Election of 1876 Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Election of 1876 - Research Paper Example Amendment 14 and 15, passed in 1866, were well incorporated in the constitution giving black citizens equal status as whites and abolishing slavery. The stage was all set to select a new president for the new United States of America. The panic created by the economic depression in 1873 had left the public with many bitter memories. The economic depression had also reduced the interest of northerners in Reconstruction of southern region. (Olson, 15-24) General Ulysses Grant, the 18th President of US was not able to handle the 1873 panic crisis aptly. Many key people in his government were directly accused of being involved in the railroad corruption charges. Hence, the entire population of US was hoping for a change and the election of 1876 was supposed to deliver it. (Brune, 124) Selection of the 19th US President The election of 1876 has a very special significance in US history. It is till date the closest Presidential election in the US history. On March 03, 1987, Rutherford Birc hard Hayes was sworn in secretly in the Red Room as the 19th President of The United States. The entire saga dates back to the last Presidential term of General Ulysses Grant. Grant’s term as a President was tainted with many corruption charges. Both the Republicans and the Democrats were aware of the importance of winning public trust to clinch the 19th US Presidential Election. Hence, both the parties wanted their candidates to have a clean image. To serve this purpose the democrats opted for Samuel J. Tilden, who had an impeccable record. Tilden had established himself as the reform minded governor of New York. He also had strong support base .His stand on removing the remaining Federal occupation soldiers from south had won him many fans from his northern constituency. Due to the economic crisis, the northern region was no more interested in the Reconstruction of south. The Reconstruction was depleting the north and they wanted to end the reconstruction movement. (Cooper) The republicans on the other hand decided to nominate James G Blaine but due to his involvement in some questionable deals his nomination was revoked and Rutherford B. Hayes was nominated. Rutherford B. Hayes was the governor of Ohio. He also like Tilden had a clean public image and commanded respect from many. He was hailed as a war hero by many. Peter Cooper was nominated by the National Greenback Party. He was 85 years of age. The Republicans raised questions regarding the health issues of Tilden. Tilden’s ties with railroad projects were also an issue of objection for many. The democrats questioned the intentions of Hayes regarding reforms to assure equality to the black citizens of United States (Cooper). The Election Campaign As the election campaign began, the general view was that the Democrats would win by a huge margin. Grant’s term as a President was clouded by many corruption charges. The Republicans were afraid of a public backlash due to their last gover nment’s performance. By the time the election was concluded, it appeared as though Tilden had won the election. It was only once the counting was over that it was realized that Tilden must win the southern state votes by huge margin to declare a win. The republicans became aware of the ground reality and fought southern state elections with a new leash of life. The Republicans and the Democrats both indulged in giving bribes and spread money around to buy votes. Florida, Louisiana, and Southern Carolina were the states in question. Both parties knew that if

Into A Police State Essay Example for Free

Into A Police State Essay Introduction In a time when WW2 had just finished, people were worried that communism might spread around the world, and the overall scariness of the changing world around, George Orwell wrote a dystopian novel, set in the future, in a world that changes the past to suit the needs ofcalled 1984. Orwells novel has been written to make his audience challenge the values that have been presented in the novel. The values of freedom and truth and an attitude of love have been used to make us challenge the way we think of these things. 1984 is a novel in which the world has been transformed into a society in which a group called the Party can watch every persons moves at any time of the day. Â  1984 manipulates the society into believing everything they say. Â  George Orwells masterpiece makes the audience challenge the values and attitudes of the novel. Â  Values of freedom, privacy and trust. Attitudes of anger, and love. BP1 1984 makes the audience challenge the value of freedom. What is freedom Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four. If that is granted, all else follows. This quote shows that the Party controls the world so much that they have the power to change the answer for 2+2=4 to 2+2=5 (or any other number). Â  That the choice for mankind lay between freedom and happiness, and that, for the great bulk of mankind, happiness was better. Â  This quote shows that people in the world of Oceania have a choice of freedom or happiness. Because most people know the consequences of having freedom, they choose the safe option and have happiness in the Party. This leads into the next quote: Â  To die hating them, that was freedom. If you are with the Party, you will have happiness (previous quote) and if you are against them, you will have the freedom to speak out against the Party. But this means that you must die, because almost all of the haters of the Party will get caught eventually and shot or killed. Because the world that people live in has been manipulated so that people do not have freedom, we as the audience are challenged with the moral of freedom and what it means having it. BP2 Â  Orwells setting in 1984 also makes us challenge the values of truth. There was truth and there was untruth, and if you clung to the truth even against the whole world, you were not mad. Â  This is saying that the people of Oceania know their own truths, and everyone has an opinion as to what is the truth and what is not. But people are forced to believe in a truth that is untrue when they know a truth which is true. Thus people have two truths to believe or know in. The people who follow the Party and respect them will believe in the untruth and forget the real truth, and the people who are against the Party will know their truth which is the truth. So the people who are against the Party are the sane ones. Â  If all records told the same tale then the lie passed into history and became truth. Â  This is saying that if all of the novels in the world said the same things, this would become the truth. And if one thing was different from a book/magazine etc. then the Party would change it so it would become the truth. It is like saying if 10 books said that WW1 did not occur, and another book did, the Party would get that one book and change it so that it would say that WW1 did not occur. If everything in the world said that something happened, then the lie would pass into history and would become the truth. Â  Whatever the party holds to be truth, is truth. It is impossible to see reality except by looking through the eyes of the Party. Â  This is saying that everything the Party says is the truth and that everyone should listen to it. If you dont listen to the truth, then you cant see the reality of what the world is. If you want to understand the world, then you must be with the Party. The world is a blur without them. These quotes show how the Party has manipulated the truth so that the entire super state believes every word they say. By doing this everyone will do what they want. However some people are already thinking against the Party and they are the sane ones but they will be the ones that will most likely die. BP3 * Orwell also challenges the audience with his dystopian society with the attitude of love. Â  The old civilizations claimed that they were founded on love or justice. Ours is founded upon hatred. This is saying that the entire world is based around hatred. This can be backed up with the two minutes hate and the hatred that people have for the Party. * There will be no loyalty, except loyalty towards the Party. There will be no love, except the love of Big Brother. There will be no laughter, except the laugh of triumph over a defeated enemy. There will be no art, no literature, no science. Â  1984s society has been challenged in a way that no love ever exists. People are not allowed to love another person. The only way that people are allowed to marry is so that they can produce for the Party. They only believe in the Party and listen to what they tell people to do. Nothing exists anymore except that Party and everything that they do. Â  Confession is not betrayal. What you say or do doesnt matter: only feelings matter. If they could make me stop loving you-that would be the real betrayal. Â  This is saying that the only way that people in Oceania can stop loving someone is if that Party brainwash them so that they wont love them anymore. That is the only way that people can betray someone. Never again will you be capable of ordinary human feeling. Everything will be dead inside you. Never again will you be capable of love, or friendship, or joy of living, or laughter, or curiosity, or courage, or integrity. You will be hollow. We shall squeeze you empty and then we shall fill you with ourselves. Â  This quote is saying that the society of 1984 has no feeling for anything. Everyone is straight faced and just does what the Party want them to do. The line Never again will you be capable of love just says that the world can become a world has place of hatred for one another. This definitely challenges the audiences on love. Â  This novel has very little love in it and it makes us challenge what love actually is and why it is such a special thing for us as humans to have. CONCLUSION Â  These points that have been made so that the audience of 1984 challenges their values and attitudes. Â  The novel explores the values of truth and freedom and the attitude of love. Â  We see that after reading the novel how much we value these things in our world and that we should be grateful for what we have in life.

Health or Wealth :: essays papers

Health or Wealth Market forces, in my belief, have always shaped the relationship between humans and their environment, and I have found it a daunting task to consider the history of such a long and complicated relationship. In all truth, market forces can be considered as anything that drives our means of consumption and our economy as a whole, and from this point of view, they can be seen as existing in some way since the dawn of time. So, instead of starting at the beginning, I will instead focus on the relationship between humans and nature from the start of what I see as the beginning of the end. The capitalist economy’s history, when viewed in light of mans entire existence, has been rather short and in that span of time, it has managed to catapult much of the world into a very new and destructive relationship with the Earths natural resources. While the changes that capitalism has brought about have been slow to evolve, it is a system that has deeply altered much more than the marketplace and which has forever changed the world. In this paper, I intend to demonstrate how the core concepts of the capitalist economy have lead the world into ecological disaster. There are many structures on which capitalism is built and a few of the most core principles are the ones that are most destructive. The tenets of individualism, efficiency, profit maximization and consumerism can be found at the heart of many of the most damaging practices of today’s world. Since they are main pillars of the capitalist marketplace, they are very pervasive and have become widespread, standard practices and ways of thinking. Individualism it is a new development in our social structure and one that has left a very deep impression. While capitalism did not spring up overnight, the period of it’s development is not relevant to this analysis, so I shall consider capitalism from some hypothetical starting point. Up until this starting point, the community was the central unit of sociological structure. Families and communities were tightly knit and gave support to one another. This type of lifestyle provided an accurate sense about how one person’s actions affect everything around them and the relationship that humans had with their environment reflected this awareness.

Against Abortion :: The Right to Life, Pro-Life Essays

Abortion to me is murder. It doesn't matter on the circumstances at all. The only time that I believe that abortions are necessary is when the mother's life is in a medical danger because of it. I know that a lot of people think that it's okay to have an abortion if the mother was raped. I don't believe that. I believe that if a girl gets raped, she did something to put herself in that position. Now, I'm not saying that it is her fault completely. I can definitely relate to this. I did something to put myself in that kind of danger. I have my accountability. My accountability is I chose to do drugs and dress provocatively because I wanted to get guy's attention. Another circumstance that really bugs me is,' The pregnancy wasn't intended'. Well, to me I would say that's what happens when you have sex before marriage. I believe that women should wait until marriage to have sexual intercourse. People know what the possibilities are with sex and what prices may have to be paid. I understand that hormones may be going like crazy but people still need to learn how to control this. Let's say this as an example: One day when you're married and your spouse isn't around you get that urge. You end up cheating on your wife or husband and they want an explanation on why. What are you going to tell them, 'Oh sorry honey my hormones were going like crazy I couldn't control myself?! I highly doubt that. Here's another one. 'I didn't feel like I was ready to be a mom yet?. Then why in the heck are you having sex? Sex has a lot of different consequences to pay. Girls that do get pregnant need to take responsibilities for their own actions. The reason why I do have energy on this is because I am adopted. My biological mom did not intend on having her second child at the age of 19.

Church Leaderhsip and Ministry Evaluation Paper Essay

1. Would you say that your congregation (or the people within your particular department or area of ministry) is â€Å"Living Out the Mind of Christ† (i.e. Unity, Humility, Selflessness) as they interact, serve, and minister to/with each other? How specifically do you as a ministry leader teach, cultivate, and maintain â€Å"The Mind of Christ† in your area of ministry? Taking a look at what Dr. Gutierrez tells us in his book. He breaks down each one of the three areas and gives some direction and a checklist on applying these elements to your message. In our Bible study and conversations that we have during our meetings, or get togethers. Someone is appointed each time to research and set up a game plan for us to discuss and have a meeting of the minds. Just as if Jesus was sitting in the room with His disciples. The speaker controls his/her format and gives a ten to fifteen minute summary of what they found interesting and gives us time to react in questions and opinions. This is a meaningful and responsive reaction towards the main source of the material that was presented. Each one gives their time and when there is two or three in the mist there will be a revival for which the word of God is proclaim. Dr. Gutierrez states: â€Å"With an open Bible and a willing spirit, you can begin an exciting spiritual journey that will not only instruct you in teachings of the Book of Phillippians but also equip you with wise counsel and guidance†.1 So in our meeting we have the spirit and devotion to be with the Mind of Christ. 2. Would you consider yourself a â€Å"Wounded Healer?† Also, would you please share an example where you have ministered to a person who is/was â€Å"wounded† in the same manner that you once were? (cf. II Corinthians 1:3-5) My son and his wife lost my eight month old grandson to drowing and we had a terrible time understading how God would take a precious baby boy so full of life and joy. We prayed and search for answers and found that sometimes bad things just happen to you in life. Job lost everything in being a servant to God, and the devil punish Job with pain and suffering but he never turn against the Father. Satan attached his character, health, property, and children, but Job fell down and whorshiped. So when this happen to us we reflected on Job story and prayed to the Father and in November they will be blessed with another son. God will never forsake thee and with this we are humble and stronger with faith and salvation in our hearts. 3. How specifically does the Holy Spirit help guide you as you lead/serve in your ministry? Also, can you give a specific example of how you were able to clearly recognize that the Holy Spirit was helping/guiding you in dealing with a particular situation and/or decision while in your ministry? What advice would you give me that, if I obeyed, would assure me that I would be able to be guided by the Holy Spirit in my life and/or ministry? The Holy Spirit will give you the right questions to asked and will lead you in the correct path to minister to the congregation. Everytime someone comes to the altar we all pray and the Holy Spirit is present and the feeling of fire is within all hearts and the joyful noise is released. The prayers and praises are given to the Lord and the church is in the mist of revival. Take heed to honor the Father in your life and humble yourself and seek Jesus to lead you in the direction that the Holy Spirit will take you. John 14:16-17; â€Å"And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever†Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬Å"the Spirit of truth, whom the word cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you†.2 4. Do you have a personal philosophy (i.e. an agreed upon plan of action/policy/understood protocol) of how/when/where you confront sin in the lives of 1) co-ministers/co-leaders in your ministry, and 2) people to whom you minister? If so, what is it? How did you come to this philosophy? If not, do you see a need for such a philosophy? Why or Why not? Col: 2:2-3; â€Å"that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, and attaining to all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the knowledge of the mystery of God, both of the Father and of Christ,†Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬Å"in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge†.3 These two verses will give you everything you need the knowledge, wisdom, and know that philosophy is the meaning of exsistence, reality, knowledge, and goodness in the world. The Bible with give you the knowledge as long as you read it, study it, and seek answers from God. He sent Jesus to be the great philosopher, teacher to the disciples, and all people that listen to Him. I try to set my standards of teaching to the policy of the Bible and seek answers from others that have devoted their life to understanding God’s word. This allows for a direct approach to the people I am talking too and allows them to asks questions and hopefully I can give them the correct answers. 5. Can I perform a little ministry quiz on you? (Remember: This question is taken from the section within chapter 25 entitled â€Å"Recalling Encounters with God!†) a. Can you recall for me what you specifically did (i.e. tasks performed, people you talked to, the number of hours of service) on any individual day in your ministry approximately six weeks ago? Yes I can because it was a time of joy and happiness I just finish my AA degree in religion and I wanted to tell everyone how excited I was that I accomplish a goal. It was a personal quest to get a degree in the field and thanks to Liberty University I applied myself and finish. Even though I am continuing on with my schooling I hope to get my BS next year about this same time. It has given me more of a understanding and also a guidance in certain material that gave me more opportunity to share with others. Seek and you shall find and with the help of the Father, and His Son I will be a better listener and teacher. b. Can you recall any time in the past that you were either so moved by hearing a sermon, reading a bible verse, hearing a testimony of a someone’s salvation that made such an impact upon your life that you still have a vivid recollection of the event today? How long ago did that spiritual event take place? It has been many years ago now that my mother passed away and I dearly love my Mom and when she died a part of me died with her. In June 1997 she gave up this life on this earth and Jesus took her away from us. I have always been someone that writes notes, poems and I wrote my Mother one and told her how much I love her and would missed her and during the funeral the preacher use it in his sermon. It was a joy inside and I knew that Jesus was with me and the Holy Spirit had carry my Mother to heaven. I could feel her presence on me as He read the letter and afterwards many people came to me and told me how wonderful it was to be so thankful in loving a person so much, but is this not what Jesus did for us as He was nailed on the cross and when He ask God to forgive us for our sins because we do not know what we do. Somewhere and sometime everyone will depart and hopefully there will be that special love one to remember them as Jesus remembers us on the cross. c. Could you briefly describe for me how your daily â€Å"Quiet time with God† or your â€Å"Communion time with God† or â€Å"Your Devotion time with God† usually goes? My time with God and Jesus is not nearly enough time to humble myself and bowed down and pray like I should. Always to busy to just give my time to just praying and praising the Father. I know that being selfishness is a sin and that I will have to answer to the reason I went to the game or play golf when I should been studing and preparing. I do pray and many times I am alone and just open my heart to Him and ask for forgiveness and through His precious Son Jesus to lead me in the straight path that He wants me to go. I would say I am a normal man and sometimes I fall short in honoring our Father and His Son. 6. As a minister, are you ever tempted to become competitive with either a fellow minister or a neighboring ministry or covet the â€Å"success† or resources of other ministers and/or ministries? How do you overcome this temptation in your life if/when it ever comes up in your heart? What advice would you give me to make sure I remain content with what God specifically has for me in my own life and/or ministry? Competing against someone else is not my idea of serving God and it is not a game of winning or losing. Jealousy is not a righteous trait to have and to let yourself overcome with jealousy will surely destroy your favor with God. For it is written that the Jews were jealous of Jesus and they crucified Him on a cross. Even though you might not crucified someone there are a lot of people that kill because of jealousy. In our lesson book â€Å"Ministry is† tells us that â€Å"To love is to stop comparing.† It is impossible to have a heart full of love for a Christian brother and still be envious or critical toward him at the same time.4 We only have to read in Genesis all the jealous hatred that occur from the very beginning with Cain and Abel, Joseph and His brothers, and Sarah and Hagar just to name a few these all ended up terrible and no one is ever a winner. Our God is a very Jealous God in Exodus 20:5 (one of the ten commandments) you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. â€Å"For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God.†5 The chosen people paid a severe price by worshipping other god’s and suffer for forty years in the wilderness. So do not be jealous of any other ministry but rejoice that so many lives are being save. 7. Provide a summary of your interview. a. In what areas of leadership and/or ministry do you feel you need to improve? Personal behavior and spend more time in studying and preparing the materials. Reaching out to others, donating more time and energy towards building a better relationship with God and Jesus Chrsit. Set a personal mission in visitation and inviting outsiders to join in our worship service. Help with the youth in planning more activities and helping with the men’s club and women auxillary. But the most important will be to talk to God and seek better answers to the questions that people might ask of me. b. Develop a specific plan to improve in these areas. Organize my time, pray longer and often, study and do research, sat down with the elders and members of the council to set up more direct meetings and feedback. Take a look at the finances and see if there is a more productive way to assist and help others. c. How will you measure your progress? During the monthly meetings set aside a time for the members to ask me questions, and give me feedback on policies and do we need to update old standards and policies that might change with the new generation of the younger members. Get them involved and asked them to get active in planning new outreach programs and as well as visiting new people. Conclusion: It is without saying that we must have Jesus Christ in our lives, and as minister’s, preachers, or elders we should put forth extra effort in building a solid foundation in the church. Involvement will be the key and knocking on doors to get people interest in the church. Determine if our motives are still moving in the correct way and take the time to celebrate the joy of friendship. I can not say about how things will change because it is not a lot that I can do except present the message that I have already set in place. If I could have interview any other preacher I do not think that their answers would be to much different than mine. Because I believe if you are call to preach than the Lord our God has already given you a outline to follow. The reason I can say this is because if you go too ten churches they will have certain things they do differently but when it comes to celebrating and worshipping Jesus Christ our Savior most of them are on the same game plan. 1. Living Out the Mind of Christ, Copyright © 2011 by Ben Gutierrez. 2. The Holy Bible, New King James Version copyright ©1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. All rights reserved. 3. Ministry Is,,,copyright © 2010 by Dave Earley and Ben Gutierrez. All rights reserved. 4. The Holy Bible, New King James Version copyright ©1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. All rights reserved. 5. Ministry Is,,,copyright © 2010 by Dave Earley and Ben Gutierrez. All rights reserved. Total Word Count: 2,356

Lexical Competence Definition and Examples

Lexical Competence Definition and Examples The ability to produce and understand the words of a language. Lexical competence is an aspect of both linguistic competence and communicative competence. Examples and Observations Anna GoyDuring the last decade or so more and more philosophers, linguists, psychologists, and computer scientists have become convinced that no complete account of our competence in the domain of word meaning can be given without a link between language and perception (Jackendoff, 1987; Landau Jackendoff, 1993; Harnad, 1993; Marconi, 1994). Moreover, it has been claimed that the boundary between lexical and encyclopaedic knowledge is not clear cut (or may be completely absent): the way we use, perceive and conceptualise objects is part of a kind of knowledge that not only belongs to our lexical competence, but is precisely what allows us to know the meanings of words and to use them correctly.Diego MarconiWhat does our ability to use words consist of? What kind of knowledge, and which abilities, underlie it?It seemed to me that to be able to use a word is, on the one hand, to have access to a network of connections between that word and other words and linguistic expressions: it is to know that cats are animals, that in order to arrive somewhere one has to move, that an illness is something one may be cured of, and so forth. On the other hand, to be able to use a word is to know how to map lexical items onto the real world, that is, to be capable of both naming (selecting the right word in response to a given object or circumstance) and application (selecting the right object or circumstances in response to a given word). The two abilities are, to a large extent, independent of each other. . . . The former ability can be called inferential, for it underlies our inferential performance (such as, for example, interpreting a general regulation concerning animals as applying to cats); the latter may be called referential. . . .I later discovered, thanks to Glyn Humphreys and other neuro-psychologists, that empirical research on brain-injured persons confirmed, to some extent, the intuitive picture of lexical competence I had been sketching. Inferential and refere ntial abilities appeared to be separate. Paul Miera[D]eveloping good test instruments for evaluating hypotheses about vocabulary development may be more difficult than we have typically supposed. Simply comparing the associations of L2 learners and native speakers, using ad hoc lists of words, as much of the research in this area has done, begins to look like a very unsatisfactory approach to assessing L2 lexical competence. Indeed, blunt research tools of this kind may be intrinsically incapable of evaluating the hypothesis we think we are researching. Careful simulation studies provide a way of testing out the capabilities of these instruments before they are widely used in real experiments.Michael Devitt and Kim SterelnyWhen we talk of an ability to use a name gained at a dubbing or in conversation, we are talking of competence. So competence with the name is simply an ability with it that is gained in a grounding or reference borrowing. Underlying the ability will be causal chains of a certain type that link the name to its bearer. Since the names sense is its property of designating by that type of chain, we could say that, in a psychologically austere way, competence with a name involves grasping its sense. But competence does not require any knowledge about the sense, any knowledge that the sense is the property of designating the bearer by a certain type of causal chain. This sense is largely external to the mind and beyond the ken of the ordinary speaker.

Free Essays on DNA Fingerprint

DNA Fingerprint Like the fingerprints identification that came in to use by detectives a police labs during the 1930s each person has a unique DNA fingerprint. Unlike a conventional fingerprint that occurs only on the on the finger tips and can be altered by surgery, a DNA fingerprint is the same for every cell, tissue and organ of a person, and it can not be alters by any known treatment, therefore the DNA Fingerprint is rapidly becoming the primary method for Identifying and distinguishing among individual human beings. The Structure of DNA The characteristics of all living organisms, including humans, are essentially determined by information contained within DNA that they inherit from their parents. The Molecular structure of DNA can be imagined as a zipper with each tooth represented by one of four letters (A, C, G or T) and with opposite teeth forming one of two pairs, either A-T or G-C. The letter A, C, G and T stands for adenine, cytosine, guanine, and thymine, the basic building blocks of DNA. The information contained on the DNA is determined primarily by the sequence of letters along the zipper. Living organism that looks different or have different characteristics also have different DNA sequences. The more varied the organisms, the more varied the DNA sequences. DNA fingerprinting is very quick way to compare the DNA sequences of any two living organisms. The usage of DNA finger printing is most common in health care research and in the justice system. The FBI and police labs around the United States have begun to use DNA fingerprints to link suspects to biological evidence-blood or semen stains, hair or items of clothing- found at the scene of a crime, and since 1987 hundreds of cases have been decided with the assistance of DNA fingerprint evidence. Another Important use of DNA fingerprints in the court system is to establish paternity in custody and child support litigation. In these applications, DNA finge... Free Essays on DNA Fingerprint Free Essays on DNA Fingerprint DNA Fingerprint Like the fingerprints identification that came in to use by detectives a police labs during the 1930s each person has a unique DNA fingerprint. Unlike a conventional fingerprint that occurs only on the on the finger tips and can be altered by surgery, a DNA fingerprint is the same for every cell, tissue and organ of a person, and it can not be alters by any known treatment, therefore the DNA Fingerprint is rapidly becoming the primary method for Identifying and distinguishing among individual human beings. The Structure of DNA The characteristics of all living organisms, including humans, are essentially determined by information contained within DNA that they inherit from their parents. The Molecular structure of DNA can be imagined as a zipper with each tooth represented by one of four letters (A, C, G or T) and with opposite teeth forming one of two pairs, either A-T or G-C. The letter A, C, G and T stands for adenine, cytosine, guanine, and thymine, the basic building blocks of DNA. The information contained on the DNA is determined primarily by the sequence of letters along the zipper. Living organism that looks different or have different characteristics also have different DNA sequences. The more varied the organisms, the more varied the DNA sequences. DNA fingerprinting is very quick way to compare the DNA sequences of any two living organisms. The usage of DNA finger printing is most common in health care research and in the justice system. The FBI and police labs around the United States have begun to use DNA fingerprints to link suspects to biological evidence-blood or semen stains, hair or items of clothing- found at the scene of a crime, and since 1987 hundreds of cases have been decided with the assistance of DNA fingerprint evidence. Another Important use of DNA fingerprints in the court system is to establish paternity in custody and child support litigation. In these applications, DNA finge...

Resumes and LinkedIn for Relaunchers The Essay Expert Interviewed on BlogTalkRadio

Resumes and LinkedIn for Relaunchers The Essay Expert Interviewed on BlogTalkRadio I was interviewed about resumes and LinkedIn topics on March 22, 2011 by LeeAnn Dance. Her project, Back In Force Productions, is a blog and radio show for stay-at-home parents reentering the workforce. For your listening pleasure! The interview is full of great tips not just for relaunchers but also for any job seeker. Find out about how long your resume should be; whether to include dates; and what the current trends are for the Objective statement (or not). And learn some absolute musts for your LinkedIn profile. This is my first experience embedding a BTR player into a blog post. Check it out! Listen to internet radio with Back in Force on Blog Talk Radio

Eugenics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Eugenics - Essay Example As quoted in "Regulating Eugenics," Francis Galton—who was actually a cousin of Charles Darwin—first used the term "eugenics" in 1883. Galton described it as: But who is to say which "race" or "strain of blood" is more "suitable" than another? This paper will look at several topics concerning eugenics and what the practice might mean in the present day and future. There is a type of eugenics that is practiced in nature. If a zebra is born with a genetic defect that affects its legs, it will very soon be culled from the herd by predators. It is a fact of nature that the weakest and sickest are, in general, the first to die; it is survival of the fittest. Humans are one predator that flip this equation on its ear. How many hunters hope to bag the smallest, sickliest of deer? No, human hunters tend to go for the "prize," thus removing from the gene pool an animal that has some sort of genetic disposition—a better immune system; greater intelligence to protect it from predators, automobiles, or starvation; stronger bones and muscle and greater strength—that has allowed it to reach an enviable size and age. To protect from overpopulation, at least in deer, hunting is a necessity; however, by culling these "trophies" from the population, hunters are weakening the stock that otherwise would have been strengthened by natural selection. But perhaps humans make up for this toying with the nature of things by taking care of our own. In Greek literature, there is mention of blind prophet. Left on his own, this man would likely die; instead, he is cared for and tended by his peers. Whether or not this person is fictional or historical does not matter, for if this behavior exists in literature, it can be reasoned that it existed in real life as well. Throughout literature and history, there is mention of a person disabled

Manage budgets and financial plans Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Manage budgets and financial plans - Essay Example Effective communication is made up of voice clarity, subject appropriateness, and language simplicity. Clarity is an important component of effective communication. Unless communication between individuals or groups is clear, communication will lack direction and can be misinterpreted. Communication is a vital link in our life. Business dealings, financial markets, legal or medical opinions, education, sports or entertainment are all a part of our life. To sustain or succeed, communication is vital. Wars have been won and lost through the use of effective and non-effective communication. Subject appropriateness is another component of effective communication. I, as a speaker must be able to deliver precise, subjective information to make you and others receptive to what I say. If I were to repeatedly go on lecturing without any participation from the audience, the whole exercise would lose its importance and nullify the objective. Also, if I were to go on stage and make a presentatio n without proper preparation, it may end up being monotonous, elaborate and finally go down as being a drab. An unprepared elaborate speech will only rebuke the audience. No one likes to be held up by lengthy lectures or speeches. The listener/audience will soon begin to lose interest and direction. Time is precious. Effective communication must thus be precise and concise. Language simplicity is the third feature in effective communication. Use of strong language can harm the intent of such an exercise. Confusion will prevail. The purpose of making a point will be lost. What good would it be, if I were to use strong language that finds most people in the audience searching for meanings Simple language that is easily understood will make the presentation most effective. The idea is to make those present understand the focus of the presentation and at the same time the reason behind it. Thus, it must be said that for effective communication, clarity, appropriateness, and simple langu age is important. In order to understand how effective communication can deliver the desired results at a professional level, I have traced three potential scenarios: 1. An address to team leaders on the introduction of the annual budget 2. A departmental meeting citing the reason for a budgetary cut 3. A capital proposal in an operational area 2.0 Effective communication and strategies while introducing an annual budget: and explaining their responsibilities to the team leaders within your department To present a company's annual financial budget to leaders of various departments calls for very precise and informative data. First and foremost, I, as the speaker must be well versed with financial terms. I should be able to interpret and conclude to all team members the logic behind any thrust in funding a particular project or division. It must be understood that all information being spelt out by me is in keeping with the company's new policies, and approved by senior managers and board members. At no point of

Inexorable Fate of Catherine Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Inexorable Fate of Catherine - Essay Example The actions and attitude of Catherine towards life and death, religion and ateism reflected that a person with a wide range of feelings had a fuller life than a person with a more restricted rang. When I read this chapter, it makes me think that we are alive when we are feeling freshly, or profoundly, or delicately; and that lack of all feeling is death and unconsciousness. But certain distinctions we can make within the scope of these propositions are by no means widely recognized; for instance, that fresh, strong feeling in Catherine is a different thing from the mass strong feeling she had faced with during the wartime. The life experience of Catherine depicted that some types and manifestations of human feeling were gross self-indulgence and were not at all the thing they appeared to be, in other words "this was what people got for loving each other" (Hemingway, 329). I disagreed with indifference and protests of Catherine against a priest. In my opinion, Catherine should change her mind and asked God to help her, but she refused. Henry asked Catherine: "Do you want me to get a priest or any one to come and see you", but she answered "Just you" (Hemingway, 330). On the other hand, this remark shows great love between Catherine and Henry, their mutual trust and support. Reading this chapter, I came to conclusion that in childhood, people believe subconsciously in superficial power of some thing beyond our understanding, in adolescence period, we deny everything being unable to join scientific knowledge about the world and unscientific knowledge on which religion is based. At the end of the chapter I understood that love to Henry was the only true faith for Catherine. I was amazed by courage and personal strength of Catherine in this chapter. Her courage and bravery proved the idea that only in difficult situations people show their real nature and courage: "When the pains were bad she called them good ones" (Hemingway, 326). Toughness stems were not from insensitivity but from a strict personal code which functions as the character's sole defense against the overwhelming chaos of death. Catherine was a real hero trying to support and encourage Henry. She told that she was "'not going to die" (Hemingway 326). The following passage was the most impressive part of the chapter, because as a reader I could do nothing to change the course of events but remain a passive viewer of human sufferings. "It seems she had one hemorrhage after another. They couldn't stop it. I went into the room and stayed with Catherine until she died. She was unconscious all the time, and it did not take her very long to die" (Hemingway 331). It was really difficult for me to read the rest of the chapter realizing that Catherine "would die" (Hemingway 327). The great irony of Catherine's death was that she had helped people all her life saving dozens of soldiers, but was faced with ultimately death of her own. The crying injustice was that she gave birth to a child who was stillborn. Her downfall was a result of a fatal flaw of events, a trait which she could not help as it was a fate which caused the tragedy and death. Catherine suffered beyond what could be expected, and paid beyond measure for whatever love and happiness she had. A new life always symbolizes great expectations and hopes which can change the life of a person or a family for the good, but for Catherine it resulted in death. Catherine tells Henry: "I'm not brave any more, darling, I'm

Neel,Alice(USA) Self Portrait,1980 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Neel,Alice(USA) Self Portrait,1980 - Essay Example Her eyeglasses portray frailty, yet proclaim her as one who sees. The glasses were her way of saying, â€Å"look, I’m somebody who inspects, I’m someone who scrutinizes. That’s who I am.† Such contrary elements hint of her singularity (Sandra 2004). She completed the nude self-portrait in 1980; apparently it was one of the many experimental self-portraits. When she was quizzed on why she did it, her response was, â€Å"the reason I did it was because my face bores me. I cannot bear that little Anglo-Saxon face. But with the whole body, strange things are happening; the flesh is falling off bones. I always had bad feet†¦I have a big toe, and there is a leg that is frightful, but as a work of art, it is gorgeous.† With a career, spanning much of the twentieth century, the self-portrait suggests her conservancy with its major art movements, as shown by the Matisse-like to strip chair and collusion of green and orange diagonal planes of color on the bottom half of the canvas. Neel’s self-portrait portrays the emergence of women as artists in their own right. She paints herself into a corner sitting in a blue-stripped chair near the point where two rear walls of a white room meet at what we presume is her reflecti on in the mirror. The subject’s naked body, framed by a layer of bluish shadow from an invisible origin of light on her right is the focus of the painting. Her hidden vagina is at its center. The brush reveals to us that she is an artist as does the rag and the rather not glamorizing eye-glasses (Nochlin 247). From another angle, Neel presents the viewer as a woman artist who has found her way out that neglected space on her own conditions. Her body at a three-quarter angle is not idealized as a female nude or a representation of an aging woman. Neel’s body with its bending shoulders, its hanging breasts over her full stomach and fleshy legs sags in every

As a Spiritual Leader, a Member approaches you in Private with the Term Paper

As a Spiritual Leader, a Member approaches you in Private with the following questions. How do you take on Leadership in answering their Questions Scriptures provided to assist if needed - Term Paper Example he church that rise to the occasion of leadership through either appointment to an office within the church or merely by showing that they have leadership qualities that naturally puts them in the position of confident and mentor. When a leader of a church is presented with the question â€Å"What does a Christian do when their pastor sins?†, the first answer should always be to forgive them as God would forgive their sins. However, Timothy 5:19-21 gives us further insight in that accusations against an elder should not be entertained unless there are two or three witnesses. The passage states that if sin is proven, accusation should be made in public. However, Mathew 18:15 suggests that one should approach in private, bringing in others if the person does not listen to the advise that suggests giving up the sinful activity. If they will not listen, then it should be brought to the church, and finally treated as if they were a pagan or a tax collector. However, the best advise would be to tell the member to be very sure before making an accusation and if they feel uncomfortable, to speak to someone with whom they can approach the pastor for a dialogue about the subject. â€Å"Our pastor has sinned and the elders do not want to take action. How do you approach your pastor?† When this question is posited, the first question will relate to finding out why the elders choose not to act. A member should always feel comfortable in approaching a pastor as they are the spiritual leader to whom they should first look to for guidance. Even if the issue concerns the pastor, the topic should be brought forward in a manner that shows continued respect until the issue is confirmed as a reason to withdraw that respect. If the pastor chooses to keep the issue between himself and God and the elders choose not to act, then a choice must be made by the member as to whether or not to remain under the spiritual guidance of those who have sinned in his or her eyes. There is a difference

Neel,Alice(USA) Self Portrait,1980 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Neel,Alice(USA) Self Portrait,1980 - Essay Example Her eyeglasses portray frailty, yet proclaim her as one who sees. The glasses were her way of saying, â€Å"look, I’m somebody who inspects, I’m someone who scrutinizes. That’s who I am.† Such contrary elements hint of her singularity (Sandra 2004). She completed the nude self-portrait in 1980; apparently it was one of the many experimental self-portraits. When she was quizzed on why she did it, her response was, â€Å"the reason I did it was because my face bores me. I cannot bear that little Anglo-Saxon face. But with the whole body, strange things are happening; the flesh is falling off bones. I always had bad feet†¦I have a big toe, and there is a leg that is frightful, but as a work of art, it is gorgeous.† With a career, spanning much of the twentieth century, the self-portrait suggests her conservancy with its major art movements, as shown by the Matisse-like to strip chair and collusion of green and orange diagonal planes of color on the bottom half of the canvas. Neel’s self-portrait portrays the emergence of women as artists in their own right. She paints herself into a corner sitting in a blue-stripped chair near the point where two rear walls of a white room meet at what we presume is her reflecti on in the mirror. The subject’s naked body, framed by a layer of bluish shadow from an invisible origin of light on her right is the focus of the painting. Her hidden vagina is at its center. The brush reveals to us that she is an artist as does the rag and the rather not glamorizing eye-glasses (Nochlin 247). From another angle, Neel presents the viewer as a woman artist who has found her way out that neglected space on her own conditions. Her body at a three-quarter angle is not idealized as a female nude or a representation of an aging woman. Neel’s body with its bending shoulders, its hanging breasts over her full stomach and fleshy legs sags in every

Why do I think that movies produced from books (Anna Karenina,Dorian Essay

Why do I think that movies produced from books (Anna Karenina,Dorian Grey) are bad - Essay Example The process of converting a textual piece of art into some kind of motion picture requires a great deal of creativity and tedious conceptualization. Novels and films use different mediums in conveying the message to the readers for the novel, and to the viewers for the film adaptation. Nevertheless, and sometimes, the whole idea of film adaptation compromises several things. Movies that are produced from books have more downside in so far as pure art is concerned. First, novels are typically lengthy and requires considerable amount of time to finish reading the whole text. Condensing it into a film would mean an exclusion of some possibly crucial parts of the story, which, as a result, could twist its overall thought. Normally, films last an hour and a half, or about 90 minutes for most Hollywood blockbuster films; hence, in an effort to fit the complete theme and the idea of the novel, scenes that do not really appeal so much to the audience will be omitted. Second, the inspiration of every film adaptation is definitely not merely for art’s sake but ultimately for financial success’ sake. This is the sad truth about film adaptations in that before producers get started to invest in the adaptation rights of a novel, it is a given that the novel is viewed as something with a â€Å"bankable† story. Of course, producers would always look at the economic side of things. Nevertheless, talking about pure art and art alone, film adaptation is not the best option there is for a real artist. Both cannot be consolidated at any point as both have very different afters: films would always go for profit; novels would always go for artistry. Because of the availability of both artworks – novels and film adaptations à ¢â‚¬â€œ people are also able to compare the quality and content of each piece of artwork. Oftentimes, because film adaptations use lavish graphic arts and visual effects, plus the inevitable tweak

Make Green Delicious Essay Example for Free

Make Green Delicious Essay With global accolades, rave reviews and local food critics, its customer bases has grown substantially. Kennedy wants to expose the thought of slow food philosophy to as many people as possible, from his customers, workers, to the community. In order to set up a foundation, build public relation and reach more people in the community, Kennedy has to spend more time and extra money which a lot of his chefs found it unnecessary. To balance between grown and sustainability, Kennedy should cut costs in other areas. C. Alternatives: 1. Set up foundation * Cut costs * Pair up with a local non-governmental organization as it may be hard to run a foundation without proper skills training 2. Do not set up foundation D. - Recommendation: Set up the foundation. If the foundation succeeds, it can achieve Kennedy`s goal of educating the public about the slow food philosophy. It will help the corporation overall as it furthers differentiate the brand. If the foundation fails, it will hurt the corporation a bit but with its 33 years of experience and brand building, it should be able to recover. E. - Implementation Plan: It may be a good idea to pair up with a local non-governmental organization so that it reduces the risk of failing to manage the foundation. It is important to look for a local non-governmental organization that agrees and aligns with the firm`s own philosophy and goals. In terms of cutting costs, as mentioned in the case, it can move the production kitchen to a lower cost location and supply Jamie Kennedy Kitchens with his own rural farm. In this way, efficiency is improved. One issue that should be taken into consideration is that by supplying the corporation with its own farm, it may be competing with the local suppliers and damage the established relationship between suppliers.

Values and ethics

Values and ethics Values and Ethics The Value base of Social Work and the Development of my own Values This essay will firstly discuss what values are and the value base of Social Work. It will then proceed to analyse the origin and evolution of my own values. Followed by reflection on them and how they relate to the value base of social work. I will summarise by identifying areas of my personal values that I think require further development. It makes sense to start off by exploring what is meant by the word ‘value. It is a somewhat vague term, most people would claim to have values but struggle to elaborate when asked what their values are. Banks makes a good analysis, ‘ ‘values is often used to refer to one or all of religious, moral, political or ideological principles, beliefs or attitudes. (cited in Thompson 2005, p108) Values can vary greatly from one culture to another, from family to family and differ between each individual. Values and what they mean to each person in my opinion are unique for everyone. As Thompson suggests ‘†¦.a value is something we hold dear, something we see as important and worthy of safeguarding. (2005, p109) The British Association of Social Workers, (BASW), promote a Code of Ethics, that they expect each and every social worker to adhere to. The key principles of these are human dignity and worth, social justice, service to humanity, integrity and competence (1999). Each of these principles contains core values that are imperative for good social work practice. Examples of such values are ‘Respect for human dignity and for individual and cultural diversity, ‘Value for every human being, their beliefs, goals, preferences and needs, also ‘Respect for human rights and self-determination. When I first read the code of ethics, at the very beginning of studying social work, it appeared very simple. I asked myself â€Å"Surely it cant be complicated to follow these basic values?†. Nevertheless, through the teaching Ive had so far and the questions it has raised, I realise that social workers must keep a constant check on themselves, reflecting regularly so as their ser vice users receive a consistent quality of service. Biestek (1961 cited in Dominelli 2004) put together seven points that he felt formed the traditional social work values. These are, Individualisation of the client, treating each service user as an individual. Purposeful expression of feelings, allowing service users to talk about and express the feeling they have. Controlled emotional environment, obtaining the right balance of emotions. Unconditional acceptance, accepting that person for who they are. Non-judgemental attitude, not judging a person on the way they choose to live their life or the decisions they have made. Client self-determination, similar to empowerment, playing a part in helping a service user realise their goals. Lastly, Confidentiality, respecting that everything discussed with a client is personal to them and they may not want others to know their private business. Although Biestek defined these values as important nearly fifty years ago, they still remain significant and can be applied to social work today. With this is in mind a common traditional value to explore would be respect. This is a value held by many different cultures and religions, mostly seen as respect towards elders and also towards people in authority. In the General Social Care Councils Codes of practice, respect is referred to throughout, one instance being ‘Respecting and maintaining the dignity and privacy of service users (2002). This value although stemming from good intentions is open to exploitation, for instance when the older individual or person in authority abuses the power that respect gives them. It is widely agreed that one should have unquestionable respect for anyone older than them or toward a person in a position of authority, whether that respect is deserved is often not open for discussion. So how do values apply to social work? Values are something people make use of in their lives everyday, probably without even realising so. However values also form a significant part of social work practice, as Trevithick points out, ‘Social work is not unique in its values perspective, but other professions may not have given this issue the same importance†¦ (2005, p4). For instance, if a social worker cannot empathise with a service user it is going to be very difficult to understand how best to assist that person. As Thompson suggests ‘(empathy)†¦is a very skilful activity, as it involves having a degree of control over our own feelings while remaining open and sensitive to the other persons feelings. (2005, p119). This is an area of my values I can detect require improvement. I will need to ensure I achieve the appropriate balance of caring without becoming so emotionally involved that I find myself in a position where I am unable to support the individual. My own values stem from my upbringing. We hold very strong family values, encouraging each other completely in whatever we are undertaking. If a member of the family has a decision to make, we will share our views and opinions, but ultimately always support and respect the final choice made. I benefited from this support immensely when I became a mother at just eighteen years old, I received an incredible amount of assistance and encouragement from my family. I am in no doubt this made a huge difference to how confident I was as a mother. However, I was unable understand my partners family values. Within their family they lead much more separate, independent lives. At eighteen I couldnt fathom this way of thinking, I thought, naively, that all families shared my familys values. My Mother-in-law expressed her disappointment that her son was becoming a young father. I perceived this as a rejection. I deliberated for a long time as to why we didnt share the same outlook, identifying it as a disapproval of her sons choice of partner. After many years, and several heated confrontations, I came to realise that it wasnt a personal attack against me. It is simply that my in-laws hold different family values to myself and I can now appreciate and understand this. It was growing more mature that enabled me to distinguish that other peoples values are different to my own. It was not my place to judge my mother-in-law and I can now recognise my over-sensitivity. I believe this was all part of a process that inspired me to form a non-judgemental attitude. I accept others for who they are and do not judge them on how they choose to live their life and the decisions they make. This is a quality that, I hope, will contribute positively towards my social work career. Another value I was raised with is respect; I mentioned this nearer the beginning of my essay and feel that it is an area of my values that has developed. As a child I was expected to show total courtesy to all adults, it was inconceivable that I could question an adult. Although secure that I was completely loved, I was a child and couldnt possibly argue with an elder. An adult would certainly not say sorry to a child, fundamentally this was not a reciprocal value. One occasion I can recall is my mother thinking I had stolen a cake from the kitchen cupboard, my brother had in fact taken it. Even though she was made aware of the truth, I was never apologised to. The concept was that adults, and more so parents, were never wrong. I like to think that now, as an adult myself, I still strongly hold this value of respect and encourage my children to show regard and consideration toward others. Although, for me personally, the value has evolved. I foster the belief that respect should be shown toward all persons, young and old. I aim to show equal respect to children and adults alike and I feel with my own children that, if I have made a mistake in any way, I should always apologise to them. It is vital when interacting with a service user I am aware of the values I hold, as Dominelli points out, ‘†¦. the social and knowledge contexts within which values are embedded impact upon their use,†¦. (2004, p65). For example, I am against abortion once the pregnancy has gone past the twelve week stage, but I am fully aware that if a service user was in this situation, it would be totally unprofessional for me to allow the client become aware of my personal opinion. It is certainly not my position to impact upon any decision the service user may make. I am also attentive to the fact that there are other areas of my personal values that require further development. One aspect that I am conscious I will need to work on is showing respect to persons that have committed certain offences, for example, a paedophile that has molested or murdered children. Having young children myself I find this sensitive issue quite upsetting. Still, I am aware that even though an individual has chosen to carry out this act it doesnt mean that they are not entitled to services. It would be my job to offer that person the services they hold a right to receive and, as before with my views on abortion, I must exercise the non-judgemental area of my values to effectively provide this. To conclude this essay I believe that I am able to recognise the values that I possess and I aspire to remain attentive to these and the areas that require further strengthening. I also feel the values I hold relate to social work practice and I hope they will contribute toward my career, in a positive manner, for many years to come.

A Life Foolishly Lived :: Personal Narrative Essays

A Life Foolishly Lived I've never quite understood the whole racism thing. I grew up in suburbia, but in the part of town considered the black neighborhood. When I was younger black kids were no different from everyone else, and I was happy that way. It wasn't until middle school and my encounters with Joey that I became aware of a difference. I was young and impressionable, and totally bought into what anyone who would consider me "cool" was saying. Joey was a 30-something-year-old quadriplegic man who lived near me. I was considered a nerd and felt desperate for guidance of some sort. Joey became my mentor. Before the accident that left him in a wheelchair, he was a rocker, and I spent hours by his side listening to his stories. "I tell you, Owen, I had it all. And the girls loved me," he would tell me, while I emptied the bag of urine strapped to his leg. Even though he never graduated from high school, had no job, would get drunk and stoned all the time, and lived with his parents, I wanted to be just like the person he used to be. He'd had girlfriends and lived the rock-and-roll lifestyle, but that ended when he was pushed off a porch and snapped his neck. He attempted to continue his old life through kids in the neighborhood. Joey would tell us how he used to make pipe bombs, so naturally we had to make a bomb and blow up a chunk of the street. But we didn't have the know-how or the supplies to make a pipe bomb, so a gallon of gasoline would have to do the trick. Sadly, we picked a bad place and set a man's lawn on fire. The police and firemen were on my street that night, putting out seven-foot high flames and asking questions. Even though nobody knew exactly who blew off the gas bomb, most had an idea. I'm sure people in that neighborhood could think only of Wheelchair Joey and his gang of misled youth. Joey listened to heavy metal and sported Charles Manson and Confederate flag t-shirts. Before I knew it, I was doing the same. He convinced me to wear the flag shirt in school the day we watched "Roots" for Black History Month. We laughed when I told him about the reactions I got, and then he congratulated me with a beer and some vodka mixed with juice.

Process Journal :: Papers

For our set text we were given the play Mrs Warrens Profession. For our choice of scene we chose scene four, the last act because the scene contains the right amount of characters for our group of four. Also the ending scene is the climax of the entire play and is full of action, we felt that the last scene was complete with comedy and romance, tension and emotion and our group felt that this scene would hold the audiences attention well. In staging the set text scene we needed to show the office environment, so we used two tables and a few chairs as in the stage instructions, and we used props such as books and papers, and a pen in an ink holder to show the time that the play was set. We were only allowed five lighting changes in total, so our group decided to keep the lighting the same to allow for more in our devised scene. The warm, yellow light suited the topics being discussed at the beginning of the scene, going to Italy and beauty and romance, but if we had unlimited changes I would have had the lighting slowly change to a harsher less yellow light when I entered, to show trouble and set the mood, and then again when Frank and Praed left to increase the tension. When we first read through the set text, we played around with different elements of the characters, emphasizing areas and changing voices and tones of voice, and exaggerating characters to then point of humour. This was in order to explore my character fully and find out as much as I could about my interpretation of how Mrs Warren thought and acted. From this and exploring the text thoroughly I found that my character, Mrs Warren was a strong character and firm in her

ZARA’s IT for Fast Fashion

Ezra, a trendy Spanish clothing retailer founded in 1975 by Manioc Ortega in La Curran. It is a flagship retail store of Inedited Group, a holding company that owns other fashion brands such as Misaims Audit, Berserk, Pull and Bear, Strabismus, Kiddy's Class, and Shoo. The company still lives by the simple idea of Amoco Ortega to link customer demand to manufacturing and link manufacturing to distribution, which ultimately able to respond very quickly to the demands of targeted customers, who are young and fashion-conscious city dwellers.Inedited operates 1,558 stores in 44 countries, of which 531 stores are part of Ezra chains. Ezra generates a majority of Indies's sales accounting for 73. 3%. Of the three departments inside Ezra, Women accounted for 60% of sales, with the rest evenly split between Men and Children division. In 2002, Inedited posted a net income of ? ¬ 438 million on revenues of ? ¬3,974 million, which is a net margin of 1 1. 02%. Overall, the company shows net margin continuously growing indicating profitable growth. As a result, the company's earnings have tripled since 1996. To reach consumer's demands quickly and accurately, Ezra established a recurring process of ordering, fulfillment, and design and management. Each section (Women, Men, and Children) of a Ezra store places an order to headquarters twice a week on the store's PDP devices. The orders include both replenishment of an existing item and requests for a new items. Store managers determined replenishment quantities by walking around the store and determining what has been selling by counting garments and talking to salespeople.Fulfilling each store's demands of clothes involves group of commercials from headquarters, who are responsible to match up the supply of finished clothes coming from factories to distribution centers then finally to the stores. The commercials works with two types of information – aggregated orders from all stores and the total supply of invent ory in the distribution centers at the same point in time. Finally, Ezra introduces new design collections at the start of fall/winter and spring/summer buying periods. In addition to that, they continuously introduce new items throughout the year, allowing them to be ahead within the industry.Note: Detail information for design and management is in â€Å"Competition† Section). SUPPLIERS: Ezra owns a group of factories in and around La Corona to do the initial production of dyeing and cutting cloth. However, they sent out the cut fabrics that needs to be sewn into garments, to network of small local workshops (not owned by Inedited) in Galatia and northern Portugal, which guarantees quick turnaround time. Finally, the sewn garments are sent to a Ezra facilities, where they are ironed, inspected, tagged, and sent to a distribution centers.COMPETITION: Ezra faces competition from multinational clothing retailers such as Gap, H&M, and Benton, Combined, these companies has over 2 00,000 employees, operating in 140 countries with net income of ? ¬1,067 million or a net margin of 15. 3%. What separate's Ezra from its competitors is it's unique approach to its marketing and business operation. Unlike its competitors, Ezra virtually does no marketing. The company place ads twice a year promoting sales and to announce the opening of new stores. As a result, their marketing expenditures average 0. % of revenue, instead of 3%-4%, which is typical for competitors. They also always make sure their stores are located in a city prime retail district and the prices for their items are established for the Spanish market. Prices for other countries is set at a fixed percentage of this baseline, taking into account distribution costs and market condition. Ezra also priorities time-to-market through vertical integration enabling them to constantly introduce new items throughout the year in a short period of time.In a typical year, Ezra introduces approximately 11,000 new items, were as its competitors average 2,000 – 4,000 items. Consequently, Ezra does not try to produce classics† clothes that would always be in style. They intend their clothes to have a fairly short life span. About 75% of the merchandise in the average store is changes over three to four weeks, resulting in their experience shoppers to visit the stores often to purchase the new items. Furthermore, Sara's senior managers takes advantage of their employee's intelligence and trust their Judgment in decision making.Store Managers are given responsibilities to deal with customers, contractors, landlords, and decisions in garments should be on sale at their individual stores. They place orders for the teems they think would sell, rather than simply accepting and displaying what headquarters decide to send them. Ezra has minimum invested in IT budget and has no formal process to set decisions for specific technology investments or projects. Usually senior management decides what new systems, if any, is required.Overall, there is very little Justification for IT efforts, which results in having no cost/benefit analysis for current and future projects. Also, Sara's business model uses POS terminal that runs on an outdated DOS operating system, which is not supported by Microsoft. This makes the operations such as ordering, fulfillment, design and manufacturing, and in-store operations inefficient. They also use handheld Pad's for ordering and for tasks such as handling garment returns to distribution centers and conveying information from headquarters to all stores. This causes redundancy.The POS terminals also makes it difficult to check in-store inventories, check inventories in other stores, and share information. The store managers would have to call to check for available SSW, which is a time consuming process. Finally, Ezra makes no use of the internet to make sales. The website is only there to maintain a presence. The issue for lack of internet sales is because the company's distribution center is not configured for picking up small orders and shipping to consumers. And, it is complicated to handle returns of merchandise bought online.The challenges above shows where Ezra can make the use of proper IT/IS infrastructure. Currently, Ezra has continued to use their systems without any changes to it. However, they have the opportunity to improve its infrastructure by investing in new IT systems. This proper implementation can also provide great opportunity for Ezra to improve its value ham operations. Before Ezra makes any decision regarding the upgrade of their old information system, they need to analyze the costs and benefits of the new system.A new operating system such as Linux, Windows, or UNIX, it will allow Ezra to develop capabilities on the outdated DOS software for POS terminals. As they install the new operating system on all the computers, they need to consider the costs of each operating system. For example, Linu x does not have one-time license cost, while Windows has a one-time license cost of ? ¬140 and UNIX of ? ¬160 per CUP]. Linux may offer the cheapest implementation costs for Ezra, but they have a higher ongoing costs, such as service contract cost that ranges from ? ¬10-? ¬150 per CUP].To upgrade the system Ezra will also have to install new hardware and replace the old POS terminals. The cost of POS terminals is ? ¬5000 per store, which will also require installation of new cables, routers etc. The wireless routers and Ethernet cost, staff training cost, software installation and maintenance cost, and the connectivity cost per store, will also add to the upgrade costs. Overall, if Ezra decides to use Linux operating system, the total cost for the initial year will be ? ¬ 56 million.This includes ? ¬ 379 thousand of operating cost and ? ¬ 2,777 million for non-operating (fixed), which is purchase of new POS terminals, wireless router and wireless Ethernet. If they us e Windows or UNIX, total initial cost will be ? ¬ 3,167 million or ? ¬ 3,175 million, respectively. This may be a very costly for the company, but it is a direct expense, which meaner the cost will depreciate over the years. For example, the total operating cost for Linux, Windows, and UNIX will decrease to ? ¬ 371 K, ? ¬ KICK, and ? ¬ ASK in the second year, respectively.The benefit of a new system will improve Sara's efficiency, which will directly influence their revenue. With the smooth communication among the stores and the headquarters, Ezra can better predict the future needs of material, and save cost by hedging them at a low cost. The system will also allow them to make clothes prototypes at a quicker rate and get a faster response from the customers. Therefore, there will be more sales, less cost, more revenue, and ultimately more profit. RECOMMENDATIONS I would recommend Ezra to upgrade their current system gradually. In the short term, there is no immediate nee d to upgrade the system.However, they need to make the changes over a long period of time. First, senior management should develop a formal IT department by hiring a COT to set decisions. Second, the new IT team should develop a strategy for the change. Third, they should develop a budget for implementing the whole upgrade. Once they have the strategy and budget in place, they should stop any more investments in the current systems and conduct a pilot test at one of their flagship store to collect data of its outcomes. Ezra should make the investments in stages. For example, the current Pads used for ordering are inconvenient.They should be replaced with convenient equipment such as the PC's. In addition, the Pads and POS are not connected. In order to improve the networking capabilities at each store, Ezra should switch from modem-based network to a broadband-based network. This will allow them to stay connected with the other stores as well as with the headquarters. POS terminals that operates on the outdated DOS system needs to be updated with a more modern and compatible operating system. As a result POS should have the customer based functionalities that will scored sales, returns, exchanges, etc.POS system should also handle functions such as inventory control, purchasing, and receiving and transferring of products to and from other locations. After the final stages, I strongly recommend to run the old and the new systems side by side, until the new system is operating smoothly. Finally, Ezra should use the internet to make online sales, and take advantage of the social media to promote itself. This can enhance their operations and ultimately increase revenue. Also, it will give them more competitive edge with the new competitors and the existing competitors. ZARA’s IT for Fast Fashion Ezra, a trendy Spanish clothing retailer founded in 1975 by Manioc Ortega in La Curran. It is a flagship retail store of Inedited Group, a holding company that owns other fashion brands such as Misaims Audit, Berserk, Pull and Bear, Strabismus, Kiddy's Class, and Shoo. The company still lives by the simple idea of Amoco Ortega to link customer demand to manufacturing and link manufacturing to distribution, which ultimately able to respond very quickly to the demands of targeted customers, who are young and fashion-conscious city dwellers.Inedited operates 1,558 stores in 44 countries, of which 531 stores are part of Ezra chains. Ezra generates a majority of Indies's sales accounting for 73. 3%. Of the three departments inside Ezra, Women accounted for 60% of sales, with the rest evenly split between Men and Children division. In 2002, Inedited posted a net income of ? ¬ 438 million on revenues of ? ¬3,974 million, which is a net margin of 1 1. 02%. Overall, the company shows net margin continuously growing indicating profitable growth. As a result, the company's earnings have tripled since 1996. To reach consumer's demands quickly and accurately, Ezra established a recurring process of ordering, fulfillment, and design and management. Each section (Women, Men, and Children) of a Ezra store places an order to headquarters twice a week on the store's PDP devices. The orders include both replenishment of an existing item and requests for a new items. Store managers determined replenishment quantities by walking around the store and determining what has been selling by counting garments and talking to salespeople.Fulfilling each store's demands of clothes involves group of commercials from headquarters, who are responsible to match up the supply of finished clothes coming from factories to distribution centers then finally to the stores. The commercials works with two types of information – aggregated orders from all stores and the total supply of invent ory in the distribution centers at the same point in time. Finally, Ezra introduces new design collections at the start of fall/winter and spring/summer buying periods. In addition to that, they continuously introduce new items throughout the year, allowing them to be ahead within the industry.Note: Detail information for design and management is in â€Å"Competition† Section). SUPPLIERS: Ezra owns a group of factories in and around La Corona to do the initial production of dyeing and cutting cloth. However, they sent out the cut fabrics that needs to be sewn into garments, to network of small local workshops (not owned by Inedited) in Galatia and northern Portugal, which guarantees quick turnaround time. Finally, the sewn garments are sent to a Ezra facilities, where they are ironed, inspected, tagged, and sent to a distribution centers.COMPETITION: Ezra faces competition from multinational clothing retailers such as Gap, H&M, and Benton, Combined, these companies has over 2 00,000 employees, operating in 140 countries with net income of ? ¬1,067 million or a net margin of 15. 3%. What separate's Ezra from its competitors is it's unique approach to its marketing and business operation. Unlike its competitors, Ezra virtually does no marketing. The company place ads twice a year promoting sales and to announce the opening of new stores. As a result, their marketing expenditures average 0. % of revenue, instead of 3%-4%, which is typical for competitors. They also always make sure their stores are located in a city prime retail district and the prices for their items are established for the Spanish market. Prices for other countries is set at a fixed percentage of this baseline, taking into account distribution costs and market condition. Ezra also priorities time-to-market through vertical integration enabling them to constantly introduce new items throughout the year in a short period of time.In a typical year, Ezra introduces approximately 11,000 new items, were as its competitors average 2,000 – 4,000 items. Consequently, Ezra does not try to produce classics† clothes that would always be in style. They intend their clothes to have a fairly short life span. About 75% of the merchandise in the average store is changes over three to four weeks, resulting in their experience shoppers to visit the stores often to purchase the new items. Furthermore, Sara's senior managers takes advantage of their employee's intelligence and trust their Judgment in decision making.Store Managers are given responsibilities to deal with customers, contractors, landlords, and decisions in garments should be on sale at their individual stores. They place orders for the teems they think would sell, rather than simply accepting and displaying what headquarters decide to send them. Ezra has minimum invested in IT budget and has no formal process to set decisions for specific technology investments or projects. Usually senior management decides what new systems, if any, is required.Overall, there is very little Justification for IT efforts, which results in having no cost/benefit analysis for current and future projects. Also, Sara's business model uses POS terminal that runs on an outdated DOS operating system, which is not supported by Microsoft. This makes the operations such as ordering, fulfillment, design and manufacturing, and in-store operations inefficient. They also use handheld Pad's for ordering and for tasks such as handling garment returns to distribution centers and conveying information from headquarters to all stores. This causes redundancy.The POS terminals also makes it difficult to check in-store inventories, check inventories in other stores, and share information. The store managers would have to call to check for available SSW, which is a time consuming process. Finally, Ezra makes no use of the internet to make sales. The website is only there to maintain a presence. The issue for lack of internet sales is because the company's distribution center is not configured for picking up small orders and shipping to consumers. And, it is complicated to handle returns of merchandise bought online.The challenges above shows where Ezra can make the use of proper IT/IS infrastructure. Currently, Ezra has continued to use their systems without any changes to it. However, they have the opportunity to improve its infrastructure by investing in new IT systems. This proper implementation can also provide great opportunity for Ezra to improve its value ham operations. Before Ezra makes any decision regarding the upgrade of their old information system, they need to analyze the costs and benefits of the new system.A new operating system such as Linux, Windows, or UNIX, it will allow Ezra to develop capabilities on the outdated DOS software for POS terminals. As they install the new operating system on all the computers, they need to consider the costs of each operating system. For example, Linu x does not have one-time license cost, while Windows has a one-time license cost of ? ¬140 and UNIX of ? ¬160 per CUP]. Linux may offer the cheapest implementation costs for Ezra, but they have a higher ongoing costs, such as service contract cost that ranges from ? ¬10-? ¬150 per CUP].To upgrade the system Ezra will also have to install new hardware and replace the old POS terminals. The cost of POS terminals is ? ¬5000 per store, which will also require installation of new cables, routers etc. The wireless routers and Ethernet cost, staff training cost, software installation and maintenance cost, and the connectivity cost per store, will also add to the upgrade costs. Overall, if Ezra decides to use Linux operating system, the total cost for the initial year will be ? ¬ 56 million.This includes ? ¬ 379 thousand of operating cost and ? ¬ 2,777 million for non-operating (fixed), which is purchase of new POS terminals, wireless router and wireless Ethernet. If they us e Windows or UNIX, total initial cost will be ? ¬ 3,167 million or ? ¬ 3,175 million, respectively. This may be a very costly for the company, but it is a direct expense, which meaner the cost will depreciate over the years. For example, the total operating cost for Linux, Windows, and UNIX will decrease to ? ¬ 371 K, ? ¬ KICK, and ? ¬ ASK in the second year, respectively.The benefit of a new system will improve Sara's efficiency, which will directly influence their revenue. With the smooth communication among the stores and the headquarters, Ezra can better predict the future needs of material, and save cost by hedging them at a low cost. The system will also allow them to make clothes prototypes at a quicker rate and get a faster response from the customers. Therefore, there will be more sales, less cost, more revenue, and ultimately more profit. RECOMMENDATIONS I would recommend Ezra to upgrade their current system gradually. In the short term, there is no immediate nee d to upgrade the system.However, they need to make the changes over a long period of time. First, senior management should develop a formal IT department by hiring a COT to set decisions. Second, the new IT team should develop a strategy for the change. Third, they should develop a budget for implementing the whole upgrade. Once they have the strategy and budget in place, they should stop any more investments in the current systems and conduct a pilot test at one of their flagship store to collect data of its outcomes. Ezra should make the investments in stages. For example, the current Pads used for ordering are inconvenient.They should be replaced with convenient equipment such as the PC's. In addition, the Pads and POS are not connected. In order to improve the networking capabilities at each store, Ezra should switch from modem-based network to a broadband-based network. This will allow them to stay connected with the other stores as well as with the headquarters. POS terminals that operates on the outdated DOS system needs to be updated with a more modern and compatible operating system. As a result POS should have the customer based functionalities that will scored sales, returns, exchanges, etc.POS system should also handle functions such as inventory control, purchasing, and receiving and transferring of products to and from other locations. After the final stages, I strongly recommend to run the old and the new systems side by side, until the new system is operating smoothly. Finally, Ezra should use the internet to make online sales, and take advantage of the social media to promote itself. This can enhance their operations and ultimately increase revenue. Also, it will give them more competitive edge with the new competitors and the existing competitors.

Mental Exploration with Super Natural Elements

Man is born with love, happiness, gloom and desperation but along with it, an essence of an unknown fear. It is a fear of strange phenomenon that has imbibed within their soul from their ancestors’ ardent belief in supernatural forces in their social and cultural lives. The aura of feelings of that strangeness is so strong in many that they begin to believe their activities and their lives as a result of the strong influence of this strangeness. The traits of these feelings dominates’ their mental powers to the extent that they deem all the supernatural elements a reality. These feelings also rely on all the displeasures and pains that he feel in the life which he mostly find in environment and nature around. He began to feel nature as personification of devils and witches, the shapes given by fork-lore of the generations past and have become so part of our life that they took many of us in its vintage of belief. All the stories, Poe’s â€Å"Fall of the House of Usher†, Hawthorne’s â€Å"Young Goodman Brown†, and Bierce’s â€Å"An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge†, are psychopathic novels. In all these stories, protagonists have strange feelings of supernatural elements with evilness and dread-ness not withstanding shrouding in them but along with that there are also scenes of lives they had passed and hope for a future if they would have lived long. These stories are not just shrouding with physical fear and gruesome murder tales but there are certain more intrinsic qualities examining mental upheavals and heart swearing souls of protagonists. They are not in certain supernatural as other tales of Gothic literature but are given the supernatural touch to the objects and environment so close to protagonists. Poe gave the House of Usher a supernatural realm and Roderick Usher felt himself into close associated with the house and owed his odd behavior to the house. Usher had a feeling that his morale and his behavior were dependent on this house. From the beginning of the story only, it had been told that there was something very unusual and peculiar about this house. When narrator met Roderick Usher, he remarked†¦ â€Å"The physique of the gray walls and the turrents, and of the dim tarn into which they all looked down, had, at length, brought upon the morale of his existence.† (Poe, 1515). In the house, narrator also felt a sense of gloominess. Usher’s family though belonged to the ancient clan could not flourish, as there remained only one survival member from generations. It happened with Roderick Usher too, his twin sister Madeline died and Roderick with the help of narrator buried Madeline in the tomb in building itself. Often Roderick would become very uneasy and would hear strange sounds and often mutter himself. They also saw the bright looking gas surrounding the house. Roderick felt that they had buried Madeline alive and she would often come out of the tomb and felt that she was standing behind the door. Wind blew the door opened and Roderick was confirmed as he saw her standing in white robes covered with blood as if she was struggling to escape. She attacked Roderick as life was passing from her and Roderick died due to fear. Along with the death of Roderick, the house too collapsed and narrator escaped from the house. There is no doubt of the fact that writer had espoused upon the supernatural elements while giving the mental dilemma of Roderick. Poe developed claustrophobia in the story. The supernatural element is naturally the ghost of Madeline. Some scholars even point to the fact that Madeline never existed but only the part of Roderick’s mental imagination but Madeline was there. Both were twins and shared same sense of dispositions. Though Madeline died soon yet Roderick never found himself separated from Madeline: this is main thrust of the story and they were again united in the end when Madeline became the cause of Roderick’s death. There is no thematic element in the story but only reflects the psychological and claustrophobic disturbances that can haunt any lonely person in a huge mansion from the walls of which spring woeful tales of his ancestors. Hawthorne shared same tendencies with Edgar Allen Poe to bring supernatural elements. His writings shook our nerves; with his ardent touch of supernatural elements, he showed us our fears and inhibited desires. â€Å"Young Goodman Brown† has both the elements of supernaturalism in the form of devil having snakelike staff that he always carried with him. Hawthorne portrays devil as equal to Brown as if there is a certain common link between the two.   It emphasizes the puritan theology, that devil is everywhere in the world. It implies every man has the qualities impersonalized by goodness as well as evilness and we easily get distracted towards evilness. Brown got every chance to go back to Faith, his wife representation of religion, purity and goodness but he fell into the trap of devil as his ancestors did.   This meeting with supernatural element in the wilderness left Brown completely distorted in his vision of the world and as a result he got psychologically disturbed and began to live with empty heart. He began to see devil behind every bush and in the heart of every man but without realizing that devil was in his heart. He always felt within him evilness and his end mounted in hopelessness and wretchedness. Hawthorne said, â€Å"A stern, a sad, a darkly meditative, a distrustful, if not a desperate man, did he become, from the night of the fearful dream.† (Hawthorne, 612) He could not even listen to the holy psalm, because sin had already overpowered his soul. As compared to Edgar Allen Poe, his Young Goodman Brown has an element of theme. It is the theme of Christian doctrine over evilness. If a person once gets into the trap of evil, it is impossible for him to come out of it. He went into the evil world full of darkness and even though tried to come out of it could not emerge out and finally fell into an eternal doom. Ambrose Bierce’s Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge is a clear picture of man whose end is near-his feelings; psychological desires and tendencies brunt open his inherent willingness to live into this world. It is again a psychological dilemma of man punished to be hanged till death at Owl Creek Bridge. There is no direct supernatural element in this story as is in Hawthorne’s or Poe but Peyton Farquhar thoughts and some strange sounds when he saw the log drifting in the stream below and the strange light when he was falling in the river and drowning. There is an essence of realistic touch in the end of the story. In his dream, what Peyton Farquhar saw â€Å"strange roseate light†, trees that look like â€Å"giant garden plants†, and â€Å"great golden stars† (Bierce 274) are though supernatural in essence and immersed in the words as real but what exactly Peyton Farquhar’s was looking at were only artificial substances woven in his mind. All events of his attempts to escape and finally when he fell down from the shot was the psychological manifestation of a man within whom there was a realization that he could escape from the clutches of death and become free like a log drifting in a river before. His love and remembrance for his wife and children was so imbibed in his soul that he felt some supernatural power would come to save him from death, but his death was inevitable. Though he thought he had escaped from soldier’s claws yet when he was going to meet his beautiful wife, he fell down from the shot and in the end, we saw him dangling from the Owl Creek Bridge. There is a misdirection of plot in story pleading a man’s desire of life but if death has to come, then no one can escape from it. This is a thematic game that Ambrose Bierce's played so naturally with the mental trip of Peyton Farquhar. Middle age was the period of Gothic literature-Witches, ghosts, spirits, etc. have formed the part of these stories and the whole environment have the feeling of strangeness in the midst of real lives, but the depth to which these stories are presented gave these stories a different dimension. These stories are more of man’s mental disturbances and emotional upheavals that take the form of supernatural beings. What a man thinks, idealizes and gets set backs in life is all form of devils and witches coming to grasp him in his jaws. This is the thematic element, Poe, Hawthorne and Bierce’s so profoundly and dexterously espoused in their stories. WORKS CITED Poe, Edgar Allan. â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher.† The American Tradition in Literature ei~th edition. Ed. George and Barbara Perkins. New York: McGraw-Hill, Inc., 1994. 1511-1523. Hawthorne, Nathaniel. â€Å"Young Goodman Brown.† Norton Anthology American Literature. Ed. Nina Baym. New York: W.W Norton & Company, 1999. 601-613. Bierce, Ambrose. â€Å"An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge.† Norton Anthology of American Literature: Volume 2. Ed. Nina Baym, et al. New York: W. W Norton, 1998. 268-275.      

Challenges Facing the East Asia Region Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Challenges Facing the East Asia Region - Essay Example Challenges Facing the East Asia Region a) Competing interests of China and Japan The polities, economies and the populations of East Asia are all dependent on the competing strategic interests of China and Japan, which pose a challenge to individual states within the region (IISS, 2014). This challenge has been aggravated by the security factors as well as the competition for territories amongst the two superpowers in the region such as the control over certain islands and parts of the sea (Feigenbaum, 2015). For example, Japan has made attempts at being the major player in the region in terms of security and the management of contested regions such as the Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands and the South China Sea. Moreover, the perceived closeness to the United States as is the case of Japan as opposed to China has further brought challenges in the determination of the geopolitical positioning of nations in the East Asia region. The above point implies that that the assertive reaction of China to the regional security of the East Asia region coupled with Japan’s nationalism in foreign policy has had an enduring effect on the neighboring nations, hence worsening the situation in region. For example, the Philippines and Vietnam as other players in the East Asia region have sided with Japan in the handling of the territorial issues with regard to the contested islands and sea territories. Apart from the above two dominant players, the major players in this region that derive their influence from them are North Korea and South Korea.