Short Essay - Drugs Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Short - Drugs - Essay Example It has been suggested, and in some cases demonstrated, that legalizing or at least decriminalizing less harmful drugs, such as marijuana, can help to reduce the violence, significantly decrease the numbers of people incarcerated for drug use, allow more individuals to remain a contributing member of society and free up funds and manpower to combat against more harmful substances. Although marijuana was included as a restricted substance as early as 1937, there has never been sufficient evidence to support claims that the drug causes widespread violence and destruction all by itself. â€Å"There never was any scholarly evidence that the [anti-drug] laws were necessary, or even beneficial, to public health and safety and none was presented when the laws were passed.† (Schaffer). With the number of Vietnam vets returning from war addicted to narcotics, President Nixon officially declared the opening of the War on Drugs in 1971, primarily directed against heroin addiction. The positive effects that were seen coming out of this early stage in the anti-drug movement has been attributed to the fact that a larger proportion of the funding available for this struggle was directed toward treatment, rather than law enforcement. (Thirty Years, 2006). Throughout these early years, marijuana was seen as a low-level drug until a group of mothers, concerned at findin g marijuana at a 13-year-old’s party, founded the Families in Action anti-drug group in 1976. The movement gained strength and direction under President Reagan in 1981 after the drug cartels in Colombia had violently made their presence known in Miami. While Nancy Reagan’s â€Å"Just Say No to Drugs† campaign included marijuana as one of the drugs to avoid, the focus of the war on drugs remained targeted on cocaine as the cartels gained increasing power and organization. The focus was finally turned to marijuana smugglers

Business , Government and Society Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Business , Government and Society - Essay Example The article mainly discussed how US regulatory bodies have put in place the most business friendly policies. The business environment views government policies in terms of the regulatory burden and property rights protection that affects them on their day-to-day activities. The article discusses how the US government still currently ranks among the top countries with regards business-friendly policies, despite the issuance of new regulations as counteractive measures to financial crisis. There had also been numerous deregulatory policies of previous governments, and thus the current government has undertaken to put in place business friendly measures. However, there have been complaints among congressmen, business people, and trade representatives that a significant percentage of unemployment has resulted from overregulation of the business environment by the government. The article shows that the World Bank ranking has also not included a number of critical factors such as skills of the workforce, the size of the market and macroeconomic conditions. Nevertheless, African countries have been reported to have the most unfriendly business environment characterized by numerous regulations.   Major Stake Holders and Their Interests Major stakeholders of macroeconomic policies include the governments’ political class, the society, and investors in the business environment. ... Concerning changes in governance, the political class alters these guidelines and rules thus affecting the day-to-day operations of businesses. The government plays key role in to the economy of a country as a whole and thus needs to put in place economic policies that would bring economic developments. The governments’ political class being a major stakeholder to macroeconomics, it has continuously interfered with operations of the economy through the construction of public corporations. However, public corporations have been privatized by many governments in a bid to stimulate economic developments through the sale of underpriced shares to private members of the society. Privatization program has been used by nations as an economic reform programs. Stimulation of economic developments has been possible in many economies by coming up with business environments that are more competitive through privatization of public corporations (Rajan & Asher 95). Macroeconomics Theory and Concepts Macroeconomic theory is not the only aspect used by the government to ensure the business environment is favorable for entrepreneurs and for economic growth. Sustained economic growth in most cases depend on structural performance such as government regulations, public sector privatization, favorable policies, liberalization of trade and efficiency of the banking sector. Economic growth that focuses on distributional and progressive improvement has a positive impact of both the interest of the society and the businesspersons. Macroeconomic theories can be complemented by government policies that seek to improve income distribution in the society. Such policies may include reforms with regards to land tenure, access to financial services at affordable rates

Evaluation Model for Web Service Change Management

Evaluation Model for Web Service Change Management EVALUATION MODEL FOR WEB SERVICE CHANGE MANAGEMENT BASED ON BUSINESS POLICY  ENFORCEMENT AbstractToday organizations in all industries are increasingly dependent upon IT and a highly available network to meet their business objectives. As customer expectations and demands rise, and their needs is one of the prevailing problems faced by IT enterprises at present, leading to increasingly complex IT service management systems. Although there exists many change management issues and solutions, there is no proper support for efficient change evaluation and monitoring. Present change management works are done only in the web service interface such as WSDL Web Service Definition Language and there is no proper support for dynamic nature in them. In order to provide a flexible environment for the Business Analyst to perform the emergency changes over the service business logic without the need of IT staff and also to evaluate changes made, we propose a Finite State Machine based Evaluation Model for Web Service Runtime Change Management and also a set of change factors to evalua te runtime changes of web services. Among which we mainly focus on the factor Business Policy Enforcement which is used for checking whether there is any policy violation with respect to the changes made. We first define the various change factors and derived solution is considered as the change measure for individual change factor. Keywords-Web Services, BL Analyzer, Dependency Analyzer, Change Factors, Business Policy Manager, Runtime Change Management, Change Evaluation Report. I. INTRODUCTION A web service is a piece of business logic that enables a paradigm shift in business structures allowing them to outsource required functionality from third party Web-based providers. As services are not static, they undergo many changes during their life cycle since the IT service management system now is facing an increasingly complex environment aroused by wide variety of requirements. This situation increases the likelihood of service interruption which in turn causes business loss. In this case, a series of changes are needed so that potential service interruptions can be prevented. A service change is any addition, modification, or removal of authorized, planned, or supported service or service component and its associated documentation. A typical IT enterprise faces considerable number of changes each year. To handle such changes, change management is needed. Change management is a set of processes that are employed to ensure that significant changes are implemented to a business process during its maintenance phase. The purpose of the change management process is to ensure that: Business risk is managed and minimized; Standardized methods and procedures are used for efficient and prompt handling of all changes; all changes to service assets and configuration items are recorded in the configuration management system; and all authorized changes support business needs and goals. Hence there arises the need for an effective framework managing those changes without affecting the business functionality. Here Change Management framework is proposed for making minor alterations to business logic but whose effect is more pronounced to the profitability of the organization. So the changes in business logic of the web service must be done very quickly within the given time constraint as the services consumed by the providers and clients must not be affected there by managing the changes at the runtime. We focus on creating environment for dynamic variations to the business logic so that it is feasible to make frequent modifications in a service which aids service provider and serves him to satisfy clients’ newfangled quests. Such environment is useful in the run-time management of web services and to exactly spot the solution to the service provider’s maintenance element. There are many models that subsist for Business Process Management in which the process is recycled for the overall process changes. However, the problem with these solutions is that they only support the process level flexibility and not the application/service level flexibility. On the other hand this Business Logic Management framework tries to append that service level flexibility. These changes are done at the Business analyst level instead of being done at the Developer level, which reduces the hierarchy level in change management and thus implies a reduction in time and cost requirements. A specific change in the logic, not only changes the functionality concerned with it, but also the dependent functions under the dependency group. In the logic level, the set of rules form the finite states with functions as transitions. A rule is said to be dependent in this model, if there is a transition from one rule to another on accepting a function. The level of dependency analysis can be even extended to the functions where the parameters act as the transition from one function to another. Thus the rules and functions under logic form a dependency group which is analyzed and verified for every change initiated externally. Those dependency groups assist in performing changes and results in an effective change. Those changes that are made based on the dependency analysis are measurable, complete and finite. Any change that is not based on the dependency analysis is said to violate the outlined properties and may result in a failure. Dependency analysis based on each factor is p erformed by a finite state machine. With the help of finite state machine, it is possible that if a particular logic has been successfully recognized then it goes to the halt state. On the other hand, there exists a transition from any state to the exception state E, if the rule or function encounters an exceptional input or parameter. By this way, the FSM simulates the pattern based on the behavior of the rules and functions, which can be easily verified and measured at each stage. This measure of change evaluation ensures that the business analyst has a direct control over the changes he makes and provides an environment that notifies the analyst about the outcome in a meaningful way. We propose a set of five change factors based on which the dependency existing between the business rules, functions and parameters is analyzed. Among which we mainly focus on the factor Business Policy Enforcement which is used for checking whether there is any policy violation with respect to the c hanges made. These change factors are also involved in the change evaluation that makes the changes to be specified in a precise and formal manner. II. FRAMEWORK FOR WEB SERVICE CHANGE MANAGEMENT In this framework, the course of action begins with issue of change request and the whole processing of the request is conducted under the supervision of an analyst. A ChangeRequest is an additional expectation that theCustomerwants which is outside the current defined scope of the project which is a change to an existing product. It is first specified by the analyst in detail. This specification includes the change to be made, brief description of the change to be made, action to be made, services, rules and the conditions under which the change has to be made. The Request handler is responsible for finding the type of the change and priority is assigned to indicate the order of importance of the request and also determines whether the change can be implemented within the runtime. Domain Variable Identifier discovers the domain variables present in the request by just tokenizing the request and searching whether any of tokens match against given domain variable set. Once we are done with domain variable identification, we can determine the domain to which the request refers to. The Domain Mapper finds the corresponding domain and services with the help of service repository which comprises all kinds of services and provides the result to Business Logic Analyzer. Fig1.Business policy enforcement framework The logic of all the services in the service repository are decomposed into rules, functions and parameters along with associated business policies are stored in the BL set with help of domain mapping. The BL analyzer identifies only the particular rule, functions, parameter and policy associated with it for each change request from BL set instead providing all the rules, functions, parameters and policies associated with it. The properties of interoperability, traceability, decidability, computability are preserved even after the alteration. These properties are evaluated by property evaluator and the calculated properties are appended to the schema to generate the final schema. The property values assist the analyst in making a decision whether or not to implement the alteration. Dependency Analyzer discovers dependencies with the ascertained rules and functions in the business logic through the identified change criteria. The Policy Manager checks for policy violation in the rule or function in which change has to be made and also in the dependent rules or functions. Since the change which is complete, finite and computable can even violate the associated policies, it is also checked by the policy manager after evaluating the properties of the identified change. Schema Generator is responsible for generating and upholding BL schema at various stages. This BL schema is helpful in guiding the management people who are not familiar in source code to make fruitful changes. The changes made in the schema will be updated obviously in business logic. Same way, when programmers do some changes in logic, it gets updated in schema accurately. Run time manager is responsible for building and deploying the services after fruitful changes are done and also it helps to debug the exceptions in the service logic sophistically. Change evaluator evaluates the changes made by the analyst based on the change factors such as business policy enforcement which determines violation of policy in the identified change criteria, code consistency which checks whether the preconditions and post conditions remains constant with respect to the changes made, requisite measure which checks whether the requisite rule or function is not altered with respect to the changes made and mapping function which checks the consistency with respect to the logic and also on the non-functional factors such as service interruption time, response time, reliability and service availability. The Change Evaluation Report includes result of the evaluation process of the change made i.e. the evaluation measures of the changes made by the analyst. By this framework, the analyst has the advantages such flexibility, works in a sophisticated environment without having much knowledge about source code since he can implement the changes at the schema level, knowledge transfer since he can do the changes whatever comes in mind directly and is able to evaluate it easily, independency since no nee d for depending on the development team thereby reducing the time and cost. III. CHANGE FACTORS Change factors are those that act as a criteria based on which the changes made can be evaluated. Any change in the business logic is governed by the following change factors. These factors influence changes either independently or in a group and make changes effective. And the change factors are as follows: Business policy enforcement Requisite measure Code consistency Mapping function A. Business Policy Enforcement In this paper, we mainly focus on the change factor business policy enforcement which is a measure of change which determines violation of policy in the identified change criteria. Here the main role of business policy enforcement is: policy mapping which is nothing but finding the appropriate policies which are associated with the rule or function in which the change has to be made and also with its dependent rules and functions; validation which refers checking whether there is any policy violation; and refinement which provides an environment for the analyst to modify the policy itself if necessary. In a business logic L encompassing set of rules R, functions F, parameters Pr, policy set P and dependency D , the change which is going to be made can be evaluated based on the business policy enforcement factor which checks whether there is any policy violation with respect to the changes made. Whenever a change is specified, it is first analyzed for completeness, finiteness and comp utable. Once the rules, functions and parameters in the change specifications are analyzed as complete, they are mapped with the existing logic set L. Then the corresponding rules, functions, parameters, dependency set and policy set are retrieved by which the change specification is checked whether it violates any policy. If so, the analyst is informed as the change cannot be made due to the violation of policy. Otherwise the change is successfully included in the existing logic set L. IV. EXPERIMENTAL STUDY The table in the next page shows the evaluation  results of some of the change requests implemented based on the business policy enforcement. TABLE I EVALUATION RESULTS FOR BUSINESS POLICY ENFORCEMENT V. Conclusion Any organization no matter its size will experience a large volume of changes in order to accommodate new business requirements, to correct faults in the infrastructure or the services, or for other reasons (such as legal requirements). This framework provides an environment for the business analyst to implement the changes at the sophisticated environment without having much knowledge about the source code and to evaluate the changes easily based on the proposed change factors in which business policy enforcement is mainly focused. With the help of the algorithm derived for the business policy enforcement, a case study of banking domain is implemented. By this framework, analyst is able to implement whatever comes in his mind directly without the help of developing team and also to detect policy violation and do the changes accordingly and also to refine the policy itself if needed. REFERENCES [1] Felix Cuadrado, Juan C. Duenas and Rodrigo GarcÄ ±Ã‚ ´a-Carmona, â€Å"An Autonomous Engine forServicesConfiguration and Deployment,† IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering, Vol. 38, No. 3, May/June 2012. [2] Xumin Liu, Athman Bouguettaya, Jemma Wu, and Li Zhou, â€Å"Ev-Lcs: A System For The Evolution Of Long-Term Composed Services,† IEEE Transactions on Services Computing,Vol.PP, Issue 99, 2011. [3] Dimitris Apostolou , Gregoris Mentzas,Ljiljana Stojanovic, Barbara Thoenssen, Tomà ¡s Pariente Lobo,†A collaborative decision framework for managing changes in e-Government services,† Government Information Quarterly 28 (2011) 101–116, PUBLISHED @ ELSEVIER, 2011. [4] Bruno Wassermann, Heiko Ludwig, Jim Laredo, Kamal Bhattacharya, Liliana Pasquale, â€Å"Distributed Cross-Domain Change Management,† 2009 IEEE International Conference on Web, Services, 978-0-7695-3709-2/09, 2009 IEEE. [5] Bassam Atieh Rajabi, Sai Peck Lee, â€Å"Change Management in Business Process Modeling Survey†, 2009 International Conference on Information Management and Engineering, 978-0-7695-1/09, 2009 IEEE. [6] Bassam Atieh Rajabi, Sai Peck Lee, â€Å"Runtime Change Management Based on Object Oriented Petri Net,† 2009 International Conference on Information Management and Engineering, 978-0-7695-1/09,2009 IEEE. [7] Oliver Moser, Florian Rosenberg and Schahram Dustdar,â€Å"Domain-Specific Service Selection for Composite Services,† IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering, VOL. 38, NO. 4, July/Aug. 2012 [8] Ruhi Sarikaya, Canturk Isci and Alper Buyuktosunoglu, â€Å"Runtime Application Behavior Prediction Using a Statistical Metric Model,† IEEE Transactions on Computers, Vol. X, No. X, May 2011. [9] Haochen Li, Zhiqiang Zhan, â€Å"Bussiness-Driven Automatic IT Change Management Based on Machine Learning,† 978-1-4673-0269-2/12, 2012 IEEE. [10] Yanhua Du, Xitong Li, and PengCheng Xiong, â€Å"Petri Net Approach to Mediation-Aided Composition of Web Services,† IEEE Tansactions on Automation Science and Engineering, Vol. 9, No. 2, Apr. 2012. [11] Marcello La Rosa, Arthur H. M. ter Hofstede, Petia Wohed, Hajo A. Reijers, Jan Mendling, and Wil M. P. van der Aalst, â€Å"Managing Process Model Complexity via Concrete Syntax Modifications,† IEEE Transactions on Industrial Informatics, Vol. 7, No. 2, May 2011.

The Uncertain Future of the Camera Cinemas :: Movies Films Theaters Essays

The Uncertain Future of the Camera Cinemas Nestled in the center of downtown San Jose sits one of the cities few cultural landmarks worth saving. The Camera Cinemas have been an institution since 1975. They serve as the unofficial home to San Jose’s small, but popular independent movie following. Unfortunately, they are at risk of being shut down for good if a new home can not be found in the next few years. This paper discusses the historical fight the Camera Cinemas have had to endure and what they must do to survive into the next century. They may be saving their best performance for last. Prior to 1975, there were no art movie houses in San Jose. The South of First Area (SOFA) Camera One currently resides in, was a red light district, home to prostitutes, porno theatres, and drug pushers. So what in the world was an art movie house doing in area like this? You could say the Cameras were ahead of their time, paving the way for what soon would be recognized as one of most culturally intellectual areas in the world. Because the closest art movie houses were 50 miles away, independent film fans looked to the Cameras as a source for entertainment in their own backyard. The Camera chain would expand in 1984 adding the Camera 3 theatres to their small but soon-to-be growing chain. It was during this time that the Cameras would start to receive top quality art and foreign films with the likes of those seen in San Francisco. The Cameras would eventually expand to four movie houses adding the Towne and Los Gatos Theatres. The relationship seemed like a match made in heaven; a s mall independent movie chain showing first run foreign and art films in the large and growing Silicon Valley. What could possibly go wrong? Much like everything else, too much of a good thing hardly ever goes unnoticed. The Camera Cinemas served as the only theatres downtown for nearly twenty years. So when the area started to flourish, big business started to open its eyes and take notice. With the opening of the brand new Pavilion Shops in downtown, AMC movie theatres looked to capitalize on an untapped market. In many situations, such as with department stores and supermarkets, competition can sometimes help to generate business. However, due to film zoning laws and the sheer commercial power of a chain like AMC, the Cameras stood to be jeopardized and ran out of business.

Preventing Obesity to Prevent Diabetes Essay

Diabetes is an ailment in which the human body refuses to produce or make appropriate use of insulin. Insulin happens to be a hormone which is required to convert starches, sugar and other foods into energy for everyday life. Although the causes of diabetes remain as a mystery, many medical experts believe that genetics and poor lifestyle choices – e g. lack of exercise – that result in obesity may very well be responsible for the disease (â€Å"Diabetes†). Of course, when insulin is prevented from converting starches, sugar and other foods into energy, metaphorically speaking, it is as though a person has lost a leg or an arm, especially when the individual is just a child. At a growing stage, children’s bodies should be effectively converting foods into energy, so that they can develop into mentally and physically healthy people – the future of our world. Besides, all kinds of preventable abnormalities are equally harmful. Imagine the effect on a child’s self-esteem, not only when he or she is called ‘fat and clumsy’ by his or her slim and fit classmates, but also when he or she must undergo treatment for diabetes at the time that his or her classmates are at play. The International Obesity TaskForce reports that almost 1. 7 billion people around the world â€Å"are at a heightened risk of weight-related, non-communicable diseases such as type 2 diabetes (â€Å"Diabetes and Obesity†). Moreover, the International Diabetes Federation has predicted that by 2025, the number of people with diabetes, including children, may reach at least 333 million (â€Å"Diabetes and Obesity†)! Insulin is responsible for taking the sugar from the human blood to the human cells. If glucose starts to build up in the blood rather than going to the cells, two problems may result: (1) The cells could become energy-starved; and (2) Eventually the high blood glucose level may start to hurt the eyes, nerves, kidneys or heart (â€Å"Diabetes†). Unsurprisingly, such suffering is very difficult for a child to bear. Fortunately, however, individuals that are suffering from diabetes may seek their doctors’ advice apart from making changes in their lifestyles to prevent these problems. If the person suffering from diabetes is overweight, the doctor may recommend weight loss. Effective weight reduction plans, in addition to â€Å"increased physical activity,† may help the diabetic person to a large extent (â€Å"Diabetes and Lifestyle†). According to a report published by the World Health Organization, â€Å"more than 22 million children under five years old are obese or overweight, and more than 17 million of them are in developing countries. Each of these children is at increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes†¦ (â€Å"Fight Childhood Obesity to Help Prevent Diabetes†). † Obviously, this is expert opinion on the relationship between obesity and diabetes. If a child is watching television or playing video games most of the time and becoming obese, his or her parents should be sending the child to run around with his or her friends in a park instead. Seeing that children in developing countries are also suffering from obesity, and therefore the risk of developing diabetes, it is clear that obesity may be inherited to boot. Children of poor families do not get enough to eat in any case. What is more, if and when they develop diabetes, their families cannot afford to get them treated. But, even if a child’s parents can afford to get him or her treated, medical treatment is more expensive than prevention of obesity. The California Department of Education reports that â€Å"[o]verweight children and youths are more prone to developing serious health problems now and in the future (â€Å"Final Task Force Recommendations†). After all, this is the age of McDonald’s and Burger King, which makes it even more important to prevent obesity in children as well as adults. It is easy to buy a hamburger from Wendy’s on the way back from school – both for the mom and the child. However, the cost of sickness is much higher than the convenience of a drive through fast food restaurant. Everybody wants children to flourish and help the nation and the entire world to prosper as well. Besides, all health experts are of one voice as far as the relationship between diabetes and obesity is concerned. The fact that most people diagnosed with diabetes are obese, be they adults or children – makes it necessary to check obesity. It has been timelessly stated: we are what we eat. Therefore, it is best for both children and adults to be nourished by healthy foods. Fruits and vegetables are always considered superior to fats and hamburgers. Exercise and keeping fit are always better than excess weight. Nobody has ever doubted that human beings love to eat good food. At the same time, however, it must be borne in mind that obesity may turn into a severe disorder. It may negatively affect the individual’s mental state, by lowering his or her self-esteem. What is more, a child that is fed on McDonald’s five times a week may eventually become incapable of studying in school if diabetes ends up hurting his or her eyes. Mothers too may be rendered helpless as far as housework is concerned. Undoubtedly, therefore, in the case of diabetes, it must be timelessly stated: obesity prevention is better than cure.

Diversity in America Essay

Diversity in america is a trademark of the beauty in our country. Without diversity, America wouldn’t be what it is today. A country that is an obvious reflection of the multiple cultures it contains. The rise and struggle of the African-Americans, The Spanish, Asian, and European immigrants who have all come to the U.S. and contributed to a diverse country. Chinese resturaunts, Soccer, Spanish music, There are so many diverse things that we love. With myself being a part of the Diverse community, it has shown me that being different doesn’t matter. Whether you’re Black, White, or Guynease, anyone can be accepted and become a good friend. In my parents home country of Guyana, the diversity is limited and its shows as they still live as if they are in the 90’s. Being as diverse as the United States has its challenges, races don’t always get along, there is always a feeling of prejudice, and stereotypes put fake labels on people. These challenges can’t always be always be solved it’s up to the people to Be more open minded. Langston Hughes faced a great amount of racism in his days, he had this to say, â€Å"I learned very early in life that our race problem is not really of black against white, and white against black. It’s a problem of people who are not very knowledgeable, or who have small minds, or small spirits.† This quote from hughes tells it all. The benefits from being such a diverse country outweigh the bad, being so diverse means many different people who have different interest and lifestyles. This presents a society where people of all different races are friends and learn from one another. The climate of acceptance in the U.S. is very high, i feel a haitian or cuban immigrant can come to the U.S. and be welcomed and ultimately succeed in this country. This is done by eliminating any racial exceptions and qualifications. Limiting Prejudice is no easy task for any country, there is no law you can put in place to stop it. Ultimately the people have to be educated and told that prejudice is just a factor that exists in your mind to create doubt. They have to know that races are not what many people may perceive. The appreciation for diversity in this country comes from the appreciation of the friends we have made who celebrate their diverse holidays that we too should embrace and the ways of other people and their culture. I happen to already know that our country does appreciate the diversity here and wouldn’t want to see it go and become one-sided. I hold myself to not being prejudice and being accepting, I like to learn of other cultures every once in awhile and be inclusive. All in all, Diversity is an important part of our society and it is a benefit to our country.

Why Do We Loe Music Essay

Why Do We Loe Music Essay Why Do We Loe Music Essay Why Do We Love Music? What is music? There’s no end to the parade of philosophers who have wondered about this, but most of us feel confident saying: ‘I know it when I hear it.’ Still, judgments of musicality are notoriously malleable. That new club tune, obnoxious at first, might become toe-tappingly likeable after a few hearings. Put the most music-apathetic individual in a household where someone is rehearsing for a contemporary music recital and they will leave whistling Ligeti. The simple act of repetition can serve as a quasi-magical agent of musicalisation. Instead of asking: ‘What is music?’ we might have an easier time asking: ‘What do we hear as music?’ And a remarkably large part of the answer appears to be: ‘I know it when I hear it again.’ Psychologists have understood that people prefer things they’ve experienced before at least since Robert Zajonc first demonstrated the ‘mere exposure effect’ in the 1960s. It doesn’t matter whether those things are triangles or pictures or melodies; people report liking them more the second or third time around, even when they aren’t aware of any previous exposure. People seem to misattribute their increased perceptual fluency – their improved ability to process the triangle or the picture or the melody – not to the prior experience, but to some quality of the object itself. Instead of thinking: ‘I’ve seen that triangle before, that’s why I know it,’ they seem to think: ‘Gee, I like that triangle. It makes me feel clever.’ This effect extends to musical listening. But evidence has been accumulating that something more than the mere exposure effect governs the special role of repetition in music. To begin with, there’s the sheer amount of it. Cultures all over the world make repetitive music. The ethnomusicologist Bruno Nettl at the University of Illinois counts repetitiveness among the few musical universals known to characterise music the world over. Hit songs on American radio often feature a chorus that plays several times, and people listen to these already repetitive songs many times. The musicologist David Huron at Ohio State University estimates that, during more than 90 per cent of the time spent listening to music, people are actually hearing passages that they’ve listened to before. The play counter in iTunes reveals just how frequently we listen to our favourite tracks. And if that’s not enough, tunes that get stuck in our heads seem to loop again and again. In short, repetition is a startlingly prevalent feature of music, real and imagined. In fact, repetition is so powerfully linked with musicality that its application can dramatically transform apparently non-musical materials into song. The psychologist Diana Deutsch, at the University of California, San Diego, discovered a particularly powerful example – the speech-to-song illusion. The illusion begins with an ordinary spoken utterance, the sentence ‘The sounds as they appear to you are not only different from those that are really present, but they sometimes behave so strangely as to seem quite impossible.’ Next, one part of this utterance – just a few words – is looped several times. Finally, the original recording is represented in its entirety, as a spoken utterance. When the listener reaches the phrase that was looped, it seems as if the speaker has broken into song, Disney-style. The transformation is truly bizarre. You’d think that listening to someone speak and listening to someone sing were separate things, distinguished by the objective characteristics of the sound itself. It seems obvious: I hear someone speak when she’s speaking, and sing when she’s singing. But the speech-to-song illusion reveals that the exact same sequence of sounds can seem either like speech or like music, depending only on whether it has been repeated. Repetition can actually shift your perceptual circuitry such that the segment of sound is heard as music: not thought about as similar to music, or contemplated in

How to Get a 30 (or Higher!) on the ACT 9 Key Tips

How to Get a 30 (or Higher!) on the ACT 9 Key Tips SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips A 30 ACT score is a solid goal to have for test day. But how difficult is it to get a 30? How many questions can you miss? And what kinds of schools can you get into with a 30? In this guide, we teach you how to get a 30 on the ACT with our nine top tips, covering everything from starting your prep through picking answers on test day. In fact, the tips in this article will help you even if you're shooting for a higher or lower score, like a 32 or a 29. But first, what are the benefits of getting a 30? Can You Get a 30 on the ACT? Why Aim for a 30? In short, yes, you can get a 30 on the ACT- as long as you're willing to dedicate a lot of effort to your prep. Be aware, though:getting a 30 will be easier for some students than it will be for others. How easy (or difficult) it is for you ultimately depends on where you're currently scoring and how much time you can commit to studying. But why 30?Is 30 a good ACT score? According topercentiles,an ACT score of 30is quite high. Data collected by ACT, Inc., shows that a 30corresponds to the 94th percentile. In other words, very few test takers- only 6 percent- score 30 or higher on the ACT, making it a great score to aim for on test day. Getting a 30 offers a couple of benefits to test takers. One isthat it can help make up for less impressive parts of your college application. For example, if you had a lower GPA, an ACT score of 30 could make your application more impressive to schools by showcasing your test-taking skills and proficiency in ACT topics. Another benefit is thatyou’ll have a better shot at getting accepted to competitive schools. With a score of 30, you’ll be just around average for admitted students to many selective private schools, such as Boston University and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.You’ll also be in the 75th percentile (that is, at a very good advantage!) for numerous public universities, including UMass Amherst and UC Santa Barbara. On the other hand, a 30 is low for extremely competitive schools. For Ivy League schools such as Harvard and Princeton, a 30 places you below the 25th percentile, meaning you’ll have a very small chance of getting accepted. Too bad the ACT doesn't test how proficient you are in hitting people in Mario Kart. (Giancarlo Marseglia Ceccoli/Flickr) What’s Needed to Get a 30 ACT Score? A 30 ACT score means scoring highly on all sections of the exam (excluding Writing, as this optional section score does not affect your composite score). Because your composite score is the average of your four section scores (English, Math, Reading, and Science), you must aim for at least a composite ACT score of 29.5- or around 30 on each section. These section scores can vary. For example, you could aim for scores in the upper 30s on your stronger sections and scores in the upper 20s on your weaker sections and still get a composite score of 30. To do this, however, you'll always need to score at least 30 on two or more sections of the exam. Here are some ways you could get a composite ACT score of 30: 30s on all four sections. 30s on two sections and 29s on the other two. 32s on two sections and 28s on the other two. 32, 31, 29, and 28 on the four sections. (And so on.) So how many correct answers do you need to get a 30 on the ACT? In truth, the answer varies depending on what test you take. Since all ACTs differ slightly in difficulty,the number of questions you must answer correctly to get a 30 also varies slightly with each test. Below, we’ve analyzed five score conversion tables from official ACT practice tests to calculate approximately how many questions you must get right to get a 30 on each section of the exam. (Remember, you don’t necessarily need to get 30s on all four sections, but you will need to get 30s on at least two sections.) After averaging the conversions, here's what we discovered: To get a 30 on ... You’ll need an average raw score of ... Meaning you can miss around ... English 67 8 questions Math 51 9 questions Reading 34 6 questions Science 36 4 questions Once again, these numbers are allapproximations based on the average number of raw points you'd need to get 30s on five different ACT practice tests. The chart above indicates that you can miss the most raw points on Math and the least on Science. You can also miss several questions on English and slightly fewer on Reading to get a 30. Here is an example of anACT scoring chart, with score conversions to 30 highlighted: Overall, you can’t miss more than a small handful of questions on each section of the ACT if you’re hoping to score a 30. To avoid missing too many questions, you must ultimately learn what to expect on test day and how to study effectively for each ACT section. We teach you how to do this next. Tip #0: don't build a pillow fort to try to hide from the ACT. How to Get a 30 on the ACT: 9 Key Tips Getting a 30 isn’t easy, but it’s certainly not impossible- you just need to know how to prepare. Our top nine tips below teach you how to get a 30 on the ACT and give you the confidence you'll need for test day. #1: Create a Study Plan When aiming for a 30 on the ACT, you'll definitely want to use a study plan to guide your prep, ideally one that specifically prepares you for getting a 30. Start by taking an official ACT practice testto get your baseline score.This is the score you start out with before beginning any ACT prep. As you take the test, try to recreate real testing conditions to give yourself a more accurate indicator of your scoring ability. This means you'll need to minimize potential distractions, take the test in a quiet room, and time yourself using the official time limits. Once finished, use your test’s scoring guide to calculate your section and composite scores. The composite score (out of 36) you get will be your baseline score. Next, subtract your baseline score from your goal score (in this case, 30) to see how many points you'll need to improve by to hit your goal score. Match this difference to one of the point ranges below to see the approximate number of hours you’ll need to study: 0-1 point improvement: 10 hours 1-2 point improvement: 20 hours 2-4 point improvement: 40 hours 4-6 point improvement: 80 hours 6-9 point improvement: 150 hours+ For example, if I scored 26 on a practice test, I’d need 4 points to hit my goal score of 30. Using the list above, we can see that this difference corresponds roughly to 40-80 hours of prep time. Once you’ve figured out the number of study hours you'll need to do, draft a study schedule that works well for you. You should try to study consistently every week until test day, so make sure to divide up your time appropriately. In addition, try to plan around any obligations you have in the time leading up to your test. #2: Use High-Quality Study Materials To get a 30 ACT score, you’ll need to use the best ACT resources currently available. This means no low-quality prep books, no sketchy websites, and no inefficient apps. By far the best resources to use are official ACT materials, many of which are completely free! Popular options include official ACT practice tests, sample questions, and The Official ACT Prep Guide, which currently sells for around $25 on Amazon. Be pickier when choosing unofficial ACT materials. I recommend only opting for those that are highly rated and contain realistic practice questions with comprehensive answer explanations. (Bonus if it includes helpful test-taking tips!) Our guides to the best ACT prep books, apps, websites, and vocabulary listscan give you more info on what unofficial resources to use. In short, always remember that quality beats quantity. There’s no point in getting tons of ACT resources if they’re not going to actually help you understand the test and get the 30 you want, so only get whatever you think will be most useful. #3: Track Your Progress Using Practice Tests An ACT study plan not only helps you space out your prep sessions but also allows you to track your progress. Throughout your studies, it's important to take occasional full-length practice tests to see whether your score is improving. How many tests you take and how often you take them depends on the amount of time you have left before test day. Generally, it’s helpful to take a test every few weeks (but never right before test day!). Once you’ve calculated your score for a practice test, use this to see whether your score is, on average, rising or staying the same. If it’s not rising as quickly as you want it to, consider what kinds of concepts or topics you can focus on more to help raise your score on another attempt. My biggest mistake? Eating eight boxes of Girl Scout cookies within a week. (brian/Flickr) #4: Analyze Your Mistakes When aiming high on the ACT, you’ll need to understand exactly what you’re getting wrong and what you can do to fix your mistakes. As you review your answers to ACT practice questions and tests, don’t just mark the correct answer and move on- take a few minutes to think deeply about why you might’ve missed a certain problem. I recommend doing this before you look at the answer explanation as a way to sharpen your problem-solving skills. After,re-solve the problem and usethe correct answer to guide your thinking. For example, if you thought the answer to a math question was 13 but it was really 36, go through the entire problem again, this time using a different approach to see whether you can find the correct answer on your own. #5: Drill Your Weaknesses Weaknesses will keep you from getting an ACT score of 30. They prevent you from getting certain questions right, even when you’ve studied the concepts. So how do you overcome your weak spots? First, by simply understanding what they are. To see what concepts you struggle the most with, go over all of the ACT practice tests and questions you've completed and try to look forpatterns in the questions you got wrong. For example, are you always missing geometry questions? Do you spend too much time on big-picture questions? Once you know what’s bringing down your score, you can then focus on drilling these weak spots in your prep. This means you’ll need to practice the questions you get wrong, review relevant strategies, and monitor your performance through practice tests to ensure you’re improving. #6: Get Key Strategies Down Pat No matter what score you're aiming for, you should always familiarize yourself with the most useful ACT strategies before taking the test. By "strategies," I mean test-taking approaches and tricks you can use to increase your chances of getting a high score (ideally, a 30!). Some ACT strategies target certain sections of the exam, whereas others apply to the entire test. Not all strategies will necessarily suit you (for example, it's best to pick just one passage-reading strategy that works well for you), but you should always try out all major approaches before choosing one to stick with. Before we dive into section-specific strategies, here are the three general ACT strategies you should be using on test day: Answer every question. There's no penalty for incorrect answers on the ACT, so try to answer every question, even if you have to guess. Because each question is multiple choice with four or five answer choices (only Math questions have five answer choices- everything else has four), you’ll always have at least a 20-25 percent chance of getting it right. Skip hard questions and return to them later. If you come across a question you can’t solve within a reasonable amount of time (see #7), mark the question and proceed to the next one. Then, once you finish the section, go back to any marked questions and try to approach them with a fresh perspective. Use the process of elimination. Not sure which answer choice is correct? Narrowing down your choices can dramatically raise your chance of getting the question right. For example, by eliminating three answer choices for a math question, your possibility of answering it correctly rises from 20 to 50 percent! For additional ACT tips and strategies, check out our individual section guides: English The Top 9 ACT English Strategies You Must Use The Best Way to Approach ACT English Passages How to Get 36 on ACT English: 9 Strategies From a Perfect Scorer Math Plugging in Numbers: a Critical SAT/ACT Math Strategy Plugging in Answers: a Critical SAT Math/ACT Math Strategy How to Guess Strategically on ACT Math How to Get 36 on ACT Math: 8 Strategies by a Perfect Scorer Reading The #1 Critical, Fundamental Strategy of ACT Reading The Best Way to Approach the ACT Reading Passage How to Answer ACT Reading Questions: 5-Step Guide How to Get 36 on ACT Reading: Strategies From a Perfect Scorer Science The 5 Best Strategies for Reading ACT Science Passages The ACT Science Strategies You Must Be Using The Hardest ACT Science Questions and Strategies to Solve Them How to Get 36 on ACT Science: 13 Strategies From a Perfect Scorer Writing ACT Writing Rubric: Full Analysis and Essay Strategies ACT Writing Tips: 15 Strategies to Raise Your Essay Score Why You Shouldn’t Copy Skeleton Templates for the SAT/ACT Essay How to Get a Perfect 12 on the ACT Writing Essay The #1 strategy for Monopoly? Flip the board into the air and play Sorry! instead. #7: Use Your Time Wisely Another key strategy we didn't mention above is to use your time wisely on each section of the ACT.Being able to allocate your time appropriately means you won't be spending too much (or too little) time on certain questions. The chart below shows how much time you have per question on each ACT section. These limits are estimates in that they assume you'll spend the same amount of time on every question. ACT Section Time Per Question English 36 seconds Math 60 seconds Reading 53 seconds Science 53 seconds As you can see, you’ll have the least amount of time per question on English and the most on Math. But even a whole minute can fly by on a math question, so you'll need to know how to approach ACT problems fast yet effectively.For tips on how to pace yourself, check out our time management guides for ACT Math, Reading, and Science. As I mentioned in tip #6, it's a good idea to answer every question since there's no penalty for incorrect answers. But thetime crunch is one of the most challenging parts of the ACT, often making it difficult to finish certain sections in time or get lengthier, more complicated questions correct. Therefore, if you're aiming for a 30, it may be better for you tospend a little more time trying to get questions rightthan to worry about trying to solve every question. You know you'll be missing a few points anyway, so use the time you would've spent answering tougher questions on solving the questions you're absolutely certain youcan get right with a little extra time. Then, just guess on the few you don't have time for. #8: Avoid Careless Errors and Double-Check Your Answers High scorers on the ACT primarily miss questions due to careless errors- that is, questions you misread or misinterpreted, answer choices you didn't fill in correctly, or answer choices you didn't confirm were correct before moving on to the next question. These types of errors, though frustrating, are entirely avoidable. The good news is that these errors mean you’re not struggling with the content of the exam, but the bad news is that you’re losing points on questions as a result of mere hastiness. The best way to avoid making careless errors is to double-check your answers.This means you'll look over each answer before proceeding to the next question. So on a math question, you could quickly double-check your answer choice by plugging it back in and re-solving. Or on an English question, you could reread the sentence you’ve corrected to ensure it sounds accurate. If you have extra time at the end of a section, goback through each question to check that you’ve answered all of them and have marked the appropriate answers on your answer sheet. Here are some additional tricks you can use to prevent careless errors: Read all questions carefully. If you skim, you might misunderstand what the question is asking you to do. For example, on Math, this could mean you accidentally solve for the wrong algebraic expression. Therefore, always read every word in a question. Reread any part of a question you don’t understand.You can't expect to get a question right if you don't get what it's asking you to do. If there's any phrase or word throwing you off, reread the question until you're pretty sure you know what it means. Read all of the answer choices before choosing one.Don't just go straight for the answer choice you think is right- often, what sounds correct isn't actually correct, as many plausible answer choices are included in order to mislead you. Read through all of the answer choices so that you can be certain you know which is right. Write neatly.If your notes are sloppy or confusing (especially when solving for math problems), you'll likely struggle to make sense of what you've written and might even choose the wrong answer as a result. Always write cleanly and coherently so that you don't accidentally foil your own efforts on test day. #9: Don’t Psych Yourself Out Last but not least, don’t let the pressure of the ACT freak you out. Getting a 30 takes hard work, but you shouldn't overwhelm yourself or feel as though your future depends on an ACT score. As long as you’ve got a solid study plan and quality ACT resources, you’re well on your way to getting a great score. Additionally, try to remain calm on test day. A little anxiety is expected, but letting your nerves get to you can make you lose both your concentration and confidence. If you don’t get a 30, remind yourself that it’s not the end of the world; you can always retake the exam or work on improving other parts of your college application. Your chances of college acceptance aren't determined solely by your ACT score, so don’t assume you’re doomed with anything below a 30! Don't look like this after you take the ACT. Seriously. Don't magically turn into a dog. Conclusion: How to Get a 30 on the ACT Many students aim for a 30 on the ACT, but is 30 a good ACT score? Absolutely! In fact,a 30 ACT score is very competitive- in the top 4 percent of test takers, to be exact.This score gives you a solid shot at getting into many moderately competitive universities, such as UC Santa Barbara and Boston University. To get a 30, you mustscore highly on all four sections of the exam (excluding Writing). Specifically, you’ll need to get at least a 30 on two sections and a composite score of 29.5 (which rounds to 30) or higher. This means you can only miss a handful of questions on each section. Above, we taught you how to get a 30 on the ACT using our top nine tips. As a reminder, here are our tips again: Come up with a foolproof study plan Obtain high-quality resources (official ones are a great place to start) Track your progress with practice tests Analyze your mistakes on tests and questions Drill your weak spots so that they don’t bring down your score Learn and practice all major ACT strategies Use your time wisely Avoid making careless errors by double-checking your answers andreading more closely Focus on doing well without psyching yourself out Armed with these tips, you'll be on your way to getting a 30 in no time! What’s Next? Want to aim even higher- say, for a perfect 36?Then check out our in-depth guide to getting a perfect ACT score, written by a real full scorer. What's considered a good ACT score?Our expert guide goes over what ACT scores and percentiles you'll need to aim for in order to be considered a competitive applicant for your schools. What about bad ACT scores? How low is too low?If you're not sure where your score stands, read our guide to low ACT scoresto learn what's considered a poor ACT score. Then, get tips on how to improve. Want to improve your ACT score by 4 points? Check out our best-in-class online ACT prep classes. We guarantee your money back if you don't improve your ACT score by 4 points or more. Our classes are entirely online, and they're taught by ACT experts. If you liked this article, you'll love our classes. Along with expert-led classes, you'll get personalized homework with thousands of practice problems organized by individual skills so you learn most effectively. We'll also give you a step-by-step, custom program to follow so you'll never be confused about what to study next. Try it risk-free today:

A Guide to French Words for Beverages

A Guide to French Words for Beverages Its no secret that the French love to eat and drink. By learning the vocabulary for common beverages and food, youll develop a deeper appreciation for this tasty aspect of French culture and make sure you never go hungry while traveling. This guide some of the most common words and phrases associated with eating and drinking, as well as links to sound files to practice your pronunciation.   Vocabulary   There are a handful of verbs youll use frequently when discussing food and drink, including  avoir  (to have),  boire  (to drink),  prendre  (to take), and  vouloir  (to want). If youre a true foodie, you may also want to learn more about how to talk about wine and coffee in French. la và ´tre!  Ã‚  Cheers! To your health!avoir soif  Ã‚  to be thirstyune boisson   drink, beverageun apà ©ritif, un apà ©ro (informal) cocktail, before-dinner drinkune bià ¨re   beerune boisson gazeuse   soda, pop, soft drinkun cafà ©Ã‚   coffee, espressole champagne   champagneun chocolat (chaud)   hot chocolateun cidre   hard ciderun citron pressà ©Ã‚   lemonadeun digestif   after-dinner drinkleau   watereau du robinet   tap watereau plate   still / plain watereau gazeuse   sparkling / mineral waterun express   espressoune infusion   herbal teale jus   juicele lait   milkune limonade   lemon soda (like Sprite or 7-Up)un pastis   anise-flavored apà ©ritifune pression   beer on taple thà ©Ã‚   teale thà © glacà ©Ã‚   iced teaune tisane   herbal teale vin  Ã‚  Ã‚  winela  gueule  de  bois   hangover​

Case Study on Profitability Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Case Study on Profitability - Assignment Example Thus the decrease in operating profit margin indicates that operating expenses of Deutsche Brauerei rise faster than its sales, which can be clearly seen from exhibit 1: 48.4% increase in sales against 49.5% increase in operating expenses. In turn this means Deutsche Brauerei now has less flexibility in determining prices, and therefore less safety in tough economic times. The ratio of income taxes to earnings before taxes has also increased to 39.5% in 1999 and 39% in 2000 from 33.8% in 1997 and 34.5% in 1998. From exhibit 1 we can see that taxable income increase steadily over years (which can be explained by unstable economic situation in Ukraine), while earnings before taxes grow slower. Consequently return on sales, which shows the operational efficiency of the company dividing earnings before tax by total sales, has decreased from 4% in 1998 (before default) to 2.8% in 1999 leveling the breakdown to 3.2% in 2000. Still shareholders' equity continues to increase shifting the return on equity ratio up to 10.3% in 2000 - the highest measure for four years; the business looks good from this perspective. Return on net assets which is equal to net income divided by fixed assets and net working capital also shows signs of healthy performance increasing to 8.4% in 2000 6.9% in previous year. The return on assets ratio have returned to its value in 1998 - 4.7% - indicating that a company puts its assets to good use when restoring profitability after economic breakdown in former USSR region. As can be seen from the exhibit 1, sales in Germany have been increasing slowly over the last four years, while the main stake was made on the Ukrainian market. Therefore changes in profitability of DB are greatly affected by local economic climate, which was very unstable these years. Although experiencing difficulties in generating profit, DB has made a successful recover from economic difficulties of the year 1998. Leverage Leverage ratios determine the company's long-term solvency. "Financial leverage is the name given to the impact on returns of a change in the extent to which the firm's assets are financed with borrowed money." (Scott, 1998) For instance debt/equity ratio shows how much money the company can safely borrow over long-terms and it is measured with dividing the total debt with total equity. The debt/equity ratio for DB has fallen from 72.3% in 1997 to 66% in 2000. The company has borrowed funds in 1997 making investments into Ukrainian market, which is the reason of such high debt/equity ratio in 1997. It is decreasing along with debt/total capital ratio (long-term debt/ long term-debt + shareholder's equity), which was 39.8% in 2000 comparing to 41.9% in 1997. This is a good sign of increasing long-term solvency. EBIT/interest ratio, which shows how many times the company can cover its obligations was rather stable during the last three years (4.7 in 1999, 2000, 4.8 in 1998) increasing significantly from 3.8 in 1997. The company has significantly decreased its debt in 1998, which was reflected in the increased solvency in the last three years. Asset Utilization The efficiency of the business is measured by asset usage ratios. Asset utilization ratios are especially important for internal monitoring concerning performance over multiple periods, serving as warning signals or benchmarks from which meaningful conclusions may be reached on operational issues (Blok and Hirt, 2005). Asset turnover is one of the most important

The Kent State University Shootings And The Boston Massacre Essay

The Kent State University Shootings And The Boston Massacre - Essay Example These lines printed in bold on the front pages of national newspapers and magazines dated May 5, 1970, conveyed the essence of what had happened during Kent students' protest against the war in Vietnam and the U.S. invasion to Cambodia. The Cambodian invasion took place in late April of 1970. According to the statement of President Nixon broadcasted nationwide on April 30, 1970 the goal of the invasion was to attack the Viet Cong headquarters located on Cambodian territory. The first protests followed the next day after Nixon's statement. Hundreds of American students, whose anti-war sentiment was the highest as compared with other social groups protested in their campuses across the country. Kent State University campus was also involved in the anti-military demonstrations. The protests peaked on Monday, May 4, when several hundreds students of Kent State University gathered at noon to declare their disapproval of the U.S. military policies in Asia2. By strange coincidence the Kent State University shootings bore frightening resemblance to another prominent event of the U.S. history, namely the Boston Massacre of 1770. The Massacre occurred on March 5, 1770 between a group of Boston citizens and British troops. A group of British soldiers shot five colonists during a public protest action against the Townshend Acts and the excessive presence of British troops in Boston and New York. The soldiers, struck by snow and ice balls thrown by the crowd, fired into the demonstrants killing five and wounding half a dozen people3. The first thing one might notice about these two events is striking similarity of dates and numbers. Separated by almost exactly two centuries both shootings occurred in the spring, and both cases produced nearly the same number of victims. In-depth analysis of the historical background of the shootings, comparison of the implications produced by them and examination of their impact on the society reveals even more interesting details. The second half of 20th century was marked by a series of events that determined the modern visage of American society. Nuclear disarmament movement and Civil rights movement in the USA of the late 1950s - early 1960s, Anti-Vietnam War movement in the USA and worldwide of the mid 1960s - early 1970s, students movement in the USA of the mid 1960s - early 1970s, women's movement in the USA that began in the late 1960s and soon spread to Europe - these are only most notable examples of such events. The shootings at Kent University went down in history as the turning point of the Vietnam War era. In those days the nation was torn by deep cultural and political conflict. Richard Nixon won the 1968 election promising to end the Vietnam War, but failed to stick to his promise. Instead, the first draft lottery since World War II was announced followed by the invasion into Cambodia that made the war even more intensive. Thousands of American students responded to the increased risk of being d rafted by protests and demonstrations setting the stage for the Kent University shootings4. The historical background of the Boston Massacre was characterized by a number of similar features, though the context was totally different. Political and economic

Employee Motivation and Job Satisfaction Assignment

Employee Motivation and Job Satisfaction - Assignment Example This research will begin with The Profiles Interviewed Employees. The selected employees for the interview are Frank and Janet (these are not their real names for purposes of concealing their identity). Frank is a chief accountant to Nestle at the headquarters in Vevey, Switzerland. Frank has joined Nestle six years ago, by then as the cost accountant. Three years later, the management promoted him to the position of the chief accountant. Frank, therefore, has an experience of six years as the accountant of the company and three years as a chief accountant. Janet is the overall marketing manager of Nestle. Initially, Janet was the production unit supervisor for four years after joining the company, but because of her remarkable performance, the management promoted her to the general marketing manager and posted her at the headquarters in Switzerland. Janet has five years experience as a marketing manager. Start of the Interview Interviewer: Particularly concerning the number of years you have worked for this company, why have you not left this company to work for a different organization?   Interviewee: The main reason for my extended stay in this company is the motivation that I get from my employer. I have my own intrinsic motivation; that is, the internal desires to produce the best. The company has enabled me to develop positive attitudes towards my work through the extrinsic motivation it offers through bonuses, rewards, recognition, and promotions. Interviewee: Have you ever encountered any problem of receiving your benefits because of your race or gender? Interviewer: No, I think the company has very strict policies to counteract any form of discrimination among the workers. Interviewer: Do you believe that your working in this organization has a meaning? Interviewee: Yes, I do. Working for this company promises a bright future for me and my family. I am fully satisfied with working here because my job tallies with my profession. I am contented with what I receive from here, and I am ready to work here until my retirement age. Interviewer: Does Nestle provide you with opportunities to grow and develop as a professional and as a person? Interviewee: The company is excellent is providing the best opportunities for professional and personal development. The company has a program for allowing employees study leaves and grants financial support for employees who want to advance their careers. There is a pension scheme program where every employee is deducted a certain proportion of income and paid to them upon retirement. Interviewer: Are there any feedbacks you would expect to receive from your company in relation to your performance that you are not receiving? Interviewee: I think I receive

Air Pollution in China Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Air Pollution in China - Essay Example The health analysts have promised more disease such as lung cancer, pulmonary diseases, and other health complications as a consequence of the air pollution trends. Cumulatively, the effects of air pollution have a negative impact on the economic growth of a country, which is a severe problem in society. Consequently, there is a need to focus on the causes of air pollution, its impacts and the possible preventive measures that can be used to mitigate against the scourge. Reilly (2011, p. 1) points out that the progressive development of China for three consecutive decades has come along with adverse consequences on the environment. In the last 30 years, China has experienced the highest level of industrial development which has consistently contributed to the development of this state. However, industrialization has been accompanied by the emission of hazardous gases in the atmosphere which has contributed to an increase in the carbon dioxide gas content in the atmosphere. Most indus tries use crude oil products to fuel their machines as the source of industrial power. The by product of these industries include smoke, whose carbon dioxide content is high and additive to the atmosphere. As most industries regard the cost of fuel as cheaper than that of electricity, they opt to use this kind of power and consequently contributing to build up of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Urbanisation is another factor that has contributed to the increased air pollution in the atmospheres. With development of industries, most people have relocated to urban areas in search of job opportunities and better livelihoods. This population build up in China towns predisposes the environment to the risk of air pollution. For instance, Beijing alone has a population of more that 22 million people, a figure that is more than double the population in New York City (Policy and Global Affairs, 2005). As people obtain job in the urban areas, they have the ability to purchase vehicles that run by diesel or petrol. For instance, in Beijing, every day the town experience an increase in its automotive by a figure of 2000 new cars. This trend promises an increase in the rate of air pollution and an increase in the adverse effects of the carbon dioxide surge in the atmosphere. This has sent an alarm to environmentalists to design effective mitigative measures to reduce and if possible eliminate the level of air pollution in China. In the rural areas of China, solid fuels contribute to the increase in the rates of air pollution in the country (Policy and Global Affairs, 2005, P. 6). One characteristic of the rural areas in China is that they have the poorest and disadvantaged groups who live well below the poverty line. This lifestyle makes it hard for the people to afford alternative means of fuel such as electricity and they have to resort to the use of coal, corn stalks, firewood and other biomass. Burning these solid fuels produces a lot of smoke that contains high leve ls of carbon dioxide and other unfriendly gases that are unhealthy for human consumption. Coupled with the fact that this population has no chimney facilities accelerates the rate of air pollution in the atmosphere. The fact that the majority of the population lives in rural areas makes it even more complex to induce preventive measures to curb environmental pollution in this region of China. In essence, Energy is a

None Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

None - Term Paper Example These pollutants have migrated off the site which became the basis of the case. In late 2008, families in the small town of Attica, Indiana learned that toxic chemical vapors were entering the air inside their homes.   After getting the bad news, these families turned to The Pollution Lawyers for help.   A class suit was then filed against Kraft Foods Global, Inc. alleging that the volatile organic compounds trichloroethylene (TCE), perchloroethylene (PCE) and vinyl chloride (VC) that was dumped at the manufacturing site by Kraft seeped into the groundwater and traveled underneath over  one-hundred nearby homes (Manzke, 2011).   It was alleged that once these chemicals are underneath these homes, the chemicals worked their way into the indoor air.   This process is commonly known as vapor intrusion (Manzke, 2011).   Vapor intrusion occurs when volatile chemicals from contaminated groundwater or soil â€Å"intrude† into an overlying building. These chemicals contaminate the air, causing a potential health hazard to individuals in the building who are subject to prolonged exposure to the chemicals (Nichols et al., 2011). After two years of litigation, a settlement was then reached. The court approved the amount of $8.1 million out of court settlement of the class action brought by 124 families in Attica, Indiana, against Kraft Foods alleging pollution from a nearby factory contaminated groundwater and caused vapor intrusion in their homes (Stoll v. Kraft Foods Global Inc.,  S.D. Ind., No. 1:09-cv-00364, 5/20/11). Also, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana approved the $2.7 million attorney’s fees that were requested plaintiffs. In addition to the monetary compensation,  Kraft has contractually agreed to remediate the groundwater and indoor air contamination of the site (Manzke, 2011). The $9.8 million ($8.1 million out of court settlement plus $2.7 million attorneys fees

Data Collection Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Data Collection - Assignment Example of the sources used by victimologists in USA include the Uniform Crime Report (UCR), National Incident Based Reporting System (NIBRS), and the National Crime Victimization (NCVS). This paper discusses the strengths and weaknesses of each of these resources and gives the similarities and differences of each. It also explains how official statistics can be used to indicate trends and how victimologists can utilize data from these sources. The UCR is a national data resource that compiles crimes from local police departments on an annual basis (Karmen, 2010). According to Crime and Criminal Justice (n.d.), the UCR program collects statistics for the following crime statistics: Data available from the UCR program is thoroughly examined before publishing. It compiles vast information of published tables, which are used to track crime trends across the states (Crime and Criminal Justice, n.d.). UCR carefully studies deviations that may result in errors since accuracy is critical component for any reporting. Preliminary reports for the previous year are released in spring, and the Crime in the United States, which is a more comprehensive report, is released in the fall (Crime and Criminal Justice, n.d.). This report has data on number of crimes, trends, arrested people, cleared crimes, homicides and offender characteristics including the relationships and used weapons. This report is, therefore, readily available with all the necessary statistics one would require. The UCR program provides data at different levels (Crime and Criminal Justice, n.d.). Many law enforcement agencies participate including the state, municipality, county, tribal and also universities and colleges. The UCR reports crimes that are only known to the police. This is because most victims of crime do not document their experiences with the law enforcement agencies that participate in this program. There is, therefore, underestimation of both the prevalence and incidence of crime. This program

None Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

None - Term Paper Example These pollutants have migrated off the site which became the basis of the case. In late 2008, families in the small town of Attica, Indiana learned that toxic chemical vapors were entering the air inside their homes.   After getting the bad news, these families turned to The Pollution Lawyers for help.   A class suit was then filed against Kraft Foods Global, Inc. alleging that the volatile organic compounds trichloroethylene (TCE), perchloroethylene (PCE) and vinyl chloride (VC) that was dumped at the manufacturing site by Kraft seeped into the groundwater and traveled underneath over  one-hundred nearby homes (Manzke, 2011).   It was alleged that once these chemicals are underneath these homes, the chemicals worked their way into the indoor air.   This process is commonly known as vapor intrusion (Manzke, 2011).   Vapor intrusion occurs when volatile chemicals from contaminated groundwater or soil â€Å"intrude† into an overlying building. These chemicals contaminate the air, causing a potential health hazard to individuals in the building who are subject to prolonged exposure to the chemicals (Nichols et al., 2011). After two years of litigation, a settlement was then reached. The court approved the amount of $8.1 million out of court settlement of the class action brought by 124 families in Attica, Indiana, against Kraft Foods alleging pollution from a nearby factory contaminated groundwater and caused vapor intrusion in their homes (Stoll v. Kraft Foods Global Inc.,  S.D. Ind., No. 1:09-cv-00364, 5/20/11). Also, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana approved the $2.7 million attorney’s fees that were requested plaintiffs. In addition to the monetary compensation,  Kraft has contractually agreed to remediate the groundwater and indoor air contamination of the site (Manzke, 2011). The $9.8 million ($8.1 million out of court settlement plus $2.7 million attorneys fees

Life Frankenstein Essay Example for Free

Life Frankenstein Essay Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein in 1818. Frankenstein was a gothic novel and the book was based on Mary Shellys life as she had a lot of death in her life as her mother died giving birth to her she and she lost her only baby. Mary Shelly want to bring her back as that is what Frankenstein did when his mother die giving birth to his brother. There was a lot of increase of science at time which drove Frankenstein to make the monster. Chapter 5 is the most important chapter as it is when he brings the monster to life but when the monster comes to life Frankenstein would not take responsibility and would not go back to his house I did not dare return to the apartment which I inhabited. It shows that man should not play god if they are not willing to take responsibility for their action which Frankenstein didnt do. He runs out of his house seemingly to detain me, but I escaped, and rushed down stairs. Just because he didnt want to take responsibility for the  Monster. This chapter shows that he is a coward as he made the monster but when he saw it he was scary to him even though he was the one who made it. It also show he is very selfish as he doesnt think of the monster he only thinks of him self and what would happen if one of his friends sees it I dreaded to behold this monster but I feared still more that Henry should see it this show that he thinks more about him self then he does about the monster as he dont want Henry to see it as it would damage his reputation. Shelley used the language to create atmosphere like at the start it is depressing as Frankenstein realises that making the monster was morally wrong it was on a dreary night of November that I behold the accomplishment but at the end it becomes a scared atmosphere as he doesnt want to think of the monster could he allude to an object on whom I dared not even think. The time of day is night my candle was nearly burnt out.  The chapter talks about appearance and reality I behold the wretch the miserable monster whom I had created he called the monster a wretch which means he doesnt see him as a human and he thinks of him as a thing that he can just throw away when he feels like it and make something else just because he look different to every one else when really Frankenstein is the monster. The chapter also talks about isolation and loneliness as  During all that time Henry was my only nurse when he isolated him self he when insane as he wanted to finish his work and not to rest, but he doesnt ask his friends for help.  The chapter shows man should not play god as it is too much responsibility for them to take. Dreams that had been my food and pleasant rest for so long a space were now became a hell to me this show that mortals react to they emotions. Humans emotions change very quickly and this shows that they should not play god if they are not willing to play it out to the end and that no human can control they emotions. Studying this chapter has showed that man should not push science too far as it can cause very dangerous things that can hurt people but if we are going to play god which means we should not be allowed to change our emotions and take responsibility for what they have made or done. It also shows that just because you love someone you are aloud to give them a new life as this is going against god.

Case Study of the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill and the Resultant Changes

Case Study of the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill and the Resultant Changes Research report of this case study is regarding of the Exxon Valdez oil spill disaster. Exxon Mobil Corporation is found on 30th November 1999 by merging Exxon and Mobil and its the largest publicly traded companies in the world. It is in the rank of #1 or #2 for the past 5 years. By the time it reached March 1989, a worst tragedy took place where caused by one of the largest super tanker in the world Exxon Valdez. [1] Different products have developed constantly in respond to changing demand for better in petroleum refinery. There a lot of processes involve in refinery, but the four main processes is refinery, separation, conversion and purification operation processes. At first the use of refinery is to create kerosene as cheaper and better compare to whale oil. Since all vehicles and airplane is combustion engine, it created more needs for petroleum. The location of Prince William Sound is so deep in where it only can be access by plane and boat. Due to this, the government and particular industries that involve had a tough time cleaning the disaster. By this major disaster, environment, economic and social were the main aspects were affected badly. It has given a negative impact on the lifestyle of the people in Prince William Sound.[2] A lot of action has been taken in the oil refinery industry after the oil spill, such as Operation Integrated Management System (OIMS), better radar system and Coast Guard in Prince William Sound. Introduction 2.1 Problem Statement By such disaster occurring, the exposure and early prevention steps would be taken by the society. Engineers will be efficient as in; safety and the quality would play a big role for them in their career by knowing the consequences of the major disaster. 2.2 Objective 1. The aim and objectives 2. To observe oil and refinery industrial processes and operations and learn the cause of the disaster 3. Risks of the oil spill disaster and pollution that affected all areas that lead to the oil spill disaster and pollution 4. The consequences of all the hazards of the oil spill disaster 5. To improvise and the changes in the management systems to prevent from the disaster to occur 2.3 Overview This research report is a case study of the Exxon Valdez oil spill disaster that took place in Prince William Sound, Alaska. Within six hours of the grounding, the Exxon Valdez spilled around 10.9 million gallons of its 53 million gallon cargo of Prudhoe Bay crude oil. Eight of the eleven tanks on board were damaged. Even before this major disaster occurred, they were high risk of oil spill in Prince William Sound. There is still an unclear doubt why this oil spill took place. [1] 3. Aim and objectives of Exxon Mobil Corporation Exxon Mobil Corporation is merged in two companies which is Exxon and Mobil in the year of 1999. It is the worlds largest petroleum and petrochemical company and it is also the worlds leading traded international oil and gas company. Exxon Mobil markets fuel and lubricants are under three brands which are Esso, Exxon and Mobil. The corporation aims and objective is divided into few sectors: 3.1 Development Exxon Mobil is focused on serious and discipline investment decision to find the best solutions that can give a large amount of profit and also the same time increase the reliability and reduce the cost. Exxon Mobil is also focused on many major projects which have started with the design and the operating concept and delivery. 3.2 Employees Exxon Mobil is very choosy in taking in and retaining employers. They need employers who are extremely good and get the best out of them. They make the best of the best by sending them to the best training. They are very committed to maintain their safety during at workplace. A safe work environment enriched by diversity and characterized by open communication, trust and fair treatment.[3] 3.3 Communities Exxon Mobil is base throughout the world. Where ever the, they are very committed to be a good cooperate citizen. They maintain their high ethical standards, obey all applicable laws, rules and regulation and also respect the culture of the respective country. Among all those objectives above, they are more dedicated to running safe and environmentally responsible process. Exxon Mobil Corporation is self-motivated to be at the leading edge of competition in all the aspects of our business. They are very discipline and very selective in estimating the range of capital investment opportunities available to them. They create new ways such as develop proprietary technologies that provide a competitive edge. Their goals are achieved by flawlessly executing business plans and adhering to these guiding principles and the foundation policies. 3.4 Shareholders Exxon Mobil Corporation is committed to enhance the long term period value of the investment dollars trusted to them by the shareholders. At the end the shareholders would be rewarded with their superior returns. The momentum of this would enhance their management of their Corporation. [1] 3.5 Customers To remain successful in an industry, a company has to be firm to please those different perception customers to adapt to their needs. Exxon Mobil commits them self to offer high quality products and services at competitive prices. [1] Refinery Industrial Processes and operations Figure 1: Process Flow Diagram [4] Oil refinery industry is a process where a barrel of raw crude oil that contains a mixture of all sorts of hydrocarbons, is transform it to petrochemical fuel like petrol and diesel. All processes are done by heat, pressure and chemical reaction method. Valves and gadgets is the one regulated when the crude oil runs through many kilo metres of pipes. Computerizes gadgets used to monitor to control and optimize the processes that are undertaken. Refining Process In this industry, refining is the most simplest and common processes is under taken. It starts with the crude oil is been heated up to vaporize the oil in distillation tower. Naturally heavier molecules would not rise as lighter ones in the vapour and with this the vapour can condense with different levels. When the cooling process occurs at various degrees, the liquefied gasses are collected in condensation trays. By this various types of petrochemical material are obtained. [4] 4.2 Treatment The purpose of this process is for hydrocarbon streams to get ready for extra processing and to prepare complete products. Sometimes it includes the elimination or separation of aromatics and naphthenic also as impurities. Chemical or physical separation for instance dissolving, absorption, or precipitation using a variation and combination of processes containing desalting, drying, hydro desulfurizing, solvent refining, sweetening, solvent extraction, and solvent dew axing might be included. 4.3 Catalytic Cracking Catalytic processes are another type of processes. It involves the breaking of heavy molecules into more valuable light molecules. For an example the breaking of low bitumen to diesel or even petrol where this process takes place in a high temperature using an alumina silicate and alumina silicate acts as a catalyst to the process and helps to break down the molecule. This catalyst is in powder form. 4.6 Auxiliary operations and facilities Steam and power generation, process and fire water system, flares and relief system, furnaces and heaters, pumps and valves, supply of steam, air, nitrogen and other plant gases, alarms and sensors, noise and pollution controls, sampling, testing, inspecting, laboratory, control room, maintenance and managerial facilities. [5] 4.4 Other Refining Operations This includes light-ends recovery, sour-water stripping, solid waste and wastewater management, process-water treatment and cooling, storing and management, product movement, hydrogen production, acid and tail-gas treatment and sulphur retrieval. [5] 5. Risks in all areas that lead to disaster 5.1 Human Error Human error is the main contributing factors. The first mate or captain of the tanker Captain Hazelwood was under influence of alcohol, at that time of the incident. The captain was unable to concentrate on his responsibility. This could be avoided if the captain of the ship were more discipline during work. Hazelwood was send to alcohol rehabilitation for 28 days. The management knew about it and they followed his progress in rehab. The mistake the management did was, gave him the responsible to be a captain of vessel again. Instead of reinstating such a major responsible as a captain, they should have given him desk work job. Moreover the third mate who was in charge of the vessel when the major accident occurred. This is because he had very little sleep the night before grounding and they were lacking of staff on board tanker. When the Hazelwood went to sleep, the third mate had to take in charge to manoeuvre the tanker without having enough sleep.[6] 5.2 Failure of Coast Guard Safe proofing method has been established and agreed between State of Alaska, the Coast Guard and the oil industry. This is to avoid human error to occur. This method works when there is a form of iceberg the coast guard has to warn the captains and the captain has to slow down their tankers. However, most of the tankers did not follow to the rules including Exxon Valdez due to profit and eliminate down time. 5.3 Delayed Response Location of Prince Williams Sound is deep so deep in by geographical view, where can be only excessed by air or water made the response slow. Apart from the location, the weather also played another big factor. Due to delayed response on reacting to clean the mess, the oil polluted about 2000km of cost line and about 26000 square kilo meters of sea was contaminated. [10] Consequences Figure 2: State on-scene Coordinators [8] A tanker with crude oil from Prudhoe Bay, Alaska collides with a reef in Alaskas Prince William Sound and 11 million gallons of crude oil spilled into one of the biggest coastlines. The horrible outcome out of the incident could have been reduced but due to the location, it made it hard for the clean-up team and the government to react. Even Exxon Mobile did not react fast due to their unstable system in place to deal with the crisis. There is no any commitment given by Exxon Mobile to ensure that this same incident will occur again. [9] 6.1 Economical The total money to just clean the mess is approximately USD 2.1 billion dollars and fine is USD 5 billion dollars of this was the biggest penalizing fines ever charged out to a company. The total Exxon Mobile had to fork out USD 7.1 billion dollars. Those fishermens were affected badly, till their livelihoods were affected. They were relying on that for surviving. They lost around yearly gross valued at USD 174 million dollars. Due to this tourism industry were affected as well. [8] 6.2 Environmental Ecological system and wildlife were destroyed fully. Shoreline for 1400 miles was affected till they cant find those areas. A total of 1,015 dead Sea otters, 36,466 dead Sea birds 144 dead bald eagles, 302 harbour and more than 100,000 of oiled birds. The number for dead birds was the highest compare to Heneman oil spill happen in 1989. Some species sinked when they die, due to that the whole sea was polluted. Most of the marine mammals fall sick due to ingesting oil while trying to clean oil of their furs or feathers or eating intoxicated prey. [9] Improvement and Changes in the Management System 7.1 Operation Integrity Management System After the oil spill Exxon Mobil Corporation devised a complete 11 point plan which covers from management to employees and everything including facilities and training. Exxon Mobil implemented an approach where safety is a major factor. The multilevel (OIMS) covers an extensive level of element in management system. This elements could classified as leadership management in safety and accountability, design, constructing and maintaining facilities, readiness in facing emergency, adaptation to change, continuous assessment of performance and inquiries in accident and incidents. When this policy been implemented Exxon had to go through a lot of changes and this changes lead to more improve and safe environment. This creates, Exxon Mobil to be the leader for safety in the industry. [4] 7.2 Management Leadership Implementation of safety starts at the management and work itself down to the labour force. This is because at the management level, the planning of the health and safety procedure is done. Thus enforcing safety measures also the responsibility of the management. This is done by identifying the risk involves followed by setting clear performances criteria. This can be done by creating a clear risk management procedure. Once that is done the leadership in the organization should have a strict enforcement policy where everybody involve should be given proper training and additional exposure to the risk and safety measure are involve. [4] 7.3 Construction and Facilities When designing a facilities and construction of the facilities there is different type degree of safeties. For an example when u designing a machinery or tool, in this case best related to a building of a oil tanker. After the catastrophic disaster of Exxon Valdez, the safety emphasis on the design was changed. For an example, tankers now are re-enforced by having double hull and other safety measures are more efficient. The operation safety is emphasis by training where is given to all ship crew. For an example, navigation officers are given training in extreme condition ship manoeuvring. [4] Improvement and Policies After the incident Exxon Mobil had strict recruitment policies where all employees which are new has to go through an alcohol and drug screening. This was also implemented on existing staff and this was done after the incident. If in case there was a employee who was under the influence of any substance on board a vessel would be stopped from sailing again until they can prove that they would not repeat and gone through proper rehabilitation. [4] Conclusion The conclusion is Exxon Valdez was one of the major oil spill disaster. It effect of this incident was wide spread and very devastating. Resulting from a human error and negligence, many innocent people and environment was affected. From this case study it can be said that a good safety plan is required. Management also should always be responsible with their action and measures to prevent such disaster. Given the situation and late response to the disaster made the incident even worse. They were many guidelines that did not followed by the management and employees, for an example the captain who was under the influence of alcohol and the lack of crew members on board. Incident happens because of human error. The crew on board was very badly trained or not trained at all for any kind of situation. Therefore more training needed in future for all the employees, there should be always a body which monitors the training and sets on-going training for all the staffs. The management should also enforce health and safety guidelines in a regular basis. To ensure in the future there will be any similar incidents occurring. There also should be a team that ensures the maintainers of the tanker and equipment on board. The Exxon Valdez spill was a lesson well learned by everyone especially Exxon Mobil Corporation and other oil and gas companies.

Sports Narrative - Football Injury :: Personal Narrative Essays

Personal Narrative- Football Injury The nerves are raging, mainly in his stomach as the butterflies flutter till no end. "Is everything ok? Will everything go as planned?" He couldn't stop thinking about what might happen. Images were racing wild as he thought about his teammates going to battle without him. He couldn't comprehend why he had to let them handle it on their own. He has played with them since they were in eighth grade, and when they need him the most, all he can do is sit and cheer. He hates this feeling of helplessness, but at the same time he knows he has to do what little he can do, well. It was two days until the first game of my last high school football season. My team and I were going to play Bayfield, a battle we had persistently prepared for since the last game of our junior year. The sun was beating on my pads, radiating the heat to make practice seem even worse. I was exhausted and looking forward to the end of my last sweat poring practice for the week. Our team was repetitively executing plays to make sure they were like second nature to us on Friday. Then, creating an unknown peace, Coach Nelson yells, "Last Play!" The play was "Red 334"which is a run to our halfback, me, out of our dive series. I crouched over the ball as I jetted past the quarterback and ran the play so we could observe the changes we needed to make. I let out a sigh of relief because we were finished with the most dreaded part of practice; well, only until someone complained about not knowing their job on one of our pass plays. Coach Nelson undoubtedly decided we needed to run through the final pass play before we perfected our defense. The play was quietly called in the huddle with intentions of getting it right. I ran the play through my mind while I tried to remember what the snap count was and what I was supposed to do for that play. The ball was snapped and I jolted to the left of our team's quarterback to set up his backside protection. Out of my peripheral vision, I noticed the defensive end raging toward the quarterback. I intensely stepped into him while lowering my body and exploded through his shoulder pads sendin g him stumbling into the line's pass protection.