Rmb Appreciation Positive Impact on China’s Economy and...

The appreciation of the RMB issue has attracted attention of various circles at home and abroad. By analyzing the current RMB exchange rate appreciation on China’s economic impact at all levels, I will mainly from the industrial structure, export structure, and enterprises to change their operational mechanism, to ease trade tensions and the effectiveness of monetary policy five-pronged approach to analysis; and my final conclusion: RMB exchange-rate appreciation generated by the final result is more positive than negative, impact is positive. In the current context of the appreciation has become a fact, china should actively take the appropriate follow-up measures to stabilize and optimize the economic environment, to minimize possible†¦show more content†¦In the 11 years, the international economic situation has undergone great changes; pegging the RMB exchange rate formation mechanism type has become increasingly unsuited to China s economic reform and development requirements. It is demonstrated by the defects are: First, the fixed nominal exchange rate has lost its real economic significance, the current RMB exchange rate formation mechanism is difficult to form market-clearing equilibrium rate. Practice, exchange settlement and capital management system in suppressing demand for foreign exchange at the same time creating a large part of foreign exchange supply, the central bank continued to intervene and the fact that the position of the largest market makers, erase all the differences between actual supply and demand. The central bank s benchmark rate to determine the true market supply and demand balance is not the result can not reflect the market changes. Secondly, the fixed dollar-pegged exchange rate system and monetary policy, the independence of the existence of a fundamental conflict, undermine the effectiveness of monetary policy cannot meet the needs of economic development. Monetary policy autonomy is essential for China’s macroeconomic stability; monetary policy should take precedence over the independence of significant exchange rate stability. But the Yuan against the U.S. dollar exchangeShow MoreRelatedThe Appreciation of Rmb2718 Words   |  11 PagesInternational Business The influence of the RMB appreciation on China’s external trade and countermeasures Group No.: Team 9 è ° ¢Ã¥ ¥â€¡Ã¯ ¼Ë†3211004310ï ¼â€° é »â€žÃ© â„¢Ã¥ â€ºÃ¯ ¼Ë†3211004300ï ¼â€° é »Å½Ã¥  ¯Ã§ ¿  Ã¯ ¼Ë†3211004301ï ¼â€° ä ¸ ¥Ã¤ ½ ³Ã¦  °Ã¯ ¼Ë†3111004291ï ¼â€° 陈ä ¼Å¸Ã¥Å" ºÃ¯ ¼Ë†3111004280ï ¼â€° June 20th, 2013 Content Abstract 2 Introduction 2 Advantages 2 Disadvantages 3 Measures 4 Conclusion 6 References 6 Abstract: Recently, the appreciation of RMB has been a hot topic and caused a heatedRead MoreThe World Is Flat !, By Thomas L. Friedman1524 Words   |  7 Pagesdoubt that globalisation has positive impact on developed and developing countries. When it comes to China, ever since it formally joined WTO, great benefits has been gained from the international trade while a huge boost to the collaboration with other countries. The issue of globalisation in China, including demonstrating why globalisation is beneficial for China, the status quo situation of globalisation in China, and the prospects and suggestions of development of China’s globalisation, will be discussedRead MoreThe Full Convertibility of Renminbi: Consequences and Influences8173 Words   |  33 PagesThe Full convertibility of Renminbi: Consequences and Influences Abstract This paper indicates the issue of full convertibility for the Chinese currency, Renminbi(RMB), and its impact on the economy of China. It does not only point out the sequencing of Renminbi’s full convertibility, expounding the detailed concepts procedure of currency convertibility (current account convertibility and capital/financial account convertibility and full convertibility) but also focus on the necessity andRead MoreImpact of Yuan Appreciation5200 Words   |  21 PagesThe Economic Impact of the Chinese Yuan Revaluation Xiaohe Zhang School of Economics, Politics and Tourism Faculty of Business and Law The University of Newcastle. Callaghan, NSW 2308, Australia Telephone: 612-49215034 Fax: 612-49216919 Email: James.Zhang.@newcastle.edu.au Abstract Since the beginning of the economic reform process in 1979, the Chinese currency (yuan) was devalued on many occasions until 1994 when the two-tier foreign exchange system was ended. While the official rate of yuan hadRead MoreChina Mono-Banking System6400 Words   |  26 PagesChinese banks. It should also be noted that the Chinese economy is still operating under a relatively conservative banking climate. The rules and regulations set by the banks are tightly linked with the government’s policies. 2.1 Time line of Chinese banks curbing loans (2004-2010) Important Events: 2003: In order to rein in the obviously excessive credit growth, the PBC raised the required reserve ratio by one pp on September 21, 2003. ICBC set up an industry research center in 2003 to improve itsRead MoreThe Wealth Effect of Cross-Border Mergers and Acquisitions in the Chinese Financial Sector19184 Words   |  77 Pageswealth effects on the rivals of Chinese target firms. The empirical results show that both experienced foreign bidders and Chinese targets obtain significant positive wealth gains during the event, while inexperienced foreign bidders suffer losses. This paper also demonstrates that foreign bidders with Chinese banking targets experience positive wealth gains, while they suffer losses with Chinese non-banking targets. Moreover, this paper shows that the wealth gains to foreign bidders are positivelyRead MoreFamous Amos12788 Words   |  52 Pagesexpansion, innovation and cost-saving. 2.2 Goals and Strategies The Kellogg Company’s revenue in 2008 amounted to $12.82 million and operating profit was reported as $1.95 million (Kellogg Company 2008). The company is positive that growth is achievable despite the weak global economy as consumers will purchase more convenient foods and prepare more meals at home. Focus will be placed on cost efficiencies and innovations across all operations to increase profitability. The following are the goals ofRead MorePrada: to Ipo or Not to Ipo: That Is the Question, Again30689 Words   |  123 PagesSelection 38 3.1 IPO Alternative 39 3.1.1 Current Environment 39 3.1.2 Pros and Cons 44 3.1.3 Simulations 46 3.1.4 Impact on Future Growth 53 3.2 Strategic Partner Alternative 57 3.2.1 Current Environment 57 3.2.2 Pros and Cons 58 3.2.3 Simulations 61 3.2.4 Impact on Future Growth 74 3.3 Debt Alternative 81 3.3.1 Current Environment 81 3.3.2 Pros and Cons 86 3.3.3 Simulation 88 3.3.4 Impact on Future Growth 93 3.4 Other Financing Alternatives 96 3.4.1 Commercial Paper 96 3.4.2 Project Financing 97 3Read MorePrada: to Ipo or Not to Ipo: That Is the Question, Again30683 Words   |  123 Pages3.1 IPO Alternative 39 3.1.1 Current Environment 39 3.1.2 Pros and Cons 44 3.1.3 Simulations 46 3.1.4 Impact on Future Growth 53 3.2 Strategic Partner Alternative 57 3.2.1 Current Environment 57 3.2.2 Pros and Cons 58 3.2.3 Simulations 61 3.2.4 Impact on Future Growth 74 3.3 Debt Alternative 81 3.3.1 Current Environment 81 3.3.2 Pros and Cons 86 3.3.3 Simulation 88 3.3.4 Impact on Future Growth 93 3.4 Other Financing Alternatives 96 3.4.1 Commercial Paper 96 3.4.2 Project FinancingRead MoreSelected Topics24764 Words   |  100 PagesPART 1: Selected Research Topics for Semester Project Topic 1: Demand Theory Title: General demand function Aim: This study empirically investigates the determinants of quantity demanded of any product and the role of the other factors in X economy. Methodology: In this study, Ordinary Least Square (OLS) is conducted to empirically investigate the determinants of quantity demanded of any product. Model: Qd=f (P, I, PR, T, PE, N) The Theory says: Qd=f (P, I, PR, T, PE, N)

To what extent can prepardness and planning mitigate the effects of volcanic hazards free essay sample

A volcanic hazard is a situation that poses a threat to life, the environment, and infrastructure after a volcanic eruption. Volcanoes are formed at various plate boundaries, such as at mid oceanic ridges where plates are moving apart, for example at the Mid Atlantic ridge. They also occur on or near subduction zones. The ‘ring of fire’ tends to be where the most violent volcanic activity occurs. The scale of destruction a volcano has is heavily dependant on whether the eruption occurs in an MEDC or an LEDC and the way in which these country’s prepare and plan for the possibility of a volcanic eruption. Additionally, many human and physical factors can contribute to the effects the volcanic eruption has on an area. Planning and preparing for volcanic eruptions effectively can reduce the impacts they have on an area significantly. The Education of local people about volcanic eruptions can reduce the effects of a volcano substantially. If one is educated about different aspects about preparing and planning for eruptions they are more likely to evacuate the area quicker. For example, In Montserrat the farmers were not educated about the effects that the volcano would have, and therefore ignored the numerous warning signs, as they did not have the education that perhaps, a more developed country may have. The eruption of Mount Etna eruption in 1991 shows how effective preparation and planning can have positive effects on a volcano’s hazards. Mount Etna is Europe’s highest and most active volcano, whilst being viewed as one of the worlds best managed. Prior the 1991 eruption of Mount Etna, massive barriers had been set up on the slopes of the volcano. This was not a permanent solution but to delay the start so that of the eruptions other methods could be brought in. Helicopters dropped concrete blocks through the tops of the volcano on the to block some vents in order to redirect the lava flow. Mount Etna is now lined with many sensors to detect any sign of an eruption with a combination of magnetic, seismic and video sensors linked to a monitoring station, sending a text at any warning that an eruption may occur. This is warning system is necessary as Mount Etna is on rich fertile ground, where 25% of Sicily’s population live. Due to the volcano type that mount Etna is (composite strata), when eruptions happen, the lava is easily managed, even though it is able to travel large distances. Lava bombs and pyroclastic flows are not a great threat when the volcano erupts. All in all, the techniques of planning and preparation prior to the eruption of Mount Etna in 1991 mitigated the effects of the volcanic hazards by a large amount as shown by the little damage the eruption did to the surrounding area. However, the effects of the eruption in Montserrat were devastating in comparison to Mount Etna, due to the lack of preparation the eruption had. The first eruption in Montserrat in 1995 was completely unplanned and prepared for. The volcano had been dormant for more than 300 years and so the eruption came as a complete surprise. The Montserrat Volcano Observatory was recognized shortly after the first eruption of the Soufriere Hills Volcano on July 18th 1995. The stations are located around the volcano and detect the ground movements caused by local earthquakes and dome collapses. Occasionally, large earthquakes outside Montserrat are also recorded. The seismic signals are monitored 24 hours a day at the Observatory. The second eruption on 25 June 1997 affected Montserrat in a number of ways, even though the volcano observatory had been put in place. This could be due to Montserrat being an LEDC, and therefore it cannot afford to implement expensive eruption detection technology. Exclusion zones, however, were put in place to ensure that minimal amount of damage would be done, following the eruption. The eruption had many impacts on the environment; the main component of the eruption causing the most devastating effects was the pyroclastic flow (hot ash, rocks and gas), which alone killed around 19 local people. Following the eruption, a total of at least 4 square kilometers of land was covered by the deposits from the pyroclastic flows and surges The fine grained pyroclastic surges broke and flattened trees. In some areas there was no vegetation left at all, vegetable beds were bare of plants and the soil was extremely hard. The lack of planning and preparedness the eruption had shocking effects on the local people as well. The volcanic eruption destroyed between 100 -150 houses. The houses were buried by debris from the pyroclastic flow, burned by the hot pyroclastic surges, or set alight by the intense heat in the atmosphere. Most of the houses destroyed were in the Exclusion Zone and should have been empty but an estimated 15 people were living and sleeping in the Exclusion Zone. It can be argued however, that the main cause of the effects of the eruption were unavoidable, the pyroclastic flow, as one can never be prepared for the size of the eruption a volcano might have. It is clear that, from the two case studies, that planning and preparedness can mitigate the effects of volcanic hazards to some extent, shown by the way in which the eruptions Sicily and in Montserrat were planned for and the effects of both volcanic eruptions. However, there are many other factors that can influence the effects of an eruption, such as volcano type, length of eruption, and other influences of which no country can prepare totally for.

Violet A Musical by Jeanine Tesori and Brian Crawley Essay Example For Students

Violet A Musical by Jeanine Tesori and Brian Crawley Essay For the professional play of my choice, I saw the musical, Violet, presented in Fords Theater by director Jeff Calhoun and an incredible team of stage artists and actors. I did not particularly enjoy the plotline of the play, but the acting was great. Since watching Violet, I have been reading my introduction to acting book, and kept in mind key concepts that author Bruce Miller specifically highlighted that characterizes â€Å"good† acting. I also kept in mind critiques and concepts I learned in class. Erin Driscoll played the main character of Violet and I specifically impressed that did not break the fourth wall once in two hours. We will write a custom essay on Violet A Musical by Jeanine Tesori and Brian Crawley specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now There musical was based on conflict after conflict. Soon after the main character Violet’s father died she makes a pilgrimage from North Carolina to Tulsa in order to â€Å"cure† herself. Violet has a huge scar on her face and believed she is very ugly because of the scar. She is travelling to Tulsa, via bus, in order to see a famous preacher to cure her ugliness. The conflict is something everyone in the audience can relate to because someway or another we are all obsessed with physical beauty. On her bus travels, Violet meets two soldiers traveling. One soldier is white, Montgomery, and the other solider, Flick, is black. Though the ultimate conflict and Violet’s objective is to become beautiful there were many conflicts with in the conflict which kept the play very interesting. The play takes place in 1964, a time in the United States where there was great racism. One of the soldiers Violet befriends is black and the plot line covers many conflicts that arise due to the color of his skin. Being from a small town, Violet notices firsthand for the first time how horrible racism is especially in the south. Violet has a very strained relationship with her father, which is very evident in the play. She believes it is her father’s fault that she is ugly. When Violet was 13, an ax that her father was using flew off the handle and hit her on the face which left her with the scar. She believes her father did this on purpose because if she was pretty she would have left her small town in North Carolina. Her father is simultaneously struggling with the pain he feels of his wife’s death years prior. Their relationship is filled with a lot of guilt on both sides. All people on the bus are dealing with some type of pain or another which is evident through the songs that they sing. Another conflict with in the storyline, is both soldiers become smitten with Violet. It is evident to the audience that Montgomery, the white soldier, is just using her for sex while Flick, the black soldier, has very deep feelings for her. The theme of racism is broached upon again because Flick never makes moves on Violet because he fears society. In class, we discussed backstory. Within the play, there are flashbacks which highlight the backstory (I found the flashbacks to be very confusing until the end of the play). Each character has lived his or her entire life until the start of the play. Erin Driscoll does a fabulous job in reminding us of Violet’s backstory. Instead of discussing pain, Erin is actually feeling the pain when discussing her relationship with her father or how she has been teased her whole life for being ugly. The pain she feels is evident in Erin’s entire demeanor. There is a huge change in her character from start to finish of the play. Her walk become lighter and her posture became significantly better at the end of the play when she accepts herself. .u602dfce1f2eea397f04e0a604bb976e4 , .u602dfce1f2eea397f04e0a604bb976e4 .postImageUrl , .u602dfce1f2eea397f04e0a604bb976e4 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u602dfce1f2eea397f04e0a604bb976e4 , .u602dfce1f2eea397f04e0a604bb976e4:hover , .u602dfce1f2eea397f04e0a604bb976e4:visited , .u602dfce1f2eea397f04e0a604bb976e4:active { border:0!important; } .u602dfce1f2eea397f04e0a604bb976e4 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u602dfce1f2eea397f04e0a604bb976e4 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u602dfce1f2eea397f04e0a604bb976e4:active , .u602dfce1f2eea397f04e0a604bb976e4:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u602dfce1f2eea397f04e0a604bb976e4 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u602dfce1f2eea397f04e0a604bb976e4 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u602dfce1f2eea397f04e0a604bb976e4 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u602dfce1f2eea397f04e0a604bb976e4 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u602dfce1f2eea397f04e0a604bb976e4:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u602dfce1f2eea397f04e0a604bb976e4 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u602dfce1f2eea397f04e0a604bb976e4 .u602dfce1f2eea397f04e0a604bb976e4-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u602dfce1f2eea397f04e0a604bb976e4:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Oliver Twist - Board Scene EssayThroughout the musical, Erin switches between a naive, stubborn girl dealing with a great deal of shame to a confident, light hearted young woman. When Violet finally makes it to Tulsa she goes to see the preacher. However, she does not get the response she anticipated. The preacher was not a very good person and believes she is very vain because nothing is wrong with her. When the preacher leaves the stage Violet speaks to God and realizes that she is a stronger person than most people. Violet has an imaginary meeting with her father who tells her that she is stronger than he ever was. She realizes that she sees with her heart and feels at peace with her father. For the first time, she believes her scar is not there and heads back to the bus station. Violet encounters the soldiers again where she waits for Montgomery (the white soldier). He is very rude when he tells her scar is still there and that he is going to Vietnam by choice, which hurts her because she thought he would stay in the US for her. Flick (the black soldier shows up) where he tells her she belongs with him and she realizes he’s the one for her regardless of his race. Within the play, each actor had a great sense of space of the stage. The flashbacks did not work so well because I felt they were very confusing. The play took place in the south but Violet’s accent was too strong and at times hard to understand. However, each actors singing voice was incredible. A major problem with the play is that there is no scar on Violet’s face which led to confusion when she saw the preacher to see if he could cure her. I was confused as to whether the scar was gone or not. I think in the future make up artists should put a scar on Violet’s face.

Whats the Best Food to Eat Before a Test

Whats the Best Food to Eat Before a Test Proper nutrition is important, and doubly so on important days like when you take a test. Keeping up your energy during the exam is crucial to your success. Ever had one of those times when youre staring at the sheet and are just drawing a blank, even though you know for sure youve studied this? It might be because you didnt pay proper attention to what you ate, and it resulted in your blood sugar flatlining at the worst moment. Heres a little guide on how to avoid it happening again. Eat Light the Night Before If youre cramming the night before a test (like any proper student would), it might be hard not to get pizza as a way of rewarding yourself. You should consider putting off that reward until you actually write the test, though. Its best to wake up hungry and not with that pregnant feeling everyone gets when eating right before going to bed. Drink Water First thing you should do for energy is drink water. Americans, as a whole, dont drink enough liquids, if you discount for sugary drinks. A glass of cold water on an empty stomach is a great way to start the day and boost your metabolism – which means youll have more energy throughout the day. Eat Your Vitamins Starting your day right means getting all the vitamins your body is going to need throughout the day. Consider, at the least, fish oil and a vitamin B supplement. Fish oil is great for energy boosting, as well as increasing metabolism and clearing up skin, and without sufficient B12, your body is not going to have proper energy reserves, and thats just two of them. Getting a blood test from your doctor will tell you better what daily supplements you should be taking. Caffeine and Energy Drinks Unless youre a total, complete addict, youll want to go without coffee and especially energy drinks. Drinking them gives an energy boost, but the crash or comedown is not worth it, especially if it happens while youre taking your test. If you absolutely cannot start the day without a beverage to bolster your energy, try green tea. It has lower amounts of caffeine, but does have anti-oxidants that coffee lacks. Eat Breakfast The most important meal of the day. If youre one of those people who doesnt have their first meal until lunchtime, you should think about having a proper breakfast. This will provide you with the energy boost you get from coffee, and sustain you until you have lunch. Since breakfast is the most vital meal of the day, you should be all that choosier with what you eat. Try and avoid sugary cereals. Yes, theyre pretty much the best, and you might say, why even wake up if I cant have my sugar fix right away? The same reason as coffee: sugar, as well as all carbs, gets you going fast, and you crash just as hard. Its the thing that metabolizes the fastest, so it wont sustain you for very long, and, as has been said above, were trying to avoid that crash. Instead of Lucky Charms, try something thats high in fat and protein. Eggs with hummus, for instance. Some sort of lean meat, like grass-fed beef or salmon is also a great way to start the day. Try it with some avocado for those healthy omega acids, and eat it on an English muffin to avoid being completely boring with your food choices. If youre a vegan, try mixing quinoa or chickpeas with some spinach or kale, add some nuts, and dress with vinegar for a morning salad. Whatever youre eating on exam day, be conscious of how long its going to sustain you for. You know your body best, and if you know a Red Bull in the morning and a Red Bull before the test is going to get you through it, then, by all means, indulge. Keep in mind, though, youre not going to be 20 forever, and at some point youre going to have to think about how healthy the choices youre making are. Until then, have fun.

Finding Water on Mars

Finding Water on Mars   Ever since we began the exploration of Mars with spacecraft (back in the 1960s), scientists have been on the lookout for evidence of water on the Red Planet. Each mission gathers more evidence for the existence of water in the past and present, and each time definitive proof is found, scientists share that information with the public. Now, with the popularity of Mars missions on the rise and the amazing story of survival that moviegoers have seen in The Martian, with Matt Damon, the search for water on Mars takes on additional meaning.   On Earth, definitive proof of water is easy to find - in as rain and snow, in lakes, ponds, rivers, and the oceans. Since we havent visited Mars in person yet, scientists work with observations made by orbiting spacecraft and lander/rovers on the surface. Future explorers WILL be able to find that water and study it and use it, so its important to know NOW about how much there is and where it exists on the Red Planet.   Streaks on Mars Over the past few years, scientists noticed curious-looking dark streaks that appear on the surface on steep slopes. They seem to come and go with the change of seasons, as temperatures change. They darken and appear to flow down the slopes during periods when the temperatures are warmer, and then fade out as things cool down. These streaks appear in several locations on Mars and have been called recurring slope linae (or RSLs for short). Scientists strongly suspect theyre related to liquid water that deposits hydrated salts (salts that have been in contact with water) on those slopes.   Salts Point the Way Observers took a look at the RSLs using an instrument onboard NASAs Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter called the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM). It looked at sunlight after it had been reflected from the surface, and analyzed it to figure out what chemical elements and minerals were there. The observations showed the chemical signature of hydrated salts in several locations, but only when the dark features were wider than usual.   A second look at the same places, but when the swaths were not very wide didnt turn up any hydrated salt. What this means is that if theres water there, its wetting the salt and causing it to show up in the observations.What are these salts? Observers determined that they are hydrated minerals called perchlorates, which are known to exist on Mars. Both the Mars Phoenix Lander and the Curiosity rover have found them in the soil samples theyve studied. The discovery of these perchlorates is the first time these salts have been spotte d from orbit over several years. Their existence is a huge clue in the search for water. Why Worry about Water on Mars?   If it seems that Mars scientists have announced water discoveries before, remember this: the discovery of water on Mars has not been one single discovery. It is the result of many observations over the past 50 years, each one giving more solid evidence that water exists. More studies will pinpoint more water, and eventually give planetary scientists a much better handle on how much water the Red Planet has and its sources underground.   Ultimately, people will travel to Mars, perhaps sometime in the next 20 years. When they do, those first Mars explorers will need all the information they can get about conditions on the Red Planet. Water, of course, is important. Its essential to life, and it can be used as a raw ingredient for many things (including fuel). Mars explorers and inhabitants will need to rely on the resources around them, just as explorers on Earth had to do as they explored our planet.   Just as important, however, is to understand Mars in its own right. Its similar to Earth in many ways, and formed in roughly the same region of the solar system some 4.6 billion years ago. Even if we never send people to the Red Planet, knowing its history and composition help fill in our knowledge of the solar systems many worlds. In particular, knowing its water history helps fill in the gaps of our understanding about what this planet may have been in the past: warm, wet, and much more habitable for life than it is now.

Scientific Management Matrix Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Scientific Management Matrix - Assignment Example Scientific management actually allowed the managers to view the work in more rational manner and ensured that work is completed in professional manner. Scientific management is relevant to today’s managers because it can allow them to plan their activities in advance and apply more efficient methods to accomplish the tasks. I believe that scientific management was the beginning of a completely new era in the field of management. The current stream of knowledge on modern management basically evolved from scientific management and earlier theorists such as Frederick Taylor contributed greatly towards the development of this discipline. Scientific Management will influence the way I consider the work and its accomplishment. This means that integration of scientific management into my personal management framework will allow me to actually see how management actually evolved and what were the key weaknesses of scientific management which I as a manager must consider in order to successfully implement them into real world

Sweatshop Labor Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Sweatshop Labor - Essay Example This would maintain high-profit margin even in low demand market conditions. In terms of history, Sweatshop developed during the industrial revolution to refer to a sub-contracting system that provided an environment for high profits among the intermediaries because of low labor costs as compared to the amount paid for the contract (Powell, 2014). The profit margin reflected the â€Å"sweat† of the workers as they received low wages compared to the working conditions and the amount of work they undertook. The clothing industry involves a subcontracting system that allows retailers to dominate the top of the chain of subcontracting. The apparel companies order sets of clothing from manufacturers, who are the designers of the clothes, and the manufacturers employ contractors. In some cases, the contractors hire subcontractors. The garment workers are then hired and paid by either the contractors of the subcontractors to perform the basic tasks of cloth making such as sewing, cutting or packaging different clothing (Powell, 2014). As such, the garment wo rkers remain at the bottom of the subcontracting chain as much as they are the center of cloth making. Low consumer demand leads to increased competition in the marketplace; an aspect that place the contractors in a critical position where they receive low price offers from the manufacturers and are left with no choice other than take the contracts due to high competition (Powell, 2014). In most cases, the prices offered in the contracts are too low that most of the contractors are not able to offer their employees the legal wages they deserve or create safe working places according to the law. As such, due to the structure of the industry, most of the contractors experience â€Å"sweating† of profits from their employees as the only alternative that would ensure sustainability of their business. In

The channels of communications Essay Example for Free

The channels of communications Essay Media is the name given to the channels of communications, which a society uses to speak to itself. It includes newspapers, magazines, adverts, television, cinema and radio. In fact, it is a mass of individual contact points between communication tools and human beings. As you see, a large part of media products are playing a key role in our life. However it hasnt been identified whether it is good or bad, and as we begin to understand the media, we realise that it can be as equally useful as well as worthless sometimes. The media provides information to educate, to inform or simply to entertain its audience. The importance of the media is to publish the message worldwide, so that it can become popular. This is achieved by certain key concepts such as presentation, language and audience. A well presentation is brought up by using techniques through working on colours, style, format, font, size and so on. Looking at language, we explore the words and images that the medium uses to communicate with its users. It is essential to choose the right words and images in order to attract the audience. Media uses its powerful strength on the audience, through what is known as audience positioning. Different types of media have their own-targeted audience. They all have a way of addressing, their purposes to their viewers to encourage them to believe what its says. For instance a mens lifestyle magazine aims at a reader who is 35 years old, middle -aged. A fashion magazine focuses mainly at women and teenagers because those are the people that are interested in their issues. From this you can see that articles can be about the topic of work, marriage life, cars, and driving and maybe about care of young children. There are thousands of newspapers published in the U. K and all over the world. They can all be divided into different categories to what information they cover; such as National daily papers, National Sunday Newspaper, Regional papers and Specialist newspaper. National daily papers, everyone is familiar with the Sun, Guardian, Mirror, Times and so on. They are published each night and are on the news stands every morning expect on Sundays. They can also be separated into two groups such as Broadsheet newspapers and Tabloid newspapers. Broadsheet newspapers are targeted at those who like more realistic approaches to news. Their articles focus more on including political and foreign items. However their publication is less popular than the tabloids. Tabloid newspapers are aimed at people who are just expecting amusement from newspaper. Although they do cover some news, they tend to contain more gossip, personality issues, shorter articles and more pictures than text. Moreover they often refuse and neglect the idea of publishing political and foreign news. By investigating these issues this essay will be based on how language, content and presentation has been conveyed in newspaper. Most newspapers are either broadsheet or tabloid in format and I will use this to explore the difference between Tabloid newspaper s and broadsheet newspapers. The Guardian and the Sun, by analysing and concentrating their front covers. Presentation takes the form of words, images or symbols. The process of working on an image or a symbol is to convey our understanding of media message. This presented differently in each newspaper, simply because there are different types of audience that they have to target. For example, broadsheet papers have more text on the front page than tabloid paper. This is maybe because they have wider pages. However the design and layout of broadsheet and tabloid newspapers are very different in many ways. The Sun paper tends to be brasher in presentation. They use large headlines and big pictures. The masthead is represented by bold enormous writing on red back round. Using red colour, which connotes a sense of danger, and so in effect we become exited and attract. The title Sun suggests that the paper will shine as the sun does bringing us a scene of happiness and enjoyment. The headline why did she have to die? refers to a young girl beaten to death. It uses rhetorical questioning to convey a message in order to market the product, to the readers of the newspaper. They typed the title as a question to attract the audience so that they will read on to find the answer. As well as, this dramatic question appeals to those who like to read tragic stories. Yet again, they present the headline as in white, bold letters on black background to draw the readers attention. Subheadings use bold writing to suggest that she was let down. They have also typed in capital letters whereas the Guardian uses small letters. This gives readers more information about the event and also influence them to find out more. There is just one column of text in the Sun article and a large photograph of the young girl dominates the article. The girl has a little smile on her which conjures the image of the sun shining, then when u realise that this pure little sun shine has lost her life, it brings up a sympathetic value in readers mind. At this point the reader becomes emotionally involved arousing their interest. Further more the photographs have been used partly because they are visually interesting rather than because they are newsworthy. As we see, the front cover of the Sun paper has been designed to people who want to scan the news quickly, in order to have a good idea about the events happening around them without giving up great amount of time to read lengthily articles. The presentation of the article in the Guardian is less effective than the article in the Sun at attracting the readers attention. They give very little importance to eye catching the audience, but they are more standard and are strict on providing the news rather that some sort of gossip. It is controversial. The masthead is in bold black writing on white back round. The black and white colour is there to give a formal and serious look. The name Guardian suggests to look after the needs of its audience. The headline: You can hide, general, but you cant run is longer, therefore the powerful message is no as quick. Despite this, the headline is straight to the point and creates shock. It takes more time to make the audience read on. As we see it is more informative rather than startling. Yet they use black and white handwriting to make the thought simple. The subheadings are presented in bold and very small writings and not capital letters as well as that they help you to understand what the article is about. The Guardian uses two photographs whereas the Sun only uses one. The first picture is very big and it helps the reader to visualise the scene of how General Augusto Pinochet appear. It expresses the feelings of tension and sadness on his face. This brings up the interest and causes readers to become emotionally involved. This picture obviously draws, peoples attention to agree with. The other picture is quite small and it also relates to the article. In fact the photographs are used to illustrate the story rather that used as stories in their own right. As we see the Guardian paper concentrates more on delivering accurate information, than presenting it in a way that will instantly attract the attention of readers. The content also takes an important place of targeting the individuals audience. Newspapers develop their own nature through the type of story they print. The Sun paper has chosen a tragic story for its front page, which is a death about a five-year old girl Lauren. She has been horribly abused by her mothers lover, which result in death. The officials spent three months holding a meeting about saving her. This story is obviously interpreted as shocking, tragic and dramatic. The opening paragraph, immediately engages the readers, and makes the feel empathy. It makes readers feel extra concern, as the fact that a young girl from their country has died makes the tragedy feel closer to home and brings the thoughts of their own problems. In effect they feel more emotional. As we can see there are more opinions than facts. The article is biased against her mothers lover because of the owners personal opinion supports the young girl. The Guardian paper has chosen a political story about the general leader Pinochet, who has been forced to move from the country. As we see this topic is very serious and informative, also the article is very detailed. At a glance, they provide more facts than opinions, as well as that the article is not biased because the argument is not only argued for one side. The article in the Sun is the only article on the front page; this ensures that another does not distract the reader. But in the Times, there are several other articles with the main article; this draws the readers attention away from the main headline into the others. The Sun uses a bold, thick border around the article, making it stand out further. The Times doesnt have a border, use colour boxes above and underneath the articles, to make it impressionable, yet is less effective as it doesnt apply around the whole page. The Sun article has aimed at very broad audience. Its simplistic enough to reach a wider audience, with short simple facts about the situation. Other than, it requires more information and more informal in sequence to meet the needs of a more intellectual people. In whatever circumstance media does not communicate with only words but with pictures and images. A large part of a newspapers identity is the language that it uses in its stories. The type of words used in the articles play an important role in the way it addresses its audience. The Sun paper uses very casual and shortened words, which help create a chatty, friendly tone. Also the language is very informal, as how people use language through a conversation; moreover they tend to use onomatopoeia, for example, cruel instead of badness, and punch and slapped instead of hurt, as an advantage to alert readers as the text becomes alive creating musicality in a sense. They refer to characters by nicknames, like her mothers evil lover, her mother and a neighbour. They often fail to extant the language in grammar or standard. Since they want to hold the attention of the readers without using long sentences or either difficult vocabulary, for the reason that, it has to be understand by lower educated people as well as to the intelligent people. The language used in Guardian tends to be formal. They contain more long and complex sentences. Headlines are in straight forward, in that they rarely use emotive or humour words. Use of difficult vocabulary is to put together the paper more standard. People in the stories have been given their proper titles such as Gen Pinochet, Mr Straw and Mr Artaza. The Guardian has aimed towards a more intellectual people. This is mainly because of the language, the language and word structure is much more good. In addition, the simple layout and the story with more facts and information for the content make the paper brighter.

Seeking Pleasure And Agression Is Part Of Human Instinct :: essays research papers

Seeking Pleasure and Agression Is Part of Human Instinct Name: Mohamed Fakhry A.Wahab   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Based on Freud concepts of pleasure and aggression, discuses Hay Ibn Yaqzan and The Island of Animals   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  It is said to be that seeking pleasure and aggression are a part of our human Instinct. We seek pleasure to shorten the time of our unhappiness. We live in a constant struggle to be always happy, and we use all the ways that take us to happiness. Aggression, on the otherhand, is a part of our human nature, which can be hidden deep down in our subconcousnes and explodes in certain situations, or it can be on the surface of our behavior and inconstant use. Sources of happiness may differ from one person to another, but the one source of our human gratification that we all agree upon, is the happiness derived from sexual pleasure. Our souls strive for sexual pleasure to be elevated from one degree of human happiness to another. Freud said that â€Å"what we call happiness in the strictest sense comes from the ... satisfaction of needs which have been dammed up to a high degree, and it is from its nature only possible as an episodic phenomenon.† (25). At the sametime, we explore those human instincts in the presence of civilization which set some rules and regulation that are surpassingly acting as guidelines for the survival of humanity. Hay Ibn Yaqzan and The Island of animals, are two different human experiences that discover our two core human instincts, pleasure and aggression. In Hay, we will find that his journey with his own instincts is different from our own human instincts, but it is the same when it comes to the roll of civilization with dealing with them. On the otherhand, The Island of Animals tends to dig in our human aggression, and shows how humanity uses civilization as a curtain to hide behind it. Freud concept of pleasure and happiness is related to Hay in only one way. It is not in the kind of happiness itself , whether if is sexual or spiritual, but it is similar in the procedure and the definitions of happiness or pleasure. In other words, pleasure to Freud is basically in sexual terms, â€Å" Sexual gratification is the prototype of all forms of individual happiness...†. On the otherhand, Hay Ibn Yaqzan's happiness or his pleasure is found in totally different kind of human instinct, which is the substitute gratification for sexual pleasure, because religion and science are included in Freud's lists for intellectual replacements for the lost sexual happiness.

The Silver Linings Playbook Chapter 9

If I Backslide Knowing that if I wear the wrong thing, Veronica will say I have ruined her night – the way she did that one time when I wore Bermuda shorts and sandals to a dress-up dinner – I can't stop thinking about what I am going to wear to her dinner party, so much that I don't even remember it's Friday, and therefore, time to see Dr. Patel, until Mom calls down in the middle of my workout, saying, â€Å"We're leaving in fifteen minutes. Hit the shower!† In the cloud room, I pick the brown chair. We recline, and Cliff says, â€Å"Your mother tells me you've had quite a week. Want to talk about it?† So I tell him about Veronica's dress-up party and how my old dress clothes don't fit because I have lost so much weight, and I have no swanky clothes other than the shirt my brother has recently given me, and I am pretty stressed out about going to a dinner party and wish I could just spend some time alone with Ronnie lifting weights, so that I would not have to see Veronica, who even Nikki says is a mean person. Dr. Patel nods a few times like he does, and then says, â€Å"Do you like the new shirt your brother gave you? Do you feel comfortable wearing it?† I tell him I absolutely love my new shirt. â€Å"So wear that one to the dress-up dinner, and I'm sure Veronica will like it too.† â€Å"Are you sure?† I ask. â€Å"Because Veronica is really particular about what you should wear to dinner parties.† â€Å"I'm sure,† he says, which makes me feel a whole lot better. â€Å"What about pants?† â€Å"What's wrong with the pants you have on now?† I look down at the tan khakis my mom purchased for me at the Gap the other day because she says I shouldn't wear sweatpants to my doctor's appointments, and even though the pants are not as swanky as my new Eagles jersey, they do look okay, so I shrug and stop worrying about what to wear to Veronica's dinner party. Cliff tries to get me to talk about Kenny G, but I only close my eyes, hum a single note, and silently count to ten every time he says Mr. G's name. Then Cliff says he knows that I have been rough with my mother, shaking her in the kitchen and knocking her down in the attic, which makes me really sad because I love my mom so much and she rescued me from the bad place and has even signed all those legal documents – and yet I cannot rightly deny what Cliff has said. My chest heats up with guilt until I can't take it. Truth be told, I break down and cry – sobbing – for at least five minutes. â€Å"Your mother is risking a lot, because she believes in you.† His words make me cry even harder. â€Å"You want to be a good person, don't you, Pat?† I nod. I cry. I do want to be a good person. I really do. â€Å"I'm going to up your meds,† Dr. Patel tells me. â€Å"You might feel a little sluggish, but it should help to curb your violent outbursts. You need to know it's your actions that will make you a good person, not desire. And if you have any more episodes, I might have to recommend that you go back to the neural health facility for more intensive treatments, which – â€Å" â€Å"No. Please. I'll be good,† I say quickly, knowing that Nikki is less likely to return if I backslide into the bad place. â€Å"Trust me.† â€Å"I do,† Dr. Patel replies with a smile.

Anana

Study Guide Note about the purpose of this Study Guide: This study guide is to help you be aware of the information you'll need to know to earn an A* on the Unit Exam for my class. I have also noted the related objectives that may be tested on during the Cambridge Exam at the end of the year. Cambridge Themes and Key Questions Addressed: Theme 1 : Government and the People 1754-2000 Key Question 1: How did Americans develop the U. S. Political system during the period from 1754 to 1865? Why did relations between the British and the colonists deteriorate before 1776?How was the Constitution created? The writings of John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and Tom Paine The Revolutionary War: political and military leadership, military events, and their consequences 1775-83 Theme 2: Who Are Americans? Key Question 1: How far did the economic, social, and political status of Native Americans change from 1754 to 2000? Theme 4: America and the World 1754-2010 Key Question 1: How were the borders of the nation defined by 1853? How important was the role of France in shaping the borders of U. S. A.? To what extent were war and diplomacy with Brittany important in defining U.S. Borders? VOCABULARY: Duties/Tariffs Import Export Revenue Martyr Tyrant/Tyranny Autocratic Militia Direct Tax Indirect Tax Loyalists Patriots Aristocracy Monarchy (and hereditary monarchy) Effigy Boycott Tar & Feathering Mercantilism: forerunner to imperialism; colonies help a mother country become self-sufficient and wealthy; idea that no great nation can exist without colonies; economic nationalism; limit imports from other countries but encourage exports to other countries.

Taiwanese Development Model Essays - Taiwanese Culture, Republics

Taiwanese Development Model Essays - Taiwanese Culture, Republics Taiwanese Development Model According to Thomas Gold Taiwan offers a text book case of an elite-led revolution leading to social transformation. The stability of hard authoritarianism of the Taiwanese government laid the groundwork for Taiwanese development. The KMT's cohesiveness and political domination plus the economic development aid supplied by the United States also helped to provide good conditions for Taiwanese growth in the beginning. Once the KMT gained control of Taiwan they redistributed the land and launched a program of rehabilitation and industrialization. This period was responsible for the nationalization of many businesses formerly owned by the Japanese and the start of industrial production in Taiwan marked by a shift away from agriculture to industry. During the early period of industrialization Taiwan tried to create domestic markets for its goods. During the period from 1960 to 1973 Taiwan pursued export expansion in the area of industrial goods. During this period U.S. aid directed at Taiwan declined as did the islands geopolitical significance. To make up for this decline Taiwan focused on increasing its exports. The growth of the Taiwanese economy during this period according to Gold laid the ground work for the growth of opposition movements and loosening of the KMT"S grip on power. According to Gold this was because the changes in the Taiwanese economy brought about a middle class, a better educated populace, and a dispersion of industry through out the country. The Period from 1973 to 1984 Gold calls the time of industrial upgrading and the emergence of a political opposition. During this period Taiwan faced the oil shock, and increase in export prices due to a labor shortage that doubled workers salaries, a further loss of geopolitical prestige, and the growth of dissent and political opposition. Taiwan industrially during this time improved the quality and quantity of its exports. The Taiwan industrial model was that of a elite run bureaucracy that tightly controlled its nations citizenry in authoritarian ways. This authoritarian government was able to effectively channel the energies of Taiwan toward modernization. This authoritarian government became a victim of its own success because as living and education ezdards rose the citizenry demanded a shift away from hard authoritarianism. Taiwan is not a very good industrialization model for other countries to use outside of East Asia. This is because many of the factors that allowed Taiwanese industrialization were unique to Taiwan. First, Taiwan was colonized before 1950 by a developmentalist power, Japan to which is had close ties even after 1950. Second, Taiwan was the recipient of financial aid during its critical early years because of a inter-core competition for hegemony between China and the United States. Third, Taiwan benefited by having a implacable foe with a very different vision of development. Fourth, Taiwan was given breathing space following 1949, this enabled Taiwan to revive production and consolidate power without foreign powers interfering. All these factor make Taiwan unique from other nations that would try to copy it. One of the elements that nations should not copy from the Taiwan Model according to Gold is Taiwan's harsh authoritarian government which was much too strictly authoritarian and had a hard time changing as the attitudes of the Taiwanese people changed. (Gold's book was published years before the 1996 democratic elections in Taiwan) But Gold does say that Taiwan's development model does have some lessons that could be copied in other nations seeking to industrialize. These are a official commitment to development, land redistribution, fostering of agriculture, creation of extra-ministerial ministries to guide development, strategic credit allocation, collection and efficient management of data concerning the economy, investment in infrastructure and human capital, and proper allocation of foreign assiezce. Taiwan's development model was a combination of an orwellian state and effective ways of industrializing. Taken as a whole the repressiveness of the Taiwanese model makes it undesirable for government to adopt; but other aspects of Taiwan's industrial policy could prove effective for countries outside of the pacific rim.

Using the Spanish Verb Pedir

Using the Spanish Verb Pedir The verb pedir is used to refer to the making of requests and is typically translated as to ask for or to request. It should not be confused with preguntar, which usually means to ask a question. Translating Pedir Keep in mind that if using pedir to mean to ask for, you shouldnt translate the for separately, as its meaning is already included in the verb. If youre a beginner at learning Spanish, it may help you to think of pedir as meaning to request, because the sentence structure you use with that English translation may more closely mimic the Spanish sentence structure. For example: Mis hijas me pidieron que les escribiera un libro. Both  My daughters asked me to write a book for them, and  My daughters requested that I write them a book are good translations. The two English sentences have the same meaning, but the second one is worded more similarly to the Spanish. Here are some examples of pedir in action: El gobierno pidià ³ la ayuda para los damnificados por el huracn. (The government asked for help for the hurricane victims.) ¿Es malo si mi enamorada me pide dinero para resolver sus problemas? (Is it bad if my sweetheart is asking me for money in order to solve her problems?)No pidas eso. (Dont ask for that.)No pido el dinero para mà ­. (Im not asking for the money for myself.)Pidieron un coche y salieron de prisa. (They asked for a car and left in a hurry.) ¿Quà © pides para tu cumpleaà ±os? (What are you asking for for your birthday?) Note that pedir que is followed by a verb in the subjunctive mood: Te pido que me escuches. (Im asking you to listen to me.)Pediremos que se reconozca el resultado de la eleccià ³n. (We will ask that the outcome of the election be recognized.)Nunca he pedido que me manden estos libros. (I have never asked them to send me these books.) Although to request or to ask for nearly always works as a translation, in some contexts it is sometimes better translated with a different verb. For example, pedir  can sometimes have a stronger meaning than ask: Un tercio de los votantes pidieron un cambio radical. (A third of the voters called for a radical change.)Mi jefe con rabia pudo haber borrado los archivos. (My boss angrily demanded to have the files be erased.) Pedir can also be used to refer to the ordering of merchandise or services: Me pongo muy triste cuando quiero pedir pizza y no tengo dinero. (I get very sad when I want to order pizza and I dont have any money.)Lo pidieron tarde por internet y no llegà ³ a tiempo. (They ordered it late online and it didnt arrive on time.) Phrases Using Pedir Here are some common phrases using pedir: pedir un deseo: to make a wish.  ¿Quà © pasa con las monedas que tiramos en las fuentes cuando pedimos un deseo? (What happens with the coins we throw in fountains when we make a wish?pedir la mano de:  to ask for someones hand in marriage. Le pedà ­ la mano de mi esposa en la estacià ³n del tren. (I asked for my wifes hand in marriage at the train station.)pedir justicia:  to seek justice, to demand justice. Los manifestantes piden justicia para el hombre que murià ³. (The demonstrators are demanding justice for the man who died.)pedir la Luna:  to ask for the moon, to ask for something impossible. Nuestros clientes no piden la Luna. Simplemente quieren disfrutar de un servicio rpido. (Our customers arent asking for the moon. They simply want to enjoy quick service.)pedir perdà ³n:  To ask for forgiveness, to apologize. Me pide perdà ³n por haberme hecho tanto daà ±o. (She apologized for having caused me so much harm.)pedir permiso:  to ask for permission. Nunca l e hemos pedido permiso a nadie. (We have never asked for permission from anybody.) Conjugation of Pedir Keep in mind that pedir is conjugated irregularly, following the pattern of vestir. When the -e- of the stem is stressed, it becomes an -i-. For example, here is the conjugation of the present-tense indicative mood: yo pido (I request), tà º pides (you request), usted/à ©l/ella pide (you/he/she request), nosotros/as pedimos (we request), vosotros/as pedà ­s (you request), ustedes/ellos/ellas piden (you/they request).

Compare and contrast The Story of an hour and the House on Mango Essay

Compare and contrast The Story of an hour and the House on Mango Street - Essay Example Mallard is the victim of her torturing husband, whereas in the other story the lead character is the victim of poverty and the so-called hypocritical values of the society and class discrimination. Both the lead characters, which seem to be weak initially emerge as strong characters towards the end of the stories. We can say that these stories have a strong theme and they speak about the "Quest for Identity" of the female lead characters. In "The Story of an Hour", the narrator of the story is probably the writer herself. Being a woman and a true feminist she has handled this story in a very tender manner. The female protagonist, Mrs. Mallard comes from an upper class family. This is quite apparent from the way her house is described by the writer. The words like comfortable roomy armchair, an open square in front of the house, staircase, tall trees, twittering of birds and blue skies indicate that she lived a very comfortable life. But despite of all these comforts, she seems to be extremely unhappy with her life. In "The House on Mango Street", the name of the narrator is Esperanza. In the first chapter of the story the names of the narrator and her parents are not revealed. We come to know of their names after reading the entire novel. Contrary to the "The Story of an hour ", the female protagonist in this story comes from a poor class family, which is also apparent from the way the writer has described her house. She describes her house in the following words - "It's small and red with tight steps in front and windows so small you'd think they were holding their breath. Bricks are crumbling in places, and the front door is so swollen you have to push hard to get in. There is no front yard, only four little elms the city planted by the curb. Out back is a small garage for the car we don't own yet and a small yard that looks smaller between the two buildings on either side. There are stairs in our house, but they're ordinary hallway stairs, and the house has only one washroom. Everybody has to share a bedroom-Mama and Papa, Carlos and Kiki, me and Nenny." From these lines we can very well understand what the state of the house as well as the state of mind of the girl is. Thus "The House on Mango Street" is a depiction of the thoughts of a small girl who is growing up to the stage of adolescence and has started realizing slowly the prejudices in the society. In "The Story of an Hour" the mood is gloomy and full of suspense and tragedy. When the sister of Mrs. Mallard, Josephine and her husband's friend Richard break the news of her husband's death to her, she is shocked initially and weeps in her sister's arms. But when she retires to her room and relaxes in her cozy armchair, she starts thinking about her past life. She lived in a society which had specific and strict rules of conduct, and she being from an elite class had to abide by the rules or the dogmas laid down by the society. She was dominated by her husband and did not have the liberty to take her own decisions. It is only when she sits alone, relaxed in the armchair that she becomes aware of her surroundings and their beauty. It shows that she was so engrossed in her married life and had so many preoccupations that she was oblivious to the true world. She was only used to living in the hypocritical world where money and social status had great significance. It is while she is enjoying her rediscovered identity and freedom and feeling happy, that she sees her husband

Assignment 6 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Assignment 6 - Essay Example It is for this reason that Liberal philosophers should support exemptions to the rules and norms of society for minority cultures: by promoting cultural exemptions, they will also support autonomy and equality. Before proceeding further with an argument for the importance of cultural exemptions to Liberalism, it is probably a good idea to define some terms and make sure that the concepts of Liberalism, autonomy and cultural exemptions are fully understood. Liberalism, as describe above, basically espouses the idea that everybody should be treated equally. As we saw in earlier chapters, like the one on the art of Benin, this is not always the case. In regards to Benin, they were seen as less â€Å"civilised† than the British, and this led to their being abused and mistreated when the two cultures clashed. This would not have happened if the British at the time had followed Liberalism, because it accepts that different cultures have â€Å"differences in moral values; different tastes in art, literature or music; differences in social customs and traditions; and differences in belief† (Pike 97). However, Liberalism itself has varying traditions. Two of those which are discussed in this chapter are difference-blind Liberalism and the Liberalism which accepts â€Å"rule and exemption approach† (Pike 106). The first of these seems fairly straight-forward. It basically means that the philosopher ignores any sort of difference whatsoever between any two people. The â€Å"rule and exemption† idea, on the other hand, involves creating rules for all people and then giving people exemptions based on cultural, social, or religious differences. In this case, then, the philosopher would acknowledge some that differences are important and need to be taken into account. On the surface, difference-blind Liberalism seems perfectly reasonable when your philosophy is â€Å"that every human being is of

America Beyond The Color Line Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

America Beyond The Color Line - Essay Example The main idea is that falling in love can stand some attentions such as public housing, education, race, politics and social welfare. He also shows that racism is over as whites and blacks can work together as brothers and sisters and even intermarry. Through the numerous interviews, Louis Gates examined the future, past and present relationship of the black and white race. The American beyond Color Line illustrates how the African Americans struggled in order to fit in the community and how life had been changing from the past to the present and how life might be in the future by regarding the relationship between the whites and the blacks. Louis travelled to the major cities in U.S. in order to look at the role of black communities in several key sectors of the American society. In his interviews, Gates has folksy styles and friendly association with the interviewees. However, he also had various weaknesses. For instance, he was remarkably willing to release tough subjects after the brief exploration. He repeatedly presented his interview subject with a challenge, â€Å"let me play the devils advocate for a moment.† He then asks questions that might annoy the respondents. The film presents a situation of struggle among the races. It makes the audience feel the importance of social justice. From the interviews, the blacks illustrate their struggle and hopes of socializing as brothers and sisters. This can be seen from the dream of Martin Luther King. As Louis interviewed other interviewees, they explained that the Blacks and Whites were working together. Louis stated that the U.S. Army consisted of 26% blacks compared to the past where the Blacks were restricted from socializing with the Whites. Louis’ document mainly promotes diversity among the races. It illustrates how there was extreme racism in America but the situation changes with time. As he made his interviews,

Domestic Abuse Case Study

Domestic Abuse Case Study Abuse can be defined as to treat wrongfully or harmfully. There are different categories of abuse that have been recognized and within our case study there appears to be two distinct forms of abuse, domestic abuse and child abuse. These can be sub divided into terms of physical abuse, emotional /psychological abuse, and non-organic failure to thrive. Physical abuse is the intentional inflicting of physical injury or harm or deliberately not preventing harm occurring. The minimum physical signs seen in our study to both Mrs Black and James are bruising with suspect excuses for their appearance. Emotional abuse is the continual failure to meet basic emotional needs. Emotional development is stunted and well- being impaired. The emotional signs in our case study can be seen in James by his actions of being withdrawn and non-communicative. The behavioural sign to abuse taking place to James is his aggressive behaviour. The short term effects of physical abuse to James are bruising and pain. In the long term recurring injuries can result in secondary illness and complications, permanent scarring and disfigurement. His emotional effects in the short term are a fear of adults or others, withdrawal, poor relationship with his peers. The long term emotional effects for James could be low self esteem, depression, inability to form relationships. Abuse can arise for many reasons and there are a number of theoretical perspectives which may be useful in clarifying why the abuse has taken place. The Feminist perspective believes that gender and family roles gives approval to a culture of abuse. Consider the historical and stereotypical ideas of the family, with men, women and children having definite roles. With the men having power and control in the perspective of abuse. In James case he lives in a reconstituted family with the father figure being dominant and a heavy drinker. From a psychological perspective, alcohol misuse can bring mental health problems which may increase aggression in the person and so James is more at risk from abuse by his step father. The family dysfunction theory suggests that the family is not functioning due to family dynamics. The dysfunctioning family attempts to find alternative ways of coping. The relationship between the mother and James, involves a dependency of James on his mother. With other problems in James mothers life, this leads to increasing stress and the inability of his mother to cope and manage the situation within the relationship. The attachment theory state that significant separations of a child from the carer in the early years can have an effect on their emotional development and can lead to psychological and social difficulties in later life. With the loss of both his father and his sisters` father with whom he was close, may have contributed to his deterioration of his behaviour If a client begins to make a disclosure of abuse it is important to ensure privacy and confidentiality. It is necessary to show that listening skills are employed and that I remain calm and receptive. I must listen without interruption and make it clear that I am taking their disclosure seriously. I must only ask questions of clarification if I am unclear as to what the vulnerable adult is saying. It is important that I acknowledge their courage in coming forward and tell them that they are not responsible for the abuse. I must let it be known to them what I will do to help them and where possible get their consent to inform my line manager. I must speak to my client in comfortable and quiet surroundings. I would ask my client to sit down where I shall use SOLER techniques to aid in communication. Using the SOLER theory I would use the five basic components used in communication. I would sit squarely on at the table turned towards one another. I would adopt an open posture. I would s it so that we have regular but varied eye contact and that my client could see my facial expressions and gestures to aid in communication. This would also let him know that I am involved in the situation. I would lean forward slightly to convey to him that I am interested and committed to actively listen to him. This adhered to our organizations policy on Confidentiality and the Data Protection Act of 1998 allowing my client to voice his concerns without worry and protected his privacy. I would inform him that they are not responsible for the abuse. I must let it be known to him what I will do to help him and where possible get his consent to inform my line manager. It is important that I make an immediate record of what the vulnerable adult has said, using only their own words. This should be recorded in the Incident Book, clearly, accurately and legibly, and then reported to the Line Manager who is responsible for any further action. As we do not supply a care service, we are not required to register with the Care Commission, but we ensure all our policies and procedures meet their standards. As all clients under these standards are legally allowed an individualized care plan, we instead have an activity plan. The policy and procedures on abuse of our organisation are underpinned by the National Care Standards which were set up under the Regulation of Care (Scotland) Act 2001. This Act came about to regulate the care and social work force and set out the principals of good care practice. The Care Commission was set up under this Act to register, regulate and inspect all care services listed in the Act. It also established The Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC). (ref1)The SSSC has aims and objectives to protect the service users, raise standards, strengthen and support workforce professionalism. An example of the code of practice on abuse, of the SSSC is `to protect the rights and promote the interests of the service users and carers. Strive to establish and maintain trust and confidence of service users and carers. Promote the independence of service users while protecting them as far as possible from danger or harm. Respect the rights of service users and ensure that their behaviour does not harm themselves or others.` The policy for protecting vulnerable people within our organisation is achieved through the careful selection, screening, training and supervision of staff and volunteers. Under The Protection of Vulnerable Groups (Scotland) Act 2007 a code of good practice for vulnerable adults within our organisation has been developed which expects staff or volunteers suspecting or have had abuse disclosed must immediately report the concerns to their line manager and write up an incident report. The line manager will discuss the concerns with the person reporting the abuse; she will clarify the concerns and obtain all known relevant information. This will then be forwarded to the ap propriate local Social Work Department stating that it concerns vulnerable adult protection. In the absence of a line manager the concerns should be reported directly to the local Social work department and then inform the line manager as soon as possible. The social work department after investigation may have to inform the police to investigate further.(ref2) the primary role of Registered Social Workers is the protection and promotion of the welfare of children, vulnerable adults and the promotion of the welfare of communities in accordance with the Scottish Social Services Councils Code of Practice for Social Service Workers. (ref3)The social work department will work with the police to carry out joint enquires if necessary and organise case reviews and protection conferences. The police will keep safe from harm the individual who has been subjected to abuse and may call for a medical examination. They will examine and collect evidence, interview suspects, identify offenders and arrange cases for prosecution. The GP or hospital Doctor maybe involved giving medical evidence of abuse and treating the individual. Under our code of good practice in preventing abuse it is important that I avoid unobserved situations of one -to-one contact with a vulnerable adult. I must never invite a vulnerable adult to my home; I must never offer to take a vulnerable adult alone in my own vehicle, if it is necessary to do things of a personal nature e.g. toileting, I must have the consent and knowledge of the carers and my line manager, before doing any of the above. I must not engage or allow any sexually provocative games involving or observed by vulnerable adults. I must never make or allow suggestive remarks or discrimatory comments to be made to a vulnerable adult. I must not engage in or tolerate bullying, or inappropriate physical behaviour. I must respect all vulnerable adults regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, disability or sexual identity. I must avoid favouritism and singling out troublemakers. I must never trivialise abuse and never let allegations of abuse go unreported, including any made aga inst myself. The policy and procedures of our organisation adhere to the Protection of Vulnerable Groups Act (Scotland) 2007 by ensuring as a way of vetting and barring every volunteer and employee has undergone a Disclosure which shows any convictions. If any convictions suggest that abuse of our clients is a possibility then they would not be allowed to volunteer or be employed. Sources of support for workers in the field of preventing abuse can be provided by statutory, voluntary, and private or independent organisations. Statutory services have a distinct concern laid down by legislation e.g. social services and NHS. The voluntary sector is run on a non profit making basis and have arisen through a recognised need and reflect society`s feelings. E.g. Advocacy, Mencap. Private organisations make a profit but I am not aware of any private local organisation that supports vulnerable adults suffering abuse. Support can consist of Casework, by working on a one to one basis, by counselling again one to one, and by group work bring people together with shared issues to resolve problems together. (Ref4) Cultural values play a part in defining what is considered abusive conduct .What we in the UK consider abuse may not be considered abuse in another culture. For example, domestic abuse has only recently become abhorrent in the UK. As up until the 1970s/80s, domestic abuse was considered a marital problem and to be accepted, but today we have little tolerance for domestic abuse. But, today, ethnic minority women still run the risk of long periods of abuse and find it difficult to report, families expect women to put up with it, as ethnic women are considered their husbands property. Honour killings` are not unknown amongst ethnic minorities using religious text as justification. (Ref5)Female circumcision is another culturally accepted form of abuse, still practised in 28 countries in Africa. It is seen to control female sexuality and sex outside marriage. This is done to girls age range from 4 to 12. It usually takes place in un- hygienic conditions with potentially fatal conse quences. Sometimes, workers may have trouble accepting the motives of people who are involved in abuse. There may be the need to ask why and how can they have abused? Where they just bad or mad? Perhaps the workers values and beliefs make working with an abuser distasteful. However, a professional approach to working with an abuser must be taken. For those who work with abusers there is a need to understand why people abuse. Abusive behaviour can sometimes be the result of mental health problems, empathy deficit, brain damage or being abused themselves. By becoming the abuser they believe they are taking control, some even believe that they are not doing anything wrong and cannot stop themselves. When working with individuals who have abused it is important to be aware that they may go on to abuse again and as well as trying to treat the underlying cause for abuse their is a need to protect the community from the abuser. So, the use of risk assessments are important to keep safe when working with an abuser. ( Ref7) It is important to be able to understand probable risks and take appropriate action to reduce them. Effective communication and personal skills are useful to understand and reduce potential conflicts. Reflection on my own values and how they may affect my practice and awareness and understanding of the abusers cultural values and background is required to ensure awareness and intervention is e mployed when required. References. SSSC. (2009). Codes of Practice. Available: http://www.arcuk.org.uk/silo/files/791.pdf. Last accessed 09/02/2010. Stephen Smellie. (2005). Role of the Social Worker: Protection of Title. Available: http://www.unison-scotland.org.uk/response/swrole2.html. Last accessed 09/02/2010 Elizabeth Bingham +. (2009). Protection including safeguarding and management of risk.. In: HNC in Social Care. Edinburgh: Heinemann. 229. Mary Barnish. (2004). Domestic Violence: A Literature Review. Available: http://www.domestic-violence-and-abuse.co.uk/information/Cultural-Differences-in-the-UK.php. Last accessed 13/02/2010. Frances A. Althaus . (1997). Female Circumcision: Rite of Passage or Violation of Rights? Available: http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/journals/2313097.html. Last accessed 13/02/2010. Kathryn Patricelli. (2005). Why do people abuse?. Available: http://www.mentalhelp.net/poc/view_doc.php?type=docid=8482. Last accessed 13/02/2010. Elizabeth Bingham +. (2009). Issues involved in protection from abuse. In: HNC in Social Care. Edinburgh: Heinemann. 217.

Decision Support Systems Used in Network Hardware Essay -- essays rese

Decision Support Systems Used in Network Hardware How does data pass through the internet? If you said decision support systems, you are correct. In an indecisive world, network hardware devices uses decision support systems (DSS) to efficiently and effectively route data, in a local area network, with the least amount of errors and inconsistencies. Decision support systems are the brains behind network hardware, and would be near impossible for them to work without the intelligent core of each distinct DSS. There are a variety of network hardware devices: switches, hubs, and routers; and they all use algorithms/procedures to transfer data towards the correct destination. Although there are many more DSS related methods used to route traffic, this paper describes how these three devices use them and each of there functions. Other types of decision support systems that network hardware devices may use are firewall technology, network address translation, and filter tables, which are all described in this paper. Network hardware is used in the first three layers of the OSI reference model. The OSI reference model is the Open Systems Interconnections standard and consists of seven layers that build from the wire. At the first layer, â€Å"the physical layer†, hubs maybe used for simple, inexpensive technology within a corporation. Hubs, when receiving data sent to it, sends that data too all network interface cards, or NICS on each computer. If the data is at its correct destination, the NIC to read the data, but if it is not, the data is discarded. Of course, this setting is much slower, because the other NICS are waiting for there turn, which is after the first message is delivered or timed out. Raymond R. Panko writes this about the waiting state a hub goes in when transmitting data: â€Å"This creates latency (delay), which grows as the number of stations grows. Another way of saying this is that the speed of the hub is shared. (Panko 108)† As, you can tell, hubs are simple, and don’t use more information than needed. Switches, which are layer 2 devices, use decision based routing by storing NIC hardware addresses and port numbers on a table in the switch. By doing this, when data is received by the switch, it knows where the source was, and where the data needs to go. This allows for faster data transmission for all NICS that are connected, because it uses the swi... ... mining tools are being used to uncover the congestion that slows network traffic down. With all these DSS type applications working together in harmony, the internet can be faster and safer to surf, than ever before. Sources Fairhurst, Gorry. â€Å"Operation of a Router.† 10 Jan, 2001. â€Å"How Firewalls Work.† HowStuffWorks (http://howstuffworks.com), by Jeff Tyson. HowStuffWorks Inc.,2002. â€Å"How LAN Switches Work.† HowStuffWorks (http://howstuffworks.com), bye Jeff Tyson. HowStuffWorks Inc.,2002. â€Å"How Network Address Translation Works.† HowStuffWorks (http://www.howstuffworks.com), by Jeff Tyson. HowStuffWorks, Inc., 2002. â€Å"How Routing Algorithms Work." HowStuffWorks (http://www.howstuffworks.com), by Roozbeh Razavi. HowStuffWorks, Inc., 2002. Norton, Michael J. â€Å"Layer 3 Switching -- Introducing the Router.† The O’Reilly Network. 13 Apr. 2001. http://www.oreillynet.com/lpt/a/770 Panko, Raymond R. â€Å"Business Data Networks and Telecommunication†. New Jersey: Pearson Education, 2003. Whipple, William L. â€Å"TCP/IP For Internet Administrators.† A Searchable Technical Reference Document. Western Logic Works: 1997 (http://www.pku.edu.cn/academic/research/computer-center/tc/html/TC0310.html)

A Different History- Analysis

A Different History By- Suajata Bhatt The poem ‘A Different History’ is set in India. In the first paragraph the poet describes how the world is developing at a fast pace and leaving behind culture, morals, value, spirituality etc. But India on the other hand has managed to sustain its tradition and modernity. â€Å"Great Pan is not dead; he simply emigrated to India Here, the gods roam freely Disguised as snakes or monkeys; every tree is sacred† Pan is the Greek god of nature. This reference to Greece and Pan could refer to two things.One of the possible interpretations is that- Rome, Greece and India are considered the hubs of spirituality and they have their own set of gods and goddesses. But over the years Greece has developed and consequently its people have lost faith in god. On the contrary, India continues to be highly spiritual and god fearing and the ‘Great Pan’ emigrating to India could connote how India continues to have faith and believe in god. Another explanation could be the love for nature and respect for the natural environment in India. Legend has it that Pan died due to the depletion of nature and animals in Greece.At the time this poem was written India was not a shade of what it is now and was known for its natural beauty and its peoples dependence and respect for nature. The next three lines seem to be mocking the Indian psyche of turning everything and everyone to god and creating a god for everything. The stereotypical Indian has a habit of using god’s name to get things done; associating every minute detail in his life to god and this is what I feel the poet is mocking. â€Å"And it is a sin to be rude to a book It is a sin to shove a book aside with your foot, sin to slam books down hard on a table, a sin to toss one carelessly across a room. † â€Å"You must learn how to turn the pages gently without disturbing Sarasvati, without offending the tree from whose wood the paper was made. â €  These lines describe the Indian culture, traditions and the values that are inculcated into kids at a young age. Sarasvati, who is considered the goddess of arts and knowledge, is, according to Hindu beliefs, resides in books. So books are respected (reference to mockery of Indian psyche) but in this case she is admiring this aspect of Indian culture.Books are considered an equivalent of god and touching god with your feet, slamming him et cetera is profanity. What the poet is trying to say in the first paragraph is that India is probably the only country in the world that have maintained its values, morals, culture and tradition and these have gone hand in hand with development. She also talks about the element of god being added to an array of things. Some of which, she thinks, are completely bizarre and others that she truly respects. â€Å"Which language has not been the oppressor’s tongue? Which language truly meant to murder someone? And how does it happen hat af ter the torture, after the soul has been cropped with a long scythe swooping out of the conqueror’s face- the unborn grandchildren grow to love that strange language. † I feel that the transition from the first paragraph to the second is not very good as the connection between the two themes is not evident. In my opinion the connection is that she is drawing a parallel between the pre- British India and the colonised India. She is using the English language as a representation of the colonised India and how it forgot or was made to forget its culture in the name of a ‘better future’ and ‘development’.Here, she refers to them as ‘oppressors’, ‘murderers’, but murderers of what? In my opinion murder in this context refers not just to taking lives but also the murder of spirits, souls and more relevantly cultures and customs. She seems to be blaming the British for the loss of the culture, customs, values, morals and in t his case language as well. She questions how despite all the damage done by the British we continue to speak the English language and have stopped speaking our mother tongue. This is the same language that was spoken by the people who destroyed out heritage and culture used .This is not only in reference to language but our love for anything ‘foreign’ and our disdain at our very own country and shame at our deep, brilliant and fascinating culture. But a poem is open to interpretation and the tone and the way it is said can change the meaning completely. While reading a poem it is important to analyse what background the poem has, the life of the poet how it is connected to her life. Sujata Bhatt, it was the first time I heard her name. She was born in Ahmedabad to a Gujarati family.She was brought up in Pune and then in 1968 at the age of twelve she shifted to the US. Currently she lives in Germany. Suajata Bhatt’s life is a complete contrast to the poem. In the poem she keeps talking about how we are forgetting our culture how we have been influenced by the ‘Conquerors’ et cetera. My first reaction to this was that she was a hypocrite. But then I realised that many times in life there are things that bother you, things that eat your insides but it is completely different and much harder to change or work against these things.I got to thinking that maybe Sujata Bhatt considers herself an example of the ‘unborn grandchildren’, maybe while writing this poem she had herself and her whole life in mind. Maybe she realised how she was losing contact with her motherland how she was losing the Indian in her. This poem could be a poem to reach out to the masses and try to make them understand the value of being in touch with your motherland and not commit the same mistake she had committed. This poem was written in the post colonial period.At a time when India was finding its bearings in the world. It was a time when India was still hung over from the British rule but at the same time it played the rebellious teen and tried to fight the natural course of things. When your country has been ruled by foreigners, colonisers for as many as three hundred years there are bound to be an influence on the country. The British ruled over many many generations of Indians and after a point of time the British way of living and approach in general started seeming normal to the Indians and they began to follow it.When the British left India in 1947 the youth were in an awkward predicament while they wanted to revive their culture and their lifestyle they continued to be westernised. Sujata Bhatt continuously emphasises the importance of a national identity not only in this poem but throughout. A national identity is what defines you globally. On the world map it is not the people who are visible it is the countries. Outside your territory your country plays a major part in your identity. The poet says that if you lo se your native habits, morals, values and culture your identity is depleted. * Arjun Nayar 9C

Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ’s Childhood Pal Chapter 21

Chapter 21 â€Å"You make a very attractive woman,† Rumi said from the comfort of his pit. â€Å"Did I tell you that my wife has passed on to her next incarnation and that I am alone?† â€Å"Yeah, you mentioned that.† He seemed to have given up on us getting his daughter back. â€Å"What happened to the rest of your family, anyway?† â€Å"They drowned.† â€Å"I'm sorry. In the Ganges?† â€Å"No, at home. It was the monsoon season. Little Vitra and I had gone to the market to buy some swill, and there was a sudden downpour. When we returned†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He shrugged. â€Å"I don't mean to sound insensitive, Rumi, but there is a chance that your loss could have been caused by – oh, I don't know – perhaps the fact that you LIVE IN A FUCKING PIT!† â€Å"That's not helping, Biff,† Joshua said. â€Å"You said you had a plan?† â€Å"Right. Rumi, am I correct in assuming that these pits, when someone is not living in them, are used for tanning hides?† â€Å"Yes, it is work that only Untouchables may do.† â€Å"That would account for the lovely smell. I assume you use urine in the tanning process, right?† â€Å"Yes, urine, mashed brains, and tea are the main ingredients.† â€Å"Show me the pit where the urine is condensed.† â€Å"The Rajneesh family is living there.† â€Å"That's okay, we'll bring them a present. Josh, do you have any lint in the bottom of your satchel?† â€Å"What are you up to?† â€Å"Alchemy,† I said. â€Å"The subtle manipulation of the elements. Watch and learn.† When it was not being used, the urine pit was the home of the Rajneesh family, and they were more than happy to give us loads of the white crystals that covered the floor of their home. There were six in the family, father, mother, an almost grown daughter, and three little ones. Another little son had been taken for sacrifice at the festival of Kali. Like Rumi, and all the other Untouchables, the Rajneesh family looked more like skeletons mummified in brown leather than people. The Untouchable men went about the pits naked or wearing only a loincloth, and even the women were dressed in tatters that barely covered them – nothing as nice as the stylish sari that I had purchased in the marketplace. Mr. Rajneesh commented that I was a very attractive woman and encouraged me to drop by after the next monsoon. Joshua pounded chunks of the crystallized mineral into a fine white powder while Rumi and I collected charcoal from under the heated dying pit (a firebox had been gouged out of the stone under the pit) which the Untouchables used to render the flowers from the indigo shrub into fabric dye. â€Å"I need brimstone, Rumi. Do you know what that is? A yellow stone that burns with a blue flame and gives off a smoke that smells like rotten eggs?† â€Å"Oh yes, they sell it in the market as some sort of medicine.† I handed the Untouchable a silver coin. Go buy as much of it as you can carry.† â€Å"Oh my, this will be more than enough money. May I buy some salt with what is left?† â€Å"Buy what you need with what's left over, just go.† Rumi skulked away and I went to help Joshua process the saltpeter. The concept of abundance was an abstract one to the Untouchables, except as it pertained to two categories, suffering and animal parts. If you wanted decent food, shelter, or clean water, you would be sorely disappointed among the Untouchables, but if you were in the market for beaks, bones, teeth, hides, sinew, hooves, hair, gallstones, fins, feathers, ears, antlers, eyeballs, bladders, lips, nostrils, poop chutes, or any other inedible part of virtually any creature that walked on, swam under, or flew over the subcontinent of India, then the Untouchables were likely to have what you wanted lying around, conveniently stored beneath a thick blanket of black flies. In order to fashion the equipment I needed for my plan, I had to think in terms of animal parts. Fine unless you need, say, a dozen short swords, bows and arrows, and chain mail for thirty soldiers and all you have to work with is a stack of nostrils and three mismatched poop chutes. It was a challenge, but I made do. As Jo shua moved among the Untouchables, surreptitiously healing their maladies, I barked out my orders. â€Å"I need eight sheep bladders – fairly dry – two handfuls of crocodile teeth, two pieces of rawhide as long as my arms and half again as wide. No, I don't care what kind of animal, just not too ripe, if you can manage it. I need hair from an elephant's tail. I need firewood, or dried dung if you must, eight oxtails, a basket of wool, and a bucket of rendered fat.† And a hundred scrawny Untouchables stood there, eyes as big as saucers, just staring at me while Joshua moved among them, healing their wounds, sicknesses, and insanities, without any of them suspecting what was happening. (We'd agreed that this was the wisest tack to take, as we didn't want a bunch of healthy Untouchables athletically bounding through Kalighat proclaiming that they had been cured of all ills by a strange foreigner, thus attracting attention to us and spoiling my plan. On the other hand, neither could we stand there and watch these people suffer, knowing that we – well, Joshua – had the power to help them.) He'd also taken to poking one of them in the arm with his finger anytime anyone said the word â€Å"Untouchable.† Later he told me that he just hated passing up the opportunity for palpable irony. I cringed when I saw Joshua touching the lepers among them, as if after all these years away from Israel a tiny Pharisee stood on my shoulder and sc reamed, â€Å"Unclean!† â€Å"Well?† I said after I'd finished my orders. â€Å"Do you want your children back or not?† â€Å"We don't have a bucket,† said one woman. â€Å"Or a basket,† said another. â€Å"Okay, fill some of the sheep bladders with rendered fat, and bundle the wool in some kind of hide. Now go, we don't have a lot of time.† And they all stood and looked at me. Big eyes. Sores healed. Parasites purged. They just looked at me. â€Å"Look, I know my Sanskrit isn't great, but you do know what I am asking?† A young man stepped forward. â€Å"We do not want to anger Kali by depriving her of her sacrifices.† â€Å"You're kidding, right?† â€Å"Kali is the bringer of destruction, without which there can be no rebirth. She is the remover of the bondage that ties us to the material world. If we anger her, she will deprive us of her divine destruction.† I looked at Joshua across the crowd. â€Å"Do you understand this?† â€Å"Fear?† he said. â€Å"Can you help?† I asked in Aramaic. â€Å"I'm not good at fear,† Joshua said in Hebrew. I thought for a second as two hundred eyes pinned me to the sandstone on which I stood. I remembered the red-stained gashes on the wooden elephant statues at the altar of Kali. Death was their deliverance, was it? â€Å"What is your name?† I asked the man who had stepped out of the crowd. â€Å"Nagesh,† he said. â€Å"Stick out your tongue, Nagesh.† He did, and I threw back the cloth that covered my head and loosened it around my neck. Then I touched his tongue. â€Å"Destruction is a gift you value?† â€Å"Yes,† said Nagesh. â€Å"Then I shall be the instrument of the goddess's gift.† With that I pulled the black glass dagger from the sheath in my sash, held it up before the crowd. While Nagesh stood, passive, wide-eyed, I drove my thumb under his jaw, pushed his head back, and brought the dagger down across his throat. I lowered him to the ground as the red liquid spurted over the sandstone. I stood and faced the crowd again, holding the dripping blade over my head. â€Å"You owe me, you ungrateful fucks! I have brought to your people the gift of Kali, now bring me what I ask for.† They moved really quickly for people who were on the edge of starvation. After the Untouchables scattered to do my bidding, Joshua and I stood over the bloodstained body of Nagesh. â€Å"That was fantastic,† Joshua said. â€Å"Absolutely perfect.† â€Å"Thanks.† â€Å"Had you been practicing all that time we were in the monastery?† â€Å"You didn't see me push the pressure point in his neck then?† â€Å"No, not at all.† â€Å"Gaspar's kung fu training. The rest, of course, was from Joy and Balthasar.† I bent over and opened Nagesh's mouth, then took the ying-yang vial from around my neck and put a drop of the antidote on the Untouchable's tongue. â€Å"So he can hear us now, like when Joy poisoned you?† Joshua asked. I pulled back one of Nagesh's eyelids and watched the pupil contract slowly in the sunlight. â€Å"No, I think he's still unconscious from me holding the pressure point. I didn't think the poison would work quickly enough. I could only get a drop of poison on my finger when I loosened my sari. I knew it would keep him down, I just wasn't sure it would put him down.† â€Å"Well, you are truly a magus, now, Biff. I'm impressed.† â€Å"Joshua, you healed a hundred people today. Half of them were probably dying. I did some sleight of hand.† My friend's enthusiasm was undeterred. â€Å"What's the red stuff, pomegranate juice? I can't figure out where you concealed it.† â€Å"No, actually I was going to ask you about that.† â€Å"What?† I held my arm up and showed Joshua where I had slashed my own wrist (the source of blood for the show). I had been holding it against my leg and as soon as I removed the pressure the blood started spurting again. I sat down hard on the sandstone and my vision began to tunnel down to a pinpoint. â€Å"I was hoping you could help me out with this,† I said before I fainted. â€Å"You need to work on that part of the trick,† Joshua said when I came to. â€Å"I might not always be around to fix your wrist.† He was speaking Hebrew – that meant for my ears only. I saw Joshua kneeling above me, then beyond him the sky was blotted out by curious brown faces. The recently murdered Nagesh was in the front of the crowd. â€Å"Hey, Nagesh, how'd the rebirth go?† I asked in Sanskrit. â€Å"I must have strayed from my dharma in my last life,† Nagesh said. â€Å"I have been reincarnated, once again, as an Untouchable. And I have the same ugly wife.† â€Å"You challenged master Levi who is called Biff,† I said, â€Å"of course you didn't move up. You're lucky you're not a stink bug or something. See, destruction isn't the big favor you all thought it was.† â€Å"We brought the things you asked for.† I hopped to my feet feeling incredibly rested and energized. â€Å"Nice,† I said to Joshua. â€Å"I feel like I just had one of those strong coffees you used to make at Balthasar's.† â€Å"I miss coffee,† said Josh. I looked at Nagesh, â€Å"I don't suppose you†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"We have swill.† â€Å"Never mind,† I said. Then I said one of those things that as a boy growing up in Galilee, you never think you'll hear yourself say: â€Å"Okay, Untouchables, bring me the sheep bladders!† Rumi said that the goddess Kali was served by a host of black-skinned female demons, who sometimes during the feast would bring men to corners of the altar and copulate with them as blood rained down from the goddess's saw-tooth maw above. â€Å"Okay, Josh, you're one of them,† I said. â€Å"What are you gonna be?† â€Å"The goddess Kali, of course. You got to be God last time.† â€Å"What last time?† â€Å"All of the last times.† I turned to my intrepid minions. â€Å"Untouchables, paint him up!† â€Å"They're not going to buy that a burr-headed Jewish kid is their goddess of destruction.† â€Å"O ye of little faith,† I said. Three hours later we were again crouched beneath a tree near the temple of Kali. We were both dressed as women, covered from head to toe by our saris, but I was looking much lumpier under mine due to Kali's extra arms and garland of severed heads, played tonight by painted sheep bladders filled with explosives and suspended around my neck by long strands of elephant tail hair. Any observers who might get close enough to notice my protrusions were quickly deterred by the smell coming off of Joshua and me. We had used the goo from the bottom of Rumi's pit to paint our bodies black. I didn't have the courage to ask what the substance had been in life, but if there was a place where they allowed vultures to ripen in the sun before pounding them into a smooth paste and mixing it with just the right amount of buffalo squat, then Rumi called it home. The Untouchables had also painted huge red rings around Joshua's eyes, fitted him with a ropey wig of oxtails, and affixed to his torso six pe rt little breasts fashioned from pitch. â€Å"Stay away from any open flame. Your tits will go up like volcanos.† â€Å"Why did I have to have six and you only had to have two.† â€Å"Because I am the goddess and have to wear the garland of skulls and the extra arms.† We'd made my arms from rawhide, using my primary arms as models, then drying the molded arms in place over the fire. The women made a harness that held the extra arms in place under my own, then we painted the arms black with the same black goo. They were a little wobbly, but they were light and would look realistic enough in the dark. It was still hours from the height of the ceremony at midnight, when the children would be hacked to death, but we wanted to be there in time to stop the revelers from cutting off the children's fingers if we could. Now, the wooden elephants were empty on their turntables, but the altar of Kali was already filling with gruesome tribute. The heads of a thousand goats had been laid on the altar before the goddess, and the blood ran slick over the stones and in the grooves that channeled it into large brass pots at the corners of the altar. Female acolytes carried the pots up a narrow ladder at the back of the great statue of Kali, then dumped them through some sort of reservoir that fed it through the goddess's jaws. Below, by torchlight, worshipers danced in the sticky shower as the blood flowed down upon them. â€Å"Look, those women are dressed like me,† Joshua said. â€Å"Except they only have two breasts each.† â€Å"Technically, they're not dressed, they're painted. You make a very attractive female demon, Josh. Did I tell you that?† â€Å"This isn't going to work.† â€Å"Of course it's going to work.† I guessed that there were already ten thousand worshipers in the temple square, dancing, chanting, and beating drums. A procession of thirty men came down the main boulevard, each carrying a basket under his arm. As they reached the altar, each man dumped the contents of the basket over the rows of bloody goat heads. â€Å"What are those?† Joshua asked. â€Å"Those are exactly what you think they are.† â€Å"They're not the heads of the children?† â€Å"No, I think those are the heads of strangers who happened down the road we were on before Rumi came along to pull us into the grass.† After the severed heads were dispersed across the altar, the female acolytes came out of the crowd dragging the headless corpse of a man, which they laid on the steps leading to the altar. Each one mimed having intercourse with the corpse, then rubbed their genitalia against the bloody stump of its neck before dancing away, blood and ochre dripping down the insides of their thighs. â€Å"There's sort of a theme developing here,† I said. â€Å"I think I'm going to be sick,† Joshua said. â€Å"Mindful breath,† I said, using one of the phrases that Gaspar was always barking at us when we were learning meditation. I knew that if Joshua could stay with the yeti for days at a time without freezing to death, he could certainly conjure up the bodily control to keep from throwing up. The sheer magnitude of the carnage was all that was keeping me from vomiting. It was as if the atrocity of the whole scene couldn't fit in my mind all at once, so I could only see just enough for my sanity and my stomach to remain intact. A shout went up in the crowd now and I could see a torch-lit sedan chair being carried above the heads of the worshipers. On it reclined a half-naked man with a tiger skin wrapped around his hips, his skin painted light gray with ashes. His hair was plaited with grease and he wore the bones of a human hand as a skullcap. Around his neck hung a necklace of human skulls. â€Å"High priest,† I said. â€Å"They aren't even going to notice you, Biff. How can you even get their attention after they've seen all this?† â€Å"They haven't seen what I'm going to show them.† As the sedan chair emerged from the crowd in front of the altar, we could see a procession following it: tied to the back of the sedan chair was a line of naked children, most of them not more than five or six, their hands tied together, a less ornately dressed priest on either side of them to steady them. The priests began to untie the children and take them to the great wooden elephants lining the boulevard. Here and there in the crowd I could see people beginning to brandish edged weapons: short swords, axes, and the long-bladed spears Joshua and I had seen over the elephant grass. The high priest was sitting on the headless corpse, shouting a poem about the divine release of Kali's destruction or something. â€Å"Here we go,† I said, pulling the black glass dagger from under my sari. â€Å"Take this.† Joshua looked at the blade shimmering in the torchlight. â€Å"I won't kill anyone,† he said. Tears were streaming down his cheeks, drawing long red lines through the black and if anything making him look more fierce. â€Å"That's fine, but you'll need to cut them loose.† â€Å"Right.† He took the knife from me. â€Å"Josh, you know what's coming. You've seen it before. Nobody else here has, especially those kids. You can't carry all of them, so they have to have enough of their wits about them to follow you. I know you can keep them from being afraid. Put your teeth in.† Joshua nodded and slipped the row of crocodile teeth attached to a piece of rawhide under his upper lip, leaving the teeth to protrude like fangs. I put in my own false fangs, then ran into the dark to circle the crowd. As I approached the rear of the altar I pulled the special torch I'd made from under my girdle of human hands. (Actually my girdle of human hands was made of dried goat's udders stuffed with straw, but the Untouchable women had done a pretty good job as long as no one bothered to count fingers.) Through Kali's stone legs I could see the priests tying each of the children on the trunk of a wooden elephant. As soon as the bonds were tight, each priest drew a bronze blade and held it aloft, ready to strike off a finger as soon as the high priest gave the signal. I struck the tip of my torch on the edge of the altar, screamed for all I was worth, then threw my sari off and ran up the steps as the torch burst into dazzling blue flame that trailed sparks behind me as I ran. I hopped across the array of goat heads and stood between the legs of the statue of Kali, my torch held aloft in one hand, one of my severed heads swinging by the hair in the other. â€Å"I am Kali,† I screamed. â€Å"Fear me!† It came out sort of mumbled through my fake teeth. Some of the drums stopped and the high priest turned around and looked at me, more because of the bright light of the torch than my fierce proclamation. â€Å"I am Kali,† I shouted again. â€Å"Goddess of destruction and all this disgusting crap you have here!† They weren't getting it. The priest signaled for the other priests to come around me from the sides. Some of the female acolytes were already trying to make their way across the dance floor of decapitations toward me. â€Å"I mean it. Bow down to me!† The priests charged on. I did have the crowd's attention, though unfortunately they weren't cowering in fear at my angry goddessness. I could see Joshua moving around the wooden elephants, the guarding priests having left their posts to come after me. â€Å"Really! I mean it!† Maybe it was the teeth. I spit them out toward the nearest of my attackers. Running across a sea of slick, bloody heads is evidently a pretty difficult task. Not if you've spent the last six years of your life hopping from the top of one post to another, even in ice and snow, but for the run-of-the-mill homicidal priest, it's a tough row to hoe. The priests and acolytes were slipping and sliding among the goat and human heads, falling over each other, smacking into the feet of the statue, one even impaling himself on a goat's horn when he fell. One of the priests was only a few feet away from me now, trying not to fall on his own blade as he crawled over the mess. â€Å"I will bring destruction†¦oh, fuck it,† I said. I lit the fuse on the severed head I held in my hand, then swung it between my legs and tossed it in a steep arch over my head. It trailed sparks on its way into the black goddess's open maw, then disappeared. I kicked the approaching priest in the jaw, then danced across the goat heads, leapt over the head of the high priest, and was halfway to Joshua at the first wooden elephant when Kali, with a deafening report, breathed fire out over the crowd and the top of her head blew off. Finally, I had the crowd's attention. They were trampling each other to get away, but I had their attention. I stood in the middle of the boulevard, swinging my second severed head in a circle, waiting for the fuse to burn down before I let it sail over the heads of the receding crowd. It exploded in the air, sending a circle of flame across the sky and no doubt deafening some of the worshipers who were close. Joshua had seven of the children around him, clinging to his legs as he moved to the next elephant. Several of the priests had recovered and were storming down the steps of the altar toward me, knives in hand. I pulled another head from my garland, lit the fuse, and held it out to them. â€Å"Ah, ah, ah,† I cautioned. â€Å"Kali. Goddess of destruction. Wrath et cetera.† At the sight of the sparking fuse they stopped and began to backpedal. â€Å"Now that's the sort of respect you should have shown before.† I started whirling the head by the hair and the priests lost all semblance of courage and turned and ran. I hurled the head back up the boulevard onto the altar, where it exploded, sending a spray of real severed goat heads in all directions. â€Å"Josh! Duck! Goat heads!† Joshua pushed the children to the ground and fell over them until the pieces settled. He glared at me a second, then went on to free the other children. I hurled three more heads into different directions and now the entire temple square was nearly deserted but for Joshua, the children, a few injured worshipers, and the dead. I had built the bombs without any shrapnel in them, so those who had been injured had been trampled in the panic and the dead were those who had already been sacrificed to Kali. I think we pulled it off without killing anyone. As Joshua led the children down the wide boulevard and out of the temple square, I covered our exit, backing down the boulevard, my last explosive head swinging in one hand, my torch in the other. Once I saw that Joshua and the children were safely away, I lit the fuse, whirled the head around and let it fly toward the black goddess. â€Å"Bitch,† I said. I was out of sight when it exploded. Joshua and I got as far as a limestone cliff overlooking the Ganges before we had to stop to let the children rest. They were tired and hungry, but mostly they were hungry, and we had brought nothing for them to eat. At least, after Joshua's touch, they weren't afraid, and that gave them some peace. Josh and I were too jangled to sleep, so we sat up as the children lay down on the rocks around us and snored like kittens. Joshua held Rumi's little daughter, Vitra, and before long her face was smeared with black paint from nuzzling his shoulder. All through the night, as he rocked the child, all I heard Joshua say was, â€Å"No more blood. No more blood.† At first light we could see thousands, no, tens of thousands of people gathering at the banks of the river, all dressed in white, except for a few old men who were naked. They moved into the water and stood facing east, heads raised in anticipation, dotting the river as far as the eye could see. As the sun became a molten fingernail of light on the horizon, the muddy surface of the river turned golden. The gold light reflected off its surface onto the buildings, the shanties, the trees, the palaces, making everything in sight, including the worshipers, appear to have been gilded. And worshipers they were, for we could hear their songs from where we sat, and although we could not discern the words, we could hear that these were the songs of God. â€Å"Are those the same people from last night?† I said. â€Å"They would have to be, wouldn't they?† â€Å"I don't understand these people. I don't understand their religion. I don't understand how they think.† Joshua stood and watched the Indians bowing and singing to the dawn, looking occasionally to the face of the child that slept on his shoulder. â€Å"This is testament to the glory of God's creation, whether these people know it or not.† â€Å"How can you say that? The sacrifices to Kali, the way the Untouchables are treated. Whatever they might believe, in practice their religion is hideous.† â€Å"You're right. It's not right to condemn this child because she was not born a Brahman?† â€Å"Of course not.† â€Å"Then is it right to condemn her because she is not born a Jew?† â€Å"What do you mean?† â€Å"A man who is born a gentile may not see the kingdom of God. Are we, as Hebrews, any different from them? The lambs at the temple on Passover? The wealth and power of the Sadducees while others go hungry? At least the Untouchables can reach their reward eventually, through karma and rebirth. We don't allow any gentile to do so.† â€Å"You can't compare what they do to God's law. We don't sacrifice human beings. We feed our poor, we take care of the sick.† â€Å"Unless the sick are unclean,† Joshua said. â€Å"But, Josh, we're the chosen. It's God's will.† â€Å"But is it right? He won't tell me what to do. So I'll say. And I say, no more.† â€Å"You're not just talking about eating bacon, are you?† â€Å"Gautama the Buddha gave the way to people of all births to find the hand of God. With no blood sacrifice. Our doors have been marked with blood for too long, Biff.† â€Å"So that's what you think you're going to do? Bring God to everyone?† â€Å"Yes. After a nap.† â€Å"Of course, I meant after a nap.† Joshua held the little girl so I could see her face as she slept on his shoulder. When the children awoke we led them back to their families at the pits, handing them into the arms of their mothers, who snatched each child away from us as if we were devils incarnate; they glared over their shoulders as they carried the babies back to their pits. â€Å"Grateful bunch,† I said. â€Å"They are afraid that we've angered Kali. And we've brought them another hungry mouth.† â€Å"Still. Why did they help us if they didn't want their children back?† â€Å"Because we told them what to do. That's what they do. What they are told. That's how the Brahmans keep them in line. If they do what they are told, then perhaps they will not be Untouchables next life.† â€Å"That's depressing.† Joshua nodded. We only had little Vitra to return to her father now, and I was sure that Rumi would be happy to see his daughter. His distress over losing her had basically been the reason he had saved our lives. As we came over the sandstone rise we could see that Rumi was not alone in his pit. Rumi stood on his sitting rock, stark naked, sprinkling salt on his erect member as a large humpbacked cow, which nearly filled the rest of the pit, licked at the salt. Joshua held Vitra so she faced away from the pit, then backed away, as if he didn't want to disturb the moment of beefy intimacy. â€Å"A cow, Rumi?† I exclaimed. â€Å"I thought you people had beliefs.† â€Å"That's not a cow, that's a bull,† Joshua said. â€Å"Oh, that's got to be your super-bonus abomination there. Where we come from whole cities get destroyed for that kind of thing, Rumi.† I reached over and put my hand over Vitra's eyes. â€Å"Stay away from Daddy, honey, or you'll turn into a pillar of salt.† â€Å"But this is my wife, reincarnated.† â€Å"Oh, don't try that one on me, Rumi. For six years I lived in a Buddhist monastery where the only female company was a wild yak. I know from desperate.† Joshua grabbed my arm. â€Å"You didn't?† â€Å"Relax, I'm just making a point. You're the Messiah here, Josh. What do you think?† â€Å"I think we need to go to Tamil and find the third magus.† He set Vitra down and Rumi quickly pulled up his loincloth as the child ran to him. â€Å"Go with God, Rumi,† Joshua said. â€Å"May Shiva watch over you, you heretics. Thank you for returning my daughter.† Joshua and I gathered up our clothes and satchels, then bought some rice in the market and set out for Tamil. We followed the Ganges south until we came to the sea, where Joshua and I washed the gore of Kali from our bodies. We sat on the beach, letting the sun dry our skin as we picked pitch out of our chest hairs. â€Å"You know, Josh,† I said, as I fought a particularly stubborn gob of tar that had stuck in my armpit, â€Å"when you were leading those kids out of the temple square, and they were so little and weak, but none of them seemed afraid†¦well, it was sort of heartwarming.† â€Å"Yep, I love all the little children of the world, you know?† â€Å"Really?† He nodded. â€Å"Green and yellow, black and white.† â€Å"Good to know – Wait, green?† â€Å"No, not green. I was just fuckin' with you.†