Personal Development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Personal Development - Essay Example essed, I have had the chance to increase the amount of time that I spend with the instructors in terms of learning after class and made sure that I went over all the material that was delivered in class. In the event that there was a concept or point that needed to be clarified, I made the resolve to talk to the instructors before the next class so that I may understand the concept and catch up with the rest of the group. Social development has also been a considerable part of my personal development as I made the discovery that I was lacking soft skills in comparison to other people. The significance of these skills in the school and work environment cannot be ignored, therefore, I had to develop them so that I could avoid cases of skill mismatching in school as well as the workplace. (Zenger and Folkman 137). Improving interactions with other individuals was among the main goals of my personal development and as the semester progressed, I had to make changes on the ways I related to people through allowing more time for interactions. I was able to achieve this goal through seeking an elective position as a representative of one of the clubs in school and the acquisition of the leadership position was critical for the developing my leadership skills. Being elected for this post has also assisted me to enhance my communication skills as am tasked with communicating the needs and issues of the members of the club to the leaders of the club. This has also assisted me to become a better listener while developing more focus in my activities since I have other responsibilities apart from my schoolwork. I had also intended to better my social interaction both within and outside the school and among the most effective ways, that I chose to achieve this was through more involvement in extra-curricular programs. Settling on a particular activity was not easy as there were numerous programs to choose from, nevertheless, I had an awareness of the significance of this and

Coming of Age in Mississippi Essay Example for Free

Coming of Age in Mississippi Essay â€Å"No one’s life is a smooth sail; we all come into stormy weather.† This statement has more truth to it than one may think. In life, everybody reaches a rough point, a point where the light at the end of the tunnel seems dim, or even nonexistent. But overcoming this adversity is what builds character. Accepting and prevailing over life’s obstacles are what separate strong, independent-minded and forward-thinking people from those who give up and avoid their problems. Anne Moody, author of Coming of Age in Mississippi, lived a life of great struggle in which she overcame adversity with great efforts and a dedicated heart and mind. As an African-American female, Anne Moody had one of the hardest battles to fight throughout her life. With limited rights as a woman and even further limitations due to race, she often found herself being subordinated by others. While in high school, she left her hometown of Centreville, Mississippi to spend the summer in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. While there, she worked for a local woman, Mrs. Jetson, doing housework. After working for Mrs. Jetson for two weeks, Anne wished to collect her pay. When Anne found Mrs. Jetson’s house empty, she recalled â€Å"On Monday I did call the shoe store, and was told Mrs. Jetson had quit on Friday. I had never before felt so gypped in all my life. Out of all the women I had worked for this woman was the worst† (Moody 150). Anne had been cheated out of two weeks’ worth of pay. She was astonished at Mrs. Jetson’s audacity in failing to pay Anne what was rightfully hers. It was difficult to find jobs where she was treated with some dignity, and almost impossible to find ones where she was treated as her employer’s equal. Anne was forced to change jobs frequently on account of being disrespected and used. Although no scamming experience was as impactful on Anne as the one with Mrs. Jetson, Anne experienced similar situations in jobs she had prior and jobs she took afterward. The summer after being in Baton Rouge, Anne went back to Louisiana; this time she stayed in New Orleans. There, she managed to land a job in a chicken factory. What she expected to be a large, intricate, and somewhat clean workplace turned out to be a dreadful nightmare. To her shock, she found herself gutting freshly killed chickens for over ten hours a day  without gloves or proper sanitation whatsoever. Near the end of the day, Anne recollected her â€Å"face, arms, and clothes were splattered with blood and chicken shit. I got so disgusted at one point that I stood there and let about a dozen chickens half full of shit pass me by† (Moody 178). Along with the other factory workers, Anne is treated with the utmost disregard to dignity and sanitation. She is forced to work excruciatingly long hours for minimum wage, exposed to grotesque dead animals and susceptible to disease. Unfortunately, because the pay was better than most other jobs in the area, Anne was forced to stick with her factory work. She worked in the factory for a month, saving her money and gaining exposure to the various stations in the factory. Although she did make very good money under the circumstances, she was deeply affected by her work; for years she could not eat chicken and for the rest of her life she refused to eat boxed chicken. The challenge of going to work every morning knowing what she was going to endure was tough, but her willpower and need for money helped her push through. After high school, Anne applied to and attended Natchez College in Mississippi. During her second year, she was eating in the cafeteria on campus when she and a few other classmates found maggots in their food. Disgusted, she and her classmates stormed into the kitchen to find an explanation for the repulsive experience. She â€Å"knew exactly where the grits were kept from the time I had worked in the kitchen. I went straight to the pantry and saw that there was a big leak from the showers upstairs. The water was seeping right down onto the shelves† (Moody 256). Anne and her classmates boycotted the campus cafeteria and its food, refusing to yield until some sanitary fixes were implemented. The challenge here was finding other ways to stay fed. The students did not have enough money to last them more than a week or so, so eventually they all started back, one by one, to the cafeteria and its semi-sanitary food. Still repulsed, Anne refused to go back and began losing a lot of weight. She became so thin and hungry all the time that she resorted to writing her mother who brought her enough canned food to last the remainder of the semester. The challenge in staying fed with healthy, sanitary food was one which presented itself on a large scale for Anne at college and otherwise. Had she been unable to obtain food from  her family, she may have starved to the point of fainting or even death. Overcoming this challenge was just about a matter of life or death for Anne. One of Anne’s most prominent memories and experiences in her early life was during her college career when she participated in a sit-in in Woolworth. The idea of the sit-in was to sit calmly at a white lunch counter and ask for service; thus, blacks wanted to show they wished to be treated equally. Of course, doing such a thing drew a lot of attention in very little time, and soon after the sit-in began a large crowd formed in the restaurant. After the crowd of whites realized Anne and her fellow sit-in participants would not budge until they received service, â€Å"the mob started smearing us [sit-in participants] with ketchup, mustard, sugar, pies, and everything on the counter. Soon Joan and I were joined by John Salter, but the moment he sat down he was hit on the jaw with what appeared to be brass knuckles. Blood gushed from his face and someone threw salt into the open wound† (Moody 291). The violence that occurred at the sit-in that Anne and her friends had to endure is almost unimaginable. The absolute disrespect, degradation, and cruelty shown to blacks by whites is virtually unbelievable, yet Anne was faced with challenges like these almost every day. Amazingly, Anne was courageous, intelligent, and controlled enough not to fight back and to remain nonviolent no matter what violence was shown to her. Her ability to not fight fire with fire is remarkable, and helped her to overcome the adversity which she so often found herself facing.

Quarter Reflection :: essays research papers

Reflective Paper Well, I would have to say things have changed for the better†¦.I think. This quarter I actually had some interest in what we were doing. I could do a lot of opinionated things like our reflection things. Normally your 3rd quarter is the worst but not this year in Mrs. Dickson’s College prep. English Class, I ended up doing all my work, well that I know of, and I participated in just about everything. So here we go, I am gonna sum it all up in these next few paragraphs. Our Miami portfolios were good and bad for me. I had my stuff where I could write what I wanted to write, and we had the crap that they wanted us to write about. We had the stuff where we could choose a poem or lyric and basically analyze it, and I loved it. I spoke my mind and had fun. Then again there was the other writing about a moment in time or a deep thought. Which I hated because I couldn’t BS my way through it. I personally don’t think this helped me at all, because I feel the same about writing as I did before and I don’t seem to write any better because of it. Well so far we are not too far into the whole college project. I have not learned much about colleges yet or I haven’t learned anything new from what I’ve already known. I planned on going to college at U.C. anyway and studying criminology and trying getting into the CIA or the FBI. And last we have â€Å"The Great Gatsby† personally can tell you I haven’t read much of it, and I’m not going to lie, I probably wont read it all. I will take my chances on the test and go from what I know and I think that I will do fine. It really doesn’t change me as a thinker, because the people back then are almost like

Leonardo da Vinci :: essays research papers

Leonardo da Vinci, perhaps the greatest man in history, invented thousands of things including the helicopter, tank and portable bridge. Leonardo was not only an inventor ,but a sculptor, an artist and an architect. He was born 1452 in the small town of Vinci ,in Tuscany. His father was a wealthy notary and his mother a peasant woman. In the mid 1460s the family moved to Florence here he was given the best education Florence could offer. He advanced rapidly socially and intellectually . He was very handsome and a fine musician. About 1482 Leonardo entered the service of the duke of Milan. Due to a recommendation stating that he could build portable bridges and knew techniques in constructing canons, ships and catapults as well as other weapons. He served as principle engineer in the duke’s military projects. In 1502 Leonardo entered the service of Cesare Borgia, duke of Romagna. He served as Cesare’s chief architect and engineer. Leonardo supervised work on the fortresses of the papal territories in central Italy. In 1506 Leonardo went to Milan again at the summons of its French governor Charles d’Amboise. For the next six years he divided his time between Milan and Florence. He still continued his engineering projects and worked on a figure for a monument to a commander of the French forces in the city. Although Leonardo produced a small number of paintings he was an influent artist. The Mona Lisa, his most famous work, is a great example of two techniques sfumato and chiaroscuro of which he was one of the first great masters. Because none of Leonardo’s sculptural projects were brought to completion, his approach to three dimensional art can only be judged by his drawings. As a scientist he towered over his generation.

Community Teaching Experience Paper Essay

It was merely a decade ago that the obesity epidemic was thought to only be a minor problem and had only alarmed a small number of endocrinologists interested by the size of the situation (James, 2008). However today, the problem of obesity is vast with more awareness of its presence by doctors and individuals alike. In fact, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention states, â€Å"More than one-third (34.9% or 78.6 million) of U.S. adults are obese (CDC, 2014)†. These numbers are outrageous and eye opening, leaving millions looking for a solution to this troubling epidemic. Obesity is not simply a cosmetic flaw as some might think, but is actually a very dangerous state of being for any individual to sustain long-term. Mentioned further in this paper, obesity leads to several debilitating diseases and disorders such as, type 2 diabetes. The teaching summary provided offers an understanding into the relationship between obesity and type 2 diabetes as well as information given to assist those who currently struggle with obesity. Obesity is not simply an inconvenience or a cosmetic issue but a very dangerous and potentially deadly circumstance. In fact, one source explains, â€Å"Obesity-related conditions include heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and certain types of cancer, some of the leading causes of preventable death (CDC, 2014)†. Although obesity is preventable and reversible, it is not easy for most to do. The task of sheading unwanted pounds is not entirely determined by will power alone, defeating cravings and the decrease in the metabolic rate that complements weight loss are also factors (Skolnik & Ryan, 2014). The fact that will power is not the single factor in weight loss, this task is very difficult to achieve, especially with life stressors involved. The teaching summary includes diet and e xercise recommendations as well as information on weight loss surgery. The relationship between obesity and type 2 diabetes’ existence has been scientifically proven and continues to remains a real threat for millions. The recognized meaning of obesity, globally, is centered on body mass index (BMI), and is a superior connection of total body fat than body weight alone, particularly on a populace basis (Skolnik & Ryan, 2014). According to one source, â€Å"†Over ­ weight† is defined as having a BMI of 25.0 to 29.9 kg/m2 and â€Å"obesity† applies to patients with a BMI >30.0 kg/m2 (Skolnik & Ryan, 2014)†. As previously stated, obesity has a high likelihood of leading to  co-morbidities such as type two diabetes; but what you may not know is how. Having excess weight, especially belly fat, makes the insulin our bodies produce resistant to fat cells. Therefore, our bodies are making the insulin and because of the adipose (fat) cells, the insulin cannot find the receptors. Furthermore, insulin resistance is due to hered itary, environmental influences and saturated and trans-fat high intake, obesity and an inactive routine (Servan, 2013). Once the insulin is unable to find the receptors, our bodies are no longer able to regulate glucose (sugar) consequently, our blood sugars rise causing havoc in the body over time. Individuals may ask the question, â€Å"Why not just lose the weight?† Unfortunately, for many, simply losing the weight is not a hop, skip, and a jump away! However, weight loss can be achieved through, diet modifications, exercise, or possibly weight loss surgery as a last resort. Quantifiable studies have credibly presented that lifestyle change is the greatest approach in the deterrence or suspension of type 2 diabetes. For overweight and obese individuals, a slight weight-loss goal of 5-10% can considerably decrease the diabetes threat (Servan, 2013). Weight loss surgery is also an option for those who feel they have tried everything and still yet struggle. Weight loss surgery is not a â€Å"quick fix†; its recipients must also change their diets forever. The teaching power point was pre sented in a group setting with other nurses as well as bariatric patients. I felt that it was important to teach the information to other nurses so that they could go and teach others afterwards. During the presentation I was very nervous and dislike speaking in front of crowds; I feel I did well simply because I am passionate about the topic. My own evaluation of the experience was overall a positive one. The information presented to the audience was over thirty-minutes, several individuals had questions, primarily regarding the weight loss surgery. However, the next time a teaching experience such as this one is conducted, I feel that a measure to test the audience would be beneficial. I feel like a fun group quiz or a trivia game would have been valuable in testing the audience’s knowledge. The only complaint I have is the time restriction. I had thirty minutes to present an introduction and the power point and feel I could have went more in depth if given more time. Overall, I feel this teaching experience was a success. The community response was a mixed one. I delivered the power point as planned and about  half of my audience turned out to be really focused on obtaining more information regarding weight loos surgery. Although I provided information in the power point about weight loss surgery, it was not my focus. Answering questions, to the best of my knowledge, about weight loss surgery took up a lot of my time. I did not have the â€Å"know how† to get the presentation back on track after the weight loss surgery slide. However, I did have a lot questions from the audience regarding the relationship between obesity and type 2 diabetes that I felt very comfortable answering. Although I did not have a means of measuring the audiences’ knowledge pre and post presentation, I feel the presentation was effective in teaching about the relationship between obesity and type 2 diabetes, and how to prevent such co-morbidities with obesity. As for my thoughts on improvement, the provider, as well as myself feel I could have used more eye contact while presenting. The daunting task of speaking in a group setting is nothing less than terrifying. However, I feel like I could have made more of an effort to make eye contact and be more engaging. As previously stated, a pre and post quiz would have been helpful in determining the effectiveness of the teaching. Although the crowd appeared appreciative of the knowledge, I have no way of knowing wheatear or not the audience actually learned the information. The provider complemented my on the variety of information I provided, as well as my confidence in my knowledge. I do agree that I feel adequately knowledgeable on the topic of the relationship between obesity and type 2 diabetes however; I feel that if I would have shown more eye contact towards the audience I could have displayed further confidence. The provider also mentioned that I had a keen attention towards the sensitivity of obesity. I personally do not feel inclined to dislike or disrespect any population for any reason whether they be a different race other than my own, extremely short or tall, or obese. The provider also complimented my thorough explanation of disease process in easy to understand way of explaining. Explaining medications and disease processes in non-technical language, or easy to understand ways of explanation is important to ensure the patients understanding. As a nurse, it is sometimes easy to forget that we know medical terminology only because we have taken courses to teach us this as well as working in the medical field. The patient may often times feel inferior to the medically educated professional, leaving the patient to  agree to understanding information when in reality they have no idea what you are saying. My goal as a nurse is to help anyone and everyone I can, through education and encouragement. I realize that change, whether it be smoking cessation, losing weight, or increasing activity; changing our routine that we are comfortable with is not easy. However, if it is harming our health, change is necessary. Health care providers cannot make anyone change but what we can do is educate on the harmful effects of what the patient is doing and provide encouragement. More importantly is to provide a non-judgmental atmosphere. The patient will be more willing to listen to the nurse’s education as well as have trust in that nurse when they feel like an equal and are not being judged. References Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). (2014, September 9). Obesity and Overweight for Professionals: Data and Statistics: Adult Obesity – DNPAO – CDC. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/adult.html James, W. P. (2008). The epidemiology of obesity: the size of the problem. Journal of Internal Medicine, 336-352. Retrieved from http://eds.a.ebscohost.com.library.gcu.edu:2048/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=9ede2d6d-4d02-42e9-aff7-dd9b2486a3c3%40sessionmgr4004&vid=8&hid=4203 Servan, P. R. (2013). Obesity and Diabetes. Nutricion Hospitalaria, 28(5), 138-143. Retrieved from http://eds.b.ebscohost.com.library.gcu.edu:2048/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=11&sid=57543655-ca3d-4380-8d2c-28a71d3ce225%40sessionmgr110&hid=120 Skolnik, N. S., & Ryan, D. H. (2014). Pathophysiology, Epidemiology, and Assessment of Obesity in Adults. Journal of Family Practice, 63(7), 3. Retrieved from http://eds.b.ebscohost.com.library.gcu.edu:2048/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=57543655-ca3d-4380-8d2c-28a71d3ce225%40sessionmgr110&vid=8&hid=119

Amusement Park Essays

Amusement Park Essays Amusement Park Paper Amusement Park Paper Amusement parks INTRODUCTION Amusement and theme parks are terms for a group of entertainment attractions and rides and other events in a location for the enjoyment of large numbers of people. An amusement park is more elaborate than a simple city park or playground, usually providing attractions meant to cater specifically to certain age groups, as well as some that are aimed towards all ages. Amusement parks evolved in Europe from fairs and pleasure gardens which were created for peoples recreation. The oldest amusement park in the world (opened 1 583) is Bakken, at Klampenborg, north of Copenhagen, Denmark. In the United States, worlds fairs and expositions were another influence on development of the amusement park industry. Most amusement parks have a fixed location, as compared to traveling funfairs and carnivals. These temporary types of amusement parks are usually present for a few days or weeks per year, such as funfairs in the United Kingdom, and carnivals (temporarily set up in a vacant lot or parking lots) and fairs (temporarily operated in a fair ground) in the United States. The temporary nature of these fairs helps to convey the feeling that people are in a different place or time. In common language, theme park is often used as a synonym for the term amusement park. A theme park is actually a distinct style of amusement park, for a theme park has landscaping, buildings, and attractions that are based on one or more specific or central themes. A plurality of themes is not required to be considered a Theme park. Despite the long history of amusement parks, where many parks have traditionally incorporated themes into the evolving design and operation of the park, qualifying a park as a theme park, the first park built with the original intension of promoting a specific (or xclusive set of) theme(s), Santa Claus Land (currently known as Holiday World Splashin Safari) located in Santa Claus, Indiana, did not open until 1946. Disneyland, located in Anaheim, California, built around the concept of encapsulating multiple theme parks into a single amusement park is often mistakenly noted as the first themed amusement park. ADMISSION PRICES AND ADMISSION POLICIES Amusement parks collect much of their revenue from admission fees paid by guests attending the park. Other revenue sources include parking fees, food and beverage sales and souvenirs. Practically all amusement parks operate using one of two dmission principles Pay-as-you-go In this format, a guest enters the park at little or no charge. The guest must then purchase rides individually, either at the attractions entrance or by purchasing ride tickets (or a similar exchange method, like a token). The cost of the attraction is often ride a carousel but four tickets to ride a roller coaster. The park may allow guests to purchase unlimited admissions to all attractions within the park. A wristband or pass is then shown at the attraction entrance to gain admission. Disneyland opened in 1955 using the pay-as-you-go format. Initially, guests paid the ride admission fees at he attractions. Within a short time, the problems of handling such large amounts of coins led to the development of a ticket system that, while now out of use, is still part of the amusement-park lexicon. In this new format, guests purchased ticket books that contained a number of tickets, labeled A, B and C. Rides and attractions using an A-ticket were generally simple, with B-tickets and C-tickets used for the larger, more popular rides. Later, the D-ticket was added, then finally the now- famous E-ticket, which was used on the biggest and most elaborate rides, like Space Mountain. Smaller tickets could be traded up for use on larger rides (i. e. , two or three A-tickets would equal a single a-ticket). Disneyland, as well as the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World, abandoned this practice in 1982. The advantages of pay-as-you-go include the following: guests pay for only what they choose to experience attraction costs can be changed easily to encourage use or capitalize on popularity The disadvantages of pay-as-you-go include the following: guests may get tired of spending money almost continuously guests may not spend as much on food or souvenirs Pay-one-price An amusement park using the pay-one-price format will charge guests a single, large admission fee. The guest is then entitled to use all or more often almost all of the attractions in the park as often as they wish during their visit. The park usually has some attractions that are not included in the admission charge; these are called up- charge attractions and can include bungee Jumping or go-kart tracks or games of skill. However, the majority of the parks attractions are included in the admission cost. The pay-one-price ticket was first used by George Tilyou at Steeplechase Park, Coney Island in 1897. The entrance fee was $0. 25 for entrance to the 15-acre (61,000 m2) park and visitors could enjoy all of the attractions as much as they wanted. When Angus Wynne, founder of Six Flags Over Texas, first visited Disneyland in 1959, he noted that parks pay-as-you-go format as a reason to make his park pay-one-price. He thought that a family would be more likely to visit his park if they knew, up front, how much it would cost to attend. The advantages of pay-one-price include: Guests can more easily budget their visit. uests may be more likely to experience an attraction theyve already paid for lower osts for the park operators, since ticket-takers are not needed at each attractions The disadvantages of pay-one-price include: guests will often be paying for attractions that they do not ride or visit guests who are simply coming Just to be with their families will have to pay anyway Todays modern theme parks typically charge a single admission fee for admission and unlimited use of attrac tions, rides, and shows, whereas most modern amusement parks offer free RIDES AND ATTRACTIONS Mechanized thrill machines are what makes an amusement park out of a pastoral, relaxing picnic grove or retreat. Earliest rides include the carousel which was originally developed as a way of practicing and then showing-off expertise at tournament skills such as riding and spearing the ring. By the 19th century, carousels were common in parks around the world. Another such ride which shaped the future of the amusement park was the roller coaster. Beginning as a winter sport in 17th century Russia, these gravity driven railroads were the beginning of the search for even more thrilling amusement park rides. The Columbian Exposition of 1893 was a particular fertile testing ground for amusement rides. The Ferris wheel is the most recognized product of the fair. Many rides are set round a theme. A park contains a mixture of attractions which can be divided into several categories. Thrill rides There is a core set of thrill rides which most amusement parks have, including the enterprise, tilt-a-whirl, the gravitron, chairswing, swinging inverter ship, twister, and the top spin. However, there is constant innovation, with new variations on ways to spin and throw passengers around appearing in an effort to keep attracting customers. e. g. thunder @ Essel world Roller coasters, such as the Behemoth, at Canadas Wonderland, have fast and steep drops from high altitudes. Since the late 19th century, amusement parks have featured roller coasters. Roller coasters feature steep drops, sharp curves, and inversions. Roller coasters may be the most attractive aspect of a park, but many people come for other reasons. Amusement parks generally have anywhere from two to seven coasters, depending on space and budget. As of 2012, the record for the most coasters in one park is held by Six Flags Magic Mountain and Cedar Point with 17; Canadas Wonderland with 16; Kings Island and Kings Dominion with 14. Train rides Amusement park trains have had long and varied history in American amusement parks as well as overseas. According to various websites and historians, the earliest park trains werent really trains†they were trolleys. The earliest park trains were mostly custom built. Some of the most common manufacturers were: Allan Herschfield Cagney Brothers Chance Rides (C. P. Huntington Train) Amusement parks with water resources generally feature a few water rides, such as the log flume, bumper boats, rapids and rowing boats. Such rides are usually gentler and shorter than roller coasters and many are suitable for all ages. Water rides are especially popular on hot days. Dark rides Overlapping with both train rides and water rides, dark rides are enclosed attractions in which patrons travel in guided vehicles along a predetermined path, through an array of illuminated scenes which may include lighting effects, animation, other special effects, music and recorded dialogue. Transport rides Transport rides are used to take large amounts of guests from one area in the park to another. They usually cost extra, even in parks where rides are free. They are generally popular as they offer an alternative to walking. Transport rides include chairlifts, monorails, and train rides. Dippin Dots, an ice cream stand that appears at several amusement parks in the United States. Amusement parks generate a portion of their income through the sale of food and drink to their patrons. Food is routinely sold through food booths, push carts and indoor restaurants. The offerings vary as widely as the amusement parks themselves, and range from common fast food items, like hamburgers, hot dogs, cotton candy, candy apples, donuts and local street foods up to full-service gourmet dishes. Amusement parks with exotic themes may include pecialty items or delicacies related to the parks theme. Many restaurants and food stands are operated by the amusement parks themselves, while others are branches of regional or national chains. The first challenge for theme parks managers is to integrate the elements in the park itself with all the elements defining the theme park environment in the theme park development plan. For example, theme parks cannot function without transportation possibilities to bring the visitor to the park, or food supply or accommodation to support the visitors stay. Another characteristic of theme parks is that their demand is highly seasonal. For theme park planners seasonality effects mean that they need to plan the facilities in such a way that whatever season or number of visitors in the park, the visitor experiences in the park are optimal. Also, when demand for rides, activities and facilities fluctuates during the day this can cause problems for the park, such as congestion and time specific peaks at the rides, activities and facilities. For theme park managers, capacity planning and routing is therefore an important task to deal with these problems. For example, to optimize the visitor streams in the park and to minimize waiting times at the activities. Another characteristic is the fact that theme parks face high fixed costs and low variable costs. This means that the costs per visitor in the low season, when there are only few visitors in the park, are much higher than in the high season, especially if the quality of the visitor experience has to be maintained. Furthermore, each year parks require high investments to add new exciting attractions to their product to attract the required level of visitors. At the demand side, theme park planners may rely on marketers to actively try and manipulate tourist demand, by price differentiation across seasons, special rates for early ookings and bundling of services and visits over time or with other tourist facilities in the region. Similar to other tourist attractions, theme parks first and foremost provide enjoyment to their customers. This implies that theme park managers face especially strong demands from customers for new and exciting Innovations in their services. Special strategies need to be devised to deal with tourist variety seeking. Also typically a diverse number of services within a park is required to promote repeat visits and to cater for different members of visitors groups as seniors and hildren) and for different segments in the tourist population at large. This has important implications for theme park planning in terms of location and type of activities that should be introduced and supported. Detailed consumer information often is essential to meet these consumers requirements. The costumers requirements place special demands on theme park planners in terms of meeting environmental standards imposed through (inter)national regulations and local communities, by increasing demands in terms of landscaping and design, and financial responsibilities in terms of managing large areas of land which need to be ought, leased or rented depending on the organizations financial management strategy. skills in terms of combining creative and commercial abilities. Theme park design is crucial in determining the success of a park. In terms of design, several different levels can be distinguished. First, rides, activities and exhibits have to be designed attractively and effectively both in terms of initial appeal and usage. Second, landscaping and urban designs are required to integrate the different single facilities into a whole based on the selected theme for the park. And finally, activities and ervices need to be arranged that can support and increase consumer experiences of the physical elements in the park. Meeting consumer demand must be done however without compromising environmental and socio-cultural objectives. Because the theme product is consumed and produced at the same time, the service must be right the first time. Therefore, adequate theme park planning is highly critical for optimizing the delivery of the theme park product to the consumer. The final challenges facing theme park planners are created by the theme park market. There is a growing competition in the theme park market, with an ever ncreasing number of parks and many parks expanding their activities. Even more so, the tourist demand market is facing demographic changes in the form of agreeing population, economic changes that lead to tighter family time budgets because of an increasing number of double earner households, and the introduction of new technologies such as multimedia entertainment that compete directly with the traditional theme park market. Knowledge of potential market origins, and interests, habits and other travel characteristics of the population is a necessary but not sufficient condition to plan the several components of the supply side. It is important for the parks to know how consumers think, and what makes them visit or not visit attractions, and when they want to visit a park. Also, for theme park planners, an estimate of peak visitor volume is essential to the planning of every feature of the theme park, parking, attractions, exhibits, toilet facilities, tour guidance, food services and souvenir sales. It can be concluded that the challenges theme park planners face ask for planning methods that can integrate the different components in the planning processes within and across various levels of planning. 2. It helps in rejuvenating . Adds value to the holiday 4. It is an enjoyable experience for all the members of the family 5. It helps to add an entertainment element to the business, educational tours etc. 6. Creates a huge revenue source 7. It caters to the all the age groups 8. It generates employment opportunities in the economy 9. It boosts the tourism and hospitality industry SWOT Analysis of Walt Disney Company Strengths Weaknesses Experience in the entertainment business (over 80 years), Tourist attraction, Strong reputation and brand name, Wide companys product range- different types of attractions and products, Disneys ttractions adjusted to changes in visitors preferences, Familiarity, Qualified and educated employees, Large work force, Many changes in top-management, High operating costs, Different culture, High price for tickets, Design duplication, Cultural imperialism, Visitor Spending European visitors not spend as much as American visitors, Opportunities Threats Highly diversified product and service, Positive government attitudes, Large group of loyal clients, Expansion on foreign markets, Over saturated markets, Increasing number of serious and actively operating competitors, which address their ffer to the same segment of clients (e. g. Six Flags) Bigger elasticity of competitors in adapting to particular segment of clients thanks to the smaller volume of sales, Increasingly competitors offer, which is perceived by clients and retailers as a wider and better available, CONCLUSION In a nutshell, theme parks will be a tendency for the tourism in the future. We need to maintain those advantages and convert those disadvantages. In order to boost the development of tourism and hospitality, we ought to boost the development of theme parks, and make theme parks our big hitter, and an important part of the newly- risen industry, and make great contribution to tourism. Amusement parks need to cater to the changing demands of the consumers since consumers want innovations. consumed and produced at the same time, the service must be right the first time. It helps to de stress and helps to rejuvenate the tourists and also creates huge profits and also generates employment opportunities. It caters to all age groups. The challenges theme park planners face ask for planning methods that can integrate the different components in the planning processes within and across various levels of planning.

Emerging Theme in Human Resource Management The WritePass Journal

Emerging Theme in Human Resource Management Part One Emerging Theme in Human Resource Management ). The company literally looks after every need that a technology geek would not want to be bothered with, to help them focus on innovation, and creativity. Such flexibility and measures for ensuring a great work/life balance keep the employees highly motivated and foster innovation and creativity. Implication of these Themes for HR Managers Modern day organizations ought to make strong efforts in maintaining a participative and democratic leadership as the very first thing needed to enforce a modern organizational culture which is   not based on traditional hierarchy, but upon a diverse workforce wherein every individual provides a valuable input to lead the organization (Senge 1996). The leadership should recognize and admit that every employ has potential to find solution to the challenges faced by the company. This should lead to a organizational culture which is based on openness and trust, where employees are supported and rewarded for learning and innovating, and one that promotes experimentation, risk taking, and values the well-being of all employees† (Gephart 1996, p 39). Such a culture would position organizations to capitalize upon forthcoming ideas which can deliver unquantifiable benefits for the development and success of the telecommunication firms. Adhering to this line of thinking, HR managers s hould provide ample facilities and amenities for socialization, such as gyms, pool and indoor games, well kept cafeteria and canteens among other recreational facilities where employees can share ideas, experiences, and embark in informal learning. Such an environment is very effective in fostering group work and team learning as well (Senge 1990). Conclusion As Hout (1999) mentions that management as we have known it is too cumbersome for todays fast, unpredictable pace. A new kind of company wins now. The best management models dont adapt to the new economy; they emerge from it. Its no longer the survival of the fittest; its the arrival of the fittest. Hout’s contention clearly identifies the new order in the business world, which is characterized as fast paced, complex and unpredictable. It dictates a paradigm shift in the modern organizational culture. He further states that: â€Å"No intelligence from on high can match the quality of solutions to market problems that arise from players who are constantly communicating with one another on the ground level. The invisible hand of the marketplace should displace the visible hand of the manager. The markets can determine where one team or initiative or company ends and another begins. Managers interfere at their peril.† This signifies the importance of a participative organi zational culture, which encapsulates themes such as fairness, openness, and respect  ; all of which combine the collective wisdom of executives and all those working in an organization, in yielding bright ideas and solutions that can be translated into company’s success. Organization within the telecommunication industry should recognize that the journey towards creating such an organizational culture through flexibility is a long and gradual one and thus temporary setbacks and difficulties are to be expected. Enforcing a participatory managerial style and engaging employees in the organizational learning process are massive feats that cannot be achieved overnight. However, given the current overall outlook of the business environment and the rapidity of the technological advancements, and recognizing the changing cultural pattern of the society in general, developing such an organization is the most crucial strategy for the success of telecommunication firms. A flexible working environment can create an organizational culture that would promote innovation and creativity. It is the best way to avert any foreseen and unforeseen challenges faced by organizations.    References Battelle, J (2005) Google CEO Eric Schmidt gives us his golden rules for managing innovation. CNN/Money. Available   fromhttp://money.cnn.com/magazines/business2/business2_archive/2005/12/01/8364616/index.htm (cited on 15th December, 2012) Bender, D.R. (1998), â€Å"Knowledge management makes information work†, Washington Business Journal, Vol. 17 No. 6, pp. 35-6. Botha, D.F. (2000), â€Å"A conceptual framework for the management of knowledge in a knowledge-based enterprise†, South African Journal of Business Management, Vol. 31 No. 4, pp. 141-8. Change Board (1 January 2010) ‘HR landscape in 2010 HR challenges’, Available from: Changeboard.com. changeboard.com/content/3020/hr-landscape-in-2010hr-challenges/# (cited on 15th December, 2012) CIPD (28 January 2010) ‘Press Office’, Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, Available from: CIPD.co.uk. cipd.co.uk/pressoffice/_articles/HRD2010280110.htm?IsSrchRes=1 (cited on 15th December, 2012) Crossan, M. M., Lane, H. W. and White, R. E. (1999) An organizational learning framework: from intuition to institution, Academy of Management Review, 24, 522. De Geus, A. (1997), â€Å"The living company†, Harvard Business Review, Vol. 75 No. 2, pp. 51-9. Drucker, P.F. (1964), Managing for Results: Economic Tasks and Risk-taking Decisions, Harper and Row, New York, NY. Drucker, P.F. (1998), â€Å"Managements new paradigms†, Forbes, Vol. 162 No. 7, pp. 152-69. Gephart, A., Victoria J., Marsick, E., Van B., and Michelle S., (1996).  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Learning organizations come alive†Ã‚  Training Development  vol. 50, no. 12: 35-45. Handy, C. (1995) The Age of Unreason, London, Arrow Business Books. Harrison, R. (2009) Learning and development. 5th ed. London: Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development. Kaplan, Robert S., and David P. Norton. (Sept./Oct. 1996).  Strategic planning and the balanced scorecard.  Strategy Leadership  vol. 24, no. 5: 18-24. Kontoghiorghes, C., Awbrey, S.M. and Feurig, P.L. (2005), â€Å"Examining the relationship between learning organization characteristics and change adaptation, innovation and organizational performance†, Human Resource Development Quarterly, Vol. 16 No. 2, pp. 185-211. Manyika, J (2008) â€Å"Google’s View on the Future of Business: An Interview with CEO Eric Schmidt†. The McKinsey Quarterly. Available from mckinseyquarterly.com/Googles_view_on_the_future_of_business_An_interview_with_CEO_Eric_Schmi t_2229 (cited on 15th December, 2012) McGill, M.E., Slocum, J.W. and Lei, D. (1992), â€Å"Management practices in learning organisations†, Management Dynamics, Vol. 21 No. 1, pp. 4-17. Miller, W.C. (1998), â€Å"Fostering intellectual capital†, HR Focus, Vol. 75 No. 1, pp. 509-17. Munk, N. (1998), â€Å"The new organization man†, Fortune, Vol. 137 No. 5, pp. 62-74. Newstrom, J and  Keith  D. Organizational Behavior : Human Behavior at Work. New York : McGraw-Hill,  1993. Nomikos, G.E. (1989), â€Å"Managing knowledge workers for productivity†, National Productivity Review, Vol. 8 No. 2, pp. 165-74. Rheem, Helen. (Mar./Apr. 1995).  Ã¢â‚¬Å"The learning organization.†Ã‚  Harvard Business Review  vol. 73, no. 2: 10. Roy, M.C., Falardeau, J. and Pelletier, C. (2001), â€Å"Support systems for knowledge workers: the need for new development approaches†, Journal of Knowledge Management Practice, August, p. 2, available at: www.tlainc.com/articl24.htm. Shea, T. (1998), â€Å"Are you good at attracting knowledge workers?†, Orlando Business Journal, Vol. 15 No. 29, p. 30. Senge, P. (1990).  The Fifth Discipline: the Art and Practice of the Learning Organization. New   York: Doubleday. Senge, P. (1996). â€Å"Leading Learning Organizations†.  Training Development  vol. 50, no.   12: 36-4. Sloman, M. (2007) ‘The changing world of the trainer: emerging good practice’, Oxford Elsevier Butterworth-Heinemann.

discrimination worksheet Essay example

discrimination worksheet Essay example discrimination worksheet Essay example Associate Program Material Allanda Smith Discrimination Worksheet Write a 100- to 200-word response to each of the following questions. Provide citations for all the sources you use. What is discrimination? How is discrimination different from prejudice and stereotyping? According to racial and ethnic groups chapter 3 page 61 (Discrimination is the denial of equal rights and opportunities to a person or persons of a group due to prejudice or any negative reasons based on race, age, religion, or gender.) Stereotypes are more of a catergory people or things are placed in and usually false presumptions. Prejudice is the thoughts and feelings usually negative in nature towards a group of people. Prejudice is not always negative, some people become bias to what they are use to like a favorite way of doing something or how they make a certain dish. The difference is discrimination involves the actions to intentionally hurt the next person while prejudice and stereotypes are usually non violent in nature when they are not acted apon. What are the causes of discrimination? According to racial and ethnic groups (Discrimination can be caused by many things; friends, weight, sexual orientation, gender, religion, family, media, fear, ignorance, age, personal beliefs, or experiences at some point in your life.) It is mostly behavior that is learned from a younger age and people get use to being that way that it becomes natural to them to the point of being a second nature like the blink of an eye or breathing. How is discrimination faced by one

Continental Philosophy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Continental Philosophy - Essay Example k are to explore some of the different conceptions of imagination that can be found in western philosophical thought and to introduce and elucidate some of the philosophical issues that arise concerning imagination and creativity. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, imagination is â€Å"the ability of the mind to be creative or resourceful.† Thus, it is traditionally believed that creativity is the manifestation of the imagination. From the way in which we use the term "imagination," it appears that it is thought that the two can be equated; that telling someone to "be more creative" is exactly the same as saying, "use the imagination." That the imagination can be associated to creativity is clearly indubitable, but it is the type of association that is questionable. Before the discussion link between creativity and the imagination, it must be stated first what constitutes creativity and secondly what we mean by the term "imagination." According to Gaut there are three conditions of creativity. First, creativity must be original. There would be no point in creating a sonnet in which one can compare his love to a summers day, as it would not be original. Even if one did, the sonnet would be of no value - the second condition of creativity. Kant has pointed out that even the most nonsensical work of art can be original, but it is not creative unless it is exemplary i.e. of value. The third condition of creativity is that it has to have flair; an artist must have the intention to create the work in that way. If one splatter link across a page, it may be original, but since the end product is arrived at inadvertently, one must have had no style or flair and thus it is not creative. Subsequently, in Gauts words, â€Å"Originality, value and flair ar e the vital ingredients in creative making.† There are a number of different uses of the term "imagination." First, "imagine" can mean, "falsely believe" such as in a situation whereby a person is told that he is

Bayesian Networks Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4750 words

Bayesian Networks - Essay Example BNs are graphical models that set probabilistic relationships among variables of interest. They depict the relationships between causes and effects. The BNs are strong knowledge representation and reasoning tool under conditions of uncertainty. The BNs are a directed acyclic graph having nodes and arcs with a conditional probability distribution linked for each node. Nodes stand for domain variables, and arcs between nodes stand for probabilistic dependencies. Set of nodes and a set of directed links between them must not form a cycle. Each node represents a random variable that can take discrete or continuous finite, mutually exclusive values. These values depend on a probability distribution, which can be different for each node. Each link states probabilistic cause-effect relations among the linked variables. A link is shown by an arc starting from the affecting variable (parent node) and ending on the affected variable (child node). We will use BNs to represent risk. For example, Figure 3.1 shows BN for "Decreased profits" risk. By linking together different risks we can model multiple risks in a project and we will look at this property in Chapter 5. Bayes' Theorem was developed after Rev. Thomas Bayes, an 18th century mathematician and theologian. Bayes set out his theory of probability in Essay towards solving a problem in the doctrine of chances published in the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London in 1764. Richard Price, a friend of Bayes' sent the paper to the Royal Society and wrote: I now send you an essay which I have found among the papers of our deceased friend Mr Bayes, and which, in my opinion, has great merit... In an introduction which he has writ to this Essay, he says, that his design at first in thinking on the subject of it was, to find out a method by which we might judge concerning the probability that an event has to happen, in given circumstances, upon supposition that we know nothing concerning it but that, under the same circumstances, it has happened a certain number of times, and failed a certain other number of times. (Hogben 1970) Laplace accepted Bayes's results in a 1781 memoir and Condorcet rediscovered them (as Laplace mentions). They stayed accepted until Boole doubted them in the Laws of Thought . Mathematically Bayes theorem is stated as: Where it is possible to update our belief in hypothesis H given the additional evidence E. The left-hand term, P(H|E) is known as the "posterior probability," or the probability of H after considering the effect of E. The term P(H) is called the "prior probability" of H. The term P(E|H) is called the "likelihood" and gives the probability of the evidence assuming the hypothesis H is true. Finally, the last term P(E) is free of H and can be viewed as a normalizing or scaling factor. The power of Bayes' theorem is that in many situations where we actually want to calculate p(H|E) it turns out that it is hard to do so directly, yet we might have direct information about the likelihood, p(E|H). Bayes' theorem allows us to calculate p(H|E) in terms of p(E|H). 1.3 The Bayesian Approach to Probability and Statistics Understanding of the Bayesian method to probability and statistics helps to know BNs and related learning techniques. The

Consumer behavior project Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Consumer behavior project - Research Paper Example The latest generation is the iPhone 6 Plus. IPhones are usually distributed to various parts of the world. The company partners with other companies in various parts of the world to make sure that their products are availed all over the world. The local companies are always given the responsibility of assembling and supplying the products locally. From the companies that are responsible for assembling the products are supplied to the local dealers who do the supplying. Given the segment targeted by the product the pricing of iPhones is usually relatively high. The prices cannot be said to be the highest in the market. The fact that the phones are of high quality and are priced such that middle income earners can afford them makes it very easy for the phones to do well in the market. The company promotes this product through front page magazine, radio, and magazine advertisements. They also frequently make use of hoarding and point of sale advertisement with the aim of increasing their sales. The company uses sales promotions and exchange offers to lure customers into buying this particular product (Pride & Ferrell,

The Pearl - John Steinbeck Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The Pearl - John Steinbeck - Essay Example The story takes a turn when the son of Kino named Coyotito gets stung by a scorpion; however he feels helpless when he doesn’t have enough money to pay the doctor for the treatment. The story reaches its climax when Kino finds a huge pearl in the sea which he perceives as a life changing chip towards an extravagant lifestyle. However, as soon as the news reaches the people of the town conspiracies and evil plots overhaul the scenario, and a serious threat strikes Kino owing much to the valuable asset he now owns. Bewildered by the situation, his partner Juana steals the pearl and throws it into the ocean, and when Kino discovers the fact he leaves her back to the ocean, and only takes her back when she recovers the pearl. Soon, they decide to leave for the capital as they weren’t getting the desired value for the pearls in the town and on their way they come across trackers who end up killing their son. Hopeless and full of regret, the couple returns to the town and Kin o throws away the pearl into the ocean himself, as he realizes how the greed corrupted his soul and brought him to the edge of the life he was standing on then. He then remembers the words of his father describing how bad things are bound to happen when the station of life is disturbed. The book can be analyzed in many different layers and all of them carry distinct messages regarding the possession and the pursuit of wealth. Every character is symbolic for a value or for an element of lust, and every phase of the story is unique for the essence it portrays reflecting the evils associated with capitalism. The title of the novel in itself symbolized the message he wants to convey, i.e. a pearl can be associated with many different values or even assets. A pearl can symbolize beauty, at the same time wealth and lust as it possesses the shine as well as the monetary value which anyone would drool for. The title is the perfect choice for the writing as it complements the theme of the bo ok, and provokes the readers as the interpretation is left totally upon the readers. The story is merely a journey of a mediocre individual who is a part of a larger social spectrum, living in the town called La Paz situation in Mexico, who strives hard to cash the pearl he finds in the ocean but in the struggle he ends up losing everything, and is left with nothing but regret. The story in itself is a depiction of the perils of capitalism, as it defines the perimeters of a good life not by virtue of emotional satisfaction in fact by acquiring a lot of wealth to be able to afford the luxuries of life. Capitalism is itself a corrupt system, as it creates class differences in the society where the worth of an individual is weighed against the amount of money they own. This creates a feeling of restlessness amongst the individuals who lie at the lower end of the spectrum, thus in the struggle for acquiring money they tend to corrupt themselves in order to comply by the system. That is exactly what Kino did, as he was helpless against the power which money carries, and the greed compelled him to even kill people who came in his way. Thus, Kino is a perfect illustration of a pure individual who ends up losing his values and even his child as he gets corrupted by the corrupt system. It all started when the doctor refused to treat his child as he was demanding a higher amount as his worth was much higher. The doctor is representing the powerful and the corrupt segment of the society who controls the resources

Managing people (case study - King Fahad hospital) Personal Statement

Managing people (case study - King Fahad hospital) - Personal Statement Example It was a sunny Wednesday morning, when I was walking in the corridor of the hospital to attend one of my patients, while walking I realized I 'd a stiff back that day and my job demanded lot of mechanical work so it wasn't any good for me. But my happy go lucky nature and my attitude of taking problems light helped me again that day and I made my entry in the intensive care unit almost completely forgetting my pain. In the ICU when I reached to a patient REHMAAN, a nice man though but very disappointed with his health, I gave him a routinely check up and then guided the ward boy to do the needful so as the treatment is well in place. And after analyzing few more patients I headed towards my cabin to take a small rest bout. While resting I heard a sharp voice as if someone dropped the medicine tray and all the bottles broke down, being a senior in that wing it becomes my responsibility to keep track of such incidents and reach out for any kind of help. As soon as I came out of cabin I saw Ryan lying down on ground holding his left arm with right hand and the medicine tray was near his right shoulder. All bottles were broken and drug stains were all over. Ryan was crying in pain, and was breathing very heavily as he has this problem of anxiety at times, I tried to help him to sit against the wall but he being a healthy guy it was a difficult task for me alone to do it. I tried to calm him down a bit but his breath was really going very abnormal, I got him a glass of water from he merely had a sip as he was not feeling comfortable at all. At the same time I required to make sure that calling any wad boys for help should not result in attention degrade for patients, so after making Ryan sit against the wall I went into the adjacent ICU and quickly analyzed the current scenario like who all patients need extra care and who are almost

The Pearl - John Steinbeck Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The Pearl - John Steinbeck - Essay Example The story takes a turn when the son of Kino named Coyotito gets stung by a scorpion; however he feels helpless when he doesn’t have enough money to pay the doctor for the treatment. The story reaches its climax when Kino finds a huge pearl in the sea which he perceives as a life changing chip towards an extravagant lifestyle. However, as soon as the news reaches the people of the town conspiracies and evil plots overhaul the scenario, and a serious threat strikes Kino owing much to the valuable asset he now owns. Bewildered by the situation, his partner Juana steals the pearl and throws it into the ocean, and when Kino discovers the fact he leaves her back to the ocean, and only takes her back when she recovers the pearl. Soon, they decide to leave for the capital as they weren’t getting the desired value for the pearls in the town and on their way they come across trackers who end up killing their son. Hopeless and full of regret, the couple returns to the town and Kin o throws away the pearl into the ocean himself, as he realizes how the greed corrupted his soul and brought him to the edge of the life he was standing on then. He then remembers the words of his father describing how bad things are bound to happen when the station of life is disturbed. The book can be analyzed in many different layers and all of them carry distinct messages regarding the possession and the pursuit of wealth. Every character is symbolic for a value or for an element of lust, and every phase of the story is unique for the essence it portrays reflecting the evils associated with capitalism. The title of the novel in itself symbolized the message he wants to convey, i.e. a pearl can be associated with many different values or even assets. A pearl can symbolize beauty, at the same time wealth and lust as it possesses the shine as well as the monetary value which anyone would drool for. The title is the perfect choice for the writing as it complements the theme of the bo ok, and provokes the readers as the interpretation is left totally upon the readers. The story is merely a journey of a mediocre individual who is a part of a larger social spectrum, living in the town called La Paz situation in Mexico, who strives hard to cash the pearl he finds in the ocean but in the struggle he ends up losing everything, and is left with nothing but regret. The story in itself is a depiction of the perils of capitalism, as it defines the perimeters of a good life not by virtue of emotional satisfaction in fact by acquiring a lot of wealth to be able to afford the luxuries of life. Capitalism is itself a corrupt system, as it creates class differences in the society where the worth of an individual is weighed against the amount of money they own. This creates a feeling of restlessness amongst the individuals who lie at the lower end of the spectrum, thus in the struggle for acquiring money they tend to corrupt themselves in order to comply by the system. That is exactly what Kino did, as he was helpless against the power which money carries, and the greed compelled him to even kill people who came in his way. Thus, Kino is a perfect illustration of a pure individual who ends up losing his values and even his child as he gets corrupted by the corrupt system. It all started when the doctor refused to treat his child as he was demanding a higher amount as his worth was much higher. The doctor is representing the powerful and the corrupt segment of the society who controls the resources

Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi - Essay Example Satrapi's focus is on her life from when she was eight to fourteen, covering this time period with the historical concepts in the background. She begins with a powerful idea; a school photo, and this photograph demonstrates many young girls in their veils. These girls would usually remove these holy veils to play on play breaks (Book Review). The author is finally able to leave the mess of the war, with her parents seeing her off at an airport, so that she can head to the safety of a school in Austria. However, the war did affect her for the rest of her life, and through adulthood we see the scars that are attributed to this experience. From the beginning to the end of her experience in Iran, the author's young life is veiled with the feelings of the oppressive, war-like life in Iran. (Book Review). It becomes quite apparent that like her own parents, many of the young children of this time were encouraged to leave the country in order to find safety. The country was in such an uphea val that even young, promising children of the next generation were not safe. Therefore, this had a profound effect on the author's life, and this effect would change her life forever. Growing up with a war at her doorstep, the author had to consider on a day to day basis how to survive, and had to also worry about her parents' survival. The emotional descriptions present in the book leave readers with a very strong sense of emotion in themselves. For example, I was quite affected by the knowledge that such a young child had to quickly grow up in order to understand the issues around her. Many of the terrible things Satrapi witnessed should never have to be witnessed by a young child. As a reader, I experienced a strong sense of a lost innocence, destroyed because of a war that the child did not necessarily understand. This certainly makes me, as a reader, feel sympathy and sadness toward the author, and this feeling continues for the narrator throughout the novel. The emotions are continually conjured up in the readers as the novel progresses. The book is presented in a very simple way, as small details are introduced to reflect on powerful concepts of emotion in the novel. By doing this, Satrapi shows how much the little things can matter, and how the slightest action can demonstrate a type of emotion (Book Review). The emotions present in all the characters, as they are all affected by the war going on in the background, is very obvious throughout the book. However, it takes some skill to be able to learn to read these small, simple, signs; as for many of us in secure western countries, we do not always see this kind of response in the individuals that surround us. Satrapi herself, as a young child during this time, often depicts the emotions of astonishment and confusion. She is chronically bewildered at having to wear a veil at only ten years old. She also becomes confused upon seeing the picture with her Uncle's former wife's head defam ed (Book Review). She is further confused by the notions of justice and God (Book Review). Because the war was going on for so long in the background of her life, it must have seemed to her that God was unjust, and this would have greatly confused a young girl. She has to deal with the change all around her demonstrated in politics, and it was noticeably difficult for a young girl to understand the

Mineral Physical Properties Essay Example for Free

Mineral Physical Properties Essay A mineral refers to an inorganic element or compound that is naturally occurring in a solid state and has a specific chemical composition and a regular, internal crystalline structure. A mineral has a highly ordered structure and particular physical properties. Some of the varying physical characteristics of mineral include color, lustre and habit. Color is the first physical property of minerals that varies between same mineral. Color is an apparent aspect in minerals but it proves unreliable in identifying minerals. It occurs due to the minerals light absorbing and reflecting properties. The variability of color between the samples of the same mineral exists because color mainly comes about as a result of electronic alterations. For instance, quartz is found in different colors such as black, white, purple, pink, blue or clear. It is observable that completely varying materials may have the similar color. Secondly, lustre is a mineral physical property that varies among the same mineral. This refers to the amount of light that it reflects from its surface. A mineral may appear differently depending on the quality, intensity or quantity of light that it reflects. The mineral for instance may appear metallic or sub metallic or may appear splendent, shining or dull. Finally, the habit is another varying physical property. It refers to the crystal’s shape of the mineral. The habit is usually shaped by the conditions under which the metal grew. It is common for a mineral to have many varying habits. The habit of a mineral may be described as the habit of crystals or the habit of crystal aggregates (Ernest, 1995). Conclusion Mineral physical property can be relied on during identification of mineral. However, certain physical properties show a range of characteristics making them less reliable in the identification process. Reference Ernest, Nickel. (1995). Mineral Resources: The Definition and Properties of a Mineral. New York: Hill and Wang.

New Generation Sequencing Technologies: Population Genetics

New Generation Sequencing Technologies: Population Genetics New generation sequencing technologies have the potential to rapidly accelerate population genetics research, allowing scientists to comprehensively understand complex evolutionary histories, as well as functional and ecological biodiversity (Shokralla, et al., 2012; Shendure Hanlee, 2008). Prior to 1977, sequence production involved the handling of toxic chemicals and radio-active isotopes, restricting sequencing to persons of high expertise and speciality (Hunkapiller, 1991; Swerdlow, et al., 1990; Sanger, et al., 1977). In 1977, Fred Sanger and Alan R. Coulson published two methodological papers describing a new form of DNA sequencing technology, which would lead to the method (capillary-based, semi-automated Sanger biochemistry) used almost exclusively in the field, for the next 30 years (Shendure Hanlee, 2008). Sanger sequencing transformed biology. It became a tool for deciphering complete genes and, later, entire genomes. Due to the unprecedented extent at which Sanger techn ology grew, factory-like enterprises, called sequencing centres, were established, housing hundreds of DNA sequencing instruments, operated by cohorts of personnel (Schuster, 2008; Hunkapilla, et al., 1991). Despite the dominance of Sanger sequencing in laboratories, for a number of decades, the technology had and continues to be hampered by inherent limitations in throughput, scalability, speed and resolution (Shendure Hanlee, 2008). To overcome these barriers, an entirely new technology was required, one that democratised the field, putting the technology of comprehensive genetic analysis into the hands of individual investigators, not only major genome research centres (Shendure Hanlee, 2008). The need for new technologies was pushed for by the facilitators of the Human Genome Project (HGP) (Ventor, et al., 2001). The excitement and successful completion of the HGP, by two competing research bodies, lead to collective hunger for more advanced, economical sequencing technologies. Next-generation sequencing (NGS), also known as massively parallel sequencing, was such a technology and has ignited a revolution in genomic science, similar to that seen when Sanger technology was presented in 1977, honing in on the era of ‘post-genomic’ research (Schuster, 2008). The revolutionary nature of NGS technologies first became apparent in 2005, in two separate publications, 454 Life Sciences (Marguiles, et al., 2005) and the Multiplex Polony Sequencing Protocol (Shendure, et al., 2005). The methodology of both research groups resulted in vast reductions in the necessary reaction volume, while dramatically extending the number of sequencing reactions (Schuster, 2008). Despite such advances, in sequencing technology, NGS had a slow uptake in the scientific community, with a number of scientists having reservations. According to Schuster (2008), scientists accustomed to Sanger sequencing, as well as the initial scepticism echoed by funding bodies, resulted in a fear that large financial investments into Sanger-sequencing technologies would not produce returns, due to the technologies becoming obsolete. Other concerns were also raised, regarding the sequencing fidelity, read length, infrastructure cost and the handling of the large data volumes produced by NGS (Zhang, et al., 2011). It was the process of combining ongoing Sanger sequencing projects with NGS technologies that promoted its acceptance, into the scientific community. Once the enormous potential of the technology had been realised, along with new and upcoming biology projects that required sequencing outside of what the current Sanger technology could feasibly produce, the concerns raised by NGS’s early sceptics started to be overlooked. A combination of both first and second generation technologies are now used in sequencing facilities and projects around the world, the implications of which, for the fields of evolutionary biology and population genetics is vast. Researchers now have the ability to observe small changes in ecological community structure that may occur following anthropogenic or natural environmental fluctuations (Hajibabaei, et al., 2011; Leininger, et al., 2006; Hunkapiller, et al., 1991). Such implications of NGS technologies has led to the generation of whole-genome sequence data, for thousands of individuals (Akey Shriver, 2011; Harismendy, et al., 2009). The availability of such data is leading to a better understanding of evolutionary processes, such as descriptions of sex-biased dispersal and mutation rate biases (e.g., Wilson Sayres, M. A., et al., 2011). Furthermore, the ability to sequence the genomes of species, that have been long extinct, is no longer nonsensical, provided the samples from which DNA is to be extracted is still viable (Green, et al., 2010; Reich, et al., 2010). The hope that such projects may help population geneticists better understand the process of extinction, whether anthropomorphically or n aturally induced, may help those endangered species whose current possibility of extinction, in the near future, is high (Akey Shriver, 2011; Miller, et al., 2011). However, despite such ambitious aspirations of population geneticists, one large area of research that remains surprisingly unanswered, within the literature, is the definition of a population or ‘the population concept’ (Waples Gaggiotti, 2006). Given the importance of such a concept, one might expect to find a commonly used definition, one that is applicable to wild species, to determine how many populations exist within a delineated geographic area and the relationships amongst them (Waples Gaggiotti, 2006). However, one does not exist, rather there is evidence that what makes a ‘population’ is based on the research question. NGS technologies are providing population geneticists with the opportunity to flesh out a detailed definition of a population, on the molecular level. For example, Waples Gaggiotti (2006) ask â€Å"How different must molecular units be before individuals can be considered a part of separate populations?† Different criteria can be established and assigned to individuals, in order to determine the answer. The interplay of different evolutionary forces (selection, migration, drift) will favour different species, with different forces being more obvious, at the molecular level, than others. The ability to pose a research question, pertaining to the individuals, within a particular habitat, is now possible due to the ability to sequence numerous samples with NGS technologies. The implications, in population genetics, for a new generation of sequencing technologies, are a greater focus on testing expectations. Such expectations, simultaneously, result in excitement and daunt to those undertaking evolutionary and population genetic research, at present. Excitement exists because fundamental questions, pertaining to the patterns of genetic variation, within and between species, can now be analysed, with new generation sequencing technologies, such as NGS. Although NGS technology may still be in its infancy, the powerful possibility of analysing massive data sets is within reach of the individual and large-scale sequencing facilities alike, at a highly reduced cost. However, the methodological tools and theoretical models needed to interpret such large data sets are equally daunting to both new, and experienced, evolutionary and population geneticists. Despite such present and future challenges, population genetics research is looking promising, thanks to adv ances in NGS adoption and computation. References Akey, J. M. Shriver, M. D. (2011). A grand challenge in evolutionary population genetics: new paradigms for exploring the past and charting the future in the post-genomic era. Frontiers in Genetics 2, 1-2. Green R. E., Krause J., Briggs A. W., Maricic T., Stenzel U., Kircher M., Patterson N., †¦ Pà ¤Ãƒ ¤bo S. (2010). A draft sequence of the Neanderthal genome. Science 328, 710–722. Hajibabaei, M., Shokralla, S., Zhou, X., Singer, G. A. C. Baird, D. J. (2011). Environmental barcoding: a next-generation sequencing approach for biomonitoring applications using river benthos. PLoS ONE 6, e17497. Harismendy, O., Ng, P. C., Strausberg, R. L., Wang, X., Stockwell, T. B., Beeson, K. Y., Schork, N. J., †¦ Frazer, K. A. (2009). Evaluation of next generation sequencing platforms for population targeted sequencing studies. Genome Biology 10 (3), 32-39. Hunkapiller, M. W. (1991). Advances in DNA sequencing technology. Current Opinion in Genetics Development 1 (1), 88-92. Hunkapiller, T., Kaiser, R. J., Koop, B. F. Hood, L. (1991). Large-scale and automated DNA sequence determination. Science 254, 59-67. Leininger, S., Urich, T., Schloter, M., Schwark, L., Qi, J., Nicol, G. W., Prosser, J. I., Schuster, S. C. Schleper, C. (2006). Archaea predominate among ammonia-oxidizing prokaryotes in soils. Nature 442, 806-809. Marguiles, M., Egholm, M., Altman, W. E., Attiya, S., Bader, J. S., Bemben, L. A., †¦ Rothberg, J. M. (2005). Genome sequencing in microfabricated high-density picolitre reators. Nature 437, 376-380. Miller W., Hayes V. M., Ratan A., Petersen D. C., Wittekindt N. E., Miller J., Walenz B., †¦ Schuster S. C. (2011). Genetic diversity and population structure of the endangered marsupial Sarcophilus harrisii (Tasmanian devil). Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 108 (30), 12348-12353. Reich D., Green R. E., Kircher M., Krause J., Patterson N., Durand E. Y., Viola B., †¦ Pà ¤Ãƒ ¤bo S. (2010). Genetic history of an archaic hominin group from Denisova Cave in Siberia. Nature 468, 1053–1060. Sanger, F., Air, G. M., Barrell, B. G., Brown, N. L., Coulson, A. R., Fiddes, J. C., Hutchison, C. A. III, Slocombe, P. M. Smith, M. (1977). Nucleotide sequence of bacteriophage phi X174 DNA. Nature 265, 687-695. Schuster, S. C. (2008). Next-generation sequencing transforms today’s biology. Nature Methods 5 (1), 16-18. Shendure, J. Hanlee, J. (2008). Next-generation DNA sequencing. Nature Biotechnology 26 (10), 1135-1145. Shendure, J., Porreca, G.J., Reppas, N. B., Lin, X., McCutcheon, J. P., Rosenbaum, A. M., Wang, M. D., Zhang, K., Mitra, R. D. Church, G. M. (2005). Accurate multiplex polony sequencing of an evolved bacterial genome. Science 309, 1728-1732. Shokralla, S., Spall, J. L., Gibson, J. F. Hajibabaei, M. (2012). Next generation sequencing technologies for environmental DNA research. Molecular Ecology 21, 1794-1805. Swerdlow, H., Wu, S. L., Harke, H. Dovichi, N. J. (1990). Capillary gel electrophoresis for DNA sequencing. Laser-induced fluorescence detection with the sheath flow cuvette. Journal of Chromatography 516, 61-67. Ventor, J. C., Adams, M. D., Myers, E.W., Li, P. W., Mural, R. J., Sutton, G. G., Amanatides, P., †¦, Zhu, X. (2001). The sequence of the human genome. Science 291, 1304-1351. Waples, R. S. Gaggiotti, O. (2006). INVITED REVIEW: What is a population? An empirical evaluation of some genetic methods for identifying the number of gene pools and their degree of connectivity. Molecular Ecology 15 (6), 1419-1439. Wilson Sayres M. A., Venditti C., Pagel M., Makova K. D. (2011). Do variations in substitution rates and male mutation bias correlate with life history traits? A study of 32 mammalian genomes. Evolution 65 (10), 2800-2815. Zhang, J., Chiodini, R., Badr, A. Zhang, G. (2011). The impact of next-generation sequencing on genomics. Journal of Genetics and Genomics 38, 95-109. Influences of Greek Culture: History of the Spartans Influences of Greek Culture: History of the Spartans The Spartans In the summer of 480 B.C a battle took place that would forever change the history of the Greeks and that would eventually influence the way in which the Western world looked at war. The Spartans took their stand against the massive army of Persians in a three day battle which resulted in the Persians taking the win but may have very well led to the Greeks winning the Greco-Persian War. A culmination of strong tactical skill and bravery contributed to the Spartans making a stand much longer and stronger than anybody could have ever predicted. The Persian king Xerxes led his massive army through the narrow mountain pass known as Thermopylae expecting no considerable fight on the part of the Spartans. The Persians bid to conquer Greece was significantly halted because of the Spartan resistance, which was led by Leonidas,followed by a small army of Spartans, amounting to no more than 300. But no matter the size of Spartas fleet, Sparta if not the strongest, was one of the strongest mili tary powers in ancient Greece. And despite them being vastly outnumbered by the Persians at Thermopylae, they did indeed prove their military strength and sophistication which resulted in their near defeat of the Persian army. Greek culture was and still is up to today a heavy influence on the modern cultures of the Western world. It is because of this heavy influence of Greek culture in the western world, the knowledge of their history proves crucial to many aspects of our understanding of our own cultures. This heavy influence on the development of the western world could very easily be the reason that the Battle of Thermopylae and other battles surrounding it, have become of such importance and high level of study. The valiant stand of the Spartans at Thermopylae lead to the Greeks defeat of the Persians in the Greco-Persian war and enabled the further development of a culture from which the western world gains many of its principles and ideas. If the Spartans had not delayed the Persians at Thermopylae there may have been a very different ending to the Greco-Persian war. This being an important observation because the Greco-Persian war played such a crucial role in the history of Greece, a defeat could have resulted in a very different future for the western civilization. The culture of Greece was one that strived for perfection in every sense of the word, but there was a dark side to the culture that so many have grown to praise. This dark side can be seen in the Spartans treatment of the Helots, who were in essence a Greek culture in their own, the Messenia’s, but early on became enslaved by the power Spartans who were in desperate need to acquire more land to deal with the burden of overpopulation. The Spartans held true and easily demonstrated as what is seen as Greece’s inability to incorporate. The poor treatment of the Helots lead them to begin a 30 year revolt, in which the Spartans took twenty years to take control of the situation. Fear of more events like this, is what turned Sparta into the war state that it became. The attempt to suppress the Helots, by the Spartans, in many ways assisted the Spartans in their attempt to defeat the Persians. No longer willing to undergo a similar revolt, the Spartans devoted a considerable a mount of time and energy making certain to prevent all such events. It was because of these efforts that major components of Spartan culture, as we know it today, were all enforced. This can be easily seen in the devotion to physical perfection and warring techniques. And equally as important as their attempt to suppress the Helots was the contribution of the Helots in constructing their armor and warring tools. So despite the overwhelmingly poor treatment of the Helots, they played a crucial role in preparing the Spartans for the challenges to come and in the heat of battle. Even though they may have played an indirect role the affect that had on both the culture and the Battle of Thermopylae itself was indeed direct. The Greeks had a large influence on the development of western world in many respects. Whether it is an influence on science or art, to anyone who has studied Greece in the days of its glory the influences be easily pinpointed. These influences continue into the art of war. As previously stated, war was a constant in Greece so much so that it became imbedded in its very culture. Consequently the way in which war was conducted in ancient Greece has become a portrait of the way in which it should be conducted, and set a standard around the Western world for years to come. Despite war being one of the most immoral, barbaric, and most appalling of all human creations, the Greeks did the impossible, by successfully portraying war as something of beauty, patriotism, freedom and self-sacrifice. Therein lays a reason the significance of the Battle at Thermopylae. That one battle not only captured the spirit of the Greeks, more specifically the Spartans, in three days but became a turning poi nt of the art of war. But the Battle of Thermopylae more importantly defended the very future of the modern world. It was Spartan culture, which in many ways, influenced the Spartans ability to stand against the Persians as long as they did. To overlook the role of Spartan culture in relation to their stand at Thermopylae would be to overlook one of the most influential aspects of the battle. Spartan culture was one of great complexity having many intricate characteristics, which adapted to the situations that they held witness to. Spartans were people of extreme patriotic pride and military prowess, who sought perfection in every form. But equal to their patriotism was their oppressive tactics towards their captives. Spartans weren’t people who believed in the concept of freedom. The Spartans for several centuries, while in Laconia and Messenia, exercised a ruthless enslavement of other native Greeks, whose land they conquered. Sparta was a military aristocracy, who wasn’t a military state for the sake of being a military state. In many respects Sparta’s army, parallel to no t other, was created and maintained for the sole purpose of suppressing the Helots. In theory it was because of Sparta’s ‘inability to incorporate’ that lead to their standing army. Sparta’s military achievements are, no doubt, the most impressive of all their possible accomplishments. By the middle of the sixth century Sparta was already considered the strongest military force in Greece. Despite the brute strength the of the Spartan army, the Spartan were still worried that a revolt from their underclass (the Helots)would cripple their advancement as a society. â€Å"The Helot underclass were always threatening to rise up in significant numbers against their masters. So, at the beginning of each new civil year Sparta’s chief elected officials, the board of five ephors (overseers, supervisors), formally declared war on them. If any Helots did choose to rebel, they might then be killed with impunity†¦.† The awareness of a possible revolt kept the Spartans military forces extremely strong. This tension between the Spartans and Helots, strongly prepared the military forces for both the expected and unexpected, a beneficial trait which played to their advantage at the Battle of Thermopylae. Another trait that played to their advantage was the educational system of Sparta. The agoge was instated into Spartan culture to both develop the physical and mental maturity of all Spartan boys and was a requirement for all Spartan males.

Von Hippel-Lindau Syndrome :: essays research papers

Von Hippel-Lindau syndrome is one of over 7000 known inherited diseases. It is an autosomal dominant disease that affects about 10% of the population.1 The history of VHL reaches back to 1864 when scattered reports of knots of blood vessels known as hemangioblastomas on the retina surfaced and were written up by opthamolagists. Eugene Von Hippel, a German opthamologist is credited with discovering the familial nature of the disease, however Swedish pathologist Arvid Lindau was the one who suggested that these hemangioblastomas are part of a larger "angiomatus [involving knots of blood vessels] lesion of the central nervous system." Additional reports of affected small families confermed Lindau's theory. In 1964, Melmon and Rosen summarized all knowlege of the disease and coined the name "Von Hippel-Lindau." The invention of ultrasound aided detection in the late 1970's, and by the mid 1980's, MRI was commonly used for detection of angiomas on the spine. In 1 993, the VHL gene was located by researchers at the National Cancer Institute. Patients with VHL suffer tumors known as angiomas (they are referred to as hemangioblastomas when discussing the retina, brain, or spinal chord and pheochromocytomas when discussing the adrenal glands) consisting of tiny knots of blood vessels. These angiomas can occur in the brain, spinal cord, retina, adrenal glands, kidney, pancreas, and very rarely in the epididymis is men and the fallopian tubes in women. Based on these manifestations, scientists have identified two types of VHL: 1) without pheochromocytoma 2) with pheochromocytoma. VHL type 2 has further been divided into two subcatagories: 2a) without pancreatic cysts 2b) with pancreatic cysts. VHL type 1 is the most common form of the disease. Scientists have also identified trends in race associated with manifestations of VHL: French families are most likely to have pancreatic cysts, German families are most likely to have pheochromocytomas, and Japanese families are more likely to have kidney tumors2. When hemangioblastomas form in the retina, they start out very small and difficult to detect. They tend to grow around the equator of the retina (See Fig 1), far from the area of central vision. A very indepth opthamological examination is required to detect hemangioblastomastomas of the retina. Once discovered, there are two main options for treatment: laser surgery or cryotherapy (freezing). The goal of these treatments is to keep the hemangioblastomas from growing. Hemangioblastomas in the brain and spinal cord can be a bit more dangerous. Early signs of a growth in these areas may include back pain, headaches, numbness, dizziness, and weakness or pain in the arms or legs.

The Video Game Narrative Essay -- essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Video Game Narrative   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The first argument that arose out of the video game world was the debate of video game violence. Still unresolved, this debate has actually allowed for the video game industry to come fully into the main stream. As the din over violence quieted the fans of the game society began to focus on issues more akin to their own style. So then began the debate of game play vs. the video game narrative. The question arose; can a game also be a story? While the semantics would suggest that, no, a game cannot be a story, we do realize that a game can contain a story. However, considering the amount of games that contain a story we can surmise that this question doesn’t further our study, and realizing that the amount of games (mostly of the 1980’s) that had no story and only gameplay we can see that the story is not a required facet for a game to be successful.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  So the question is in need of updating. Is the story contained in today’s games the traditional linear story being contained in a non-linear gameplay arena, or do video game stories possess some special qualities that allow a game to be different from a book or movie. To understand the video game we need to look at one of the video game world’s ultimate predecessors: Dungeons and Dragons. Back in the time when teenage guys dressed up as the character that they had spent month after month making stronger, there existed no video games to fool with. No, this was how the nerds of the day hung out. And much like today, where we have â€Å"Halo bashes† of anywhere from 4 to 16 (16 being the average), the competition between warlock and dungeon master was only the beginning   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Oakley 2 of the excitement. The story that played out in D&D was different every time, depending on how the game was played. And like it’s successor, the RPG’s of today (most notably the Final Fantasy series) play the same way as the games of old. So ... ...  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Oakley 4 a necessity? And what other qualities have taken the main stage of video games today?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The video game world is an ever-changing realm, originally it was a staple way to pass the time, then it became what we looked forward to after a hard day’s work. So as the gaming world becomes more complex, new game types emerge to fill our free time. But very rarely does a game like Pac-Man or Pong come out; a game that has no real story in it, it’s just a way to score points. However it is my belief that even when there is no literal story to a multiplayer game we still have a background to the reason we compete. If one were to take the story of the Master Chief and the Covenant out of the game Halo (2001), we would still have a superb multiplayer game. On the outside it would seem that the only reason to play is to kill the other Spartans, there is no deeper story behind it. However, for the players at least, it becomes a contest, and as you play more and more you remember the other games; you want revenge, you want to be better, or you want to d o something funny.

Causes Of Protestant Reformation

Though human beings are innately compelled to venerate forms of god or higher beings, they also have the tendency to remove themselves from the bonds of undesirable groups and established norms when they feel already most uncomfortable or when new alternatives ready to be explored have presented itself. This tendency have also propelled many individuals to deviate from the grip of Catholicism during the time when irregularities in leadership by religious superiors have spread doubt on the Catholic faith.Before Martin Luther was excommunicated and called a heretic, he was a brilliant student from a catholic monastery. Having been obsessed with whether he is going to be saved by his actions and practices as a catholic, he arrived to some questions regarding the â€Å"legality† of some catholic practices and rites with respect to the teachings from the bible. From there he concluded that portions of catholic teachings do not coincide with the holy scriptures and certain practices of church people are out of their religious requirements. From here he created his 95 theses, containing his criticisms on the religion.He is particular about the claims of the catholic church that it is capable of bringing salvation of people from sins and later lead them to the paradise they promised. Luther contradicted this by citing the bible's reference to God as the only savior. Also, he notes that faith alone is necessary in order to follow the Words of God, not prayers to some saints, like Mary who is venerated in the catholic church as someone higher in being. His 95 Theses however is focused mainly on his renouncement of the practice of indulgences, religious acts that include prayers, attendance in mass celebrations, charity, and penance.Indulgences are done in order to remove one's soul out of purgatory, an extra-temporal state where souls who are not â€Å"clean† enough of heaven is being purified before entry. Prayers sent with regards to the people in purgato ry helps in purifying them, eventually granting them passage to paradise. This is contested by Luther, saying in general that indulgences is not commanded by the bible and followers should only practice those directed by the bible. His letter to the Archbishop of Mainz in 1517 voiced his objections over the sale of indulgences done by friars in many parts of Germany.Priests, encouraged by a permission from the pope, collects â€Å"contributions† which will be included in the funds necessary in building a church in Rome. Johann Tetzel, a friar in Germany, advocated that indulgences will purchase a soul out of purgatory and fly to heaven. Also, he stressed that the money offered can remove one's sin and the penance required thereof. The Catholic Church however denied Luther's objections, noting that the church is needed in interpreting the bible and God's Word to the people. From there they excommunicated Luther and called him a heretic.The church commanded its followers to bur n Luther's book which spread already in Germany where it was received with much appreciation and acceptance by the state who have conflicts with the Holy Roman Empire that time already. The over-reaction of the church may have contributed in Luther's success in influencing people away from the church. Though Luther's intention is not to build a new church but only to reform the existing due to its wrong ways, the excommunication and the conviction of heresy stray away from catholic teachings.However, other reasons are being cited to explain the spread of Lutheranism and the defiance of people to the Catholic Church (Kreis, 2002). Considering that his goal is only to reform certain practices of the church, his arguments are not enough to make a new church in itself. This is why many practices of the Protestant church is similar to those practiced by catholics. The desire of rich people to save their money while at the same time being saved from sins gave them a reason to remove thems elves from the Catholic church.Since Luther argued that only faith is needed to be saved, the rich found it unnecessary to pay indulgences consequently saving their money for themselves. This is the same with the poor people who cannot pay indulgences. Because they have no money to literally pay for their sins, they feel hopeless and lack sense of dignity and esteem as a follower of God. When they heard of Luther's arguments against indulgences, they are given new hope for salvation without even paying a single copper coin. Later achievements of Protestantism received contributions from John Calvin, another reformist influenced by Luther.He argues that God alone have the final say on who is going to be saved, not the church nor the priests. This is explained in his concept of predestination, which stresses that human beings are not capable to understand God, even the pope of the Catholic Church. However, The growth of Protestantism is still accountable to Martin Luther and the surpr ising number of his initial followers. The spread of Protestantism marks the capability of people to deviate from the undesirable group or norms that they belong to.Martin Luther found that the practices of the Catholic Church and its leaders are no longer in accordance to what their belief states, particularly the orders of the bible. However, the number of people who followed him did not do so because of the righteousness of his claims. Their motives are propelled by their personal desire to remove themselves from the seemingly corrupt and repressive leadership of the church and their objections on the purpose of giving money when a more effortless and pretentious action, faith, is necessary.