The Hunters: Phantom Chapter 13

â€Å"I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry,† Meredith said for the tenth time. Her usual y composed face was flushed, and her eyes were bright with unshed tears. Matt didn't remember ever seeing her so upset about something, especial y something that had ended up not being a big deal. Sure, Celia could have been hurt, but the car hadn't touched her. â€Å"I'm fine, real y I am, Meredith,† Celia assured her again. â€Å"I just didn't see you. I don't know how, but I didn't. Thank God for Alaric,† Meredith said, throwing a grateful glance at Alaric, who was sitting close beside her and rubbing her back. â€Å"It's okay, Meredith,† he said. â€Å"It's al okay.† Alaric seemed more concerned for Meredith than for Celia, and Matt didn't blame him. Babbling was pretty out of character for Meredith. Alaric wrapped his arms tightly around Meredith, and she visibly relaxed. Celia, on the other hand, tensed noticeably as Meredith leaned into Alaric's embrace. Matt traded a rueful glance with Bonnie. Then Stefan reached out and stroked Elena's shoulder absently, and Matt was surprised to feel a jealous pang of his own. Wasn't he ever going to get over Elena Gilbert? It had been more than a year since they dated, and about a century in experience. Bonnie was stil watching him, now with a speculative gleam in her eyes, and Matt shot her a bland smile. He'd just as soon not know what Bonnie saw in his face when he looked at Elena and Stefan. â€Å"Around this bend and up the slope is the Plunge,† he said to Celia, ushering her forward along the trail. â€Å"It's a little bit of a hike, but it's the best place around here for a picnic.† â€Å"Absolutely the best,† said Bonnie cheerily. â€Å"We can jump down the waterfal .† She fel in on Celia's other side, helping him to herd her away from the two couples, who were murmuring to one another softly as they fol owed behind. â€Å"Is that safe?† asked Celia dubiously. â€Å"Total y,† said Bonnie. â€Å"Everybody jumps the waterfal here, and nobody's ever gotten hurt.† â€Å"Usual y it's safe,† said Matt, more cautiously. â€Å"You and Meredith might want to think about not swimming, Celia.† â€Å"I hate this,† Bonnie said. â€Å"I hate having to be extracareful because of some dark thing that we don't know anything about. Everything should be normal.† Normal or not, it was a magnificent picnic. They spread their blankets on the rocks near the top of the waterfal . The smal fal s plummeted down the side of the cliff and ended in a deep pool of effervescent water, making a sort of natural fountain that spil ed into a clear bronze-green pool. Mrs. Flowers had packed salads and breads and desserts for them, as wel as meat and corn to gril on a hibachi Stefan had brought from the boardinghouse. They had more than enough food for a couple days of camping, let alone one lunch. Elena had stowed cold drinks in a cooler, and, after hiking up the trail in the Virginia summer heat, everyone was happy to crack open a lemonade or soda. Even Stefan took a water bottle and drank as he started heating the gril , although it was automatical y understood by everyone that he would not be eating. Matt had always found the fact that he never saw Stefan eating a little creepy, even before Matt knew he was a vampire. The girls squirmed out of jeans and tops to display their bathing suits, like caterpil ars transforming into butterflies. Meredith was tan and lean in a black one-piece. Bonnie was wearing a petite mermaid-green bikini. Elena wore a soft gold bandeau that went with her hair. Matt watched Stefan watching her appreciatively, and felt that little twist of jealousy again. Both Elena and Bonnie pul ed their T-shirts back on over their bathing suits almost immediately. They always did: Their pale skin burned instead of tanned. Celia lounged on a towel, looking spectacular in a casual yet daringly cut white swimsuit. The effect of the pure white against Celia's coffee-colored skin was amazing. Matt noticed Meredith's eyes passing over her and then glancing sharply at Alaric. But Alaric was too busy shucking down to a pair of red trunks. Stefan stayed out of the direct sunlight, remaining in his dark jeans and black T-shirt. Wasn't that a little creepy, too? Matt thought. Stefan's ring protected him from the sun's rays, didn't it? Did he stil have to stick to the shadows? And what was with the black clothing? Was he pretending to be Damon now? Matt frowned at the thought: One Damon had been more than enough. Matt shook his head, stretched his arms and legs, turned his face toward the sun, and tried to get rid of his thoughts. He liked Stefan. He always had. Stefan was a good guy. A vampire, a dry voice in the back of his mind noted, even a harmless one, can rarely be described as a good guy. Matt ignored the voice. â€Å"Let's jump!† he said, and headed toward the waterfal . â€Å"Not Meredith,† said Stefan flatly. â€Å"Not Meredith, and not Celia. You two stay here.† There was a little silence, and he glanced up from the gril to see his friends staring at him. He kept his face neutral as he returned their gazes. This was a life-or-death situation. It was Stefan's responsibility now to keep them safe, whether they liked it or not. He looked at them each in turn, holding their eyes. He was not going to back down. Meredith had risen to her feet to fol ow Matt to the fal s' edge, and she hesitated for a moment, clearly unsure how to react. Then her face hardened, and Stefan saw that she had chosen to take a stand. She stepped toward him. â€Å"I'm sorry, Stefan,† she said, her voice level. â€Å"I know you're worried, but I'm going to do what I decide I want to do. I can look after myself.† She moved to join Matt, who was standing at the edge of the cliff, but Stefan's hand whipped out to grab her wrist, his fingers as strong as steel. â€Å"No, Meredith,† he said firmly. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Bonnie's mouth drop open. Everyone was looking at him with puzzled, anxious faces, and Stefan tried to soften his tone. â€Å"I'm just trying to do what's best for you.† Meredith sighed, a long, gusty sound, and seemed to be making an effort to let go of some of her anger. â€Å"I know that, Stefan,† she said reasonably, â€Å"and I appreciate it. But I can't go through the world not doing the things I usual y do, just waiting for whatever this is to come get me.† She tried to move around him, but he sidestepped to block her way again. Meredith glanced at Celia, who threw up her hands and shook her head. â€Å"Don't look at me,† Celia said. â€Å"I have no urge to jump off a cliff. I'm just going to lie in the sunshine and let you al work this out yourselves.† She leaned back on her hands and turned her face toward the sun. Meredith's eyes narrowed and she whirled back to Stefan. As she was opening her mouth, Elena broke in. â€Å"What if the rest of us go first?† she suggested placatingly to Stefan. â€Å"We can make sure there's nothing clearly dangerous down there. And we'l be near her at the bottom. Nobody's ever been hurt jumping here, not that I've heard of. Right, guys?† Matt and Bonnie nodded in agreement. Stefan felt himself softening. Whenever Elena used her logical voice and her wide, appealing eyes, he found himself agreeing to plans that, in his heart of hearts, he thought were foolhardy. Elena pressed her advantage. â€Å"You could stand right by the water below, too,† she said. â€Å"Then, if there's any problem, you could dive in right away. You're so fast, you'd get there before anything bad could happen.† Stefan knew this was wrong. He hadn't forgotten that sick swoop of despair, of realizing he was too slow to save someone. Once again, he saw Damon's long, graceful leap toward Bonnie that had ended with Damon fal ing to earth, a wooden branch driven through his heart. Damon had died because Stefan was too slow to save him, too slow to realize the danger and save Bonnie himself. He'd also been too late to save Elena when she had driven off the bridge and drowned. The fact that she now lived again didn't mean he hadn't failed her then. He remembered her pale hair floating like seaweed in the chil y water of Wickery Creek, her hands stil resting on the steering wheel, her eyes closed, and shuddered. He had dived repeatedly before he found her. She had been so cold and white when he carried her to shore. Stil , he found himself nodding. What Elena wanted, Elena got. He would stand by and protect Meredith as best as he could, and he prayed, as far as a vampire could pray, that it would be enough. The rest of the friends stayed at the top while, down at the bottom of the fal s, Stefan surveyed the pool at his feet. The water sprayed up exuberantly from where the fal s hit the surface. Warm, pale sand encircled the pool's edges, making a tiny beach, and the center of the pool seemed dark and deep. Matt jumped first, with a long, wavering whoop as he plummeted. The splash as he hit the water was huge, and he seemed to stay submerged for a long time. Stefan leaned forward to watch the water. He couldn't see through the foam thrown up by the fal s, and an anxious quiver shot through his stomach. He was just thinking of diving in after him when Matt's sleek wet head broke the surface. â€Å"I touched the bottom!† he announced, grinning, and shook his head like a dog, throwing glittering drops of water everywhere. He swam toward Stefan, strong tan limbs moving powerful y, and Stefan thought how easy everything seemed for Matt. He was a creature of sunlight and simplicity, while Stefan was stuck in the shadows, living a long half-life of secrets and loneliness. Sure, his sapphire ring let him walk in the sun, but being exposed to the sunlight for a long time, like today, was uncomfortable, as if there were some kind of itch deep inside him. It was worse now that he was readjusting to a diet of animal blood again. His unease was yet another reminder that he didn't real y belong here. Not the way Matt did. He shrugged off his sour feelings, surprised at their emergence in the first place. Matt was a good friend. He always had been. The daylight must be getting to him. Bonnie jumped next, and surfaced more quickly, coughing and snorting. â€Å"Oof!† she said. â€Å"I got water up my nose! Ugh!† She pul ed herself out of the water and perched on a rock near Stefan's feet. â€Å"You don't swim?† she asked him. Stefan was struck with a flash of memory. Damon, tanned and strong, splashing him and laughing in one of his rare fits of good humor. It was hundreds of years ago now. Back when the Salvatore brothers had lived in the sunlight, back before even the great-grandparents of his friends had been born. â€Å"Not for a long time,† he answered. Elena jumped with the same casual grace as she did everything else, straight as an arrow toward the bottom of the fal s, her gold bathing suit and her golden hair gleaming in the sunshine. She was underwater for longer than Bonnie had been, and again Stefan tensed, watching the pool. When she broke the surface, she gave them a rueful grin. â€Å"I couldn't quite reach the bottom,† she said. â€Å"I was stretching and stretching down. I could see the sand, but the water pushed me back up.† â€Å"I didn't even try,† Bonnie said. â€Å"I've accepted that I'm too short.† Elena swam away from the bottom of the fal s and climbed onto the sand, settling next to Bonnie at Stefan's feet. Matt climbed out of the water, too, and stood near the fal s, gazing up critical y. â€Å"Just jump feetfirst, Meredith,† he cal ed teasingly. â€Å"You're such a show-off.† Meredith was poised at the edge of the fal s. She saluted them and then leaped into a perfect swan dive, arching swiftly toward the pool, disappearing smoothly beneath the water with barely a splash. â€Å"She was on the swim team,† Bonnie said conversational y to Stefan. â€Å"She has a row of ribbons and trophies on a shelf at home.† Stefan nodded absently, his eyes scanning the water. Surely Meredith's head would break the surface in a second. The others had taken about this long to reemerge. â€Å"Can I jump yet?† Alaric cal ed from above. â€Å"No!† Elena shouted. She rose to her feet and she and Stefan exchanged a worried glance. Meredith had been down there too long. Meredith surfaced, sputtering and pushing her wet hair out of her eyes. Stefan relaxed. â€Å"I did it!† she cal ed. â€Å"I – â€Å" Her eyes widened and she began to shriek, but her scream was cut off as she was abruptly yanked under the water by something they couldn't see. In the space of a breath, she was gone. For a moment, Stefan just stared at where Meredith had been, unable to move. Too slow, too slow, an internal voice taunted him, and he pictured Damon's face, laughing cruel y and saying again, So fragile, Stefan. He couldn't see Meredith anywhere under the clear, effervescent water. It was as if she had been taken suddenly away. Al of this flew through Stefan's head in only a heartbeat, and then he dived into the water after her. Underwater, he couldn't see anything. The white water from the fal s bubbled up, throwing foam and golden sand in front of him. Stefan urgently channeled his Power to his eyes, sharpening his vision, but mostly that just meant that now he could see the individual bubbles of the white water and the grains of sand in sharp relief. Where was Meredith? The bubbling water was trying to push him up to the surface, too. He had to struggle to move forward through the murky water, reaching out. Something brushed his fingers and he grabbed at it, but it was only a handful of slippery pondweed. Where was she? Time was running out. Humans could go without oxygen for only a few minutes before brain damage set in. A few minutes after that, there would be no recovery at al . He remembered Elena's drowning once more, the frail white shape that he had pul ed from Matt's wrecked car, ice crystals in her hair. The water here was warm, but would kil Meredith just as surely. He swal owed a sob and reached out frantical y again into the shadowed depths. His fingers found skin, and it moved against his hand. Stefan grasped whatever limb it was, tight enough to bruise, and surged forward. In less than a second more, he could see that it was Meredith's arm. She was conscious, her mouth tight with fear, her hair streaming around her in the water. At first he couldn't see why she hadn't come to the surface. Then Meredith gestured emphatical y, reaching to fumble at long tendrils of pondweed that had somehow become entangled with her legs. Stefan swam down, pushing against the white water from the fal s, and tried to work his hand under the pondweed to pul it off her. It was wrapped so tightly around Meredith's legs that he couldn't get his fingers beneath it. Her skin was pressed white by the strands. Stefan struggled for a moment, then swam closer and let Power surge into him, sharpening and lengthening his canines. He bit, careful not to scratch Meredith's legs, and pul ed at the pondweed, but it resisted him. A little late, he realized that the resilience of the plants must be supernatural: His Power-enhanced strength was enough to break bones, tear through metal, and should have had no problem with a bit of pondweed. And final y – so slow, he reprimanded himself, always just so damn slow – he realized what he was looking at. Stefan felt his eyes widen in horror. The tight strands of pondweed against Meredith's long legs spel ed out a name.

Critical sommentary on London and Jerusalem by William Blake Essay

The poetry of William Blake is well known for its metaphysical language and profound symbolism. In his two poems, entitled â€Å"London† and â€Å"Jerusalem† his use of these techniques, alongside many others, is crucial in his portrayal of the corruptive tendencies of man and his perspective on religion and England during the Industrial Revolution. Throughout these poems Blake reveals his strong dislike for the Industrial Revolution and its effect on London, expressed particularly in his poem â€Å"London†. His poem â€Å"Jerusalem† focuses very much so on the natural beauty of England and religion in England. Blake, much like many Romantic poets, bases his writings on emotion rather than intellect. This is evident throughout these poems as Blake appeals to the senses and stirs readers to question their resolve with regards to England and its natural beauty. The poem â€Å"London† by William Blake begins with a cynical portrayal of the authority figures during the Romantic era, these being the church and the King. This is evident in Blake’s use of the word â€Å"chart’d† which implies that the â€Å"streets† and â€Å"Thames† are owned by the state, exposing the oppressive nature of capitalism in England during this era, this also proposes that nature is controlled by the wealthy. A Marxist reading of this shows the relationship between the Church or King and the land over which they rule, portraying the capital power as the bourgeoisie and their land and people on it as the proletariat. Blake continues to communicate to the reader the effect of this oppression in the line, â€Å"Marks of weakness, marks of woe. † This depicts the sadness and helplessness of the people of London. The poem is dark and gothic which is evident in Blake’s use of the words, â€Å"manacles†, â€Å"blights† and â€Å"plagues†. The use of this language aids in his depiction of a corrupt society. The beat of the poem is repetitive; this also emphasizes the constant pressures placed upon society. Throughout the next two stanzas there is a strong sense of discontent and subjugation shown in the line, â€Å"The mind-forg’d manacles I hear. † This accentuates the churches and or the king’s control over the minds of man, once again exploiting the corruptive nature that is brought about by authority and power. The values of the Christian church are challenged as Blake exposes the many flaws of the church and its corruptive tendencies. As a contemporary reader it is evident still to this day that England, the mother country, is still ever-changing and very much so industrialized, as in Blake’s era. The church is a symbol for salvation, hope and refuge though Blake presents the church as corrupt, oppressive and controlling; this challenges the values of many contemporary readers and those of Blake’s era. Evident in the line, â€Å"Every black’ning Church appalls;†. This line also portrays the church as not completely corrupt, rather, slowly â€Å"black’ning† or becoming corrupt. In the last stanza Blake proposes that marriage is an end to freedom as shown in, â€Å"And the blights with plagues the Marriage hearse†. Marriage, commonly takes place in a church, again this is associated with the controlling and oppressive nature of the church during the Romantic period. The use of archaic language in this poem adds to its gothic nature and aids in creating a short and sharp beat throughout the poem, the use of the â€Å"ABCB† rhyming pattern is simplistic and repetitive creating an atmosphere of continuity. In Blake’s poem entitled â€Å"Jerusalem† the persona questions the theory that Jesus was once in England as a child this is supported by the first stanza, â€Å"And did those feet in ancient time Walk upon England’s mountains green? And was the holy Lamb Of God On England’s pleasant pastures seen? † Blake utilizes a somber tone throughout the poem as he is discussing his own country in a seemingly patriotic manner. The poem is full of metaphor which aids in Blake’s representation of the church as an ever changing authority. In the line, â€Å"Among these dark satanic mills† Blake could be referring to the Industrial revolution or the universities and churches during the Romantic period which would repress the minds of society and corrupt. Throughout the poem Blake makes constant reference to England’s beauty, this contrasts to the â€Å"dark satanic mills†, the â€Å"bow of burning gold† and the â€Å"chariot of fire† which is all manmade, Blake is juxtaposing the natural beauty of England with its industrial capabilities. In the third and fourth stanza Blake uses numerous metaphors to emphasize his fight against the clergy this is evident in the lines, â€Å"Bring me my spear! O clouds, unfold! † and â€Å"I shall not cease in mental fight, Till we have built Jerusalem In England’s green and pleasant land. † The persona plans to kill or rebel, in the name of God in order to build his Jerusalem in England. This is much like Blake’s â€Å"London† as both poems exploit the church and authority as corrupt, though in the poem â€Å"Jerusalem† Blake discusses his struggle to fight against this conformity and oppression. London and Jerusalem both describe Blake’s home, England. In London, situated not too far from Blake’s home, a place of corruption, death and depression is exposed whilst in Jerusalem Blake portrays England as a beautiful country, one which however lacks guidance and through Christ, Blake seeks this guidance and will not rest until Jerusalem has been built â€Å"In England’s green and pleasant land. Throughout both poems Blake shows his strong dislike of the Industrial revolution and its effect on England, focusing on London. Blake akin to change throughout his life, portrays, through his two poems the changes occurring in his life and that of many other people and how these changes affect the inhabitants of the world and the world its self.

Android Applications with Artificial Intelligence in Mobile Phones

Every company is willing to provide new features and easy to use interface to their customers. But perfection is a thing which comes with time. This paper will include various features, advantages, lacking of major mobile operating systems which includes iOS by Apple, Android by Google and Symbian of Nokia. With the analysis, I have found that once a major market share holder Symbian is now on a verge to be history, while new operating systems are at a boom due to new technology and features, iOS has still been able to conserve its market share with frequent updations. KEYWORDS: Android, Symbian, iOS, Mobile Operating System I. With increasing craze of mobile phones in customers, we often see a wave of confusion for selection of best phone in their minds. Hundreds of brands with different operating systems, providing tons of features to customers seems to be a mind boggling market. A mind-boggling bazaar of competing manufacturers and overlapping technologies -William D. Marbach Competition in mobile industry is increasing day by day. Every mobile company wants to provide best features in their mobiles During 1940s Motorola developed a two way Walkie-Talkie and a two way radio for military which is very big in size. What is an Operating System? An OS is the most critical software element on any running processor-based device[2]. The OS manages the hardware and software resources within a device and performs and manages basic tasks such as the recognition of input from the device keyboard and generation of output to the device’s screen. It also ensures that different programs running at the same time do not interfere with each other. It is responsible for the management of memory and for communication within the device. OSs may be extended to add additional complexity and hence functionality to the code. In the mobile world, the more complex OSs will contain, for example, UI (User Interface) elements as these become increasingly important as the devices become more complex. The OS is purposely hidden from the user who, as a general rule, will have no direct interaction with it. It is, rather, a base onto which the applications required by the user are loaded. The OS is not only a key element in terms of the tasks it performs but the choice of OS will constrain or enable the functionality of the end device in two key respects; firstly that which is technically possible with any given OS and secondly that which is available, i. e. what applications have been developed for that OS. The OS, provides a software platform on top of which other application programs can run. The application programs have to be written for a particular OS so the choice of OS, therefore, determines to a great extent the applications that can be offered on the end device. The OS also provides a consistent interface for applications, regardless of the hardware it is loaded on. Communication between the OS and the applications is done through an API (Application Program Interface) which allows a software developer to write an application for one device and have a high level of confidence that it will run on another running the same OS. III. Â  The Mobile OSs [4]can be differentiated, based on the existing operating systems used by computers. a. Real-Time Operating System (RTOS) Real-Time Operating System which responds to inputs, immediately and generates results, instantly. This type of system is usually used to control scientific devices and similar small instruments where memory and resources are crucial and constricted. This type of devices have very limited or zero-end user utilities, so more effort goes into making the OS really memory efficient and fast (less coding), so as to minimize the execution time ,in turn saving on power as well. e. g. : 8086 etc. b. Single user, single tasking operation system This type of OS is better version of Real time OS, where one user can do effectively one thing at a time, which means that doing more than one thing at a time is difficult in this type of OS.

Health and Aging Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Health and Aging - Essay Example Institutional discrimination is when policies are implemented that go against ethnic minorities. Hence, these people have a low standard of living and lead unhealthy lives. However the health effects of discrimination may vary from person to person. A person’s age, sex and social position may influence how discrimination will affect them.Studies prove that reporting and challenging racism results in lower blood pressure when compared to bearing it. There is no concrete evidence that establish the fact that racism may have serious health effects. This article will investigate the relationship between health and racism. The sample of the study included 5196 people of Caribbean, Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Chinese origin and 2867 whites who were selected using stratified random sampling. These people were interviewed in full detail. They were given a questionnaire which had questions regarding their health and any interpersonal discrimination experiences that they had. The questions included if they thought that they would be denied a job by a British employer because of their ethnic background. Their own health was self assessed by them. 12 percent of the participants reported verbal abuse in the past year. 64 percent thought that a British employer would refuse a job because of their ethnic background while 37 percent thought that a British employer would do so at least half the time. Participants who reported verbal abuse were 50 percent more likely to report their health as fair or poor as compared to those who were not abused. While respondents who thought that a British employer would refuse a job because of his ethnic background were 40 percent more likely to report fair or poor health. Females were 60 percent more likely to report bad health compared to males. The findings suggest that experience and perception of interpersonal

Research paper for drunk driving Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Research paper for drunk driving - Essay Example The paper tries a research work on the topic drunk driving. The main purpose of the work is to give people awareness about the social problem of drunk driving. The topic has got wide scope as it has become one of the serious social problems in the modern world. The work will certainly motivate people to abstain from alcohol and other drugs while driving. The paper has wider significance as it helps people ponder over the matter seriously and also helps them in taking a stand negative in attitude towards drunk driving. The paper tries to research and argue that the number of people who drive vehicles under the influence of alcohol is alarmingly on the increase. This research paper contains a cover letter and analysis of the research topic drunk driving. Special attention is paid to analyze the thesis statement, introduction, conclusion, content, and organization of the research paper under consideration Driving under the influence of alcohol and other drugs is a crime in almost all countries of the world. Now a days people mix driving with drinking. The number of people who drink while driving is on the increase. People are unaware of the adversities that mixing up of drinking and driving can bring about. There are many instances of accidents which have been caused by drunk driving. When people mix up drinking with driving the possibilities for accidents are many and rather serious. The ability to act according to the demands of the situation is inactive in a drunkard and if he or she is driving a vehicle it will certainly affect their driving. It is the main reason why drunkards tend to make most of the accidents on roads. When people drive vehicles under the influence of alcohol they fail to effectively respond to the challenging situations on roads. People lose control over their action after having consumed alcohol. Likewise drunkards lose control over their driving as well as their vehicles. This causes accidents. There

Somalia Outline Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Somalia - Outline Example The World Bank and USAID have been involved in the water supply sectors of the given countries to a large extent; hence they provide credible and reliable data on the water supply situations in these countries and thus justify the use of these sources. Water provision is a serious problem in most developing countries, and it is even a worse scenario in Somalia. This is a country that has been war-ravaged for the last two decades. To generate effective recommendations for water provision in Somalia, it is first necessary to establish the water supply situation, and then compare water provision systems that are considerably effective in countries with a similar situation like Somalia’s. This study explores the water provision solutions that have been implemented in Mozambique and Ghana and use them to generate recommendations for the water supply crisis in Somalia. According to the Advanced Blue Revolution Initiative, Somalia lacks an official water supply and sanitation system (ABRI 2009, p. 1). A large population obtains water from boreholes and shallow wells. The shallow wells are usually located near settlements, and the condition of this water is alarming due to nearly latrines seeping health hazards to ground water; cholera and diarrhoea outbreaks are common, and ABRI statistics indicate that less than 29% of the population has access to clean and sustainable water sources. It might be necessary to point out that the urban water supply system that existed in Somalia before degeneration into conflict was already constrained, poorly funded and mismanaged, and became inoperable after the civil crisis. This is the basis that informs the choice of comparison countries; Mozambique has an experience of nearly 20 years in war, and Ghana is muted as a model for other developing countries in efforts to curb most of their challenging problems. A brief background on Mozambique’s water provision system indicates that it was rendered useless

COMMUNICATION USING NEWER TECHNOLOGIES Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

COMMUNICATION USING NEWER TECHNOLOGIES - Essay Example Communicating with other people regardless what part of the world is possible in a very timely manner. We send invitations through an e-mail as well as e-cards to greet someone who celebrates birthday. Invitations can also be posted in Facebook so people can confirm if they are attending an event. In fact, communication is real-time because one can video conference with a friend, business partner or loved one through technologies like Skype. Last time, my childhood friends planned a get-together; however, a friend of ours couldn’t make it, since she is living abroad. All we had to do was set up the video camera and speaker on the PC, so she can be part of that wonderful celebration. She was there with us virtually all the time, watching us as we sing and played games. She heard the music in the background that reminded her of our good times together. She also saw the decorations we made as well as the clothes we wore that night. The only thing missing is the fact that she coul dn’t embrace us for all she has is a screen. Nevertheless, she felt she was almost there; in fact, everyone chatted with her, so she saw the smiles in our face. Aside from the Skype conference, we also sent our friend pictures by simply attaching it to our e-mail.

Women and Terrorism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Women and Terrorism - Essay Example Once so defined, those affected may become international lepers. Hence the nature of their movement; its objectives, ideology, and historical reason for being will be dismissed out of hand. The second stage in the 20th century transformation of terrorism was the growth of state sponsorship. Historically, the representation of women increases during the second wave of terrorism, although it is never very high. Also, the proportion of "supporters" relative to "regulars" and "leaders" grows in the second wave. Yet when researchers look at their places of birth and adult residence, the case for the diffusion of neo-Fascist terrorism by expansion weakens (Mason 37). Measured both in terms of where they were born and resided the early neo-Fascists were a more geographically dispersed collection of people than the later ones. So far as the terrorists' gender is concerned, somewhat surprisingly the late leftists did not show a statistically significant increase in female representation as against the early contingent (Mason 38). There is a shift, however, in the kinds of women who appear during the second period. The data suggest an increase in the proportion of married women who participated in the left-wing groups. The most famous [women terrorist] is Ulrike... Furthermore, second generation women were more likely to play leadership roles in these groups than were women who joined the earlier formations. Palestinian women terrorist leadership has been sufficiently successful that it may have provided at least some motivation for the September 11 attacks. States which are unable to confront their enemies conventionally have provided every imaginable assistance to terrorist groups in order to weaken their enemies physically or morally. Although the original acts of Palestinian terror have brought some international condemnation upon the perpetrators, Israeli responses have resulted in even worse condemnation for Israel (Bassam 83). Formal U.N. reprimands weaken Israel's moral position, which affects its relations with the U.S. Government. Ironically, the attacks have not weakened the Israelis physically; if anything, the attacks have moved the Israelis to new levels of proficiency in eradicating the threat. A crucial factor in the rise to prominence of the women participation has been the evolution of modes of violent behavior over time. If violence is viewed as an ongoing component in human relationships, rather than as a moral consideration, it is clear that the eras of conventional warfare and, in turn, nuclear warfare, have been respectively organized, institutionalized, and for the most part deterred (with no guarantee over future breakdowns) (Neuberger and Valentini 24). As persons have devised capabilities to deal with these forms of violence, it is not surprising that advocates of violence have turned to unconventional forms of warfare-first guerrilla warfare (liberation movements), and eventually to

Critical analysis of EU law system Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Critical analysis of EU law system - Essay Example In 2001 was accepted the new constituent Treaty, which has received the name the Treaty of Nice and is one of the major founding treaties of the European Union. According to this Treaty, which has come into force in 2003, were made essential changes in institutional structure, to process of formation and functioning of institutes of EU. The Nice Treaty, "once it comes into force, will allow for more categories of cases to be moved from the jurisdiction of the ECJ to that of the European Court of First Instance (CFI) and from that of the CFI to new judicial panels hearing appeals in special in special areas of the law that are of lesser importance for the general evolution of the European Union"3. Since May, 1st, 2004 10 more Member states has entered the European Union and the general number of Member-states has reached twenty five4. The European Union is becoming the leading economic world centre, has sharply strengthening its political influence on a world scene, having united the states, which population is made nearby half milliard people. And all these people have right, which must be efficiently protected. Issues of cognition, perfection, and realization of law have always been of great value for communication and interaction of people, resolution and prevention of conflicts between them. Historical way of the development of legal matter and spirit of different people was long and complex. It took some thousand years for people in their majority to understand, from the very beginning intuitively, and then more and more deliberately, the sense and the role of law in their lives. Nowadays these issues continue to remain topical, being shown both inside of the personal, and in interpersonal communications, in mutual relations between various associations, communities, and states.Research of above mentioned issues should be begun with a human being, whose essential features, ideal and behavioural images obviously or implicitly are connected with the law. Only a person among all other live beings possesses an intellect and is capable to feel and realize law, to observe legal establishments, and to adapt to legal activity. Any person is a social essence, who in the course of communication with similar like he/her can improve legal norms, create more and more convenient models of public behaviour. Living in this word, a human being lives in a legal system and owing to some social, economic, political and other factors of development cannot exist without the law. According to Chauhan (2004, p. 1), "human beings are rational beings. They, by virtue of their being h uman, possess certain basic and inalienable rights which are commonly known as human rights. These rights of human beings are not derived from being a national of certain state, but belong to them because of their very existence and are based upon the attributes of human personality"5. As a matter of fact we may consider the relations between a human and the law from two sides. From the one side a person acts only as a user, a consumer of this law. But there is the other side of these relations, when a person acts as a creator of this law. First of all it is necessary to understand that the law is an integral quality of a human and a property of its objective reality6. The European

Integrated Marketing Communication Project Essay

Integrated Marketing Communication Project - Essay Example The designed questionnaire was taken to the chosen set of respondents who were necessarily consumers who had purchased an Apple product. In response to a question on the main aspects that influences brand evaluation by the customers it was observed that the main aspects that influences them particularly in the customer segment of Apple was quality. Customers often perceived a product on the basis of product features and reputation of the brand as they felt it added value to their social status as well. A certain section of the respondents also stated the importance of price as a crucial aspect while undertaking a purchase decision. The survey findings also stated that brands that become a hit with the consumers are normally those that have a good brand image. This brand image is built mainly on the basis of product attributes, service quality and reputation of the brand in the market. Quality is one area that seems to have been the most important factor stated by the respondents as main criteria that makes brands popular and hit in the market. The respondents stated that brands that had a good reputation with quality standards as well as customer service were more likely to be the chosen brand by the customers. It was perhaps for the reason that most of the respondents felt that quality and product features were the most important criteria for decision making by the customers. In the course of the survey it was also found that brand image also depended on the business profile of the organization. Brands like Google and Apple score high with regard to brand image by virtue of the robustness of their business mod els. The survey also revealed that customer service as well as the marketing communication strategy also plays a major role in the development of brand image of an organization as most respondents felt that the manner in which an organization communicated with the customers had a very lasting and comprehensive effect on the overall positioning and brand image of an organization. In response to a question on the ways customers evaluate as brand it was observed that most customers used a cost benefit analysis to analyze a brand. Most of the respondents were of the view that if the cost of a product tends to satisfy their demands then they perceive it to be a good brand. In addition to this respondents also stated that product features and additional facilities like loyalty points, rewards and bonuses also played a major role in the perception of brands among the customers. In summation it was found that most of the respondents stated the importance of the elements of the marketing mix as the essential

The prince of Verona Essay Example for Free

The prince of Verona Essay In this essay, I will be comparing the way the 400 years old William Shakespeares film Romeo and Juliet was transformed by Baz luharmann for the understanding of the modern audience. Romeo and Juliet was written by William Shakespeare 400 years ago. In the past plays were acted in the theatre. The plays were totally different from the way they are now. The theatre had a stage where the play was to be acted; this had an entrance and an exit. There was no lighting and no scenery; there was also a balcony on the first floor where some scenes were acted. Below the stage was where the audience stood to watch the play. There were also two galleries. At the top of the building there was a flag to show there was a play in progress. This is a sign for the illiterate population, who couldnt read notices. A Prologue is a piece of useful information before a play or story is acted. It tells us what we are supposed to expect. In Shakespeares time the narrator would have come out before the play started to deliver the prologue to the audience. This is very important as there is no form of scenery or lighting to describe the location or what is happening. Hence, the audience have to be attentive and listen to everything that is said in the play. This can be illustrated in this quotation In fair Verona, where we lay our scene. This is a typical statement a narrator will say when delivering the Prologue to inform the audience where the play is taking place. Baz Luhrmanns film has a totally different way of presenting the prologue. In this present day we have newscasters who give us information about what is happening internally and externally. This is the device Baz Luhrmanns uses. The film starts with a television set and a newscaster reading the news. This is the way the prologue is first presented. She talks about the setting in fair Verona, where we lay our scene, she talks about the main story and characters in this quotation two households both alike in dignity and she also says short statements which are a brief summary of the play. At the top right corner of the screen there is a picture of a broken ring and below it are these words; star crossed lovers. This illustrates that there is love and a broken relationship between two lovers in the film. Also the broken ring suggests that the lovers relationship will be but a short one as it is destined to end in tragedy. Also there is dramatic operatic music at the background; it suggests the film will most likely be a tragedy as is often seen in grand operas. The Prologue is delivered again. This is very different from the first time; it contains flashes of scenes in the film/ informative clips. This prologue has a voiceover of Friar. He is the perfect person for this job because he knows the story from the start to the end. The clips are very informative. The two towers with the names MONTAGUE AND CAPULET suggest wealth and probably business rivalry, which a modern audience would understand. It also shows they are both well-to-do families. We can also say they are of the same status: It also has shots of the statues of Jesus and Mary this shows a church is involved and it reflects the Catholic religion practised in Verona. There are also flashes of murder, city in flames, police aircraft. People in these flashes have worried and troubled looks on their faces. There is also this newspaper article with a caption ANCIENT GRUDGE. This explains that the two families have had this grudge for years and generations. This is because a modern audience is literate; the film director can use text on the screen, whereas Shakespeares original audience could not read. The line civil blood makes civil hands unclean is illustrated using the flashes of fire in the streets, bloodshed, and violence. Another major difference between the films is the names and appearance. In Shakespeares original play the heads of the families were just called Lady and Lord Capulet or Montague and to differentiate the families they would have probably used red clothes for a family and blue for another family. This is totally different in Baz Luhrmanns film. He gives the characters names. The Capulets are Fulgencio and Gloria. This suggests they originated from Italy. Caroline and Ted Montague are of north European origin. The audience are now aware that the families are both business rivals and from different communities. Their appearances also differ: the Montagues are blond and blue eyed and the Capulets have a Mediterranean appearance. Act 1 Scene 1 then begins and the music changes. The music that follows the film is a classic and tragic kind of music. It is giving the audience clues about immerse drama and tragedy of what they are to witness. It is a hi-life, hip-pop music followed by the arrival of the Montague boys. They arrive in a yellow car with the music turned on loudly. They wear bright-coloured beach shirts. Their car plate number even has Mi n, their family name on it. This entry is very common to the modern audience. It is the usual show-off of young boys from a rich background, who like to party and are carefree. The scene is well lit and shows a cool happy atmosphere. The music changes at the arrival of the Capulets. It is now a menacing kind of music. It sends a dangerous, serious, down-to-earth kind of music. The Capulets arrive in a stylish fashion with cowboy boots that have steel plates on them; they come in black official suits with bullet belts. They have a purposeful serious look. They portray the real bad-boys attitude, ready to fight. All this takes place in a gas station the equivalent of the public haunt of men. The Montague boys sight their enemy. They both start taunting each other. Abra Capulet starts it; it all seems like a comic. Then Tybalt who is Juliets cousin comes out, and takes a step further. The Montagues despite all their loud behaviour seen reluctant to fight, but Tybalt, who is a trouble- maker, brings out his gun and starts shooting. The Montagues start defending themselves, leading it to a real fight. It gets to a climax when Tybalt drops his cigar and the place goes up in flames drawing the attention of the police. The mayhem which follows is very familiar to the audience who see action movies. The Prince of Verona is updated to be the chief of police. He is the peace maker and makes a stand. He calls both head of the families and tells them if any fight reoccurs disturbing the peace of the streets they will pay for it with their lives. In conclusion, I think Baz Lurhmann has done a very good job. The music interprets and indicates the stage of the scenes. Instead of swords, they use guns which are a normal sight to a modern audience as they are used to watching action films. The dressing also speaks a lot of the characters, so does the body language, especially that of Tybalt: his looks, his pose and the way he carries himself suggest trouble. The violent scene shows irresponsibility and senselessness of the feud. It is this pointless violence that destroys the lives of the innocent lovers ROMEO AND JULIET whom the play is named after and whom we meet later in the play. Finally, I think the opening is very effective as everyone can understand through the clips and well delivered Prologue. The costume and setting of the scene are also important as it speaks to the Audience even if they do not understand the Shakespearean language.

Human Growth and Development Research Paper Essay Example for Free

Human Growth and Development Research Paper Essay Abstract The following research paper will be written on schizophrenia. I will discuss what schizophrenia is. I will discuss the history behind this chronic disease. Also, who is affected by it? In addition, how common it is in some people. And, I will talk about the different types. Furthermore, I will discuss the causes of schizophrenia. If schizophrenia is hereditary? And the different types of symptoms. Also, how it is diagnosed. Lastly, I will talk over the treatment for people with schizophrenia. What is Schizophrenia? Schizophrenia is a chronic and severe mental illness. It is considered one of the psychotic mental disorders and is described by symptoms of thought, behavior, and social problems. The thought problems associated with schizophrenia are described as psychosis, in that the persons thinking is completely out of touch with reality at times. An example of this would be, the sufferer of this disease may hear voices or see people that are not actually present or feel like bugs are crawling on their skin when there are none. The individual with this disorder may also have disorganized speech, behavior, physically rigid, significantly decreased feelings, and delusions, which are ideas about themselves or others that have no basis in reality (for example, the individual might experience paranoia, in that he or she thinks others are plotting against them when they are not). What is the history of schizophrenia? The term schizophrenia has only been in use since 1911. The word schizophrenia is less than 100 years old. Soon before that, it was deemed a separate mental illness in 1887 by Emil Kraepelin. Despite the fact that it is a more recent known disease, it has been described throughout written history. Ancient Egyptian, Hindu, Chinese, Greek, and Roman writings described symptoms similar to the symptoms of schizophrenia. During medieval times, schizophrenia, like other illnesses, was often viewed as evidence of the sufferer being possessed by spirits or evil powers. The film â€Å"A Beautiful Mind† depicts the life of a man named John Nash, a noted scientist, and his struggles with paranoid schizophrenia. In history, all people who were considered abnormal, whether due to mental illness, mental retardation, or physical deformities, were treated the same. Early theories  invented that mental disorders were caused by â€Å"evil possession† of the body, and the appropriate treatment was then get rid of these demons, through various means, reaching from innocuous treatments, such as exposing the patient to certain types of music, to dangerous and sometimes deadly means, such as releasing the evil spirits by drilling holes in the patients skull. 1996-2014 MedicineNet. 1996-2009. Schizophrenia.com. Who is affected, and who is it most common in? Schizophrenia affects about 1% of the population, corresponding to more than 2 million people in the United States and 100,000-200,000 newly diagnosed people every year. Other statistics about schizophrenia include that it affects men about one and a half times more commonly than women and that 50% of people in hospital psychiatric care have schizophrenia. Diagnosis is usually in people aged 17-35 years with the illness appearing earlier in men (in the late teens or early 20s) than in women (who are affected in the 20s to early 30s). Although there have been fewer studies on schizophrenia in children compared to adults, researchers are finding that children as young as 6 years old can be found to have all the symptoms of their adult counterparts and continue to have those symptoms into adulthood. 1996-2014 MedicineNet. What are the different types of Schizophrenia? There are five different types of schizophrenia, each based on the kind of symptoms the person has at the time of assessment. Firstly, there is paranoid schizophrenia. In this type the individual is preoccupied with one or more delusions or many auditory hallucinations but does not have symptoms of disorganized schizophrenia. On the other hand, disorganized schizophrenia is when the prominent symptoms are disorganized speech and behavior, as well as flat or inappropriate affect. The person does not have enough symptoms to be characterized as suffering from catatonic schizophrenia. On that note, catatonic schizophrenia is when the person with this type of schizophrenia primarily has at least two of the following symptoms: difficulty moving, resistance to moving, excessive movement, abnormal movements, and/or repeating what others say or do. Also, there is undifferentiated schizophrenia: This is characterized by episodes of two or more of the resulting symptoms: delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech or behavior, catatonic behavior, but the individual does not qualify for a diagnosis of paranoid, disorganized, or catatonic type of schizophrenia. Lastly, there is residual schizophrenia: While the full-blown  characteristic positive symptoms of schizophrenia (those that involve an excess of normal behavior, such as delusions, paranoia, or heightened sensitivity) are absent, the sufferer has a less severe form of the disorder or has only negative symptoms (symptoms characterized by a decrease in function, such as withdrawal, disinterest, and not speaking). Overall, those are all the different types of schizophrenia, there descriptions, and symptoms. 1996-2014 MedicineNet. What Are Causes of Schizophrenia? There are many causes to schizophrenia. Rather, it is the result of a complex group of genetic, psychological, and environmental factors. Genetically, schizophrenia is very similar to bipolar disorder, in the two disorders they both share a number of the same risk genes. However, the fact is that both illnesses also have some genetic factors that are unique. Environmentally, the risks of developing schizophrenia can even occur before birth. For example, the risk of schizophrenia is increased in individuals whose mother had one of certain infections during pregnancy. Difficult life circumstances during childhood, like the early loss of a parent, parental poverty, bullying, witnessing parental violence; emotional, sexual, or physical abuse; physical or emotional neglect; and insecure attachment have been associated with the development of this illness. The environment and the beings around the child as its young can decide whether or not the person suffers of that disease. 1996-2014 MedicineNet. Is Schizophrenia Hereditary? One of the most frequently asked question about schizophrenia is if it is hereditary. Like most of the other mental disorders, schizophrenia is not directly passed from one generation to another genetically, but it is known to run in families. Consequently, the risk of illness in an identical twin of a person with schizophrenia is 40%-50% and a child of a parent suffering from schizophrenia has a 10% chance of developing the illness. So, yes schizophrenia is somewhat hereditary. 1996-2014 MedicineNet. What are some signs or symptoms of schizophrenia? When it comes to symptoms there are two different categories. There are positive and negative symptoms. Positive: Beliefs that have no basis in reality (delusions) Hearing, seeing, feeling, smelling, or tasting things that have no basis in reality (hallucinations) Disorganized speech Disorganized behaviors Catatonic behaviors Negative: Inhibition of facial expressions Lack of motivation/ speech 1996-2014  MedicineNet. How is schizophrenia diagnosed? There is no test that definitively indicates that someone has schizophrenia. Therefore, health care officials diagnose this disorder by gathering comprehensive medical, family, and mental-health information. Patients have a tendency to to benefit when the practitioner takes into account their clients entire life and background. This consists of but is not restricted to the persons gender, sexual orientation, cultural, religious and ethnic background, and socioeconomic status. The symptom sufferer might be asked to fill out a self-test that the practitioner will review if the person being appraised is able to complete it. The practitioner will also either perform a physical examination or request that the individuals primary-care doctor perform one. The medical examination will usually include lab tests to evaluate the persons general health and to explore whether or not the individual has a medical condition that might produce psychological symptoms. Also, mental-health professionals are often exploring if the individual suffers from hallucinations or delusions, depression and/or manic symptoms, anxiety, substance abuse, as well as some personality disorders and developmental disorders. As a result, some of the symptoms of schizophrenia can also occur in other mental illnesses, the mental-health screening is to determine if the individual suffers from schizoaffective disorder or other psychotic disorder, depressive disorder, bipolar disorder, anxiety disorder, or a substance-abuse or personality disorder. Any disorder that is associated with bizarre behavior, mood, or thinking, like borderline personality disorder or another psychotic disorder, as well as dissociative identity disorder, also known as multiple personality disorder, which may be particularly challenging to tell between from schizophrenia. In order to judge the persons current emotional state, health-care providers perform a mental-status examination as well. In addition, providing treatment that is appropriate to the diagnosis, determining the presence of mental illnesses that may co-occur with schizophrenia is important in improving the life of individuals with schizophrenia. For example, people with schizophrenia are at increased risk of depression, or thoughts of suicide. 1996-2014 MedicineNet. What are some treatments for schizophrenia? There are a number  of helpful treatments available; medication remains the key of treatment for people with schizophrenia. These medications are often referred to as antipsychotics since they help decrease the intensity of psychotic symptoms. Many health-care professionals prescribe one of these medications, sometimes in combination of one or more other psychiatric medications, in order to maximize the benefit for the person with schizophrenia. Medications that are thought to be particularly effective in treating positive symptoms of schizophrenia include olanzapine (Zyprexa), risperidone (Risperdal), quetiapine (Seroquel), ziprasidone (Geodon), aripiprazole (Abilify), paliperidone (Invega), asenapine (Saphis), lurasidone (Latuda), and lloperidone (Fanapt). These medications are the newer collection of antipsychotic medications, also called second-generation antipsychotics. They are known for having the ability to work quickly compared too many other psychiatric medications. As a group of medications, side effects that occur most often include sleepiness, dizziness, and increased appetite. In addition to medication there are psychosocial treatments. One, Family psycho-education: In addition to educating family members about the symptoms, course, and treatment of schizophrenia, this form of treatment consists of providing family support, problem-solving skills, and access to care providers during times of crises. Secondly, there is the treatment of Social skills training: Also called illness management and recovery programming, social-skills training involve teaching clients ways to handle social situations appropriately. It often involves the person scripting (thinking through or role-playing) situations that occur in social settings in order to prepare for those situations when they actually occur. This treatment type has been found to help people with schizophrenia resist using drugs of abuse, as well as improve their relationships with health-care professionals and with people at work. Although, these are only a couple of the many options for treatment; these are some of the best. 1996-2014 MedicineNet. References: http://www.medicinenet.com/schizophrenia_pictures_slideshow/article.htmhttp://schizophrenia.com/family/sz.overview.htm http://www.medicinenet.com/schizophrenia/article.htm http://www.helpguide.org/mental/schizophrenia_symptom.htm Title Schizophrenia Authors John M. Neale, Thomas F. Oltmanns Edition illustrated Publisher John Wiley Sons, 1980 Original from the University of California Digitized Aug 24, 2010 ISBN 0471630861, 9780471630869 Length 554 pages http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schizophrenia

Case on a childs childhood and upbringing

Case on a childs childhood and upbringing A kids childhood should be filled with happy moments, laughter and lovely toys, not memories that make one shudder even at the thought of it. Being a child should not be a painful journey. After all, children are equal holders of human rights and they should not be denied a safe environment to grow and mature. However, many adults have failed to see the importance of ensuring the well-being of these young innocent kids. Every single day, almost five children die as a result of child abuse and at least one report of child abuse is made every ten seconds (National). Child abuse may take the form of physical, sexual, emotional or neglect, with physical abuse being the most common (Child). The incidence of parents and other guardians consciously, or even willfully, committing acts that harm the children theyre supposed to be nurturing is a sad fact of human society that cuts across all borders of ethnicity and class (Joseph). Its high time for us to dig deep into the roots of this evil a nd look for solutions to combat the issue, before it continues to bring detrimental impacts to both the abused victims, and also, the society. Behind any actions, there is always a reason. Same goes to child abuse. Child abuse is triggered by many factors. According to Dr. Joel Akande, among all the contributing factors, lack of insight is the main culprit. Child abusers lack insight into the value of the children and this leads to sexual, verbal or physical exploitation of these kids (Akande). This may be due to the fact that the children are unwanted from unplanned pregnancy or they may be physically or mentally impaired (Akande). When these adults are engulfed in frustration or anger, children become their easy targets as they are vulnerable objects. If they were to value their precious kids dearly, they would always place the childrens happiness as their utmost priority. A responsible parent will try his very best to protect his child from any form of danger at all times. Apart from that, some caregivers lack parenting skills and they might have unrealistic expectations about child care (Saisan et. al). Child care is a daunting task, especially for working adults who have the heavy responsibilities to juggle between career and family. Without necessary parenting skills and support from others, caring for a child can be very stressful. Caregivers who are unable to handle child care stress tend to abuse their children as an outlet of their emotions (Gibson). They unleash their anger on the children to make themselves feel better as they have little control over their own emotions. This is especially evident in teen parents who have unrealistic and immature expectations about how much care babies and small children need (Saisan et. al). Also, parents under the power of drugs and alcohol can be abusive and easily neglect their children (Gibson). Drugs and alcohol abuse increases the likelihood of violence, because it interferes with communication among family members and abusers have lower abilities in controlling their behaviors (Miller et.al 357). Underestimation of the consequences of violence take s place at the same time as a result of interference with the brain centers that control socially unacceptable behaviors when adults abuse drugs and alcohol (Miller et.al). They lose their ability to judge whats right or wrong when they are not sober. Parents who come home drunk or high on drugs are unable to take good care of their children, make good judgments and have control over often-dangerous compulsions (Saisan et.al). The neglected children are often left to fend for themselves and scavenge for their basic needs such as food under such harsh environment. Herbert Ward once said, Child abuse casts a shadow the length of a lifetime. Indeed, it is true that child abuse leaves deep and long-lasting impacts on the victims, be it physically or emotionally. Physical abuse leaves visible signs, such as frequent physical injuries or unexplained bruises, cuts and wounds. This is often done by slapping, spanking and caning by the caregivers. Some may even resort to harsher means such as using hot iron and leather belt to harm their children. The visible physical scars and wounds will heal someday, but the emotional scarring will be embedded deep down in the childrens hearts throughout their lives. Victims of violence may face trouble developing self-confidence and a sense of self in them. It is difficult to overcome the core feelings of being worthless and hopeless, if a child is being repeatedly told that he is good for nothing since young (Saisan et. al). They no longer believe that they worth more or stand a place in the society. Abused child ren also cannot regulate and express their emotions effectively, in turn leads to unexplained anxiety, depression and anger in adult survivors of abuse (Saisan et.al). In addition, child abuse is a vicious cycle. Based on a literature review, Kaufman and Zigler have estimated that inter-generational transmission rate of child abuse is approximately 30 percent (186). This signifies that three out of ten people who were neglected in childhood will abuse their own children in the future. They are more likely to raise their children in the way they have experienced as a child, repeating the horrible cycle unconsciously. This causes unfavorable effects to the society as a whole, as the future leaders of tomorrow are not empowered to fulfill their potential as productive human beings, said Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, the prime ministers wife of Malaysia (Getting). Hence, it is essential to put a halt to this terrible chain of abuse. First things first, caregivers have to be equipped with good parenting skills and it is vital to be mentally prepared for all the child care stress and challenges that follow. Parents should set realistic expectations of what children can handle at certain stages of development as it can help avoid frustrations and anger at normal child behavior (Saisan et.al). Emotional control and developing emotional intelligence is equally critical especially when one needs to handle children with special needs. Society has a pivotal role to play in combating this issue as well. The mindset of not wanting to encroach into other peoples lives should be discarded. One should not be reluctant to make a report to the authority if a child is suspected being abused by his caregivers. Society must realize that a small act of kindness can actually bring light into the darkness of a childs life. The earlier the victims get help, the hig her chance they have to recover from the abuse and not perpetuate the vicious cycle (Child). Truly, if there is evil in this world, it lies within the heart of mankind.

Exploring the Ideal Everyday Environment :: Essays Papers

Exploring the Ideal Everyday Environment The everyday is most easily viewed as a routine: the occurrences and reoccurrences of an individual’s daily life. A person generally wakes in the mornings, goes to work or attends school, fills their afternoons with errands and activities, returns home, and retires to bed late in the evenings. They become focused on this pattern of the everyday and most everyone in society lives by such a pattern. However, this is not to say that all members of society experience the same everyday, and there is more complexity that lies beyond an everyday routine. Each individual lives in an everyday world unalike any other. No two people live the same everyday life. Therefore, it is deemed important that the everyday is viewed and considered on a large scale. The large scale most often used is the city or the metropolis. A metropolis environment allows for the everyday to exist bountifully, and therefore, allows the everyday to thrive. Differences in everyday life can be compared and contrasted from person to person. The everyday is most often explored in a metropolis setting for these reasons. However, can it be argued then that they everyday only exists within the metropolis? Does an everyday take place outside of the city? It is my belief from my studies that the everyday actually occurs only within the city, and the country or rural areas is where a less complex routine happens. People live routine lives in the country, yet the routine is not massive enough for observation when considering the everyday. Urban areas are the best place for the everyday to occur because it allows for collaboration of routine lives with the shock of the abnormal. Multiple observations of routine lives allow for the everyday to be perceived in order to draw conclusions about the everyday and to classify the everyday. The shocks that occur in the metropolis allow analysts to perceive the effect and to document changes such socks have on a society. Imagine people busily w alking down the street and think of each person’s individual everyday life while observing the shocks of the abnormal. In this, the everyday is being experienced with the subjection to the metropolis. The metropolis, as the most ideal location for the everyday to occur, can be

The Rastafarian Movement :: essays research papers fc

The Rastafarian Movement Since its founding in the 1930s, the Rastafarian movement has grown to the point where it has become a major cultural and political force in Jamaica. During its existence, the movement has challenged Jamaica's neo-colonialist society's attempts to keep whites at the top and blacks at the bottom of the socio-economic structure. Because of its controversial actions, the movement has evoked responses from observers that range from "hostility" to "curiosity" (Forsythe 63). On one hand, Rastafarians have been criticized because of their belief that Haile Selassie, the former emperor of Ethiopia, is God and that marijuana (ganja) should be used as a religious sacrament. On the other hand, the Rastafari have been praised for their continual resistance to and confrontation with oppression, racism, and the exploitation of the poor and underprivileged (Campbell 1). Unfortunately, most early studies of the Rastafarian movement create a distorted image of the group. Jamaica's national newspaper, the Daily Gleaner's, anti-Rastafarian perspective led many to conclude that the Rastafarians were Black Marxist "racists" whose "criminality" was linked to drug-addiction. As an example of the distorted image, Morris stated the following: They are vehement in their attacks on the government, the white man, imperialism and Christianity, and their eloquence is touched by that naivete which derives...from an almost total ignorance of the world, economic affairs, and any sense of history. This is not to say that they do not have a cause; it is simply to state that whatever case they may have, they parody it with their odd speech, dress and behaviour. (89) Despite the often negative image projected in the press and other writings, the Rastafarian movement has grown at a rapid rate. In 1977, an estimated 75,000 native Jamaicans were followers of Rastafari (Davis and Simon, Reggae Bloodlines, 63). By 1988, Barrett conservatively calculated the membership of the worldwide movement to be 300,000 (2). Forsythe observed that Rastafarianism "represents a growing force wherever sizable West Indian communities are found--in Britain, Canada, the USA and in the Caribbean" (63). There are several possible explanations for the rapid growth of Rastafari. One major factor in its expansion was the emergence in the late 1960s of reggae music, a derivative of American rhythm and blues and Jamaican ska. Reggae helped spread the philosophy of Rastafari to the wider Jamaican audience and the world. During that period of time, Bob Marley and the Wailers were the principal popularizers of reggae.

Dell :: GCSE Business Marketing Coursework

Dell In 1984, at the age of 19, Michael Dell founded Dell Computer with a simple vision and business concept—that personal computers could be built to order and sold directly to customers. Michael Dell believed his approach to PC manufacturing had two advantages: (1) bypassing distributors and retail dealers eliminated the markups of resellers, and (2) building to order greatly reduced the costs and risks associated with carrying large stocks of parts, components, and finished goods. While Dell Computer sometimes struggled during its early years in trying to refine its strategy, build an adequate infrastructure, and establish market credibility against better-known rivals, its build-to-order and sell-direct approach proved appealing to growing numbers of customers in the mid-1990s as global PC sales rose to record levels. And, just as important, the strategy gave the company a substantial cost and profit-margin advantage over rivals that manufactured PCs in volume and kept their di stributors and retailers stocked with ample inventories. Going into 1998, Dell Computer had a 12 percent share of the PC market in the United States, trailing only Compaq Computer and IBM, which held first and second place in the market, respectively. Worldwide, Dell Computer had nearly a 6 percent market share (see Exhibit 1). And the company was gaining market share quickly in all of the world's markets. The company's fastest growing market for the past several quarters was Europe. Even though Asia's economic woes in the first quarter of 1998 resulted in a slight decline in Asian sales of PCs, Dell's sales in Asia rose 35 percent. Dell's sales at its Internet Web site were averaging $5 million a day and were expected to reach $1.5 billion annually by year-end 1998. Dell Computer had 1997 revenues of $12.3 billion, up from $3.4 billion in 1994—a compound average growth rate of 53 percent. Over the same period, profits were up from $140 million to $944 million—an 89 percent growth rate. Since 1990, the company's stock price h ad exploded from a split-adjusted price of 23 cents per share to $83 per share in May 1998—a 36,000 percent increase. Dell Computer was the top-performing big company stock so far during the 1990s and seemed poised to become the stock of the decade. Dell's principal products included desktop PCs, notebook computers, workstations, and servers. The company also marketed a number of products made by other manufacturers, including CD-ROM drives, modems, monitors, networking hardware, memory cards, storage devices, speakers, and printers.

BPO: The Boon with a Twist Essay

The India business process outsourcing (BPO) ‘success story’ needs to be tempered with a strong dose of caution. The two issues that this paper seeks to raise viz. employees’ welfare and working at the lower end of the value chain, need to be addressed if indeed the BPO phenomenon is to be called a ‘boon’ for India. The paper discusses the state of the industry in India and the reasons why BPO is the ‘Big Wave’. However, the emphasis of the paper is on another aspect of the story that at best ignored and at worst completely discounted. Some vital questions have been raised like- what is the impact that this newly spawned industry is having on the millions that is now employs? Also, it is not just about the health of the individual that is of concern here. It is about the entire social, physical and psychological fabric of a nation that is slowly changing. From the perspective of the companies also, the high staff turnover must makes it increasingly expensive for India based operations to maintain and improve their quality of service. Another dark side of the story is that India is still working on the low end of the value chain of the business-processes. Over time India’s success will depend on moving up the value chain and make the competitiveness non-replicable by other low cost countries. Read more:  BPO Management System The paper concludes with some solutions to the above-mentioned problems, concentrating primarily on the employee welfare and moving up the value chain. This requires the concerted efforts of both the industry and the government. BPO: The Boon with a Twist â€Å"Yesterday upon the stair I met a man who wasn’t there He wasn’t there again today I wish that man would go away† The Sunrise Sector: An Introduction There have been various studies and papers highlighting how the BPO is the best thing to happen to the Indian youth since the Internet. And not without reason. McKinsey and Co. tell us that by 2008 India will have a whooping 5 million people employed in the BPO sector and will be able to boast of additional revenues in excess of $57 billion. We need this opportunity like never before. However, there is another aspect of the story that is relatively ignored by both, the industry captains and the popular press alike. This paper looks into that aspect of the BPO industry in India and attempts to question the ‘blind faith’ in the sector. It raises some vital questions like- what is the impact that this newly spawned industry is having on the millions that is now employs? Are the reports that we keep hearing, about over-stressed 22-somethings leaving their jobs and the irritable alienated-from-friends-and-family youngsters true? It is not just about the health of the individual that is of concern here. The entire social fabric of a nation that is slowly changing as fresh graduates suddenly find themselves with lots of money due to these sunrise sector jobs, but no time or energy to spend it. The Bright Side The major driving force in the BPO sector is money. In his or her first job, an Indian back-office recruit can easily earn between Rs.15, 000 and Rs.20, 000 a month, which may only be a tenth of what their US counterparts earn, but considering that in terms of the World Bank-calculated purchasing-power parity, $1 can buy four times as much in India as it can in the US, Rs.15,000 per month is certainly a lot more than pocket change to an average youngster. Competition, sense of achievement, and financial freedom are the other driving forces, say BPO professionals. A brief snapshot of how the BPO industry operates puts forth some very interesting facts. The BPO industry is built around the raison d’ etre of efficiency and cost-effectiveness. With the current focus on core business capabilities, many companies in the Western world are outsourcing select business functions to expert partners. BPO takes a set of activities and takes on the responsibility of reengineering the entire way the operation is done. The most popular BPO activity currently outsourced to India is Call Centre operations. Companies selling products or services very often promise 24Ãâ€"7 support through telephones, email or the Internet for their wares. These require a large workforce to constantly be ready at helpdesks with answers to questions customers may call in with. The cost of setting up a call center in the US combined with the cost of wages is 10 to 20 times the cost of setting up a center in a developing nation like India. Hence, these companies re-route the calls made to helpdesks for their products to Indian call centres. These calls are handled by Indians sitting in India and donning an identity (and an accent) similar to their US counterparts. In pure economic terms it is much more sensible to run cost centres like these out of India. The average savings are in the region of 20-30%. And in an age when a penny saved is a penny earned these savings can be used to fuel further growth. The Not So Bright Side: The Human Face One of the reasons that provides India this opportunity is that Indians have readily adapted to – and are working entirely in the US time zone. This phenomenon has only increased over the past few years, popularly known as working the ‘Graveyard Shift’. In its eagerness to pave the way for the BPO boom, the government is infringing on protections bitterly fought for, like the eight-hour day.1 Labor legislation governing employment of workers in this sector is being amended to allow for night-shift work, work during notified holidays in India, staggering of weekends off and the like. Registered trade unions already struggling against this onslaught. Various researches on this darker aspect present some hard facts: * There is an increasing number of BPO employees who leave because they can’t handle the pressure and schedule of jobs * For most of them stress at work is their biggest source of discomfort * Most of these stressed-out employees suffer from sleep-related disorders and have digestive disorders. * Women who work the night shift face an increased risk of breast cancer of up to 60 percent2. * Stress is leading to impairment of conventional social and family life. Difficulties are particularly acute for women with child-care responsibilities. The high stress and irregular hours are taking their toll on many of the mostly just-out-of-college employees. Nutritionists, doctors and psychiatrists say there has been a dramatic increase in call center employees coming to them with problems like hair loss, ear infections from contaminated head phones, ulcers and digestion problems, piles and sleeplessness. All this is having far reaching consequences on the lives of the individuals who are working in this industry. The Not So Bright Side: The Value Chain Outsourcing – a job that no graduate or educated person in the US wants to do is shifted to low wage developing countries like India where there are ‘high quality’ graduates to do the job. In fact that’s the main USP of India – English speaking, ‘high quality’ people being employed for work that may not require half their potential. If we take our best and brightest and put them in dead end outsourcing jobs, where is this country headed? NASSCOM is touting the BPO industry as the new wave. There is no denying that it creates jobs. However the real question is for how long and what kinds of jobs? The government is spending huge resources to educate the highly talented young people only to relegate them to mindless transaction processing. The lucre of these jobs can be ascertained from the disinterest shown the educated people in Europe and US. In these ‘sending countries’ its seen as a part time job – something a college dropout or housewife with time to kill would do. India needs to worry about her youth. The best and brightest go to the US and work there which is an intellectual drain for India. The others – and undoubtedly a lot of bright ones do remain – seem to be sucked by into this BPO machine. India cannot afford continue working at the lowest end of the value chain. Sooner or later Indian companies will have to realize – and fight for – the fact we need to do a little more of the ‘value-added work’. In the long run, the business model of Indian BPOs will become unsustainable and unless they re-engineer a transformation the entire sector will fail to exist as an industry3. Taking a Moment As BPO employees soon find out, money and the college-like ambience is not everything. Cultural shifts, loss of identity, stress due to continuous night shifts and adverse effect on health were only some of the problems that cropped up in several interviews with employees of BPOs. For youngsters it’s a trade-off between what they gain in poise and confidence, and what they lose out in family life and social circle of friends who were not part of this field. Suffering severe sleep disturbances, headaches and even blackouts, most spend all their time away from the job sleeping. And the only long-term solution they can suggest is to quit. Hence, it is of serious concern not only for the employees but also for the companies. The issue of quality of service is raised by the very high staff turnover rates in India, especially at call centres, where annual turnover is said to exceed 50 per cent. High staff turnover is reported even amongst the more established, employee friendly IT companies, some of whom offer stock options and residential accommodations to entice employees to stay on. High staff turnover must make it increasingly expensive for India based operations to maintain and improve their quality of service. This is due to the rising costs for hiring and training and the higher wages needed to attract quality employees. It costs an average of Rs.20,000 to train every Call Center employee4. With the attrition rate so high this is hitting the bottom line for these companies very hard. Moreover high dropout rates have much larger implications for maintaining consistent quality standards. It is impossible to maintain a high quality of service when the entire workforce turns over every 3 years.5 The Road Ahead This section deals with some proposed solutions to fight the two challenges. Improving Employee Welfare: In some countries where the call center industry has been there for a while, e.g. UK and Australia a lot of understanding on what this unique workplace entails and what needs to be done about it, has evolved. For instance, in the UK, the government intervened a while ago with a local authority circular called ‘Advice Regarding Call Center Working Practices’. This circular lists in detail the stress factors and ailments peculiar to this industry, and has various measures to deal with them. However in India, no understanding of the problem exists. This is a serious concern not only from the employee’s end but also from the company’s perspective. The employers incur huge costs of agent attrition due to stress. It’s high time that the Indian government and the industry made some concerted effort on the lines of the above-mentioned countries and brought forth proactive measures of dealing with employee issues in call centers. Role of Companies Companies need to get their act together quickly if they have to arrest the high rate of inflation and avoid the high burnout rate among employees. One of the things to be understood is that the BPO sector is not yet being looked at as a career but rather as a stop-gap arrangement till a better job comes up. Unfortunately as is turns out the next ‘non-bpo’ sector job for most of these individuals turns out to be a fairly less paying one as well. Towards this end taking care of the employees well being becomes a priority for the companies. Most companies are already moving in this direction with well established programs that take care of the all round well-being of the employees with regular health checkups, reduced work hours, adequate training programs and a concern for the employees growth in the organization. Employee welfare will work on three factors each of which need to be understood by organization. Towards this goal an integrated strategy for employee welfare can be developed. Some specific recommendations regarding ensuring employee well being can include regular mental and physical check-ups for employees, periodic counseling on career regulating the number of night shifts worked in a row etc. More importantly, such programs wherein certain employees can avail of funding to aid further studies should be introduced. Role of Government An important part needs to be played by the government in regulating the industry with regards to labour laws. Although the government’s provisions to make it easier for the industry to grow at the pace it has are commendable, this growth cannot be had at the expense of human capital. It is necessary to safeguard the interests of the employees through enforced regulations to ensure sustenance. Specifically the government needs to re-look at * Specific regulations monitoring night-shift work * Monitoring work during notified holidays and weekends * Review of policies regarding food arrangements at workplaces * Policies regarding working of women at night – ensuring safety Moving up the value chain: Despite the fact that the world’s athletic shoes are produced in low-wage environments, their design remains firmly rooted in developed nations. Even today, despite all of the electronics manufacturing located in developing nations, the bulk of the value-added design remains in the developed nations. Taking on the ‘risks’ of the business-processes instead of simply reengineering them is one of the surest ways of convincing outsourcing companies to give greater value added work to the Indian firms. Similarly, it is important to forge alliances and partnerships of the outsourcing companies to convince them to trust us with their core processes instead on taking on fringe work. To summarize, in the end there are only two sustainable end-game models for companies in the BPO segment – the first is insight driven and the other is a platform model. Both of them leverage on proprietary capabilities of individual companies. Over time, a country’s competitiveness will eventually be commoditized and therefore become replicable. India is at that stage. For further growth a company will have to differentiate itself from the labor arbitrage and country competitiveness gamut and build on in-house capabilities that sets it apart. When Indian BPOs move away from the ‘replication’ model and start providing specialized value-added services for clients, they have a far greater chance of surviving, he said. The issue of differential time zones that forces Indian employees to take on jobs with permanent night shifts seems to be completely non-negotiable. However, by shifting the nature of work away from real time to delayed time, this too can be man aged in some companies over a period of time.    1 The Karnataka government has â€Å"simplified† labor legislations: Several barriers, including employment of women at night, flexible working hours, mandatory weekly offs have all been removed by necessary amendments to relevant laws to create an â€Å"optimal environment† for the growth of the BPO sector in the State. 2 A study (2001) by the Seattle based Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, in association with the National Cancer Institute 3 Presentation on the BPO landscape and possible end-game models at the NASSCOM ITES-BPO Summit in Bangalore in June 2003. 4 McKinsey-Nasscom study 2002 5 Went for Cost, Stayed for Quality: Moving the Back Office to India, paper by Rafiq Dossani, Senior Research Scholar, Asia/Pacific Research Center, Stanford University

Ap comaprison china and egypt Essay

Nomads have been known to roam the eastern hemisphere since the beginning of time. The nomadic people and their incursions had affected China and Egypt both, however there impact varied greatly from region to region. China and Egypt both share that the nomads brought chariots to either region, but they differ in the fact that in Egypt most people were forced to become nomadic and driven out of their homes, while China did not. In both China and Egypt the nomadic people brought new culture to each society. Mainly they brought cultural diffusion to each. From each place the nomads traveled from, apiece of that culture got incorporated into China and Egypt, bringing new ideas, and improving society. Chariots were also a similarity that the nomads brought to both China and Egypt. Mainly nobles, and the military used the chariot as a way of transportation. The chariot was a way of showing social hierarchy, and also improved warfare tactics. These similarities greatly impacted and improved the great societies of China and Egypt. The effects of the nomads and their incursions on China and Egypt differed in many ways. The Chinese living near the Yellow River had to become nomadic due to agricultural reasons, while in Egypt the nomadic life style was forced upon them by being forced out of their homes. Due to the Chinese becoming nomadic because of agricultural reasons, many issues formed between the non-nomadic Chinese people and the nomadic Chinese people. So for 2,000 years the nomads harassed, invaded, and even conquered the settled agricultural civilizations of the Chinese empire causing many incursions. Counter to that the nomad people helped flourish the Egyptian life style along the Nile, raising its population tremendously. Lastly one other difference of the effect of nomadic people and their incursions on both Egypt and China was, in China the nomadic people concentrated on herding their animals, and in Egypt not so much. I think the differences between the way the nomads affected China and  Egypt were do to the way the different empires were run. The governments were ran differently, there for making it tough for the similar attributes the nomads brought, making it hard to affect them both in the same way. In the end weather the affect of the nomads and their incursions were similar in both China and Egypt or different, those attributes that were brought to the societies by the nomads helped form those two top regions today.

Competency statement Essay

In 1996 I graduated from Michigan City High School in Michigan City, IN. After graduation I was not able to go right off to college since I was a teen mother. So, instead I immediately began working for a clothing store named Ms. D’s Merchandise. There I was responsible for determining marketing strategies, informing customers about new and incoming merchandise, formulating prices, and maintaining store staff. Working for a small business I was able to acquire customer service skills, tactfully deal with customers, numeracy, initiative, ability to work under pressure, and cultural awareness. Those skills prepared me for the many of the experiences that I would encounter at other jobs. After working there for about 8 months I decided to try something new. I began working at the Life Care Center, a nursing home. There I was a full-time dietary aide, assistant cook, and head cook. I was an employee there for two years. My responsibilities were preparing food items and assembling ready foods for patient trays, setting tables for the elderly, maintaining the kitchen area, ensuring proper preparation/portioning/determining quality of food, and supervising dietary aides. As you know working in this type of atmosphere conflicts may arise. May it be mistakes made by kitchen staff, staff unsatisfied with hours available or simply employees being angry about staying over when others arrive late for their shift. These all require some level of assertive conflict resolution skills. Responding to the needs of your staff in a timely manner, actively listening, remaining calm and fair at all times worked well in this type of atmosphere. Next, in August of 1998 I began working for the state as a correctional officer at the Indiana State Prison. Since I worked in a customer service setting, I learned from prior experience how to resolve conflicts in the workplace in many ways. This experience formed the foundation for many endeavors in the future. There, I was responsible for the safety and security of offenders, instruct inmates and maintain records of offender movement, check inmate for possible contraband, make periodic patrols of quarters and work areas, in itiate count, and be familiar with daily operation of each assignment. Working in a controlled setting staff must work together to reduce conflict among offenders as well as each other. Personal interpretation plays a huge role in conflict within this facility. Each year the staff received 16 hours of  in-service training covering topics like self defense, self control, and how to maintain situations and gain control. Bringing everyone together was the goal since there were many factors separating the culture; like rank, gender, profession, and ethnic groups. Also, documenting daily movement and activities reduced conflict as well. Mainly because documenting helps to avoid any legal action or disputes of judgement. On one occasion I was given an assigned to work in a tower with no heat for several weeks. The control officer had a history of partially do his job. I turned in several work orders to address the heat issue and I also wrote him up for failure to inspect the towers before assigning them. Since he and I could not resolve the issue I utilized the chain of command and went to his supervisor. The supervisor immediately resolved the heat and scheduling issue. In 2001 I became interested in being a hair stylist. I knew living in Mich igan City would not allow me to gain financial stability since it was such a small place. So I moved to Indianapolis. After researching the cosmetology schools in Indianapolis I decided to attend Kayes’ School of Cosmetology. There I received a diploma for cosmetology, esthetics, and manicuring in 2004. After graduation I was hired by The Elizabeth Arden Salon, they hired me as a manicurist/hair. What is conflict? Webster’s Dictionary (Merriam-Webster, 1983) defines conflict as sharp disagreement or opposition of interest or ideas. In other words, what I want does not match what you want, or could it be that you are so much alike that you can’t agree on anything? According to David Hardcastle, Professor of Social Service Administration at the University of Maryland in Baltimore (Hardcastle, 2004), co-workers who get on one another nerves, don’t clash with everyone at the office, just the ones they’re most like. To discover why conflict occurs, Dr. Hardcastle conducted a survey of characteristics of co-workers that often have disputes with others in the workplace. In conclusion, he found that employees that don’t get along are usually more alike than different and that all conflicts at some level,since people perceive that these are incompatible goals held by at least 2 people who are interfering with what the other person wants. According to (Bell & Daly, 1984), before a conflict is carried too far, people often assure each other that they want the same thing or that they are headed in the same direction. This may be because both parties are trying to find common ground. However, in true  conflict people not only want different things but believe that another is interfering with their goal attainment. Here are some core issues that arise in many conflicts:  · Self-esteem underlies all conflicts In every conflict, someone’s sense of self is at stake.  · People engage in conflict when they feel demeaned, when they try to regain a sense of being a good person and when they’re hurting from a previous struggle. Many people are not interested in winning or losing; they just need to feel better about themselves.  · The most significant conflict is when someone feels as though their being taken advantage of. This can occur when dedication and commitment cause an individual to work later hours, but then they are not compensated for it.  · Lastly, conflict can occur when the employee has unrealistic expectations of what their position entails, or of being misunderstood in the workplace. Dr. Tony Fiore mentioned in an article (Fiore, T, 1999, Business know how, several steps a manager can take to reduce workplace conflict. You will find them listed below: 1) Managers should focus on communication skills, both in terms of how they communicate and how they are teaching their employees to communicate with each other. This would include using I statements instead of you language. 2) Managers need to increase their listening skills. Active listening involves things like trying to understand what the individual is saying, repeat it for clarity and then let communicating to them that you did indeed understand what they said. 3) Establish healthy boundaries, without boundaries, there will be conflict and squabbles, power struggles and all kinds of circumstances. Try being more empathetic and compassionate toward your employees or co-workers, without crossing the lines of being their friend. 4) Emotional intelligence, develop skills to be more effective, by teaching people to combine both intelligence and emotions in the workplace. 5) Lastly, set up behavioral consequences to be used with truly uncooperative employees who are unwilling to change. This means explaining expectations to the employee and the outcome if the problematic behavior continues. Rosemary McCaslin a professor of Social Work at California State  University San Bernardino believes in involving the office veterans to assist with the mediation process. Being the seasoned employee, they are usually looked at as the mentors and are able to explain the workplace expectations to all parties involved. By utilizing this process, you are able to resolve conflicts before they escalate. Speak to all parties involved in the conflict. This can often supply the insight you need in regards to the dispute. You also ask others that are familiar with their characters and habits to help give you visualize the full picture. Finding out what each party wants and what their goals are can also give you the full picture of what caused the dispute and how this conf lict can be resolved. Helping them to understand one another can alleviate some of the tension. A careful analysis of other people’s interest and values, as well as your own, will require empathetic listening and respectful speaking. Together, when people use dialogue to talk with each other, they will discover new ideas, new possibilities and new potential solutions to create a better working environment.