A reaction paper on the statement

Thomas Edison failed many times before successfully inventing the modern electric light bulb. He said, â€Å"If I find 10,000 ways something won’t work, I haven’t failed. I am not discouraged, because every wrong attempt discarded is another step forward.† Reflect on an accomplishment you achieved in an unlikely way.People are known for their ability of becoming the best individuals that they could be even in the middle of disadvantageous situations. It is undeniable that because of the many challenges that people have to live with, they are now able to understand the major issues that are involved within the system of real human living.Aside from gaining the knowledge of the realities about challenges, humans are now able to make the best out of the hardships that come along the way as they intend to be the best that they could be in facing their own lives. Thomas Edison has been among the major personalities in the human history that has been able to make certa in changes in the society through applying the said idealism of NEVER GIVING UP in the middle of major issues of survival in life.Consistently considering this particular fact of life has already made great changes and institutional breakthroughs in the society today. This is certainly the same with the situation that is dealt with by each individual that is considerably facing difficult problems and challenges as persons making up the society today.As for the case of the author of this paper, it could be observed that she has been able to wake up from a dark situation that challenged her ability to withstand the dangers and the hardships of being ill. Although she had been facing such problems with her health, she has been noted to actually understand that she should and must be able to continue her personal development even with so much challenges that she has to face because of her case.Because of this, it is undeniable that she was able to stand up again and become the kind of p erson she wants herself to be, a fighter. She chose to continue her studies amidst all the odds that faced her along the way to at least develop her own skills and make definite changes as to the way that she lives her life beyond all the challenges that she is supposed to deal with.Through this account of actual life experience, it could be noted that challenges are supposed to be faced as major probabilities of changes among human individuals. IT is through these challenges and difficulties that the human society tries to make a difference upon their lives. It is through this particular factor of life that each individual is able to become a stronger person who is able to face the different challenges in his own journey.People who are able to stand up again after a failure that may or may not be inflicted by their ownselves, are those whoa re able to make huge changes in the lives of many people, through inspiring them to fight for their right to a fine way of living and through b ecoming the pillars of truth that attests to the fact that standing up and not giving up is a major part of living a successful way of life.One’s real purpose in living could be identified to the ways by which he is particularly able to face the different challenges that he is naturally faced with in his own journey towards personal development and social connection as well.

Sap Ag and Brady Corporation Redesign

Case Study – Can Brady Corporation Redesign Its Systems for Success? Executive Summary: The Brady Corporation is branded as the oldest & the most successful companies in Milwaukee, Wisconsin founded in 1915; and a leader in high performance labels, signs and related industrial safety products. They have 44 business units that produce and distribute its labels from 47 locations in 20 countries on five continents around the world. Despite its growing success, the company found it was running into trouble in the mid 1990’s that fear of falling behind with its competitors in the use of Internet to save costs on already –low profit margins. In 1997, Brandy launched a major Web project; the new digital system was called Web-to-Workbench; which enable customers to be able to design and order their own signs online and the website would automatically forward the new order to its production facility. However problems were encountered; Brady relied heavily on information systems (IS) to support most of its business process, but were antiquated (out of date), & could not communicate with each other. In February 1999 Hudson’s assess the company could not continue growing because it was â€Å"Stymied by an infrastructure that had reached well beyond practical limits† She concluded that the company must overhaul its business process totally to move fully into the digital age. Brady needed to revamp al its system. The goal â€Å"business-led Project for the whole company† and not just a software or information technology project was made clear by CFO David Schroeder Brady. I. Viewpoint From the Brady’s CEO KATHERINE HUDSON II. Time Context In year 2000 III. Statement of the Problem SAP enterprise software was not a good foundation for Brady’s new systems creating problems in various areas of the company. IV. Statement of the Objectives 1. In year 2000, SAP will tie-up with other systems projects 2. In year 2003 upon installation and testing of all systems and then if it fails, it’s time for Brady to redesign its system 3. Hire people for maintenance of the new information system for the company simultaneously with the installation of the system. V. Areas of Consideration TOWS MATRIX |Strengths |Weaknesses | | | |Business units act independently from each | | |The pioneer in high performance label and |other. | | |signs. |Information systems are not in synch with each | | |Has 44 business unit for the manufacture of its|other. | |products |Information systems are out of date. | | |Has a unique system that lets customers | | | |customize their own design in the product they | | | |intend to purchase. | |Opportunities |S O |WO | | | | | | | | | | |â€Å"Maxi-Maxi† Strategy |â€Å"Mini-Maxi† Strategy | | | | | | |Use a firm’s internal strengths to take |This are strategies aimed at improving internal| | |advantage of external opportunities |weaknesses by taking advantage of external | | | |opportunities | |Threats |ST |WT | | | | | |1. Brady is falling behind with its competitors|â€Å"Maxi-Mini† Strategy |â€Å"Mini-Mini† Strategy | |in the use of Internet to save costs on already| | | |–low profit margins. Use a firm’s strengths to avoid or reduce the |This are defensive tactics directed at reducing| | |impact of external threats |internal weaknesses and avoiding external | | | |threats | | | | | | | | | | | | | VI. Assumption Computers and Information Systems: Year In Review 2001 The recession year 2001 hit the computers and information systems sector hard. Already reeling from the collapse of dot-com companies a year earlier, the industry had to de al with reduced demand for its products and services. That in turn produced a steady stream of corporate cutbacks and layoffs. The terrorist attacks in the U. S. on September 11, which stunned the world and sent the U. S. Source: Encyclop? dia Britannica. om, retrieved from Analysis: The information age had run a wall in its technological advances. After the millennium bug the news about the dot. com collapse and the terrorist attacks, people begun to question the reliability of computers and the system. Companies began searching for a cheaper and more reliable system to place. SAP Needs More than Tech Help to Fix Problems SAP has made a lot of bad headlines. An SAP rollout at Levi Strauss went awry, leading to delayed product shipments for a whole week during the second quarter, which in turn caused a bad earnings quarter. News of price hikes and a forced transition to the new SAP Enterprise support. Silicon. om best summed up the problem that this SAP is claiming this as an enhanc ed offering, it is difficult to see how it will be able to justify this level of fees for customers whose deployments are complete or which do not wish to upgrade. Source: ITBusinessEdge, Lorraine Lawson, July 2008 Analysis: Systems had become unreliable that companies in the US had become hesitant in installing new and improved information system in their production. Another bad scenario that had come up is the burst of the dot. com bubble leaving most Americans awry about computers and the system that runs them. VII. Alternative Courses of Action ACA 1: Change for Oracle System ACA 2: Hire technicians to troubleshoot and upgrade the system ACA 3: Extensive use of the internet for the unification of transaction of all units of Brady corp. VIII. ANALYSIS ACA 1: ACA 2: Hire technicians to troubleshoot and upgrade the system Advantages: By hiring technicians, they can do preventive maintenance of Brady’s system and at the same time can upgrade the system. The can install programs that can help Brady in its information system problems. Disadvantages: More costly because of the human factor that is attached upon the ACA ACA 3: Extensive use of the internet for the unification of transaction of all units of Brady corp. Advantages: Internet usage had been proven less costly and the vastness of its reach is unlimited. Disadvantages: Brady might just replicate the problem that it already has. IX. Conclusion Decision Matrix Criteria |ACA 1 |ACA 2 |ACA 3 | |Cost-driven | |1 |3 | |Effectiveness | |4 |4 | |Easy to implement | |3 |4 | |Total | | | | Rating: 1-4 (1 is the lowest and 4 is the highest) X. Plan of Action Activities |Person in-charge |Costs |Timeframe | | | | | | |ACA 1 | | | | | |HRD |The minimum wage it has to pay |2001 | |ACA 2 | | for the technicians that will | | | | |handle the information system | | | | |(44Business Units/One person | | | | |per unit) | | | |I. T. /Engineering Dept. |Internet usage is said to be |2001 | |ACA 3 | |free of charge but the system | | | | |that a company has shell out to| | | | |have a decent internet | | | | |connection varies | |

Eassy on Imac

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Explore the importance of the WTO for international business Essay

Explore the importance of the WTO for international business - Essay Example The World Trade Organization (WTO) is a modern international association constructed as an enduring body. It is meant to perform the role of a regulator in the scopes of exchange in goods, exchange in services, external investment, and academic property among others. This essay will present the importance of the WTO for international business. WTO and its importance for international business During the late 1990s, a lot of the disputes over globalization concentrated on the World Trade Organization. The WTO was started in 1995 to ease international trade and solve disputes between countries. Geneva was its headquarters, and it had 135 member countries by 1999, majority was developing countries. According to Simmons (2005: 45) the organization helps the developing nations’ interests by easing trade development, providing a system for settling quarrels, reinforcing the integrity of trade changes, and endorsing clear trade systems that lower operation costs. After it was started , the WTO turned out to be a lightning pole for disagreement over globalization (The WTO after Cancun, 2003: 98). The WTO is a compassionate United Nations of Commerce, with enough implementation powers to support countries work out their dissimilarities (Bates, 2007: 76). However to some the WTO is a terrorizing, trade controlled world management of trade in which the statutory body and the law court operate separate the analysis of anyone who is not a regime leader or business lawyer (Morrison, 2009: 67). From this perspective, the organization's influence to arbitrate trade quarrels also provides it the power to dominate national laws, as well as environmental safeties. In that, it entails the independence of its member countries (Correa, 2000: 44). The Doha was the modern trade negotiations between the WTO members (Laeven, 2000: 78). Its purpose was to attain major improvement of the worldwide trading method through the institution of lower tariffs, free services, and trade faci litation. It is also recognized as semi-officially, and the Doha Development Agenda as a central objective is to advance the trading outlooks of developing states (EUROPA-Rapid-Press, 2006). More on Doha is going to be covered later on in the essay. The World Trade Organization was developed because of negations between parties in the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) formed at the end of the Second World War. The GATT was developed in 1947 to govern the post-second world war (Caroline, 2004:77). The International Monetary Fund (IMF), the United Nations, and World Bank were also developed in the years of 1944-1945, as the international leaders believed that the international institutions were capable of assisting the economic and social disasters during that time. The institutions would also prevent the global climate from worsening to the point of conflict (Caroline, 2004:77).The organization of the WTO is governed by its supreme authority, and the Legislative Conferenc e, which constitutes of all the WTO members. They meet at least twice a year and can make decisions on all issues concerning the joint trade treaties (Biadgleng, 2008: 45). The task of WTO in worldwide trade as specified in the Agreement incorporates: Aiding the application, administer allowance and procedure and promoting the objectives of the accord creating it and other Mutual Trade Unions and specifying the framework for the application

Two Different Art Forms Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Two Different Art Forms - Assignment Example Two sculptors namely, Daphnis of Miletus and Paionios of Ephesus designed the statue. The dying gladiator portrays an injured Celtic fighter in anticipation of death in the arena. The sculpture depicts a living-dimension marble of a singular amidst the sculptures of bronze bestowed at Pergammon. King Attlos I erected the statue to honor his wins over the Gladiators who had raided Asia during the 239 B.C. The dying Gaul imitates a miserable gladiator sitting on his shield tired and given up. The sculpture shows a perforation on the warrior’s right lung on its lower lobe. The Gaul is either dying because of the bleeding wound or the enemy might inflict another fatal injury at any moment. The sculptors are sensitive in the application of the principle of proportion. The warrior is seated at the middle with his sword and shield dropped besides him. The viewers would focus on the main statue of the gladiator and his weapons. Michelangelo designed the Pieta sculpture between 1498 and 1499, which is currently housed in Vatican City. The sculpture exposes Mary holding the body of Christ in her laps immediately his body was taken down from the cross. The statue outstands amongst others because of its inability to express proportionality. In common situations, it would be specious for a woman to hold a man in her laps due to the size and weight. Mary’s body is concealed with Christ’s body in her arms. Nevertheless, the statue is magnificent, and other artists commend it for the outstanding manifestation of creativity (Ragionieri, 2008). According to Giorgio Vasari, the sculpture will remain as the best despite other artists’ innovations. Michelangelo employs the harmony principle to outline the homogeneity of the sculpture throughout the work. A painting refers to the technique of art that incorporate the application of paint on other surfaces either in an image or as a beautification. Paintings have meanings

Sensory Perception Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Sensory Perception - Essay Example This means that whenever a certain sensation is perceived through the different senses of the body, information becomes processed as per what has already taken place in the past making it an issue of associating events. As a result, this is backed by the Pavlovian theory of reinforcement, and this makes information to be perceived as accurate provided a given stimulus is introduced every time to produced similar effects (Ban & Gantt, 2008). However, this pavlovian theory plays a significant role in labeling sensory information as inaccurate in events when experience contradicts sensory input. In most cases for sensory information to be perceived as inaccurate, a process termed as the construction of doubt takes place within an individual, whereby it creates a break down in the association between stimulus and expected results (Asratyan, 2001). The breakdown in belief takes place slowly and accounts for the largest factor that leads to inaccuracy of sensory information due to the pres ence of contradicting experiences from time to time leading to inconsistencies in perception of stimuli. In order to believe in sensory information, an individual’s intent also features in that it all depends on what the individual expects to perceive or gain from the sensory experience. This can be taken from the psychological situation of the individual making belief in sensory information to be accurate or inaccurate based on their state of being. For example, a fiercely hungry person perceives food on almost all instances including those that have nothing to do with relief from hunger. In addition, the external environment plays a key role in the accuracy, which is especially so in the case of cognitive impenetrability (Barth et al, 2012). The concept of cognitive impenetrability contributes to the inaccuracy of sensory information based on the environment in that the external environment may have objects and aspects that are not apparent to sensory organs, but these, bas ed on experiences are apparent to cognition. Consequently, cognitive impenetrability accounts for data inaccuracy in cases where one does not logically and critically process or analyze sensory information to make an immediate decision. This makes sensory data largely unreliable and invalid in spite of perceiving the immediate environment correctly as per available senses, but in the absence of cognition and experiences. Sensory information can further be made accurate or inaccurate based on confounding of different sensory organs and the data perceived. One sensory organ can pick information correctly, while another can take in information from a different angle making the information conflicting and interpretation becomes difficult. This also makes sensory information processed inaccurate by not following dynamics of the environment and the input of all the senses (Hwang, 2008). Besides the different factors mentioned in influencing the accuracy of sensory information, analysis an d assessment of sensory data, nature and nurture are involved. Nurture plays a large part in interpretation and evaluation of date through application of acquired information and experience in learning, also known as perceptual learning. Nurture allows interpretation of data as per active or passive cognition, in which case it serves to correct internal errors (Barth et al, 2012). These are errors emanating from nature in perception, as nature allows interp

Organisational management in health care Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Organisational management in health care - Essay Example Also, regular medical check-ups help maintain the physical fitness of workers and guarantee that work flow will not be derailed due to health reasons. On their part, workers in the healthcare profession should be conscientious enough to provide high quality service. To achieve this, good team work must be established. The unified vision of what the organization wants to achieve and where it wants to go in the future in terms of quality, professionalism, services offered and expertise is what each of the team should aspire for. This paper attempts to analyze how workers in healthcare organizations can work together to attain above-average organizational outcomes. Aside from workers being efficient in the performance of their tasks, key factors in the journey to a team’s success are, good leadership, effective communication and objective evaluation of the team’s performance and quality of service. Management must be consistent in communicating to each worker its philosophy of providing the best quality health care and treatment through collaborative efforts of professionals from different disciplines. Each worker should be able to feel that he is part of a great team that sets high goals and successfully attains them. â€Å"Creating the conditions that engender knowledge transfer entails significant structural and cultural changes by top leadership, which will require leaders to be convinced that the benefits of knowledge transfer outweigh the costs. In the absence of this commitment, it is unlikely that attempts to increase knowledge flow will succeed. Leaders should be cautious about publicly touting the virtues of "knowledge sharing" without a substantive commitment to change, as this may result in the failure of well-intentioned knowledge transfer initiatives, bringing with it lowered employee morale and the potential for resistance against future knowledge-transfer init iatives.† (Burgess, 2005) Leadership may be defined as a â€Å"process in which a

Budgeting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Budgeting - Essay Example Forecasting should not be mistaken with budgeting. Forecasting is a management tool used for planning and setting a goal. Forecasting makes use of past and present data, and trend analysis to estimate sales, or to estimate demands for a product. It uses statistical data in estimation and uses management expertise, knowledge and judgment (GeminiGeek, n.d. ) An operating budget is a projection of estimated income and expenses that is based on the forecasted sales which is usually done for a short term period, normally for one year while a cash budget is a way of monitoring the cash flow of a business. Cash budget makes it easy to see how much money comes in and out for the period, thus, it becomes a simple way to monitor the financial condition of the business or household. A cash budget can be done either on a weekly or monthly period for an accurate monitoring (Business Directory, n.d.) Zero budgeting departs from the traditional budgeting wherein all expenses must be justified for every new budgeting period and every function within the organization is analyzed. Zero budgeting starts from zero and does not take into account prior year’s budget (Cronin, Tom). For instance, if you have a budget of $20,000 for a campaign in 2011 and it did not produce good result, the manager must justify why he needs the same budget for 2012. The manager must develop a plan from zero-base and justify why, where and how he will spend the money of the company. In other words, if the manager proposes a campaign for a product, he would pinpoint the projected expenses and profit to show its feasibility so that the company could assign a particular budget for that. All budget proposals are then analyzed and ranked according to importance. The system lets the management identify priorities, allows management to compare and analyze the needs of every unit in the organization and make funding allocation. In zero based, budgets are built

Public Law Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Public Law - Assignment Example At what point is a constitutional convention said to exist? Scholars have developed several tests over time to indentify existed of a convention. They include Jennings test developed by Sir Ivor Jennings and Marshall and Moodie test. The objective of this paper is to examine the two tests, their differences and how both tests apply in case of an individual minister responsibility. Jennings test According to Sir Ivor Jennings, a constitutional convention exists if three core requirements are satisfied: (1) The must precedents underpinning it, (2) the parties to the particular convention must be bound by it and (3) there must be a reason for the existence of the convention. This test was adopted by the Supreme Court of Canada in Re Amendment of the Constitution of Canada.5 In this case, the government had proposed certain changes to the constitution without seeking consent of the provinces. The Constitution of Canada did not require consent of the provinces in such circumstances. Howev er, a convention had developed such that the consent of the provinces was always sought before such a change to the constitution. ... The main issue was whether education convention had been extended over time by custom to include advocacy correspondence. The court adopted Jennings test. It had no problem with establishing the first element since the prince had clearly been engaging in advocacy correspondence. With regard to the second element, the tribunal found that Prince Charles did not feel entitled to contact ministers and they did not feel they were obligated to respond as part of his â€Å"preparation for kingship.6 The third element was also finding lacking. The tribunal held that the education convention did not extend to advocacy correspondence: â€Å"it is the constitutional role of the monarch, not the heir to the throne, to encourage or warn government†.7 Consequently since two out of the three requirements failed, the tribunal held that the educational convention did not extend to advocacy.8 Marshall and Moodie test Marshal and Moodie9 state â€Å"a convention is a non-legal rule of constitu tional behavior which has been consistently accepted by those affected by it as binding on them, but which is not enforceable in the courts† Therefore, according to Marshal and Moodie, the question to ask is whether the convention has been consistently accepted by those to whom it is binding. Secondly, it has to be formulated on the basis of an acknowledged principle of government.10 According to the Upper Tribunal in Evans, â€Å"there was in fact nothing said by Marshall and Moodie which was inconsistent with what was said by Jennings†.11 However, the two tests exhibit some differences. To begin with, according to Jennings first test, the particular convention must have had a precedent. â€Å"A single precedent with a good reason may be enough to establish the

Risk and Returns Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Risk and Returns - Assignment Example In order to diversify the risk, the assets are held together forming a portfolio. The sum of variance for the portfolio is almost lower than a single average weight of individual portfolio, therefore, minimizing the overall risk of investment (Rachev, 2005).  To clearly illustrate the model, the following capital structure for Wal-Mart stores for the year 2010 is used. Each component cost could be determined using various formulas. For instance, to determine the cost of debt using the Wall mart sore which has $1,000 PV (par value) zero coupon bond outstanding. Assuming that the bonds are currently trading at $ 385.54 with a 10 year maturity period and a tax rate of 40%, then the cost could be determined as follow. Finally the cost of equity would be determined using capital asset pricing model would be used to determine the cost of the components. Assuming that the risk free rate in the market is 4% and having been given the beta factor of 3 for bond and 0 for money market instruments. For a risk take investor, he will consider using debt which is much cheaper than common equity and preference stock. This is a risky investment, though the overall return will be much higher. The average weighted cost of capital will be much lesser i.e. 9% as par the computation above. On the hand if the investor considers using less debt which is cheaper and opt to use more equality and common stock as shown in the capital structure bellow; In conclusion, it is clear that risk is a universal factor in investment decision since no one can really stay away fro it. Though that is the case, risk can be reduced based on individually capability as well as their knowledge. For one to have successful portfolio management, then it will depend on the right mix of all assets and individual investor’s overall risk expectation. One of the key important choices which an investor has to consider is his where his risk tolerance lies. This

Windows Server 2003 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Windows Server 2003 - Essay Example They need to know and understand the benefit of upgrading to Windows Server 2003 so they can make the right decision. A company with an already stable system perhaps would wonder why I should upgrade my system when it seems fine and sufficient. Some will also probably ask why I should spend some more when I already have what we want. What's new What is the benefit Shall I gain from it Microsoft Windows Server 2003 for the comprehension of a typical user is simply an enhancement to Microsoft's previous server products such as NT 4.0 and Windows Server 2000. However, this latest operating system contains over 340 (Eurodata, 2004) improvements for Windows 2000 Server and the capability to handle different server functions that can significantly increase productivity and security that will give businesses added benefits. Similar to its predecessor, Server 2003 was built in the same tradition of strengths, superiority, and cost effectiveness to sustain business growth. In the real world, business are constantly changing, expanding, and seeking new ways to improve and support the demands of their organization. Growing organizations that are heavily relying on their computer network are looking for flexible and scalable systems that can greatly reduce their operating and administration cost. In addition, to ensure greater success, an organization wants real value on the ir investment and demand greater reliability and innovative functionalities with their server operating systems. Microsoft is much aware of these necessities and since the released of Windows 2000 Server substantially reviewed and studies all possible bugs and weak points to produce a much better operating system. According to Microsoft's Server 2003 White Paper (Microsoft, 2002), this operating systems provides various utilities, services, and features that could convince users to upgrade. One of the enticing new features of Server 2003 aside from being stable is its integrated platform that can be easily deploy and manage without security implications. This is to a certain extent viable considering the real world situation of company networks where combinations of Intranets and Internet are being used and continually being stretched to satisfy the organizations growing requirements. When an operating system is stable, it means more uptime and secured. This is exactly what Microsoft wants to sell; a fast, reliable, and secured platform with advanced connectivity that can provide a company gre ater competitive advantage in global marketplace (Eurodata, 2004). Improved Reliability, Windows Server 2003 provides device driver's resiliency that prevents defective drivers (that are known to be incompatible) that could unfavorably harm the server and holdup the company's operation. Furthermore, similar to XP, the Server 2003 is capable of device rollbacks (Ivens, 2003), restoration of last known good configuration, file protection, and application compatibility options. These features will ensure more uptime for the company network eliminating the possibility of system shutdown due to maintenance and restoration works (Microsoft, 2002). Improved Availability further fortifies network operational stability by

The physical objects Essay Example for Free

The physical objects Essay What is the significance of the physical objects that Ibsen has used in Act-1?Amidst a beautiful rose garden, where the sunrays came beaming down, she was sitting as though she had been totally oblivious to the happening of the world. This is the way a novelist would elucidate such a situation, with the use of apt words and adjectives, using his language skill to express the emotions of the characters but drama involves a completely different approach, an entirely special technique of writing. A dramatist would probably have to delineate the same situation by the physical presence of the beautiful roses, the display of the beaming sunrays and with the actress having to emote the feeling of loneliness. And it is only then, that the audience would understand that in the beautiful rose garden, there is a girl feeling very lonely. In what you would call A Good Drama, the audience is challenged to look not only at the dialogue and actors, but is challenged to examine staging, lighting and even the furniture. Stage directions become cryptic messages of characterization. The dramatists portrayal is well supported by the physical presence of certain objects and the audiences dramatic interpretation goes beyond the traditional analysis of dialogue and relationships. This environmental thinking creates a new dimension of meaning in drama  It is this kind of interaction between the living and non-living characters which allow Henrik Ibsen to reveal emotion and motivation in his play Hedda Gabler. Ibsen gives detailed stage directions about the lighting, the props, and certain objects, to achieve his effects and to supplement his thoughts. Two of the most dramatically significant of these objects are the portrait of Heddas father and the pair of pistols. Each of these emphasizes the dissonant relationship between Hedda and her new environment. Though the portrait of Heddas father in a generals uniform is never directly referred to, it gives us an indication of Heddas military-aristocratic paternal background. The pistols were inherited by Hedda from her father. Her perplexing habit of aiming the pistols at people {Eilert} dramatizes the profound dissonance between herself and her present world, and her frustration with the emptiness of her life. It seems she can conceive of no future for herself other than a life of excruciating boredom. The way in which the portrait and the pistols figure in her world suggests that she is caught up in the repetition of her past rather than engaged in the creation of a future. This is because Hedda, a beautiful young lady was married to Tesman, an indefatigable scholar, both of them having hardly any evident similarities. Although there is no apparent reason for them to have got married one is coaxed into believing by Heddas attitude that Temans world seemed to offer her some sort of security. However she began to feel suffocate in the claustrophobically middle class atmosphere. An early indication of Heddas hostility to the world in which she finds herself is when, on an impulse, she speaks demeaning of a hat, which she knows to be Aunt Julies, {Tesmans aunt} but which she pretends to believe is the maids. That hat was newly and specially bought by Aunt Julie and was even considered attractive by Tesman but Hedda referred to it as old which proves to be a clear indication of the difference in the social classes from which Hedda and Tesman came. The mention by Aunt Julie of her parasol being hers and not the maid Bertas signifies that in spite of the demeaning behaviour of Hedda towards Aunt Julie, the aunt never reciprocated the same way. If Heddas character has been formed in a military-paternal setting, Tesman still lives in an atmosphere of motherly concern, brought up as he has been by a trio of self-sacrificing women Aunt Julie, Aunt Rina and Berta. Tesmans elation over his bedroom slippers, which were embroidered by Aunt Rina, and the fact that he even mentioned about them to Hedda on their honeymoon, is clearly proved by it. Differences between Hedda and Tesman are further indicated by the piano, which was placed in the drawing room. The piano does not fit in the drawing room, just as Hedda doesnt fit into the Tesman family and its middle-class lifestyle. George and Hedda make different assumptions about remedying the problem of the piano. George assumes they will trade it in for a new piano and is startled by Heddas extravagant assumption they will keep it and buy a new one. The entire drawing room itself is indicative of what kind of a mismatch Hedda was to Tesmans family. The room is like Hedda in its sophistication and elegance. It symbolizes Heddas lifestyle, rather than those of the Tesmans. Aunt Julie expressing surprise at Hedda having the covers of the furniture removed further reflects this. This reminds us of the saying that one mans luxury might be anothers necessity. Also the reactions of the characters to the lighting and the position of the glass door are of some significance. While aunt Julie wants the glass door open to welcome the morning fresh air, Hedda refers to it as the flood of sunlight. She however prefers to draw the curtains so that the light becomes softer and does not want the light to go away completely. Light often represents life and aliveness and thus aunt Julies welcoming of the morning light epitomizes her optimistic attitude towards life and her positive thinking. Darkness usually symbolizes danger or vice but Heddas want of soft light and not complete darkness gives us signs of her mysterious past. It shows us that although Hedda was interested in all the mysteries and adventures of life, she preferred to keep a sufficient distance from all those things, which would disturb or disrupt her lifes stability. In this way Ibsen uses the glass door to indicate their varying attitudes towards life. Heddas emptiness of life is further illustrated by her distastefulness towards the flowers and her finding the flowers somewhat stifling. Flowers usually are a mark of happiness and hope and often symbolize a new freshness of life. But Heddas views about the flowers are somewhat opposite.  Thus Ibsen has skillfully used various physical objects to reflect essential characteristics of the relations between the characters and to personify his characters. His detailed stage direction reminds us of what, owner of Prithvi theatre, Mumbai had said, Stage direction is an integral part of every drama. Without the props appropriately placed on stage, the play, however brilliant it may be, appears like a body without a soul, a tear without an emotion and love without a heart.

The aspects of social responsibility

The aspects of social responsibility In what ways does Priestley explore the theme of social responsibility in â€Å"An Inspector Calls†? In this essay I aim to explore all the aspects of social responsibility shown in â€Å"An Inspector Calls†. I will endeavour to do this by using dramatic devices expressed throughout the play and their significance to the play; I will also discuss the effectiveness in which Priestley conveys the theme of social responsibility. Throughout the 1930s Priestley became very aware of the social inequality in Britain at that time and in 1942 he decided to form a political party with some like-minded colleagues. The party was called the Common Wealth Party and it argued that Land ownership should be given to the public and that Britain should be more democratic in politics. In 1945 the Common Wealth Party was merged into the Labour party, but Priestley was still very influential in the way that the party was being run and helped develop the idea of a welfare state which was implemented after the war. Priestley also made many BBC radio broadcasts to try and promote the idea of socialism within the Labour Party. Social responsibility is the most discussed and possibly the most important aspect of â€Å"An Inspector Calls†. Priestleys message seems to be: Do not only look after yourself but also care for others and that people have to accept the consequences of their actions. Arthur Birling is a perfect example of this. â€Å"But take my word for it, you youngsters and Ive learnt in the good hard school of experience that a man has to mind his own business and look after himself and his own..†. In this quote Arthur is encouraging selfishness, being irresponsible and having no social responsibility, this is the complete opposite of everything that Priestley stands for as a socialist. Although this happens to work in Priestleys favour throughout the course of the play as the Inspector, who seems to voice Priestleys views as a socialist, frequently overturns Mr. Birlings and others views forcing them to be heard more habitually throughout the audience which will influence their opinions. The Birlings as a family seem to have no social responsibility, in particular Arthur makes it apparent that he has no social awareness; he illustrates no remorse when talking about Evas death, or that of his factory workers and the horrendous conditions they work in. In his speech to Eric and Gerald prior to the arrival of the Inspector he offers some ‘guidance in which he lectures on how he thinks others should be treated. â€Å"But the way some of these cranks talk and write now, youd think everybody has to look after everybody else as if we were all mixed up together like bees in a bee hive- community and all that nonsense.† Mr. Birling carries qualities such as arrogance, inconsideration, irresponsibility and lacks social awareness. The Inspectors function in the play is to educate the Birlings about collective responsibility, equality, union and consideration of others. He achieves this by using various techniques such as a shock and awe method and forcing them to feel guilt for what they have done by encouraging them to empathise with their victims. Priestley specifically set the play in 1912; this was because at this time society as a whole was completely different to how it was when Priestley wrote the play (1945). The play has investigated the matter of social class and the restrictions that come with it and also the matter of gender with one gender being dominant over the other. Although in 1945 almost all of these restrictions were gone. For instance, in 1912 it was considered compulsory for women to behave dutifully to men. The expectations on women were high and even women of aristocracy could do nothing but marry on, and for those who were born of a lower social class, it was an opportunity for cheap labour, much like the case of Eva Smith. However by 1945, the consequences of war enabled womens role in society to grow considerably. Priestley liked to see these unusual situations as an opportunity and thought that his audiences would see the potential as he did. All the way through his play he constantly encourages his a udience to take hold of the opportunity that the end of World War 2 has given them, to construct a superior more socially responsible society. When Priestley set the play in 1912 it gave him the opportunity to include references to major historical events such as the HMS Titanic, World War 1 and mining strikes. This allowed Priestley to make the audience involved and one step ahead of the ignorant characters. At first glance the genre of the play: ‘An Inspector Calls seems to be a typical murder mystery. Although as the play expands, the genre seems to transform from a theme of ignorance to a ‘whodunit as the Inspector cross-examines his way through each and every one in the Birling household. The Inspector manages to maintain control of the pace and the tension by dealing with each query individually. The story is revealed gradually, bit by bit. The lighting plays a significant part in assigning the mood and atmosphere of the play. We start Act One with a description of the scene, followed by an introduction of the main characters. At this point we are told â€Å"The lighting should be pink and intimate until the Inspector arrives, and then it should be brighter and harder.† Priestley uses a pink, warm theme of lighting to portray a sense of calm, success and self-satisfaction, ultimately reflecting the characters. Dan Anahory

Developing Emergency Action Plan for Gym

Developing Emergency Action Plan for Gym Understanding emergency procedures in fitness environment An emergency response system is crucial for ensuring a safe environment for members, users, and staff, as well as being a very sound practice for managing risk. With health and fitness facilities, an emergency response system must be established to offer the highest reasonable safety level for users and staff. Emergency gym procedures are the established plans that are instigated if an emergency occurs. It may be simply a power outage, or more seriously a medical emergency, a fire or even a weather-related scenario. Gyms must have an emergency action plan (EAP) in place so that all the occupants at the time will be able to act effectively if required. What Would You Do? If a gym clients is seriously injured, or worse, dies in front of you while they have been exercising. What would you do? The question usually comes as a complete surprise to existing and new instructors. Unfortunately, the notion of folks dying or being injured while in an exercise environment is rarely addressed by the gym management, or by employees. Therefore, when it does happens, which it will one day, the gym is in chaos as basically nobody knows what procedures to follow. Gym Emergency: Typical Scenario This is what usually happens when procedures are obscure. The gym staff are not clear about what to do, panic may ensue. The front desk operator telephones 911 (or the police). The gym management may performs CPR/AED. Members are afraid to help or do not wish to be involved. While this scenario is generally what happens, it is that the instructor/trainers not knowing that is particularly disturbing when seconds and minutes are crucial and can save a life. The reasoning here is that on the whole the gym staff do not know a gym’s emergency procedures, regarding say, a heart attack. Even if they do know the procedure, how many instructors are CRP/AED certified? Why Many Gym Managements Don’t Know EAP? It is assumed that instructors who are CPR/AED certified already know what to do. They do not want to scare away new instructors. The gym has no procedures in place for emergencies (other than â€Å"call 911†³). It has not occurred to the manager/owner that clients may experience heart attacks there. Chain of Command Every gym should have a chain of responsibility which is deployed during an emergency. Emergencies can happen at any moment. There will be occasions when the person in overall charge will not be in the premises. That is why a chain of responsibility is essential, as the next person becomes in charge of the emergency. Activation of EAP The individual in charge at the time should make the call to activate an EAP. If a medical emergency has occurred, then those who are trained in CPR and emergency aid must remain with the patient. The person in charge at the time will coordinate the staff and gym personnel as to what they must do while the plan is in activation. Location of Equipment All gyms should have emergency equipment to hand. This must include a first aid kit, a telephone, fire extinguisher/s and sometimes an automated external defibrillator (AED). Every person that works in the gym must know where this equipment is available. Posting of Emergency Procedure Gyms should have an EAP poster in a visible position in order that all the information is easily available in case of an emergency. This should list the chain of command, the location of emergency equipment, and other relevant information. People do not really think clearly in an emergency, and having an EAP poster with all relevant information can save a lives when time matters most. Managing the Risks The management of risk refers to those practices and systems that gyms should establish to limit their exposure to any potential liability or financial loss. In the health club and fitness industry, risk management refers to the practices, systems and procedures by which a gym can reduce the risk of an employee or a client coming to harm (injury or death). Risk management involves practices that are preventive (such as pre-activity screening and correctly maintaining equipment) to practices that can be considered a reaction to unexpected events (such as emergency response systems). It must be acknowledged that the various types of health and fitness facilities do markedly vary, from the unsupervised to medically supervised clinical exercise centers. Gyms and exercise facilities often serve varied aims and clients, they do or don’t have organized programs, and also may or may not employ staff that are qualified. Management should use the local medical personnel or healthcare professionals to help develop an emergency response program. Local emergency medical services (EMS) can help a facility to develop a response program. Gyms and facilities can also engage the services of a physician, a registered nurse, or a certified emergency medical technician to assist in the development of their response program. An emergency response system should consider any emergency situations that may occur. Among these are medical emergencies that can be foreseen in regard to moderate or more intense workouts, such as hypoglycemia, a heart attack, a stroke, cardiac arrest or heat illness, and injuries that are in nature orthopedic. The response system should also consider other potential emergencies not specifically caused by physical activity, such a chemical accident, fire, and a range of weather and natural disaster events. An emergency response plan should consider explicit steps and instructions on how the emergency situation must be dealt with and including the roles that 1st , 2nd , and 3rd responders to an emergency will play. Additionally, an emergency response plan must indicate clearly the locations of emergency equipment (e.g., telephone for 911 and contact info for EMS, locations of the emergency exits, and the access points for EMS personnel), and also the steps needed to contact local EMS. It is preferable to physically rehearse the emergency response system at least twice per year. Medical Emergencies at the Gym Exercise brings so many health benefits, and moreover is beneficial to people with many medical conditions that include heart disease and Myocardial infarction (heart attack). The risk of a sudden medical emergency is ever present, and medical emergencies may occur before, during and after exercise. For vulnerable people, exercise may precipitate an emergency at the gym which can emanate from many different medical conditions like diabetes or high blood pressure, heart disease, and also a poor physical condition, or obesity and so on. For example, if an individual experiences pressure of the chest during or after an exercise session, they must call an ambulance to ride to the hospital irrespective of whether the person is on medication for blood pressure or has had three prior heart attacks, if they are 22 years of age, or seemingly fit and healthy. What to do in an Emergency Let us assume that you are an instructor in a gym which has no clearly visible emergency procedure, or none that you are of. Perhaps one day you will hear a PA system announcement asking: â€Å"Is there a doctor or nurse in the building?† that is usually a sign that something quite bad has happened. You might or might not hear those words over the PA. All clubs are different. If you feel that an emergency is occurring, whatever you may be doing, should be dropped and then head to the emergency location to assess the situation. Do not assume that someone else will do it. If you are instructing at the time, make excuses and go yourself. After arriving, these basic steps should be followed. If a person collapses, then immediately inform emergency medical services and also care for the person according to the guidelines of the American Heart Association CPR or similar authority. If there is an automated external defibrillator (AED) available, then utilise it. Every instructor or trainer and gym management personnel are encouraged to at attend a basic CPR course. CPR techniques are easy to learn and they carry a very low risk of transmission of any disease to a provider if hands-only CPR is used or one of other modern protocols that de-emphasize giving rescue breaths mouth-to-mouth. The training will help to prepare one to deal with a clear medical emergency such as collapse and in particular, the loss of pulse. Many medical emergencies begin with much less clear signs or symptoms. Chest pain is perhaps the most prevalent symptom of a cardiac emergency, although people often describe what they are feeling as tightness or pressure. Discomfort or sensations in the jaw or neck, the arms, the upper abdomen or back, may also be linked to a cardiac event. Even without any chest discomfort, a shortness of breath, may well be a heart attack symptom or other medical emergency. This is a common feeling at a gym even for healthy individuals during or immediately following exercise. The thing to watch for is whether the shortness of breath seems dis-proportionate to the situation or if it is lasting longer than normal. Unfortunately, several other possible causes may be associated with a cardiac event such as, lightheadedness, nausea and sweating amongst them. Again, the rule of thumb is to look for what may seem out of the ordinary under the circumstances. Strokes are also a medical emergency which requires immediate response. While strokes are less usually thought of as being associated with exercising, the symptoms and signs of a stroke include: a sudden headache, difficulty with finding words language comprehension confusion speech is slurred un – coordinated movement and numbness a tingling or a weakness particularly on one side of the body or face. What actually constitutes a real medical emergency is often a challenging judgment call, and if one is in doubt then it’s better to send the person immediately to an emergency department and let the professionals assess. Occasionally, people might prefer to visit an urgent care or their doctor’s office, but those facilities will usually not have the necessary resources to assess or manage a real emergency and so should be consulted for routine health care and what are clearly minor issues. Some may wish to avoid the expense or drama of calling an ambulance. Bear in mind that if a person is really having a heart attack or a stroke, the minutes count, and the time elapsing from the start of the event to treatment will determine the extent of damage to heart muscle or to the brain – elapsing time can dramatically alter outcomes. If CPR is Necessary Keep calm Perform CPR /use the AED (if you are CPR/AED certified) Have a staff member call 911 and also contact the gym manager/owner, regarding the incident Perform CPR ( or AED) until the paramedics arrive Instruct a staff member to get the member’s club file to give to the paramedics on their arrival (this file should contain contact info, the medications of the person and such like, important info for paramedics). Assign a member of staff to wait outside the premises, to escort the paramedics inside and to the emergency location on their arrival. File an incident report Common Gym Related Emergencies Occasionally an athlete may experience a potentially life changing injury, such as to the head or a severe neck injury, eye injuries, or similar. However the majority of sports-related injuries will be bone and soft tissue injuries like strains, sprains, dislocations and knee injuries. Most of these injuries will absolutely require treatment, but it may not be necessary to call for an emergency response. On the whole, apart from the very serious health emergencies which may never even happen in your presence, most injuries that are gym and exercise related are avoidable. Remember the golden rules to follow, and hopefully almost all injuries will not occur on your watch. Warm –up Stretching (both pre- and post-exercise ) Hydration Nutrition Rest Bear in mind that a body operates like a machine, yet it requires diligent maintenance such as correct nutrition, stretching and rest. Too much of a good thing, or overworking the body is always inadvisable and regularly leads to negative results. Remember to know your own limits and also those of the clients, meaning listen to your body and hopefully the incidence of injury will be greatly diminished.

Learning Disabilities Essay -- A Level Essays

Learning Disabilities Eleven-year-old Anna is outgoing and bright. She attempts to work hard, but her progress in school has always been slow. She is a year behind her peers, particularly in her English class and her teachers have slowly begun to reduce their expectations of her. Her parents are worried because her confidence for learning is decreasing, and there is less motivation for her to do homework and class assignments. A psychologist found that her intelligence is in the gifted range, but she has difficulty in making out written symbols. It is easy to make the assumption that Anna seems merely as a child who is slow intellectually, but when taking a closer look, it shows that she is just as intelligent but happens to suffer from a learning disorder. Students with learning disorders have brain impairments that make it difficult for them to acquire skills and knowledge accurately and fast enough to keep pace with average academic progress (Encarta, 2003, p.1). The purpose of this research paper is t o investigate the causes of learning disorders, various types of disabilities, their causes, and finally how in today’s modern era assistive technology is able to reduce the frustration of students and increase their level of performance. Defining Learning Disorders/Disabilities The IDEA (The Health & Fitness Association) 1997 Definition of Learning Disabilities is: â€Å"A disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or using language, spoken or written, that may manifest itself in imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write spell, or to do mathematical calculations. The term includes such conditions as perceptual handicaps, brain injury, minimal brain dysfunction, d... ...p://www.ldanatl.org/aboutld/teachers/social_emotional/socialacceptance.asp Addresses the fact that health professionals, special educators, and parents must make real efforts to promote the social acceptance of children suffering with learning disabilities. Crossen, C. (1997). Studies suggest phonics help children learning to read. Wall Street Journal. Retrieved April 16, 2005 from http://barrier-free.arch.gatech.edu/Articles/wsj_learning.html Talks about how the earlier reading disabilities are detected the better. With proper encouragement and tools students will have more motivation for reading throughout their lives. Sack, J.L. (1999). Schools advised to catch, treat disabilities as early as possible. Education Week, 18, 7. Received April 16, 2005 from EBSO-host. Emphasizes importance of treating a learning disability as early as possible.

Consider changes Owen made in Anthem For Doomed Youth. How effective Es

Consider changes Owen made in Anthem For Doomed Youth. How effective do you find them in presenting the Pity of War? In this essay I intend to analysis how effective the redrafts of the poem 'Anthem For Doomed Youth' by comparing the first and final drafts. I will go about this task by comparing and contrasting the parts of the poem, which have been change to the ones, which appeared in the final draft. The first change that one is confronted with is the change of the title. Owen begins with the word 'dead', which is changed to 'doomed'. The reason for changing this is because it makes the readers first impressions very deep. The word 'doomed' hits closer to home than the word 'dead' as doomed creates image sin the readers mind that all the youth will die as opposed to 'dead' which simply accounts for the dead. The word doomed has a greater impact within the readers mind. The word doomed also has a sense of inevitability about it and those involved have no control over it. It hints to the reader that the youth of the soldiers has been taken away due to the horrific events that they will encounter whilst at war. As youth is meant to be a time of happiness. The overall impact if this change does do a lot for the poem to emphasise the 'Pity of War'. In the first line the soldiers are referred to in the final draft as 'cattle' from the passive verb of 'fast'. The word 'cattle' creates connotations within the readers mind of the slaughtering of the animals and creates a much more violent picture. It also spells out to the reader that the reason for cattle is so they can be slaughter and their existence serves no other meaning which could be linked to the purpose of the troops being in the battle field; t... ...ake an effort but it seems to make war be a petty thing and as soon as darkness strikes everyone puts down guns and waits until morning. Overall the majority of the changes are to make the lines have more impact but some are also to be in with the structure. The poem is in two stanzas, the first seems to create a picture of the entire events of a whole war. Due to the way it talks of battle and then mention remembrance at the end. Due to the language used and the usage of alliteration the stanza seems to have a sense of speed about it and overall creates a very compelling picture of war. The second stanza has a much more religious and emotional view about it. The pace is slowed down and there is much emphasis on the connotations and imagery, which the author crates. The poem is a very true reflection of the way in which life was wasted in World War One.

The Return: Shadow Souls Chapter 9

Even as Elena opened her mouth to speak, she could feel herself lifted as if in a hurricane. For a moment she clung to the boy who was being torn from her grasp, then she just had time to shout, â€Å"I'll be back,† and to hear his reply, before she was pulled into the ordinary world of baths and manipulation and motel rooms. â€Å"I'll keep our secret!† That was what the little boy had cried to her at the last moment. And what could that mean but that he would keep their rendezvous from the real (or â€Å"ordinairy†) Damon? A moment later Elena was standing in a dingy motel room, and Damon was clutching her upper arms. As he released her, Elena could taste salt. Tears were flowing freely down her cheeks. It didn't seem to make any difference to her attacker. Damon seemed to be at the mercy of raw desperation. He was shaking like a little boy the first time he kissed his first love. That's what's driving the control away, Elena thought fuzzily. As for herself, she felt as if she might faint. No! She had to stay conscious. Elena pushed and twisted, hurting herself deliberately against the apparently unbreakable grip that held her. It held. The possessor? Shinichi again, sneaking into Damon's mind and making him do things – ? Elena fought harder, pushed herself until she actually could have screamed with pain. She whimpered once – The hold broke. Somehow Elena knew that Shinichi wasn't involved in this. The true soul of Damon was a little boy held in chains for God-knew-how-many centuries, who had never known warmth and closeness but who still had a tearful appreciation for them. The child who was chained to the rock surrounding was one of Damon's deepest secrets. And now Elena was trembling so hard she wasn't sure she could stand up, and she was wondering about the child. Was he cold? Was he crying like Elena? How could she tell? She and Damon were left staring at each other, both breathing hard. Damon's sleek hair was mussed, making him look rakish as a buccaneer. His face, always so pale and self-composed, was flushed with blood. His eyes dropped to watch Elena automatically massaging her wrists. She could feel pins and needles now: she was getting back some circulation. Once he'd looked away, he couldn't seem to look her in the eye again. Eye contact. All right. Elena recognized a weapon, groping for a chair and finding the bed unexpectedly close behind her. She didn't have many weapons right now; and she needed to use all of them. She sat, giving in to the weakness in her body, but she kept her eyes on Damon's face. His mouth was swollen. And that was†¦unfair. Damon's pout was a part of his most basic artillery. He had always had the most beautiful mouth she'd ever seen on anyone, man or woman. The mouth, the hair, the half-drooping lids, the heavy lashes, the delicacy of his jawline†¦unfair, even to someone like Elena, who'd long ago gotten past interest in a person because of some accident of beauty. But she'd never seen that mouth swollen, the perfect hair disordered, the eyelashes trembling because he was looking everywhere except at her and trying not to show it. â€Å"Was that†¦ what you've been thinking about while you've been refusing to talk to me?† she asked, and her voice was almost steady. Damon's sudden stillness was perfection like all his other perfections. No breathing, of course. He stared at a spot in the beige carpet that by rights ought to have broken into flames. Then, finally, he lifted those huge dark eyes to hers. It was so hard to tell anything about Damon's eyes because the iris was almost the same color as the pupil, but Elena had a feeling that at this moment they were dilated so far as to be all pupil. How could eyes as dark as midnight trap and hold light? She seemed to see in them a universe of stars. Damon said, softly, â€Å"Run.† Elena felt her legs tense. â€Å"Shinichi?† â€Å"No. You should run now.† Elena felt her thigh muscles relax slightly and was grateful not to have to try to prove that she could run – or even crawl – at this exact instant. But her fists clenched. â€Å"You mean this is just you being a bastard?† she said. â€Å"Have you decided to hate me again? Did you enjoy – ?† Damon whirled again, stillness into motion faster than her eyes could track it. He hit the frame of the window, once, pulling the punch almost completely at the last instant. There was a crash and then a thousand little echoes as the glass showered like diamonds against the darkness outside. â€Å"That might†¦bring some people to help you.† Damon wasn't trying to make the words seem more than an afterthought. Now that he was turned away from her, he didn't seem to care about keeping up appearances. Fine tremors ran through his body. â€Å"This late, in this storm, this far away from the office – I doubt it.† Elena's body was catching up with the adrenaline spurt that had allowed her to fight her way out of Damon's grip. She was tingling all over and she had to work to keep it from turning into outright shaking. And they were back to square one, with Damon staring into the night and her staring at his back. Or, at least, that was where he wanted them to be. â€Å"You could have just asked,† she said. She didn't know if this was possible for a vampire to understand. She still hadn't taught Stefan. He went without things that he wanted because he didn't understand about asking. In all innocence and with all good intentions, Stefan left things until she, Elena, was forced to ask him. Damon, she thought, didn't usually have that problem. He took whatever he wanted as casually as if picking items off of a grocery store shelf. And right now he was laughing silently, which meant that he was truly stricken. â€Å"I'll take that as an apology,† Elena said softly. Now Damon was laughing out loud, and Elena felt a chill. Here she was, trying to help him, and – â€Å"Do you think,† he broke into her thoughts, â€Å"that that was all I wanted?† Elena felt herself freeze again as she mulled this over. Damon could easily have taken her blood while he held her immobile. But – of course – that wasn't all he wanted from her. Her aura†¦she knew what it did to vampires. Damon had been protecting her all along from other vampires who might see it. The difference, Elena's native honesty told her, was that she didn't give a damn about any of the others. But Damon was different. When he kissed her she could feel the difference inside her. Something she had never felt before†¦until Stefan. Oh, God – was this really her, Elena Gilbert, betraying Stefan by the simple act of not running away from this situation? Damon was being a better person than she was; he was telling her to take the temptation of her aura away from him. So that she could start the torture anew tomorrow. Elena had been in many circumstances where she'd judged that it was best for her to leave before things got too hot. The problem here was that there was nowhere that she could go to without turning up the heat – putting herself in greater danger. And, incidentally, losing her chance to find Stefan. Should she have gone with Matt? But Damon had said they couldn't get into this Dark Dimension place, not two humans by themselves. He'd said they needed him with them. And Elena still had some doubts as to whether Damon would take the trouble to even drive to Arizona, much less search for Stefan, if she wasn't with him every step of the way. Besides, how could Matt have protected her on the dangerous road she and Damon were following? Elena knew that Matt would die for her – and that's just what he would do, too, if they came up against vampires or werewolves. Die. Leaving Elena facing her enemies alone. Oh, yes, Elena knew what Damon did each night when she slept in the car. He put some kind of dark spells around her, signing them with his name, sealing them with his seal, and they kept random creatures of the night away from the car until morning. But their greatest enemies, the kitsune twins, Shinichi and Misao, they had brought with them. Elena thought about all this before raising her head to look Damon in the eyes. Eyes which, at that moment, reminded her of those of a ragged child chained to a rock. â€Å"You're not going to leave, are you?† he whispered. Elena shook her head. â€Å"You're really not afraid of me?† â€Å"Oh, I'm afraid.† Again Elena felt that inward shiver. But she was flying somewhere now, she had set the course, and there was no way that she could stop. Especially not when he looked at her like that. It reminded her of the fierce joy, the almost reluctant pride he always showed when they took down an enemy together. â€Å"I won't become your Princess of Darkness,† she told him. â€Å"And you know that I could never give up Stefan.† A ghost of his old mocking smile touched his lips. â€Å"There's plenty of time to convince you to my way of thinking on those matters.† No need, Elena thought. She knew that Stefan would understand. But even now, when it seemed the whole world was whirling around her, something rose up in Elena to challenge Damon. â€Å"You say it's not Shinichi. I believe you. But is all this because – of what Caroline said?† She could hear the sudden hardness in her own voice. â€Å"Caroline?† Damon blinked as if thrown off his stride. â€Å"She said that before I met Stefan I was just a – † Elena found it impossible to get the last word out. â€Å"That I was†¦promiscuous.† Damon's jaw hardened and his cheeks flushed quickly – as if he'd been struck from an unexpected direction. â€Å"That girl,† he muttered. â€Å"She's already fixed her destiny and if it were anyone else I might be inclined to take some pity. But she goes†¦beyond†¦she's†¦beyond†¦any propriety†¦Ã¢â‚¬  As he spoke his words slowed, and a look of bewilderment clouded his face. He was gazing at Elena and she knew he could see the tears standing in her eyes, because he reached up to brush them away with his fingers. As he did, however, he stopped dead in midmotion, and, his face suddenly bemused, he brought one of his hands up to his lips, tasting her tears. Whatever they tasted like to him, he didn't seem to believe it. He brought the other hand up to his lips as well. Elena was openly staring at him now; he should have been put out of countenance – but he wasn't. Instead a kaleidoscope of expressions passed over his face, too quickly for her human eyes to catch them all. But she did see astonishment, disbelief, bitterness, more astonishment, and then finally a kind of joyful shock and a look almost as if there were tears in his own eyes. And then Damon laughed. It was a quick, self-mocking laugh, but it was genuine, euphoric, even. â€Å"Damon,† Elena said, still blinking back tears – it had all happened that fast – â€Å"what is wrong with you?† â€Å"Nothing's wrong, everything's right,† he said, while raising a scholarly finger. â€Å"You should never try to fool a vampire, Elena. Vampires have many senses humans don't – and some we don't even know we have until we need them. It's taken me long enough to realize what I know about you. Because, of course, everyone was telling me one thing, and my own mind was telling me something else. But I've figured it out, at last. I know what you really are, Elena.† For half a minute Elena sat in shocked silence. â€Å"If you do, then I might as well tell you right now that no one will believe you.† â€Å"Maybe not,† Damon said, â€Å"especially if they're human. But vampires are programmed to recognize the aura of a maiden. And you are unicorn-bait, Elena. I don't know or care how you got your reputation. I was fooled by it myself for a long time, but I've finally found the truth.† Suddenly he was bending over her so that she could see nothing but him, his fine hair brushing her forehead, his lips close to hers, his dark eyes, fathomless, capturing her gaze. â€Å"Elena,† he whispered. â€Å"This is your secret. I don't know how you've managed it, but†¦you're a virgin.† He leaned in toward her, his lips just brushing hers, sharing his deliberate breaths with hers. They stayed like that for a long, long time, Damon seeming enthralled to be able to give Elena something from his own body: the oxygen that both she and he needed, but acquired in different ways. For many humans, the stillness of their bodies, the silence, and the sustained eye contact, for neither of them had shut their eyes, might have been too much. It might have felt as if they had plunged themselves into their partner's personalities too far, that they were losing definition and becoming an ethereal part of each other before one kiss had even been completed. But Elena was floating on air: on the breath that Damon gave her – and in the literal sense. If Damon's strong, long, slender hands had not held her shoulders, she would have escaped his grip entirely. Elena knew that there was another way that he could keep her down. He could Influence her to let gravity have its way with her. But so far, she had felt not the slightest touch of attempted Influence. It was as if he still wanted to give her the honor of choice. He would not seduce her by any of his many accustomed methods, the tricks of domination learned over half a millennium of nights. Only the breathing, which was coming more and more quickly, as Elena felt her senses begin to swim and her heart began to pound. Was she truly sure that Stefan wouldn't mind this? But Stefan had given her the greatest honor possible by trusting in her love and her judgment. And she was beginning to feel Damon's true self, his overwhelming need for her; his vulnerability because that need was becoming like an obsession to him. Without attempting to Influence her, he was still spreading great soft dark wings all around her so that there was nowhere to run, nowhere to escape. Elena felt herself begin to swoon with the intensity of the passion they had wrought between them. As a final gesture, not of repudiation, but of invitation, she arched her head back, exposing to him her bare throat, and let him feel her longing. And as if great, crystal bells were ringing in the distance, she felt his jubilation at her voluntary surrender to the velvet darkness that was overtaking her. She never felt the teeth that broke her skin and claimed her blood. Before that happened she was seeing stars. And then the universe was swallowed up in Damon's dark eyes.

Study drugs aflevering

Is the world (we) teaching the children always to strive for more? Is it never enough? Can you always do better? Should you do everything to achieve you best? What is the limit? For many of students the pressure of high scores, the parents expectations (or what the students think is the parents expectations) are enough to drive them towards the ‘Study Drugs'. Fellow students probably have told them about the benefit of the drugs. Its easier to take a pill and carry on like a freight train, than studying at a normal rate.According to most users, you can study for hours without getting tired and without losing focus on the assignment. You can use nights instead of days etc. According to Martha J. Farad, director at the Center for Cognitive Neuroscience at the university of Pennsylvania, up to 25 percent of students on some college campuses has used these drugs from February 2008 to February 2009. The price can go from AS to 25$ a pill, depending whether is near exams week or not. The main concern is, that most don't know or talk about the down side of the abuse.I don't know which side effect is worst, addiction, hart deceases or psychosis. According to the website: http://www. Otherworldly. Org/ druggists/rattail. HTML Rattail is called names like the poor man's cocaine and Diet Coke. They have made a brochure that explains about the side effects of the abuse. For example in 2004 Rattail was involved in an estimated 3,601 hospital emergency department visits. The conclusion is never use drugs as an easy way through your problems (at work, school or sports).The side effects are prohibitive. Personally will never try drugs. My father is a drug addict. Even though he's a recovering addict, I still remember the side effects of the drugs as well of the side effects of his detect. He took heroin and drugs like that Sometimes that made him hyperactive and it was very embarrassing when we were among family and rends, but it also made him very lethargic and lazy and he just laid on the couch out of contact with the rest of the world.

The Responsibility of Judicial Reviews

Thought out time judicial review's responsibility had been to ensure there is no conflate to the â€Å"supreme law of the land† (The constitution) and it's democratic values. In Order to make sure that the system does not get influence from the elected officials. Our founding fathers have deliberately put in place judicial review in to the system. But in turn the judicial review itself is not democratic. Because the nine â€Å"independent † black robe elites have bias, and can not be remove. A Supreme Court justice is appointed by the president and must be confirmed by the senate. When the President appoints a court justice he usually appointed someone who is highly educated and have a close ideology as he, because he wants to influence the courts. But soon after they are appointed they loss ties with any political influence. Because they're appointed for life. No matter how bad of job they are doing, they are protected by the constitution. And can only be impeach if they have commended high crimes such as treason and bribery. In our history only five federal court judges have ever been impeached. In order for the courts to judge the case without any favorites, there is no room for any bias. If the court have bias they well not be able to give a good interpretation of the constitution. Insested courts often give inference on the cases. And putting the case in there own perspective. During 1933-1937 the Roosevelt's presidency (D&Z chapter 13 Page 347) the courts still had a philosophy of rugged individualism. The courts thou out the national industrial recovery administration, railroad retirement act, national farm mortgage act, agricultural adjustment act, And denied the federal government the power to regulate manufacturing, petroleum, mining, agriculture, and labor conditions. Only after National labor relations board V. Jones & laughlin Steel Corporation. How can the court say one thing and does another? The court says, â€Å"no person in the country should be denied equal protection of the law†. That give the blacks the right to vote, to attend integrated schools, to receive equal justice in the courts, and give congress the power to protect blacks from discrimination in public accommodations, employment, voting, and housing. But in (D&Z page 348) â€Å"Dennis V, United States the courts permitted the prosecution of communists for merely â€Å"advocating† the overthrow of the government and in communist government party. U. S. A V. Subversive activities control board it upheld the right to require registration of â€Å"subversive† organizations. It permitted congressional committees to interrogate citizens about their political view and upheld loyalty oaths and loyalty-security programs How can people say that courts are always right? And above all they are unbiased? That can not be the truth. As human beings we all have ideas and bias because at a very young age we learned and developed bias from our parents and friends. Some say that you could change the bias and idea if you get an good education you'll be able to have a higher tolerate but education only could change you so much. As beings we could only tolerate so much. When in crises and the issues are against us, we'll thou tolerate out to the window and take some form of action to suppress the opponent. That applies to all the mass, the elites, and even the courts. Then how can judicial reviews be democratic? how did the outcome of the American civil war impact modern America? American had not all way been an industrialize nation or a major player in the international market. In fact prior to the civil war American was this back ward predominate cotton-growing base south with an emerging industrializing north-east and a west that is the land of free farmers. Having a Combination of capitalism and feudalism in the cotton-growing south, where there are the halves (master) and the have-nots (slaves). The slaves do not own anything and are commended to the masters. This system is similar to feudalism, where the lords and servants have a close tied with each other. The southerner justerful it by saying:† it is natural form of human society, beneficial both to the slave and the master. the emerging industrializing northeast had an ideology of a more democratic and capitalistic idea. Last, but not the lease, the west of the free, their ideology are very close to the industrializing northeast. The ending of the war gave the north the power to unite the union as a whole. Because of a rapid growth in the textile industry the north was in need of laborers. The demand for laborers has sprouted emerging of a middle class. This enables the slaves to have the mobility to move up on the social structure. We must give credit to the middle class. Because they were the ones that really wanted to have the up bond mobility. With the help of education they created technologic advancements. That had created a growing industry with importing and exporting of goods. With a rapid growth of the industries the union was in shortage of laborers, and never before had the union depend more on the free slaves. Many of the free slaves have migrated from the south to the northeast and west creating their own communities. In order for the west to move their goods to the northeast and south, a good and suffusion transportation system is needed. In many of the modern nation they all have one thing in common with each other. They have a effusion transportation system, if you're want to be a major player you must have an mean of moving your products in a fast effusion and cheap way. The out come of the civil war is a chain reaction. By having the north wining the war, it brought down the last of the feudal system to its keens. The nation evolves from capitalism and feudalism to liberalism. From the liberalism it is destine that we are going to be come an industrialize nation. Because the north have won and the north is an emerging industrializing north. From an emergent-fueled nation demanded more labors. The once that don't have job now have. The ones that did not have an opportunity to have a wage-earning job now do. It gives the next generation an education. From the demanded labors the economy have sprout an never before seen middle class. Because of the education and the opportunity it go technologic advancement. By have all though things in the new and reform government it give everyone mobility. The impact comes in differn forms shape and sizes.

Friendship: Interpersonal Relationship and Friendships

Friends and Friendships in Emerging Adulthood Carolyn Manager Barry* Loyola University Maryland Stephanie D. Madsen McDaniel College â€Å"I'll be there for you, when the rain starts to pour. â€Å"l These lyrics began each episode of the popular sitcom Friends. The trials and tribulations of these six â€Å"20-something† friends captivated the American public for a decade until Ross, Monica, Joey, Phoebe, Chandler, and Rachel eventually transitioned to adulthood at the shows closure.Perhaps the shows popularity was due to having some truth in the fiction: (a) friends can be a proxy family for young people, offering invaluable advice, support, and musicianship; (b) friends can be of the same or opposite sex, but these two types of friendship work differently; (c) friends may engage in casual sex, but may also become involved romantically; (d) friendships are central to the lives of emerging adults, especially those who are single and not in a serious romantic relationship; a nd (e) friends help people to figure themselves out and influence their behavior, potentially for both good and bad.As is the case with all TV shows, there is also pure fiction in this sitcom: these six friends lived in the same apartments in the same city ND often held down the same Job for over a decade. Instead, instability is more the norm among realize emerging adults. Also, most American young people get married and become parent's in their late ass rather than the ass (as the sitcom depicted). So while close friendships are critical to emerging adults' happiness, search for their identities, and true loves, friends become less important once they've figured out the big questions of life and â€Å"settle down† in marriage, parenthood, and careers.Still, for emerging adults, friends can fill the growing gap between the time when they leave he families they grew * Carolyn Manager Barry is an associate professor of psychology at Loyola University Maryland. Stephanie Madsen is an associate professor of psychology at McDaniel College. 2 Changing Spirituality of Emerging Adults up in and when they establish families of their own. Can Men and Women Be Friends? With persons of the same or opposite sex. Children need same-sex friendships in order to develop into socially skilled, moral, and empathetic adults.From the teen years on, it is common to make friends with both sexes, and these friendships can be f good quality, as seen in Rachel and Joeys friendship?they regularly shared problems, offered support, and simply enjoyed each other's company. Still, people most prefer same-sex friendships throughout their lives, and it is less common for men and women to be friends beyond college or after one friend marries. Friendships between men and women differ in some ways from those between people of the same sex. Men's friendships with women are more emotionally intimate than their friendships with men.And heterosexual men often seek friendships with women to w hom they are sexually attracted. Not surprisingly then, approximately Alfa of opposite-sex friends in college report that they have engaged in sexual behavior, which has the potential to hurt the relationship. However, many college students believe that sex enhances a friendship's quality and helps them to consider whether they want to remain â€Å"Just friends† or move on to something more. What Are Friendships Like? There appears to be some truth to the old adage â€Å"birds of a feather flock together. Certainly we saw this portrayed in the six characters on Friends. All shared the same ethnicity (European American), enjoyed the same activities (sipping coffee at Central Perk), and had similar levels of social skills (though Joey seemed more adept at getting dates than Ross or Chandler). Such similarities offer a common ground that strengthens friendships and helps them to endure. Women's friendships are often communal?offering companionship, intimacy, emotional security, and affection. Friends Rachel and Monica supported each other with late-night chats.Men's friendships emphasize competition and are more gigantic? providing help, a reliable alliance, and self-validation. Friends Joey and Chandler 3 competed in videotapes from matching recliners. Still, men and women value friendships with all of these features (perhaps placing greater importance on the communal). From the teen years on, intimacy becomes the hallmark of friendships and is related to how close we feel toward our friends. Emerging adults' friendships are even more emotionally intimate than their friendships of Just a few years earlier. Relationship quality depends not only on what you give friends, but also what you get.In addition to the healthy dimensions we described above, friendships can also have negative aspects, such as frequent conflict, power inequities, and antagonism. Women's friendships, in particular, can fall prey to co-rumination, where women obsess over problems in t heir lives in conversations with friends instead of taking fruitful action. In one episode of Friends, Chandler sought support from the girls following a break-up; they urged him to talk about his feelings (adding, â€Å"if you want to lead to depression. Thankfully, positive friendship qualities can help buffer negative ones.Friends focused on one particular cultural and ethnic group. Likewise, current research on emerging-adult friendships largely ignores cultural influences on friendships, though important differences exist. For example, different ethnic groups seek different friendship qualities. Asian Americans emphasize an amicable exchange of ideas, African Americans seek acceptance and respect, Latino Americans highlight the importance of relational support, and European Americans focus on meeting individual needs of each friend. How Do Friendships Change across Emerging Adulthood?Given the many transitions that emerging adults face, it is not surprising that their friendsh ips change as well. Transformations in friendships and friendship networks relate to life stage rather than age. So knowing that a person is 20 versus 26 does not ell us much about their friendships. Instead, knowing whether they are romantically involved or have children is much more informative than age alone. Friends are frequent companions, getting together at least once a week for no specific purpose (for example, gathering at Central Perk Just to talk) and less frequently 4 for events such as movies, parties, and concerts.Friends find less time to get together as they progress toward adulthood. Despite these overall changes in approaches to friendship networks, emerging adults keep their individual patterns of interacting with friends. So a very social or very shy teen will adopt the same approach to friendship networks as an emerging adult. The small friendship network on Friends remained stable over 10 years?not at all typical of most emerging adults' networks. Instead, emer ging adults become increasingly flexible in whom they include in friendship networks and how they maintain these networks.They grow more accepting of opposite-sex friendships, even keeping former boyfriends or girlfriends on as friends. European American emerging adults' friendship networks become more diverse (especially if they are exposed to more diverse social networks through allege or work), but the networks of African American, Latino American, and Asian American emerging adults become less diverse (especially if they invest in activities and groups linked to their ethnicity). Relative to the rest of the lifespan, friendship networks are the largest during early emerging adulthood and get smaller later on in emerging adulthood.Although women have more close friends than do men on average, men's and women's friendship networks are of equal size. Still, the friendship network on Friends did illustrate the density that is typical of emerging adults' friends. It is common for man y network members to share common links (working at the same place, living in the same building) or even to be friends with each other. People tend to form relationships with others in their same social situation. True to life, the characters in Friends shared roughly the same place in life when their group formed.They were single, had no or few childcare responsibilities, and were still searching for meaningful careers. More on the side of fiction, the friendship network of these television friends did not change in response to their own life changes, as is happily. Friends seldom featured the workplace, but many emerging adults find friends there as they explore career pathways and settle into adult work roles. Career stage influences the lives of single emerging-adult men, especially.These men often have large 5 friendship networks preparer, but have few friends who provide emotional or instrumental support; the time constraints inherent in beginning a career bring friendship net works down to a more manageable size. Career transitions don't seem to alter single women's friendship networks in the same way?women maintain ironsides networks during their careers that are similar in size to those they had while in their late teens and early ass. The characters on Friends had many romantic involvements, and whether emerging adults are single, dating, or married affects friendship networks.Single and dating people are strongly attached to friends, naming friends as their top companions and confidants. In contrast, romantically involved emerging adults change the time they spend with friends. Early in their relationships, emerging-adult couples spend more time with friends to introduce them to their new romantic interest. But as the relationship gets serious, the couple withdraws from the circle of friends. This was shown in the final season of Friends. By then Monica and Chandler had hooked up, fallen in love, and gotten married.When the group of friends gathered to celebrate Earache's daughter's first birthday, Monica and Chandler instead opted to sneak away for a romantic weekend alone. Typically, withdrawal is selective, with couples spending less time with peripheral friends and more time with friends who support their relationship. A few Friends characters became parent's, an event that typically happens at the end of?or even after?emerging adulthood. Although their tight friendship network remained stable, parenthood normally reorganizes friendship networks.New parent's report fewer friends following the birth of a child, and fathers, especially, report less satisfying and supportive friendships than they experienced beforehand. Family members generally do not try (and in truth feel that they should not try) to influence who emerging adults' friends are or what they do with these friends. And friendships don't often influence family relationships. Instead, some emerging adults view their friends as â€Å"being† family. Sexual-mi nority emerging adults whose families reject them sometimes adopt a family of choice from a network of supportive friends.Other emerging adults do this too, as shown when Friends characters spent Thanksgiving together instead of Joining their families. Likewise, it is common to hear emerging 6 emerging adults sometimes consider family members (especially siblings or cousins) to be friends. For example, Ross and Monica were siblings who offered each other companionship and emotional intimacy. Finding close ties among family members provides a ready source of support, but being more involved with peers helps merging adults weather some transitions better (for example, moving away from home).Friends and friendship networks also influence romantic relationships. For example, emerging adults often find new romantic partners within their existing friendship networks. This meaner that the diversity found within an emerging adult's friendship network influences the likelihood that he or she will date someone of a different race. Friends complain loudly when too much time is spent with a romantic partner (but they are likely to support the romantic relationship if they know the boyfriend or girlfriend well).Friends' support (or lack of support) for a romantic relationship affects the couple's level of commitment to the relationship. Perhaps knowing this, emerging adults are sometimes selective about the friends to whom they introduce a new romantic partner. Friends can influence break-ups, but they do so infrequently. Couples don't stay together for the sake of their friends, even though there can be a high cost to breaking up with a romantic partner when they share the same friends. For example, throughout the series, Ross and Rachel had an on-again, off-again relationship.Each time they broke up, it disrupted their friendship network. Why Do Friendships Matter to Emerging Adults? From toddlers to old age, we have friends. But why are they so important in the lives of emerging adults? First, friends support emerging adults' identity development. Friendships provide feelings of worth as well as opportunities for story telling and frank discussions about religion, life aspirations, moral dilemmas, and relationships. Certainly, friends' banter at Central Perk not only rehashed the weeks events, but also tried to make sense of the world around them.The intimacy forged wrought these heartfelt discussions not only helps with finding oneself, but also nurtures close friendships. Second, friendships contribute to how emerging adults feel about themselves; feeling good (or bad) about your friendships coincides with feeling good (or bad) about 7 yourself. Emerging adults who rarely spend time with their friends are lonely. But spending time with friends who validate their feelings brings happiness (perhaps this explains why Joey was perpetually happy, despite not having much success as a which are useful during the many?and at times anxiety-inducing?trans itions that merging adults face.Third, friendships support emerging adults' understandings of how relationships work, and, in fact, many discussions center on these ties. Friendships provide occasions to see things from someone else's point of view. This, in turn, helps emerging adults to think through issues more critically and carefully. Fourth, friendships offer companionship?both in person and from afar?during what can be a lonely time. Over the past decade, emerging adults have increasingly relied upon cell phones, testing, instant messaging, and social networking sites like Faceable to communicate with friends.Online friendships can be good ones, especially when they last long enough to develop into emotionally close and supportive relationships that supplement existing friendships. On the other hand, having 800 â€Å"online friends† is not equivalent to having friends you see regularly. In the coming years, maybe we'll know what benefits online-only friendships serve a nd when it is that technologies improve?rather than undermine?friendships. For now it is safe to say that most emerging adults use technology to enhance existing friendships rather than to replace them.Lastly, friendships involve intimacy and interdependence, and the development of these skills supports ongoing and future romantic relationships. Same-sex friends regularly discuss their romantic relationships?especially problems. Given that men find the most intimacy in their friendships with women, these friendships probably help them to develop emotional intimacy skills they'll need for other close relationships. Can Birds of a Feather Shape a Flock? Emerging adults report that friends affect their major life decisions.In fact, friends' behaviors affect emerging adults' positive outcomes, including church attendance. Friends' behaviors also influence more negative outcomes (e. . , those with aggressive 8 friends are more likely to abuse their romantic partners). Besides friends' be havior, the quality of the friendship matters, with â€Å"better† friendships promoting positive adjustment and reducing problem behaviors. We don't yet know whether these effects are due to choosing a bird with similar feathers or birds shaping each other's behavior? likely it is a bit of both. What Does Friends Teach Us about Friends?Friends went off the air in 2005, but through DVD releases and syndication it continues to illustrate core concepts about emerging-adult friendships today. This show offers key implications for practitioners working with actual 20-something friends. 1 . Friendships are important in emerging adulthood, but their importance changes as romantic relationships become more salient and stable. Amid emerging- adults' numerous transitions, practitioners should ask troubled young people about and (mostly) platonic opposite-sex friendships, in reality these are less common than same-sex ones.As seen in Ross and Earache's relationship, the line between a f riend and a romantic/sexual partner is often fuzzy, creating feelings of anticipation and disappointment. Practitioners should be careful not to assume that opposite-sex friendships among heterosexuals are platonic or romantic. 3. Practitioners should strive to create environments that support friendships with diverse peoples. For many young people, moving out on their own provides their first exposure to individuals with substantially different backgrounds and ideas from their own. Interactions with these individuals can support growing maturity. . Friends are influential for better and for worse. Helping emerging adults form friendships with people who show positive behaviors (e. G. Ammonia's career success) will, in turn, promote successful development. Likewise, emerging adults whose friends are making poor life decisions may find it helpful to distance themselves from these friends and align themselves with other friends who are making better decisions. 9 5. Friendships are par ticularly important for marginalia peoples (ethnic or sexual minorities), and efforts to form friendships with allies and similar others will serve these young people well.For some, friendship and family networks overlap. Friends may be close enough to be considered â€Å"family'; likewise, some emerging adults insider family members to fulfill friendship needs as well, as Monica and Ross clearly did. 6. Although Friends' characters were limited to cell phone use, modern- day emerging adults are as'. N. Y with technologies such as testing and social networking sites to support existing friendships rather than supplant them. This appears to be a positive dimension of friendships that makes sense given that they are always on the move.But practitioners should encourage face-to-face interactions, particularly for very personal and life-transforming discussions?not all of life's battles can be won or lost via Faceable. . Emerging adults weather transitions best when they maintain exist ing friendships but are open to forming new friendships. For example, upon moving to the city, Rachel rekindled her old friendship with Monica but established new friendships with the other four. This may be challenging for some emerging adults who prefer to stick close to family, but making friends in new settings benefits them in the long run.Throughout our whole lives?but especially in emerging adulthood, it seems?we need friends who will â€Å"be there† for Notes The Rembrandt (1995), â€Å"I'll Be There for You,† Atlantic Records. Episode 14; â€Å"The One with the Cake,† season 10, episode 4; â€Å"The One with All the Thanksgivings,† season 5, episode 8; â€Å"The Pilot† (â€Å"The One Where Monica Gets a Roommate†), season 1, episode 1 . 10 Annotated Bibliography Fall, W. A. , and Faulkner, S. L. (2000). On being â€Å"Just friends†: The frequency and impact of sexual activity in cross-sex friendships. Journal of Social and Pe rsonal Relationships, 17, 205-222.Can women and men be â€Å"Just friends†? These authors sampled American university students and found that some emerging adults can have platonic friendships with the opposite sex. However, approximately half of heterosexual college students have had sex with opposite-sex friends. Among those who added â€Å"benefits† to their friendships, some did so frequently and others only every few years. The overwhelming majority of these friends were single when sexual encounters occurred, but a third of these friendships included at least one romantically involved friend.Having sex with a friend was relationship-enhancing in some cases and quite damaging in others. Allan, G. (2008). Flexibility, friendship, and family. Personal Relationships, 15, 1-16. In a comprehensive and current overview of reindeer's (including friendships in emerging adulthood), this author highlights instances where friendship and family overlap, support each other, an d are in conflict with each other. A sociologist, Dry. Allan especially focuses on societal changes over the past 40 years that have allowed people to enjoy greater freedom and flexibility in forming their own personal relationships.He reflects on suffusion in relationships (the merging family and friend relationships) but emphasizes that people have distinct understanding of these two types of relationships. Bagel, C. L. , Bender, S. E. Andresen's, C. L. , Kinshasa, T. L. , Monticello, S. A. , and Mueller, J. G. (2005). Friendship quality and perceived relationship changes predict psychosocial adjustment in early adulthood. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 22, 235- 254. 11 It seems that although friends agree about the quality of their relationship, each person has a slightly different view of the relationship.When friends disagreed about their relationship, they felt less satisfied about the friendship and were more hostile. So while having friendships with positive d imensions is important, noting the extent f negative dimensions in the relationship matters as well, particularly as it can shape an individual's well-being. Barry, C. M. , Madsen, S. D. , Nelson, L. J. , Carroll,J. S. , adulthood: Differential associations with identity development and achieved adulthood criteria. Journal of Adult Development, 16, 209-222. How do friendships change as emerging adults move toward adulthood?In a study of over 700 emerging adults, these authors found that people who were more â€Å"adulteries† actually had poorer quality friendships than did those who had not yet made adult commitments. In contrast, adulteries emerging adults had better romantic relationships. It seems that some of the steps toward becoming an adult (settling into a career, avoiding risky behavior, etc. ) might happen because of romantic partners more than because of friends. Boost, K. K. , Cox, M. J. , Brunching, M. R. , and Payne, C. (2002).Structural and supportive changes i n couples' family and friendship networks across the transition to parenthood. Journal of Marriage and Family, 64, 517-531. Having a baby changes everything?including friendship networks. These authors followed 137 couples from he time they were expecting to their children's second birthdays. Close friendships were especially important to new mothers over this time period, while their husbands' friendship networks declined and became less satisfying. For all parent's, having close friendships protected against feelings of depression during this transition.Crabber, J. , and Burgomaster, D. (1998). Friendship and need fulfillment during three phases of young adulthood. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 15, 393-409. 12 Changing Spirituality of Emerging Adults These scholars examined how friendship lays out in different phases of emerging adulthood defined by family roles rather than by age: the single phase, the meritorious-children phase, and the parenthood phase. Emerging adults rely on friends to meet social needs the most during the single phase, slowing down their reliance as they move to the married and parenthood phases.Women call on friends for emotional support more than men do across all three phases. Deck', E. L. , Laggardly, J. G. , Miller, A. C. , schemer, M. J. , and Ryan, R. M. (2006). On the benefits of giving as well as receiving autonomy support: Mutuality in close friendships. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 32, 313-327. Is it better to give than to receive support? The originators of Self-Determination Theory (Decide and Ryan, 2000) showed that receiving support from authority figures makes a big difference in people's motivation and satisfaction.This study extends their findings to friendships, where each partner is equal in terms of their authority. Indeed, people benefit by giving and receiving autonomy support to/from their friends, but it is the giving of such support to a close friend that matters more to a person 's well-being. Admire, M. , Oxidize, M. , and Whitecap, L. A. (2007). Looking to happy tomorrows with friends: Best and close friendships as they predict happiness. Journal of Happiness Studies, 8, 243-271. While friendship and happiness seem like a natural fit, the story is more complicated.Do all friends make people happy? The scholars find that spending time with a best friend makes people happy, especially when they also spend time with a person's happiness. Female, D. H. (2001). No couple is an island: A social network perspective on dyadic stability. Social Forces, 79, 1259-1287. How do friends affect emerging adults' romantic relationships? Interestingly, this study finds that thinking hat friends support a romantic relationship matters more 13 than how much they actually support it.These perceptions of support from friends lead to more stable relationships, but at the same time, having a really close best friendship makes it less likely that a romantic relationship will endu re (perhaps because the friendship competes with the romantic partnership for one's time). It seems that friendships can have both positive and negative effects on emerging adults' romantic relationships. Grief, G. L. (2009). Buddy system: Understanding male friendships. New York: Oxford University Press. Considerable emphasis has been given to women's friendships with their hallmark high levels of emotional intimacy.The author levels the playing field in this book by summarizing extensive interviews with 400 men to describe what makes their friendships tick, affirming the importance of friendships for the well-being of men and communities. Additional interviews with women allow for appropriate contrast between the two genders. The author presents a typology of different kinds of male friendships: must (friends with whom it is critical to share important news), trust (highly liked friends, but not as useful as a must reined), Just (acquaintances who are companions), and rust friends (long-time friends).Lastly, characteristics of male friendships from early to late adulthood are described and interwoven with meaningful life events that shape these close relationships. Hearth, W. W. , and Stevens, N. (1997). Friendships and adaptation in the life course. Psychological Bulletin, 121, 355-370. These scholars show that friendships add considerable value throughout the lifespan. People's expectations and descriptions of their friends change throughout life, which makes sense given that people's thinking becomes more sophisticated. Regardless of these changes, people of all ages agree that friendships should involve both give and take.How friends engage with one another does change with age and situation. While having friends generally is a good thing for people, it depends upon the identity of friends and the quality of these relationships. 14 Letterer, A. M. , Griffin, E. M. , and Sparks, G. G. (2007). Forecasting â€Å"friends forever†: A longitudinal inves tigation of sustained closeness between best friends. Personal Relationships, 14, 343-350. Following a cohort of university students from 1983 until 2002, these scholars examine which college friendship characteristics matter in