Tuesday, December 24, 2019

The Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison - 2489 Words

â€Å"I AM AN invisible man.† A story of obstacles of durable struggle, but hope, and everlasting search for voice in a narrow-minded society; The Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison depicts the dehumanization and feeling of being ostracized in society, of one man. Imagine a time when everyone you encounter have a racial thought or credibility toward your own races, never considering the fact that who you are as a person does not matter worth a dime. You are better determines on shade of your skin which hide your voice effectively towards America. Finding a grinning face on a black male face is rare occasion back then probably invisible to the naked eye. Ralph Ellison in the invisible man uses character development and voice to describe the blindness and invisibility the protagonist feels but the larger motif Ellison alludes to in society. The challenges that are faced through the eyes of the narrator of The Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison give’s the audience the outlook of a man’s struggle to find a place in society where he no longer feels invisible. To begin with, The Invisible Man’s impact to society’s outlook towards African-American’s brought to light how society impacts individuals and how they each see the world. The Invisible Man prompts the world with idealistic thoughts that goes throughout or forceful matters in literacy. To put it another way â€Å"The book was called Black Fiction (Rosenblatt), Ellison was only 39 when the first-person narrative became the bestsellerShow MoreRelatedInvisible Man By Ralph Ellison1366 Words   |  6 Pagesfighter left standing, amidst unbridled carnage. The titular narrator of Ralph Ellison s novel Invisible Man, is no stranger to those experiences. In the beginning, he is forced to fight several other black boxers for the amusement of many heckling, white spectators. Through the imaginative use of objects, symbols, allusions, and the actions, thoughts, and purposes of the spectators, pugilists and risquà © entertainment, Ellison seeks to express a powerful im age of American race relations and womenRead MoreInvisible, Invisible Man, By Ralph Ellison1994 Words   |  8 PagesInvisible Race and Gender in Invisible Man, by Ralph Ellison In Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison, the unnamed narrator shows us through the use motifs and symbols how racism and sexism negatively affect the social class and individual identity of the oppressed people. Throughout the novel, the African American narrator tells us the story of his journey to find success in life which is sabotaged by the white-dominated society in which he lives in. Along his journey, we are also shown how the patriarchyRead MoreThe Invisible Man By Ralph Ellison Essay2164 Words   |  9 Pagestrying to rebel against the status quo. Protest literature emerged from the Harlem Renaissance in the 1920’s to 1930’s. Protest literature is used to address real socio-political issues and express objections against them. In his novel, The Invisible Man, Ralph Ellison exposes the racism in society by focusing on the culture, in regards to the expected assimilation of African Americans and how the time period largely influenced the mistreatment of the African A merican population. He also uses symbolsRead MoreInvisible Man By Ralph Ellison1246 Words   |  5 Pagesauthor of Invisible Man, Ralph Ellison, was born March 1st, 1914, and died April 16, 1994. He was born in Oklahoma City and named after Ralph Waldo Emerson, a famous journalist and poet. When Ellison was 3, his father died of a work-related accident, leaving his mother to care for him and his younger brother. As a young boy, he always wanted to major in music, and he went to Tuskegee University to become a composer and performer of music. The summer before his senior year in college, Ellison went toRead MoreInvisible Man By Ralph Ellison909 Words   |  4 PagesInvisible Man by Ralph Ellison is a novel which embodies the universal theme of self-discovery, of the search to figure out who one truly is in life which we all are embarked upon. Throughout the text, the narrator is constantly wondering about who he really is, and evaluating the different identities which he assumes fo r himself. He progresses from being a hopeful student with a bright future to being just another poor black laborer in New Your City to being a fairly well off spokesperson for aRead MoreInvisible Man By Ralph Ellison1277 Words   |  6 PagesInvisible Man, by Ralph Ellison, is a story about a young African American man whose color renders him invisible. The theme of racism as a hurdle to individual identity is present throughout the story in a variety of examples. From the beginning of the novel the theme of identity is evident as the narrator states, â€Å"All my life I had been looking for something, and everywhere I turned someone tried to tell me what I was† (Ellison, p. 1254). In the midst of living in a racist American society the speakersRead MoreThe Invisible Man By Ralph Ellison3051 Words   |  13 Pagesportrayed through the narrator’s, the invisible man, journey through life. The problems with society are foreshadowed by the racism and the symbols of the color white presented in the paint plant. â€Å"The Invisible Man† by Ralph Ellison depicts the African Americans struggle to be viewed as an equal member of society through the narrators struggles through life to discover his individuality or place in society while the white man or the community conspires to â€Å"keep the black man down†. The story follows theRead MoreThe Invisible Man By Ralph Ellison977 Words   |  4 PagesBook Review: Invisible Man Invisible Man is an American Literature novel published by Ralph Ellison in 1952. The novel traces the experiences of a young college black man growing up in Harlem, New York. Attempting to succeed in a predominantly white society, the narrator encounters shocks and disillusionments from being expelled from college to hiding in an underground hole to protect himself from the people above. He lives a repressed life as an â€Å"Invisible Man† for he believes that society ignoresRead MoreInvisible Man By Ralph Ellison1032 Words   |  5 Pageslike modern society some people leads, and others will follow. Subjects will conditionally generate their own ideas and realize these ideas rather than just be assigned tasks that question their beliefs. The author Ralph Ellison illustrates it best. Ellison’s realistic fiction Invisible Man perpetuates the manifestation of manipulation over the minorities in this society. As the narrator embraces every identity he has been given, h e starts to become more independent, and a leader in his community. Read MoreInvisible Man By Ralph Ellison1481 Words   |  6 PagesInvisible Man is a novel by Ralph Ellison, published in 1952. It addresses many of the social and intellectual issues facing African-Americans in the early twentieth century. This includes black nationalism, the relationship between black identity and Marxism, and the reformist racial policies of Booker T. Washington, as well as issues of individuality and personal identity. The grandson of slaves, Ralph Ellison was born in 1914 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and was raised in Tulsa, Oklahoma. His

Sunday, December 15, 2019

Edgar Germain Hilaire Degas’ “Waiting” Free Essays

Among the most interesting work of modern art on display in the J. Paul Getty Museum is Edgar Germain Hilaire Degas’ â€Å"Waiting,† a pastel painting done around 1882. In this work, Degas captures the picture of a young ballerina and an older woman sitting on a bench, apparently waiting for something to happen or someone to arrive. We will write a custom essay sample on Edgar Germain Hilaire Degas’ â€Å"Waiting† or any similar topic only for you Order Now The painting is a study of the sharp contrast between youth and old age, which is illustrated in the play of colors, light, and shadows that the painter carefully preserved in his work. The young ballerina is painted in soft colors of gold, blue, and cream which reflect the light while the older woman is garbed in black. In the same manner, the younger subject is painted to suggest motion, energy and restlessness; here she is massaging her feet, apparently waiting for a performance to begin. The woman, on the other hand, is immobile, devoid of light movement and comes across to be waiting for the action to end so she can rest. Degas’ â€Å"Waiting† is displayed in a small dark room located on the left side of the museum entrance. Exhibited along with it are German painter Joseph Vivien’s â€Å"Portrait of a Man† and Swiss painter Jean-Étienne Liotard’s â€Å"Maria Frederike van Reede-Athlone at Seven.† The darkness of the room brings out the sharp contrast in colors and the use of light in the pastels. Likewise, its small size is clearly meant to convey a sense of intimacy wherein the viewer feels a sense of privilege at catching a glimpse of so personal a thing as an individual’s portrait. The arrangement of the paintings depicts the various influences of artists according to their respective periods. In particular, the works show the progression of portraiture and the use of pastel as a medium since Vivien’s â€Å"Portrait of a Man† in 1725 to Degas’ â€Å"Waiting† a century and a half later. It is clear that Degas’ work is a huge departure from the conventional concept of painting people’s portraits. Vivien’s portrait is carefully composed according to the artistic conventions of balance and color; its subject is self-consciously positioned at the center of the canvass, capturing the face, and his figure appears to come out of the shadows. Vivien’s colors are austere and sombre, which reflects the prevailing style at that time. Liotard’s â€Å"Maria Frederike van Reede-Athlone,† on the other hand, reflects a subtle change in the painter’s pallet from Vivien’s dark, muted colors to bold, albeit cold tones. However, the same rule is applied regarding the subject’s position. Hence, Degas’ â€Å"Waiting† stands out in sharp contrast to the two paintings. First, he clearly circumvents the prevailing concept of portraiture by showing two subjects who assume positions that are not usually accepted in portraiture: the young girl is shown massaging her feet, which makes her face unseen by the audience, while the woman’s face is half-covered by her hat. Degas also draws his subjects from a very different angle and perspective; he is obviously not as interested in showing their facial countenances as in showing their characters through body language. He also abandons the dark tones in favor of bold, bright, and warm colors to create dramatic contrasts in his work. â€Å"Waiting† illustrates Degas’ affinity with the impressionist movement, although he apparently abhorred being called one because of major ideological rifts with prominent impressionist painters. He particularly criticized his self-confessed impressionist contemporaries for their practice of painting in â€Å"plein-air† as he believed that it was tantamount to copying which interfered with the artist’s imagination. (Smith 58) Nevertheless, Degas’ work clearly shares the same impressionist characteristics as shown in his style and choice of events and people of everyday life as subjects. Like the works of most impressionist painters such as Edouard Manet, Claude Monet, Pierre Auguste Renoir, Alfred Sisley, Berthe Morisot, Jean Frederic Bazille, and Camille Pissarro, Degas’ â€Å"Waiting† reflected the belief that â€Å"art should relate to the real world and reflect modern life† as opposed to painting religious and mythological figures that was traditionally favored by connosieurs of high art. (Snider) Its choice of subject, a ballerina and her companion in the process of waiting, captures an aspect of modern French life. Its style undoubtedly mirrors the impressionists’ fascination with capturing light in the most realistic manner, and its colors also carry the impressionist preference for warm, vibrant tones that suggest movement and life. Although Degas’ works and his obsession with the figures of women, particularly dancers, in his paintings have often invited varied interpretation from art critics and academicians, it is clear that his middle-class background and upbringing has tremendous influence in shaping his choice of subjects. (Theodore 145) Reff Theodore infers that Degas’ passion for painting movement arose from his early exposure to the ballet which was â€Å"a familiar part of the contemporary scene† in nineteenth century Paris. (145) The impact of Degas’ background is also seen in his being â€Å"deeply concerned with truth for its own sake, in probing life beneath the crust of good manners† (Nicolson 172) in his depiction of Parisian modern life. In â€Å"Waiting,† Degas honestly portrays the differences between his subjects, in effect making a statement about the sad truth that the young ballerina, with all her vibrancy and beauty, will soon pass into the life of her companion, drained and weary of the world. It is suggested that Degas’ and other impressionists’ ideas were largely influenced by the rapid technological and social developments of their time. Indeed, impressionism drew much of its ideas from innovations, techniques, and concepts in photography. (Snider) Clearly, Degas and his contemporaries were so impressed by the ability of photographs to capture the exact effect of light on its subjects that they sought to recreate this ability in their paintings. Other painters, like Monet, even tried to copy the photographic effects of varying shutter speeds in his work. (Snider) Degas’ background as an artist produced and molded by extraordinary and tumultous changes in his time that was brought about by the rapid industrialization of France and all of Europe, his pastel work â€Å"Waiting† could be displayed in another gallery together with Claude Monet’s â€Å"Gare Saint-Lazare,† a painting which shows the Saint-Lazare train station. This painting would give a contemporary audience an idea of â€Å"Waiting’s† background as the train is a ubiquitous symbol of the industrial revolution which gripped not only the economic but also cultural life of Europe in Degas’ time. Hence, Monet’s work sets the mood for Degas’ curious study of youth and old age in the age of modernity, where everything passes quickly. Other works that could be exhibited alongside Degas’ â€Å"Waiting† is Auguste Renoir’s painting â€Å"The Dance at the Moulin Delagalette† and Degas’ own work â€Å"The Millinery Shop† which shows the social activities of the French middle class and the activities of working-class women, respectively. The two paintings would also highlight the contrast that Degas sought to portray in his subjects, wherein Renoir’s middle-class subjects, painted as they socialize in a party, is compared with a lone woman while making hats that are ostensibly worn by those who can afford it. Likewise, Andy Warhol’s â€Å"Campbell Soup Cans† would also be a fitting touch to the gallery as it signifies the advent of mass production. Although Warhol’s work is at odds with the impressionist theme of Degas’ work, it nevertheless echoes the â€Å"ordinariness† and repetitive pattern of modern life that Degas captures in his painting. Works Cited: Nicolson, Benedict. â€Å"Degas’ Monotypes.† The Burlington Magazine 100.662 (May 1958):172-175 Reff, Theodore. â€Å"Edgar Degas and the Dance.† Arts Magazine 53.3(November 1978):145-149. Smith, George E. â€Å"James, Degas, and the Modern View.† NOVEL: A Forum on Fiction 21.1 (Autumn 1987): 56-72 Snider, Lindsay. â€Å"A Lasting Impression: French Painters Revolutionize the Art World.† The History Teacher, 25.1(November 2001). 5 May 2008. http://historycooperative.org/ How to cite Edgar Germain Hilaire Degas’ â€Å"Waiting†, Essay examples

Saturday, December 7, 2019

Knowledge Management in Hewlett-Packard Free-Samples for Students

Questions: 1.List the Knowledge Management Initiatives adopted by HP? 2.Explain the Impact of adopting Knowledge Management Practices on HPs Success. 3.The Case Study Indicated that HP has used Lotus notes as a technology vehicle to Establish different Knowledge Bases. Conduct a Brief search about Lotus notes and Explain how it is useful in Establishing a Knowledge base. What is the Importance of having a Knowledge base in Knowledge Management? 4. Why do you think the Training Review never took off? What could have Karney done in order to make it Work?5. What are the Incentives that Karney used to promote the Knowledge Bases? What was the Effect of those Incentives?6. Karney declared that there is a risk with the Knowledge Base. What was it and how did he Propose to Overcome it? 7. Why do you think the Knowledge Management with PPO Customers Initiative did not succeed? Answers: Introduction Knowledge management is the process in which information and knowledge are captured, organized and efficiently distributed. It involves an approach that identifies, evaluates and shares all the knowledge pertaining an organization. Knowledge management is crucial to the success of the organization. HP is an organization that applied the knowledge management policy to identify its strengths, evaluates its market and improve the overall performance of the organization. 1.Adopted knowledge management initiatives Hewlett-Packard Company adopted three knowledge management initiatives (Goh, et al., 2011). The management held a sequence of seminars on knowledge management. The initiative was to bring together all people all people within the organization. They came up with the three knowledge management projects. Creating a bond of the experts This was intended to be the source of knowledge for human resources in the company labs. Tony Carrozza, one of the Information Technical Engineer, developed a directory known as Connex, where all employees profiles are set, basing on their knowledge in particular fields. Trainers Trading Post HP adopted this initiative with the aim of having educators distributed across the company. This were the people who found it hard to share knowledge, and the idea was to work on a common method of sharing knowledge among the educators and trainers Development of knowledge links This involved a collection of knowledge on the development of products in the company in a knowledge link .it contained information obtained from expertise by the knowledge information editors. However, this goal failed, and the network was not developed. This led to the development of HP Network News database that contained the FAQs section on their products to assist customers (Goh, et al., 2011) 2.Impact of adopting knowledge management practices The dissemination of knowledge within the business units was highly achieved in HP. The workshop enabled the various groups to gain expertise in the management of information within the company.Through Trainers Trading Post more knowledge was shared by educators and a great improvement was noted among those individuals who had a problem with sharing knowledge. HP realized a massive flow of methods and ideas among the internal employees with the help of Lotus Notes Technology .the shared knowledge has led to the development of high-tech products. Through Knowledge management, faster decision making was realized. When internal business units, came together in large numbers, various opinions were generated which helped in making decisions (Baets, 2005). Workgroups brought together their actual experiences in their fields, which helped in shared ideas that shaped HPs decisions. Creating Connex, aimed at taking advantage of the experiences of existent experts in HP. This created teamwork among members. They benefited from knowledge contributed by each learning from experiences of other people is beneficial, increasing productivity since members apply the acquired knowledge in the current requisites. 3. Lotus Notes Lotus Notes is a software application that arranges and portrays databases to the users business workspace. According to Calabria and Burke (2002), Lotus Notes combines applications in business, messaging and e-mailing and collaboration into one workstation.It is an importation tool in sharing informing thus creating a knowledge database. It is crucial in every business because of its integration power, where a business uses it for emails team working, collaborative learning and knowledge management under the same space. Through developments, Lotus Notes is used in various ways in knowledge, management to create a knowledge base. This is created when individuals in business are involved in sharing of opinions, ideas, and their experiences. This creates a collaborative database that contains all the information thats is shared and discussed through the emails (Trochim, Arora and Donnelly, 2016). In knowledge management, a knowledge base important because some of the information stored may need to be updated over time as well as for future reference. .the information stored may also be used training to other new recruits in an organization. A knowledge base increases productivity in the business, this due to the fact, employees spend more time searching reviewing information on how to perform work. The team working, is another benefit of the knowledge base. This is because some employees use the stored information to work together and combine their opinions on stored data. 4.Failed training review The training review failed because of the educator's reluctance to share their opinions through online databases on the importance of evaluations materials and those who provided them. The lack of motivation by the employees was the major setback. They felt that there was no motivation in the collection of the reports, such as rewards for doing so. This member of the organization lacked the initiative to adopt the consumer reports and get knowledge from them. In realization of why the Training Review failed, Karney would have created a structure that eliminates the hindrances that were hindering members from sharing knowledge through the evaluation of consumer reports.' They are major steps involved in designing a successful structure for the interaction. First, the kidney would have a created an interactive virtual environment where members would share their knowledge on the consumer reports in an interesting manner. This virtual space would be ideal in discussing the importance of consumer market. With every idea and material evaluated, a member would earn points. Those with the highest points would have a chance to attended conferences with high profile marketers in the United States. Secondly, while earning points, members would feel, that there is a reward, in engaging in the knowledge sharing. Hence, all members would strive in earning the highest points. Karney needed to come up with a motivational system to spearhead the engagemen t by members in the training review. Lastly, in every knowledge sharing platform, leaders need to act as an example to the members by taking part in the process of sharing knowledge. In this scenarios, Karney would have been involved in engaging with other members. This would have made the platform easier and more systematic by being a part of it. If leaders engage, members would be motivated to do as well. 5.Incentives to promote knowledge bases. Karney promoted knowledge bases by using incentives. He used different incentives to create motivation in members. He issued the free miles. This were Notes given freely to the users who engaged in the knowledge databases. In addition, he enabled earning points through every contribution made by a member. Karney used voice mail persuasions as well as emails to increase the number of the contribution made by members. This incentive had impacts, to the knowledge bases. For example, through the free notes, a lot of members engaged more in submitting contributions as well as reading what had been shared.Within a period of a year, at least 67% of the educators had read posts while 63% had contributed to the knowledge gathered. Incentives have led to increased motivation among members to share knowledge on the various topics on products, market and competitive advantage in HP. There was an increasing number of members who participated, thus a noted increase in the knowledge sharing. There was a lot of new information disseminated in the knowledge databases that enriched HP at large. The members of this organization assumed a positive approach to the knowledge sharing process due to the incentives. They realized the importance of knowledge gathered and how it was impacting the organization positively. Enrichment in knowledge led to more innovations and more productivity among members (House and Price, 2009). 6.Risks in knowledge bases Karney pointed out that the knowledge base was in danger of going down if there lacked someone to push for it. Karney realized that if he did not follow up on the database, it could not thrive in the company and there would be fewer contributions. In this case, there was no teamwork and self-motivation to manage the databases. Karney realized that the knowledge bases solely dependent on a promoter to steer motivation for the members to engage. There was a need to create the spirit of virtual teamwork among members so that, the knowledge database could run without his presence. This involved initiating an interest among members on the importance of knowledge databases and their impact on their performance. This would be achieved by creating training opportunities for the employees, to create awareness on the need and importance of the knowledge databases, (Ishikawa Naka, 2007). Teamwork is used to create the culture of an organization, improve unity among workers and to increase performance in the organization. HP needs to create the spirit of teamwork for members to have the personal initiative energy to be able to appreciate knowledge bases. There was a need for Karney create a committed staff to be accountable for the database rather than holding everyone accountable. 7.Knowledge with PPO customers initiative Summarizing knowledge across all PPO was considered beyond limits of HP and did not succeed. The knowledge links needed a lot of members and experts to work on and set it up, but in HP, there were members to maintain this database with time, (2014, HP). This members lack the zeal to engage in the database systems. Due to the need for a wide range of knowledge that was required by knowledge links, this system was not built due to the lack of experts in the fields required. Since HP did not have a committed team to work with, it was going to be difficult to generate knowledge for the PPO customers initiative. This initiative needed all the members of HP to be dedicated to contributing content, but they lacked motivation and needed to be pushed to do it This initiative was calling for a very wide range of information that HP could not handle. There were gaps in the knowledge expertise among the HP team which would not fit the requirements of the PPO customer knowledge management. There was no need for HP to build a system that they were not going to keep up with since it would have created the wrong image in the market leading to customer loss. PPO knowledge management project The current projects that HP is working on are; the first project involves the information on HPs organization competitors. The second involves creating a link that is web based for all the information gathered on research. Lastly, the final system is intended to manage marketing intelligence internationally, (Goldman Reyes 2008). These projects are likely to face various risks in their implementation. One of the major risks is the barriers in technology. This software could face several breakdowns leading to the loss of the information gathered. To maintain the software, HP would require incurring high costs which would impact negatively to the organization .another technological barrier is that of IT literacy among members of the organization .lack of know-how on operating this system may be a major setback for the accomplishments of this systems. The other major risk likely to face this projects is the lack of content. Content for this systems requires a lot of research .this barrier links to individuals in the organization. Are the individuals willing to get high-quality content for over a long period and do they have the skills to generate this content? To work with IT, technology members of the organization need to have knowledge of the type of information to be put across. They are various ways to overcome these risks in the organization. The first initiative is to train the members on how these systems work and the technology they use. This enables the members to be fully equipped on how these projects work. On the content risk, only members with the expertise required should be in charge of this projects to generate useful content. References Baets, W. R. J. (2005). Knowledge management and management learning: extending the horizons of knowledge-based management. Springer E-Books. New York, Springer. https://public.eblib.com/choice/publicfullrecord.aspx?p=302834. Draghici, A. (2007). New Business Requirements in the Knowledge-Based Society. Dudek D., (2014). HP. Amsterdam, Medianet . Goldman, R. L., Reyes, J. G. (2008). The PPO. Health Marketing Quarterly. 1, 101-107. Goh, Mark, Thompson, S. H. Teo, Nishant, Rohit, Agarwal, Sameer. (2011). Leveraging collaborative technologies to build a knowledge sharing culture at HP Analytics. MIS Quarterly Executive, Vol. 10, No. 1, Pp. 1-18. Indiana: Indiana University. https://researchoutputs.unisa.edu.au/1959.8/123650 House, C. H., Price, R. L. (2009). The HP Phenomenon: Innovation and Business Transformation. Palo Alto, Stanford University Press. Available from https://public.eblib.com/choice/publicfullrecord.aspx?p=543987. Hooper, K. (2011). IBM Lotus Notes 8.5 user guide: Lite: a practical, hands-on user guide with time-saving tips and comprehensive instructions for using the Lotus Notes client interface and mail effectively and efficiently. Birmingham, UK, Packt Publishing. International Conference on Knowledge Management in Organizations, Uden, L. (2013). The 8th International Conference on Knowledge Management in Organizations: social and big data computing for knowledge management. Available from https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=truescope=sitedb=nlebkdb=nlabkAN=638849 Ishikawa, A., Naka, I. (2007). Knowledge management and risk strategies. Hackensack, NJ, World Scientific. Available from https://site.ebrary.com/id/10188784. Jennex, M. E. (2009). Knowledge management, organizational memory, and transfer behavior: global approaches and advancements. Hershey, PA, Information Science Reference. Available from https://site.ebrary.com/id/10257336 LI, J., Cao, L., Wang, C., Tan, K. C., Liu, B., Pei, J., Tseng, V. S. (2013). Trends and applications in knowledge discovery and data mining: PAKDD 2013 International Workshops: DMApps, DANTH, QIMIE, BDM, CDA, CloudSD, Gold Coast, QLD, Australia, And April 14-17, 2013: revised selected papers. https://public.eblib.com/choice/publicfullrecord.aspx?p=3092986. Rhoads, E., O'sullivan, K. J., Stankosky, M. J. (2007). An Evaluation of Factors that Influence the Success of Knowledge Management Practices in U.S. Federal Agencies. International Journal of Knowledge Management. 3, 31-46 Ruhe, G., Wohlin, C. (2014). Software project management in a changing world. Available from https://public.eblib.com/choice/publicfullrecord.aspx?p=1965576. Schiuma, G., Iwaarden, J. V., Carlucci, D. (2014). Knowledge-based value creation dynamics in 21st-century organizations. Bradford, Emerald Group Publishing Limited. Available from https://public.eblib.com/choice/publicfullrecord.aspx?p=1752808. Steven Y., (2010). PPO annual. Melbourne, Great Southern Press. Trochim, W. M. K., Arora, K., Donnelly, J. P. (2016). Research methods: the essential knowledge base. Boston, MA, Cengage Learning. CALABRIA, J., BURKE, D. (2002). Lotus Notes. Indianapolis, Que. Available from https://proquest.safaribooksonline.com/078

Saturday, November 30, 2019

Summary of Arabic Blackberry Adapting to the Language of the Market Essay Example

Summary of Arabic Blackberry: Adapting to the Language of the Market Essay Summary of Arabic Blackberry:Adapting to the language of the market Lynn-T Facts: The UAEs mobile phone provider telco Etisalat collaborated with the creators of the Blackberry,RIM,to create the Arabic version of the e-mail smart phone. The Blackberry has brought about the buzz wordpush e-mail into the business world. In other words,each and every e-mail is delivered instantaneously and individually to handsets. The adoption of push e-mail is the first step in improving the mobility and communications between business and within business in the Middle East.Ultimately, it is hoped that this will open the door to other services and applications that will allow users to experience the advantages of an office environment no matter where they may be. There is great competition between the handset sellers to become the leading device that achieves the dominant market share in the Middle East. Some of the manufacturers provide the reseller with a valuable, ongoing income stream. Resellers n eed some skills, such as basic networking, networking integration, messaging, and some element of expertise in security.But some of the other manufacturers believe that push e-mail is very straightfoward and can be easily understood by the end user, so there is no need to involve resellers and make the application seem more complex than it is. They feel that this will only inhibit the adoption of the system. Although it is popular, it has not achieves the market penetration of the U. S. Or Europe yet. There are other issues,too, which have impeded the adoption of the push e-mail system. The devices are very expensive. In itself, this is not the issue,but replacement costs would be prohibitive if they were lost or stolen.The United Arab Emirates is the market in the Middle East. Banks and the hospitality and the financial sectors have been the main purchasers. Most small-to -medium-sized business are waiting for out until the price drops and the technology is fully proven. Once these two factors fall into place, the demand for the new technology will be enormous. Problems and solutions (1)P:The one thing holding the widespread adoption of the technology back is other business in the supply chain and those who are either unwilling or unable to adopt the technology. One of the main challenges is the lack of awareness in the technology itself and its benefits. S:The Sony Ericsson Middle East company said that we have an ongoing educational program for our distributors and retailers,and that is how we update our business partners on the latest innovations and the latest technologies available in the mobile communications industry. In addition to that,we have our merchandising team which is in regular contact with the trade and helps to educate and inform the retailers on a regular basis. (2)P:Security and the fact that sensitive data could be lost or stolen by a companys competitors. The vendors and resellers have a tough job on their hands to convince the end user s that the data is safe and that it can be managed and removed from the handset remotely. S:The reseller can providing advice on how to protect data on the device through password protected applications or antivirus applications. My opinions: Everyone wants to be connected all of the time to avoid missing important information.Push e-mail makes it convenient. Information is available anytime, anywhere, and the workforce is always connected. To accelerate the adoption of the system,the reseller should raise the awareness customers have of the product to the end users. Through different ways to let end users be aware of the convenience of the push e-mail. In these measures,a strong brand promotion is essential,and one of the most effective and important step maybe that provide abundant business experience for free for some day.In this way, the end users that had adopted the system early on can then be used to explain the system to others and to highlight its virtues in the business. I think add-ons functions are becoming an important role to draw new users. The abundant of additional features and applications can keep the product fresh and up to date. Resellers need to understand how to get the device to work in the users corporate e-mail. When they take it out of the box, end users except it to work so resellers need to be able to facilitate that.As security and the fact that sensitive data could be lost or stolen by a companys competitors, We can use fingerprint identification or face recognition to protect data in the handset. All of the push e-mail handsets are still premium priced at this stage of their introduction onto the Middle East. But the price will drop soon. Also the technology will be fully proven. At that time, the demand of push e-mails will be enormous.

Tuesday, November 26, 2019

Provincial Bird Emblems of Canada

Provincial Bird Emblems of Canada Each of the provinces and territories of Canada has an official bird emblem. There is no national bird of Canada. The Official Bird Emblems of Canada Alberta Provincial Bird Great Horned Owl BC Provincial Bird Stellers Jay Manitoba Provincial Bird Great Gray Owl New Brunswick Provincial Bird Black-Capped Chickadee Newfoundland Provincial Bird Atlantic Puffin NWT Official Bird Gyrfalcon Nova Scotia Provincial Bird Osprey Nunavut Official Bird Rock Ptarmigan Ontario Provincial Bird Common Loon PEI Provincial Bird Blue Jay Quebec Provincial Bird Snowy Owl Saskatchewan Provincial Bird Sharp-tailed Grouse Yukon Official Bird Raven Great Horned Owl On May 3, 1977 Alberta adopted the Great Horned owl as its Bird Emblem.   It was the popular winner in a vote amongst Albertas school children. This species of owl is native to North America and live in Alberta year round. It was meant to symbolize a growing concern for threatened wildlife.   Stellers Jay The lively Stellers Jay was once voted most popular bird by the people of British Columbia. The locals like the bird so much that on December 17, 1987, it was made the provincial bird. While these birds are considered pretty to look at their bird call has been described  as harsh.   Great Gray Owl Manitoba is one of three provinces to choose an owl for its provincial bird. The great gray owl is a native of Canada but is often seen in the Manitoba region. Its known for its large head and fluffy feathers. The wing span of this bird can reach an impressive four feet.   Black-Capped Chickadee Following a contest by the Federation of Naturalists in 1983, the black-capped chickadee was chosen as New Brunswicks provincial bird. Its one of the smallest provincial  birds and, compared to others like the Gyrfalcon, is rather tame.   Ã‚   Atlantic Puffin Newfoundlands adorable provincial bird is the Atlantic Puffin. It was a good choice seeing as almost 95% of North American Puffins breed along the Newfoundland coast. This is the only breed of puffin native to the Atlantic Ocean.   Gyrfalcon In 1990 the Northwest Territories chose a bird as rugged as their terrain  to represent them. The Gyrfalcon is the largest falcon breed on earth. These fast birds come in a variety of colors including white,  gray, brown and black.   Osprey Nova Scotia also chose a raptor for its provincial bird. After the peregrine  falcon, the Osprey is one of the most  widely found raptor  species. This bird of prey has powerful reversible outer toes, that it uses to catch fish and small animals with.   Rock Ptarmigan For its provincial bird, Nunavut picked a common game bird known as the Rock Ptarmigan. This quail-like bird is sometimes referred to as a snow chicken. These birds are popular in Canada and Japan.    Common Loon Despite its somewhat silly name, the Common Loon is the largest in the loon family. The provincial bird of Ontario belongs to a breed of bird known as divers. This is because they can be seen diving into the water attempting to catch fish.   Blue Jay The popular North American bird known as the Blue Jay is the provincial bird of Prince Edward Islands. It was chosen by popular vote in 1977. The bird is probably most widely known for its stunning blue color.   Snowy Owl Surviving on a steady diet of lemmings the Snowy Owl is the provincial bird of Quebec. This beautiful white owl can be seen hunting during the night and day. It was chosen as the provincial bird in 1987. Sharp-Tailed Grouse In 1945 the people of Saskatchewan chose the sharp-tailed grouse as its provincial bird. This popular game bird is also called the Prarie Chicken.   Raven In 1985 the Yukon choose the Common Raven as its provincial bird. These highly intelligent birds can be found all over the Yukon territory. The Common Raven is the largest member of the Crow family. This bird is important to the First Nation People of the Yukon and many stories are told about them.

Friday, November 22, 2019

A Review of Teamwork an Episode in Allegiance, an American Drama Series

A Review of Teamwork an Episode in Allegiance, an American Drama Series Reading Television: Allegiance Consumers are indulged by media through watching television based on themes that capture their attention. Recently, I watched an episode Teamwork from the TV show Allegiance on NBC. Allegiance is about Alex O’ Conner, who is a young man that does not know that his family are Russian spies. He works for the CIA as an analyst, which results in conflict of interests. His parents work for a spy organization, who wants the files, which can potentially destroy American core values. Alex is working with the CIA to foil Rezident’s plans in obtaining the files. In the episode Teamwork, Alex confronts his parents by accusing them that they are Russian spies. Throughout this whole episode, there are stereotypical examples that portray how media views men, women, people of color, and American nationalism. This episode portrays Russian stereotypes of women, men, politics and economy. Allegiance highlights prejudices, through representation based on character behavior in different scenarios. The music, shots, and characters represents the theme of allegiance and nationalism. The scene opens with Alex demanding to know the truth from his parents about Mikeal, because his files are a threat. Alex asked accusatory questions about Mikeal and his files. As a result, Katya becomes hysterical, and throws Alex off, by confessing that she had an affair, which was just another lie. This scene, portrayed the stereotype that Russian women are gold diggers, because they only want to live comfortably and be dependent on a male figure. When Katya mentioned she attended, border school in America, it also brought up a political notion of Russia sending children to America for better opportunities. During this whole scene, the music was quick, light and dramatic. This represented Alex’s mood on how he felt when Katya constantly disappeared when he was a child. Alex represents the American ideals which are justice and liberty, however Katya and Mark represent the Russian socialist mentality. There are many instances when we watch a series when we do not know the true reason why the director choose to shoot a scene a certain way. In this master shot, Alex is shown being angry. There are more superimposed shots when information is revealed about his mother’s disappearances. The argument gets more heated, there are close ups of Alex, Katya and Mark. The camera stays focused on Katya’s reaction from her affair confessions. When Alex’s youngest sister Sarah, walks into the kitchen, she is ignorant about the situation. Sarah symbolizes the innocence in not knowing that her family are spies. Natalie, is Alex’s older sister whose boyfriend is a Russian spy, who works for the enemy in NYC. Natalie plays a vital role by bugging Alex’s cellphone and computer as a way to collect information from the CIA. The scene opens with Natalie and Viktor in bed, being woken up by a phone call from Rezident. Viktor is told that Alex is threatening his parents if they do not tell him the truth. There is parallel editing between the scenes when Alex confronts his parents, to Natalie and Viktor rushing into traffic, and there is a zoom in shot of Roman (main boss of Rezident), giving the order to assassinate the family to emphasize the point that he is in charge. After Viktor and Natalie stop the assault, there is a POV shot of Alex leaving the apartment in shock. The music was heavy, during the montage shoots and parallel editing emphasized. This shows how close Alex learned the truth, until his mother lied to him again. When the scene closes, everyone is safe but appalled with Katya’s romantic affair confession. The scene jump cuts, to Moscow a year before Operation: Black Dagger was put into play. The scene shows a conference that include white, European men who are wearing either professional suits or military uniforms. The audience is portrayed into knowing that these men have decision making power. This represents the Russian society, as sexist towards women because they are behind in providing them equality. The entire scene shows a man speaking to a large group about weakness in American economy. They are questioning United States power, because their only punishment is sanctions. Since American global influence is decreasing, Moscow feels they are at an advantage. However, one of the military officers disagrees with Black Dagger and calls it madness. But the speaker counters that remark with â€Å"Madness is American sanctions, madness is the last of Soviet sovereignty†. This scene represents politics by explaining the importance of those missing files. The missing files contain a plan that could potentially destroy American core values. This episode presents different beliefs and loyalties that result in conflict of interests. Nationalism influences decision making in different characters. In this series, women are used as pawns to satisfy a male’s needs. One of the many stereotypes portrayed about women in the workplace is a scene with Sam and Michelle played by Kenneth Choi and Floriana Lima. Sam questions Michelle’s place in the workplace to what she replies â€Å"Oh Sam, you have such a constrained view of me.† This shows that that even though she is a successful Hispanic women working in a male-dominated field of law enforcement, her supervisor will never see her as equal. Also, when Michelle is told to get a search warrant from the New York Attorney General’s office, Sam tells Alex to accompany her. Sam believes she will not get the warrant on her own. This represents what women face today in the workplace. There is a scene with Natalie and Viktor; that portrays Natalie through a stereotype that women in a relationship needs a man’s approval to feel complete and happy. This is a stereotypical image that presents women as being insecure about themselves. A women’s opinion is also disregarded because they are viewed as inferior. Katya’s advice got completely brushed off by Mark, who choose to go his way to the Brooklyn Navy Yard. When Katya had a gun in her hands, Mark looked at her in fear. This shows that he felt uncomfortable with a women who had power. The Allegiance characters embody certain traits that are correct in some cases. Alex O’Conner, the main protagonist represents being a hero, he is a smart CIA analyst with a promising future. His supervisor Sam, is trying to groom him for a better position but, also feels threatened by his talent. Special Agent Brock is the overseer of the organization, and does not like his authority questioned. Roman also does not like his authority to be questioned. They all feel that when they are questioned, they would be viewed as less than a man. For example, Roman needed to regain his control by killing Viktor’s friend, as a way to show dominance. Mark plays the husband role, so his decisions cannot be questioned by either Katya or Natalie. A scene that shows this power struggle is when Mark confronts Katya about the affair. When Katya says that she had to make a decision for the family, Mark puts her in an inferior that she is not one to make them. This show is great in cont ext, however when it comes to stereotypes Allegiance is a show to see. Allegiance exhibits an interesting storyline that shows the intertwining between politics and family matters. However, the characters role in the show present stereotypes that can put people in a box. This show unintentionally creates views to have a limited mindset of the real world.

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Analysis Of The Book The Cider House Rules Essay

Analysis Of The Book The Cider House Rules - Essay Example   When Homer learns about Larch's secrets- him secretly being an abortionist, driven by the sight of the black-alley horrors- he considers it morally wrong. He befriends Candy Kendall, a couple to Wally Worthington, who need an abortion. He leaves and goes with them to Wally's family's orchard. He develops the love for Candy secretly (Irving 78). They get a child together- Angel. After he knows of Larch’s death, he goes back to St. Clouds as a director.to show his heroism nature; he maintains his dislike for abortions. However, he honors the choice of his parents and continues Dr. Wilbur's legacy.   Even though he has all the training to be an obstetrician and gynecologist and has adequate knowledge on performing abortions, he goes ahead and objects to the latter.   He refuses completely to do them (Irving 34). He is questioned repeatedly throughout this film, on this subject, and he responds to this by declining to perform the abortions with a reason that he is not form ally trained as a doctor, and that they are illegal. He hopes for a day to come when abortions will be legal, free, and safe when he'll no longer be obliged to perform them (Irving 66).  We can describe The Cider House Rules as a coming-of-age story. These tales trail a character from babyhood to adulthood, all the way through his/her moral knowledge, until as a hero; he/she finds a place in life. A true hero, like Homer, is the one who takes decisive action in finding out his/her destiny or fate (Irving 44).

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

Types of Profit Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Types of Profit - Essay Example This capital expenditure takes time which cannot be completed in the short-run. Similarly, no existing firm can leave the industry in the short-run. The reason behind this is that whenever a firm sets up in any industry it has to incur some sunk costs. In lay man terms, sunk costs are actually setup costs. These costs are barriers that do not let the firms leave the industry in the short-run as no firm wants to leave the industry without minimizing or cashing in on some of their sunk costs. As we have already discussed, that no firm can be lured into or pushed-out of the industry in the short-run. The reasons that may tempt the other businesses entering into industry are off course profits, as discussed above. There are two types of profit that firm makes in the short run based on its costs and revenue. A firm may be making large profits or break-even in this time-scale. In economic terms break-even is known as normal profit because the calculation includes implicit or opportunity co sts, which are not actual cost and hence a firm which is breaking even is making a profit in accounting terms. Normal Profits are usually denoted by AR=AC. Similarly, apart from normal profit a firm might also be making a Supernormal profit denoted by a equation AR>AC. These profits positions can be shown in the following diagrams: In figure 1 we see the condition in whi... In short-run when the firm is earning normal profits, the firm is just covering total costs. Since the TC (Total Cost Calculations) also includes implicit costs like opportunity cost of capital employed, return of capital in alternative uses etc. These are not actual costs and hence breaking even would mean that firm is earning profit which it could earning in alternative businesses and hence there is no motivation for the firm to go out of the industry. The distinction in this situation, for the firm, is AC= AR and thus TC = TR. (Lipsey and Chrystal, 2003) In figure 2, we see the condition where our assumed manufacturing firm is making an abnormal profit. In this situation the firm earns more than normal profit and hence in this case there is no reason why the firm would leave the industry but instead if it leaves the industry, it won't be able to make as much profit as it is earning in this industry. In the figure 2, the shaded area "pink" is the amount of supernormal profit that our manufacturing firm is earning. The above two profits positions that a firm could face in the short-run are favorable conditions and hence no rational firm would leave the industry in the prevailing conditions discussed above. However, the problem arises when our manufacturing firm makes an economic loss. An economic loss is a condition when the firm is not able cover its average cost. In this condition, entrepreneurs often face a dilemma whether to continue with the current production or to cease the operation of the firm altogether. However, one interesting point or assumption that we can make here is that even after making an economic loss, sometimes it is feasible for businesses or firms to continue to operate in the industry. The reasons behind this may be economical or

Saturday, November 16, 2019

Three Kings (1999) Dir. by D.O. Russell Essay Example for Free

Three Kings (1999) Dir. by D.O. Russell Essay â€Å"Three Kings† is based on the events of the Gulf war and portrays Iraqi rebellions against Saddam Hussein. The movie describes adventures of fours soldiers who steal a gold bullion. This work belongs to war adventure movies and anti-war films. Disillusioned by war casualties and cruelty they saw during Desert Storm Operation, the soldiers kill one of Iraqis and find a document (a map). Cruz, a young journalist, tells her lover gates about recent rumors, and Gates convinces the men that this map will help them to find 23 million (a gold bullion) in Saddam’s bunkers. The journey begins. The main part of the movie vividly portrays hardship and grievances faced by native Iraqi population. The main characters rescue Iraqi prisoners, their leader and several Americas. Barlow is caught by Iraqi soldiers and taken to a bunker. Barlow calls him wife but one of the soldiers interrupts him and subjects to tortures. Together with deserters, the commands free Barlow. They find gold. In order to save their lives and reach Iranian border, Gates pays huge sums of money to drivers. When they reach the border, they are caught by American solder. In order to free the Shiites refugees, they give the rest of the gold to this American soldier. In several years, Barlow becomes a prosperous businessman and his friend Elgin an advisor to movies. The stolen gold was returned to Kuwait. This movie portrays great sufferings and pain faced by American soldiers during the Gulf War. The idea that all the suffering were for nothing was simply unbearable (Vernon 2001). The horrible reality of the war is therefore transformed into what one might call the Myth. The key members of this battlefield brotherhood are Elgin and Barlow, the contemporary warriors who because of their skills and indifference to their own survival perfectly fit definition of the ideal combat soldier. Their foil is Iraqi military, who with their background, conscience, and critical attitude toward peace and fellow-soldiers are outsiders from the circle. The choices of the characters are influenced by toughness and heroic actions of other soldiers and brutality of war. In this new environment, all men are natural leaders. These grunts also understand what is needed to survive in combat operations. Because of their poverty and lack of money, they are not part of the mainstream back in the World. But once reaching Iraq, they assume new identities, as signified by their nicknames, feel pride in their combat skills, and acquire a sense of belonging and meaning in their lives-even if that meaning is only helping themselves and their friends stay alive. What bonds them is their ultimate trust in each other, their combat skills, their love-hate relationship with the wars violence and absurdity, and their strong sense of being abandoned by the people at home. Overall, this movie praises the fighting spirit and self-sacrifice of this small unit of soldiers. Critics Berardinelli (1999) admit that â€Å"the action sequences are expertly directed, and Russell develops tension because were never sure whos going to survive or whats going to happen next†. The desire to save their friend Barlow vividly portrays that friendship and comradeship, honor, courage, pride, and loyalty are the main qualities which help soldiers to survive during the Gulf War (Arnold 1999). The strength of Three Kings lies in the descriptions of combat-language, events, emotions, conflicts, and tragedies inherent in the physical and psychological realities of war. D.O. Russell has a remarkable understanding of the combat soldiers psychological relationships to Iraq. He also has an ear for the grunts language and an eye for the precise details conveying the horrors and miseries of war. Taking into account historical context of the movie, â€Å"the four men are reluctantly pulled into a civil war between the Iraqi villagers and members of Saddam Husseins oppressive Republican Guard, which is torturing and killing anyone without a uniform† (Vice 1999). Most impressive is the authentic grunt dialogue pervading the speech patterns, vulgarities, jargon, fear, threats, hate, and black humor. We can guess the exact meaning and significance of actions taking into account real historical events and choices of the characters. In contrast to many other war movies, the aim of this work is to ‘force’ viewers to rethink meaning and significance of human relations during war and value the role and importance of friendship in human relations. The benefit of this movie is the brutal realism and exhaustive detail of the day-to-day life of a combat soldier. This movie portrays the evolution of a soldier and gives viewers a feel for war. Critics (Arnold 2000) admit that the irony of the movie is reasoned battlefield strategies which do not defeat enemies, but the blunderings of an incompetent major lead to victory. As a war movie, D.O. Russell unveils the horrors of the Gulf War and its political context. Thus, the graphic scenes are, at times, almost poetic in their litany of death, gruesome details, and horrific human destruction (Berardinelli 1999). In this movie, soldiers glorious moments on the battlefield are absent; the resulting oppressive spiritual darkness pervading the narrative is not so much a consequence of individuals actions but a product of the political, social, and military systems in which the soldiers have existed. Unlike many war stories, D.O. Russell introduces a strong political undertone and often, unsuccessfully, attempts to move away from the fictional memoir to a more developed dramatic plot. From this assignment I leant that actions and personal qualities of the characters provide reasons to believe that glorious moments of heroism, honor, and self-sacrifice regularly occur on the battlefield, and that a brotherhood of strong bonds of attachment and mutual concern, is widespread among combat soldiers. The knowledge of history and political situation can help viewers to understand war movies and their meaning. References Arnold, G. (1999, October 1) `Three Kings No Crowning Achievement. The Washington Times, p. 5 Berardinelli, J. Three Kings. Retrieved 24 April 2007, form http://www.reelviews.net/movies/t/3kings.html Three Kings. Dir. by D.O. Russell (2000) Warner Home Video. Vice, J. (1999). Desert News. Retrieved 24 April 2007, form http://deseretnews.com/movies/view/1,1257,70000069,00.html Vernon, A. (2001 Winter) The Gulf War and Postmodern Memory. The Wilson Quarterly, 25, p. 37.

Thursday, November 14, 2019

Essay --

Alvin Samarnmitr December 9, 2013 Bio 441 CS3219 Hedgehog Signaling Pathways Shh is a gene that plays a significant role in regulating the development of organogenesis in vertebrates. This is a recently discovered gene and over the span of only 20 years, it has become a greatly studied ligand. Not only does it function as a chemical signal necessary for development in early embryogenesis, but also continue to remain important throughout the entire life of adulthood. The signaling pathways of Shh is very intricate and due to many research reviews over the last decade, researchers have elaborated the details of this particular pathway. Some major roles that Shh contributes to are development of the brain, spinal cord, nervous system, eyes, limbs of the body, cell growth and many other important parts of the body. Because Shh signaling pathway is essential for normal embryonic development, any mutation or absence of Shh ligand will cause serious health conditions such as holoprosencephaly, cyclopia, and many other defects. Recent research shows that geneticists were able to map out the specific location of the gene in order to further understand the relationship between other genes. As research continue to progress in the growing field of developmental biology, more information about Shh will soon be discovered. Hedgehog Gene The Hedgehog gene (Hh) was first discovered by German biologist Christiane NÃ ¼sslein-Volhard, American Biologist Eric Wieschaus, and Edward B. Lewis. They were experimenting with Drosophila melanogaster fruit fly and successfully identified the crucial genes that controlled the segmentation pattern of the Drosophila embryo. Their research was published in 1980 and this won them a Nobel Prize in Physiology or ... ... requires a certain amount of both Gli activators and Gli repressors, a disruption in the balance of these proteins usually lead to exncephaly. There are many other mutants that causes the cilia to function improperly and many of these mutant leads to exencephaly, which is a cephalic disorder where the brain is formed on the exterior of the skull. Mutation or absence of hedghog will cause major health problems and defects in embryonic development. Holoprosencephaly (HPE) is one of the most common developmental defect and is caused by nonsense mutation and cytogenicc deletion. This loss of function mutation is the main cause and the symptoms can range from mild to severe cyclopia. It is a cephalic disorder in which the forebrain of the embryo fails to develop and split into two hemispheres. Resulting in abmornal brain development and deformation of the facial area.

Monday, November 11, 2019

Lord Byron’s Don Juan Essay

Lord Byron’s Don Juan is a satirical poem that offers a seemingly comical and serious outlook of sexuality. In three different sexual relations in three different places, the events that surround Don Juan are both laughable and questionable. From an early affair with Donna Julia, to an innocently, beautiful engagement with Haidee and finally an unfulfilled and avoided relation with the Sultana Gulbeyaz, Don Juan escapes through the clutches of love with shattered innocence, a broken heart and near fatal eroticism. â€Å"As Byron’s satiric genius developed, it tended to employ less and less of the traditional axe-swinging of the neoclassic satirists and to approach more and more the mocking and ironic manner of the Italian burlesque poets†¦Finally, when his satiric genius had fully ripened, Byron found complete expression in serious and social satire† (Trueblood, 19). From an early age, Don Juan was destined to wander through a maze of sexuality. One can see this unfolding by merely looking at his parent’s marriage. Let us first look at Don Juan’s parents, Don Jose and Donna Inez. Byron presents the couple ironically and comically. Donna Inez, â€Å"morality’s prim personification †¦perfect past all parallel† (Byron, I, 16-17), still is not good enough for Don Jose. A man with a greater concern for women than knowledge, Don Jose is not a particularly admirable father figure. He lacks respect for his wife, and â€Å"like a lineal son of Eve, /Went plucking various fruits without her leave† (Byron, I, 18). This allusion to Don Jose being a son of Eve is somewhat accurate and satirical. Like Eve, he is careless and unaware of the consequences of his actions. However, as Eve’s son, the offspring of God’s beautiful creation, Don Jose is given holy qualities. He cannot be blamed for his actions, and for a long time, Donna Inez blinds herself from his wrongdoings and maintains their marital status. Their relationship is practically pointless; a mother and father that wished each other dead, not divorced. The unification of Don Jose and Donna Inez is a comical union. â€Å"What men call gallantry, and gods adultery, / Is much more common where the climate’s sultry† (Byron, I, 63). The two reach a point where they canno t stand each other, yet for some reason, they stay together. At the same time, marital disputes and infidelity make for no laughing matter. They were, and continue to be, problems for couples all around the world. Byron depicts Don Jose and Donna Inez at each other’s throats, but still sleeping side by side. To further solidify ironic humour, when their divorce inevitably approaches, Don Jose falls ill and dies. His death right before getting divorced symbolizes the death of marriage. Byron might be poking fun at the fact that more and more marriages end in divorce, and that the fire shared by ‘soul mates’ typically burns out. Despite being an unfaithful and uncaring father, the narrator paradoxically calls Don Jose an honourable man. The death of the father creates increased duties for the mother. Donna Inez decides to enlighten Don Juan with the teachings of art and sciences, but in doing so, neglects teaching him the basic facts of life. Someone uniformed about basic life necessities is at risk of not knowing how to act and react to certain situations. Though Don Juan does not attempt to manipulate those around him, his lack of direction leads him to being a victim of a harsh, unforgiving world. â€Å"Ladies even of the most uneasy virtue / Prefer a spouse whose age is short of thirty† (Byron, I, 61). This is a bold statement from the narrator, but it is certainly the case for Donna Julia, Donna Inez’s friend. She falls for the young and handsome Don Juan when he turns sixteen, though her affection started before then. Donna Julia is seven years older than Don Juan. Her love for the young lad is both comic and paedophilic. Donna Julia unsuccessfully resists temptation, and eventually takes Juan’s innocence and sends him along a path of sexual confusion. As the narrator states: â€Å"Even innocence itself has many a wile / And will not dare to trust itself with truth, / And love is taught hypocrisy from youth† (Byron, I, 72). Her inability to resist Don Juan is satirical for he is sexually inexperienced. Being sexually unsatisfied, one would think Donna Julia would pursue a lover with sexual experience. Her longing for such a young man is bizarre a nd questionable. â€Å"Byron seems to the think temptation integral to creation, and fall the inevitable consequence of temptation† (Ridenour, 29). For Don Juan, an impending relationship with Donna Julia is most appealing, but in turn, it is the start of spiralling, sexual journey. â€Å"Oh pleasure, you’re indeed a pleasant thing, / Although one must be damned for you no doubt† (Byron, I, 119). Unfortunate consequences of plentiful pleasure tend to follow Don Juan around. His romance with Donna Julia is of short lived passion. One November night, Don Alfonso’s suspicions reach a new height and he confronts Donna Julia in her suite. The season is significant; November represents the conclusion of fall and an approaching winter. The trees lose their leaves, plants and shrubs dwindle and the days get shorter and colder. These events can be compared to Don Juan and Donna Julia’s relationship, as its fire is extinguished by an upset Don Alfonso. â€Å"Man is chained to cold earth and is able to alleviate his sufferings only by his own efforts – by love and glory and, as we learn in the second sta nza, by poetry. This very poem is presented as an attempt to give color, form, warmth to a world naturally colorless, indefinite and chill† (Ridenour, 33). This thought can also be applied to Donna Julia, who was brightening her world with the young Don Juan. Though she promised Don Alfonso to never disgrace the ring she wore, she falls victim to the fact that â€Å"pleasure’s a sin and sometimes sin’s a pleasure† (Byron, I, 133). Donna Julia acts like a double-edged sword when confronted by Don Alfonso. She gets upsets by his unfaithful accusations, while the whole time, Don Juan is hidden beneath a pile of clothes. â€Å"Satire was Byron’s natural and habitual response to censure and injury† (Trueblood, 20). In the end, Donna Julia is left emotionally hurt and displaced, while Don Juan barely escapes from a physical punishment. Don Alfonso is left betrayed, deceived and not knowing where to turn. The first canto ends with the same disheartened feeling: â€Å"All things that have been born were born to die, / And flesh (which Death mows down to hay) is grass† (Byron, I, 220). The allusion of De ath mowing the grass of life is comic and serious. Humans age from year to year and their health eventually deteriorates. The same can be said of Don Juan’s sexual relations. â€Å"In Don Juan, Byron uses almost every possible variation of epic tone, from the frivolous to the almost entirely serious† (Clancy, 63). The tone takes a turn for the worse when Juan is involved in a shipwreck. He manages to get aboard a longboat and escape the capsizing ship. Juan’s luck only lasts so long for his tutor, who boards the longboat only to be eaten several days later. Just when Juan appears on the brink of death, he floats to safety clutching an oar. The oar can be seen as an obvious phallic symbol, and in turn, it leads Juan to his first true love, Haidee. â€Å"Amidst the barren sand and rocks so rude / She and her wave-worn love had made their bower† (Byron, II, 198). The setting of their relationship is perfect, for it is both beautiful and dangerous. â€Å"As Byron is careful to point out, it is here, on a coast whose perils have been repeatedly emphasized, that the peculiarly harmonious and ideal love of Juan and Haidee is consummatedâ₠¬  (Ridenour, 44). The love of Juan and Haidee has a quality of magnificence which Don Juan and Donna Julia lacked. The two are portrayed as soul mates that happened upon each other. They were brought together in a stroke of luck and when their union is denied â€Å"the power of love sours to lust, sex hatred and leering prudishness. What is true love is equally true of the other passions†¦The attempt to contain the passions and stop the flow of life always defeats itself in some manner. This is the particular form which the standard satiric plot takes in Don Juan† (Kernan, 93). Though Haidee and Juan were meant for each other, Lambro interferes and puts an end to their relationship. He ruins the purity of love, which had ironically been washed up on a beach. Lambro puts Juan into slavery, and furthermore, causes his daughter’s coma and eventual death. Had he accepted the unification of Juan and Haidee, life in general would have been happier, gayer. Violence and disorder lurk behind tranquility and harmony, and the tranquil and harmonious are fated inevitably to dissolve again in the violent and chaotic. This is an immutable law of Byron’s world. Haidee was, â€Å"Nature’s bride† (Byron, II, 202), and the love she shared with Juan is contrasted in its naturalness with the unnatural situation of woman in society. Their union is almost an act of natural religion. (Ridenour). Mary Grant places Don Juan â€Å"among the different kinds of humor, the mild and pervasive type of Socratic irony, subtle in its half-laughter and half-earnestness, harmonized best with the ease of affability of the sermo, its change of tone from grave to gay, its arts in the absence of art† (Ridenour,10). Don Juan is brought to a slave market in Constantinople and bought by a eunuch for the Sultana, Gulbeyaz. The eunuch, Baba, can be seen as a sinister and dangerous character. â€Å"The technique of associating the subject to be ridiculed with sexual impotence is, of course, a traditional one; but the connection between impotence and lust for power exists on a much deeper level than that of mere invective† (Ridenour, 12). Baba’s sexual life has been obliterated, and his condition foreshadows a drastic change to Don Juan. This is fulfilled when he is brought to the palace and immediately dressed in woman’s clothing. Juan’s gender rearrangement is ironic, and turns bizarre when Gulbeyaz demands him to make love to her. As he is still in mourning for losing Haidee, Juan refuses and bursts into tears. â€Å"In the accounts of his [Juan’s] relations with women, he is not made to appear heroic or even dignified; and these impress us as having an ingredien t of the genuine as well as of the make-believe† (Eliot, 97). His actions at first infuriate the Sultana, then she feels compassion, and eventually she cries. Juan is displaced from a man to a weeping woman, while Gulbeyaz turns from a demanding woman to an apathetic female. Communication between the two is short lived as the sultan approaches the castle. Upon seeing Juan, the sultan states: â€Å"I see you’ve bought another girl; ‘tis pity / That a mere Christian should be half so pretty† (Byron, V, 155). The sultan, who has four wives and undoubtedly several mistresses, comes off as a fool for not noticing that Juan is a male. We can laugh at his blindness, but at the same time, one can only wonder what else he does not see. In Canto I we have the amusing account of the genealogy of Don Juan. Then there is a description of the first of Juan’s amours, the Julia episode. Canto II continues Juan’s adventures, including his shipwreck and subsequent love affair with Haidee. In Cantos III and IV the passionate roma nce of Haidee and Juan comes to its tragic end and Juan is soon embroiled in the ludicrous seraglio escapade which occupies the whole of Canto V and is concluded in Canto VI (Trueblood, 5). Through these episodes, Byron uses satire to portray sexuality in a comical and serious manner. â€Å"The poem is a satire on the romantic cult of passion and on the natural man whose passions are his only guide from his proper woes† (Clancy, 53). Don Juan is sent on a rollercoaster of sexuality: paedophilic love, true love ending in a broken heart and then a confusing, uncertain relation. Through hardships and endeavours, Don Juan comes out a stronger man. From the first six cantos, one can conclude that â€Å"love, which should be a means of overcoming self, of living in and for another person, is itself egotistic. The remedy merely aggravates the disorder. It is the same paradox which, in other terms, we have met so often before† (Ridenour, 75). The comedic yet serious portrayal of sexuality makes Don Juan one of the greatest satires even written.

Saturday, November 9, 2019

Emperor’s Club Essay

English question 5 â€Å"It is not living that is important, but living rightly and honestly. † The definition of success varies depending on who is defining it. By the end of the novel, Hundert and Sedgewick Bell each believe that they have reached success in their own lives. Sedgewick, following in his Dad’s footsteps of using and manipulating every situation and opportunity in order to advance his selfish goals, feels successful as a wealthy and powerful businessman. Sedgewick by the example, set by his distant, judgmental, and uncompromising father has learned that being honorable and having good character are qualities that are unimportant when measuring a man’s success. Just like his father who did not see the merit of developing a moral conscience, Sedgewick Bell rejects the moral guidance of his caring teacher, choosing instead to cultivate the cut-throat tactics his father instilled in him as necessary to achieve the fame and fortune vital for success. In contrast, Hundert is only able to feel successful when he has regained his dignity and honor by confessing his breach of trust and asking for forgiveness from the student he betrayed. Once Hundert does the honorable thing and tells Blythe about Hundert’s cheating during the selection of the contestants for the Emperor’s Club competition, Hundert is able to reset his moral compass, and move on with his life. Hundert comes to understand that it was his selfish desire to see Bell succeed that drove Hundert to disregard what he knew was right in order to avoid the truth – that Sedgewick Bell had no desire to become the honest and hardworking student Hundert â€Å"willed† him to be. Through this realization Hundert is able to see that even though he may not have succeeded with Bell, this one â€Å"failure† does not minimize the positive contribution he has made to the lives of his many other students. Hundert’s success is evidenced by the fact that even after 25 years, Hundert’s students throw him a party to show their appreciation of the advice, instruction, interest and guidance he gave them when they were students at St. Benedict’s. Hundert is considered by the majority of his students to be a mentor, and positive role model. It is this realization that helps Hundert see that his success lies in the fact that his students have taken his message of living a moral, and honest life with them into their world and used his words to help shape their own productive lives . s well as, that of their children. Hundert realizes that success should be measured not by the money in a man’s pocket, or the job he has, but by the positive impact he has in the world and on the lives of others. As the film progresses Hundert comes to terms with the fact that no matter how hard he tried he could never compete with the powerful negative influences that were present in the Bell home. Sedgewick was raised to view a successful man as being self-serving, untrusting, insensitive, and controlling. It was when Humdert tried to set a new moral example of success for Sedgewick that Humbert was driven to compromise his own beliefs. Hundert learned that when one compromises him for the sake of another the relationship is doomed to fail. It is when Hundert is able to accept that he is not responsible for the selfish, immoral man Sedgewick has become that he can rid himself of the feelings of failure that resulted in him leaving the profession he loved. When Hundert is rewarded by the positive comments of his students he understands that his success is in the fact that he has made the world a better place because he has educated a generation of kind, caring and moral men and fathers who will pass on his appreciation of honor, dignity, kindness, sensitivity, creativity and integrity to future generations. Hundert and Sedgewick each define â€Å"success† differently and it is up to each individual viewer to watch and listen to the movie carefully in order to decide which definition he/she will use to evaluate the â€Å"success â€Å" of his/her life.

Thursday, November 7, 2019

college essay( fire dept) essays

college essay( fire dept) essays I decided to join the fire department a year and half ago as a way to aid the community in which I ¡Ã‚ ¯ve lived all my life. Firefighting has always been an interest of mine. It was something I dreamed of doing as a child. When I began to realize my dream, I had no idea of the obstacles and challenges that I would face, the things I would witness and the change it would have on me as a person. After being voted into the department, I entered what is called a  ¡Ã‚ °probie ¡ period, which is a year of probation that all rookie firemen must go through. During this time, I took many courses ranging from water rescue, CPR certification, hazardous material, and extrication training. In addition to these concentrations, I had to clean the firehouse, make beds, wash the trucks, do the dishes, and roll hose. I did this without complaint because I knew it was part of the learning process in becoming a firefighter. All the firefighters were very supportive of me, watched over me, and helped teach me the skills necessary to become a firefighter. The first call I responded to was a signal 50, which means,  ¡Ã‚ °fire ¡. I slid down the fire pole, threw on my turnout gear, which consisted of my coat, boots, hat, and pants. I jumped in the truck, feeling an overwhelming sense of nervousness and excitement. I can still remember my captain telling me hit the horn and siren as we went thorough busy downtown Mystic. I was imaging a house engulfed in flames. As we arrived at the scene to my surprise, a brush fire caused by the disposal of coal from a fireplace was the only thing I encountered that day. Since that day, though, I have come upon many high stress situations involving fatal car crashes, search and rescue, and structure fires. My first fire occurred in a two story wood building. I was at the nozzle of the hose, directing the flow of water with my captain and a fellow firefighter behind me. My captain told me ...

Monday, November 4, 2019

Proposal Technique for Creating Behavior Change Essay

Proposal Technique for Creating Behavior Change - Essay Example They may succumb easily to repeated traumatic events that may be related to other experiences of interpersonal violence, including child abuse. The individual has feelings of intense fear and low self esteem. Prey to incidents of disrespect and more victimization, our client no longer expresses assertiveness. She is easily agreeable and prey to incidents of disrespect and more victimization. It is suggested that she undergo sessions cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) in order to recognize and identify the thought patterns that she has which lead to distorted feelings about herself. The therapist will use CBT in a way such that the young lady will be able to accept and internalize a positive mirror of herself, first initiated by the therapist, so that she may constructive a credible and non-destructive self image. Discussion Cognitive Behavior Therapy Cognitive Behavior Therapy was developed by psychiatrist Aaron Beck during the 1960s and 1970s. CBT recognizes core beliefs which individ uals have built and internalized over their lifetime. They are called schemas and they give rise to intermediate beliefs of rules, attitudes, and assumptions. These collections of schemas produce instant automatic thoughts that, not based on reasoning or deliberation, are immediately evaluated and accepted as true. If the schema have been developed on irrational or dysfunctional beliefs, the individual will produce irrational behavior from stimuli that could often lead to depression, anxiety, or anger. The task of the CBT therapist is to interact with the patient in a systematic way so that the patient gains confident to begin to correct irrational thought patterns. CBT is goal directed and problem solving focused. The typical regimen may involve 14 sessions, two a week that gradually disperse to a one weekly and then biweekly delivery, all over a two to three month period. There are booster sessions which can occur quarterly and some dysfunctions, more rigid, may require longer per iods. The CBT therapist interacts with the patient to initially identify automatic thoughts in the first sessions and gradually advances to evaluation of intermediate and core beliefs. Techniques include Socratic questioning, guided discovery, positive mirroring, behavior therapy and gestalt therapy. Homework assignments are made, the patient, if capable, writes out many responses. With collaboration and active participation between the therapist and the patient, sessions are structured and outlined as parts dealing with previous review, agenda (in case of new considerations), review of homework, new homework, and feedback. The patient is taught to learn to focus and identify dysfunctional thinking, to evaluate thinking validity and to set a plan of action. The patient learns to understand how thinking is organized and how thoughts influence emotions. By doing homework and practicing session techniques, the therapist’s goal is to help the patient toward self application and t he practice and use of constructive techniques. Cognitive Trauma Therapy Kubany et al have developed a version of CBT as Cognitive Trauma Therapy for battered women (CTT-BW) who face incidents of posttraumatic stress disorder (2009). They have highlighted CBT techniques of stress management, relaxation training, and exposure homework dealing with trauma responses. Guilt was identified as a major treatment target with a focus on creating

Saturday, November 2, 2019

Create Research Questions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Create Research Questions - Essay Example The research questions that will be looked at in this article will focus on the proposals that were produced by Padgett with more emphasis on what should be expected in future research studies in this field. One of the research proposals focused on a study of treatment related and substance related outcomes based on the 48 month study conducted on the housing first and treatment first program for the homeless people suffering from severe mental illness (Padget, 2006). The main aim of the study was to determine whether the findings of the previous studies can be sustained or they may end up changing after some period of time. In order to look at what should be expected in the future, the following research questions will be addressed: The research questions above reflect on some aspects that were discussed by Padget (2004) in her proposals based on the studies that were conducted. In order for a research methodology to be selected there is need to carefully check up on the research questions so as to ascertain the nature of the methodology to be used. In this case a qualitative methodology will be more appropriate based on the fact that empirical materials will be collected to in order to carry out the study. With regards to the case study on the homeless people suffering with severe mental illness the appropriate method of collecting data for the this study will be through sampling and recruitment. Participants will be chosen based on selected criteria after which interviews will be conducted on each respective participant in order to collect their findings. It is well noted that the approval of each participant greatly considered before pushing forward with the research study. A structured interview will be best suited in carrying out the research study and thus the research questions will be analysed in detail based on the response of

Thursday, October 31, 2019

Illusion and Perspective in Renaissance Art Essay

Illusion and Perspective in Renaissance Art - Essay Example Studiolo literally translates into "study" ("Studiolo"), and that is what its owner intended for it to be when he had it installed in the ducal palace in the small town of Gubbio in Italy. Federico de Montefeltro (1422-1482), the Duke of Urbino, commissioned the studiolo in 1476 as an in-house center for intellectual pursuits ("Studiolo"), for the study and perusal of private papers, as well as for keeping precious belongings. It was also an effective conversation-piece for special guests, launching them into conversations they were unlikely to forget for a long time. But walking around the room and marveling at the excellent craftsmanship around me, I couldn't help but feel that it had a much deeper purpose. I imagined that whenever the duke allowed friends and visitors to step into this tiny enclave, it was like he was allowing them a privileged peek through a window, or in this case, many windows into his very soul. Through a very clever style of wood inlaying known as intarsia, de Montefeltro's designer Baccio Pontelli succeeded in showcasing practically every facet of the duke's personality and vast range of interests in a creatively personal manner. The Metropolitan Museum of Art describes the technique as using "thousands of tiny pieces of different kinds of wood to create the illusion of walls lined with cupboards. Their lattice doors are open, revealing a dazzling array of the accoutrements of the duke's life" ("Studiolo"). At the core of this technique is the use of the illusionistic perspective-an interesting contrast or, some say, complement to the humanistic realism that was prevalent in Renaissance art. The art of illusion, or trompe l'oeil (French for "fool the eye"), presents a scene in order to fool the viewer into mistaking it for reality ("The Illusion"). The pictorial images on the wood panels of the studiolo look three-dimensional, obviously designed to make the viewer think that what he is seeing is real. As a patron of the arts, de Montefeltro would have belonged to that class of people in Renaissance Italy who could afford to have special works commissioned by expensive artists. Having the studiolo done by a top-calibre craftman showed his prominent stature in society. The tiny room's contents further exhibited his passion for the liberal arts-literature, music, mathematics, astronomy and the military arts- which, more often than not, were the domain of the learned uppercrust in 15th to 16th century Europe. His love for learning was evident by the 30 or so books showcased in the cabinets. The presence of citterns, lutes, and harps showed that he probably preferred delicate music, such as medieval chansons and types of Baroque music. Hanging from a hook on the top shelf of one of the panels is an armillary sphere, an astronomical instrument used in the fifteenth century for teaching elementary astronomy ("Studiolo"). One of the most interesting items on display was an octagonal bird cage that is seen through a half-open cabinet, and in it is perched a parakeet and its seed box. Since such exotic birds and animals could only be owned by royalty and other wealthy citizens, one can conclude that the duke was truly a person of great importance during his time. The parakeet, it seems, was a status symbol. It would

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

Philosophy of Life Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Philosophy of Life - Essay Example Throughout my whole life the sense of family has been a value instilled in me by my grandparents and parents. They have always have stressed the importance of spending time together as a family, so growing up, family has just been a part of the person I was slowly becoming. Every Sunday after church,our family tradition has always been to have my father’s side of the family to get together for breakfast. It is something that is always the same, we have the main dish of cheesy eggs with toast, and everyone is responsible for bringing a side dish to go with the main meal. My grandparent’s house is filled with the chattering and laughing of everyone updating one another on how their week has gone. The men sit in the family room discussing farming, sports, or weather. While the women gather in the kitchen filling each other in on the latest gossip or upcoming events in our town. Then there is the chaos of the grandkids and great grandkids running around and screaming as the y play various games together. My grandma has always insisted it was something we had to do. She wanted us all to know what was going on in each others lives and not lose track of the importance of family, regardless of our busy schedules. It is a tradition that we have continued even after she left us for the higher plain. We continue the tradition knowing that she would have wanted us to do so. Now that I am older and in college I realize I miss being able to go see my family every Sunday and look forward to it when I come home. Even though family has always been something I valued, now that I am further away and unable to see them as often, I have developed an even stronger appreciation for the significance of spending time together as a family. Honesty is another value that has been influenced and expected of me by my family as I was growing up. From the time I was achild my parents always promoted the importance of honesty, and demonstrated it to us by being good examples to fo llow. Throughout my rebellious high school years, my freshman and sophomore years, was when I truly implemented honesty as one of my own values that I found imperative to uphold and not just something that was expected of me. During my rebellious years I would defy my parents and make up lies about where I was truly going. In most of the cases it ended up getting me into more trouble than if I would have told them honestly where I was going right away. After countless times of my parents figuring out I had lied and punishing me for my deviance, I finally realized it was easier to be honest. Telling them where I was going and what I would be doing allowed us to develop a sense of trust , openness, and an earnest relationship with one another that I value to this very day. The trusted me more, and to my surprise they actually approved of the events I thought they would prevent me from attending. Now honesty is something I believe to have great worth and feel as though I have more resp ect for myself as a result of incorporating honesty into my value system. Teamwork is another value very important to me. I developed teamwork early on in my childhood and have continued to build on it from playing sports. During elementary school I participated in both basketball and little league softball. Starting out learning all the basic rules and skills of the sport was a challenge. Then by actually playing the game it became critical to work together

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Causes of Whooping Cough

Causes of Whooping Cough Abstract Introduction The genus Bordetella contains species of bacteria which are related serologically each displaying similar characteristics such as morphology, size and staining reactions (Website 1). The Bordetella genus is responsible for respiratory infections that are common in both people and animals (journal 1); Bordetella pertussis was first isolated in pure culture in 1906 and was long considered the sole causing factor of whooping cough. However, further studies revealed that mild forms of whooping cough could be caused by Bordetella parapertussis and on occasions Bordetella bronchiseptica (website 1). Whooping cough is a highly contagious respiratory illness that affects humans caused by the gram negative bacterial pathogen Bordetella pertussis. This particular pathogen is a strict human pathogen with no evidence of an impact on animals or the environment (journal 1). The disease can be characterised by bronchopneumonia, paroxysmal coughing and the distinctive ‘whooping’ intake of air. Pertussis is more prevelant in developing countries where essential medical care is often not available and disease (journal 2) Species Associated with Bordetella Bacteria that belong to the genus Bordetella are of importance to both paediatric and veterinary medicine due to their ability to colonise and multiply on the ciliated epithelial cells of the respiratory tract (journal 4) Nine species have been identified within the Bordetella genus to date, only three additional members, B. bronchiseptica, B. parapertussis and b. homlessi (journal 3). B. pertussis and B. parapertussis are extremely closely related according to their genomes; B. bronchiseptica, which by DNA-DNA and DNA-rRNA hybridisation are also closely related to the two previous species. A more recent addition to the genus includes B. avium (formerly known as Alceligenes faecalis) (website 1) which is described as a bird pathogen causes turkey coryza and other respiratory infections in fowl (journal 2). Another late addition includes B. hinzii (formerly known as A. faecalis type II), which can lead to respiratory disease in poultry and is very rarely found in humans (website 1). B. trematum has recently been proposed for a novel species isolated from human wounds and ear infections; although none of the new species identified were associated with respiratory infections, they are phylogenetically si milar to other members of the genus (journal 2). Transmission Infection typically begins with the bacterium entering the airways of the host via airborne droplets derived from the cough of an infected individual. The pathogen proceeds down the respiratory tract and adhering to ciliated epithelial cells of the trachea and nasopharnyx in the host. Once attachment has occurred, the pathogen proceeds to replicate and colonise any adjacent areas. As part of Bordetella’s extensive range of virulence factors, it secretes toxins that damage the epithelial cells, which results in the loss of ciliated cells; this process induces the characteristic coughing (journal 2). Virulence Factors The main objective of any pathogenic bacterium is to colonise and replicate by exploiting its environment to the fullest extent. This can be achieved by the bacterium controlling and producing specific factors that enable it to infect the host (journal 2). Many of the virulence factors characterised in the bordetellae are common across the three species (B. pertussis, B parapertussis and B. bronchiseptica). These include adhesions such as filamentous hemagglutinin (FHA), pertactin tracheal colonisation factor and fimbriae, and toxins including adenylate cyclasehemolysin, dermonecrotic and tracheal cytotoxin. Other virulence factors are expressed by just one of the species, such as the pertussis toxin and serum resistant protein secreted by B. pertussis or a type III secretion system expressed by the species B. bronchiseptica (Journal 5) Bvg Regulation The majority of virulence factors displaced by this genus are controlled by BvgAS regulatory locus, a two-component regulatory system. BvgA is a 23 kDa (journal 9) DNA binding response regulator (journal 8). BvgS is a 135 kDa (journal 9) transmembrane sensor protein kinase (journal 8). This system assists the transition of B. pertussis between its virulent phase of Bvg+ and its Bvg phase which is avirulent (JOURNAL 10). For both B. bronchiseptica and B. pertussis, in order for sufficient respiratory tract colonisation the Bvg+ phase is necessary (journal 8), this phase can be demonstrated when bacteria is grown on a rich media at 37Â °C (journal 11) BvgAS undergoes a series of phosphorelay signal transduction events in response to an environmental stimulus that leads to differential transcriptions of target genes. This regulatory system has a distinct intermediate phase, Bvg1 that can be achieved with the growth of bacteria in that conditions are between Bvg+ and Bvg phases (journal 11). BvgS undergoes autophosphorylation when there is an absence of modulators, after several steps the phosphate group is transferred to the amino terminal domain of the second component. The phosphorylation activates BvgA and binds to promoter regions located on B.pertussis virulence activated genes (Journal 12). Filamentous Haemagglutinin Many virulence factors of Bordetella pertussis are well characterised and any mutations in these factors causes significant reduction or complete loss of virulence. The bacteria adhere to ciliated cells of the epithelium in the upper section of the respiratory tract. The filamentous haemagglutinin (FHA) is the major adhesion present across B. pertussis, B. parapertussis and B. bronchiseptica (journal 6). This particular virulence factor is crucial in order for B. pertussis to attach the pathogen to the host cell. FHA is a 220-kDA surface associated protein that is secreted to the extracellular environment to assist the adherence to ciliated epithelial cells, therefore initiating the pathogenic cycle (Journal 2). However, in recent studies using the closely related species Bordetella bronchiseptica it has shown that other adhesions are just as important in initiating an infection; any deletion of any of the four adhesions (FHA, Pertactin, fimbriae, Brk A) results in the decreased abil ity of B. bronchiseptica to bind to host cells (Book 1) Pertactin Pertactin can also be known as aliases p.69 and OMP 68 due to its electrophoretic mobility in SDS-Page, pertactin is a 60-kDa outer membrane protein which assists bacterial adherence. Similar molecules are produced by other members of the same genus; B. parapertussis produces p.70 and p.68 in B. bronchiseptica (Journal 2). In a comparison of the prn gene sequences of B. bronchiseptica, B. pertussis and B. parapertussis, the precursors were found to be homologous (journal 6). The mechanism in which pertactin promotes the adherence to the ciliated epithelial cells is unknown and no receptor has been found, It has been demonstrated by a number of groups that pertactin can be described as an immunoprotective antigen (Journal 2). Adenylate cyclase toxin/haemolysin Adenylate cyclase toxin, a 177 kDa polypeptide (book 1) is a highly toxic potent repeats in toxin (RTX) family and is a substrate of T1SS. This particular toxin consists of two functional molecules; adenylate cyclase domain which binds calmodulin and catalyses unregulated conversion of ATP to cAMP, and an RTX haemolytic domain which is responsible for the binding to target cells and translocating adenylate domain into the cytosol (journal 7). Evidence suggests that the increasing levels of cAMP produced can lead to a decrease in phagocytosis as well as inhibition of chemotaxis; this therefore affects a major part of the innate immune response book 1). ACT has the potential to play a role in adhesion by modifying a carbohydrate binding domain of FHA leading to an increased ability to bind to host cells. However, the main function of ACT appears to be its ability to inhibit the function of neutrophils (book 1). Pertussis Toxin (PT) – Type IV Secretion Pertussis toxin is a member of the AB5 toxin family, indicating it consists of five different subunits (book 2), with two copies of the subunit 2 together with single copies of S 2, 3 and 5 forming a pentameric ring. This mediates host cell receptor binding and the translocation of the S 1 subunit (ADP ribosyltransferase) (BOOK 4), it is considered the most complex bacterial toxin. Pertussis toxin is essential for bacterial virulence; it interferes with the mechanism used by host cells to remain in communication with the rest of the host’s body. Other affects include weight loss, elevated igE production, and increased sensitivity to histamine, serotonin and cold. While the pertussis toxin alters the behaviour of both human and animal cells, its ability to inhibit activation of the immune system in response to infection best explains its role in human whooping cough (book 2). A full understanding of Type IV secretion is yet to be achieved; however, it does provide a good example of the ability of bacteria to adapt groups of proteins to its new needs (book 4). Epidemiology In terms of epidemiological quantities, there are two fundamental aspects: the transmission rate and the length of the infectious period; these values determine the basic reproductive rate R0 (journal 13). The mucous membranes of the human respiratory tract are the natural habitat for Bordetella bacteria, although B. pertussis can survive outside the body for up to a few days and can be transmitted via contaminated items. Majority of infectors occur through direct contact with an infected individual (website 1). Prior to the 20th century was considered a terrible childhood disease, in 2008 it still occurs for approximately 195,000 deaths worldwide. Of these fatal cases 95% occurred in developing countries. Outbreaks have been found to be linked with incomplete or reduced immunisation of individuals. The vaccine formerly used was known as DTP and included antibodies diphtheria toxin (D), tetanus toxin (T) and pertussis (P); however, this vaccine has been replaced with a safer DTaP vaccine, reducing the side effects (website 2). Discussion Although many advances have been made, much remains to be discovered as to how the adhesions and toxins produced by the Bordetella species establish and maintain infection and development of disease.in host cell organisms. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK7813/ WEBSITE 1 http://www.who.int/immunization/topics/pertussis/en/index.html WEBSITE 2 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1082800/ JOURNAL 1 JOURNAL 2 http://cmr.asm.org/content/18/2/326.full.pdf+html JOURNAL 3 JOURNAL 4 JOURNAL 5 http://ac.els-cdn.com.ezproxy.tees.ac.uk/S1438422104700168/1-s2.0-S1438422104700168-main.pdf?_tid=39b13536-78ce-11e3-a0ea-00000aab0f6bacdnat=1389231467_08ec4f32bf03d5b1bbcd2962a3d8df69 JOURNAL 6 http://ac.els-cdn.com.ezproxy.tees.ac.uk/S1369527409000022/1-s2.0-S1369527409000022-main.pdf?_tid=5086535e-78ce-11e3-a61d-00000aacb35eacdnat=1389231506_264d1d5985a0ebc34a51cd5e2841829b JOURNAL 7 http://jb.asm.org/content/189/10/3695.long JOURNAL 8 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC108527/pdf/ii004367.pdf JOURNAL 9 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC98121/pdf/ii001983.pdf JOURNAL 10 http://jb.asm.org/content/186/17/5692.full.pdf JOURNAL 11 http://ac.els-cdn.com/S1369527400001697/1-s2.0-S1369527400001697-main.pdf?_tid=51d25790-79a9-11e3-86be-00000aab0f02acdnat=1389325568_31e8be38dfd04481d06fa83d877cb8dd JOURNAL 12 http://ac.els-cdn.com/S0966842X05001654/1-s2.0-S0966842X05001654-main.pdf?_tid=4baef94c-79ac-11e3-a8e6-00000aacb361acdnat=1389326846_4eecbd9c825cd7b16b288d3acc79fd7e JOURNAL 13 http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=axeJ8Q9eJ3kCprintsec=frontcoverdq=bordetellahl=ensa=Xei=PlHNUqfFJMSt7Qa_-YCQCAredir_esc=y#v=onepageq=bordetellaf=false BOOK 1 http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=sTsC65kCJbUCpg=PA648dq=bordetellahl=ensa=Xei=PlHNUqfFJMSt7Qa_-YCQCAredir_esc=y#v=onepageq=bordetellaf=false BOOK 2 http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=FwGmyh2OUToCpg=PT575dq=bordetellahl=ensa=Xei=PlHNUqfFJMSt7Qa_-YCQCAredir_esc=y#v=onepageq=bordetellaf=false BOOK 3 BOOK 4 BACTERIAL MECHANISMS