Essay about Technology is a Benefit to Our Society

Technology is a Benefit to Our Society Over the last century, our world has evolved so much, because of the growth of the technological field. Although we spend a lot of money in order to gain new information, the reward goes far beyond the cost of money. In this case, the reward is the ability to save the lives of millions of people. In his essay, â€Å"The Technology of Medicine,† Lewis Thomas describes the three levels of technology; Nontechnology, Halfway Technology, and Effective Technology (582-583). â€Å"Nontechnology† has become the therapeutic part of technology, which helps patients through the emotional and mental effects that a disease can have on them. â€Å"Halfway Technology† is the name given to procedures, such as transplants,†¦show more content†¦Without technology, humans could not possibly know as much as we do about terrifying diseases such as AIDS and Cancer. Although we have not yet invented a cure for neither disease, we have developed many drugs and other sources of treatment that could help delay death for a patient. In the case of Cancer, many people have even been able to overcome the disease through treatments such as chemotherapy and radiation. Stephen Jay Gould, focuses on one of these terrifying diseases in his essay, â€Å"The Terrifying Normalcy of AIDS.† Gould states that â€Å"John Platt recognized that the limited data on the origin of AIDS and its spread in America suggested a more frightening prospect: we are all susceptible to AIDS† (594); but by using technology along with our God-given knowledge, we will hopefully be able to find a cure to this destructive disease. Technology has also provided families with the gift of life. Everyday, many children are born prematurely and need to be set on breathing tubes, which give the children another way of breathing before they are able to do it on their own. If not for this invention, many couples would not get the chance to experience the feeling of having their very own child. We would not have any way of providing the resources that would allow these children to survive, if it were not for technology. In fact,Show MoreRelatedSociety s Dependence On Technology1244 Words   |  5 Pages11- Period 1 2 October 2015 Society’s Dependency On Technology Today, technology is a ruling factor among our society. Technology is involved in every aspect of our lives. Our dependence on technology has been taken to a whole other level, we are now incredibly dependent on technology. We may be too dependent on technology, but our dependence does not necessarily impact us in negative ways. II. Some say the increasing need for technology, specifically social media, causes social isolationRead MoreTranshumanism Essay example918 Words   |  4 PagesFreedom: A Refutation to the Benefits of Transhumanism and Physical Disabilities Transhumanism is a word that describes anything which favors the development of innovative technologies for the improvement of human health, both physical and mental. Throughout the past decade, this movement of transhumanism has started to take course throughout the world. Biotechnologies are one subset of the transhumanist movement that have consistently shown great promise to benefit society as a whole. Ideas surroundingRead MoreThe, Visible M Ethics And The New Genetics867 Words   |  4 PagesToday we live in a society that is constantly evolving.This evolution has outpacing our society expectations. With technological advances’ unfolding right in front of our eyes, the line between what is moral and immoral has been blurred. In Peter Singer’s â€Å"Visible Man: Ethics in a World Without Secrets† and the Dalai Lama’s â€Å"Ethics and the New Genetics† both authors present the potential benefits of today’s advancements but also make it clear that theses advancements have molded our ethical and moralRead MoreImportance Of Web Accessibility For People With Disabilities904 Words   |  4 PagesWhy this is important This chapter reviews the importance of web accessibility in our society. It also considers participatory design as a solution to the problem. Accessible new technology and all its facilities and benefits should be available for all people despite different disadvantages they might have. Disability should not exclude from the society. Moreover, there are a number of reasons why we should make accessible websites for people with disabilities. First of all it is the right thingRead MoreEssay on Technology in Greg Bears Blood Music1491 Words   |  6 PagesTechnology in Greg Bears Blood Music      Ã‚   Different genres of literature are particular responses to society; therefore, cyberpunk, as a genre, is a response to our contemporary society, known as the information age. One of the attributes given the genre is that it has an apocalyptic or post-apocalyptic tone, warning the reader of the perils of technology, while at the same time celebrating the possibilities of technology, usually through a strong character in the novel. In Greg BearsRead MoreThe Influence Of Modern Technology839 Words   |  4 Pagesmodern technology involved in your life? 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There are common themes and stylistic choices because all of the distorted mirrors that authors are holding up are trying to show us the same things. They are trying to give us the same warnings - what the world might look like if we take our quest for perfection too far.† Authors want us to be fearful of the future, so we do not have to go down the path of a dystopianRead MoreA Brief Note On Technology And Social Media952 Words   |  4 PagesTechnology and Social Media: Crucial to Society Social media is one of the most popular means of communication today. The general public uses social media to talk to loved ones, find long lost friends, and participate in online discussions. As technological capabilities have advanced over the years, so has the public’s reliance on social media. Debates have surfaced about whether the public is misusing social media. Many people are questioning whether social media is replacing human interaction

Jane Eyre is one of the earliest English novels with a...

Jane Eyre is one of the earliest English novels with a strong, female central character. Do you think she sells out by marrying Rochester, thus enabling a conventional, romantic ending to the novel? He stretched his hand out to be led. (Jane) Form start to finish, this novel has had one strong, female central character - Jane Eyre. We see her fight for independence as a female from her childhood right up until her marriage. These ardent, passionate beliefs do not leave her once married, if anything; they get stronger. Jane does not sell out by marrying Rochester for now she is the more powerful half of the relationship. Jane is her husbands eyes and He (Rochester) saw nature...books through me. She has everything†¦show more content†¦At first, she appears unruly and undisciplined however she shows her versatility and soon adapts to the strict regime. For the first time, Jane meets a friend, Helen Burns. She is amazed at Helens restraint and acceptance of unjust punishment, Burns made no answer: I wondered at her silence. In these three, very similar occurrences in Janes early years, we can establish through passionate outburst and a reluctance to be intimidated that Jane was most definitely a strong, female, central character. You are too compulsive; too vehement! Wise words from Helen burns, Janes earliest friend who taught her many life lessons. It was shortly after Helens death that Jane felt ready to leave Lowood for she, desired liberty; for liberty (she) gasped. In typical Jane manner, she acted upon her impulses and advertised her services in the newspaper as a governess. At this point in the essay, it is interesting to note the social and conventional position of women at this time- the 1840s. In Victorian Britain; young, poor women such as Jane would have had two options- become a full time wife and mother or become a governess; it would be morally improper for a female to do anything else. While doing a study into the lives of women in the 1800s, Joyce Carol Oates discovered that women were, Imagined as merely inhabiting bodies meant to bear children and, being in other respects, tasteless without appetite. It isShow MoreRelatedJane Eyre and Tess of the DUrbervilles Essay examples1433 Words   |  6 PagesComparative Study - Jane Eyre and Tess of the DUrbervilles Comparison of Thomas Hardys Tess of the DUrbervilles and Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontà « is possible as both authors were writing in the same time period; therefore both books contain certain aspects attributed to one genre: the Victorian Novel. However its is also important to realise the differences between the books as well as the similarities; the diversities are what give each novel its individuality and make it distinctRead MoreFeminism : The Advocacy Of Women s Rights On The Grounds Of Political, Social, And Economic Equality1694 Words   |  7 PagesMicaela Castro English 2 2/29/16 Jane Eyre and Feminism Feminism is defined as the â€Å"advocacy of women s rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality to men† (Oxford Dictionary). In the past century, the standards of what is considered feminism have changed. At the time Jane Eyre was published, feminism per se did not exist yet. In the Victorian Era any actions done by women that went against the norms for women for that timeRead MoreJane Austen And Charlotte Bronte s Social Class1748 Words   |  7 PagesIn both texts, both authors; Jane Austen and Charlotte Bronte explore social class in a number of ways. They do this through the use of their stylistic devices and this in turn appeals to their different audiences. Both Jane and Charlotte are notable writers for their remarkable texts. Jane Austen is known for playing a revolutionary role in the generation of English female literature, which was counteracted by this piece- and Charlotte Bronte further developed her feminist thoughts, which have beenRead MoreJourney by Patricia Grace3775 Words   |  16 PagesLITERATURE IN ENGLISH Paper 3 Poetry and Prose Additional Materials: *8973287783* 9695/31 October/November 2009 2 hours Answer Booklet/Paper READ THESE INSTRUCTIONS FIRST If you have been given an Answer Booklet, follow the instructions on the front cover of the Booklet. Write your Centre number, candidate number and name on all the work you hand in. Write in dark blue or black pen. Do not use staples, paper clips, highlighters, glue or correction fluid. Answer two questions, one from Section A

Information Systems Project and Risk Management

Question: Discuss about the Information Systems Project and Risk Management. Answer: Introduction: The Niche product had been designed for the usage as the tool of primary policy and by remaining within a specific jurisdiction. The environment of the Victoria police system was well established but still the system was advised towards the incorporation of the Niche products for the redevelopment of its products. Victoria police thus thought of customizing their products for maintaining the upgrades coming up in the informational systems and the management. The Niche Technologies had been sound but still the Leap system was proved obsolete and thus replaced with the Link system (Ballantyne et al. 2013). The Link system had not been cost effective and the other fundamental mistakes surrounding the system include the following: Lack of documentation by the management and the leaders led to an ineffective process in the management system. The ongoing changes from the replacement of the Leap to link system were left unrecorded, which resulted to errors and disaster in the outcomes of the system (Byrne 2012). Various opportunities surrounded the implementation of the new system. However, the management and leaders set them aside without any consideration of the same. The wholesale efficiencies and improvements were ignored which if implemented efficiently, would have resulted into significant enhancement of the supporting system for the operating policies. The management board and the leaders were least interested in the adoption of a much better information system for the technologies implemented in the organization. They ignored the gaining of knowledge about the impacts and complex nature of the release of the Niche product that resulted into heavy burden of costs and other limitations for the department (Elliott et al. 2012). There were a numerous amount of integration issues and breaches of the project system. The issues arose with the increase in the demands of the storage, accessibility, collection procedure and the usage of the information on the systems of the Victoria Police. The department did not meet the requirement of implementing stringent controls and the guidelines related to privacy. This resulted into the issues of integration and other shortfalls. Furthermore, the lack of training for police on the appropriate accessibility towards the law enforcement information dropped in a numerous breaches (Freitag and Found 2016). TIBCO had nominated an amount of 27 interfaces in particular for the systems and according to it, numerous interfaces have a working in a real time basis and few of the same are too complex and require stringent controls. According to TIBCO, the controls must be concerned with the security of data, audit trails and encryption requirements related with the exchanged data and information. The same requires redevelopment that mentioned the use of ESB, as it provides an assistance towards the designing of an interface through preparation of the architecture of the interfaces in a straightforward manner. The use of ESB enables the interface exchange of data audible and reduction of the efforts in building up the interfaces (Grossman et al. 2013). Even though, the ESB system is highly costly in comparison to the other tools, ESB measures and estimates the efforts involved in the growth and development of the interfaces. The development of the interfaces is a risky affair because of its scalability and status of being a major pre requisite of a project. The users of the Niche and project planning resulted into the identification of the issues and the same were problematic for the replacement of the LEAP system to the LINK system for the Victoria Police. The major technical issues were: The LEAP system was operative from a great point of time leading to the accumulation of large depositories of data. The important data recorded in the system might be of utmost importance in the future that may require transferring of the same into the new system. Thus, the large amount of data proved a major challenge as the time required will stop the continuous processes within the department (Henshaw and Thomas 2012). The old database and systems have record of the criminal data and information required for a lifetime. Even though few of the data might have had a lesser impact on the users of the operations, they need to be recorded for future availability. The registers or the witness documents cannot be ignored and misplaced. The present time did not contain mechanisms for which the associated analysts of the projects would have a determination of specific place or dates for the movement of the data and information (Herrington and Pope 2014). The recommendation for the Victoria Police is the proper training of the team members of the project and systems. There must be an engagement with the other jurisdictions for the implementation of the suggested Niche. The training might not turn out to be cost effective in nature, but after training the maturity of the systems and the data conversion procedures. Moreover, there must be proper training and learning procedures for the improvement of the quality of the data conversion process (Hyde et al. 2012). As per the discussions above, the data conversion and other training activities for a perfect team and management required additional costs and expenditure. There are many major activities and areas, which include the management of crimes, general incidents, prisoner and custody, intelligence, property and court case management. The crime management ensures the compliance procedures to be secured and appropriate with the national standards. The intelligence management will help in the security of the management and capability of the agency and the data. The general incident will comply with the necessities of the customers and the areas of the road incidents and interventions. The sudden deaths and other anti social behavior will increase the functionality of the operations (Kestic et al. 2013). The management of the property i.e. the lost, seized, damaged and others that are under the possession of the police will have to be under proper management. They are kept under special measures and accuracy procedures. To manage the same, the managers will have to consider severe costs related to the properties under the possession. The management of the custodians and the prisoners is another addition of the costs and expenditures for the department. The preparation of the cases of the court especially the electronically based cases including the management of the warrants and victim management will be approved and increase the costs i.e. modification of the budgets will take place (Larson 2013). The above shows that the management of the above activities will further require labor and maintenance costs. Apart from the above, the management has to look forward to the issues underlying in the data conversion and other activities. The advice for the Victoria Police is the proper guidance to the members of the team for the projects and systems. There must be a commitment with the other jurisdictions for the completion of the suggested Niche. The education might not turn out to be cost effective in nature, but after training, there is increase in the maturity of the arrangement and the data conversion measures. Furthermore, there must be appropriate training and learning events for the development of the quality of the data conversion process (Pearson-Goff and Herrington 2013). The implementation of the Niche RMS will result in great productivity and functionality, which include the following: Due to the increase in the officers and the management team, there will be more effectiveness and ample measurement techniques to suffice the requirement of the Victoria Police. The department will embrace the use of the management systems like controlling of the crime, accidents, and thefts, damages to the property or management of the custodians or the prisoners. The capability of the effective preparation of the cases of the courts both manually and electronically will increase and thus, there will be greater demand and productivity.The people will have a greater confidence on the Victorian Police (Phang et al. 2013). The data conversion from the old to the newer systems will require the higher costs that will increase the cost but reduce the productivity. Still, to maintain the records of both the old and latest ones, the data systems and conversion procedures must be highly efficient and useful. Therefore, the budget of $160m is justified, as the requirements if met, will require heavy cost and expenditures on the part of the management (Police 2014). Victorian Police had taken a short-term approach rather than a long-term approach of application of the information system for reduction of the hazard and risks. The department must carry on the actions towards the long-term strategic approach, the IT issues must be reviewed, and the process model must be as follows: There are various issues to the implementation of the risk management procedures and thus there must be effectiveness in the company. The recommendations for a finer and effective planning are represented above and the same can be explained as under: Current state analysis: The current processes, activities and the usage of the appropriate technology must be complied and then allocated costs and the count of each data interface must be defined. Further, an analysis of the data and the processes must be made by collecting the volume metrics (Powell and Cauchi 2013). Business case development: The evaluation of the costs and the estimated future staffs and the officials must be done for effectiveness in the productivity and running of the organization. Design of the model: the mapping of the services must be appropriate and there must be development of a functional organization with responsibilities and determining the best options of sourcing. The design of facility and the technology infrastructure must be effective and useful (Scott et al. 2015). Design of the organization: The positions and the origination must have a model, which has the updated features and characteristics. There must be identification of the supporting technologies and tools fitting the suitability of the business model. Evaluation of the technology: There must be effective validation of the technologies having a specific support service towards the model of the organization. In the given case, the Victorian Police must work upon effectively on the development of the high-level functional requirements of technology and redesigning processes (Sentas 2014). Planning of the implementation: The determination of the phase of implementation options and the best-fit recommendations must be carried on by the management system. The leaders of the organization must carry on the development of the implementation plan of the team structure and the leadership management. There must be defined structure of the project to the team with perfect education of the required roles and responsibilities (Taylor 2013). Thus, the above must be kept in mind and proper training ensured by the management team to involve the officials and other members. The data conversion procedures must be under stricter control and management for better productivity and assurance of the better functionality and facilitative infrastructure within the organization (Van Auken and Carraher 2012). References Ballantyne, K.N., Poy, A.L. and van Oorschot, R.A., 2013. Environmental DNA monitoring: beware of the transition to more sensitive typing methodologies.Australian Journal of Forensic Sciences,45(3), pp.323-340. Byrne, J., 2012.The occupy handbook. Little, Brown. Elliott, I., Thomas, S.D. and Ogloff, J.R., 2012. Procedural justice in contacts with the police: The perspective of victims of crime.Police practice and research,13(5), pp.437-449. Freitag, C. and Found, B., 2016. Developing tailored planning models for forensic organisations.Australian Journal of Forensic Sciences, pp.1-13. Grossman, M., Bruck, D., Stephenson, P., Dwyer, R. and Roose, J., 2013. Learning to engage: A review of Victoria police cross-cultural training practices.Melbourne: Centre for Cultural Diversity and Wellbeing, Victoria University. Henshaw, M. and Thomas, S., 2012. Police encounters with people with intellectual disability: prevalence, characteristics and challenges.Journal of Intellectual Disability Research,56(6), pp.620-631. Herrington, V. and Pope, R., 2014. The impact of police training in mental health: an example from Australia.Policing and society,24(5), pp.501-522. Hyde, R.A., Ishikawa, M.Y., Kare, J.T., Nugent, T.J., Wood, L.L. and Wood, V.Y., The Invention Science Fund I, Llc, 2012.System and method for operating a vehicle. U.S. Patent 8,335,635. Kesic, D., Thomas, S.D. and Ogloff, J.R., 2013. Use of nonfatal force on and by persons with apparent mental disorder in encounters with police.Criminal justice and behavior,40(3), pp.321-337. Larson, N., 2013. Niche products, generic products, and consumer search.Economic Theory,52(2), pp.793-832. Pearson-Goff, M. and Herrington, V., 2013. Police leadership: A systematic review of the literature.Policing, p.pat027. Phang, C.W., Zhang, C. and Sutanto, J., 2013. The influence of user interaction and participation in social media on the consumption intention of niche products.Information Management,50(8), pp.661-672. Police, V., 2014.Code of practice for the investigation of family violence. Victoria Police. Powell, M.B. and Cauchi, R., 2013. Victims perceptions of a new model of sexual assault investigation adopted by Victoria Police.Police practice and research,14(3), pp.228-241. Scott, N., Caulkins, J.P., Ritter, A., Quinn, C. and Dietze, P., 2015. High?frequency drug purity and price series as tools for explaining drug trends and harms in Victoria, Australia.Addiction,110(1), pp.120-128. Sentas, V., 2014.Traces of terror: Counter-terrorism law, policing, and race. Oxford University Press. Taylor, S.C., 2013. Policing just outcomes: Improving the police response to adults reporting sexual assault. Van Auken, H. and Carraher, S., 2012. An analysis of funding decisions for niche agricultural products.Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship,17(02), p.1250012.

Interior Design Style free essay sample

Country  interior design style Calm and bringing comfort. There is a delightful simplicity to this style. It can range from cottage country to the more graceful French country approach. Gothic  interior design style it’s almost enchanting! Gothic style lets you add a dash of mystical charm while you create a space with a clear look that sets you apart. So let your imagination soar. Minimalist  interior design style Contemporary tranquility without excessive decorative style. You can breathe easy! pic][pic]Rustic  interior design style Inspired by the wild, this style is unrefined and time tested. The look is warm and calm. When you need to unwind, rustic style will wrap you in a cozy embrace. Southwestern  interior design style Temporary, lived-in style with Native American and Spanish affect. Swedish  (Gustavian)  interior design style Beautiful, kindle and airy! It is neoclassical style with a rare, Scandinavian twist. Traditional  interior design style Luxurious and attractive. We will write a custom essay sample on Interior Design Style or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page This style emphasizes finely crafted details and beautifully patterned fabrics. With a nod to the past, it remains a top  decorating style. Tropical  interior design style Love the look of exotic, seaside places? Redesign your own interior with a tropical design style. It emphasizes natural textures and an comfortable, calm atmosphere. Tuscan  interior design style this popular style brings to mind the good life in a golden age. You dont have to live near the Mediterranean to love this old world look! Tuscan style is earthy yet refined.

A Quick Guide to Effective Email - Formality

A Quick Guide to Effective Email - Formality I will confess to being an overly formal emailer. I stick with professional titles and last names longer than I need to, I continue using salutations and closing phrases even in a conversational chain, and I can’t seem to stop signing off with â€Å"best† or â€Å"regards† and second guessing my use of exclamation points. This has all been exacerbated by teaching college students as an adjunct- their instant informality, use of text-speak, and round the clock emails make me want to crawl inside a mailbox and never come out. Lucky for me, the folks at Social-Hire.com have some guidance for the overthinkers among us who are composing job application emails. Come across as too stiff, and you’re a bad fit for the office culture. Too informal, and you lack the poise and polish they expect from an employee. What to do?First ContactLook carefully at the website of the company that you’re applying to work for. Have employees contributed bios? Does it sound like a person or a marketing firm drafted the copy? Does anyone link to their social media profiles? Let the formal or relaxed tone of your email match what you see on their site.SeniorityThough many companies encourage an informal persona, a more formal approach is always preferable  if you’re writing to a senior employee or a hiring manager. Play it safe by starting with â€Å"Dear† and using whatever professional title you’re aware of (Dr., Mr., Ms.- don’t get cute with â€Å"Miss† or â€Å"Mrs.†). You never know how that might rub someone the wrong way. Use their full name, and end with â€Å"Best,†   Ã¢â‚¬Å"Sincerely,† or â€Å"Thank you.†RepliesOH THANK GOODNESS, any reply that’s not outright dismissive tells you that you did something correctly! Let their attitude guide yours- match your response’s relaxation to theirs. Don’t overdo it! My students make the misstep of taking a brief, speed y response from me as a sign they can write back with emojis and â€Å"sup† and â€Å"Thank uuuuuuuu.†Keep in mind this is American-centered advice- companies in a variety of cultural context may approach their email communications very differently.So to sum up:Err on the side of formality.Let them take the lead.Don’t drop your guard too quickly!Happy emailing! Now take that inspirational quote out of your signature.Job Application Advice: How Formal Should Your Email Be?Read More at www.social-hire.com

Indians and the Westward movement essays

Indians and the Westward movement essays The white people had now found our Country. The transportation problems facing the nation were as huge as the country itself. Only a few roads for coaches and wagons stretched between the states. Coaches and wagons also moved slowly, very slowly. The 260-mile journey from New York to Boston, for example, took 39 hours by stagecoach. The only other ways to travel or move goods were by small boats, on horseback or on foot. Slow, costly transport was bad for business. It could isolate Americans in one region from those in another. Let us bind the Republic together with a perfect system of roads and canals. Let us conquer space, John Calhoun said. States began to take on the challenge of building roads and canals. This transportation revolution had a huge impact on the everyday life of Americans resulting in conflicts with the Indians. The most successful, and most daring, improvement of this period was the Erie Canal. The success of the Erie Canal opened the upper Ohio Valley and the Great Lakes region to settlement. Thousands of immigrants traveled into Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Michigan. Farm products from this region flowed eastward and their population grew. Fed by the West, easterners could concentrate on trade and manufacturing. In turn, the westerners bought the manufacturers goods of the East. The success of the Erie Canal encouraged more canal buildig in other parts of the country. It helped Americans push west in search of new lands to farm; American victories during the war of 1812 had also crushed most Indian resistance east of the Mississippi. In addition, there was a spirit of confidence and restlessness in the air. People were on the move just to be on the move. Before this time, the way of life was very different. The policies on transportation came also with policies on economic development. Before these policies individuals produced everything ...

How did Procter & Gamble Globalize Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

How did Procter & Gamble Globalize - Essay Example In the early 1990s the company changed its marketing strategy, by introducing products worldwide early in their product development. Today P&G manages a world roll-out within 18 months (Ball et al, 2005, p. 479). Since 1980 P&G has increased four times the number of consumers the company serves to five million people around the world. P&G today has operations in more than 80 countries employing 110,000 people; its products are sold in over 140 countries, transforming P&G into one of the biggest consumer goods companies (Ball et al, 2005, p. 9). With global headquarters in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA, P&G has manufacturing facilities in 114 plants in 42 countries worldwide (Graph 1) (Sustainability Report 2004). It manufactures and markets nearly 300 products and is one of the world's most successful brand creation companies (Graph 5). P&G has one of the strongest portfolios of quality brands, including Pampers, Tide, Ariel, Always, Whisper and many others (Datamonitor, 2004). Most of the company's products are produced and assembled by P&G-owned facilities; approximately 10 percent of products are outsourced to third parties (Graph 2). P&G purchase annually more than $25 billion materials and services to manufacture and market their products. In company-owned plants P&G purchases the majority of raw materials within the regions where products are manufactured (P&G Sustainability Report, 2004). P&G's globalization strategy is straightforward. The company is focused on its core businesses and leading brands, countries and customers. The global company structure has established regional organizations for seven world regions - North America; Latin America; Western Europe; China; ASEAN, Australasia and India; North Asia; and Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa (Graph 3) (P&G Sustainability Report, 2004). The company's majority of sales come from the mature markets of USA and Western Europe (Graph 4, 6). A balanced future growth has drawn investment in developing countries and low-income markets that represent majority of world population (P&G Annual Report 2005). As a result, sales in those segments are growing, and China has become P&G's sixth largest market (Ball et al, 2005, p. 479). 2. "Why" Market access Procter & Gamble's globalization strategy is focused on customer similarities worldwide. In this aspect market access has been the major driver for P&G's global expansion, whereby relatively standardized products have been produced in similar manufacturing facilities around the world and then sold under the same brand names globally (Ball et al, 2005, p. 9). This "brand internationalization" (Enke et al, n.d.) has increased P&G's competitiveness. Sustained further market expansion requires P&G to look to other consumer segments. P&G's sales have been focused on premium-priced branded products in relatively affluent Western consumers. Still, according to P&G CEO A G Lafley the company has "a tremendous opportunity to serve lower income and value-conscious consumers around the world" (cited by Mitchell, 2005). The rationale behind this strategy is simple. Mature markets, where P&G is present face intense competition and slow growth in demand. This impedes organic growth and forces P&G to look for alternative markets, like the developing countr

Civil society and religious figures in Saudi Arabia Literature review

Civil society and religious figures in Saudi Arabia - Literature review Example The conference report stated that in Saudi Arabia, â€Å"all non-governmental organizations are controlled by the state in a way or another, and they do not have their full independence† (p. 3). According to the report, many official authorities supervise CSOs and interfere in the elections of their board of directors; they also oversee the audit and financial accounts of these organizations. 2-4 Nature of civil society, what is it, its history, how did it affect western policy when it was first applied, what changes occurred in the west. Definition and nature of civil society There are several forms of democracy that involve varying levels of citizenship participation. What distinguishes civil society is its role as channel for deliberation, which is essentially different from voting and negotiation. Voting is the mere aggregation of preferences, and negotiation or bargaining involves voluntary coordination across different groups; these are essentially procedural, however, a nd reflect opinions already arrived at and distributions of power already established (Heller, 2013, 1). Deliberation, on the other hand, is â€Å"decision making by discussion among free and equal citizens (Elster 1998, 1 in Heller, 2013, 1). By deliberating, citizens and civil society organisations debate the issues before preferences can be solidified, thus act to inform and evaluate prior to taking positions on any side of the debate, making it a better alternative than voting. Also, deliberation allows participants to adjust their preferences by introducing new information, contexts, conceptualisations and understanding into what is essentially the decision-making process and creates a better coordination process than bargaining. History and development of civil society â€Å"Civil society† as a term originated during the times of the ancient Greek and Roman philosophers, although in these contexts the phrase was associated more with the state. The term was however disc ontinued from usage in the mid-1800s because of the shift in the attention of political philosophers to the repercussions and implications of the industrial revolution. In post-World War II, Marxist theorist Antonio Gramsci revived the term to mean the society of citizens as the core of autonomous political activity, specifically in rebellion against tyranny. All these notwithstanding, civil society gained a new meaning in the 1990s when the term again resurfaced as globalisation spread throughout the various nations (Carothers, 1999, 19). Effects of civil society on western policy Heller (2013) views civil society as a reaction of grassroots elements to the growing tide of globalisation and marginalisation of representative democracy and bureaucratic organisation, which the author describes as having suffered in terms of legitimacy and effectiveness. There have generally been two responses to this development. First is the push towards â€Å"good governance† whereby the stat e and institutions such as the market are made self-regulating and thus insulated against politics. Under this situation, however, the voice of the people – a.k.a. democracy – is reduced to the ballot every election period, and nothing more. Another response, which the author views as a better alternat

The major problem in inventory system Essay Example for Free

The major problem in inventory system Essay One issue is infrequent large orders vs. frequent small orders. Large orders will increase the amount of inventory on hand, which is costly, but may benefit from volume discounts. Frequent orders are costly to process, and the resulting small inventory levels may increase the probability of stock-outs, leading to loss of customers. In principle all these factors can be calculated mathematically and the optimum found. A second issue is related to changes in demand (predictable or random) for the product. For example having the needed merchandise on hand in order to make sales during the appropriate buying season(s). A classic example is a toy store pre-Christmas. If one does not have the items on the shelves, one will not make the sales. And the wholesale market is not perfect. There can be considerable delays, particularly with the most popular toys. So, the entrepreneur or business manager will buy on spec. Another example is a furniture store. If there is a six week, or more, delay for customers to get merchandise, some sales will be lost. And yet another example is a restaurant, where a considerable percentage of the sales are the value-added aspects of food preparation and presentation, and so it is rational to buy and store somewhat more to reduce the chances of running out of key ingredients. With all these examples, the situation often comes down to these two key questions: How confident are you that the merchandise will sell, and how much upside is there if it does? And a third issue comes from the view that inventory also serves the function of decoupling two separate operations. For example work in process inventory often accumulates between two departments because the consuming and the producing department do not coordinate their work. With improved coordination this buffer inventory could be eliminated. This leads to the whole philosophy of Just In Time, which argues that the costs of carrying inventory have typically been underestimated, both the direct, obvious costs of storage space and insurance, but also the harder-to-measure costs of increased variables and complexity, and thus decreased flexibility, for the business enterprise.

Man and Nature in The Grapes of Wrath Essay -- Grapes Wrath essays

Man and Nature in The Grapes of Wrath   Ã‚   In The Grapes of Wrath, John Steinbeck uses both obvious references and subtle contrasts to emphasize the main theme of the novel: the sanctity of man's relationship to the natural world and to each other.    Machines have no place in this relationship. They act as a barrier between men and the land. They are dangerous because they perform the function of men with greater efficiency, but they lack the spiritual element that makes the land so valuable. Chapter five uses imagery to detail the evil inherent in the plowing of land by a machine:    "Behind the tractor rolled the shining disks, cutting the earth with blades-not plowing but surgery, pushing the cut earth to the right where the second row of disks cut it and pushed it to the left; slicing blades shining, polished by the cut earth. And pulled behind the disks, the harrows combing with iron teeth so that the little clods broke up and the earth lay smooth. Behind the harrows, the long seeders- twelve curved iron penes erected in the foundry, orgasms set...

“Mother Tongue” by Amy Tan Essay

In â€Å"Mother Tongue† by Amy Tan, Tan explores the connection between one’s language and their identity, she examines not only how language affects the development of ones identity, but also the role it has in the way one is perceived by society. Tan shares a few anecdotes illustrating the role language played in shaping her own personal identity. â€Å"I think my mother’s English almost had an affect on limiting my possibilities in life as well.† Tan goes on to explore the idea that the â€Å"broken English† she heard spoken by her mother at home ultimately led to her doing poorly in English, at least when compared to her science and math scores. This led her teachers to steer her away from writing and more towards math and science. In Tan’s case her â€Å"rebellious nature† led her to become an English major her first year of college. Many other Asian-American students are not as headstrong as Tan and therefore are often pushed int o careers in math and science, this undoubtedly affects one’s identity as careers are a major component of an individual’s life. Another way language can be seen affecting Tan’s identity in mother tongue is in the way tan uses, interprets, and thinks about words. â€Å"Her language, as I hear it, is vivid, direct, full of observation and imagery. That was the language that helped shape the way I saw things, expressed things, made sense of the world.† Here Tan was refering to the language of her mother, which obviously played a huge role in how Tan herself interpreted and used words. The final connection between language and identity that can be ascertained from this piece is how often the assumptions about one’s identity made based upon the way they speak are often false. This was very much the case for Tan’s mother, towards the beginning of the piece Tan makes it clear to the audience that while her mother’s English may be â€Å"limited† this in no way reflects how much English she comprehends. Tan also discusses how, when she was growing up, her mother’s â€Å"limited† English limited Tan’s perception of her, â€Å"†¦because she expressed them imperfectly her thoughts were imperfect.† was the logic behind Tan’s view of her mother when she was growing up. This was the view most people seemed to have of Tan’s mother, which is an incorrect perception of her mother’s actual intelligence and comprhension of the English language.

Describe the performance of characteristics of eggs Essay

Egg white and yolk contain protein. Ovalbumin is present in egg white, however globulin and albumin are also present in a very small amount. Whereas egg yolk contains protein in the form of lipoproteins, which are a combination of proteins and lipids. The most important complex lipid in egg yolk is lecithin. Lecithin gives the egg yolk the properties of a stable emulsion. The fat molecules in the egg yolk are held in an emulsion by lecithin. Eggs have three main performance characteristics and they a coagulation, which includes setting, binding, coating, thickening, enriching and glazing, secondly they can be whisked to create foams and aerate mixtures and called aeration and lastly emulsifiers. Coagulation is the process in which proteins change from their natural liquid state into a gel or a solid. This happens because each protein molecule is constructed from long chains of amino acids joined by peptide bonds. The bonds are weak and when heat, acid or mechanical action is applied they start to break. The changes are permanent. When the protein changes it physical structure when it coagulates is called denaturation. Syneresis can occur when the egg is overcooked. This is when the texture becomes porous as the protein shrinks and pockets of water are left in the product. Between 60-65C is the temperature which egg whites start to coagulate and the result of this the egg white changes appearance from transparent like to white and the texture will be from gel like to solid texture. Egg yolk starts to coagulate at a higher temperature than egg white, it begins coagulating at 65C and finish at 70C. From the darker yellow appearance of the egg yolk it will turn into a lighter yellow yolk and from runny yolk it can go to powdery solid yolk. There are a number of factors that will affect coagulation. A firmer set can be achieved at a lower temperature if an acid such as lemon juice is added. A looser set and higher coagulation temperature is achieved by the addition of sugar to the mixture. The quantity of egg yolk determines the strength of the set mixture. A higher proportion of egg yolks or whole eggs will produce firmer or thicker custard. A low heat achieves gentle heat transference, which produce perfect conditions for a coagulation. Aeration is when egg white is whisked. Foam is formed when air is dispersed through the liquid egg white. Egg whites can be aerated due to the ability of the ovalbu, in to stretch and hold air. When egg whites is whisked the proteins are denatures and uncoil. This forms a 3D air / liquid structure that can hold air when folded into food mixtures. The foam is stable but its properties can be affected by the use of additional ingredients or conditions. First factor that can affect foam formation is salt. It decreases the pH of the egg white and this increases the resistance to foam, so the time taken to foam is increased. It gives the foam more stable and it enhances the flavour. Second factor is sugar. Sugar interferes with the bonds that form as the egg whites uncoil. Therefore the whisking time is increased and the resulting foam is denser, however the foam is more stable. This factor is commonly used for meringues. Fat affects foam formation. Fat such as egg yolk prevents new bonds being formed in the structure. Fourthly alkalis will increase the pH of the foam, decreasing the foaming time but making the foam stable. Lastly will be acids. Acids such as tartaric and acetic will soften the foam. Because the fat in the egg yolk, it inhibits the aeration recipes are usually for egg whites. However sponge cakes do use whole eggs. They are whisked with sugar over a pan of hot water (double boiler method) it works because the whisking action causes the proteins to denature and the heat causes coagulate resulting in stable form. Emulsion is formed when one liquid is dispersed in the small droplets into a second liquid with which it will not normally mix. Egg yolk has emulsification properties, which means it has the ability to hold large quantities of fat in an emulsion. Lecithin is present in egg yolk, which has a hydrophobic (water hating) component and hydrophilic (water loving) component. Eggs have many other functions. An egg can give additional thickness to sauces; it can also be use as binding and coating agent. Eggs can also be used as an egg washed or sometimes called glazing and commonly used for the top of pastries and breads. It also add colour and enrichment.

Rise Of Totalitarian Dictators Essay

Rise Of Totalitarian Dictators Essay Rise Of Totalitarian Dictators Essay Name ______________________________ Date ___________________ Pd ________ The Rise of Totalitarian Dictatorships I. The Rise of Totalitarian Dictators A. The Impact of World War I 1. After WWI, many nations were struggling to __________________ 2. A global _____________________________ in the 1930s led to high unemployment & a sense of ________________________ in Europe 3. The Treaty of Versailles created _______________________ among many nations B. In this climate of postwar uncertainty, __________________________ increased & citizens turned to totalitarian dictators to rule the nation 1. _____________________________ leaders are ________________ who control all aspects of the government & the lives of the citizens 2. Totalitarian leaders gained support by promising jobs, promoting ________________________, & using propaganda 3. Dictators held on to their power by using censorship, secret _____________________, denying ________________________, & eliminating opposing rivals or political parties II. Totalitarian Dictators A. Stalin in the Soviet Union 1. Among the first totalitarian dictators was ___________________________ of the Soviet Union 2. Stalin was ____________________ & seized all property, farms, factories in order to ______________________ the economy & create equality 3. He used a _______________________________________ & the Great Purge to eliminate rivals 4. Stalin’s ___________________ Plans & collective farms improved the Soviet Union’s industrial & agricultural output B. Benito Mussolini in Italy 1. Fascism a. Not all totalitarian dictators were Communists b. In ____________, ___________________, & Spain, people turned to an extremely nationalist gov’t called fascism i. _________________ gov’ts were controlled by dictators who demanded _____________________ from citizens ii. Fascists did not offer _____________________________ & used one-party to rule the nation c. Fascism vs. Communism i. Unlike Communists, fascists believed people could keep their _______________________________ ii. Mussolini & Hitler believed in fascism: the idea that nations need strong ___________________, total authority by one party, but that people can keep private property iii. Stalin was a Communist believed that the government should control all ______________________ & business 2. In Italy, __________________________________ formed the Fascist Party a. Mussolini gained popularity by promising to revive the economy, rebuild the _______________, & expand Italy to create a new _________________ Empire b. Mussolini created the ________________________ (a secret police force) to enforce the goals of his Fascist Party 3. By 1922, Mussolini was popular enough to lead a â€Å"_____________________________________† & forced the Italian king to name him prime minister 4. As _________________________________, Benito Mussolini was known as â€Å"Il Duce† (the chief) a. Mussolini ended __________________________ & all opposition parties b. Mussolini built up the military to create new _____________ c. He planned to conquer new ____________________________ in Africa for Italy C. Adolf Hitler in Germany 1. The Nazis were a ___________________ group in Germany that wanted to overthrow the disloyal Weimar Republic 2. ______________________________ was an early Nazi recruit & quickly rose to power in the party 3. Hitler was ____________________ by Mussolini & used many of his ideas to make the Nazi Party strong in Germany a. The Nazis created their own militia called the ______________________________ b. Hitler planned a ____________________________________ but he was _______________ & jailed for 9 months 4. While in jail, Hitler wrote _________________________ which outlined his plans for Germany a. He wrote that Germans were members of a ____________________ called Aryans & all non-Aryans were inferior b. He declared that Germans needed lebensraum

French Expressions Using Chose

French Expressions Using Chose The French word une chose literally means thing and is also used in many idiomatic expressions. Learn how to say above all, at best, to take bad news well, and more with this list of expressions with chose. French Expressions with Chose la chose en questionthe matter at hand la chose imprimà ©eprinted word la chose jugà ©e (law)final decision, res judicata la chose publique (politics)nation, state avant toute choseabove all else peu de chosenot much, very little toutes choses à ©galesall things being equal, all things considered Cest bien peu de chose.Its nothing really. Cest une chose admise que...Its a known/accepted fact that... Cest la chose ne pas faire.Thats the one thing not to do. Cest chose faite.Its done. Ce nest pas chose aisà ©e de...Its not easy to... Ce nest pas chose facile de...Its not easy to... Chose curieuse, il...Curiously enough, he... La chose est dimportance.Its a matter of some importance. Chose à ©trange, il...Strangely, he... Chose promise, chose due. (proverb)Promises are made to be kept. De deux choses lune : soit ..., soit ....There are two possibilities: either ..., or .... (Infinitive) est une chose, (infinitive) en est une autre.(Doing something) is one thing, (doing something) is another. Il ny a pas une seule chose vraie l-dedans.There isnt a single word of truth in it. Il va vous expliquer la chose.Hell tell you all about it, Hell explain it to you. Je viens de penser une chose.I just thought of something. Tu lui diras / Vous lui direz bien des choses de ma part.Give him my regards. Voil une bonne chose de faite.Thats one thing done / out of the way. à ªtre la chose de quelquunto be someones plaything à ªtre portà © sur la chose (informal)to have a one-track mind à ªtre tout choseto feel a little strange, out of sorts, under the weather prendre bien la choseto take it (e.g., bad news) well se sentir tout choseto feel a little strange, out of sorts, under the weather les chosesthings Au point oà ¹ en sont les chosesThe way things are at the moment. Ce sont des choses qui arrivent.Its just one of those things, These things happen. Cest dans lordre des choses.Its in the nature/order of things. Les choses se sont passà ©es ainsi.It happened like this. Les choses vont mal.Things are going badly. Dans là ©tat actuel des chosesAs matters/things stand right now En mettant les choses au mieux.At best. En mettant les choses au pire.At worst. Mettons les choses au point.Lets get things straight/clear. par la force des chosesby force of circumstance, inevitably avoir un tas de choses faireto have a ton/bunch of things to do faire bien les chosesto do things well/properly faire de grandes chosesto do great things ne pas faire les choses demi/moitià ©to do things well, (UK) to not do things by halves parler de choses et dautresto talk about this and that prendre les choses cÅ“urto take things to heart regarder les choses en faceto face up to things le chose (informal)thingie, contraption quelque chosesomething quelque chose de (bizarre, intà ©ressant...)something (strange, interesting...) Monsieur ChoseMr. Whats-his-name Eh! Chose!Hey, you! Pauvre chose!Poor thing! le petit choseyoung whats-his-name grand-choseThis indefinite pronoun is always used in the negative pas grand-chosenot much, nothing much sans changer grand-chosewithout changing much

Pre- and post- operative assessment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Pre- and post- operative assessment - Essay Example Health care needs in US communities are increasing, as is the demand for quality, cost-effective health care. (Barnett, 2005). Nursing personnel are more and more associated with helping the patients and medical practitioners now, and they have a crucial role to play in disease management and intervention. Laparotomy is a diagnostic procedure used to assess disease in the abdomen. One of the more frequent reasons for a laparotomy is to determine the extent cancer has spread. It is also used for acute situations in which the cause of the problem is unknown but the location is within the abdomen. Examples include perforated bowel, ectopic (outside the womb) pregnancy , endometriosis , appendicitis , bleeding, and inflammation of the pancreas. If the diagnosis made that laparotomy is amenable to further surgery, it is often done immediately. (Brigham and Women's Hospital 2006). Pre-operative assessment aims to reduce morbidity and mortality associated with surgery, prevent unnecessary cancellations, and minimize hospital stay. It benefits the nursing personnel as well as health practitioners to identify potential problems and develop a plan to prepare patients to a pre-surgical level of functioning to eliminate further surgical complications. It is a "very effective method for eliminating costly and unnecessary 'screening' investigations (Thomas, 2006). In the instant case, the i... (Brigham and Women's Hospital 2006). Pre-operative assessment aims to reduce morbidity and mortality associated with surgery, prevent unnecessary cancellations, and minimize hospital stay. It benefits the nursing personnel as well as health practitioners to identify potential problems and develop a plan to prepare patients to a pre-surgical level of functioning to eliminate further surgical complications. It is a "very effective method for eliminating costly and unnecessary 'screening' investigations (Thomas, 2006). In the instant case, the issues that need to be discussed at the pre-operative stage would be with regard to any special pre-operative program needed for Mrs. Maxshall and the estimated time for surgery, and time for recovery and convalescence. Since the patient is suffering from Osteoarthritis and remained a continuous smoker, performance of the lungs and heart needs to be monitored very closely. The aspect of anemia also requires to be taken into consideration. The advantages of utilizing the pre-admission clinic should be in terms of lower hospital stay and a better preparation, planning, and management of the surgery. The pre-admission also takes care of necessary tests and investigations for management of the operation. This also ensures that there is no delay for surgery upon admission, since it often happens that disadvantaged patients my get long date for surgery. Disadvantages of pre-admission clinic would be attributed to delay in diagnosis and initiating clinical/surgical procedures. If the patient develops abnormal symptoms after the investigations are carried out, but before being sent to the operating theater, the hospital stay also will be prolonged. In this case history the patient

Market Potential Index (MPI) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Market Potential Index (MPI) - Essay Example hat the market is still profitable in the future while market intensity tells that the population has enough disposable income to avail a cellular phone (this is important because cellular phone is not considered a basic need). Market infrastructure is important because cellular phones needs telecommunication infrastructure before it can operate such as International Gateway Facility. The five countries that I would advise a company selling laptops to enter into first are China, India, Singapore, Philippines and HongKong. China and India came as my first two because the sheer market size, economic freedom coupled with technological awareness in both countries. The market in both countries is also not yet mature so the competition is not yet that intense making it easier for the company to penetrate. Singapore came in third because of its overwhelming market growth rate (100) making it ideal for new entrants. I placed Philippines before HongKong because of its recent economic robustness in terms of market when the rest of the world is in recession. I place HongKong as fifth because of its market intensity (200) indicating that the population has more than enough disposable income to purchase new

Entrepreneurial Marketing Business Plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Entrepreneurial Marketing Business Plan - Essay Example OZ Tube operates exclusively in the south-east Queensland and Brisbane. In this regard, most of the contents are meant for the local population. OZ Tube directs all its hospitality content to the youth population in these two areas. OZ Tube productions works articulately with hospitality premises and other recreational destinations in producing tailor-made video content that responds to the preferences held by the youth (Tunji, 2011). In addition, OZ Tube website provides updates on a 24/7 basis on what is happening within the local hospitality venues and any other related recreational event. All the promotional programs and videos produced by this company changes swiftly with times due to changes in the required content of the advertisement episodes in videos and in the internet. At this juncture, we can appraise the context of a dynamic process whereby OZ Tube is planning to create a new TV program named The Pulse (Tunji, 2011). Just like any other video programs hosted by OZ Tube, The Pulse carries the contents of hospitality and tourism events and venues. This is one of the contemporary TV programs aimed at facilitating delivery of promotional contents to the target generation. The Pulse will revolve around the aspect of entertainment, travel ways and recreational places. Video contents covered in the episodes aims at highlighting the main messages regarding these places at any given time. This TV program still targets the youth population of Brisbane and south-east Queensland. In this regard, the program communicates the major events happening in entertainment places and recreational facilities to the local population and in a timely manner (Frederick, 2009). In the context of entertainment, this TV program covers contents relating to any local entertainment events happening within a certain timeframe or even which theatres show whichever blockbuster movie in the market at that time. In this regard, the company’s management behind the creation and i mplementation of The Pulse requires a business plan. This business plan will serve as an indicator of the present and future state of affairs with respect to the company’s business expectations on the plan. The plan also serves to indicate fundamental aspects like financial forecasts and risks involved in the process (Frederick, 2009). Just like any other business activity, The Pulse will undergo a financial evaluation meant to test the project’s feasibility. A project is feasible if the expected results conform to the subject company’s objectives. In order to ascertain the feasibility of the project with respect to financial terms, it is necessary to carry out a comprehensive financial analysis. In addition, the feasibility decision will be backed up by information concerning risk evaluation of the underlying project. One of the financial statement the will serve as a appropriate tool in the project’s financial analysis is the balance sheet. The companyà ¢â‚¬â„¢s balance sheet reflects the current assets and liabilities that pertains the business and financial statements of the underlying project. This balance sheet guides the interested stakeholders, especially external financers like the sponsors in availing funds to the Pulse. The pulse aims at producing 13 weekly episodes. Therefore, successful production of these episodes need substantial amount of finances. Financial ratios

Looking at Women Essay Example for Free

Looking at Women Essay â€Å"Looking at Women† by Scott Sanders was first published in spring of 1989 in the Georgia Review and was later reprinted in Sander’s essay collection titled â€Å"Secrets of the Universe† (1991). In this work, Sanders tells us his thoughts on how men look at women, hence the title; he explains to us that he feels that men turn women into things rather than people by objectifying their bodies. He goes into great detail about how a lot of women feel their role in today’s society is to exist for the pleasure of men and he questions how simple minded creatures we must be to fall for such things. Although I agree with his argument, I also see the other side of it. This could be the subject of a long drawn out debate, there is a much simpler way to approach it in that we get used to a certain way of thinking and it eventually becomes habit to look at a female and judge her, to make her feel as though she has to fit a certain image because she knows people expect that much of her, to make her want to dress and act a certain way for people to actually see her and so when she does a good job at it, she feels good. When a person is young, they look at things in an innocent manner. As they mature over time, they start to look at things in a different way. A guy for example, will start to notice things he didn’t before such as the way a girl walks, how tight her clothes are, the curves on her figure, and other things. And these of course, are all things he has seen before, just never in this light. So he continues to look and as that happens over time he get in the habit of searching for these fine details, even if he isn’t necessarily interested. Sander’s addressed that thought in Looking at Women when he stated that â€Å"what attracts our eyes and rouses our blood is only partially instinctual† (187) which implies that some of it is learned. The way men look at women over time has reached a point where it has become degrading and on some level can be disrespectful. The things we do as women to get men to look at us are not required to get the same end result, and this is also approached with in the text where it says that â€Å"The fraction of desire that leads to procreation is †¦ irrelevant† (Sanders 180). Sometimes men do look because they’re interested in the woman herself.. However most of the time, he will look and in his mind he has already have graded this woman on a scale of 1-10 without even realizing it because he’s so used to doing it. I think a lot of people would agree that females have always been painted as submissive, delicate things who are there to be dependant and cared for. We’re supposed to do â€Å"girly† things like paint our nails, cook, clean, and wear high heels while the men go out and get all the attention. We are portrayed as a â€Å"fluff pastry †¦ plastic figurine †¦ to achieve the status of art† (185). We are works of art though, we do not wake up with our faces painted and hair perfect – we have to make it happen and like true art, it takes time and effort. We are to be delicate and beautiful, something worth bragging about, a thing to look at and admire. With this type of thinking, we slowly become objects, instead of people. Scott Sanders poses the question, a few times in the story â€Å"Why †¦ do so many women decorate themselves like dolls?† (184). Upon further reading, we will come to see that the answer (qtd. in Le Deuxieme Sexe) lies within the text: we do it simply because â€Å"it is the most potent identity available to (us)† (Sanders 184). While it might be nice as a man to have a woman to take of you or even to have one dependant on you, it’s not what defines us as a species and it certainly isn’t the only role we are capable of playing. As this is the role we identify most with, we feel this need to be good at it. It is typically viewed as an immoral, degrading thing (trying to be sexy) but with a little bit of tweaking and experience (also stores such as Victoria’s Secret help), we can perfect it to where it then becomes a tool, a weapon, a trap. â€Å"Women need not make spectacles of themselves in order to draw the attention of men† (186), in other words we don’t need to dress up and put makeup on our faces or wear shoes with heels that prevent us from walking. We know we don’t and that if men really want to look, they will do so regardless of what we look like or what we’re wearing. Although, it’s easier to just conform to the role society as created for us. For some women it can even be fun, if they happen to be bored or insecure enough to crave that type of attention. They don’t see themselves as a pretty damsel in distress, rather a lion or a tiger with the strength, cunning, and speed needed to hunt and capture its prey. They can entice a man, and make him want more, make him crave it. She’ll draw him in with a false sense of security, because as a man, he naturally assumes he is in control. But he’s not, he’s just flying along and suddenly caught in a web. And just like that, like the lion pounces on the gazelle, he has fallen victim to â€Å"put-ons whose only purpose is in being taken off† (184). And just like that, the roles are reversed. Two spiked heels, a ton of lace, and one tube of bright red lipstick later, she is on top and he is an object she is toying with. He then becomes a trophy of what she is capable of, and what she has accomplished. She is proud because she has done so with the role society designed to diminish her. As time goes on, these social roles with change and hopefully everyone will be seen for whom they are not what they look like. Sanders made many interesting points in his story about the way society views women and we take that idea and run with it. Society took us and tried to turn us into an object that can’t be feared, an object simply for admiration and we became works of art that we too can be proud of. However, we should not be proud of the fact that this has become a habit and that we insist on making people feel like they need to fit a certain image in order to be proud of themselves. While society may not like it, we are strong and independent and can handle anything they throw at us. We’re champions and they’re going to hear us roar. Works Cited Sanders, Scott. â€Å"Looking at Women.† The Norton Reader. 13th ed. Eds. Linda Peterson. New York: W. W. Norton Company, Inc. 2012: 179-189. Print.

Paranoid Schizophrenia: They’re Out To Get Me Essay examples -- Menta

Paranoid Schizophrenia: They’re Out To Get Me Introduction Paranoid Schizophrenia is a serious psychotic disorder that impairs a person’s perception of reality, causing the mind to lose contact with the real world. This disorder greatly affects one’s ability to negotiate the activities of everyday life, such as school, work, or social situations. In 1898, Emil Kraepelin was to the first to provide information regarding schizophrenia naming it â€Å"dementia praecox†, and defining it as a psychosis with an early onset of intellectual deterioration (Schiffman & Walker, 1998). Ten years later, a Swiss psychiatrist, Eugen Bluler renamed the disorder using a combination of the Greek words â€Å"skhizein† and â€Å"phren† meaning split mind (Barlow & Durand, 2011). He believed the unusual behaviors were a split from the basic functions of personality and reality. Today, there are misconceptions about the term schizophrenia in which society confuses a split mind with a split personality. The broad definiti on of schizophrenia continues to be researched and narrowed into subtypes with specific presenting characteristics. Paranoid schizophrenia is one of the five major sub-types listed in the Fourth Edition of the Diagnostic Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders; Text-Revised (DSM-IV-TR) with the list continuing to expand as the criteria identifies specific related symptoms or behaviors (American Psychiatric Association, 2000). Although this disorder only afflicts 1% of the total population of the United States, this amounts to over 3 million people living with the disorder. Diagnosis Diagnosis of this syndrome typically occurs in late adolescence through early adulthood with the onset of behaviors marking deterioration in the abilit... .... (2010). The history of mental illness: From "skull drills" to "happy pills". Student Pulse, 02(09), 1-4. Retrieved from http://www.studentpulse.com/articles/283/the-history-of-mental-illness-from-skull-drills-to-happy-pills Maguire, G. A. (2002). Comprehensive understanding of schizophrenia and its treatment. American Journal of Health-System Pharmacists, 59(5), 4-11. doi: 1079-2082/02/0901Maguire, National Institute of Health. National Institute of Health, National Institute of Mental Health. (2009). Schizophrenia (09-3517). Retrieved from U.S. Department of Health and Human Services website: http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/schizophrenia/schizophrenia-booket-2009.pdf Schiffman, J. & Walker, E. F. (1998). Schizophrenia. In H. Friedman (Ed.) The Disorders: Specialty Articles from the Encyclopedia of Mental Health. Academic Press: New York.

The Indigo Spell Chapter Two

MS. TERWILLIGER REFUSED to say much more after that. She drove us back to Amberwood and hardly seemed to know I was there. She just kept muttering things to herself like, â€Å"Not enough time† and â€Å"Need more proof.† When she finally dropped me off, I tried pressing her for more information. â€Å"What was all that about protecting myself?† I asked. â€Å"Protection from what?† We were parked in the fire lane again, and she still wore that distracted look. â€Å"I'll explain later, in our session tomorrow.† â€Å"I can't,† I reminded her. â€Å"I'm leaving right after my regular classes. Remember? I have a flight to catch. I told you about it last week. And yesterday. And earlier today.† That brought her back to attention. â€Å"Did you? Well, then. I suppose we'll make do with what we must. I'll see what I can have for you in the morning.† I left her for my bed after that, not that I could get much sleep. And when I showed up to her history class the next morning, she was true to her word. Before the bell rang, she walked up to my desk and handed me an old book with a cracked red leather cover. The title was in Latin and translated to Elements of Battle, which sent a chill down my spine. Spells to create light and invisibility were one thing. There was a practicality to them that I could almost rationalize. But battle spells? Something told me I might have a little trouble with those. â€Å"Reading material for the plane,† she said. She spoke in her usual, addled scholar voice, but I could see a glint of that anxiety from last night in her eyes. â€Å"Focus only on the first section. I trust you'll do your usual thorough job – and then some.† None of the other arriving students paid any attention to us. My last class of the day was an independent study session on late-antique history, which she served as my mentor for. More often than not, she used the session as a passive-aggressive way to teach me magic. So, her giving me books like this was nothing out of the ordinary. â€Å"And,† she added, â€Å"if you could find out where that neighborhood is, it would be extremely useful.† I was speechless for a few moments. Locate one neighborhood in the greater Los Angeles metropolitan area? â€Å"That's . . . a very large area to cover,† I said at last, choosing my words carefully with witnesses around. She nodded and pushed her glasses up her nose. â€Å"I know. Most people probably couldn't do it.† And on that semi-complimentary note, she returned to her desk at the front of the classroom. â€Å"What neighborhood?† asked a new voice. Eddie Castile had just arrived and slid into a neighboring desk. Eddie was a dhampir – possessing a mix of human and vampire DNA that had been passed down from days when the two races mixed. For all intents and purposes, though, he was indistinguishable from an ordinary human. With his sandy-colored hair and brown eyes, he also bore enough resemblance to me to support our cover story that we were twins. In reality, Eddie was here at Amberwood as a bodyguard for Jill. Dissidents among her own kind, the Moroi, were hunting her, and even though we'd seen no sign of them since coming to Palm Springs, Eddie was always vigilant and ready to pounce. I slipped the red leather book into my messenger bag. â€Å"Don't ask. Another of her wacky assignments.† None of my friends – save Adrian – knew about my involvement with Ms. Terwilliger's magic use. Well, and Jill by default. All Moroi possessed some sort of elemental magic. Adrian's was a rare and powerful one called spirit, which could work miracles of healing. He'd used that magic to bring Jill back from the dead when assassins had killed her. Doing so had made Jill â€Å"shadow-kissed† – that is, it created a psychic bond between them, one that allowed Jill to feel his emotions and sometimes see through his eyes. As a result, Jill knew more about what went on between Adrian and me than I liked. I took my car keys out of my bag and reluctantly handed them over to Eddie. He was the only one I trusted to drive my car, and I always let him borrow it when I left town, in case he needed to run errands for our group. â€Å"Here you go. I better get it back in one piece. Do not let Angeline near the driver's seat.† He grinned. â€Å"Do I look suicidal? I probably won't even use it. Are you sure you don't want me to drive you to the airport later?† â€Å"You'd miss class,† I said. The only reason I was able to cut school early was because of the unusual nature of my independent study. â€Å"I wouldn't mind, believe me. I've got a science test.† He grimaced and lowered his voice. â€Å"I hated physics the first time, you know.† I couldn't help a smile. Both Eddie and I were eighteen and had graduated high school, me through homeschooling and him through an elite Moroi and dhampir academy. We couldn't pose as students without going through the motions of class, however. While I didn't mind the extra work, Eddie wasn't as taken with a love of learning as I was. â€Å"No thanks,† I told him. â€Å"A cab will be fine.† The bell rang, and Eddie straightened up in his desk. As Ms. Terwilliger called the class to order, he whispered to me, â€Å"Jill's really bummed she can't go.† â€Å"I know,† I murmured back. â€Å"But we all know why she can't.† â€Å"Yeah,† he agreed. â€Å"What I don't know is why she's mad at you.† I turned toward the front of the classroom and pointedly ignored him. Jill was the only one who knew about Adrian's declaration of love, thanks to that bond. It was another one of those things I wished hadn't been shared, but Adrian couldn't help it. Although Jill knew vampire-human romances were wrong, she couldn't forgive me for hurting Adrian so badly. To make things worse, she was probably personally experiencing some of his pain. Even if our other friends didn't know what had occurred, it was obvious that something wasn't right with Jill and me. Eddie had picked up on it right away and immediately interrogated me. I'd given him a vague excuse about Jill not liking some rules I'd instated for her here at school. Eddie hadn't bought that, but Jill had been just as close-mouthed on the matter, leaving him clueless and frustrated. The school day zipped by, and before long, I was in a taxi and on my way to the airport. I'd packed light and only had one small suitcase and my messenger bag, both of which could be carried on. For what seemed like the hundredth time, I took out a small silver and white gift bag and examined its contents. Inside was an expensive crystal sun catcher, the kind meant to be hung on a porch or in a window. It depicted two doves in flight, facing each other. Wrapping it back in its tissue paper, I returned it to its gift bag and then my own bag. I hoped it would be an acceptable gift for the upcoming event. I was going to a vampire wedding. I'd never been to one before. Probably no Alchemist had. Although we worked with the Moroi to protect their existence, the Alchemists made it clear they wanted no involvement that went beyond business contact. After recent events, however, both groups had decided it would be good to improve our professional relations. Since this wedding was a big deal, a few other Alchemists and I had been invited. I knew the couple, and in theory, I was excited to see them married. It was the rest of the event that made me nervous: a huge social gathering of Moroi and dhampirs. Even with other Alchemists there, we'd be hopelessly outnumbered. Being in Palm Springs with Eddie, Jill, and the others had gone a long way in improving my feelings toward their kind. I got along with that little group well and now considered them friends. But even as liberal as I was in such matters, I still possessed a lot of the anxiety other Alchemists had inside the vampiric world. Maybe Moroi and dhampirs weren't creatures of evil, like I'd once believed, but they certainly weren't human. I kind of wished my Palm Springs friends were coming with me, but that had been out of the question. The whole point of Jill and the rest of us being in Palm Springs was to hide her away and keep her safe from those trying to kill her. Both Moroi and Strigoi tended to avoid sunny, desert regions. If she suddenly showed up at a major Moroi function, it would defeat the whole purpose. Eddie and Angeline, another dhampir protecting her at Amberwood, had to stay behind as well. Only Adrian and I had been invited to the wedding, and we were thankfully on separate flights. If anyone had noticed that he and I were traveling together, it could attract attention back in Palm Springs, which could then expose Jill. Adrian's flight wasn't even leaving from Palm Springs. He was flying out by way of Los Angeles, two hours west, just to make sure we weren't linked together. I had to connect through a different flight in Los Angeles, which reminded me of Ms. Terwilliger's task. Find one neighborhood in all of Los Angeles's greater metropolitan area. Sure, no problem. The only thing I had going for me was that the Victorian houses were so distinct. If I could find some historical society, there was a good chance they could direct me toward areas matching that description. It would narrow my search considerably. I reached my gate at LAX an hour before the scheduled flight. I'd just gotten cozy with Ms. Terwilliger's book when an overhead announcement declared, â€Å"Paging passenger Melrose. Please come see a customer service agent.† I felt a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. Gathering up my things, I approached the desk and was greeted by a cheery airline representative. â€Å"I'm sad to tell you this flight has been overbooked,† she said. From her peppy voice and big smile, she didn't seem sad at all. â€Å"What's that mean for me, exactly?† I asked, my dread growing. â€Å"I have a confirmed seat.† I dealt with bureaucracy and red tape all the time, but overbooking flights was something I'd never understood. How did that even happen? It wasn't like the number of seats was a surprise to them. â€Å"It means that you're no longer on the flight,† she explained. â€Å"You and a couple other volunteers gave up your seats to accommodate that family. Otherwise, they would've had to be split up.† â€Å"Volunteers?† I repeated, following her gesture. Off to the side of the seating area, a family with seven children smiled back at me. The children were tiny and adorable, with big eyes and the kind of cuteness you saw in musicals about orphans finding new homes. Outraged, I turned back toward the agent. â€Å"How can you do that? I checked in way ahead of time! I have a wedding to get to. I can't miss it.† The woman produced a boarding pass. â€Å"We've more than made up for it. We've booked you on another flight, to Philadelphia – one that's leaving sooner. And you've even been upgraded to first class for your inconvenience.† â€Å"That's something,† I said. I was still annoyed at this, simply out of principle. I liked order and procedure. Altering those threw off my world. I looked down at the boarding pass and then did a double take. â€Å"It's leaving now!† She nodded. â€Å"Like I said, sooner. I'd hurry up if I were you.† Then, on cue, I heard a last-call announcement for my new flight, saying all passengers need to be on board now, as they were about to shut the cabin doors. I wasn't the swearing type, but I almost was then – especially when I saw that my new gate was on the opposite side of the terminal. Without another word, I grabbed my things and sprinted toward the gate as quickly as I could, making a mental note to write a letter of complaint to the airline. Through some miracle, I made it just before my new flight was closed to passengers, though the agent working that gate sternly told me that next time, I should plan ahead and allow more time. I ignored her and headed into the airplane, where I was greeted by a much nicer flight attendant – especially when she saw my first class ticket. â€Å"You're right here, Miss Melrose,† she said, pointing to the third row of the cabin. â€Å"We're so glad you could join us.† She helped me put my suitcase in the overhead bin, which proved to be pretty difficult since other, earlier passengers had taken up most of the space. It required some creative knowledge of spatial relations, and when we finally managed it, I practically passed out into my seat, exhausted from this unexpected flurry of excitement. So much for a relaxing trip. I had just enough time to fasten my seat belt before the plane began backing up. Feeling a little steadier, I plucked the safety card from its pocket so that I could follow along with the attendant's presentation. No matter how many times I flew, I always thought it was important to be up to speed on procedures. I was watching the attendant fasten an oxygen mask when a familiar and intoxicating scent washed over me. In all of the chaos of making this flight, I hadn't even bothered to pay attention to my seatmate. Adrian. I stared in disbelief. He was watching me with amusement and had no doubt been waiting to see how long it would take me to notice him. I didn't even bother asking what he was doing here. I'd known he was flying out of LAX, and through some wacky twist of happenstance, I'd been bumped to his flight. â€Å"This is impossible,† I exclaimed. The scientist in me was too amazed to fully realize the uncomfortable nature of the situation I now found myself in. â€Å"It's one thing for me to get moved to a new flight. But to end up next to you? Do you know what the odds of that are? It's incredible.† â€Å"Some might call it fate,† he said. â€Å"Or maybe there just aren't that many flights to Philadelphia.† He raised a glass of clear liquid to me in a toast. Since I'd never seen Adrian drink water, I had to assume it was vodka. â€Å"Nice to see you, by the way.† â€Å"Um, you too.† The engines roared to life around us, momentarily sparing me from conversation. Reality began sinking in. I was trapped on a five-hour flight with Adrian Ivashkov. Five hours. Five hours sitting only a few inches from him, smelling his overpriced cologne and looking into those knowing eyes. What was I going to do? Nothing, of course. There was nowhere to go, nowhere to escape since even first-class passengers weren't allowed parachutes. My heart began to race as I frantically groped for something to say. He was watching me in silence, still with that small smirk, waiting for me to lead the conversation. â€Å"So,† I said at last, staring at my hands. â€Å"How's, uh, your car?† â€Å"I left it out on the street. Figured it'll be fine there while I'm gone.† I jerked my head up, jaw dropping. â€Å"You did what? They'll tow it if it's left there overnight!† Adrian was laughing before I even finished. â€Å"So that's what it takes to get a passionate reaction, huh?† He shook his head. â€Å"Don't worry, Sage. I was just kidding. It's tucked away safely in my building's parking lot.† I felt my cheeks burn. I hated that I'd fallen into his joke and was even a little embarrassed that I'd just flipped out over a car. Admittedly, it wasn't just any car. It was a beautiful, classic Mustang that Adrian had recently purchased. In fact, he'd bought it to impress me, pretending he couldn't drive manual transmission in order to spend more time with me while I taught him. I thought the car was amazing, but it still astonished me that he would have gone to that much trouble for us to be together. We reached our cruising altitude, and the flight attendant returned to get Adrian another drink. â€Å"Anything for you, miss?† she asked. â€Å"Diet Coke,† I said automatically. Adrian tsked once she was gone. â€Å"You could've gotten that for free back in coach.† I rolled my eyes. â€Å"Do I have to spend the next five hours being harassed? If so, I'll go back in coach and let some lucky person ‘upgrade' to my seat.† Adrian held up his hands in a placating gesture. â€Å"No, no. Carry on. I'll entertain myself.† Entertaining himself turned out to be doing a crossword puzzle in one of the in-flight magazines. I took out Ms. Terwilliger's book and tried to read, but it was hard to focus with him beside me. I kept sneaking glances out of the corner of my eye, partly to see if he was looking at me and partly just to study his features. He was the same Adrian as ever, annoyingly good looking with his tousled brown hair and sculpted face. I vowed I wouldn't speak to him, but when I noticed he hadn't written anything in a while and was tapping his pen loudly on the tray, I couldn't help myself. â€Å"What is it?† I asked. â€Å"Seven-letter word for ‘cotton gin pioneer.'† â€Å"Whitney,† I replied. He leaned over and wrote in the letters. â€Å"‘Dominates the Mohs' scale.' Also seven letters.† â€Å"Diamond.† Five words later, I realized what was happening. â€Å"Hey,† I told him. â€Å"I am not doing this.† He looked up at me with angelic eyes. â€Å"Doing what?† â€Å"You know what. You're luring me in. You know I can't resist – â€Å" â€Å"Me?† he suggested. I pointed at the magazine. â€Å"Random trivia.† I angled my body away from him and made a big show of opening my book. â€Å"I have work to do.† I felt Adrian look over my shoulder, and I tried to ignore how aware of his proximity I was. â€Å"Looks like Jackie's still got you working hard in her class.† Adrian had met Ms. Terwilliger recently and had somehow charmed his way into a first-name basis. â€Å"This one's more like an extracurricular activity,† I explained. â€Å"Really? I thought you were pretty against doing any more with this stuff than you had to.† I shut the book in frustration. â€Å"I am! But then she said – † I bit off the words, reminding myself that I shouldn't engage with Adrian any more than I had to. It was just too easy to slip back into old, friendly behaviors with him. It felt right when, obviously, it was wrong. â€Å"Then what?† he prompted, voice gentle. I looked up at him and saw no smugness or mockery. I didn't even see any of the burning hurt that had plagued me these last few weeks. He actually looked concerned, which momentarily distracted me from Ms. Terwilliger's task. Seeing him this way contrasted drastically with what had followed in the wake of our kiss. I'd been so nervous at the thought of sitting with him on this flight, and yet, here he was, ready to support me. Why the change? I hesitated, unsure what to do. Since last night, I'd been turning her words and the vision over and over in my head, trying to figure out what they meant. Adrian was the only person who knew about my involvement with her and magic (aside from Jill), and until this moment, I hadn't realized how badly I was dying to discuss this with someone. So, I cracked and told him the whole story of my desert adventure. When I finished, I was surprised to see how dark his expression had become. â€Å"It's one thing for her to try to get you to learn spells here and there. But it's a totally different thing for her to drag you into something dangerous.† His ardent concern surprised me a little – but maybe it shouldn't have. â€Å"From the way she talked, though, it wasn't like it was her doing. She seemed pretty upset about . . . well, whatever all this means.† Adrian pointed at the book. â€Å"And that'll help somehow?† â€Å"I guess.† I ran my fingers over the cover and embossed Latin words. â€Å"It has protection and attack spells – things that are a bit more hard core than what I've ever done. I don't like it, and these aren't even the really advanced ones. She told me to skip those.† â€Å"You don't like magic, period,† he reminded me. â€Å"But if these can keep you safe, then maybe you shouldn't ignore them.† I hated admitting when he was right. It only encouraged him. â€Å"Yeah, but I just wish I knew what I was trying to stay safe from – no. No. We can't do this.† Without even realizing it, I'd slipped into the way things used to be, talking to Adrian in that easy, comfortable way we had. In fact, I'd even been confiding in him. He looked startled. â€Å"Do what? I stopped asking you for crossword help, didn't I?† I took a deep breath, bracing myself. I'd known this moment was coming, no matter how much I wanted to put it off. I just hadn't expected it to come while on a plane ride. â€Å"Adrian, we have to talk about what happened. Between you and me,† I declared. He took a moment to consider my words. â€Å"Well . . . last I knew, nothing was happening between you and me.† I dared a look at him. â€Å"Exactly. I'm sorry for what happened . . . what I said, but it was all true. We have to move past this and go on with our lives in a normal way. It's for the good of our group in Palm Springs.† â€Å"Funny, I have moved past it,† he said. â€Å"You're the one bringing it up.† I blushed again. â€Å"But it's because of you! You've spent the last few weeks all moody and sulking, hardly ever talking to me. And when you do, there's usually some nasty barb in it.† While recently having dinner at Clarence Donahue's, I'd seen one of the most terrifying spiders ever come crawling into the living room. Mustering all my courage, I'd caught the creepy little beast and set him free. Adrian's comment on my brave act had been, â€Å"Wow, I didn't know you actually faced down things that scared you. I thought your normal response was to run kicking and screaming from them and pretend they don't exist.† â€Å"You're right about the attitude,† he said now, nodding along with my words. Once again, he looked remarkably serious. â€Å"And I'm sorry.† â€Å"You . . . are?† I could only stare. â€Å"So . . . you're done with all of that . . . stuff? Done with, uh, feeling that way?† I couldn't bring myself to elaborate. Done with being in love with me. â€Å"Oh, no,† he said cheerfully. â€Å"Not at all.† â€Å"But you just said – â€Å" â€Å"I'm done with the pouting,† he said. â€Å"Done with being moody – well, I mean, I'm always a little moody. That's what Adrian Ivashkov's all about. But I'm done with the excessive stuff. That didn't get me anywhere with Rose. It won't get me anywhere with you.† â€Å"Nothing will get you anywhere with me,† I exclaimed. â€Å"I don't know about that.† He put on an introspective look that was both unexpected and intriguing. â€Å"You're not as much of a lost cause as she was. I mean, with her, I had to overcome her deep, epic love with a Russian warlord. You and I just have to overcome hundreds of years' worth of deeply ingrained prejudice and taboo between our two races. Easy.† â€Å"Adrian!† I felt my temper beginning to flare. â€Å"This isn't a joke.† â€Å"I know. It's certainly not to me. And that's why I'm not going to give you a hard time.† He paused dramatically. â€Å"I'll just love you whether you want me to or not.† The attendant came by with hot towels, putting our conversation on hold and allowing his slightly disturbing words to hang in the air between us. I was dumbfounded and couldn't muster a response until after she came back to collect the cloths. â€Å"Whether I want you to or not? What on earth does that mean?† Adrian grimaced. â€Å"Sorry. That came off creepier than I intended. I just mean, I don't care if you say we can't be together. I don't care if you think I'm the most evil, unnatural creature walking the earth.† For the briefest of moments, his choice of words threw me back in time, to when he'd told me I was the most beautiful creature walking the earth. Those words haunted me now, just as they had then. We'd been sitting in a dark, candlelit room, and he'd looked at me in a way that no one ever had – Stop it, Sydney. Focus. â€Å"You can think whatever you want, do whatever you want,† Adrian continued, unaware of my traitorous thoughts. There was a remarkable calm about him. â€Å"I'm going to just go on loving you, even if it's hopeless.† I don't know why that shocked me as much as it did. I glanced around to make sure no one was listening. â€Å"I . . . what? No. You can't!† He tilted his head to the side as he regarded me carefully. â€Å"Why? It doesn't hurt you or anything. I told you I won't bother you if you don't want me to. And if you do, well, I'm all about that. So what's it matter if I just love you from afar?† I didn't entirely know. â€Å"Because . . . because you can't!† â€Å"Why not?† â€Å"You . . . you need to move on,† I managed. Yes, that was a sound reason. â€Å"You need to find someone else. You know I don't – that I can't. Well, you know. You're wasting your time with me.† He remained firm. â€Å"It's my time to waste.† â€Å"But it's crazy! Why would you do that?† â€Å"Because I can't help doing it,† he said with a shrug. â€Å"And hey, if I keep loving you, maybe you'll eventually crack and love me too. Hell, I'm pretty sure you're already half in love with me.† â€Å"I am not! And everything you just said is ridiculous. That's terrible logic.† Adrian returned to his crossword puzzle. â€Å"Well, you can think what you want, so long as you remember – no matter how ordinary things seem between us – I'm still here, still in love with you, and care about you more than any other guy, evil or otherwise, ever will.† â€Å"I don't think you're evil.† â€Å"See? Things are already looking promising.† He tapped the magazine with his pen again. â€Å"‘Romantic Victorian poetess.' Eight letters.† I didn't answer. I had been rendered speechless. Adrian never mentioned that dangerous topic again for the rest of the flight. Most of the time, he kept to himself, and when he did speak, it was about perfectly safe topics, like our dinner and the upcoming wedding. Anyone sitting with us would never have known there was anything weird between us. But I knew. That knowledge ate me up. It was all-consuming. And as the flight progressed, and eventually landed, I could no longer look at Adrian the same way. Each time we made eye contact, I just kept thinking of his words: I'm still here, still in love with you, and care about you more than any other guy ever will. Part of me felt offended. How dare he? How dare he love me whether I wanted him to or not? I had told him not to! He had no right to. And the rest of me? The rest of me was scared. If I keep loving you, maybe you'll eventually crack and love me too. It was ludicrous. You couldn't make someone love you just by loving them. It didn't matter how charming he was, how good looking, or how funny. An Alchemist and a Moroi could never be together. It was impossible. I'm pretty sure you're already half in love with me. Very impossible.