Many parents opt to educate at home, whether it be for religious purposes or because they are pursuing the philosophy of child-led learning. Whatever the reason for home schooling, it has become a predominant form of education in society today (Lines, 1995). Society inflicts many stereotypes upon those who â€Å"go against the norm.† Children who are home-schooled are seen as shy, passive, introverted people who do not get along well in society. It is believed that parents of home-schooled children are protecting their chil... ...ooled peers. Bibliography Aiex, N. (1994). Home Schooling and Socialization of Children. ERIC Digest. Retrieved April 23, 2003, from http://www.ericfacility.net/ericdigests/ed372460.html Jaycox, R. (2001). Rural Home Schooling and Place-Based Education. ERIC Digest. Retrieved April 24, 2003, from http://www.ericfacility.net/ericdigests/ed459971.html Lines, P. (1995). Home Schooling. ERIC Digest, Number 95. Retrieved April 23, 2003, from http://www.ericfacility.net/ericdigests/ed381849.html Merriam-Webster Online. (2003). Home School. Merriam-Webster, Incorporated. Retrieved April 24, 2003, from http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?va=homeschooled National Home Education Research Institute. (2002). Home Education Research Fact Sheet. National Home Education Research Institute. Retrieved April 24, 2003, from http://www.nheri.org/content.php?menu=1002&page_id=24

Growing Up Hindu in America

I moved o a small town In 2004, and I was like most Americans as far as being Ignorant to the different religions that were worshipped. I was different In the fact that I was curious to meet new people and what they do. This is true even with my own step mother who is Catholic. When she joined the family she told me that she was not allowed in the church. I grew up in the Baptist church so I did not understand why this was. I sat down with her until I understood the situation. She said her goal was to become a member of the church again, and she did.So as I was moving some of my things n one day, a few houses from me was a tall man with a turban on his head, long white hair and beard, and some sort of robe for his clothes. My daughter was frightened and asked If we were living near Osama Bin Laden. I must admit that he held a striking resemblance, but quickly assured her that It was not him and that everybody has different beliefs. With all of the stories of the terrorists It was rea lly hard to shake my own doubts about what this gentleman true reasons for being here were. Shortly after this encounter, I met the man's son.He was a local entrepreneur that had been in the area for more than 30 years. He owned the small store that was within shouting distance from my house, so I found myself becoming friends with him. He was from India and studied the Hindu religion. He had four children with American wives, none of which he was still with. The more I learned about his culture, the more I wanted to learn. He was so proud of where he came from and so was his father. They both had amazing work ethics. His father is 86 years old and still works every day.He actually rides his bicycle to work at a local industrial plant. I had so many questions for how he raised his children. His hillier are raised by their American mothers and went to public schools. One of the daughters went to college here but quickly excelled, so he sent her to India to finish. They speak English, and also speak his native Punjabi language, but It Is broken. He was quick to tell me that he had to have a son and that is why he had Tour centers. I nerve Ana to De a son to Inherit ten Tamil Yes Delousing since en was the oldest because the daughters could not.This did not sit well with me, but he Just laughed. He said that is the way that it is in his culture. If he did not have a son, the items would go to his brothers. They are free to worship how they want. I then met my soon to be best friend and her family. She introduces me to her husband, and high school sweet heart. He is a short, with dark skin and dark hair and a southern accent. I whispered to her, â€Å"k, I give, where is he from? † She informs me that he is from Trinidad, but that his family is originally from India. So, I asked if he was related to the local store owner.She quickly stated that they were not and that their families do not always see eye to eye. I was shocked that this small town had this ma ny Indians in it. I came from a slightly larger town, and I had never personally met know anyone from India and now I know two whole families. I felt privileged at this point to be able to be this diverse. Well most of us always want to know how people met, and I fell into that trap. She explained that they met in High School. She was quick to explain that her parents did not approve and she was at times forbidden to see him.At one point her father even made her write a report on Trinidad and India Just to see how serious she was about dating him. She completed the task and her father was impressed with the report so much that he allowed the courtship. They eventually got married and have three children. He also has a sister and brother that have local families. His parents live within a few miles of all of them and so do several aunts, uncles and many cousins. The parents still speak with strong accents and practice their religious beliefs daily. The children were raised to be allo wed to practice whatever religion that they choose with their families.None of the children ever spoke the native language or practice the religion regularly. All three of them married Americans with Christian beliefs and that is what the study with their children. One day I was approached by the father and was invited to attend a Pupas at their home. Of course I had many questions about this. My friend begged me to go with her to this yearly ceremony. She said that it is a beautiful ceremony and you have to see it at least once in your life. She brought me a traditional Indian outfit to wear, that was absolutely beautiful.Needless to say my curiosity got the best of me, and I went. I first did a little research to see what I was attending, Just in case I had any questions. I learned that Hinduism is characterized by a belief in reincarnation by a belief in a supreme being of many forms and natures. That it is the world's oldest organized religion, existing for 4500 years. Based on the ancient Vivid Literature and is populated by and almost infinite number of Gods. Reincarnation and being held accountable for one's deeds (Karma) are fundamental components of Hinduism.It is the third largest category of religions. (â€Å"Hinduism for Schools†) The interesting thing about the religion is that they believe that there is a cycle to the lives we live. Since they believe in reincarnation, they believe that they only thing that follows us when we pass is our character. This cycle will continue over and over until we meet God. You start out at the lowest form and move up to human. So hen you hear people say they wish they could come back as a fly on the wall, which would be the opposite direction for the Hindu religion.Hindus believe that if you meditate really hard you will find God in your innermost self. They consider this Atman, and I have watched them Join hands and bow to each toner when teen greet Ana say, Names. So, I sake want Tanat meant. My Eternal' father told me that it meant that â€Å"There is God in you†. He explained to me that this is why they believe in Karma and that you should respect everyone and everything. Hindus believe that God lives in all of us and that if you hurt anyone, or yourself, that oh hurt God. (â€Å"Hinduism for Schools†) So as we attended this Pupas and I entered the makeshift temple.There was a priest standing by the shrine where the offerings were being made, even money. I was quickly instructed to take my shoes off. The worshipers were saying mantras, and at times the priest would chant. There were picture and statues of many different deities. The other family members were praying to these deities. I noticed that a lot of them were women. I recently learned from my text that there are more than 330 million deities in India. They said that they can choose any shape they would like to view God in. Some can choose to view God as a mother in heaven, or as a shape such as fire.The meal was blessed and there was no meat served that day. My friend's mother ended the evening with a Hindi song that she produced on CD. (Fisher, 2008, p. 72) After this exciting day that I got to experience how the Hindus worship, dress and eat, I really wanted to know how it was to do this on a daily basis. I asked my friend why he did not speak like his parents and even if he could speak their language or worship their religion. He told me that he could not. His parents chose not to teach their children the Hindu faith or the language.

Online Dating in India

Introduction: The topic of my dissertation is â€Å"taking online relation offline† . India being a nation of youngest population of the world had have very young history of online dating just a decade old but it still have very promising market which have around 25 million estimated online user base with 200million US $ projected market by 2014(Source: industry estimate by stepup. com) this growth is the result of changed mindset of young middle class who want to live in virtual space, which itself is eased by cheap computers and cheaper and faster internet connectivity.Rising income, access to World Wide Web helped Indian youth to finally come out of that traditional bubble which tell then that fraternizing with any women other than their fiance is wrong. We are now leaving back inhibitions; do not care for social norms and anonymity of cyber space act as icing on this cake of dating. We are using online dating to find new friends and partners on this space as it help us to make our new identity and thus bring out real in us.Today, youths are more interested in finding a likeminded person with whom they can share their life without being judged and talk about fluid topics like movies or fantasies rather than ticking off qualities mostly physical through pre-set list given by their parents. CMC partners exchanged proportionally more self-disclosures and questions than did face-to-face partners. Moreover, the questions they asked were about more personal topics than those the face-to-face partners exchanged.At the same time, the deeper the disclosures and questions used by partners in CMC, the more effective they were rated by their partners, in comparison to those who met in Face to Face discussions (Walther, 1993, pp. 147–148). â€Å"Dating culture in India is evolving rapidly. Changing cultural dynamics like the increase in average marriage age†¦ are shifting the dating paradigm significantly,† StepOut co-founder and CEO Adam Sachs This change in mind set had brought change in dating pattern . here in my dissertation I am trying to cover this WHY and WHAT of changing pattern of cyber dating space. ike all space this cyber space is also a result of confluence of spatial and temporal pattern, but unlike physical space it has compression of time and space boundaries. in cyber space there are no geographical boundaries. in this space we can create our own identity’s which can be different from real one. Here my objective is to study this dating pattern and objectives of my research are as follows: 1. To draw regional profile of the users of these dating sites. 2. To examine if these space supplement real spaces for meeting and dating. 3. To identify the sites where users would like to meet in person. 4.Do users found it safe to date online. To study these objectives I had taken sample size of forty people by random method. All of them are students of age between 20-25. Surveys are done by questionnaire meth od which has both open end and close multiple choice questions. Survey is done online by the help of Google forms and personally by interviews.. I had chosen this topic to highlight the social importance of online dating and its effect on real space dating. My title of this dissertation â€Å"taking online relation offline â€Å"lay emphasis on the study of HOW online relations are taken to OFFLI NE meetings and WHERE they are conducted and WHY. y survey is done on small sample of 40 students randomly selected from social networking site Facebook and online dating site ‘indiandating’ . commercial dating sites become increasingly accepted as a means of forming romantic relationships, more and more couples are meeting online (Rosenfeld, 2010). One industry trade report estimated that almost 25 million unique users around the world accessed an online dating site in April, 2011 alone (Subscription Site Insider, 2011). In India 6 million singles have joined online dating s ervices in India. The market is estimated to be worth $130 million USD in 2012.By 2015 it is estimated India will have 115 million users of dating services. (source:www. onlinedatingmagzine. com) Young India provides large market for online dating services. Some statistics of Indian dating scenario are: oBy 2015 it is estimated India will have 115 million users of dating services. o20 percent of current committed relationship began online. o17 percent of marriages in 2012 began on an online dating site. ? WHY ONLINE DATING: Dating is a form of courtship consisting of social activities done by two people with the aim of each assessing the other's suitability as a partner in an intimate relationship or as a spouse.While the term has several meanings, it usually refers to the act of meeting and engaging in some mutually agreed upon social activity in public, together, as a couple. When we say online dating then it really means dating in cyber space. Online dating (OD) or Internet datin g is a dating system which allows individuals, couples and groups to make contact and communicate with each other over the Internet, usually with the objective of developing a personal, romantic, or sexual relationship.Online dating services usually provide immoderate matchmaking over the Internet, through the use of personal computers or cell phones. It is a form of dating which is COMPUTER MEDIATED COMMUNICATION (CMC). Here bond created between potential partners takes different path than normal or traditional dating relationship. it is an alternative medium for experiencing new and creative romantic endeavors with few spatial-temporal limits. Online dating promises to offer new possibilities and creativities not found in the real-life world scenario Firstly I would like to define the terms before proceeding further . had use the term dating sites to those web sites that primarily focus on offering the user opportunities to form a new relationship, I had compared this term with co nventional offline dating which denotes various ways by strangers meet each other to form alliance like meeting in some get together, being introduced by some mutual friend, approaching a class mate or coworker . this type of dating pattern had limited success in countries like India where dating is conceived as something un traditional and a trend of west.Here marriages are alliances formed by the family consent with many cases where couples have there their first meeting on the eve of their marriage. It is a country where we cannot hit on a girl or boy in some cafeteria or book shop leave alone the option of bar or pub. Here it is not conductive to use pick-up lines like â€Å"hello, how are things going? I am looking for like-minded people and found u†¦ †but online dating chat rooms allow these lines as ice breakers and even if someone get offended he can ignore that person. verall online research had shown that online daters are more confident then offline daters(sou rce: online dating magazine;2005) A study by BURMASTER (2005) of 3400 adults in Asian sub-continent found that one out of three internet users would opt to go online to meet potential dating partner and that internet is the third most popular mode of getting a date followed by meeting through friend and meeting someone at club or pub. To understand how online dating is better than conventional dating we have to consider three important facilities which are offered by online dating sites.They are : †¢ACCESS †¢COMMUNICATION †¢MATCHMAKING Here access refers to opportunity a user gets to evaluate potential partner which are not easily available in conventional dating. Communication refers to users’ opportunity to use various forms of Computer mediated communication (cmc) to communicate with potential partner before meeting face to face. And matching refers to a sites use of Matching refers to a site’s use of a mathematical algorithm to select potential partn ers for users. Online dating’s these three services had altered the dating landscape all together.As firstly its major element of internet flexible accessibility, creative opportunities and perhaps most importantly, anonymity. These freedoms remove the moral tangles of society and provide a â€Å"free play† . this feature of anonymity make online dating free from the oversight of others and thus do not carry any fear of stigma. The main idea of this dissertation is to provide an insight to the status of online dating in India and do these sites replace the real spaces for meeting and dating (conventional dating). Secondly does the users find it safe to use it and the sites where would like to meet after taking it offline.Ben-Ze-ev(2003) book ‘love online; emotions on the internet’ stated that cyber space provides a private world in which the information that is revealed about a person is the information he wants to reveal. He claims that online disclosure is very prevalent as people feel safer in cyber space than in actual space. He says that shame an important emotion is less common in space which leads to very open behavior of the people. The popularity of online dating is because of Internet’s flexible accessibility, creative opportunities, and perhaps Most importantly, anonymity and new freedoms attending that anonymity.These freedoms remove and disentangle emotions from the moral and social qualms which we in face in the world and thus facilitate a â€Å"free play† with identity and imagination. Today internet dating industry generates revenue of 800$ million in 2008 thus making it forth highest internet industry after online gambling, digital music and online gaming. (Mitchell,2009) Online dating services had altered the dating landscape. in particular online dating, which is becoming important way of finding potential partners had altered both the romantic acquaintance process.For example in online dating person gets a snapshot of potential partner before meeting face to face. He had learned about the person through his profile picture and profile details and other facts before deciding whether to meet them in person or not. Some dating sites also use some mathematical algorithm to find best match based on values, personality, style, interest, race, religion, gender and even pin codes. Though are plenty of places where people could potentially find the love of their life. There are bars, outdoor events, group activities, and even on a park bench as you read your favorite book.Members of the opposite sex are everywhere. They live and breathe among us. However even when surrounded by an incomprehensible number of options that pass us by every day, it can still seem impossible to find that one person that you may want to spend your life with. For a lot of people, online dating websites have become that key instrument in finding the love of their life. Source:http//www. photoillustrationthinks. com Mainly the benefits of all dating are many. In the real world you’d have to go on a large amount of dates to find someone that even slightly comes close to your liking.You may go on a lot of these dates only to realize that you wish you got to know them better before you actually got to meet them. Dates take a lot of time, effort, and money. Going out weekly or even monthly with people you barely know can lead to a lot of wasted and disappointing evenings. When you meet someone online you could move slowly and really get to know each other. You could move from one form of communication to another. Before you actually decide that this is someone you’d like to meet in person, you could move from messaging each other online to instant messaging to talking on the phone.Before going out on a real date and dealing with all of the potential stress involved, get to know someone online. No commitment, it's all about getting to know someone new in a safe environment, at a c omfortable distance without forcing yourself to sit though dinner with someone you have nothing in common with. In Indian scenario though with the help of communication technology world had become a smaller place. We are globalized but it had also increase expectation to perform and communicate in these spaces.We are rooted deep to our traditions but in the same time want to be a part of this large cyber world where there is no inhibitions, moral code of conduct and we have power of anonymity. Today’s youth do not opt for online dating to find someone to have one night stand but they do so to find there soul mate or friend who fulfill their requirement of a friend or partner with the qualities they want (mainly demanded by their family) In this dissertation I am making my all efforts to study the indian dating scenario from a student standpoint. METHODOLOGY: Basically there are four main objectives of this research.They deal with: 1. To draw regional profile of the users of t hese dating sites. 2. To examine if these space supplement real spaces for meeting and dating. 3. To identify the sites where users would like to meet in person 4. Do users found it safe to date online A number of studies have been conducted, both using quantitative and qualitative approaches, to examine the feature of dating which occurs in online environments. They focus on wide range of features, such as the structure and power-dynamics involved in online communities, and how this is facilitated by technology.However, perhaps the most prominent area of inquiry, and the main concern of this paper, is the participant’s view on online dating and how they perceive it when it is taken offline, it also study about how their online identity relates to the everyday offline personality. Method used for collecting samples is: Purposive Sampling: A common strategy for sampling in qualitative research studies, purposive sampling places participants in groups relevant to criteria that fits the research question. Factors that affect sample size include available resources, study time, and objectives.To study this I had collected samples from two sources firstly from online source like Facebook and indiandating. com by the help of Google forms and survey monkey. Out of these forty adult subjects twenty are male and twenty are female belonging to the age group of (20-25) of age and mostly belonging to Delhi. The survey sample is kept short because of prevalence of homogeneous answer of students and also because of shortage of time. They all are student; student sample is chosen as they represent the taste of Indian youth. And they use these sites most.Secondly, ten subjects were again interviewed about their experience of online dating. These ten subjects were chosen from same survey group as they have different experiences and they were ready to share it. Their interviews are transcribed and quoted where they are needed. SURVEY METHOD: Questionnaire method: Survey instrument consist of questionnaire mostly of multiple choice and few being open end questions. They start with enquiry about subject’s sex, age and their occupation. The rest of questionnaire are mixed up to answer the pre-defined objectives. t queried about their preference to date online or in real space or how they assess others profile and decide whom to approach and whom to not. it also collect data about where they want to go out on date and why. An obvious strength is that the research question can be addressed in a relatively short space of time. The questionnaire consist of FACTUAL questions dealing with demographic information, education status or their sex and also some BEHAVIORAL questions dealing with views, opinion ,beliefs and values of the subject. This help to get both qualitative data which helped me to treat the data and check the hypothesis.Interview method: Following questionnaire was used by me to collect data followed by some open end personally interv iewed questions. Which mainly aim at recording subjects experiences of taking online dating offline. These questioned were asked to ten subjects who had admitted dating online and had met potential partner in offline/real life space. There answers are trans scripted to avoid my personal biasness. These subjects were informed that there personal information are used in dissertation. The subjects were also asked about open end questions like ‘what help them to distinguish fake profile from a eal one. ’, ‘why they use online dating or where they would like to meet their potential partner and why. ’ In this following dissertation I had taken subject from two famous dating and social networking sites: Facebook and indiandating. com. I had chosen indiandating . com as it is top ranking Indian dating site catering to the need of whole India. Facebook is also taken even though it is not a dating site but networking site as Indian youth use it a lot to date as there are less chances of fake profile, its free and site itself gives option like ‘people you may know’ so and help in meeting new people.Relevance of study: My dissertation deals with broad canvas of cyber space. Online dating is one of the most important part of it. In Indian context though online dating is not much old still not much work is done on this topic. Ratings of dating sites are not published and net user base is also not know. Material is available only for the sites which have foreign backdrop. Though country has the world's third largest Internet users with over 121 million users (of whom 59% who only access the internet via mobile devices) as of December 2011. 137,000,000 Internet users for June 30, 2012, 11. % penetration, per IAMIA and 62,713,680 Facebook subscribers on Dec 31, 2012, 5. 2% penetration rate. (source: http://www. internetworldstats. com/) still not much research is done to study cyber space by geographers. My study does not deal with region al profile as it is very difficult to trace it in small sample size and quite irrelevant as cyber space compress spatiality. I deal with the hypothesis which state that do these cyber space can replace the real space dating sites and how and why of it. I had also tried to mark out those places where they would like to meet in real space and why.My research aim to know if the reason of using online dating is different among both sex group and do our social cultural traits affect our cyber behavior. My study also aim to find out if these online dating is supplementing real life dating and while concluding I’ll also look at pros and cons of online dating. The rise use of dating sites has been driven by several trends in society. One of these is that people now move around more often for work, distancing themselves from friends and family members who could play matchmakers. Another is that they are living longer, and hence more likely o look for new love later in life. The spread of fast broadband connectivity in many countries has also encouraged people to dabble in online dating. My study is relevant as it is a qualitative research of the online behavior of my subject. It is not based on past trend and neither has it predicted future. It is just an analysis of current dating scenario and how it is taken to real world. Limitation of the study: My research is limited in several ways. First in this dissertation i used a convenience sample that is very small in comparison to vast user base.With small sample size of 40 subjects for questionnaire method and ten for personal interview, a caution must be applied and result should not be universally applied. This small sample size is the result of lack of time to survey. my research is not designed to evaluate the dating scenario of students but to study how and why they bring it offline. All the subjects are student hence my sample also miss a large chunk of online daters who are employed personals ,married coupl es and people above age 25. due to shortage of time the no of interview taken are also less i. . 10 persons and they are transcribed and quoted in examples. Though care has been taken to inscribe personal biasness but at some point I failed to maintain unbiased opinion. LITERATURE REVIEW: My dissertation topic is â€Å"taking online relationship offline† on this topic not much work is done on Indian context. The articles which help me to clear my basics about this topics are : 1. Online Dating: A Critical Analysis From the Perspective of Psychological Science By: Eli J. Finkel1, Paul W. Eastwick, Benjamin R. Karney, Harry T.Reis ,and Susan Sprecher Northwestern University; Texas A;M University; University of California, Los Angeles; University of Rochester; and Illinois State University This article deals with information analysis and synthesis focusing on finding and drawing conclusion from it. This article study and check the claim of the online dating sites which claims th at online dating sites had promoted better romantic outcomes than conventional dating’s and online dating sites are fundamentally different from conventional dating sites.This article start with the history of dating in world and how society the arranged marriages still prevalent in parts of Southeast Asia where two individuals are bought together by the intervention of the third person/party who had a relatively broader social network and power to apply judgments. (Ahuvia ;Adelman,1992) It explain that how with the presence of these three elements online dating are superior to conventional form of dating by a. access to potential romantic partners b. communication with potential romantic partners c. atching with compatible romantic partners The overarching goal of this article is to draw upon the accumulated scientific literature on romantic relationships and other psychological phenomena to evaluate (a) whether online dating represents a fundamental rather than an increment al shift in the process of relationship initiation (the uniqueness question) and (b) whether online dating yields better romantic outcomes than does conventional offline dating (the superiority question). this article had outlined the development of dating leading to development of online dating.This historic trend line help us to understand the development of dating and importance of third party intervention. it also explain the changing view of mass about online dating earlier as it was seen something attempted by people who can’t date in real world and were assumed as ‘nerd’ ‘the desperates†and the socially inept (Goodwin, 1990; Orr, 2004; Smaill, 2004;Whitty ; Carr, 2006; Wildermuth ; Vogl-Bauer, 2007). as it was observed that early adapter of this technology â€Å"a little on the shy side or a little on the sleazy side† (Orr, 2004, p. 29). his article had studied slow and steady early growth of online dating and how it get stigmatized befo re but today enjoying its boom days. secondly it deals with the fact that Has online dating fundamentally altered the romantic acquaintance process? this article deals with famous nine step as follows: This article also deals with the issues that how online dating provides superior access, communication and matching then conventional dating. it finally draw the conclusion that Online dating offers access to potential partners whom people would be unlikely to meet through other avenues, and this access yields new romantic possibilities.On the other hand, the heavy emphasis on profile browsing at most dating sites has considerable downsides, and there is little reason to believe that current compatibility algorithms are especially effective. Online dating functions best to the degree that it introduces people to potential partners they would have been unlikely to encounter otherwise and facilitates a rapid transition to face-to-face interaction, where the two people can get a clearer sense of their romantic potential.Though this reading provide guidance to start this dissertation but it do lack in few aspects as it only cover the spatial and cultural settings of western world (America) this article do not deal with the situations and the reasons stating how online relations survive in offline world. But in a nut shell this article had helped in finding that Online dating is now the easiest way to meet other people who are looking to date or looking for a potential relationship.In addition, some key reasons as to why people like online dating are: * Online dating allows people to cast a wider â€Å"dating net† in search for a â€Å"perfect† potential long-term partner or soul-mate. * Online dating allows busy people to better organize and plan their dating life. * Online dating gives shy people a voice since it’s easier for shy people to initially communicate while behind a computer monitor. * Online dating allows people to see if there is ch emistry before going out on a date. Online dating allows people to filter matches, being able to better sort the type of person they want to date based on religion, interests, political beliefs, etc. * Online dating is the way to date now. Everyone knows a couple who met via online dating and people are no longer ashamed to admit that they met online. Other articals like , paper presented at the Identities in Action conference, Mikael Jakobsson and Victoria Popdan (1999) adopt an auto-ethnographic approach, reflecting on the online interaction that resulted in the development of the friendship between the two authors.Looking mainly at discourse conducted through the graphical chat systems of â€Å"Active Worlds† and â€Å"The Palace†, the study addresses two main areas. Primarily, Jakobsson and Popdan examine the more conventional concerns of the portrayal and perception of identity in a text-based reality concluding, rather generally, that some aspects of personality are emphasized whilst others are de-emphasized. They also argue that rather than encouraging identity play, the barrier of online communication encouraged the participants of their study to behave more openly, to more confidently express their â€Å"true elves†. In this way, the authors observe that the technology offered for online communication can serve as â€Å"A mask that shields the person behind it and in this way tends to make the person more open†¦the saying that ‘the mask does not hide, it reveals’ captures this phenomenon very well. † (Jakobsson and Popdan 1999: 5). Result: After completing my survey and by employing statistical techniques manage to draw larger picture of Indian dating scenario represented by my subjects. I had compiled all my results in single excel sheet thus making is easier to study the data.The questionnaire and interview was set up to validate my objectives of the dissertation. Those objectives were: 1. Trace the demo graphic profile of the users of dating sites? 2. To examine if these spaces supplement real spaces for meeting and dating 3. To identify the sites where they would like to meet in person. 4. Do they find it safe to use it and why? To find answer of these objectives I had divided my questionnaire into sub parts 1. Trace the demographic profile of the users of dating sites? The survey is done from the sample size of 40 people twenty male and twenty females.Mostly in there college. With age group of 20-25. The relationship status of the user is kept into consideration and it is found that: Relationship Status Relationship Status Source: survey result from questionnaire. Source: survey result from questionnaire. The work profile of all the subjects is same. They all are students. I had tried to find out why this subject group uses online dating. I survey this by giving them multiple choice questions to determine why they use these dating sites. In my research I had found out thatI had a lso tried to find out that are people while online dating tried to find if people try to find out their potential partner through regional chat rooms so as to find their date which have physical proximity. It shows result as: Conclusion: My first objective which was to know the demographic profile of the clearly explain the status of randomly picked up sample as * Most of them are below age group of 25 * Females are less actively involved in online dating in comparison to their male counterpart but they are more actively involved in keeping track of their old friends. Their age structure shows that as female are moving towards age upper limit their online dating had decreased. Whereas no such trend is found in male section. May because they are mostly single and get married at older age, hence they are looking for their potential dating partner. * It is seen that mostly male chat in regional chat room so that they find it easier to meet offline whereas majority of girls do not use r egional chat room may be because they want to avoid meeting someone they knew and try to keep anonymity. It is also evident from the data that male generally hit chartrooms because they find it easy to express themselves in cyberspace. For example, a male who is conventionally macho in the offline world may more easily drop his bravado in an online environment or vice versa. This may occur partly because the technology mediates discourse and removes the immediacy of peer group judgment, diminishing the pressure for the individual to conform in socially set manners. Males also use online dating to make new online friends rather than tracing the old friends which is more prominent in females. Anonymity attract female more than the male may be it is because our social structure don’t give girls space and freedom to express themselves and to date the person they like without being judged. * Females had also use online dating to meet new persons but lesser then males. This result shows that our society’s social constrain are loosen up in this cyber space. Participants by utilizing the character-based nature of this cyber world to express qualities and physical attributes that they feel they lack in the offline world.Objective two: To examine if these spaces supplement real spaces for meeting and dating Even in current scenario in India it is difficult to approach a stranger in a cafe or club and extend a hand for friendship or to start conversation with pick up line like ‘hey can we be friends? ’ this situation help in emergence of this online dating. In my questionnaire I had tried to find out that is this hypothesis is true or not. In my studies I had found out that 17 girls out of 20 found is easier to socialize in cyber space where as 14 admitted that they had seriously tried dating through these sites. n boys this result are even more positive. Traditionally in India dating is some phenomena which is carried forward by third parties- religious leaders, parents, elderly women and so forth for centauries but they work in small scale and generally introduce person they personally knew. But in online dating one can browse one’s profile at any time without one’s awareness. Rather than meeting potential partners and then slowly learning various facts about them, Users of online dating sites typically learn a broad range of facts about potential partners (and vice versa) before deciding whether a first meeting is desirable.Access to potential partners, tools to communicate with them and to judge the compatibility of potential partner are the service that definitely mark online dating superior to real dating. This online dating space provides chat rooms where people can chat, share pictures videos, play games and can do other loads of things. Though real space also provide us these facilities but they are different in few means. In real world if we go out for date then firstly it will become public affair and in countries like India it is not looked up nicely.Secondly, from male point of view online dating save their expenditure which can be incurred on first dates. From my interview and surveyed data , I had seen that most of the subjects had tried dating online and above fifty percent of them had met offline. People also share personal information’s and issues online as they feel more safer, confident and as the idea of being judged or mis judge is absent. Example: why you use online dating? Ram:† as I can choose any one from the lot according to my mood,if someone is annoying me I can instantly block her profile .I can chat about many topics without being judged and the best part is that it’s my little secret and I can chat with new girls without even getting in knowledge of my parents and my girlfriend. while online dating I can easily hide my negative aspects I can choosen to sound boring or basketball player and even act like total freak or flirt. † Ra jiv: â€Å"I use online dating as I can do it from my home place at my comfort and at my time. I am free to express as I like and act anyway. I entertain myself, increase my social circle and that too without getting out of my comfort zone . hatting apps had helped a lot in making me addicted to it. aaj kal k anoroid mobile apps. Ne to bore hone ka option he nahi chodha. i just love being online all day in chat rooms. flirting and chatting as feel like† From the above interview transcribe we can incur that online space had supplement offline meeting and dating but it has its other side too. From my survey I had also recorded the fact that most of the people dating online are not serious for relationships. Fake identities, spam pages, frauds id’s are very prominent. ource: http://www. cartoonstock. com/stylesheet. css online predators. Case one: Interviewer: did you ever chatted from fake id and why? Alfa_male :† yes I did it many times I m a girl age 23 but I lik e to chat by posing as male. mazza ata hai ladke ban k girls se baat karne mai alag sa and best part to tab hota hai jab she started taking it seriously its very good prank to play on. † source: http://www. cartoonstock. com/stylesheet. css profile pictures also create dillusions. Case two: Interviewer: had you ever came across any fake profile?Sarita: â€Å"ek baar ek ladke se mai milne gayi usse mai facebook pe milli thee,jab usse mall mai dekha I was soo shocked he weight almost 100kg and height was about 5 feet, I don’t want to judge someone on physical criteria but all his pic in Facebook were either close ups or in large group thus making it entirely different person. From that day I had decided that I would never meet someone in person. † There are people who think that it’s fine to date online for fun but we should not get into serious relationships as most of the time people who are dating are not serious.And if we had find the perfect match then we should take it offline as soon as possible. it is noticed that although users can go directly from dating-site-mediated communication to a face-to-face meeting (e. g. , by scheduling a date through the dating site instant messaging system), most users engage in communication outside of the dating site, frequently via personal e-mail accounts, before deciding to meet face-to-face (Day, Hamilton, Hutchins, Maher, ; Vance,2010). Most of the datings that progress to the mutual mediated communication stage meet face-to-face within a month, frequently within a week (Rosen et al. 2008; Whitty, 2008). Conclusion: It is observed in my study that girls prefer online dating over conventional dating for following reasons: * Ignoring an unwanted date request typically would be considered rude in a face-to-face context, but the relative anonymity at this stage of the online dating process renders it a common and frequently inoffensive strategy, along with the use of impersonal, scripted  "no thanks† messages generated by the site (Tong ; Walther, 2011). * Even if in later stage they find someone annoying they can simply remove them. * Have control over their cyber life and identity. Boys also prefer online dating as they have loads of option to choose from. On the basis of my survey I can conclude that do online dating space had enormous potential to supplement real spaces for meeting and dating. These sites in some cases do supplement real spaces for dating as they provide a platform which is safe ,offer anonymity and choices with the comfort of home place but it is also quite a time-consuming and often frustrating activity as dating sites are swarmed up with fake profiles ,bots ,spams ,frauds . Majority of the users said that they hate fake profiles in dating sites.As it is very disappointing to find that all we know about a person in offline space is lie. 40% of the people feel that people are not serious in online dating may be because they have lot of pro file to choose from and their behavior is subjugated by none. One of the biggest dangers of meeting someone online and then pursuing a real-time relationship with them is the fact that the Internet provides a false sense of security. By spending time getting to know someone via email or IM, you might let your guard down more quickly and divulge more personal information than you would in person.In addition, while you are being deeply open and honest, you have no way of knowing that the other person is really who he claims to be. Abundance of dating sites has a dark side. People intuitively think that having more choices will increase the probability of finding a â€Å"better† or â€Å"best† option, but they often find it hard to make any selection at all when faced with too many choices Safety is also an important issue in online dating. Online stalker, frauds, scammers are common concern of online daters.Some people on dating websites try to get to know people on an i ntimate level for the sole purpose of trying to get money from them, pretending they are having a hard time financially or saying they need the funds to schedule a visit. The intimate information you share online, whether photos, sexual practices or any other sensitive matter, can come back to haunt you. The legal system, unfortunately, does not provide much in the way of remedies for online defamation and the Internet has a permanent memory. Even your efforts to protect your own reputation can backfire on you. It pays to be very careful about what you disclose.All such are the reasons why these sites cannot replace real spaces for dating. But can act as a catalyst to supplement dating in real spaces. Initially online scape do provide safe platform to initiate dating with unknown personals who can be our friends. Objective 3: To identify the sites where they would like to meet in person. This objective aims to find out the real tangible spaces and sites where people want to meet whe n they take their online relationships offline. . Online dating has become a very big part of our society in the last few years, and it seems to have taken the place of meeting people in bars.The biggest part to the online dating process is actually meeting a person face to face for the first time. This can be a little nerve-racking and exciting, as it may put you way out of your comfort zone. It is a big decision to decide about the place where one wants to meet other in the real space. As after the secure platform of cyber space where one is going to finally meet people in person. Well it really depends upon the comfort level of that person. There communication online or on phone helps to select best place. Generally it is a place with quite ambience with comfort to communicate freely in public place.In my survey I had tried to find out such places where people generally tend to meet up for their first date. And after what window period they find it comfortable to meet. Survey res ult: Source: surveyed data It is quite visible that choice of sites for meeting first time is quite different between both the sexes. Girls want to opt for the places which are quite but public like coffee shops or movie whereas boys like to go to places where they can indulge in activities os places which are full of action so as to work as ice breaker. ource: http://www. cartoonstock. com/stylesheet. css In my survey I had found that more of male are interested in taking online dates offline and generally to place or the places of their interest. I had also noticed that seventy percent of girls believe in window period before meeting online or even before changing with option of blocking phone no to avoid taking to a person has encouraged women to exchange phone number and hence they talk over phone for a long period before meeting offline. Objective 4: Do they find it safe to use it and whyFirst dates are always fraught with anxiety, particularly blind dates of any kind. Meeting an online friend face-to-face does qualify as a first date, although you have technically been getting to know them or mildly flirting for a while. As you are already nervous, anxious, and excited about meeting this person for the first time. Depending on the time you have vested in getting to know each other online and/or over the phone it depend if people find it safe to use it. According to my survey: Percentage of subjects finding it safe to meet online. Source: surveyed dataAnd when the question is asked for the reason to feel safe online dating the reply are: Ques: why feel safe in online dating? Source: surveyed data Analysis: as the question of online safety arise girls are more concern about it and even more to be confident about the fact they have power and control to choice, reject and block any one they feel like. They also enjoy the quality of anonymity which internet offers but not as much as males do. The factor of online dating sites that they provide us tool of crea ting identity. We can pose, we can act, and we can fake all these options are soo available.This tool is more used and preferred by females then by males as female identity are generally molded and bended in our society. But internet provide them freedom to explore any aspect of their identity. Interviewed reply: Interviewer: why you feel safe to date online and then bring it on real space? Arti: online dating k bahut benefits hai ek toh nobody knows about it so I can chat to anyone I like secondly its soo safe you can easily share anything, here I have the power to provide or deny access to my profile,jab lage risky ho raha hai sab then I can easily quit bas fir profile name changed and I can chat again. Asma : â€Å"arey here I have block option always open. If someone irritate me I just block his access to my profile. Even if I want to meet that person online e then I can cross check his profile on social networking sites as people generally don’t lie over them and when i t came to dating and meeting I just follow my instinct and normal safety code, will meet him in public place within the knowledge of my friends or family on my turf so if anything wrong happen I can quickly use fire exits† Feeling safe online is one of the illusion which internet provide us.In this cyberspace we tend to drop our inhibitions, fear, anxiety, code of conduct and tend to share our personal information. We should to that as it is seen that many times these small peek in our personal real life or our avatars can lead to serious damage to our reputation in real world later in our life. Internet had great memory it never forget anything. source: http://www. cartoonstock. com/stylesheet. css Profile which you have created years back in your teen can cause bad affect in your future life. It can range from ids like [email  protected] co. n or may be some pics of pajama party or may be some dark sites you had googled in past but by mistake you get tagged in it. Cases of online stalking , With 81% adults in India sharing information online once a week, inter personal communication have taken a beating. Intel Corporation’s study, titled Mobile Etiquette revealed a perception of ‘oversharing’ with at least six out of ten adults and teens saying they believe other people divulge too much personal information online. Nearly 44% respondents admitted that they were embarrassed by or regretted something they have shared online. ource: http://www. cartoonstock. com/stylesheet. css online dating is a safe option or not is an argument yet to be resolved but it is been noticed that with limited information on display and by using basic guidelines about online dating we can avoid the pitfalls of the online dating. The online dating world gives you more options, but finding a date online also presents safety hazards. While many members of the online dating sites are honest and well intentioned, others prey on women or don’t present th emselves honestly. There are guys who will think that this is the perfect ption to fix a date with women and then take advantage of her. You need to be careful. There is no scarcity of perverts out there. Even worse, there can be guys who are pretending to be someone they are not. Conclusion: According to the BBC World Service global poll that surveyed close to 11,000 Internet users in 19 countries, India and Pakistan have some of the largest numbers of enthusiasts for online dating. 59 per cent of Indians and 60 per cent of Pakistanis use the Internet to find a potential partner. Online dating saves time and money; it lets you hide your identity and thereby provides safety.As compared to the old and traditional way of finding a mate, online dating is much better and lets you communicate with somebody sitting on the other end of the globe. My thesis as aimed to trace the way how online dating’s are taken offline by Indian youth. my findings shows that most of the people who d ate are single as female move into relationship or marriage their dating activity decreases but male do not show any such trend. Female use dating to be in contact with their friends but male do it to find someone new to date online.These dating actually cannot replace the real dating place but they do supplement real dating space in many ways as if online relation hit the real road then it tends to be successful. These dating sites help in finding people of similar interest, same location , religion or traits easily as online dating provides choice. But this factor also has its bad side attached to it. Abundance has a dark side. People intuitively think that having more choices will increase the probability of finding a â€Å"better† or â€Å"best† option, but they often find it hard to make any selection at all when faced with too many choices.This phenomenon is called â€Å"choice overload. † This abundance may also result in believing one has essentially inf inite possibilities, which may lead some people to question or devalue their current partner. This is called â€Å"trading up,† and may lead to treating one’s dates as commodities. It is inevitable that, in every relationship, there will come a moment of disillusionment. Having an array of potential partners may discourage any sustained effort to resolve conflicts. Though these dating sites sometimes pose as if they had made dating a fun not a serious affair.Some people find that exchange of information online is not safe and majority things that online dating is easy and safe way to express, as with the help of anonymity trait online dating had become a good choice for Indian youth as they want this dating stuff to be kept as secret as it is still not socially admitted. I had found out that dating online is acting as safer option to date but fake profiles ,spams ,online fraud cases had limited the way in which they want to date. These obstacles make dating bit dangero us as it can cause financial, emotional loss together with bad effect on reputation.It is also seen that sites the people decided to meet offline also varies. Girls tend to opt for public places but with quite ambience. So as to feel safe but also to have enough privacy to initiate conversation. Whereas boys opt for restaurant, movies, disc or lounges as they are not much good in initiating conversation they use such places in defense to speak less and enjoy the company. Some of them give reasons that such places give an comfort zone so act as a ice breaker. Girls avoid disc or lounges for first date as they believe to keep it as simple as possible so as to find it easy if date doesn’t go smooth.They like places like coffee shop or restaurant to keep its duration small. Though online dating has many pros to use it ,it also have its part of pitfalls: When you provide information about yourself online, you inevitably take certain risks. Online dating, perhaps because it speaks to our fondest hopes, opens the door to certain vulnerabilities. It can deceive; can offend you sexually, emotionally or financially. But in end it is just a way to find potential partner now its up to us to follow our instinct and use it tool to help ourself in search of true love.. As said by one of my subject: I believe in love at first site.. XO XO