Theorem of Pythagoras in Mathematics Math Problem

Theorem of Pythagoras in Mathematics - Math Problem Example When I talk about the diagonal of the square, or the nine-point circle, or the Euler line, I am not talking about the often rather sketchy and highly imperfect drawing on the blackboard, but about something which underlies all particular exemplifications of squares and diagonals, nine-point circles, or Euler lines, and is independent of each of them" 2. The very fact that we use the definite article, and talk of the square, the nine-point circle, etc., bears witness to this; and by the same token, it would be absurd to ask where the square was, or to ask when the nine-point center came to be on the Euler line, or to suggest that Pythagoras' theorem might hold for you but not for me. So Plato's answer to the question "What is mathematics about" is that it is about something timeless, spaceless and objective 3. Among the five postulates which Euclid wanted us to grant the fifth one is "If a straight line falling on two straight lines makes the interior angles on the same side less than two right angles, the two straight lines, if produced indefinitely, meet on that side on which are the angles less than two right angles. ... aight lines makes the interior angles on the same side less than two right angles, the two straight lines, if produced indefinitely, meet on that side on which are the angles less than two right angles. "These were generally taken to express self-evident truths. This is somewhat surprising, in that the first three are not really propositions at all, but instructions expressed in the infinitive, and the last too complex to be self-evident no finite man can see it to be true, because no finite man can see indefinitely far to make sure that the two lines actually do meet in every case. Many other formulations of the fifth postulate have been offered, both in the ancient and in the modern world, in the hope of their being more self-evidently true"4 . Among them the most notable was "In a right-angled triangle, the square on the hypotenuse equals the sum of the squares on the other two sides" 5. Fig 1.1 6 The alternative formulations of the fifth postulate of the theorem are less cumbersome and may be more acceptable than Euclid's own version, but none of them are so self-evident that they cannot be questioned. The importance of Pythagoras proposed theorem can be seen from the fact that Pythagoras' theorem is far from being obviously true, something that should be granted without more ado, it does not need any further justifications. "In fact, none of the other alternative formulations was felt to be completely obvious, and they all seemed in need of some kind of further justification. The philosophers Wallis and Saccheri in search of a better justification, devoted years to trying to prove the fifth postulate by a reductio ad absurdum, assuming it to be false and trying to derive a contradiction. The attempt failed, but in the course of it he unwittingly discovered

A Report On Travel And Tourism Environment Tourism Essay

A Report On Travel And Tourism Environment Tourism Essay The purpose of this report is to survey the current state of the UK tourism market. This report examines the historical evolution of the travel and tourism industry in the UK, from ancient time to present in case of importance of being informed about, the history will lead us to understand the situation better and clearer and also it tries to clarify the current structure of the travel and tourism industry in the UK. Since we are facing many effects that economic policies have on different industries, the report also investigates the influence of both local and international agencies as well as global and national economic policy on tourism industry. The other section which has been explained in the current report is the effects of supply and demand on travel and tourism industry; its important to be discussed because of the clear vision itll give us in planning for the industry. Finally it should be noticed that all industries have some pros and cons and knowing them gives planners and managers to avoid making repetitive wrong decisions therefore I will describe what the positive and negative impacts are on local and the globe by tourism industry. History and structure of the travel and tourism industry History Since Persian king Darius the Great has made the first generation of roads and accommodation facilities for commuting, thousands of years has been past, its easy to find the footsteps of Egyptians and Romans as ancient travellers, Wikipedia (July 2010) comments that Wealthy people have always travelled to distant parts of the world, to see great buildings, works of art, learn new languages, experience new cultures and to taste different cuisines. Long ago, at the time of the Roman Republic, places such as Baiae were popular coastal resorts for the rich. However, we have different concept of travelling and tourism today. The word tourism was used by 1811 and tourist by 1780 also the word tour was used by 14th century (Merriam-Websters 11th collegiate dictionary). Nowadays based on UNWTO 1993, tourism is defined as: The activities of persons travelling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes. The UK was always one of the pathfinders in history of tourism industry, since many of new travelling system has founded or developed by the UK such as The Elizabethan traveller in the renaissance or the first-ever excursions by Thomas cook, Cox kings company. The industry revolution and economic growth formed todays tourism, as a result of social changes and massive demands for having leisure and recreation in the new born industrial societies. Wikipedia (July 2010) claims that: Leisure travel was associated with the Industrial Revolution in the United Kingdom the first European country to promote leisure time to the increasing industrial population. Initially, this applied to the owners of the machinery of production, the economic oligarchy, the factory owners and the traders. These comprised the new middle class. The need for services led the companies to be founded, 2008 marked the 250th anniversary of the foundation of Cox Kings, the longest established travel company in the world. Cox Kings (2010) In the other words, we were facing Democratization of Tourism which has been described by John Urry. How has it occurred? Sharply (2006) noted that: an historical analysis of tourism development identifies three main periods within which specific forms of tourism can be identified: 1600-1800: a period which witnessed the rise and fall of the Grand Tour, as well as the popularity of spas as the first example of resort-based tourism e.g. tourism in the Lake District which dates back to 1698, when many visitors travelled to the Lake District for the education and the pleasure of the journey. 1800-1900: during this period, seaside resorts emerged and grew rapidly. The latter half of the 19th century also saw the birth and development of the package tour, with Thomas Cook being widely considered as the originator of the concept. 1900 onwards: a period initially defined by increasing domestic tourism but, since the 1960s, by the rapid growth of international mass tourism. The world has experienced a noticeable fluctuation on almost every thing while World War II, the tourism wasnt apart and had major shifts; Industries have increasingly become global in the Post-World War II period. Infrastructures and transportation have faced fundamental changes, some of them are: Using motor couches Increase in car ownership Increase in leisure time More disposable income and paid holiday Jet aircrafts developed Computerized reservation systems Introduction of holiday camps Low cost airlines Long haul destinations Package holidays Social changes Political changes Nowadays tourism is affected mostly by new social attitude of government and people toward terrorism after 9/11, financial recession in 2009 and growth of the internet and Medias. Structure Travel and tourism industry is really complicated and usually is considered as umbrella industry, since its dependence on a lot of factors and sectors which are working together, therefore every section should work correctly in order to be successful. This industry encompasses transportation system, accommodations, tour operators, travel agencies, cruise lines, adventure companies, receptive operators, convention bureaus and so on. According to Rowe et al (2002), Travel and tourism is able to be discussed in several categories, but we basically classify it in these three types that are presented by Diagram1: Travel and Tourism Domestic Tourism Inbound Tourism Outbound Tourism Figure 1 Domestic tourism is when people from a country take holidays, short breaks and day trip in their own homeland. Like a couple who take a two days break to visit their relatives in their own country. Inbound tourism is when some people enter to another country form their home country. Like a business group which enter England in order to attend a conference. Outbound tourism this terms is used when the people travel form their own country to visit the other part of the world for leisure or baseness. Like an Iranian family who goes to The U.S just for leisure. In the chart below the number of both inbound and outbound tourism in the UK have been compared since 2008: National Statistic Online (2010) Figure2 Source: National Statistic Online There is also another model suggested by Leiper in 1990, according to Cooper et al, (2008) there are three basic elements of Leipers model: Tourists Tourists are different in what their goals are and what they are traveling for but they are the first ring of this chain. Geographical elements Traveler-generating region Tourist destination region Tourist route region The tourism sector Figure 3 Some of the tourism sector includes: International or national tourism organizations e.g.: UNWTO, Visitbritainà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Transportation system e.g. airlines, rail system, ocean liners, rental cars, buses à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Accommodations e.g. hotels, BBs, time share complex, campingà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Tour operators, wholesalers, travel agencies, adventure companies, receptive operators, convention bureaus Visitors attractions e.g. museums, ancient monuments, landscapes Lets put Leipers model in practice with an example, a British young couple is traveling to Brazil in order to spend their honeymoon in Rio; Rio is famous for its great beaches. They fly by British Air Line, and booked a five star hotel at the beach through the internet. This package was designed by Travel to Heaven which is a wholesaler but they have bought it from a travel agency near their home in Sheffield. They are going to take the train to London since the flight is form Heathrow air port. A young couple is tourist. Geographical elements. Sheffield (England) is tourist generating region. Rio (Brazil) is tourist destination region. Taking the train from Sheffield and flying form Heathrow forms transit route region. Tourism elements are particularly Travel to Heaven, a small travel agency, a five star hotel, catering, national and international organizations, and so on. Tourism and travel Industry sometimes get impact of Integrations in companies which are an important occurrence; firstly we have to know that there are two kinds of integration, Horizontal and Vertical. According to Travel and Tourism Publishing (2010): Vertical integration in the travel industry is when a company has control over other companies that are at different levels in the chain of distribution or in different sectors for instance, TUI Travel UK owns Thomson and First Choice tour operating businesses, and the Thomson and First Choice travel agency chains. Thomas Cook AG (a German group) owns the Thomas Cook and MyTravel tour operating companies (including Airtours), plus the Thomas Cook and Going Places chains of travel agencies. Horizontal integration is when a company owns or has control over a number of companies at the same level in the distribution chain or the same industry sector for instance, many tour operating businesses that are now part of the big two were originally independent companies, e.g. Neilson and Club 18-30 (now part of the Thomas Cook Group), and Something Special and the Holiday Cottages Group (now merged with Thomson). These examples have made significant fluctuations in this industry both locally and globally. The influence of local and national governments and international agencies on the travel and tourism industry The nature of tourism industry as one of the worlds largest industries, employing approximately 235 million people and generating over 9.2 per cent of world GDP, due to its complex structure and its involvement in hundreds of different unit, cause it to be affected by the local and national governments as well as tourism organizations and agencies both domestically and globally. Figure 1 from Charles et al (2006) shows, all of these functions must be carried out with a high degree of cooperative interaction between the public and private sectors. Figure 4 Source: Tourism principle, practice and philosophies Organizations which lead tourism and travel industry are classified in four levels; some of these organizations are briefly described below, in addition it should be mentioned that Iran and Turkey have been selected as samples about national organizations. International organizations and agencies UNWTO: The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO/OMT) is a specialized agency of the united à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ½nations and the leading international organization in the field of tourism. It serves as a à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ½global forum for tourism policy issues and a practical source of tourism know-how.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ½ UNWTO (September 2010). WTTC: The World Travel Tourism Council (WTTC) is the forum for business leaders in the Travel Tourism industry. With Chief Executives of some one hundred of the worlds leading Travel Tourism companies as its Members, WTTC has a unique mandate and overview on all matters related to Travel Tourism. WTTC (September 2010). IATA: It is an international trade body, created over 60 years ago by a group of airlines. Today, IATA represents some 230 airlines comprising 93% of scheduled  international air traffic. The organization also represents leads and serves the airline industry in general.  IATA (September 2010)   Other organizations which have direct or indirect roles in tourism such as; WHO, IFC, IBRD, ICAO, UNESCO, OECD and so on Regional organizations PATA: The Pacific Asia Travel Association is a not-for-profit membership association dedicated to building responsible travel to, from and within the Pacific Asia Region. PATA (September 2010) ETC: The European Travel Commission (ETC) is an association of National Tourism Organizations (NTOs). It was created in 1948 to promote Europe as a destination to long-haul tourism markets. Visiteurope (September 2010) National organizations ICHTO: Iran Cultural Heritage and Tourism Organization is responsible for culture heritage, handy crafts and tourism. Museums, hospitality sectors, catering services. Managing private sectors encircle organization duties. KULTUR: Republic of Turkey Ministry of Culture and Tourism is a national organization which is in charge of tourism in Turkey. Local organizations GCHTO: Guilan Culture Heritage and Tourism Organization is a local organization that acts in Guilan province located in north of Iran. THA: Tehran Hotels Association, this association works to develop hotels and manage hospitality issues in Tehran the capital of Iran. Every province has its own association. These organizations are in charge of leading, managing, developing and making polices for expanding sustainable tourism criteria. Interrelate between these organizations is very crucial, since they are managing a massive industry. For example UNWTO is well-known for its unique statistics and surveys, also Charles et al (2006) declare that UNWTO has a central and decisive role in promoting the development of responsible, sustainable, and universally accessible tourism, with the aim of contributing to economic development, international understanding, peace, prosperity, and universal respect for and observance of human rights and fundamental freedoms. In pursuing this aim, WTO pays particular attention to the interests of the developing countries in the field of tourism. Its not only this organization involve in different regional projects, for instance the project of Silk road an ancient 12,000 Km form Asia to Europe. UNWTO is working on poverty soothing and omission through sustainable tourism, protecting children from sexual exploitation in tourism, crisis management, ecotourism, and safety and security. A good example for cooperation between all these organizations in different levels can be Rural Heritage Museum of Guilan this museum has been founded in 2005 with approximately four million dollars investment, its now in seventh phase. Its the first eco-museum in Iran. UNESCO, ICOM (international council of museum), university of Tehran, ICHTO, GCHTO, Financial sponsors and local communities involved in founding this museum as an unique experience in Iran. Here in this part of the report we are going to investigate what are the influences of these sectors on tourism; in addition the condition of these organizations and their effects will be examined in Iran. Naturally role of the government in totalitarian systems and communist regimes is more than the other sectors, because in these kinds of systems almost everything in all levels is controlled by the government. In addition finding suitable information based on reliable statistic is a troublesome action indeed. There are lots of outcomes can be identified in Iran during last few decades, for instance since Islamic revolution, Iran has faced fundamental fluctuations in politics, ideology, international relationship, economy and so on. All of these elements obviously influenced tourism industry, for example after the revolution many western countries werent interested to visit Iran mainly, because of the black face that the totalitarian regime of Iran had and also because of eight years war among Iran and Iraq which made the region unsafe, also partly because of limitation in social freedom for example in clothing or drinking. Political Issues and policies Sanctions after sanctions is what shows how bitter is the situation of Irans policy in international community; however in tourism destinations and attractions in the world ranking, Iran is in top twenties but in multi billion dollar tourism business its just near the finish line. Its hard to approve that you are not a terrorist as an ordinary citizen of Iran when you are preparing to travel to other countries; the process for getting visa is a pain due to political policy which Iran has and the feedback of the international community. Traveling to Iran form some countries is hard and sometimes impossible, for instance Israel and the United States. Political stability was threatened by 2009 presidential race and deception in the result which ends with Green Movement protests. This has decreased all domestic, outbound and inbound tourism, thus the investment in privet sector has declined. Economic Issues and policies The effect of economic issues is mostly touchable in domestic and outbound tourism not inbounds. Cutting taxes is an encouraging policy offered by government in order to increase privet sector role in tourism. Investing in tourism industry due to interest rate, inflation and economic stability ties with high risk, the interest rate in Iran is about 15% 25% and the inflation is usually more than 12% and mostly about 20%. Inbound tourism is benefiting with cheaper expenses thanks to the currency power, one $ US is about 10,000 IRR. Traveling by personal cars has been dramatically fall as a result of the policy of using Intelligent Fuel Cards that has been done by the government to reduce the petrol consumption in Iran. Other issues and policies Getting justification in order to run a business for private sector in Iran is a complicated and inexplicable process. A person who wants to invest in tourism fields should pass many filters and tests which arent necessarily relevant to the travel and tourism industry. There was a gradual rise in government employees travel by offering Expedition Cards from the government sector. People can use it to decrease their expenses while traveling. Educating and encouraging people to travel by advertising through the public Medias has made a fluctuation. Producing statistics and information is forgotten by authorities, and practically there isnt any reliable information about tourism industry. The new policy of government is to invest in health tourism thanks to Irans great infrastructure and substructure in this case. Investigate the effects of supply and demand on the travel and tourism industry Planning for enormous industries such tourism is much more vital today, so there should be a wise vision of what we have as facts and what is forecasted for the future. In addition analyzing supply and demand is a consequential procedure in a flourishing industry. As its been mentioned in the first task there are some models which illustrate structure of tourism, but it also can be defined with this two components; Cooper et al (2008) Demand-side definitions Supply-side definitions Since demand-side has an immense influence on supply-side, even we can say that supply is a function of demand, demand as a key factor of tourism industry will be discussed in this task. Indeed definition of demand is varying in the different subjects for example the explanation of demand in Economy may is differ with the definition in Psychology or Geography. But lets clarify according to Page (2007) tourism demand has been defined in numerous ways, including: The total number of persons who travel, or wish to travel, to use tourist facilities and services at places away from their places of work and residence; The relationship between individuals motivation [to travel] and their ability to do so; The schedule of the amount of any product or service which people are willing and able to buy at each specific price in a set of possible prices during a specified period of time. Each of these definitions in tourism has some elements according to cooper et al (2008) there are three elements in tourism demand: Demand elements Actual demand Suppressed demand No demand Figure 5 Effective or actual demand is the number of people participating in tourism, commonly expressed as the number of travelers. For instance thousands of people went to see World Cup in South Africa. Suppressed demand, which consists of the proportion of the population who are unable to travel because of, circumstances e.g. lack of purchasing power or lack of holidays. There were some people that liked to go and involve in World Cup but due to some circumstances like lack of money they couldnt make it. No demand includes those members of the population who have no desire to travel and those who are unable to travel due to family commitments or illness or they choose to spend their income on the other things rather than tourism. About the World Cup my brother is not interested in football at all so he should be in no demand category. Or may be some people are banded to enter South Africa so they are potentially categorized in no demand. As you can see all three elements can be explained in both geographical regions discussed by Leipers model. This may be an interesting question that: Why do people go on holiday? So lets see what motivations are, and what forms demand to travel. Knowing this is absolutely significant as a result of the importance of demand role in enhancement of tourism. Tourism demand determinants are different and a lot but most of the experts, despite of new determinants like globalization and environmentalism, believe that Uysel 1998 has explained these factors wisely. Figure 6 is his model in demand determinants. For better understanding lets have some examples, through these samples some of these determinants will be discussed, imagine an archeologist wants to visit Ancient Iran Museum to see Cyrus the great cylinder which is the first human right declaration that had kept in British museum beforehand. She wasnt able to go to Britain because it was not affordable for her for many reasons like: her disposable income wasnt enough, tourism price is high and exchange rate is dramatically upward but now she can easily see it (Economical determinants). Also if even she was able to pay for this travel she wasnt able to leave Iran, due to social and psychological reasons for example her father doesnt let her daughter leave Iran before she gets married, also she didnt have enough time for spending, and she is afraid of flying and so on (Social psychological determinants). Or think about an adventurous group interested in mount climbing and intend to go to Himalaya mountain range. Both Afghanistan and Nepal are good but due to war, terrorism, level of development in infrastructure and superstructure Nepals chance is more than Afghanistan (Exogenous determinants). Figure 6 Source: Reproduce form Tourism management managing for change Increasing tourism demand is led by two types of factors, Internal and External; external factors are those related to surrounding of person such as income and social condition. Internal factors are base on individual needs like health education and personal interests. In addition demand changes under many other circumstances through consumer behavior and decision process, cooper et al (2008) claim that decision making process as a system made up of four basic elements: Energizers of demand. These are the forces and influences that collectively create the motivation to travel or go on holiday. Effectors of demand. The information process and subsequent purchase decisions are influenced by the tourists knowledge and perceptions of particular places, destinations or experiences. These are the pull factors which lead the tourist to making particular travel choices. Roles and the decision-making process. Here, the important role is that of the family member who normally involved in the different stage of purchase process and the final resolution of decisions about when, where ad how the group will consume the tourism product. Determinants of demand. A variety of economic, social and psychological factors determine particular choices or filter out inappropriate products. These include tangible or descriptive demand factors, such as: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Mobility à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Employment and income à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Paid holiday entitlement à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Education levels à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Demographic variables: age, gender, race, stage in the family life cycle. In the other hand studying demand can clarify vital data which are main requirements for contriving future plans including: Number of visitors arrived Means of transportation Length of staying Type of accommodation Money expenditure and so on These data and lots of other details can be deriving by analyzing the demand statistics and information. Now that there is a very good perception of demand in tourism we have to see what direct and indirect influences it has on supply, or in the other word how supply changes to meet demand. Some examples will clarify how the system is. Globalization has changed the globe in many ways Medias, internet and satellites are playing a massive role in forming tourism demand these days and of course supply side used this as an opportunity. Internet booking, international ads, online packages and virtual tours are all important for demand side and tourists. Thanks to these changes, now there are lots of online sites which serve consumers before making a decision. These web sites and TV ads are very important to conceptualize tourists mind beforehand. Its significant since it influences consumer behavior based on determinants that we discussed in advance. The number of visitors during a year is different, for example during summer only a few people wants to visit Sahara desert or in the winter many people intend to go ski in Europe. Low season and High season are tow different concept which supply side should be aware of, the policies for these two occasions should be different, for example offering lower price services to attract people in low season may is one of the strategies. Also in the high season setting new flights can be helpful in order to cover all visitors. Environmentalism as a new issue has changed the world view of point about many things, for example hotels try to be greener in order to pull more customers toward. Or tour packages to North Pole have been established as a result of increasing pattern of demand to visit ice melting phenomenon and being informed of what is going on in reality. Tourism is a rapidly growing phenomenon and has become one of the largest industries in the world. The impact of tourism is extremely varied. On one hand, it plays an important and certainly positive role in the socio-economic and political development in destination countries by, for instance, offering new employment opportunities. Also, in certain instances, it may contribute to a broader cultural understanding by creating awareness, respecting the diversity of cultures and ways of life. On the other hand, as a tool to create jobs, it has not fulfilled its expectations. At the same time, complaints from tourist destinations concerning massive negative impacts upon environment, culture and residents ways of life have given rise to a demand for a more sustainable development in tourism. Different parties will have to be involved in the process of developing sustainable tourism. This section focuses on what the tourism industry itself can do in order to increase its sustainability, defines three major problems, and suggests possible tourism initiatives to help solve these problems. Other problems should also be included in the discussion for it to become exhaustive. Wikipedia (July 2010) (Merriam-Websters 11th collegiate dictionary) Word Tourism Organization 1993. Sharply (2006) Rowe et al (2002), National Statistic Online (2010) [online] http://www.statistics.gov.uk/cci/nugget.asp?id=352[Accessed: 20 July 2010] Cooper et al, 2008 Cox Kings (2010) Centuries of Experience [online]http://www.coxandkings.co.uk/aboutus-history.aspx, [Accessed: 20 July 2010] Travel and Tourism Publishing (2010) [online] www.tandtpublishing.co.uk/acatalog/pdf/unit12ppt.ppt [[Accessed: 27 July 2010] unwto (september2010) wttc (September 2010) IATA (September 2010)   PATA (September 2010) http://www.visiteurope.com/Footer/About-us Charles et al (2006) Task 5 Impact of tourism, UN PDF

Free Essays - The Catcher In The Rye :: Catcher Rye Essays

Catcher In The Rye      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Catcher in the Rye, starts off with the main character, Holden Caulfield being expelled from school once again.   Holden is a sixteen year old boy who has been expelled on numerous occasions from other schools.   This time he is being expelled from Pency Prep.   Before Holden goes home to his parents, he plans to spend a few days in New York.   His parents do not know of the expulsion, so he spends the weekend in a hotel.   Holden is a pretty strange kid who can always find a way to get himself into trouble.   Holden constantly talks about how he hates phony people and phony words.   He complains of how the head master Thurman of Pency Prep is a phony person.   Holden says he is the kind of guy who will treat you bad, but will act polite and nice to your parents when they visit.   Holden basically decides that almost everyone he meets in his life is a phony.   He even gets disgusted with the advertisement for Pency Prep.   The picture of the horse jumping over a fence is a false image in his opinion.   He says that he has never even seen a horse on the campus.   Holden is also very curious.   Of all things, he wonders where the ducks go when the pond freezes over in the park.   He loves his red hunting cap that he bought for a dollar. The cap serves as his way to be an individual.   Stradtler is his roommate and they are fairly good friends.   Stradtler is two years older than him so he is always going out on dates and has to listen to Holden question him.   One time Stradtler goes out with one of Holden$BCT(J long time friends, Jane Gallagher, and he has to listen to an earful from Holden.   Ackley is Holden$BCT(J neighbor and they are all right friends.   Ackley is the kind of guy though who can get on anybody$BCT(J nerves in a heart beat.   Ackley and Stradtler despise of each other and rarely talk.   Ackley is very nosy and Holden does not understand why he puts up with Ackley$BCT(J nonsense.   Holden has a dead brother Allie, an older brother D.B., who is a writer, and a younger sister

Public Administration Essay

Q1: The chief executive of the country, or President, holds the highest office.   He cannot make laws but he participates in the legislation process. Although he is the head of state, I agree that the chief executive cannot take for granted that the legislative body, which is Congress, would follow his will on any subject.   The President has to use all of his willpower, his charisma, and every advantages available to him to influence the outcome of the legislation process.  Ã‚   The constitution made sure that the chief executive won’t have absolute power to avoid dictatorship.   There are even times that Congress would overturn the President’s veto on a particular law. As an example, the current administration of President Bush has always been in favor of attacking countries that pose a threat to the United States, particularly those countries that are identified as havens for terrorists.   President Bush obtained Congress’ approval on attacking Iraq and Afghanistan because of what happened in 9/11.   Congress agreed with the President to redress a wrong-doing and because a successful conclusion to the war was imminent.   Years later, the victory in Iraq was indecisive.   Despite the President’s persuasion for the troops to stay in Iraq, Congress held out and the chief executive has to concede to the decision that the troops should be pulled out. Q2: If I have to end the state’s monopoly on liquor sales, my strategy is to engage in massive lobbying efforts employing the best lobbyists in every state.   The CEO said money is not a problem, so, it means that advertising and marketing strategies can also be used to slowly influence the mind of the voters.   Hard liquors, like tequila, are popular drinks in bars.   The campaign should first target those people who owns bars and their patrons.   Whether or not this strategy would work out remains on how effective the lobbyists are in influencing the right people.   The lobbyists I would need are those who would be good in promoting the benefits of privatization of hard liquor, particularly to the state’s coffers.   The country is in an economic crisis and many states are hard-pressed to meet many programs.   With the promise of big tax revenues from the privatization, state officials would find ways to relinquish control over hard liquor sales.   They would find a way to change the law without needing a 60% acceptance from the public. Calling to mind the reasons why the Prohibition was approved, and why hard liquor sale is regulated by the government agency, I would be reminded of the evils of unregulated alcohol selling.   In this regard, my personal recommendation is not to allow private businesses to sell hard liquors.   Giving up control on hard liquor could mean a return of the era wherein alcohol consumption caused many of society’s ills.   There are too many crimes as it is, and unregulated alcohol manufacturing and selling could worsen the current situation. Q3:  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The elements of a bureaucracy are: – statutes legalizing the agency’s existence, as well as how it is structured, the type of activities it is in charge with, and the budgets for the agency’s operation; – determination of what legislative committee is to oversee an agency and what sector of society will the services be delivered to; – discretionary power; – resources, how big the agency should be and how will the organization be structured; – maintaining a close relationship with the legislative body for its continued existence and survival; and – the presence of skillful leadership and knowledgeable employees. The strength of a bureaucracy lies in its being outside of the limelight in the political arena.   An administrative agency has more influence in policymaking when it is not being closely watched.   The weakness of a bureaucracy is on its single-mindedness of purpose.   If it is created for a particular sector, like the National Labor Relations Board for the labor sector, the agency cannot accommodate other requests from the public.   While is this a weakness, it is also a bureaucracy’s strength.   By focusing on one aspect of society, an agency can better serve the needs of that sector.   Another weakness of the bureaucracy is its tendency to respond more promptly to queries from legislators compared to its response to a query from the public.   Since an agency is dependent on Congress, it needs to be liked by the members of Congress. The criticisms against a bureaucracy are centered on two things.   First, an administrative agency’s accountability for failures is comparatively less compared to private businesses.   Second, a bureaucracy’s performance is difficult to gauge because it provides services and creates policies.   It cannot be measured based on quantifiable metrics. In my opinion, the main benefit of having administrative agencies is the focus it could give to the community in terms of services.   For instance, a bureaucracy is needed to manage the country’s health care.   Without a particular administrative agency for health care, people could wait weeks and months before receiving medical service.   In terms of challenges, a bureaucracy’s main challenge is how to become independent from the influence of legislators.   It has to find balance with regards to its dealings with the public and the legislative body. Q4: Federalism is a form of governance wherein the power to govern the nation is not centralized.   In the United States, the federal government does not control how states should implement and interpret many laws.   They are independent from the federal government’s interference in many aspects, like utility regulation, zoning, divorce, and many others.   In other words, each state is empowered to a certain degree.   The federal government do not interfere with state matters unless it has reason to.   When the federal government needs bigger state control, it often provides grants-in-aid to obtain some concessions from the states.   Or conversely, the federal government can decrease federal aid to the states.   Like in the case of the Medicaid system, the current administration is proposing a cut on its contribution to the program. Federalism is effective in giving each state the decision on how to govern itself based on its people’s needs.   Federalism could also be bad when there would be an absence of cooperation among states and between the federal government and the states. Q5: The current high rate of divorce can be attributed to the lack of difficulty in obtaining one since law made it easy for married couples to separate legally and sever the ties of marriage.   This is one area where I would work on so that couples can’t just divorce one another to the detriment of their children.   In order to tighten the law, I would first seek the aid of the church, the local politicians and engage the community in a discussion of my proposal. Before going to these people I would already be ready with my own modifications so that we have something concrete to work on.   I would present to these people my proposal that I would call the divorce test.   The couple should pass this test before any court would accept their filing. The revised divorce law would require the couple to undergo marriage counseling at least twice before they can pass the divorce test.   Like in bankruptcy, divorce should be the last resort for couples to take.   I would expect some quarters to argue but instead of debating endlessly, I would ask them to present one of their own proposal.   So long as everyone keeps to the objective of keeping families together, a revision could be arrived at that would be fair and equitable to everyone.

Haroun and the Sea of the Stories Essay

â€Å"Haroun and the Sea of Stories†, a novel by Salman Rushdie spans the adventurous journey of the protagonist of the story, Haroun who wishes to bring back his father’s gift of storytelling. Haroun is the son of the famous storyteller Rashid Khalifa whose stories enthrall the listeners. The author of novel was placed under fatwa which compelled him to lead a life of isolation and hiding. And it was during his hiding that he wrote the above novel. Salman Rushdie uses his novel as a medium to defy the censorship placed on his writings. Through the characters of his novel, the author presents his own thoughts about the censorship and the people who imposed the censorship upon him. The characters in the novel are influenced by the personal experiences of the author and resemble the persons of the real world. Prominent among them is the character of Khattam-Shud who reminds one of Ayatollah Khomeini, the person responsible for the fatwa of Salman Rushdie. Khattam-Shud rules the Land of Chupwalas by making them behave according to his rules. He wants to rule the whole world but his wish remains unfulfilled for he is unable to be in command of the world of numerous stories. Rushdie (2001) writes â€Å"inside every single story, inside every Stream in the Ocean, there lies a world, a story-world, that I cannot Rule at all†. (pg. 161). So when he realizes that he cannot control the world of the stories he decides to poison the Sea of Stories so that the source of stories itself is destroyed and the imagination of the story tellers is snatched from them forever. This attitude of Khattam-Shud is analogous to that of Khomeini who wants to control the writings of Salman and when that is not possible he issues orders for Salman’s killing. Khomeini insists that the world accept his beliefs about Islamism and when anyone tries to revolt against his authority he suppresses him by using his powers.

A report on the landscape evolution of the Durham coast The WritePass Journal

A report on the landscape evolution of the Durham coast Introduction and Background: A report on the landscape evolution of the Durham coast Introduction and Background:Past and long-term processes acting on the Durham coastline: the long-term evolution of Dawdon Blast Beach and WhitburnPresent day processes:Assessing erosion rates and predicting future change:Conclusion:References:Related Introduction and Background: This report aims to assess the landscape evolution of the Durham coast, and to determine the past, present and future processes acting on the coastline. Natural processes have shaped the region for millions of years, and at present the area is characterized by a number of physical features. These include Permian Magnesian Limestone Cliffs, glacial sediments, raised beaches, incised valleys and small coastal headlands. In the last 10,000 years the development of the costal zone has been in response to a switch from glacial to interglacial conditions, and the resultant rising global sea level. However, over the last century increasing human activity has artificially modified the coastline in a number of ways. In the north east of England, coal mining was the dominant industry until the early 1990’s. Such activity was often characterized by the dumping of vast quantities of waste rock and low-grade coal onto the beaches by coastal mines (Humphries, 2001). The disturbances caused by active waste tipping to both the coastline and the natural ecosystems within the area were extensive: in some parts, the accumulations of waste reached 20m in thickness. That said, the decline of the coal industry throughout the 1980’s and its eventual closure allowed for a review of the management of the coastline. The result was the launch of the so-called ‘Turning the Tide’ project, which aimed to restore previous environmental conditions, as well as create new socio-economic opportunities (Wilkinson and McCay, 1998). The website explains how a small management team exists â€Å"to protect and enhance the special qualities of this unique coastline† (durhamheritagecoast.org). The project facilitated the removal of industrial waste, the development of recreational initiatives and the opening of coastal footpaths.   Changes in both physical activities and anthropogenic attitudes towards the management of the coastline have allowed the area to redevelop. We visited two sites, at Dawdon (a site popular for sea angling) and Whitburn, to execute a number of tasks in an attempt to understand these processes more, and to try and predict future changes. As such, I have divided this project into three separate categories: the past and long-term processes acting on the Durham coastline, present day activity in the region and our prediction of what may happen in the future. These categories will be followed by a discussion and conclusion. Past and long-term processes acting on the Durham coastline: the long-term evolution of Dawdon Blast Beach and Whitburn Bird (1984) makes the point that the evolution of coastlines can be analyzed in a number of ways: geological structure, marine processes, tidal conditions, changing sea levels and shifting climatic processes. By citing the number of influences that can play a role in the development of coastlines, Bird (1984) makes it clear that if we are to understand the present and future processes, we must first gain significant knowledge of the past. Therefore, in order to understand the Durham coastline completely, we must first look at the region’s historical geomorphology and its underlying geology. Bridgland (1999) explains how the geology of Dawdon and Whitburn is primarily made up of Permian Magnesian Limestone. Above the limestone lies a layer of boulder clay, which supports grasslands, plant life and other wildlife.   Going further back into time, though, reveals the influence of glaciation on the region’s geological development.   Glacial deposits in the region reveal that ice was present until fifteen thousand years ago. Britain’s glacial history is, in parts, incomplete and poorly understood. However, evidence in the form of glacial sediments, erratics, clast fabrics and striae can give us some understanding as to where the ice came from and how and why the sea-level has changed in the last 10,000 years. Erratics are simply rocks that have been transported and deposited by a previously existing glacier (Holden, 2005). Holden (2005: 528) also explains how â€Å"glacial abrasion causes striations† and the smoothing of some surfaces. The evidence for this is in present day striae, which were observed at Whitburn. Clastic fabric is composed of grains of rock, which have been weathered and eroded from previously existing bedrock (Holden, 2005). Transportation of clastic material is often by ice. It is these separate forms of evidence that together suggest that the first glacial ice to appear in the region came from the northwest (Lunn, 1995). The second glacial ice witnessed is attributed to the Cheviot / Tweed area. It has been proven that Whitburn is located where previously different sections of ice may have competed against each other before eventually merging.  Ã‚   Johnson (1995) also notes that further evidence of glacial activity in the region comes in the form of lakes, which are suggested to have formed during periods of deglaciation. Shennan et. al (2006) have recently undertaken extensive research into relative sea level change, and attempted to reconstruct British ice sheets. Evidence suggests that the Durham coastline is still responding to the rising sea level and rapid changes of the last 10,000 years. Crucial to this area of study is the principle of isostasy, defined by Holden (2005:718) as â€Å"the principle by which the Earth’s crust floats upon the denser mantle.† Shennan et. al (2006) make it clear how relative sea level change, as a result of isostasy, depends not just on sea-level change but also land-level fluctuations. This is the principle of isostatic change. The significance for past and long-term processes acting on the Durham coastline is that areas that were covered in ice, such as the northeast of England, are often still experiencing uplift as a result of their newfound buoyancy. The opposite is true of regions that were not covered in ice, such as southern England, which are currently subsiding. It is clear that the present day processes have been shaped by the geological history of the Durham coastline. Present day processes: Dawdon Blast Beach is displayed in the appendix as figure 1.   The pronounced headlands and bays that exist along the Durham coastline are the result of different rates of erosion. Erosion is occurring at Dawdon as the result of wave action and tidal currents: where the rock is more resistant headlands form, and where it is more easily eroded bays, like Dawdon Blast Beach, retreat inwards (Holden, 2005). Limestone, which, as previously said, is at the heart of the geology of the northeast coastline, is a rock that can produce extensive and defined erosional features. On land these are known as karst landscapes, but on the coast the erosion of limestone can often lead to the development of features such as stacks, stumps and arches. The impact of the sea is the cause of much unstableness along the coastline, providing sediment and other material for the water to transport and deposit elsewhere. Indeed, the northeast coastline has little shelter from the impact of waves. But although erosion by wave action is commonly seen along the Durham coastline, the transportation and deposition of the eroded sediment along the coastline relies on other processes, too. This is because the headland and bay features reduce the impact of longshore drift. The direction of transportation is north to south, and much of the material is trapped by the headland at the south end of the bay. It appears that the transportation of sediment owes much of its existence to the power and direction of the wind, whereas the layout of the coastline, and in particular the existence of headlands, is the root of much deposition. Some of the coastal features, though, are anthropogenic in nature: mining has influenced Dawdon Blast Beach in a number of ways over the last 100 years. The vast quantities of waste that was simply tipped onto the beach has affected habitats and ecosystems, discouraged visitors and left the local communities with little pride about their unique coastline (durhamheritagecoast.org). But the waste also raised the beach level and left many cliffs isolated from the sea. Evidence suggests that the mines were also responsible for the creation of a number of artificial lagoons as a result of their pumping out excess water below the natural sea level.   The mining industry has had an ecological, environmental, social, economic and physical impact on Dawdon Blast Beach in the last 100 years. Assessing erosion rates and predicting future change: The beach at Dawdon has been eroding at its northern end since the prevention of mine waste tipping. From 1994 onwards the beach has been monitored by the Environment Agency to assess erosion rates. In an attempt to predict any future change on the coastline, we used a leveling technique to construct our own profile of the Dawdon Blast Beach (figure 4), before comparing it with the agency data from 1994 to 2010 (figure 5).   Figure 5 shows clearly that, over a relatively short period of time (since 1994), the beach has suffered significant recession and sediment loss.   Understanding the reason behind the erosion rates is an important factor in trying to determine any future changes. Despite the closure of the mining industry some years ago, the legacy of the waste left on Dawdon Blast Beach continues today. The waste produced from the blast furnace and mining industry actually prevents heavy erosion to some parts of the cliff, acting as an artificial wall to the power of the sea and wind. However, as this waste is eventually removed (it is predicted to have completely gone within 15 years) the cliffs at Dawdon will become increasingly exposed to the influence of natural processes, and heavy erosion is predicted to occur. This will result in further inland retreat and lengthening of the bay. As explained earlier, the process of longshore drift and sediment transportation travels from the north to the south along Dawdon Blast Beach. Like the waste, the deposited sediment acts as a temporary blockade and means that the southern end of the beach will remain protected for longer. As the sediment deposited by longshore drift reduces in quantity, further erosion is predicted to occur. Eventually, it will be necessary for anthropogenic intervention to prevent the coastline from being eroded too heavily. Human intervention may come in the form of sea barriers, or even in the introduction of sediment where it has been significantly removed. Conclusion: This project has revealed how the Durham coast has been shaped throughout geological history, examined the modern day processes currently shaping it and made an attempt at predicting future erosion rates and development. It is clear that both natural and anthropogenic processes have had a significant influence on the development of the region. The current coastline and its landscape owe much of its existence to the historical glaciers and the force of the tides, both past and present. But this project has also revealed the extent to which human activity and production of waste have influenced natural geological development. The waste produced from the previously booming mines has impacted not only present day processes (ironically, it actually protected the cliffs from coastal erosion) but also what will happen in the future. The closure of the mining industry, though, and the launch of the ‘Turning the Tide’ project means that there is more chance of the coastline re-discovering its natural state in the future. Now all that can be seen of the colliery are two structures adjacent to the car park, and the predicted removal of all the existing waste means that natural processes will once again assume their authority. Consequently, in the future we expect to see greater erosion rates than which currently exist. All of the processes and impacts that this project has investigated have had influence, positive on negative, on the development of the Durham coastal area, which has been and continues to be a cultural asset, important to the region’s economy, wellbeing and natural habitats. References: Bird, E.C.F. 1984 ‘Coasts: an introduction to coastal geomorphology.’ Blackwell 3rd edition Bridgland, D.R. 1999 ‘The Pleistocene Of North-East England.’ In: Bridgland, D.R., Horton, B.P. Innes, J.B. (Eds). ‘The Quaternary Of North-East England.’ Field Guide, Quaternary Research Association, London, 1-9 www.durhamheritagecoast.org (accessed 8/4/2011) Holden J, 2005, ‘An Introduction to Physical Geography and the Environment,’ Second Edition, Pearson Education Essex Humphries, L. 2001. ‘A review of relative sea-level rise caused by mining-induced subsidence in the coastal zone: some implications for increased coastal recession.’ Climate Research 18, 147-156 Johnson, G., 1995:   Ã¢â‚¬ËœRobson’s Geology of North East England.’   Transactions of the Natural History Society of Northumbria 56, part 5. Lunn, A., 1995: ‘Quaternary.’   In: Johnson, G., 1995 (ed): ‘Robson’s Geology of North East England.’   Transactions of the Natural History Society of Northumbria 56, part 5, 297-312. Shennan, I., Bradley, S., Milne, G., Brooks, A., Bassett, S. Hamilton, S. 2006 ‘Relative sea-level changes, glacial isostatic modelling and ice-sheet reconstructions from the British Isles since the Last Glacial Maximum.’ Journal of Quaternary Science. 21:585-599 Wilkinson, D.L. and McCay, N.A.J. (1998). In Fox, H.R., Moore, H.M. and McIntosh, A.D. (eds) ‘Land Reclamation: Achieving Sustainable Benefits,’ Balkerna: Rotterdam

The Scarlet Letter Essays (1335 words) - English-language Films

The Scarlet Letter Essays (1335 words) - English-language Films The Scarlet Letter When the topic of a Puritanical society is brought up, most people think of a rigorous, conservative, highly devout society. While this may have usually been the case, this was not always so. The Puritan society was also known not to act out of brotherly, Christian love, but to cruelly lash out on those who sinned or were deemed unfit for society. Two works of literature that display both aspects of this society very accurately are The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, and The Crucible, by Arthur Miller. The Scarlet Letter displays a society that treats two people very differently who commit the sin of adultery together. The woman, Hester Prynne, admits her sin, is forced to always wear a scarlet letter A on her bosom, and is ostracized from society. The man, Reverend Dimmesdale, hides his sin from the world, is almost worshipped by the townspeople, but is filled with the shame of his action. Hawthorne illustrates how insensitive a Puritan society can be t! o those who admit their wrong doings. The Crucible is a play that tells the story of the famous witchcraft trial in Salem, Massachusetts. In the story, Abigail Williams, the orphaned niece of the town?s minister, Reverend Parris, is the main person who accuses people of sending their spirits on her and the other girls. What starts as children dancing in the woods leads to the accusation and execution of many innocent people for witchcraft. The two works of literature have very similar qualities, including setting, conflict, and general aspects of the characters, while there are also specific parallels between characters, such as Abigail and Hester, and Parris and Dimmesdale. The settings in both The Scarlet Letter and The Crucible are similar in many ways. The Scarlet Letter takes place around the 1640s, as the The Crucible occurs in 1692. The time period is very important in both pieces, because it is a time of religious intolerance and a conservative attitude pervades in New England, where both works of literature take place. This Puritan setting is also very important in both works of literature. The reason behind the townspeople persecuting sinners is because of the Puritan beliefs of the time period. This is the driving force between the actions of the characters. The setting of a religiously intolerant village is also the main reason behind the conflict that lies in each plot. The conflicts in both works of literature are also similar. They are both caused by the same thing, the excessively devout town in which the setting takes place. The conflict in The Scarlet Letter that occurs between Dimmesdale, Hester, and Chillingworth is caused by the town?s intolerance for sinners. Hester?s life is spent in complete loneliness because of the way the town treats her. Chillingworth, Hester?s past husband, is like most of the townspeople, because he feels the need to punish and inflict pain on sinners, especially those who have personally harmed him. Chillingworth tries to gain revenge on Dimmesdale, the man who commits adultery with his wife. The town?s desire to seek out and personally condemn sinners is also the source of conflict in The Crucible. In The Crucible, the townspeople hunt out the witches in the community as an attempt to rid the town of evil. In both, the conflict is caused by the town?s self appointed right to rancorously persecute a! nd punish anyone who is found sinning. The conflict is also similar because both towns are generally the same. They are both located in the same general area of America, which causes the people to have similar beliefs and traditions. This includes the townspeople, and the general aspects of the characters. The general aspects of characters are also similar in both The Scarlet Letter and The Crucible. Both have a main antagonist, who wishes to punish sinners. In The Scarlet Letter, this person is Roger Chillingworth, who wants to gain revenge on Dimmesdale, and in The Crucible, the antagonist is Abigail Williams, the girl who mainly accuses the people of being witches. Also, both works of literature include ignorant townspeople who contribute to the main conflict. In The Scarlet Letter, these people are the ones who loathe

ESL Lesson Plan Using Suggestopedia

ESL Lesson Plan Using Suggestopedia During a workshop held by Lori Ristevski concerning the practical application of Brain Friendly Learning (otherwise known as effective/affective learning), Lori stated that this method of teaching is based on the idea that effective learning is suggestive in nature, not direct. In other words, learning takes place through a combination of different types of right and left brain functions. She stated that long-term memory is semi-conscious and that we must sidetrack people with other things in order to allow them to receive information through peripheral perception. In order to  understand these concepts, Lori led us through a concert. A concert is basically a story read (or sung by some) out loud by the teacher. Students concentrate on understanding the story and not on learning new vocabulary, grammar etc. Following are the steps of this exercise and an example text for a concert. An important principle applied to this exercise (and, I imagine, all effective/affective materials) is the repeated exposure to new material. Music is also played in the background as a means of stimulating right brain participation. A Concert Step 1: Read (or sing in a quasi-recitative style - good luck ;-) the concert to students. Make sure to not introduce the new material before the concert.Step 2: Have students split up into teams. Read the concert back with pauses, the focus information being presented, for the students to fill in. Each correct answer gets a point. For example: You are working on introducing prepositions, you have read the concert and now read John went ____ the store ___ the corner. Students shout out into! and on! and the various teams get points.Step 3: Have students, in their respective teams, take cards (that you have prepared) with the new words/phrases on them. Students then place the cards in the correct order of usage or combine them with other cards to make sense. For example: Cards have been created with prepositions and nouns. Students need to then match up the correct preposition with the noun.Step 4: Have students make up sentences, in turn, using the paired up cards. For example: Stude nt A takes the pair into, store and says, He went into the store to buy some food. Now, heres the concert text. Thanks to another colleague, Judith Ruskin, for having created this text. The target language areas of this text are verb preposition, and adjective preposition combinations. Once upon a time, there was a young man who was addicted to chocolate. He ate it for breakfast in the morning, at lunch and dinner - it seemed that he was never tired of eating it. Chocolate with cornflakes, chocolate on toast, chocolate, and beer - he even boasted of eating chocolate and steak. He was married to a beautiful woman whom he had met when he was recovering from flu. She was a nurse, responsible for all the patients in the area and very content with her job. In fact, the only problem these two had was his dependence on chocolate. One day the young wife decided on a plan to make her husband allergic to chocolate forever. She confided in her best friend and asked her to cooperate with her in playing a trick on her husband. She was aware of the fact that her friend suffered from rats and she asked if she could borrow some of her rat poison. Her friend was a little surprised at the request but agreed to it and gave her the poison. The young wife hurried home and started work in the kitchen, very satisfied with herself. An hour later she emerged from the kitchen proudly carrying a large chocolate cake and the empty tin of rat poison. Darling - Ive made a lovely chocolate cake for you! she called fondly. Down the stairs, the greedy husband ran and in short time he had polished it off, right down to the last crumb. He was released from the hospital after only two weeks. He never accused his wife of poisoning him, but he was always slightly suspicious of her. Needless to say, he never again touched chocolate. Well, as you can tell my colleague is British and has that touch of famed British love of black humor... For further information on effective/affective learning: SEALSociety for Effective Affective Learning. UK based global association promoting effective/affective learning. SuggestopediaAn introduction to Suggestopedia through a look at documentation on the Net concerning its theory, practice,  and principles. BRAIN friendly English Learning Take a look at this exciting approach to learning/teaching English which focuses on using all areas of the brain while enjoying learning.

Brief response Michael Richards Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Brief response Michael Richards - Essay Example Being a performer with his long experience, he should have known that distractions may occur on such establishments without the motive of the patrons to intentionally create a disturbance. However, Richard reacted to the situation and showed unprofessional attitude during the 2006 November 17 incident at the Laugh Factory. Richard made an appearance on the David Letterman show and made a public apology to Kyle Doss and Frank McBride, another target of the outburst. However, the two did not accept the apology and filed a case against Richard. They felt that what Richard did was not sincere and was forced as a resort to save his career. This may be justifiable since the image created in the mind of the public was that Richard was a racist. With it being on record and with the patrons who witnessed the outburst, the statements he threw to the targets were generally addressed to the black American race and not specifically or individually addressed and it was made in public. Doing public apology on air is much more of an appeal to the audiences and viewers. Because if he is indeed sincere with his apologies, he should have approached and seek the forgiveness of Kyle and the target group in private before appearing on public to make amends to those black Americans who viewed and learned what he did. Richard may have denied that he’s a racist but his actions prove a different story. Just like a â€Å"slip of the tongue†, his opinion about blacks were revealed during his outburst. The way his mind works during that incident showed his low opinion of the black culture. If he indeed has compassion for black people, those offending words should have not left his mouth. Since he is not a dark-colored skin American, and the used the word â€Å"nigger†, he has a lot of explaining to do. As Wyann’s mentioned, their culture much have the right to use the

Defining blackness in America Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Defining blackness in America - Essay Example in order to differentiate blacks from white. The racial line has always put blacks at a distance and hindered them from participating in American culture and politics. It is what has kept African Americans from being given equal opportunities in the U.S., being seen as citizens in the U.S., and being seen as humans in the U.S. Blackness is the best way to explain this complicated relationship African Americans share with America and the whites that they live alongside in this country. There used to be a strong argument in America that being black could affect one’s access to power. There, was an argument that being black was a disadvantage, and that an individual you would be limited in what you could accomplish simply based on the color of your skin. These perceptions would hold true in the past America, but in the modern day America, power is more accessible to people of all races, including African Americans. The argument that African Americans cannot get ahead because of t heir color is more of a crutch than something is which is factual. Like Toure stated in his book, â€Å"Who’s Afraid of Post-Blackness†, we are going an era where there are so many different ways to be black that nobody has to keep up some pre-conceived black image because, honestly, there is not one (Toure 48). One common perception prevalent among man is that, generally, other people view them based on their physical appearance. This type of perception falls into the psychological concept that Toure refers to as the looking glass self in his book â€Å"Who’s Afraid of Post-Blackness†. This states that people perceive themselves based on the way that their peers perceive them, which leads people to reinforce other people's perspectives of them (Toure 47). Naturally, people want to portray a certain type of image. When you think of individuals who are in power, you typically think of someone who is white and who is male. This is why some believe that blac ks who have skin light tones are more likely to be in power than dark skinned African Americans. This color complex has not only shaped the way white Americans view African Americans, but also the way African Americans view other African Americans. A lot of emphasis has been placed on skin color to the extent that, individuals opt for doing anything, to get an appearance that has the impression of taking them to the threshold of becoming successful. The further one strays away from this image the more challenging it becomes for them to have the illusion of power. This outdated view of politics is not a part of how it works anymore. Money, class and contacts fuel the realm of politics and have the say over who gets to be in power and who does not. Being light or dark does not really control how you fit in this modern day political atmosphere (Toure 47). Being light-skinned or dark-skinned does not really control how you fit in this modern day political atmosphere. We are entering an age where people at the top come in all races and nationalities. The journey to this position, however, has not been without its struggles and perils. Black people in America have had to deal with classism and sexism from within, on top of racism from without. African American women have borne the brunt of this in particular with mental and physical oppression from both white and African American males (Bharati 37). Blackness for the African American

What do Northcentral's Mission Statement, Vision, and Values Statement Personal

What do Northcentral's Mission , Vision, and Values mean to me personally as a Learner - Personal Statement Example This can lead to several challenges in ensuring that students not only understand their lessons but are also integrated into the university's culture. I think Northcentral University is doing a very good job of ensuring this and as such is one of the best online universities out there. Northcentral university's mission statement and vision clearly spell out how their approach to online learning is unique and distinctive. The university's and its faculty's passion and commitment to educating individual students are clearly spelt out in the university's value statement. This distinctive approach to learning and the commitment of the faculty is passed onto the students and inspires them to conduct themselves with integrity and give their best performance through innovation and teamwork. In my opinion, Northcentral University's mission statement, vision and values statement help define how I as a learner shall conduct myself and learn from the dedicated faculty members. Northcentral Univ ersity's mission is to provide "quality educational opportunities" to people around the world. The commitment to providing education to not just a community but to interested individuals all over the world makes the university unique. Traditional universities, by the virtue of their location, can only provide education to the individuals living in the community. Because these traditional universities have a commitment to their communities, when they do enroll outsiders, they often charge them higher tuition rates. The campus-based model also means that students need to be at the campus at particular times, which can make it difficult for many students to pursue an education while also being gainfully employed. Northcentral University's online model takes care of these typical problems of a traditional university. It removes boundaries from education and makes it easily available at the same affordable rate to people around the world, thus removing the location based discrimination s een in local universities. The online model also allows busy professionals to get education without giving up their day jobs. Thus, the university's mission ensures that education can become truly universal by making it available to anyone who seeks it. A big problem often faced by online students is that the quality of education is often much lower than what is available through the traditional classroom model. One reason for this is that professors often think of their online classes as an additional job and are not dedicated to it in the same way as they are to their traditional classes. Since teachers can see their students in person in a traditional classroom, they feel more of a connection to them. In an online environment, this connection between the teachers and students is often missing. The "distinctive faculty mentored approach" of Northcentral University ensures that the university's students do not feel neglected by their teachers. Being a fully online university, teach ers do not see their online students as an additional job. The faculty's passion and investment into the student's education ensures that Northcentral University does not suffer from the problems faced by other online programs. Northcentral University values the needs of individual students promotes a passion for education in its faculty and administration. The focus on the needs of each individual student is important because in large class sizes, individual students often get lost. On the one hand, the brighter students stand out and often become teacher's favorite while on the other hand students at the bottom of the class are ignored. As a result, the good students excel and get much more attention from the teachers while the average students are left to fend for

Throughout This semester you will work in a small group(maximum four Essay

Throughout This semester you will work in a small group(maximum four persons)to analyse the strategic activates and decisions of - Essay Example The importance of location when expanding internationally is further verified through the study of Luo (2000). According to the above researcher, the expansion of each firm internationally is likely to be influenced by three factors: ‘ownership advantages of a firm, location advantages of a market, and advantages related to the internal processes of a firm’ (Luo 2000, p.103-104). It is made clear that choosing the appropriate location can affect the internationalization efforts of a firm, depending on the existence of increased or decreased location advantages in regard to the country chosen. According to Neelankavil (2007) choosing the appropriate country for entry is quite important due to the following reason: the selection of an inappropriate country for entry ‘can lead to severe damages on a firm’s performance while the time period required for recovering from such damages can be quite long’ (Neelankavil 2007, p.82). ... This means that the location chosen should secure the achievement of the above target, even in the long term (Ebner 2011). China meets the above term; the country’s population is quite high and the demand of products of such type, i.e. of products related to the nutrition of babies, is quite high, as also analyzed below. 3.2.2 Geographic distance When reviewing the appropriateness of a country as a target market emphasis should be also given to the distance between the home market and the target market (Tallman 2007). Indeed, ‘geographic distance’ (Tallman 2007, p.295) is often regarded as a factor that can highly influence the success of a product in a new market (Tallman 2007). Developing strategic alliances locally can be an excellent method for limiting the risks related to such initiatives (Tallman 2007, p.295). 3.2.3 Local demand for similar products The level of demand of products of similar characteristics is critical for choosing the location of a firmâ⠂¬â„¢s international expansion. In the case under examination the choice of China as a target market for Aptamil Power milk can be characterized as fully justified. In terms of its economy China ranks among the most powerful countries worldwide. In a report published by Economist (2013) emphasis is given to the power of the Chinese economy but also to the threats that the particular economy has to face since it is mainly ‘consumer – led’ (The Economist 2013). For Aptamil Power milk the Chinese market seems to be an excellent destination due to the following two reasons: a) the demand for products of the particular type is quite high in China (BBC News 2013), b) a recent scandal related to the quality of such

Mad Hot Ballroom by Marilyn Argrelo Movie Review

Mad Hot Ballroom by Marilyn Argrelo - Movie Review Example From the beginning of the film, establishes the basic idea that anyone can achieve anything if he/she has the zest and is ready to work towards it. It opens on Public School-115 of Washington Heights, Manhattan, when during her interview, the school Principal informs that 97% of the school's Hispanic population lives below the poverty line. However, she also asserts, that these students are not apologetic about their conditions. They are dreamers and they like to chase their passions, live their life. The ballroom dance teaching helps these students foster the very spirit. It helps them unfold their own personalities and make life more fulfilling. Yomaria Reynosa, the dance teacher of Washington Heights, PS 115 acclaims, "You don't know what's hidden inside each child until you open it up". She recalls her young days when the opportunities weren't as many. Today, students are getting a chance to unleash and enhance their talents. "With time, there are avenues opening up for them (kids) to go into something that has to do with arts". This holds true for each one of us. Future generations are always better equipped, more open and liberal than those who precede them. In our school days, kids never had technology au fait; they were never so informed about life. I remember, when in school we were first introduced to computers. There were about thirty students in a class, sharing five computers. Today, times have changed. Students have both, avenues and opportunities. As the movie progresses, it brings to light, the myriad facets of American life. The kids share their secrets, talk about various issues that concern them, discuss their perceptions about things. The dance competition event serves the perfect milieu for these young men and women to explore themselves, their dreams, their sensuality; their association with the opposite sex and to learn to coexist with harmony in a multi-cultural environment. I think it is quite relevant to any modern day society. Initially, in the movie, we see kids showing some reservation in getting together. They remain with their respective guys' and girls' groups and give out strange expressions when asked to pair up or hold hands. These kids are basically unwilling participants. With time and the consistent efforts of their dedicated teachers, the kids' inhibitions fade away, their attitudes towards their partner softens. They start accepting each other, enjoy dancing with harmony. In my teens, I had similar experiences. I would generally be a shy person and keep away from most guys.  Ã‚  

Business Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 44

Business Law - Essay Example The company should seek a temporary work permit in the United States. The company should also seek the assistance of an approved attorney who prepares the form "I-94---Arrival and Departure Record making it easier for contractors to work efficiently in America. The company should also seek labor certification from the immigration office for their constructors. We are a foreign construction company seeking to expand our services to the United States. The letter aims to inform and register our company with the tax department as a move to comply with the necessary tax obligations. Mrs. Photolover failed to seek the necessary copyright when selling the photographs though she specified the exceptions. Mr. Likesdrawing used someone’s material outside the stated exceptions without the consent of the developer. Mrs. Photolover should sue to discontinue the sale of the said pictures and obtain a valid copyright. Mr. Likes drawing should argue on the basis of fair usage as the picture lacks a valid copyright. Producers developed an anti-competitive practice that involved price fixing. Consumers are protected by law from acts of price fixation, and the companies can be sued. The Sherman Act prevents acts of collusion among producers to fix prices, and violations attract fines of up to $10 million for corporations and $350000 or a three-year imprisonment or both for individuals. The case relating to Apple Corporation is based on the antitrust laws and competition issues. The possible outcomes include the requirement for Apple to prove that their acquisition is based on economic policies and also illustrate the desire of a fair competition with no intention of unfair practices. Where Apple fails to prove the fair competition, the European Commission will illustrate its fears before the judge. The judge can abolish the deal in venturing in the music streaming industry or provide various obligations that the company has to follow. A similar case example involved the case

Mad Hot Ballroom by Marilyn Argrelo Movie Review

Mad Hot Ballroom by Marilyn Argrelo - Movie Review Example From the beginning of the film, establishes the basic idea that anyone can achieve anything if he/she has the zest and is ready to work towards it. It opens on Public School-115 of Washington Heights, Manhattan, when during her interview, the school Principal informs that 97% of the school's Hispanic population lives below the poverty line. However, she also asserts, that these students are not apologetic about their conditions. They are dreamers and they like to chase their passions, live their life. The ballroom dance teaching helps these students foster the very spirit. It helps them unfold their own personalities and make life more fulfilling. Yomaria Reynosa, the dance teacher of Washington Heights, PS 115 acclaims, "You don't know what's hidden inside each child until you open it up". She recalls her young days when the opportunities weren't as many. Today, students are getting a chance to unleash and enhance their talents. "With time, there are avenues opening up for them (kids) to go into something that has to do with arts". This holds true for each one of us. Future generations are always better equipped, more open and liberal than those who precede them. In our school days, kids never had technology au fait; they were never so informed about life. I remember, when in school we were first introduced to computers. There were about thirty students in a class, sharing five computers. Today, times have changed. Students have both, avenues and opportunities. As the movie progresses, it brings to light, the myriad facets of American life. The kids share their secrets, talk about various issues that concern them, discuss their perceptions about things. The dance competition event serves the perfect milieu for these young men and women to explore themselves, their dreams, their sensuality; their association with the opposite sex and to learn to coexist with harmony in a multi-cultural environment. I think it is quite relevant to any modern day society. Initially, in the movie, we see kids showing some reservation in getting together. They remain with their respective guys' and girls' groups and give out strange expressions when asked to pair up or hold hands. These kids are basically unwilling participants. With time and the consistent efforts of their dedicated teachers, the kids' inhibitions fade away, their attitudes towards their partner softens. They start accepting each other, enjoy dancing with harmony. In my teens, I had similar experiences. I would generally be a shy person and keep away from most guys.  Ã‚  

A Personal Experiment in Renunciation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

A Personal Experiment in Renunciation - Essay Example I substituted with a plant-based diet inspired by Asian cuisine that is based on eastern traditions. Eastern traditions hold that food can be effectively used to attain balance and harmony within the body. On this day, I consume tofu laver soup and polenta. My craving for meet is quite evident. I struggle to refrain from eating meat and animal products which I am quite used to on the first day. I do not realise any significant change in my body save for the fact that I do not use a tooth pick to remove food particles stuck between my teeth. Day 2: July 24, 2014 - Instead of the usual tea, sausage, pizza and chicken, I consume spoon cabbage and tofu soup noodles on the second day of the experiment. Having ordered something that I have never ordered from a restaurant in the past, my friends are quite surprised and amused by my choice of food. I have to struggle with my self-centred ego as I try to convince my friends that I have not gone crazy. I almost swear that this is the last time I am eating out with my friends during the period of my experiment. chicken that is clearly delicious. I am concerned about their amusement and greatly tempted to give up. I am also greatly attracted to the meal that my family members are taking....its far more tasty than what I am going to eat. I realise that my concern for external things is still high. Day 4: July 26, 2014 - I am greatly tempted to give up the exercise. Luckily, a friend of mine on vegetarian diet encourages and convinces me to go on with the exercise. I feel like I am missing meat and may not be able to resist a bite if it is offered to me. I am getting used to the taste of the vegetarian diet gradually. I feel that my breath has gotten fresher and I am more self controlled at the end of the day as I care less about what others think of my choice to go vegetarian. Day 5: July 27, 2014 – On this day, quite surprisingly my two wisdom teeth that have been making me

Exploring An Occurrence At Owl Creek Bridge

Exploring An Occurrence At Owl Creek Bridge The short story An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge has received more critical attention than any other single work written by Ambrose Bierce. This is most likely because of the way the story combines into one text the best components distributed among much of Bierces fiction such as narrative, plot, imagery, the exposure of human-deception, and a surprise ending (Stoicheff 1). In An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge, Bierce differentiates between internal and external worlds and illustrates that the mind can create its own realities and escapes. He does not tell the reader that Farquhar is hallucinating, but instead expects the reader to evaluate the story and realize the impossibility of events described in the final events of the story. With such literary techniques, Bierce opposed many of the literary trends of his day in both his journalism and his fiction. He believed any view of life which ignored the unconscious processes of mind could not call itself realistic (Davidson 2). Bierc es works reflect his obsession with ironic, unnecessary, and strange death, as well as his cynical, disillusioned attitude on the meaninglessness of life (Habibi 2). He detested war and saw firsthand the absurdity and insanity of it. This emerges as a connecting theme in several of his writings. His protagonists are usually antiheroes and they make conscious decisions based on flawed thinking, which ultimately lead to tragic predicaments (Habibi 2-3). Bierce is known for his use of literary elements and skillfully uses third person narrative, a quickly paced plot, realistic detail, and blends fantasy and reality to lead the reader into believing in Farquhars escape. Therefore, the reader is unable to interpret Farquhars true fate until the very end of the story. Bierce cleverly chooses to write this story in third person narrative. By using third person narrative, the author is able to do a variety of different things to capture the readers attention and keep them guessing. He most likely chooses this course of action to convey to the reader the main characters feelings and emotions and to conceal his death. This perspective, often called limited omniscience, tells the story from an observers standpoint (Samide 1). By definition, this narrator knows all things important in the story, even a characters own thoughts. Therefore, the reader is able to get a more in depth look into how the main character is feeling, as well as tell the reader the outward world of the story (Samide 1). In this story, the author chooses to focus on the mind of only one main character, Farquhar, and enters it extensively throughout the course of the story. At any given time, the narrator may also move in and out of the chosen characters mind and thoughts, or inform the reader about what is happening in the outer world of the story. Because the author chooses this point of view, it is difficult for the reader to know Farquhars escape is unreal until the last line of the story, when the narrator emerges from his mind to tell the reader Farquhar is dead (Samide 1). Bierce skillfully forces the reader to believe in Farquhars hallucinated escape and therefore, is able to surprise the reader with Farquhars death. It enables Bierce to take the reader inside Farquhars mind to demonstrate how emotional confusion alters not only the way the mind interprets the reality of a situation, but also the way it perceives the passage of time. Bierce also uses a rapidly paced plot to keep the reader from figuring out the surprise ending. He quickly paces the plot in order to distract the reader from closely examining Farquhars unlikely escapes from death. Before the reader has time to consider the likelihood of a broken neck from the rope or some other injury, Bierce has Farquhar struggling not to drown. He sinks deep into the water, his hands still tied together and the noose still wrapped around his neck. So instead of thinking about his broken neck or suffering from another injury, the reader focuses on his new problem of drowning. Then, somehow, Farquhar is able to free his hands from the rope and slips off the noose. But again, the reader is relieved that Farquhar escapes drowning that he does not fully examine the likeliness of this escape. Then, Farquhar bursts to the surface of the water for air and must start dodging bullets, diverting the readers attention once more from the previous escapes from the ropes and dr owning (Samide 3). Therefore, by using a rapid paced plot, Bierce is able to distract the reader from examining the likeliness of the escapes by creating new diversions, making it more believable for the reader. Another literary device Bierce uses in An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge is the element of imagery. Bierce relies heavily upon imagery throughout the story, centering on sight and sounds to make his tale more convincing. Bierce goes to great lengths to describe the opening sequence in terms of its military arrangement. He provides vivid images of group formations and soldier stances such as a single company of infantry in line, the barrels inclining backward against the right shoulder, the hands crossed upon the stock, at parade rest the butts of the rifles on the ground (Bierce 72). These descriptions show Bierces past military experience in various wars and battles, giving the story a sense of realism. Also by using such realistic details, Bierce is able to make Farquhars escape more believable to the reader. After the first round of shots from the soldiers, when he hears the captain give orders to fire, Farquhar dives deep into the water. Some of the bullets, still warm from the g uns, spiral down into the water beside him (Samide 3). One lodged between his collar and neck; it was uncomfortably warm and he snatched it out. (Bierce 75) These few examples of realism lead the reader to believe that Farquhar is really escaping. When he comes to the surface again, the current has taken Farquhar out of shooting range of personal weapons, but he must now worry about the cannon being used. The first shot misses, but sprays him with water. The second shot is a much better shot that will surely hit him, but suddenly, the current whirls him around a bend in the river and throws him up on the bank, out of aim of the cannon (Samide 3). While the rapid series of dangers has caused the reader to consider the probability of each escape, the authors use of imagery and realistic detail convinces the reader that he is out of danger and is now on his way to finishing his escape by losing himself in the dense forest and getting back home to his wife and family (Samide 3). The res t of the story goes on to describe Farquhars long trip home. He continues on his journey through the forest and finally arrives to the gate of his own home. He sees his wife and she holds out her hands in joyous welcome. As Farquhar reaches out to embrace her, he feels a stunning blow to his neck, sees a blinding white light, hears a sounds like the shock of a cannon-then all is darkness and silence (Bierce76). At this point in the story, the limited narrator moves out of Farquhars mind and returns to the objective world on the bridge, revealing to the reader the shocking last line and revelation that, all along, the escape was Farquhars hallucination (Samide 3-4). Peyton Farquhar was dead; his body, with a broken neck, swung gently from side to side beneath the timbers of the Owl Creek Bridge. (Bierce 76) One of the literary elements Bierce uses that he is most known for is his blending of fantasy and reality. Bierce mixes the external world of death with Farquhars internal world, resulting in the success of his hallucination. Farquhar, in his mind, is imagining his incredible escape when he is actually dying. Bierce skillfully uses metaphors and similes in order to secretly describe the true fate of Farquhar. For example, Bierce uses the pendulum not only as a significant metaphor for time, but also as a simile for Farquhars body, which swung gently from side to side beneath the timbers of the Owl Creek Bridge (Bierce 76). Farquhar is conscious of motionà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ of a vast pendulum because his body literally traces, and therefore senses it. Similar intrusions of other objective stimuli into Farquhars experience occur throughout the rest of the story. The sharp report of the firing gun, its slightly later dulled thunder, and the alleged explosion of the cannon that was cracking and smashing the branches in the forest beyond are all Farquhars hallucinated revision of the sound of his own neck breaking. Bierce successfully emphasizes the association, describing the literal event of Farquhars neck breaking as occurring with sound like the shock of a cannon. Farquhars sensation of rising rising toward the surface of the water is the dreamers understanding of the slight bounce the body experiences after reaching the extremity of its flexible rope; the feeling of almost drowning in the creek modifies the fact of strangulation itself; the horribly aching neck and the uncomfortably warm bullet impossibly lodged between his collar and his neck under the water reinterpret the pain of hanging; the counter-swirl that spins him around in the current refers to the twisting at the end of the rope; the projecting point which concealed him from his enemies transforms the bridge now above him; the sensation of his own tongue thrusting forward from between his teeth into the cold air registers its grotesque protrusion during strangulation; the inability to feel the roadway beneath his feet is a similarly accurate feeling, dutifully revised into an understandable fatigue, thirst and numbness near the end of his narrative of escape (Stoicheff 3). Thus, a key element in the story is the distention of time and the blending of fantasy and reality. The reader is left with a range of reactions: the element of surprise, the promise and loss of hope, the tragedy of death, the ultimate coherence of objective reality, and acknowledgment of Bierces carefully constructed deception (Habibi 1). Bierce skillfully blends the third person point of view that conceals Farquhars death until the very end, a rapidly paced plot of narrow escapes from death that distract the reader, concrete details that make the final escape seem real, and the technique of blending fantasy and reality (Samide 4). Bierces usage of narrative, plot, imagery, and blending of fantasy and reality make it hard for the reader to detect Farquhars true fate until the final line of the story. In An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge, Bierce distinguishes between the internal and external worlds of Farquhar and shows the reader that the mind can create its own realities and its own escapes. He expects the reader to evaluate the story and realize on his own the impossibility of events described in the final events of the story (Davidson 2). Bierce purposely uses these elements of fiction in order to create a suspenseful ending that connects with the central theme of the human need to escape death. Work Cited Welty Bierce, Ambrose. An Occurrence at Owl Creek. Literature: An Introduction to Reading and Writing. 9th ed. Ed. Edgar V. Roberts. New York: Pearson Longman, 2009, 71-76. Samide, Daniel E. Anatomy of a Classic: Ambrose Bierce Cleverly Used Some Key Literary Tools in Crafting His Civil War Tale An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge. The Writer May 2005:42. Literature Resources from Gale. Web. 5 Apr. 2010. Habibi, Don Asher. The experience of a lifetime: philosophical reflections on a narrative device of Ambrose Bierce. Studies in the Humanities 29.2 (2002): 83+. Academic OneFile. Web. 11 Apr. 2010. Davidson, Cathy N. Ambrose (Gwinett) Bierce. American Short-Story Writers Before 1880. Ed. Bobby Ellen Kimbel and William E. Grant. Detroit: Gale Research, 1988. Dictionary of Literary Biography Vol. 74. Literature Resources from Gale. Web. 10 Apr. 2010. Stoicheff, Peter. Something Uncanny: The Dream Structure in Ambrose Bierces An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge. Studies in Short Fiction 30.3 (Summer 1993): 349-357. Joseph Palmisano. Vol. 72. Detroit: Gale, 2004. Literature Resources from Gale. Web. 10 Apr. 2010.