Thursday, October 31, 2019

The Making of Disneyland Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Making of Disneyland - Essay Example This discussion stresses that beneath this feeling of joy and happiness lay a grim reality that plagued United States at that time. The author’s main argument is the prevalence of racial discrimination in the country. This racism found its way right into Disneyland. The recreational park housed Fantasyland; an area perhaps found in dreams.   However the same park demonstrated the existence of racism, an aspect that can be a nightmare for many.  This paper discusses that the author cites numerous instances that establish the prevalence of racism in Disneyland. At the outset, the author states that akin to the postwar suburbs, Disneyland was not meant for the blacks and other minorities. The theme park was specifically meant for the white, middle class families. The entry fee was exorbitant and therefore only the affluent could afford to visit Disneyland and have a pleasurable experience. The high fee ensured that Disneyland was accessible to an â€Å"economically† ho mogenous group. Disneyland was located near new freeways. However, it was catering to the all-white neighborhoods that had emerged in the San Fernando Valley and Orange Country, claims the author. The author has categorically stated that Disneyland was not meant for the ethnic minority residing in the inner city. The most compelling evidence of racial discrimination inside Disneyland emerges from the fact that Walt Disney did not employ African Americans at the park. This policy continued till the civil right protests of 1963.

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

Chinua Achebe Things Fall Apart Essay Example for Free

Chinua Achebe Things Fall Apart Essay He had a slight stammer and had no patience with unsuccessful men. Okonkwo’s fears were becoming like his father, Unoka because his father was a failure. The characteristics of his father was his father was poor and his wife and children had barely enough to eat and people laughed at him because he was a loafer and they swore never to lend him money again because he never paid it back. Unoka was inactive, deprived, wasteful, weak, moderate, and always very fascinated in music and conversation. Okonkwo on the other hand was the total opposite of his father, he just married his third wife, he was a wealthy farmer and had two barns full of yams last but not least he had taken two titles and had shown incredible prowess in two inter-tribal wars. 2. Kola is a stimulant, comparable to very strong tea or coffee, which is served on most social occasions in this culture. It is also one ingredient after which Coca Cola is named. Note how the ritual for sharing kola is described without being explained. Why do you think Achebe does this? He will continue to introduce Ibo customs in this fashion throughout the novel. * Achebe describes kola without explaining it because he wants the reader to know that Kola nuts plays a big part in the African culture due to the fact that in the book it states â€Å"He who bring Kola Nuts brings life†. Kola Nuts is to be presented to the titled man or a village head. This plays a very important social and ritual role in the Igbo culture. The kola-nuts are the highest symbol of Igbo hospitality. Whenever a kola-nut appears in a gathering, the matter to be discussed at that particular time is regarded as very important. When an important guest visits the community, kola-nuts are brought out and handed to the elder person. 3. One becomes influential in this culture by earning titles. As with the Potlatch Indians of our region and many other peoples, this is an expensive proposition which involves the dispersing most of ones painfully accumulated wealth. What do you think are the social functions of such a system? I believe the social functions of such a system is to show your people how far you have come as a person and how successful you are. So the more money that you spend it shows people how victorious you are. If you just have a regular old party without putting much money into it you aren’t that successful in other people’s eyes. 4. One of the most famous lines in the novel is proverbs are the palm-oil with which words are eaten. What does this mean? Palm oil is a rich yellow oil pressed from the fruit of certain palm trees and used both for fuel and cooking. Look for other proverbs as you read. Cowry shells threaded on strings were traditionally used as a means of exchange by many African cultures. The villages distance from the sea makes them sufficiently rare to serve as money. Cowries from as far away as Southeast Asia have been found in sub-Saharan Africa. * This important quote shows how the Igbo people use their art of rhetoric so plainly. The quote shows how our lifestyle is one of fast-paced conversations, yet the Igbo prize conversation as an art form. That art form shows how the Igbo people use rhetoric so plainly. We all know proverbs are meant to be well thought-out and intentional but not quickly digested and forgotten. In the quote the metaphor suggests that words are organized by proverbs for digestion. Palm oil was a common form of cooking oil, and many foods were prepared with it for use. For that reason, proverbs are the source by which words or conversations are made. The same value that they place on food, the nourishment of life, to words, the sustenance of communication and for these reasons the community.

Saturday, October 26, 2019

Simulation of IV Bag Decanting

Simulation of IV Bag Decanting Base Design and Equations The setup of the simulation is given below. The point at the top of the fluid in the IV bag is denoted with a subscript 1. The point at the exit of the catheter into the patient’s arm is denoted with a subscript 2. Assuming that the patient does not move his/her arm during the procedure, we can set point 2 as a static, whereas point 1 is moving dynamically as the bag empties. Bernoulli’s Equation in the units of energy is given as: Setting point 2 as the height of ground, excluding the pumping term and combining pressure terms into a pressure difference, but measuring PÂ ­1 and P2 in gauge pressure and assuming P1 to be atmospheric yields the following equation: Where Where For laminar flow (Re And for turbulent (Re > 2100): Mathematical Development Derivation of equations pertaining to the IV bag What is needed first is a way to find the volume of fluid still within the bag when only knowing the height of the fluid in the bag. Taking the central axis of the bag as an independent variable and viewing the radius of the bag at that point as a dependent variable yields the following straight line: Which has the equation: And performing a solid of revolution about the h axis: It is know that and that by mass balance assuming no accumulation in the pipe But: Finally for the frustum IV bag: Friction terms development Comparing the Reynold’s number in the pipe and the catheter: But by mass balance and assuming no accumulation: Which is always less than one. Therefore if flow in the catheter is laminar, then flow in the pipe has to be laminar too. This leaves 3 cases of flow in the system. The first is flow is laminar in the catheter and pipe. The second case is flow is turbulent in the catheter, but laminar in the pipe, or flow is turbulent for the catheter and pipe. For the first case where flow is laminar in both the catheter and the pipe: If the flow is turbulent in the catheter, then the friction term is the sum of the friction from the pipe and the catheter: Simulation Program Development Solving velocity of fluid leaving the catheter for any fluid height h The above Equations 1-9 are easily incorporated into matlab functions (Appendix A: Calculations functions). The first problem that the program must solve is calculating the instantaneous velocity of fluid out of the catheter at any height of fluid in the IV bag. First the flow in the catheter is assumed to be laminar (this is just a starting point for iterations). The correct velocity of the fluid leaving the catheter is the point here Equation 1 is stable. Since the equation contains a square root, for the answer to be reasonable then there has to be a positive root. i.e: Substituting equations 3 and 5 Since is very small, it’s square may be neglected (checked with given simulation values it was on the order of 10-10) The velocity that satisfies the stable solution of Equation 10 must therefore lie between 0 and for laminar flow speeds. This means that Equation 10 may be solved by bisection method, giving the instantaneous velocity out of the catheter for a certain height of fluid in the IV bag. If the maximum and minimum velocities do not generate the proper conditions required for the bisection method (one function value must produce a number greater than zero, and the other must generate a number below zero to imply a root between the two numbers on a continuous function), then the flow velocity must be such that the flow is turbulent in the catheter. If it is the case that flow must be turbulent in the catheter, then we can set an initial guess of v2 at the minimum velocity required to have turbulent flow in the catheter. Using this as an initial velocity, it can be iterated until a stable solution is found. See Appendix B for this programming logic. Comments have been added to aid understanding. Fluid flow out of the IV bag In order to calculate how fluid flows out of the IV bag, we set the program to take small time elements and determine the velocity of the fluid flowing out of the catheter for a set fluid height. Since that time element is small, we assumed that the velocity did not change appreciably in that small element. Volumetric flow is the product of linear velocity of flow and cross-sectional surface area, and assuming no accumulation in the pipe for mass balance: Now we need to know what the height is of the bag for that volume, which is simply the real root that solves Equation 2. This entire process is iterated for each time element until the bag empties or the fluid velocity leaving the catheter is zero. This logic may be found in Appendix C. Concatenating Results Finally a matrix is constructed that holds all data of the catheter fluid velocity, bag volume, fluid flow rate and height of fluid in the bag and is concatenated with a time vector. This resultant matrix now holds all of the data of the simulation, which is parsed to the primary class that is running the simulation to produce the graphs, and find numerical values for points on the graphs. Results of Simulation The following data was fed into matlab: P2 = 90.228/760*101325; Lcat = 43.703/1000; Dcat = 0.711/1000; Lpipe = 1.383; H = 22.8/100; R = 0.3829*H; hd = 1.377; Dpipe = 3/1000; rpipe = 0.5*Dpipe; mu = 1.142/1000; rho = 1017; X = calcX(R,H,rpipe); h0 = 0.8*X; beta = (R-rpipe)/X; The simulation was run using the following command to retrieve the results matrix: VhvQt = generateVhvtQMatrix(rho,Dcat,mu,Lpipe,Lcat,Dpipe,beta,h0,rpipe,9.81,hd,P2); Solution graphs were plotted as follows: plot(VhvQt(5,:),VhvQt(2,:)); xlabel(Time in seconds); ylabel(Height of fluid in bag in meters); Bag volume is row 1, height of bag is row 2, velocity of fluid in the catheter is row 3, flowrate is row 4 and row 5 is the time vector. To find the total time taken for the bag to empty, the command was used: VhvQt(5,end) = 3122 Similar commands were used to find exact datapoints at any period in time. Discussion of Simulation Results The values of the viscosity and density of the 5% w/v glucose solution – more commonly known as D5W, Dextrose 5 Water or Intravenous Sugar Solution, were looked up from Wolfram Alpha’s material database, and had the values of and . (Wolfram Alpha) The purpose of the simulation was to calculate and plot the graphs as well as answer how long it takes for the bag to drain. It took 3122 seconds for the bag to drain, or just over 52 minutes. At the last second of the simulation, the height of fluid in the bag was less than 4 millimetres, which corresponds to a volume of 0.045 mL. Figures 3-5 all show a negative exponential function, which is to be expected since the flow rate is a function of the head pressure, which is a function of the conical shape of the bag. Initially, the high flow rate that corresponds with the higher head of fluid does not change very much, as the level of fluid in the cone does not drop significantly quickly. However, after about 2500 seconds (80% through the time of the simulation), the velocity of fluid leaving the catheter begins to change. While this change is clearly not linear, it is not really significant when compared to the absolute changes in values. From the start of the simulation until 80% through the simulation (2500 seconds), the velocity of fluid in the catheter only changes from 0.8655 to 0.6922 m/s, or 20.02%. It is only in the last period of time just before the bag empties is there a significant change in the velocity of fluid entering the patient, with the final velocity being 0.4707 m/s just as the bag empties, which is itself only a change of 45.62%. This phenomenon is most apparent in Figure 6, where it can be seen that the volume of fluid left in the bag appears to decant at an almost linear rate (differential of volume/time is flow rate). Only just after 2500 seconds does the steepness of the graph very slightly begin to change upward indicated a slow in the flow rate of fluid leaving the bag. This phenomenon does, however, make sense. The height that the bag is lifted above the catheter is hd = 1.377 meters. The height of fluid in the bag at the start of the procedure is h0 = 0.1793m, or only 13.20% of hd. The means that the driving force behind the IV procedure (which is the height above the IV bag is placed above the catheter in the patient’s arm) that creates the pressure difference to overcome the venous pressure of blood in the patient’s veins only changes by 13.2%, and remains changed by only 20.02 % during the initial 80% of the procedure – in other words, it doesn’t change by much, and therefore we expect that the flow rate won’t change very much until very close to the end of the procedure, which is what we see in Figure 3. In real world application, this means that in general the flow rate of IV solution to the patient is mostly a function of how high above the patient the IV bag is placed, and not necessarily how empty or full the bag its self is. In fact, general practise used by doctors is simply to place the IV bag above the heart level of the patient (Dr. Chen-Maynard, 1999). In application, a desired flow rate of IV fluid into the patient may controlled by lowering or lifting the IV bag a certain height above the patient. Nomenclature References Dr. Chen-Maynard, P. R. (1999). Calculating Parenteral Feedings. California: California Department of Health Science and Human Ecology. Wolfram Alpha. (n.d.). Comprehensive Material Data Sheet for D5W. Retrieved April 28, 2014, from http://www.wolframalpha.com/input/?i=5%+(w/v)+glucose

Friday, October 25, 2019

The Roman Empire :: essays research papers

The Roman Empire When the ancient Greeks were reaching the height of their glory, the power of Rome, to the west, was slowly rising. The Romans were best in warfare, engineering, and government. Rome rose to power gradually, with no set plan for world conquest. The Romans fought many wars and enslaved many people. By the time of Augustus, shortly before Christ, most of the known world was unified and at peace under Roman rule. The Kings of Early Rome The early Romans didn’t keep any written records. There are only two existing documents, which give the continuous early history of Rome. The old legends say that Romulus founded the city in 753 BC when the settlements on the seven hills were united. Under his heir, the Romans conquered Alba Longa, the religious center of the Latin civilizations. During the rule of Ancus Martius, a number of annoying Latin cities were conquered, and their people were brought to Rome. The Etruscan Conquest Shortly before 600 BC, Rome was conquered by several Etruscan princes from across the Tiber River. Tarquinius Priscus drained the city's marshes. The last of the kings of Rome, Tarquinius Superbus, was a dictator who opposed the people. Under the rule of the Etruscans Rome grew in importance and power. Great temples and impressive public works were built. Rome had become the largest and richest city in Italy. Period of Conquest It was only a tiny city-state, much like the city-states that were growing at the same time in Greece. The common citizens were called the plebs or plebeians. They marched out of Rome in a body and threatened to make a new city in 494 BC. In 350 BC the plebeians were admitted to the dictatorship. The Roman Senate has been called the "most distinguished and important political body, which has ever existed in the world." Political Struggle The struggle for political power was the economic struggle between rich and poor. Gradually, reforms were forced through. Compelled at first to fight for its very existence against powerful neighbors, Rome gradually fought its way to the leadership of the Italian civilizations. Success of Rome Slowed Down By Gauls The successful progress of Rome received a temporary difficulty in 390 BC when wandering Gauls advanced through the center of Etruria. In another century Rome conquered their whole territory. Only southern Italy remained independent. Fearful at the spread of Roman power, the Greek cities appealed to Pyrrhus.

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Microsoft Corp.’s Pricing Policies Essay

Executive Summary This case study focused on the Microsoft Corporation and charges made by their competitors, the Federal Trade Commission, and the Department of Justice of antitrust violations and a monopoly of the computer operating systems and applications software, software development tools (e.g., programming language software), and hardware peripherals (e.g., Microsoft Mouse) that Microsoft specializes in. It focused on numerous issues that would lead one to believe that Microsoft was in fact monopolizing the entire industry they were in. . In order to adequately discuss and analyze the issues of this case, I have broken this paper up into four separate sections. Section 1 – Key Terms & Concepts: Description of the key terms & concepts that pertain to this case Section 2 – The Case Against Microsoft: Identify the facts and information that support my case against Microsoft Section 3 – The Defense of Microsoft: Identify certain facts and information that support a defense of Microsoft Section 4 – Discussion: What I have learned from the case After reading this case study, I went back to the email that I received from you and went over the questions that you suggested we consider. The first question was: If you were the DOJ how would you build a case against Microsoft or a dominant leader? I will attempt to do this in Section 2 – The Case Against Microsoft. The second question was: If you were Microsoft how might you defend yourself against DOJ claims? I will cover this in Section 3 – The Defense of Microsoft. I will attempt to show why it was very necessary for the DOJ to bring a case of monopoly and antitrust violations against Microsoft. In doing this, I will attempt to put myself into Microsoft’s shoes and defend their claims that they have not created a monopoly. Section 1 1. Key Terms & Concepts The reason I decided to include these terms and concepts was to make it easier for me to write this paper and use certain terms without describing them each time I used them in my paper. Department of Justice, Antitrust Division: The Assistant Attorney General for Antitrust, a presidential appointee, ran the Antitrust Division of the DoJ. When the Division thought the evidence was sufficiently persuasive, it brought criminal charges. The Division also entered into negotiations with businesses to end litigation in exchange for consent decrees in civil cases, or nolo contendere (no contest) please in criminal cases DOJ: Department of Justice: The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) is a Cabinet department in the United States government designed to enforce the law and defend the interests of the United States according to the law and to ensure fair and impartial administration of justice for all Americans (http://en.wikipedia. Org /wiki / United_States_Department_of_Justice) DOS: Disc Operating System FTC – Federal Trade Commission: The FTC enforces federal antitrust and consumer protection laws by investigating complaints against individual companies initiated by consumers, businesses, congressional inquiries, or reports in the media (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Trade_Commission) ISVs: Independent Software Vendors MS-DOS: Microsoft Operating Systems NDAs: Non-disclosure agreements OEMs: Original Equipment Manufacturers OS: Operating Systems PC: Personal Computer Sherman Anti-Trust Act: it made illegal any form of contract or combination between entities in regards to trade and commerce that would have the effect of restraining trade. And it also put responsibility on government attorneys and district courts to pursue and investigate trusts http://en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/ Sherman _ Antitrust_Act) The Clayton Act of 1914: The Clayton Act was designed to prevent monopoly in the beginning rather than to remedy its effects. To accomplish this goal, Congress authorized antitrust prosecutions whenever business practices â€Å"may†¦substantially lessen competition or tend to create a monopoly in any line of commerce, in any section of the country.† Section Two of the act forbade sellers from discriminating in price – selling goods of like grade and quality to different buyers at different prices – when such differences were neither cost justified nor necessary to â€Å"meet competition.† Section Three limited the use of tying and â€Å"exclusive dealing† contracts. Tying contracts required purchasers or leases to acquire a second, separate product in order to obtain the desired product. Exclusive dealing contracts obliged a purchaser or lessee not to deal in products of competitors Vaporware: is software or hardware which is announced by a developer well in advance of release, but which then fails to emerge, either with or without a protracted development cycle. The term implies deception, or at least a negligent degree of optimism; that is, it implies that the announcer knows that product development is in too early a stage to support responsible statements about its completion date, feature set, or even feasibility (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vaporware) Section 2 2. The Case Against Microsoft In order to make my case against Microsoft and prove that they are most assuredly in violation of monopoly and anti-trust regulations, I will answer the following questions: 1. Is this a case of monopoly? 2. Is this case a violation of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act? Is this a case of monopoly? When I began considering my approach to this paper, I first thought about situations where I was absolutely sure I had been the â€Å"victim† of a monopoly. In order to do this, I first had to make sure that I fully understood exactly what a monopoly was. The American Heritage ® Dictionary defines a monopoly as â€Å"Exclusive control by one group of the means of producing or selling a commodity or service†. In simpler terms, I have always thought of a monopoly as a big corporation doing its best to â€Å"screw-over† the little guy (A.K.A the customer) by doing its best to make as much money as possible. The first situation that came to mind when I thought of a monopoly was how the Comcast cable company had a virtual strangle-hold on the cable service in my home’s area. Since they had â€Å"exclusive control †¦of the means of producing or selling a commodity or service†, in this case they were the only cable provider in our area, you were forced to settle for Comcast’s service unless you had satellite television or you were willing to settle for the wonderfully fuzzy reception from the antiquated â€Å"rabbit ear† antennas of years past. As a result, we unfortunately had to deal with Comcast’s horrible service and always rising rates. Luckily for us, another competitor came in to the picture when WOW! (Wide Open West Internet-Cable-Phone) set up service in our area. We switched cable providers almost immediately and we couldn’t have been happier. They have provided excellent customer service and their rates are consistently lower  than Comcast’s. As a consumer, we definitely benefited from the increased competition and eventual abolishment of the cable company monopoly in our area. With that out of the way, I was forced to look at whether or not Microsoft had a monopoly in their particular industry. Based on the information in this case, I cannot say that Microsoft has a monopoly on any single entire industry. Do they dominate the majority of endeavors that they choose to participate in? Of course they do. Just look at some of these numbers: As you can see from Table 1, Microsoft dominates the market shares of suite software in the United States. The only problem with these numbers is the fact that they are limited in their time range. In my experience, three years is a long enough time to make an approximate forecast for future happenings, from a financial standpoint. However, that is from a transportation and supply-chain perspective where the main variable happens to be the customer’s shipping fluctuations. In a volatile and constantly evolving market such as software development, these numbers could sway tremendously with the introduction of a new and sought after product or changes in consumer wants and desires. Table 2 shows the financial numbers of Microsoft and three of their competitors: This also tells a lot about Microsoft’s market dominance, but this time from a financial standpoint. Two things that stand out to me in this table are the fact that Microsoft has almost twice as much net revenue than their nearest competitor (Microsoft has 4,649 and Novell has 1,998). The second thing that jumped out to me is the fact that all of the competitors show an increase in net revenue from 1984 to 1994. Based on the growth of Microsoft’s competitors (which there are more than one), I feel confident in saying that Microsoft does not have a monopoly in their industry. They do not meet the standard set forth by the simple definition in the dictionary of â€Å"Exclusive control by one group of the means of producing or selling a commodity or service†. As you can clearly see from the tables, Microsoft  does not have exclusive control of the means of producing or selling a commodity or service. However, Microsoft does in fact hold a monopoly on many other counts, one of which is that Microsoft Windows, the Microsoft OS, is installed on most personal computers that can be purchased from Dell, Hewlett Packard, Compaq, and the like. Because this OS comes pre-installed, we as the consumers do not have much of a choice and there is not much of an alternative for us to go with unless we want to switch to an Apple Macintosh OS. Although Microsoft isn’t a natural monopoly in the classically defined or economic sense that I’ve identified above, it is a natural monopoly in the land of cyberspace. Microsoft is the path of least resistance for government, consumers, and programmers alike. Microsoft may have many faults, but they make a lot of things easier too. Most of us are willing to accept a monopoly such as Microsoft has for increased convenience and usability. Microsoft is a one-product company, no matter how it may sometimes appear. Their success is fundamentally due to the success of Windows. It rose to power with one product, and it resides there because of the success of that product. Unfortunately for us, this is not only the best product on the market, it is the only true alternative for us to use. In my book, regardless of the textbook definition, this constitutes a monopoly by Microsoft. Is this a case a violation of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act? As I stated in Section 1, the Sherman Anti-Trust Act makes â€Å"illegal any form of contract or combination between entities in regards to trade and commerce that would have the effect of restraining trade†. Based on this case and the readings from week #7, there is proof that Microsoft did violate the Sherman Anti-Trust Act, particularly Sections 1 and 2 of the Act. Section One prohibited contracts, combinations and conspiracies â€Å"in restraint of trade† while Section Two outlawed monopolies and attempts to monopolize. Microsoft violated the Sherman Anti-Trust Act by illegally using its market power to restrain trade in the high tech industry. A filing from the DOJ on December 19, 1999 stated that â€Å"Microsoft engaged in illegal conduct in five separate ways: * by tying browser sales to sales of the operating system; * by using its market power to illegally maintain a monopoly; * by attempting to monopolize the browser market; * by imposing exclusive dealing arrangements between itself and Internet service providers and/or developers; and * by imposing first boot-up and screen restrictions on computer makers.† http://news.com.com/2100-1001-233992.html The DOJ filing in December of 1999 shows exactly why Microsoft was in violation of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act. Some of the things that Microsoft has done that clearly violate the act include, but are certainly not limited to: Microsoft customers upgrading their copies of Microsoft Office at the Microsoft website, but using the competition’s web browser, are greeted with a message insisting on the use of MSIE for the â€Å"full edition† of the update. On November 18, 1998 the digital greeting card company Blue Mountain Arts discovered that beta versions of Microsoft’s Outlook Express (which comes free with Internet Explorer) were automatically filing Blue Mountain’s e-mail greeting cards into the â€Å"junk† folder rather than the â€Å"inbox.† Shortly afterwards, Blue Mountain Arts discovered that Microsoft’s WebTV service was blocking their e-mail greeting cards as well. When the courts ordered Microsoft to ship Windows without an integrated Internet Explorer, the company â€Å"complied† by offering a non-functional version of the OS, claiming that the browser was now so completely  integrated into Windows to remove it was tantamount to â€Å"breaking† the operating system. -All three of these examples were taken from the following website: http://www.vcnet. com /bms/departments/dirtytricks.shtml To summarize, I’ve identified the following facts: Microsoft does have a monopoly in their industry Microsoft did violate Acts 1 and 2 of the Sherman Anti-trust Act It is convenient for Microsoft to say that their success is solely based on them being able to produce good products. Although they do devote extraordinary resources to improving their technologies, they also work diligently to stifle growth and in-roads from their competition. Section 3 3. The Defense of Microsoft – I am not going to spend a great deal of time attempting to defend Microsoft. They have spent millions and millions of dollars working tirelessly to do it themselves. Furthermore, I firmly believe that they have established a monopoly and that this monopoly serves to futher one parties interests: Microsoft’s. However, I did some research online and came up with the following paragraph from an article titled â€Å"The Microsoft Antitrust Suit† written by Peter Tracey. In it, he wrote â€Å"The persecution of Microsoft is an assault on the free market, and on the intelligence of the American people. It is the result of long-held envy by Microsoft’s competitors, including Netscape and Oracle. It is in violation of the constitution, being both ex post facto and vague (Getman). The governments persecution of Microsoft should be stopped, moreover, the antitrust legislation that has exposed business to unfair and unreasonable practices should be repealed.† (http://www.levelthreesolutions.com/ peter/msantitrust.html) In Microsoft’s opinion, the government should not get involved in determining what means a company uses to produce their products. They feel that they have been able to succeed through hard work, tenancity, and superior products. Although it may be â€Å"unfortunate† for their competitiors, Microsoft feels that â€Å"if you can’t stand the heat, stay out of the kitchen.† In essence, Microsoft makes the most money doing what they do by taking solid ideas from other people, such as the Disc Operating System, and making them better. Microsoft doesn’t monopolize the industry. They simply work harder, take risks, and capitalize where other companies have floundered. Section 4 4. Discussion – Before I discuss this particular case study, I must tell you that I have always been a big fan of Microsoft and Bill Gates. I have enjoyed the relatively cheap cost of Microsoft’s software such as Microsoft Excel and Word. I have also felt that with each successive upgrade of these products I have only been able to improve my performance both at work and school. I also thought it was impressive that Bill Gates could take his ideas, push forward with his undefeatable will, and become one of the richest people in the entire world. However, this case study and the analysis that I’ve done with it has really opened my eyes to the â€Å"seamy† side of Microsoft and Bill Gates. I was so moved by this case that I even went and downloaded one of Microsoft’s few internet browser competitors, Netscape, to compare it’s product with Internet Explorer. When my wife asked me what my paper was I about I told her it was about Microsoft and whether or not they were a monopoly in the industry. Her very quick and wry response said it so perfectly: â€Å"Duh, of course they are. Even I know that.† I think this says it all so succinctly. Do I think Microsoft needs to be disbanded or separated in to two different operating companies? Not really. Like I said before, I enjoy Microsoft’s products and I use them constantly. In fact, I am writing  this paper using one of Microsoft’s products, Microsoft Word. I just honestly think that fair competition and a level playing field for Microsoft’s competitors would only benefit the consumer in the long run. More people with new insights will be given the chance to expand the technology already in place. Too many companies are skittish about taking on Microsoft because of the monopoly and the fear of being annihilated. Finally, I have learned that cases of anti-trust and monopoly are not always as clear cut as one may think. I always thought that Microsoft had a clear monopoly and that there was nothing any of us could ever do to remedy it. I also really didn’t care as long as they continued to improve Windows and the accompanying Office Suite. I can see now that competition in all economic arenas, whether it is cable television or fast-food or computer software, is important, no vital, for lower prices and increased technological growth.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

The State of The Canadian Econ essays

The State of The Canadian Econ essays The Canadian Economy has been shaken, stirred and chilled. Stocks have crashed, jaws have fallen, and it has taken years off the lives of some buisnessmen. Even though there are many fears that of a recession is due, because of the state of the United States economy, it is safe to say at this time we are secure but we have a rocky road ahead. I feel that there will be a growth at about 3%. Jean Chretien states that he is not worried at all about a recession, with consumer confidence running high, our economy is running smooth. Chretien says that we are in a surplus position, we are paying down the debt, taxes will be reduced, and the country is being prepared for the year 2001. We are standing in a good position, as long as we can keep consumer spending up, taxes down and a comfortable surplus, we will continue to be safe from recession. Canadas economy shows the best results in five months in October, Economic growth has soared since 1998, and has continued to rise. Though analysts caution a slowdown is ahead, because of the United States consumer sales drop, because of our high consumer spending and positive economic growth, we will continue to sit secure through the recession scare. Ontarios Finance Minister Ernie Eves has found $1.4 billion, using one billion towards Ontarios debt, taking it down to $112 billion. With Ontarios flourishing economy, which has grown 5.5%. The Finance Minister received an extra $2 billion in revenue, and this is expected to grow 3.7% in 2001. The jobless rate dropped 6.8% in December, meaning that consumer spending will rise, and government spending will drop (welfare numbers will fall), which means for now we are secure, the only worry is the fall of the United States economy. As the economy drops, growth slows down thus ensuring a drop in jobless rate and consumer spending. The clouds towards a recession ...

Monday, October 21, 2019

Preparation of 2-Acetylcyclohexanone Essays

Preparation of 2-Acetylcyclohexanone Essays Preparation of 2-Acetylcyclohexanone Paper Preparation of 2-Acetylcyclohexanone Paper Introduction3 Results4 Discussion6 Conclusion7 Experimental7 References8 Preparation of 2-Acetylcyclohexanone Introduction When hydrogens are present on the ? -carbon of ketones (like the reaction used in this experiment), carbonyl compounds and aldehydes, they turn the compound slightly acidic1. These functional groups are removed by using a basic solution as shown in (i) below1. The product formed with water is stable only due to resonance, but does not form a very stable equilibrium. Enamine reactions are used to avoid many problems usually associated with alkylating or acylating carbonyl compounds when they are reacted with aqueous sodium hydroxide1 as shown in reactions (ii) and (iv)1. The main problem being that the reaction results in a great number of crucial secondary side reactions, such as those in equations (iii), (iv) and (vi), and this in turn results in the main product formed in (i) being only available in small amounts because of the previously mentioned unstable equilibrium, while nucleophile OH- in equation (iii) is much higher1. When the OH- reacts with alkyl halide (iii) or acyl halide (iv), the conjugate base will tend to react with the unreacted carbonyl compound by means of an aldol condensation reaction as shown in equation (vi)1. Results Preparation of the enamine PyrrolidineCyclohexanone Molecular formula: C4H9NMolecular formula: C6H10O Volume: 4. 0 ml+. Volume: 5. 0 ml Density: 0. 87 g cm-3Density: 0. 95 g cm-3 Boiling point: 87? CBoiling point: 156? C Masses were worked out using densities: Mass cyclohexanone = 0. 947g/ml x 5ml = 4. 739g Therefore moles = mass/molar mass = 4. 739g/98. 15g mol-1 = 0. 483 moles Mass pyrrolidine = 0. 866g/mol x 4. 0 ml = 3. 464g Therefore moles = mass/molar mass = 3. 464 / 71. 11g mol-1 Addition of the acetic anhydride EnamineAcetic Anhydride Molecular formula: C10H9N Molecular formula: C4H6O3 ¬ (2) Volume: 4. 5 ml Density: 1. 08 g cm-3 (2) Molecular Weight: 102. 1 g/mol Boiling point: 139. 8? C(2) Moles : 0. 04760 moles Acetic anhydride is the limiting reagent The s toichiometric ratio of acetic anhydride to 2 acetylcyclohexanone is 1:1 Preparation of 2-Acetylcyclohexanone 1-pyrrolidino-1-cyclohexene2-Acetylcyclohexanone Molecular Weight: 151. 25 g mol-1 Molecular Weight: 140. 18 g mol ¬-1 Mass: 0. 14g Moles: 0. 04760 moles The stoichiometric ratio of acetic anhydride to 2 acetylcyclohexanone is 1:1, therefore there is 0. 04760 moles of 2-acetylcyclohexanone. Theoretical mass of 2-acetylcyclohexanone = 0. 04760mol x 140. 18g/mol = 6. 673g Percentage yield = Actual yield/ Theoretical yield x 100 = 0. 14g/6. 673g x 100 = 2. 10% Discussion As previously mentioned, aldehydes and ketones will tend to react with primary amines in order to form an imine, as can be seen in step 2 below. Enamines are very easily alkylated due to them being very nucleophillic1. The first step entails the reaction of pyrrolidine and cyclohexanone with p-Toluenesulfonic acid to form a toluene solution of the enamine as shown below. Step 1: Reaction of pyrrolidine and cyclohexanone with p-Toluenesulfonic acid to form a toluene solution of the enamine The second step involves the reaction of the toluene solution of the enamine with acetic anhydride to form 1-pyrrolidino-1-cyclohexene, which is the intermediate of the reaction. This intermediate is not seen as it cannot be isolated due to it being very unstable. Step 2: Reaction of the enamine with the acetic anhydride to form 1-pyrrolidinocyclohexene (the intermediate) The third and final step is the reaction of the intermediate(1-pyrrolidino-1-cyclohexene) with water in order to form final product 2-acetylcyclohexanone. Step 3: 1-pyrrolidino-1-cyclohexene (the intermediate) reacts with water in order to form 2-acetylcyclohexanone. The product was isolated by means of using a separator funnel. The solution was cooled till it was room temperature and transferred to a seperatory funnel. 10 ml water was also added to the funnel and the contents were mixed thoroughly by inverting the funnel several times and releasing the gas build-up pressure by releasing the valve on the stopcock. The aqueous layer was the bottom layer due to it being higher in density than the organic layer and was disposed of in a beaker. Similarly, the organic layer was rinsed with three portions of hydrochloric acid (3M) and finally rinsed again with water (10 ml). The organic layer was transferred to a clean 250 ml beaker and dried over MgSO4 – MgSO4 was added until it stopped clumping together at the bottom of the beaker in solution. The MgSO4 drying agent was then filtered off by vacuum suction. The melting point range obtained in the experiment was 110-119? C, which is not the same as the theoretical boiling point of 138? C. This could be due to impurities present in the sample, like water, which would lower the boiling point. The % yield was particularly low and could be attributed to insufficient reflux of the enamine solution that was supposed to have een refluxed for a minimum of half an hour, but due to time constraints, was only refluxed for 20 minutes. Another way to make 2-acetylcyclohexanone is by using a suspension of tellurium chloride and chloroform4 Conclusion There are three steps in the mechanism to forming 2-acetylcyclohexanone. These are reacting pyrrolidine and cyclohexanone with p-Toluenesulfonic acid to form a tol uene solution of the enamine, reaction of the enamine with the acetic anhydride to form 1-pyrrolidinocyclohexene, and reacting 1-pyrrolidino-1-cyclohexene (the intermediate) with water in order to form 2-acetylcyclohexanone. The melting point range obtained experimentally was 110-119? C and is very different from the theoretical melting point range due to errors that have occurred during the procedure of the practical and are explained in the discussion above. The particularly low % yield of 2. 10% is due to insufficient reflux time. Experimental Preparation of the toluene solution of the enamine A 100ml round bottomed flask was pre-weighed, after which cyclohexanone (5. 0ml), pyrrolidine (4. 0ml), toluene-4-sulfonic acid (0. 1g) and 40 ml toluene were added to it. boiling chips were also added to the reagent mixture so as to prevent loss of product due to splashing and boiling of the product. The Dean and Stark apparatus was set up individually by each student. The 100 ml round bottomed flask with reagent mixture was then fit to the Dean and Stark apparatus with a reflux condenser fit to the top of the apparatus. The reflux condenser was fit with a calcium chloride drying tube in order to prevent atmosp heric moisture from reacting with the contents of the round bottomed flask, and also to serve as a means to relieve pressure formed during the reaction. A heating mantle was used to heat the round bottomed flask till a vigorous reflux of the toluene, with vapour rising up the condenser was observable. It was observed that the water that formed as a result of the reaction of the toluene reflux collected in the trap portion of the Dean and Stark trap apparatus. Once the solution was boiling, reflux was continued for an hour. During this waiting period, a solution of acetic anhydride (4. 5 ml) in toluene (10 ml) was prepared. Once reflux was complete after one hour, the solution was cooled till it could be handled comfortably and the Dean and Stark apparatus was removed. While waiting for the flask to cool, the distillation setup was prepared by re-positioning the condenser with both a receiver and receiver flask. The now cooled round bottomed flask was fit with a thermometer attached by means of a still head and fit to the distillation setup. The flask was once again heating using a heating mantle to distil pyrrolidine and water that was still present. Distillation was continued until the temperature reached 108-110? C. Thereafter, the round bottomed flask was allowed to cool down to room temperature after removing it from the distillation setup and removing the still head with thermometer. Preparation of the 2-Acetylcyclohexanone The acetic anhydride solution that had been previously prepared was then added to the round bottom flask containing the enamine solution while stirring and was further stirred for 15 minutes. Water (5 ml) and 3 boiling chips was then added to the flask and fit with a reflux condenser. This new reagent mixture containing intermediate product enamine was heated under reflux for a full 30 minutes once the solution came to a boil. This was the stopping point for day 1 of the experiment. The round bottomed flask was labelled and stoppered for continuation of the experiment on the following week. On day 2 of the experiment, the content of the round bottomed flask was transferred to a separating funnel. Water (10 ml) was used to rinse the round bottomed flask and this rinsing was added to the separating funnel. The content of the funnel was mixed well and the gas was released by opening the stopcock. The aqueous layer was the lower layer and was separated from the organic layer, which remained in the funnel. Similarly, the organic layer was rinsed with three portions of hydrochloric acid (3M) and finally rinsed again with water (10 ml). The organic layer was transferred to a clean 250 ml beaker and dried over MgSO4 – MgSO4 was added until it stopped clumping together at the bottom of the beaker in solution. The MgSO4 drying agent was then filtered off by vacuum suction. The vacuum distillation setup was then prepared and the filtered solution was transferred to this setup in order to distil off the toluene at its boiling point of 110? C at 760 mmHg pressure. The remaining residue was put in a very small round bottomed flask. This flask was attached to a short path condenser with 3 anti-bumping granules added to the flask. 3 very small receiver flasks were preweighed before the product was flame distilled. Flame distillation took place under reduced pressure by means of using the bench vacuum. different fractions of product during the distillation were collected in 3 different receiver flasks. The temperature range that each of the fractions were collected at were recorded. The added masses of the product collected in all three flasks were used. References 1. courses. chem. psu. edu/chem36/Chem36H/IndivExpt1/435%20Acetylcyclohexanone. pdf – Accessed 11/08/08 2. http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Acetic_anhydride – Accessed 11/08/08 3. P. Y Bruice, Organic Chemistry, 4th Edition, Pearson Education Inc. , 2004, USA pgs 747-753 4. freepatentsonline. com/4355097. html

Sunday, October 20, 2019

Persuasive Eassy †Marijuana Debate

Persuasive Eassy – Marijuana Debate Free Online Research Papers In Virginia, there is controversial debate over the use of marijuana for medical purposes. The advantages for some people using marijuana for medical reasons are, it eases their pain, and relaxes them so they can enjoy their lives. For some terminally ill patients the marijuana also makes them happier and more enjoyable to be around. The disadvantage is that after smoking it for an extended period the majority of the patients could develop lung cancer, but is not so bad considering that the patients are already terminally ill. My standpoint on this subject is that it is a good idea for marijuana to be used as a medical drug for the treatment in terminal illnesses. Of all the reformations that should be made, the legalization of marijuana is perhaps the most necessary. One of the most important reasons for legalizing marijuana is the benefit to the medical community (National Academy Press). It has been proven that marijuana can greatly reduce some of the effects of cancer. In addition, marijuana has prolonged the lives of people who were diagnosed as terminally ill. Many people also rely on the drug to ease their pain and suffering (National Academy Press). Another important benefit of marijuana is its usefulness in reducing nausea in chemotherapy patients. Marijuana helps patients more than any other prescribed drug currently available. Nearly half of the doctors who were asked said they have suggested using marijuana, or would prescribe it if it were legal. As more and more research comes in about marijuana, people are starting to realize that it can help patients with other medical problems (National Academy Press). Medical marijuana has been used for years. It has been found as far back as 1,600 years ago. Marijuana was used for many different reasons. For patients in chemotherapy marijuana has been used to give them their appetites back and reduce the nausea (Cannabis). People with severe headaches may also be prescribed marijuana. Marijuana can be used on patients with sleeping or eating disorders too. Yet, in most states it is illegal to even prescribe marijuana. Yet in 1988 our own DEA’s administrative Judge Frances Young said, â€Å"Marijuana is one of the safest therapeutically active substances known to man†. He also said â€Å"marijuana in its natural form is far safer than many foods we commonly consume† (National Academy Press). Tobacco has no medical uses at all. Some say tobacco relieves stress and helps reduce the appetite. Other than that, tobacco has no use of any kind at all. About 50 percent of incoming college, freshmen have admitted to using marijuana. And about 40 percent of them smoke it on a regular basis (National Academy Press). The question is why is marijuana illegal and tobacco legal? Marijuana has been known as a â€Å"gateway drug†, meaning it leads to use of other harder drugs (National Academy Press). This is not true. It truly depends on the person whether they are going to do other drugs. People who smoke marijuana do not have a higher chance of getting addicted or even trying cocaine or heroin than non-users. Many negative facts have been told of marijuana, mostly by the tobacco industry, which are false (National Academy Press). Why is the tobacco industry so concerned with marijuana and its negative effects? It is because the tobacco industry is trying to take some of the attention off their product and point the finger at marijuana. Marijuana is healthier, safer, and has more medical use than tobacco does (Internet Mental Healt h). Most illegal drugs, such as cocaine and heroin, are mixed with many different chemicals, but not marijuana. Marijuana is grown from the ground. No chemicals are added during or after the growing process, just sunlight and water is needed for the plant to grow. Once the plant reaches its peak, it is taken down and hung up to dry for a long period. After that, it is ready to be enjoyed and smoked by its users. But in tobacco they mix in many unneeded harmful chemicals. One of these chemicals is nicotine, which is highly addictive (Internet Mental Health). This is the chemical that keeps the tobacco smokers coming back for more, and more, which keeps the tobacco companies happy and well paid. You may ask why is this chemical in tobacco. The reason is just so tobacco users cannot quit smoking when they try, but are stuck smoking until they die (Internet Mental Health). Today millions of young kids, teens, and adults are addicted physically to tobacco and yet it is impossible to become physically addicted to marijuana. Physical addiction is where the body thinks it needs the nicotine to survive, so when you just stop the body is not used to not having it in your system and withdrawal symptoms may occur. When one tries to stop the use of tobacco products withdrawal symptoms may occur including rapid pulse, increased hand tremor, insomnia, nausea, physical agitations, anxiety, illusions, and seizures (Internet Mental Health). These symptoms may occur for months after stopping the use of tobacco. Also, tobacco leaves radioactive materials in your lungs, which over time is what causes cancer (Cannabis). No radioactive materials are present in marijuana smoke. The tar in marijuana smoke only contains 33% less tar as tobacco (Cannabis). Also, when marijuana is smoked, it breaks down other tars in your lungs, including other marijuana and tobacco tars. Tob acco makes the lungs air passages smaller and can cause them to constrict, unlike marijuana. Continuous tobacco use causes the air passageways to eventually close up making it impossible to breath. And in the end tobacco kill you. Another negative effect of nicotine is that it causes negative effects on the heart and circulatory systems. What the nicotine does is causes the veins and arteries in your body to constrict (Cannabis). This may lead to a stroke or heart attack. Tobacco use causes the body many problems. There has never been an overdose of marijuana. To overdose on marijuana you would have to smoke over a pound in an hour of high quality marijuana. That is physically impossible. This is true because the active chemical in marijuana is delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). â€Å"THC is one of the few chemicals for which there is no known toxic amount† (Cannabis), meaning content of THC in marijuana is not high enough to cause death. Tobacco, on the other hand, can kill a person by an overdose. People have managed to overdose by using dermal patches and smoking tobacco at the same time (Cannabis). Nicotine is a dangerous drug and should not be used at all. Many people think that marijuana makes you less intelligent. The largest study of cannabis to date showed that they are wrong. It was proven that heavy long-term users scored slightly higher on IQ tests, had a lower illness rate, lower chance of developing cancer, and an increased life span compared to non-users (Why Marijuana over Tobacco?†). So smoking some marijuana before a test actually will increase your ability to think. In fact, it said the cannabis smokers have been known to outlive non-smokers by up to 2 years (Why Marijuana over Tobacco?†). We have all heard that smoking cannabis causes cancer. Not only is this a lie but also users of marijuana have lower rates of producing lung cancer then non-users. â€Å"Not one case of lung cancer has ever been successfully linked to marijuana use† (Why Marijuana over Tobacco?†). In 1975 researchers at the Medical College of Virginia found that cannabis can help fight against benign and malignant cancers. This proves that marijuana does not cause cancer, but it could prevent or even cure it. What about tobacco though? Tobacco does cause lung cancer. Tobacco leaves tar in the lungs that are radioactive. These radioactive materials morph over time into very harmful materials that causes cancer to be produced (Why Marijuana over Tobacco?†). Cannabis is the number one used illegal drug. If it is not addictive then why do people who try it come back? This is because it is safer than all the other drugs. Cannabis has been used all over the world for many reasons. The Indians smoked it at ceremonies to relax and have a good time. Where legal, doctors prescribe it to their patients for a number of different reasons. Some famous artists and musicians use marijuana on a regular basis to enhance their creativity. Others just use it because they like to relax and have fun (Virginia Laws on Cannabis). Nothing is wrong with smoking marijuana for any reason at all, but using tobacco is just suicide. What you have been told in the past may contradict the facts about marijuana. Smoking tobacco makes no sense and needs to be stopped. So, do not just stand there in the tobacco smoke filled room and get out and smoke some marijuana. Research Papers on Persuasive Eassy - Marijuana DebateUnreasonable Searches and SeizuresArguments for Physician-Assisted Suicide (PAS)The Relationship Between Delinquency and Drug UseThe Fifth HorsemanThe Effects of Illegal ImmigrationGenetic EngineeringCapital PunishmentNever Been Kicked Out of a Place This NiceTwilight of the UAWHip-Hop is Art

Saturday, October 19, 2019

Twin Turbo Engine Repair Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Twin Turbo Engine Repair - Research Paper Example A twin turbo engine is that type of engine which has two such turbo chargers installed at its intake manifold. Twin turbo chargers can be used for in parallel (to increase the amount of charge) or sequential (to increase the pressure of charge) operation. Examples of cars using such engines are Toyota Supra and BMW N54 etc. The current paper addresses one of the major repair problems for a twin turbo engine. Overhauling a Turbocharger: Most of the turbocharger users prefer to replace the whole turbocharger assembly in case of a fault. This is because of the complexities that arise during the repair of the assembly. The most important challenge during a turbocharger repair arises due to the small size of the components. This makes the vital parts such as bearings, turbine and compressor blades, seals etc. inaccessible for the repairer. Specialized tooling is required to perform most of the operations which is not readily available. All the operations from checking bearing play to misa lignment of the components require special expertise. However, we shall discuss here the challenges that arise while cleaning the insides of a turbocharger in a twin turbo engine. In a normal engine overhaul, engine degreasers are used to clean the insides of the engine and make it spot free.

Friday, October 18, 2019

Travelogue Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Travelogue - Assignment Example ty of Tokyo was established and remained the capital until 1943, when it was established as a municipality and merged with the metropolitan prefecture of Tokyo. The duration of my trip would constitute one week. To get to Tokyo, it will cost approximately $1000-$1500, depending on the season. Due to Travelocity.com website, it can be found out that there are several flights a day that will begin my course to get there. Since I am on budget, the Japan National Tourism Organization website recommends staying in a small inn or hotel, because Ryokan, a residential building where meals are provided, can be quite expensive. I chose the Hilton in Tokyo because it is located close to the airport and while it was not the cheapest alternative, it was one of the lowest price hotels. There are many avenues of public transportation that are relatively inexpensive, so I will be able to easily get around the city. Places I would like visit during my stay in Tokyo are Disneyland Tokyo, the National museum of Emerging Science and Innovation and Sanrio Puroland. I would also like to walk downtown, as it is famous for having lots of different shops. I do not think I have a plan for eating; I would like to walk the city and taste some of the local cuisine. I would also ask hotel personnel what they recommend. I think one of the best ways to find where the great food hotspots are is to ask the local population. By the end of my trip, I would hope to have learned a great deal about the culture and the customs of the city. I am sure that by the end of the trip, I will have learned some of the cultural rules and etiquettes that make the city unique as well. In order to undertake my trip, I am going to save a lot of money so that I am able to find and to afford the hotel I would like to stay at. I would also need quite a bit of money to be able to go to all of the places that I would like to see; according to the official Japanese Travel website, food and accommodations can be quite

Methodology chapter Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Methodology chapter - Essay Example Theoretical issues are fundamental to any research process because they constitute what researchers ‘silently think’ about research (Scott and Usher, 2011). Therefore, philosophical assumptions about ontology, epistemology and axiology are critical in undertaking a research process (Klenke, 2008). In the following sections, clarity on the philosophical approaches and research paradigm for this study will be provided. Ontological approach addresses the philosophical question about the nature of reality and how it affects the methods of doing research. This approach focuses on ways of life and the relations behind social realities. According to Ritchie and Lewis (2003), ontology emphasizes on multiple and dynamic realities with no consideration of external realities. Qualitative researchers agree that ontology describes people views on the nature of reality both objectively and subjectively. Ontological assumptions affect our opinions and views on what is real and what is not. Such assumptions must be identified and considered so that the findings of particular phenomena can be objective and credible. Epistemology consists of appropriate methods of finding out the nature of the world through knowledge acquisition. This approach emphasizes on knowledge acquisition and use to form basis and background for explanation of social realities. In epistemology, researchers opt to work with visibly evident social realities to come up with law- like conclusions akin to the ones created by natural and physical scientists (Cohen, et al., 2011). However, this approach has been termed more subjective especially when gathering information directly from participants through data collection methods such as interviews and observation (Beck 1979). Creswell (1998) defines paradigms as world diverse views, while Denzin and Lincoln (1994) describe a paradigm as a set of basic beliefs that deal with

Earthquake Impacts Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Earthquake Impacts - Essay Example Although more times than not earthquakes are tectonic, they can also occur in volcanic regions. Although many people seem to think that the only earthquakes that take place are those which can be felt, that belief is completely false. Instead, large numbers of earthquakes take place daily across the world, but the majority of these can only be felt by seismometers and cannot be felt by the person and cause no structural damage of any sort. The strength and damage caused by an earthquake can vary dramatically, depending on the strength of the earthquake. Smaller earthquakes may go completely unnoticed, while larger earthquakes can cause serious destruction and massive loss of life. In fact, most of the larger earthquakes are then followed by smaller ones - these are otherwise known as foreshocks or aftershocks; foreshocks being smaller earthquakes which precede the larger earthquake, and aftershocks being those which procede it. The first method of recording earthquakes was through of certain scales called intensity scales. The United States, Japan, and Europe each have their own form of scales. However the problem with all of these scales is that they are often a poor measure for the relative size of different events in different places. Seismologists now favor a measure called the seismic movement, which relates to the concept of moment in physics, to measure the size of a seismic source. The 1995 Great Hanshin Earthquake - which is commonly referred to as the Kobe earthquake due to the fact that it took place near Kobe, one of Japan's largest and most populated cities - was one of the most devastating earthquakes to ever hit Japan. Although over ten years have passed now since this earthquake hit, it is still considered to be one of the most disastrous ever to hit Japan since the Great Kanto earthquake of 1923, and will not soon be forgotten. In due to this earthquake, more than 5,500 people were killed, with more than 26,000 left injured. The total economic loss was estimated as being approximately $200 billion USD. During this earthquake, it was recorded that the ground moved 7 inches in horizontal shaking, and 4 inches in the vertical direction, and the earthquake itself is actually still active, with 716 aftershocks recorded by 10 AM as of January 18, 1996, 74 of these could be felt by the human body, and 14 of these occurred on the 18th. The epicenter of the earthquake was 20km underneath the island of Awaji, across a strait from Kobe. With a magnitude of 6.9 (Mw) and a duration of roughly 20 seconds, in regards to the structural damage caused by the earthquake, there were: 144,032 buildings destroyed by ground shaking, 7,456 buildings destroyed by fire, 82,091 collapsed buildings, and 86,043 severely damaged buildings. All Kobe ports were shut down to international shipping, there was substantial damage to containing loader piers, and all access to Kobe via highway and railway were blocked. The Kobe earthquake struck early in the morning without any warning, taking the city completely by surprise. It was due to the city of Kobe's high population density and linear layout, that there was such substantial damage and trauma caused; infrastructure networks were made much less redundant because of this, and this was a key factor in the significant structural

Thursday, October 17, 2019

Eminent Domain (Real Estate Analysis) Research Paper

Eminent Domain (Real Estate Analysis) - Research Paper Example In most cases use of eminent domain by real estate developers results in disputes and court proceedings referred to as condemnation proceedings. Additionally, use of eminent domain by private agents can result in increased corruption since the agents can use the process to enable them pay less for property. In some cases, government official have been involved in corruption whereby they have used eminent domain to acquire private property and later sold it to private developers. The power of eminent domain is restrained by public clause of Fifth Amendment, which requires that the government provide adequate evidence for the acquisition in addition to just compensation before seizing private property for public use (Aycock and Black 53-54). Initially, the eminent domain was used to obtain private properties for public uses such as schools, roads, and parks. However, the eminent domain has been expanded and is often used to include other project meant to benefit the public. Real estate agents are thus able to employ the power of eminent domain when they want to acquire property for purposes such as urban renewal projects. Several real estate agents help in fostering development, which is crucial for economic growth. They are thus empowered by eminent domain to acquire property for commercial development (Aycock and Black 53-55). There are many questions regarding the legitimacy of eminent domain especially when it is used to acquire property for private developers such as real estate agents. Although the government is required to provide evidence that the project is for public benefit, there are question on how some real estate projects benefit the public. Additionally, ways of calculating of the just compensation is questionable. Therefore, it is important that the government exercise eminent domain carefully since it affect the constitutional rights of the property owners (Cook Web). Transfer of property land to real estate agents entails

Dissertation Module Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Dissertation Module - Essay Example The most innovative work since the early 1990s, however, has been the development of understanding and elaboration of cognitive therapy approaches to the treatment of psychoses in urban and rural geographical regions. Thus, the interdisciplinary research occurs in the minds of the authors as well as in their interaction with each other. In this instance, the research, theory-building and clinical applications are a synthesis of individual and group effort. It is often difficult to know which comes first: theory, therapy or research. Theory serves as a roadmap for the clinician and informs the researcher regarding the important areas for investigation. On the other hand, the clinical works provides the data that generate the formulation of the theory and the ideas for research. Finally, research not only validates (or invalidates) the clinical and theoretical propositions but also provides new guidelines for therapy and ideas for theory building. The research will draw on the blend of theory, research and practice in developing the corpus of knowledge, formulating the basic assumptions, and adapting and refining appropriate strategies for the treatment of psychoses in urban and rural geographical regions. ... the corpus of knowledge, formulating the basic assumptions, and adapting and refining appropriate strategies for the treatment of psychoses in urban and rural geographical regions. The result will be a landmark in the evolution of cognitive therapy for psychoses. 8. Provide a brief outline of the research problem For centuries, it has been debated that the inordinateness of psychoses found in geographically urban areas (including city centres) is the consequence of social drift. Social drift is described as the resettlement of the populace suffering from various psychoses to the urban areas from outlying or rural geographical regions. The term psychosis includes disorders such as schizophrenia, schizoaffective and schizophreniform disorders, affective disorders where psychosis is present (e.g. in depression, mania, bipolar affective disorder) and delusional disorders. More recent research has shown, however, that there is an increased risk of psychosis within individuals born into an urban than rural areas (Warner, date, Jablensky, 1992). What is the causal agency for the increased risk of psychosis Is this due to increased rates of difficult births or obstetric complications, sunlight deprivation, environmental disturbances, ozone depletion or excesses of toxins Or, is there some other facto r yet to be studied An explanation of this phenomenon would contribute to our understanding of the causes of psychoses. 9. Provide a brief outline of the selected methodology and/or methods Here approach of this research is based on content analysis of previously conducted researches and studies. The data of our research will be based on previously conducted researches as mentioned above. In the data-gathering phase, the researcher will go through reading many studies of

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

Earthquake Impacts Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Earthquake Impacts - Essay Example Although more times than not earthquakes are tectonic, they can also occur in volcanic regions. Although many people seem to think that the only earthquakes that take place are those which can be felt, that belief is completely false. Instead, large numbers of earthquakes take place daily across the world, but the majority of these can only be felt by seismometers and cannot be felt by the person and cause no structural damage of any sort. The strength and damage caused by an earthquake can vary dramatically, depending on the strength of the earthquake. Smaller earthquakes may go completely unnoticed, while larger earthquakes can cause serious destruction and massive loss of life. In fact, most of the larger earthquakes are then followed by smaller ones - these are otherwise known as foreshocks or aftershocks; foreshocks being smaller earthquakes which precede the larger earthquake, and aftershocks being those which procede it. The first method of recording earthquakes was through of certain scales called intensity scales. The United States, Japan, and Europe each have their own form of scales. However the problem with all of these scales is that they are often a poor measure for the relative size of different events in different places. Seismologists now favor a measure called the seismic movement, which relates to the concept of moment in physics, to measure the size of a seismic source. The 1995 Great Hanshin Earthquake - which is commonly referred to as the Kobe earthquake due to the fact that it took place near Kobe, one of Japan's largest and most populated cities - was one of the most devastating earthquakes to ever hit Japan. Although over ten years have passed now since this earthquake hit, it is still considered to be one of the most disastrous ever to hit Japan since the Great Kanto earthquake of 1923, and will not soon be forgotten. In due to this earthquake, more than 5,500 people were killed, with more than 26,000 left injured. The total economic loss was estimated as being approximately $200 billion USD. During this earthquake, it was recorded that the ground moved 7 inches in horizontal shaking, and 4 inches in the vertical direction, and the earthquake itself is actually still active, with 716 aftershocks recorded by 10 AM as of January 18, 1996, 74 of these could be felt by the human body, and 14 of these occurred on the 18th. The epicenter of the earthquake was 20km underneath the island of Awaji, across a strait from Kobe. With a magnitude of 6.9 (Mw) and a duration of roughly 20 seconds, in regards to the structural damage caused by the earthquake, there were: 144,032 buildings destroyed by ground shaking, 7,456 buildings destroyed by fire, 82,091 collapsed buildings, and 86,043 severely damaged buildings. All Kobe ports were shut down to international shipping, there was substantial damage to containing loader piers, and all access to Kobe via highway and railway were blocked. The Kobe earthquake struck early in the morning without any warning, taking the city completely by surprise. It was due to the city of Kobe's high population density and linear layout, that there was such substantial damage and trauma caused; infrastructure networks were made much less redundant because of this, and this was a key factor in the significant structural

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

Dissertation Module Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Dissertation Module - Essay Example The most innovative work since the early 1990s, however, has been the development of understanding and elaboration of cognitive therapy approaches to the treatment of psychoses in urban and rural geographical regions. Thus, the interdisciplinary research occurs in the minds of the authors as well as in their interaction with each other. In this instance, the research, theory-building and clinical applications are a synthesis of individual and group effort. It is often difficult to know which comes first: theory, therapy or research. Theory serves as a roadmap for the clinician and informs the researcher regarding the important areas for investigation. On the other hand, the clinical works provides the data that generate the formulation of the theory and the ideas for research. Finally, research not only validates (or invalidates) the clinical and theoretical propositions but also provides new guidelines for therapy and ideas for theory building. The research will draw on the blend of theory, research and practice in developing the corpus of knowledge, formulating the basic assumptions, and adapting and refining appropriate strategies for the treatment of psychoses in urban and rural geographical regions. ... the corpus of knowledge, formulating the basic assumptions, and adapting and refining appropriate strategies for the treatment of psychoses in urban and rural geographical regions. The result will be a landmark in the evolution of cognitive therapy for psychoses. 8. Provide a brief outline of the research problem For centuries, it has been debated that the inordinateness of psychoses found in geographically urban areas (including city centres) is the consequence of social drift. Social drift is described as the resettlement of the populace suffering from various psychoses to the urban areas from outlying or rural geographical regions. The term psychosis includes disorders such as schizophrenia, schizoaffective and schizophreniform disorders, affective disorders where psychosis is present (e.g. in depression, mania, bipolar affective disorder) and delusional disorders. More recent research has shown, however, that there is an increased risk of psychosis within individuals born into an urban than rural areas (Warner, date, Jablensky, 1992). What is the causal agency for the increased risk of psychosis Is this due to increased rates of difficult births or obstetric complications, sunlight deprivation, environmental disturbances, ozone depletion or excesses of toxins Or, is there some other facto r yet to be studied An explanation of this phenomenon would contribute to our understanding of the causes of psychoses. 9. Provide a brief outline of the selected methodology and/or methods Here approach of this research is based on content analysis of previously conducted researches and studies. The data of our research will be based on previously conducted researches as mentioned above. In the data-gathering phase, the researcher will go through reading many studies of

Reaction Paper About UNICEF Cities Failing Children Essay Example for Free

Reaction Paper About UNICEF Cities Failing Children Essay As a Filipino and youth of this country, I’ve appreciated UNICEF’s efforts in regards with the children who are in need. It is not easy to aggregate data of the country’s status just to check how are the citizens especially the children are treated and supported by the countries, particularly of their local governments or cities where they are settling. However, the report and data were compiled and reported by State of the World’s Children of UNICEF though it was an article, reported few years ago (March 7, 2012), still it makes me feel uncomfortable and burdened, knowing that many children are deprived of most basic services and necessities that actually they should have. In addition, UNICEF cited Philippines as an example of their article entitled, Cities Failing Children. The report states that children (Filipinos) who live in poor urban even other class of urban communities experience deprivations such as lack of decent housing and limited access to clean water and they are more exposed to disaster risks and are also more prone to neglect, abuse, and exploitation. It proves that our government is not doing the part that they should be performing, like what we have learned from our previous lesson, Power of the State – the three inherent power of state specifically the police power, which states that it is the sovereign power to promote and protect the general welfare; it is the most pervasive and the least limitable of the three powers of the state, the most essential, consistent and illimitable which enables the State to prohibit all hurtful things to the comfort, safety and welfare of the society, these just become meaningless at all for in reality, this power is not being fully exercised and practiced by our government. In my opinion, our government should at least exert extra sympathy or attention with this kind of problems rather than to their own agendas and non-sense conflicts of their parties. I think it is not impossible for the Philippines to cure and solve this kind of problem if we just unite and our government stop their not-so-needed plans because I strongly believe that the true wealth of the nation is the children and next generation, but if this problem continues and will not be given attention, I assume that next coming years will be more hard to live for. Nevertheless, it’s not late to do something for this kind of problem it is just a matter of love, passion and honesty of our government and even of  us that are more blessed than them. Further, I never lose hope that one day Philippine government and possibly with the help of UNICEF, will use the power of the state to build and create a better future for our generation especially for those children deprived of their basic needs or even their basic rights and solve a lot of problem within these children. Therefore, as a Filipino informed of this matter, we should take responsibility to do something for our beloved country. I have learned that I should have not take for granted things that I have because almost half of our population are deprived of the basic needs that I already have. I don’t want to promise anything but I will try to do the best I can to serve and help our nation. Hoping that after few years, UNICEF’s report about Philippines even their report about the world will be better and be full of hope and great future for the people and most of all, for the children.

Monday, October 14, 2019

Software to Manage the Olympic Games

Software to Manage the Olympic Games The Olympic and Paralympic Games are the worlds largest peace-time event. The modern Olympic Games were first held in Greece in 1896 and since 1960, the Paralympic Games have provided athletes with disabilities with the opportunity to compete at the highest level. All athletes are encouraged to live by a set of shared principles -the Olympic and Paralympic Values of friendship, equality, respect, courage, determination, excellence and inspiration. The Games are held every four years in a different city and in 2012 London will be hosting the Games. London started the bidding process to be a host city in 2003. Over two years the bid team put together a plan to show how the London Games would be staged. The team presented the plans to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in Singapore in 2005, along with four other competing cities. After evaluation, the IOC voted for the city that they felt was the most suitable to host the Games in 2012. London received 54 votes in the final round compared to the 50 votes awarded to Paris and so became the host city. The London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) has been set up to take responsibility for planning, organising and delivering a memorable Games in 2012. This is a huge task. The ÂÂ £2 billion needed to organise and run the Olympic and Paralympic Games has to be raised by LOCOG from the private sector. This is achieved through selling sponsorship, merchandising, broadcasting rights and tickets for events. The London 2012 Games will bring together more than 14,000 athletes from 205 countries. Spectators and sports enthusiasts will buy nine million tickets and billions of people around the world will watch the event on TV. Ensuring everything runs smoothly is a tough challenge and LOCOG cannot do it on its own. It has to work closely with many partners and stakeholders to make it happen. This case study shows how creating a clear vision and set of values has made it possible to establish clear objectives for delivering an unforgettable Games. A. Objective: Your group has been chosen to write the software required to manage the London Olympic Games 2012 from sending invitations to the participating countries/ teams , managing the facilities, tracking the events , recording the results and finally keeping track of the results and the performance of the participants etc. B. Your Tasks and Deliverables:- Identify the major tasks to be carried out. Identify the order the tasks have to be developed. Can some tasks be done in parallel (at the same time) or serially (one task must finish before the next task starts) and break down the major tasks to the lower levels (as far as work package). Identify any special tasks (tasks which need specialists). Identify any major risks that could affect the delivery of the project or cause to exceed the project budget, time scale or increase the required resource. Construct a risk assessment table that will rate the impact of each risk that you identify. Recommend ways to provide for the risks after a careful analysis. Use your initiative to determine how long jobs take to Include the critical path analysis to demonstrate the beginning to end of the project and identify where there may be problems. Include the milestones. Determine the labour costs and provide a WBS containing these costs. The WBS should also content a set of estimates that are mirrored on the WBS and should be capable of rolling-up to demonstrate the overall cost of the project and the individual cost of each sub deliverable. Use the different project evaluation techniques done in the class to evaluate the economic feasibility of the project. Consider all the strategic issues arising out of the project success( and failure !) Consider all the technical issues arising from this project.

Sunday, October 13, 2019

The World of Neonatal Nursing Essay -- Nurse Medical Medicine Essays

The World of Neonatal Nursing Since neonatal nursing is my special interest and field, I chose to write about the health care options which are available to parents having children in different hospitals throughout the world. With the state of the art technological advances in the neonatal units, there are so many options available for the care of newborn babies. I reviewed the neonatal units in Australia, Saudi Arabia, New York, Tokyo, Ireland, and California, and I have learned what It takes to run a neonatal intensive care unit all around the world. There were several National Standards that apply to my research. Knows and understands that people define regions and use them to interpret the world’s changing complexity. This applies to the hospitals because where the majority of people live, determines how the world changes and grows. Knows and understands that culture and experience influence people’s perceptions of places and experiences. This applies to the way that different cultures view different procedures in a hospital setting, as well as a worldly setting. The first hospital that I reviewed was the Kirwan Hospital for Women. The KHW is located in Townsville, North Queensland, Australia. Townsville is the largest city in Queensland, with a population of more than 150,000 people. KHW is a hospital dedicated solely to the needs of women. It has maternity, gynecology, and neonatal units, whose goals are to provide the best quality care for women and their newborns. Kirwan Hospital for Women has the only Level III neonatal unit outside of Brisbane. KHW serves a diverse community in a sparsely populated area one-tenth the size of the United States, so the staff must go out and retrieve th... ...he many years to come. I have learned many things about neonatal nursing and I intend on using this information to better myself as a neonatal nurse. Works Cited (1) Carson, Vicki, "Letter From Townsville: Neonatal Nursing Tropical Style." http://www.nann.org/ctrlline/twnsvill.htm (2) Braden, Sandra, "Neonatal Nursing in Saudi Arabia." http://www.nann.org/ctrlline/nnsaudi.htm (3) "The Jo Carole and Ronald S. Lauder Newborn Intensive Care Unit." http://www.mssm.edu/peds/newborn.html (4) "Coombe Women’s Hospital." http://www.coombe.ie/intro/facts.html (5) "Long Beach Neonatal Intensive Care Unit." http://www.lbcommunity.com/medical/mdmcsneo.html (6) "International Neonatal Nurses Broadsheet." http://www.bizjet.com/jnn/conference.html Geography 354, Spring 1998

Saturday, October 12, 2019

Comparing the Cultural and Social Critiques of Notes from Underground a

Cultural and Social Critiques of Notes from Underground and Invisible Man It is understanding oneself and the power structures of society that helps one gain authenticity, and ultimately†¦.. power. Notes from Underground and Invisible Man offer a wide variety of social critiques. While some critiques are explicit within the plot, others are implicit in statements of characters and the relations between two or more characters. Many of the ideas of social critique in Notes from Underground have direct parallels or antitheses in Invisible Man. Most--if not all--of the critiques transcend the time, location, and historical context in which they occur. The greatest value that the critiques in the two texts have to offer is that they deal with the unalterable human condition. Notes from Underground and Invisible Man offer a variety social critiques, most prominently in nationalism and cultural pride, an exclusive community versus an inclusive community, and the power structures within society. Nationalism is one of the main targets of the critique in Notes from Underground. The underground man's highly self-centered personality has a direct parallel in the ideas he has about his country. He says, "We, in Russia, have no fools; that is well known. That is what distinguishes us from foreign lands" (Dostoevsky 40). Such nationalistic propaganda was intended for all Russians to consider and evaluate. At the time the novel was written, Western civilization seemed to be extending its influence everywhere. As Dr. Lutomski pointed out in lecture, this caused many to adopt an isolationist philosophy, believing that the only way a country can be pure to its own citizens is to cut itself off from the outside world. Dostoevsky is presenti... ...s within a society must be able to channel that diversity into a feeling of unity that makes all of the individuals in all of the cultures feel like they belong to the indivisible whole. When one has found an entire group of people to identify with, one can transcend to a new level of self-understanding. And it is understanding oneself and the power structures of society that helps one gain authenticity, and ultimately power. Works Cited Bakhtin, Mikhail. Problems of Dostoevsky's Poetics. Ed. and trans. Caryl Emerson. Introd. by Wayne C. Booth. Theory and History of Literature. Minneapolis: U. of Minnesota Pr., 1984. Ellison, Ralph. Invisible Man. (Library Ed.). New York: Random House, Inc. 1994 Dostoevsky, Fyodor. Notes from Underground: A New Translation, Backgrounds and Sources, Responses, Criticism. Norton Critical Edition. New York: Norton, 1989.

Friday, October 11, 2019

A State Lottery is the Best Way to Raise Money for Education

Lottery is often perceived as a dishonest and seedy project that can create serious social problems including economic distress and gambling addiction (Clotfelter and Cook, 1989, 37).It is thus natural for lottery to be hotly debated, sensational, and controversial. It actually makes the society divided on its acceptance whether legally or morally. Despite these facts, let it be stated that a state lottery is the best way to raise money for education.To begin with, it is ideal to state that those who advocate that state lottery is not the best way to raise money rely upon two assumptions. They say that by doing so shall be impractical and immoral to the eyes of society. First of all, they believe that state lotteries are not designed or created for the purposes of supporting education. And second, receiving money to educate children from such a means like gambling or lottery does not seem ethical and proper.To refute these assumptions, let it be stated that state lottery is actually a practical and feasible way to fund education.   The truth is that even as early as the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, state and municipalities held legally sanctioned lotteries to finance public projects such as roads, bridges, canals, courthouses, hospitals and schools (Blanche, 1950, 71; Kaplan 1984, 92). They believe that it is a very efficient to fund such projects the government is not capable of fully doing so.It is actually admitted that state lottery has a dark and immoral reputation having graft and corruption inherent parts of it. People have been saying that state lottery is a bad image for funding education. However, people do not realize the fact that funding education is a good image for lottery. People have a perception that lottery is all about winning the jackpot.However, lottery as a legal means to an end is socially acceptable. Records show that in 1992 that the only reason sales in lottery increased is because of the Common School Fund Law which grants a large percentage of state lottery profit for education (Illinois State Lottery 1992, X). This is not using education to increase sales but rather, it is the means for education to flourish.In conclusion, state lottery is the most efficient and productive way to raise money. This is because the government has already been doing this legally for a long time. The government has been doing this not only for education but in other aspects as well. And also, despite its negative image, state lottery has already been socially accepted in society. WORKS CITED1)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Blanche, Ernest E. Lotteries, Yesterday and Tomorrow. Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 269 (1950): 71–76.2)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Clotfelter, Charles T., and Philip J. Cook. Selling Hope: State Lotteries in America. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Press, 1998.3)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Illinois State Lottery. 1992 Annual Report. Springfield: Illinois State Lottery, 1992.4)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Kaplan, H. Roy. The Social and Economic Impact of State Lotteries. Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 474 (1984): 91–106.OUTLINEI.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Introduction :Thesis – A state lottery is the best way to raise money for education.II.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   BodyA)  Ã‚  Ã‚   State lottery is impractical and immoral in the eyes of society.B)  Ã‚  Ã‚   State lottery has been used in the past t o fund schools and other projects.C)  Ã‚  Ã‚   Funding education is a good image for state lottery.III.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Conclusion–  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   State lottery is the most efficient and productive way to raise money and is socially acceptable.   

Thursday, October 10, 2019

Iron Crowned Chapter 25

â€Å"Ow.† I squeezed my eyes shut as another wave of nausea rolled through me. Control, control. A few deep breaths later, I opened my eyes and met Dorian's gaze. â€Å"Unexpected,† he said in that dry way of his. â€Å"And unwelcome.† I sat at the base of his throne in the banquet hall, which was packed. It must have been mealtime, but no one was paying attention to the food. They were all on their feet, staring at the evening entertainment that had literally dropped into their midst. I peered around, wondering how I'd been drawn to this spot and then found it – the Slinky I'd left here as my anchor. It had once had its own little room, but now sat on a table beside Dorian's throne, one he kept small treasures and knickknacks on to amuse him when holding court. Odd placement. There was no time to ponder that, though. I turned to Jasmine who looked as disoriented and sick as I felt but didn't seem to have suffered any permanent damage. Her body and soul were intact, which was what counted. I looked back at Dorian and tried to stand up, but my legs gave way beneath me. I started to fall and clutched his robe instinctively. Jasmine, with surprising speed, moved in to catch my arm and steady me. â€Å"Hospitality,† I gasped out. â€Å"Please.† Dorian's unwelcome comment had been a reminder that I currently didn't have hospitality and that I was technically trespassing and fully vulnerable to attack within his walls. Yet, the fact that I hadn't already been removed was a good sign, and though his expression more or less remained unchanged, there was a spark of curiosity in his eyes. He couldn't ignore me on my knees, begging him for protection. Not yet. No matter how angry he was at me, this kind of novelty was too irresistible for his nature. He started to speak, undoubtedly ready with some witty quip, but was interrupted when Jasmine clutched at him and added her pleas to mine. â€Å"Please. Give us your protection. Hurry!† Dorian frowned, no longer able to hide his curiosity and surprise. â€Å"The daughters of Storm King, begging me for help after one made it quite clear she didn't ever want to see me again. Do tell me why I shouldn't have you thrown out or imprisoned.† He paused thoughtfully. â€Å"Or ransomed back to your own people. Quite a profit there, I imagine.† â€Å"Dorian – † I began. Suddenly, there was a commotion at the hall's entrance. A cluster of Dorian's guards appeared – with Kiyo between them. I wasn't surprised he'd showed up so quickly. My mark would have led him right to me, and while he couldn't jump directly into Dorian's castle, he'd probably crossed over right in front of the gates. â€Å"Sire,† said one of the guards. â€Å"He seeks entrance – â€Å" Kiyo wore that fierce, raging expression, and no one in that room could have any doubt that he was there ready for battle. Dorian's guards certainly had picked up on it, and they closed ranks as he strode forward. I had a feeling Kiyo wanted to fight right through them, but reason and self-control held him at bay – for now. Meanwhile, at the sight of him, I managed to make my legs work again and scrambled to my feet. Jasmine grasped my hand, helping me rise, and as one, we backed up slightly so that we stood in line with Dorian. The world reeled a little, but I refused to show my weakness. I would not faint. â€Å"Get rid of him,† I said, trying not to sound hysterical. â€Å"Deny him hospitality and throw him out.† â€Å"She's an outcast here,† growled Kiyo, fists clenched. â€Å"And this has nothing to do with you. Send her away.† Tension and silence filled the space between all of us, and all eyes swiveled to Dorian. Neither Kiyo nor I – nor Jasmine, for that matter – had hospitality and protection within Dorian's household at the moment. We had no guarantees of safety. Hell, if Kiyo decided to attack me right now, no one had to intervene. We would be a great dinner show. I wondered how good a defense Jasmine and I could put up, if it would be enough to give us a chance to escape to my own land if Dorian wouldn't help us. I could guess Dorian's thoughts – or rather, his confusion. That Kiyo would be on the verge of killing me made no sense. Asking why would go against Dorian's natural, all-knowing fa;ade. Plus, Kiyo and I weren't his favorite people right now. Giving in to either of us meant a concession Dorian didn't want to make. â€Å"Hail to you!† An unexpected, raspy voice made me jump, and even Dorian flinched a little. From the crowd, Masthera had emerged, her white hair streaming behind her and eyes as wide as ever. She came forward with purpose and – to my total astonishment – fell onto her knees before me. She stared up at me, and I expected that usual scattered and crazy look. Instead, I saw awe and rapture. Worship, even. â€Å"Hail to you, Queen of Rowan and Thorn. Hail to you, bringer of life, bringer of life. I see it – I see the life growing within you, the mother who will fulfill the prophecy!† She reached a skeletal hand toward my stomach, and I jerked away from her grasp. â€Å"Don't touch me!† I exclaimed. â€Å"I see it,† she cried. â€Å"You shine, Queen of Rowan and Thorn. You carry the heir. You shine with it.† â€Å"Dorian!† exclaimed Kiyo, drawing our attention back. His expression had grown dark at Masthera's words. Full disclosure was the last thing he wanted. â€Å"Give her to me! Stay out of this!† I again looked pleadingly at Dorian. â€Å"He's going to try to kill me,† I said. â€Å"If you throw me out, he and Maiwenn will come after me. Please give us your hospitality.† Dorian – like most everyone in the hall – had been left dumbstruck by Masthera's proclamation. Dorian forcibly schooled his face back to neutrality, but the gaze he turned on me was so heavy and penetrating that I was nearly knocked to my knees again. â€Å"Is it true?† he asked in a low voice that probably only Jasmine heard. â€Å"Are you pregnant?† There was no point in lying or pretending. I gave a swift nod. His next question nearly broke my heart. He tried so hard to keep his voice level and strong, but I heard the break in it, the longing and desperation. â€Å"Is it – is there any chance – is it – â€Å" He couldn't finish but didn't need to. He wanted to know if he was the father. A million thoughts raced through my head. Would things have been different if we'd actually had intercourse the last time we were together? Would I have gotten pregnant with his child, instead of Kiyo's? Maybe. Maybe not. Sex didn't always lead to pregnancy, especially with the gentry. I could still have ended up with Kiyo's babies or been left with a talk show?Cworthy paternity dispute. If Dorian had been the one to get me pregnant, my future would have been signed and sealed. He would have moved heaven and earth to keep me safe. As it was, I probably could have lied now. The gentry had no paternity tests. That would have simplified things – but I couldn't do it. â€Å"No,† I said softly. Dorian's features stilled, and a surprising wave of regret and sorrow filled me in response to the cavalcade of emotions that had to be going through him as well. He had no reason to help me, not after what he saw as my betrayal. And certainly not with me carrying another man's children. â€Å"Please,† said Jasmine. Her blue-gray eyes were large and desperate. I'd never seen her so humble and meek. And I'd certainly never expected to see it on my behalf. â€Å"Please help us. Please give us your hospitality. Your Majesty.† My eyes were still locked with Dorian's, my heart still breaking over the hurt I'd caused him. Off to the side, I heard Kiyo warn Dorian again, â€Å"This is between Eugenie and me. Give her to me, and this ends. If you don't, Maiwenn and God knows who else will get involved.† â€Å"I'm sorry,† I said to Dorian, my voice barely audible. â€Å"I'm so sorry.† â€Å"Please,† Jasmine repeated, nearly on the verge of tears now. â€Å"Hospitality.† The whole world hinged on Dorian. No one breathed. Then, abruptly, he turned away from me. â€Å"Granted,† he said crisply. â€Å"The daughters of Storm King are under my protection. Remove the kitsune, and do not allow him entrance again.† The guards were in motion almost before Dorian finished speaking. More had slipped into the room in the last minute or so, and it was a good thing too. Kiyo fought against all of them as they laid hands on him and began dragging him backward. They made little progress, so great were his struggles He was strong, so insanely strong, and it scared me to think what would have happened if I'd been left to him in my weakened state. â€Å"Dorian!† roared Kiyo, still fighting against the guards' grip. â€Å"Don't do this! You'll regret it!† Dorian had returned to his normal laconic persona. â€Å"You will address me as ‘King Dorian' or ‘Your Majesty,'† he replied. â€Å"And you will not disobey my orders within my home.† The floor trembled, and I heard a gasp from those gathered. Uneasily, I remembered an idle comment Dorian had once made, about how he could bring the castle down around us if he wanted to. The walls stayed intact, however, but a large section of the stone floor ripped up, eliciting more cries of fear. Before my eyes, the slab of stone morphed and stretched, then flew through the air toward Kiyo. It wrapped itself around his torso, enclosing his arms in a sort of magical strait-jacket. Kiyo, unsurprisingly, stopped struggling, but his shouts didn't cease. â€Å"Eugenie! You don't know what you're doing! This isn't over! Eugenie!† â€Å"Get him out,† said Dorian coldly. â€Å"Now. If he resists again or changes form, kill him.† The guards hurried to obey while Kiyo continued yelling his outrage at me, Dorian, and the world. I hoped they moved fast because Dorian had had a point. If Kiyo transformed into a fox, he'd slip out of his stone prison. Of course, he'd have to transform into a small fox, which would do little harm, but still. It would be a lot better for all of us once Kiyo was outside the walls. The guards must have succeeded because no more commotion followed. Jasmine turned to Dorian. â€Å"You should have killed him anyway,† she said flatly. Her standard response. The ghost of a smile flickered across Dorian's lips, though his eyes were still hard. â€Å"You're nearly as delightful as your sister,† he observed. â€Å"No matter how displeased I am at the two of you right now, I admit, things will certainly be entertaining with you around. And they will become very entertaining soon.† That was directed at me. â€Å"If you think you brought a war down before, you haven't seen anything yet, my dear. You've caused me quite a bit of trouble.† I barely heard him. The adrenaline was fast fading from my body, and all the pain from fighting with Kiyo and then doing the forced transition began returning. I felt sick, and my surroundings were spinning once again. â€Å"Sorry,† I managed to say to Dorian, just before collapsing.