Rehabilitation Paper Essay

Rehabilitation is a word that is used often within the corrections, in the prison setting. It is an attempt to change an individual’s attitude and behavior. There are programs that are to prevent habitual offenders, help a criminal get to their normal state of mind and not to be punishing for their action that may cause the criminal to change and become an outstanding citizen that follows the rules instead of the individual getting out and committing another crime. Throughout the years there has been many processes created to form rehabilitation process of criminal justice. The process has helped many offenders by allowing him/her to return within their community as a changed individual. Rehabilitation is a specific program that is applied within a prison setting to bring the end of a criminal’s behavior called desistance, the meaning to cease and stop. An inmate getting into the right program would keep them long enough in order to complete the program successfully, once the program has been completed then the inmate can be put in the community so that their behavior would be tested as a non-criminal behavior. There are some facilities that offer rehab, religion, and anger management (Foster, 2006). In the twentieths century it was believed that prison official were not able to give a defined and clear method of rehabilitation (Foster, 2006). Scientific penology was a major role in defining and conducting structured thoughts and scientific studies that is utilized through rehabilitation (Foster, 2006). The program has an effect on prisoners, the prisons and society in various ways. Inmates have these types of programs available as it gives the individual something constructive to do with his/her time. The type of rehabilitation programs can have a  positive impact on inmate’s life, if rehabilitation is completed while incarcerated all means his/her life change and when released they will benefit to society. In my opinion, I think that prison rehabilitation is in a good setting when it comes to offenders however, once an individual is released he/she should continue to be monitored for a period of time to make sure that they stay on the straight and positive path. Rehabilitation can help an individual make positive choices in his or her life. I just believe that it can be a positive program, however prisoners have to see a need for rehabilitation. Rehabilitation is a word that is used often within the corrections, in the prison setting. It is an attempt to change an individual’s attitude and behavior. There are programs that are to prevent habitual offenders, help a criminal get to their normal state of mind and not to be punishing for their action that may cause the criminal to change and become an outstanding citizen that follows the rules instead of the individual getting out and committing another crime. Throughout the years there has been many processes created to form rehabilitation process of criminal justice. The process has helped many offenders by allowing him/her to return within their community as a changed individual. Rehabilitation is a specific program that is applied within a prison setting to bring the end of a criminal’s behavior called desistance, the meaning to cease and stop. An inmate getting into the right program would keep them long enough in order to complete the program successfully, once the program has been completed then the inmate can be put in the community so that their behavior would be tested as a non-criminal behavior. There are some facilities that offer rehab, religion, and anger management (Foster, 2006). In the twentieths century it was believed that prison official were not able to give a defined and clear method of rehabilitation (Foster, 2006). Scientific penology was a major role in defining and conducting structured thoughts and scientific studies that is utilized through rehabilitation (Foster, 2006). The program has an effect on prisoners, the prisons and society in various ways. Inmates have these types of programs available as it gives the individual something constructive to do with his/her time. The type of rehabilitation programs can have a  positive impact on inmate’s life, if rehabilitation is completed while incarcerated all means his/her life change and when released they will benefit to society. In my opinion, I think that prison rehabilitation is in a good setting when it comes to offenders however, once an individual is released he/she should continue to be monitored for a period of time to make sure that they stay on the straight and positive path. Rehabilitation can help an individual make positive choices in his or her life. I just believe that it can be a positive program, however prisoners have to see a need for rehabilitation.

Uses Of Vegetable Cooking Oil Environmental Sciences Essay

Vegetable cookery oil is a lipid rich, syrupy substances ensuing from vegetable beginnings, such as thenar meats and seeds, which is liquid at room temperature ( Merryweather et al. 2005 ) . Vegetable cookery oils contain high proportion of unsaturated fatty acids because they do non incorporate carbon-to-carbon dual bonds. Unsaturated fatty acids are classified into two viz. ; monounsaturated ( those holding merely one dual bond in the C concatenation, such as oleic acid ) and polyunsaturated ( those holding two or more dual bonds in the C concatenation ) determines the features of oil ( CAC 1999 ; Mistry and Khambete 2011 ; GEA Food Solutions 2013 ) . There are several types of vegetable cookery oil used for frying in the catering industries including Olive oil, Soya-bean oil, Sunflower oil, Groundnut oil, Maize oil, Cottonseed oil, Mustard-seed oil, Grape seed oil, and Palm oil [ Codex Alimentarius Commission ( CAC ) 1999 ; GEA Food Solutions 2013 ] . As we all know that vegetable cookery oil is basically used for frying operations in the catering industries.1.2 USES OF VEGETABLE COOKING OILCooking oil is used for frying operations at place and the catering industries. The catering industries are the major users of cooking oil for the readying of several nutrient merchandises such as the eggs, murphy, meat merchandises, veggies and related fried nutrients ( Fellows 2000 ) .1.3 Frying OPERATIONS AND THE USE OF VEGETABLE COOKING OIL BY THE CATERING INDUSTRYFrying is a unit operation which is chiefly used to change the eating quality of some specific nutrients listed supra. These nutrients are of import in catering applications and are produced on a commercial graduated table for gross revenues and distribution ( Fellows 2000 ) . There are two types of frying operations known with the catering industry viz. : Shallow sauteing, and Deep fat sauteing ( Fellows 2000 )1.3.1 SHALLOW FryingThis is besides called contact sauteing. This is suited merely for nutrients such as Warren burgers, eggs and other types of Pattie. In this type of frying operation, heat is transferred to the nutrient surface by conductivity from the hot surface of the pan through a thin bed of oil. It has a high surface heat transportation coefficient of 200-450 Wm-2 k-1. However, there is no even distribution of heat across the whole nutrient surface ( Fellows 2000 ) .1.3.2 DEEP-FAT FryingThis is a cooking procedure of nutrients at temperatures between 140 to 180 oC for a few seconds [ German Society for fat Science ( GBFS ) 2008 ] . This method of frying operation is suited for all sorts of nutrients irrespective of their form. In this method of frying operation, heat transportation takes topographic point by a combination of convection within the hot oil and conductivity to the inside to the nutrient. And all surfaces of the nutrient have a similar heat intervention that is equally distributed. The surface heat transportation coefficient of deep-fat sauteing are ranged between 250-300 Wm-2 k-1 before vaporization of wet from the surface begins but subsequently increased to 800-1000 Wm-2 k-1 due to the violent turbulency caused by steam go forthing the nutrient surface ( Fellows 2000 ) .1.4 EFFECT AND LEGAL REQUIREMENTS FOR COOKING OIL1.4.1 EFFECT OF FRYING OPERATION ON THE QUALITY AND SAFETY OF COOKING OILHeat and oil recovery systems are used to cut down energy and oil costs, particularly in the catering industry. Drawn-out warming due to recycle of oil at the high temperatures during frying operations, in the presence of wet and O released from nutrients, causes oxidization of the oil to organize a scope of volatile carbonyls, hydroxyl acids, keto acids and epoxy acids, which leads to unpleasant spirits and dark coloring material of the oil ; perchance could take to toxicity, decomposition and other nutritionary alte rations can every bit good occur in the oil ( Fellows 2000 ) . These can normally take to the formation of volatile decomposition merchandises and non-volatile decomposition merchandises. The volatile decomposition merchandises have lower molecular weight than the oil and are lost from the sauteing pan due to vaporization. While the non-volatile decomposition merchandises are formed by oxidization and polymerization of the cooking oil and signifier residues on the sides and at the underside of the sauteing container. Polymerization in the absence of O produces cyclic compounds and polymers with high molecular weight, which increase the syrupy features of the cooking oil. This lowers the surface heat transportation coefficient during frying operation and increases the sum of oil absorbed by the finished merchandise. Because of this cooking oil quality reduces if used for several times to fry nutrients ( Fellows 2000 ) . Therefore, there is the demand to command the usage of cooking oil in the catering industry to guarantee the safety and quality of fried nutrient merchandises for human ingestion.1.4.2 LEGAL REQUIREMENT FOR THE USE OF COOKING OIL IN THE CATERING INDUSTRYOil is an expensive merchandise ; managing it expeditiously saves processing costs and ensures invariably high nutrient quality for the consumer in the catering industries. In a extremely competitory catering concern, there is considerable force per unit area on caterers to supply first-class merchandises at the lowest possible monetary value, to fulfill consumers ‘ demands. As a consequence, many of these nutrient concern mercantile establishments are going progressively interested in efficient oil direction, which brings two valuable benefits ; maintaining oil ingestion to a minimal and keeping optimal merchandise quality and visual aspect ( GEA Food Solutions 2013 ) . From the above tabular array provided, polar compounds per centum is limited in all the states subjected to official ordinances although the values vary somewhat from one state to another. Apart from the initial standards of oxidized fatty acid and fume point, free fatty acids and polymer content, the most characteristic groups of compounds originated due to the wet of the nutrient and to the high temperature of the sauteing procedure, severally. And many other states have embraced specific recommendations or guidelines based on similar standards which reflect the increasing involvement in the control of used sauteing oils to better the quality and alimentary belongingss of fried nutrients ( Dobarganes and Marquez-Ruz 1998 ) .1.4.4 OIL USE AND MANAGEMENT IN THE CATERING INDUSTRIESMismanagement of oil can do several unwanted alterations in its features, such as the, coloring material which darkens with black musca volitanss looking ; viscousness which increases during frying ; fume po int which reduces as the oil is broken down doing the oil to develop smoke even under normal operating conditions ; sensory which affects the gustatory sensation and olfactory property of the frying oil becomes hapless ; oil pickup which increases with merchandises fried in debauched oil, and foaming, severally. In pattern, caterers adopt the best possible via media based on costs, market demands, oil direction patterns and frying oil stableness ( CAC 2011 ; GEA Food Solutions 2013 ) .1.4.5 MANAGEMENT OF FRYING OILThere is a demand to pull off frying oil for safety and quality interest by the catering industry. Rossell ( 1998 ) suggests as written below: Do non blend used oil with fresh oil ; Shop fresh oil in a suited storage system with equal cleansing modus operandi ; Do non air out oil ; Do non overheat oil during sauteing operation ; Do non salt nutrients before sauteing ; Do non fry wet nutrient ; Do non disrupt circulation of hot oil ; Do non fry nutrient with oil for over 12 hours without been discarded ; Discard WVO suitably and seasonably in the recommended armored combat vehicles such as steel armored combat vehicles and plastic armored combat vehicles specially designed for oil storage. The British Standards ( BS 799 ) portion 5 ( Reference 5 ) set a criterion for steel armored combat vehicles to be used for the storage of WVO ( Department for Environment, Food & A ; Rural Affairs 2011 ) .1.4.6 WASTE VEGETABLE OIL ( WVO ) MANAGEMENTThe term WVO refers to cooking oil which has been used in nutrient in nutrient production, such as sauteing, and which is no longer feasible for its intended usage ( Refaat 2010 ) . Proper disposal of WVO in the catering industry has been an of import waste direction concern, because on one-year footing about 500 million metric tons of WVO is produced by the big and little catering industry. Harmonizing to available statistics, China entirely generates between 200 and 300 million metric tons of WVO that are illicitly reused alternatively of been discarded by the catering industries, which poses a possible wellness jeopardy to the guiltless consumers. The generated waste ( WVO ) must be decently managed ( that is disposed and recycled ) in order to forestall possible environmental pollution ( Zhang et al. 2012 ) . WVO is normally disposed into sinks, taking to blockage of pipes ; and if acquire into the H2O organic structures ( rivers, seas and oceans ) doing the oxygenation of H2O hard. This act of illegal WVO disposal can ensue to asphyxiation and likely the violent death of the marine lives such as the fishes and other animate beings that live in the sea, rivers and oceans. Because of WVO disposal into the H2O organic structures, a individual liter of WVO disposed can pollute every bit much as 1 million liters of H2O ( Refaat 2010 ) . WVO contains about a 1000 portion per million of entire halogens but with the possibility of been recycled and used as a biodiesel if decently managed by the catering industry [ Texas Commission on Environmental Quality ( TCEQ ) 2012 ] . Therefore: Do rub and scraping used home bases, pans and utensils before lavation ; WVO should be stored in labeled containers and/or armored combat vehicles that are in good status ; Keep WVO storage containers covered and off from conditions ; Do non blend WVO with any other liquids, such as anti-freeze, interruption cleansing agent, gasolene, pigment dilutants, pesticides and chemicals ; Obtain all necessary training/education and certification on the direction of WVO from the relevant governments and experts ; Keep records of all WVO storage and recycling activities ; Send WVO for recycling to a registered and certified recycling company ; Do non dump WVO in the rubbish, on the land, or down a drain because it is illegal dispose used oil in that mode ; Do usage strainers in sink stopper holes, and empty contents trapped into the designated bin ; Make keep grease traps and enzyme dosing equipment on a regular basis ( TCEQ 2012 ; Water UK 2013 ) . Recently, it has been established that WVO can be used in the production of low monetary value biodiesel fuel with the possibility of executing really good like any other combustible stuffs ( Refaat 2010 ) . Even though Gbobadian et Al. ( 2009 ) stressed that the concentration of the carbonmonoxide and hydrocarbon emanations were significantly decreased when biodiesel was tested. However, burning efficaciousness of WVO used as a biodiesel remained changeless ( Refaat 2010 ) . More significantly, WVO is a renewable, biodegradable and environmentally friendly biodiesel with promising combustibleness ( Refaat 2010 ; Mistry and Khambete 2011 ) . Biodiesel from WVO can merely be used for energy production if purified decently and met the demand set by EN 12214 Standard. The liquid-liquid extraction method shows assuring consequence ( Berrios et al.2011 ) .1.5.0 REGULATIONS FOR WVO MANAGEMENTThere are many Regulations put in topographic point in UK for proper direction of WVO, fat and nutr ient waste ( Water UK 2013 ) : Animal By-Products Regulations EC 1774/2002 ( ABPR ) ; Building Act 1984, Section 59 ; Environmental Protection Act 1990 ( Duty of Care ) ; Environmental Protection Act 1990 ( Statutory Nuisance ) ; Food Safety Act 1990.1.5.1 Animal By-products Regulations EC 1774/2002 ( ABPR )Regulations EC 1774/2002 ( ABPR ) states that from 1 November, 2004 WVO from providing industries can no longer be used as an ingredient in carnal provender preparation to safe guard the nutrient concatenation. The aggregation of WVO must be through a accredited waste bearer. Besides from October 2007 liquid waste, such as WVO, may non be disposed of at landfill.1.5.2 Building Act 1984, Section 59Section 59 of the Building Act 1984 gives power to local authorization to necessitate satisfactory proviso for drainage of an bing edifice by service of a notice on the proprietor ; including a demand for the installing of a lubricating oil trap.1.5.3 Environmental Protection Act 1990 ( Duty of Care )This Act emphasizes that every commercial premises set uping aggregation and disposal of waste, such as WVO, must follow with the demands of Section 34 of the Environmental Protection Act ( Duty of Care ) Regulations 1991 as amended. The aim of the ‘Duty of Care ‘ is to guarantee that all waste is managed right from the point of production to the point of concluding disposal. The manufacturer of waste, such as the catering industry, should merely let ‘Registered waste bearer ‘ to roll up generated for disposal from their premises. Besides, they must maintain a record of all wastes aggregations, because failure to supply paperss can ensue in a ?300.00 fixed mulct or prosecution.1.5.4 Environmental Protection Act 1990 ( Statutory Nuisance )The local authorization ‘s environmental wellness section will cover with all reported ailments of ‘Statutory Nuisance ‘ that could happen due to blow botching, such as odors, wastewaters, garbage accretion and premises that pose menace to human wellness or a nuisance. And where a statutory nuisance exists the local authorization has to function an ‘abatement notice ‘ under Section 80 of the Act. But failure to follow can ensue in prosecution ; or emptying of the waste by the authorization and claim cost from the proprietor of the concern.1.5.5 Food Safety Act 1990This Act gives local authorization the power to inspect premises under the Food Safety Act 1990. Problems originating from the consequence of fat, oil and lubricating oil on drains ensuing in a failure to follow with the Food Hygiene Regulations could ensue in prosecution or an exigency prohibition order forestalling trading from the premises.1.6 DiscussionThe healthiest oil for cookery is one that is composed chiefly of monounsaturated fat. Processed oils incorporating a high measure of concentrated fats are considered the least healthy by most medical practicians, but saturated fats from natural beginnings can hold some benefits. Contrary to popular belief, fat is really a valuable portion of people ‘s diet, leting people to absorb foods that require fat in order to metabolise in the organic structure ( Tricia 2013 ) . Most oils from nuts are considered reasonably healthy, but one should be careful utilizing oil derived particularly from peanuts or walnuts as these are most often indicated in terrible nut allergic reactions. If one plans to utilize insignificant oil on a dish served to invitees, be certain to verify that no invitee has a peanut allergic reaction. Peanut oil contains high sums of monounsaturated fat. Olive oil is considered by some to be the healthiest oil because it provides a mix of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated. It can besides be obtained in really pure signifier, which most wellness experts recommend ( Tricia 2013 ) . Deep sauteing between the temperature ranges of 170 oC and 200 oC can take to the formation of Acrylamide when frying particularly starchy nutrient such as the murphies. Besides, there is likeliness that oil will undergo hydrolysis, oxidization and thermic polymerization ( Wai 2007 ) . These reactions can take to some nutrient safety and quality issues that would necessitate attending from the nutrient safety and quality experts. Because hydrolysis of oil is the dislocation of oil complex compounds to glycerol, FFAs, monoglycerides and diglycerides. While oxidization of used oil implies the dislocation of the triglyceride molecules to hydroperoxides ( due to primary oxidization ) , every bit good as into volatile and non-volatile compounds ( due to secondary oxidization ) causation increased in oil viscousity and stain. And thermic polymerisation leads to the production of high molecular cyclic fatty acid ( FA ) monomers ( Wai 2007 ) . Zhang et Al. ( 2012 ) suggested that: Governments should pay more attending to market-oriented policies on WVO disposal and direction towards guaranting developing biofuel from it ; Relevant authorities bureaus and stakeholders should work together to guarantee that the recycle and reuse of WVO and biofuel go a world by seting in topographic point feasible policy and system ; Certain rigorous legal steps and demands should be established by authoritiess to implement and supervise the policy and legal model refering ordinances on the direction of WVO in order to c heckmate the activities of the catering industry. This might cut down and forestall the reuse of exhausted oil ( WVO ) for another unit of ammunition ( s ) of frying operation ( s ) by the catering industry.1.7 DecisionIn decision, with the depletion of universe crude oil militias and the increased environmental concerns, the acceptance and usage of WVO as a biodiesel is timely and would be helpful. The production of biodiesel from WVO offers economic, environmental and godforsaken direction solutions to the catering industry and the greenish blue system as a whole ( Mistry and Khambete 2011 ) . Although before this immense dream of utilizing WVO for biofuel can be a world there is the demand for an integrated attempts between the relevant authorities bureau and the catering industry ( Zhang et al.2012 ) .

What is Peak Oil and what are the implications for the main transport Essay - 2

What is Peak Oil and what are the implications for the main transport modes (cars; trucks; trains; ships; aircraft) - Essay Example Geologist, M. King Hubbert had first developed the concept of â€Å"Peak oil† while he was working for Shell Ltd., an oil company. The main hypothesis of Hubbert is that production of petroleum products can only increase up to a certain point, the maximum production. After that, production will surely decline. Hubert had originally predicted in 1956 that oil production of the United States will begin to fall from the period of 70s (Nà ¤f, 2010). Though initially rejected, validity of this hypothesis had begun to gain momentum when this possibility showed signs of reality. Since then, various analysts had used the background of Hubbert to predict the peak year for world oil decline. The expected time frame for the decline is 2004 to 2008 (National Research Council, 2006). The following graph shows the initial hypothesis of Hubbert. According to current estimates, the peak year of production depends heavily on the future demand. The exact time frame has not been commonly agreed upon, but estimates claim that it is likely to happen before 2020 (Mobbs, 2005). The current estimates have suggested that assuming the world economy to grow at 3-3.5% per annum, the consumption of oil in developing countries will rise from 84 bbl/day in 2005 to 120 bbl/day in 2025. Additionally, assuming depletion of oil at 3-3.5% per annum, the current demand can only be met if 98 bbl/day is produced from sources other than the existing ones, which are almost impossible (Graefe, 2011). The peak oil debate has continued for too long and no concrete results have been reached. The ones for the notion debate that the production will always lag behind discovery and the decline is terminal (Kaufmann, n.d.). Over the last few decades, newer sites that had been discovered had shown that reserves in them are not too high and cannot be sustained for a long-term. The Kuwait oil company has also decided on using multi-cyclic models to overcome

Primary Source Annotation Assignment about women history in USA Essay

Primary Source Annotation Assignment about women history in USA - Essay Example In his defense of what he considers a woman’s practice, he establishes the origin of man-midwifery as a â€Å"fashion first set by the court prostitute of Paris† in December 1663. He urges the Bostonians not to accept the practice of man-midwifery and instead urges women to advertise themselves in the papers as practitioners of the art. The fact that Gregory finds it important to offer such a strong defense in favor of women is a statement that women in the colonial era were not regarded as qualified enough to perform â€Å"obstetric art† (15). He also alludes to the fact that most husbands, wives, and daughters were not at ease with male mid-wives as â€Å"the husband’s monopoly over his wife ceased† (9). The statement clearly shows that man-midwifery was associated with moral decadence and extramarital relations. Several aspects of women in the colonial era emerge Gregory’s paper. First, the fact that it is a man championing the rights of women to monopolize the practice of midwifery means that women at the time were not in a position to argue for themselves. This could be as a result of lack of training and education. Gregory applauds efforts from Paris where an institution was established to train women on midwifery practices. He suggests that such an institution should be established in Boston. The growing custom of man-midwifery or accoucheurs was seen as a â€Å"war against women [which was] prosecuted with the same vigor [in Boston] as in England† (11). This shows that even as early as 1840, women were still struggling to be recognized as an important part of the society. Those who supported women to take up the midwifery roles sought to embrace the long standing tradition that was established in England and Europe as a whole. At first Gregory points to instances where women in the past have taken the task of helping fellow women deliver. He associates the

How firms gain competitive advantage in the changing business dynamics Essay

How firms gain competitive advantage in the changing business dynamics - Essay Example The intention of this study is the change management that has increasingly become key element of competitive advantage for the business organizations in the current environment of volatility and rapidly transforming socio-economic and political imperatives. The need to identify the drivers of change and incorporating the same within the business strategies by organizational leadership has become top priority for mot only to succeed but also to survive. The five authors discussed in the paper believe that changes are good for the firms and firms which have flexible approach are better able to absorb changes and surge ahead of others. In the highly competitive market, firms need to leverage their competencies for competitive advantage. The various modules and mechanisms of evaluating and analyzing the performance metrics become highly critical factors for success of the firm. The internal and external exigencies influence the performance of the firms and therefore need to be analyzed, evaluated and exploited for gaining leverage against their rivals in the industry. Indeed, the firms survive or fail in the competitive market mainly because they either unable to anticipate changes in the environment or failed to exploit the opportunities that were offered by the changes to survive and gain competitive edge. The visionary outlook of the leadership and the innovative approach of the firms are vital inputs that facilitate and create opportunities to maintain their niche market position. The paper would primarily be evaluating the works of five authors who have introduced radical concepts in the business strategies to cope with the environmental changes.... The paper would primarily be evaluating the works of five authors who have introduced radical concepts in the business strategies to cope with the environmental changes. Section 1 What is change and how companies cope with changes Change is inevitable and irreversible process that provokes reaction and forces people out of their comfort zone. Most importantly, impact of change becomes most visible when it is viewed adversely. Bateman and Zaithaml (1990) stress that organizations need to change because the environment within which they operate is constantly changing. The organizational leadership therefore becomes the vital ingredient that prepares and motivates people to become flexible. It not only helps them to adopt changes but also to look for opportunities in contextual changes which can be exploited for improving their productivity and outcome. As the following authors assert, changes become enabling factors when they are explored for opportunities. Indeed, the authors have dif ferent perspective on change and change management. Change management has become a critical issue for firms. They emphasize that it helps them to understand, anticipate, evaluate and analyze changes to identify the drivers of change and explore opportunities for exploiting them. They believe that changes are good for the firms and firms which have flexible approach are better able to absorb changes and surge ahead of others. Some of the mechanisms that are evolved to cope with changes are: fostering business alliances; using technology; thinking out of the box; being innovative through new development and R&D; creating learning environment; exploiting human

Marketing Plan for R200 Revola Smart Phone Research Paper

Marketing Plan for R200 Revola Smart Phone - Research Paper Example They are also data enabled However, the smart phone models that are currently available in the market have several deficits. Storage memory is limited because the in built memory is limited and has a provision for just one microSD memory card slot. Due to the multitasking on the smart phone battery life is really reduced requiring one to keep recharging frequently. A majority of smart phones are recharged from an electric circuit which may be a barrier if one is not in a position to access electricity. Touch screen smart phone models have high sensitivity and easily damaged when in contact with dust and water. There is a potent market for the product R200 smart phone since consumers have raised concern that besides the great technological configuration of the regular smart phones, they are easily damaged. The introduction of a gadget that resolves this deficit would seal the gap in the market. Introduction Revola is a communication company dealing in the manufacture of such products like mobile phones, computer chips and operating system software. It a medium sized company considering its capital base and the market share in the communication industry. Revola has developed a smart phone R200 series to meet the current market need. This marketing plan describes our market share and the strategies we are applying to get customers and create a reliable revenue flow (Keegan et.al 200). ... solve these challenges with the advanced technological feature that it possesses .This phone has 4GB in built memory, and two microSD memory card slots creating the capacity to hold a wider file capacity. The model uses a solar battery with a longer life. Besides its ability to utilize electric energy, the battery can also be recharged by solar energy. This saves on the inconveniences that a low battery can have and also on energy consumption. Dust and water proof technologies have also been incorporated reducing the risk for damage incase of contact (Keegan et.al 200). The company intends to generate revenue for the development of our smart phones by having a public offer of our company shares in the stock market to increase our capital base by shareholder funding. The company intends to offer consultation services to other manufactures who deal in the market of some of our other products such as computer chips and operating systems software (Viardot 200). In the initial stage of th e smart phone business, we look forward to stock revenue and consultation returns to form a large part of our revenue flow (Hartline and Ferrell 200). Current Marketing Situation and market description The current global technology revolution has created a tremendous market for information gadgets such as the R200 smart phones. The coming up various social sites has encouraged dynamic socialization creating a greater market for gadgets that are portable and able to access the internet. People need smarter ways to plan and manage their daily activities and a mobile gadget with these provisions such as the R200 smart phone make the ideal example (Hartline and Ferrell 200). The company’s ideal target customer group includes the business class who has to manage a number of daily activities

Discovery English Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Discovery English - Essay Example However, these journal previews had much of the information that I needed to analyze them. To analyze and evaluate a journal we need to consider its output, content, perception and usage, citation and management (Haustein v). The two journals I analyze in this Paper are the American Education History Journal, Volume 31, and the Journal of Research in Character Education, Volume 6. The American Education History Journal, volume 31, was first published in 2004. One of its outspoken positive qualities is that it has several topics which can be viewed in its preview at no cost through the internet. Another positive quality is that it covers a wide range of topic related to elementary education most of which contain comprehensive information about research undertaken in this field (Watras 1). Moreover, its research surveys are not biased to any country thus making it a worldwide journal. However, the journal also has some negative qualities. One of its negative qualities is the inaccessib ility of the full view of the journal only that makes the information available from this journal to be limited. Our other journal, the Journal of Research in Character Education, Volume 6, was published in 2008. It has several positive qualities, one of them being having the most recent information on current research on elementary education. ... However, it has a preview which can be viewed through the internet at no cost since it contain much of the information which an elementary profession can require. It was published for many years ago in 2004 and its information is as important as those in the latest journals are and hence it has a good durability. The journal had a lot of prestige in the field of elementary education when it was first published because of the quality of its content. However, it has lost some of its prestige due to the emergence of current journals in this field that relies mostly on current research. The institution of origin of this journal is the University of North Carolina. This is where the journal was first edited and published. University of North Carolina is the place where it is currently published although currently it can be purchased from several books distributers. Journal of Research in Character Education is costly to purchase since it is among the most current journals. Like our previo us journal, this one too has large longevity since it is currently as much useful as when it was published in 2008. It is also very much prestigious because it carries information from highly rated scholars and it contains information from most current research. One of such research is research on the effect of school-based program in enhancing pre-social development of Children (Milson and Berkowitz 1). The institution origin of this journal also is the University of North Carolina. This is where it was edited and published. From my interviews, I found out that many scholars in the current society are still using these two journals. Two people I interviewed told me that they have used either a

Last 2 religion journal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Last 2 religion journal - Essay Example In the former, spiritual experiences are taken to be the result of the processes of matter. In pantheistic theology, both nature and mind (spirit) are considered to be manifestations of some divine principle, which pervades all nature but is ultimately not different from it. The view that nature depends on God can be either theistic or deistic. For me, both of these trends have one thing in common: They assume that nature is ordered and that the human mind is capable of tracing out that order. One could, therefore, try to unfold on an analytical basis the respective impacts of those various religious ideologies on the scientific enterprise. However, such an approach would, at almost every step, imply historical considerations about science, and all the more so as science has only gradually revealed itself as a strictly quantitative study of things in motion. It may, therefore, seem more logical to specify, from the start, those impacts in their historical context, because pantheism, theism, deism, and materialism represent also a historical sequence (Byrne 54). This opinion holds true in respect both to the formulation of a major scientific theory and to its subsequent interpretation. Hence, the relation of deism to science is a matter that is essentially different in its status before and after Newtons Principia. Before the appearance of that work, which preceded the robust emergence of deism in the Western world, pantheism and deism could play their respectively inhibitory and creative roles in science (Byrne 59). After the Principia, exact science had a broadly articulated mathematical, or quantitative, structure that safely operated within its own set of methodical canons and retained a very large measure of independence from participating scientists religious or antireligious motivations. And, as is well known, this distinction led to the deism, which

Play Therapy for Children with Sensory Processing Disorder(SPD) Essay

Play Therapy for Children with Sensory Processing Disorder(SPD) - Essay Example tional senses, the touch,  hearing, taste, sight and smell; as well as two additional senses, the vestibular and the proprioceptive senses, which tell us what position our body is in (Ayres, 25th edition, page 38). Carol Stock has defined this condition as "inefficient neurological processing of information received through the senses, causing problems with learning, development, and behavior"(The Out-of –Sync Child, 1998). Other common terminologies used for this condition are Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD), Dysfunction of Sensory Integration (DSI) and Sensory Integrative  Disorder (SID). The term Sensory Integration Dysfunction, was coined by Dr. A. Jean Ayres, a researcher and pioneer in the field of occupational therapy (Miller, Sensory Processing Disorder Foundation). Sensory systems are means of perceiving the external world. They are essential for maintaining arousal, forming body image and regulating movement. Sensory inputs are necessary for brain function and contribute to development. Thus, those children in whom sensory inputs are not integrated or processed normally, experience real-life situations in a different manner when compared to normal children (Ayres, 25th edition, pages 13-22) . Many children with SPD have normal intelligence (â€Å"How is SPD treated?†, Sensory Processing Disorder Foundation), but the way they perceive sensory information is different from the normal children. This does not mean they are blind or deaf. The blind and deaf children do not perceive the specific senses at all. There is defect in the visual or auditory pathways. Whereas, in a child with SPD, these pathways are normal, the perception is also present, but the perception is abnormal. The children are either hyposensitive or hypersensitive to outside stimuli. For example, a child who is hyposensitive to touch will constantly be crashing into things seeking extra stimulation, while a hypersensitive child will avoid being touched or will not touching things when

African American Essay Essay Example for Free

African American Essay Essay African American literature is captivating, powerful, spiritual, and emotional. The recurring theme is slavery but there are others such as inequality among sexes and races, injustice, resentment, and the strong belief in religion. These pieces of literature have been told by the individuals who went through the experience of slavery such as Frederick Douglass and others, like Jamaica Kincaid who have a passion for writing. The writers who experienced slavery themselves had differing views of their experience and relationship with their master. These pieces of literature share the pain, strength, heartache and will to go that each of these individuals experienced. The first reading is, To My Old Master, by Jourdan Anderson. This piece of literature is Anderson’s response to a letter he has received from his old master. It is a compelling story about how terrible and bad the Whites treated the African Americans. The master want’s Anderson and his family to come back and work for him. He reminds the master about how poorly they were treated while working for him. Anderson states, â€Å"Although you shot at me twice before I left you, I did not want to hear of your being hurt, and am glad you are still living. † (1865, p. 15). Anderson tells the master that he is making money and his family is living and doing well. He even expresses that his children are receiving an education now. It is very apparent to the reader that Anderson’s wife does not want to return and work for the master. â€Å"Mandy says she would be afraid to go back without some proof that you were disposed to treat us justly and kindly; and we have concluded to test your sincerity by asking you to send us our wages for the time we served you. † (1865, p. 16). Anderson remembers how horribly the woman and girls were treated, and he will never allow his daughters to go through that experience. â€Å"I would stay here and starve- and die, if it come to that- than to have my girls brought to shame by the violence and wickedness of their young masters. † (1865, p. 16) The end of the story the reader still feels Anderson’s resentment and bitterness toward the master. The next story and the one piece I enjoyed the most is, â€Å"White Folks Treated Us Good† by Marriah Hines. Hines states, â€Å"My white people treated us decent. † (p. 32). She goes onto further explain how her master feed, dressed, and kept them well. Hines explains how terrible master’s treated other slaves. â€Å"Some unfortunate individuals practically have nothing to eat. Why, the way their owners treated them was disgraceful treated them like felines and canines† (Hines, p. 32). Hines sounds fortunate and lucky to have worked for her master. The master gave the slaves Sunday off to rest and even allowed them to attend Church. Unlike other slaves Hines was never raped, beaten, or treated in a physical horrible way. The compelling part of this piece occured when the slaves were allowed to leave; most of them choose to stay. â€Å"Most of us stayed right there and raised our own crops. † (p. 34). Hines knew of her freedom but believed in her loyalty to her master and his family. The master provided her with assistance and support. A rare occurrence to read an African American piece of literature that speaks of a master in a positive and respectful manner. This master was a different man of his time. He did not take advantage of his slaves or treat them in a horrendous manner. This master used his slaves to care and run his property but treated them with respect and dignity, they deserved. Hines went onto, marry Benjamin F. Hines and give birth to five children. The last piece of literature is, â€Å"If We Must Die† by Claude McKay. This poem is about how horribly and disgusting Whites treated African Americans. It is written about the race riots in 1919. It describes the strength of the African Americans standing up to the Whites even if it ultimately meant dying. McKay states, â€Å"Like men we’ll face the murderous, cowardly pack, pressed to the wall, dying but fighting back! † (p. 378). This poem exemplifies the bravery and the will to fight for what is right otherwise these people would have been beaten and killed for the rest of their lives. There will always be a presence of racism in the world and specifically in the United States of America. Still today African Americans are treated equally as Whites. Although we as a country have come a very long way there is still work to be done. The more we educate people the less we will experience ignorance. The hate and the idea of inferiority will slow diminish if people become educated. I can end proudly stating that I am married to a Black man and we have two beautiful daughters, and I give an enormous amount of respect to those who fought for what was right. References Anderson, J. (1865). To my old master. In I. Reed (Ed. ), African American Literature. Abrief introduction and anthology (pp. 15-16). New York: The Longman LiteraryMosaic Series. [serial online]. December 2005;36(4):299-323. Available from:Academic Search Complete, Ipswich, MA. Accessed May 23, 2011. Hines, M. (n. d. ). My white folks treated us good. In I. Reed (Ed. ), African Americanliterature. A brief introduction and anthology (pp. 21-25). New York: TheLongman Literary Mosaic Series. [serial online]. December 2005;36(4):299-323. Available from: Academic Search Complete, Ipswich, MA. Accessed May 21,2011. McKay, C. (n. d. ). If we must die. In I. Reed (Ed. ), African American literature. Abriefintroduction and anthology (pp. 378). New York: The Longman LiterarySeries[serial online]. December 2005;36(4):299-323. Available from: AcademicSearchComplete, Ipswich, MA. Accessed Dec, 2011.

How Bombardier deal their transportation business around the globe

How Bombardier deal their transportation business around the globe Bombardier is a famous transportation company dealing their transportation business around the globe. Currently company is running business more than 60 countries on five continents (Bombardier, 2010). Aerospace and Rail transportation is main interest in transportation industry. In this company, large number of world class products design, manufacture, sell and support in these two sector of transportation. This includes commercial and business aircrafts, also rail transportation equipment, systems and services. Bombardier headquarters is situated in Montreal, Quà ©bec, Canada. This company is established by young mechanic name Joseph-Armand Bombardier (Born: 1907) who invented his first snow vehicle in his age 15. He was motivated to make peoples life easy way to travel in snow covered roads of rural Quà ©bec. Joseph introduced his first commercial launch of the seven passenger B7 snowmobile in 1937. Bombardier established a company called LAuto-Neige Bombardier Limità ©e to manufacture the 12-passenger B12 snowmobile. Later he also launched a series of other snow going vehicles which were used for ambulance, freight transport, postal mail delivery and school transportation services. Joseph was all time live with his dream of inventing something special which would be personal snowmobile. His continuous try made a unique industry which is called snowmobiling. He introduced his world renowned Ski-Doo. Only with the snowmobiles success, Joseph died in 1964 and left a profitable company. Analyse the international business environment and the development of global organisations Globalisation In normal sense the Globalisation means globalise something to enjoy common faculty of society around the member countries of the world. The questions will arise what type of faculty should be utilised or enjoyed in global circumstances. According to Rothenberg (2003), Globalisation is the acceleration and intensification of interaction and integration among the people, companies and governments of different nations. In 1971, Bombardier purchased majority of shares of Austrian company named Lohner-Werke. As a leadership in North American rail transportation, Bombardier signed a $1 billion US contract to supply 825 subway cars to the New York City Transit Authority. As a globalised company Bombardier expanded largely in European rail equipment and services market and acquired a 45% interest in the Belgian manufacturer BN Constructions Ferroviaires et Mà ©talliques S.A. (Bombardier, 2010 cited at http://www.bombardier.com/en/corporate/about-us/history?docID=0901260d8001dffa). The term globalisation began to be used more commonly in the 1980s reflecting technological advances that made it easier and quicker to complete international transactions-both trade and financial flows. It refers to an extension beyond national borders of the same market forces that have operated for centuries at all levels of human economic activity village markets, urban industries, or financial centres. The term Globalisation is not a single phenomenon but also is a concept of various socio-economical forces. Giddens (1990) given vast definition of globalisation: the intensification of world-wide social relations which link distant localities in such a way that local happenings are shaped by events occurring many miles away and vice versa. These social relations might be for economical, technological, cultural etc. International Trade The main characteristic of globalisation is the removal of tariff barriers from world trade. For welcoming international trade in developed country, greater imports offer consumers a large variety of goods at competitive price, while in a same time strong incentives for domestic industries to remain competitive. In developing countries, exports are potentiality of earning foreign currency through exports. In this case, exports initiate new economic era of development which also stimulate job opportunity as various industries sell beyond their borders. Moreover, this trade deepen competitiveness in the market of workers and country get competitive advantage of open market. By this process workers get efficiency from one industry and get capability for selling their labours in anywhere in the world. Say as an example of old worker of textile industry in Italy can move to any suitable place in the world where they can get good wages of their labour and have chance to work as a superviso r or one level up in the developing country where textile industry moved for outsourcing. Current international trade generate dynamism and flexibility, as steady imports flow help to offset adverse domestic supply shocks. Open market economy of a country attract foreign investment, which would give the economy more dynamicity than before by huge employment opportunity for the local workforce and give them opportunity to become a skill labour by scope of using new technologies. Some protectionist group against the Globalisation undertakes policy not to welcoming Globalisation. They try to restrict international trade because they believe international trade make the local market monopolised by the multi-national company. They raise tariffs prices of imported goods and restrict the imported products for encouraging local production. IMF experts say this initiative of restriction of international trade harm consumers of which may be poor. Protectionism saying they want to save the local labour and products from the international import products. They want to save the industry and labour which might not be profitable in view of profit based capitalism. Protectionists are well organised and their organisations in different countries are well connected with each other. IMF saying their activity reduces the flow of variety of goods in local market and generating inefficiency of labour and production system. In article on Globalisation: A brief overview, IMF experts are saying expanded International trade is a main part of Globalisation by which developing countries can be benefited. Ernesto Zedillo, the former president of Mexico, has observed that, In every case where a poor nation has significantly overcome its poverty, this has been achieved while engaging in production for export markets and opening itself to the influx of foreign goods, investment, and technology.  After fallen of Soviet block, many developing countries open their market for international trade in late 1980s. As a result, some protectionist countries were facing poor economic performance and various economic crises. In the 1990s many former soviet bloc countries of East Europe joined into the international trading system and developing In the 1990s, many former Eastern bloc countries integrated into the global trading system and developing Asia-one of the most closed regions to trade in 1980-progressively dismant led barriers to trade. Overall, while the average tariff rate applied by developing countries is higher than that applied by advanced countries, it has declined significantly over the last several decades. Benefits of globalisation When tariff barrier abolished from the international trade to smooth flow of products, capital and technology from one country to another, following are the indicators by which world market benefited and according to International Monetary Fund (IMF) website how goods, capital and people, have become more globalised: The value of trade (goods and services) as a percentage of worlds GDP increased from 42.1 in 1980 to 62.1 in 2007. Foreign direct investment (FDI) increased from 6.5% of world GDP in 1980 to 31.8% in 2006. The stock of international claims (primarily bank loans), as a percentage of world GDP, increased from roughly 10% in 1980 to 48% in 2006 (BIS, 2006). The number of minutes spent on cross-border telephone calls, on a per-capita basis, increased from 7.3 in 1991 to 28.8 in 2006 (IMF and International Telecommunications Union data cited on http://www.imf.org/external/np/exr/ib/2008/053008.htm#P35_4963) The number of foreign workers has increased from 78 million people (2.4% of the world population) in 1965 to 191 million people (3.0% of the world population) in 2005. Challenges of Globalisation Strategies Strategy is originated in the Greek word strategos, which is understood as The art of the general. The concept of strategy first applied in the field military wing of a state, later formulated in the business management (Ludviga et. al. 2010). The strategic theory in business management started to develop when Porter (1980) described Competitive Positioning. Resource based view (RBV) is a strategic resources tool on fundamental basis for a competitive advantage of a firm lies primarily in the application of the bundle of valuable resources at the firms disposal (Wernerfelt, B. 1984). RBV is primarily proposed by Penrose and later developed by Werhefelt, Hamel and Prahalad (1990). Barney (1991) contributed one year later and treated as father of RBV on the firm. Maxoney and Sanchez (2004) suggested that strategic theory depend on the market and history and cannot be universal or timeless. The researcher modifies and develops or changes the theories with the changes of social factors and development (Ludviga and Chirjevskis, 2010). Kim and Mauborgne (1997) suggested that in globalisation competitive advantage is no longer applicable and competition is counterproductive here. In Blue Ocean Strategy, Kim and Mauborgne (2005) proposed value innovation instead of competitive advantage. To describe Service-Dominant logic (S-D logic), Robert Lusch and Stephen Vargo (2004) described by their own way, in globalisation world economy connected without any barrier and it holds more turbulent with increased impact of ethics and businesses are responsible into the society, also new relation and interaction between the producer and the consumer which emerged value added collaborative process of co-creation. It describes a new understanding of purpose and nature of an organisation, market and society; the knowledge and skills should be applied for the benefit of other parties and value is determined only by the beneficiary (customer). Analyse appropriate organisational structures It is important to point out the organisations structure and the relationship between it and an organisations size, strategy, technology, environment and culture. Miller (1989) discussed deeply the necessity of assembling of strategy and structure. Burns and Stalker (1961) identified the flexibility of organisational environment and described when the structure of an organisation coincides with the rate of change within its environments then it is achieved maximum performance. To discuss about the importance of culture in relation to organisational design and structure, Handy (1990, 1993) has discussed it needs for new organisational forms. Pascale, Milleman and Gioja (2000), Mabey, Salaman Storey (2001) discussed and came to consideration that structure has a key role in the all-important human dimension of an organisation. Senge (1994) identified that though managers main role is the design of organisational structures, even it is often neglected responsibility in an organisation. Furthermore organisational design is not well understood in traditional management education and also does not include the development of the principles of corporate design (McMaster, 1996). Organisational structures are the appropriate frame of interaction between roles in an organisation and its different phase which described by Mullins (1993), Salaman (2001). They also said that in order to achieve the organisational goals and direct activities of different parts, it should be allocate work and responsibilities in a framework. This framework giving managers clear direction to work plan, organise, direct, control and monitoring the activities of the organisation (Mullins, 1993, Mabey, Salaman 2001). This view is based on the principles of classical and scientific management and it called as traditional view. Pascale, Milleman and Gioja (2000) taken non-traditional approach which described that the role of architects and principles that provide i) structural integrity (sound building), ii) functionality (space appropriate for its intended use), and iii) aesthetic appeal. Using these principles, an architect can work with the customer in order to create a structure that is an integral and facilitating aspect of the life of the people who move in and around it. This model is treaded as good model to consider organisation design principles. In an organisation, structures are sets of relations between the roles. Fararo (1997) and Sà ¸rensen (1978) studied in mathematical sociology about such structures is the so-called vertical differentiation or authority structures of organisations, usually considered to be a hierarchy structures. Mono-dimensional organisational structure in work considers a multiplicity of structured aspects: authority, communication, delegation, responsibility, control, power etc. Sleznick (1948), Morgenstern (1951) and Giddens (1984) done foundational work on social and organisation theory and summarised as that organisations do not exhibit one single structural dimension, but they are instead multi-structured objects. In particular, we view organisational structure as hiding at least three relevant dimensions which called: power, coordination and control. Chief ExecutiveThus the basic structure of many large organisations in the 20th century was founded on linear, segmented, hierarchical design principles as typified by Figure 1. The larger the organisation the larger the structure and the more sub divisions. It was an approach to organisation design that reflected the classical scientific worldview as did the early management theorists. Research Development Personnel Manufacturing Finance Sales Product A Product B Product C Area X Area Y Area Z Figure 1.1. Traditional Organisation Chart/Structure (adapted from Weinshall, 1971, in Handy, 1993) In mid-20th century there was trend to create huge corporate structures in different businesses like Hanson Trust, Trafalgar House, Unilever, and GKN in the UK and General Electric in the USA (Mabey, Salaman Storey, 2001). After Second World War some country nationalise the public utilities, where bureaucracies were major problem. National Health Service of the UK nationalise in 1948 in this process. In the last decades of the 20th century, there had significant changes of trend for large and larger structures and it was over. Ashkenas et. al. (1995) found almost every organisation experimented with some kind of structural change process. Mabey, Salaman Storey (2001) described that some less traditional forms of organisation structure began to emerge as evidenced by the de-structured forms. Old mechanistic systems are everywhere breaking down (Handy, 1990). Mabey, Salaman Storey (2001) talk of the emergence of a new paradigm for organisational form which seeks to replace the rigidity and cumbersome nature of the traditional form. Ashkenas et. al. (1995) report on a change in design principles that amounts to a major shift. Ashkenas et. al. (1995) summarised the success factors of both the old and newer approaches as described as follows: OLD SUCCESS FACTORS NEW SUCCESS FACTORS Size Speed Role clarity Flexibility Specialisation Integration Control innovation By the press release in Jan 29, 2004, President and Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Bombardier Inc., Mr. Paul Tellier announced following declaration of the structural changes of Bombardier. Press Release as follows: The position of President and Chief Operating Officer of Bombardier Transportation was split into two distinct position. Mr. Paul handed over his COO post to Mr. Wolfgang Toelsner as because Mr. Toelsner is recognised as one of the most respected leader in the rail industry. He has been responsible for Bombardiers Locomotives and Freight Division in Europe since 2001. Under the new structure, eight (8) of the ten (10) operational divisions will report to the Chief Operating Officer: North America, Total Transit Systems, Light Rail Vehicles (LRV), Locomotives and Freight, Propulsion and Control, Rail Control Solutions, Bogies, and the London Underground Projects. The industrial division previously responsible for the manufacturing network in Europe and is being disbanded. The various manufacturing facilities will become part of the respective product divisions, allowing each division to have direct responsibility not only for marketing, sales and engineering, but also for production. This means, for example, that the plants producing mainline products will be integrated into the Mainline Division, the ones producing light rail vehicles will become part of the LRV Division. The Mainline Division will be expanded to include the Metros Division as well as the Carbodies Division. The products manufactured by these two units are produced in the same facilities. The Chief Operating Officer, Mr. Wolfgang Toelsner; the expanded Mainline Division President, Mr. Olof Persson; and the Services Division President, Mr. Rik Dobbelaere, will report to the President. All Bombarider Transportation group staff functions will continue to report to the President . Mr. Tellier continues to chair the recently constituted Management Committee. (Euronext, 2010). This new organisational re-structuring process has been improved project management, accountability as well as customer service, reduced overhead and duplication, and simplified the organisational structure. Bombardier Transportation currently employs some 28,600 staff at 42 major production and service locations around the world. Several of these host more than one production/service facility under separate management. Three plants in China are joint ventures with only a 25% Bombardier share and, due to that, limited influence. There are around 40 generally smaller sites of the Services and the Total Transit Systems divisions (most of them Though Bombardier Transportation is Canada based Transportation Company, but it expanding his technology, financial investment and resources all over the world and became a globalised company in the globe. Europe is the purchasing capable continent for rail travelling so it is the largest market in the world for rail. Bombardier Transportations main focus is in Europe. Bombardier is employed around 21,550 employees in this region. Approximately 5,150 employees work in North and Central America and in a same time 1,900 employees are working for the company in Australia/Asia and other parts of the world (Bombardier, 2010 cited at www.bombardier.com/files/en/docs/BT_SustainabilityReport_EN.pdf). Now we can say it is not company for a particular country it makes its identify for global society and technology, experiences of human resources, financial investment and its products also moving one place to another. That is why we can easily say this company became globalised company in the w orld or it is also influencing for globalisation in a same time. In response to market realities and to remain competitive the company carried out a restructuring program in 2004/05. This resulted in a reduction of the workforce by 7,600 worldwide and the closure of seven facilities. The sites affected by closure were the production plants in Amadora, Portugal, Ammendorf, Germany, Kalmar, Sweden, Pratteln, Switzerland, Derby Pride Park, Doncaster, and Wakefield, UK. Effectiveness and Efficiency of Existing Bombardier Strategy Operation Bombardier now globalised its operation both its transportation and aerospace divisions. According to Fortunes Global 500 companies, Bombardier was rated 448 (CNN, 2010). Currently Bombardier Aerospace (BA) has two main business activities Aircraft manufacture and Services. Within Aircraft manufacture, there are the sectors of business aircraft such as the Learjet range and commercial aircraft such as the CRJ Series operated by carriers worldwide. Services include such activities as parts logistics, leasing style operations, training, and sales of pre-owned (second hand) aircraft. This division is now a world leader in the design and manufacture of innovative aviation products and is a provider of related services. BAs aircraft portfolio includes a comprehensive line of business aircraft, commercial aircraft including regional jets, turboprops and single-aisle mainline jets and amphibious aircraft. BA also provides aftermarket services as well as fractional ownership and flight enti tlement programmes (Knowmore.org, 2010) Train is the eco-friendly transport as because 70% of emitted CO2 would be avoided when every passenger-km shifted road to rail transport. Bombardier Transportation thinks rail is the most sustainable mode of transit (Bombardier.com, 2010). One of the attractive strategy of Bombardier is corporate responsibility for maximising environmental benefits by rail travel. That is why Bombardier put in its strategy a new and modern concept of engineering and operating design and philosophy called sustainable mobility (Bombardier, 2010). Following are the key business goals for sustainability: To being profitable business organisation, Bombardier is delivering safe and competitive products to their customers. By anyhow Bombardier optimising environmental performance of their vehicles. To best of their ability, Bombardier industrial activities confirmed unspoiled environment to the new generations. Bombardier all time confirms healthy and safe working places for employees in the society. Bombardier transferring best practices and knowledge, especially in less industrialised countries. (Bombardier, 2010 About Us) As a first vehicle manufacturer, Bombardier Transportation signed in the International Association of Public Transports (UITP) Sustainability Charter in 2003. As part of Bombardier commitment to the charter, at the end of 2006 Bombardier first Sustainability Report describing the progress Bombardier are making towards environmental and social responsibility. In September 2009, Bombardier Transportation jointly taken a venture of Bombardier Sifang (Qingdao) Transportation Ltd. has been approved by the Chinese Ministry of Railways (MOR) to supply 80 ZEFIRO 380 very high speed trains (1,120 cars) for countrys rapidly growing high speed rail network. The contract including 20 eight-car trainsets and 60 sixteen-car trainsets, is valued at an estimated  £2.5 billion. Bombardiers share of the contract is estimated at  £1.25 billion. The first train is scheduled for delivery in 2012 with final deliveries expected in 2014 (Bombardier, 2009). This contract is the integral part of an evolving high speed rail capability in China which is developing more than 6000 km of new high speed lines to create one of the most advanced high speed rail networks in the world. The trains, with maximum operating speeds of 380 kph, are based on Bombardiers next-generation ZEFIRO high speed rail technology and powered by a highly energy efficient BOMBARDIER MITRA C propulsion and control system. The mission Statement of Bombardier is to be the worlds leading manufacturer of planes and trains. Bombardier is committed to providing superior value and service to our customers and sustained profitability to their shareholders by investing in their people and products (Bombardier, 2010). Bombardier lead market through innovative quality, extraordinary product safety measurement, efficiency and performance. Its mission, core values and leadership attributes are the building bricks of making good governance. This governance starts with their mission and to deliver best class value products for their customers and profits for shareholders. Bombardier core values guide the action to fulfil this mission: Integrity Commitment to excellence Customer orientation Shareholder focus Bombardier leadership attributes remind all employees what it means to be our best: Putting people first. Working together. Having a passion for winning. Having a drive for results. As part of its stewardship role, the Board advises management on significant business issues and assumes the following responsibilities: Approves corporate strategy Monitors financial matters and internal controls through its Audit Committee Oversees pension fund matters through its Finance and Risk Management Committee Monitors environmental, occupational health and safety matters through its Human Resources and Compensation Committee. Assesses and oversees the succession plan of the President and Chief Executive Officer and senior executives through its Human Resources and Compensation Committee. Monitors corporate governance issues through its Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee. The two areas in which Bombardier conducts business are both greatly affected by macro (PESTLE) factors. It is also felt that the business focus has narrowed and is limiting the growth of the organisation. As a global organisation, Bombardier is mindful of this, and as such has implemented several key initiatives: Risk Management: Now a days company size makes a company relatively riskfull for exist sustainably. It is due to fast-paced world and nowadays risks can also materialise more rapidly than ever. It is called Risk Management. In May 2007, Bombardier Board created the Finance and Risk Management Committee to making risk management a central focus of the company. Every year, the Corporate Audit Service and Risk Assessment (CASRA) team thoroughly assesses our major risks. Senior management and the Audit Committee review the results and develop an annual action plan to address these risks. The Boards Finance and Risk Management Committee captures and follows up on risk mitigation, including social and environmental risks as future carbon costs. Occupational health, safety and environmental risks are mitigated through management systems and compliance audits, Supply chain risks are reduced through their supply chain management practices, including the Bombardier supplier code of conduct. Cultural aspects: Bombardier rail contract with Chinese company publicly criticised over its controversial deal to supply railway cars to the Qinghai-Tibet railway. A campaigner of Free Tibet commented on the contract and said Bombardiers  £1.25 billion contract has broken its own Ethical Code, by investing in a high risk project, which will contribute to what the Dalai Lama has described as cultural genocide. Another Free Tiber Campaigner Mr. Tenzin Metok Sither said, The railway is a political project, designed to facilitate the move of millions of Chinese settlers into Tibet, enable increased militarisation along the border with India and Pakistan, and allow China easily to transport Tibers natural resources to Chinas east coast. It is not designed to benefit Tibetans. Bombardier is now a willing participant in this destruction, with its technology enabling an abusive regime to extend its control over Tibet. (Mediacentre.blog.co.uk 2010). The Dalai Lama stated that, Some kind of cultural genocide is taking places in general, a railway link is very useful in order to develop, but not when politically motivated to bring about demographic change, (Associated Press, 2005). This contract will definitely influences culture of Chinese people as because by this project China is getting going to capable to achieve the fastest railway network in the world. Impact of technological advancement and Financial Resource: Bombardiers ZEFIRO high speed technology is the culmination of the companys long standing reputation in this market segment. Developed for speeds between 250 and 380 km/h, ZEFIRO offers the highest levels of comfort and capacity, low operating costs and diverse application options for different countries and railway networks. Bombardier is currently delivering the worlds first ZEFIRO trains to the Chinese Ministry of Railways (MOR). These trainsets feature Electrical Multiple Unit (EMU) sleeper cars capable of speeds up to 250 km/h. Bombardier also have won another contract to supply the MOR with 80 ZEFIRO 380 very high speed trains. Bombardier was the first company in Europe to develop and apply an aluminium carbody concept for the high speed segment. It was pioneered in the 90s and has been optimised to meet the latest high standards for crash safety in accordance with TSI 2002. Bombardier Transportation has been developing high speed and very high speed trains by working closely w ith Aerospace Division of the company as Aerospace Division expertise in acoustic and aerodynamic behaviour with reliability management. Bombardier Transportation earned  £4,234 million before interest and taxes in 2005/06 financial year. The majority of turnover was generated from the sales of rolling stock (including mainline and metro vehicles, trams and locomotives) followed by services such as maintenance and delivery of spare parts. The business with European transportation companies who remain Bombardiers most important customers generated 72% of turnover. Strategic Alternatives of Bombardier

The Symbolic Pearl :: essays research papers

Most novels usually have a main symbol, which teaches a character, or the reader, a very important lesson or moral. This is true in Nathaniel Hawthorne's classic The Scarlet Letter, where Hester Prynne's daughter Pearl serves as the most extensive living symbol in the entire novel. She is much more of a symbol than an actual character. Pearl symbolizes Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale's concealed love affair and plays a key character in The Scarlet Letter as well.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Little Pearl, the so-called 'elf child,'; is the daughter and result of the minister Arthur Dimmesdale and Hester Prynne's unthinkable sin of adultery. She is an imaginative, intelligent little girl who is full of life and shows a 'rich and luxuriant beauty; a beauty that shone with deep and vivid tints.'; She is a living, breathing child who can see and talk. The only real characteristics that prove she is an actual person are shown by her emotions; she has a very unfavorable temper and usually ends up getting her way by throwing tantrums. For example, in the forest scene, she sees her mother's scarlet letter discarded on the ground, fusses and screams for her to put it back on, which eventually Hester does. Pearl is obviously a definite person, but she is also a definite symbol of many things. First, she is a distinct symbol of the relationship between Hester and Dimmesdale. She is a representative of the passion, which came with Hester's sin of adultery. Second, she is an active reminder of Hester's sin besides the letter A on her breast. And lastly, Pearl becomes mesmerized by her mother's scarlet letter. She pelts the letter with flowers, 'covering the mother's breast with hurts for which she could find no balm in this world.'; Pearl's 'inevitable tendency to hover about the enigma of the scarlet letter'; is fully developed when Pearl imitates her mother by placing a seaweed letter A on her own breast.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  But the most important symbol that Pearl reflects is when they are in the forest. In one of the book's most dramatic scenes, Pearl blocks her mother's attempt to escape from her symbol of shame. After Hester has tossed her scarlet letter on the ground, Pearl shrieks in a fit and will not recognize or come to her mother until she proceeds to put her letter back on and puts her hair back up under her white cap.

The Labor Debate, An American :: essays research papers

'The Labor Debate:'; The American Dream Revisited   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Immigration is one hot topic in modern day conversation. Many believe that immigrants coming to the United States are taking many well-needed jobs away from able-bodied Americans. On the other hand, there are still those that believe that the jobs being taken away are not ones that Americans would perform due to the terrible working conditions, low pay, and lack of medical coverage. The immigration problem has come to a point where the United States must make a decision to spend a lot of money to curtail the amount of immigrants using force and funds of an overbearing amount, or to just let the immigrants continue to go about their business in trying to find a way into a country where they are mildly welcome. The article 'The Labor Debate'; discusses both the pros and cons of immigrants, both legal and illegal alike, taking jobs of their own in a country where they might not be welcome.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   I believe that the immigrants are not necessarily taking jobs away from the American worker. Those occupations that the immigrants possess are truly illegal for any employer to employ any American. The job sights include unsanitary conditions, dangerous equipment use without proper safety precautions, extremely long working days, and less than minimum wage for average pay. There is not one citizen in this country that would stand for such an outrageous environment to work in. Many would go directly to an inspection board to have the factory/plant evaluated to see if the factory could pass any sort of inspection. Hence, the factory/plant would be closed down and there would be even fewer jobs for Americans.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Those immigrants out there that are working are helping to construct certain items that citizens of the United States do not want to be a part of. Take as an example the sewing of blue jeans, a product that graces the legs of half the country. Many Americans out there need this clothing for working and playing in. However, the tedious work of sewing blue jeans does not fit into the description of the American dream for the citizens of this country. If it helps to put some food on the table for a starving family from Mexico, ask yourself if it is truly worth it to throw all the illegal immigrants out to send them to a place where no jobs are available to pay them money that can even provide this meager amount of food?

The Effect of Telecommunications Technology on our Work and Play :: Technology Impact Technological Essays

Cell phones have changed the atmosphere of our workplaces, making them more escapable physically, yet at the same time making them less escapable mentally. Enhanced with other phone services such as caller ID, call forwarding, and answering machines they have created whole new sets of contacting games between employee's and their co-workers. They have made our roads more dangerous, yet having them in our cars has made it easier to call a tow truck when you're stranded, or to call a radio station to report gridlock. The same person that uses their phone in line at the store to get the advantage over the unreachable employee to gain status at the office, also loses status in the community due to the snickering behind them in line. The recent telecommunications improvements provide an opportunity for the appealing psuedo-self-employed aspects of telecommuting. For parents, cell phones have eliminated the excuses of the late night returning child when asked 'Why didn't you call?" Cell ph ones have obviously intruded into our lives in more ways than we even realize at first glimpse, while making a great deal of things we do much easier. In this paper I will attempt to expand on how these changing relationships effect our always stressed out society. Wireless Communications is in the grand scheme of technological development, a rather recent event. But the quickness to which the market of cellular phones has expanded shows that some people have definitely embraced it as a positive. The graph on the following page shows the rapidity of America's love affair with the cell phone. Radio Telephone technology started in 1977 when Motorola, American Radio Telephone, and AT&T were licensed by the FCC to develop a high capacity radio telephone system for shortwave radio bands. In 1978 AT&T began the first radio telephone system test operations in Chicago. The Japenese inaugurated the first commercial cellular telephone system in Tokyo in 1979. In the United States, the Federal Communications commission authorized commercial cell phones in 1982 and the first system was set up by Ameritech in Chicago the following year. AT&T and Motorola followed in 1984 with their own systems in New York and Washington D.C.. The amount of customers and potential customers rapidly expanded and by 1990 there were systems in place, or close to being completed in every market in the United States. As the graph shows the early 1990's gave way to an exponential growth in ownership of cell phones especially as the new digital lighter weight phones became available in 1992.

Benefits of Sports

Should students be involved in sports during their busy academic life? I  believe  so,  there are three  major benefits that i believe are the most important reason to start a sport: They are   Health, helps build good values, and are just all in all fun. I encourage students to take up sports. Even  though I’m a student myself and i know how busy we get from homework and test, but sports can help relieve stress and make school more fun.A report from the United Nations Inter-Agency Task force on sports for Development and Peace stated that young people can benefit from physical activity as it contributes to developing healthy bones,  efficient  heart and lung function as well as improved motor skills and cognitive function. Physical activity can help to prevent hip fractures among women and reduce the effects of  osteoporosis. Remaining physically active can enhance  functional  capacity among older people, and can help to maintain quality of life and   Independence. Sport teaches many good values that one can use in sports and their daily  life.Honesty,  disciplined  respect, and many others are just some of the values that sports teach us. A student can use these  values  in their daily  routine. Sports can help a student learn about arriving on time, setting  priorities, and to  encourage  team work. The key to creating and sustaining values based on sporting is Living Values: living values in  everything  you do, every time,  every day. Sports can be really fun and exciting. I  practice  Taekwondo and its exiting being put up  against  a bigger, faster, and stronger  opponent. It’s a very rewarding experience to see how much hard work pays of in combat and it can be applied in school.You may not see the results running and  practicing  everyday but once you get in to battle it shows, and it’s the same for school you may not see the results of  content  studying until you t ake an exam. It’s very exciting and I recommend all students to try sports it is very fun. In conclusion I believe students should start a sport since it offers many benefits Like: health benefits, good values, and it’s fun. I encourage my fellow students to join a sport It really makes the learning experience more enjoyable, and I believe it prepares us for success.

Organisational behaviour of ‘Breadtalk’ Essay

Question 1: What is Corporate Social Responsibility and how could this influence the organisational behaviour of ‘Breadtalk’? Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is where corporations or organisations are obliged to inter-relate their businesses with behaving in ethical and moral ways. It is where such corporations have notions towards having responsibility to the society that upholds them. Examples of ethical and moral ways varies from giving back to needy groups in terms of monetary funding and healthcare, to integrating CSR strategies directly into the business tactic of an organisation. By means of integrating is having â€Å"employee-friendly human resource policy where safety in workplace, social security benefit, flexible office hour, recreation and other benefits are included† (cited in The Financial Express, 2010). ‘Breadtalk’, well-known for its commitment in providing the best for its customers in different countries, have given back to the society and providing internal support throughout its company. ‘Breadtalk’ continuously provides on-the-job training and supervision for its employees, awarding opportunities for head departments to hold higher positions abroad; such as overseeing business processes. Having close human relations have forged strong ties into branching out its brand even more till ‘Breadtalk’ now operates across 17 countries and all of which are carefully chosen locations. Overseas operations are guarded by key players who are chosen with good qualifications and competent ones that work well with other key players in the company. In commemorating its 10th birthday, ‘Breadtalk’ donated $50,000 to needy school children of The Straits Times School Pocket Money Fund in Singapore from 5 cents from the sale of each Floss bun. Organisational behaviour is the study of understanding the behaviour of individuals and to see them so that organisations can relate to such behaviours that come in a variety and find solutions for them. For ‘Breadtalk’, there are many positive reviews about the company and none is seen to lead to any pitfall that might occur. On the other hand, having an uncertain future does not mean that constant learning is stopped; upgrading oneself is key for future success. Organisational behaviour for ‘Breadtalk’ have moved from traditional to re-engineered values of which have cause a more globalised mindset for the company, changing nature of work due to upgrading technology, improved knowledge management, understanding different cultures, improving employee-employer relations, having work-life balance, and all these due to an ethical managerial behaviour called Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). The efforts to find solutions for a good Organisational Behaviour have allowed proper group dynamics and a sense of motivation within the company, a few examples of such solutions, which have been evaluated from CSR. (412 words) Questions 2: Why is an understanding of cultural differences important to the Business Managers at ‘Breadtalk’? To assist the Managers of ‘Breadtalk’ to decide if they should expand to Australia, briefly describe the Australian culture? Understanding cultural differences can help avoid acts of ethnocentrism, being aware of a country’s elements of culture – language, religion, values and attributes, customs and manners, material goods, aesthetics, education; complying to cultural dimensions – power distance, uncertainty avoidance, individualism, masculinity; and preserving social structure. Understanding the elements of culture can avoid ethnocentrism. These elements help the understanding of cultural differences by relating to the country’s way of life. Cultural dimensions help the understanding of how people from various cultures behave and its uniqueness. In business, managers must understand the culture of other countries and l earn to accept them. In this process, managers have to fight against ethnocentrism and understand the social structure of the host countries. The Aussie culture is a fast-paced, self-absorbed society, typical in the urbanized world. The influences of aborigines’ culture give the outlook of Australia as casual and friendly. It’s a fair country allowing its people to make their own decisions at a young age. Both men and women gain equal rights in education and work. At young ages of 18 can one enter into a full-time profession of their choice. Retirement has no obligatory age. In terms of time and punctuality for business engagements, Aussies are deemed acceptable. In business, it’s generally â€Å"expected that production and service deadlines will be met whilst long delays are considered unacceptable† (cited in Australia Society and Culture Complete Report, 2010). Social engagements are equally important to be on time. The pros of expansion will be tapping on a wider consumer experience, increasing benefits in many areas, increased popularity, increased chances of joint-ventures and opportunities. The cons of expansion will be on-going competition if unresolved at lower stages of expansion, increased capital costs, reduced performance from foreign agents, conflicts of interests and objectives. Thoughts of expansion can be pondered on. From an interview with ‘BreadTalk’s’ management personnel, the brand would not branch abroad to a country unqualified in meeting the standards and demands required. Looking at the consumer size, it is rewarding if outlets branch into Australia. Although, looking at the needs and demands of the Australian community for food sources, specifically bread, competition is highly foreseeable. ‘Breadtalk’ having its many successes as of now is seen sufficient for the company. Its culture of branching out in Asia is seen a lot. Many hope to see the company’s success diverts into that direction. If it is for the best of ‘Breadtalk’, expansion into Australia can be a future food for thought. (410 words) (Total: 822 words) References Tan, Mindy. (2011) Active in talent management : BreadTalk Group CFO Catherine Lee tells MINDY TAN why CFOs are most suited to take on this important task. The Business Times, (accessed May 10, 2012) http://www.proquest.com.libproxy.nlb.gov.sg/ Bayoud, N., M. Kavanagh, and G. Slaughter. (2012) Corporate Social Responsibility Disclosure and Employee Commitment: Evidence from Libya. International Journal of Economics and Finance 4, no. 5, (accessed May 10, 2012) http://www.proquest.com.libproxy.nlb.gov.sg/ Tan, Benjamin. (2012) Deft dough-maker. The Business Times, (accessed May 10, 2012) http://www.proquest.com.libproxy.nlb.gov.sg/ BreadTalk Group Limited â€Å"Our Company†. http://www.breadtalk.com/business-overview.html Peck Ming, Chuang. (2012) PM has straightforward message for companies and workers :Firms must think long-term, workers must upgrade skills. The Business Times, (accessed May 10, 2012) http://www.proquest.com.libproxy.nlb.gov.sg/ Express, The Financial. (2010) CSR soars, benefits all. 2012. The Financial Express, (accessed May 10, 2012) http://www.proquest.com.libproxy.nlb.gov.sg/ Wei Sheng, Lim. (2012) How important is ethics in business strategy? The Business Times, (accessed May 10, 2012) http://www.proquest.com.libproxy.nlb.gov.sg/ McGraw, P., and S. Dabski. (2010) CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY REPORTING IN AUSTRALIA’S LARGEST COMPANIES. Labour & Industry 21, no. 1: 390-409, (accessed May 10, 2012) http://www.proquest.com.libproxy.nlb.gov.sg/ Nair, Suja R. (2010) Organisational Behaviour. Mumbai: Global Media Express, The Financial. (2012) Nestle’s own style of CSR. The Financial Express, (accessed May 10, 2012) http://www.proquest.com.libproxy.nlb.gov.sg/ Ngee Ann Polytechnic. (2011) Cultural Awareness. International Business: Chapter 4-6. Singapore: Ngee Ann Polytechnic Press, World Trade. (2010) Australia Society and Culture Complete Report. California: World Trade Press Sharmayne Saunders. (2012) Corporate Social Responsibility: A Helping Hand for a Better Belize. International Journal of Business and Social Science 3, no. 9: 174-175, (accessed May 10, 2012) http://www.proquest.com.libproxy.nlb.gov.sg/ Wright, N., and H. Be nnett. (2011) Business ethics, CSR, sustainability and the MBA. Journal of Management and Organization 17, no. 5: 641-655, (accessed May 10, 2012) http://www.proquest.com.libproxy.nlb.gov.sg/

Last Sacrifice Chapter Seventeen

THE INTERROGATION DIDN'T go so well. Oh, sure, we made plenty of threats and used the stakes as torture devices, but not much came of it. Dimitri was still scary when dealing with Sonya, but after his breakdown with Donovan, he was careful not to fall into that berserk rage again. This was healthier for him in the long run but not so good for scaring up answers out of Sonya. It didn't help matters that we didn't exactly have a concrete question to ask her. We mostly had a series to throw at her. Did she know about another Dragomir? Was she related to the mother? Where were the mother and child? Things also went bad when Sonya realized we needed her too much to kill her, no matter how much silver stake torture we did. We'd been at it for over an hour and were getting exhausted. At least, I was. I leaned against a wall near Sonya, and though I had my stake out and ready, I was relying on the wall a bit more than I liked to admit to keep me upright. None of us had spoken in a while. Even Sonya had given up on her snarling threats. She simply waited and stayed watchful, undoubtedly planning for escape, probably figuring we'd tire before she did. That silence was scarier than all the threats in the world. I was used to Strigoi using words to intimidate me. I'd never expected the power simply being quiet and staring menacingly could have. â€Å"What happened to your head, Rose?' asked Dimitri, suddenly catching a glimpse of it. I'd been tuning out a little and realized he was talking to me. â€Å"Huh?' I brushed aside hair that had been obscuring part of my forehead. My fingers came away sticky with blood, triggering vague memories of crashing into the table. I shrugged, ignoring the dizziness I'd been feeling. â€Å"I'm fine.' Dimitri gave Sydney the quickest of glances. â€Å"Go lay her down and clean it up. Don't let her sleep until we can figure out if it's a concussion.' â€Å"No, I can't,' I argued. â€Å"I can't leave you alone with her †¦' â€Å"I'm fine,' he said. â€Å"Rest up so that you can help me later. You're no good to me if you're just going to fall over.' I still protested, but when Sydney gently took my arm, my stumbling gave me away. She led me to the house's one bedroom, much to my dismay. There was something creepy about knowing I was in a Strigoi's bed–even if it was covered with a blue-and- white floral quilt. â€Å"Man,' I said, lying back against the pillow once Sydney had cleaned my forehead. Despite my earlier denial, it felt great to rest. â€Å"I can't get used to the weirdness of a Strigoi living in a place so †¦ normal. How are you holding up?' â€Å"Better than you guys,' said Sydney. She wrapped her arms around herself and eyed the room uncomfortably. â€Å"Being around Strigoi is starting to make you guys seem not so bad.' â€Å"Well, at least some good's come out of this,' I remarked. Despite her joke, I knew she had to be terrified. I started to close my eyes and was jolted awake when Sydney poked my arm. â€Å"No sleep,' she chastised. â€Å"Stay up and talk to me.' â€Å"It's not a concussion,' I muttered. â€Å"But I suppose we can go over plans to get Sonya to talk.' Sydney sat at the foot of the bed and grimaced. â€Å"No offense? But I don't think she's going to crack.' â€Å"She will once she's gone a few days without blood.' Sydney blanched. â€Å"A few days?' â€Å"Well, whatever it takes to–‘ A spike of emotion flitted through the bond, and I froze. Sydney jumped up, her eyes darting around as though a group of Strigoi might have burst into the room. â€Å"What's wrong?' she exclaimed. â€Å"I have to go to Lissa.' â€Å"You're not supposed to sleep–‘ â€Å"It's not sleeping,' I said bluntly. And with that, I jumped away from Sonya's bedroom and into Lissa's perspective. She was riding in a van with five other people whom I immediately recognized as other royal nominees. It was an eight-person van and also included a guardian driver with another in the passenger seat who was looking back at Lissa and her companions. â€Å"Each of you will be dropped off in a separate location on the outskirts of a forest and given a map and compass. The ultimate goal is for you to reach the destination on the map and wait out the daylight until we come for you.' Lissa and the other nominees exchanged glances and then, almost as one, peered out the van's windows. It was almost noon, and the sunlight was pouring down. â€Å"Waiting out the daylight' was not going to be pleasant but didn't sound impossible. Idly, she scratched at a small bandage on her arm and quickly stopped herself. I read from her thoughts what it was: a tiny, barely noticeable dot tattooed into her skin. It was actually similar to Sydney's: blood and earth, mixed with compulsion. Compulsion might be taboo among Moroi, but this was a special situation. The spell in the tattoo prevented the candidates from revealing the monarch tests to others not involved with the process. This was the first test. â€Å"What kind of terrain are you sending us to?' demanded Marcus Lazar. â€Å"We're not all in the same physical shape. It's not fair when some of us have an advantage.' His eyes were on Lissa as he spoke. â€Å"There is a lot of walking,' said the guardian, face serious. â€Å"But it's nothing that any candidate–of any age–shouldn't be able to handle. And, to be honest, part of the requirements for a king or queen is a certain amount of stamina. Age brings wisdom, but a monarch needs to be healthy. Not an athlete by any means,' added the guardian quickly, seeing Marcus start to open his mouth. â€Å"But it's no good for the Moroi to have a sickly monarch elected who dies within a year. Harsh, but true. And you also need to be able to endure uncomfortable situations. If you can't handle a day in the sun, you can't handle a Council meeting.' I think he intended that as a joke, but it was hard to tell since he didn't smile. â€Å"It's not a race, though. Take your time getting to the end if you need it. Marked along the map are spots where certain items are hidden–items that'll make this more bearable, if you can decipher the clues.' â€Å"Can we use our magic?' asked Ariana Szelsky. She wasn't young either, but she looked tough and ready to accept a challenge of endurance. â€Å"Yes, you can,' said the guardian solemnly. â€Å"Are we in danger out there?' asked another candidate, Ronald Ozera. â€Å"Aside from the sun?' â€Å"That,' said the guardian mysteriously, â€Å"is something you'll need to learn for yourselves. But, if at any time you want out †¦' He produced a bag of cell phones and distributed them. Maps and compasses followed. â€Å"Call the programmed number, and we'll come for you.' Nobody had to ask about the hidden message behind that. Calling the number would get you out of the long day of endurance. It would also mean you'd failed the test and were out of the running for the throne. Lissa glanced at her phone, half-surprised there was even a signal. They'd left Court about an hour ago and were well into the countryside. A line of trees made Lissa think they were nearing their destination. So. A test of physical endurance. It wasn't quite what she'd expected. The trials a monarch went through had long been shrouded in mystery, gaining an almost mystical reputation. This one was pretty practical, and Lissa could understand the reasoning, even if Marcus didn't. It truly wasn't an athletic competition, and the guardian had a point in saying that the future monarch should possess a certain level of fitness. Glancing at the back of her map, which listed the clues, Lissa realized this would also test their reasoning skills. All very basic stuff–but essential to ruling a nation. The van dropped them off one by one at different starting points. With each departing candidate, Lissa's anxiety grew. There's nothing to worry about, she thought. I've just got to sit through a sunny day. She was the next to last person dropped off, with only Ariana remaining behind. Ariana patted Lissa's arm as the van door opened. â€Å"Good luck, dear.' Lissa gave her a quick smile. These tests might all be a ruse on Lissa's part, but Ariana was the real deal, and Lissa prayed the older woman could get through this successfully. Left alone as the van drove away, unease spread through Lissa. The simple endurance test suddenly seemed much more daunting and difficult. She was on her own, something that didn't happen very often. I'd been there for most of her life, and even when I'd left, she'd had friends around her. But now? It was just her, the map, and the cell phone. And the cell phone was her enemy. She walked to the edge of the forest and studied her map. A drawing of a large oak tree marked the beginning, with directions to go northwest. Scanning the trees, Lissa saw three maples, a fir, and–an oak. Heading toward it, she couldn't help a smile. If anyone else had botanical landmarks and didn't know their plants and trees, they could lose candidacy right there. The compass was a classic one. No digital GPS convenience here. Lissa had never used a compass like this, and the protective part of me wished I could jump in and help. I should have known better, though. Lissa was smart and easily figured it out. Heading northwest, she stepped into the woods. While there was no clear path, the forest's floor wasn't too covered with overgrowth or obstacles. The nice part about being in the forest was that the trees blocked out some of the sun. It still wasn't an ideal Moroi condition, but it beat being dropped in a desert. Birds sang, and the scenery was lush and green. Keeping an eye out for the next landmark, Lissa tried to relax and pretend she was simply on a pleasant hike. Yet †¦ it was difficult to do that with so much on her mind. Abe and our other friends were now in charge of working and asking questions about the murder. All of them were asleep right now–it was the middle of the Moroi night–but Lissa didn't know when she'd return and couldn't help resenting this test for taking up her time. No, wasting her time. She'd finally accepted the logic behind her friends' nomination–but she still didn't like it. She wanted to actively help them. Her churning thoughts almost led her right past her next landmark: a tree that had fallen ages ago. Moss covered it, and much of the wood was rotten. A star on the map marked it as a place with a clue. She flipped over the map and read: I grow and I shrink. I run and I crawl. Follow my voice, though I have none at all. I never do leave here, but I travel around– I float through the sky and I creep through the ground. I keep my cache in a vault although I have no wealth, Seek out my decay to safeguard your health. Um. My mind went blank right about then, but Lissa's spun. She read it over and over again, examining the individual words and how each line played off the other. I never do leave here. That was the starting point, she decided. Something permanent. She looked around, considered the trees, then dismissed them. They could always be cut and removed. Careful not to stray too far from the fallen tree, she circled the area searching for more. Everything was theoretically transient. What stayed? Follow my voice. She came to a halt and closed her eyes, absorbing the sounds around her. Mostly birds. The occasional rustle of leaves. And– She opened her eyes and walked briskly to her right. The sound she'd heard grew louder, bubbling and trickling. There. A small creek ran through the woods, hardly noticeable. Indeed, it seemed too tiny for the streambed carved out around it. â€Å"But I bet you grow when it rains,' she murmured, uncaring that she was speaking to a stream. She looked back down at the clue, and I felt her clever mind rapidly piece it all together. The stream was permanent–but traveled. It changed size. It had a voice. It ran in deep parts, crawled when there were obstacles. And when it evaporated, it floated in the air. She frowned, still puzzling the riddle aloud. â€Å"But you don't decay.' Lissa studied the area once more, uneasily thinking decay could apply to any plant life. Her gaze moved past a large maple tree and then jerked back. At its base grew a clump of brown and white mushrooms, several wilting and turning black. She hurried over and knelt down, and that was when she saw it: a small hole dug into the earth nearby. Leaning closer, she saw a flash of color: a purple drawstring bag. Triumphantly, Lissa pulled it out and stood up. The bag was made of canvas and had long strings that would allow it to hang over her shoulder as she walked. She opened the bag and peered inside. There, tucked inside the fluffy and fuzzy lining, was the best thing of all: a bottle of water. Until now, Lissa hadn't realized how hot and dehydrated she'd grown–or how wearying the sun was. The candidates had been told to wear sturdy shoes and practical clothing but hadn't been allowed any other supplies. Finding this bottle was priceless. Sitting on the log, she took a break, careful to conserve her water. While the map indicated a few more clues and â€Å"rewards,' she knew she couldn't necessarily count on any more helpful bags. So, after several minutes' rest, she put away the water and slung the little tote over her shoulder. The map directed her due west, so that was the way she went. The heat beat on her as she continued her walk, forcing her to take a few more (conservative) water breaks. She kept reminding herself it wasn't a race and that she should take it easy. After a few more clues, she discovered the map wasn't quite to scale, so it wasn't always obvious how long each leg of the hike was. Nonetheless, she was delighted to successfully solve each clue, though the rewards became more and more baffling. One of them was a bunch of sticks sitting on a rock, something she would have sworn was a mistake, but someone civilized had clearly tied the bundle together. She added that into her bag, along with a neatly folded green plastic tarp. By now, sweat was pouring off her, and rolling up the sleeves of her button-down cotton shirt did little to help. She took more frequent breaks. Sunburn became a serious concern, so it was a huge relief when her next clue led to a bottle of sunscreen. After a couple hours of battling the intense summer heat, Lissa became so hot and tired that she no longer had the mental energy to be annoyed about missing out on whatever was happening at Court. All that mattered was getting to the end of this test. The map showed two more clues, which she took as a promising sign. She would reach the end soon and then could simply wait for someone to get her. A flash of realization hit her. The tarp. The tarp was a sun block, she decided. She could use it at the end. This cheered her up, as did the next prize: more water and a floppy, wide-brimmed hat that helped keep the sunlight from her face. Unfortunately, after that, what appeared to be a short leg of the trip turned out to be twice as long as she expected. By the time she finally reached the next clue, she was more interested in taking a water break than digging out whatever else the guardians had left her. My heart went out to her. I wished so, so badly that I could help. That was my job, to protect her. She shouldn't be alone. Or should she? Was that also part of the test? In a world where royals were almost always surrounded by guardians, this solitude had to be a total shock. Moroi were hardy and had excellent senses, but they weren't built for extreme heat and challenging terrain. I could have probably jogged the course easily. Admittedly, I wasn't sure I would have had Lissa's deductive skills in figuring out the clues. Lissa's last reward was flint and steel, not that she had any idea what they were. I recognized them instantly as the tools of a fire-making kit but couldn't for the world figure out why she'd need to build a fire on a day like this. With a shrug, she added the items to her bag and kept going. And that's when things started to get cold. Really cold. She didn't entirely process it at first, mainly because the sun was still shining so brilliantly. Her brain said what she felt was impossible, but her goose bumps and chattering teeth said otherwise. She rolled her sleeves back down and quickened her pace, wishing that the sudden cold had at least come with cloud cover. Walking faster and exerting herself more helped heat her body. Until it began to rain. It started off as a mist, then changed to drizzle, and finally turned into a steady curtain of water. Her hair and clothing became soaked, making the cold temperature that much worse. Yet †¦ the sun still shone, its light an annoyance to her sensitive skin but offering no warmth in compensation. Magic, she realized. This weather is magical. It was part of the test. Somehow, Moroi air and water magic users had united to defy the hot, sunny weather. That was why she had a tarp–to block the sun and the rain. She considered getting it out now and wearing it like a cloak but quickly decided to wait until she reached the endpoint. She had no idea how far away that really was, though. Twenty feet? Twenty miles? The chill of the rain crept over her, seeping under her skin. It was miserable. The cell phone in the bag was her ticket out. It was barely late afternoon. She had a long time to wait before this test ended. All she had to do was make one call †¦ one call, and she'd be out of this mess and back to working on what she should be at Court. No. A kernel of determination flared up within her. This challenge was no longer about the Moroi throne or Tatiana's murder. It was a test she would take on for herself. She'd led a soft and sheltered life, letting others protect her. She would endure this on her own–and she would pass. This determination took her to the map's end, a clearing ringed in trees. Two of the trees were small and close enough together that Lissa thought she might be able to drape the tarp into some sort of reasonable shelter. With cold, fumbling fingers, she managed to get it out of the bag and unfold it to its full size–which was fortunately much larger than she'd suspected. Her mood began to lift as she worked with the tarp and figured out how to create a small canopy. She crawled inside once it was complete, glad to be out of the falling rain. But that didn't change the fact that she was wet. Or that the ground was also wet– and muddy. The tarp also didn't protect her against the cold. She felt a flash of bitterness, recalling the guardians saying magic was allowed in this test. She hadn't thought magic would be useful at the time, but now, she could certainly see the perks of being a water user to control the rain and keep it off her. Or, better yet: being a fire user. She wished Christian was with her. She would have welcomed the warmth of both his magic and his embrace. For this kind of situation, spirit seriously sucked–unless, perhaps, she got hypothermia and needed to try to heal herself (which never worked as well as it did on other people). No, she decided. There could be no question: water and fire users had the advantage in this test. That's when it hit her. Fire! Lissa straightened up from where she'd been huddled. She hadn't recognized the iron and flint for what they were, but now, vague recollections of fire-making were coming back to her. She'd never been taught those skills directly but was pretty sure striking the stones together would make a spark–if she only had dry wood. Everything out there was soaked†¦ . Except for the bundle of sticks in her bag. Laughing out loud, she untied the sticks and set them in a place shielded from the rain. After arranging them in what seemed like a campfire-friendly pattern, she tried to figure out what to do with the steel and flint. In movies, she thought she'd seen people just hit them to make sparks fly. So, that's what she did. Nothing happened. She tried three more times, and her earlier excitement gave way to spirit-darkened frustration. I pulled some of that from her, needing her to stay focused. On the fourth try, a spark flew off and faded away–but it was what she needed to understand the principle. Before long she could easily make sparks, but they did nothing when they landed on the wood. Up and down: her mood was a rollercoaster of hope and disappointment. Don't give up, I wanted to say as I drew off more negativity. Don't give up. I also wanted to give her a lesson on kindling, but that was pushing my limits. Watching her, I was beginning to realize how much I underestimated Lissa's intelligence. I knew she was brilliant, but I always imagined her being helpless in these situations. She wasn't. She could reason things out. That tiny spark couldn't penetrate the wood of the sticks. She needed a bigger flame. She needed something the sparks could ignite. But what? Surely nothing in this waterlogged forest. Her eyes fell on the map poking out of her bag. She hesitated only a moment before ripping and shredding the paper into a pile on top of the twigs. Supposedly, she'd reached the end of the hike and didn't need the map. Supposedly. But it was too late now, and Lissa pushed forward with her plan. First, she pulled out some of the bag's fluffy lining, adding the bits of fuzz to the paper. Then she took up the flint and steel again. A spark jumped out and immediately caught a piece of the paper. It flared orange before fading out, leaving a wisp of smoke. She tried again, leaning forward to gently blow on the paper when the spark landed. A tiny flame appeared, caught a neighboring shred, and then faded. Steeling herself up, Lissa tried a final time. â€Å"Come on, come on,' she muttered, as though she might compel a fire into existence. This time, the spark caught and held, turning into a small flame, then a larger flame that soon consumed her kindling. I prayed it would take to the wood, or else she was out of luck. Brighter and larger the flame grew, eating the last of the paper and fuzz †¦ and then spreading along the sticks. Lissa blew softly to keep it going, and before long, the campfire was in full blaze. The fire couldn't change the piercing cold, but as far as she was concerned, she had the warmth of the entire sun in her hands. She smiled, and a sense of pride that she hadn't felt in a while spread within her. Finally able to relax, she glanced out at the rainy forest and caught the faintest flashes of color in the distance. Channeling spirit, she used her magic to intensify her ability to see auras. Sure enough–hidden far, far out among the trees, she could see two auras filled with strong, steady colors. Their owners stood still, staying quiet and covered. Lissa's smile grew. Guardians. Or maybe the air and water users controlling the weather. None of the candidates were alone out here. Ronald Ozera had had no need to worry–but then, he wouldn't know that. Only she did. Maybe spirit wasn't so useless out here after all. The rain began to lighten, and the fire's warmth continued to soothe her. She couldn't read the time from the sky, but somehow, she knew she would have no problem waiting out the day and– â€Å"Rose?' A voice summoned me out of Lissa's wilderness survival. â€Å"Rose, wake up or †¦ whatever.' I blinked, focusing on Sydney's face, which was a few inches from mine. â€Å"What?' I demanded. â€Å"Why are you bothering me?' She flinched and jerked away, momentarily speechless. Pulling away Lissa's darkness while joined with her hadn't affected me at the time, but now, conscious in my own body, I felt anger and irritation flood me. It's not you, it's not Sydney, I told myself. It's spirit. Calm down. I took a deep breath, refusing to let spirit master me. I was stronger than it was. I hoped. As I fought to push those feelings down, I looked around and remembered I was in Sonya Karp's bedroom. All my problems came rushing back. There was a bound Strigoi in the other room, one we were barely keeping constrained and who didn't seem like she would give us answers anytime soon. I looked back at Sydney, who still seemed afraid of me. â€Å"I'm sorry †¦ I didn't mean to snap at you. I was just startled.' She hesitated a few moments and then nodded, accepting my apology. As the fear faded from her face, I could see that something else was bothering her. â€Å"What's wrong?' I asked. As long as we were alive and Sonya was still trapped, things couldn't be that bad, right? Sydney stepped back and crossed her arms. â€Å"Victor Dashkov and his brother are here.'