Does Dr Who tell us about science and technology or the Britain of its Essay

Does Dr Who tell us about science and technology or the Britain of its time Discuss - Essay Example Moreover, the era gave birth to television, which changed many aspects of the British society (Campbell). During these years of technological advancements many other elements were also becoming popular in Britain. People were fascinated with TV shows and greatly appreciated them. One of the most famous TV shows of all times is Doctor Who broadcasted on BBC, the first story of the series began on 23 November 1963 (Hyland). The caste of Doctor Who is fascinating and interesting, the science fiction elements in the series is its major attraction. the first episode of ‘Unearthly Child’, Doctor Who has been at the heart of its viewers (Britton). This paper aims to analyze whether Doctor Who tells us more about science and fiction or Britain of that time. Moreover, the paper will discuss some of the many technological elements from Doctor Who. Thesis Statement: Doctor Who is a science fiction show which was first presented in 1963. The show has presented many technological ele ments which are either inevitably possible or impossible. It has merged science fiction with science fantasy and has grasped what was going on in the British society of that particular time. Background The longest running British science fiction series, Doctor Who first began in 1963. The series is based on about 800 episodes that have been broadcasted periodically, and celebrates its 50 years anniversary. The theme of the series revolves around the science fiction and science fantasy, as some of the critics identify it as science fiction where as some believe it’s a science fiction. Doctor Who portrays some of the most amazing and fascinating adventures for humans. The series incorporates elements of science and technology, through illusions, imaginary narrative, through its unique representation of character and events, like Aliens, Cyber men, Sonic Screwdrivers etc. The entries story of the series focuses on the concept of time travel that allows the characters of the seri es to travel anywhere, even in the past and future. Doctor Who presents advanced science, technology and fiction in a very innovative manner, attracting several viewers around the world. Some believe that the ideas in the series are beyond human imagination, whereas some ideas seemed quite reasonable with the foreseeable science and are believed to be possible. Another chief element, which contributed towards the longevity of the show, is that it has effectively portrayed the fact of technological development and transformation of British society. Doctor Who certainly highlights science and fiction, which has tapped fear and curiosity among the viewers with the help of strong imaginary narratives and comments of the technological issues. The argument Doctor Who is undoubtedly a brilliant piece of science and fiction, but the need is to understand whether the show has actually tried to portray science fiction or science fantasy and whether it has reflected the Britain of that period. The science and technology that has been showed in Doctor Who is certainly beyond ones imagination (Campbell). Doctor Who is a science fiction series and viewers enjoy watching it as it is fun (Mckee). It gives the viewer an escape from their routine life and exhausted schedule so that they can fire up their imagination with some extra imaginary story. Some of the concepts in the serieshave become a part of reality whereas some are

Speech on Everyone Is Human Being Essay Example for Free

Speech on Everyone Is Human Being Essay Sir,Madam.. I am here to present the speech which is about â€Å"Every One is a Human Beign†. My story begins like this. A mother gives a birth to a living creature and We called it as â€Å"An infant†. You, Me and We all were borned because of a mother. When we were in our infantry age, We didn’t know so much things. There had very few things with us. We knew how to smile, how to cry and how to get loved. After becoming older.. Humans learn lot of things. They learn science, Maths, Religion and Languages.. But they forget the initial facts which had with them in born.. They try to cover their real smile, they try to show fake smile, fake feelings and they are running like rats for searching money. They don’t care each others. They don’t like to thing we all are human beigns and they haven’t time too to think so. Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. Furthermore, no distinction shall be made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs, whether it be independent, trust, non-self-governing or under any other limitation of sovereignty. Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person. They are human just like you and me. They have emotions just like you and me. sadness, happiness, loneliness put it this way, whatever you are feeling everyone in the world can and will feel. so instead of putting them in your mind as better than me put in your mind your as good as they are. We all want to live by each other’s happiness, not by each other’s misery. We don’t want to hate and despise one another. In this world there is room for everyone and the earth is rich and can provide for everyone.The way of life can be free and beautiful.But we have lost the way. Reality is what you believe in. There is no such thing as a fish as fals e reality! So if you put in your mind that everyone else is human, all lonely individuals looking for other people to meet. well then that is exactly what they are.

Reconstruction Essay examples -- essays research papers

Victoria Hubble February 8, 2000 Reconstruction The Reconstruction, a time most people would call a rebirth, succeeded in few of the goals that it had set out to achieve within the 12 years it was in progress. It was the reconstruction’s failure in its objectives, that brought forth the inevitable success in changing the South, as well as the countless African Americans living in it as well as the countless African Americans living in it at the time. There were three goals the reconstruction set, and failed to achieve, as well as emphasizing the profound effect it had on the south, and an entire race. In the South the Reconstruction period was a time of readjustment accompanied by disorder. Southern whites wished to keep blacks in a condition of quasi-servitude, extending few civil rights and firmly rejecting social equality. Blacks, on the other hand, wanted full freedom and, above all, land of their own. Inevitably, there were frequent clashes. Some erupted into race riots, but acts of terrorism against individual black leaders were more common. During this turmoil, Southern whites and blacks began to work out ways of getting their farms back into operation and of making a living. Indeed, the most important developments of the Reconstruction era were not the highly publicized political contests but the slow, almost imperceptible changes that occurred in southern society. Blacks could now legally marry, and they set up conventional and usually stable family units; they quietly seceded from the white churches and formed their own religious organizations, which became a central point for the black community. Without land or money, most freedmen had to continue working for white masters; but they were now unwilling to labor in gangs or to live in the old slave quarters under the eye of the plantation owner. The governments set up in the Southern states under the congressional program of Reconstruction were, contrary to traditional cliches, fairly honest an d effective. Though the period has sometimes been labeled "Black Reconstruction," the Radical governments in the south were never dominated by blacks. There were no black governors, only two black senators and a handful of congressmen, and only one legislature controlled by blacks. Those black who did hold office appear to have been about equal in competence and honesty to the whites. it i... ...have political power, the right to a good education, and much more. After Republicans lost interest in supporting African American rights and Democrats regained political and economic control of the South, the racially segregated and capitalist government flourished again. The Reconstruction did, for a short time, transform the South for African Americans, but most rights and benefits gained during that time were lost to Democrats during the Redemption. The Redemption turned the Reconstruction into an economic, political, and social loss for most African Americans throughout the South. After more than 2 centuries of being emancipated, African Americans were given a new life. This phrase a new life was not the life of equality. However it was still a change from enslavement. This was the single and most important success of the Reconstruction. when it liberated African Americans in the South, it also replaced enslavement for segregation. When dealing with a historical event such a s this one, a person has to look at what the Reconstruction has cost African Americans and what it has brought them in return, then they must answer the question "was it all worth while?"

Julio Nakpil Essay

Julio Nakpil was born as one of twelve children to a well-off family in Quiapo district of Manila. His parents withdrew him from formal schooling after two years and had him look over the family stable. Julio educated himself at home and eventually learned how to play the piano as was proper for traditional families during the time. His skill at the piano earned him an audience with the affluent, and later inspired him to compose his first piece – a polka – in 1888. Julio later became a piano teacher and composed regularly. Philippine Revolution Further information: Philippine Revolution During the Philippine Revolution, Julio served as a commander for revolutionary troops in the northern Philippines under Andrà ©s Bonifacio. Many of Julio’s compositions during this time were inspired directly by the Revolution. Julio also composed a candidate for the Philippine national anthem preferred by Bonifacio but was ultimately rejected for Lupang Hinirang. After Emilio Aguinaldo allegedly ordered Bonifacio executed, Nakpil claimed to have received threats on his own life as well as that of General Antonio Luna, the latter ending up betrayed and executed by Aguinaldo’s men. Later life After the Revolution, Nakpil fell in love with and eventually married Bonifacio’s widow Gregoria de Jesà ºs. They moved to Manila and raised six children, one of whom married the architect Carlos Santos-Viola. Julio continued to compose until his death in 1960. Before his death he also contributed to a book on his life that was published by his heirs in 1964. In his memoirs titled ‘Apuntes Sobre la Revolucià ³n Filipina (Notes on the Philippine Revolution), Nakpil wrote â€Å"I swear before God and before History that everything related in these notes is the truth and I entreat the historian not to publish this until after my death.† On page 30 of his memoirs can be found Nakpil’s notes on the death of Bonifacio, and on page 130 is his account of the assassination of Antonio Luna where Nakpil wrote â€Å"When General A. Luna was dastardly assassinated on the stairs of the Convent of Kabanatuan and already fallen on the ground, the mother of Emilio Aguina ldo looked out the window and asked: ‘Ano, humihinga pa ba?'(So, is he still breathing?)† On pages 157-158, Nakpil wrote of Aguinaldo, â€Å"Emilio Aguinaldo’s surrender to the Americans was a cowardly act. There was no doubt that he coveted the presidency. He surrendered for fear that others more competent than he would occupy the post of president of the Republic. Had he fought with his captors, regardless of whether he succumbed so that he might be considered a hero, at least to vindicate his crimes, by this time we would be admiring a monument to the second hero of the Philippines, unlike what he did delivering himself as prisoner and afterward taking an oath of allegiance to the American flag. The crimes he committed against Andrà ©s Bonifacio and Antonio Luna, and his attempt to assassinate the undersigned [Julio Nakpil] should be condemned by history, and Universal Freemasonry ought to expel him and declare him a spurious son. The coward finds many dangers where none exist!† The house where Nakpil and de Jesà ºs lived, known as â€Å"Bahay Nakpil†, still stands in Quiapo and is maintained by his heirs as a museum that also offers walking tours of Quiapo and other special events and doubles as a performance area. â€Å"Bahay Nakpil† is the only Spanish-style building left standing in Quiapo. Julian Felipe Julià ¡n Felipe (January 28, 1861 – October 2, 1944), was the composer of the music of the Filipino national anthem, formerly known as â€Å"Marcha Nacional Magdalo†, now known as Lupang Hinirang.[1] Early life He was born in Cavite City, Cavite. A dedicated music teacher and composer, he was appointed by then-President Emilio Aguinaldo as Director of the National Band of the First Philippine Republic. He died in Manila. He studied at a public school in Cavite and Binondo, Manila for his primary education. At an early age, he showed his talent in music. He also learned how to play the piano and the organ. Later, He became an organist in St. Peter’s Parish Church. As an organist, Felipe was given the chance to hone his gift. Soon after he was composing songs. Among his early popular compositions were Moteti el Santesisimo, Sintos y Floras Rogodones, Amorita Danza and Reina de Cavite (In honor of Nuestra Seà ±ora de la Soledad de Porta Vaga). He impressed many music enthusiasts with the said pieces. Though still young, his works were already at par with the seasoned musicians. In recognition of his remarkable contributions in the field of music, he was given awards and accolades. Involvement in the Philippine Revolution When the revolution broke out, Julian joined his fellow Cavitenos who fought against the Spaniards. He was arrested and jailed at Fort San Felipe in Cavite. When freed, he again joined Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo’s troop. He composed nationalistic songs that inspired his compatriots to continue fighting against the Spaniards. A bust of Felipe can be found in Cavite City, located near San Sebastian College – Recoletos de Cavite. National Anthem Gen. Aguinaldo asked him to provide a stirring composition to be played in the historic proclamation of Philippine independence. His composition ‘Marcha Nacional Filipina’, played on June 12, 1898 in Aguinaldo’s home in Kawit, was adopted as the Philippine national anthem on September 5, 1938. Later life Julian and his wife Irene Tapia had four daughters and a son. Julian died on October 2, 1944, at age of 83. Nicanor Abelardo Nicanor Sta. Ana Abelardo (February 7, 1893 – March 21, 1934) was a Filipino composer known for his Kundiman songs, especially before the Second World War. Life Abelardo was born in San Miguel de Mayumo, Bulacan. His mother belonged to a family of artists in Guagua, the Hensons. He was introduced to music when he was five years old, when his father taught him the solfeggio and the banduria. At the age of 8, he was able to compose his estoryahe first work, a waltz entitled â€Å"Ang Unang Buko,† which was dedicated to his grandmother. At the age of 13, he was already playing at saloons and cabarets in Manila. At age 15, he was already teaching in barrio schools in San Ildefonso and San Miguel Bulacan. All of these happened even before young Abelardo finally took up courses under Guy F. Harrison and Robert Schofield at the UP Conservatory of Music in 1916. By 1924, following a teacher’s certificate in science and composition received in 1921, he was appointed head of the composition department at the Conservatory. Years later, he ran a boarding school for young musicians, and among his students were National Artist Antonino Buenaventura, Alfredo Lozano and Lucino Sacramento. In the field of composition he is known for his redefinition of the kundiman, bringing the genre to art-song status. Among his works were â€Å"Nasaan Ka Irog,† â€Å"Magbalik Ka Hirang,† and â€Å"Himutok.† He died in 1934 at the age of 41, leaving a collection of more than 140 works.[1] As a composition major at the University of the Philippines, he also composed the melody for the university’s official anthem, U.P. Naming Mahal. The building housing the College of Music in UP Diliman (Abelardo Hall) is named in his honor.[2] The Main theatre of the Cultural Center of the Philippines is named in his honor ( Tanghalang Nicanor Abelardo).. Ernani Cuenco Ernani Joson Cuenco (May 10, 1936) was a Filipino composer,[1] film scorer, musical director and music teacher. He wrote an outstanding and memorable body of works that resonate with the Filipino sense of musicality and which embody an ingenious voice that raises the aesthetic dimensions of contemporary Filipino music. Cuenco played with the Filipino Youth Symphony Orchestra and the Manila Symphony Orchestra from 1960 to 1968, and the Manila Chamber Soloists from 1966 to 1970. He completed a music degree in piano and cello from the University of Santo Tomas where he also taught for decades until his death in 1988. His songwriting credits include â€Å"Nahan, Kahit na Magtiis,† and â€Å"Diligin Mo ng Hamog ang Uhaw na Lupa,† â€Å"Pilipinas,† â€Å"Inang Bayan,† â€Å"Isang Dalangin,† â€Å"Kalesa,† â€Å"Bato sa Buhangin† and â€Å"Gaano Kita Kamahal.† The latter song shows how Cuenco enriched the Filipino love ballad by adding the elements of kundiman to it.

International Business Case Discussion

A green field development can be a best way to reduce labor costs. Intel could employ well- educated, reliable workers inexpensively in Costa Rica through the development of green field. 2. The international site selection team is important for Intel because they should identify and collect the technical, economic, and environmental protection criteria, develop an evaluation plan, evaluate proposed sites, identify alternatives that meet the purpose and need for the proposed action, and make recommendations to the site-selection official.The various functions and expertise are necessary in site selection team because all site selections involve multiple criteria, it is important that the various members' expertise be appropriate to the task. 3. There are some risks that Intel must assume as It enters into the development of a silicon manufacturing plant in a foreign country. First, The development costs a lot to start up. Establishing silicon safer semiconductor manufacturing capabili ties Is an expensive endeavor, normally ranging between $100 and $300 million Second, This industry is very sensitive industry to time.Such an Investment Is projected approximately two years ahead of production demand. The world of semiconductor manufacturing Is fast paced. Production capabilities must be acquired quickly. 4. Intel supported Costa Rica financially through Greenfield development. Intel had projected an Initial $300 million Investment In a Greenfield development. To a small country such as Costa Rica, a $300 million Investment was equivalent to 2. 1 percent of the country's GAP. Moreover, There were derivative Impact that this mode of entry had on the economy and the population In general. Intel also had some benefits room entering Costa Rica.They discovered high levels of engineering and software development capabilities that permitted expansion Into more sophisticated processes. 5. I think a acquisition strategy would make the company successful In establishing prod uction capableness In foreign countries. International Business Case Discussion By kiths 3. There are some risks that Intel must assume as it enters into the development of a start up. Establishing silicon safer semiconductor manufacturing capabilities is an industry is very sensitive industry to time. Such an investment is projected manufacturing is fast paced.Production capabilities must be acquired quickly. Projected an initial $300 million investment in a Greenfield development. To a small country such as Costa Rica, a $300 million investment was equivalent to 2. 1 percent of the country's GAP. Moreover, There were derivative impact that this mode of entry had on the economy and the population in general. Intel also had some benefits development capabilities that permitted expansion into more sophisticated 5. I think a acquisition strategy would make the company successful in establishing production capabilities in foreign countries.

Krashen S Theory Of Language Acquisition Essay

Krashen S Theory Of Language Acquisition Essay Krashen S Theory Of Language Acquisition Essay Krashen’s Theory of Language Acquisition Professor Stephan D. Krashen is one of the most well-known experts of linguistics. His theory of second language acquisition, known as the Monitor Model, consists of five interconnected hypotheses: (1) the acquisition/learning hypothesis, (2) the natural order hypothesis, (3) the monitor hypothesis, (4) the input hypothesis, and (5) the affective filter hypothesis (Freeman & Freeman, 2011, p. 113). The acquisition/learning hypotheses refers to the idea that people are actually able to develop a second language through two methods: (1) by acquisition and (2) by learning. Acquisition is a subconscious process in which a learner is unaware of what they are gaining. It bases itself on how people communicate among each other through real and meaningful activities. Learning, on the other hand, is the product of formal instruction. It focuses on learning correct grammar and following the rules of target language. The natural order hypothesis focuses on the idea that whatever the language one is trying to learn, there is a particular order with which that language learning progresses. This hypothesis suggests that this natural order of acquisition occurs independently of deliberate teaching and therefore teachers cannot change the order of a grammatical teaching sequence. According to Freeman & Freeman, â€Å"The natural order applies to language that is acquired, not language that is learned†(2011, p117). The monitor hypothesis bases itself on correcting the language of a language learner. It’s basically an editor that â€Å"provides us with rules we can use to monitor our output as we speak or write† (p 118). The monitor is a way of evaluating how well a student can communicate in the second language. The input hypothesis is based on comprehensible input, when the language acquisition students receive can actually be understood by them. When input is comprehensible, students are able to understand the essence of what is being said or presented to them. â€Å"To ensure that the input is comprehensible, teachers can use pictures, gestures, tone of voice, and hands-on activities† (Freeman & Freeman, 2004, p. 38). The affective filter hypothesis â€Å"explains the role of affective factors in the

List of 50 Compliments and Nice Things to Say!

List of 50 Compliments and Nice Things to Say! List of 50 Compliments and Nice Things to Say! List of 50 Compliments and Nice Things to Say! By Michael Too often I forget to do it. But when Im pleased or impressed by someone, I need to make a point to write them a note. Some people are embarrassed by strong face-to-face compliments. After all, if a compliment isnt heartfelt, it may seem mocking instead. But if you think they will be uncomfortable, you can always send your compliments about them to a third party. And if you preface your compliment with I think youre or Ive always liked how, it may be easier to accept. After all, they may say, you have a right to your opinion. But secretly, everyone likes specific praise. Here are 50 compliments, so that when you say something good about someone else, you can say it more precisely. accomplished for someone who has not only accomplished many things, but has accomplished them skillfully and with flair. admirable worthy of admiration, someone who should be looked up to. adorable for someone, often a child, who is cute and inspires affection and fondness, who seems worthy of love. Originally, worthy of worship, but rarely used in that sense. affable for someone is friendly and a good conversationalist; easy to talk to, courteous and gracious. agreeable for someone whose personality is suitable and pleasing to you. If they disagree with your ideas, they will do it tactfully and pleasantly. alluring so attractive they are like a lure, tempting and enticing. Not a compliment to be given after a business lunch. amiable pleasant and likable, kind and kind-hearted, sweet and gracious; literally friendable, since it comes from the French and Latin words for friend, which comes from the word for love. amusing for someone who makes you laugh, though the word can easily sound condescending or patronizing. beautiful for someone who is physically attractive (usually a woman is beautiful, a man is handsome), but can also describe aspects of a person: a beautiful spirit, a beautiful mind. bright clever and intelligent, a quick learner. The word has a positive connotation: someone with a bright mind makes for pleasant company, which cant be said for a smarty-pants or a know-it-all. charming for someone with an attractive personality, as if they possess a magical charm that makes them likable. cheerful optimistic and happy, whose pleasant attitude is either contagious or annoying (some people dont want to be cheered up). commendable worthy of commendation, praise, admiration and recognition. congenial for someone with whom others enjoy spending time, who is sociable, affable, and fits in well. convivial merry and cheerful, as at a community feast, which is the meaning of the Latin combination of together and live. cordial warm, sincere, and affectionate. The Latin root means of the heart. diplomatic tactful and courteous, who knows how to make peace and soothe offenses, like a good diplomat or ambassador. distinguished celebrated for their accomplishments, who stands out above the crowd. elegant graceful and refined, precise and restrained in style. eminent for someone who stands out as remarkable and noteworthy in their field. Not to be confused with imminent. enchanting for someone with an attractive personality, who delights others with their charm. engaging interesting and appealing, who makes others want to be involved with him or her. enthusiastic eager, even excited; fervent and zealous. Originally a religious term among the ancient Greeks. estimable worthy of admiration and respect. You would get an idea of its meaning if you misspelled and mispronounced it as esteemable. fun entertaining, amusing, and enjoyable. A compliment for those who help others laugh, not a compliment for those who are laughed at. genial cheerful and friendly, from the Latin for festive. The word congenial adds the Latin prefix for with. gracious for someone who doesnt embarrass, who is always tactful, kind, and warmly courteous. graceful for someone who isnt embarrassed, who is elegant and natural. handsome good-looking: usually an attractive man, but sometimes a striking and impressive woman. honorable worthy of honor and respect, or who is honest and principled. inspiring encouraging and energizing. Not as sentimental as the word inspirational so its more useful as a compliment. jolly merry and cheerful. Famously used to describe Santa Claus. jovial good-humored and outgoing, traditionally influenced by the planet Jupiter. kindly gentle and affectionate, considerate and warm-hearted. Typical of grandparents. laudable commendable and praiseworthy, someone who should be extolled and applauded. likable easy to like, personable, endearing. masterful skillful and proficient, a master of their craft, or sometimes a master of other people. pleasant agreeable, pleasing, personable. One of the most general and innocuous words in this list. praiseworthy commendable, admirable, meritorious. refined cultured, elegant, polished, not vulgar, sometimes prissy. refreshing invigorating, stimulating, vitalizing, pleasantly different. remarkable notable, amazing, extraordinary. Worth writing down. reputable respectable, well-regarded, with a good reputation. A reputable merchant will not cheat you, and others can confirm that fact. skillful proficient, adept, talented, able, practiced. smart clever, intelligent, shrewd, cultivated. An elegant person may be a smart dresser. solid reliable, substantial, dependable. Solid people can be counted on, like a solid floor. sweet kind, pleasant, thoughtful, not sour or bitter. A word much more common used by women. sympathetic compassionate, friendly, especially when youre troubled. From the Greek for suffering together. thoughtful considerate, caring, attentive, solicitous. Because a thoughtful person thinks about you, they help you. worthy deserving, having worth, principled, deserving, reputable. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Possessive of Proper Names Ending in S"Owing to" vs "Due to"The Difference Between "Shade" and "Shadow"

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow Quotes

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow Quotes The Legend of Sleepy Hollow is a supernatural tale by Washington Irving. Here are a few famous quotes from the story. Quotes The chief part of the stories, however, turned upon the favorite specter of Sleepy Hollow, the Headless Horseman, who had been heard several times of late, patrolling the country; and, it was said, tethered his horse nightly among the graves in the churchyard. I profess not to know how women’s hearts are wooed and won. To me, they have always been matters of riddle and admiration. Some seem to have but one vulnerable point, or door of access; while others have a thousand avenues, and may be captured in a thousand different ways. It is a great triumph of skill to gain the former, but a still greater proof of generalship to maintain possession of the latter, for a man must battle for his fortress at every door and window. He who wins a thousand common hearts is therefore entitled to some renown; but he who keeps undisputed sway over the heart of a coquette, is indeed a hero. On mounting a rising ground, which brought the figure of his fellow-traveller in relief against the sky, gigantic in height, and muffled in a cloak, Ichabod was horror-struck on perceiving that he was headless! – but his horror was still more increased on observing that the head, which should have rested on his shoulders, was carried before him on the pommel of his saddle! It was, as I have said, a fine autumnal day; the sky was clear and serene, and nature wore that rich and golden livery which we always associate with the idea of abundance. The forests had put on their sober brown and yellow, while some trees of the tenderer kind had been nipped by the frosts into brilliant dyes of orange, purple, and scarlet. Local tales and superstitions thrive best in these sheltered, long settled retreats; but are trampled under foot, by the shifting throng that forms the population of most of our country places. Besides, there is no encouragement for ghosts in most of our villages, for they have scarce had time to finish their first nap, and turn themselves in their graves, before their surviving friends have traveled away from the neighborhood, so that when they turn out of a night to walk the rounds, they have no acquaintance left to call upon. This is perhaps the reason why we so seldom hear of ghosts except in our long-established Dutch communities. As the enraptured Ichabod fancied all this, and as he rolled his great green eyes over the fat meadow-lands, the rich fields of wheat, of rye, of buckwheat, and Indian corn, and the orchards burthened with ruddy fruit, which surrounded the warm tenement of Van Tassel, his heart yearned after the damsel who was to inherit these domains, and his imagination expanded with the idea, how they might be readily turned into cash, and the money invested in immense tracts of wild land, and shingle palaces in the wilderness. Nay, his busy fancy already realized his hopes, and presented to him the blooming Katrina, with a whole family of children, mounted on the top of a wagon loaded with household trumpery, with pots and kettles dangling beneath; and he beheld himself bestriding a pacing mare, with a colt at her heels, setting out for Kentucky, Tennessee, or the Lord knows where! Ichabod only lingered behind, according to the custom of country lovers, to have a tete-a-tete with the heiress; fully convinced that he was now on the high road to success. What passed at this interview I will not pretend to say, for in fact, I do not know. Something, however, I fear me, must have gone wrong, for he certainly sallied forth, after no very great interval, with an air quite desolate and chopfallen- Oh these women! these women! Could that girl have been playing off any of her coquettish tricks?- Was her encouragement of the poor pedagogue all a mere sham to secure her conquest of his rival?- Heaven only knows, not I! The mysterious event caused much speculation at the Church on the following Sunday. Knots of gazers and gossips were collected in the churchyard, at the bridge, and at the spot where the hat and pumpkin had been found. The stories of Brouwer, of Bones, and a whole budget of others, were called to mind; and when they had diligently considered them all and compared them with the symptoms of the present case, they shook their heads, and came to the conclusion that Ichabod had been carried off by the galloping Hessian. As he was a bachelor, and in nobody’s debt, nobody troubled his head any more about him, the school was removed to a different quarter of the hollow, and another pedagogue reigned in his stead. This neighborhood, at the time of which I am speaking, was one of those highly favored places which abound with chronicle and great men. The British and American line had run near it during the war- it had, therefore, been the scene of marauding, and been infested with refugees, cowboys, and all kinds of border chivalry. Just sufficient time had elapsed to enable each storyteller to dress up his tale with a little becoming fiction, and in the indistinctness of his recollection, to make himself the hero of every exploit. The schoolmaster is generally a man of some importance in the female circle of a rural neighborhood, being considered a kind of idle gentlemanlike personage, of vastly superior taste and accomplishments to the rough country swains, and, indeed, inferior in learning only to the parson. There was something extremely provoking in this obstinately pacific system; it left Brom no alternative but to draw upon the funds of rustic waggery in his disposition, and to play off boorish practical jokes upon his rival. It was a matter of no little vanity to him, on Sundays, to take his station in front of the church gallery, with a band of chosen singers; where, in his own mind, he completely carried away the palm from the parson. Certain it is, his voice resounded far above all the rest of the congregation; and there are peculiar quavers still to be heard in that church, and which may even be heard half a mile off, quite to the opposite side of the mill-pond, on a still Sunday morning, which are said to be legitimately descended from the nose of Ichabod Crane. Thus, by divers little make-shifts in that ingenious way which is commonly denominated â€Å"by hook and by crook,† the worthy pedagogue got on tolerably enough, and was thought, by all who understood nothing of the labor of headwork, to have a wonderfully easy life of it. The old country wives, however, who are the best judges of these matters, maintain to this day that Ichabod was spirited away by supernatural means; and it is a favorite story often told about the neighborhood round the winter evening fire.

MAI Systems Corporation Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

MAI Systems Corporation - Case Study Example Recently, Softbrands purchased the Company back in August 2006. Since its inception in 1957, the Company has gone through significant changes. Being an opportunist and thanks to IBM and the Justice Department in 1956 when the entire computer industry was under the monopoly of IBM, Walter R. Oreamuno and his associate came up with an idea of re-purchasing the computer equipment from IBM customers and leasing it back to the customers at a lower rate than what was being offered by IBM. This idea was a great boast to the MAI's growth but did not last that long. During this time, the Company opted for an IPO with an Not realizing IBM's strategy of depreciating its punch card equipment and the innovation of 360 third generation computer, MAI invested substantially in the older equipment that resulted in MAI's growth to stall. During 1967, a major setback on merger plans with Transamerica, Oreamuno stepped down as the CEO and was replaced by Luther Schwalm an ex-IBM veteran. With a shift in strategy, the earlier investment in the older IBM equipment did not prove to be fertile, Schwalm decided to write-off the outdated older equipment. MAI's cash flow was impacted so substantially that its net worth in 1970 was negative $ 28 million. Oreamuno's decision proved out to be so wrong that even Schwalm was unable to bring the Company out of trouble. It was that when in 1971 MAI's CFO took over as the President. With a new strategy, Kurshan reorganized MAI into a holding company with various subsidiaries. Basic/Four and Sorbus subsidiaries of MAI did well in bringing MAI back to life. Sorbus took advantage of MAI's existing 1,200-person maintenance staff as its core, and expanding from there. Basic/Four was a major success instantaneously. In 1972, Basic/Four introduced the first multi-user transaction-processing mini-computer to use the Business Basic language. Basic/Four's revenue grew up to $43 million, and it was contributing around two-thirds of MAI's tot al earnings. Focused on software products, MAI in 1977 took over acquired Word stream Corporation. This company was producing word processing systems and IBM-compatible CRT terminals. MAI shipped its 10,000th computer system in the year 1980. The market for these computers began to shift drastically at this time, and small companies were turning to cheaper, newly available personal computers instead of the mini-computers that had been Basic/Four's forte. In 1983, the company introduced its MAI 8000, a super-minicomputer nearly as powerful as a mainframe computer, which was proficient enough of servicing up to 96 users at one time. In 1984, a New York-based investor Asher Edelman purchased 12 percent of MAI's stock. Edelman by means of a proxy war for control of the company won four seats on MAI's ten-member board of directors. In the course of the proxy battle, Edelman received a settlement in the $1 million range following a libel suit filed against MAI concerning company advertisements. During April 1984, MAI International Corporation, the company's worldwide marketing arm, was folded into

Trading & Dealing in Security Markets Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Trading & Dealing in Security Markets - Essay Example Investigations showed that the crash occurred due to a single mutual firm fund that sold a large number of contracts worth 4.1 billion USD and this triggered a reaction from HFT machines that quickly dumped their positions thus pulling the Dow index down. The HFT machines then quickly bought stock at the lower prices and this made the stocks rise then dumped the stock and this ‘hot potato’ trading continued until equilibrium was brought in. All this happened in a few minutes due to the fragile and interconnected nature of the market (SEC, 30 September 2010). There are fears that since algorithms used in the software decision making are hidden, it is difficult to asses if HFT amplifies or dampens the market equilibrium prices. HFT also encourages Flash Trading where certain traders can see incoming buy or sell orders for securities about 30 milliseconds before others do. This lead called 'front running' allows HFT traders to execute their trading strategy ahead of others (NYT, 8 October 2012). HFT traders also have the advantage that they can turn their machines off when the risks and trends are against them and thus they can cut their losses. Overall, trading is thus reduced to a war of technology and speed of connectivity and the financial software and hardware market was worth 25.4 billion USD in 2011. Terms such as scalping, shorting have become common and HFT run transactions in less than 10 milliseconds (Gsell, 2009). 2.2. Advantages of HFT HFT brings equality in the market and a small trader with a single terminal running powerful HFT software can overcome billion dollar traders. HFT is also credited with bringing liquidity in the market, reducing risk of frauds perpetrated by large... The author of the essay "Trading and Dealing in Security Markets" begins with that High Frequency Trading – HFT makes use of powerful computers that automate the trading process and where trading software takes the decisions to buy, sell or hold stock. The practice is also called as Algorithmic trading, Algo trading, automated trading or black box trading. Since the commands are executed by software systems, positions on various stocks are held for durations that vary from a few seconds to a few minutes. HFT has been blamed for ‘flash’ price variations where the prices changes very rapidly for no apparent reason. With high profits almost assured and reduction of losses to a minimum, many traders have started using HFT. In a way, HFT represents the inevitable move to high technology. Like many other areas of business processes such as procurement, automatic ordering in supply change management, ERP systems, humans are removed from decision-making and power is veste d in machines. At the end of the essay the author concludes that since HFT yields high profits, many more firms will take up this practice. HFT certainly has some ill effects on the stock movement and these needs to be constrained and regulated. The regulations must not place HFT under disadvantage and new technology must not be punished. The author also gives his recommendations. Thus, traders should not be allowed to switch off their machines when stocks are falling. This will ensure HFTs remain operational even when they stand to make a loss, just as any day trader.

Econ2010 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Econ2010 - Assignment Example Opportunity cost results from high commodity prices that make the purchasers unable to get their preferred commodities rather, they opt for other commodities. Speculation can be described as a means by which an individual makes decisions without having concrete evidence. An example of a speculation is that an individual buying the shares or shares of a company believes that he is making an investment. He might make a profit or a loss from the shares he buys from the company. When the price ceiling is at Pc, the market equilibrium is not reached, and the producers or suppliers accrue losses from the current prevailing prices. The impact of the lost gains of commerce is that producers or suppliers are discouraged from transporting their product into the market resulting to shortage of the products in the souk. An economic distortion is a situation when suppliers are allowed to charge their prices in the market because the government has stopped allocating its financial resources. The difference is that the landlords will not particularly benefit because the government will be controlling the prices that they are charging to tenants (Kahn, 123). Loss of price floor policy will mean that individuals will have possession of various goods that may positively or negatively affect the state. An example is that teenagers in the society will have access to alcoholic beverages. Exporting a commodity refers to the process where a product is being transported out of the country. It is advantageous to export a product under a price floor policy because it relives exporters from paying taxes. Protectionism is a law that is placed to protect its citizen’s welfare in trade matters and jobs from foreigners and international trade by the government. An example is that the law gives a country’s citizen a higher opportunity of getting a job within the country than a foreigner (Kahn, 11). The cost of protectionism is expensive to the countries applying the

The impact of Twitter on people's life Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The impact of Twitter on people's life - Essay Example President Obama is one of the many politicians who use twitter to get his messages around the world. He shares his ideas about his new campaigns and even a little bit about his personal information. Being the social networking website that twitter is, it is also very different from other websites because a wide range of people come together and shares their stuff even famous people. They get their messages out, talk about their upcoming releases and movies because they are not penalized for whatever they say. Companies even promote their brands and products for example star bucks promoted their â€Å"promoted tweets† in order to get their business out there. Whatever the case, it is very important that we understand, to every ying there is a yang, everything has both negative and positive aspects to it which are as follows: It has never been easy for the people to connect with others and make new friends because just a few decades ago it was tough to meet new people and socialize now twitter has completely erased the distances. One biggest negative impact of social networking sites is that they can be very addictive. People may lose their focus at work or around the house. It is very important that they be used in moderation. One more drawback to twitter or any social website is the amount of information that is being shared. People can lose their jobs and even relationships over sharing confidential information over websites. People also have privacy issues because no matter how well hidden a person’s personal information is or it doesn’t matter if the privacy settings are on the highest level, it only takes an angry follower to copy paste a picture and leak it around to take revenge. It is great how big a change twitter has brought in our lives but the right checks and balances we can make the most out the opportunities we

Henry Clay's views of slavery Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Henry Clay's views of slavery - Essay Example To put action to words, he, of his own free will, freed his slaves, many years before the Civil War and the emancipation (NPR para 4). Clay was one of the people who President Lincoln admired a lot, and his drive for the emancipation must have emanated from this. In fact, Clay and Lincoln seem to have shared the same socio-political philosophy when it came to leadership. For instance, Clay is quoted as having said that he would rather be right than president. This was indication of how his view on slavery was hindering his political career. There have been conflicting arguments on how the abolition of slavery affected the economy of the United States. Some feel that the abolition was a big loss to the economy, especially the southern parts of America which were too dependent on slave labour for their extensive agricultural activities. Slave labour was fundamental in allowing the southern farmers to be able to continue being large-scale producers. In fact, although the southern parts constituted only about thirty percent of the population at the time, it was able to produce a majority of the agricultural products such as cotton which was in great demand, and other food crops. With the abolition of the slaves, these farmers could not access the cheap and affordable labour the farmers were getting from the slaves. The economic impact of the abolition of slavery can also be considered in terms of the productivity of an individual. The question in this case would be, were slaves more productive while in slavery than they were while free? In one way, it can be argued that slaves, due to the fact that they were to work constantly, were more productive. A free person on the other hand, can do work in one day which will give him enough income to help his family for three days. In this regard, such a person may end up being idle for the rest of the days. This argument has however been countered, especially by modern research on human motivation. For instance, Abraham Mas low, a psychologist, established that human motivation changes from time to time in a hierarchical manner depending on the various levels of human needs. These conflicting issues of slavery can be best seen in Henry Clay’s attitude towards slavery. Henry was a representative who influenced a lot of issues in USA politics and economics and at one time was openly opposed to slavery. Yet, in spite of his stand on slavery, he himself owned slaves (NPR, 2010). This is an indication that although opposed slavery on moral grounds, he still could appreciate the economic importance of slavery. The other way in which the impact of emancipation can be considered is by looking at the value of a slave. Although the actual value of a slave could not have been calculated accurately, it can be estimated. A slave was bought at about $200 and was estimated to have a value of $800 to $100 when future value of his work is considered. It is estimated that there were four million slaves, giving a value of $400 of the slaves who lived during the time of emancipation. This would mean that this value of the economy was destroyed just by freeing the slaves. However, this argument is valid only in theory but falls short in practice. Freeing a slave did not nullify his or her economic value but only shifted the value from one owner to another (from the slave master to the slave). In this regard, it cannot be said that freeing the slaves nullified their

Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games-2016 Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games-2016 - Coursework Example The case of the Olympic Games, a nation is not only interested in obtaining a degree of profitability, they are also interested in showcasing their nation to the rest of the world and providing these visitors/newcomers with a positive social experience that could encourage them to visit the nation in the future and/or engage with it economically in a way that they might not have before. Further, key environmental issues also exist with respect to planning and executing such an event as the Olympics. Ultimately, the structures and different requirements of these games necessitate that the city landscape must be transformed as a means of providing the crowds and the athletes with the required infrastructure for the games without creating monstrosities that will be an eyesore on the city landscape or have a distinctly negative impact upon the environment for the future.  Ã‚   Finally, planners for these games must bear in mind that the economics of the entire endeavor is the underpinn ing power and constraint that keeps the games confined to realistic goals.  The rationale for discussing the economic constraints and issues first has to do with the fact that the possibility to host such an event would not be able to be engaged if it were not for the requisite amount of funding that is required to host it.   Beyond this, a nation such as Brazil must determine a firm budget for the process. For instance, many nations that have hosted the Olympics in the past have crafted a budget only to find themselves experiencing dramatic cost overruns as projects are expanded, completed slowly, or not completed at all and necessitating the further work of engineers and contractors to complete according to plan. Moreover, rather than merely crafting a budget for the games and attempting to adhere to it, Brazil must also analyze the costs of the games with respect to the overall results that they hope to enjoy from them. As has been noted previously within the introduction, th e social and economic issues are somewhat overlapping; due to the fact that nations tend to put their respective system forward to the rest of the world as a means of engaging with people, encouraging them to invest within the nation, and promoting their own culture and society. Accordingly, the budget and planning process must engage with whether or not this particular approach will be utilized or whether or not the games are intended as a means of deriving revenue and being profitable. Although each and every nation that hosts the Olympic Games is interested in deriving a level of profitability, for the most part, nations that host these games find themselves in debt for decades after the Olympics have passed.

Henry Clay's views of slavery Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Henry Clay's views of slavery - Essay Example To put action to words, he, of his own free will, freed his slaves, many years before the Civil War and the emancipation (NPR para 4). Clay was one of the people who President Lincoln admired a lot, and his drive for the emancipation must have emanated from this. In fact, Clay and Lincoln seem to have shared the same socio-political philosophy when it came to leadership. For instance, Clay is quoted as having said that he would rather be right than president. This was indication of how his view on slavery was hindering his political career. There have been conflicting arguments on how the abolition of slavery affected the economy of the United States. Some feel that the abolition was a big loss to the economy, especially the southern parts of America which were too dependent on slave labour for their extensive agricultural activities. Slave labour was fundamental in allowing the southern farmers to be able to continue being large-scale producers. In fact, although the southern parts constituted only about thirty percent of the population at the time, it was able to produce a majority of the agricultural products such as cotton which was in great demand, and other food crops. With the abolition of the slaves, these farmers could not access the cheap and affordable labour the farmers were getting from the slaves. The economic impact of the abolition of slavery can also be considered in terms of the productivity of an individual. The question in this case would be, were slaves more productive while in slavery than they were while free? In one way, it can be argued that slaves, due to the fact that they were to work constantly, were more productive. A free person on the other hand, can do work in one day which will give him enough income to help his family for three days. In this regard, such a person may end up being idle for the rest of the days. This argument has however been countered, especially by modern research on human motivation. For instance, Abraham Mas low, a psychologist, established that human motivation changes from time to time in a hierarchical manner depending on the various levels of human needs. These conflicting issues of slavery can be best seen in Henry Clay’s attitude towards slavery. Henry was a representative who influenced a lot of issues in USA politics and economics and at one time was openly opposed to slavery. Yet, in spite of his stand on slavery, he himself owned slaves (NPR, 2010). This is an indication that although opposed slavery on moral grounds, he still could appreciate the economic importance of slavery. The other way in which the impact of emancipation can be considered is by looking at the value of a slave. Although the actual value of a slave could not have been calculated accurately, it can be estimated. A slave was bought at about $200 and was estimated to have a value of $800 to $100 when future value of his work is considered. It is estimated that there were four million slaves, giving a value of $400 of the slaves who lived during the time of emancipation. This would mean that this value of the economy was destroyed just by freeing the slaves. However, this argument is valid only in theory but falls short in practice. Freeing a slave did not nullify his or her economic value but only shifted the value from one owner to another (from the slave master to the slave). In this regard, it cannot be said that freeing the slaves nullified their

Mktg Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 2

Mktg - Essay Example The other common restriction is imposition of taxes and tariffs on imports. Lastly, a government may ban trade between it and another country or countries. This is called â€Å"Embargoes†. Logistic Performance Index is an international logistic assessment tool used to determine a countries global trade performance in regard to logistical dimensions. These dimensions incude,quality of trade as facilitated by infrastructure, efficiency in regard to the clearance concept, relative ease in the arrangement and pricing of shipment products, tracking and tracing ability of products being exported and imported. Overall quality and competitiveness of services used in logistics which may include transport oparations.Lastly under Logistic Performance Index is reliability. This refers to if the goods are able to reach their intended destination within expected time. In general outline, logistic performance index can be implored in a number of ways. They guide the assemblance of goods before being exported to another country. They also facilitate import procedures and provide guidelines that are common to parties participating in trade. It gives firms universal outlook and enables all nations be potential markets. In conclusion political restricts uphold the overall trading welfare of a particular country whereas logistic Performance index puts logistic systems in place to enable effective trading environment

Cultural Views on Health Essay Example for Free

Cultural Views on Health Essay Health beliefs and cultural practices are an essential part of todays multicultural society. It is beneficial for medical providers to be aware of the perspectives of different cultures. Minorities suffer from receiving proper health care because of lack of Jobs, no insurance, and their cultural beliefs. A persons cultural background can affect medical treatment and health care needs he or she may receive. People from different cultures have different beliefs on health care. The two different cultures I chose to discuss are Hispanic American and African American cultural views. I will be discussing the cultural views between Hispanic Americans and African Americans and their views on health care. The majority of Hispanic Americans are Catholics. Religious beliefs and spirituality play important roles in health care of Hispanic cultures in the United States. Mexican American believes health is a gift from God and their health problems are a result of Gods will. Some Mexican Americans may not have resources for health care and use traditional healings to treat their illness. Hispanics respect their elders and the men within their culture. According to Transcultural Nursing (1997-2008), Hispanics are accustomed to the professionalism of social workers, so they rely on their family and close friends for support or help. Curanderos and Santeros are two common healing practices among the Hispanic culture. Curanderos are naturalist healers who use herbs and plant to heal illnesses. Santeros use the power of the saints to heal and counsel. The majority of African Americans are Christians. Many African Americans view religious as an essential part of life. African Americans view God as the source of ood health and a source of serious illness. Many African Americans rely on religion, family, and social connections for support because of the unfairness they have encountered in the past. Many African Americans think they receive poor health care because of their ethnic background or their race. African Americans may not see a medical provider until this or her medical condition severe because of economic factors. Many cultures do not believe that organic approach is very helpful. Organic approach may seem impersonal to people who have a traditionally different method of care. Minorities, such as African American and Mexican American, have been dissatisfied with the overall health care services because of the unfair treatment they receive as individuals. The organic approach uses scientific knowledge of germs and diseases to find out the health of a patient by using physical testing, conducting studies and experiments, and keeping detailed patient records. From an organic perspective, a patients cultural beliefs and social practices are not the primary issues of health care. Harmony perspective sees illness as an incident that occurs for different reasons

Elements in Designing Public Spaces

Elements in Designing Public Spaces Introduction: Now a days more attention is given on to the human dimension in the city planning and the need for quality in the public spaces. Importance of public spaces is universally accepted by one and all. The question is what makes public space more successful? The designer is trying to give best model of good public spaces. However we find that many times well designed public space also doesnt generate good public response. In this essay an attempt is made to study a place evolved organic growth through accumulation and flourishes of public at large design public space to know which place is more successful. Question: What makes a successful public space? Have people who use it had any role to play in making it a successful? What role a designer can play in making a space successful? Public space defined: If one has to define public space in one liner, it means space for public at large.According to public space book, public zrealm includes all the space accessible to and used by people (p.111).So we can say it is a space which is made for people and it is made by people. As Loukaitou sideris and Banerjee (1998, p.175) observe: public life involves relatively open and universal social contexts, in contrast to private life, which is intimate, familiar, shielded, controlled by the individual, and shared only with family and friends. Public space is the place where one likes to spend more time not doing anything special and enjoy surroundings. This can be libraries, community centers, streets, plaza and parks. The dimensions of public space are physical and social. (p.109) Physical means space- which occur social activities. These spaces may be or may not be privately owned. For example hospitals, theaters etc are privately owned public space. The public space can be external or internal and it might be quasi external and internal space. (p.111) William White (1980) in his study in New York gave more emphasis on small scale open spaces in towns, squares, piazzas, plazas, pocket parks and street as the important public space, which are external public spaces. Primitive man moved from place to place in search for food and shelter. Agriculture helped him to settle at place for security and protection. Family life and sense of ownership were the important factor which weighed with him for the establishment of settlement. Communal living gave rise to social interaction. He then stated exchanging goods and services with others in the community for his personal and family need and here started business and commerce. Good and bad events in the community brought inmates closer and this is how, a life outside the private house originated. Initially no particular space was identified as public space. Shady place under the tree on the outskirt of a village or habitat served the purpose. Common well near the village, lake side land, riverbank or the market place was the place where people of all walks of life gathered and discussed their serious and non serious issues. Still in villages people use to gather at the Chauraha of the village. Chauraha is the space where the community meeting takes place in village. It might be under tree or open space at the junction of street. Here they did their routine activity, enjoyed the community life. This was the most primitive public space created by the people without any deliberation or active participation. Market places, squares, plazas and gardens are the extended versions of such places by evolution. All these places have grown organically by evolution. The man is the most inquisitive and innovative creature on earth. He has the ability to think, evaluate, accept the good and forego the bad. These mental faculties have made it possible for a man to improve by evolution. The change may not seem in a short time, in the longer run, the change is substantial. By evolutionary process man has tried to make his habitat more and more suited. Man has improvised his society by accumulation, adaptations and additions. Henry Sheftoe has raised a question can we design such places at the drawing board? Critics of formal architecture and planning such as Bernard Rudofsky (Architecture without Architects) and Christopher Alexander (The Timeless Way of Building, A Pattern Language) suggest that we are better of growing good places and spaces, rather than trying to build them from a blueprint. Henry Sheftoe has said I think we have a lot to learn about how plans and natural environments grow, evolve and adapt to local circumstances and then to mirror this in the development of the built environment. What do we mean by a city or town? Is it just a place of land where houses have been built for human settlement? Or it is a living organism of people staying there. If one knows the basic different between house and home, he will appreciate this important difference. A building may be just a structure of four walls and roof for an outsider but for a person residing there is more than that because he is attached to the same sentimentally. This sense of attachment to a public place works at macro level. Therefore, when we talk of evolved public space, they are the places created be people for themselves to suit their taste, culture and tradition. The city is discussed in barren eviscerated terms and in technical jargon by urban professional as if it were lifeless, detached being. In fact it is a sensory, emotional, lived experience. (Landry 2006,p.2). When a city or town is to be planned from the scratch, the designer can defiantly give his best with the help of his design input. He provides for the well designed public spaces for the common use and the same will be used by people who will stay there. But this is not the easy case every time. How well the people will accept a public space if it is designed without taking in to account their taste and needs? It may fail through it may be the most ideal design situation. Sennet (1973) in his critical statement said they have failed, not for lack of technical expertise, but because they have lot had the power to be adaptive over the course of time p100. Barnad (1994) in his account of How Building Learn suggested that good architecture is nor necessarily produced by design specialists but by the spontaneous and continuous activity of the people. Christopher Alexander asks why our modern cities so often lack a sense of natural growth, and goes on to suggest a set of rules and guidelines by which we can inject that organic character back into our high streets, buildings and squares. People who stay at a place, have by their long association to the place and style of living, developed an affinity towards the same and material change in that space will never be accepted by them. Spaces are for people to suit the designed place. Such attempts will arouse condemnation from the people and will result in failure of the space to serve the purpose. One can treat the body but not the soul. What is successful public space?: Successful public space are the place which is universally accepted by the community, where one can see and enjoy multiple activity and accessible by all kinds of member of society from children to aged. According to Francis Tibbalds, successful public spaces consist of rich, vibrant, mixed use environment that does not die at night or at the weekends and is visually stimulating and attractive to residents and visitors alike. Successful public spaces contain overlapping use of different activity and where person can join and participate without any hesitation. It must be a safe place. This is the place where society like to meet daily and enjoy the pollution free atmosphere. Henry Sheftoe has used word convivial for a successful public space. He says convivial is defined in dictionaries as festive, sociable, jovial and fond of merry- making; usually referring to people, but it can equally apply to a situation. He says without such convivial spaces, cities, towns and villages would be mere accretions of buildings with no deliberate opportunities for casual encounters and positive interactions between friends or strangers. How to evaluate public space? Despite the fact that the public space is important for good urban living, question still remains, what places are good or bad. Evolution of public space is a subjective issue and decisions may vary from person to person. Here we are not concerned with the decision form the designers point of view, but only from the point of vew of an individual common man on the street. Experts in the subjects have given different parameters for evaluating the success of a public space. However project for public space have after many case studies and surveys propounded four important parameters and they are access and linkages, comfort and image, user and activities, sociability. All other parameters given by others are more or less covered within the sweep of the aforesaid four issues. Therefore in this essay, success of the public spaces is examined by applying these four parameters only. Accessibility is most important factor which affects the willingness of the users. People are ready and willi ng if the space is nearby, in the neighborhood or approachable easily. Comfort and images decides the attraction of people. According to book Image of the City (Lynch, p.9), the quality in a physical object which gives it a high probability to evoking a strong image in any given observer. Good comfort of space also create good image on the mind. Comfort is the abstract perception in the minds of the user and good seating, lighting, mobility, traffic free environment are the physical criteria. People coming to certain public space have different reasons to come and therefore multiple activity options on the space make it more convivial. Mixed used activities generate maximum public response. If space is used by only one type of users, other users may not find place interesting. Space must provide welcoming environment to all the residents at all the time. Activities in short are the reasons to visit the place, they will interact and communicate with each other. They will love the company and will have sympathy for others. Tolerance, compassion and love are the natural fallout of a good public space. Why Banaras Ghats and Pershing park? Case study of ghat in Banaras as evolved public space: Banaras is perhaps the oldest living city in the world. It is said that (singh, 1993) city has been lived since 4th century. According to Mark Twain (1898) Banaras is older than history, older than tradition, older than legend and looks twice as old as all of them together. It is situated on the bank of holy river Ganga. According to author P. B. Singh (1993), From the ages this river front of Ganga is used by people of India as a place for performing rituals and holistic activity from birth to death. Visitor from all over the world make a point to visit Banaras either to perform Hindu rituals or be witness to them. River bank of Ganga and especially the Ghats has been acclaimed as public places and their existence since time immemorial does make it evolved public place. It is a classical example of evolved public place. According to the Merriam Websters online dictionary (2009) Ghat means A broad flight of steps that is situated on an Indian riverbank and that provides access to the water especially for bathing. Banaras is bound on the east by river Ganga which flows from north to south and while bending continuously makes a beautiful crescent like riverfront. The left bank is flanked by city while right bank is plain and undeveloped. The right bank lands are reserved for agriculture and no construction is permissible. People of Banaras are strongly related to river. The river nurtures their life. It is respected mother like. All the people living there regularly visit the ghat for bathing and routine. Earlier the ghats were muddy platforms to sit near the river. However by evolution the muddy platforms are regenerated as stepped ghats. Most of these ghats have been improved during the 17th and 18th centuries. (Singh, 1993). High contours and different water levels in the river during different seasons, the stepped embankment -ghat is perhaps the best type of river front. There are almost 84 ghats along the river in span of 5 kms. However study is confined to Dasashvamedh ghat, Darbhanga ghat, Munshi ghat, Ahilyabai Ghat. Accessibility and linkage to the edge of the river (Ghat): Study area Ghats are interconnected with each other and one can walk from one to other easily. Access to the ghat is little bit mysterious and confusing. But in plan, one can observe that all roads in the city directly lead to the ghats. Ghats are connected with two types of street. Dasashvamedh road is the Commercial Street and main approach for visitors. Other streets are Secondary Street and connect internal part of the city to the ghats. Other clear accessibility to the ghats is from the river, which is very clear and inviting. Transit points are the main bazaar street. Ghat is accessible on foot and by the boat from the river. The overall experience from city to the Dasashvamedh Ghat: From city to the Ghat is a human scale. Person cant perceive the Ghat while moving from the street. River is not visible from the inner parts of the town. Arrival to the Ghats is quite surprising. Organic development of the building on the edge of river diverts the users movement towards Ghat at certain angle and cut the vision from the distance. The experience from Dasashvamedh Ghat to the city: This experience is quite opposite to one stated above. At the ghat edge buildings are monument scale, which create image of the city from the river and image of skyline gives clear interpretation of activity on the edge. From the ghat one can observe whole city skyline because of the topography of the city. This scale slowly disappears while moving towheads the city. Dasashvamedh road: Dasashvamedh road is a main connection between Kashi Vishvanath temple and the Dasashvamedh Ghat. The whole street contains commercial life and full of mix use character houses. Surprisingly street has two way roads with divider at the center but does not give access to cars. Only two wheelers can pass on this road. The flow of people on this route is so high and black head crowd leads everyone towards the Ghat. At the junction of the Ghat street goes down in slope. Secondary Streets: These streets connect Munshi Ghat, Darbhanda Ghat and Ahilyabai ghat which are mainly attached with residential area. These streets are quite narrow and flanked by row of 3 to 4 storied residential houses with small shops on the ground floor. Street creates shadow on the road all the time which gives good comfort all the time of the day to user. Cows and dogs also stroll in these narrow streets and pedestrian found comfortable. Dark street have over looking spaces from the houses create secure and safe walk for users. At the junction of Chaustti Bazaar streets widen up and that generate community activity with the help of Chaurah (cross road) and temple or shrine. Here edges are the mediator who play major role to generate public spaces at the certain intervals. Accessibility to the Ghats is crowded and appears mess to a designer. On the linkage of the ghat and street, small temples and stalls which make it porous and active in nature. Crowd on such points make the movement on foot also difficult. Edge of the Ghat: Edge of the Darbhanga Ghat and Munshi Ghat are quite dead because of the fort wall but still we can observe activities there. On Dasashvamedh Ghat, shops and temples make edge quite porous and live. Comfort and Image: Ghats have its own individuality on the bank of rive Ganga. Here we can really appreciate what Kevin Lynch thought about the city image (1981, p.1 ) At every instant, there is more than eye can see, more than ear can hear, sitting or a view waiting to be explored. According to Rishma Parikh (2000, p.39) the nature of the placeis sensorial as well as physical. Both, physical environment and the manners of its consumption are responsible for an image. Ghats are very unique in nature. The steps on the contour make it full of life and activities. One can notice that number of people, mostly tourist are busy with cameras taking photograph. But those busy in their routine activities of bathing, praying, performing rituals are unperturbed. The space is full of people from all walks of life. The stone steps provide sitting for people as well as provide accessibility to river. Here Ghats face east direction so direct sun light will be there in the morning hours but in let afternoon and evening hours, monumental scale edge gives shadow on the steps. People use umbrella to gain shadow in the morning hours on the platform of the ghat. At places, bottom of the trees is converted into platform to sit. Here at the Dasashvamedh Ghat we can see police station but still safety is the issue because of the overcrowding. The buildings on the steps create overlooking spaces, which help to reduce issues of safety. City of Banaras is very congested in nature. But as one enters the Ghat, one can feel openness and freedom of space, which is the main attraction for the people to come at ghat. Uses and activity: The Ghats generate very strong religious bond because of devotees holding central activity power. All ghats are used for ritual activities. In the morning people gather here for bathing and Puja, in the afternoon people are busy doing rituals and evening hours see people attending Arati (offering with lighted lamps) and Puja. They take bath in the river. In the afternoon time we can see the people doing different ritual activity behind the death of the people. Apart from the rituals we can see children playing on the platform of the Ghats. Visitors are roaming around and taking photos. Even these activities are also daily on the Ghats. In the special occasions the Ghats used as Emphi Theater, where different live concerts are arranged. On festival days, special Arati is done. Ghats have multi layer activity throughout the day. On the edge of the Dasashvamedh Ghat we can find small temples which conduct religious discourses. The small stalls around the Ghats sell many items which attract not only the local public but also the tourist alike. Small idols, flower, scented sticks etc. Even visitor can take a ride in the bat during the day and night time full moon boat ride is very famous to enjoy the river. This is perhaps the best place where one can see culture and tradition of India. It is India in small scale. Sociability: Sociability of the place is clearly seen. Activities here bring the people together. Devotees and priest sit together and have rituals, which is the back bone activity on the ghat. We find people of all walks of life from beggars to businessman freely interacting with each other. Rich give aims to poor. Bhandaras are the special events on festival days. This is the best example of community participation on the ghat. Even one can observe animals like, cow, goat and man/woman sitting together very comfortably. Visitors and even foreign tourist are seen involved in local activities. Barber shop, tea stalls, palmist, horoscope reader, singer, musician and serpent are commonly seen here and people enjoy their presence and company. Ghats are the best example of socialization between people of different culture and tradition. Space around the Ghats is quite messy and dirty but it doesnt dissuade public to going there. All big events in the town are held here. The Ghats not only have religious importance but are the life line of the people of neighborhood. Kumar says about people of Banaras in her article, their bowels would simply not move in closed spaces, nor would they consider themselves clean from bathing under tap, which shows social attachment of people to the space. Take away ghat from Banaras and it would be lifeless. Ghats are the best examples of democratic places. Neelakshi Joshi has rightly said, the ghat is thus the common bath, the largest open space, meditation center and the biggest pub in town for culture and social encounter and has been so far centuries untold. The ghats of Banaras stand as inspiration for bringing together all men-painters, ascetics, beggars, washer men and kings to the same platform. Natures bounty is not considered the prerogative of the man who can afford the property by the river. It is rather a thing of joy for all to be enjoyed together. Case study of Pershing Square: Site is situated in Los Angeles. City has storing grid pattern and this park is fitted in block size of the grid. This park was designed 1866 and number of time it was redesigned. The study is based on the last design which is done in 1994 by Ricardo Legoretta and Laurie Olin. Before in 1866 it was a formal Spanish plaza and then it was reinvented in 1911, 1928, 1950 and 1994. The number of redesigning of plaza shows transformation of the city from time to time. It is suggestive of the lack of community connection. If local people are attached to a place, they would have stuck to basic form of the space. In 1951 government rebuilt the area and proposed underground parking with the reason to reduce car congestion of the area. Accessibility and image to the park: The Pershing square is an island having road grid on all four sides. The streets which are adjacent to the square are south Olive Street, West 5th and 6th lane and south hill street. Park is accessible from all roads. Streets act as a divider between edge of adjacent building and park. Buildings around the streets are like west 6th lane, South Olive and Hill Street. Have activates like dominos pizza, restaurants, cafà ©, hotels, offices and international jewelry center. This street faà §ade seems very active and porous in nature. The West 5th street faà §ade is little dead and have parking lot as well. Traffic on this street in day time is quite high. People use this street as a pathway to go from one place to another. People do not linger here on this space for long time. At the edge of the square have entry for the underground parking. It has different color wall on the edge, which distract the vision of people. One can find public transport at the edge of the park. On all stree ts, bus stop to access the park. Pershing square metro station is located nearby at five minutes walk. Comfort and image to the park: At the first glance of the parks modern architecture generate good impression on the mind. Usage of the bright color creates aesthetic excitement. Even good use of architectural elements can be seen inside the park. Park has good comfortable arrangement of seating. Pam tree in the park give better shadow and give proper comfortable area to stand. The steps around the water body give comfortable sitting to the user. Usage and activity at the park: The park has scientific architectural elements like solar system waterfall, several constellation maps on floor, telescopes. But this element does not generate activates. At lunch time, people serving in nearby places come here to take their lunch. Most of the time the park is sterile. The development authority conduct good events on the park to attract people like ice scatting, musical evenings etc. but after the activity park seem dead. Park is used only by homeless people. Sociability: The development authority designed it to make a social and democratic space. But it has not come up as such. It has miserable failed to serve is purpose. Analysis: Case study shows that ghats are conveniently located on bank of River Ganga. The river runs north to south and city has organically grown along the river. All the roads lead us to Ghat and accessibility is good form proximity point of view. However city is congested. Roads are narrow and mess. Ghats remain crowded all the time and movement is not comfortable. Cleanliness is another negative factor. However from the point of varied of activities, it is a successful place in as much as the place is bubbling with varied activities throughout the day. Socialization is utmost on this space. If the success of the ghat is to be evaluated y applying parameters suggested by the Project for Public Space, the rating would be poor. However, clumsy accessibility and poor comfort level do not deter the people from socializing on this space. The reverence, people of Banaras has shown is enormous to river Ganga. River Ganga is the life line of people o Banaras and Ghats are the organs without which life at Banaras cannot be thought of. Social attachment of the people of Banaras to river Ganga is is enormous and that has made the ghats a great success despite all odds in terms of good design elements. Ghats are present day riverfronts. However, care has been taken by those who developed ghats on river to ensure that the river is not canalized by embankments as we see at other places. The crescent shaped curve of the river is also well maintained showing their respect for the river. Ghats are perhaps the best example of evolved places. Second case study of Pershing Square Park gives an opposite proposition. Accessibility to park is good. Comfort level and image of the place is also good. Aesthetic design of the park should normally arouse public response. The development authorities have inserted all good design elements to make the park success. However we find that public participation at the place is very poor. The park has failed to achieve its objective. Either people are not interested in the activities it offers or the people have no attachment with the space. The combined study of the two places leads us to conclude that over and above the four parameters suggested by Project for Public Space, there is one more factor which is vital to make a public space convivial and it is -emotional attachment of people to its place. Presence of this factor alone can make a space successful even if no some other counts it may not be convivial. Emotions emanate from long unbroken social and cultural bond. People make places by their accumulations of adaptations and additions. Designer can certainly give his inputs on first three counts of accessibility, comfort and activities but he is helpless on the last parameter in as much as he can solicit public response. He cant make people use this space. Public sentiments are the most vital issue which makes the place successful. Without public response, the space will be sterile and miserably fail to achieve its true objective. The authorities, therefore, should concentrate more on improving evolved public spa ces by increasing the accessibility and comfort level and by providing diverse mix use activities. Evolved public spaces can be made more convivial with little work in this direction. Findings: People make places. Unless the space stimulates the overwhelmed response from one and all, the public space meat for them cannot become successful. The public spaces evolved by accumulation of adaptations and additions by users themselves are more convivial and people regularly use such places though they are not encouraging from the designers point of view. The success of particular public spaces is not in the hands of the designer. His best design model can fail if people do not respond favorably. Design exercise fails if it does not uphold the sentiments of the people using them. Evolved public space can be easily made more comfortable and lively by the efforts of the designer who keeps in mind the sentiments of the users.

Venice :: essays research papers

What is the federal government's single greatest responsibility to the public? In my opinion the federal government has many responsibilities to the public, but most importantly is its pledge of protection to the public. When I say protection, I mean not only from military attacks from other countries, but by supplying funds for all the needs of the citizens. As the population in the U.S. increases and federal funds decrease, the government tends to forget all of the little people who elected the politicians into office. The people to whom I am referring are the farmers and small business owners, who rely on the government's support to protect their investments. As shipping and international money-exchange has become easier and faster, the ability for small business owners or farmers to sell their goods have conversely become harder. I believe that it is the gocernment's responsibility to ensure that these people do not struggle to earn a living. Bills such as trade restrictions, etc are created so these people can earn a living. Another type of protection that the government must provide abundantly is aid to the smaller governments, such as state or city offices. I feel that this is most important in crime-ridden, overpopulated cities, such as New York or Los Angeles. These are the great tourist attractions in America, but they don't receive the recognition that they deserve from the government. Without government funds, these cities don't have enough money for upkeeping and allow their images to become tarnished. This will cause a domino effect because less tourists will want to visit America. Less tourism means that these cities have less revenues and less importance to the government. Less importance means that they will receive even less aid. Such an effect will ruin any bright spots which still are in the U.

Off Balance Sheet Accounting

Off balance sheet financing is financing from sources other than debt or equity offerings, such as joint ventures, research and development partnership and operating leases. For complex institutions such as banks, they increase their use of off shore subsidiaries and swap transactions to avoid disclosing liabilities. In other words, off balance sheet accounting is a process which a business creates what is practically a debt that it must pay off, but the debt is accounted as another type of transaction that does not count as a liability. Similarly, this applies to asset too.Operating leasing is the most common form of off balance sheet financing. With leasing, on the one hand, an entity could acquire the right to use an asset through a rental agreement. On the other hand, the entity could purchase the same asset using external finance. While the two arrangements may result in identical net cash flows to the entity, in the case of a purchase both the asset and the associated financing obligation appear on the entity’s balance sheet whereas in the formal scenario rental payments are accounted for as a period expense, with the asset corresponding liability omitted from the entity’s balance sheet.Entities used Special Purpose Entities (SPE), are also known as Variable Interest Entities (VIE) for off balance sheet treatment of deals. SPE or VIE is a corporation or partnership formed for the purpose of borrowing money to buy financial assets. Debts are move to a newly created company (SPE OR VIE) specifically to make a company look like it has far less debt than it actually does, which was the case with Enron. For example, a company needs to finance a business venture but doesn’t want to take on the risk, or when there is too much debt to get a loan.By starting a new SPE, they can secure a loan through the new entity. There are situations where it makes sense to start a SPE. If a company wants to branch out into another area outside of its core b usiness, a SPE will keep that risk from affecting the main balance sheet and profitability of the company. The main factor that companies are doing off balance sheet accounting is to provide a better looking balance sheet with lower reported debt to equity ratio, which usually results in driving their stock price higher. Nevertheless, omission of the asset could help to inflate return on assets.This may make the firms look more creditworthy. For instance, by having operating leases, debt does not appear; thus, reducing financial leverage with an increase in operating leverage. By having lower leverage ratio or higher operating leverage, it could attract more investments from investors; therefore, it drives up the stock prices. Next, off balance sheet accounting allows the firms to receive benefits of the interest deduction for tax purposes while avoiding the obligation and the interest expense on its financial statements.In other words, firms with off balance sheet financing are lik ely to have tax interest expense that exceeds financial reporting interest expense. However, off balance sheet accounting has brought some impacts toward the stakeholders. Off balance sheet accounting removes the transparency from investors, markets and regulators. Firms use financial engineering to make their balance sheet appear that they are better capitalized and less risky than they really are. Without transparency, investors and regulators can no longer accurately assess risks.This is because investors and regulators use the balance sheet as an anchor in their assessment of risk. The shareholders could only guess at the extent of the firm’s exposure risks. This affects the judgment of stakeholders; and, it could bring tremendous loss to the stakeholders when the firms collapse. The Enron accounting fraud will best illustrate this. In order to overcome this issue, regulators have established several methods through Sarbanes-Oxley Act, MD&A as well as new rules on leasing .The Securities and Exchange Commission issues final rules implementing Section 401(a) of the Act relating to the disclosure of off balance sheet arrangement, contractual obligation and contingent liabilities. These rules require disclosure of off balance sheet arrangement that have, or are reasonably likely to have, a current or future effect on a company’s condition, changes in financial condition, revenues or expenses, results of operations, liquidity, capital expenditures or capital resources that is material to investors.The disclosure includes elements such as the nature and business purposes to the company of the off balance sheet arrangement and the importance to the reporting company of the liquidity, capital resources, market risk support, credit risk support or other benefits provided by the arrangement. Nonetheless, firms are to disclose the amounts of revenues, expenses and cash flows of the company arising from the arrangements as well as the nature and amounts of interest retained, securities issued and other debt incurred by the company in connection with the arrangements.The rules also require public companies to disclose in a tabular format in their MD&A the amounts of payments due under specified contractual obligations, aggregated by category of contractual obligation. The five categories of contractual obligations, consisting of long term debt obligations, capital lease obligations, operating lease obligations, purchase obligations and other long term debt liabilities reflected on the company’s balance sheet. The table must disclose what portion of payments under these obligations is due within less than one year, from one to three years, from three to five years and more than five years.To encourage the disclosure on off balance sheet arrangement, the amended rules include a safe harbor that applies the existing statutory safe harbors protecting forward-looking information required by the rules. With regard to the disclosure of off balance sheet arrangements, the safe harbor provision indicates that the meaningful cautionary statements element of the statutory safe harbor will be satisfied if the company satisfies all the requirements of the amended rules relating to off balance sheet disclosures.As mentioned above, operating leases can be exploited by entities for off-balance sheet financing – using an operating lease to obtain assets, thereby not increasing leverage and not decreasing return on assets. The proposed new standard on leases by the joint project of FASB and IASB, currently under development, moves away from the current â€Å"risk and returns† basis to a â€Å"right of use basis†. The lessee and the lessor will recognize assets and liabilities individually for all rights and obligations arising from a lease contract.There will no longer be separate treatments for operating and finance leases – all leases will be accounted for on the same basis. In short, operat ing leasing contract is no longer available and only finance leasing will be used for accounting in the near future. In short, off balance sheet accounting could be use but only with appropriate disclosures are done. By having the disclosures, balance sheet is more transparent to the stakeholders; and, the stakeholders do not need to have a wild guess on the risk of a company. Stakeholders’ investments are said to be more secured.

The Return: Midnight Chapter 8

Damon nodded thoughtful y, glancing back and forth between the fighting stave and the pil owcase in his hand. Hadn't he suspected something like this for a long time? Subconsciously? After al , there had been that attack on the grandfather, which had failed to either kil him or to erase his memory completely. Damon's imagination could fil in the rest: her parents seeing no reason to blight their tiny daughter's life with this gruesome business – a whole new change of scenery – and then giving up the practice in the provincial, protected little town of Fel ‘s Church. If they had only known. Oh, doubtless they had made sure that Meredith had had self-defense and various martial arts training since she was a child, while swearing her to absolute secrecy – even from her best friends. Wel , now, Damon thought. The first of Shinichi's riddles was already solved. â€Å"One of you has a lifetime secret kept from everyone.† I always knew there was something about this girl†¦and this is it. I'd bet my life that she's a black belt. There had been a long silence. Now Damon broke it. Your ancestors were hunters too? he asked, as if she were telepathic. He waited a moment – stil silence. Okay – no telepathy. That was good. He nodded at the magnificent stave. â€Å"That was certainly made for a lord or lady.† Meredith wasn't stupid. She spoke without glancing away from his eyes. She was ready, at any instant, to go into kil ing mode. â€Å"We're just ordinary folk, trying to get a job done so innocent humans wil be safer.† â€Å"By kil ing the odd vampire or two.† â€Å"Wel , so far in recorded history saying ‘Naughty, naughty, Mama spank'has failed to convert a single vampire to vegetarianism.† Damon had to laugh. â€Å"Pity you weren't born early enough to convert Stefan. He could have been your grand triumph.† â€Å"You think that's funny. But we do have converts.† â€Å"Yes. People wil say anything while you're holding a pointed stick at them.† â€Å"People who feel that it's wrong to Influence other people into believing they're getting something for nothing.† â€Å"That's it! Meredith! Let me Influence you!† This time it was Meredith who laughed. â€Å"No, I'm serious! When I'm a vampire again, let me Influence you not to be so much afraid of a bite. I swear I won't take more than a teaspoon. But that would give me time to show you – â€Å" â€Å"A nice big house of candy that never existed? A relative who died ten years ago and who would have abhorred the thought of you taking my memory of her and using it as a lure? A dream of ending world hunger that doesn't put food into one mouth?† This girl, thought Damon, is dangerous. It's like a Counter-Influence that they've taught to their members. Wanting her to see that vampires, or ex-vampires, or Once and Future Vampires had some good qualities – like courage – he let go of the pil owcase and grasped the end of the fighting stave with both hands. Meredith raised an eyebrow. â€Å"Did I not just recently tel you that a number of those spikes you've just driven into your flesh are poisonous? Or were you not listening?† She had automatical y grabbed the stave as wel , above the dangerous zone. â€Å"You told me,†he said inscrutably – he hoped. â€Å"I particularly said ‘poisonous to humans as wel as to werewolves and other things' – recal it?† â€Å"You told me that, too. But I'd rather die than live as a human, so: Let the games begin.†And with that, Damon began to push the two-headed stave toward Meredith's heart. She immediately clamped down on the stave as wel , pushing it back toward him. But he had three advantages, as they both soon realized. He was slightly tal er and more strongly muscled even than lithe, athletic Meredith; he had a longer reach than hers; and he had taken up a much more aggressive position. Even though he could feel poisoned little spikes biting into his palms, he thrust forward and up until the kil ing point was once again near her heart. Meredith pushed back with an amazing amount of strength and then suddenly, somehow, they were even again. Damon glanced up to see how that had happened, and saw, to his shock, that she also had grasped the stave in the kil ing zone. Now her hands were dripping blood onto the floor just as his were. â€Å"Meredith!† â€Å"What? I take my job seriously.† Despite her gambit, he was stronger. Inch by inch, he forced his torn palms to hang on, his arms to exert pressure. And inch by inch she was forced backward, refusing to quit – until there was no more room to back up. And there they stood, the entire length of the stave between them, and the refrigerator flat against Meredith's back. Al Damon could think of was Elena. If he somehow survived this – and Meredith did not – then what would those malachite eyes say to him? How would he live with what they said? And then, with infuriating timing, like a chess player knocking over her own king, Meredith let go of the spear, conceding Damon's superior strength. After which, seeming to have no fear of turning her back on him, she took a jar ful of salve from a kitchen cupboard, scooped out a dol op of the contents, and motioned for Damon to hold out his hands. He frowned. He'd never heard of a poison that got into the blood that could be cured by external measures. â€Å"I didn't put real poison in the human needles,†she said calmly. â€Å"But your palms wil be torn and this is an excel ent remedy. It's ancient, passed down for generations.† â€Å"How kind of you to share,† – at his most sharply ironic. â€Å"And now what are we going to do? Start al over again?†he added as Meredith calmly began to rub salve into her own hands. â€Å"No. Hunter-slayers have a code, you know. You won the sphere. I assume you're planning to do what Sage seems to have done. Open the Gate to the Dark Dimension.† â€Å"Open the Gate to the Dark Dimensions,†he corrected. â€Å"Probably I should have mentioned – there's more than one. But al I want is to become a vampire again. And we can talk as we go, since I see we're both wearing our cat burglar costumes.† Meredith was dressed much as he was, in black jeans and a lightweight black sweater. With her long shining dark hair she looked unexpectedly beautiful. Damon, who had considered running her through with the stave, just as his obligation to vampire-kind, now found himself wavering. If she gave him no trouble on his way to the Gate, he would let her go, he decided. He was feeling magnanimous – for the first time he had faced down and conquered the fearsome Meredith, and besides, she had a code as he did. He felt a sort of kinship with her. With ironic gal antry, he waved her on before him, retaining possession of the pil owcase and the fighting stave himself. As Damon quietly shut the front door he saw that dawn was about to break. Perfect timing. The stave caught the first rays of light. â€Å"I have a question for you,†he said to Meredith's long, silky dark hair. â€Å"You said that you didn't find this gorgeous stave until after Klaus – that wicked Old One – was dead. But if you're from a hunter-slayer family you might have been more help in getting him dispatched. Like mentioning that only white ash could kil him.† â€Å"It was because my parents didn't actively pursue the family business – they didn't know. They were both from hunter families, of course – you have to be, to keep it out of the tabloids and – â€Å" † – police files – â€Å" â€Å"Do you want me to talk, or can you do your stand-up routine alone?† â€Å"Point taken† – hefting the extremely pointed stave. â€Å"I'l listen.† â€Å"But even though they chose not to be active, they knew that a vampire or werewolf might decide to pick on their daughter if they found out her identity. So during school, I took ‘harpsichord lessons'and ‘riding lessons'one day a week each – have done since I was three. I'm a Black Belt Shihan, and a Taekwondo Saseung. I might start Dragon Kung Fu – â€Å" â€Å"Point taken once more. But then how exactly did you find that gorgeous kil ing stick?† â€Å"After Klaus was dead, while Stefan was babysitting Elena, suddenly Grandpa started talking – just single words – but it made me go look in our attic. I found this.† â€Å"So you really don't know how to use it?† â€Å"I'd just started practicing when Shinichi turned up. But, no, I don't real y have a clue. I'm pretty good with a bo staff, though, so I just use it like that.† â€Å"You didn't use it like a bo staff on me.† â€Å"I was hoping to persuade you, not kil you. I couldn't think of how to explain to Elena that I'd broken al your bones.† Damon kept himself from laughing – barely. â€Å"So how did a couple of inactive hunter-slayers end up moving to a town on top of a few hundred crossing ley lines?† â€Å"I'm guessing they didn't know what a line of natural Power was. And Fel ‘s Church looked smal and peaceful – back then.† They found the Gateway just as Damon had seen it before, a neat rectangular piece sliced out of the earth, about five feet deep. â€Å"Now sit down there,†he adjured Meredith, putting her on the opposite corner from where he lay the stave. â€Å"Have you given a thought – even the briefest – as to what wil happen to Misao if you pour out all the liquid in there?† â€Å"Actual y, not one. Not one microsecond's worth,†Damon said cheerful y. â€Å"Why? Do you think she would for me?† Meredith sighed. â€Å"No. That's the problem with both of you.† â€Å"She's certainly your problem at the moment, although I may stop by sometime after the town's destroyed to have a little tte--tte with her brother about the concept of keeping an oath.† â€Å"After you've gotten strong enough to beat him.† â€Å"Well, why don't you do something? It's your town they've devastated, after al ,†Damon said. â€Å"Children attacking themselves and each other, and now adults attacking children – â€Å" â€Å"They're either scared to death or possessed by those malach the foxes are stil spreading everywhere – â€Å" â€Å"Yes, and so fear and paranoia keep spreading too. Fel ‘s Church may be little by the standards of other genocides they've caused, but it's an important place because it's sitting on top – â€Å" â€Å"Of al those ley lines ful of magical power – yes, yes, I know. But don't you care at al ? About us? Their future plans for us? Doesn't any of it matter to you?†Meredith demanded. Damon thought of the stil , smal figure in the first-floor bedroom and felt a sick qualm. â€Å"I told you already,†he snapped. â€Å"I'm coming back for a talk with Shinichi.† After which, careful y, he began to pour liquid from the uncorked star bal at one corner of the rectangle. Now that he was actual y at the Gate, he realized he had no idea what he should do. The proper procedure might be to jump in and pour out the star bal ‘s entire liquid in the middle. But four corners seemed to dictate four different places to pour, and he was sticking to that. He expected Meredith to try to foul things up somehow. Make a run for the house. Make some noise, at least. Attack him from behind now that he had dropped the stave. But apparently her code of honor forbade this. Strange girl, he thought. But I'l leave her the stave, since it real y belongs to her family, and, anyway, it's going to get me kil ed the instant I land in the Dark Dimension. A slave carrying a weapon – especial y a weapon like that – won't have a chance. Judiciously, he poured out almost al of the liquid left into the final corner and stepped back to see what would happen. SSSS-bah! White! Blazing white light. That was al his eyes or his mind could take in at first. And then, with a rush of triumph he thought: I've done it! The Gateway is open! â€Å"The center of the upper Dark Dimension, please,†he said politely to the blazing hole. â€Å"A secluded al ey would probably be the best, if you don't mind.†And then he jumped into the hole. Except that he didn't. Just as he was starting to bend his knees, something hit him from the right. â€Å"Meredith! I thought – â€Å" But it wasn't Meredith. It was Bonnie. â€Å"You tricked me! You can't go in there!†She was sobbing and screaming. â€Å"Yes, I can! Now let go of me – before it disappears!†He tried to pry her off, while his mind whirled uselessly. He'd left this girl – what? – an hour or so ago, so deeply asleep that she had looked dead. Just how much could that little body take? â€Å"No! They'l kil you! And Elena wil kil me! But I'l get kil ed first because I'l stil be here!† Awake, and actual y capable of putting together puzzles. â€Å"Human, I told you to let go,†he snarled. He bared his teeth at her, which only caused her to bury her head in his jacket and cling on koala-bear style, wrapping both her legs around one of his. A couple of real y hard slaps should dislodge her, he thought. He lifted his hand.