Night World : Witchlight Chapter 16

We were so careful, she thought, setting up wards three days early and having agents watch the house. Nothing got inside during those three days; we were sure of that, and so we thought we were safe. But we didn't stop to think-what if the dragon was already inside when we put the wards up? Brett. He's the dragon. It could take on any shape, assume any animal's form, and know all that the animal knew. A human being was an animal. So why couldn't it touch a human and know all the human knew? It would be the perfect disguise. And we all fell for it, Keller thought. I knew there was something creepy about him, but I just put it down to him being obnoxious. And he's been here all the time, inside the wards, laughing at us, waiting for Iliana to come. And Iliana's with him right now. Keller felt sure of that in her gut. She wanted to throw herself against the door again, but that wouldn't do any good. She needed to be calm now, to think, because she couldn't afford to waste any time. The window. Keller tried to open it, looking down at a hedge of rhododendron bushes below. The sash was stuck, nailed fast. But it didn't matter. Glass was more breakable than wood. She stepped back and changed. Melting, flowing, jumpsuit becoming fur. Tail shooting free. Ears. Whiskers. Heavy paws thumping down. A single long stretch to get used to the new body and being on four feet instead of two. She was a panther, and she felt good. Strong and mean. Her muscles were like steel under her soft coat, and her big paws were twitching to bat someone silly. That dragon would be sorry he'd ever messed with her. With a rasping yowl that she couldn't help, she gathered herself and sprang straight at the window. The full weight of her panther body hit the glass, and it shattered, and then she was flying in the cold night air. She got cut. Panthers actually had thin and delicate skin compared to other animals. But she was indifferent to the pain. She landed and took off running, shaking her paws in flight to get rid of little bits of glass. She raced around the mansion, looking for a place to enter. Eventually, she found a low, unshuttered window, and once again, she gathered herself and jumped. She landed in a sitting room with glass falling all around her onto a fine, old carpet Brett. And Iliana. She would smell them out. She lifted her muzzle, smelling currents in the air. At the same time, she expanded her sense of hearing to its fullest. No Iliana. She couldn't get even a whiff of her. That was bad, but she would try again from the game room, where Iliana had been last. That was where she was going anyway, because that was where Brett was. Not Brett, she reminded herself as she loped through corridors and rooms. The dragon. She raced through the ballroom and heard a scream. She barely turned her head to notice a girl standing frozen, just lifting her hand to point. The college band crashed to a halt, almost as one, except the drummer, who went on playing for a moment with his eyes shut. Keller ignored them all, running at top speed and leaping down the stairs, her heavy front paws hitting the carpeted floor first, then her back paws hitting almost on either side of them. Each spring propelled her into the next. She burst into the game room. For an instant, she stood still, taking in the scene. She wanted to make sure with her eyes that what her ears and her nose told her was true: Iliana wasn't here. It was true. Winnie was missing, too, and Keller couldn't smell them anywhere. Then someone spotted her, a full-grown panther, jet black, with glowing eyes and long teeth just showing as she panted gently, standing in the doorway with her tail lashing. â€Å"Oh, my God!† The voice soared over the babble. â€Å"Look at that!† Everyone looked. Everyone froze for an instant. Chaos erupted. Girls were screaming. Boys were yelling. Plenty of boys were screaming, too. They saw her, and they fell over themselves, diving for the exits or for hiding places. They poured out of the room, dragging each other, sometimes trampling each other. Keller gave a loud, snarling yowl to help them on, and they scattered like chickens. The only one Keller cared about was the Brett-dragon. He turned and ran down a corridor. Luring her? He must be. Maybe he didn't realize she had found out yet Maybe he had some reason for continuing the charade. She threw her head back and gave a snarl that resounded through the house. It wasn't just anger. It was calling Nissa and Galen. If they could hear her, they would understand and come running. Then she took off after the dragon. As she loped down the corridor, she changed again. This time, she couldn't just try to kill him; she needed to be able to talk. But she also needed her claws, so she changed to her half-and-half form, fur shriveling off her arms, body rearing up to run on booted feet, hair flying out behind her. The dragon was almost at the end of the corridor when she jumped him. She knocked him down and rolled him over, straddling him. She was braced to feel the agony of the dark power crackling through her, but it didn't come. She pinned his arms and showed her teeth and screamed in his face. â€Å"Where is she? What did you do with her?† The face looked back at her. It looked just like Brett, just like a human. It was sickly white, with rolling eyeballs and spittle at the corners of the mouth. The only answer she got was a moan of what sounded like terror. â€Å"Tell me! Where is she?† â€Å"-it's not my fault†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"What?† She lifted his body and banged it down again. His head flopped on his neck like a dead fish. He looked like someone about to faint Something was wrong. â€Å"She's in the bedroom with my parents. They're all asleep-or something-â€Å" His forehead. When she shook him, his hair flew around. It was uncharacteristically messy, but the forehead underneath was smooth. â€Å"I couldn't help it He did something to my brain. I couldn't even think until a few minutes ago. I just did what he told me to do. I was like a robot! And you don't know what it was like, having him in the house the last three days, and feeling like a puppet, and when he let go a few minutes ago, I thought I was going to be killed-â€Å" The babbling went on, but Keller's mind had disengaged. She had lots of thoughts all at once, like layers in a parfait. Chalk up another ability for dragons: telepathic mind control. Of weak human subjects, anyway. Nissa was right* the Night World did know what had happened in the music room. The substitution was probably made right after that. They could have grabbed Jaime on her way back to class. The car incident was designed to make us sympathetic and to lull our suspicions before they began. We thought of her as a victim. The doctors at the hospital must have been controlled, too. They had to have been-they'd looked at Jaime's head. Jaime's headaches have kept her at home for the past three days, so she never had to cross the wards. Diana trusts Jaime implicitly and would go anywhere with her without a fight Jaime wears bangs. And on the last layer, rushing at her cold and sharp as crystal: Jaime is the dragon. Jaime is the dragon. A vast, silent calm seemed to have filled Keller. She felt as if there was too much space inside her head. Very slowly, she looked down at Brett again. â€Å"Stop talking.† It was almost a whisper, but his gabble stopped as if she'd turned off a faucet â€Å"Now. Who's in the bedroom with your parents? Your sister?† He nodded, terrified. Tears spurted out of his eyes. â€Å"Your real sister.† He nodded again. They must have brought her in sometime, Keller thought. Certainly before we put the wards up and started checking cars, maybe even before the fake Jaime got back from the hospital. Why they'd kept her alive was a mystery, but Keller didn't have time to worry about it â€Å"Brett,† she said, still in a careful whisper, â€Å"what I want to know is where Iliana is. Do you know where she's been taken?† He choked. ‘1 don't know. He didn't tell me anything, even when he was in my mind. But I noticed-4here were some people down in the cellar. I think they were making a tunnel.† A tunnel. Under the wards, of course. So we were made fools of twice. She had to grit her teeth to keep from screaming. The floor plan of the house was a blur in her mind. She hauled Brett up by his shirt and said, â€Å"Where's the basement door? Show me!† Ic-can't-â€Å" â€Å"Move!† He moved, staggering. She followed, pushing him along, until they got to a door and stairs. Then he collapsed. â€Å"Down there. Don't ask me to go with you. I can't. I can't look at him again.† He huddled, rocking himself. Keller left him. Three stairs down, she bounded back up and grabbed him by the shirt. â€Å"That phone call from Iliana's mother-does he really have the baby?† She need to know if it came to bargaining. â€Å"I don't know,† Brett moaned in a sick voice. He was clutching his stomach as if he were wounded. â€Å"There wasn't any phone call, but I don't know what he's been doing.† He threw her a desperate look and whispered hoarsely, â€Å"What is he?† Keller dropped him. â€Å"You don't want to know,† she said, and left him again. She took the stairs very quietly but very quickly. Her senses were open, but the farther she went down, the less useful they were. They were being swamped by an overpowering sickly-sweet odor and by a rushing sound that seemed to fill her head. By the time she got to the last step, her fur was bristling, and her heart was pounding. Her tail stood out stiffly, and her pupils were wide. It was very dark, but details of the room slowly came into focus. It was a large furnished basement, or had been. Now every piece of furniture seemed to be broken and piled in a heap in the corner. There was a raw hole in one concrete wall, a hole that opened into a black tunnel. And the sickly-sweet smell came from piles of dung. They were lying on the floor all around, along with giant scratch marks that had dug grooves into the tile. The entire place looked like nothing so much as a huge animal's den. She couldn't sense anything alive in the room. Keller moved toward the tunnel, fast but stealthy. Ripple, freeze. Ripple, freeze. Leopards could move this way across grassland bare of cover and not be seen. But nothing jumped out to attack her. The mouth of the tunnel was wet, the soil crumbly. Keller climbed in, still moving lightly. Water dripped from the mat of roots and earth above her. The whole thing looked ready to cave in at any moment. He must have made it The dragon. Goddess knows how; maybe with claws. Anyway, he wasn't too fussy about it; it was meant to be a temporary thing. The smell was just as powerful here, and the rushing sound was even clearer. There must be an underground stream-or maybe just water pipes- very close. Come on, girl, what are you waiting for? You're a grunt, it's your job to move! Don't stand around trying to think! It was hard to make herself go deeper and deeper into that damp and confining place. Her senses were all useless, even sight, because the bore twisted and turned so she could never see more than a few feet ahead. She was heading blind and deaf into she had no idea what. At any moment, she might reach a shaft or a side tunnel where something could attack her. And the feel of the earth above her was almost crushing. She kept going. Please let her be alive. He doesn't need to kill her. He should try to make her join him first Please, please, don't let him have killed her. After what seemed like forever, she realized that the angle of the tunnel was changing. She was heading up. Then a current of air swirled to her, barely sniffable under the thick dragon smell, and it was fresh. Night air. Somewhere ahead. The end of the tunnel. A new panic invaded her. Please don't let them have gotten away. She threw aside all caution and sprinted. Up, up-and she could smell it clearly now. Cold air, unfouled. Up, up-and she could hear sounds. A yell that suddenly broke off. The voice sounded like- Galen! she thought, and her heart tore. Then she saw light Moonlight. She gathered her muscles and jumped. She scrambled out of the mouth of the tunnel. And there, in moonlight that hurt her eyes, she saw everything. A car, a black Jeep, parked under a tree. The engine running but the seats empty. And in front of it, what looked like a battlefield. There were bodies everywhere. Several were vampires in black-dark ninjas. But also on the ground were the bodies of Nissa and Winnie and Galen. So they followed, a distant part of Keller's mind said, not interfering in the slightest with the part that was getting ready for the fight. They followed the dragon-which must have done something to Winnie to get Iliana away from her. That was why I couldn't smell anybody; they all went into the tunnel while I was upstairs with brother Brett. She couldn't tell if they were dead. They were all tying very still, and there was blood on Winnie's head and on Nissa's right arm and back. Blood and daw marks. And Galen†¦ he was sprawled out full-length, with no signs of breathing. He wasn't even a warrior. He'd never had a chance. Then Keller saw something that drove the others out of her head. The dragon. It was standing near the Jeep, but frozen, as if it had just wheeled to face her. It was holding a limp figure in silvery-white casually, almost tucked under its arm. And it still looked like Jaime Ashton-Hughes. It was wearing Jaime's pretty blue dress. Its soft brown hair blew gently about its face, and Keller could feel its dark blue eyes fixed on her. But there were differences, too. Its skin was deadly pale, and something yellowish was oozing from a cut on its cheekbone. Its lips were drawn back from its teeth in a grinning snarl that Jaime never could have managed. And when the wind blew the soft hair off its forehead, Keller could see horns. There they were. Stubby and soft-looking-or at least soft on the outside, like downy skin over bone. They were so obviously real and yet so grotesque that Keller felt her stomach turn. And there were five of them. Five. The book said one to three! Keller thought indignantly. And in rare cases four. But this thing has five! Five seats of shapeshifting power, not to mention the black energy, mind control, and whatever else it's been keeping up its sleeve just for me. I'm dead. Well, she had known that from the beginning, of course. She'd known it six days ago when she first leaped for the dragon's back in the mall. But now the realization was more bitter, because not only was she dead, so was all hope. I can't kill that thing. It's going to slaughter me as easily as the others. And then take Iliana. It didn't matter. She had to try. â€Å"Put the girl down,† she said. She kept her half-and-half shape to say it. Maybe she could startle it by changing suddenly when she sprang. â€Å"I don't think so,† the dragon said with Jaime's mouth. It had Jaime's voice down perfectly. But then it opened the mouth, and basso profundo laughter came out, so deep and startling that Keller felt ice down her spine. â€Å"Come on,† Keller said. â€Å"Neither of us wants her hurt.† While she was talking, she was moving slowly, trying to circle behind it. But it turned with her, keeping its back to the Jeep. â€Å"You may not,† the dragon said. â€Å"But I really don't care. She's already hurt; I don't know if she'll make it anyway.† Its grin spread wider. â€Å"Put her down,† Keller said again. She knew that it wouldn't. But she wanted to keep talking, keep it off guard. She also knew it wasn't going to let her get behind it. Panthers naturally attack from behind. It wasn't going to be an option. Keller's eyes shifted to the huge and ancient pine tree the Jeep was parked under. Or they didn't actually shift, because that would have given the dragon a clue. She expanded her awareness to take it in. It was her chance. â€Å"We haven't even properly introduced ourselves-† she began. And then, in mid-sentence, she leaped.

Diet Food Industry

Serious illnesses or diseases and poor physical conditions that cause personal problems and difficulties are commonly attributed to the health and lifestyle of individuals, particularly the kind of food that they eat. For instance, obesity that is consequently known to lead to other major and fatal diseases such as heart attack, hypertension, diabetes, etc. , is not only caused by a sedentary lifestyle but also the unceasing consumption of unhealthy foods, particularly sweet and fatty ones.Most people are aware of this fact even without the aid of informational tools and activities. Due to the widespread occurrence of these illnesses or diseases, medical health professionals and health buffs have advocated for a â€Å"health and lifestyle revolution† that consists of a healthy diet and a fit lifestyle. With these changes, the diet food industry has also been established.The diet food industry operates internationally, with various organizations and establishments capitalizing on the strength of the industry’s market; thus, the influx of new groups or individuals who are willing to venture into the diet food industry especially within the international setting. However, groups and individuals who are highly interested in investing in the diet food industry need to go over various processes and succeeding stages in order to ensure their place and position within the corporate arena.The remainder of this paper will discuss these processes and stages, including the study of the global prospect, particularly for a planned restaurant that specializes in diet food meals, the current trends and practices in the diet food industry, available opportunities as well as probable risks and threats, the competition, and the nature and dimensions of the market situation. First, setting up a restaurant in some part of the world requires the study of worldwide acceptance and national or cultural responses to diet foods.(The International Food Information Council, 2 008) This particular process is a good way to start of establishing a business plan because it directly determines whether the targeted market in a particular place exist and is enough to fuel the success of the business in terms of sales and revenue. In addition, there are other considerations such as multicultural diversity, the availability of channels of distributions, the moral or ethical practices prevailing over a particular place, and the availability of resources.(Shay, 2007)Since the structures and dimensions of these factors and requirements differ for each place, there is a pressing need to conduct surveys and market researches in order to determine the best place to set up a restaurant that specializes in diet food. Perhaps, it should be developed in nations or localities that have high incidences of illnesses and diseases that are attributed to unhealthy diets and lifestyles, while considering the number of competition that exist within the area.Overall, the quality of the global prospect of establishing a diet food restaurant will depend on the results and outcomes of the survey and market research. Second, there is a need to review the current trends that fuel the diet food industry. Usually, they are backed up scientific breakthroughs in food or biological technology and the condition of the economy. For instance, the current global economic crisis will lead to the control and limitation of pricing strategies if the restaurant owner will expect the market to frequent the products and services provided by the establishment.(Heigl, 2008)According to the research conducted by MSN Health and Fitness (2008), individuals find it hard to maintain a healthy diet considering the price that they have to pay for each meal. In addition, there has been much discussion and recommendations on the consumption of organic foods – versus the widespread production of genetically modified organisms or GMOs and food products – as chief sources vitamin s and minerals needed by the body. Organic food has also been found out to be a good prevention measure to avoid illnesses and diseases brought about by GMOs.(Greene, 2008)With the reason aforementioned above – that is the alarming increase in the number of individuals who die or get stricken by major illnesses and diseases that are attributed to unhealthy diet and lifestyle as well as the growing importance directed by individuals to the physical and aesthetic condition of individuals – there are various opportunities open for existing business organization to expand or venture into the diet food industry.The continuous evolution of dietary constructs as brought about by the advancement of science and technology allow the diet food industry to reap the benefits of discoveries, developments, and improvements that fit the landscape of diet food restaurants. In addition, the existence of numerous dietary food plans or selections also build up opportunities for organizati ons or establishments to compete. For instance, there are restaurants that specialize on vegetarian meals, low-carbohydrate diets, low cholesterol diets, sugar-free food products, high fiber meals, etc.(â€Å"Special Dietary Needs,† 2008)Moreover, as time progresses, there will be other introductions to the diet food industry. On the other hand, the risks involved have something to do with the problems those organizations or establishments would have to encounter during the planning and implementation process. For instance, competition is always considered a risk, as well as the market acceptability and response of the market to diet food products and services.Moreover, the risks are great for restaurants in terms of how they will be able to handle the market saturation of organizations and establishments that specialize on the diet or special foods. For this reason, the restaurant should be able to offer something new and innovative to the market, set it on affordable prices as compared to other establishments, and ensure the quality and efficiency of the food products and services being offered for the benefit of the consumers.With the development of the diet food industry, organizations and establishments are slowly trying to get into the bandwagon by modifying or transforming their products and services in order to attract the bulk of the market that patronizes special and diet foods. For instance, various supermarkets have involved themselves in promoting healthy diet foods for their consumers by taking part in the implementation of various strategies in terms of consumer purchases of healthy foods. (Mhurchu, et. al., 2005)In addition, well-known restaurants such as Chili’s Grill & Bar, TGI Friday’s, Fresh Fit, etc. In addition, this valuable cause of promoting the health and well being of individuals is also backed up by city governments and private organizations that are concerned about health awareness and consciousness. (Barlyn, 2 008) For ideas on how to introduce healthy diet foods, restaurants should follow by example from the popular restaurants aforementioned. Fresh Fit offers meals that include a sandwich, yogurt, and a bottle of water which is known to be only 340 calories.Chili’s Grill & Bar offers the Guiltless Grill meals that are packed with a variety of vegetables such as carrots, broccoli, and peppers. In addition, it also comes with a low-fat dressing. The Applebee’s Grill & Bar also offer meals that include various vegetables including low-calories steaks and beneficial seafood selections such as shrimps. All the healthy diet foods offered by Applebee’s, Chili’s, Romano’s Macaroni, Subway, and TGI Friday’s only amount from 300 to 400 calories per meal.

Evaluating a Website for Credibility Essay

A search for men’s health related website conducted using the public search engine Google.com. Men’s Health Network (MHN), http://www.menshealthnetwork.org, is a nonprofit organization reaching out to males and their families focusing on the growing health crisis that affect the premature mortality of men (Men’s Health Network, 2014). Approximately 50% of the population is male; evaluating the sites credibility is important when using it as an educational tool for male patients related to prevention and management of health. Evaluation of website MHN is comprised of spokespersons and advisory board. The website discloses a limited list of spokespersons with title and areas of educational focus. The site states, â€Å"†¦there are over 800 physicians, mental health experts, and other key thought leaders among the MHN Board of Advisors†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Men’s Health Network, 2014). The readability of the website is not technical, the average person will be able to read the information on the site and be able to understand the intent of the organizations message. The information that is presented is accurate but referencing to studies and citations are lacking or difficult to find. Brief explanations of diseases are summarized followed by links to outside sources such as the American Urology Association, National Institute of Health, or Journal of Men’s Health for additional information. MHN is sponsored by monetary donations from the public as well as internships to promote education to the public and policy makers related to men’s health (Men’s Health Network, 2014). Partnerships are publicly display at the bottom of the website and range from for-profit drug companies such as Glaxo Smith Kline, Bayer and Pfizer as well as nonprofit organizations such as Boy Scouts of America and Veterans Health Council. Since the number of for-profit partnerships with MHN supersedes the  nonprofit partnerships, one can view the information provided on MHN as favoring the for profit companies despite MHN having links to outside sources for information on diseases. MHN website navigation is user friendly with headings at the top of the web pages that are identical on every page. The font utilized is clear, easy to read, and not strenuous on the eyes. All links in headings are operational and link phrases are clearly described to target page. MHN security link states commitment to ensuring user privacy and that any information collected is used only in accordance to the November 2012 policy (Men’s Health Network, 2014). MHN informs that the website will request permission to place â€Å"cookies† on user’s computer. The term â€Å"cookie† is defined and gives the user informed consent. MHN clearly states that clicking links to partnerships and outside sources link takes the user away from MHN site and states, â€Å"we cannot be responsible for the protection and privacy of any information which you provide whilst visiting such sites and such sites are not governed by this privacy statement.† (Men’s Health Network, 2014). Empirical evidence Building credibility for a website requires providing links to reputable organizations which increase traffic, thereby increasing its relevance in search outcomes (Calabro, 2010). MHN achieves this with a banner containing links to other organizations for the reader to get additional information, but the sites that the reader is linked to do not always reciprocate a link back. Calabro (2010) suggests that updating the home page regularly with updated graphics, information, and testimonials are vital to enhancing the websites presence on the internet. MHN, compared to www.nih.org which publicly displays the sites last revision, information contained on the site doesn’t display last revision although there is updating to the site by evidence of seminar announcements, online flyers, and press releases. In a study of 1,442 acute care nurses employed in one large hospital system with readily available library sources, 43% reported starting a search with Google. Of that group 64% reported success in obtaining results using a general search engine such as Google. While 49% started a search using CINAHL or MEDLINE, a much smaller percentage reported successful searching (20% and 24% respectively) of these professional databases. (Miller, Graves, Jones, & Sievert, 2010, p. 3) Not having a subscription to CINAHL or  MEDLINE, according to (Miller et al., 2010), should not hinder knowledgeable nurses in using public search engines for credible information as a tool to educate patients and families. Application to nursing practice Evaluating information found on the internet is important to properly educate patients as MHN provides educational material for men, boys, women and families. The professional nurse can utilize the site resources to aide families to cope with ailments that affect their male loved ones. Nurses can resource MHN to provide information to families to co-pay card programs to curb the high cost of health insurance. Summary MHN demonstrates credibility by the use of expert advising board and links to creditable organizations which have done studies to support their mission. The site is easy to find on public search engines, easy to read for the lay person while giving links to more detailed information for the healthcare professional. References Calabro A 2010 Endhave your presensce on the internet with an improved website.Calabro, A. (2010). Enhance your presence on the internet with an improved website. O&P Business News, 19(12), 18. 201409201149291993026019 Mens Health NetworkMen’s Health Network. (n.d.). Retrieved September 15, 2014, from http://www.menshealthnetwork.org 201409161816071882827044 Miller L C Graves R S Jones B B Sievert M C 2010 Beyond Google: Finding and evaluating web-based information for community-based nursing practice.Miller, L. C., Graves, R. S., Jones, B. B., & Sievert, M. C. (2010). Beyond Google: Finding and evaluating web-based information for community-based nursing practice. International Journal of Nursing Education Scholarship, 7(1), 1-16. doi:10.2202/1548-923X.1961 201409201214161550333619

Analysis and Evaluation of an Argument Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Analysis and Evaluation of an Argument - Essay Example Since then, the desire to develop anti-ageing strategies grew in him. He has done several researches and merged them with logic ideas. That is why he says that ageing is rather a curable disease is any other. His reasoning is based on the body tissue that results in metabolism. He said the effects of metabolism are what brings about growing old in human beings. He felt the need to enable people not to lose the ones they love anymore due to health issues, lack of liveliness, and the ability of functioning in ageing process (De Grey, 210). He felt this loss had to stop since the majority of the people that died due to old age always had agonizing and very expensive death. The expense was due to that old people were vulnerable to lots of diseases and there most of the time is spent with medical assistance. Old people are not productive. This is because they can hardly assist in any job. They are therefore seen as valueless in the society. Aubrey De Grey has developed seven biological related steps to help slow the ageing process of human being. These steps help to repair the damaged organs in the body ones the ageing process crops in the body (De Grey, 222). Accumulation of damaged organs in the tissue of the body is what brings about diseases and other problem that result in death in old age. Cellular damages occur seven ways in the ageing process. Therefore, the seven steps are to help clean the junk of the cells both inside and outside. As people age, there tend to be worn out cells that need to be removed and protein cross-linking in the body. The bad cells are the one that causes the diseases of old age and therefore, they need removal and the body needs to be induced to produce new one. Prevention is always said to be better than cure. Dr Grey uses the quote a lot and says that people should not wait until they develop ageing problems to be cured. They should be earlier precautions and preventions to old

Ethics & International Relations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Ethics & International Relations - Essay Example 1These myths describe many things some may look reasonable and easy to understand whereas others may not look logical. But all these myths and narrative whether reasonable or not help us to understand the big games played between big powers. These myths also indicate that events taking place around the world are ethical and moral. These myths can also answer this important question: Can International Relations theory ever be truly ethical? Generally it is said that whatever rules of fair play are taught by religion and traditional values of society are called ethics. It is important to understand the comprehensive definition of ethics. A complete clarity about what ethics or morality is necessary since there are many confusing views presented by some philosophers. The modern views about ethics clarify much confusion. The modern views are: Although it is debatable that what exact range should ethics cover. But majority of scholars agrees that it should be related to the particular concepts like vice, benefit, disgrace, obligation, duty, virtue etc. Many people look for ethical teachings in religion and tradition. But in contemporary world, these sources may not provide adequate answers. If they provide answers then they become controversial because of different interpretations. Similarly, culture also can not provide complete ethical answers in various situations. If the culture of a nation gives one interpretation then it is quite possible that culture of other nation may contradict it. But it is also true that most of the cultures have many common points to be agreed on. Almost all cultures accept and preach the common virtues like truth, honesty, steadfastness etc. It is therefore necessary to evolve a universal ethical theory. 2The universal values can take varied cultural forms in various places. Other ethical concepts can prove to be universal in reach but

Unfair distribution of resources in africa Essay

Unfair distribution of resources in africa - Essay Example The first one supports "continuing to discourage ethnic identification with a view to promoting statewide unity" (Presbey, 2003), or in other words- this approach believes in tearing down the ethnic differences that divide citizens of the same country, uniting everyone and as a result- encouraging a proper and sensible allocation of resources which does not take ethnic origins into consideration when deciding how to allocate the available resources. Contrary to this is the other approach which is extremely prevalent in African governments- taking peoples ethnic allegiances as they are and devising a federal state based on ethnic regions. When this is done, the government then chooses to allocate most resources to the regions associated with their own ethnicity. In other words, government officials allocate resources so that people from their own ethnicity will benefit much more and receive the most, whereas people from other ethnicities suffer from deprivation and an apparent lack of resources. Presbey claims that this method of allocating resources to benefic one group (or groups) at the expense of another group (or groups) started when Africa was controlled by colonial forces. They began a system in which rural farmers were underpaid for their produce, which later subsidized urban centers. That meant that the farmers who worked very hard did not receive any proper compensation for their hard work, their goods were taken away from them and then sold to everyone else, and while the rich could afford to buy this and gain access to other resources and infrastructures- the poor could not, and did not get the resources they needed. This is exactly like what is happening today, according to Presbey, because the Africans just adopted the "colonial system" of resource allocation. What is done today is very similar to what was done then- those who are in control of the country misuse

Name etymology theme Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Name etymology theme - Essay Example Neither of these names is rare or unusual for my country, yet there are some interesting points to concentrate upon while researching their etymology. First of all, I would like to mention that my first name, Mai, actually exists in several different cultures and languages. For instance, Mai is as popular Japanese name meaning "brightness" (www.babynames.com). In some languages of the Native Americans, Mai meant "coyote" (www.babynameworld.com). Mai can be regarded as a pet name from Margaret (from Latin "pearl") or Mary (from Hebrew "bitter" or Latin "the star of the ocean"). The name Mai exits in the Swedish and Chinese languages as well. In Vietnam, the names given to the girls normally have literal meanings associated with beauty or art - very often the etymology of the names is connected with the names of flowers, plants or birds. So, my name Mai in Vietnamese means "cherry blossom". (Female Vietnamese names) In Vietnamese, Mai is a very popular name for girls, and as far as my family's history is concerned, the reason why I was given this name was that my Dad obviously wanted me to be very much like my Mum whose middle name is Mai as well, and therefore he insisted that I should be named this way. Thi is, according to the research, the most popular female middle name, and it means "ancestry", "clan".

Skills Shortage and HRM Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 1

Skills Shortage and HRM - Essay Example Furthermore, it often increases the crime rate as people resort to earning money in illegal ways due to their unemployment. Other problems like low morale in the workforce, and economic recession are also very common due to unemployment. Furthermore, it discourages people to pursue further education because they see how even the highly educated people are often forced to do jobs which are below their potential, simply due to the lack of jobs available. Thus, unemployment has a major negative effect on the economy and welfare (Beresford, pg 190, 2004). Another difficult, however completely different, scenario occurs when the economy has plenty of jobs available in various industries, but does not have enough skilled labor to meet this demand. Whereas the people in the above mentioned situation were forced to compete with several other qualified people for the same job, this scenario describes a situation where companies are competing against each other for the same potential employee. They are forced to do this when the economy does not have an adequate supply of people with the skills which these companies require (Capelli, pg 145, 2005). PROBLEM WITH THIS SHORTAGE A shortage of skilled labor as described above usually pertains to fields which require high level skills, such as those needed for the technological industries. These industries are ever changing and developing, and thus require the workers to have updated and relevant skills. Such a feat can only be accomplished by regularly training these workers, which requires time and money. Sometimes, workers with such updated skills are not available for the companies to fill their vacancies. This causes severe problems, because then the company has to divert substantial resources to recruitment, which costs them heavily to get new employees; whereas new employees are supposed to be making more money for them, not costing them their funds. This causes problems for the companies, and thus it is necessary for t hem to determine some cost effective recruitment strategies (Goss, pg 232, 1994). POSSIBLE RECRUITMENT STRATEGIES One way of employing such cost-effective recruitment methods is to pay attention to factors which will attract employees as well as motivate them to keep working. These include the fringe benefits, bonuses, promotions, training programs and compensation rates that these companies offer the employees. The management style, reputation and size of the company are also very important factors in this regard. Different factors have a different level of importance for employees. Some may prefer a job which pays them a high salary, while others may be attracted to large companies with good reputations in the industry. Thus, these companies need to account for these individual differences when recruiting employees (Capelli, pg 146, 2005). Not every company can afford to offer the potential employees being recruited all the above benefits. In fact, some companies may face severe d ifficulties in recruiting new people due to such limited resources. If they exist in an economy which has a very limited supply of employees who possess the skills needed, they face major problems when trying to recruit such employees. Since they do not have all the resources other companies may be able to offer employees, they will not be the preferred choice of employers for

Comparison of two friends Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Comparison of two friends - Essay Example While I was allowed to try new things and venture out on my own Aziz spent a great deal of time at home reading or studying. Though his grades were always better than mine it was never a point between us at that one may be being smarter than the other. We shared bonds that defied our personal choices in sports or culture and our personalities despite their differences seemed to supplement each other as though we were one. Aziz and I have been best friends for as long as I can remember. Aziz and I frequently go places together that separately we would likely not be interested in. He has taught me a great deal about Asian culture and we are exploring Egyptian culture though lately we have been discovering new music. I am looking for a part time job while Aziz is focusing more on finishing his education. Aziz’s’ parents are more able to afford his expenses though I feel guilty as I know my parents struggle. I would love to find something in a trendy stylish store in the mall while I finish school. My focus has been on business and that is my long term plan as of now; business administration. Aziz, being the genius that he is hopes to go to medical school one day and I don’t doubt that he will. His family is all successful with careers that took years to attain and I know that has had a strong influence on Aziz. He has less time for girlfriends than I; we manage to date casually. Neither of us is in a committed relationship, my last one ending badly. Aziz has many friends that are girls though I don’t ever remember him being serious towards one. Aziz and I share most of our thoughts and we can always talk to each other. Times get stressful when you are trying to succeed, knowing that others are expecting you to. We both realize our limitations and set goals that are achievable. I sometimes get jealous of Aziz as he easily reaches goals and we laugh as he encourages me. Despite our many differences it is Aziz who gives me the

Case Study 10-1, Troon Golf Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

10-1, Troon Golf - Case Study Example The increasing difference in between IT cost and the purchase price forced the management to put in place TCO. At optimal level, the analysis of TCO supported the acquisition and planning decisions for the firm’s assets bringing a significant maintenance and operating cost over a significantly long usable life. Therefore, the use of TCO helped the firm in quantifying and measuring its costs. Further, it impacted commercial negotiations through the expansion of narrow confines of the IT prices to a large area of opportunities thus eventually allowing management to refresh its hardware at the optimal cost level. Some costs in the firm are purely variable while others are fixed thus displaying no correlation to levels of output. Expenses in the firm spiraled out due the fact that the firm had long-term plans that make it impossible to account for hybrid expenses occurring. Whenever a firm does not estimate accurately the step fixed costs, it is possible that the expenses spiral will be dramatic. Further still, the management of the firmed lacked enough experience and proper accounting skills thus estimation of costs was a problem until Cary Westmark intervened with a new idea. The firm should have decided to hire an independent consultant to ensure that costs are properly estimated. This is event since the firm’s support costs were seen to increase within the projected life of IT, which consequently led to the increase in the expenses. This means that were it not for the technology Vice President, Mr. Westmark, who introduced TCO, the expenses would have continued to increase thus lea ding the firm to a shut down position. Example of hidden cost will include damage to machines by a worker and time lost by a worker, which could have been as a result of supervisor responding to a injury-causing incident. The cost incurred when hiring and training either a temporary of a

Sociology and Friends Essay Example for Free

Sociology and Friends Essay How Can I Help My Friends Realize Their Value How Can I Help My Friends Realize Their Value Words: 713 The value of friendship is said to be the greatest one among mankind. True friends make others realize their true value. Trying to make someone realize their value can be a difficult process because they might not even realize it themselves. Showing someone how important they are will result in them being a stronger person and in you being a better friend. Friends are meant to help others out in times of need and by doing so we need to show our friends their true value and accomplishing such a task may at times prove to be difficult. Having true friends is very important as it gives us the chance to get advice in times of need, a shoulder to cry on and the ability to share the happiest moments of our life. In all of this we sometimes forget to show others how important they are to us and this can degrade the friendship over a period of time. In today’s fast society there is just not the time to take out and relax. We live in a world that is moving at a very fast rate and taking out time for loved ones usually gets put on the back burner. We need to take out time for our friends and show them their importance but also do something genuinely for them from the bottom of our hearts. We need to put them top on our priority list because value is only given to something that is at the top of our lists. We are investing time with them and it not only shows how much time you want to spend with them but also how you truly value them. Realizing someone’s importance can be hard but once we lose them it suddenly becomes clear to us. We need to give our friends respect because without respect you will not get any back and it just shows, â€Å"you care†. Friends share their most inanimate secrets and help each other out in times of need. This is actually a very important part in friendship because with sharing your problems with your friend it shows that you trust him or her enough to be sharing it with them in the first place. This also shows that you value their advice. You are open to them and you give them the courage to come and talk to you which shows them how important they are in your life and you challenge yourself by giving a part of yourself to them. You need to acknowledge them in such a way by showing them that they are of some importance to your life; and without them it would be difficult for you to go on in life. Show your friends that you truly appreciate them and you are grateful that they are there for you. We should stop looking for the flaws in other individuals. As a society we follow social norms and due to that we like to look for flaws in others, bring others down or show others that we are better than them. In the process of doing so we are bringing other individuals down and abating their value. We need to show our friends that we worry for them and when they are afflicted pain so are we. We need to show our support for them every step along the way and if they are in pain and suffering not look down up upon them but help them bring their head up high and give them the confidence that they are in need of. Friendship is a strong relationship that needs time and energy just like any other relationship in the world. We need to take out time for our friends and help them in desperate times of need. We need to view them as our partners instead of a burden or responsibility that we have to fill. As a society now days we view friendship as harmful at times because of fear that our friend might beat us in any competition of any kind but that is because trust is lost and when we start trusting each other and giving respect these problems will go away on their own. Give values to your friends as than they will realize their true value.

Chinua Achebe vs. Margret Atwood Essay Example for Free

Chinua Achebe vs. Margret Atwood Essay Compare the ways that vultures are portrayed and used in the poems by Margaret Atwood and Chinua Achebe. By Jessica Tilbrook. Chinua Achebe and Margret Atwood grew up in two very different environments. They were born almost a decade apart, yet they both managed to construct two very meaningful poems about vultures. Achebe was born in Nigeria in 1930. In 1967 the region of Biafra broke away from Nigeria. Achebe became a devoted supporter of Biafra independence and served as ambassador for the people of the nation. But to get this point there was a 3 year war of independence ravage. Chinua Achebe witnesses some horrific scenes. He saw babies, children and adults starving to there death. He saw his own people from Biafra killing others from Nigeria. He saw how loving people have the capacity to be evil and vice versa according to Achebes version on the poem vultures. Chinua Achebe believed that any good work of art should have a purpose. Achebes vultures defiantly had a purpose, as it shows how even evil, vile creatures like vultures have the capacity to love. Throughout Achebes poem there is a negative feel. From the very start of the poem it is unpleasant and quite graphic in the description of the vultures. In the poem it occasionally refers to love as one of the vultures inclines affectionately. This suggests that even vile creatures can have the capacity to love. Chinua Achebe uses many techniques throughout his poem vultures. The structure of the poem has no rhyming scheme or lines of the same lengths. The lines are written short, probably on purpose as you can then appreciate the horror, by reading it slower, creating tension. Achebes poem isnt really in Stanzas it is more split into four sections; this is probably done to keep the flow of evil and ideas running through the poem. There is also a lack of punctuation throughout the poem, this could have been done on purpose to keep the poem flowing, like the sections. Chinua Achebe choose to right in past tense for the description of the vultures, as its easier to understand what vultures are like whereas the Belsen Commandant is described in the present tense. This might of been done to remind us that evil is all around us now, and everyone has the capacity to be evil. The word strange on its own, at the beginning of the second section makes us pause, and think about whats actually going to be strange, which makes you think about the whole section. Throughout Achebes poem there is a lot of imagery a good example of this is Belsen Commandant a mass murderer and his children calling him Daddy, not father. This is probably done so you can visualise how the children have no idea of what there father has actually done, and they are treating him like normal. This is quite emotional to read, as you can imagine this really happening. Another example of Achebes imagery is the metaphors he uses to describe death and horror. In the first section it says vulture perching high on broken bones of a dead tree. This makes the atmosphere more intense, and builds up the tension from the very beginning. There is some alliteration in the poem, but there are not many references to sound. I think Achebe wants to concentrate on more visual images rather than sound effects to suggest his ideas. I liked Achebes version of the poem vultures. It had a very meaningful purpose, which is what Achebe wanted to achieve. He wanted to use vultures as a vehicle to get people to understand that even the most loving of people have the capacity to be evil. I think he used vultures as a very successful vehicle at getting his point across. I also think that this poem is ambiguous on one hand, you could say that even the cruellest of creatures show even the tiniest amount of love, but on the other hand, that even the most loving creatures have potential to be even the slightest bit evil. The second poem called vultures was written my Margret Atwood. She was born in Ottawa, Ontario in 1939. She was a daughter of a forest entomologist, and spent part of her early years in the bush of North Quebec. Atwood is the joint honorary president of the rare bird club of birdlife international. The main message of this poem is how life comes of death. So basically the cycle of life, and even from the most horrific things in life, can bring something extraordinary out of it. Throughout Atwoods poems there are references to death, such as hung and bones. This does not give a good vibe to the poem. Atwood uses several metaphors throughout. Then theyre hyenas, raucous around the kill, flapping their black umbrellas. This is two metaphors in one sentence. She describes the vultures as hyenas which is not only a good comparison but good use of imagery. Also Atwood says the vultures were flapping their black umbrellas this makes them out to seem huge evil animals. The structure of Atwoods poem is done very well, as she occasionally puts odd words on a separate line to make you think about the poem in more depth. The poem is sort of in stanzas but there isnt maybe, which helps the poem keep flowing. All of the lines in the poem are roughly the same length, apart from the occasional odd word. I think it makes the poem easier to read, and get the rhyme flowing at the right pace. Margret Atwood uses a variety of meaningful and powerful words. For example carnage violate gluttonous all these words have a negative impact on vultures. As they are explaining why and how they are vile creates. But some people might say that the way vultures act is completely natural. This is because it is natural for them to eat, which means killing other animals, to feed themselves and there family. Which shows this poem is also quite ambiguous. There arent many references to sound throughout Atwoods version of Vultures. But she does say vultures snigger at funerals. And sniggering refers to sound. This also implies vultures are vile creature, as it is inappropriate to horribly giggle at a funeral. I think that Margret Atwood successfully used vultures as a good vehicle to show how life comes out of death, even in the most horrible circumstances. I thought both Chinua Achebe and Margret Atwoods poems both had very different meanings, but both shows contrasts between humans and vultures. In my opinion Chinua Achebes version of vultures was the best used vehicle to get his point across. As he point his point across very well, and he achieved his purpose that any good work of art should have a purpose. So I think Chinua Achebes poem just slightly had an edge over Margret Atwoods because of Achebes aims for his poem.

Pluralist Theories Of The Mass Media Media Essay

Pluralist Theories Of The Mass Media Media Essay Sociologists are interested in the mass media because of the powerful effect it has in peoples lives both politically and socially. Mass media is forms of communication directed to big mass audiences without any personal contact. This can be by radio, television, internet, billboards and so on. This essay is going to explain and critically evaluate the Marxist and pluralist theories of the mass media. An explanation of the media will also be included. Marxist theorists suggest that the media is dominated by the ruling class who are the major owners of the media corporations, which gives them total control and manipulation of media content and audiences in their own interest. In the view of the Marxist the media is seen as part of an ideal ground in which various class views are battled out. However, pluralists suggest that there is no dominant ruling class. They insist that the role of the media is to promote freedom of speech. In fact they see society as a multipart of rival groups and interests, of which none take the leading role all of the time. Pluralists believe that the government has a key position in regulating media content and ownership. Marxists view known as the instrumentalist approach makes several claims, of which the pluralists such as James Whale (1997) argue that Marxists case neglects important facts, and that it exaggerates the power of the media. Some of key claims are: That the owners of the mass media have direct control over the ideas communicated through the mass media, but the pluralists argue that it is not all owners who try to control media content. They actually do point out that there has been a witness of cases where top newspaper editors have disputes with owners over control of editorial content. Marxists continue to claim that mass media audiences are seen as passive consumers, of the distorted and partial accounts of news and the cheap distracting entertainment, which the media provides them with. As a result of this the mass audience just accepts whatever is presented to them, whereby a public opinion could be easily manipulated by the mass media. Pluralists criticise this point by arguing that the media owners and those who work for the media cant afford to ignore the views and interests of the public to buy or listen to what they want. Marxists claim that the capitalist owners of the mass media intentionally aim to promote ideas that give them huge massive benefits to their class of which they are members. But on the other hand pluralists call that an unhelpful concept. They go on to say that it is a ruling class ideology. Marxists point out that the reason why pluralists are very critical to Marxists instrumental accounts of the media is because pluralists themselves are often part of or funded by the media industries. Having to consider the above evaluation, now let us look at how sociologists explain the main ways in which the news is created by the media. Sociologists have argued that the process by which journalists create the news is a manufacturing process and that its production processes are quite predictable. Sociologist Phillip Schlesingers (1978) gave some results about the news study, by saying that journalists use a news diary to make their job easier, and that many articles can be prepared in advance due to tight deadlines. However, sociologist agree to a certain point that journalists are still controlled in what they present to the public because they are guided by news values, shared norms and values which makes them believe that it is essential to the public. Results drawn by researchers like Galting and Ruge (1981) showed that two key sets of factors involved in determining journalist news values are bureaucratic and cultural. This means that news items must be immediate and refer to current affairs, brief, simple and exiting. They insist that news must focus on elite decision makers and on personalities rather those issues. Overall, a conclusion can be drawn from the above to say that the whole process of making the news is socially constructed and that the media can have a considerable influence of public debate. The fact that the public respond a huge percentage to the media products, it has been proved that some reports are found to be misleading and over dramatised to give a good story. In a sense such stories are over exaggerated and they usually have a negative impact to the audience. Such reports cause moral panics and bring fear amongst society. After his research of gang fighting at the sea side, Stan Cohen argued that the media play a key role in creating moral panics. He drew a conclusion that the media over exaggerated in order to boost their sales and succeeded in attracting a huge number of readers. Another recent example of moral panic was about the Nigerian man who tried to blow up an American bound airline. The result of that event has brought on security changes at airports around the world. In fact at Heathrow airport a new security device which shows peoples nudity when they pass through, it was introduced shortly after the incident. If we look further into how groups of people are represented in the media either by gender or ethnicity background, we find that women and ethnic minorities are under- represented in position of power and influence in the management of the media industry. On the side of gender, sociologists say that the mass media is patriarchal; women appear less than men on television. Many adverts portray women as either house wives or sex figures in the media. For example in the sun news paper, they have dedicated a page three that shows half naked women on a daily basis. This definitely keeps the male audiences hooked on such news paper. There has been a great deal of research showing that media representations of men dominate the media and are more positive than that of women. For example, Dominick and Rauch (1972), Brelt and Cantor (1988), Cumberbatch (1990), found out that images of men were predominant in adverts, and that men are usually in more authoritative roles or in higher status occupation. They also claimed that the majority of voice -overs in adverts was male voices. Feminist sociologist Gaye Tuchman (1978) concluded that women are symbolically destroyed and marginalised in media representation. On the other hand, studies have showed that media representations of ethnic minorities are tremendously presented in terms of negative stereotypes. So many newspapers tend to represent ethnic minorities as a threat to the public. This ranges from being criminals, dangerous, pitied or illegal immigrants. On television, ethnic minorities tend to be in restricted range of roles. The broadcasting standards Commission (1999) found that ethnic minorities are more linked with arts, media, health and care roles than other roles such as legal professions. Researchers such as Sarita Malik (2002) believed that there is a racialised regime of representation within which black are portrayed as having different experiences from other groups. She concluded that Whiteness is portrayed as the norm. Karen Ross (2000) used focus groups of people from different ethnic minorities and she found out that each group was portrayed as homogeneous. Van Dijk (1991) used a hypodermic model and argued that newspapers have a major impact in developing a perception of immigration as a problem which may lead to racial attacks. In conclusion mass media indeed affects society in many ways. There some positive and negative attributes from the mass media that influence society in todays world. These are either political or social issues.

Black Holes :: essays research papers

The theory that black holes have existed is not new at all. The thought of them first started in 1783 when Rev. John Michell applied Newton’s theory of gravity to predict the possibility of so-called â€Å"dark stars.† Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity predicted in 1915 â€Å"Schwartzschild singularities.† In 1967, these were renamed â€Å"black holes.†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A black hole is collapsed object (usually a star) that has become invisible and has such a powerful gravitational force that nothing, even light, can escape its surface. This is the reason that they are invisible. They are so powerful that one could easily crush an enormous amount of matter into an incredibly small space. For instance, if the earth were to be squeezed into a black hole, it would end up as the size of a marble.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A black hole forms when a super massive star has â€Å"used up† all of its nuclear fuel and then collapses under its own gravitational force. This happens because, as a star burns fuel, it creates an outward push, which counteracts the inward pull of gravity. Once the fuel is gone, the internal pressure of the star drops and it can no longer support its own weight. In a monstrous explosion, the outer layers are thrown off. And, at this same moment, the core collapses. This can happen rather quickly because gravity can crush an object 10,000 miles across to an object only 10 miles across in about one second.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  During the time that a black hole is created, the star shrinks down to an infinitely small and infinitely dense point know as the singularity. At this point, all we have ever known about the universe breaks down. Around the singularity there is an imaginary circle called the event horizon. This is the black hole’s gravitational boundary where not even light can escape. Once this boundary has been crossed, there is no return. You could never actually see an object fall into a black hole. As it approaches the event horizon, time would slow down to the point in which it would take an infinite amount of time to reach it. Meanwhile, the black hole’s gravitational pull on light would give the effect that the object is fading away. If that object were a person, these are the effects that he would feel: As he fell into the black hole, he would instantly be stretched out because

Essay --

Just Another Chalk-line Characters: James Enfield – Detective (age 38) Lee Ames – Detective (age 48) Chris Rollins – Detective (age 26) Nolan Eckhart – Detective (age 40) – Deceased Setting: The scene takes place in an alleyway beside a popular bar named Edward’s. There are a few police officers scattered about closing off the area. (Extras during the stage production.) They would leave the stage until the end of the act when the detectives call the coroner to take away the body. James, Lee and Chris are on the site of a murder. The murder in question is of one of their co-workers and friend Nolan Eckhart. They are standing around the body of Nolan; James is kneeling down actually checking on the body. The alley is empty with the exception of the body and a small pile of garbage from the bar. Act One: Scene One ( James is a man nearing forty. His build is average; he has light skin and dark hair. He is sensible and caring enough for his partners. He’s dismayed that Nolan has been killed. They were close friends in the office. Lee has been around for a while nearing his fifties he has been working on the force for twenty years. He is experienced but tired. Nolan’s death is not easy on him either, though he won’t show it. He’s a larger man than James, with a bit of a round gut and his head is affixed with greying and balding hair. Chris is the youngest of the trio; he is the newest member in their office having been transferred from another precinct. He shows promise to be a great detective, in his first few cases in their precinct he has already impressed the chief and was rewarded a raise to his salary. He is more muscular than the other two and his brown hair is cut professionally short.) James: Damn†¦I still can’t ge... ... Lee, he may not be as useful as he used to be out here in the field, but in the office he still has his purpose. I’m so glad the chief and I share a similar thought process in all this. It’s quite thrilling to be able to practice my forensics skills; just in this case it’s in reverse. (Notices James returning and stops speaking, leaning against the wall as if his speech moments before never occurred.) James: (Returns from off-stage) Coroner’s on his way. The officers will watch over the scene. We’re officially done for the night. Now, let’s get warmed up shall we? Chris: Alright then. I feel it’s going to be quite cold later on, better enjoy it while it lasts. (Both men leave the stage, going inside the bar for drinks. James turns to look at Nolan once last time) James: (sighing ) I still can’t believe Nolan is dead. Chris: Let’s go make you forget about it, huh.

Swords :: Essays Papers

Swords The sword was the predominant weapon of the knight during the Middle Ages. According to the Arms and Armor Glossary, "Swords have a long tapered, usually two edged blade ranging from 32" to more than 72" In length ending in a point which was sometimes, but not always, used for thrusting." Knights used swords in battle because they were very light. In weight, ranging from 3-5 pounds. The first metal swords were made of bronze, but later they were crafted of iron. From the period of the sixth century until the fifteenth century the most popular weapon for both knights and squires was the broadsword. The broadsword is generally a two-edged sword that ranges in length from 30" to 42". This sword is 2" to 3" at the base and 1/16" to 1/8" at the point. A knight was able to fight all day with this weapon because of its light weight, yet it was heavy enough that it could inflict serious harm on anyone that was to get in it's way. The broadsword is so dangerous because it works by concentrating the force of its blow. Another popular type of sword was the bastardsword. Bastardsword is the modern word for hand and a half sword. This blade's popularity peaked during the fifteenth century. Being 44" to 50" in length this sword was longer than the traditional broadsword. Knights liked this sword because of its versatility, the extended handle allowed the blade to be used in either both hands or wielded in one hand. In general swords tend to weigh less than most people think. The pommels of many swords are thicker than they appear in most drawings and illustrations; they are heavy in order to counter the blade. Over time the sword came to possess a very strong symbolic meaning, different virtues were assigned to the two edges of the sword. "The two edges of the sword show that the knight serves both God and the people, and its point shows that all people must obey him." (Barber 36) The cross or quillion (a popular 16th century term) is another part of a sword. It was given this name because of its shape; the quillion resembles a Christian cross, which subsequently furthers the symbolism of the sword.

Critical reflections on the Westphalian assumptions Essay

Reflection Piece Critical reflections on the Westphalian assumptions of international law and organization: a crisis of legitimacy. Although the lack of world government, most people agree that there is a body of norms and rules of conduct that generate international law. International law has generally examinated from two dissimilar positions. When power and interests clashes, skeptics see international law as a insignificant and nonexistent. Especially, the article of A. Claire Outler focuses on this problem. However,others have occasionally seen international law as a strong tool to organize and change the behaviour of states for the better. The main impotance or constraint of international law is the conflicting and generally uncertain provisions in international treaties and conventions. Also, legal system lacks the compulsory Juristiction and an adopted hierarchy because most powerful and developed countries ignore and try to run way the limitations of international law. I think that this situation clearly shows the weaknesses of international law. A influential legal code requires to reconcile itself to actual behaviour of individuals and states and not try to essentially remake them according to abstract moral principles. In general, realist are more suspicious about the issue of international law on the other hand,liberals and constructivist rely on it is, and should be, a crucial force shaping the behavior of states. To sum up, I think that this article was a very useful because it shows the negative and positive aspects of the issue clearly. However, some part of the article was a little bit biased about the validity of international law. It generally focuses on deficiencies of international law. I agree that there is lack of world government and international law hasn’t compulsory Jurisdiction but this doesn’t mean that international law is not real and necessary law.

What Are the Different Forms of Literature?

Literature is a form of expression. It is an expression of one's feeling, ideas, emotions, personal experience and imagination. It conveys through a piece of writing that can be valued in the works of art, especially, novels, plays and poems. It is divided into two fictional and non-fictional literatures. Fictional literature is based on imagery writing than reality. It provides information, education and entertainment to the readers. Non-fictional literature is based on reality. It denotes about the facts, real places, real events and character. The world of literature suggests an art form. Works of literature particularly represent a genre. Literature can be varied from one generation to another generation. Great literatures transform the man who reads it towards the man who wrote it. The life of human and nature is explored in the way of literature. The good literature has emotional element, the element of imagination and fancy, the element of composition and style. Literature is an expression of life. It is the man's script of thoughts and emotion. It is characterized by permanent qualities. Every great work comes from an ideal person, to know his ideal record we should read his literature. Literature talks about the ideals of people, love, faith, duty and friendship. Literature can be classified into novel, short story and dramas. The concept of literature varied over time. British literature was considered one of the most widespread literatures in the world. This was the period, which faced lots of inventions and developments in the England. All the developments were influenced by the authors and imitated in their own works. There was also a great development in British literature. England flourished from the year 800 BC. British literature includes the works of old English, middle English and modern English each denoted different periods. The most important events in England were the Germanic invasions. Germanic was followed by Angles and Saxons. Angles and Saxons were established in various parts of the Britain. British literature states about the human and of its experience. It describes about the difficulty of achieving the community. Common people's problems were reflected in the periodicals and newspapers. Humanism became the most important in the life of intellectuals and in the English literature. It was the fundamental quality found in the people of the renaissance period. British literature was bound up with historical shifts of British identity. The most important historical event was the Hundred Year's war, the Black Death this made many writers to write about it. Many people were encouraged to translate Latin works into English. English were recorded in chronicles this was the first historical record. English was wide spread all over the country of England. By the year 1300 English was used by all classes of people. The most common goal of the poet was to make English more flexible. During the fifteenth century English language attained the modern form. Poetry was more essential in the seventh and eighth century of England. Poetic talents were highly valued in the English literature. Heroic couplet, ballad and sonnets were some of the important thing introduced in the English literature. This made the poetry writing even more effectiveness in the literature. The prose of old English has only the English soil and not the Germanic origins. There was a rise in morality play in the fourteenth century. It teaches people about morals and values of human lives. The Canterbury Tales was one of the famous works of Chaucer which reflects the society of England and the real characters who lived in the society. The most remarkable thing in England was the invention of printing press by Caxton in 1476. The invention made a huge development that all the books in the manuscript were changed into printed books. It encouraged writings of all kinds of works and also improved the standardization of English language. The age reason can be divided into three The Restoration Age, The Augustan Age and The Age of Johnson. There was a great development in scientific inventions like navigation, shipbuilding and discoveries of sea route. Queen Elizabeth Age was considered one of the fruitful periods of English history. She made a lot of developments in English history. The Elizabethan literature reflects the new nationalism. Many new genres, themes, ideas were introduced in English literature. Elizabethan literature commonly influenced self-confident and about the expanding of nation powers and increasing the wealth. In the sixteenth and seventeenth century drama was flourished in England in the works of university wits. Jacobean drama started with the drama including the Shakespeare's plays. Drama continued to expand until the theaters were closed. Novels were popular in the Britain. The novels were considered not only the form of entertainment but also means of analyzing and offering solutions social and political problems. The century was ended with gothic novels. The development of poetry, novels and drama attained a great height. It was influenced by the pupil because of the humanism, morality and the historical truth which arouses interest towards the people.

Learning Definition

Definition Learning Abstract: What is Learning? Does a new term need to be coined for learning? One hundred and four students undergraduate and graduate were asked to respond to the question. Their responses were coded using the five levels researcher designed rubric which was modeled after Bloom‘s Taxonomy for depth of knowledge. Of the responses coded fifty-one were from Pre-Service teachers and fiftythree were from graduate students enrolled in the Principals Masters Program. The effects of understanding learning include the preparation of lesson plans, classroom instruction, the guiding of student learning, and the professional development of teacher leaders. Introduction: Learning is a term that is being used with great frequency in Education. Learning is a critical event today, because if a child has learned, then doors are opened to the world. If the student has not learned then their opportunities for success have been narrowed. Teachers are heard to say, ? my students learned their multiplication tables today.? It is concrete and measurable, either they can recite them from memory or they can not. Can they recite them today and a week from today? Other teachers are heard to say, ? my students learned to write an essay.? They learned the parts of an essay. They learned the parts of an essay, but can they write an essay? The question of ? What is Learning? has become critical in the lives of children, adolescents, and adults. In some states children cannot move from one grade to another without passing a criterion referenced test which is given on one day of the year. If on that day the child can answer an appropriate number of the given questions they can pass on to the next grade. Should the student fail the test, then he is given the test repeatedly-until he/she ? passes? and then he is permitted to move on to the next grade. If the student does not pass, then the student is retained, to try to learn again (Texas 726 Education Agency, 2010). When the student reaches High School they may face end of course exams that determine whether or not they are able to graduate or the level of the diploma that can students receive. Scores on one test determine whether or not a student is required to take remedial classes before entering the regular college program, even if the student ? assed? the course in high school. If the student received a passing grade and then can not perform on the designated test, did they really learn? No, by our measures they did not learn. When then, has learning occurred? It is often said, ? when I can teach someone else, when I can apply the information, when I can make ? learning? connections of content across conceptual areas.? All the r esponses and many more may be correct. The question still remains, when has learning occurred and to what degree has that learning been embedded for connections to new learnings? What is Learning It is no longer acceptable to say, ? I know that the students are learning as they all are smiling and giving positive body language of acceptance during the lesson?. This was at one time considered a ? check for understanding‘ however, understanding is also a vague term which is not measurable unless ongoing formative assessments are given by the teacher (Popham, 2008). Schlecty (2002) identifies the behavior of smiling and nodding on the part of the teacher pleasing student as either 1) Ritual engagement, or 2) Passive compliance. According to Schlecty (2002) ritual engagement occurs when the student is undertaking the task or assignment because of the end result which is often identified as a passing grade. Passive compliance serves to identify the necessary effort that student will expend in order to avoid negative consequences, which can include a bad grade or not passing the ? test.? Again, the question emerges did learning occur? Can you ? pass? a test and not have learned the information; is the ? learning‘ only in short term memory to be dumped when the 727 goal ? passing the test‘ is achieved. This could lead to another discussion to be addressed at a different time. It is critical for today‘s educators to be able to document a student‘s progress or lack of. Ron Edmonds put forth the belief and is quoted in 1979 as saying ? It seems to me, therefore, that what is left of this discussion are three declarative statements: (a) We can, whenever and wherever we choose, successfully teach all children whose schooling is of interest to us; (b) We already know more than we need to do that; and (c) Whether or not we do it must finally depend on how we feel bout the fact that we haven‘t so far.? (p. 22) Ron Edmonds believed that all students can learn. He based his life‘s work on learning trying to determine why in some schools all children were learning and in other schools, the same level of learning was not happening. There have always been pockets of schools ? where learning occurred? and other similar schools where students were not learning as identifie d by state criteria. Yet, defining learning is still an area that is often unclear for teachers, parents, and the larger community they serve. When education faculty members are asked to define learning, they are seen to smile and write an answer that is a collection of vague terms or words. By vague, the researchers are defining it as being unmeasurable or something that can not be documented without a judgmental reply on the part of the person attempting to define learning; it is abstract. So what is learning? Learning is defined in about as many ways as the number of people you ask. The dictionary thesaurus states that learning is knowledge, education, erudition, scholarship, understanding, research, study, teaching, instruction, edification and wisdom. The definition in the dictionary defines learning as acquiring of knowledge, acquired knowledge and change of knowledge. The term ? learning? seems to float around teacher meetings, in-service and professional development training, the teachers lounge, parent-teacher conferences, university faculty meetings and even in 728 the classroom with the students. The term learning seems to be used in many cases to indicate a mastery of a concept, yet if a ? number of‘ or ? mount of‘ learning (a quantitative amount) had to be documented for any student, that amount would be a human guess, which maybe altered by the State to reach identified targets for learning for that year, that testing cycle. Learning in this context is not or has not been measured, when the targets for learning continue to move up and down based upon the scores of the students on the test. We are all familiar with movement of the learning—in the University classroom it is called a curve. The moving targ et that maybe unidentified leads to a vagueness or lack of clarity if we want to know ? ow much? or ? what? did the student learn? Learning by necessity in conversations about curriculum is generally connected to assessment in order to determine if learning has occurred. This ? learning? becomes critical for the classroom teacher. W. James Popham says, ? †¦That formative assessment process must be based, not on a whim, but on evidence of the students current level of mastery with respect to certain skills and bodies of knowledge? p. 7. This being the case, then the role of determining learning becomes the responsibility of the classroom teacher. When observing in classrooms, today, many of us have witnessed students being given a passing grade because they were compliant teacher pleasers, or a terrific problem that the teacher did not want to deal with again, they passed on to the next level of learning without understanding the ? learning?. Assessment did not occur and if it did, it was ignored. These children who have not learned and who have been passed from grade to grade experience the frustration and failure that accompanies, never learning. During a recent observation an eighth grade science class, the teacher stated to the observer that this ? as a difficult group of students.? The day before the classroom observation a fight had occurred with three boys in the class and another teacher had to come into the science teacher‘s class to intervene 729 and stop the fight. The planned lab for the observation day was excellent, even though students were threatened, ? if you don‘t behave you will not get to go ou tside for the lab. It is a really good lab and it will be fun. You are going to miss the lab if you don‘t finish the lab sheet. You are going to keep everyone from getting to do the lab; it is fun. You are going to get beads.? Finally, with help and coaxing all of the students finished the pre-lab form. Then students were given string and colored beads to put around their wrists, to go outside and see what happened to the beads in the sun. It was exciting for the Junior High students to watch as the beads as they changed colors. Then it was time to complete the lab sheets. The teacher relished the curiosity of the students as they asked questions about the process of the color transformation and she skillfully guided their responses. Now the students had to write up the lab report. One African American student walked around with his head down looking for beads. Other students, also African American and Hispanic, never attempted to complete the form. The observer offered to help, finally going over to one black child sitting on the ground with his head between his legs. The observer asked, ? can I help you finish the form the student had not started to write. The black child responded that, ? He did not want to.? It became ever so painfully obvious that a number of the students in this predominately low-income classroom could not write and were reading at an elementary level. Had science learning occurred for the students who were actively involved in the lab with the changing colors of beads when exposed to sunlight? Learning was not evidence for the classroom teacher, since the lab forms were not completed. Yet, for the school by state standards, reading is rated at an acceptable level of performance for the majority of the students tested. Given the significance of high stakes testing that effects children and teacher‘s lives, it is no longer acceptable to say learning has occurred, when one child has been left behind. Learning must be measurable and real. It must last. Today educators need to be able to document a student‘s 730 progress or lack there of and the interventions for learning are essential. Yet, is high stakes testing the answer for the dilemma of ? learning.? It is very difficult to pass a high stakes test, and to learn if a child can not read, yet they must also be able to demonstrated learning in science, math, and social studies. High stakes tests provide a framework for accountability. High stakes tests may serve to distribute teaching fairly and equitably for all students. Funding for schools is connected to learning or the lack thereof, but much more is learned in schools than can be measured on one test, on any given day of the week. The measurement for learning and of learning is critical to the life of the child. For the purposes of this work an attempt was made to determine a definition for learning based upon the understanding of Teacher-candidates (pre-service students) and graduate students in the School of Education and Human Development in a regional institution that serves a predominately low income, rural, minority population. Additionally, this institution serves a large metropolitan area, which has a population that is diverse financially, ethnically, and culturally. Research Study This research study began as university faculty reviewed lesson plan assignments of teacher candidates. It was found that an acceptable assessment/evaluation of the skill being addressed was missing in approximately 90% of the plans submitted. This seemed to be very odd that the students would just omitted one of the components of the lesson plans which they were developing even though it was listed in the assignment directions. In the directions, it was stated that all lesson plans must contain a title, objective/s, supplies, procedure and assessment/evaluation which matches the objective/s. It was noted that most of the lessons which were missing components cited an online source for his/her lesson. In her work, Patton (2009) found that many of the lesson plans on the Internet were not quality. Using the very basic components, she found that less than 10% were 731 complete. There was not any judgment used as to the quality of the component as at this point it was a simple response of yes if the was there and no if it was not. The study evaluated approximately 200 lesson plans which were retrieved from the Internet. These lesson plans were just picked randomly after a Google search was done to locate the various sites. Only one lesson plan was printed from each site to be included in the study. Further while in consultation with a graduate faculty member who also teaches ? learning? for teachers becoming principals, it was determined that several class sessions were being spent on ? learning.? What is learning and when has learning occurred? Again, the responses were vague, non-specific and general, without the extended focus and discussion on learning, there was no real determination of ? learning? by prospective principal students. Purpose The purpose of this study was to determine what undergraduate and graduate students in the School of Education and Human Development consider to be ? learning.? That is: The researchers for this project were attempting to determine how others describe and interpret learning. Methodology The subjects of the study were 104 teacher candidates and graduate students preparing for the principalship. There were 51 teacher candidates and 54 graduate students. These students were surveyed to determine how or what they perceive as learning. The teacher candidates are in the last semester of coursework before doing student teaching. These Teacher candidates have been busy preparing lesson plans and were asked as a part of a multiple phased assignment to give their personal meaning of learning. In an additional, second assignment, they were asked to write a paper on learning and to state how they could document a student‘s progress. Definition Learning 732 will be addressed in this paper with the primary question being ? Does a new mental model need to be developed for the Teacher candidates The future principals were given the same assignments; we must remember that these graduate students are in the classrooms, thus preparing lesson plans on a daily basis. The process was equally important to these future Teacher Leaders, as they help others at the campus find their meaning of learning. The ethnicity of the students in this study is very diverse. Approximately 50% of the student body is majority and the other 50% are minorities including about 4% international students. Instruments: Survey A: quick 3-4 minute response to the question ? hat is learning Rubric: researcher designed. See figure 1 below. Levels of Learning Level 5 Level 4 Level 3 Level 2 Level 1 Gained information, able to apply and then have that information which was gained measured in some way Gained information, complex definition and the person is able to apply what was gained. A detailed definition however is just banking the info rmation and is not able to apply the gained knowledge Is able to give an answer however, is not able to do more than bank the information. Lowest of levels. Only repeat the word, learning; does not give an answer or defines learning with learning. This one is almost lower than the knowledge level on Bloom’s taxonomy. Figure 1 Researcher –designed Rubric of the levels of learning Several weeks prior to the survey being distributed, the researchers developed a hierarchical, five-tier ranking system to evaluate the surveys. Bloom‘s taxonomy served as a model 733 of hierarchical ranking to evaluate the surveys. Charles Randall‘s work with problem solving was also an influence. Responses to the surveys were scored using the rubric to measure levels of thinking. The grading rubric was a 1-5 Lickert scale. Level 1) The lowest of levels. The student only repeated the word, learning; does not give an answer or defined learning with the word learning. Level 2) The student is able to give an answer however, it not able to do more than bank the information. Level 3) The student is able to give a detailed definition, however, but is not able to apply the gained knowledge. Level 4) The student gained information, provided a complex definition and is able to apply what was gained. and Level 5) The students gained the information was able to apply and then have that information which was gained measured or evaluated in some way. The participants in the survey were asked to write their definition of learning. They were given about 3 minutes to do so. They were told well in advance that the task was not a graded exercise as to the quality. It was either a full credit if you participated or no-credit if you did not. It was hoped that this would relieve some anxiety and allow the participants to elaborate on the task. Graduate students breathed deeply and hesitated to respond to the quarry. The responses which only had a few words and repeated the word ? learn‘ or used the word ? earn‘ to complete the definition were rated a one (1). A rating of a two (2) was reserved for definitions which were of very low level and seemed to believe that the human mind was a bank for the information and was not be used. It was to be stored or banked. This banking was more like a safe deposit box where the info was safe but did not gain any interest or in this case no new information could be added. The ranking of a three (3) was given for a more detailed definition and possibly even added a little information but it was still kept in the safety of the bank. For a four (4) the response illustrated that the person gained the information and was able to apply and 734 use it in a constructive manner. The highest tier on the hierarchical chart was a five (5). In this highest ranking the students illustrated gained information, which he/she was able to apply and then have that application measured or evaluated in some manner. After the surveys were completed the responses were first coded into two categories. The first being very simply responses and in the other the responses were more complex. Next the responses were evaluated using a researcher-designed rubric which was modeled from the very low knowledge level response to the highest level which utilized a judgment and evaluation in the explanation. The two researchers rated the surveys individually and then met and re-evaluated each. The ratings of the two researchers were very close. When there was an evaluation not in agreement, the two discussed and came to a consensus. Using the criteria there was 90% agreement thus, establishing inter-rater reliability. Results/Findings: For the purpose of the findings to the question ? What is learning , only one student, a teacher candidate, 1 of 51 responded at the lowest level. None of the graduate student responses were evaluated as a level one response, meaning they only repeated the word learning and did not give an evaluation or an answer to define learning. Fourteen of 51, (27%) teacher candidates responses, were at level two, as did 11 of 53, (21%) of graduate students. By a level two response, they were considered to have given an answer to what is learning, but they did not apply or evaluate learning as apart of the response. Twenty-three of 51 teacher candidates (45%) of the responses were a level Three. A detailed definition was provided, but there was no application indicated in the response. While 20 of 53 graduate students (38%) responses were rated as a level three. 735 Thirteen of 51, (26%) teacher candidates‘ responses were a level four. They gained the information and provided a complex definition which included application. Seventeen of 53, (32%) teacher candidates‘ responses were rated as level four. While 5 of 53 graduate students (9%) had a level 5 response. There were no level 5 responses from the teacher candidates. Level 5 is the highest of levels and most difficult to achieve. To be rated a level 5 response the answer to ? What is learning , encompassed the lower levels of knowledge, application, and added the element of evaluation, the responder could document the ? learning? results. See Table 1 below for these findings. Teacher Graduate Candidates Students Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Level 4 Level 5 0 13 23 14 1 5 17 20 11 0 Table 1 Number of responses at each level Figure 2 represents a graph comparing the teacher candidates and graduate students at each level of the rubric. See the Figure below. 736 25 20 15 Teacher Candidates Graduate Students 10 5 0 Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Level 4 Level 5 Figure 2 A comparison of teacher candidates and graduate students at each level Implications Do we as educators need to change the language of the education community? The answer is a definite yes if we are going to document a number which can and does open and close doors for students? Students are allowed in programs where they really do not have the background knowledge or even need in those particular programs. By the same token, students are refused entrance into programs as they did not empress certain adults who are making the call, yet if given a measurable instrument, these students prove to be very proficient in the topic. Further, as Educators we need to define, ? what is learning so that teachers and principals can focus upon the importance of the learning in the classroom. A new term needs to be coined that can describe to the world of education and to the larger community, what is implied when it is said that, one has learned. Did they master the concept, will they remember the learning six months or five years from now? Or, did the student only learn to pass a test and then forget the information to go on to a new ? learning. ‘ The new term needs to be 737 one that is measurable, can be documented, described and explained, have a common meaning so that everyone, including all ethnic groups, will have a fair chance when it is used. If learning is a process rather than a test as suggested by Popham, then clarity is required when the use of the term is applied. Curricular aims need to be determined. Sub-skills leading to learning should be identified and our own beliefs about learning must be clear. (Popham, 2008, Lambert, 2002, Schlecty, 2002). Teacher‘s cognitive development when explored by Ammon (1984) in a study of a two-year teacher education program with an emphasis on teaching teachers about child development (Piagetian theory) found that teachers as they studied Piagetian and related developmental theory, their personal conceptions of students, learning, and teaching changed. The participating teachers progressed from simplistic to more complex, interactive explanations of student‘s behaviors, development, and learning. These teachers moved from ? showing and telling,? to designing a learning environment that fostered the construction of knowledge for learning. The teachers‘ views on learning shifted from passive receptions to active construction of learning. A young teacher is described by C. Yarema as she moves conceptually into understanding a mathematical concept that she herself had never grasp, until reflecting with her learning community (Yarema, Smith, and Hutto under-review). The teacher learning example is a problem for the 5th -6th grade research lesson in mathematics which was stated as follows: ? A new season of sports has started and programs are being designed for printing. Certain companies purchased spaces on your 8? nch by 11 inch rectangular advertisement page to be seen in the next program. Given the ad pieces, your group must design an advertisement page for the program. You will notice that ads are in three categories: entertainment, apparel and food. What fraction of the page is covered by entertainment ads A teacher volunteered with the rest of her group observing and gathering data on student learning. The pri ncipal, an education faculty member, evaluator of the project, university mathematics faculty, and teachers in the 7th-8th grade group were invited to join the 5th– 6th grade group in this phase of their lesson study. 38 Students were introduced to advertising by perusing sports programs, then the teacher posed the problem and gave each group of students materials for designing an ad page using 8 separate ads with different areas. Out of the 8 ad pieces, three fell into the category of entertainment. After some difficulty with designing an ad page, all groups stated the answer to the problem as 3/8. Although this answer was anticipated by the teacher‘s lesson study group, she became disturbed that all students ? got the wrong answer.? Instead of following the suggested interventions recorded in the group‘s Plan to Guide Learning, apart of the Lesson Study Process, the teacher chose to focus students‘ attention on her. From the front of the room, she then directed students through a paper folding exercise, folding the advertisement page into halves, fourths, and eighths. At that point, she asked students to place the 3 entertainment ads on the page. Following this set of instructions, students saw that 3/8 of the page was not covered, and some changed their answer accordingly to (3? )/8. Although this answer is technically correct, the teacher did not see this as a possible answer and instructed students to fold the paper again into sixteenths, thus leading all students through the same solution process to the answer 7/16. During the post lesson discussion with the observers, the teacher learning was identified; the teacher spoke first. She elaborated on the decision made as an individual teacher. Then the group moderator called on various people to ask the Teacher questions. A teacher colleague asked her how she thought her students would have responded if she had focused them on the whole to the fraction in the problem. The Teacher referred back to a mathematics lesson in a summer professional development that she had attended, and she state, ? that she never thought in terms of the whole to the faction.? Then the Teacher‘s principal complimented her on introducing the paper folding exercise and asked her the reason she chose to continue folding the paper to sixteenths. The Teacher admitted that she did not know what to do when all the students answered 3/8 and that her 739 pedagogical choice of folding the paper into sixteenths took away the opportunity for students to engage in problem solving as it led them all to the same answer of 7/16. She also stated that she did not know if they understood this answer. Next, the outreach mathematician asked her why she redirected students away from the answer [(3? ) / 8] of the page being covered by entertainment ads. The teacher was unable to respond as other teachers from her school commented about the need to hear students‘ explanations so the group could learn more about what students were thinking. During this discussion, another teacher commented that she finally understood why [(3? ) /8] of the page is a correct answer. The teacher then reiterated what she had learned from the debriefing? The question evolves again, when has learning occur? Is it incremental, in stages as concepts develop both for students and teachers? Students are held to a different level of accountability for learning. Yet, with the learning, can they move to application and evaluation of the learning? Benjamin Bloom understands the responsibility of the teacher in the classroom for student learning. He states that students, maybe different in the rate that they learn, but not their potential for learning. (Bloom, 1981). Other factors can be identified that effect and influence learning. One of the primary factors effecting student learning is the effectiveness of the teacher, (Podesta, 2000). Studies have shown that students with teachers who are highly effective out perform other students on standardized tests. The expert teacher work can be very different from that of the novice teacher. The implications for the learning of the student are significant. Learning is required. While there are graduations in teacher content knowledge and pedagogy, there still should remain a sense in all teachers in every classroom, what is learning for that day, for that subject, if students are expected to learn. John D. Bransford and Nancy J. Vye (1989) cite the variations in knowledge from ? know that,‘ something is true to ? knowing how‘ to think, learn, and solve problems.? p. 193. The stakeholders of today‘s 740 educational society demand to see documented evidence that the students are learning and mastering the required content. Each school, public and private, answers to a higher entity who in turn reports to the State and ultimately the Federal government the level of learning of the students. Reports i. e. , STEM, etc keep the progress or lack of learning in the public eye. The effectiveness of the schools is closely monitored. The level of learning of the students is monitored by the government, business, parents, and tax payers as they determine whether or not families will choose to move to a town, a neighborhood, or a state. Internationally the educational level of each and every country is compared daily to determine the intellectual capacity of the citizenry. Conclusions If, as a country, we are using high stakes testing to determine if students are learning, then the teacher should be able to state the learning goal and know the scaffolding steps that would lead to the learning goal. What is learning, when did it happen, or if the student did not learn, then what action did the teacher take to re-teach, re-mediate so that the student did learn. Are there learning progressions-scaffolds and have they been identified, in order for the student to learn the larger concept of the lesson. Deep and important discussion should be a part of the teacher education curriculum that include what is learning, when did learning occur, did the information pass the attention threshold for the student, is it stored in long term memory. How do we encourage student‘s to learn? As the Nation moves to National Standards for learning, then translating learning goals into real learning and mastery of concepts become crucial for teacher effectiveness in the classroom (Bulter and McMunn, 2006). Each teacher must be able to identify the timeline for that individual student learning has taken place and for her/him and what is learning for that individual lesson, concept, unit, or area of study. While it is impossible to know everything in 741 today‘s society, it is critical that educators understand learning, in order to assure that all students do learn. Jennifer B. Chauvot, in her article ? Grounding practice in scholarship, grounding scholarship in practice: Knowledge of a mathematics teacher educator-researcher,? speaks to the importance of teacher training, citing that there is limited research focused upon what teacher educators need to know and how they develop that knowledge. There tends to be an assumption that a good teacher will be a good teacher educator, but in reality little attention has been given to the support of teacher educators. The state of Texas is currently involved in attempting to augment teacher training of teacher educators as end of course assessments are requiring a higher level of teaching at the university so that teacher candidates will be prepared to teach the curriculum in the public schools. Bridging the gaps of current teaching and elevating the practice for teacher education has become a focus of the statewide initiative. The curriculum becomes the knowledge to be learned by the student and taught by the teacher. With State and National curriculum standards serving to focus education, teaching and learning, then a clear expectation of ? earning? is necessary for both the teacher and the learner. Implications for colleges and universities as they change their instruction to assure that the teacher candidates become avid classroom teacher. These teacher candidates will progress from the university classroom to the being the confident and secure classroom teacher. Connecting teacher learning wi th student learning is the theme of the ten key principles of professional development as outlined by Timperly (2008), whereby experts work with teachers to assist them as expert teachers who teach others content and skills of pedagogy. Focusing upon student learning whether in the k-12 classroom or the university setting becomes a priority, if all students are going to ? learn.? Additionally, the professional development of teachers to extend and 742 scaffold content knowledge become an important role of school districts and universities as they reach out and build learning communities. Newmann and Wehlage (1995) noted that ? Schools with strong professional communities were better able to offer authentic pedagogy and were more effective in promoting student learning.? p. 3. The next area for research will be for the students to identify their learning goal for their students and then determine, if learning has occurred. 743 References: Ammon, P. (1984). Human development, teaching and teacher education. The Teacher Education Quarterly, 11 (4), 95-108. Bloom, B. (1981). All Our Children are Learning: A Primer for Parent‘s, Teachers, and other Educators. NY: McGraw-Hill Book Company. Bransford, J. D. ; Vye, N. 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Working on the Work. Jossey-Bass. San Francisco, CA. 744 Timperly, H. (2008). ?Teacher Professional Learning and Development.? Educational Practices Series. Yarema. C. , Smith, P. , Hutto, N. , (under-review, 2010). ?A Community of Practice: Productive Professional development of Mathematics Teaches through Lesson Study.? 745 Copyright of NAAAS & Affiliates Conference Monographs is the property of National Association of African American Studies & Affiliates and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use.