Threats Posed to the European Union by Al-Qaeda Militia Operating from Research Proposal

Threats Posed to the European Union by Al-Qaeda Militia Operating from Northern Africa - Research Proposal Example Research Methods. b. Advanced Arabic and French. c. Six years of legal research skills as a lawyer. d. Islamology. e. History of the Middle and North Africa. 2.2 The Discipline to Which the Project Relates This reserch project relates to the discipline of history and political science; in fact, this discipline has a significant relation rediscovering the past and retelling history. There are numerous works that have been developed in the discipline of historical reflection. Furthermore, political sceince is self-understanding on issues regaridng interlationships between countries and activities by a group within a country that has effect on other countries. 3. RESEARCH PROJECT 3.1 Description of Research Topic This project focuses on exploring issues regarding terrorism operations; in fact, there are theories, which are developed by this study, which are focused on fostering understanding of terrorism studies. On the other hand, this study borrows ideas from other related fields and theoretical ideas in relation to terrorism activities or various groups such as Al-Qaeda militia. This study features a litrature which focuses on a given perspective is is applied on the basis of a theory focused on studying terrorism. This study will focus on studying drawing relevant ideas in the field of Jihadist terrorism, which will be based on religious background of Islam. Therefore through this ideas, the reseach will focus on achieveing the following objectives; a. Objectives i. Explore the problem caused by Al-Qaeda militia terrorism operations and challenges that are posed to European coutries. ii. Present a discussion concerning these problems based on the thories such as anarchism and ‘jihad.’ iii. The research will focus on identifying other possible reasons that can be associated to Al-Qaeda militia terrorism against European coutries. iv. Establish relevant counter terrorism operations and strategies to facilitate protection of citizens living in these European countries. In order to achieve the first objective, the reserch will focus on drawing relevant ideas from the two theories and perspectives that have been gathered in political science class. In this case, the first dimession will involve application of anarchism theory, which was advance by Karl Heinzen and Johann Most, who are the main proponents. The research will apply the Jihad perspective to explore issues regarding terrorism; in fact, this theory is atributed to Muslim extremists. The second objective will be achieved by beginning to focus on anarchism theory, based on the way it is presented through a broad range of issues that offer a definiton and differentiaton of various forms of the theory. For instance, the these forms of anarchism include individual anarchism, mutual anarchism and collective anarchism (Berkman 35). On the other hand, the research will explore the theory of Jihad, which concerns a term that is used on Islam to describe â€Å"the holy war or f ighting in the ways of Allah† (Rawshandil and Chadha 13). Therefore, this research will also seek to identify ways through which these terrorists have utilized the theory of anarchism and Jihad to cite reasons for their attacks. The research will focus on idenitfying other reasons cited by Al-Qaeda militia tojustify their operations in Northern Africa aimed at attaking European countries. For instance, there are notion that Christians are perceived to have a negative perception against Islamic

Graphic Design as Main Communication Medium Essay Example for Free

Graphic Design as Main Communication Medium Essay As multimedia advances to higher stages of development, the significance of graphic design continues to increase. Graphic design was once considers a visual form of art. Over time, it has come to be recognized as form of communication. Art and communication reflect and serve culture. Culture represents the political and economic structure of the society. Therefore graphic design reflects and promotes political and economic systems. This paper attempt to show that graphic design, layout design of the poster and artistic craftsmanship of typography are the main communication media that have served different cultures during different historical eras. Graphic design can be defined from many perspectives. For a layman, graphic design may simply refer to the production of printed, online, and manufactured materials that are visually appealing. Graphic design is reproduced in either large numbers or in gigantic media such as billboards so that it can get the attention of many people. Being a visual instrument of communication, it usually employs an effective combination of graphics and text in order to convey a message. Graphic design is prevalent in both the capitalists and socialist economies. The capitalist use it mainly to sell goods and services while the socialists use it to sell ideas to motivate people to agree with government policies and work for a socialist economy. Whatever the case , the of aim graphic design is to motivate people to act; the information it relays is meant to move people and not just to satisfy the usual thirst for knowledge. Some people include paintings as graphic design but Barnard in the book, Graphic Design as Communication, denies that this is incorrect. Classical paintings merely tell a story. They are being viewed only in the confines of private homes or museums. They are definitely not for popular consumption. Newark, in the book, The Gutenberg Galaxy, states that the coins found in Apollonia, Greece, which was estimated sometime in 450 BC may be considered the earliest products of graphic design. Because it was a form of currency, it was produced in large numbers. It has a prototypical logo and it was made with the use of a metal die, a technological wonder at that time. Jobling Crowley define graphic design in relation to social structures and the historical context in which such structure exists. Graphic design is shaped by certain society’s beliefs and morals. Jobling Crowley identify three factors that graphic design constitutes the following: It is produced in large numbers; It should be cheap and graphic design conveys ideas through a combination of words and images. However, Jobling Crowley argue that not all products of graphic deign are cheap. In fact, some of them are symbolic of wealth and luxury. Newark defines graphic design by focusing on its functions. Graphic design functions as a means of communication. Once the design is able to attract the attention of people, it must be able to explain its message with the minimum use of words, if any. Brand logos explain not only the product but also the quality it possesses. A graphic design becomes the identity of its subject. People begin to relate certain symbols to what they represent. For example, the elephant symbol becomes the Republican Party. These act on people’s emotions and become factors in determining how they feel the market. Knoblauch points out that communication shapes culture. Culture develops by communication and acceptable interaction by the society. In this regard, since graphic design is a medium of communication, it serves culture as well. It passes through many historical eras and different cultures. This is contrary to the common belief that it is just a product of the modern computer technology. Technology is a continuous process and so is its evolution. History has shown that human beings had begun communicating through visuals before oral communication grew. McLuhan notes that Gutenberg press is an important stage in the evolution of graphic design. Invented around 1440 by Johannes Gutenberg, it made possible the mass production of literary material. Bibles were the first material to be produced. Gutenberg used a special character symbols which he developed himself to represent words and common Latin phrases. Gutenberg’s visually attractive typography and lay-out made the Bible more appealing to people, a fact that served well the cultural interests of the Holy Roman Empire . 1700s and 1800s saw further development of graphic design. This was the time that capitalism was developing at a rapid pace. Publishers were in great competition with each other.. Therefore, graphic design was highly improved. At this point came there arose contradictions between publishers and authors. Publishers used graphic design especially on the covers to make it more attractive. The authors feared that this might change the context of the book. This shows that graphic design can either enhance or destroys the context of the ext. Barchas, J. warns us not to make judgment by looking at the cover of a book since graphic design may convey anther meaning. Graphic design is developing further. The advancement of computer and information technology has made it possible for graphic arts to be blended with other media Graphic design has been used tin advertisement. Eisend advises that the advertisers have to create graphic design that effectively sells a product. The graphic design must also be able to convince the consumer to buy only the brand that it promotes. Lindstrom notes that many companies are gradually transforming the traditional billboards into audio-visual displays, which appeal to more senses other than just sight. In conclusion, graphic design can either be a factor to encourage the survival of a social system or it can destroy it to introduce a new one. Reference The given research paper

Philosophy Statement :: Education Teaching Teachers Classroom Essays

Philosophy Statement â€Å"Give a child a fish and he eats for a day. Teach him to fish and he eats for a lifetime.† ~Author Unknown Teaching is not a profession but a life choice to change the world one child at a time. In a classroom there are four walls and within those four walls lies the opportunity to build strong foundations for tomorrow. I believe there are three aspects to teaching; touching the mind (mental), the heart (emotional), and the hands (physical). If you take a young child to the lake, a river, or even a stream and teach him to fish he learns techniques mentally, feels loved and wanted emotionally, and learns that he is growing physically. The same can be said for a classroom. Instruct a child’s mind, love a child’s heart, and hold a child’s hand and success is instantly recognizable. The three walk hand in hand toward a child’s overall development. The mind must be stimulated to learn. Children learn what they see, not what they are told. Although my objective is to teach on a high school level, I believe that the same is true with teens. Parents declare, â€Å"Do as I say not as I do,† but children replicate what they are exposed to on a daily basis. If a teacher is not excited about what she is teaching neither will the student be excited about what he/she is learning. Moods are contagious, make the atmosphere outrageous! It is my desire that students see my enthusiasm when teaching my content area and that excitement ignites a fire of passion for learning within the individual student and the classroom as a whole. Young people today have a strong desire to feel wanted. They want to fit in, they want to look cool, they want to be loved and fall in love, they simply want acceptance. It is my job as a mentor to nurture those basic needs of emotional development at the adolescent age. I vow never to ridicule a student for a wrong answer, never chastise a pupil in front of peers, and never embarrass a child for the sake of demonstrating my authority. Students need to have a sense of belonging and purpose within the classroom and the world outside, nurturing their heart and emotions is critical during these years.

What Impressions of the Characters Relationship Are Conveyed by the Language They Use, and the Interaction Between Them

What impressions of the characters relationship are conveyed by the language they use, and the interaction between them? In this text, the opening scene of Ibsen’s Dolls House, the conversation between Helmer and Nora shows who acts as a more authoritative figure through imperatives, patronising lexis and explanative language. This is to show the relationship between the married couple regarding terms of how they address each other. I will also consider gender theories such as Debora Tennen’s gender theory of politeness and Zimmerman and West’s suggesting men are more dominating in conversation.The purpose of the text, A Dolls House, is to reveal information about the relationship between Nora and Helmer through the interactions of their conversation and their lexis. Nora speaks in a polite manor, ‘just this minute’ which could be interpreted through Trudgill’s gender theory suggesting women use precise pronunciation to aim to be viewed at a h igher class. The adjective, ‘just’ could imply Nora will act quickly in order to respond to her husband because he has a higher status and power over herself.However, her husbands language is very different, ‘been wasting money again? ’ this rhetorical question implies a threatening and dominant tone. This could be interpreted by kZimmerman and West’s gender theory which suggests men act more dominant in conversation in order to gain and keep power. The terms of address the couple use change in relation to the conversation topic. Nora addresses her husband by his second name, ‘As you please, Torvald’ which could imply their relationship is formal and she has little authority as he holds all the power.This could be interpreted by Debora Tennen who states that women use terms of address and politeness to form bonds. However, Helmer addresses Nora in two different approaches; whilst they are having a general conversation Nora is referred to as his possession, ‘My little skylark’ the adjective ‘little’ implying she is belittled as she has no authority. Also, the use of the pronoun, ‘my’ implies Nora belongs to Helmer and she has control over her hence the metaphor for her name.However, when Nora ‘misbehaves’ she is addressed with her name, ‘Nora, Nora! Just like a woman! ’ his use of explanative language portrays his loss of patience with her but also he is telling her off like Nora is a child in a patronising manor. The repetition of ‘Nora’ implies she has done wrong and he dismisses her to get her to behave like a father would to a child. This could be interpreted by Grice’s maxims of quantity as he speaks more than Nora implying he has a higher level of authority and power.

Corporation Tech Essay

Corporation Tech will face many security risks with their current network. The user domain is the single most vulnerable part of any network and as such poses the most obvious security risk. To mitigate risks involving the users is to implement policies and training to educate the user on proper use and security best practices. By educating the user on security practices such as secure passwords, safe web surfing, and securing their workstations, many potential attacks can be avoided. Policies and training are also necessary because they can be used as evidence when taking administrative action against a user or intruder in the event the system or data information is compromised. Laptops and workstations have their own set of security risks associated with them. They are vulnerable to being compromised by malware, spyware, or even hackers that take advantage of certain exploits. Laptops, workstations and mobile devices are susceptible to malicious software attacks, theft or loss. Viruses and malware can affect these devices and are usually acquired through contaminated email attachments and hyperlinks that redirect the user to exploited web sites or are transferred through USB storage devices. Viruses and malware can also be acquired by downloading infected files or programs that are designed by hackers. Because of the need to protect systems against threats, all workstations and laptops should be secured with antivirus and firewall software and updated and patched on a regular basis to fix vulnerabilities with the software that hackers may exploit. Since the laptops are mobile by nature they are at risk of being stolen along with all of the data saved on their hard drives. The best security method for this would be to encrypt the hard drives on the laptops and where feasible only store sensitive data on corporate servers and allow authorized user  remote access to the data via SSHVPN sessions. Physical security or lack thereof also poses a huge risk; if an attacker has physical access to your equipment they do not actually need your log in credentials to access data. Attackers could boot your systems up on a live CD and compromise your information without leaving any trace in the logs other than a restart. Even if an attacker has a narrow window for physical access to your systems, they can steal the hardware and gain access to the data from it at their convenience. Secure all removable equipment is locked storage locations with security controls such as cameras and biometric access devices. Distributed Denial of Service (DDOS) attacks are a major concern when it comes to the company’s servers; this is done when a botnet sends an overwhelming amount of requests to the servers until they shut down. The best method to deal with this is to install security hardware or software that can detect these kinds of attacks as they are beginning to take place and filter that traffic out. The hardware is often very effective but also can be very expensive which can be a whole different issue but if you have the funding available I would recommend purchasing the hardware. SQL injections are one of the most common attacks on web based applications, these attacks occur when an attacker inserts a SQL statement that is not authorized through a SQL data channel such as the login screen. This best way to mitigate this risk is to implement string checking for special SQL characters or install software to check the web application for injection vulnerabilities. The software may cost a little money but it will help to prevent unauthorized access to information in your database.

Alive essays

Alive essays Alive, by Piers Paul Read, is the story of how a Uruguayan rugby team and their friends who survived for ten weeks in the Andes after their chartered plane to Chile crashed. The plane took off on October 12, 1972, from Montevideo for Santiago. Reports of bad weather in the Andes brought the plane down in Mendoza, a small Argentinean town close to the Andes. The boys were disappointed; however, the next day the weather cleared so the plane took off for the Planchon Pass to the south. The flight was routine and the atmosphere relaxed until the pilot turned toward the north to Santiago, Chile. Soon after, the plane hit an air pocket and plunged several hundred feet. There was nervous joking in the cabin until the plane hit a second air pocket that brought it out of the clouds. The real panic hit when the view out the windows was not the lush green valleys of Chile but of a rocky mountain ten feet from the wing. The wing hit the mountain, broke off, and flipped over the body of t he plane, cutting off the tail. The plane then plummeted to the ground. However, instead of smashing into the rocks, it landed on its belly and slid down the valley like a toboggan. Although thirty-two out of the original forty-five passengers survived the crash, only twenty-seven survived the night. Soon the survivors became weak because they only received one square of chocolate and a capful of wine a day. Finally, on the tenth day, the religious debate over whether or not to eat the dead bodies was finally discussed. Though everyone decided that it was the right and only thing to do, several could not get past the physical repulsion. Once it became apparent that there would be no rescue, the few who had previously refused now took their first pieces. After they had regained their strength, three boys set out to find the tail for extra supplies. The climb was strenuous, and they hadnt prepared their gear sufficiently. Consequently, they...

Download the Golden Book of Chemistry Experiments

Download the Golden Book of Chemistry Experiments The Golden Book of Chemistry Experiments, written by Robert Brent and illustrated by Harry Lazarus, is a 1960s childrens book that tells kids how they can set up a home chemistry lab to conduct simple chemistry experiments. The first edition of the book was printed in 1962. A second printing was released in 1962 and a revised edition was printed in 1963. Supposedly the US government had the book removed from libraries and banned for sale on the grounds that the projects were too dangerous for kids. According to the Online Computer Library Center (OCLC), only 126 copies of the book are available in libraries. The Golden Book of Chemistry Experiments remains one of the best do-it-yourself chemistry experiment books around. This book is now available to the public. You can download the pdf of The Golden Book of Chemistry Experiments to save on your computer, print, or distribute. Find Home Experiments

How to Study History Terms for a Test

How to Study History Terms for a Test When you study terms and definitions for a history exam, the best way to make the information stick is to understand your terms in context or understand how each new vocabulary word relates to other new words and facts. In high school, your teachers will cover what happened in history. As you move on to college history courses, you will be expected to know why an event happened and the reasons each event is important. This is why history tests contain so many essays or long-answer questions. You have a lot of explaining to do! Gather History Terms Sometimes a teacher will give students a study guide that contains a list of possible terms for the test. More often than not, the list will be long and intimidating. Some of the words may seem brand new to you! If the teacher doesnt provide a list, you should come up with one yourself. Go through your notes and the chapters to come up with a comprehensive list. Dont be overwhelmed by a long list of terms. Youll see that they quickly become familiar once you start to review your notes. The list will seem shorter and shorter as you study. First, youll need to locate the terms in your class notes. Underline them or circle them, but dont use a colored highlighter just yet. Review your notes and see which terms appeared on the same day or lecture. Establish relationships between the terms. How are they connected?Pretend that you are writing a news report on the event or topic  and write a paragraph that contains three or four of those terms. Your paragraph should contain a date and the names of any important person who might be related to the significance of the events or terms (like a president).Keep writing paragraphs until you use up your terms. You can re-use a term if one term fits well with two or more clumps. This is a good thing! The more you repeat a term, the more youll understand its significance. Once you have finished making and reading over your paragraphs, find a way to utilize your best learning style. Study Tips Visual: Go back to your notes and use a highlighter to connect your terms. For example, highlight each term in one paragraph green, highlight terms from another paragraph yellow, etc. Make a list of significant people and places for each event situated on the timeline. Then  draw a blank timeline and fill in the details without looking at your original. See how much material you retained. Also, try  putting the timeline on post-it notes and paste them around your room. Walk around and actively note each event. Keep in mind that its not useful to memorize a large catalog of notes on a topic. Rather, its more effective to  establish a  connection between the facts.  Think about events in a  logical order to help you understand them, and consider the use of mind maps, a hierarchical diagram used to visually organize information. Auditory: Find a recording device to record yourself as you read over each paragraph slowly. Listen to your recording several times. Tactile: Make flashcards by putting all the terms on one side of a card and the entire paragraph on the flip side. Or  put a question on one side (eg, What year did the Civil War take place?) and then the answer on the other side to test yourself. Repeat your process until every term seems completely familiar to you. Youll be ready to answer individual definitions, long and short answer questions, and essay questions!

Evaluation of Beck Depression Inventory Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Evaluation of Beck Depression Inventory - Essay Example The reliability and validity of the test was shown to be very strong with reliability coefficients ranging from .77 to .89 in different studies and a strong correlation with scores of other common instrument. The tool was also shown to be valuable across several settings from clinical, through counseling to research purposes and finally, the strength and weakness of the instrument were considered. The Beck Depression Inventory is a psychological test that is widely acknowledge and accepted. The test was first created by Beck and his colleagues in the 1960s; however, since then the reliability and validity of the instrument have been examined in several languages amongst several populations and the general efficiency of the test as an instrument for measuring cognitive values has been widely established. The Beck Depression Inventory comes in questionnaire form that allows for self evaluation based on a point grade system of the questions contained in the questionnaire. Arnault, Saint, Shinji Sakamoto, Aiko Moriwaki (2006) reports that a study has been carried out with a Japanese population that validated the use of the instrument, Chellappa and Arajo 2006 also reported a validation of a Portuguese version of the test among a Brazilian sample, while Carano et al. (2006) also reported a stock taking and evaluation of the Psychometric properties of the test after twenty five years carried out by Beck et al (1988) Obviously, Beck Depression Inventory has undergone serious and several tests of validity, reliability and efficiency, and in most cases, the value of the instrument in measuring depressive symptoms have been credibly established. Purpose, Design and Format of Beck Depression Inventory In the commonest cases, and perhaps, as the name of the instrument suggests; Beck Depression Inventory is an instrument that is used for taking 'inventory' of the depressive tendencies and/or depressive symptoms in a sample population. It is sometimes used in conjunction with other psychological tests to evaluate other forms of cognitive values, for instance, Zywiak et al (2006) made use of BDI as an instrument to predict negative affect relapses in men undergoing formal treatment for alcoholism. However, in most cases, Beck Depression Inventory is aimed at measuring the severity of depression in a population. The questions of the instrument are so designed as to evaluate the patients' self report of activities, moods and behaviors for signs of depression symptoms and the severity of the symptoms, if present. In this regard, the instrument contains twenty one items that focuses majorly on the cognitive symptoms of depression. Each items in the instrument is rated on a four-point Likert-type scale with scores ranging from 0 - 3. The sum of the points of all the items in the instrument indicates the BDI score of the client, which is also an indication of the presence or otherwise, and the severity of depression in the client. The total possible score of the instrument is 84. A BDI score of between 0 and 9 is regarded as lack of, or minimal depression, total BDI scores of 10 - 18 is an indication of mild depression, while a total BDI score of 19 - 29 is an indication of moderate depression, any score above 29 is an indicati

Social Media Marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Social Media Marketing - Essay Example Social media marketing strategy may not work if it is not integrated with other digital assets of the company. It needs to be integrated with other forms of digital marketing such as email marketing, affiliates etc. To have a successful social media marketing strategy it is important to have an integrated view of the strategy and social media strategy is executed within that broader strategy.One of the mistakes which are often made by the new marketers is not using the images in their posts. Whether you are posting on Twitter or Facebook, it is extremely important to use images to their best use. Images create more engagement and ensure that your readers are being served with fresh and attractive messages. A mistake which is often made by the new marketers is to portray different messages on different social media platforms which can confuse the followers. To have a successful social media marketing strategy, it is clear that a consistent message shall be delivered across all the soc ial media marketing channels.New marketers often fail to deliver contents which are demanded by the followers. Posting irrelevant contents can be detrimental as it can lose its value for the followers. Above five mistakes can actually fail the whole social media marketing strategy of any firm. If you are new and using social media for the first time to market your brand, it is important to avoid above five mistakes and make a solid case for the success of your brand on social media for the longer period of time.

Dental School Application Personal Statement Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Dental School Application - Personal Statement Example s that I have performed in different organizations, my active participation in a mission trip as well my work as a translator in an international hospital. I performed different tasks during my vacations to enhance and polish my abilities of getting adapted to environments that were essential for my career. I volunteered at the York Central Hospital where I learnt how to interact in the most appropriate manner with patients. This experience was further strengthened by my second volunteering task at Beasley Community Centre, Hamilton. The exposure in the community centre taught me how to interact and deal with young children. I did not want to restrict myself and to further expand my knowledge I worked as a translator in an international hospital in South Korea. This was owing to my expertise over Korean and English language. This international experience taught me further on how to deal with patients belonging to different settings. I also took part in a mission trip to enhance my experience in art of dealing with people coming from different backgrounds. I have always been very active for learning and gaining as much experience as I can. My volunteering tasks in different settings have proved to be very helpful for me and these experiences have taught me in the most appropriate and effective manner of how to deal with different

Action, Goals and Benefits Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Action, Goals and Benefits - Essay Example It is our most valued possession. While pursuing an education, we will certainly run into obstacles along the way. However, by having a clear vision of our goals and a well-developed habit of study we can clear any hurdles that are placed in our path. Though the pace of today's world makes an education seem difficult, it can be made easier by following some simple rules. One of the first things we realize when we begin an education is that there just doesn't seem to be enough time in the day. It's important to recognize that education is the priority. An awareness of my goals can be the best aide in setting a schedule for my activities (Managing Your Time). It may mean giving up a Sunday football game. I may have to suffer with a couple less hours of sleep now and then. Managing my time will require me to make a schedule that will take priority over most of the other events in my life. Sticking to my schedule will be easier if I concentrate on my goals and my reasons for getting an education. I hope to improve my writing skills in this class and become a better communicator. The ability to write successfully will enhance my professional opportunities as well as give me a sense of personal accomplishment. My current lifestyle and schedule is an obstacle that I need to work around. I work 12 hours a day and set aside Sunday for church. At first glance, it seems that I only have Gen 101: Action, Goals and Benefits Saturdays to study. However, I can read during my lunch breaks at work. I can set aside an hour each night dedicated to my studies. Vince Lombardi once said that hard work is the price we pay to achieve our goals (cited in Determination Quotations). I can extend my study period on Saturday by 2 hours and work in an additional 2 hours on Sunday. This will give me an additional 14 hours of study time each week. It may mean some personal sacrifice, but eventually it will become a habit and will be almost unnoticed. By applying myself to my studies and keeping to my schedule I should see considerable progress throughout the course. I expect my writing to become easier and clearer. The library will open my mind to new opportunities and interests. I expect that my schedule and study routine will become a habit that will transfer to my other courses in the future. I plan to continue my education at the University of Phoenix after I finish this course on March 7, 2007. The path to a degree will also bring about increased opportunities and positions in my employment. Aside from benefiting from an increase in salary, it will also give me greater self-esteem. Education is a continual process of self-improvement and that improvement will show in every part of my life. Whether at work, at home, or in a social situation, an education shines through and makes the whole world a little brighter. To sum it all up, my education is important to me and it is a crucial step on my path to self-improvement. This course will give me the tools to write better, read better, Gen 101: Action, Goals and Benefits study better, and develop a greater sense of personal management. Though my schedule may be packed, I can find ways to set aside the time I need to study. By keeping my goals on my mind, it's easy to make education a priority. Small sacrifices now can realize big rewards later. My plan is to focus on this program and continue to study at UOP. It will give me a greater chance for career advancement and offer me better economic opportunities. Education is the one thing you always carry with you and no one can take from you. This course is a step in acquiring that very valuable

Easy A Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Easy A - Essay Example The next Monday, the two goes to the bathroom, and Rhiannon asks about Olive’s encounter with the college student. Olive lies that she lost her virginity with the fictitious boyfriend on the same weekend. Marianne (Amanda Bynes) overheard the conversation. She then proceeded to spread the rumor about Olive’s promiscuity (Devine, Easy A). Marianne, the religious fanatic, and the school’s chastity queen, blames Olive unexpectedly about her promiscuity. Olive wears a cloth of a notorious student. During the English class, she identifies herself as Hester Prynne, the woman condemned by her neighbors in the novel by Nathaniel Hawthorne (Devine, Easy A). Olive confides the truth to her bullied gay friend, Brandon, suggesting to her to lie that he had slept with a girl. Brandon asks for help from Olive, and the two pretends to have had sex in a party. Olive’s reputation degrades. Outcast boys offer to pay Olive so as to improve their image too (Devine, Easy A). Her new power even worked for adults. The teacher Mr. Griffith, and his estranged wife, the guidance counselor who ends up entangled in embarrassments. She finally lost control of the situation and had to take an attitude to revert it. The main female character is Olive Penderghast. The real name of the actor is Emma Stones. In the film, she makes an innocent lie to avoid camping with her best friend, Rhiannon, together with her weird parents. She claims she had gone on a date while she had spent the weekend doing tedious things like singing alone in the room, painting her nails and the nails of her dog (Devine, Easy A). Another female character is Marianne, Amanda Bynes. She is the righteous religious girl in the film. She lights the fuse on olive’s lie and goes ahead in spreading it. Rhiannon, Aly Michalka, is also a female character in the film. She sets peak in the play (Devine, Easy A). Olive Penderghast, the virgin high school girl, never wanted to

Action, Goals and Benefits Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Action, Goals and Benefits - Essay Example It is our most valued possession. While pursuing an education, we will certainly run into obstacles along the way. However, by having a clear vision of our goals and a well-developed habit of study we can clear any hurdles that are placed in our path. Though the pace of today's world makes an education seem difficult, it can be made easier by following some simple rules. One of the first things we realize when we begin an education is that there just doesn't seem to be enough time in the day. It's important to recognize that education is the priority. An awareness of my goals can be the best aide in setting a schedule for my activities (Managing Your Time). It may mean giving up a Sunday football game. I may have to suffer with a couple less hours of sleep now and then. Managing my time will require me to make a schedule that will take priority over most of the other events in my life. Sticking to my schedule will be easier if I concentrate on my goals and my reasons for getting an education. I hope to improve my writing skills in this class and become a better communicator. The ability to write successfully will enhance my professional opportunities as well as give me a sense of personal accomplishment. My current lifestyle and schedule is an obstacle that I need to work around. I work 12 hours a day and set aside Sunday for church. At first glance, it seems that I only have Gen 101: Action, Goals and Benefits Saturdays to study. However, I can read during my lunch breaks at work. I can set aside an hour each night dedicated to my studies. Vince Lombardi once said that hard work is the price we pay to achieve our goals (cited in Determination Quotations). I can extend my study period on Saturday by 2 hours and work in an additional 2 hours on Sunday. This will give me an additional 14 hours of study time each week. It may mean some personal sacrifice, but eventually it will become a habit and will be almost unnoticed. By applying myself to my studies and keeping to my schedule I should see considerable progress throughout the course. I expect my writing to become easier and clearer. The library will open my mind to new opportunities and interests. I expect that my schedule and study routine will become a habit that will transfer to my other courses in the future. I plan to continue my education at the University of Phoenix after I finish this course on March 7, 2007. The path to a degree will also bring about increased opportunities and positions in my employment. Aside from benefiting from an increase in salary, it will also give me greater self-esteem. Education is a continual process of self-improvement and that improvement will show in every part of my life. Whether at work, at home, or in a social situation, an education shines through and makes the whole world a little brighter. To sum it all up, my education is important to me and it is a crucial step on my path to self-improvement. This course will give me the tools to write better, read better, Gen 101: Action, Goals and Benefits study better, and develop a greater sense of personal management. Though my schedule may be packed, I can find ways to set aside the time I need to study. By keeping my goals on my mind, it's easy to make education a priority. Small sacrifices now can realize big rewards later. My plan is to focus on this program and continue to study at UOP. It will give me a greater chance for career advancement and offer me better economic opportunities. Education is the one thing you always carry with you and no one can take from you. This course is a step in acquiring that very valuable

Short Answer Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Short Answer - Assignment Example The intercessions become more dedicated and intricate as the stratagems employed at a particular stage are looked into. 10. The watchword is to challenge the negativities and encourage the positive aspects. For example, when the light is put on, the darkness automatically disappears. If the procedure has to work, it should include viability, desirability and efficacy. The responsibility rests upon teachers as well as the parents. Their positive dispositions leave an effect as for the teen’s capability to partake in societal and activities in the educational institution. The three areas of insufficiency abilities elucidated are communications skills, social skills and self-management skills. Constructive behavior backing, being primarily a teaching method, is successful. 11. Certain broad factors need to be identified such as goal identification, collecting information, developing assumptions, support plan design, execution and watching. Primary prevention approaches focus on intercessions employed on an educational institution-wise system for learners. This stage of deterrence is defined "primary" because majority of the students are treated on identical terms, also relating to identical stage to the intercession. The primary deterrence level is of consequence by the numerical point of view. Secondary level interventions are for a small and limited group as per the exclusive requirements of the students of this group which include societal backing like sharpening social skills by specific exercises or educational sustenance. Tertiary-level packages are mostly intensive or individual-based intercessions and are the most inclusive and intricate. Behavioral strategies categorized under PBS are many to enable toe students to transform their behavior. S ome of these strategies are delivered through the consultation process by teachers. To prevent the most severe forms of problem behaviors, normal social behavior in

Dental Amalgam and the Risks Essay Example for Free

Dental Amalgam and the Risks Essay What is amalgam? Amalgam is a combination of metals that has been used in dentistry for more than 100 years. It is still commonly used today. Although it sometimes is called silver amalgam, amalgam actually consists of a combination of metals. These include silver, mercury, tin and copper. Small amounts of zinc, indium or palladium also may be used. How safe is amalgam? Many studies on the safety of amalgam fillings have been done. In 2009, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) evaluated this research. It found no reason to limit the use of amalgam. The FDA concluded that amalgam fillings are safe for adults and children ages 6 and above. Why is mercury used in amalgam? Mercury is used in amalgam because it helps make the filling material pliable. When it is mixed with an alloy powder, it creates a compound that is soft enough to mix and press into the tooth. But it also hardens quickly and can withstand the forces of biting and chewing. Why the concern about mercury in amalgam? Everyone is exposed to mercury through air, drinking water, soil and food. Concerns have been raised, for instance, about the amount of mercury building up in fish as a result of pollution. Mercury enters the air from industries that burn mercury-containing fuels. Mercury from all sources can build up in body organs. As with most substances, the degree of harm caused by mercury in the body is related to the amount. Very low levels dont cause any ill effects. At higher levels — for instance, when workers are exposed to mercury through their jobs — mercury can cause several symptoms. These include anxiety, irritability, memory loss, headaches and fatigue. Studies have shown that the amount of mercury you are exposed to from your fillings is less than the amount that most people are exposed to in their daily environment or in the food they eat. Do some people have reactions to amalgam? In rare cases, people have allergic reactions to the mercury in amalgam. The American Dental Association says that fewer than 100 cases of this type of allergy have ever been reported. People allergic to amalgam can receive other filling materials. Should pregnant women be concerned about amalgam feelings? Research has not shown any health effects from amalgam fillings in pregnant women. However, mercury can cross the placenta. In general, dentists advise pregnant women to avoid unnecessary dental care. Women should not get amalgam fillings during pregnancy. Dentists can suggest other materials for any pregnant woman who needs a cavity filled. If amalgam is safe, why does my dentist take precautions when handling it? Because dentists work with mercury almost every day, they must take safety precautions. Without protection, dentists can inhale mercury vapors. Over time, this exposure can produce symptoms of mercury toxicity. How is dental amalgam made? To make dental amalgam, dentists mix liquid mercury with a powder containing silver, tin and other metals. Dentists buy special capsules that contain the powder and the liquid mercury, separated by a membrane. They use special machinery to puncture the membrane and mix the amalgam while it is still in the capsule. Once mixing is complete, the capsule is opened. By the time the amalgam is placed in your tooth, the mercury has formed a compound with the other metals. It is no longer toxic.

Motivation And Vocabulary Learning

Motivation And Vocabulary Learning In current time the demand of learning English is rising tremendously due to lingua franca nature of this language in EFL context which refers to student who study English in non-English language society and ESL who study English in an environment that their mother tongue is English; therefore, so many attention has been given to this field because of economical and educational purposes. Back in the days, during methods era and especially in learning-centered methods the lack of explicit focus on grammar cause the vocabulary to gain an important role. They believe that vocabulary cause better comprehension and with this achievement there will be a language development (Kumaravadivelu, 2008). Although with death of method, this component of language is not dead yet, and it still has an important role in current classes with different styles of teaching. In Richards and Renandya (2002) the importance of this fact has been expressed as in the past , vocabulary teaching and learning were often given little priority in second language programs, but recently there has been a renewed interest in the nature of vocabulary and its role in learning and teaching (p.255). 1. a. the problems that students have in different tasks Many linguists define language as a sign system (Hudson, 2000), which consist of lexicon and grammar. According to Hudson, lexicon refers to mental dictionary. And we have different approaches on vocabulary learning that we will study them in detail on following sections. One of them is Lexical approach, in this approach the focus and emphasis is not on the grammar, syntax and structure but on the lexis or word and word combinations (Richards Rodgers, 2006). Most of these approaches and methods isolating words from the context and teach them explicitly as a single unit or compound (prefabricated) unit, but the problem will come up when the learner wants to use it; they can not place it appropriately in correct situations. For example the word reticent means quiet but the place and the context of using this word is not in the supermarket rather it is in the academic places such as university and college; an English learner will memorize this word and use it when she/he wants to talk to a native sales person or in imaginary role play activity with out awareness of authentic use of it that will cause low motivation. Because when the native speakers feel the lack of language competency they will avoid continuing the conversation. Other problems that can be find in the realm of vocabulary learning / teaching is the use of complicated words by the teacher in the classes which are not appropriate for the students in basic or intermediate levels. According to my own experience and observation, so many EFL classes experience this atmosphere which makes the learners anxious. One of the main reasons for that is the practice of teachers themselves, when a teacher with good general knowledge of English teaches an intermediate students for a year he /she will lose some of his knowledge according to lack of practice then they will bring that practice into their classes. The supervisor of that institute was happy and when the question has been asked about this problem he mentioned Krashens i + 1 hypothesis, but he didnt bring into consideration the level of 1 is not determined yet and how harmful it can be for learners. The mentioned problems make the learners overwhelmed and bewildered on how, when and where to use the words. Should they use the writing words (the words that are usually used in writing) in the speaking tasks or use the speaking words in the writing tasks? This will cause debilitative anxiety and low self-efficacy which refers to external factors. The word self-efficacy is defined in Williams and Burden (1997) as students beliefs about their capabilities to apply effectively the knowledge and skills they already possess and thereby learn new cognitive skill (p.129). When the learners are confused and can not recognize which word to select or when to use the special word, they will refer it to task difficulty (Williams Burden, 1997).This low self-efficacy will cause low motivation (which will be studied in detail in the Body of this paper), and when the learners are not motivated they give up practicing and they think that the task is hard but in reality the absence of practice which is due to low motivation caused that. And when this happen, it not only influence their vocabulary knowledge but also it plays a significant role on other four skills, because when the knowledge of vocabulary is low, the comprehension will be low so the pr oduction. Richards and Renandya (2002) express vocabulary is core component of language proficiency and provides much of the basis for how well learners speak, listen, read and write (p.255). Also in their book they mentioned with out the good knowledge of vocabulary and strategies for learning new vocabulary, learners can not progress in the way that their capabilities are and this will cause low motivation then they wont participate in learning opportunities around them such as listening to news, watching movies, listening to the native speaker and using the language in different context(Richards and Renandya ,2002). 1. b. passive and active vocabulary learning There are generally two types of vocabulary in mind, passive and active (Heaton, 1990). By passive vocabulary he refers to reading and listening words (comprehensive). Hunt and Beglar in the book of Richards Renandya (2002) classify it as incidental learning in the long run, most words in both first and second languages are probably learned incidentally, through extensive reading and listening (p.259). We may read so many articles, books, newspapers and texts included different classes of words but it is not possible to use those words in our speaking and writing (production). The emphasis is on speaking because during the utterance we have less time for processing the new words and the speaker tries to use safe words which have been proved before. The other group is active vocabulary. In this group we have writing and speaking words (productive) that refers to the word we use in our speaking and writing so the classification is listening: passive/spoken, reading: passive/written, speaking: active/spoken and writing: active/written(Heaton , 1990, P.51). It is worth mentioning that the amount of words that we comprehended is much larger than the words that we produced.in the research of Oxford Crookall (1990) declared that spoken vocabulary is often smaller than written vocabulary, which is in turn generally smaller than receptive vocabulary (p.23).from that statement they conclude that proficiency in speaking is more difficult for the student to achieve than writing and writing is harder than reading and listening ( Oxford Crookall, 1990). According to my own experience, one of my classes memorized and practiced the 504 essential words but they hardly used those words in their production. The ideal goal for the learners is shifting from passive knowledge of vocabulary to active knowledge of vocabulary and create an atmosphere for better fluency with the activated vocabulary .for the fluency Richards renandya (2002) suggest that fluency is partly depends on developing sight vocabulary through extensive reading and studying high-frequency vocabulary(p.262) and also they expressed that fluency is cyclic use of already known words so the students can produce an utterance without hesitation(Richards and renandya,2002). To achieve these goal different variables should be taken into consideration such as time, books, methods of teaching, students back ground knowledge and so on. Mentioned variables will effect the learners motivation. For example in that class if the time and duration had been extended the result would have been different. Students could use those words so they didnt think about the hardness of the task (external, task difficulty) and they could have higher self- efficacy and better motivation. And they could realize that vocabulary learning is a formidable and complex life-long task (Stahl Nagy, 2006). There is a mutual relationship between motivation and vocabulary learning so when the learners are motivated they will learn more vocabulary and when they learn more vocabulary they will be more motivated, like a cycle. 1. C. absence of enough review of related literature About the title of this paper there are only very few information, studies and review of related literature. the reason for that is scholars and researchers usually consider vocabulary as part of reading skill , Deng (2010) declare motivation for vocabulary learning is different from motivation for reading , so the motivation of vocabulary should be studied separately (p.4). 2. Body There are six categories in the dimensions of vocabulary learning: help-seeking, morphology, context, dictionary use, spelling and phonology (Deng, 2010). The help-seeking is very important in the process of vocabulary learning among EFL students. When the learners dont t know the meaning of the word they will ask for it from the other peer or authority such as teachers or parents (this will be analyzed in detail in the vocabulary learning strategies). Research on this field show that students usually use this strategy rather than checking dictionary because it is easier and to the point, but it has down side too, using dictionary is a skill and when they get use to it they are exposed to more vocabulary learning and authentic pronunciation. In Richards renandya (2002) the importance of dictionary is declared through bilingual dictionaries have been found to result in vocabulary learning (p.263); they also proposed the advantages of bilingual dictionaries over monolingual one. .help-seeking shows that the students are concern about their studies so they have facilitative anxiety. When they realize the meaning, they will be more motiva ted due to understanding the concept of the text. The second category for vocabulary learning is morphology. Hudson (2000) defines morphology as concern the classes of morphemes, and their occurrence in sentences and combination as words (p.8). We can study morphemes in two ways, based on meaning and based on the form with in two subparts, grammatical and lexical morphemes (Hudson, 2000). Study has shown that the student awareness on this division and the characteristic of each grammatical and lexical morpheme such as concreteness, frequency, open-set membership will help them to overcome the difficulty of the task .as an example, when the learners can distinguish between stem, root, suffix and prefix they not only will realize the meaning and function of that word but also they can use this technique to overcome some other hard and complicated task in the realm of vocabulary learning. In this situation learners become more self- actualized in result they will consider themselves as part of the process and they dont rely on external factors (luck, difficulty of the task) so they will have a higher motivation. Williams Burden (1997) declare that the greater the value that individuals attached to the accomplishment or involvement in an activity the more highly motivated they will be both to engage in it initially and later to put sustained effort into succeeding in the activity(p.125). In fact, many examinations have been taken in the morphology and motivation realm, Deng (2010) examined the motivation of morphological knowledge by measuring students motivation to notice and manipulate word parts that contribute to word meanings (p.11). The result of this study shows the significant relationship between motivation and morphological awareness. Another factor which causes lack of motivation is accessibility to morphemes in our lexicon. Lexicon is mental dictionary of the morphemes and signs (Hudson, 2000). Access to morpheme in our lexicon occurs by rhyme, initial sound, and synonym, rough opposite, semantic features, context of occurrence, part of speech and spelling( Hudson, 2000, p.74). Another way for Vocabulary learning is learning the word with in text itself. Contextualization occurs when the unknown meaning of the word is guessed by the reader according to other words and phrases. Contextual use refers to understanding word meanings by scrutinizing surrounding context, including preceding or succeeding phrases and sentences that provide syntactic and semantic cues (Deng, 2010, P.11), it is worth mentioning that this technique is more suitable for advanced learners because vocabulary learning includes learning collocations, associations, and related morphological as well as grammatical patterns ; considering all these elements for guessing the meaning is not possible for basic learners(Richards renandya, 2003). This is very useful technique for the learners to enhance their self-efficacy as well. When they realize that they do not need to know the meaning of all the words to overcome the test or task difficulty, they will see an open window of opportunity for l earning. On the other hand Kelly (1990) declared that unless the context is very constrained, which is relatively rare occurrence or unless there is a relationship with the known word identifiable on the basis of form and supported by context, there is little chance of guessing the correct meaning (p.203). We can learn and access the vocabulary in lexicon with phonology and phonological process. In phonological process the learner can keep the word in the mind by the sound of it and also can have an access to the lexicon by the same application. The Other type is spelling, Deng (2010) presents that spelling is specified as sub category of students motivation in vocabulary learning because spelling helps to learn new vocabulary (p.11). Spelling influences conceptualizations of vocabulary learning (Ehri Wilce, 1986). Through the spelling vocabulary l the image of the words can be established in the mind better than when the spelling is not known and this gives the learner stronger self -esteem. Richards Renandya (2002) express that language -focused instruction includes focusing on the pronunciation and spelling of words; deliberately learning the meaning of a word; memorizing collocations, phrases or sentences containing a word and being corrected for incorrect use of words(p.270). 2. a. types of motivation and vocabulary learning So far we realized that how motivation is related to the vocabulary learning. In this section, we consider types of motivation and the relationship with vocabulary learning. Motivation refers to goal-directed behavior (Masgoret and Gardner, 2003, p.128). It has been studied in different psychological schools of thought such as behaviorist view, cognitivist view and social constructivist view. In behaviorist point of view the concept of motivation is tied to rewards and external factors. Although the behaviorist point of view has been rejected but it can not be fully rejected; some times it plays an important role in vocabulary leaning. The external feedback that learners get will motivate them to continue the vocabulary learning tasks. Some scholars emphasis on the effect of feedback the effort students put into their work outside of class needs to be acknowledged with sufficient feedback to make them feel that the effort was worthwhile in moving them toward their goal (capturing and directing, 1997, p.4 ).so by giving them immediate feedback they will be more motivated in expansion of vocabulary learning. And, William and Burden (1997) declared that behavioral psychologist were the first to recognize the power of feedback as a motivating influence (p. 134). Other perspectives such as achievement motivation can be helpful in vocabulary learning. But it has two phases, one when the learner is highly motivated to accomplish the vocabulary task for external factors such as achieving the first place in the class or for their parents satisfaction. The second phase which is debilitative refers to the situations when the learner avoids participating in the task due to stressful nature of that activity. In result, we can see that the early psychologist approaches toward motivation is simple and deficient. Although there are not enough review of literature in the area of vocabulary learning and motivation but it can be studied in the Gardners integrative and instrumenta l orientation. Masgoret and Gardner (2003) Define integrative orientation as integration refers to an openness to identify, at least in part, with another language community (p.126). In integrative orientation the EFL learners want to be part of the English language community, and they want to integrate themselves with the English culture. This type of orientation is highly related to vocabulary learning. When learners want to be part of the community and they are highly motivated, they should speak or write in the manner that native speaker does. This will cause the learner to focus on expansion of vocabulary, besides using the words in appropriate place as mentioned on the introduction part of this paper. Also Masgoret and Gardener emphasis the adaption of word sounds, pronunciations, word orders, and other behavioral and cognitive features (Masgoret and Gardner, 2003). There are six variables included in the measure of integrative motivation which the main component, consists of attitude, interests and integrative orientation (William Burden, 1997). Attitudes toward the learning situation refer to the individuals reaction to anything associated with the immediate context in which the language is taught (Masgoret and Gardner, 2003, p.127).also Deng which is one of the main references of this paper, investigates motivation particularly attitude in vocabulary learning and defines it as evaluating a particular entity with some degree of favor or disfavor (Deng, 2010, p.8). Sometimes the students are not interested in the target language group but they can be open to all groups (Masgort and Gardner, 2003); in the case of interest, they make themselves involved in vocabulary learning and participate in different tasks which cause further learning. The other type is instrumental orientation; which has less effect on the vocabulary learning compare to integrative orientation. When the learners want to overcome the difficulty of the text, task or exam for achieving a passing mark, financial rewards, furthering a career or gaining promotion they usually have instrumental orientation (William Burden, 1997). This kind of motivation is applicable to vocabulary learning too. When the learners want to get passing mark on an English test they should study appropriate vocabulary for achieving that goal and it is only and only for that purpose. The other approaches toward motivation are cognitive and social constructivist. In cognitive psychologist approach, the most important part is the choice that learners have on their actions (William and Burden, 1997). And in the social constructivist perspectives , the motivation is because of social factors so when one person is motivated, he/she will continue to achieve the goal and the way they are satisfied is different from person to person( William Burden, 1997). There are other perspectives to motivation, intrinsic and extrinsic. In the researches on the vocabulary learning both intrinsic and extrinsic motivations play an important role. But intrinsic motivation which in William and Burden (1997) book has been defined as experience of doing something that generates interest and enjoyment, and the reason for performing the activity lies within the activity itself (p.123) is very important for the vocabulary learning. Because the learners are interested in the task or vocabular y learning, so they try more to get their goals, and they wont give up easily. 2. b. the complexity of words Some times the complexity of words may cause lack of motivation and because there is a mutual relationship between them, it may cause the student to give up the learning. According to Nagy and Scott there are five aspects of vocabulary complexity the first one is incremental- knowing which Deng (2010) defines it as knowing a word is not a matter of all- or- nothing, but incremental process based on small scales (p.9). So it means that the vocabulary knowledge is additive. The learner shouldnt be overwhelmed and unmotivated due to complex nature of vocabulary learning; when they see that they can add to their base knowledge. The second one is multidimensionality-word that consists of grammar, conceptual meaning and morphology which has been explained in the previous sections. Polysemy -words that Yule (1985) defines it as two or more words with the same form and related meanings (p.107). Also yule gives a good example of run that can relate to person or water. When the learner face t his complexity he/she can be bewildered, to avoid this ambiguity different strategies are needed that will be discussed in the following section. The other type is interrelatedness words that Deng explain it with the example of understanding the word bread which is related to understanding of other related words such as powder and wheat (Deng, 2010). And the last one is heterogeneity-word that refers to word class. For example some words are abstract like love and some words are concrete like chair, understanding these two level words are different and the abstract words may cause anxiety among EFL learner and especially between younger ages. Another perspective to words is the division of word knowledge to receptive and productive. Richards Renandya (2002) define the receptive knowledge as one of the aspects of knowledge through reading and listening, and productive knowledge means being able to use in speaking and writing (p.261). The concept of word knowledge is closely related to the passive and active vocabulary. Zhong in his research explain the concept of receptive-productive word as the mastery level of vocabulary knowledge reflected in the learners comprehension and production abilities (p.118) and also in the same paper he demonstrate progressive process of learning a word. The reason that I brought these parts of word and vocabulary learning in to this paper is that in conclusion part we will see there is a mutual relation between learning vocabulary and motivation. According to Zhong the first dimension is partial -precise dimension, it shows the knowledge moves from recognition to vague understanding of the meaning and later to the mastery of precise comprehension (p.118). The second is depth dimension which is the quality of knowing word and the last dimension is receptive and productive dimension. 2. c. vocabulary learning strategies In order to simplify the complexity of the word and vocabulary learning that has a significant role on student anxiety and motivation, some strategies are needed. When the learners are motivated they will seek some ways for better understanding of the text or making use of these strategies for longer retention of words. For this purpose in Richards and Renandya there is a great emphasis on these strategies for inferring words from context as well as those which can help learner retain the meaning (RichardsRenandya,2002). There are different categorizations for vocabulary learning strategies according to different researchers. Oxford Crookall divided the techniques for vocabulary learning in to four categories decontextualizing technique that extract the word from the context completely which help the learners remember how the word is used as a part of language; semi- contextualizing in this technique the new word is related to the learners already known word but still they are not part of the context; the third one is contextualizing technique that the word will be studied in communicative context; and the last one is adaptable that reinforce other techniques (Oxford Crookall , 1990). Decontextualizing technique consists of word lists that are divided into unpaired list and paired list, flashcards and conventional dictionary use; semi contextualizing which is consisted of words grouping ,visual imaginary ,key word ,physical sensation and semantic mapping; contextualizing technique that is processed with in the four skills in general English proficiency; and the last one , adaptable technique which they use structured reviewing (Oxford Crookall, 1990). In the Asgaris research, the division is based on Schmitt classification, and he divides it in discovery strategies and consolidation strategies with five sub- categories consists of determination, social, memory ,cognitive and metacognitive strategies ( Asgari,2010). In the research that has been done by Asgari, she tries to related the learning strategies to vocabulary learning ,although it is acceptable but more specification is needed , because a specific classification for vocabulary learning strategies has been given. Other strategies which are related to learning in general term, can be associated to vocabulary learning as well , such as circumlocution when we describe the unknown word for the listener ; using prefabricated pattern , word coinage , approximation and so on (William Burden, 1997).the mentioned techniques are part of the compensatory strategy, which is crucial for learner productive vocabulary knowledge. When they use this type of strategy they will continue the production and this will cause low anxiety and high degree of motivation. 3. Conclusion So far different aspects of motivation and vocabulary learning have been investigated, the problems that EFL learners have in the classes and generally as the process of learning the second or foreign language beside the kinds of motivation and kinds of words. Also different strategies have been mentioned to compensate the above problems. The reason for this division is first there is not enough literature on this specific subject and second from my own understanding there are mutual relationship between vocabulary learning and motivation. By that I mean when the learners are motivated they will learn vocabulary better and when they learn a word they will be more motivated. So the reason for bringing all the above problems, kinds and strategies is that they are like a chain and they are related to each other. Deng in his research found no difference between male and female in motivation for vocabulary learning and he found a significant relationship between vocabulary learning and mo tivation (Deng, 2010).and also Fernandez Terrazas (2012) in their research found that there is a significant positive relationship between the level of motivation and receptive vocabulary tests grade (p.49). so by considering the level of motivation we can improve vocabulary learning among the EFL learners.

Gregor Johann Mendel :: essays research papers

Gregor Johann Mendel Gregor Mendel was one of the first people in the history of science to discover genetics. He independently discovered his work and lived in Brunn, Czechoslovakia. In Brunn he was a monk and later the Abbot of the church in Brunn. While he was in Brunn he performed many experiments with garden peas. With the information he observed he wrote a paper where he described the patterns of inheritance in terms of seven pairs of contrasting traits that appeared in different pea-plant varieties. All of the experiments he performed utilized the pea-plant, which in this case is the basis of the experiment. Mendels work was reported at a meeting of the Brunn Society for the Study of Natural Science in 1865, and was published the following year. Mendels paper presented a completely new and unique documented theory of inheritances, but it did not lead immediately to a cataclysm of genetic research. The scientists who read his papers of complex theories, dismissed it because it could be explained in such a simple model. He was rediscovered by Hugo de Vries in The Netherlands, Carl Correns in Germany, and Evich Tschermak in Austria all at the same time after 1900. They named the units Mendel described "genes." When the gene has a slighty different base sequence it is called an "allele." Mendel also developed 3 laws or principles. The first principle is called the, "Principle of Segregation." This principle states that the traits of an organism are determined by individual units of heredity called genes. Both adult organisms have one allele from each parent, which gives both organisms 2 alleles. The alleles are separated or "segregated" from each other with the reproductive cell formation. Mendel's second principle is the, "Principle of independent assortment." This principle states that the expression of a gene for

Burger King Case Study Essay

Burger King or McDonalds? In the United States, these two companies equally compete for consumers. Americans usually favor one company over the other or just choose to eat at whichever is more convenient to them. For the American people, Burger King is as common of a household name as McDonalds. However, in Japan, the Burger King brand is one that is not very well known. Burger King has been trying to tap into the Japanese market for some time now. McDonalds, KFC, and Pizza Hut are the leading fast food market chains as of today, but Burger King is trying to make it into this region of the world. With U.S. markets saturated, and the mad cow disease scare slowing sales of Burger King in Europe, it is so important for Burger King to saturate another market, Japan. Much research has been done to think of new and effective ways to penetrate the Japanese market through marketing. Our group of researchers have put together an in depth report on the issues within the marketing of Burger Kin g in Japan. They have discovered the main cause for this need in marketing and what needs to be done to solve Burger King’s marketing issues. Situation Analysis There are many differences between eastern and western culture regarding the restaurant industry. In Western Culture space is more easily attainable. It is easier for new companies to enter the market in the restaurant industry because it is more accepting of diversity. Food trends in this culture differ dramatically from eastern culture. In the western culture, significance of food is not greatly valued and is offered in access creating more waste. The western culture is vast and heterogeneous. Many cultures are accepted creating a vast variety of fusion food sold here in the west culture. In restaurants a bigger variety of different food can be found on the menu. In the Eastern culture, food defines the culture. Each country has it’s own unique and cultural dishes that signifies the past. The middle easts favorite top meat ingredient is lamb and it is substituted for beef. Also most of the Middle East is Islamic so that means that many of the of their dietary rules are obser ved because of religious factors. In Asia, food and culture is divided into three main regions: southwest (India), southeast (Vietnam) and northeast (Japan). India uses more vegetarian ingredients such as beans, rice, and spices. Vietnam focuses on stir-frying, steaming, or  boiling when preparing their food. In Japan, many use the spices they used for their for religious ceremonies. Also in Japan, space is very limited due to overpopulation of people. The Japanese market is maxed out making it very challenging for new companies such as restaurants to enter the restaurant industry. To the Japanese consumer, the significance of food is valued and they feel it is important to not waste it. The norm of their culture is to conserve and not let anything go to waste. Food is offered in small portions for this particular reason. Japan has a very homogeneous culture. They are set in the ways that they do things and don’t deviate from their way of life. In Japan’s restaurant industry, it is more common to see rice and vegetables on the menu. In the case study one of the reasons why Burger King is unsuccessful in Japan is because they are trying to push western culture in an eastern market. Burger King doesn’t understand that they have to tailor their menu to meet the needs of the eastern pallet. They are not offering the foods that appeal to the people of Japan. There are number of other reasons why BK has not become successful in Japan: Weak advertising. Upon researching commercials for Burger King in Japan, it is apparent that their advertising doesn’t appeal to their consumer market. Forcing higher prices than their competitor (McDonalds). McDonalds has been established for more than 25 years and is the most popular hamburger restaurant. Most consumers are price conscious There is no market place for them because they haven’t completely established their brand. BK in Japan does not look like they have established any goals as to how they want to present their brand No differentiation among competitors They haven’t fully achieved brand recognition They’re trying to be an upscale restaurant which doesn’t fit the market. Targeted market is too narrow only catering to a younger crowd They need to reach out to the older population.  The cost of having flame broil grills is not cost effective.  BK is hiding the most unique characteristics because it’s too expensive to build it in front of the restaurant. The budget promotion costs are being  overlooked while opening too many stores. BK is just wants to try to take over the competitor market when in reality they are failing. Problem Definition The problem with Japan is brand image. Burger King wants to expand without building a brand that the Japanese consumers are willing to spend extra money for a burger. Analysis of Alternatives Focus on â€Å"freshness† Burger King has stated that its main focus is producing traditional burgers. Instead of the typical two pickles and some ketchup, focus on the nutritional value such as fresh lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and pickles. Fix branding image Differentiate themselves as a more upscale restaurant A example, better training of the staff and cleaner facilities. This may avoid burger wars. Appeal to younger generation Studies have shown that the younger generation is willing to spend more money on nice things. Burger King should try to target this market by becoming an upscale burger restaurant. Also, anime commercials may attract a younger crowd. Place flame broiled grills in front of store. With the gas restrictions are becoming more lenient, having customers visibly see how burgers are made will attract more customers and provide free advertisement just by word of mouth. Attract customers by smell. Venting the exhaust from the grill will release the smell of burgers cooking into the public. This could reach the customers 5 sense of smell, touch, see, taste, and hear. All of this elements could attract more customers to a delicious flame broiled Whopper. Continue integrating Burger King into existing stores Building â€Å"stand-alone† restaurants is expensive. By adding small restaurants into high traffic areas (train/gas stations) it will be a great selling location because of the high volume of customers stopping and waiting. Also, land is so scarce in Japan, partnering will help minimize costs and provides  a definite location for the restaurant. Adding Japanese influence into store. May become more relatable to the culture so customers will be dining in a comfortable environment. Sponsor shows Sponsor physical challenge show comparable to MXC (Most Extreme Elimination). Making the obstacle courses resemble Burger King. Example: have some customers jump on Whoppers or placing the Burger King Emblem to help positively advertise working out with burgers. Themes in restaurant The rock and roll theme is creative but the drawbacks are that they’ll only be known as the rock and roll themed restaurant. A Burger King could be known as a themed restaurant by having different themes in each restaurant. One themed restaurant can have revolving carts where the consumers can sit down and just pick their order off a conveyor belt right by their table. Recommendation Top Recommendation Ranking 1. Fixing brand image 2. Promote freshness of ingredients 3. Adding flame broil grills in front of restaurants 4. Integrate Burger King into existing stores such as gas station or train station 5. Focus on Millennial demographic 6. Promote Japanese culture in restaurants 7. Spend more on promotional advertising 8. Attract customers by smell 9. Sponsor Shows 10. Theme in different restaurants SWOT Analysis During the research it can be said that Burger King in Japan is trying their best to become a real competitor in the fast food industry. I believe that Burger King has the ability to succeed if only better decisions are made. It is evident that many BK restaurants are being developed in a rapid amount of  time. A Japanese proverb â€Å"wishing to eat the fugu, but wishing to live too† states that â€Å"Fugu is a delicious fish which has a poison in it which leads to death if eaten, so in order to eat it has to be prepared by a skillful cook who knows how to properly get rid of the poison. This proverb illustrates situation when there is a bit of risk in taking the action and expresses concern about the outcome†. In all seriousness, it is a risk to rapidly open BK restaurants without the concern of not reaching its potential goal of succeeding. Burger King Japan needs to sit down and focus on how they want to show the consumer what the BK industry is about. Next, corpo rate should consider thinking outside of the box and adding more cultural options instead of buns and beef. I have discovered that a black bun burger â€Å"Kuno Burger† has made it’s way to Japan. Further research on the success needs to be analyzed. Did the consumers like it? Did they know it existed? How did you advertise the sandwich? What will happen if you add rice dishes on the menu? Or fish sandwiches? Also, I believe a way to help Burger King find its target market is by asking individuals what they would like to see, taste, hear, smell, and touch. Maybe have more events and a taste testing between two competing burger restaurants. One target market can be tourists visiting Japan. Some tourists are thrilled to see that their comfort zone is all of a sudden changed because of cultural influences. McDonalds has successfully changed its menu to fit more of the consumer needs which has proved to be the top restaurant to beat. Burger King needs to be more aware of their tactics and build a better team to figure out how to attend to all customers from all around the world (whether the want something familiar or something new). In conclusion, Burger King has to reconsider its standpoint in Japan. It has proved to establish itself successfully in other countries. In the maxed out market economy of Japan, Burger King can has potential to grow. Corporate needs to band together to better figure out the brand image before expanding itself too thin.

Elaborate on the Evolution of Human Resource Management

Ans: Kautilya provides a systematic treatment of management of human resources as early as 4th century B. C. in his treatise titled â€Å"Arth –Shastra†. As it has been described in the book, there prevailed logical procedures and principles in respect of labor organizations such as Shreni or guild system and co-operative sector. The wages were paid strictly in terms of quantity and quality of work turned out and punishment were imposed for unnecessarily delaying the work or spoiling it. The concept of â€Å"Varnasharam† or caste system was originally based on these principles . The individuals who used to earn their livelihood by engaging themselves in activities such as teaching, sacrifices or state management were designated as Brahmins while those specializing in fighting were termed as Kshatiyas. From the 14th century B. C. to the later half of the 10th century A. D. , the relationships between the employer and employees were marked by justice and equity. As regards Indian economy in Mediaeval India, although there was a lull because of numerous foreign aggressions for around 700 years, during the Mughal rules, the Indian trade and commerce were revived. Several â€Å"Karkhanas† were established at Agra, Delhi, Lahore, Ahmedabad and various other places. The Plantation Act of 1863 makes provisions that if the workers failed to complete their period of contract, they should be imprisoned for a period not exceeding three months. Explicitly, the working conditions in the tea plantations were extremely bad. Accordingly, the workers were entirely helpless in the face of the organized and powerful European planters. In 1905, the printers’ Union at Calcutta and in 1907, the Postal Union at Bombay was established. In 1922, the indentured labor system involving migration of India Labor to other countries on contract basis was abolished as a result of a strong National movement. In the same year, the Central Labor Board was established to federate the different unions in the Bombay city and the All India Trade Union Congress was organized. It may be noted that the reliable statistics of trade union growth are not available for the period before the formal implementation of the Indian Trade Unions Act, 1926. Betw2een 1939-40 and 1944-45 the number of registered trade unions increased from 666 to 865. During period 1947-1960 industrial employment rose by 2. 8 times, the total claimed union membership also went up by 2. 3 times. In 1960, 45 percent of the total industrial workforce was claimed to be unionized. Today, the total membership is estimated to be around 4. 3 million i. e. 28 percent of total workforce. MB0027 Human Resource Management Assignment 1 Answer the following questions: Q1:Elaborate on the evolution of Human Resource Management. Ans: Kautilya provides a systematic treatment of management of human resources as early as 4th century B. C. in his treatise titled â€Å"Arth –Shastra†. As it has been described in the book, there prevailed logical procedures and principles in respect of labor organizations such as Shreni or guild system and co-operative sector. The wages were paid strictly in terms of quantity and quality of work turned out and punishment were imposed for unnecessarily delaying the work or spoiling it. The concept of â€Å"Varnasharam† or caste system was originally based on these principles . The individuals who used to earn their livelihood by engaging themselves in activities such as teaching, sacrifices or state management were designated as Brahmins while those specializing in fighting were termed as Kshatiyas. From the 14th century B. C. to the later half of the 10th century A. D. , the relationships between the employer and employees were marked by justice and equity. As regards Indian economy in Mediaeval India, although there was a lull because of numerous foreign aggressions for around 700 years, during the Mughal rules, the Indian trade and commerce were revived. Several â€Å"Karkhanas† were established at Agra, Delhi, Lahore, Ahmedabad and various other places. The Plantation Act of 1863 makes provisions that if the workers failed to complete their period of contract, they should be imprisoned for a period not exceeding three months. Explicitly, the working conditions in the tea plantations were extremely bad. Accordingly, the workers were entirely helpless in the face of the organized and powerful European planters. In 1905, the printers’ Union at Calcutta and in 1907, the Postal Union at Bombay was established. In 1922, the indentured labor system involving migration of India Labor to other countries on contract basis was abolished as a result of a strong National movement. In the same year, the Central Labor Board was established to federate the different unions in the Bombay city and the All India Trade Union Congress was organized. It may be noted that the reliable statistics of trade union growth are not available for the period before the formal implementation of the Indian Trade Unions Act, 1926. Betw2een 1939-40 and 1944-45 the number of registered trade unions increased from 666 to 865. During period 1947-1960 industrial employment rose by 2. 8 times, the total claimed union membership also went up by 2. 3 times. In 1960, 45 percent of the total industrial workforce was claimed to be unionized. Today, the total membership is estimated to be around 4. 3 million i. e. 28 percent of total workforce.

Carrie Chapter Three

â€Å"‘No, I won't,† she said. â€Å"Momma says good girls don't.† She looked strange for a little girl, half sad and half self-righteous. ‘I could hardly believe it, and the first thing that popped into my mind also popped right out of my mouth. I said: â€Å"Well, I'm a good girl. And doesn't your mother have breasts?† ‘She lowered her head and said something so softly I couldn't hear it. When I asked her to repeat it, she looked at me defiantly and said that her momma had been bad when she made her and that was why she had them. She called them dirtypillows, as if it was all one word. ‘I couldn't believe it. I was just dumbfounded. There was nothing at all I could think to say. We just stared at each other, and what I wanted to do was grab that sad little scrap of a girl and run away with her. ‘And that was when Margaret White came out of her back door and saw us.' ‘For a minute she just goggled as if she couldn't believe it. Then she opened her mouth and whooped. That's the ugliest sound I've ever beard in my life. It was like the noise of a bull alligator would make in a swamp. She just whooped. Rage. Complete, insane rage. Her face went just as red as the side of a fire truck and she curled her hands into fists and whooped at the sky. She was shaking all over. I thought she was having a stroke. Her face was all scrunched up, and it was a gargoyle's face. ‘I thought Carrie was going to faint – or die on the spot. She sucked in all her breath and that little face went a cottage-cheesy colour. ‘Her mother yelled: â€Å"CAAAARRIEEEEEE!† ‘I jumped up and yelled back: â€Å"Don't you yell at her that way! You ought to be ashamed!† Something stupid like that. I don't remember. Carrie started to go back and then she stopped and then she started again, and just before she crossed over from our lawn to theirs she looked back at me and there was a look †¦ oh, dreadful. I can't say it. Wanting and hating and fearing †¦ and misery. As if life itself had fallen on her like stones, all at the age of three. ‘My mother came out on the back stoop and her face just crumpled when she saw the child. And Margaret †¦ oh, she was screaming things about sluts and strumpets and the sins of the fathers being visited even into the seventh generation. My tongue felt like a little dried-up plant. ‘For just a second Carrie stood swaying back and forth between the two yards, and then Margaret White looked upward and I swear sweet Jesus that woman bayed at the sky. And then she started to †¦ to hurt herself, scourge herself. She was clawing at her neck and cheeks, making red marks and scratches. She tore her dress. ‘Carrie screamed out â€Å"Momma!† and ran to her. ‘Mrs White kind of †¦ squatted, like a frog, and her arms swooped wide open. I thought she was going to crush her and I screamed. The woman was grinning. Grinning and drooling right down her chin. Oh, I was sick. Jesus, I was so sick. ‘She gathered her up and they went in. I turned off my radio and I could hear her. Some of the words, but not all. You didn't have to hear all the words to know what was going on. Praying and sobbing and screeching. Crazy sounds. And Margaret telling the little girl to get herself into her closet and pray. The little girl crying and screaming that she was sorry, she forgot. Then nothing. And my mother and I just looked at each other. I never saw Mom look so bad, not even when Dad died. She said: â€Å"The child-!' and that was all. We went inside.' She gets up and goes to the window, a pretty woman in a yellow no-back sundress. ‘It's almost like living it all over again, you know,' she says, not turning around ‘I'm all riled up inside again.' She laughs a little and cradles her elbows in her palms. ‘Oh, she was so pretty. You'd never know from those pictures.' Cars go by outside, back and forth, and I sit and wait for her to go on. She reminds me of a pole-vaulter eyeing the bar and wondering if it's set too high. ‘My mother brewed us scotch tea. strong, with milk, the way she used to when I was tomboying around and someone would push me in the nettle patch or I'd fall off my bicycle. It was awful but we drank it anyway, sitting across from each other in the kitchen nook. She was in some old housedress with the hem falling down in back, and I was in my Whore of Babylon, two-piece swimsuit. I wanted to cry but it was too real to cry about, not like the movies. Once when I was in New York I saw an old drunk leading a little girl in a blue dress by the hand. The girl had cried herself into a bloody nose. The drunk had goitre and his neck looked like an inner tube. There was a red bump in the middle of his forehead and a long white string on the blue serge jacket he was wearing. Everyone kept going and coming because, if you did, then pretty soon you wouldn't see them any more. That was real, too. ‘I wanted to tell my mother that, and I was just opening my mouth to say it when the other thing happened †¦ the thing you want to hear about, I guess. There was a big thump outside that made the glasses rattle in the china cabinet. It was a feeling as well as a sound, thick and solid, as if someone had just pushed an iron safe off the roof.' She lights a new cigarette and begins to puff rapidly. ‘I went to the window and looked out, but I couldn't see anything. Then, when I was getting ready to turn around, something else fell. The sun glittered on it. I thought it was a big glass globe for a second. Then it hit the edge of the Whites' roof and shattered, and it wasn't glass at all. It was a big chunk of ice. I was going to turn around and tell Mom, and that's when they started to fall all at once, in a shower. ‘They were falling on the Whites' roof, on the back and front lawn, on the outside door to their cellar. That was a sheet-tin bulkhead, and when the first one hit it made a huge bong noise, like a church bell. My mother and I both screamed. We were clutching each other like a couple of girls in a thunderstorm. ‘Then it stopped. There was no sound at all from their house. You could see the water from the melting ice trickling down their slate shingles in the sunshine. A great big hunk of ice was stuck in the angle of the roof and their little chimney. The light on it was so bright that my eyes hurt to look at it. ‘My mother started to ask me if it was over, and then Margaret screamed. The sound came to us very clearly. In a way it was worse than before, because there was terror in this one. Then there were clanging, banging sounds, as if she were throwing every pot and pan in the house at the girl. The back door slammed open and slammed closed. No one came out. More screams. Mom said for me to call the police but I couldn't move. I was stuck to the spot. Mr Kirk and his wife Virginia came out on their lawn to look. The Smiths, too. Pretty soon everyone on the street that was home had come out, even old Mrs Warwick from up the block, and she was deaf in one ear. ‘Things started to crash and tinkle and break. Bottles, glasses, I don't know what all. And then the side window broke open and the kitchen table fell halfway through. With God as my witness. It was a big mahogany thing and it took the screen with it and it must have weighed three hundred pounds. How could a woman – even a big woman – throw that?' I ask her if she is implying something. ‘I'm only telling you,' she insists, suddenly distraught. ‘I'm not asking you to believe-‘ She seems to catch her breath and then goes on flatly: ‘There was nothing for maybe five minutes. Water was dripping out of the gutters over there. And there was ice all over the Whites' lawn. It was melting fast.' She gives a short, chopping laugh and butts her cigarette. ‘Why not? It was August.' She wanders aimlessly back towards the sofa, then veers away. ‘Then the stones. Right out of the blue sky. Whistling and screaming like bombs. My mother cried out, ‘What in the name of !' and put her hands over her head. But I couldn't move. I watched it all and I couldn't move. It didn't matter anyway. They only fell on the Whites' property. ‘One of them hit a downspout and knocked it on to the lawn. Others punched holes right through the roof and into the attic. The roof made a big cracking sound each time one hit, and puffs of dust would squirt up. The ones that hit the ground made everything vibrate. You could feel them hitting in your feet. ‘Our china was tinkling and the fancy Welsh dresser was shaking and Mom's teacup fell on the floor and broke. ‘They made big pits in the Whites' back lawn when they struck. Craters. Mrs White hired a junkman from across town to cart them away, and Jerry Smith from up the street paid him a buck to let him chip a piece of one. He took it to B.U. and they looked at it and said it was ordinary granite. ‘One of the last ones hit a little table they had in their back yard and smashed it to pieces.' ‘But nothing, nothing that wasn't on their property was hit.' She stops and turns from the window to look at me, and her face is haggard from remembering all that. One hand plays forgetfully with her casually stylish shag haircut. ‘Not much of it got into the local paper. By the time Billy Harris came around – he reported the Chamberlain news – she had already gotten the roof fixed, and when people told him the stones had gone right through it, I think he thought we were pulling his leg. ‘Nobody wants to believe it, not even now. You and all the people who'll read what you write will wish they could laugh it of and call me just another nut who's been out here in the sun too long. But it happened. There were lots of people on the block who saw it happen, and it was just as real as that drunk leading the little girl with the bloody nose. And now there's this other thing. No one can laugh that of, either. Too many people are dead. ‘And it's not just on the Whites' property any more.' She smiles, but there's not a drop of humour in it. She says: ‘Ralph White was insured, and Margaret got a lot of money when he died †¦ double indemnity. He left the house insured, too, but she never got a penny of that. The damage was caused by an act of God. Poetic justice, huh?' She laughs a little, but there's no humour in that, either †¦ Found written repeatedly on one page of a Ewen Consolidated High School notebook owned by Carrie White: Everybody's guessed/that baby can't be blessed/'til she finally sees that she's like all the rest †¦ Carrie went into the house and closed the door behind her. Bright daylight disappeared and was replaced by brown shadows, coolness, and the oppressive smell of talcum powder. The only sound was the ticking of the Black Forest cuckoo clock in the living room. Momma had gotten the cuckoo clock with Green Stamps. Once, in the sixth grade, Carrie had set out to ask Momma if Green Stamps weren't sinful, but her nerve had failed her. She walked up the hall and put her coat in the closet. A luminous picture above the coathooks limned a ghostly Jesus hovering grimly over a family seated at the kitchen table. Beneath was the caption (also luminous): The Unseen Guest. She went into the living room and stood in the middle of the faded, starting-to-be-threadbare rug. She closed her eyes and watched the little dots flash by in the darkness. Her headache thumped queasily behind her temples. Alone. Momma worked on the speed ironer and folder down at the Blue Ribbon Laundry in Chamberlain Centre. She had worked there since Carrie was five, when the compensation and insurance that had resulted from her father's accident had begun to run out. Her hours were from seven-thirty in the morning until four in the afternoon. The laundry was Godless. Momma had told her so many times. The foreman, Mr Elton Mott, was especially Godless. Momma said that Satan had reserved a special blue corner of Hell for Elt, as he was called at the Blue Ribbon. Alone. She opened her eyes. The living room contained two chairs with straight backs. There was a sewing table with a light where Carrie sometimes made dresses in the evening while Momma tatted doilies and talked about The Coming. The Black Forest cuckoo clock was on the far wall. There were many religious pictures, but the one Carrie liked best was on the wall above her chair. It was Jesus leading lambs on a hill that was as green and smooth as the Riverside golf course. The others were not as tranquil: Jesus turning the money-changers from the temple, Moses throwing the Tablets down upon the worshippers of the golden calf, Thomas the Doubter putting his hand on Christ's wounded side (oh, the horrified fascination of that one and the nightmares it had given her as a girl!), Noah's ark floating above the agonized, drowning sinners, Lot and his family fleeing the great burning of Sodom and Gomorrah. On a small deal table there were a lamp and a stack of tracts. The top pamphlet showed a sinner (his spiritual status was obvious from the agonized expression on his face) trying to crawl beneath a large boulder. The title blared: Neither shall the rock hide him ON THAT DAY! But the room was actually dominated by a huge plaster crucifix on the far wall, fully four feet high. Momma had mail-ordered it special from St Louis. The Jesus impaled upon it was frozen in a grotesque, muscle-straining rictus of pain, mouth drawn down in a groaning curve. His crown of thorns bled scarlet streams down temples and forehead. The eyes were turned up in a medieval expression of slanted agony. Both hands were also drenched with blood and the feet were nailed to a small plaster platform. This corpus had also given Carrie endless nightmares in which the mutilated Christ chased her through dream corridors, holding a mallet and nails, begging her to take up her cross and follow Him. Just lately these dreams had evolved into something less understandable but more sinister. The object did not seem to be murder but something even more awful. Alone. The pain in her legs and belly and privates had drained away a little. She no longer thought she was bleeding to death. The word was menstruation, and all at once it seemed logical and inevitable. It was her Time of the Month. She giggled a strange, affrighted giggle in the solemn stillness of the flying room. It sounded like a quiz show. You too can win an all-expenses-paid trip to Bermuda on Time of the Month. Like the memory of the stones, the knowledge of menstruation seemed always to have been there, blocked but waiting. She turned and walked heavily upstairs. The bathroom had a wooden floor that had been scrubbed nearly white (Cleanliness is next to Godliness) and a tub on claw feet. Rust stains dripped down the porcelain below the chrome spout, and there was no shower attachment. Momma said showers were sinful. Carrie went in, opened the towel cabinet, and began to hunt purposefully but carefully, not leaving anything out of place. Momma's eyes were sharp. The blue box was in the very back, behind the old towels they didn't use any more. There was a fuzzily silhouetted woman in a long, filmy gown on the side. She took one of the napkins out and looked at it curiously. She had blotted the lipstick she stuck into her purse quite openly with these – once on a street corner. Now she remembered (or imagined she did) quizzical, shocked looks. Her face flamed. They had told her. The flush faded to a milky anger. She went into her tiny bedroom. There were many more religious pictures here, but there were more lambs and fewer scenes of righteous wrath. A Ewen pennant was tacked over the dresser. On the dresser itself was a Bible and a plastic Jesus that glowed in the dark. She undressed – first her blouse, then her hateful kneelength skirt, her slip, her girdle, her pettipants, her garter belt, her stockings, She looked at the pile of heavy clothes, their buttons and rubber, with an expression of fierce wretchedness. In the school library there was a stack of back issues of Seventeen and often she leafed through them, pasting an expression of idiotic casualness on her face. The models looked so easy and smooth in their short, kicky skirts, pantyhose, and frilly underwear with patterns on them. Of course easy was one of Momma's pet words (she knew what Momma would say to a question) to describe them. And it would make her dreadfully self-conscious, she knew that. Naked, evil, blackened with the sin of exhibitionism, the breeze blowing lewdly up the backs of her legs, inciting lust. And she knew that they would know how she felt. They always did. They would embarrass her somehow, push her savagely back into clowndom. It was their way. She could, she knew she could be (what) in another place. She was thick through the waist only because sometimes she felt so miserable, empty, bored, that the only way to fill that gaping, whistling hole was to eat and eat and eat-but she was not that thick through the middle. Her body chemistry would not allow her to go beyond a certain point. And she thought her legs were actually pretty, almost as pretty as Sue Snell's or Vicky Hanscom's. She could be (what o what o what) could stop the chocolates and her pimples would go down. They always did. She could fix her hair. Buy pantyhose and blue and green tights. Make little skirts and dresses from Butterick and Simplicity patterns. The price of a bus ticket, a train ticket. She could be, could be, could be Alive. She unsnapped her heavy cotton bra and let it fall. Her breasts were milk-white, upright and smooth. The nipples were a light coffee colour. She ran her hands over them and a little shiver went through her. Evil, bad, oh it was. Momma had told her there was Something. The Something was dangerous, ancient, unutterably evil. It could make you Feeble. Watch, Momma said. It comes at night. It will make you think of the evil that goes on in parking lots and roadhouses. But, though this was only nine-twenty in the morning, Carrie thought that the Something had come to her. She ran her hands over her breasts (dirtypillows) again, and the skin was cool but the nipples were hot and hard, and when she tweaked one it made her feel weak and dissolving. Yes, this was the Something. Her underpants were spotted with blood. Suddenly she felt that she must burst into tears, scream, or rip the Something out of her body whole and, beating, crush it, kill it. The napkin Miss Desjardin had fixed was already wilting and she changed it carefully, knowing how bad she was, how bad they were, how she hated them and herself. Only Momma was good. Momma had battled the Black Man and had vanquished him. Carrie had seen it happen in a dream. Momma had driven him out of the front door with a broom, and the Black Man had fled up Carlin Street into the night, his cloven feet striking red sparks from the cement. Her momma had torn the Something out of herself and was pure. Carrie hated her. She caught a glimpse of her own face in the tiny mirror she had hung on the back of the door, a mirror with a cheap green plastic rim, good only for combing hair by. She hated her face, her dull, stupid, bovine face, the vapid eyes, the red, shiny pimples, the nests of black heads. She hated her face most of all. The reflection was suddenly split by a jagged, silvery crack. The mirror fell on the floor and shattered at her feet, leaving only the plastic ring to stare at her like a blinded eye. From Ogilvie's Dictionary of Physic Phenomena: Telekinesis is the ability to move objects or to cause changes in objects by force of the mind. The phenomenon has most reliably been reported in times of crisis or in stress situations, when automobiles have been levitated from pinned bodies or debris from collapsed buildings, etc. The phenomenon is often confused with the work of poltergeists, which are playful spirits. It should be noted that poltergeists are astral beings of questionable reality, while telekinesis is thought to be an empiric function of the mind, possibly electrochemical in nature †¦ When they had finished making love, as she slowly put her clothes in order in the back seat of Tommy Ross's 1963 Ford, Sue Snell found her thoughts turning back to Carrie White. It was Friday night and Tommy (who was still looking pensively out the back window with his pants still down around his ankles; the effect was comic but oddly endearing) had taken her bowling. That, of course, was a mutually accepted excuse. Fornication had been on their minds from the word go. She had been going out more or less steadily with Tommy ever since October (it was now May) and they had been lovers for only two weeks. Seven times, she amended. Tonight had been the seventh. There had been no fireworks yet, no bands playing ‘Stars and Stripes Forever,' but it had gotten a little better. The first time had hurt like hell. Her girl friends, Helen Shyres and Jeanne Gault, had both done It, and they both assured her that it only hurt for a minute – like getting a shot of penicillin – and then it was roses. But for Sue, the first time had been like being reamed out with a hoe handle. Tommy had confessed to her since, with a grin, that he had gotten the rubber on wrong, too. Tonight was only the second time she had begun to feel something like pleasure, and then it was over. Tommy had held out for as long as he could, but then it was just†¦ over. It seemed like an awful lot of rubbing for a little warmth. In the aftermath she felt low and melancholy, and her thoughts turned to Carrie in this light. A wave of remorse caught her with all emotional guards down, and when Tommy turned back from the view of Brickyard Rill, she was crying. ‘Hey,' he said, alarmed. ‘Oh, hey.' He held her clumsily. ‘It's all right,' she said still weeping. ‘It's not you. I did a not-so-good thing today. I was just thinking of it.' ‘What?' He patted the back of her neck gently. So she found herself launching into the story of that morning's incident, hardly believing it was herself she was listening to. Facing the thing frankly, she realized the main reason she had allowed Tommy to have her was because she was in (love? infatuation? didn't matter results were the same) with him, and now to put herself in this position-cohort in a nasty shower-room joke-was hardly the approved method to hook a fellow. And Tommy was, of course, Popular. As someone who had been Popular herself all her life, it had almost seemed written that she would meet and fall in love with someone as Popular as she. They were almost certain to be voted King and Queen of the highschool Spring Ball, and the senior class had already voted them class couple for the yearbook. They had become a fixed star in the shifting firmament of the high school's relationships, the acknowledged Romeo and Juliet. And she knew with sudden hatefulness that there was one couple like them in every white suburban high school in America. And having something she had always longed for – a sense of place, of security, of status – she found that it carried uneasiness with it like a darker sister. It was not the way she had conceived it. There were dark things lumbering around their warm circle of light. The idea that she had let him fuck her (do you have to say it that way yes this time I do) simply because he was Popular, for instance. The fact that they fit together walking, or that she could look at their reflection in a store window and think. There goes a handsome couple. She was quite sure