Performance Management in a Human Resources Framework Essay

Performance Management in a Human Resources Framework Introduction The purpose of this assignment to is to consider Performance Management in a Human Resources Framework. Firstly, the assignment will look at the concept of ‘Human Resources Management’ as a holistic strategic approach to managing the relationship between employer and employee that goes beyond the bounds of mere ‘Personnel Management’. Secondly, in light of the statement from Cooke and Armstrong (1990, cited in Rudman, 2002) that â€Å"Human resources strategies exist to ensure that the culture, values and structure of the organisation and the quality, motivation and commitment of its members contribute fully to the achievement of its objectives† (p. 7), I will examine the extent to which my school’s performance appraisal and professional development policy and practice fit into a human resources framework. Lastly, these examples will be used to identify some of the potential and pitfalls of performance appraisal and professional development for an educational organisation. Human Resources Management – a holistic approach Human resource management (HRM) can be viewed as a holistic approach to managing the relationships in an organisation between the employer and employee. Rudman’s (2002) definition of HRM implies this holistic approach, in that HRM â€Å"covers all the concepts, strategies, policies and practices which organisations use to manage and develop the people who work for them† (p. 3). Several authors (Macky & Johnson 2000; McGraw, 1997; Rudman, 2002; Smith, 1998) acknowledge that HRM is the strategic and coherent approach to the management of an organisation’s most valued assets – the people working there who individually and collectively contribute to the achievement of the objectives of the organisation. The terms ‘human resource management’ (HRM), ‘human resources’ (HR) and even ‘strategic human resource management’ (SHRM) have largely replaced the term â€Å"personnel management† as a description of the processes involved in managing people in organisations during the decades of the 1980s and 1990s (McGraw, 1997; Rudman, 2002). â€Å"People have been making personnel decisions since the earliest of times† (Rudman, 2002, p. 2), however, from a historical perspective, the modern form of personnel management was founded from the time of the industrial revolution on two main beliefs: 1) the employer’s concern for the welfare of its workers, and 2) the organisation’s need for control (Rudman, 2002). Over the last century personnel management evolved through the changing responses between these two beliefs and altered because of influences through scientific management, the industrial welfare and human relations movements , the development of trade unions and collective bargaining, and the growth of employment-related legislation (Rudman, 2002). Today, personnel management is associated with the functional aspects of people in organisations, whereas HRM is associated with the strategic aspects of people in organisations (Rudman, 2002). In practice the distinction between Personnel and Human Resource Management is often blurred because organisations need both function and strategic direction for managing and developing people (McGraw, 1997). Personnel management (PM) is therefore often used to describe the work related with administering policies and procedures for staff appointments, salaries, training and other employer/employee interactions.

Bob Dylan: An Influence for a Generation

â€Å"A person is a success if they get up in the morning and gets to bed at night, and in between dose what he wants to do† –words spoken by the singer/songwriter Bob Dylan. Being a man of success himself, yet a very humble and simple man, changed the way people view musical quality. Dylan was awarded with the number one song in the twentieth century with those lyrics from his masterpiece Like a Rolling Stone, by Rolling Stone Magazine. His poetic words were heard all across the world, inspiring all who heard his voice. Telling tales of political and civil injustice, Dylan’s words brought normal everyday life a new sense of hope through tough times in a person’s life. Discussed will be the early era of Dylan from his unique musical talents during his childhood which drove him to his writing pieces, himself as an inspirational and motivated leader of the 1960’s and how his powerful music makes him one of the most influential musicians of all time. In the beginning, Bob Dylan was born Robert Allan Zimmerman on May 24th, 1941 in Duluth Minnesota (Heatly, 126). Dylan was raised in a middle-class family to his parents Abraham and Beatrice Zimmerman (Martin). His father owned Zimmerman Furniture & Appliance Company in the small town of Duluth, but the family was forced to move to the nearby town of Hibbing after he lost the business due to him becoming ill with polio in 1946 (Kooper). Dylan was raised in Hibbing, Minnesota from the age of seven and lived there for most of his childhood (Heatly, 126). Raised in a small town, Dylan was musically inclined and had a great significance in music at an incredibly young age which brought him to learn many various instruments at the same time. He took piano lessons when first moving to Hibbing, but became impatient with the teacher so decided to quit lessons and began to teach himself how to play piano, guitar and harmonica; without surprisingly knowing how to read music (Martin). With his yearning for music, Dylan was largely influenced by the late-night radio broadcasts of the country, blues and rock-and-roll, during his mid-teens (Heatly, 126). Some of his favorites were the blues musicians, which included Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf and Jimmy Reed (Martin). Dylan’s favorite musical idol was Woody Guthrie, who was a socially-conscious singer/songwriter of â€Å"This Land is Your Land† and several other protest songs (Heatly, 126). Always knowing he wanted to be a musician, Dylan tried to play in many bands as possible during high school and throughout college as well. In 1959, just before enrolling in college, he served a brief stint playing piano for the rising pop star, Bobby Vee (Kooper). With some musical experience, Dylan participated in several high school rock bands while studying at the University of Minnesota with a high interest of American folk music (Heatly 126). While in college, Dylan discovered the bohemian section of Minneapolis know as Dinkytown (Kooper). An after Dylan explored the talent that came out of Dinkytown; Dylan was inspired to quit the University of Minnesota and became a full-time musician. Dylan traveled to the East Coast, playing at several Greenwich Village coffeehouses and was gaining rising fame (Heatly, 126). He went by the phony name of Bob Dylan, which was picked out after the Welsh poet Dylan Thomas. Dylan picked him because he liked many of Thomas’ poems (Kooper). During his travels between coffeehouses, Dylan was determined to meet up with musician Woody Guthrie. Guthrie, who was actually in a New Jersey hospital dying from a neurological disorder called Huntington’s Chorea. Dylan was able to speak to Guthrie, his idol, before he passed away†¦ but never explained in detail of their only and final conversation between each other (Heatly, 126). With his multiple coffeehouse performances, his career took off and still soars to this day. Bob Dylan became a common name and his skills of music and lyrics became widely known; which make you wonder what was said between him and Guthrie? Bob Dylan is a very skillful songwriter, usually expressing his ideas through his well known protest songs. His protest songs often dealt with problems caused by social and political injustice, which include â€Å"Blowin in the Wind and â€Å"The Times They Are A-Changin† (Martin). The Civil Rights Movement took very kindly to Dylan’s songs, so well that they wanted him to be a part of the cause for quality. His best known work of the 1960’s took on a musical shadow so large it shaped into a political influence. It was such a huge influence, the Civil Rights Movement adopted his song â€Å"Blowin in the wind† as their anthem for equality and peace (Ayoub). Dylan accepted his place in the Civil Rights Movement and gathered the attention of the people to the movement. Frequently performing at the Civil Rights rallies in the early 1960’s which included the March on Washington when Martin Luther King gave his â€Å"I Have a Dream† speech on August 28th 1963 (Rathbone). Dylan became a powerful voice to all the working-class people in America during the 1960’s. He had several protest songs that had political content that both reflected and influenced the concerns of a generation of younger people such as the Civil Rights movement, anti-nuclear weapons campaign and the anti-Vietnam War movement (Rathbone). Dylan was a prominent part of the radical change during the 1960’s reform and was greatly recognized for his participation such as receiving the Tom Paine Award by The National Civil Liberties Committee for his contribution and achievements (Rathbone). All throughout Bob Dylan’s musical career, he has created and molded new types of different styles of music together. His inspiration was to intimidate the music of his own music idol, Woody Guthrie. He wanted to be a socially conscious singer/composer just like Guthrie (Heatly, 126). As the times changed, Dylan became a musical chameleon. He was able to conform to the changes in the popularity in music. Dylan’s career started with folk and protest music in the early 1960’s then moved through to electrified folk-rock in the mid and late 1960’s and early 1970’s (Kamin). After the Civil Rights, most fans found Dylan’s folk music more admiring and significant than anything he had ever wrote; popularity formed by creating the raw-sounding combo of vocals, harmonica and guitar. That mixture alone has kept his music career last him forty-seven years (Rathbone). Dylan did not want to stop there; he wanted to evolve into the new generation of music. Dylan cross-pollinated folk and country music with electric rock, creating an entirely new dimension of popular music (Heatly, 126). He liked to mix sounds and experiment different styles to meet his high expectations of creativity. He created the new style called â€Å"folk-rock† mixing his original folk sound but began to play electric guitar to embrace rock-and-roll (Dylan). Some Dylan fans did not approve of his switch but happened to still remained a musical sensation with a wider audience. Dylan and his band also caused an uproar at the Newport Folk Festival in July of 1965, when they began to perform with electric instruments instead of traditional acoustic ones. After being heckled by the crowd, they left the stage after only playing three songs (Martin). Dylan kept his optimism up with his fan-base and continued to play his electric instruments. To win back his fans, â€Å"Like a Rolling Stone† was a United States hit, cementing his reputation as a lyricist but added his new sound among the electrical instruments of guitars and organs (Ayoub). His musical career had its ups and downs, but his fans rolled through his many experimented musical styles. Dylan’s voice and songwriting were still raw but were mixed with the realms of traditional folk, country, blues, rock-and-roll and gospel (Kamin). A Bob Dylan song is more than just a catchy tune to whistle to. Dylan was possibly the most influential singer/songwriters of his era (Dylan). Not only did he create a respectable musical rhythm, his lyrics were his area of expertise. He wrote very poetic and sometimes even abstract but often-philosophical lyrics of astute commentary and therapeutic introspection that spoke to masses during an era of social unrest, political upheaval and radical change (Heatly 126). Dylan had many techniques to keep his audience engaged with his poetic lyrics, by performing his allusive, poetic songs with his nasal spontaneous vocal style and electrical bond. He enlarged pop music’s range and vocabulary while creating a widely limited sound. While accomplishing all of that, he still had the ability to challenge, influence and surprise his listeners (Wenner). In his earlier lyric writings, he focused on the societal issues during his protest era. The songs were broken down into a simple folk melody combined with lyrics questioning the social and political status quo. These songs were very native and unsophisticated in their nature, catching the attention of the zeitgeist of the 1960’s (Ayoub). All of his music was interpreted differently but he reached an elevated standard of lyric writing also the role of the singer/songwriter as well (Heatly, 126). While a fine interpreter of songs, Dylan was not considered a beautiful singer. Many of his own songs when first reaching the public were sung through other artists. Dylan’s fans could get past his singing, only because they were amazed how he could write such wonderful lyrics. Dylan’s music was also more popular though other artist that covered his songs such as Joan Baez, Pete Paul & Mary, Guns n’ Roses, The Byrds and Jimi Hendrix, because adding an able singer to his wonderful lyrics made his music very popular to a wider group of fans (Ayoub). Dylan was hailed the Shakespeare of his generation, due to his intellectualism of classic literature and poetry that showed though his music; even if he was not the artist performing the song (Kooper). It was subsequently common for a band to cover Dylan’s songs in the mid-1960’s, that CBS started to promote him by saying â€Å"Nobody sings Dylan like Dylan. † Whoever sang his songs were immediately recognized as his and a good part of his fame rested not only on his lyrical excellence but on the underlying attitude of Dylan (Ayoub). Even though many artists covered his songs, Dylan had his own techniques to sing his songs. He sang in what he called the â€Å"taking blues† and story-telling format in most of his first few albums such as â€Å"The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan† and â€Å"The times They Are A-Changin† (Dylan). Dylan had many other trademarks and techniques that signified his music. One of his newer types of songs was a lengthy and impressionistic still retaining an element of social commentary but added dense metaphorical landscape like the songs â€Å"Chimes of Freedom† and â€Å"Mr. Tambourine Man. He exhibited his dry wit and inhabited by a sequence of grotesque, metaphorical character (Ayoub). Dylan’s many styles of lyrics have all contributed to his success as a musician. The music Dylan made revolutionized rock, as his lyrics were analyzed, debated, and quoted like no music before him. Dylan chewed up traditional folk and spat out literary and folk traditions still used today (Wenner). Bob Dylan was given a lot of recognition and praise for his achievements and gain throughout his musical career. There are so many musical facets he discovered and always pushed his musical talent to the limit. Not only had Dylan achieve a high musical status, but he is highly looked upon in society for his contribution for the Civil Rights movement. He gave a voice to the working-class to fight for peace and help give a reason for freedom to the minorities. Dylan’s musical talent is beyond any other, as being able to compose his own music and create a whole new genre of music for an ever-changing society of his time. Along with his musical style, his lyrical masterpieces gave his listeners a mass of different trademarks in his lyrics. Every song he has written, all the way from his first protest song to his upbeat electric songs along with his metaphorical and abstract songs, has changed the standard of a singer/songwriter. All throughout his career, Dylan has given a voice to the working people, by creating new genres of music and is the ideal singer/songwriter of the 1960’s. As the ambiguous man he was, he had more questions than answers. At the end of the day, Bob Dylan would always say â€Å"All I can do is be me, whoever that is. † He knew he was a man of radical change, but he did not know he could change the world with a piece of paper, a pencil and a guitar.

The Golden Lily Chapter 22

SHOTS RANG OUT across the arena, taking down several more armed Warriors. I realized that Dimitri and Eddie weren't alone – because neither was holding a gun. The shots were coming from the roofs of the compound buildings that surrounded the arena. Chaos broke out as the gathered spectators jumped to their feet to join in the fray. My breath caught as I realized that many of them had their own weapons too. I was shocked to notice that the fallen Warrior on the ground next to me wasn't bleeding. A small dart hung from his shoulder. The sharpshooters' â€Å"bullets† must have been tranquilizers. Who were they? I looked back toward the entrance and saw that a few others with the look of guardians had entered the arena and were fighting with some of the Warriors, including Chris. This provided cover for Dimitri and Eddie to free Sonya. A flash of strawberry blonde hair caught my eye near them, and I recognized Angeline's lithe figure. Dimitri efficiently cut Sonya's straps then helped lift her toward Eddie. A zealous Warrior came at them, and Angeline quickly knocked him out – as though he were a motivational speaker. Beside me, one of the masters shouted, â€Å"Get the Alchemist girl! Hold her hostage! They'll negotiate for her!† The Alchemist girl. Right. That would be me. In the roar of fighting, hardly anyone heard him – save one. The bleach blonde girl had managed to evade being tranquilized. She leapt toward me. My adrenaline kicked in, and I was suddenly no longer afraid. With reflexes I didn't know I had, I reached into my purse and pulled out the so-called â€Å"potpourri.† I ripped it open and flung it out around me, shouting a Latin incantation that translated roughly to â€Å"see no more.† Compared to the scrying spell, this one was astonishingly easy. It required will on my part, certainly, but most of the magic was tied into the physical components and didn't need the hours of concentration that the other one had. The power surged through me almost instantly, filling me with a thrill I hadn't expected. The girl screamed and dropped her gun, clawing at her eyes. Cries of dismay from the masters sitting by me showed they too had been affected. I'd cast a blindness spell, one that would affect those near me for about thirty seconds. Some part of me knew that wielding magic was wrong, but the rest of me felt triumphant at stopping some of these trigger-happy fanatics, if only temporarily. I didn't waste any of that precious time. I jumped up from where I was sitting and ran across the arena, away from the fighting near the entrance. â€Å"Sydney!† I don't know how I managed to hear my name above all that noise. Glancing behind me, I saw Eddie and Angeline carrying Sonya out through the door. They paused, and a pained look crossed Eddie's face as he glanced around, assessing the situation. I could guess his thoughts. He wanted me to come with them. Most of the gathered Warriors had raced to the center of the arena, trying to stop Sonya's rescue. They outmatched me by a long shot, creating a wall between my friends and me. Even if I didn't have to actually fight anyone, it seemed impossible I'd slip by unnoticed – especially since several people were still shouting about â€Å"that Alchemist girl.† Shaking my head adamantly, I motioned for Eddie to go on without me. Indecision warred on his face, and I hoped he wouldn't attempt to break through the throng to get to me. I pointed at the door, again urging him to go. Sonya was the incapacitated one. I would find my own way out. Not waiting to see what he'd do, I turned and continued the way I'd been going. There was a lot of open space for me to cover, but fewer Warriors to stop me. Several buildings ringed the arena, some with doors and windows. I moved toward them, though I had nothing to break the glass. Two of the doors had padlocks. That left two without. The first one I tried turned out to have some unseen lock and wouldn't open. Frantic, I ran to the second and heard a shout behind me. The bleach blonde girl had regained her sight and was coming after me. Desperately, I turned the doorknob. Nothing happened. Reaching into my purse, I pulled out what the Warriors had mistaken for hand sanitizer. I dumped it out, spilling acid over the metal knob. It melted before my eyes. I hoped that would kill the lock. I threw my shoulder into the door, and it gave. Then I dared a peek behind me. My pursuer was lying on the ground, another victim of the tranquilizers. I breathed a sigh of relief and pushed through the door. I'd expected to enter another garage like the one I'd first been taken to, but instead I found myself in some sort of residential building. The empty hallways turned this way and that, and I felt disoriented. Everyone was at the free-for-all in the arena. I passed makeshift bedrooms, filled with cots and partially unpacked suitcases and backpacks. When I noticed what looked like an office, I hesitated in the doorway. Papers covered large foldout tables inside, and I wondered if any contained useful information about the Warriors. I wanted so badly to go in and investigate. These Warriors were a mystery to the Alchemists. Who knew what intel these papers contained? What if there was information that could protect the Moroi? I hesitated for the space of a few heartbeats then reluctantly kept going. The guardians were using tranquilizers, but the Warriors had real guns – guns they wouldn't be afraid to use on me. Better to get out of here with the information I already had than not get out alive. I reached the far side of the building at last and peered out a bedroom window. It was so dark outside now that I could hardly see anything. I didn't have the benefit of torches anymore. The only thing I could tell for sure was that I was no longer adjacent to the arena. That was good enough for me, though it would've been better if there was a door leading outside. I'd have to make my own. Grabbing a chair, I swung it into the window and was completely astonished when the glass broke easily. A few shards hit me, but nothing large enough to cause injury. Standing on the chair, I managed to climb out the window without injuring my hands. I was met by a warm, dark night. No electric lights were visible ahead, just open black land. I took this to mean I was on the opposite side of the compound where Trey had brought me. There were no roads, no sound from the highway we had traveled. There was also no sign of life anywhere, which I took as a good sign. Hopefully all the Warrior guards who normally paroled the grounds were off fighting guardians. If Sonya was out now, my hope was that the guardians would begin retreating – and grab me along the way. Even if they didn't, I wasn't above walking back to I-10 and hitchhiking. The compound was sprawling and confusing, and as I walked around it and still saw no sign of the highway, I began to grow uneasy. How turned around had I gotten? I only had a limited amount of time to get off Warrior property. They could be hunting me right now. There was also the disconcerting problem that once I made it to the periphery, I'd have to deal with the electric fence. Still, it might be best to forget looking for the freeway and simply make for the edge of the Warriors' camp so that I could – A hand grabbed my shoulder, and I screamed. â€Å"Easy there, Sage. I'm no gun-toting crazy guy. Crazy, yes. But not the rest.† I stared in disbelief, not that I could really make out much of the tall, dark figure standing over me. â€Å"Adrian?† The height was right, as was the build. As I stared, I became more and more certain. His hands steadied my shaking. I was so glad to see a friendly face – to see him – that I nearly sank into his arms in relief. â€Å"It is you. How'd you find me?† â€Å"You're the only human out here with a yellow and purple aura,† he said. â€Å"Makes you easy to spot.† â€Å"No, I mean, how'd you find me here? At the compound?† â€Å"I followed the others. They told me not to, but†¦ well.† In the faint moonlight I could barely see his shrug. â€Å"I don't follow directions well. When Castile came out with Sonya and started babbling about how you'd gone out some random door, I thought I'd take a quick walk around. I don't think I was supposed to do that either, but the guardians were kind of busy.† â€Å"You are crazy,† I snapped, despite how happy I was to know I hadn't been abandoned in this miserable place. â€Å"The Warriors are so mad that they'd probably kill a Moroi on sight if they saw you.† He tugged my hand forward. Even through his banter, there'd been a hard tone to his words. He was fully aware of the danger we faced. â€Å"Then we'd better get out of here.† Adrian led me back in the direction I'd come, then went around the opposite side of the building. I didn't see the freeway lights yet, but he soon turned and began running toward the property's far edge, away from the building. I ran alongside him, still holding his hand. â€Å"Where are we going?† I asked. â€Å"The guardians assembled near the back side of the compound, so they wouldn't be spotted. That part of the fence has been deactivated – if you can climb it.† â€Å"Of course I can climb it. I'm practically a prodigy in PE,† I pointed out. â€Å"The question is, can you, Mr. Smoker?† The fence began to come into focus as we approached, mostly because its shape blocked some of the stars. â€Å"That's the section. Behind the scraggly bush,† Adrian said. I couldn't see any bush but trusted in his eyes. â€Å"Go a little ways past that, and there's this country highway that the guardians used as a staging point. I'm parked there.† We came to a halt in front of the fence, both of us a little breathless. I peered upward. â€Å"You're sure it's still off?† â€Å"It was when we came in,† said Adrian, but I could hear a little uncertainty in his voice. â€Å"You think those guys would have gotten their act together enough to fix it already?† â€Å"No,† I admitted. â€Å"But I'd still like to know for sure. I mean, most commercial electric fences won't significantly hurt someone, but we should know.† He glanced around. â€Å"Can we throw a stick at it?† â€Å"Wood doesn't conduct.† I rifled through my purse and found what I wanted: a metal pen with a foam grip. â€Å"Hopefully, the foam on this will block the worst of it if the fence really is hot.† Trying not to grimace, I reached out and touched the pen's barrel to the fence, half-expecting some intense charge to send me flying backward. Nothing happened. I slowly ran the pen along the fence, since most electric ones had an intermittent pulse. Sustained contact would be needed. â€Å"Looks clean,† I said, exhaling in relief and turning to Adrian. â€Å"I guess we're good to – ahh!† A bright light shone in my eyes, blinding me and killing whatever night vision I'd gained out here. I heard Adrian cry out in surprise as well. â€Å"It's the girl!† a male voice exclaimed. â€Å"And†¦ and one of them!† The flashlight was moved out of my face, and although spots still danced in my vision, I could make out two hulking figures rapidly approaching. Were they armed? My mind raced. Whether they were or not, they were still an obvious threat since Warriors apparently liked to practice bashing each other in their free time, and Adrian and I didn't. â€Å"Don't move,† said one of them. A blade shone in the gleam of the lowered flashlight. Not as bad as a gun, but not great either. â€Å"You're both coming with us, back inside.† â€Å"Slowly,† added the other. â€Å"Don't try any tricks.† Unfortunately for them, I still had a few up my sleeve. Quickly I put the pen back in my purse and grabbed another souvenir from Ms. Terwilliger's homework: a thin, round wooden bracelet. Before either Warrior could do anything, I snapped the wooden circle into four pieces and tossed them on the ground, calling out another Latin incantation. Again, I felt the rush of power and its exultation. The men cried out – I'd cast a disorientation spell, one that messed with equilibrium and made vision blurry and surreal. It worked a lot like the blindness spell, affecting those around me. I lunged forward and pushed one of our assailants down. He fell easily, too incapacitated by the spell to resist. The other guy was so distraught that he'd dropped the flashlight and was practically on the ground already as his attempts at balance failed. Nonetheless, I gave him a good kick to the chest to make sure he stayed down and grabbed his flashlight in the process. I didn't necessarily need it with Adrian's night vision, but these two would now be helpless in the dark when the spell wore off. â€Å"Sage! What the hell did you do to me?† Turning, I saw Adrian clinging to the fence, using it to hold himself up. In my eagerness to stop the Warriors, I'd forgotten the spell affected everyone near me. â€Å"Oh,† I said. â€Å"Sorry.† â€Å"Sorry? My legs don't work!† â€Å"It's your inner ear, actually. Come on. Grab the fence and climb. One hand in front of the other.† I caught hold as well and urged him up. It wasn't the most difficult fence to climb – it wasn't electrified or barbed – and having it for support negated some of Adrian's disorientation. Nonetheless, it was still slow going as we made it toward the top. This spell lasted a little longer than the blindness one, but I was painfully aware that as soon as Adrian was free from it, the Warriors would be too. Against all odds, we made it to the top of the fence. Getting over to the other side was much more difficult, and I had to do a fair amount of acrobatics to help Adrian make the transition while keeping myself steady. Finally, I wrangled him into the correct position to climb down. â€Å"Good,† I said. â€Å"Now just reverse what you did before, one hand down in front of the – † Something slipped, either his hand or foot, and Adrian plummeted to the ground. It wasn't that long of a drop, and his height helped a little – not that he was in any shape to actually use his legs and land on his feet. I winced. â€Å"Or you can just take the short way down,† I said. I quickly scaled down after him and helped him stand. Aside from the spell's debilitation, he didn't seem to have suffered any damage. Slipping an arm around him and letting him lean his weight on me, I attempted to run toward the road he'd mentioned, which was now slightly visible. â€Å"Running† was difficult, however. It was hard work keeping Adrian up and I kept stumbling. Still, we made our way slowly from the compound, which was about as much as we could hope for. Adrian's state made him clumsy and heavy, and his height was a real inconvenience. Then, without warning, the spell wore off, and Adrian instantly recovered. His legs strengthened and his unwieldy gait straightened out. Suddenly, it was as though he were carrying me, and we practically tripped over each other trying to adjust. â€Å"You okay?† I asked, letting go. â€Å"I am now. What the hell was that?† â€Å"It's not important. What is important is that those guys have recovered too. Maybe I knocked them down hard enough to slow them down.† That seemed kind of unlikely. â€Å"But run anyway.† We ran, and even if he undoubtedly had the respiratory system of a chain smoker, his long legs made up for it. He could easily outdistance me but slowed so that we stayed together. Whenever he started to get ahead, he'd grab my hand again. Shouts sounded behind us, and I turned off the flashlight to make us harder to spot. â€Å"There,† said Adrian. â€Å"See the cars?† Slowly, out of the darkness, two SUVs materialized, along with a much more conspicuous yellow Mustang. â€Å"Very covert,† I muttered. â€Å"Most of the guardians have gotten away,† said Adrian. â€Å"But not everyone.† Before I could respond, someone grabbed me from behind. In a maneuver that would have made Wolfe proud, I managed the backward kick that he'd tried so hard to teach us. It caught my attacker by surprise, and he released me, only for his companion to shove me to the ground. Three figures ran toward us from the cars and hurled themselves at our attackers. Thanks to his signature duster, I knew Dimitri led the group. â€Å"Get out of here,† he called to Adrian and me. â€Å"You know where to meet. We'll cover you. Drive fast – they'll probably be on the road soon.† Adrian helped me up, and once again we ran together. I'd hurt my ankle in the fall, so I moved slowly, but Adrian helped me along and let me lean on him. All the while, my heart was threatening to pound out of my chest, even when we reached the safety of the Mustang. He guided me to the passenger side. â€Å"Can you get in okay?† â€Å"I'm fine,† I said, sliding in and unwilling to admit the pain was growing. I prayed I hadn't slowed us too much. I couldn't stand the thought of being the one responsible for Adrian's capture. Satisfied, Adrian raced over to the driver's side and started the car. The engine roared to life, and he followed Dimitri's orders to the letter, peeling out at a speed I was envious of. Out on this country highway, however, it seemed unlikely there were any cops. I glanced behind us a few times, but by the time we made it to I-10, it was obvious no one had followed us. I sighed gratefully and leaned my head against the seat, though I was still a long way from being calm. I couldn't assume we were safe yet. â€Å"Okay,† I said. â€Å"How on earth did you guys find me?† Adrian didn't answer right away. When he did, I could tell it was with great reluctance. â€Å"Eddie put a tracking device in your purse, back at my place.† â€Å"What? He couldn't have! They searched me.† â€Å"Well, I'm sure it didn't look like one. I don't know what he ended up getting. He got it from your people, actually. As soon as Trey confirmed the meeting tonight, Belikov was on the phone with every guardian in a two-hour radius, trying to recruit backup. He called the Alchemists too and convinced them to share some tech.† There were so many crazy things about what he'd just said, I didn't know where to begin parsing it. All sorts of wheeling and dealing had gone on without me realizing it. And even when it had been settled, no one had told me about it. Plus, the Alchemists had been involved? Helping the guardians to track me? â€Å"The earrings,† I said. â€Å"That's where they came from. The tracker must be in one of them. I never would have guessed.† â€Å"I'm not surprised, knowing the way you guys work.† The rest of tonight's reality began to sink in. The last of my fear subsided – only to be replaced by anger. â€Å"You lied to me! All of you! You should have told me what you were doing – that you were tracking me and planning a raid! How could you keep that from me?† He sighed. â€Å"I didn't want to, believe me. I told them over and over they needed to get you in the loop. But everyone was afraid you'd refuse to take the device if you knew about it. Or that you'd somehow slip up and give away the plan to those nuts. I didn't believe that, though.† â€Å"And yet, you didn't bother telling me yourself,† I snapped, still outraged. â€Å"I couldn't! They made me promise not to.† Somehow, his betrayal hurt worse than all the others. I had come to trust him implicitly. How could he do this to me? â€Å"No one believed I'd be able to talk the Warriors down, so everyone just made contingency plans without me.† Never mind that I hadn't been able to talk them down. â€Å"Someone should have told me. You should have told me.† There was legitimate pain and regret in his voice. â€Å"I'm telling you, I wanted to. But I was trapped. You of all people should know what it's like being caught between groups, Sage. Besides, don't you remember what I said just before you got in the car with Trey?† I did, actually. Almost word for word. No matter what happens, I want you to know that I never doubted what you're going to do. It's smart, and it's brave. I slouched further into my seat and felt like I was on the verge of tears. Adrian was right. I did know what it was like to have your loyalty stretched between different groups. I understood the position he'd been in. It was just, some selfish part of me wished that I'd been the one his loyalty had been strongest to. He tried, an inner voice said. He tried to tell you. The meeting spot that Dimitri had told Adrian to go to turned out to be Clarence's house. The place was crawling with guardians, some of whom were patching up each other's injuries. No one had been killed on either side, something the guardians had been very cautious about. The Warriors of Light already thought vampires were twisted and corrupt. They didn't need more fuel added to the fire. Not that tonight's raid was probably going to help matters. I had no clue how the Warriors would react or if there might be some lethal retaliation in store. I supposed the guardians and Alchemists had taken that into consideration. I wondered bitterly if any of them would share their opinions on it with me. â€Å"I know better than to offer to heal you,† Adrian told me, as we squeezed past a group of guardians. â€Å"Grab a seat in the living room, and I'll get you some ice.† I started to say I could get my own, but my ankle was growing increasingly painful. With a nod, I left him and made my way to the living room. A couple of unknown guardians were there, along with a beaming Clarence. To my surprise, Eddie and Angeline were also in there, sitting side by side – and holding hands? â€Å"Sydney!† he exclaimed. He immediately released Angeline's hand and hurried over to me, astonishing me with a hug. â€Å"Thank God you're okay. I hated having to leave you there. That wasn't part of the plan. I was supposed to have gotten you out with Sonya.† â€Å"Yeah, well, maybe next time, someone can fill me in on the plan,† I said pointedly. Eddie grimaced. â€Å"I'm sorry about that. I really am. We just†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"I know, I know. Didn't think I'd go along with it, were afraid something would go wrong, etc., etc.† â€Å"I'm sorry.† I didn't entirely forgive him, but I was too tired to push the matter much further. â€Å"Just tell me this,† I said, lowering my voice. â€Å"Were you just holding hands with Angeline?† He blushed, which seemed ludicrous after the fierceness I'd seen him pull off back at the compound. â€Å"Er, yeah. We were just†¦ talking. I mean, that is†¦ I think we might go out sometime. Not at school, of course, since everyone thinks we're related. And probably not anything serious. I mean, she's still a little out there, but she's not as bad as I used to think. And she was really great in that battle. I feel like maybe I should get my head out of the fantasy with Jill and try some normal dating. If you'll let me borrow your car.† I had to pick my jaw up off the floor. â€Å"Sure,† I said. â€Å"Far be it for me to stop a budding romance.† Should I tell him Jill might not be such a fantasy after all? I didn't want to meddle. Eddie deserved to be happy, but I couldn't help but feel a little bad that I'd told Jill he might be interested. I hope I hadn't made things more complicated. Adrian returned with a bag of ice. I sat down in an armchair, and he helped position the ice on my ankle after I propped it up on a footstool. I relaxed as the ice began numbing the pain and hoped I hadn't broken anything. â€Å"Isn't this exciting?† Clarence asked me. â€Å"Finally, you were able to see the vampire hunters for yourselves!† I wasn't sure I'd describe the night with that much enthusiasm, but I did have to concede a point to him. â€Å"You were right,† I said. â€Å"I'm sorry for not believing you sooner.† He gave me a kind smile. â€Å"It's all right, my dear. I probably wouldn't have believed a crazy old man either.† I smiled in return and then thought of something from earlier. â€Å"Mr. Donahue†¦ you said when you encountered the hunters before that a human named Marcus Finch intervened on your behalf.† Clarence nodded eagerly. â€Å"Yes, yes. Nice young man, that Marcus. Certainly hope I run into him again someday.† â€Å"Was he an Alchemist?† I asked. Seeing Clarence's puzzled look, I tapped my cheek. â€Å"Did he have a tattoo like mine?† â€Å"Like yours? No, no. It was different. Hard to explain.† I leaned forward. â€Å"But he did have a tattoo on his cheek?† â€Å"Yes. Didn't you see in the picture?† â€Å"What picture?† Clarence's gaze turned inward. â€Å"I could've sworn I showed you some of my old pictures, back when Lee and Tamara were young†¦ ah, such good days those were.† I worked hard to stay patient. Clarence's moments of coherence were sometimes hard to get a hold of. â€Å"And Marcus? You have a picture of him too?† â€Å"Of course. A lovely one of the two of us. I'll find it one day and show you.† I wanted to ask him if he'd show it to me now, but with his place so crowded, it didn't seem like the right time. Dimitri arrived shortly thereafter, along with the last of the guardians who'd been at the compound. Dimitri immediately asked about Sonya, who I'd learned was resting in her bedroom. Adrian had offered to heal her, but Sonya had had enough clarity of mind to refuse him, saying she simply wanted blood and rest and a chance for the drugs to wear off naturally. Once Dimitri got this report and could rest easy about Sonya, he came straight to me, looking down from his lofty height at where I sat with my ice. â€Å"I'm sorry,† he said. â€Å"I know you must have heard by now what happened.† â€Å"That I was sent into a dangerous situation with only half the information I needed?† I asked. â€Å"Yeah, I heard all about that.† â€Å"I'm not a fan of lies and half truths,† he said. â€Å"I wished there'd been another way. We had so little time, and this just seemed like the best option. No one doubted your ability to reason and make a compelling case. It was the Warriors' ability to listen and see reason that we didn't believe in.† â€Å"I can see why you guys didn't trust me with the plan.† Near me, I saw Adrian flinch at the way I said â€Å"you guys.† I hadn't intentionally meant anything by it but realized now that it sounded very condescending and Alchemist – so Us versus Them. â€Å"But I still can't believe the Alchemists went along with that – that they condoned keeping me out of the loop.† There were no free chairs left, so Dimitri simply sat down cross-legged. â€Å"There's not much I can tell you about that. Like I said, it was all short notice, and when I spoke with Donna Stanton, she felt it would be safer all around if you didn't know what was coming. If it makes you feel better, she was very adamant about us keeping you safe once we were there.† â€Å"Maybe,† I said. â€Å"It'd be better still if she'd thought about how I might feel when I found out I wasn't trusted with vital information.† â€Å"She did think about it,† said Dimitri, looking slightly uncomfortable. â€Å"She said you wouldn't mind because you understand the importance of not questioning your superiors' decisions and that you know what they do is for the best. She said you're an exemplary Alchemist.† Don't question. They know what's best. We can't take any chances. â€Å"Of course she did,† I said. I never question anything.

Team Building 5 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Team Building 5 - Essay Example The teams should have the ability to decide the drawbacks of each member and the place that they are going wrong thereby leading to faulty production. After the identification of the faults a list of recommendations should be drawn up in order to address the same. The recommendations thus recorded should be discussed with the entire team. Brainstorming ideas help develop those further and identify the drawbacks, if any. The team members can also be interchanged to form new groups such that the working relationship between them can be developed and a better coordination can be achieved. The results of the newly formed group are compared with the previous ones so as to tabulate the results and draw comparison between the two. Such comparisons help in the development of the teams in the long run. The drawbacks thus identified will help both the teams in future to coordinate the work and achieve better results (West, 2012). 2. Design E is a mixed task force that has members from both the teams working together to develop solutions to interface problem. It is done such that a mutually beneficial end could be reached. It is a traditional method of team building and is used so that the problems in the production process can be solved by the teams without much difficulty (Dyer, Dyer & Dyer, 2007).This method facilitates least involvement of all the team members yet achieves to solve the inter-team problems and allows easy implementation of solutions. Projects in which the competition between the teams are so high that it destroys the competitive environment of the workplace, then such a method of team building is the most effective way. However Design E allows the team members to list the areas of concern one has against a fellow worker. The list is then discussed so that each member knows the areas that he should work on. This method thus increases

British Petroleum Plc IT Analysis Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

British Petroleum Plc IT Analysis - Assignment Example The adaptation of cost leadership and differentiation strategies will help the company reach the next level through increased business efficiency, improved data processing and storage among other benefits. The two options go hand-in-hand during their implementation but, BP should consider implementing the cost leadership strategy first then implement differentiation strategy later. Cost leadership strategy enables a firm gain competitive advantage through reduction of economic costs below the competitors’ cost. On the other hand, differentiation strategy enables an organization to shift product development on the bases of cost of marketing of goods and services (Conklin & Sorrell 2010). By first implementing the differentiation strategy, BP will sand a better chance of implementing differentiation strategy. BP’s main objective is to become the leading oil and gas producing industry globally by adaptation of them modern I.T. services that assists in improving business en vironment. The BP I.T processes will be achieved through various strategies set aside by the company management that include value added preposition, target markets, cost factors, revenue drivers and revenue streams. All these strategies focus on the company becoming the cost leader in the market, which requires an implementation of the cost leadership strategic option. ... BP is a large industry with an extremely high volume of production of oil and gas. In addition, the company has specialized machines and proficient workforce that enable provide high quality products and services. The high volume of production places BP in a better position of lowering costs per unit production the implementation of cost leadership strategy easier and fast. In addition, the company can reduce its overhead costs through spreading different costs to other areas like advertisement. Moreover, by implementing this strategy BP will hold the strongest position in the industry and will be able to set floor prices for other companies to follow. The second strategy should follow cost leadership is differentiation option. After ensuring the company’s cost security, BP can come up with differentiation strategy that will increase the value of her products and services relative to the perceived value of other companies. BP will implement differentiation strategy by using fe atures that will make customers prefer the company products and services to those offered by competitors. The focus on high revenue and cost margins places BP in a better position to achieve and perfect economic performance. With I.T in place and low cost of products and services, customers will be more attracted to BP products and services because they are more valuable and have differentiation advantage. Question4 Write a proposal to BP on I.T integration to reducing cost Summary BP is the leading oil and gas production company and serves many customers globally. BP wishes to integrate I.T. systems in her operations in order to improve the overall efficiency in terms of customers’ services and products production. By establishing the

Corporate law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Corporate law - Essay Example The aspects that Corporation Law takes care of in relation to the activities of the companies are its formation and operations including fundraising and activities of the officer’s involved1. The Corporations Act already defines remuneration in Section 9 noting it to be â€Å"any benefit that is given to an officer or employee of a corporation is remuneration if and only if the benefit, were it received by a director of the corporation, would be remuneration of the director for the purposes of an accounting standard that deals with disclosure in companies’ financial reports of information about directors’ remuneration†1. This discussion intends to recognize the laws relating to director’s remuneration particularly in Australia. Moreover, the effectiveness of these laws safeguarding shareholders’ interests will also be determined in the discussion. Legal Issues Prevalent to Laws of Directors’ Remuneration There had been a public enquiry that was conducted by the Productivity Commission of Australia for the purpose of regulating the framework of the directors’ remuneration for the companies falling under the purview of Corporations Act. The commission was specifically requested to consider a few points namely; The Australian trend followed with respect to the remuneration of directors along with executives The strength of the regulatory framework in practice over the transparency, responsibility as well as oversight of the remuneration practices of the executives and directors The role of various bodies like the retail and institutional shareholders in various aspects of the remuneration practices like setting, development, reporting and consideration The possibility of mechanisms that would be helpful to enhance the alignment of the boards’ and executives’ interests with the broader community The strength of effects of the responses received internationally about the various issues of remunera tion that tend to arise out of the financial crisis globally2. There were certain changes brought about in the Corporations Act with regards to the remuneration of executives and directors especially in Australia. These changes were passed through the Corporation Amendment Bill 2011. The changes include the following points: The ‘No Vacancy’ Rule: This change was set with intent to be applicable for public companies following a board limit less than the higher limit specified in their organizational constitution4. Proxy Voting: This is set for all the companies. According to this, the proxy holders shall have to direct every alternative as directed for all the resolutions4. The ‘Two Strike Rule’: This sets for the listed companies which signifies that any vote for the directors in order to compete for re–election shall be needed in case a board proceeds with proposal for remuneration even after obtaining 25 percent or more vote at two successive gene ral meetings conducted annually4. Remuneration Consultants: This is for the companies that tend to disclose every detail in the report in connection with the remuneration provided by the company to the directors4. Voting by Key Management Personnel (KMP): This affirms that KMP as well as their close associates would be prohibited from partaking in the non-binding votes particularly in the case of listed

Genetically Modified Crops Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Genetically Modified Crops - Essay Example Some have termed the genetically manipulated crops ‘frankenfoods’ and have questioned the potential harm to people and the environment that could come from their production. This discussion will answer these questions regarding the safety of these foods and present an overview of bioengineered foods. Bioengineering food involves â€Å"splicing a gene from one organism, such as a bacterium, into a plant or animal to confer certain traits† (Muth et al, 2002). These traits, developed for agricultural crops such as corn, soybeans, canola and cotton include increasing nutrients, tolerance to herbicides and drought, resistance to fungus and insects and reduced spoilage. Bioengineered corn and soybeans have become increasingly widespread among farmers during the last decade and the products can be commonly found in most grocery stores. Companies that engineer and produce bioengineered foods as well as manufacturers that choose to use these foods in their ingredients are faced with a stringent and ever-developing regulatory oversight by three government agencies; the USDA (U.S. Department of Agriculture), the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) and the FDA (Food and Drug Administration). Which agency regulates a particular product is determined by the intended use of the crop. Very often, a product is regulated by multiple agencies. The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, a division of the USDA monitors products and organisms that affect plants. Products and organisms derived from bioengineering methods introduced to or manufactured in the U.S. require USDA identification. This agency then determines if the item in question is a ‘regulated article’ or a possible disease. If the USDA decides that the product or crop is to be regulated, â€Å"a written approval usually is issued that designates conditions for introduction of the article† (McCammon,

The attitudes of children and adults Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The attitudes of children and adults - Essay Example gs about these manifestations in one’s characteristics, it is the experiences that the individual undergoes that actually defines his behavior into that of an adult, or that of a child. However, basically, humans are ‘selfish’ by nature, and these attitudes towards the different parts of life may still root to the fact that humans are selfish beings. Let’s take four aspects wherein the difference between such behaviors can clearly be seen: honesty, education, trust, and personal outlook. One of the most discordant aspects of life is honesty. Honesty is one of the basic things that people can either adhere to or stray from. Although children are not the most tactful individuals one may come across with, they are by nature, very honest creatures (Froese). When it comes to honesty, a child’s remarks/comments are those that are deemed reliable, compared to that of an adult’s. Adults’ credibility in honesty is shadowed by the mere fact that it is quite natural for them to blurt out ‘white lies’, -- which is also where children are first exposed to the concept of lying. Children are very blatant in their facial expressions, as well as their actions. A child who told a lie, is most likely to gush, and cover his mouth, with an obvious act to conceal such action. Whereas an adult who told a lie is just most likely to touch his lip, a more refined and unobvious way to conceal such act (Pease and Pease 25). When it comes to lying, though, chil dren and adults both lie – and the reasons behind it are usually to one’s own benefit. A child is most likely to lie to escape punishment, while an adult may lie to impress someone, to get his way, or to protect others, even themselves (Zolten and Long). However, it is noted that any individual – child or adult, does not respond well to being lied at. In terms of education, the attitude of the child and the adult may differ in the light of how they were â€Å"programmed† for such endeavor, as well as

Applying the Laws of Sines and Cosines Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Applying the Laws of Sines and Cosines - Essay Example For both solutions of the ambiguous case the third angle is found and the rest sides are calculated (Aufmann and Nation, 2014). SSS and SAS cases are solved applying the law of cosines. According to the law of cosines, the square of any side of the triangle is equal to the sum of squares of the rest sides subtracting double product of these sides and a cosine of the angle between these sides (Aufmann and Nation, 2014). For instance, For SSS case, the cosine of each angle can be found from the equation, and the corresponding angles can be calculated. For the SAS case the unknown side is found from the equation initially. Then, the rest angles are found using the procedure for SSS case (Aufmann and Nation, 2014). Thus, the general guidelines for any triangle are to define the problem or the case (SSS, SSA) encountered. For the ambiguous case, the number of possible triangles has to be found. Afterward, the solution for the triangle can be found using the procedures described

The Policies of Alexander Hamilton and Andrew Jackson Essay

The Policies of Alexander Hamilton and Andrew Jackson - Essay Example He also has a high regard towards the upper-class and educated men as the fittest to become the country’s leaders. Opposing the political views of Hamilton is Jackson’s democratic-republicanism. He stressed out the ordinary people’s right to vote and the first president to represent all Americans, regardless of their social standing (â€Å"The Presidency†). He is known to be Hamilton’s critic who contradicts federalism ideals. He regarded Hamilton’s views as elitist and idealistic. Relationship to Modern America Today, the American Federal government is a combination of two political views. It takes Hamilton’s view on the independence of government branches and Jackson’s idealism on suffrage. States also are given freedom provided that they also follow the national law. In other words, today’s politics resemble both political views. First, the elitist perspective of Hamilton is still surviving, although discouraged by mod ern thought. Many of the politicians today are with high educational background and came from influential families. Second, Jefferson’s state independence is practiced. State leaders are given the freedom to revise existing laws or to make laws not found with the rest of the states (e.g. legal drinking age). Economic Views By the end of the American Revolution, the country has to face a tremendous economic problem. There is an estimated $54 million debt of the United States while it only has barely half of the amount as their asset (â€Å"Alexander Hamilton’s†). Clearly, there is a huge deficit in the country’s economic budget. To address this problem, Alexander Hamilton was given the task to regulate all forms of economic activities until it stabilizes. As young as he was at that time, he regarded taxation and debt management as a two-way street to economic stability. He proposed that all states should be imposed by appropriate taxes for debt payment. Al though states that are already debt-free at that time resisted against this proposal, it is still pursued and became successful. The next move by Hamilton was to establish the Bank of the United States as â€Å"modeled from the Bank of England† (â€Å"Alexander Hamilton’s†) to take care of the collected taxes. While concerned with the nation’s debt payment, unlike Hamilton, Jackson disagrees with imposing taxes on states and became an advocate of the Laissez-Faire economy. This means to say that states are free to make international economic relations and other local economic activities without the imposition of taxes or the intervention of the national government (Ambrose and Martin 33). Despite the success of Hamilton's implementation of taxes and debt management, Jackson believes that an economy is better off without the presence of both. Since his younger years, Jackson hated debt in general, more so with national debt (Smith).

No Topic Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

No Topic - Essay Example Although she was not recognized in United Petro this will be a better opportunity for her to develop her career as a chemical engineer as it will lead to her success. Issue no.1 The safety of the people and workers in the surrounding area. Penny has the knowledge on the effect of the plant not only to workers but the surrounding environment. To show her concern in the welfare of everyone she should stand up and protect the safety of the people by either assisting in making a better and safer plant. Issue no.2.The contract at United Petro on non-disclosure and non-compete. When in a contract there are terms and conditions which must comply and by Penny accepting not to reveal the things she had learned in United Petro she was supposed to consider this in her decision making. She therefore is not supposed to give out information even if she is an employee. Issue no. 3.To participate in the making of the alpha –denitrophol by sharing her views and opinions. Penny was a member in the assignment of making the denitrophol to which she was to give her opinions on the plant. Since she had acquired knowledge from her previous job it would be right for her to share on what she knew will lead to its production. Issue no. 1. Revealing on a better way of making the project work using the ideas in UP. As an employer in CCC she should be able to participate actively in the making of the plant and from her previous experience this is a better opportunity to use it in her job. Issue no.2.Contacting with the previous company UP before revealing on what would be helpful to the project in Consolidated Chemical Company. Although this may lead to misunderstandings, it is a good way of showing gratitude to the previous company. It is also an ethical way considering that she was in the contract on not revealing her experience in other companies (Harris & Michael 32). Issue no.3.Contacting her company

American History Essay Example for Free

American History Essay The American Revolution posed to be an important event for both African Americans and women. For women, the impact of this event solidified their role and place in society (Courtney, 1999). These women made Americans understand their significance and worth in different aspects. On the other hand, for African Americans, this event started the process of change in terms of equality and the prevalent system of slavery. It is in this light such impact paved the way as a stepping stone towards gaining freedom and independence from their masters (Hooker, 1996). Comparing the two scenarios (women and African Americans), it can be argued that these two groups share the same principles each one fights for. The only difference in this is the manner wherein they are applied or the conditions that needs to be addressed. Looking at it, both parties seek to develop a renewed interest for (1) freedom, (2) equality, and (3) rights. However, in terms of application, we can see that African Americans clamor for this to eliminate the system of prejudice and hate brought about by slavery and apartheid. On the other hand, women continue to seek these principles for their desires to be equally associated with men in both rights and responsibilities. Despite these efforts, Americans continue to hinder participation for both African Americans and women. For women, suffrage was still maintained for men (Courtney, 1999). At the same time, jobs and responsibilities continue to be categorized accordingly with little or minimal changes. On the part of African Americans, apartheid and slavery continues to exist in some states. Likewise, prejudice and racial hate continues to be present especially among Southern states wherein some African American slaves were subjected (Hooker, 1996). The leaders in turn justified these actions as a result of adjustment and transition process wherein leaders and members of society have to adhere to these new set of standards and norms. At the same time, it was better off this way because some groups continue to pursue previous rules and principles since they are not subjected to such actions. Lastly, this endeavor opens up opportunities for change wherein it may prove to be difficult to handle for some leaders. It is through these myriad of reasons that many American leaders tried to limit down the application of the commitment towards equality.

Functional Groups of Lisinopril

Functional Groups of Lisinopril The IR spectra of pure showed peaks at which are consistent with the presence of the functional groups of lisinopril (Fig.no.12) Furthermore, the calibration curve of lisinopril obeyed Beers law in the range of 10-60 g/ml (Fig.no.11) An IR spectrum of the drug-polymer (methylcellulose) mixture was taken to study and check the drug- polymer interaction. The spectrum revealed that not much interaction between the drug and polymer (Fig.no.13). In TLC studies, the prepared lisinopril microspheres (M4, M7) showed (Table.no.9) the same Rf (0.5512, 0.5769) value as pure compound (0.5897) and no additional spots were detected. TLC studies (Fig.no15) thus indicated no interaction between lisinopril and polymer (methylcellulose) in the floating microspheres prepared. This observation also indicated that lisinopril was not decomposing during the preparation of floating microspheres. Differential Scanning Colorimetry: The thermal behavior of floating microspheres of lisinopril was studying using DSC are shown in (Fig no.16). The DSC thermogram of pure drug lisinopril exhibited an exothermic peak at corresponding to its melting point. For formulation (M7) this peaks are at respectively. The characteristic exothermic peak is slightly shifted to lower temperature, indicating that there is no interaction between drug and carrier. Percentage yield: Percentage yield of different batches of the prepared floating microspheres were determined by weighing the floating microspheres after drying. All batches of methylcellulose floating microspheres showed a percentage yield of greater than 75%, the percentage yields of all the prepared formulations (M1-M9) were in the range of 76.8 to 92.16% (Table.no.11). Percentage yield is found to be higher with formulation M7 (92.16%). Scanning Electron Microscopy: The surface morphology of the prepared floating microsphere (M7) was shown to be spherical by the SEM photography (Fig.no.19). Particle size analysis: The particle size analysis was carried out using an optical microscope. The arithmetic mean particle size of the methylcellulose floating microspheres significantly increased with increasing polymer concentration were shown in (Table.no.18).The particle size distribution of the methylcellulose floating microspheres ranged between 163.125 to 252.375Â µm. Micromeritic properties of the floating microspheres 61 The various micromeritic properties of the prepared floating microspheres were studied. Acceptable range of angle of repose is between 20ÃŽ ¿-40ÃŽ ¿ and angle of repose for methylcellulose floating microspheres (M1-M9) was between 24.44 to 35.53ÃŽ ¿ (Table no. ), thus indicating good flow property for methylcellulose floating microspheres. Acceptable range of Hausners ratio is up to 1.25 and Hausners ratio for methylcellulose floating microspheres(M1-M9) was between 1.085 to 1.181(Table.no.21) ,all the prepared floating microspheres had a value less than 1.25 thereby exhibiting good flow properties. Acceptable range of Carr,s index (%)is up to 5-21%, and carrs index for methylcellulose floating microspheres(M1-M9) was between 7.910 to 15.379 % (Table.no.21) all the formulations showed an Carr,s index (%) less than 16% and hence had a flow properties. Percentage drug content of the floating microspheres The percentage drug content of different batches of floating microspheres was found in the range of 55.33 to 88%.All batches of the methylcellulose floating microspheres formulation shown percentage drug content more than 55% (Table no.23) and it is found that percentage drug content increases with an increase in the polymer concentration (except M2,M6). Formulation M5 has shown maximum percentage drug content (88.0%). Buoyancy percentage: (Floating ability) The buoyancy test was carried out to investigate the buoyancy percentage (floating ability) of the prepared methylcellulose floating microspheres. The buoyancy percentage of the different batches of floating microspheres was found in the range of 48.0 to 85.0% at the end of 12 hrs (Table.no.25). All the formulated floating microspheres of lisinopril showed buoyancy (floating ability) more than 48%. Amongst the batches of prepared methylcellulose floating microspheres, batch M5 showed highest buoyancy (85%). Floating ability of different formulations was found to be differed according to the increase polymer concentration and it is found that percentage of buoyancy increases with an increase in the amount of polymer. In-vitro release studies Lisinopril release from the all formulated floating microspheres were studied in SGF (0.1N HCl) for 12 hrs.The floating microspheres showed sustained release of the lisinopril (drug) in acidic environment and the drug release was found to be approximately linear (fig no. ). The drug release from methylcellulose floating microspheres was found to be 82.35, 78.75, 74.25, 71.55, 66.15, 83.70, 90.45, 94.5 and 97.65% at the end of 12 h for M1,M2,M3,M4,M5,M6,M7,M8 and M9 respectively (Table.no.27). The sustained release pattern was observed for the prepared floating microspheres (M1-M9) clearly exhibiting an increase in the polymer concentration results decrease in-vitro drug release of lisinopril. Amongst the batches of prepared methylcellulose floating microspheres, batch M5 showed higher drug entrapment efficiency 88.0% and the minimal in-vitro drug release 66.15% at the end of the 12 hrs with compared to the other prepared methylcellulose floating microspheres. Drug release kinetics The results for the mathematic modeling of the in-vitro drug release data for the methylcellulose floating microspheres have been complied and the R2 values shown in the table no. The in-vitro drug release profile for the formulations M1-M9 were subjected to various drug release kinetic studies and are depicted in the following figures. (Fig.no.30-38) The release profile for the formulations M1-M9 exhibiting a maximum R2 values (0.9613, 0.9421, 0.9386, 0.9446, 0.9382, 0.9546, 0.9520, 0.9599 and 0.9660) was found to obey that particular kinetics. From the results it is apparent that the regression coefficient value closer to unity as in the case of the Zero orders plots. The Zero order plots of different formulation were found to be fairly linear, as indicated by their high regression values. Thus, it seems that drug release from the floating microspheres followed Zero order kinetics. The data indicates a lesser amount of linearity when plotted by the First order equation. Hence it can be concluded that the major mechanism of drug release follows Zero order kinetics. Further, the conversion of the data from the dissolution studies suggested possibility of understanding the mechanism of drug release by configuring the data into various mathematical modeling such as Higuchis and Korsemeyers -peppas plots. The mass transfer with respect to square root of time has been plotted, revealed a linear graph with regression value close to one stating that the release from the matrix was through diffusion. Data based on the Higuchi model usually provide a evidence to the diffusion mechanism of drug release from matrix systems such as the methylcellulose floating microspheres developed in this work. R2 values based on the Higuchis model ranged from 0.8882, 0.8578, 0.8507, 0.8603, 0.8542, 0.8773, 0.8708, 0.8858 and 0.8978. (Table.no.29). As these values were close to 1.0, the drug release mechanism of the developed floating microspheres can be said to be Higuchian and, therefore, matrix diffusion-controlled. CHITOSAN FLOATING MICROSPHERES IR Spectra of chitosan floating microspheres An IR spectrum of the drug-polymer (chitosan) mixture was taken to study and check the drug- polymer interaction. The spectrum revealed that not much interaction between the drug and polymer (Fig.no.14). Thin Layer Chromatography: In TLC studies, the prepared lisinopril microspheres (C4, C7) showed the same Rf (0.5384, 0.5000) value as pure compound (0.5897) and no additional spots were detected(Fig.no.15). TLC studies thus indicated no interaction between lisinopril and polymer (chitosan) in the floating microspheres prepared. This observation also indicated that lisinopril was not decomposing during the preparation of floating microspheres. Differential Scanning Colorimetry: The thermal behavior of floating microspheres of lisinopril was studying using DSC are shown in Fig.no.17. The DSC thermogram of pure drug lisinopril exhibited an exothermic peak at corresponding to its melting point. For formulation (C7) this peaks are at respectively. The characteristic exothermic peak is slightly shifted to lower temperature, indicating that there is no interaction between drug and carrier. Percentage yield: Percentage yield of different batches of the prepared floating microspheres were determined by weighing the floating microspheres after drying. All batches of methylcellulose floating microspheres showed a percentage yield of greater than 75%, The percentage yields of all the prepared formulations (C1-C9) were in the range of 78.0 -93.66% (Table.no.12). Percentage yield is found to be higher with formulation C7 (93.66%). Scanning Electron Microscopy: The surface morphology of the prepared floating microsphere (C7) was shown to be spherical by the SEM photography (Fig.no.20). Particle size analysis: The particle size analysis was carried out using an optical microscope. The arithmetic mean particle size of floating microspheres significantly increased with increasing polymer concentration were shown in Table. No. 19. The particle size distribution of the chitosan floating microspheres ranged between 32.50 to 55.80Â µm. Micromeritic properties of the floating microspheres 61 The various micromeritic properties of the prepared floating microspheres were studied. Acceptable range of angle of repose is between 20ÃŽ ¿-40ÃŽ ¿ and angle of repose for chitosan floating microspheres (C1-C9) was between 19.02 to 23.49ÃŽ ¿ (Table.no.22), thus indicating good flow property for chitosan floating microspheres. Acceptable range of Hausners ratio is up to 1.25 and Hausners ratio for chitosan floating microspheres(C1-C9) was between 1.100 to 1.230 (Table.no.22) ,all the prepared floating microspheres had a value less than 1.25 thereby exhibiting good flow properties. Acceptable range of Carr,s index (%)is up to 5-21%, and carrs index for chitosan floating microspheres(C1-C9) was between 9.090 to 18.746% (Table.no.22) all the formulations showed an Carr,s index (%) less than 18% and hence had a flow properties. Percentage drug content of the floating microspheres The percentage drug content of different batches of floating microspheres was found in the range of 50.66 to 88.0%.All batches of the chitosan floating microspheres formulation shown percentage drug content more than 50% (Table.no.24) and it is found that percentage drug content increases with an increase in the polymer concentration. Formulation C5 shown maximum percentage drug content (88.0%). Buoyancy percentage: (Floating ability) The buoyancy test was carried out to investigate the buoyancy percentage (floating ability) of the prepared chitosan floating microspheres. The buoyancy percentage of the different batches of floating microspheres was found in the range of 46.0 to 82.0% at the end of 12 hrs (Table.no.26). All the formulated floating microspheres of lisinopril showed buoyancy (floating ability) more than 46%. Amongst the batches of prepared chitosan floating microspheres, batch C5 showed highest buoyancy (85%). Floating ability of different formulations was found to be differed according to the increase polymer concentration and it is found that percentage of buoyancy increases with an increase in the amount of polymer. In-vitro release studies Lisinopril releases from the all formulated floating microspheres were studied in SGF (0.1N HCl) for 12 hrs.The floating microspheres showed sustained release of the lisinopril (drug) in acidic environment and the drug release was found to be approximately linear (Fig.no.29). The drug release from chitosan floating microspheres was found to be 66.6, 61.65, 58.95, 57.15, 52.2, 69.3, 71.55, 74.7 and 78.75% at the end of 12 h for C1,C2,C3,C4,C5,C6,C7,C8 and C9 respectively (Table.no.28). The sustained release pattern was observed for the prepared floating microspheres (C1-C9) clearly exhibiting an increase in the polymer concentration results decrease in-vitro drug release of lisinopril. Amongst the batches of prepared chitosan floating microspheres, batch C5 showed higher drug entrapment efficiency 88.0% and the minimal in-vitro drug release 52.2% at the end of the 12 hrs with compared to the other prepared chitosan floating microspheres. Drug release kinetics The results for the mathematic modeling of the in-vitro drug release data for the methylcellulose floating microspheres have been complied and the R2 values shown in the table no. The in-vitro drug release profile for the formulations C1-C9 were subjected to various drug release kinetic studies and are depicted in the following figures. (Fig.no.39-47) The release profile for the formulations C1-C9 exhibiting a maximum R2 values (0.9834, 0.9646, 0.9556, 0.9244, 0.9305, 0.9656, 0.9655, 0.9646, and 0.9759) were found to obey that particular kinetics. From the results it is apparent that the regression coefficient value closer to unity as in the case of the Zero orders plots. The Zero order plots of different formulation were found to be fairly linear, as indicated by their high regression values .Thus, it seems that drug release from the floating microspheres followed Zero order kinetics. The data indicates a lesser amount of linearity when plotted by the First order equation. Hence it can be concluded that the major mechanism of drug release follows Zero order kinetics. Further, the conversion of the data from the dissolution studies suggested possibility of understanding the mechanism of drug release by configuring the data into various mathematical modeling such as Higuchis and Korsemeyers -peppas plots. The mass transfer with respect to square root of time has been plotted, revealed a linear graph with regression value close to one stating that the release from the matrix was through diffusion. Data based on the Higuchi model usually provide a evidence to the diffusion mechanism of drug release from matrix systems such as the chitosan floating microspheres developed in this work. R2 values based on the Higuchis model ranged from 0.9238, 0.8905, 0.8751, 0.8295, 0.8392, 0.8955, 0.8993, 0.8986 and 0.9236. (Table.no.30). As these values were close to 1.0, the drug release mechanism of the developed floating microspheres can be said to be Higuchian and, therefore, matrix diffusion-controlled.

Overview of Race Conflict Theories

Overview of Race Conflict Theories Placid Tankie Race is a term that can be defined using many different ways within the society. In the United States of America, for example, research indicates that white people looks black people as having a darker skin color than black people normally have (Hills, 2002). In addition, the meaning and importance of race does not only varies from place to place, but also changes over time. For example, today, the Census Bureau allows people to describe themselves using different racial category which include six single race options and fifty-seven multiracial categories (U.S. Census Bureau 2012). People can classify each another racially based on their physical characteristics such as skin color, facial structures, body structures, and hair texture. George Riter (2003), define race as a socially constructed category of people who share a common biologically traits that member of a society consider important. According to Loveman (1999), in her article titled IsRaceEssential? outline Eduardo Bonilla-Silva ideology and explanation about the limitations on the study of racial phenomena. Eduardo Bonilla-Silva showed that racial phenomena can be better understood if it is considered as a structural theory of racism. According Loveman (1999), Eduardo Bonilla-Silva identified several limitations of the existing approaches toward racial phenomena including the narrow way racism was considered by sociologists as opposed to systematic and rational, contemporary structure, both overt and covert behavior. The article also stipulates that Eduardo Bonilla-Silva believes that the structural theory of racism based on the concept of radicalized social system can be used to overcome the limitations of racial phenomena in order to improve the understanding of the causes, mechanism, and consequences of racial phenomena. According to Loveman (1999), Eduardo Bonilla-Silva concept of improving the understandin g of racial phenomena was based on confounding categories, reifying race, and analytical distinction between race and ethnicity. In addition, Loveman (1999) demonstrated in her work that the theoretical frame work proposed by Eduardo Bonilla-Silva in order to improve the understanding of the meaning of race and the consequences of racism related to the structural theory of racism was undermined by the different concepts Eduardo Bonilla-Silva used. These include: confounding categories, reifying race, and analytical distinction between race and ethnicity. Loveman (1999) and other sociologists agree with Eduardo Bonilla-Silva about the importance of improving our understanding on racial phenomena, but argued that his structural theory of racism was not the best analytical frame work for understanding the meaning of race and its consequences on the society. Furthermore, these sociologists demonstrated that in order to understand how race shape social relation in the society, race should not be considered as a category of analysis, but race should focus on the processes of boundary construction, maintenance, and d ecline which is a comparative sociology of group making that was built on Weberian concept of social closure (Loveman, 1999). More ever, the view of Eduardo Bonilla-Silva on racial phenomena was supported by other researchers such as Omi and Winant. These two sociologists defended the ontological condition of race based on the circular definitions and essentialist reasoning. In addition, their argument for a distinction between race and ethnicity was based on a particular reading of U.S. history rather than on any analytical foundation. Furthermore, Omi, Winant, and Eduardo Bonilla-Silva never define racial category without referencing to race. Mean while Loveman (1999) and other sociologists like Wacquant argued that this analytical pitfall of referencing to race in the definition of racial category can be avoided successfully by considering race as a category of analysis in order to gain analytical study of race as a category of practice.Adopting this analytical frame work which focus on the processes of group making and categorization of essentializing schemas. Generally, one can explore to what extent a particular essentializing vocabulary is related to a particular form of social closure and its consequences. Therefore, it becomes a question to what extent, systems of classification, stratification, and social injustices can be supported by ideas that race can be distinct from those informed by a discourse of ethnicity or nationality (Loveman, 1999). Again, conflict of race occurs when the majority group of the society feels that the different cultures, morals, and values of the minority group causes deviance to the society. The conflict perspective is a frame work for building theory that looks society as an arena of inequality that generates conflict and changes. The race-conflict theory sees the society as an inequality and conflict between people of different racial and ethnic categories. The race-conflict theory is in accordance with the content of race because it highlights how race factors are linked to inequality in terms of several factors such as education, power, money, and social prestige. For example, the United States of America, which has people from different countries worldwide, is considered as the land of opportunity and freedom, and it is also a country that is considered notorious for racial discrimination. From the beginning of this country, just like men have power over women, white people have numerous adv antages over people of color, including higher income, more schooling, better health and longer life expectancy. Racism has been one of the most important issues that the society have been facing and fighting for the past decades. Currently, racism has declined, but it is still an important issue that needs to be addresses always. Although removing racism from the world will caused a lot of sacrifices and suffering, I hope that people will be able to overcome racism, and live in a world where they do not care about an individual skin color or nationality. References Hill, Mark E. Race of the Interviewer and Perception of the Skin Color: Evidence from the Multi-City Study of Urban Inequality. American Sociology Review. Vol. 67, No.1 (Februrary 2002): 99-108. Loveman, Mara. Is Race Essential? America Sociological Review: Vol. 64, No.6 (December 1990): 890-98. U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Employment Statistics. National Occupation Employment and Wage Estimate. 2012. Available at http://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_nat.htm

Colonialism in India Essay -- British Invasion, Massive Boycotts

The British invasion formed into a historical development of British colonialism in India. Despite India under the British rule, Mahatma Gandhi played an important role in gaining Independence. He not only changed India but also strongly fought for India's independence, using various strategies. The British Empire ruled as long as they could to reform India both politically and socially. India was the first major Asian civilizations to fall victim to European predatory activities (Duiker 31). With conquering India, the British had various purposes behind it. Their main purpose was to achieve a monopolistic trading position (The Economic and Social Impact of Colonial Rule in India). The second purpose was the control of India; this was a key element in the world power structure, in terms of geography, logistics and military manpower (The Economic and Social Impact of Colonial Rule in India). When the East India Company continued to trade under the British, huge armies were created, largely composed of Indian sepoys (Marshall). The armies were used to defend the Company’s territories protect the Indian states (Marshall). With major control over India, the British used a combination of firepower & guile to consolidate their power over the country by expanding from their base areas along the coast into the interior (Duiker 31). Some territories were also taken over the privately run East India Company, which at the time was given authority to administer Asian territories under British occupation, while others were ruled by local maharajas (Duiker 31). British governance brought order and stability to a society that had recently been wrecked by the wars from the different empires (Duiker 31). Since the British wanted to refo... ...tween the Hindus and Muslims, Jinnah felt that Muslims had no future in India (Overfield 216). With the end of British rule in 1947, not only did India gain its independence but also along with it was born an other country, Pakistan where Jinnah served as the first governor (Overfield 216). With the gain of India’s independence, Gandhi was shot the following year in 1948 by a Hindu zealot who resented his commitment to Hindu – Muslim harmony (Overfield 212). Despite numerous conflicts with the British and with the Muslims, India fought for its rights by doing what they felt was right. India under the British rule had some benefits as the new school system and outlawing sati but they did manage to trouble the Indians with taxation and other laws. Gandhi who was an outstanding, important figure in India’s way for independence who taught to fight with nonviolence.

Long Island Nuclear :: essays papers

Long Island Nuclear The question of whether Long Island should have nuclear power plants is controversial. There are two sides that can be taken; however, both sides have their own share of problems. If we were to chose not to have nuclear plants, then eventually all natural resources will run out. Oil supplies as of right now will run out in two hundred years. But that is if we keep on using the same amount of oil that is consumed today. Our use of oil is certainly not being diminished; in fact each year the amount of oil used goes up. So oil supplies probably won’t even last that long. The natural resources that we use now are still harmful to the earth. The gasoline that we use to run our cars pollutes the air, and considering the amount of cars that are driven each day on the expressway. That is a lot of barrels of oil. However, if Long Island decided to use nuclear energy, then there is a great danger of toxic waste invading our drinking water, and also the chance of a spill similar to Chernobyl or Three Mile Island. As we saw with Chernobyl there is great danger when using nuclear energy. If this were to happen on Long Island the risk of mortality would be even worse. There is no place on Long Island that is a good spot with no inhabitance. On Long Island there would be no escape, the roads simply would not support that amount of traffic. These are the fears of Long Islanders. Which brings us to another question. What did Long Islanders know about the Shoreham Nuclear Power Plant? LILCO (long island lighting company) first announced its plan to build a nuclear power plant in 1965. They bought 455-acres in Shoreham, Wading River, and started construction in 1968. (pg 16 Aron) The plant was engineered and built by Stone & Webster Engineering Corp. They have helped ten prior electric companies, to build nuclear plants before 1985. Long Islanders at first were for having cheap energy, and did not disagree with the construction. But as time past and politics changed. The views towards nuclear power in the mid 1980s changed on Long Island. Shoreham power plant, which help to lower taxes and employed many local people. Now LILCO was getting negative press every other day. It was not what was going on at Shoreham but rather the rest of the world.

College essay -- essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  As I near the end of my high school career, I realize that I am not the same person who began 3 years ago as a freshman. While my teachers instilled the fundamental aspects of a well-rounded education, I learned through my own experience that education extends beyond the classroom. My activities in academics, athletics, community service and work experience, have instilled qualities in me that will prepare me for the immediate future of college and beyond.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  My unique educational environment of a school has allowed me the opportunity to form close relationships with teachers and students alike, enabling me to interact with people of various backgrounds and ages. These experiences prepared me for my encounters beyond the realm of the classroom. Within this environment, I planned my class’ junior and senior trips. These experiences provided me with an opportunity to represent my classmates while fostering communication between the faculty and students. Currently, I participate in a class called . Twice a week, and I get together to read, review his homework, talk about current events, and share our life experiences. While this seemed intimidating at first, I learned that he depended on me to help with his work. No longer was I just ‘helping out’, but I had a responsibility to to assist with his learning and be a positive role model in his life. With these recent school experiences, I have learned how communication and c...

Poes Lost Love, Poetry Paper

ENG 102 March 19, 2013 Poe’s Lost Love When first reading â€Å"Annabel Lee† by Edgar Allan Poe, there’s a sense of love that you can feel realistically and immediately. Edgar Allan Poe is one of the most famous poets of the 19th century. Poe is considered to be the father of modern detective stories and highly admired. The dark gruesome images that Poe depicts are what makes readers love his work. He paints a clear picture and uses that setting to his advantage in each of his dark tales. In â€Å"Annabel Lee† he writes a happy yet dark poem using the elements of imagery, symbolism and tone to show his permanence of true love.Edgar Allan Poe is the most famous poet in his genre of dark, gruesome mystery. â€Å"Poe had a difficult upbringing, fraught with illness, loss and poverty. † (Giammarco online 01/2013). Poe’s parents both died when he was the age of two, which left him orphaned. Poe was also poverty stricken most of his life and could not even finish college due to the lack of funds. After college, â€Å"he briefly attended West Point Military Academy and served briefly in the U. S. Army. † (Delbanco, Cheuse 291) Poe then married his thirteen year old cousin who contracted tuberculosis, which took the life of his mother and father as well.These events probably triggered his dark sense of writing influencing his famous poems such as â€Å"The Raven†, â€Å"Tell Tale Heart†, â€Å"Annabel Lee† and many more. Poe was very talented, not by just writing poems and stories, but he worked for many newspapers and magazines as well. Poe passed away at the young age of 40, with his death a mystery. (Delbanco, Cheuse 291) The poem â€Å"Annabel Lee† is about a beautiful, painful memory. A childhood love was abruptly brought to an end when Annabel Lee passes away. Poe wants you to know in this story that it is a great love, not just a childhood fling. â€Å"But we loved with a love that was more than love† (9).This love is so great that even the angels are jealous of this, which is why he believes they took his love away. His love is so strong for this girl that he lays down every night by the dead body in the tomb. â€Å"I lie down by the side / Of my darling, my darling, my life and my bride† (38-39). This is poem turns when his true love dies and steps into his point of view in his dark world. â€Å"Annabel Lee† is a six line, six stanza ballad. A ballad is a type of poem that is intended to be recited or sung. A ballad poem â€Å"tells a lively or tragic story in simple sample† (Delbanco, Cheuse 796).In the poem â€Å"Annabel Lee†, Poe makes his story feel very realistic, almost as if you were the one who lost your love. In each set of stanzas, Poe sets up a pattern of rhymes. Also, he sets a pattern of a long line followed by a short line and so on. But in a few spots he switches it up. Poe was very talented when it came to setti ng. The first tactic that he uses in â€Å"Annabel Lee† was imagery. Imagery is the things that are seen, or imagined. Imagery is visually or figurative language used to create lyrical emotion. In â€Å"Annabel Lee† Poe refers to a kingdom by the sea over and over again.This help creates a picture of a time and place a long time ago and makes his love seem more mysterious. He also uses imagery when describing â€Å"That the wind came out of the cloud, chilling / And killing my Annabel Lee† (25-26) putting a vast picture in our head that is merely a sickness taking over her body. The second strategy that Edger Allan Poe uses is symbolism. Symbolism is practice of representing things by symbols, or with a symbolic meaning. Poe talks about â€Å"For the moon never beams without bringing me dreams† (34) which is a symbol for the character not being able to sleep at night without dreaming of his love.In this poem Poe also talks about a highborn kinsman. This i s a symbol for everyone who doesn’t understand his love for this girl and just thinks that they were young. Poe was a very talented man. Although he never was a rich famous man while he lived, his dark gruesome tales are known by everybody today. His skills of using symbolism and imagery in â€Å"Annabel Lee† have made it one of his more well known poems. Many people believe that his inspiration for this poem was the death of his wife. â€Å"Annabel Lee† is a great love poem that came out of the dark mind of Poe and will always remain a classic.

Crescent Case Essay

A. Segmentation and TargetingWhen Looking at what foodstuff should be targeted the thing that stuck out close to was there is not a sun-loving resource for verve throws. Most of these wassails ar full of steep fructose maize syrup and loaded with extreme amounts of caffeine. crescent-shaped give the consumers a wellnessy alternative to this survival. The trend these days is towards more natural and healthier choices. Crescent is just that. It gives the filling for a well-informed version of an postal code drink which is more than needed. The dexterity potable trade is growing at a much faster rate than the have drink commercialise as closely as the fitting into a much better set point for merchandising. With the market for these zippo drink organism on sightly $2.99 the price of $2.75 for crescent is under the market average as salutary as cosmosness a brush off bit different by marketing a healthy alternative survival to most other sport drinks on th e market now.B. PositioningWhen Looking everywhere the two perceptual Maps the thing find is that most of these merchandises hit extremes of each category. For framework a sport drink is noble on the hydration level but depressed on the cypher. As for the elan vital drink the case is the exact opposite. When looking at eatable and perceptivity the nutrition and taste argon high on sports drinks and energy drinks ar low on nutrition but the 50/50 on the taste. When looking at crescents studies it would seem that they would be the best case for the average consumer as they would be better than average in all of these categories. The nutrition would be higher than the sports drinks and close to what swish and drip ar pertaining to nutritional value and the taste would as well as fall higher similar to shake off or Razor. When looking at the Hydration and Energy Crescent would also be above average for both. With the equivalent of a instill of coffees worth of caffeine Crescent would fall similar to where torque and Drip are for energy levels.As for looking at hydration Crescent would be up nigher to the sports drinks with is electrolytes and natural ingredients closer to where Glean and Watr+ are. Each marketing advance has positives and negatives. When marketed as an energy drink there is the Pros of being a drastically growing market which has grown by 40% already and is projected to hit 13.5 billion by 2018 as well as no single product being marketed as a healthy alternative energy drink. Another pro is that the cost of theproduct is less than the market average. The con of an energy drink market would be that authorized news stories are highlighting the health risks of Energy drinks and the diminishing number of consumers who are now drinking them. The sports drink market have a much bigger population of consumers ranging from younger ages of 12-24.Also with the average sports drink being much cheaper muckle whitethorn not be will to pay the $2.75 for a sports drink. With Crescent being an all organic product being an alternative to high fructose maize drinks would profit their market audience. The threats would be the make up in childhood obesity who crystalize up a cock-a-hoop arrogate of the sport drink market the option of just proving water to children is easier and more economically sound for parents rather than continually compensable for sports drinks. Lastly as an Organic suck up they are able to market it as a healthy sports/energy drink for the body continuous adult who wants to extend away from non-organic products. This also works as a con where if they market only when to this small group of people they may be losing a lot of consumers who may be avoiding the new fad of vegan, healthy organic products.C. Contribution MarginThe division margin per case of Crescent would be $5.28 or 18%. This is forecast by taking the selling price per bear and minusing the cost per can. Which would bring the profit of 22 cents per can and a case of 24 would bring the profit to $5.28 per case. You would then present that number and divide it by the worth per case of $29.76 which would give you 18% profit.D. Break counterbalanceTo ascertain the national level of marketing it would necessitate putting in 6.66 times the compute that it took to market 15% which would be a total marketing budget of 5 million dollars. With a Total budget of 5 Million dollars it would take selling 946970 Cases of Crescent to break even on the National Level. To address the break-even market region for energy would be .07% of the Market Share. This is figured by taking the Market of 9.58 billion dollars and dividing that by the Marketing budget of 5 Million Dollars.E. suggestationThe factors that should be utilise to determine positioning are, Similarities incompetitors, visualise of market increase, pricing of products and marketability of product. I would Recommend Marketing Crescent as an organ ic energy drink. This would apply to a large number of people and would give a different option to the Energy Drinks that are currently on the market. This product could increase the consumers ideas of what energy drinks are especially cogitate on bringing up the plains of healthiness, hydration and natural. With these areas only having the highest percentage at 11% Crescent would be a great product to diversify the market. Having a below average market price for product pricing makes Crescent an even better market to explore. Crescent provides a great break from the normal high fructose high caffeine energy drinks while still hydrating and tasting great.