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Thursday, April 19, 2007

Case study of automobile and changes it has brought about

definition
A self-propelled passenger vehicle that usually has four wheels and an internal-combustion engine, used for land transport.

Case study: United States

Introduction
* Over the years, the automobiles have developed into a type of transport
* cleaner, safer, more reliable and more economical than horses
* some claim the car is a marvel of technology
* while others claim that it lead to serious consequences

effects on social lives
PROS.
* quality of life is better
* automobiles made traveling more comfortable and affordable
* able to travel long distances
* made places more accessible
* with better accessibility, more recreational activities will open up

CONS.
* less communication
* experience stress when they are stuck in traffic jams
* much time is lost
* because of automobiles, people seldom walk to get to their destinations, thus obesity problem has increased significantly

changes in courtship customs and sexual norms
* automobiles used for dating by 1920s
* received complaints about "night riders" who parked their cars along country lanes
* by 1960s, about 40% of marriage proposals took place in them

changes in people's attitudes
* individuality increased for automobiles' owners
* middle-class men prone to delay marriages to save enough money to buy an automobile
* delay in couples having children or having fewer children due to the expenses
* may lead to higher divorce rates
* with automobiles, people can now go wherever they like thus there may be a decrease in church attendance and family outings during weekends

* car is a symbol of social status and prestige as it is a luxury good
* people use it to flaunt wealth
* lead to discrimination towards the lower income people

* as men earn more than women on average, they are able to afford automobiles compared to the women
* women will be despised, they have no status
* leads to gender discrimination

environmental changes
* automobiles are a major source of carbon dioxide
* and carbon dioxide is the main source of global warming
* leads to many serious consequences eg. Rise in water level…
* the construction of more roads increase the consumption of natural resources and also increase air and land pollution
* people will be breathing in exhaust fumes which are bad for health
* with increasing number of automobiles, increases accidental rates

bibliography
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Effects_of_the_automobile_on_societies#Social_status

`simple girl__
|9:33 PM|

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