Night World : Dark Angel Chapter 15

Melusine was watching her. â€Å"You're strong. I think you can do it, daughter of Hellewise.† â€Å"I'm not strong. I'm scared.† â€Å"I think it may be possible to be both,† Melusine said wryly. â€Å"But, Gillian? If you do get through it, please come back. I want to talk to you about some things. About the Night World-and about something called Circle Daybreak.† The way she said it alarmed Gillian. â€Å"Is it important?† â€Å"It could be very important to you, a witch with human ancestors and surrounded by humans.† â€Å"Okay. I'll come back-if.† Gillian glanced once around the shop. Maybe there was some sort of talisman or something she should take†¦ But she knew she was just stalling. If there were anything helpful, Melusine would have already given it to her. There was nothing left to do now but go. â€Å"Good luck,† Melusine said, and Gillian marched to the door. Not that she had any particular idea where she was going. She was almost at the creaky front door of the Five and Ten when she heard Melusine calling. â€Å"I forgot to mention one thing. Whoever your ‘Angel' was, he was probably from this general area. Earthbound spirits usually hang around the place they died. Although that's probably not much help.† Gillian stood still, blinking. â€Å"No †¦ no, it w helpful. It's great. It's given me an idea.† She turned and went through the door without really seeing it, stepped out into the square without really hearing the piped-in Christmas music. At least I've got a place to go now, she thought. She drove south, back toward Somerset, then took a winding road eastward into the hills. As she rounded a gentle curve she saw the cemetery spread out beneath her. It was a very old graveyard, but still popular. Steeped in tradition, but with plenty of room. Grandpa Trevor was buried in the newer section, but there were ancient tombstones on the wooded hill. If she had a chance of finding Angel, it might be here. The only way to the older section was up a wooden staircase held in place by railway ties. Gillian climbed it cautiously, holding the handrail. Then she stood at the top and looked around, trying not to shiver. She was among tall sycamores and oaks which seemed to stretch black bony fingers in every direction. The sun was falling lower in the sky and long shadows tinged with lavender were reaching out from the trees. Gillian braced herself. And then, as loudly as she could, she yelled. â€Å"Come on, you! You know what I want!† Silence. Gillian refused to feel foolish. Gloved hands tucked under her arms, she shouted into the stillness. â€Å"I know you can hear me! I know you're out there! The question is, are you in here?† She kicked a foot toward a snow-covered sandstone marker. Because of course there was nothing she could do here on her own. The only way to get the information she needed, about who Angel had been in his earthly life and what he'd done or left undone, was from Angel himself. Nobody else could tell her. â€Å"Is this you?† Gillian scraped snow from a granite gravestone and read the words. † ‘Thomas Ewing, 1775, Who bled and Dyed for Liberty.' Were you Thomas Ewing?† The ice-coated twigs of the tree above her clashed together in the rising wind. It made a sound like a crystal chandelier. â€Å"No, he sounds too brave. And you're obviously just a coward.† She scraped some other stones. â€Å"Hey, maybe you were William Case. ‘Cut down in the flower of Youth by falling from the Stagecoach.' That sounds more like you. Were you William Case?† (Are you all finished singing?) Gillian froze. (Because I've got one for you.) The voice in her head began to sing raucously. Eerily. (The Pha-a-antom of the Opera is here, inside your mind†¦) â€Å"Oh, come on, Angel. You can do better than that. And why aren't you letting me see you? Too scared to meet me face to face?† A light shimmered over the snow-a beautiful pale golden light that rippled like silk. It grew, it took on a shape. And then Angel was standing there. Not floating. His feet actually seemed to touch the snow. He looked-terrific. Haunting and beautiful in the gathering twilight. But his beauty was only frightening now. Gillian knew what was underneath it. â€Å"Hi there,† she almost whispered. â€Å"I guess you know what I'm here to talk about.† â€Å"Don't know and don't care. Should you be out here alone, anyway? Does anybody know where you are?† Gillian positioned herself in front of him. She looked directly into eyes that were as violet and darkly luminous as the sky. â€Å"I know what you are,† she said, holding those eyes, giving every word equal weight. â€Å"Not an angel. Not a devil. You're just a person. Just like me.† â€Å"Wrong.† â€Å"You've got the same feelings as any other person. And you can't be happy being where you are. Nobody could. You can't want to be stuck there. If I were dead, I'd hate it.† The last words came out with a force that surprised even Gillian. Angel looked away. An advantage. Gillian leapt in. â€Å"Hate it,† she repeated. â€Å"Just hanging around, getting stagnant, watching other people living their lives. Being nothing, doing nothing-unless it's to make a little trouble for people on earth. What kind of a life is tha-† She broke off, realizing her mistake. He was grinning maliciously, recovering. â€Å"No life!† â€Å"All right, what kind of existence, then,† Gillian said coldly. â€Å"You know what I mean. It stinks. Angel. It's putrid. It's disgusting.† A spasm crossed Angel's face. He whirled away from her. And for the first time since Gillian had seen him, she saw agitation in him. He was actually pacing, moving like a caged animal. And his hair-it seemed to be ruffled by some unseen wind. Gillian pressed her advantage. â€Å"It's about as good as being under there.† She kicked at the dead weeds over a grave. He whirled back, and his eyes were unnaturally bright. â€Å"But I am under there, Gillian.† For a moment, her skin prickled so that she couldn't speak. She had to force herself to say steadily, â€Å"Under that one?† â€Å"No. But I'll show you where. Would you like that?† He made a grand gesture, inviting her down the stairs. Gillian hesitated, then went, knowing he was behind her. Her heart was pumping wildly. This was almost like a physical contest between them-a contest to see who could upset the other more. But she had to do it. She had to make a connection with him. To reach into his anger and frustration and despair and somehow drag answers out of it. And it was a contest. A contest of wills. Who could shout louder, who could be more merciless. Who could hold on. The prize was Angel's soul. She nearly tripped at the bottom of the stairs. It was too dark to see her footing. She noticed, almost absently, that it was getting very cold. Something like an icy wind went past her-and there was light in front of her. Angel was walking there, not leaving any footprints in the snow. Gillian staggered after him. They were heading for the newer section of the cemetery. Past it. Into the very new section. â€Å"Here.† Angel said. He turned. His eyes were glittering. He was standing behind a gravestone and his own light illuminated it. Chills washed over Gillian. This was what she had asked for, it was exactly what she had asked for. But it still made the hair on her neck stand on end. He was under here. Right here. Beneath the ground. The body of the person she'd loved and trusted†¦ whose voice had been the last thing she'd heard at night and the first thing each morning. He was under here in some kind of box, unless maybe that had rotted. And he wasn't smiling and golden-haired and handsome. And she was going to find out his name from a stone. â€Å"I'm here, Gillian,† Angel said ghoulishly, leaning over the granite marker, resting his elbows on it. â€Å"Come up and say hello.† He was smiling, but his eyes looked as if he hated her. Wild and reckless and bitter. Capable of anything. And somehow, the sick horror that had been sweeping through Gillian disappeared. Her eyes were full, spilling over. The tears froze on her cheeks. She brushed at them absently and knelt beside the grave, not on it. She didn't look at Angel. She put her hands together for just a moment and bent her head. It was a wordless prayer to whatever Power might be out there. Then she took off her glove and gently scraped snow away from the marker with her bare hand. It was a simple granite headstone with a scrolled top. It read â€Å"In loving memory. Our son. Gary Fargeon.† â€Å"Gary Fargeon,† Gillian said softly. She looked up at the figure leaning over the stone. â€Å"Gary.† He gave a mocking laugh, but it sounded forced. â€Å"Nice to meet you. I was from Sterback; we were practically neighbors.† Gillian looked back down. The date of birth was eighteen years ago. And the date of death was the previous year. â€Å"You died last year. And you were only seventeen.† â€Å"I had a little car crash,† he said. â€Å"I was extremely drunk.† He laughed again, wildly. Gillian sat back on her heels. â€Å"Oh, really. Well, that was brilliant,† she whispered. â€Å"What's life?† He bared his teeth. † ‘Out, out, brief candle'-or something like that.† Gillian refused to be distracted. â€Å"Is that what you did?† she asked quietly. â€Å"Got yourself killed? Is that unfinished business somehow?† â€Å"Wouldn't you like to know?† he said. Okay, retreat. He wasn't ready yet. Maybe try some feminine wiles. â€Å"I just thought you trusted me-Angel. I thought we were supposed to be soulmates †¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"But by now you know we aren't, don't you? Because you found your real love-that jerk.† Gary turned up the brilliance of his smile. â€Å"But even if we're not soulmates, we are connected, you know. We're cousins. Distant, but the bond is there.† Gillian's hands fell to her sides. She stared up at him. Lights were going on in her brain, but she wasn't quite sure what they illuminated yet. The strangest thing was that she wasn't entirely surprised. â€Å"Didn't you ever wonder why we both have the same color eyes?† He stared down at her. Although everything was dark around him, his eyes were like violet flame. â€Å"I mean it isn't exactly common. Your great-grandmother Elspeth had these eyes. So did her twin brother, Emmeth.† Twins. Of course. The lost Harman babies, Melusine had said. Elspeth and Emmeth. â€Å"And you're†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He smirked. â€Å"I'm Emmeth's great-grandson.† Now Gillian could see what her mind was trying to illuminate. Her thoughts were racing. â€Å"You're a witch, too. That was why you knew how to do the spells and things. But how did you figure out what you were?† â€Å"Some idiots from Circle Daybreak came,† Gary said. â€Å"They were looking for lost witches. They'd managed to track Emmeth's descendants down. They told me enough that I understood what kind of powers I had. And then-I told them to get lost themselves.† â€Å"Why?† â€Å"They were jerks. All they care about is getting humans and Night People together. But I knew the Night World was the place for rne. Humans deserve what they get.† Gillian stood. Her fingers were getting red and swollen. She tried to pull her glove back on. â€Å"Gary, you are a human. At least part. Just like I am.† â€Å"No. We're superior to them. We're special-â€Å" â€Å"We are not special. We're no better than anyone else!† Gary was grinning unpleasantly, breathing quickly. â€Å"You're wrong there. The Night People are supposed to be hunters. There are even laws that say so.† A chill that had nothing to do with the wind went through Gillian. â€Å"Oh, really?† Then she had another thought. â€Å"Is that why you made me go to that club? So they could hunt me?† â€Å"No, you idiot!† Gary's eyes flashed. â€Å"I told you-you're one of them. I just wanted you to realize that. You could have stayed, been part of them-â€Å" â€Å"But why?† â€Å"So you would be like me!† The wind was gusting wildly again. Frozen tree branches creaked like creatures in pain. â€Å"But why?† â€Å"So you could come be with me. So we could be together. Forever. If you joined them, you wouldn't have gone on to the Other Side-â€Å" â€Å"When I died! You wanted me dead.† Gary looked confused. â€Å"That was just at first-† Gillian was angry now. Yelling. â€Å"You planned the whole thing! You lured me. Didn't you? Didn't you? That crying I heard in the woods-that was you, wasn't it?† â€Å"Everything you did was designed to kill me! Just so you'd have company!† â€Å"I was lonely!† The words seemed to hang and echo. Then Gary's eyes darkened and he turned away. â€Å"I was so lonely,† he said again, and there was something so hopeless in his voice that Gillian stepped toward him. â€Å"Anyway, I didn't do it,† he said over his shoulder. â€Å"I changed my mind. I thought I could come live with you here-â€Å" â€Å"By killing David and taking his body. Yeah. Great plan.† He didn't move. Helplessly, Gillian reached out a hand. It passed right through his shoulder. She looked at the hand, then said quietly, â€Å"Gary, tell me what you did. What the unfinished business is.† â€Å"So you can try to send me on.† â€Å"Yes.† â€Å"But what if I don't want to go on?† â€Å"You have to!† Gillian clenched her teeth. â€Å"You don't belong here, Gary! This isn't your place anymore! And there's nothing you can do here, except†¦ except evil.† She stopped, breathing hard. He turned, and she saw the wild look again. â€Å"Maybe that's what I like to- do.† â€Å"You don't understand. I'm not going to let you. I'm not going to stop or give up. I'll do whatever it takes to make you move on.† â€Å"But maybe you won't have the chance.† A blast of wind. And something else. Stinging granules that struck Gillian's face like tiny needles. â€Å"What if there's a blizzard tonight?† â€Å"Gary, stop it!† The gale buffeted her. â€Å"A freak storm. Something nobody expected.† â€Å"Gary†¦Ã¢â‚¬  It was very dark-the moon and stars had been blotted out. But Gillian could see a driving, swirling whiteness. Her teeth were chattering and her face was numb. â€Å"And what if Amy's car won't start? If something went wrong with the engine †¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Don't do this! Gary!† She couldn't see him now. His light was gone, swallowed in the storm. Snow slashed her face. â€Å"Nobody knows where you are, do they? That wasn't very smart, dragonfly. Maybe you need somebody to look after you, after all.† Gillian gasped, open-mouthed, for breath. She tried to take a step and the wind thrust her against something hard. A tombstone. This was what she'd been afraid of. That her angel would turn against her, try to destroy her. But now that it was happening, she found that she knew what to do. Gary's voice came out of the gale. â€Å"What if I just go away and leave you for a little while?† Gillian's eyes were watering, the tears freezing on her lashes. It was hard to get a breath. But she gathered herself, hanging on to the tombstone, and yelled. â€Å"You won't! You know you won't-â€Å" â€Å"How can I know?† She answered with a question, shouting over the wind. â€Å"Why didn't you kill David?† Her only answer was the howling gale. Gillian's sight was dimming. The cold hurt. She tried to ding on to the tombstone, but her hands were numb. â€Å"You couldn't do it, Gary! You couldn't kill someone! When it came right down to it, you couldn't! And that's how I know.† She waited. At first she thought that she'd been wrong. That he'd left her alone in the storm. Then she realized the wind was dying. The curtains of snow were thinning. Stopping. A light formed in the empty air. Angel-no, Gary-was standing there. She could see him clearly. She could even see what was in his eyes. Bitterness. Anger. But something like a plea, too. â€Å"But I did, Gillian. That's exactly what I did. I killed someone.† Gillian took a breath that started out quick and ended long. Oh. Oh †¦ that was bad. But there might have been some justification. A fight. Self-defense. She said quietly, â€Å"Who?† â€Å"Can't you guess? Paula Belizer.†

Ethics & Philosophy Essay

Free markets can be said to be the markets which have no government interference or regulation. The only regulations present are the ones which involve protecting property rights and maintaining the legal system. Free markets are markets in which the product prices are solely set through market forces, as opposed to interference by external forces. There is also free competition in free markets, and the law of supply and demand is used to fix prices of goods and services in such markets. There are various philosophers who support free markets while others are opposed to such markets. The paper will analyze the contributions of Adam smith, Karl Marx and Milton Friedman on the issue and will give a brief conclusion on the issues discussed. Karl Marx. Karl Marx was a German philosophers who is considered to be amongst the most controversial philosophers in history. He was against capitalism and free markets, which he viewed to be a means with which property owners or the rich use to maintain control over the peasants or poor. Karl Marx viewed the capitalist system as a system meant to make the rich richer and the poor poorer. He explained that initially, capitalism was meant to be a means with which people exchanged commodities which they did not have. However, after money was created, it evolved and became a means with which people could make profits as opposed to satisfying the demand for products. Over time, capitalism undermined the human development and well being, and products created could now dictate how interactions between human beings would be. Soon, the relations between society became material as everything was treated in terms of its monetary worth, as opposed to creative and artistic qualities possessed. Capitalism led to the alienation of workers since they were separated from owning the means which was used for production, and they became slaves to the people who owned those means. This led to the emergence of two economic groups; the property owners and the workers, and the latter were oppressed by the former. This is the reason which made him predict the collapse of capitalism and its replacement with socialism. Socialism is a system in which the government or authority controls production so that it may be mutually beneficial to all members of the society or state. Karl Marx was opposed to free markets since they tended to favor the rich and oppress the poor. Free markets are a feature of the capitalist system, which made Karl Marx oppose them. Weaknesses of this argument. Karl Marx is opposed to free markets due to the weaknesses which he views in capitalism. Karl Marx views capitalism to be a system where the rich oppress the poor. He therefore opposes all features of capitalist systems which he views to be a means which promote the exploitation of the poor . However, Karl Marx does not consider the model which combines both capitalism and socialism in order to take advantage of the positive attributes of the two models. Since socialism has its weaknesses, combining both models may be more beneficial to the economy. In this respect, moderate government interference in trade by the government is an option which Karl Marx should have pursued. Adam Smith. He is considered to be the father of the modern economics and he contributed a lot toward the modern capitalist system. Adam Smith was of the opinion that production was the key to economic growth and that this could only be achieved through economic liberalization. Adam Smith therefore supported unregulated markets since he saw them as a means of stimulating economic growth. He explained that free markets would enable individuals to develop a business without having government intervention, and that the people who consume the products developed would do so at prices which have been determined by demand and supply forces . Adam Smith added that free markets enabled the most competitive producers and consumers to survive, which was beneficial to the economy. He viewed free markets are independent problem solvers which did not require government interference, since market forces eventually address any surpluses or shortages which are inherent in the market. Adam Smith uses the ‘invisible hand’ theory to explain the way in which different parts of the economy are integrated. Smith explains that each individual is guided by an invisible hand in making their decisions which benefit the economy, without their knowledge. He explains that individuals carry out actions which are meant to benefit themselves, but they end up benefiting the society at large, which is not the initial aim of the individual. Smith gives an illustration of the creation of a wool coat. He says that the coat is developed after a series of processes which are undertaken by different people. The shepherd who owns the sheep, the spinner who develops the coats, and the shipper who transports them to the market all play a role in the creation of the finished product. He explains that this subconscious process by the different parties involved achieves higher levels of efficiencies than would be achieved had the process been planned by the players involved. It means that markets which are regulated by the government have lower efficiency levels compared to markets which are not regulated . This is the major reason why Adam Smith supports the free markets as opposed to regulated markets. Weaknesses of this argument. Adam smith is of the opinion that free markets enabled the most competitive producers and consumers to survive, which is beneficial to the economy. He gives many attributes of free markets, most of which are true. However, he does not discuss the weaknesses of free markets. Free markets suffer from certain weaknesses such as inhibiting the growth of small firms. Free markets may also experience monopolistic and oligopolistic tendencies which adversely affect the economy. The economy may also suffer certain effects attributed to unfair practices in trade. Other effects like inflation, market downturns and others require regulation by a central authority. Adam Smith does not discuss these situations, which makes his argument inconclusive. Milton Friedman. Friedman made major contributions to the economic crisis during the early 20th century. He viewed the 1920s as a period of sustainable and vital growth. Friedman believed that economic growth and freedom had a direct relationship. He used several principles and arguments to further his support from free markets. The political principle was used by Friedman to define the features of free markets. He explained that in free markets, individuals cannot coerce each other and that there is voluntary cooperation between the parties involved . He further explained that parties which are involved in transactions under such circumstances benefit in one way or another, otherwise they would not participate in these transactions. In free market transactions, there are no social responsibilities and values; there are only shared responsibilities and values. However, Friedman was also of the opinion that the government should intervene in the economy if there is threat to it. One of the instances when Friedman supported government interference was during the Great depression which occurred in 1929. The Great Depression changed the view that the United States economy was robust and that it should be totally free from government control, after the US Stock Exchange collapsed due to various factors. Friedman supports the market regulation and explains that if the Federal Government had intervened and applied the right policies, this depression would have been avoided. He explains that the Federal Government should have suspended payment for the withdrawals being requested by people. The policy which was used at the time, which involved printing more money to supplement the increased demand, is blamed for the Great Depression. This reveals a more soft approach to the initial stand that government intervention should not be allowed, and that the markets should be allowed to operate as free markets. However, it does not completely change the stance which had been taken by Friedman regarding free markets. Government interference is allowed only under special circumstances where lack of intervention would lead to severe effects to the economy. This was the case during the Great depression and is also currently the case in the event of the global financial crisis being experienced. Weaknesses of this argument. Friedman is categorical that there should be free markets if economies are to grow. He argues that the absence of social values and responsibilities and the presence of shared values are factors which facilitate economic growth. However, he appears to take a soft stand when discussing the Great Depression where he advocates for government interference, but using the right policies. This is a deviation from his stand that the government should not interfere with the business environment. It also reveals that free trade has weaknesses which he does not effectively address. Personal view. In my opinion, free markets do not lead to serious political, social, or environmental problems as explained by some philosophers. This is because free markets are the most effective and natural means in which prices should be set to ensure effectiveness. On the contrary, a wrong approach of interference by the government may lead to serious political, social, or environmental problems as was seen in the Great Depression. The current financial crisis which began in the United States can also be said to have been accelerated by the government failure to limit the borrowings by investors and excess lending by financial institutions using predatory lending practices. This is a similar problem which led to the great depressions, and the government interference is seen to have led to adverse effects rather than positive effects on the economy. However, in extreme cases of economic problems, the government should intervene. This should only be done to save the economy in cases where the market forces are clearly unable to rectify the situation. For instance, the current financial crisis facing the world requires the government’s intervention. This does not mean that the government supports the regulation of markets since in the absence of economic crises, the market forces would usually be used to set the product prices. My major reasons for supporting free markets is that regulated markets usually discourage investments, especially if the regulations are too strict. Investors prefer investing in countries where there is free trade since they can predict their future earnings or returns on investment, due to the absence of external factors in the business environment. Regulated markets may also adversely affect the economy especially if the policies which are applied are retrogressive. Summary and conclusion. It is evident that the three philosophers made major contributions to the modern world. Their theories are still in use several years after some of them passed away. However, it is important to note that their arguments relating to free trade are inconclusive since some of the facts which they used to support their arguments have changed. It is also important to note that none of them has a wrong view, it is only that they looked at free trade from different perspectives. The contributions which each of them has made to society should be appreciated since they all talked about various issues affecting the society, and not just free trade. It is important that other scholars improve on the theories which were advanced by Adam smith, Karl Marx and Milton Friedman. This will reflect the market environment as it is today, and the arguments developed can be used to improve the policies in the current business environment. Works cited. Amadae Samuel. Rationalizing capitalist democracy: the Cold War origins of rational choice liberalism.Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2003, p255-261. Gagnier Regenia. The insatiability of human wants: economics and aesthetics in market society. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2000, p25-35. Machaj Mateusz. Friedman for government intervention: the case of the great depression. Mises Daily. Retrieved on March 18, 2009 from . Sunderlin, William D. Ideology, social theory, and the environment. New York: Rowman & Littlefield, 2002, p23-33.

8th Grade History Observation

I was very excited about this assignment. I enjoy going into the classroom and being able to observe what is going on and how everyone interacts with each other. I decided to attend a classroom at an expulsion school that has 4th- 12th grade students. Every student has a different story of why they are they at this school, some students made a mistake and want to earn their way back to their school site and some do not care about school and to not try to work towards anything positive. The staff explained that working there is a challenge and takes a special type of person that can adjust to a variety of challenging students and still try to accomplish a positive learning environment. I decided to observe the 8th grade history class for an entire chapter. I wanted to get the full experience from the start of the lesson to testing and see how the whole lesson is presented, delivered and received from start to finish. The text book used is United States History: Independence to 1914. I sat in when the students were learning about the Constitution and Bill of Rights. The book seemed difficult for some students to read and comprehend. There was an aide in the classroom at all times. I sat in a class with 31 students in it and 12 of them had an IEP, 504 plan or BSP. The teacher and aide were constantly walking around and helping the students with a diverse set of challenges. Some students I could see clearly could not read the book. The level of reading was considerably lower that what the textbook was. I could see there were students with a 2nd grade reading level trying to read a 8th grade textbook. There was also one student who caught my eye because he had a one on one aide. The first day of class the teacher passes out a page that is front and back. This has a few vocabulary words that are in the text and has sentences from the text with blanks within the sentences. The student is to read through the text and fill in the blanks and define the vocabulary words. Most students are able to complete this task without help. It took them to look in the glossary or dictionary and copy the definition. The student with a one on one aide did not have the skills to find the words alphabetically. He needed assistance finding the words and then was able to copy the words down on the page. The teacher and aide continued to walk around with the class and that kept everyone on task. I thought this was a good idea and the students seemed to know what to do and got right to work. They are allowed to work in a group of two or independently. The students that seemed serious about getting the work done worked independently. The students who worked â€Å"smarter not harder† split to front and back pages and then copied so that they could finish and have free time. The second day of class was for the students to finish their sheet of work. The students that already finished earned free time. I saw this was a distraction for the students who were still working. They were constantly looing at the students that had free time and could not focus on the job they needed to complete. A few students rushed through their work to earn free time. I did not notice anyone checking their completed work. After this class knowing that all the students were finished I asked the teacher if I could see the answer key and review the students work. He gladly granted my request. Out of 30 students, only 5 students did a great job and it showed in their work that they cared about getting a good grade and had little to no incorrect answers. More than half of the students clearly did not care and wrote in bogus answers. The few that were left copied each other’s work and clearly did not care about what was written. The third day of class the students traded papers and corrected their work with the teacher. He went through every question and had them write in the correct answer if they got it wrong. This was the first time I saw interaction between the teacher and the students. There was no conversation about the information and how this may apply to the students today. The correction of the two sided paper took the whole hour period, mainly because the students were uninterested and wasted a lot of time talking. It was almost like the students did not know how to behave when the teacher was in front of the class. After the students were done correcting their work the teacher collected the papers and recorded their grades. The next day, which was day 4 and the 4th hour of instruction on this lesson, the teacher passed out their work with the correct answers and a similar paper that read â€Å"test†. This format was the same as the assignment and had sentences from the text with blanks for the student to write the correct answer completing the sentence. I reviewed the test and see that the answer or black portion for the student to fill in was the question in the assignment. The question in the assignment was the answer or blank portion in the test. The whole concept seemed a little easy for this age and to be honest very boring and redundant. The next day the teacher had the students watch a history movie on the Constitution and Bill of Rights. The movie had more interest to the kids than the assignment that week. I was disappointed with the teaching aspect of this class. The teacher said he feels this â€Å"packet method† gets through the material and is repetitious for the kids to learn the material. I felt the kids were bored and had no desire to read the material. These kids especially strive for attention and most of the times do not have positive interactions with adults. The Constitution and Bill of Rights is a LARGE part of our history and after this week these kids did not have a better understanding or respect for our country and the rights they take for granted. The teacher and the children were not involved with each other at all with exception to correcting the assignment together. There are many things I would do differently. I would first, to get their attention, had out a blank piece of paper and ask them to make their own rights and make their own Constitution. I would have them do this to grab their interest in the lesson. These kids are more interested in what they think and what they want than anything else so I would use that and ask them what they want. I would then let them speak to the class about what they feel like they should have as right and why. This would teach the kids to respect the student speaking and also teach the kids courage to get up and speak in front of a group of their peers without using foul language. I would want to spark up a conversation about right and how important they are to each and every person. After that I would use the study guide the teacher created and read and answer the study guide as a class. I would also relate the lesson to what the students wrote in their own Bill of Rights. This was a great learning experience for me as an aspiring teacher. I would want more interaction within my classroom and my students. The students were very diverse in the aspect of some wanting to work, some not caring about the work, some unable to do work and some tweeners. I think having control of the classroom is the key in this environment. Being in front of the students and showing them you care about this and they should too, this is the philosophy I would do every day in class. I would have very little time in this environment where the student has the option when they are finished they would have free time. The only incentive there is the quicker you finish the quicker you can do whatever you want. I would have different incentives and a more positive environment that the kids could participate in with me, the teacher, the leader and their peers. In this type of school I feel with the curriculum you are also teaching life skills that they have not had the privilege of learning in their home environment. I cannot wait to have my own classroom and see the outcome of constant interaction and having the students give their personality to the lesson and assignments.

Critically assess, compare and contrast the RANDOM NETWORK and the Essay

Critically assess, compare and contrast the RANDOM NETWORK and the SCALE-FREE network proposed by Barabasi and Albert. With the - Essay Example An examination of the vulnerability of scale-free networks is also discussed in this paper, and the effect of power law distribution on the network topology is analyzed. The removal of nodes in these network models and the effects of such removal are discussed. The contrast between Scale-free networks and random networks in the area of resisting failures is analyzed, as it has been suggested that the strongly connected nodes are responsible for the failure of scale-free networks. This paper also includes some theoretical syntheses, the proposal of new and exploratory conceptual models, theoretically grounded discussions of methodology, the analysis of historical developments with clear implications for current and future theory, theoretically relevant discussions of timely and important network issues, and comprehensive literature reviews with strong theoretical implications. INTRODUCTION In recent history, evolving networks have been seen as a relevant and very popular area of resea rch among physicists. Reka Albert and Albert-Laszlo Barabasi introduced a concept of evolving networks that is based on preferential attachment, in order to understand the areas from which the ubiquity of scale-free distributions in real networks originates. Reka Albert and Albert-Laszlo Barabasi studied a highly connected network model which was later called the scale-free network. â€Å"Networks have become a general tool for describing the structure of interaction or dependencies in such disparate systems as cell metabolism, the internet, and society.† (Barabasi A-L, Albert R 2002) With scale free networks, even in very large networks, nodes can be selected arbitrarily and connected through other nodes which serve as the intermediary nodes. â€Å"There are features that the scale-free network contains that are lacking in the random network. In a scale free network, a small number of nodes contribute heavily to connectivity. These nodes are called hubs. In a random network , each node contributes approximately the same to the overall connectivity of the network.†(Barabasi, Albert-Laszlo 2002) In a scale-free network, the network is self-similar, in that different parts of the network are statistically similar throughout the entire network. This self similarity is a major feature of fractals. â€Å"The term "scale-free" was first coined by physicist Albert-Laszlo Barabasi and his colleagues at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana. In 1998, they mapped the connectedness of the World Wide Web and found, to their surprise, that the web did not have an even distribution of connectivity (so-called "random connectivity"). Instead, a very few network nodes (also referred to as hubs) were far more connected than other nodes. In general, they found that the probability P (k) that a node in the network connects with k other nodes was, in a given network, proportional to k. They named this kind of network connectivity "scale-free". They also argued that there is a simple explanation for this behavior. Many networks expand through the addition of nodes to an existing network, and those nodes attach preferentially to nodes already well-connected. When this is the case, a scale-free network naturally arises.† (Watts, D.W 2003) Although a scale-free netw

Alienation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Alienation - Essay Example Most significantly, the novel depicts the unexpected entrance of Peter Walsh who was an old friend and former suitor of Clarissa. Their meeting reflects a mixture of happiness and tension as Clarissa wonders why she married Richard Dalloway instead of Peter Walsh who was her suitor. The novel also revolves around the story of Septimus Warren Smith, a shell-shocked World War I veteran who suffered from the war and later committed suicide. The novel presents the topic of alienation in many dimensions. Alienation depicts a sense of emotional isolation between individuals or groups within a given community. Indeed, we can sense a feeling of emotional isolation as Peter Walsh feels desperate over his unfulfilling life. This results from the fact that his friends and former suitors have moved on with their lives. Indeed, Peter Walsh was Clarissa’s suitor but Clarissa chose to marry Richard because of his social class. This shows that Peter Walsh suffers from social alienation. As a result, Peter Walsh cries as he regrets losing Clarissa and desperately asks her if she really loves Richard. More so, Peter Walsh’s social alienation manifests where he fails to establish and maintain any stable romantic relationship (Woolf 42-44). Indeed, despite the social world requiring one to make concrete decisions, Peter alienates himself from the social world by lacking the capacity to decide what he feels. As such, he results to talking to himself, which depicts social isolation. On the other hand, we can identify social alienation from the story of Septimus Warren Smith, a shell-shocked World War I veteran. Indeed, Septimus alienated himself from the physical world by constantly residing in the internal world where he talks with his friend Evans who died in the war. He is emotionally numb and encounters deep madness and crazy hallucinations where he sees and hears unreal things that a normal person cannot witness. This is a deviation from the norms and reflects soc ial alienation. In fact, in the social world, people communicate in the real world and not in the internal world as Septimus does. Furthermore, Septimus' presence in the novel is alienation, as he does not relate with any of the other main characters. Ultimately, Septimus suffers the consequences of alienation as he commits suicides after a light moment of joy with his wife. Indeed, Septimus decided in his internal world that he will not go with the doctors to a mental institution and opts to die (Woolf 36-42). This depicts social alienation as people do not commit suicide in the social world but wait for their natural death. More so, we experience Lucrezia’s emotional alienation, as she miserably misses Italy and is tired of taking her husband to various soulless doctors. This depicts social isolation, as the other characters are seemingly comfortable in this place. More so, the novel depicts Clarissa’s alienation from the social world. Indeed, Clarissa’s urge to pay attention to every guest  alienates her from enjoying her evening party. We can see her wishing that she could get some time to talk to Sally and Peter but she is too busy with the other guests. Indeed, Clarissa sought to enjoy her evening party but the events happening during the party hinders her form such enjoyment. This is despite the fact that other people attending the party derive full enjoyment from the party.

Personal development and careers Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Personal development and careers - Essay Example The last part focuses on barriers to communication and strategies that can be implemented to overcome them. 1. â€Å"Learning is the process of acquiring knowledge through experience which leads to an enduring change in behaviour,† (Hucznski & Buchanan, 2010). It can be noted that organisations operate in a dynamic environment which is ever changing hence learning in an organisation is a very important strategy that ought to be implemented in order to overcome the challenges that are often brought about by change. Against this background, this essay seeks to explain this assertion in relation to learning theories. The paper will also outline different elements of learning and how they impact on individuals as well as the organisation as a whole. Basically, the concept of learning was popularized by Peter Senge (1990) who described it as, â€Å"the process whereby people continually expand their capacity to create the results they truly desire, where new and expansive patterns of thinking are nurtured, where collective aspiration is set free and where people continually learn how to learn together through the exchange of ideas,† (Robbins, 2003). ... The ability of the organisation to grow mainly depends on the ability of the employees to generate new ideas which can be developed into feasible strategies that can be implemented in the operations of the organisation. There are mainly two theories of learning namely the behavioural and cognitive theories. Behavioural theory suggests that human behaviour in relation to learning can be explained in terms of external stimuli, responses, learned histories and reinforcement which mean that all human behaviour could therefore be understood in terms of cause and effect (Torrington, Hall & Taylor, 2008). On the other hand, cognitive theory posits to the effect that learning is influenced by mental structures. According to Vygotsky (1978), aspects such as problem solving are influenced by an integration of personal traits such as motivation, cognitive strategies as well as the learner’s ambition to acquire new knowledge in a related subject. In most cases, an individual person is awa re of the reason why he or she is learning hence there is need to positively influence this process for a positive result. Both theories are applicable to learning especially in organisations where it can be noted that people learn through socialisation whereby they interact with their workmates in a bid to exchange ideas and knowledge which is the foundation of learning. There is a close relationship between these two concepts given that they emphasise on the need to transform the organisation for positive growth through changing the behaviour of the employees through the knowledge they will gain from the learning process. The learner will be exposed to a system that will

Transformation of African culture in Midaq Alley and Death and The Research Paper

Transformation of African culture in Midaq Alley and Death and The King's Horseman - Research Paper Example The novel critically focuses on the presence of the British soldiers during WWII, and these represent the western forces that have been brought to Midaq valley and influence the lives of people in this area according to the western cultures. Likewise Wole Soyinka’s Death and the King’s Horseman deals with the questions of cultural identity, the themes and forms of the general audience as the author brings them out clearly. The book presents contrast between the life of Europeans and the lives of Africans in a contrast of cultures. To this, Soyinka attributes lives to the forms of lives that originally developed on African soil and in the civilized world to mean Africa and European respectively. The difference of what is perceived as local and what is imported through the white man presents a case of contrast and the play brings out these contrasts to indicate how the western culture has influenced people on the African soil. Therefore, the two books portray a case of cu ltural degradation where Africans are influenced by the western cultures through a process that is termed as civilization, to adopt new ways of lives and depart from their traditional ways of life. The negative influence of the western culture in Midaq valley is portrayed by Hamida. This is a lady who grows in middle class environment and has no attachment to her mother or to any other neighbor. Hamida knows that she is beautiful and wants to control men those who are powerful and those that are rich (Amyuni, 1). While her husband Abbas is away in the army making an honest living, she is attracted to the rich Salim who is lasting for her. Hamida later realizes that prostitution is her calling and she is a â€Å"whore by instinct† (Mahfouz, 205). This presents a case of immorality where the riches that are accumulated in Cairo as are breaking up families and African communal settings as well as values. Mahfouz (1) explains Midaq valley to be enclosed between 3 walls with darkn ess. The unity and communal life is portrayed by uncle Kalim where he says; â€Å"good evening everyone.† Come on its time for evening get together†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..† this is a setting that would portray a close connection between the people of Midaq Valley, which has been broken by the presence of the white man with women such as Hamida turning to prostitution with these rich men. Mahfouz further explains how Hamida realizes that her honor had been bought several times by the British soldiers; meaning that she has been prostituting with these soldiers. This case is portrayed by Alwan a family man with complete family but is not satisfied with his wife he is â€Å"unable to find the pleasures he yearned for in his wife† this makes him be attracted to Hamida (Mahfouz, 80). In addition the book presents the negative changes of religion though civilization. This is observed when Mr Kirsha claims that â€Å"public reciters still have an appeal which won’t disap pear. The radio won’t replace us† the cafe owner however replies that â€Å"this is you say and not what my customers say and you are not going to ruin my business† (Mahfouz, 5). Though Kirsha and other public reciters had been used to recite the Quaran in public places with no resistant, the radio that represents the western civilization has brought another element where people see beyond this, and are not any more interested in these reciters or too much of their religion . This might be attributed to civilization,

Solution-Focused Brief Therapy for Veterans Essay

Solution-Focused Brief Therapy for Veterans - Essay Example Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT) is a method of counseling that centers on the patient's future and relies on solutions to be effective. As its name indicates, it is designed to be accomplished in a shorter time frame than traditional therapies. SFBT has been used on patients suffering from depression, anxiety, trauma, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Early research indicated a success rate of 77% with an average of 2.9 sessions (Rothwell 2005 p.402). Industry sponsored research has further indicated its effectiveness that has resulted in "lasting change on average in less than 5 sessions and in up to 83% of referrals" (The Brief Therapy Practice 2003). Still, there is widespread skepticism in the scientific community. Could this brief and effective form of treatment be of benefit to veterans who are returning from Iraq and Afghanistan To answer this question, an examination of the function of SFBT and how it might be integrated into the current treatment of veterans i s essential. Soldiers returning from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are faced with numerous mental health issues. Approximately one-third of the veterans returning from these wars that seek medical treatment are diagnosed with a mental disorder (Fact Sheet). A major concern is the high rate of post-traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD) acquired from the intense combat conditions. PTSD rates among returning veterans is as high as 15% while another 10% have symptoms of anxiety or depression (Fact Sheet). In addition there are higher than normal rates of chronic fatigue and panic disorder. It would be important to verify if the brief approach would be effective at helping these veterans overcome these major mental health issues. In addition to the major mental health disorders, returning veterans also face a wide range of other issues that affect their mental health. There may be relationship problems when returning to a family after months of absence. To avoid seeking medical treatment, veterans may self-medicate and develop a substance abuse problem. Wounded veterans face reintegrating into a civilian world with a life long disability. In addition they face the problems of relocation, isolation, and unemployment. A brief look at these issues and an evaluation of current treatment methods may be able to shed some light on the usefulness of brief therapy. The term Brief Solution-Focused Therapy (SFBT) is a broad term that encompasses many forms of the treatment. For the purposes of this paper, SFBT is defined as being brief, less than 16 weeks, and focused on a positive outcome through a sequence of changes in behavior and expectations. It is closely associated with Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) and Family and Marital therapy. Results of previous research using these alternative methods may infer some potential for SFBT. Brief Solution-Focused Therapy (SFBT) an Overview SFBT was originally developed as a short-term psychotherapy approach at the Brief Family Therapy Center in Milwaukee in the late 1970s. Rather than focusing on problems and the basis for emotion, it focuses on the solution. Attention is drawn to goals rather than obstacles and strengths rather than weaknesses. Solution-focused therapists do not make diagnoses, try to promote insight, or analyze the past. Instead they encourage the client to recognize and implement alternatives. SFBT has been used for the treatment of alcohol and

Philosophy Ethics Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Philosophy Ethics - Research Paper Example 1). On the other hand, Confucius’s The Analects – a post-mortem compilation of his thoughts and written works (Walsh, 2006, p. 11), according to Van Norden (2002), illustrates the combined influential power of Jesus and Socrates (p. 3), essentially implying that it is at par with Plato’s. Suffice it to say: If Plato is the Socrates of the West; then Confucius is the â€Å"Socrates of China† (Walsh, 2006, p. 11). Plato’s definition of the meaning of life can be understood from his view of reality, which to him is divided into two worlds: ‘becoming’ and ‘being’. The world of becoming is the ever-changing material world we deal with everyday with our five senses, that we mistaken it to be what true life is. In reality however, everything in this world is mere unsatisfactory and substandard copies of the original form, which is the unchanging world of being that though abstract is nevertheless the true world – the perfect world; that is why it is unchanging. (Young, 2003, p. 10) Essentially so, ‘being’ is essentially what defines each of us; this is our reason of existence; it is this world that truly defines the meaning of life. Yet since it is the invisible reality, we have to strive hard to see it beyond the visible world. But to be able to do so, we ought to know first the forms of perfections that we have to seek. As such, the meaning of life rests in our pursuit for what is good; because it is only through this that we can attain perfection. Yet, perfection is impossible to the fallible man. Nevertheless, striving hard to get closer to perfection is what matters, as this would differentiate us from the rest. (Walsh, 2007, p. 25) Truly so, it is easy to become a man but it is difficult to attain one’s being. Confucius’s definition of the meaning of life can be understood from his belief of the influences of fate and

Propaganda in World War I and why the US entered the war Essay

Propaganda in World War I and why the US entered the war - Essay Example This research will begin with the statement that the Great War (World War I) that erupted in 1914 pitted the allied powers (Great Britain, France, Russia against the central powers (Germany, Austria, Turkey). These European powers often engaged in fights for status and territory thus the Great War was no exception except that it attracted the whole world into the conflict. Not even the United States which had vowed to maintain its isolationist or non-interventionist policy was spared. Of most importance is that the US depended much on trade from both powers with trade from allied forces accounting for more than $ 800 million and from central powers $170 million. Further, trade from Britain and France depended on loans from American banks. No wonder the US was unable to sustain its to a non-interventionist stance. This was bound to be difficult for US thus the formation of the Creel committee to devise propaganda that would shape public opinion towards war support. There are various f actors that led the US to enter the war. First, it was the economic ties with Europe. The war would have jeopardized US trade thus it was reasonable to intervene. Secondly, it is the strong ethnic ties of US to the old world. America comprised of many immigrants from war torn areas hence it was bound to get involved in the war. Furthermore, President Wilson always held great admiration for British form of government hence sympathetic to its plight. Another important reason is that US was caught in the middle of commercial warfare with Britain blockade on one side and German blockade on the other.

Statistics in Business Essay Example for Free

Statistics in Business Essay What is statistics? Statistics is collecting, measuring, analyzing, and communicating data. There are two types of statistics, descriptive statistics and inferential statistics (Lind, Marchal, Wathen, 2011). Statistics are applied in different situations. This paper will describe the role statistics has in making business decisions. This paper will also provide examples of situations in which statistics are applied. Types of Statistics Lind, Marchal, and Wathen define statistics as â€Å"The science of collecting, organizing, presenting, analyzing, and interpreting data to assist in making more effective decisions (Lind, et al. , 2011, p. 5). In statistics there are two types, descriptive and inferential statistics. First, descriptive statistics is the informative organization, summarization, and presentation of data. The second type of statistics is inferential statistics. Inferential statistics is also called statistical inference, is â€Å"the methods used to estimate a property of a population on the basis of a sample† (Lind, et al., 2011 p. 7). Statistic Examples One example of statistics in a situation is when starting a weight loss program. To measure the progress of the weight loss over time the individual would measure their weight on the same day and time every week then plot the results on a chart for six months. Another example is in baseball. In baseball a batter statistics is used to see the probability of hitting certain types of the pitches and rather the batter can hit a homerun. A third example is when network channels use inferential statistics to determine when to cancel a program. The networks gather data samples of the viewers’ preferences. The ratings of the viewers’ program preference are in turn used to determine which programs are canceled. Conclusion In conclusion, statics was defined as the collection, measurement, analysis, and communication of data. The two types of statistics, descriptive and inferential statistics were also defined. Finally, three examples weight loss measurement, baseball hits, and program ratings were presented to provide situations were statistics were applied.

Exploitation of Indigenous Peoples Essay Example for Free

Exploitation of Indigenous Peoples Essay The Native Americans were slaves from the north to the South of the Americas and right across the North American continent. The percentage of Native American slaves was larger than black slaves and they were enslaved far longer than Black slaves. Native Americans were slaves for about 500 years, from the 1400s to the 1900s. Native Americans slaves were for 200 years before African Americans made it to the new world. The slaves of Native American were shipped to several areas around the world, the Caribbean, Europe and the Middle East. [1] Native Americans were slaves even after slavery was removed because they were not citizens and the laws did not apply to them, the first Native American group was under Columbus, about 200,000 natives were harshly enslaved by him. Only 500 survived by the year 1550 and the group were extinct before 1650. [2] When Christopher Columbus discovered the New World in the late 1400s, his goal was to take all it natural resources and take it to Spain, he named it the new resource for Spain. Columbus figured an opportunity to convert the natives to Christianity, to provide another trade point with his mother country, and to learn about a vast extent of the agriculture and animals, as well as interesting cultures that the Old World had ever seen. However, one of the strongest causes of this difference in objectives was Hernando Cortes. Hernando Cortes’s purpose for the occupation of present-day Mexico was the conquest of the native peoples. Through harsh force and dishonesty, he destroyed the native tribes, making the Aztec Empire his own empire. In Bartolome de Las Casas writing about the indigenous peoples, witnessed a massive murder of the original people of Cuba, and became an opponent to the violent conversion of the Native Americans. He is considered the Father of Liberation Theology, arguing with Juan Gines de Sepulveda. De las Casas argued that Native Americans should be treated as other Spanish subjects of the king. He suggested that instead of making the Native Americans slaves, the Spanish should ship Africans to the New World for use as slave labor. [3] Alonso Zuazo said in his writings about the native Americans that the. Indians would serve as slaves for the Europeans in the sugar cane plantation in the coasts of Northern Africa. The main thing he was focused on was when the enslaving of the natives was failing in the sixteenth century; they wanted to replace them with slaves from western Africa. He found out that Africans were better slaves than the Native Americans because they came from agricultural societies and they know about agriculture more than the Native Americans. [4] Native Americans interacted with enslaved Africans in every way possible. Native Americans were enslaved along with Africans, They worked together, lived together in the same houses, produced recipes for food, shared herbal remedies, myths and legends, and in the end they breed together. Because both races were non-Christian, Europeans considered them under the Europeans. They worked to make enemies of the two groups. In some areas, Native Americans began to slowly engage with white culture. Africans were not affected with the conditions and diseases. It was because the Africans were already in contact with the Europeans when they had started trading with one another. Europeans felt they could handle the climate because of their skin color. Many Native Americans started to die because of the diseases. A lot of the Native Americans also started to escape and fight back, and many of them died. They also felt that Africans were cheaper. The Native Americans were less resistant to the diseases that the Europeans brought with them. In North America, the conquerors at first werent thinking of taking take Native Americans as slaves because they lived a harsh life that needed to be at peace with the Natives to continue. There were more Africans available and the Europeans found it more meaningful to buy Africans from Africans than to attempt to capture Indians. [5] Bibliography: Ivison, Duncan, Paul Patton, and Will Sanders. Political Theory and the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. 2nd ed. publication place: Cambridge University Press, publication year. http://books. google. com/books? hl=enlr=id=JkqahTHpUmUCoi=fndpg=PA36dq=exploitation+of+indigenous+peoplesots=DojNLSzhZdsig=oW_5zCg8jDjBuKeOQbRVDVO9x9Q#v=onepageq=exploitation%20of%20indigenous%20peoplesf=false (accessed November 23, 2012). Saco, J. A. â€Å"Alonso de Zuazo (1518). † http://www. digitalhistory. uh. edu. http://www. digitalhistory. uh. edu/active_learning/explorations/spain/spain_zuazo. cfm (accessed November 23, 2012). TAINO-L. â€Å"Bartolome de Las Casas and His Defence of the Indians. † http://www. hartford-hwp. com. http://www. hartford-hwp. com/archives/40/186. html (accessed November 26, 2012). Columbus, Christopher. â€Å"Letter to King Ferdinand of Spain, Describing the Results of the First Voyage. † www. xroads. virginia. edu. http://xroads.virginia. edu/ hyper/hns/garden/columbus. html (accessed November 26, 2012). [1] Duncan Ivison, Paul Patton, and Will Sanders, Political Theory and the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, 2nd ed. (publication place: Cambridge University Press, publication year), 36-39, http://books. google. com/books? hl=enlr=id=JkqahTHpUmUCoi=fndpg=PA36dq=exploitation+of+indigenous+peoplesots=DojNLSzhZdsig=oW_5zCg8jDjBuKeOQbRVDVO9x9Q#v=onepageq=exploitation%20of%20indigenous%20peoplesf=false (accessed November 23, 2012). [2] TAINO-L, â€Å"Bartolome de Las Casas and His Defence of the Indians,† http://www. hartford-hwp. com, http://www. hartford-hwp. com/archives/40/186. html (accessed November 26, 2012). [3] J. A. Saco, â€Å"Alonso de Zuazo (1518),† http://www. digitalhistory. uh. edu, http://www. digitalhistory. uh. edu/active_learning/explorations/spain/spain_zuazo. cfm (accessed November 23, 2012). [4] Christopher Columbus, â€Å"Letter to King Ferdinand of Spain, Describing the Results of the First Voyage,† www. xroads. virginia. edu.

Metastatic Cancer: Types and Causes

Metastatic Cancer: Types and Causes Introduction Cancer is something that many people face or is affected by in some way. Cancer is a problem that is global and always growing affecting more people as the world’s population increases. The 2012 statistics show that were about 3.45 million new cases of cancer and 1.75 million deaths as a result of cancer worldwide in the year 2012. The main cancer site being breast contributing 464,000 cases [Ferlay, Foucher, Tieulent, Et.al, 2013]. Thanks to a better understanding and better treatment of cancer like chemotherapy and cancer based drugs, there has been a decrease in death from cancer and so better survival rates for both males and females affect by cancer [Jemal, Simard, Dorell, Et.al, 2012]. The fact cancer is so prevalent worldwide is due to the many features and ways that cancer affects people. One of these features is that some cancer cells are not static. The cancer cells are able to alter and change in order to form into another cancer that is in another part of the body therefore affecting a different organ site. This ability for cancer cells to move or migrate to different parts of the body is known as Metastasis [Yachida, Jones, Bozic, Et.al, 2010] [Fokas, Cabillic, Et.al, 2007]. The fact that cancer cells are able to migrate to other sites of the body is not just random. Where the cells migrate to, is dependent on where the cancer cells was originally was before the migration. What dictates where the cancer cells go, are specific stimuli or environment within the body so that the cells are able to grow into tumours. The stimuli or environment may consist of specific receptors or chemokines that are shared or common between the two sites [Baruch, 2009]. When cancer has metastasised to a different area the site that the cancer had originated in is known as the primary cancer and the site at which the cancer cells moved to is known as metastatic cancer. A common type of metastasis is from breast to brain, with breast being the primary cancer and br ain being the metastatic cancer. Breast cancer is often found to metastase to the brain, the chances of this occurring are increased when patients have HER2 over expression [Gupta, Adkins, Et.al, 2013]. HER2 comes from the human epidermal growth factor receptor family that controls response such as cell growth and cell differentiation, therefore it can be easily predicted that over expression of HER2 leads to uncontrollable cell growth a feature that is in all cancers [Rubin Yarden, 2001]. The metastasises of cancer within patients does not affect them straight away, as it often takes years for the metastatic cancer to be detected and to affect the person. When the primary tumour has grown, only then will the tumour cells migrate and invade to another part of the body and grow at the site. When the tumour cells are at the new site then they the process of cell growth occurs at the site. But it has been shown that the tumour cells at the new site have been dormant which accounts for the time between the detection of the primary cancer and the metastatic cancer [Rà ¶cken, 2010]. The way the metastatic cancer cells move from their primary site to their metastatic site can be many ways depending on ultimately were the tumour formation will be formed in. Examples of the movement or migration are 1) local tissue invasion which is movement of the tumour cells through the tissue, 2) hematogenous spread which is the movement through the blood; 3) lymphatic spread which similar to the blood by uses the lymph nodes and finally 4) spreading through surfaces and cavities [Pepper, 2001]. There are many sites of metastatasis, below is a summary table of the sites and where they originated from [Nguyen, Bos, Massaguà ©, 2009]. Table 1: A brief summary list that shows the sites of metastasis from primary tumours [Nguyen, Bos, Massaguà ©, 2009]. A metastatic cancer that is particularly important and of interest is metastatic cancer that is able to migrate to the brain. From the table above it can be seen that sites of metastasis for the brain is only in 3 types of tumours, these being breast, lung adenocarcinoma and skin melanoma. Out of these three types’ lung and breast tumours usually metastases to the brain making up 60% of brain metastasises [Nguyen, DeAngelis, 2004]. The reason why brain metastasis is of particular interest is because of how the metastatic cancer is able to pass through the blood brain barrier (BBB). In order to understand the movement of the blood brain barrier it structure must first be looked at. The blood brain barrier is made up of 4 main sections or parts that are of important to it function. These 4 parts are 1) tight junctions, 2) adherens junctions, 3) astrocytes, and 4) pericytes, each section has its own function as well. The tight junctions are made up of claudin, occludin, and junct ion adhesion molecules these are transmembrane proteins which are involved in cell-to-cell adhesion. Adheren junctions are responsible for paracellular permeability. Astrocytes are for structural supports and also for guiding of neurons and finally the pericytes are for mechanical support for cell attachment. [Lawther, Kumar, Krovvidi, 2011] [Hawkins, OKane, Simpson, Et.al 2006]. Figure 1: Image showing the main parts of the BBB and the overall structure of the BBB. Image was extracted from [Lawther, Kumar, Krovvidi, 2011]. Now that the structure of the blood brain barrier can be seen more clearly, a better understanding of how metastatic brain tumours form and how the cells pass through the blood brain barrier. More specifically primary breast cancer that produces metastatic brain tumour can be looked at. The tumour cells that are being metastasised are able to express vascular endothelial growth factor (VGEF). The expression of the vascular endothelial growth factor by the tumour cells is able to disrupt the blood brain barriers permeability which allows the cells to pass through and into the brain [Gerstner, Fine, 2007]. Another way to metastasise to the brain is by the tumour breast cells attaching or invading the brain microvascular endothelial cells and then passes through the blood brain barrier [Arshad, Wang, Sy. Et.al, 2011]. The survival rates of patients that have a metastatic brain tumour in unfortunately not very high. Those patients that have had primary breast cancer and then later gaine d a metastatic brain tumour have between 30-40% chance of death due to the metastatic brain tumour [Wadasadawala, Gupta, Bagul, 2007] [Jaboin, Ferraro, DeWees, Et.al, 2013]. There are treatments available that help fight against metastatic brain tumours the main one and most effective being radiotherapy. However the effectiveness of radiotherapy is dependent of where the tumour cells had originated from i.e. which primary cancer the patient had first. Those that had primary lung or breast cancer are more sensitive to the radiotherapy treatment. Other types of treatments include Craniotomy, Postoperative radiotherapy, and Stereotactic radiosurgery. The treatment that is craniotomy is not used often as it is stressful for the patients. Postoperative radiotherapy is also an effective treatment that improves the life of the person, however there are side effects or conditions that can occur as well like disorder of the nervous system or dementia. The final treatment stated is Stereotact ic radiosurgery which involves using gamma radiation on the site of the tumour [Shibui, 1999]. With the use of radiation is the fear of persevering the nearby cells and tissues. With the advancement of science and technology the treatment of using radiotherapy has become better. The use of radiotherapy is still the main treatment but with better radiotherapy processes and technique the preservation of the cells and tissue from radiation has greatly improved [Owonikoko, Arbiser, Zelnak, Et.al, 2014]. Epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) Epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) is defined as a biological process that occurs within polarised epithelial cells which interact with the basement membrane. The polarised epithelial cells undergo many biological changes that brings about a mesenchymal cell phenotype, these changes include an increased ability of migration, invasion and develop a resistance to the process of apoptosis [Kalluri Weinberg, 2009]. There are keys differences between the epithelial cells and the mesenchymal cells. Epithelial cells are cells that form layers, which are tightly packed by membrane structure such as tight junctions, gap junctions’ adherens junctions and desosomes. These cells do possess an ability of motility, however under normal condition they remain they do not move. In comparison the mesenchymal cells are not organised into layers like epithelial cells. The main difference between the two is that mesenchymal cells are very motile whereas epithelial are not normally [Th iery Sleeman, 2006].The whole process of epithelial–mesenchymal transition plays a role in normal development. These normal developments include gastrulation which is an early phase in embryonic development and heart morphogenesis which need and take advantage of the transition between the epithelial cells into mesenchymal cells. Another key role of the EMT is that it is for the down regulation of E-cadherin [Larue Bellacosa, 2005]. E-cadherin is a tumour suppressor that is encoded by the Cadherin-1 (CDH1) gene that is key for the suppression of carcinoma progression. It has been found and seen that the loss of the Cadherin-1 at EMT sites are linked to the formation, development of cancer. The reason for this is due to the fact that the loss of the E-cadherin increases the ability of invasion in cells [Wang Shang, 2013]. As with any biological process there are transcription factors that cause and regulate the transition. The transcription factors that mediate the processes are SNAI1 which down regulates E-cadherin, Zinc finger E-box (ZEB) and also basic helix–loop–helix transcription factors [Lamouille, Xu, Derynck, 2014]. There are features and properties of the mesenchymal cells that can be linked to cancer if not regulated properly. The mesenchymal cells are able to produce and secrete chemokines and growth factors that stimulate cell growth and angiogenesis. Another key feature of the mesenchymal cells is that they have anti apoptotic properties that can stop or save cells from undergoing apoptosis [Murphy, Moncivais, Caplan, 2013]. Just from seeing the features of the mesenchymal cells it can easily be seen that if the regulation of the process, mutation or changes in expression occur the consequences can be predicted and linked to the formation of cancer. The final aspect of epit helial–mesenchymal transition is how it is linked to the formation of cancer and more specifically metastatic cancers. As stated epithelial–mesenchymal transition is regulated by many growth factors and proteins such as Epidermal growth factor, Hepatocyte growth factor and Transforming growth factor beta, all of which if changed by mutation or expression can ultimately contribute to the hallmarks of metastatic cancer like uncontrollable cell growth and invasion into other tissues and organs in the body which is the main feature of metastatic cancer [Gos, MiÅ‚oszewska, Przybyszewska, 2009]. Below is a diagram that summarises and shows the process of how epithelial–mesenchymal transition can promote the formation of metastatic cancer [Kongemail, Liemail, Wangemail, Et.al, 2011]. Figure 2: A summary of how epithelial–mesenchymal transition can be linked to metastatic cancer. EMT is the process of epithelial–mesenchymal transition and MET is the process of Mesenchymal–Epithelial Transition. Image taken from [Kongemail, Liemail, Wangemail, Et.al, 2011]. The image above shows the transition of a primary tumour into a metastatic tumour and reason for this to happen. Red arrows show aspects that may be gone wrong due mutation or change in expression through methylation. Epigenetics Epigenetics is the genetic control by using factors that does not include a person’s DNA sequence [Simmons, 2008]. Epigenetic control or regulation is the process whereby genes are activated or deactivated within a cell [Mitsuyoshi Nakao, 2001]. Essentially the concept of epigenetics is the change in gene expression that can be caused by certain mechanisms such as DNA Methylation or Histone modification. These changes in gene expression whereby expression of a gene is switched on or off can be inherited and passed on. The idea of epigenetics and its mechanism is needed for maintenance of genes that are specific to tissues. Changes in the process of epigenetics, like DNA Methylation or Histone modification causes disruptions in a genes function, which alters its expression and is one of the hallmarks of how cancer begins [Sharma, Kelly, Jones, 2010]. As stated there two ways that can causes changes, histone modification and DNA methylation which will be the main focus of this p aper. The process of histone modification to a certan extent is reversible depending on the type of modification. The process of DNA methylation is more long term creating long-term repression [Cedar Bergman, 2009]. DNA methylation is the common mechanism in which genes are activated or deactivated by the addition of a methyl group to cytosine or adenine bases, making it an epigenetic signal tool. Changes in the process of DNA methylation can result in a gene being constantly activated or deactivated which can lead to brain tumours or other tumours in the body [Phillips, 2008]. The process of DNA methylation is catalysed by the family of enzymes known as DNA methyltransferases. DNA methyltransferases is an important enzyme in epigenetic silencing of transcription. As this is a family of enzyme there are many types of DNA methyltransferases which are DNMT 1, DNMT 2, and DNMT 3 each one having their own function [Simmons, 2008] [Fakhr, Hagh, 2013]. There are two types of DNA methylat ion these are 1) Hypermethylation and 2) Hypomethylation. Hypermethylation stops transcription in the promoter region of suppressor genes which ultimately lead to gene silencing [Das Singal, 2004]. The location at which hypermethylation occurs at are known as CpG sites, these are sites were cytosine is next to guanine. It is the cytosine in these CpG sites that are usually methylated and therefore switched off [Esteller, 2002]. Hypomethylation is the loss of methylation at regions or sites that are normally heavily methylated, for example satellites like SAT 2. The loss of the methylation at SAT 2 can lead to instability and oncogene activation (Jin, Li Robertson, 2011). Oncogenes when activated increases protein expression which in turn leads to increase in cell division, decreases in cell differentiation and the inhibition of cell death [Chial, 2008]. It is the mutation of a proto-oncogene by hypomethylation that makes an oncogene which is the cause of increase in cell division and therefore the cause of an abnormal growth of cells that leads to tumours and cancer. A proto-oncogene is the normal, non-mutated gene that regulates cell division making it controllable by balancing cell growth and death. There many types of proto-oncogenes these include WNT, RAS and ERK [Chial, 2008] [Torry, Cooper, 1991]. To summarise the idea of Epigenetics is the control of gene expression using DNA methylation or Histone modification. If any of these two processes are damaged or mutated this then means the control of gene expression can no long be controlled and so this leads to increase in cell growth and therefore tumours and cancer. Methylation of Promoter Region The DNA methylation of the promoter region within genes is as stated an epigenetic event that is linked to transcriptional silencing in cancer. This means that DNA methylation in this region is for the control of gene expression [Yang Park, 2012]. The promoter region of gene is a region that starts or causes the initiation of transcription [Gordon, Chervonenkis, Gammerman, 2003]. The process of methylation in the promoter region causes the expression of genes to reduce or in the in case of cancers cause the silencing of the gene altogether. There are two ways that this happens in the promoter region. One of the ways it can occur is the inhibition of sequence-specific transcription factors which contain CpG sites. The second way is by the use of methyl-CpG binding proteins which can compete for binding sites of methylated DNA [Robertson Jones, 2000]. E-cadherin was introduced to have a key role in epithelial–mesenchymal transition. If there is methylation more specifically hy permethylation in the promoter region of the E-cadherin then this can cause the silencing of the gene which has been linked to many types of gastric cancer also known as stomach cancer [Tamura, Yin, Wang, 2000]. Another gene that is important and methylation of it has been shown and linked to astrocytic brain tumour is the Methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (MGMT). Methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase’s function is as a repair protein that can remove promutagenic alkyl groups’ guanine in DNA. DNA methylation in the CpG Island of the Methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase means that its function in order to remove promutagenic alkyl groups is decreased [Nakamura, Watanabe, Yonekawa, Et.al, 2001].

The Deeper Meanings of Hawthornes Young Goodman Brown Essay -- Young

The Deeper Meanings of Young Goodman Brown "Young Goodman Brown," a story written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, should be interpreted on a psychoanalytical level rather than a religious one. It is my observation that "Young Goodman Brown" may very well be the first published work alluding to divisions of the mind and personality theory. Although religion is a direct theme throughout the story, "Young Goodman Brown" appears to be an allegory with deeper meanings. To explore properly my position concerning the dynamics of "Young Goodman Brown," it is necessary to understand Freud's structural model. The development of Freud's structural model presents an understanding of the struggles between the conscious and unconscious forces of the mind. The structural model indicates three powerful forces that dictate conscious behavior, or binders of reality. These three forces consist of the id, superego, and ego. When Young Goodman Brown begins his journey down the path of the haunted forest, he quickly meets a fellow-traveler that I interpret as the irrational guide lurking inside himself. The guide repeatedly urges Goodman Brown to continue the errand despite Brown's overwhelming reluctance; he assures him that "[W]e are but a little way in the forest yet" (Hawthorne 274). The traveler demonstrates a subconscious part of the psyche called the id. The id is that part of the psyche that is driven by pleasure and irrational wishing. The guide's insistence never seems to be in Brown's best interest. The traveler's motive was to do what feels good at the time, not putting into account any potential ramification that could result, which in this story turns out to be the loss of Goodman Brown's wife, Faith. His reckless behavior is ap... ...ind may be found within Hawthorne's story. If the reader will only look past its literal interpretation and explore the rich symbols and hidden meanings laden throughout the text, she or he will be rewarded with a work of fiction that was way before its time. Works Cited Carpenter, Richard. "Hawthorne's Polar Explorations: Young Goodman Brown and My Kinsman, Major Molineux." Nineteenth Century Fiction 24 (1969): 45-56. Gay, Peter. Freud: A Life for Our Time. New York: Doubleday, 1989. Hawthorne, Nathaniel. "Young Goodman Brown." Literature Reading Fiction, Poetry, Drama, and the Essay. Ed. Robert DiYanni. 4th ed. Boston: McGraw & Hill, 1998. 272-280. Hurley, Paul. "Young Goodman Brown's 'Heart of Darkness.'" American Literature 37 (1966): 410-419. Paulits, Walter. "Ambivalence in 'Young Goodman Brown.'" American Literature 41 (1970): 577-584.

Essay on Robert Frosts The Road Not Taken - It Made All the Difference

The Road Not Taken: All the Difference Each person must make many decisions in their lifetime. Some decisions are easy while others are more difficult. The poem "The Road Not Taken" by Robert Frost is a first person narrative tale of a monumental moment in Frost’s life. Frost is faced between the choice of a moment and a lifetime. Walking down a rural road the narrator encounters a point on his travel that diverges into two separate similar paths. In Robert Frost's poem "The Road Not Taken", Frost presents the idea of man facing the difficult unalterable predilection of a moment and a lifetime. This idea in Frost's poem is embodied in the fork in the road, the decision between the two paths, and the speaker's decision. Man's life can be metaphorically related to a physical journey filled with many twists and turns. Through out this journey there are instants where choices between alternate paths have to be made- the route man decides to take is not always an easy one to determine. The fork in the road represents the speaker's encounter of having to choose from two paths a direction that will affect his the rest of his life ( ). Frost presents to the reader a moment in anyone's life where an arduous problematic choice has to be made. There are an abundance of options in life man faces; Frost symbolizes this into the diverging of the two paths in his poem. The decision for which path to choose from can be hard to accept, just as the revelation of the choices. The two paths represent the options man has to choose from. Faced with these decisions, man has to weigh his options carefu... ...e ways. Faced with very similar choices man tries to examine what they have to offer, but often is not able to for tell the consequences. Man can opt to go the common route, which is the more reliable, and have a common life or he can choose the less common route, which is unknown and often difficult, and have a unique life that stands out above everyone else's life. The choices a person makes in life are ultimately responsible for their future, yet at the same time a person can never go back to the past and experience other possibilities. It is unfeasible to predict the outcomes of capital decisions we make; often it is essential to make these decisions fixed on nothing more than questioning which selection will provide fulfillment. In the end, we reflect over the decisions we have made, and like Frost, sigh, discovering they have made "all the difference."

Duke Players in NBA :: essays research papers

Mike Krzyzweski has sent the most players to the NBA in the past 15 years. As a matter of fact he has 15 ex-Blue Devils in the NBA. Danny Ferry was the first his players to graduate to the NBA. In 1989 he was drafted by the Los Angeles Clippers, and in 2003 helped the San Antonio Spurs win a NBA title. Christian Laettner was second in line, he was drafted 3rd overall by the Minnesota Timberwolves in 1992, and recently retired in 2005 with the Miami Heat. Laettner wasn?t the only player from the 1992 championship team to branch off into the NBA Grant Hill came right behind him in 1994, when he became the 3rd overall pick in the NBA draft, after being drafted by the Detroit Pistons he was traded to the Orlando Magic, and still plays with them. In 1999 Coach K sent out his 1st, number one overall pick, when Elton Brand was drafted by the Chicago Bulls. Brand was traded to the Los Angeles Clippers in 2001, and is considered one of the NBA?s best players. In 2001 Shane Battier won the C ollege Player of the Year award, he also earned the 6th overall pick in the draft by the Memphis Grizzlies, he now plays for the Houston Rockets. Carlos Boozer is the first 2nd round selection of Coach K?s 15 NBA players. He was chosen 35th overall by the Cleveland Cavaliers, he now plays for the Utah Jazz, and is one of the leagues top international players. Mike Dunleavy is one of three players from Duke to be chosen 3rd overall. In 2002 the Golden State Warriors selected, he currently plays with the Indiana Pacers. Dunleavy wasn?t the only player to depart from Duke in 2002, Jay Williams was his partner, going right before Dunleavy, and being the 2nd overall pick, for the Chicago Bulls. Chris Duhon became the second player to join Boozer in being a 2nd round selection in 2004 by the Chicago Bulls. Dahntay Jones is the only player who made it to the NBA that didn?t play his entire collegiate career with Duke. His childhood friend Jay Williams encouraged him to join the team after he had already been playing at Rutgers University. He was selected 20th overall in 2003 by the Boston Celtics, he presently plays with the Memphis Grizzlies. Along with teammate Elton Brand, Corey Maggette is also notable as one of the first Duke players under Coach K to leave before the end of his athletic eligibility.

Importance of Moral Education Essay

Before 1976, education was the exclusive responsibility of the states. In the Constitutional Amendment of 1976, education was included in the Concurrent list. Since then, the central government continues to play a leading role in the evolution and monitoring of educational policies and programmes, the most notable of which are the National Policy of Education (NPE), 1986, and the Programme of Action, 1986 as updated in 1992. The modified policy envisages a national system of education to bring about uniformity in education, making adult education a mass movement, providing universal access, retention and quality in elementary education and expanding the structure of higher education. Moral education is not our priority. It is not included in any syllabi-whether of science or humanities. Morals or morality, broadly speaking, implies honesty of character, fairness in attitude and absence of evils like jealousy, hatred and greed from actions. Our system of education gives us formal know ledge of various types of subjects but does not teach us what is morality and how to bring the characteristics related to it in our mindset. Our schools, colleges and universities are churning out millions of young graduates every year who are experts in some field of science, art, commerce or technology. No teaching or training is given to the students on moral values. What have been the results of this system of education? We have professionals in every field, but we have few people in society who have a high moral character. The society reflects our education most of our officials whether in public sector or private sector are corrupt. The assets they have acquired are often several times higher than their known sources of income. We read about income-tax raids or Central Bureau of Investigation raids on the residences of high officials. Wealth amounting to crores of rupees is recovered during these raids. We watch on TV channels the scams that are unearthed after regular intervals. What do these incidents reveal? They reveal that our greed has reached gigantic proportions. The attitude of government employees has become so indifferent to public that they are not prepared to help. These unscrupulous workers do not work even for 50 per cent of the total hours of their duty. This is nothing but stealth of time. As students they were taught to solve various types of sums or write answers to different types of questions. They were not taught how to serve the nation. They were  not made aware of the happiness that one derives by working honestly and sincerely. The atmosphere in our schools, colleges and other institutions of education is full of competition. The students are taught to excel one another. Their competition, more often than not, becomes so intense that it leads to rivalries, jealousy and hatred among class-fellows. While it cannot be denied that competition is necessary to achieve higher goals but is totally undesirable if it breeds ill feelings. Our ancient universities of Nalanda and Patliputra created scholars of great repute like Kautilya in Economics and Susruta in Medicine, but they never used competition among the students to move ahead. Actually, these students were taught by the gurus the feelings of mutual help, of being complementary to one another. There was a spirit of sacrifice for the sake of justice and fair play. That is why our ancient societies were happy and prosperous. The teachers and other educationists who are concerned with the orientation of syllabi for schools and colleges are of the opinion that the characteristics of honesty, fair play, goodness and helpfulness which are the ingredients of morality cannot be taught as subjects in any educational institution. They are something which a child inherits from the parents and learns from his family, particularly mother and father. So far as religion is concerned it is also something which everyone acquires from one’s family and other members of the community. India being a secular country, cannot take up religious education in schools and colleges. They argue that, to the extent the moral education can be given in educational institutions, it is given through discipline and punishments for breaking the code of conduct. Any student who steals abuses or hurts others is punished. This is nothing else but imparting of moral education. What these teachers and educationists tend to ignore is that these actions teach only discipline in actions. Evils as they say have large fangs, desires are boundless. The students need to be told the ultimate consequences of acquiring wealth through illegal means when they grow up and take up some job. For this, moral education needs to be taken up as a subje ct. Our life on earth is for a limited period of time. The purpose of human life is not to indulge in luxuries and enjoy the material comforts. They give temporary happiness. The real purpose of life is to develop our spirit in a pure and chaste manner whereby we attain salvation. This is the spiritual lesson which every religion teaches. This is a part of moral  education which each faith teaches us. This should be a part of our education. The educationists have an argument to make in this regard also. They are of the opinion that while framing syllabi for language and literature, the novels, stories, poems and other write-ups of those great religious philosophers are taken which contain this spiritual education. The names of Guru Nanak and Swami Vivekanand are prominent. Among the social reformers the names of Gandhi, Raja Rammohan Roy and others are given. The works of great scholars are sufficient to develop a sense of justice and fairness among the students. It may be true to some extent but the fact remains that by including the works of great religious men and social reformers in the curriculum helps but little. In the examination, the students have to answer the questions based on the text. There is no examination which tests whether the students have adopted this philosophy-whether they have resolved to act according to the philosophy in their own lives. Moral values are extremely important for building a society which is free from the evils of violence, greed, hatred, avarice and jealousy. However, high economic growth do we achieve, whatever high amount of wealth do we accumulate, our society will be afflicted by corruption, inequality and perverity if moral education is ignored. India has been a beacon of light for the world for showing others the values of religion and morality. If we have lost our own path, what will we show to the world? We have to start from the grass-roots level to impart moral education on our children. The syllabi at schools and colleges must include this education so that surely, though slowly our society is purged of all evils and we become role models for others. A great responsibility devolves on the teachers to remove the ill feelings of jealousy and hatred from the pupils’ minds. They must teach the students to achieve their goals through hard work. The attitude of fairness and justice developed in childhood and teenage will lay the foundation of responsible citizens.

Police Dogs

Police Dogs Breah Ratlif Animal Science AY105-02 12-12:50 Cute, fun, loving, cuddly, outgoing; these are only a few words to describe the animals that we have come to know and love as a part of our families. Dogs have been man’s best friend for hundreds of years and were the first animal to be domesticated because they are great as companions, highly intelligent, and were found to be very useful in human’s everyday lives. Even though they made excellent house pets they were highly successful at working side by side humans as well.They are not limited to being just best friends, but they have been found to be protectors and saviors as well, to their owners, others people and even other dogs too. One type of working dogs in particular that needs to be recognized for their tremendous efforts, and hard work is none other than police dogs. There are many dogs that will help humans in time of need. For example there are guide dogs, search-and-rescue dogs, and bomb-or-drug- sn iffing dogs just to name a few. They really dedicate themselves to the jobs that they live to do.But few dogs are asked to go above and beyond to lay their lives on the line to protect and serve as much as police dogs. These dogs are trained to do specific things. The basic description of what police dogs do is to guard their handler, and assist him in numerous tasks, such as finding, intimidating, and holding suspects, or investigate the scene of a crime. Some can even be trained specially for detection work. It is interesting how on one hand they are a loving member of a family, then when it is time to do some police work they can take down and attack humans so easily.In order to lead this type of life style this dog has to have some very important traits that other dogs may not have. They must come from intelligent, strong, dedicated, and aggressive but obedient lines of dogs, and while even the trait to be too aggressive is not very desired the strongest traits that police dogs must have are self-control and obedience. Police dogs are usually members of the working dog breeds. The dogs today come from a long line of purebred working dogs that were bred because of their high intelligence and strength.There are other breeds that have traits that could greatly contribute to police work as well such as hunting dogs or herding dogs because of skills like hunting and tracking for instance. There are several dogs that qualify for police work and are known for their bravery and drive. The German Shepard is the most common and most popular dog for police work. Lab Retrievers, Belgian Malinois, Doberman Pinschers, Akitas, Terriers, Boxers, Spaniels, Bloodhounds, the Bouvier de Flandres, Rottweiler’s, Collies and Dutch Shepherds have been known to also be used for different types of police work.K-9 police work is more than just brute strength and skin prickling growling. Tracking down or smelling for drugs, weapons, evidence, cash, bodies, criminals; holding o n to criminals; and even protection work are all a part basic everyday life. Just the presence of a having a police dog by the officers side can prevent physical harm from being inflicted upon the police officer by the suspect/criminal, ultimately leading to lesser chances of the officer getting harmed in any way.Police dogs today are not bred or employed to be vicious animals towards people in any sense; in all actuality most are trained or supposed to be trained to enjoy their work as hard as that may seem. What happens is it all starts off as fun and games. Chasing and grabbing is introduced to them as games when they are young pups to get them use to it. They usually play these types of games only when the handler or in other words a police officer, gives the right command for them to do so.The goal of the games is not for the dog to actually â€Å"bite† its opponent but more to merely hold on to it for as long as possible till the officer it works with gives the dog the command to let go. This tactic is mostly to insure that the suspect/criminal does not get away until the officer can catch up and take care of him/her their self. This grab is strong and hard. There is always a large possibility that the suspect/criminal can/will be bitten if they attempt to fight off the dog but when thinking about it even the dog â€Å"gripping† onto the suspect will inflict a bite.They would not be able to hold the suspect as well if they did not apply pressure into their grip. Before any dog has to be turned loose, they try to intimidate the person first by giving them a warning that if they start to run, the dog will be released and will chase after them. A barking tactic is also used to scare the person into not running away. Even in a case where the officer and dog seem to have the upper hand, there are many situations where the tables can be completely turned. Both the officer and the dog are trained to work together as a team.They must be able to ful ly trust and understand one another especially when they are placed in extremely dangerous and stressful situations. It is the responsibility of the officer the dog is being handled by to only use the dog when the situation absolutely calls for it. Any other way would be very inappropriate and would be a terrible miss use of the animal. Not being responsible could also put the dog in more of harm’s way which can take a definite turn for the worst. Going into depth of the most popular and common of the police dogs the â€Å"the German shepherd only came into being a little over 100 years ago.A German shepherd enthusiast, fascinated with the intelligence, strength and agility of the country’s native sheep dogs, established the breed, which spread throughout the world when Allied soldiers saw how the Germans used them as messenger, tracker and guard dogs during World War 1. After the war, the name German Shepherd Dog (Deutsher Shaferhund) was dropped in favor of the Alsa tian Wolf Dog (After the Alsace-Lorraine German/French border region), as it was thought that the word â€Å"German† would make the breed unpopular, and Alsatian continued to be used for the breed until the 1970s. Your Best Friend: The Dog, pg. 50. The other types of working dogs that are used a lot more than the rest of the working breeds in police work are the Belgin Malinois (very similar to the German shepherd), the Doberman, Boxer and Rottweiler. One main reason they are under the German shepherd or Belgin Malinois could be because of factors such as tolerance for instance. That can be directed towards weather and other such factors. Based off of observation with their fur coats being shorter they do not do as well in colder climates or seasons and police duties are year round.Still the loyalty, obedience, and ability to react quickly in certain situations, make the Doberman a great breed for police dog training. The brute strength of a Rottweiler, along with their intel ligence and protective nature, makes them popular to some and in case there are no German shepherds around Rottweiler’s are great substitutes for getting the job done. The same goes for the boxer with it being fearless, loyal and strong they are also respected to be a strong guard dog and used in police work.This topic was found to be interesting and unique because dogs are one of the few animals people can really rely on to be there no matter what. Humans can rely on dogs to be more than great companions and friends. They have traits of loyalty, fearlessness, loving, strong, dedicated, and intelligent. The list could go on but more than any pet they will stick by your side till the very end. Dogs were also found to be great at being put to work. Their senses are far better than humans. They have Excellent hearing and smelling. According to facts. randomhistory. om a dog can locate the source of a sound in 1/600 of a second and can hear sounds four times farther away than a h uman can. Also Touch is the first sense the dog develops. The entire body, including the paws, is covered with touch-sensitive nerve endings. Dogs have a wet nose to collect more of the tiny droplets of smelling chemicals in the air. When it comes to their smelling abilities a dogs sense of smell is 50 times for sensitive than a humans. Some dogs can smell dead bodies under water, where termites are hiding, and natural gas buried under 40 feet of dirt.They can even detect cancer that is too small to be detected by a doctor and can find lung cancer by sniffing a person’s breath. It does not hurt that dogs can be trained to do just about anything so this makes them perfect for doing work. A good example of something a police dog can be trained to do is known as â€Å"Aggressive alert† which the most common of the alerts it is taught to them. Aggressive alert is what the dogs do to show indication of an odor or substance that they are trained to detect by vigorously scrat ching and barking at a particular item. Another alert that is taught to police dogs is called â€Å"Passive alert†.The dog will sit when it smells the odor that it is trained to detect. Passive alert is common when it comes to explosive detection canines and narcotic detection canines. I feel that there are many pros and cons to having police dogs on the force. I personally like the fact that we have dogs involved in police work to a certain extent. Where some humans lack the stamina to run and catch up with a suspect that has decided to give an officer the chase, the police dog can make up for what he/she lacks. Dogs are great runners and if exercised properly they can almost run for miles.This makes them great at catching up with suspects to get a good grip on them and hold them until the officer can catch up and give the dog the command to let go. Also by using the dog it allows for the officers to refrain from using bullets if they are not exactly necessary, and unlike a gun, a dog almost never misses. This could lead to saving more lives whether innocent or not. I also think that the dogs really have been one of the best decisions that the police for could have made when it came to looking for better ways to do their job in multiple aspects.This is really in consideration to the dog’s senses being way more sensitive than that of a human. Since we are unable to smell certain things that are not very pungent or in close range to our noses our dogs can definitely smell what we cannot especially particular breeds of dogs that have a better sense of smell than others. There was one particular instance that I can personally say caught my attention. I had an open bag of cookies in my purse and there was a beagle puppy and a boxer puppy in front of me allowing me to pet them.Instantly the beagle puppy could smell the bag of cookies that I had in my purse sitting behind me before the boxer puppy could. It was so amazing to me to see how the dog react ed to the smell of the cookies. From previous knowledge of beagles I know that they are also working dogs and are great for smelling things and hunting things down. Police dogs are notorious for sniffing out drugs among other things. I remember being in high school and middle school and they would have days where they would bring police dogs in to smell the lockers of students to check for drugs.They always made sure students stayed in the class room for safety reasons I’m sure. They are also good for being used in airports where people are constantly coming and going from other states and countries so it is highly important to know what people have on them when boarding or getting off of a plane may catch things that the metal detectors, x-ray like machines and security guards may miss. Their highly sensitive noses can also be used to track down one specific person, leading to a faster take down of suspects as well as finding those who are in need.Some cons of police dogs ar e the actual harm they can cause a person while trying to catch and hold them while they wait for their trainer. They can inflict puncture wounds and if they grip the wrong part of the human body can lead to some pretty serious damage. There may also be case where the dog may attack the wrong person. Even though police dogs are extensively trained and are trusted partners police officers, they still possess canine instincts. A dog gets overexcited or becomes frightened may bite a handler, a suspect or a member of the public that is completely innocent.Police departments cannot make guarantees that these out of hand attacks will not happen, and it is possible for police agencies to be taken to court by the victims and forced to pay compensation for any damages caused by the out of control dog. Depending on how well the dog has been handled it does run the possibility to become aggressive. Another down fall is that police work can be beyond dangerous, and dogs are also susceptible to being injured or even killed while on duty. There have been cases where dogs have been killed by suspects that may have wielded knives and guns.Some people may view this as a disadvantage of using police dogs since the animal does not have a choice in terms of a career and emergency care is not all ways a call away for our canine companions especially at certain hours of the night. Mainly I do believe that having dogs doing police work does good than it does bad. There are more positives to adding dogs to the picture than negatives. Works Cited 1. â€Å"Police Dogs. †, German Shepherd Police Dog Breeds. Izoox, n. d. Web. 05 Oct. 2012. . 2. â€Å"The Dog† Your Best Friend. Pg 50. London: Carlton, 2010.Print. 3. Luca, Catherine Marien-Le. â€Å"Types of Working Dogs. † Types of Working Dogs. The Canine Information Library 2003-2010, n. d. Web. 05 Oct. 2012. . 4. â€Å"SITE NAVIGATION. † History Of Police Service Dogs. N. p. , n. d. Web. 05 Oct. 2012. . 5. à ¢â‚¬Å"WHY EMPLOY A POLICE DOG ? † Police Dogs. N. p. , n. d. Web. 05 Oct. 2012. http://www. worldwidecanine. com/PoliceDogs. htm 6. â€Å"99 Fun Facts About . . . † 99 Fun Facts about Dogs. N. p. , 15 Feb. 2009. Web. 05 Oct. 2012.