...13 January 2014 Last updated at 15:16 ET Share this pageEmail Print Share this page ShareFacebookTwitter.Panama Canal expansion project: Have American fears come true? Comments (31) By Thomas Sparrow BBC Mundo, Washington The US has a lot riding on a successful expansion of the Panama canal Continue reading the main story Related Stories Row threatens Panama Canal expansion Nicaragua canal construction delayed Panama profile More than four years ago, when Panama awarded the lucrative contract to expand its inter-oceanic canal to a mostly European consortium, the United States was not pleased. An American company whose bid was unsuccessful, Bechtel, thought the winning tender would barely pay for pouring the concrete and that the consortium would probably try to renegotiate the price at some stage during the construction process. Some might argue that those American doubts have been justified, especially in view of the ongoing economic row between the European consortium and the Panamanian government agency that runs the waterway. The spat has threatened to bring work to a grinding halt, unless the two parties manage to resolve a $1.6bn (£1bn) dispute over cost overruns. A series of WikiLeaks cables from the US embassy in Panama that were revealed by the Spanish daily newspaper El Pais in 2010 provided an inside view of the frustration that was felt in the US at not having been able to get that contract. Bechtel had been strongly backed by the...
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...of European countries. The Monroe Doctrine of 1823 asserted the United State’s position by warning European powers against any further attempts to colonize lands in the Western Hemisphere. The American continents are henceforth not to be considered as subjects for future colonization by any European power. With the economic growth of Latin America and the Pacific the United States began to see the need for a more efficient and secure route to the east coast. The Isthmus of Panama was identified as that route and...
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...Viewpoint William T. Love – who made the man-made canal that he envisions linking the Niagara River to Lake Ontario, providing water and hydroelectric power for a model industrial city. Time Frame: Between 1942 and 1953 Hooker Chemical disposed of about 22,000 tons of mixed chemical wastes into the Love Canal. Background of the case Near the end of the nineteenth century, after America was once again a unified country, the entrepreneurial pioneers looked towards shipping. Many canals, such as the C&O and Erie Canals, unified American waterways to provide an efficient shipping system. In 1894, venture capitalist William Love envisioned a "power canal" (the purpose of which was to supply cheap hydroelectric power) in the Niagara Falls region of New York State. Construction began on Love's vision, but soon a depression hit the nation, and Love was left with no investors and little more than an empty ditch. "Love Canal"--as the hole became affectionately known by the local townspeople-- became a swimming hole in the summer, and an ice skating rink in the winter. This attitude towards the canal was to end by the mid-1900's. In 1942, Hooker Chemical and Plastics Corporation negotiated a deal with the current title-holders of the land, the power company, whereby the Corporation was allowed to dump any wastes into the canal. Hooker finally bought out the land, and its surroundings, in 1947. To the company's defense, [the chemicals were dug into impermeable clay soil [oec]...
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...What major prerequisites allowed the industrial revolution to begin in Britain? Somewhere between 1740 and 1780, Britain experienced a series of rapid economic and social changes. This was to be the beginning of the Industrial revolution. Whilst this revolution would spread to other major countries around the world, it is undeniable that it all started off in Britain. There are many reasons for this, and it is important to note that there was nothing particularly unique about Britain in comparison with the rest of Europe, it was simply a combination of factors came together at the right time for Britain and allowed it to gain a head start in its own industrial revolution. One of the reasons why Britain’s industrial revolution began first actually has a large element of luck involved. Britain was very fortunate in that it had a large amount of natural resources, especially coal, that could be mined. This meant that Britain did not have to rely on foreign trade in order to manufacture their own goods, they could simply mine it for themselves. Iron was another natural resource that Britain was lucky to have in abundance. Both coal and iron would prove to be crucial in the construction of railways, which were vital for transporting resources, goods and people around the country at a much faster rate than had previously been possible. Coal and iron would also be required to build and, subsequently, fuel the factory machines that would manufacture all of Britain’s industrial goods...
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...Bangkok Dangerous Zone Bangkok is a capital city of Thailand and very famous city for tourists all around the world. More than ten million tourists from many places around the world spend a lot of their time and money in Bangkok each year. However, there are many negative articles from tourists who used to visit Bangkok. They were complained about the security in their life, pollution in Bangkok, and protest. As a Thai citizen, I agree with them because I am the one who faced with those problems before. There are three main parts that I think it is correct to say that Bangkok is a dangerous zone, which are security in their life, pollution, and protest. When we want to travel somewhere, we always look at the previous information from Internet or another source as a guide. We need to be sure about many things before we are going to be there. In addition, a security in traveling or stay there is one of the most important to be decided whether to go or not. As many tourists were mentioned about this, so I would like to amplify in more details about this kind of thing also. In Bangkok, we will face with a low quality of transportation services. Once the tourists reach to airport, they do not have enough information to go to their destination in a blink of an eye. They will face with a fake taxi that will charge them with an unreasonable price or rob and rape them if possible.—this situation is real. Moreover, in Bangkok has many type of transportation that will give them a cause...
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...plow would be strapped to a mule or horse. The horse or mule would pull the plow along which allow to create the rows. It allow farmers to plow their fields a lot faster and easier. The rows would be straight and spaced out from each other. Then they would use a seed drill after they had plow the fields. It would a drill a hole and planted a seed. This method was very beneficial because it help allow more plants to be planted and less seeds to be wasted. Canals were another great invention by the ancient Chinese. It would allow boats to get through the cities very easily. The canals was a water system dug by the farmers. It made travel and trade easier for the boats. In the canals, the canal pound lock was helpful for the boats. It had two walls in the canals and the walls could be raised up. The boat would sail in through the first wall. Then the first wall would be shut and then the second wall would slowly raise up. This would allow water level to equal out so the boats could safely sail through. The bridges over the canal were made with arches. Ancient China made the concept of the arch. The arch allow for bridges to be stronger and...
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...Imagine a world in which all the rivers are connected to each other. There are many rivers and they each have their own source, and they have tides and currents that come in and go out. The waters of the rivers mix and merge to such extent that the temperature and fish populations are pretty much the same no matter where you go. The people of the world use the rivers for food, water, recreation, power and transport. They go upstream and they go downstream, they build damns, boats, and irrigation systems. You can think of Globalization as this entire system of rivers, structures, people, products, ideas, and all the processes that help or hinder the mixing of the metaphoric 'waters'. Two major aspect of globalization are; grobalization and glocalization. We can use the analogy of the rivers to explore these aspects. Imagine a world in which there are only a handful of very large mountains. These mountains are the sources of water for most of the world. The water that begins in their peaks has a very powerful current as it flows in a downward motion to the rest of the world. At first in mighty rivers that are so strong they have washed out smaller mountains in their path, they have toppled water reservoir towers and engulfed lakes and eventually come together into just one mega river that reaches entirely around the world. This river then branches out into all reaches of all the lands so that there are very few places to get water other than from this mega river. Now...
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...Manmade Wonder of the World. The building of the Panama Canal was one of the most grandiose and dramatic American ventures of all times. A shipping gateway between Central and South America had been a desire from the 1600’s, first attempted by the French in the 1880s and later completed by United States in 1914, under the direction of Theodore Roosevelt. U.S. intervention with the Panama Canal brought an end of a revolution and the birth of a new nation, the Republic of Panama, and creation of one of biggest strategic advantages that truly brought the U.S. Navy into the next century as a growing superpower. The canal was the largest and most expensive project ever attempted up to that date in U.S. history and easily changed the face of the western hemisphere, if not the world. A quick, easy and safe passage for merchant ships and navies to pass between the Pacific and Atlantic oceans had been a desire of many since early 17th century. Study after study was conducted and focused on Panama, which was a part of Colombia; Nicaragua and the Isthmus of Tehuantepec in Mexico. Regardless of the desire or need, early plans were often abandoned because the undertaking was near impossible and government politics often made negotiations more difficult. The French were the first nation to attempt the project and were confident of success after building the Suez Canal in Egypt. In 1876, the Interoceanic Canal Commission was created to head up the project and placed in the...
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...The Panama Canal: From Yesterday to Tomorrow By Clarence Moore North Lake College Introduction to Business Logistics LGMT-1319-73471 Professor Jeffrey Wendt April 2013 When the first European, Rodrigo de Bastidas, reached Panama in 1501, he could hardly envision the magnitude of the Isthmus’ future. As more Spanish caravels arrived, the search for gold was intensified. A shortened route from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean was not found by Magellan, who conceived of going around Cape Horn or passing through the Straits that were to bear his name. When sea routes were found to be to long the Spaniards turned to overland crossings, and when Vasco Nunez de Balboa first crossed the Isthmus of Panama in 1513, he initiated a ceaseless march of traffic. Panamanians are still proud of the curious Balboa who discovered the Pacific, surveyed the Panama route across the Central America Isthmus and found that there existed a difference in the levels of the respective oceans. The Conquistador Herman Cortes was certain that no natural waterway existed between the Atlantic and the Pacific, and he expressed a desire to construct a sea passageway through Panama, Darien, Nicaragua, or Tehmantepec. The dreams of the foresighted Cortes went for naught as it was almost three centuries before serious consideration was again given to the construction of an interocean waterway (Liss). From the beginning of the sixteenth century until the beginning...
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...Morrison are somewhat valid, but I think that the second expression is more accurate. Of course, building a canal is a difficult thing in itself that required: precise measurement taking, leveling, and calculations; adequate tools and technology; access to appropriate materials; and hardworking, intelligent, obedient, and detail oriented workers. With all of those things the canals would have been more successful like in other countries that had been canal building for decades. These men didn’t have any of those things to begin with and even after obtaining help of a notable English engineer with experience and the correct tools and materials, there were still issues sue to the men themselves. The Middlesex...
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...The Panama Canal is a canal that leads from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean. Lots of people thought about digging a tunnel from one end to the other. It was potential land for this but the technology wasn’t there yet and no one had the money for it. After some time, technology rose and France started the first attempt at the digging of the Panama Canal. This canal would be dug out at sea-level and go through the narrow bridge between North and South America. About halfway through the project, and a lot of digging was done, France noticed the canal was not going to work and it was a failure. Their machines did not cut through the rocky terrain, they were running out of money very quickly, and most men were getting diseases like...
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...The Suez Crisis During the 1950’s, Britain’s rule over Egypt led them to gain joint control over the Suez Canal with the French. However, many Egyptians were tired of Britain’s presence because they felt as if they were second class citizens in their own country. This led to Egypt’s military beginning to pressure Britain’s armies, located in the Canal Zone, so they would leave. Not only were attacks made on the British, but also on Israeli troops along the border between the two countries. Years later, this long and negative history between the nations would eventually lead to the joint decision for Israel, Britain, and France to attack Egypt when Colonel Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalized the Suez Canal in July 1956. As a result, the Suez Crisis ensued. During the course of this paper, I will argue that the Suez Crisis had a greater impact on Britain and Frances’ power as colonizing countries as it exposed significant military weaknesses. I will first discuss in further detail what the Suez Crisis was. Then I will explain the different measures that were taken to maintain peace amongst the nations involved. Lastly, I will discuss the different outcomes Egypt, Britain, France, and Israel faced. When Colonel Nasser replaced General Neguib in 1954 he had three main goals for Egypt. These included: making Egypt independent by ending British occupation, building up the Egyptian forces for an effective attack on Israel, and building the economy by constructing a dam at...
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...PROJECT PART 1. EXPLORATION OF RISK: CONSTRUCTION OF THE THIRD SHIPPING LANE THROUGH THE PANAMA CANAL Presented to: R. Hiles PM595 Prepared by: Carlton D. Clyburn Jr. OCTOBER 2012 TABLE OF CONTENTS I. Introduction 3 II. Exploration of Risks 4 III. Fault Trees 4 a. Fault Tree: Project Completion Delay 5 b. Fault Tree: Changes in Cost Projections (Overruns) 6 IV. Conclusion 7 V. References 8 Introduction Construction of a third shipping lane through the Panama Canal has begun and it is a collaboration of contractors and manufacturers from around the globe working in unison to exacting concrete and design specifications. The Panama Canal’s third lane expansion involves building enormous new locks that will accommodate the new generation of shipping vessels that are about three times the size of “Panamax” ships constructed to fit precisely in the existing canal’s lock chambers. According to the vessel glossary of the World Trade Ref, the Panamax is defined as: “An ocean-going cargo vessel of the maximum size possible to pass through the locks of the Panama Canal, which are 1000ft long by 110ft wide and 85ft deep. These vessels are typically of 50,000 to 80,000 dwt, 965ft (290m) in length; 106ft. (32.3m) beam; and 39.5ft (12.04m) draft.” The new locks on the Atlantic and Pacific entrances will consist of a trio of chambers measuring 1400ft (427m) long, 180ft (55m)...
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...The definite article - the The definite article The indefinite article Exercises: Articles The definite article - the The definite article the is the same for all genders in singular and in plural. the boy, the girl, the cat, the computers If the following word begins with a vowel, we speak [], if the following word begins with a consonant, we speak []. [] | [] | the following word starts with a spoken consonant | the following word starts with a spoken vowel | the girl | the English girl | the book | the orange book | the school | the old school | the unit Here a [] is pronounced at the beginning of the word. | the uncle Here a [] is pronounced at the beginning of the word. | We have listed some examples in the following table. There you can see when we use the definite article and when we don't. without the definite article | with the definite article | general words (indefinite) | general words (definite) | Life is too short. I like flowers. | I've read a book on the life of Bill Clinton. I like the flowers in your garden. | names of persons on the singular, relatives | family names in the plural | Peter and John live in London. Aunt Mary lives in Los Angeles. | The Smiths live in Chicago. | public buildings, institutions, means of transport (indefinite) | public buildings, institutions, means of transport (definite) | Mandy doesn't like school. We go to school by bus. Some people go to church on Sundays. | The school that Mandy goes...
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...geographic position has been the lifeline of the Panamanian economy since the discovery of the Isthmus of Panama by Rodrigo de Bastidas (Cite). The Isthmus of Panama is the narrow stretch of land that separates the Pacific and the Atlantic oceans. This was controlled along with the rest of the country by Spain until 1821 when they became a part of Columbia. In the year 1903 Panama became an independent republic and it established its modern governmental system. The executive branch of government is led by a President and Vice-President whom are “democratically elected for a five year term by direct vote”(Cite). There are several key elements that keep Panama afloat economically. The most important factor in Panama’s economy is the Panama Canal. This is one of the largest civil engineering projects completed and allowed an alternative to the ever-sought after Northwest Passage. The country has several exports that help the economy but nothing that drives it significantly. There are also many imports that the country has been made available to because of their massive trade route. In addition, there are areas like the Colón Free Trade Zone where increased trade is encouraged and achieved. This paper will discuss these major factors in Panama’s economy as well as more variables that can affect the country in the future. Panama is located at the connection of Central and South America with many lakes and rivers dividing the center of the country. In the early years of Spanish exploration...
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