Saftey Officer Example

Saftey Officer Example Saftey Officer †Article Example Errand David .W. Dodson in his book ‘Fire Department Incident Safety Officer’ gives the capacities and traits of compelling Fire Department Incident Officers. He contends that a viable Incident Safety Officer ought not exclusively have the option to meet the base necessities set out in the law, yet in addition â€Å"they must have the option to obtain extra aptitudes and information well past Fire Officer 1 level† (Dodson, 2007, p.79). This implies a viable Incident Safety Officer ought to have outperformed the base expertise level so as to release his obligations effectively. Besides their need to increase an essential comprehension of what is around them and the dangers in question, an Incident Safety Officer must have a general thought of the aptitudes and data that are an obligatory necessity to be inside his insight. Dodson, (2007, p.80) contends that it is the capacity of a compelling Incident Safety Officer (ISO) to be, at the very least, educated in the fi elds of building development, chance/advantage ideas, fire conduct, fireman physiology, risky vitality, and episode the board frameworks. Nonetheless, he keeps up that the key expertise is created towards fruitful interpretation of the information learnt into application without steady oversight. This consequently endless supply of the information, the ISO has a capacity to complete the commanded errands with a 90% proficiency and viability. This implies an ISO must have the option to complete his undertakings with, â€Å"an systematic robotization that is profoundly associated with a suitable activity for the incident† (Dodson, 2007, p.79). This involves a brief comprehension of the way that the procurement of such information must be joined by the powerful utilization of such abilities. It is this ability and information that empowers an ISO to perceive the capability of an occurrence (Dodson, 2007, p.79). The joined information on aptitude and an away from of the aptitudes required to kill an episode, and the improvement of a raised mindfulness or sound judgment to manage any occurrence as it raises shapes the characteristics of a compelling Incident Safety Officer.ReferenceDodson, W.D. (2007). Local group of fire-fighters Incident Safety Officer. New York, Delmar.

Much ado about nothing

A lot of excitement about something that is not important is a sentimental interesting parody composed by William Shakespeare. By concentrating on connections, the creator of the play features the effect of double dealing to solidarity, love and joy. Misdirection is the gadget the characters use to either demolish or improve each other’s lives. The adoration connections are either fabricate or decimated because of stunts, jealousy or insignificant awful luck.Advertising We will compose a custom paper test on Much ado about nothing explicitly for you for just $16.05 $11/page Learn More Similarly, a portion of the characters discover satisfaction in lying or playing stunts to their companions or sweethearts so as to accomplish their own childish desire. Shockingly, the part of self-trickery emerges among a couple of characters. Concisely, the subject of misleading spins around adoration connections in the play. Along these lines, the slippery bonds made between various character s are powerless for the most part since they are expand on the establishment of trickiness as explained in the following conversation. As per Shakespeare, an adoration relationship resembles destiny and in this manner, just a self-beguiling individual can isolate two individuals who have a typical intrigue. Set in a regal situation, Claudio reports his expectation of seeking and inevitably, wedding Hero who has illustrious blood. Fortunately, Don Pedro the Spanish sovereign urges Claudio to proceed with his arrangements. Despite the fact that Benedick is against Claudio’s aims of dating Hero, Claudio puts him off by saying â€Å"in mine eye she is the best woman that ever I looked on† (Shakespeare Act I scene I 135-137). Benedick tricks himself when he imagines that he can change Claudio’s mind/goals not to date Hero. For example, he says, â€Å"God prohibit it ought to be so† (Shakespeare Act I scene I 140). During his discussion with Don Pedro, Benedick ’s declares that he doesn't plan to wed either. Be that as it may, he doesn't have a clue what lies ahead (destiny conveys). Along these lines, Benedick’s minimal brain or powerlessness to acknowledge different people’s suppositions or goals inspires him to lie constantly to himself. Benedick’s battles to change Claudio’s goals to wed Hero however he doesn't succeed. Essentially, Beatrice rehearses self-misleading, when she additionally announces that she is preferred of single over wedded. For instance in Act II she says â€Å"Just on the off chance that he sends me no spouse; for the, which favoring I am upon my knees each morning and evening† (Shakespeare Scene I 137-140). In spite of the fact that Beatrice’s petition is to stay single, she amusingly conflicts with her desire lastly weds Benedick.Advertising Looking for paper on english writing? How about we check whether we can support you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Thus, her supplication/wish is a proof of self-duplicity among characters. In the end, because of destiny, Claudio and Hero set out on an adoration Journey and Benedick’s and Beatrice end up in an affection relationship. Along these lines, Shakespeare shows self-misleading is a conduct, which may urge individuals to live in a refusal, as it is the situation with Benedick and Beatrice. Also, self-misdirection can be the main the channel individuals can use to assemble solid bonds. Progressively finished, through concentrating on self-double dealing Shakespeare debilitates individuals in the contemporary society against sabotaging their latent capacity or God’s goal. Another instance of trickery in the story emerges when Don Pedro allots himself the obligation of charming Hero for Claudio. In any case, Claudio doesn't confide in Don Pedro principally in view of his previous tricky communication with Don John. In spite of the fact that Don John is Don Pedro’s sibling, he misleads Claudio that his sibling adores Hero. In the long run, a difference follows between Don Pedro and Claudio. Because of the steady act of misleading among the characters, Claudio accepts that Don Pedro is charming Hero for himself. The steady acts of self-trickery among the characters push them to see every single others as misleading. In any case, Claudio’s relationship with Hero starts. In this way, Shakespeare illuminates the contemporary society that double dealing can prompt disunity, family separate and battles. Moreover, a few people utilize the component of double dealing to vindicate or satisfy their self-aspirations, as it is the situation with Don John. When Claudio begins dating Hero, it is an exercise to the crowd or peruser that individuals ought not rush to pass judgment, accept or trust any negative contemplations/words from companions, relatives and accomplices. Individuals ought not prevent themselves bliss on the grounds that from securin g minor charges from outsiders. Consequently, some of the time duplicity can be a type of consolation to the influenced gatherings and along these lines, individuals should utilize that opportunity to accomplish their own aspirations. As per Shakespeare, misleading can be the best way to take care of social issues. For example, through untruths/trickery Don John accomplishes his goal of breaking the relationship or wedding among Claudio and Hero. Claudio embarrasses Hero at the wedding when he understands or accepts that she is unfaithful (through deception).Advertising We will compose a custom exposition test on Much ado about nothing explicitly for you for just $16.05 $11/page Learn More Don Pedro and Claudio likewise join in the open mortification of Hero while Margret the owner of the separation indecently watches the fall of Hero particularly when she swoons during the wedding. Be that as it may, Leonato and the Friar counterfeit Hero’s passing so as to find out reality. Through compassion, Claudio acknowledges to wed Leonato’s niece (who really is Hero). Because of misdirection and its inevitable effect, Claudio acknowledges to wed an outsider. Shockingly, the assemblage (ladies) shows up in veils and Claudio needs to wear a cover during the wedding. This type of double dealing is useful to both Claudio and Hero who cut off up setting up a strong association. During the wedding, Claudio asks, â€Å"Which is the woman I should seize upon† (Shakespeare Act V scene IV 53)? This shows Claudio is prepared to wed any lady regardless of whether he doesn't adore her. Thusly, the creator shows that double dealing is the main way, which can help with understanding testing circumstances particularly, which occurs because of misleading. In this way, as per Shakespeare marriage is a social establishment that may not really be expand on affection. Claudio’s choice to wed an outsider is to empower him socially fit in the general public. In t his manner, blame or sorry may not really be the fundamental inspiration driving his demonstration. In this way, double dealing makes fantasy that in the long run, benefits the two gatherings. Furthermore, the creator likewise demonstrates that most connections particularly relationships are down and out or assemble dependent on trickery. Be that as it may, the way, where an individual handles the untruths/duplicities may assemble or pulverize their future. In a nutshell, the fundamental topic featured in the play is double dealing. The greater part of the connections are either fabricate or pulverized on account of trickiness. In any case, behind any type of untruth or misleading consistently an enduring answer for a contention or issue develops. At the point when Shakespeare centers around the component of self-duplicity among his characters particularly Beatrice and Benedick, he disheartens the crowd against living in abstemiousness. Both Beatrice and Benedick don't have faith in adoration or marriage relationship however in the long run they wind up wedding one another. Also, Shakespeare shows that through misleading people can tackle their social issues particularly in regards to adore connections, as it is the situation with Claudio and Hero.Advertising Searching for paper on english writing? How about we check whether we can support you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Find out More In this way, double dealing is a piece of the general public. In any case, individuals ought to figure out how to tackle emphatically an issue expand on premise of double dealing. At long last, in spite of the fact that trickery makes pressure in the play, the relationship expand on lies end up more grounded. Works Cited Shakespeare, William. A lot of trouble about something that is not important. New York: Penguin press, 1998. Print This article on Much ado about nothing was composed and put together by client Daphne Rush to help you with your own investigations. You are allowed to utilize it for research and reference purposes so as to compose your own paper; be that as it may, you should refer to it appropriately. You can give your paper here.

Depression and Cognitive Distortions

Depression and Cognitive Distortions Depression Symptoms Print Depression and Cognitive Distortions By Nancy Schimelpfening Nancy Schimelpfening, MS is the administrator for the non-profit depression support group Depression Sanctuary. Nancy has a lifetime of experience with depression, experiencing firsthand how devastating this illness can be. Learn about our editorial policy Nancy Schimelpfening Updated on February 15, 2020 Paper Boat Creative/Getty Images   More in Depression Symptoms Causes Diagnosis Treatment Types Childhood Depression Suicide Which came first, the chicken or the egg? Which came first, the depression symptoms  or the pessimistic thoughts? In many cases, depression actually is the result of habitual negative thoughts, called cognitive distortions.?? When bad things happen, we begin chastising ourselves with thoughts such as Im no good, Im a total failure or Nothing ever goes my way. Our feelings follow what we are thinking, and negative thoughts like these can send us spiraling down into depression. This concept is the guiding principle behind cognitive therapy, a type of psychotherapy developed by psychiatrist Aaron T. Beck in the 1960s. If we think something often enough, we begin to believe its true and our feelings match what we are thinking about ourselves. To conquer depression, we must stop those automatic negative thoughts and replace them with more positive, truthful ones. By nipping these thoughts in the bud, we can halt depression before it even starts. Common Cognitive Distortion Examples Cognitive therapy is directed at 10 common cognitive distortions, or faulty thought patterns, that send us into depression. See if you recognize yourself in any of these. All-or-Nothing Thinking: John recently applied for a promotion in his firm. The job went to another employee with more experience. John wanted this job badly and now feels that he will never be promoted. He feels that he is a total failure in his career.Overgeneralization: Linda is lonely and often spends most of her time at home. Her friends sometimes ask her to come out for dinner and meet new people. Linda feels that that is it useless to try to meet people. No one really could like her. People are all mean and superficial anyway.Mental Filter: Mary is having a bad day. As she drives home, a kind gentleman waves her to go ahead of him as she merges into traffic. Later in her trip, another driver cuts her off. She grumbles to herself that there are nothing but rude and insensitive people in her city.Disqualifying the Positive: Rhonda just had her portrait made. Her friend tells her how beautiful she looks. Rhonda brushes aside the compliment by saying that the photographer must hav e touched up the picture. She never looks that good in real life, she thinks.Jumping to Conclusions: Chuck is waiting for his date at a restaurant. Shes now 20 minutes late. Chuck laments to himself that he must have done something wrong and now she has stood him up. Meanwhile, across town, his date is stuck in traffic.Magnification and Minimization: Scott is playing football. He bungles a play that hes been practicing for weeks. He later scores the winning touchdown. His teammates compliment him. He tells them he should have played better; the touchdown was just dumb luck.Emotional Reasoning: Laura looks around her untidy house and feels overwhelmed by the prospect of cleaning. She feels that its hopeless to even try to clean.Should Statements: David is sitting in his doctors waiting room. His doctor is running late. David sits stewing, thinking, With how much Im paying him, he should be on time. He ought to have more consideration. He ends up feeling bitter and resentful.Labeling and Mislabeling: Donna just cheated on her diet. Im a fat, lazy pig, she thinks.Personalization: Jeans son is doing poorly in school. She feels that she must be a bad mother. She feels that its all her fault that he isnt studying. How to Cope If you recognize any of these behaviors in yourself, then youre halfway there. Heres a homework assignment for you: Over the next few weeks, monitor the self-defeating ways in which you respond to situations. Practice recognizing your automatic responses. Now we will take each of the above cognitive distortions and discuss some powerful coping strategies that will help you dispel the blues before they even start. All-or-Nothing Thinking This type of thinking is characterized by absolute terms like  always,  never, and  forever??. Few situations are ever this absolute. There are generally gray areas. The technique that you should apply here is to eliminate these absolute terms from your vocabulary, except for the cases where they truly apply. Look for a more accurate description of the situation. Heres an example of self-talk that John could have used to cope with not getting that promotion: I wanted this job a lot, but it went to someone with more experience. This is disappointing to me, but it doesnt mean Im not a good employee. Other opportunities will be available in the future. Ill keep working on my skills so that Ill be ready for them when they arrive. This one setback does not mean my career is over. Overall, I have excelled in my work. Overgeneralization When one overgeneralizes, one takes an isolated case or cases and assumes that all others are the same??. Are people really all mean and superficial and could never like her? What about her friends who are trying to get her to go out? Obviously, she does have someone who cares about her. The next time you catch yourself overgeneralizing, remind yourself that even though a group of people may share something in common, they are also separate and unique individuals. No two people are exactly the same. There may be mean and superficial people in this world. There may even be people who dislike you. But, not every person will fit this description. By assuming that everyone doesnt like you, you are building a wall that will prevent you from having what you crave the most â€" friendship. Mental Filter When a person falls victim to mental filters they are mentally singling out only the bad events in their lives and overlooking the positive??. Learn to look for that silver lining in every cloud. Its all about how you choose to let events affect you. Mary could have turned her whole day around if she had paid attention to that nice man who went out of his way to help her. Disqualifying the Positive We  depressives  are masters at taking the good in a situation and turning it into a negative. Part of this comes from a tendency to have  low self-esteem. We feel like we just dont deserve it. How to turn this around is simple. The next time someone compliments you, resist the little voice inside that says you dont deserve it. Just say thank you and smile. The more you do this, the easier it will become. Jumping to Conclusions Once again, we fall victim to our own insecurities. We expect the worst and begin preparing early for the disappointment. By the time we find out that all our fears were unfounded, weve worked ourselves into a frenzy and for what? Next time do this:  Give the person the benefit of the doubt. Youll save yourself a lot of unnecessary  worry. If your fears have some basis in reality, however, drop that person from your life like a hot potato. Magnification and Minimization Have you ever looked through a telescope from the wrong direction? Everything looks tinier than it really is. When you look through the other end, everything looks larger. People who fall into the magnification/minimization trap look at all their successes through the wrong end of the telescope and their failures through the other end??. What can you do to stay away from this error and stop your negative thoughts? Remember the old saying, He cant see the forest for the trees? When one mistake bogs us down, we forget to look at the overall picture. Step back and look at the forest now and then. Overall, Scott played a good game. So what if he made a mistake? Emotional Reasoning Laura has based her assessment of the situation on how it makes her  feel  not how it really is. It may make her feel bad to think of the large task ahead of her, but is it really hopeless? In reality, cleaning her house is a doable task. She just doesnt feel up to it. She has reached the conclusion that it is useless to try based on the fact that it overwhelms her. When a situation feels overwhelming, try this to stop your negative thoughts: Break down the task down into smaller ones. Then prioritize what is most important to you. Now, do the first task on your list. Believe it or not, you will begin to feel better and ready for more. The important thing is to just do  something  towards your goal. No matter how small, its a start and will break you out of feeling helpless. Should Statements We all think things  should  be a certain way, but lets face it, they arent. Concentrate on what you can change and if you cant change it, accept it as part of life and go on. Your  mental health  is more important than the way things should be. Labeling and Mislabeling What Donna has done in our example is label herself as lazy and hopeless. She most likely will reason that since she cant lose weight, she may as well eat. She has now effectively trapped herself by living up to the label she placed on herself. When we label ourselves, we set ourselves up to become whatever that label entails. This can just as easily work to our advantage. Heres what Donna could have done to make labeling work in her favor. She could have considered the fact that up until now she has been strong. She could then forgive herself for only being human and acknowledge that she has been working hard to lose weight and has been succeeding. This is a temporary setback that she can overcome. Overall, she is a strong person and has proven it by her successful weight loss. With this type of positive thinking, Donna will feel better and be back to work on her weight loss goals in no time. Personalization In our example, Jean is taking all the responsibility for how her son is doing in school. She is failing to take into consideration that her son is an individual who is ultimately responsible for himself. She can do her best to guide him, but in the  end,  he controls his own actions. Next time you find yourself doing this, ask yourself, Would I take credit if this person were doing something praiseworthy? Chances are youd say, No, he accomplished that by himself. So why blame yourself when he does something not so praiseworthy? Beating yourself up is not going to change his behavior. Only he can do that. The solutions Ive presented here are some of the common situations we find ourselves in. Take these as examples and create your own positive solutions to your negative thoughts. Recognizing that you do it is the first step. Then play devils advocate and challenge yourself to find the positive. Turn your thoughts around and your moods will follow suit. Remember, you  are  what you think! The 7 Best Online Help Resources for Depression

Jazz in the Culture of Nazi Germany Essay - 1185 Words

Different Drummers: Jazz in the Culture of Nazi Germany by Michael Kater There has only been one moment in history when jazz was synonymous with popular music in the country of its origin. During the years of, and immediately prior to World War II, a subgenre of jazz commonly referred to as swing was playing on all American radio stations and attracting throngs of young people to dancehalls for live shows. But it wasnt only popular amongst Americans; historian Michael H. Kater, in his book Different Drummers: Jazz in the Culture of Nazi Germany, has turned his eye away from the United States in order to examine the effects jazz had on German culture during the years of swing popularity. In his introduction, Kater explains the†¦show more content†¦One famous critic of the genre was Theodore Adorno who, while priding himself on being an avant-gardist, refused to categorize jazz as an actual art form, instead he relegated it to the class of arts and crafts. This view of the music could be fairly attributed to underlying prejudices that were ing rained in the German psyche. By the time the Nazi Party had gained significant political power, they had begun to successfully exploit the ignorance of the general populace regarding the characteristics of dark-skinned peoples. Although during the republic there were a number of African and African-American jazz musicians occupying spaces in German bands, as well as in foreign bands touring through the country, German culture was not as accepting of people of color as, say, France was at the time. One reason for this racism that stood out in Katers book was the mistreatment of German women by North African colonials in the French Army during the occupation following World War I. But even those exceptionally tolerant Germans who praised the African-Americans that invented jazz still regarded them with a paradoxical objectification that attempted to hold the black man up on a pedestal for his mystical musical skills, but consequently turned his image into a threatening one. This concept would be later known as Crow Jimism in American bebop circles. What the Nazis found threatening about jazz, according to Kater, was its spirit as wellShow MoreRelatedJazz and World War Ii: Reciprocal Effects and Relationships Essay854 Words   |  4 PagesJazz and World War II: Reciprocal Effects and Relationships Both Jazz music and World War II had a significant impact on each other. Jazz music boosted the morale of soldiers fighting abroad and also lifted the spirits of their loved ones back at home. Many jazz musicians were soldiers, and several others traveled overseas or across the country to entertain U.S. troops. Among these performers were Bing Crosby, Artie Shaw, and Benny Carter. Jazz music was not only evident in American culture, butRead MorePropaganda and Radio Broadcasting In Nazi Germany Essay1374 Words   |  6 Pages1933 Adolf Hitler was chosen as Chancellor of Germany by president Paul von Hindenburg. With this, the Nazi party came to power. Originally called the National Socialist German Workers party (Nazi for short), the Nazi party emphasized how Laissez-faire capitalism, economic liberalism, and democracy failed in government. The National Socialists stressed the importance of the impeccability of the German race. Although they had very determined ideas, The Nazi party began as a relatively small group inRead MoreHitler And The Nazi Party1547 Words   |  7 PagesNazism in America Probably one of the most infamous political groups in history were the Nazis, a party created and lead by Hitler, an equally awful man. The Nazi party was based in Germany, and many Germans had fallen prey to their deception through their immoral methods, but it was a true surprise when Americans started to become ensnared by their deceit as well. After WWI, Germany was in ruins; so many Germans immigrated to the US. Some of these immigrants fit in quite well intoRead MoreThe Use Of Mass Media On The World Of Jews1495 Words   |  6 Pagesposition to be chancellor of Germany, instead of doing good, he exceeded his power in an effort to diminish the world of Jews. Adolf Hitler’s tyranny is shown by the use of mass media and the control of culture, acts of genocide against Jews and the invasion and repression of other sovereign countries. Hitler was looked upon as good and bad leader, for the vast majority of German citizens they loved Hitler. He showed the ability to keep strength and courage despite Germany losing the war and for thisRead MoreWomen in Nazi Germany1548 Words   |  7 PagesThe women in Nazi Germany had a very specific role set up for them. The specifications of their job consisted of revolving around their house duties, their husbands and their children. Most of the income in the family would come from the husband, while back at home, the women would tidy up and keep everything in place. The encouragement of marrying at a young age, and getting a proper family dates back to 1933, from when Hitler first rose to power, and the Law for the Encouragement of Marriage wasRead MoreThe Cold War On Europe1282 Words   |  6 Pagespolitical and military tension between powers in the Western Bloc (the United States, its NATO allies and others) and powers in the Eastern Bloc (the Soviet Union and its allies in the Warsaw Pact). It â€Å"split the temporary wartime alliance against Nazi Germany, leaving the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) and the United States as two superpowers with profound economic and political differences: the former being a single-party Marxist–Leninist state, and the latter being a capitalist state withRead MoreThe Role of Music during World War II736 Words   |  3 PagesMusic was used as propaganda throughout the countries involved to gain public support. The music that was present in World War II was extremely versatile and happy, which helped keep spirits high among everybody. Styles such as swing, blues, and jazz were popular music styles at the time. By the end of 1941, 96.2% of Americans owned radios. This granted greater access to music and information on the war. This is in contrast to World War I, where most citizens of the world were not as connectedRead MoreEssay on The Forms of Propaganda Used by the State in Nazi Germany973 Words   |  4 PagesUsed by the State in Nazi Germany One of the purposes of dictatorship was to give the Nazis control of peoples lives. The more control they had, the more easily they could put their aims into effect. The job of controlling people thus became one of the main tasks of the Nazi state. Party propaganda was evident throughout German society and served as a means by which the state could effectively reach every German and summon absolute loyalty to the Nazi party. FollowingRead MoreDifferences Between Class, Religion And Politics1500 Words   |  6 Pageswere used to show these very same ideologies. In September 1933, The Reichskulturekammer (Reich Culture Chamber) was established and led by Goebbels. The seven sub chambers of fine arts, music, theater, the press, the radio, literature, and films was established. Only artists that complied with Nazi ideology was able to become members and be active in the cultural community. bBY 1935, the Reich Culture Chamber had 100,000 members. The radio was used as one of the main methods of propaganda. FromRead MoreHow Africans Became Victims Of The German Concentration Camps1549 Words   |  7 Pagesothers, and very tragic as they were, from the 1890-1945, both Colonial Germany and Nazi Germany committed horrible assaults, on black Germans of African descent. Before, during and after the Holocaust black men, women, and children were being starved in a German-operated concentration camp in Africa. However, these shocking incidents on helpless Africans began in the late 1480s and lasted for many centuries in new Germany. How Africans became victims of the German concentration camps is a story

The Minoan Civilization An Aegean Bronze Age Civilization

The Minoan civilization was an Aegean Bronze Age civilization that was rich with culture, art and architecture. They were so intellectually advanced for their time period, that they have made a significant contribution to the development of the Western European civilization. The Mycenaean civilization flourished in the late Bronze Age. Unlike the Minoans, the Mycenaeans were militaristic and more calculating people. They had very specific reasons behind their actions. Both civilizations had differences and similarities in their technology, trade, military, and society. Being in close proximity of other ancient civilizations, both the Minoans and the Mycenaeans learned from others to fortify their own identity as a society. The Minoan civilization developed rapidly during the middle of the Bronze Age in 2000 BCE until 1500 BCE in the island of Crete. The Minoans were a sophisticated culture that had a unique palette in art and architecture. We know from archeological discoveries, that they had complex settlements and structures, but there were no fortifications, suggesting that they were peaceful and harmonious. This harmony carried through to their art giving it literary and mythological essence that questions, who exactly were the Minoans? Their lack of walled citadels, temples, and unclear kings and priests, suggests that there was an absence of male domination in this society. This leads to believe that the females played an important role in the Minoan society. In manyShow MoreRelatedAncient Mediterranean Art Essays1098 Words   |  5 PagesAncient Mediterranean Art I. Description of a Cycladic female figurine Cycladic civilization is divided into three periods: Early Cycladic (3000-2000 BC), Middle Cycladic (2000-1500 BC), and Late Cycladic (1500-1100 BC). The large amount of white marble sculptures located in the Cycladic islands, especially Naxos and Paros, a place exclusively made up of female folded-arm figures. These impressive marbles seem to be a symbol of Cycladic art. These figures are the best-knownRead MoreCauses Of Minoan Civilization993 Words   |  4 PagesIntroduction Civilization is an important part of people’s live. It develops when the environment of a region can support a large and productive population. Civilization is a social, economic, and political entity distinguished by the ability to express itself through images and written language (H.Sayre, 2011, P.1). Minoan civilization is the first advanced civilization of the prehistoric Aegean region that was developed on a small island of Crete, where Sir Arthur Evans an English archaeologistRead Morehis112 r3 Ancient Civilizations and the Greek World Matrix1457 Words   |  6 Pagesï » ¿University of Phoenix Material Ancient Civilizations and the Greek World Matrix Complete the matrix by entering cultural, political, and economic developments that had lasting effects or that are significant of each civilization. The table includes one example. Civilization Cultural Developments Political Developments Economic Developments Mesopotamian Developed the beginnings of astronomy and mathematics Believed in many gods not just one. Emergence of Kings, exercised distinct political ratherRead MoreThe Aegean Bronze Age Essay1516 Words   |  7 PagesThe Aegean Bronze age displayed a proliferation of beliefs manifested in social practices, and material culture. Among these practices, the display of idols became substantial in epitomizing social realities. The Minoan civilization, being one of the most momentous urbanization formed during this period, established the use of icons to exemplify their cultural and societal views. Emblems in the form of deities, monstrous creatures, hybrids and composites were prominent, alluding to the ways in whichRead MoreThe Collapse Of The Minoan2114 Words   |  9 Pagesthe Minoans? Well they are considered by many Historians and Archeologists to be the first great European Civilization. Some people believed that this was the mythical land of Atlantis. They were located near the Aegean Sea and lands such as Greece, Troy and Asia Minor. One interesting fact is that these people n ever called themselves the Minoans. There wasn’t any name listed in the history books for these people but the Ancient Crete Civilization. They were known as the Crete Civilization becauseRead MoreThe Minoans and Mycenaeans Essay842 Words   |  4 PagesThe Minoans and Mycenaeans were both from the Greek era. They differentiated quite a bit between each other. While the Minoans were peaceful people, the Mycenaeans were brutal and warlike. These two civilizations help the people of today learn about ancient culture. Although the two places were varied much from one another, the cultures wrote the most understandable historical evidence about themselves. This paper will tell how these close regions compared and contrasted. The Mycenaeans existedRead MoreCollapse of Bronze Age Greece Essay1955 Words   |  8 PagesThe Bronze Age in Greece was a period of time in which their civilization flourished. They were a main power at the time and seemed to have everything they wanted in the palm of their hands. Many other civilizations have a period of time also known as the Bronze Age, however, the bronze age of Greece is widely known to be the most prolific and dominant in history. The Greece Bronze Age is estimated to have lasted from between 8th to 6th century BC to about 146BC. Nobody knows for sure the exactRead MoreSimilarities And Differences Between Minos And Mycenaean On The Sea By Trade Essay920 Words   |  4 Pagesimpresses and honor to this masterpiece. The Minoan built an unusual and distinctive type of column. It referred to as an â€Å"inverted column because unlike the later Greek column, it tapers downward, the diameter being smaller at the bottom than at the top. And the columns were m ade of wood rather than stone and were painted bright red. Minoan civilization that developed on the island of Crete around 3000 B.C.E. â€Å"According to later Greek myth, the Minoan civilization was created by an off scoring god ZeusRead MoreGreek Culture : Ancient Greece1688 Words   |  7 Pagesand Bronze Age to the Twentieth century. The Stone Age is the first age in the Greece history, which dates all the way back to 11,000 BC. This age goes all the way until 3,000 BC. The reason that archaeologists call this the Stone Age is because during this time the population started to develop stone tools and basic agriculture skills (history of Greece). Greeka says between 3,500 BC and 3,000 BC larger villages and special organization started to form a high elite group. The next Age is theRead MoreThe Minoan Civilization2030 Words   |  9 PagesHistory Of Architecture Building: Palace Of Minos. Dates: 1700-1400 BC. Time period : Bronze Age. Location: Knossos,Crete. Civilization :The Minoans. In the heart of the Mediterranean Sea, South of Greece, lays the island of Crete refuge of the lost civilization of the minions.The island is first refereed as Kaptara at the Syrian city of Mani dating from 18 000 BC; Also known as Keftiu† from the fresco of the Tomb of Rekhmire in the valley of the kings in Egypt. The islands length is 260 km

MRI Contrast Agents Free Essays

â€Å"MRI contrast is used for a variety of reasons.   Primarily, it is used to improve the detection of disease; that is, to increase sensitivity and diagnostic confidence, to enhance the ability to differentiate normal and abnormal tissue; and to identify the extent of the disease† (Muroff, 2001). Contrast agents are chemical substances used in anatomical or functional imaging for the purpose of increasing visual differences between normal and abnormal tissue. We will write a custom essay sample on MRI Contrast Agents or any similar topic only for you Order Now    These chemical substances are used to alter relaxation times.   Contrast agents are classified by changes in relaxation times after injection. There are six main categories of MRI contrast agents: Gastrointestinal, Intravenous, Intravascular (blood pool), Tumor-specific, and Reticuloendothelial contrast agents. Within the Gastrointestinal contrast agent category, there two subcategories: Positive and Negative contrast agents. Positive contrast agents cause a reduction in T1 relaxation times.   These agents appear brightly on images.   They may contain Manganese, Iron or Gadolinium as active elements. Positive contrast agents have three classifications: Paramagnetic agents, short T1-relaxation agents, and a combination of the two. Paramagnetic contrast agents have magnetic centers which create magnetic fields.   These fields interact with water protons, and have a larger effect on relaxation rates.   They include ferric chloride and gadolinium, which cause T1 and T2 shortening.   In low concentrations, T1 shortening holds the domination of the intensity of the signal.   In high concentrations, T2 shortening causes the signal to decrease.   At mid-level concentration, T1 and T2 shortening show an increase in the signal on T1 weighted images, and decreased the signal on T2 weighted images. Short T1-relaxation agents include mineral oil and oil emulsions.   In these agents, protons relax faster than protons in water, which results in short T1 time.   In bowels with T1 weighted images, a bright signal is apparent. Combinations include emulsion oil that contains corn oil and ferric ammonium citrate, and an emusion containing baby formula with ferrous sulfate.   Combination contrast agents distribute evenly through the bowels. Negative contrast agents will appear largely dark on images.   They are frequently called superparamagnetic iron oxide (SPIO).   They have shorter T1 and T2 relaxation times. Negative contrast agents have three classifications: diamagnetic agents, superparamagnetic agents, and perfluorochemicals. One readily available diamagnetic contrast agent is barium sulfate suspension.   It reduces the loss of bowel signals, resulting in improved pancreatic visualization. Superparamagnetic contrast agents are generally administered orally.   They include magnelite albumin microspheres and superparamagnetic iron oxide.   A large loss of the signal in the stomach and small bowels that give immense visualization of the pancreas and anterior renal margins.   This contrast agent type â€Å"accumulates in the reticuloendothelial system of the liver, and darkens healthy liver tissue in T2-weighted images† (mr-tip.com). Perfluorochemicals are organic compounds that replace protons with fluorine.   They are a special group of negative contrast agents that appear completely dark on images, because they do not contain hydrogen atoms, which are responsible for the signal in MRIs.   In gastrointestinal imaging, the purpose of perfluorochemicals is to give a complete signal absence in the bowels. Intravenous contrast agents include both ionic and nonionic chelates.   When using paramagnetic metal ions as contrast agents, there is a high level of toxicity in the doses required for imaging.   Chelates reduce the chances of long term toxicity by reducing the toxic levels. Intravascular contrast agents remain in the blood longer than most other contrast agents.   They are highly useful in diagnosis imaging that may require longer imaging times. Tumor-Specific contrast agents are targeted to tumors.   There are four main types of tumor-specific agents: Metalloporphyrins target multiple types of tumors, such as melanomas and lymphomas. Monoclonal antibodies are for specific tumors such as colon carcinomas. Ferrioxamine is a paramagnetic agent used for the kidneys and urinary tract. Nitroxides are also paramagnetic agents, but are not widely used. Reticuloendothelial contrast agents are used in liver, spleen and lymph node MRIs.   In liver and spleen imaging, specific contrast agents are used that target the reticuloendothelial system of the liver and spleen.   Because of the inability of most imagers to differentiate between normal and abnormal lymph nodes, USPIO has become widely used.   USPIO allows imagers to have the ability to differentiate between lymph nodes. â€Å"In cases where it is difficult to differentiate two types of tissue, because the signal intensity they produce is so similar, the solution is to add a contrast agent to one of them in order to distinguish it from the other tissue† (GE Healthcare, 2007).   MRI contrast agents affect hydrogen atoms and the time they take to return to their original state, thereby increasing the signal intensity differences between the tissue with the contrast agent and the tissue without the contrast agent.   This results in an increase of contrasts on the image. References GE Healthcare (accessed January 13, 2007) www.amershamhealth.com/public/medical/mri_3.shtml Medline Plus (revised March 2000) http://mplus.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/uspdi/202770.html MR-Technology (accessed January 13, 2007) www.mr-tip.com Muroff, Lawrence R. (Aug. 2001) â€Å"MRI Contrast: Current Agents and Issues† Applied Radiology Online (vol. 30, No. 8) www.appliedradiology.com Runge, Val M. (Aug. 2001) â€Å"The Safety of MR Contrast Media: A Literature Review† Applied Radiology Online (Vol. 30, No. 8) www.appliedradiology.com How to cite MRI Contrast Agents, Essay examples

Brave New World Essay Example For Students

Brave New World Essay Huxleys Brave New World is definitely new and is something that is difficult for a person living in a 90s world to imagine for it is so very diverse compared to our society and customs today. The odd world and lifestyle that was prophesied by Aldous Huxley in the first half of the 20th century has much of the same basis of customs but they are just performed different ritually in these peoples everyday routines. If anyone from our time and our world were ever to spend any given amount of time in Huxleys world then they would be confused, shunned by society and looked at almost as a savage like John for having such different and â€Å"primitive† ways. This of course would happen to anyone from Huxleys world that infiltrated our world that we know. Its all in ones opinion whether or not Huxleys adjustments for a stable environment are just are not but what can be done is to show a comparison between a world subjected to Huxleys ideas from Brave New World and our reality today. One comparison that can be made and also the most obvious is how people are brought into the world. In Huxleys world there is a complicated hatching process where embryos are monitored and adjusted. This occurs in the Central London Hatchery and Conditioning Center. There are many, many aspects to this process and many different methods used to bring life into the world then what we are accustomed to. Here embryos are kept in jars and processed in several ways and conditioned in such a way that everything about the person can be determined and altered. Once these children are born they are put through several events from day one which help to suit them for the rest of their lives. For example, a type of treatment would occur to a certain group of children with a certain determined destiny and so that they enjoy their occupations and niche in their world no matter what that role may be. The people who work to keep this world stable would not want a child predestined to become a construction worker to ever find curiosity in books and learning; that child would be conditioned to stay away from books and learning by means of bad association with those certain things. The child may be given a book and then shocked so they can affiliate bad memories with studying. All persons produced by the center are subjected to many other types of conditioning processes to fit them perfectly to perform their job in the world such as hypnopaedia which is sleep-teaching. In todays reality two people mate and the woman conceives the child through birth. There is no other method of creating a human being. In our world pregnancy is considered natural and beautiful. Children are brought up very individually and in different ways, usually by families and taught the basics of growing up. Children are educated in school learning all subjects including history which is another aspect of life that is shunned by Huxleys society. The mating part in the ritual of creating life is what brings us to our next comparison, sex. In Huxleys society sex is had hastily and through promiscuity, with many partners. Love is something that is not even imagined in their world. But in reality sex is something precious and is not had without thought and without knowing the person well, actually, this is in most scenarios but it is sad to say that promiscuity does exist to some extent in our world. Love is a very serious thing in reality, even more precious than sex and love does occur often. Symbolism In The Fall Of The House Of Usher EssayHuman reproductive instincts are compromised! This is partially due to the counterbalancing desire for self-fulfillment in humans. Since the State provides to satisfy all sensual pleasures of its citizens, this desire is appeased and therefore enables the suppression of reproductive instincts. Moreover, the State provides nurture, through conditioning, in such a way as to conform all individuals to the ideals of the State. This takes place from the time of fertilization to and throughout adulthood. It guarantees, in most cases, the citizens complete acceptance of every aspect of life. For example, when babies destined for the working-class are exposed to books and flowers, they are also subjected to electric shocks coupled with loud and frightening noises; thus, paired stimuli are used to condition, or predetermine a responds, to an object or experience. As the Director of Hatcheries and Conditioning puts it, what man has joined, nature is powerless to put asunder. The human species has finally learned to master what its instinct desires. Furthermore, through hypnopaedia, the mind of each individual is filled with suggestions from the State. These suggestions become the thought processes and mold the desires of each citizen. The Director claims that all conditioning aim at making people like their unescapable destiny. Therefore, not only has man conquered nature by developing the ability to categorize the genes of individuals and to maximize the efficiency of the workforce, through conditioning, individuals are also taught to conform to societal values and to enjoy their status in society. If you were an Epsilon, your conditioning would have made you no less thankful that you werent a Beta or an Alpha. Ultimately, one has to wonder whether humans are slaves to genes or slaves to conditioning. In Brave New World, cultural conditioning seems to be the dominating factor in the behavior of individuals. The introduction of the Savage into civilization illuminates the slavery of the seemingly robotic Epsilon workers. In both the book and movie versions, the Savage assaults the Soma-distribution line. He sees that the masses of people are trapped, trapped by their conditioning. They are conditioned to take Soma when agitated, to behave in a certain way as to not disrupt the stability of society, and to conform to the ideals of the State. The Savage asks, but do you like being slaves? Dont you want to be free and men? Dont you even understand what manhood and freedom are? Unfortunately, his audience has no notion of freedom due to their conditioning. They are so deeply entrapped and conditioned to be content in life that freedom has no value and no meaning to them. While Huxley focuses on the sacrifice of individualism in favor of social stability, the movie version of Brave New World addresses the lack of love. This lack of love is not only evident between individuals, but it is also pervasive in the mass attitude toward art, philosophy, and even religion and science. Anyhow, the result of both worlds is the same. Through conditioning or mass propaganda, people are taught to live in universal happiness. Universal happiness keeps the wheels steadily turning; truth and beauty cant. And this happiness, achieved through ingestion of soma and conditioning, leads to social stability. And according to the Controller, in Brave New World, stability is the primal and ultimate need. Men are no longer slaves of genes but are instead conditioned to serve the stability of society. Each person has his/her place, and everyone works for everyone else. While Huxley presents his Brave New World as a hopeless environment lacking love and real happiness, the movie offers a glimpse of hope in its ending: it shows that a young boy voluntarily disconnects his conditioning process. This is done intentionally. There is hope at the end of our story, Mr. Williams, one of the directors said. Throughout the movie, we get screenshots of this young boy frowning, as if he realizes that something is wrong with the world. Moreover, in the ending, his actions leave a provoking statement that suggests a victory over cultural conditioning. It suggests the presence of a stronger force driving the inhabitants of Brave New World to go against their conditioning. This force constitutes the instincts, the desires and behaviors that are programmed into our genes, that is inherent in human beings. Therefore the movie presents a comeback by nature to overcome nurture. The story of Brave New World presents a scary scenario of government control, regulations on reproduction, and a resulting lack of love in society. The battle between nurture and nature takes place. The State represents the nurturing factors that influence the behavior of individuals; the genes that provide the individuals with instinctive behaviors represent nature. While Huxleys Brave New World hails nurture as the ultimate winner, able to suppress all instinctive desires, the movie version proposes that instinctive desires can drive the inhabitants of Brave New World to go against their conditioning. The movie acknowledges the powerful instinctive desires that counter the conditioning of people. However, after examining both versions of Brave New World, one cannot help feeling entrapped by the society that one lives in. Through a careful analysis of both the book and the movie version of Brave New World, it becomes evident that our world is not so different from Brave New World. Society conditioning induces individuals to strive for better careers, more money, and larger properties. Happiness is often derived from the fulfillment of sensual pleasures and the pursuit of a luxurious life. In Brave New World, we are shocked by the amount of influence that social conditioning exerts on individuals. However, who is to say that we are not under similar influences today in our very own world?

Gun Control Essays (1285 words) - Gun Politics In The United States

Gun Control Gun Control Gun control is an action of the government that is supposed to reduce crime. Congress has passed many laws on this subject and there really has not been an effect. Gun control has been a controversial issue for years, but the citizens of the United States have a right to own guns and the Constitution states that. On the government's path to control guns they created the Brady Act. Handgun Control Incorporated is the major organization for lobbying, and introducing legislation on gun control. It is headed by Sarah Brady, wife of former White House Press Secretary James Brady. James Brady was shot during an attempt on President Reagan's life in 1981. Sarah is the one responsible for introducing this bill. This bill was supposed to stop criminals from obtaining guns. If an individual wants a firearm bad enough, chances are they will get one (Brennen and Polsby). All it does Is prevent honest people from being able to purchase guns. The person purchasing the gun has to wait for two week while the government performs a background check. The problem with this is it stops the average citizen from purchasing a gun on the whim, while it protects the common criminal. What if a burglar enters a house with full intention to maim or kill? The innocent victim can not get a gun to protect his family because he was arrested seven years ago for drunk driving (Larson). According to the General Accounting Office, in the first seventeen months of the law's existence only seven criminals were convicted for attempting to buy a handgun. Banning more and more guns may reduce gun violence, but it will not eliminate guns from society and will only lead to more and bigger problems. While continuing to take more freedom away from the American people. Gun control laws do not prevent little kids from using guns and harming people. Violent video games help children with their marksmanship and to get over their fear of shooting someone. Parents of three slain girls in the Heath School shootings are going after the manufacturers. They feel that violent video games are partially responsible for their children's death. They claim that the video game taught the shooter how to be an excellent marksman. The boy had never used a gun, but was skilled enough to hit eight moving targets in only eight shots (Prichard). Another fact that backs up the parent's belief is that of military training. Each year billions of dollars are spent to train police and the military how to shoot. Video simulation is the best way to help overcome the natural resistance that most people have about shooting someone. Studies show that people are extraordinary susceptible to programming. One main difference between military training and video games is that military instructions are constantly pausing the action and where the video game is in constant action (Blakemore). There is no direct relationship between the number of guns and the amount of crime in the United States. Between 1973 and 1992, the rate of gun ownership increased by forty-five percent while the homicide rate during that period fell by nearly ten percent. Even with the increasing number of guns in society the homicide rate decreased, highlighting that guns are not the root of the problem, people are. Guns do not kill people, people kill people. Guns do not work as self-protection against criminals. Guns are just as valuable to civilians as they are to police officers. As many as sixty-five lives are protected by guns for every life lost to a gun. Every year potential victims kill between two thousand and three thousand criminals, and wound an additional nine thousand to seventeen thousand. Private citizens mistakenly kill innocent people only thirty times a year, compared to about three hundred and ten mistaken killings by police. Criminals succeed in taking a gun away from an armed victim less than one percent of the time. Gun control laws are needed to prevent the purchase of saturday night specials and assault weapons. Criminals generally prefer larger caliber and more expensive handguns (Brennen and Polsby). President Clinton proposed a restriction on armor piercing ammo. However, the FBI reported that sixty-eight percent of officers killed were not wearing a vest. Of those killed wearing a vest ninety-five percent were shot in unprotected areas. Many people like to use guns for recreation use. The NRA, National Rifle Association, even has its own hunting magazines. These magazines are

What You Should Know About Ronald Reagans Radio Career

What You Should Know About Ronald Reagan's Radio Career Ronald Reagan, the 40th U.S. President was many things - including a radio broadcaster. More specifically, he was a sportscaster for several stations between 1932 and 1937 including WOC-AM and WHO-AM. You may not have heard the details, so here are some highlights: WOC - AM 1420 in Davenport was the First commercial radio station west of the Mississippi River and [in 1932] first to hire Ronald Reagan.WOC, needed an announcer to broadcast University of Iowa games. Reagans first assignment - for $5 and bus fare - was the University of Iowas homecoming game against Minnesota. (RonaldReagan.com)After WOC consolidated with WHO in Des Moines...WHO, an NBC affiliate gave Reagan national media exposure. (Reagan.utexas.edu.)  Dutch (a childhood nickname because of his Dutch boy haircut) gained national media exposure recreating Chicago Cubs baseball games from the studio.  One of his responsibilities was to give accounts of Chicago Cubs baseball games via telegraph. During one game between the Cubs and their arch rivals the St. Louis Cardinals that was tied 0-0 in the 9th inning, the telegraph went dead: An often repeated tale of Reagans radio days recounts how he delivered play-by-play broadcasts of Chicago Cubs baseball games he had never seen. Hi s flawless recitations were based solely on telegraph accounts of games in progress. (PBS.org) Once in 1934, during the ninth inning of a Cubs - St. Louis Cardinals game, the wire went dead. Reagan smoothly improvised a fictional play-by-play (in which hitters on both teams gained a superhuman ability to foul off pitches) until the wire was restored. (Wikepedia.org)  Reagan said: â€Å"There were several other stations broadcasting that game and I knew I’d lose my audience if I told them we’d lost our telegraph connections so I took a chance. I had (Billy) Jurges hit another foul. Then I had him foul one that only missed being a home run by a foot. I had him foul one back in the stands and took up some time describing the two lads that got in a fight over the ball. I kept on having him foul balls until I was setting a record for a ballplayer hitting successive foul balls and I was getting more than a little scared. Just then my operator started typing. When he passed me the paper I started to giggle - it said: ‘Jurges popped out on the first ball pitched .’† (intellecualconservative.com)   Did you know that less than six months after President Ronald Reagan left the office he attended an All-Star Game and did some more broadcasting? (BaseballAlmanac.com)  His political career started through the presidency of the Screen Actors Guild (SAG). He gained political stature through radio broadcasts and speaking tours sponsored by the General Electric company.

Marriage Practices of Chicano Population Research Paper

Marriage Practices of Chicano Population - Research Paper Example The mother in law plays a significant role during the marriage ceremony. Firstly, they help the bride to prepare for the big occasion. Mother in laws is expected to prepare their children for the roles that are expected of them as a mother and wife. Similarly, in Chicano culture, the mother in law is expected to prepare her daughter for her new roles. In addition, they are expected to help them to prepare for the big moment in their lives. A Chicano woman is expected to enter the marriage institution fully aware of expectations and equipped with the necessary skills to be a good wife and mother (ODea 812). Furthermore, they are expected to prepare the big dinners. The Chicano community has a special relationship with food. In the community, food plays a significant role, as the community not only enjoys eating a well-prepared meal but it also serves as a celebration of their culture. The Chicano community is among the closest-knit community in America. The bride is not expected to see the groom before the wedding day. The practice is widespread among all societies in the world. Most people believe that seeing the groom before the wedding would jinx the marriage. As a result, there is a period of separation between the bride and groom before they get married. The liminal phase is represented by the actual wedding day. The Chicano community loves to party. As a result, weddings are an excellent excuse for having a good time. The event is characterized by good music and dancing. The Chicano community has a deep appreciation for music. In addition, the community loves to celebrate the big moments in a person’s life.

Porter's Five Forces Strategy Analysis as it applies to the Auto Essay

Porter's Five Forces Strategy Analysis as it applies to the Auto Industry - Essay Example For international organizations, decisions have to be made on whether the strategies would be the same for every country it competes with as well as giving managers the mandate to choose their own strategies. Functional strategies for particular operations derived from business level strategies include marketing, accounting and finance. An automotive industry manufactures, designs, develops, markets and sell motor vehicles and is considered the world’s most significant economic sector in terms of revenue generation. The American automobile industry is the only industry that has never changed for years since its inception. Businesses begin, grow, develop, and end just like human beings. Some do not complete their life cycle as a result of their interruptions. They undergo a myriad of challenges that make them eventually die. Contrary to a human being, a business can change its methods of operation to more efficient mechanisms for improvement. From this view, the American automo bile industry has raised the question of whether it will be able to adapt or it will end from its stagnating condition. Before establishing an organization’s business-level strategy, it must discern the determining factors of profit maximization of an industry. The tool of analyzing these factors is what is known as Porter’s Five Forces Model. ... Introduction to the Auto Industry As defined earlier, an automotive industry manufactures, markets, designs, develops and sells motor vehicles. It does not include industries attached to automobiles after delivery to the client such as fuel stations, electronics and repair shops. An automobile industry involves producing and selling individual powered vehicles such as trucks, passenger cars, farm equipment and other commercial vehicles. The auto industry has facilitated the growth of infrastructure for long distance commuters, entertainment and shopping, growth of market centers, increased urbanization and industrialization (Burgess, 1980). The industry is also one of the key employers thus contributing to economic growth. Until 2005, the US dominated the world in production of automobile. Majority of the auto dealers in the US were blacksmith and carriage shops. Progress was soon developed when the car replaced the horse and buggy. Blacksmith shops were everywhere in the market cent ers and played the role of serving customers at a great deal. The inventors of automobile industries were engineers like Henry Leland and Henry Ford. Blacksmith shops were service oriented whereas carriage shops required time to time management together with the horses that drew them. Since their goal was to provide exceptional satisfaction to the customers needs, they slowly became auto dealers of servicing their customer’s vehicles. They were able to compete with service stations such as Jiffy Lube, Midas, and Meineke among others. From that time the number of dealers began to increase giving rise to many franchised automobile dealers. This trend went down from 1950 until 2007 (Tuman 19). 3.1 Industry definition The first fifty years saw the industry

Examining The Definition Of Western Orientalism Cultural Studies Essay

Examining The Definition Of Western Orientalism Cultural Studies Essay Orientalism transfigures the study of Middle East. Edward Said defines, Orientalism as the ethnocentric way Europe approaches the Asian regions.  Europeans looked upon the people of the Orient or the East and Arabic states as gullible and devoid of energy and initiative.   The invasion of European nations proved a radical decline in the natural prosperity of every nation they stumbled upon. The matters of the European sense of superiority and interest in control can also be seen in orientalist scholarship. Backward and barbaric, fundamentally incapable of social, political, or technological modernization, these were the descriptions of the non-western societies given to them by the people of west. Orientalism is the term that signifies the existing dislike and discrimination at the bottom of the political, economic, social and cultural discourses that were created to justify the imperialist Wests invasion and domination over the non-West. In other words, Orientalism was brought o ut as a matter of historical judgment. He illustrates Asian and Islamic Cultures during European imperialism and Europes goals of maintaining power and domination of non-Europeans.He argued that Europe used the Orient and imperialism as a symbol of its strength and superiority. Said suggested that Orientalists are treated as others-in this case, Muslims and Asians-and as objects defined not in terms of their own discourses, but solely in terms of standards and definitions imposed on them from outside. Among the influences underlying these definitions was, in Saids view, a long-standing Western concern with presenting Islam as opposed to Christianity. Said divided orientalism into two categories, one is the latent Orientalism which  is the unconscious, untouchable certainty about what the Orient is. Its basic content is static and unanimous. The Orient is seen as separate, eccentric, backward, silently different, sensual, and passive. It has a tendency towards despotism and away from progress. It displays feminine penetrability and supine malleability. Its progress and value are judged in terms of, and in comparison to, the West, so it is always the other, the conquerable, and the inferior whereas manifest Orientalism  is what is spoken and acted upon. It includes information and changes in knowledge about the Orient as well as policy decisions founded in Orientalist thinking. It is the expression in words and actions of Latent Orientalism. Any humanist would see that before the west intervened, each individual culture followed to their habitat, past experiences, and past knowledge.   Even though they were not modernized they still would have survived on their own just as they had been doing it for centuries.  Ã‚   However, a race of people could not be heartless enough to admit their destruction with a clear conscious and no remorse.   They would not pack their bags and leave a deserted crippled country. Orientalism and Western domination of the rest of the world. Understanding Orientalism is useful in the context of South Asia, as it enables us to understand the relationship between political hegemony and knowledge. Said says Orientalism exposes the European will to domination to create an orderly discipline of study a set of institutions, a latent vocabulary a subject matter, and subject races. It represents the power to make philological distinctions and the institutional force to make statements about Oriental mentality, the inscrutable Oriental, the unreliable and degenerate Oriental. The concept of Orientalism is useful in analysing prevailing literature, generalised and essentialised ideas such as Hinduism and Islam. It is also important in understanding womens movements and feminist discourses in South Asia. Many South Asian women used the criticism of Orientalism to criticise literature, imaginations and situations affecting women. Yet, the idea of Orientalism and the Western imagery of the Orient can be used ideologically by extremis t nationalists and fundamentalists who suppress the freedom of thought under the pretence of defending the Orient and fighting with the West. Misunderstanding the project of Orientalism may increase hostility between people and glorify myths such as West and Orient. It is no longer desirable, in our globalised world, to say that only South Asians can talk about South Asia, or only Hindu can talk about Hinduism and explain Indian religious traditions. For example, Tibetan Buddhism was scorned again during the Victorian period, when Buddhist studies were growing into an academic discipline. As depicted by Prof Lopez, The nineteenth-century constructions of Tibetan Buddhism are part of the heritage of Orientalism, described by Edward Said as a European mode for gaining authority over the Orient, a mode whereby Orientals were controlledpolitically and epistemologicallyby scholars in Europe and colonial officials in Asia. An important part of this scholarship was the self-aggrandizing ab ility of European scholars to write histories of Oriental civilizations that identified their origins, their classical periods, and their decline. The last of these (also called the modern period) was marked by decay and impotence. The modern period was also contemporaneous with European colonialism, one of whose products for the West was knowledge about the East. According to the exponents of this new field of knowledge, the facts and artefacts of the classical period were rescued by the emergent Western scholarship from the custody of the Orientals, who failed to recognize them for what they were and hence lost any right to them. The Orientalist would henceforth speak for the Oriental through heredity of scholarship whose task it was to represent the Orient because the Orient was incapable of representing itself. This representation of the East by the West carried with it the valuation of what was true and what was false, what was worthy and what was worthless. Furthermore, accord ing to Edward Saids  Orientalism, the texts produced by European Orientalists had the power to create not only knowledge but also the very reality they appear to define by delimiting the object of knowledge. Said argues that Orientalism also had more directly political effects: its representations of the Orient provided a justification for imperialism and a foundation for colonial policies and institutions. (Prof Donald S. Lopez Jr, 1994) Iraq is the ultimate illustration of how Orientalist conventional wisdom had it wrong.   Arguing that this Orientalism has driven America to contempt and discriminate against the Orient, and eventually to invade Afghanistan and Iraq as well as arousing certain public opinion against North Korea, may be criticized for its ignorance or exaggeration, especially when the world has observed the events of September attack (9/11) and the North Korean nuclear weapon issue.During the past two centuries Europe has ideologically constituted Asia in relation to itself with the purpose of putting its hand in it. In the past decade, Asian music and culture has spread throughout the West like poppies. The problem is that this Orientalism is still present, long after the imperialist invasions. Bushs policies are the evidence for the existence of Orientalism. The Bush administration invaded Iraq claiming that Iraq had Weapon of Mass destruction (WMD) and that Saddam Hussein was an unforgivable dict ator. As the supposed Weapon of mass destruction (WMD) have not yet been found and as Hussein was the representative of Iraq, chosen by its people, it is natural that the Iraqi people pronounce curse against Bush. With the amount of west intervention in Iraq, it was not possible for the US military force to occupy Iraq forever. During the Bush administration, he announced that the US military force will be withdrawn upon the establishment of a democratic government in Iraq, the US will probably still try to dominate Iraq in one way or another as long as they have an oil interest in Iraq. Their dominance, however, will not last for long, and the US army cannot help but leave Iraq. This is just a matter of time. Americans or people in the world felt over 9/11 attack. Nobody can deny that 9/11 was an atrocity that aroused anger around the world. The world, however, is aware that the broad antagonism of the west especially Americans against the Arab world was one of the main causes of 9 /11, and that the terrorist Bin Laden himself was, in the past nurtured by the US to fight against the USSR. In other words, 9/11 was a trap set by the US themselves then. The war in Iraq, perceptions have proven particularly relevant to the conduct of military operations. However, because Western outlook of this critical region, and forming the personal collection of most Westerners, are predetermined by each individuals experience within his/her culture. This experience is mostly shaped by the images, ideas and impressions retained from exposure to popular culture, media and more or less elaborate programmes or readings, and depending on ones educational accomplishments, personal or professional interests. The common characteristic between all these individual experiences, as far as the Middle-East is concerned, is that they are all immersed in a predominant consensus or discourse about the representation of this critical region of the world. Likewise, the launch of the Arabic lan guage Al-Jazeera satellite channel nearly ten years ago, transformed the television landscape in the Middle East. And over the past three years the channel has gained global reputation and became a name which governments and decision-makers across the world can hardly ignore. Even, In  The Lord of the Rings  film trilogy, the costumes of the Haradrims, a human race who allies itself with the enemy, are Middle-Eastern in style. When children are fed this kind of negative bias against the Middle-East, the subliminal cultural consciousness of whole generations is enduringly and profoundly impacted. The normality of such bad depictions clearly illustrates what several Western intellectuals qualify at best as acceptable political in correctness directed against Middle-Easterner The war declared on terrorism after the massacre of 9/11 in New York, with the subsequent military operations in Afghanistan and in Iraq, revives this tradition of improving interventionism by carrying on the old orientalist-related topic. Far from destroying the Great Divide between the West and the Rest, the wars of a new type support and separate the division between civilized and barbaric in the era of globalization. The explanation of ideology of the American, according to which there would no longer be outside or inside, because no country would now be released from terrorism. What now prevails is a sober vision of globalization, that of a fight to the death between two worlds, extending over all continents, between America, and the Islamic terrorism. But this originality goes back to schemes that are as old as the United States itself, insofar as this self-proclaimed exceptional, autonomous and providential imperial republic has an idealistic or ideal component qualified as es sential. Edward Said also refers to the medias ability to control and filter information as an invisible screen, releasing what it wants people to know and blacking out what it does not want them to know. To accomplish his goal Said sets up a methodological argument within which he addresses three main concepts. First, that imperialism is not about a specific moment in history, but rather a continuing interdependent dialogue between subject peoples and the dominant hegemony of the empire. Secondly, through the production of popular western literature authors have maintained a sense of continued supremacy upon subject peoples. This theorization that postcolonial domination has been institutionalized within western literature is a reference to the idea of a continuing interchange of ideas between dominant culture and oppressed peoples. Lastly, Saids comparison of colonialism to racism is integral to his argument about the continuation of oppression in a postcolonial environment. Throughout his analysis of culture, he focuses on the limitations of subjugated peoples within western culture and the reasons for their continued oppression. In Covering Islam (1997), Said postulates that, if knowledge is power, those who control the modern Western media (visual and print) are most powerful because they are able to determine what people like or dislike, what they wear and how they wear it, and what they should know and must not know about themselves. Said claims that untruth and falsehood about Islam and the Muslim world are consistently propagated in the media, in the name of objectivity, liberalism, freedom, democracy and progress Conclusion In this contemporary world, there is at least more than fifty percent intervention of the west towards the rest of the world. Edward Said argues in Orientalism, his landmark 1978 study of the relationship between the production of knowledge and the exercise of imperial power, the attitudes and images created by this tradition compose a closely bound system of created knowledge, of willed human work, about the Eastern other which the imperial powers of Europe and North America have historically used to invite and justify political and economic intervention and imperialism. Critics who have studied Orientalism in Europe, especially in nineteenth-century literature, have pointed out that there is much that can be learned about the Wests image of itself through the way Western writers have depicted the Orient. The influential popular magazine, The National Geographic, established in 1988 used to represent a window on the world for millions of middle class Americans at a time when movies and televisions were either not yet invented or in their infancy. The plain picturesque coverage of the Middle-East, by this magazine, showed the Arabs as exotic Orientals Mass media and movie industry developed throughout the twentieth century to become the main spreader of information, images and attitudes about the region to the public at large. The Arab Muslim progressively became a figure in American popular culture. No one can deny that orientalism has made great contributions to the study of Arab culture and history, and to the religion of Islam. Orientalists were and still are standing as experts in Arab-Islamic culture. They accumulated very rich knowledge and experience in this field of inquiry. In fact they made tremendous contribution to research, translation, and ultimately to the preservation and indexing of Arab-Islamic heritage.

Bladerunner - Humanity And Nature Essays -- essays research papers

The central theme of Bladerunner is the relationship between humanity and nature. More specifically it has a purpose in showing how science can negatively influence this fragile relationship. Set in Los Angeles of 2019 we see the decadence of western society into an inhumane harsh impersonal, technology-dominated realm. The inhabitants who fight for their daily survival are in desperate want for nature, contact with which is denied to them by the unrestricted scientific progress and the consequent exploitation of the natural world conducted for the sole purpose of profit. Humanity is also losing touch with it’s own nature. The compassion, the empathy, the love and the emotion are all rare or absent. This ailing relationship between humanity and nature is conveyed through the means of scene setting, dialogue, plot, camera techniques and other film features. All these elements of cinematography synthesise to create an effective portrayal of the unifying theme. In Bladerunner the most prominent element of cinematography is mise en scà ©ne. It generates a context for the film and therefore makes the plot and themes acceptable. To set an appropriate scene different variables need to be controlled. These variables include location, props, lighting and colour. In general the location of the plot is in the vast urban canyons of 2019 LA. The imposing dark buildings, the dirty fog, perpetual rain and the crowded dark streets devoid of vegetation make up the backdrop of most scenes. All this is filmed in dark lighting, which complements the effect produced by the fog in obscuring the living details. From this the responder acknowledges the deterioration of society, the harsh conditions that the humans are subjected to and the way the human spirit itself is progressively destroyed under such conditions. Filming such a location at night provides the director with the opportunity to use chiaroscuro (a technique of strong contrast) to further convey the dominance of technology over humanity. For example in outdoor scenes the garish flickering neons are obtrusively visible but they fail to illuminate the obscure, dark, fogged surroundings, including the multitudes of faceless people. The prominent visibility of artificial things over human presence together with the qualities of the location indicates the degradation of human life under the rule of science. The clothing w... ...he development of characters and their response to the events of the plot, Ridley Scott and the actors communicate the way relationship between humanity and nature has evolved (deteriorated) into the world of 2019 LA. In effect all the techniques mentioned above portray a society of individuals who are weary of the world they live in. They are rejects who lead a pitiful existence in a wasteland called earth because they are not fit enough to go the out-world colonies. Suppressing their own natural instincts for the sake of physically surviving they really the walking dead. Scientific progress conducted not for the best interests of humanity but for the best interests of business has effectively brought about the progressive degradation of society. By exploiting and destroying the natural world human can no more find solace or beauty so as to recuperate their weary minds and rekindle their dying spirits. In summary the techniques that are unique to film such as camera, lighting, costuming, colour and location works in conjunction with common literary techniques such as visual symbolism, irony and characterisation to effectively convey the relationship between humanity and nature.

The Hunters: Phantom Chapter 9

Bonnie winced at the nasty metalic taste in her mouth and blinked several times, until the room around her came back into focus. â€Å"Ugh,† she said. â€Å"I hate doing that.† Everyone was staring at her, their faces white and shocked. â€Å"What?† she said uneasily. â€Å"What'd I say?† Elena was sitting very stil . â€Å"You said it was my fault,† she said slowly. â€Å"Whatever is coming after us, I brought it here.† Stefan reached out to cover her hand with his own. Unbidden, the meanest, narrowest part of Bonnie's mind thought wearily, Of course. It's always about Elena, isn't it? Meredith and Matt fil ed Bonnie in on the rest of what she'd said in her trance, but their eyes kept returning to Elena's stricken face, and as soon as they finished tel ing her what she'd missed, they turned away from Bonnie, back to Elena. â€Å"We need to make a plan,† Meredith said to her softly. â€Å"We'l al want some refreshment,† Mrs. Flowers said, rising to her feet, and Bonnie fol owed her into the kitchen, eager to escape the tension of the room. She wasn't real y a plan girl, anyway, she told herself. She'd made her contribution just by being the vision girl. Elena and Meredith were the ones everyone looked to for making the decisions. But it wasn't fair, was it? She wasn't a fool, despite the fact that her friends al treated her like the baby of the group. Everyone thought Elena and Meredith were so clever and so strong, but Bonnie had saved the day again and again – not that anyone ever remembered that. She ran her tongue along the edges of her teeth, trying to scrape off the nasty sour taste stil in her mouth. Mrs. Flowers had decided that what the group needed to soothe them was some of her special elder-flower lemonade. While she fil ed the glasses with ice, poured the drinks, and set them out on a tray, Bonnie watched her restlessly. There was a rough, empty feeling inside Bonnie, like something was missing. It wasn't fair, she thought again. None of them appreciated her or realized al she'd done for them. â€Å"Mrs. Flowers,† she said suddenly. â€Å"How do you talk to your mother?† Mrs. Flowers turned to her, surprised. â€Å"Why, my dear,† she said, â€Å"it's very easy to speak to ghosts, if they want to speak to you, or if they are the spirits of someone you loved. Ghosts, you see, have not left our plane but stay close to us.† â€Å"But stil ,† Bonnie pressed on, â€Å"you can do more than that, a lot more.† She pictured Mrs. Flowers, young again, eyes flashing, hair flying, fighting the kitsune's malevolent Power with an equal Power of her own. â€Å"You're a very powerful witch.† Mrs. Flowers's expression was reserved. â€Å"It's kind of you to say so, dear.† Bonnie twirled a ringlet of her hair around one finger anxiously, weighing her next words. â€Å"Wel†¦ if you would, of course – only if you have time – I'd like you to train me. Whatever you'd be wil ing to teach me. I can see things and I've gotten better at that, but I'd like to learn everything, anything else you can show me. Divining, and about herbs. Protection spel s. The works, I guess. I feel like there's so much I don't know, and I think I might have talent, you know? I hope so, anyway.† Mrs. Flowers looked at her appraisingly for one long moment and then nodded once more. â€Å"I wil teach you,† she said. â€Å"With pleasure. You possess great natural talent.† â€Å"Real y?† Bonnie said shyly. A warm bubble of happiness rose inside her, fil ing the emptiness that had engulfed her just moments ago. Then she cleared her throat and added, as casual y as she could manage, â€Å"And I was wondering†¦ can you talk to anyone who's dead? Or just your mother?† Mrs. Flowers didn't answer for a few moments. Bonnie felt like the older woman's sharp blue gaze was looking straight through her and analyzing the mind and heart inside. When Mrs. Flowers did speak, her voice was gentle. â€Å"Who is it you want to contact, dear?† Bonnie flinched. â€Å"No one in particular,† she said quickly, erasing an image of Damon's black-on-black eyes from her mind. â€Å"It just seems like something that would be useful. And interesting, too. Like, I could learn al about Fel ‘s Church's history.† She turned away from Mrs. Flowers and busied herself with the lemonade glasses, leaving the subject behind for now. There would be time to ask again, she thought. Soon. â€Å"The most important thing,† Elena was saying earnestly, â€Å"is to protect Meredith. We've gotten a warning, and we need to take advantage of it, not sit around worrying about where it came from. If something terrible – something I brought somehow – is coming, we'l deal with it when it gets here. Right now, we look out for Meredith.† She was so beautiful, she made Stefan dizzy. Quite literal y: Sometimes he would look at her, catch her at a certain angle, and would see, as if for the first time, the delicate curve of her cheek, the lightest rose-petal blush in her creamy skin, the soft seriousness of her mouth. In those moments, every time, his head and stomach would swoop as if he'd just gotten off a rol er coaster. Elena. He belonged to her; it was as simple as that. As if for hundreds of years he had been journeying toward this one mortal girl, and now that he had found her, his long, long life final y had found its purpose. You don't have her, though, something inside him said. Not all of her. Not really. Stefan shook off the traitorous thought. Elena loved him. She loved him bravely and desperately and passionately and far more than he deserved. And he loved her. That was what mattered. And right now, this sweet mortal girl he loved was efficiently organizing a schedule for guarding Meredith, assigning duties with the calm expectation that she would be obeyed. â€Å"Matt,† she said, â€Å"if you're working tomorrow night, you and Alaric can take the daytime shift. Stefan wil take over at night, and Bonnie and I wil pick up in the morning.† â€Å"You should have been a general,† Stefan murmured to her, earning himself a quick smile. â€Å"I don't need guards,† Meredith said irritably. â€Å"I've been trained in martial arts and I've faced the supernatural before.† It seemed to Stefan that her eye rested speculatively on him for a second, and he forced himself not to bristle under her scrutiny. â€Å"My stave is al the protection I need.† â€Å"A stave like yours couldn't have protected Celia,† Elena argued. â€Å"Without Stefan there to intervene, she would have been kil ed.† On the couch, Celia closed her eyes and rested her head against Alaric's arm. â€Å"Fine, then.† Meredith spoke in a clipped tone, her eyes on Celia. â€Å"It's true, out of al of us, only Stefan could have saved her. And that's the other reason this whole team effort to protect me is ridiculous. Do you have the strength and speed these days to save me from a moving train, Elena? Does Bonnie?† Stefan saw Bonnie, coming in with a tray of lemonade glasses, pause and frown as she heard Meredith's words. He had known, of course, that with Damon dead and Elena's Powers gone, he was the only one left to protect the group. Wel , Mrs. Flowers and Bonnie had some limited magical ability. Then Stefan amended the thought further. Mrs. Flowers was actual y quite powerful, but her powers were stil depleted from fighting the kitsune. It came to the same thing, then: Stefan was the only one who could protect them now. Meredith might talk about her responsibilities as a vampire hunter, but in the end, despite her training and heritage, she was just another mortal. His eyes scanned the group, al the mortals, his mortals. Meredith, serious gray eyes and a steely resolve. Matt, eager and boyish and decent down to the bone. Bonnie, sunny and sweet, and with a core of strength perhaps even she didn't know she had. Mrs. Flowers, a wise matriarch. Alaric and Celia†¦ wel , they weren't his mortals the way the others were, but they fel under his protection while they were here. He had sworn to prote ct humans, when he could. If he could. He remembered Damon saying to him once, laughing in one of his fits of dangerous good humor, his face gleeful, â€Å"They're just so fragile, Stefan! You can break them without even meaning to!† And Elena, his Elena. She was as vulnerable as the rest of them now. He flinched. If anything ever happened to her, Stefan knew beyond a doubt that he would take off the ring that let him walk in the day, lie down in the grass above her grave, and wait for the sun. But the same hol ow voice inside that questioned Elena's love for him whispered darkly in his ear: She would not do the same for you. You are not her everything. As Elena and Meredith, with occasional interjections from Matt and Bonnie, continued to argue about whether Meredith needed the efforts of the group to guard her, Stefan closed his eyes and slipped into his memories of Damon's death. Stefan watched, foolish and uncomprehending and just not fast enough, as Damon, quicker than him till the last, dashed toward the huge tree and flung Bonnie, light as dandelion fluff, out of the reach of the barbed branches already plummeting toward her. As he threw her, a branch caught Damon through his chest, pinning him to the ground. Stefan saw the moment of shock in his brother's eyes before they rolled backward. A single drop of blood ran from his mouth down his chin. â€Å"Damon, open your eyes!† Elena was screaming. There was a rough tone in her voice, an agony Stefan had never heard from her before. Her hands jerked at Damon's shoulders, as if she wanted to shake him hard, and Stefan pulled her away. â€Å"He can't, Elena, he can't,† he said, half sobbing. Couldn't she see that Damon was dying? The branch had stopped his heart and the tree's poison was spreading through his veins and arteries. He was gone. Stefan had gently lowered Damon's head to the ground. He would let his brother go. But Elena wouldn't. Turning to take her in his arms and comfort her, Stefan saw that she had forgotten him. Her eyes were closed and her lips were moving soundlessly. All her muscles were taut, straining toward Damon, and Stefan realized with a dull shock that she and Damon were connected still, that a last conversation was being carried on along some private frequency that excluded him. Her face was wet with tears, and she suddenly fumbled for her knife and with one swift, sure movement, nicked her own jugular vein, starting blood flowing across her neck. â€Å"Drink, Damon,† she said in a desperate, prayerlike voice, prying his mouth open with her hands and angling her neck above it. The smell of Elena's blood was rich and tangy, making Stefan's canines itch with desire even in his horror at her carelessness in cutting her own throat. Damon did not drink. The blood ran out of his mouth and down his neck, soaking his shirt and pooling on his black leather jacket. Elena sobbed and threw herself on top of Damon, kissing his cold lips, her eyes clenched shut. Stefan could tell she was still in communion with Damon's spirit, a telepathic exchange of love and secrets private between them, the two people he loved most. The only people he loved. A cold tendril of envy, the feeling of being the outsider looking in, the one who was left all alone, curled along Stefan's spine even as tears of grief ran down his face. A phone rang, and Stefan snapped back to the present. Elena glanced at her cel and then answered, â€Å"Hi, Aunt Judith.† She paused. â€Å"At the boardinghouse with everybody. We picked up Alaric and his friend from the train.† Another pause and she grimaced. â€Å"I'm sorry, I forgot. Yes, I wil . In just a few minutes, al right? Okay. Bye.† She hung up and got to her feet. â€Å"Apparently at some point I promised Aunt Judith I would be home for dinner tonight. Robert's getting out the fondue set and Margaret wants me to show her how to dip bread in cheese.† She rol ed her eyes, but Stefan wasn't fooled. He could see how delighted Elena was to have her baby sister idolizing her again. Elena went on, frowning, â€Å"I'm not sure I'l be able to get out again tonight, but someone needs to be with Meredith at al times. Can you stay here tonight, Meredith, instead of at home?† Meredith nodded slowly, her long legs drawn up under her on the couch. She looked tired and apprehensive, despite her earlier bravado. Elena touched her hand in farewel , and Meredith smiled at her. â€Å"I'm sure your minions wil take good care of me, Queen Elena,† she said lightly. â€Å"I'd expect nothing less,† Elena answered in the same tone, turning her smile on the rest of the room. Stefan got to his feet. â€Å"I'l walk you home,† he said. Matt rose, too. â€Å"I can drive you,† he offered, and Stefan was surprised to find that he had to suppress the urge to shove Matt back into his seat. Stefan would take care of Elena. She was his responsibility. â€Å"No, stay here, both of you,† Elena said firmly. â€Å"It's only a few blocks, and it's stil broad daylight out. You look after Meredith.† Stefan settled back in his chair, eyeing Matt. With a wave, Elena was gone, and Stefan stretched out his senses to fol ow her as far as he could, pushing his Power to sense whether anything dangerous, anything at al , lurked nearby. His Powers weren't strong enough, though, to reach al the way to Elena's house. He curled his hands into tight, frustrated fists. He had been so much more powerful when he al owed himself to drink human blood. Meredith was watching him, gray eyes sympathetic. â€Å"She'l be okay,† she said. â€Å"You can't watch her al the time.† But I can try, thought Stefan. When Elena strol ed up her walk, Caleb was clipping the glossy green leaves of the flowering camel ia bushes in front of the house. â€Å"Hi,† she said, surprised. â€Å"Have you been here al day?† He stopped trimming and wiped the sweat off his forehead. With his blond hair and healthy tan, he looked like a California surfer transplanted to a Virginia lawn. Elena thought Caleb seemed just right on a perfect summer day like this one, a lawn mower humming in the distance somewhere, the sky blue and high above them. â€Å"Sure,† he said cheerful y. â€Å"Lots to do. It looks good, right?† â€Å"It real y does,† she said. And it did. The grass was mowed, the hedges were perfectly trimmed, and he had set out some daisies in the flower beds near the house. â€Å"What've you been up to today?† Caleb asked. â€Å"Nothing as energetic as this,† Elena said, suppressing the memory of the desperate race to save Celia. â€Å"My friends and I just picked someone up at the train station and hung out inside for the rest of the day. I hope the weather holds, though. We want to take a picnic up to Hot Springs tomorrow.† â€Å"Sounds like fun,† Caleb said agreeably. Elena was tempted for a moment to invite him along. Despite Stefan's reservations, he seemed like a nice guy, and he probably didn't know many people in town. Maybe Bonnie would hit it off with him. He was pretty cute, after al . And Bonnie hadn't real y been interested in anyone for a while. Anyone other than Damon, a secret little voice said in the back of her mind. But of course she couldn't invite Caleb. What was she thinking? She and her friends couldn't have outsiders around while they talked about what supernatural entity had it in for them now. A little pang of longing hit her. Would she ever be a girl who could have a picnic and swim and flirt and be able to talk to anyone she liked, because she had no dark secrets to conceal? â€Å"Aren't you exhausted?† she asked, quickly changing the subject. She thought she saw a flicker of disappointment in his eyes. Had he realized she was thinking of inviting him along on the picnic and then changed her mind? But he answered readily enough. â€Å"Oh, your aunt ran me out a couple of glasses of lemonade, and I had a sandwich with your sister at lunchtime.† He grinned. â€Å"She's a cutie. And an excel ent conversationalist. She told me al about tigers.† â€Å"She talked to you?† Elena said with surprise. â€Å"She's usual y real y shy around new people. She wouldn't talk to my boyfriend, Stefan, until he'd been around for months.† â€Å"Oh, wel ,† he said, and shrugged. â€Å"Once I showed her a couple of magic tricks, she was so fascinated she forgot to be shy. She's going to be a master magician by the time she starts first grade. She's a natural.† â€Å"Real y?† said Elena. She felt a sharp shift in her stomach, a sense of loss. She had missed so much of her little sister's life. She'd noticed at breakfast that she looked and sounded older. It was like Margaret had grown into a different person without her. Elena gave herself a mental shake: She needed to stop being such a whiner. She was unbelievably lucky just to be here now. â€Å"Oh, yeah,† he said. â€Å"Look, I taught her this.† He held out a tanned fist, turned it over, and opened his hand to reveal a camel ia blossom, waxy and white, closed his hand, then opened it again to reveal a tightly furled bud. â€Å"Wow,† said Elena, intrigued. â€Å"Do it again.† She watched intently as he opened and closed his hand several times, revealing flower then bud, flower then bud. â€Å"I showed Margaret how to do it with coins, switching between a quarter and a penny,† he said, â€Å"but it's the same principle.† â€Å"I've seen tricks like that before,† she said, â€Å"but I can't figure out where you're hiding the one that isn't showing. How do you do it?† â€Å"Magic, of course,† he said, smiling, and opened his hand to let the camel ia blossom fal at Elena's feet. â€Å"Do you believe in magic?† she said, looking up into his warm blue eyes. He was flirting with her, she knew – guys always flirted with Elena if she let them. â€Å"Wel , I ought to,† he said softly. â€Å"I'm from New Orleans, you know, the home of voodoo.† â€Å"Voodoo?† she said, a cold shiver going down her spine. Caleb laughed. â€Å"I'm just playing with you,† he said. â€Å"Voodoo. Jeez, what a load of crap.† â€Å"Oh, right. Total y,† Elena said, forcing a giggle. â€Å"One time, though,† Caleb continued, â€Å"back before my parents died, Tyler was visiting, and the two of us went to the French Quarter to get our fortunes told by this old voudon priestess.† â€Å"Your parents died?† Elena asked, surprised. Caleb lowered his head for a moment, and Elena reached out to touch him, her hand lingering on his. â€Å"Mine did, too,† she said. Caleb was very stil . â€Å"I know,† he said. Their eyes met, and Elena winced in sympathy. There was such pain in Caleb's warm blue eyes when she looked for it, despite his easy smile. â€Å"It was years ago,† he said softly. â€Å"I stil miss them sometimes, though, you know.† She squeezed his hand. â€Å"I know,† she said quietly. Then Caleb smiled and shook his head a little, and the moment between them was over. â€Å"This was before that, though,† he said. â€Å"We were maybe twelve years old when Tyler visited.† Caleb's slight Southern accent got stronger as he went on, his tone lazy and rich. â€Å"I didn't believe in that stuff back then, either, and I don't think Tyler did, but we thought it might be kind of fun. You know how it's fun to scare yourself a little sometimes.† He paused. â€Å"It was pretty creepy, actual y. She had al these black candles burning and weird charms everywhere, stuff made of bones and hair. She threw some powder on the floor around us and looked at the different patterns. She told Tyler she saw a big change coming for him and that he needed to think careful y before he put himself in someone else's power.† Elena flinched involuntarily. A big change had certainly come for Tyler, and he had put himself in the vampire Klaus's power. Wherever Tyler was now, things hadn't turned out the way he'd planned. â€Å"And what did she tel you?† she asked. â€Å"Nothing much, real y,† he answered. â€Å"Mostly just to be good. Stay out of trouble, look out for my family. That kind of thing. Stuff I try to do. My aunt and uncle need me here now, with Tyler missing.† He looked down at her again, shrugged, and smiled. â€Å"Like I said, though, it was mostly just a load of crap. Magic and al that nutty stuff.† â€Å"Yeah,† Elena said hol owly. â€Å"Al that nutty stuff.† The sun went behind a cloud and Elena shivered once more. Caleb moved closer to her. â€Å"Are you cold?† he said, and reached a hand out toward her shoulder. At that moment a raucous caw burst from the trees by the house, and a big black crow flew toward them, low and fast. Caleb dropped his hand and ducked, covering his face, but the crow angled up at the last minute, flapping furiously, and soared away over their heads. â€Å"Did you see that?† Caleb cried. â€Å"It almost hit us.† â€Å"I did,† Elena answered, watching as the graceful winged silhouette disappeared into the sky. â€Å"I did.†