Corporal punishment Essay

Introduction The performance of most South African schools fluctuates from time to time. These fluctuation trends are as a result of the micro-evolutionary mechanistic changes that consistently take place throughout the country. Some schools in the urban areas perform extremely well, but some perform poorly despite the available resources that the school have. For example some of these schools have laboratories that are highly functional and also well structured for experimental as well as practical work which enhances skills in learners and also intensifies the existing theoretical knowledge that the learners have, whereas in schools geographically featured in remote areas or should I say rural schools, these resources are scarce. Privileged learners in these schools (urban) do not utilize these resources appropriately. Most learners in rural areas come from very disadvantaged homes and go to disadvantaged schools. However, the performance in some of these schools is satisfactory. Some learners academically excel irrespective of the harsh conditions they have to encounter on a daily basis. These Excellencies are facilitated by educators, parents/guardians or community members who act as â€Å"steering† in the learning environment. Educators in these schools sympathize with their learners and thus dedicate themselves in everything they do which effectively enhance as well make active the mindset of learners irrespective of their spectral backgrounds. We often hear of these educators who play such critical roles in learner’s academic life in newspapers, community radio stations and also on televisions. Some of the work of these educators may not be globally recognized but the outcomes are truly appreciated in the South African context. Distinction between resilience and excellence The restoration from form unfavourable conditions due to environmental factors is referred to as resilience. Generally resilience according to Akhurst and Sader, 2012 is â€Å"the process of recovering quickly from misfortune or illness†. If resilience was to be explained in scientific terms: It can be explained as follows, â€Å"let’s consider a typical plant cell and see what happens when you place it in a saturated solution( solution containing an excessive amounts of solutes) , the plant cell shrinks, becomes smaller in size and temporarily lose form and shape. During the process, its contents are rearranged, altered and functionality ceases to operate. When you take the same plant cell and place it in pure water, the cell regains its contents and gets restored back to its original form. The plant cell does not die because there is a â€Å"resilient force† which prevents it from total annihilation. The plant cell stays dormant until its physiological conditions get restored†. Similarly in the context of resilience in schools, some schools are able to overcome the barriers associated with learning and continue with the production of good results irrespective of external factors. Excellence in simple terms can be described as the ability to do well or the production of positive outcomes. Excellence in schools can be assessed differenty depending on the schools primary purpose. For example schools that do well in mathematics regard themselves as being excellent whereas schools that perform well in Speech and drama also regards themselves also as being excellent. So in actual fact, the description of the excellent depends on the desired outcomes of that particular context. Excellence in schools Resilience in Relation to Excellence Corporal punishment was another way of shaping learners, that mischiveously stood on the way pathway of learners with the willingness to perform to produce outstanding results. (Christie, P, 2001, p52). Even though this is very unlawful, meetings based on corporal punishments are first discussed with the parents/guardians of the learners before a decision is taken. Some learners parents/guardians agrees, specifically those with children’s from black schools. The reason why they (parents) permit educators to give corporal punishment is simply because they were raised in a similar way which in a way instilled good discipline and also helped them to be responsible individuals. â€Å"Some parents still believe that abandoning corporal punishment by the government is the reason why learners perform poorly in their subjects at school. However, according to Christie, 2012, the banning of corporal punishment could not be the reason for poor performance in South African schools, because no evidence was gathered in the apartheid era. Some resilient learners were greatly aspired by pupils in the community, these included church, and community services. This is true, for example in my case after trying to give on school . i. e. at high school, some grown up folks that lived in the same neighbourhood as me, folks that i used to hang up with and take drugs encouraged and told me that dropping out of school was not an option for a person who really wants to be successful in life. At first when they said this, i questioned them about why did they drop out at standard 8 and 9, now known as grade 10 and 11 respectively? Unfortunately these guys did history while still at school and the response they gave was a quotation from former S. A president, Nelson Mandela, which stated that â€Å"A 70 year old can never think like a 30 year old, and being 70 years of age gives you the licence and priviledge that the 30 year old can never have†. The second quotation they gave was from Malcom X, which stated that,†The future belongs to those who prepare for it today†. Well at that stage all of this was meaningless to me as a science learner, but after being triggered by a discussion I had with one of my EDPD610 colleague (Ms Moodley) during the first contact session, I started to realise the in depth meaning that these guys were trying to convey to me 11 years ago. Conditions at that time for me were unfavourable, both mom and dad were uneducated, consumed liquor and I had to watch my father beat my mother almost every weekend, the home turned into a â€Å"gladiator ring† with my elder brother and I as the referees. I was good in mathematics and science at grade 8, but when I reached grade 10, the performance started to deteriorate because I started to take drugs and abandoned my soccer training in the afternoons. I joined wrong friends and isolated myself from my primary school buddies. Unfortunately one of my science teachers, Mrs S Padayachee detected the problem and confronted me directly. I received help, woke up and dusted myself, but it was too late for me to catch up with the material covered in grade 12. I ended passing with bad symbols and decided to repeat my matric. After repeating, I passed with good symbols, enrolled for Bsc degree at UKZN, graduated, and now i’m a science educator, with less than a year experience. Generally I feel revived, resurrected, and restored and have this immense power of wanting to infiltrate knowledge to South African learners. I managed to excel academically despite the repulsive forces that acted upon me, I managed to excel in overcoming my negative thoughts, I managed to excel in making my family proud of me because i’m the only person in the family to reach matric and have a degree. Best practices of teacher’s resilience in their schools Conclusion References 1) http://web. uvic. ca/hr/managertoolkit/changeandtransition/takingchargechange. pdf( date accessed 13/03/13) 2) Botha ,R. J(2004). Excellence in leadership : The demands the professional school pricinple. Retrieved 08 March 13, 2013http://www. ajol. info/index. php/saje/article/viewFile/24995/20678 3) Christie,P. (2001). Improving school quality in South Africa: a study of schools that have succeeded against the odds. Journal of Education , 41,45,52 4) Hattie, J (2003). Teachers make a difference: what is the research eveidence.

PHP vs. ASP Essay

Introduction PHP and ASP are the two best web technologies this century is to offer. In their own ways, they have created trust and market for their product and development environment. Anstey (2003) mentions that PHP belongs to a free software community and open source general purpose software which is very easy to use and correct its bugs from the community of developers around the world. ASP is a program that runs on IIS server and is a free component with windows operating system and offers various features (Argence, 2008). ASP.NET is a unified Web development platform that provides services necessary for developers to build enterprise-class Web applications. ASP.NET provides programming model and infrastructure for more secure, scalable, and stable applications. ASP.NET is a compiled, .NET based web environment developed in any .NET compatible languages like Visual Basic .NET, C#, JScript.NET, etc. Additionally, the entire .NET Framework is available to any ASP.NET application. Developers can easily access the benefits of these technologies, which include the managed common language runtime environment, type safety, inheritance, and so on. The foundation of all Web applications is that they deliver dynamic content over a protocol which by model is stateless. Most of the ASP.NET developments fall in client-server architecture programming model. Minimal points to be considered for a typical web application modeled as client-server architecture are given below. User interface and client environment (Page layout). Data verification, transfer and store. Security. Scalability, reliability and availability of the application. Optimized resource utilization and performance. Handling unpleasant instances gracefully. Navigation. Literature review PHP traces back to the development of Perl and C which emerged quite successfully as a result of the contribution of the various programmers around the globe and as a result of its being an open community. The various versions came out successfully through 1997 to 2004 where the features were added and successfully taken up to cater to the development paradigm of the large scale of internet users. ASP came handy with Windows 95 with the features of IIS server installed. It was an established standard which takes into account the various databases into consideration and is based on the COM model. The various differences among PHP and ASP make sure that all to a good extent the feature are compiled and carries enough advantage to understand the loopholes and make sure that all the various utilities are enforced well.   PHP and ASP depict large scale differences in the form of various factors like cost, integration of features, speed, platform compatibility, additional costs, base language, database connectivity and many others. Cost: As PHP is not single handedly owned by any individual or an organization it does not requires to be purchased for use. Even for the support of the backend, it uses a database technology named MySQL which is also available free of cost (DuBois, 2002). The hosting of the PHP pages into the Linux server and their deployment is quite affordable and can be done with ease. Glass (2004) mentions that ASP is synchronized with Microsoft Windows operating system and comes along with it bearing the cost of the operating system. Moreover hosting ASP pages is expensive over the internet and features like email, file uploading and other features are quite expensive at the same time. Integration with operating environments and databases: PHP makes sure that all the operating environments are taken care to its fullest capability and is compatible with Windows, UNIX, Linux, Solaris and others. Its platform dependency format makes sure that all the various compatibility with operating environments makes it quite viable in nature. PHP integrates with the databases like MySQL and others in a great fashion. ASP on the other hand is compatible with Windows only and makes sure that Microsoft oriented databases like MSSQL server would be well integrated with it. For other database platforms it requires to download various libraries and components for integration and workability (Hull, 2002). Performance: PHP is an interpreted language and make sure that the interpreted nature makes it fast for getting the customization done. The memory requirement of the PHP pages is quite optimizable and runs very fast with the greater understanding of the various features. Database connections of PHP are also quite flexible and make sure that all the various database functionality like stability, transactions, replication, triggers and stored procedures are handled quite well (Merrall, 2000). ASP on the other hand is a compiled language and the software glitches are quite often not corrected or take a long time to get it done. The compiled nature makes sure that all the various factors like throughput and response time is quite low for the hosted pages. Its exclusivity with Microsoft windows operating system makes it platform independent with regard to various hosting and access problems. Enhanced capabilities and compatibility: These include file transfer programs and utilities, compression of data, uploading of files, integration of XML an MD5, encryption techniques and email facilities are not included in ASP, even if it does it requires the support of large third party packages installed, which are very easily integrated in PHP. PHP.net (2008) mentions that complex functions like dynamic images, IMAP, SNMP, dynamic flash, PDF, native access to Oracle, Ovrimos, Postgre, Sybase, mSql, MSSQL, Ingres, Interbase and Informix databases, LDAP, and sockets and many others are easily integrated with PHP, however it would create a big problem with its integration with ASP. PHP is compatible with various web servers for its functioning however ASP requires it to be easily integrated with only IIS and PWS as explained by Pires (2005). Conclusion   Although both ASP and PHP are web server end languages for web development, it makes sure that the factors like cost, installation, performance, compatibility issues are economized to its full   extent. PHP offers the best integration of the speed and performance factors and make sure that all the various promises are met for catering to the web development (Zhang, 1999). ASP is most suitable with the Microsoft platform and makes sure that all the features are captured and managed for the various services. References Anstey, Marty (2003). PHP vs ASP. Retrieved 19, February 2008 from http://marty.anstey.ca/programming/php/articles/ Argence d Ricardo (2008). Web Hosting, PHP vs AS.P. Retrieved 18, February 2008 from http://articles.topofhosting.com/web-hosting-php-asp.php DuBois, Paul (2002). MySQL Cookbook. O’Reilly, October 2002. Glass, Michael (2004). Beginning PHP, Apache, MySQL ® Web Development. Wiley Publicizing sons. ISBN: 0-7645-5744-0. Hull, Sean (2002). PHP vs. ASP.NET Redux. Retrieved 18, February 2008 from http://www.oracle.com/technology/pub/columns/hull_php2.html Merrall, Graeme (2000). PHP/MySQL Tutorial PHP.net (2008). See: http://www.php.net/manual/en Pires, Halstatt (2005). ASP vs. PHP. Retrieved 18, February 2008 from http://www.webpronews.com/expertarticles/2005/12/22/asp-vs-php Zhang, Ying (1999). Web Database Step-by-Step Guide.

North American Free Trade Agreement and Company Fruit

1. Why did many textile jobs apparently migrate out of the United States in the years after the establishment of NAFTA? Jobs migrated out of the United States because where the average labor for US was $10 to $12 an hour compared to rates in Mexico at $10 to $12 a day. For example, the company Fruit of the Loom Inc. would benefit more and increase their revenue by paying their employee’s less to perform the job. It is also stated that NAFTA was credited with helping crease increase political stability in Mexico. So this could be another reason for the Jobs migrating out of the United States. 2. Who gained from the process of readjustment in the textile industry after NAFTA? Who lost? Due to this readjustment in which the United States jobs migrated to Mexico had a major effect on workers in the textile mills in the United States. But indeed had a great benefit on consumers in the US. It stated that employment in textile mills dropped from 478,000to 239,000, employment in apparel plummeted from 858,000 to 296,000. This shows that a great amount of workers were left empty handed searching for new employment. But on the other hand, this adjustment made it more reasonable for people like myself. Due to textiles moving to Mexico, prices dropped on clothing. Now it makes it easier for consumers to buy clothing at a cheaper price rather than spending a lot of money just to do so. This shows that the market will grow because people can and willing to spend more money at the cheaper rate. In this case, Mexico and U.S will benefit. Mexico would increase jobs as low cost production moves south. And U.S will increase a prosperous market and lower the prices for consumers from goods produced in Mexico. Especially when prices are at a discounted rate. 3. With hindsight, do you think it is better to protect vulnerable industries such as textiles, or to let them adjust to the painful winds of change that follow entering into free trade agreements? What would the benefits of cost of protection be? What would the costs be? I have a two-sided opinion on this matter. I feel that in a way we should protect industries such as the textiles because jobs would be lost and wages levels would decline tremendously in the United States and Canada. Mexican workers would emigrate north and pollution would increase due to Mexico’s more lax standards. And also Mexico would also lose its sovereignty which is not an important factor. But on the other hand, we shouldn’t protect because this would prosper in the market & benefit the consumers.

Investigate and analyse the financial system of South Korea, Its level Essay

Investigate and analyse the financial system of South Korea, Its level of development,The efficiency of its financial markets,an - Essay Example South Korea established a central bank in 1950 that was given the mandate of regulating all the other banks in the country, printing and circulation of the currency in South Korea as well as making laws and regulations that would govern other financial institutions in the country. The minor banks in South Korea had a function of extending credit services to businesses and other medium and long term investment projects (pg 48). Today, the financial system of South Korea has grown and continues to improve remarkably over the years. South Korea is located in the north-eastern Asia and it is bordered by the Yellow sea to the west and Democratic Republic of Korea to the north. South Korea has four distinct seasons and in 2011, the population was estimated to be 48.75 million people with the annual growth rate in population estimated to be 0.23%. South Korea is characterized by low birth rate and high life expectancy at an average of 82 years for women and 75 years for men but the literacy levels are high with compulsory schooling for the first 9 years. This has greatly been affecting the economy of South Korea because most of the population is made up of the old people. The major religions in South Korea are Christianity, Buddhhism, Shamanism, Confucianism and Chondogyo. Politically, South Korea has a well organized government by the president, the parliament and the judiciary. Power was well laid out in the constitution that was appealed in 1987 (Kim & Black, 2004). South Korea has had a well performing investment sector especially in agriculture and other medium and long-term investments. This sector has been an integral part of the economy of South Korea and the banks even offered loans that would be channeled towards these businesses. They contributed to the growth of South Korea’s GDP that has improved though it had staggered for some time due to hard economic times that South Korea went through for some time (Lau, 1996). The depository sector of the fin ancial system has also been improved over the years where unlike the times when banks were solely owned by the government, the people have been allowed the freedom to have shares in the banking sector and the banks have started offering depository services for their customers (Lee, 2004). This has strengthened the financial system of South Korea and has ensured that there is constant growth in the sector. In the recent years, South Korea’s financial system moved from the government ownership to more widespread powers where people were allowed to participate directly through the purchase of shares. This was contributed to by the increases reforms and strategies that were geared towards attainment of stability in the financial markets. Over the past 10 years, The GDP of South Korea has experience fluctuations in GDP with a 9% growth in 2009 and 6.1% being recorded in 2010. This was due to changes in economic situations globally and changes in the level of exports in the country over the years. South Korea’s financial system has improved significantly and it has even gone ahead to sign business agreements with North Korea that are aimed at improving the exports in the country hence ensuring the country a growth in the GDP and Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) (Zahid,1995). The growth of the financial institutions in South Korea have been so much affected by the aging population, strict labor laws, poor management of the institutions, underdevelopment of the

Poverty Deduction Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Poverty Deduction - Essay Example In spite of the fact that there is no social environment which does not feature poor people, the issue of poverty is often regarded as the one what must be solved by the government for the benefit of the entire society. This paper will analyze poverty reduction policies. It is quite obvious that governmental policies that were designed to raise the well being of the entire population were initiated since the dawn of the United States. While they may have a varying degree of success, it is obvious that the second half of the previous century is the time when the government decided to make it one of its highest priorities. For example, the scholars often refer to several pieces of legislation that were introduced by Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964 as War on Poverty (Lerner, 2012, p. 93). Indeed, this is a rather important point in the history of social welfare policy as it features such acts as Social Security Act, Food Stamp Act, The Economic Opportunity Act and Elementary and Secondary Education Act which shaped the development of war on poverty for many decades. To begin with, one might note that there is a special program is that widely known and is developed to help people escape poverty. It used to be known as Food Stamps Program, but the contemporary name of it is Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. According to it, any household in the country that is eligible for this program is able to receive additional money in a form alternative to US banknotes that will be used to buy food. One of the major points lies in the fact that a household can include from one to an infinite number of people, so literally anyone is able to apply ("Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program", 2014). Of course, there is a logical restriction: the amount of money that the household make should be reasonably low. Another policy that should be taken into account is called Job Corps. As one can easily guess from the very name of it, this is a program that provides people with job

How I would change the U.S. Healthcare system for the better Essay

How I would change the U.S. Healthcare system for the better - Essay Example To start with, the dysfunctional public policies have been the root cause for the failure of the set up to provide state of the art and up to the mark healthcare facilities to all and sundry. Moreover there is a general need to understand how we are faced with a need to ration the responsibility within ourselves. It is all about understanding each other and in the end, comprehending that the health of one human being in the society or for that matter in the country would encourage another person to remain healthy as well. In fact, this would force the latter to make sure he receives the best possible healthcare amenities at the hand of the state. After all, it is the state’s responsibility to provide up to the mark healthcare facilities. Policy changes thus become the first and foremost directive in this regard that can be taken. These policy changes entail a complete disassociation between the consumption of healthcare services as well as paying for the same services on the other hand. Secondly, the need of the hour in this healthcare agenda is to see for ourselves that we acknowledge the issue of healthcare as being some what not aligned with the society’s needs and it is an independent entity all the same. Thus it needs to be treated as such. This means that if the state understands that healthcare is something that is kept separate from the rest of the facilities that it usually provides and the same is made available to each and every person within the country, irrespective of his or her standing, caste, color or creed then only one can assume that some thing better is happening in the healthcare circles of US. Next in rank is emotional health which is very closely related to spiritual health in that people’s emotions draw heavily from those around them. This makes it especially important that whatever type of group one seeks out for spiritual guidance is

Poetic Form Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Poetic Form - Essay Example The Victorian poets were very uncomfortable when more and more people shifted their attention towards scientific development, the belief that science can supersede God and his powers deeply affected the Victorian poets. Arnold conspicuously employs pathetic fallacy throughout "Dover Beach" the inanimate object has been presented in the form of sea in the poem. Sadness is a feeling which every human being experiences and sadness is being projected by Arnold in the poem, sadness is being attributed onto the sea by the poet in the poem. The poet also succeeds in creating a feeling of pathos in the poem, the readers begin to sympathize with the poet and this is how the feeling of pathos is created. â€Å"The sea is calm tonight, The tide is full, the moon lies fair Upon the straits; on the French coast the light Gleams and is gone;† (Dover Beach) The word â€Å"is† is repeated thrice in these lines and this goes to show that the poet is emphasizing on the nightly seaside sc enery. Several changes take place in the poem, the poet concludes by saying that there was light earlier but there is no light now which means darkness has descended and according to the poet it is all doom and gloom. â€Å"Gleams and is gone† The last is used clearly goes to show that the poet is trying to say that the light that was there earlier is there no more and there is nothing but darkness. Certainty also has gone with the light but this can only be understood if the poem is evaluated metaphorically. In darkness it becomes very difficult to determine one’s position and it becomes even more difficult to determine where others may be positioned. â€Å"Neither joy, nor love, nor light/ Nor certitude, nor peace, nor help for pain;" (Dover Beach) It is quite conspicuous that words like neither and nor have been repeated and usually when words get repeated in a poem it signifies emphasis and this case is no different. Neither and nor have been repeated in order to signify denial by the poet. The blank and the nihilistic view of Matthew Arnold has been presented here, he is talking about the basic human values here and believes that the basic human values have disappeared and nothing remains now and this is how the readers get to know of his nihilistic views. The poem’s language has been enriched by the poet; several adjectives have been used by Arnold. "Tremulous cadence", "eternal note of sadness" clearly signify melancholy and these adjectives have been used to increase the melancholic feeling in the poem. The readers must look for metaphors and images to understand the hidden meaning of the poem; the sea is both a symbol and a metaphor in the poem. Several transitions take place from the first stanza to the very last, initially the sea looks very beautiful under moonlight but it becomes hostile as the poem progresses. As the poem progresses the sea starts to evoke a feeling of sadness. In the third stanza it becomes "Sea of Faith" w hich has a hidden meaning as most stanzas of the poem. The certainty a religion brings with itself has been withdrawn and as usual human beings are left with nothing but darkness according to the poet. Tennyson’s â€Å"In Memoriam† is quite similar to Arnold’s â€Å"Dover Beach†. Both the poets are aghast in the poems; they pity human beings in their poems. The opening of â€Å"In Memoriam† is quite different from â€Å"Dover Beach†, Tennyson talks about faith in the opening stanza of the poem; he believed that faith is the only

Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 7

Research Paper Example Twenty years ago synthesis of biopolymers cost more than synthesis of polymers from petroleum. However, rising prices made this sphere more attaractive. Besides, biopolymers may not only substitute traditional polymers but also possess new characteristics (biodegradability, extreme strength, possibility to obtain thin and firm films) (Sample). There are three way of to synthesize biopolymers. The first way is an extraction and modification of natural polymers from plants. The examples of such materials are thermoplastic starch, derivatives of cellulose and rubber. Rubber obtained from the rubber tree Hevea braziliensis is the first known polymer. The second pathway is a polymerization of bio-monomers. Polylactic acid (PLA), polyamides, polyurethanes and polyesters can be obtained using this approach. The third pathway is an extraction of polymers produced by microorganisms. Polyhydroxyalcanoates (so-called PHA family) can be obtained using this approach (Rudin and Choi 528). Microorganisms can also produce monomers or raw materials that can be extracted and polymerized. For example, bioethanol can be produced from the sugarcane starch, wheat or corn through microbial strain and biological fermentation process. Afterward, ethanol is dehydrated over a solid catalyst to ethylene, which is polymerized to polyethylene (Babu, O Connor, and Seeram 6). The production of biopolymers uses the well-known polymerization techniques. For example, polyamides or polyurethanes can be produced using free radical, cationic, olefin metathesis and condensation polymerization. Polylactic acid is obtained from lactic acid by the combination of condensation polymerization and ring opening polymerization or by one of the mentioned techniques separately. Polymers like PHA are synthesized by microorganisms (sometimes genetically modified) and extracted using centrifugation and press

Responsive Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Responsive - Essay Example He has stayed amongst the Kung Bushmen of the Kalahari Desert for a number of years, but he barely knows them in totality. The best time that he learns something substantial about their behavior is when he has only one Christmas to celebrate in their land. This is a group of people that are of a funny character. They make us marvel at values of their society. These include their togetherness that they uphold in the society. In so many ways, they used to enjoy in unity through sharing their hunt almost in each and every single day. The story in this article exposes the true nature of the Kung Bushmen. As a matter of fact, they are a group of people in the society that enforces humility in people who do not have it at hand. They try as much as possible to resist pride that may crop up in someone after a little achievement of victory. For instance, it is seen in the text how people hunted and brought fatty meat at home, but in rejoinder received the least of appreciation. The anthropologist himself wondered why gratitude was barely shown to those who went hunting and gathering. To set the facts right, a member of the Kung Bushmen community gives a hidden answer, all about arrogance! This is what I realize that the Bushmen Community try as much as possible to resist for its existence would only lead to a feeling of superiority over the others. In short, members of society at large prefer to be equal to one another. In this article, what comes out more vividly is mockery of the highest order. In the first instance, it took a lot of sacrifice for Ontah, the anthropologist to have the fattest ox for his last Christmas celebration amongst the Kung. In return, what he receives before that big day is ridicule and travesty. It is amazing how each person confronts him with a similar scorn. Exposing his folly, he hardly realizes the pure intentions of these people and to make him do, he has to inquire and seek judgment from a few

Oil Struggle and the Fight for Power Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Oil Struggle and the Fight for Power - Essay Example Possession of oil has been the cause of geopolitical and economic conflicts, most of which led to war. The endowment of oil reserve is not a guarantee of a nation’s rise to world power. Rather, their liberal supply of oil serves as a threat to their security. Over the years, Middle East remains to be the region with the bountiful amount of oil. Dietrich mentioned that Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and Kuwait are three of the Middle Eastern countries that are capable of supplying billions of oil barrels. It is noteworthy that countries with large oil reserves have been in constant conflicts. The recent US occupation of Iraq in 2003 made a remarkable impact on the oil economy. Iraq has the third largest oil reserve in the world. Upon the conclusion of the war in Iraq, people have come to pay attention to the true aim of the war. The inability of US to find the alleged weapons of mass destruction contained in Iraq has led many to assume that America’s dwindling supply of oil is the main purpose of the intervention. The fear of the disruption in oil supply has been constantly thriving in the global atmosphere. As the demands for oil consumption continuously grow, the world market can expect oil to reach skyrocket prices. This threat motivates everybody, most industrialized nations, to take actions. If the increasing demand for oil does not cease, the future of oil industry in the Middle East can take one of two paths. Firstly, Middle East’s oil reserves can be expected to take a sweet spot in the global economy. If this happens, Middle East can rise as one of the world’s most powerful regions. Experts claim that this is highly unlikely due to the fact that some of the Middle Eastern countries are on an economic sanction.

Family and Abbey Essay Example for Free

Family and Abbey Essay Blonde hair, blue eyes and a sad look. This was the face of an innocent little girl named Abbey. Abbey was only 10 years old and she lived at home with her mother and father. She had no one to play with and her only friend was a little toy bear, it was old and falling apart and it had patches of hair. Abbey was an only child and was just about to start year 5 at Howard Pubic School. The poor little girl wasn’t so much bullied at school, but she was always left out. She was too young to understand why it was happening to her and why the children were always being mean to her. I guess you could say, most 10 year olds love going home at the end of the day to see their family but not Abbey. Abbey’s father had a beer in his hand as per usual and her mum had bloodshot eyes as always. The only time she was allowed out of her room was to go to school, other than that her parents always kept her locked in an attic because they had no time for the poor little girl and they never cared about her. Every afternoon she would come home from school and sit in her room talking to her toy bear when no one was around. She used to lie on the floor and not make a sound. She hides in a corner while she hears her parents come up and unlock the door. Some more and more pain Abbey has to go through for no reason at all. There are scars on her face and bruises on her legs. Out of everyone, why is she is such a horrible place? The poor little girl cries herself to sleep every night because all she wants to do is to fit in with everyone and have a family that loves her dearly but she thinks to herself why she is not belonging. She holds her toy bear close and sobs. Meanwhile in her room, she sits in the corner quiet but yet thinking â€Å"God why? Why did my life turn out like this?† Everyday is a struggle for the little five year old and she prays before she goes to bed â€Å"Dear Jesus, I know that my mummy or daddy do not care about me but please promise me you’ll take good care of them. I also pray that tomorrow I will make friends because it is hard for me to go to school and not play with anyone. No one wants to be friends with me and I don’t know why. Thank you and I love you†. One night before school, her mum came home high. The mother and father were having an argument and the police were called. The poor little girl was slapped, beaten and hit as hours went by. When the police showed up, they took Abbey to a foster home to be looked after. When she leaves, Abbey suddenly runs back inside and grabs her teddy, as that is the only thing she took with her. The mother and father said goodbye to the little girl as the police took her away. Abbey is now in a safer environment with carers that she loves. She has put everything past her and started a new life. She will always remember what happened when she was young but now all she can think of is how happy she is.

Ocean city and Clearwater beach Essay Example for Free

Ocean city and Clearwater beach Essay One of the great things about summer is going to the beaches. Over the past ten years my family and I have had the pleasure of heading up to Ocean City Maryland on the eastern shore. The beach there is an excellent place for the family to get together and have fun. The sand at Ocean City is an off white color and warm to the touch and the water with its bluish green color feels cool on your skin. Ocean City has one of the largest boardwalks on the east coast with its many shops, stores, and restaurants it attracts families from all around the world. Ocean city also has a great amusement park for all the kids at heart and for all the true little people. However, At times it does tend to get a bit crowed but that’s half the fun of going to the beach the sights, sounds, the smells, and the many different types of people all enjoying themselves. A few years ago we did happen to change up a bit and headed down to Clearwater Florida for a short vacation the beach in Clearwater is also a very nice beach the sand there is a pure white color and feels so cool on your feet as you walk upon it, and the water is a very clean clear light blue, and very warm as you wad though it. You can even see your feet as small fish move around you Clearwater beach doesn’t have a boardwalk, but it does have the many restaurants and shops to visit. I did notice that Clearwater beach seems to be more geared to the young professional type people. There isn’t an amusement park for the kids and it didn’t seem like many families were there. The time that I spent there it never seemed to get crowded at all, but that was fine because it was relaxing and a nice change of pace. I would recommend both beaches to anyone that wants to get away for a good time, good people and a change of the norm.

The Issue Of Handphone In School English Language Essay

The Issue Of Handphone In School English Language Essay   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Handphone has become indispensable gadget, an absolute necessity for both adults and children. Like every other invention of man, whether or not to allo the use of handphones in Malaysian schools is not an easy yes-or- no issue. This is the dilemma of the authorities.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   If properly used, the handphone can bring more benefits than harm especially to children. When television first made its debut in the 1960s, everybody imagined that it would have a negative effect on children. Parents fret over their childrens addiction to the idiot box and the neglect of their studies. Their fears were unfounded as they soon found that if strictly contolled, the television was as harmless as the radio or the gramophone.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In more recent times, the same anxiety greeted the advent of computers, especially the Internet. Today, the Internet has becomean essential tool and we cannot imagine a life without computers. Like the computers, the handphone has many advantages, while an abuse of it can have disastrous results. Handphones are useful tools of communication. Parents and children can keep in touch with each other and any last mintue change of plans can be conveyed easily without any trouble to either party. Some children however, cite this as a loss of privacy as parents will have a 24-hour access to their children   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Parents say the handphone is more than a convenience-it is an essential item that can function as a tracker divece. With it they can monitor their children and check on their whereabouts via satelite. Thus, from whereevr they are, paretns can ensure the safety of thier children and avoid incidents like kidnapping and such crimes.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Education Ministry officials, school authorities and many parents believe that allowing handphones in schools would only widen the disparity between the haves and the have-nots among students. Handphones come in a variety of shapes, colours and function:from generic ones to highly sophisticated ones that double up as camers, video cameras and palm tops. Not every child in school comes from middle or upper class families that can afford to buy each child a handphone. The self esteem of children who do not own a handphone or who possess a basic one wii be affected. Low esteem among students would cause a rift among children. Cliques, jealousy and rivalry would result. This unhealthy situation should not be nurtured in a school. Instea, the school environment should promote equal opprotunities and equal treatment.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Another reason for the strong outcry against allowing studentsto bring handphones to school is the distraction it poses. SMSes, games and ringing tones are some of the distractors that take the students attention away from the lesson. Children being children will not be able to resist the temptation of answering calls and sending messages when they should be listening to the teacher or classes, the games available on the phone is something the students would resort to after classes to overcome boredom.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Apart from diverting students attention, the handphones can threathen the validity of school examinations. Students may cheat durin examinations via text messages. Information or answers can be passed from one student to the next while examiners may be totally oblivious of the cheating that happen.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Finally, even adults find it hard to exercise social etiquette and discretion in the use of handphones, therefore children cannot be expected to do any better. Despite explicit messages in movies threatres, at meetings and at formal meetings, we still hear phones ringing away. School administrators and discipline teachers would find it difficult to to effectively prohibit students from using their phones during lessons.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   If Ministry of Education lifts the ban on handphones, schools may come up with new rules or guidelines to control the use of the handphone. Inevitably, teacher will be burdened with the task of monitoring the use and misuse of the handphone. All this is additional stress for teachers who are already loaded with heavy responsibilities. The Malaysian school system has thrived so far even with handphones being banned from schools. Why sudden change of heart? http://ngkwdaniel.spaces.live.com/blog/cns!61F13D5E0ECD31F0!521.entry Cell Phones at School: Should They Be Allowed? by Maya Cohen The question of whether cell phones should be allowed in schools has been hotly debated over the years. Most school administrations regard cell phone use as disruptive and distracting, and have implemented policies that prohibit using them on school grounds. There are benefits to giving your kids cell phones for use outside of school, but before you add them to your family plan, read the pros and cons: The Pros You can be in touch with your children, and know their whereabouts. Your kids can reach you in the event of an emergency, and vice versa. If in danger, your children can reach the authorities or a medical provider. Phones can be silenced during class or study periods, and active only in appropriate places. Cell phones create a convenience that was previously unavailable. With cell phones, you can easily reach your kids for any reason: to ask them questions, change plans, or to simply say hello. The Cons Students often forget to turn off their phones in class, and ringing noises or text-message alerts disrupt learning. Even if set to silent, cell phones can still cause distraction, since text messaging has become a high-tech method of passing notes in school. Students have been known to use cell phones to call in bomb threats to schools, to avoid or condense class time. In the event of a widespread crisis, rampant cell phone use can overload communication systems and render them inoperable. Student cell phone networks add to the spread of rumors and misinformation, which can be harmful during a widespread crisis. Phones can be used as cheating devices during exams. The long-term physical effects of cell phone use are still undetermined. There are compelling arguments on both sides of the debate, and both enthusiasts and critics make convincing points. What do you think? Take our poll: POLL: Should schools allow cell phones? In fact, the real decision regarding cell phones lies with parents. Short of checking each and every backpack, school officials can only enforce cell phone bans if they catch a student with a prohibited device. Would you allow your child to bring a cell phone to school? Share your opinion in our poll: http://life.familyeducation.com/cellular-telephones/school/51264.html By MALLIKA VASUGI WHEN initial reports about students being allowed to use handphones in schools were first released, many teachers were incredulous.    There were already enough problems in schools where the ruling against handphones was strictly enforced. With the lifting of the ban, all hell was bound to break loose.    We shuddered in our staff rooms, imagining the consequences.    It was a great relief therefore when the announcement to renew the handphone ban came shortly after that although there were a few raised eyebrows and wry comments passed about the now its on-now its off thing.    During the period between the first and second announcements, many letters to the editor were written and opinions given about the ruling both in favour of, and against, the bringing of handphones to schools.    While teachers were generally opposed to the idea, some parents were pleased.    Times have changed, one parent wrote. We need to keep in touch with our children. How else will they reach us in case of emergencies?    http://thestar.com.my/archives/2006/2/5/education/09cartoon.jpg One colleague remarked, The way some parents go on, you would think their offspring came into the world clutching handphones to their ears.    Many teachers laughed quietly when further restrictions on the use of the handphone were outlined.    Only during break time, in the canteen or school compound, not during lessons.    As teachers smack in the middle of this issue, with first-hand knowledge of the problems caused by handphones despite school rules against it, it is difficult not to be sceptical. Besides being an effective examination cheating tool and major distraction during the teaching-learning process, handphone text messages have also replaced the classic love-letter to the girl in the last row.    Thats an understatement, said another friend who is the discipline master in his school.    Remember the old school boy trick of yesteryear involving strategically placed pencil-sharpener mirrors. Just imagine what they can do with camera-phones these days.    And do you know what the worst part is?    Some of the models in the lewd, almost pornographic, camera-phone shots are our students. Makes you wonder what the root of all this moral decadence is, doesnt it?    Of course banning the handphone in schools does not mean all these problems are going to be solved. Cheaters will still cheat and inappropriate behaviour in girl-boy relationships will still continue.    Besides, asked another parent, Wouldnt it be unfair to students who genuinely need to have the handphone with them? What about kids with medical problems who need to be in constant contact with their parents?    School administrators have never been unaware of this situation and for that reason, there are always teachers on duty everyday to deal with emergencies such as sending students home, to the hospital, contacting parents and so on.    Some schools I know even allow students to bring their handphones to school but they have to turn the phones in to the school authorities throughout the school session.    You know what really amazes me? said my discipline teacher friend.    Every time we conduct a spot-check and confiscate handphones, parents who have never attended any school function, never turned up on open day to check on their childs progress throughout the school year, are at the school office within half an hour of notification, pleading with us to return the handphones to their children.    Another point brought up by the no handphones in school proponents was the possible feelings of resentment, envy or even feelings of inferiority which may arise when students begin comparing handphone models in schools.    Like most of our material possessions that start out as needs, handphones have become a sort of status symbol for some.    Parents know this when their teenagers tearfully plead for the over RM1,000 model that every other kid has.    Imagine a kid who applies for the Textbook Loan Scheme because his father earns less than RM1,000 a month, sitting next to a student flashing the latest Nokia N90 which cost his dad RM2,500.    Most of us teachers especially, are glad that the issue is finally settled and the ban remains effective.    But we know some of the negative comments that are bound to be made by those less satisfied with the ruling.    Teachers should not blame handphones for discipline problems.    It is the teachers job to ensure students pay attention in class and do not play with handphones. Teachers should not shirk their responsibilities or pass the buck, and so on and so forth.    I wish someone would teach us teachers how to keep a student awake in class when he has been working part-time until 2am to pay for the luxury items he needs, handphones of course being at the top of the list.    While we are at that, I also wish someone would teach us teachers how to prevent students from using vulgarities in school when they use them all the time at home.    Or tell them it is not okay to cheat although this allows them to get what they want.    Or that it is morally wrong to flash an expensive Samsung D500 in front of another kid whose parents cannot afford to give him lunch money.    http://www.mobile88.com/news/read.asp?file=/2006/2/5/20060205000212sec=cover%20story By KAREN CHAPMAN PETALING JAYA: The Education Ministrys decision to lift the ban on handphones in schools from this year has generally caused an uproar.    Director General of Education Datuk Dr Ahamad Sipon cited the increasing number of students owning handphones due to cheaper service charges and handsets as the reason for lifting the ban.    Basically, the Education Ministry does not want to prevent the usage of handphones in school. But their use by both teachers and students must be controlled so that the teaching and learning process is not disrupted, he said in a circular.    RING IT IN Yim Pheng Lets not panic unnecessarily with the lifting of the ban. Lets see what happens first. If there are problems as a result of the directive, I am sure the Education Ministry can then review the situation.    Schools should also have their own rules on the matter.    SMK La Salle (Petaling Jaya) principal A Rajenthran I welcome the ministrys lifting of the ban. We allowed students to bring their handphones last year for convenience and security reasons.    Many parents want to be able to contact their children. They also want their children to be able to contact them in case of an emergency.    We set up a process where students who want to bring their handphones can do so, but they have to first register with us.    We cannot run away from the fact that handphones make things extremely convenient these days.    Parent Abu Kadir Abdullah, 49 All of us in the family keep in touch with each other via handphones, so in this ICT (information and communication technology) age, having handphones will help us communicate faster better.    Parent K.K. Wong, 43 In this day and age where both parents are busy working until late in the day they have to depend on the handphone to keep in touch with their children in school. It is no more just a gadget to show off, it has become a necessity.    Many parents can attest to the fact that it has helped them in their lives. School authorities should make sure students help us communicate faster and better.    CALL IT OFF Parent V. Gunasekaran I am really scared for my daughter. Some IT savvy boys may take funny pictures of girls and circulate them through the MMS. The Ministry should have a rethink.    Senior assistant Mary Goh We have a strict ban on handphones. I really dont see a need for students to bring them to school. There are enough public telephones in school and if there is an emergency, they can always use the office telephone.    Although we are very strict, and will confiscate the phones if we catch them with one, some still manage to sneak them into school. Its really not a good idea.    Principal Suzana Ahmad I am concerned because bringing handphones to school will distract students from concentrating on their studies.    Students are here to learn but they may be unable to resist the urge to check their phones for messages every now and then.    After teaching for many years in urban schools, I can tell you that children in these areas can be very sneaky and may put their phones on silent mode in class.    Teacher R. Usha I agree it is not a good move. I am worried about the impact on those who do not have handphones.    Children from wealthier backgrounds may possess state-of-the-art phones while the poorer ones may have something simpler or none at all. This will cause jealousy and may even result in thefts. http://www.mobile88.com/news/read.asp?file=/2006/1/12/20060112213741sec=news

Art of Psychotherapy Essay -- therapeutic relationship

I believe that the art of psychotherapy is more important than empirically validated treatments (EVT). I feel that the art of psychotherapy lies in the common factors, which include the therapeutic relationship, client and therapist factors (e.g., personality), helping clients deal with problems, and hope or expectancy factors (Reisner, 2005). Although I do believe that empirically validated treatments may enhance the therapeutic process, the treatments themselves are by no means the most important or fundamental aspects of therapy. There appears, at least to me, to be much more of an art involved in developing the relationship with the client and understanding the client’s perspective. It takes art and skill of a therapist to examine, explore, or understand the self and another person. I agree with the idea presented by Allen (2008) that scientific knowledge is important, but it is not sufficient for the successful outcomes in psychotherapy. If a therapist cannot develop a re lationship and understand the client, then it is unlikely that individualized techniques could be successfully applied. Psychotherapy could easily exist as an art form if it were not for managed care. Managed care has not completely eradicated the art of psychotherapy at this point in time; however, as more research reveals EVT are applicable to more disorders, then the art of psychotherapy will likely decline in existence. This would occur due to managed care’s preferences for the use of EVT, since there is evidence that they work and likely work quickly, saving time and money. In order to receive reimbursement and compete with psychopharmacology there is a growing necessity for the reliance on empirically validated therapy (Reisner, 2005). Psychotherapy... ...ong with any necessary treatment measures (Scaturo, 2001). All types of therapy approaches are getting at the same problems of the client in an effort to alleviate them. The only real difference is they â€Å"process† that is that is involved. A discrepancy in treatment and the outcome is created if clinical expertise alone, research findings (EVTs) alone, or patient preference alone determines the treatments that the client gets (Reisner, 2005). Therapy involves both science (empirically validated treatments) and art by combining the relationship, knowledge of the client’s needs with the proper treatment techniques. Overall, I do not feel that manualized treatments will ever completely replace the art of psychotherapy; however, it is likely that the combination of manualized treatments and the art of psychotherapy will lead to more successful therapeutic outcomes. Art of Psychotherapy Essay -- therapeutic relationship I believe that the art of psychotherapy is more important than empirically validated treatments (EVT). I feel that the art of psychotherapy lies in the common factors, which include the therapeutic relationship, client and therapist factors (e.g., personality), helping clients deal with problems, and hope or expectancy factors (Reisner, 2005). Although I do believe that empirically validated treatments may enhance the therapeutic process, the treatments themselves are by no means the most important or fundamental aspects of therapy. There appears, at least to me, to be much more of an art involved in developing the relationship with the client and understanding the client’s perspective. It takes art and skill of a therapist to examine, explore, or understand the self and another person. I agree with the idea presented by Allen (2008) that scientific knowledge is important, but it is not sufficient for the successful outcomes in psychotherapy. If a therapist cannot develop a re lationship and understand the client, then it is unlikely that individualized techniques could be successfully applied. Psychotherapy could easily exist as an art form if it were not for managed care. Managed care has not completely eradicated the art of psychotherapy at this point in time; however, as more research reveals EVT are applicable to more disorders, then the art of psychotherapy will likely decline in existence. This would occur due to managed care’s preferences for the use of EVT, since there is evidence that they work and likely work quickly, saving time and money. In order to receive reimbursement and compete with psychopharmacology there is a growing necessity for the reliance on empirically validated therapy (Reisner, 2005). Psychotherapy... ...ong with any necessary treatment measures (Scaturo, 2001). All types of therapy approaches are getting at the same problems of the client in an effort to alleviate them. The only real difference is they â€Å"process† that is that is involved. A discrepancy in treatment and the outcome is created if clinical expertise alone, research findings (EVTs) alone, or patient preference alone determines the treatments that the client gets (Reisner, 2005). Therapy involves both science (empirically validated treatments) and art by combining the relationship, knowledge of the client’s needs with the proper treatment techniques. Overall, I do not feel that manualized treatments will ever completely replace the art of psychotherapy; however, it is likely that the combination of manualized treatments and the art of psychotherapy will lead to more successful therapeutic outcomes.

America Must Create Jobs Essay -- The Decline of America

Those living in the United States of America are experiencing some economically dark times. Unemployment is becoming increasingly worse. Social programs are failing. Prices everywhere are on the rise as wages are declining drastically. Class division has never been more distinct. Of those lucky enough to have secured the multiple jobs needed in order to maintain their subsistent existences, most make only a minimum wage, established by their state’s laws, which is then harshly taxed upon. Life is hard enough in our dying superpower of a nation, but even worse for the work force of America that must survive on minimum wage. It is an offending disappointment that our fellow countrymen and women must live the way they do. This raises a crucial question whose outcome affects much of the working population. Should minimum wage be raised? And why? There are several arguments being made by economists as to why the minimum wage must be increased. One reason that really pulls on the heart strings is that raising the minimum wage will assist American families. Many of those on minimum wage are working for what is considered â€Å"living wages† as opposed to a side wage. A living wage is much more substantial. These peoples’ needs must be taken into account if they are to survive. But survival isn’t enough. People are not robotic. They all deserve the same chance at happiness as everyone else. Over 28 million of the people in this country work for minimum wage. In the words of one economist that is fighting for the preservation of the family, â€Å"With more family income, some people would choose to retire, go back to school, or have children, making it easier for others who need jobs to find them. Working families would have more time for commu... ...evin-Waldman, Oren M. The Case of the Minimum Wage: Competing Policy Models. Albany: State University of New York, 2001. Print. Levin-Waldman, Oren M. Wage Policy, Income Distribution, and Democratic Theory. London: Routledge, 2011. Print. Mutari, Ellen, and Deborah M. Figart. Women and the Economy: A Reader. Armonk, NY: M.E. Sharpe, 2003. Print. "The Case for Raising the Minimum Wage." The Case for Raising the Minimum Wage. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Dec. 2013. Staff, NPR. "Raising Minimum Wage: A Help Or Harm?" NPR. NPR, n.d. Web. 04 Dec. 2013. "Top 5 Reasons Why Raising the Minimum Wage Is Good for You and Me." Alternet. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Dec. 2013. Adams, Mark. "Raising the Minimum Wage Hurts the Poor." US News. U.S.News & World Report, 11 Mar. 2013. Web. 05 Dec. 2013. "Why We Should Not Raise the National Minimum Wage." IVNus. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Dec. 2013.

The Impact of European Diseases in the New World Essay -- American Ame

The Impact of European Diseases in the New World If science has taught us anything, it is that one event invariably effects countless others. This is no more evident than when a species is introduced into a new environment. Once a foreign species finds itself in new surroundings, it can either die or adapt. Often, these introduced species take over the environment, irrevocably changing it to fit their needs. This usually leads to a serious deteriorating in the well being of species currently existing there. Such is the case as when the Europeans introduced themselves to the New World. The new arrivals not only brought themselves, their technologies, and ways of life, but, most disastrously, their diseases arrived as well. When the Europeans crossed the Atlantic, they not only fought and killed many natives; they slaughtered countless more without even knowing it, signing the death warrants of millions simply by meeting . The real detrimental effect to the Indians was their exposure to the diseases inadvertently brought over by the colonists; these "most hideous enemies†¦invisible killers which those men brought in their blood and breath." (Stannard, xii) The effect of these diseases in the New World (and in fact, many diseases have in general) is rather ironic. The pathogens that cause disease are not out to kill anything, quite the opposite. The whole purpose for anything existing in this world is to pass its genetic material on to offspring. This concept is called fitness. For an organism to be optimally fit, it must survive so it can successfully multiply as often as it can, creating numerous kin so that its genes will live on generations past its own death. For viruses to live, they need a host. They infect an org... ... Stannard, David, E. 1992. American Holocaust: Columbus and the Conquest of the New World. Oxford University Press. 385pp Cowley, Geoffrey. 1992. "The Great Disease Migration." Newsweek. Fall/Winter, vol. 118. Pg. 54(3) Crosby, Alfred, W. 1986. Ecological Imperialism. Cambridge University Press. 368pp Meltzer, David J. 1992. "How Columbus sickened the New World." New Scientist, Oct. 10. Vol.136, pg.38 (4) Linton, Alan. 1982. Microbes, Man and Animals: The Natural History of Microbial Interactions. John Wiley & Sons. 342pp Sale, Kirkpatrick. 1991. The Conquest of Paradise: Christopher Columbus and the Columbian Legacy. Plume. 453pp. Unknown, Discover Staff. 1996. "The origin of Syphilis." Discover. October. Vol. 17, n10, pg23 (3) Glick, J, Schaffer, C. 1991. "The Indian Homeland." U.S. News and World Report. July 8, vol.111, n2, pg26 (6)

Bloodlines Chapter Eleven

BEFORE CLASS THE NEXT DAY, I left a message with someone at the Alchemists' office, telling them I needed â€Å"Mr. and Mrs. Melrose† to send a note excusing Jill from PE – or at least from outdoor activities. I hoped they'd move quickly on this. The Alchemists were fast when they wanted to be, but they sometimes had odd ideas of what took priority. I hoped they didn't have the same attitude toward Jill's misery as Keith did. But I knew not to expect any action that day, so Jill had to suffer through another PE class – and I had to suffer through watching her suffer. What was really terrible was that Jill didn't whine or try to get out of anything. She didn't even show any sign of last night's breakdown. She came in with determination and optimism, as though maybe this would be the day the sun wouldn't affect her. Yet, before long, she began to wane just as she had last time. She looked sick and tired, and my own performance faltered a little because I kept watching her, afraid she'd pass out. Micah was the saving grace. Once again, he fearlessly switched teams – this time from the very start of class. He covered for her just as he had last time, allowing her to escape the notice of teacher and classmates – well, except for Laurel, who seemed to notice – and get annoyed by – everything he did. Her eyes flicked angrily between him and Jill, and she kept flinging her hair over her shoulder to get his attention. I was a little amused to note that Micah's attention remained solely on keeping the ball away from Jill. Micah also jumped immediately to her side when class ended and had a water bottle ready, which she accepted gratefully. I was grateful too, but seeing his concern for her dredged up all my old worries. She was good to her word, however. She returned his attentions in a friendly way, but you definitely couldn't call it flirting. He made no secret of his intentions, though, and I still worried that it would be better if she didn't have to deal with them. I'd meant it when I said I trusted her, but I couldn't help but think it'd be a lot easier on everyone if he laid off in his advances. This would require A Talk. Dreading what I had to do, I caught up with Micah outside the locker rooms. We were both waiting for Jill to finish up, and I took advantage of the alone time with him. â€Å"Hey, Micah,† I said, â€Å"I need to talk to you†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Hey,† he returned brightly. His blue eyes were wide and excited. â€Å"I had an idea I wanted to run past you. If you guys aren't able to get a note for her, maybe you could see about getting her schedule switched around? If she took PE first period, it wouldn't be nearly as hot out yet. Maybe it wouldn't be as hard on her. I mean, she seems like she'd like to participate in some of this stuff.† â€Å"She would,† I said slowly. â€Å"And that's a really good idea.† â€Å"I know some people who work in the office. I'll ask them to run some options and see if it's even possible with the rest of her classes.† He faked a pout. â€Å"I'll be sad not to have her in class, but it'd be worth it to know she's not so miserable.† â€Å"Yeah,† I agreed weakly, suddenly feeling at a loss. He really had come up with a good idea. He was even unselfish enough to give up the chance to be with her in order to promote the greater good. How could I have â€Å"the talk† with him now? How could I suddenly say, â€Å"Leave my sister alone,† when he was going out of his way to be so nice? I was as bad as Eddie, avoiding confrontation with Micah. This guy was too likable for his own good. Before I could manage a response, Micah then went off in an unexpected direction. â€Å"You really should get her to a doctor, though. I don't think she has a sun allergy.† â€Å"Oh?† I asked in surprise. â€Å"Have you not been watching her suffer through class each day?† â€Å"No, no, believe me, she's definitely got an issue with the sun,† he assured me quickly. â€Å"But she might be misdiagnosed. I read up on sun allergies, and people usually get rashes with them. This overall weakness she gets†¦ I don't know. I think it might be something else.† Oh no. â€Å"Like what?† â€Å"I don't know,† he mused. â€Å"But I'll keep researching theories and let you know.† Wonderful. PE also gave me my first glimpse at one of Amberwood's metallic tattoos in action. Greg Slade was impossible not to watch during class, and I wasn't the only one who got distracted. Just as Kristin and Julia had said, he really was faster and stronger. He made dives no one else was quick enough to react to. When he hit the ball, it was a wonder we didn't hear a sonic boom shortly thereafter. This earned him praise at first, but soon, I noticed something. There was a sloppy edge to his game. He was filled with ability, yes, but sometimes it was unfocused. Those powerful hits didn't always help because he'd blast the ball out of bounds. And in running to make a shot, he rarely considered those around him. When a guy from my English class got knocked down flat on his back, simply for being in the path of Slade and the ball, Miss Carson stopped the game and roared her displeasure about Slade's aggression. He took it in with a sulky smirk. â€Å"Too bad Eddie's not in this class,† Jill said afterward. â€Å"He'd be a total match for Slade.† â€Å"Maybe it's better no one notices,† I remarked. Eddie, from what I'd heard, was already a shining star in his PE class. It was part of a dhampir's natural athleticism, and I knew he was actually working hard not to be too good at everything. I checked in with Ms. Terwilliger after PE, happy to find my teacher fully stocked with coffee of her own. I spent most of the period going through the book and taking notes on my laptop. Partway through, she came over to check my work. â€Å"You're very organized,† she said, looking over my shoulder. â€Å"Headings and subheadings and sub-subheadings.† â€Å"Thank you,† I said. Jared Sage had been very particular in teaching his children research skills. Ms. Terwilliger took a sip of coffee and continued reading the screen. â€Å"You didn't list the ritual and spell steps,† she pointed out moments later. â€Å"You just summarize them in a couple lines.† Well, yes, that was the point of note-taking. â€Å"I cite all the page numbers,† I said. â€Å"If you need to check the actual components, there's an easy reference.† â€Å"No†¦ go back and put all the steps and ingredients in your notes. I want to be able to have them all in one place.† You do have them in one place, I wanted to say. In the book. Notes were about condensing the material, not retyping the original text word for word. But Ms. Terwilliger had already wandered away, staring at her filing cabinet absentmindedly as she muttered to herself about a misplaced folder. With a sigh, I flipped back to the beginning of the book, trying not to think about how this was going to set me back. At least I was only doing this for credit and not a grade. I stayed past the late bell in an effort to make up some lost time. When I got back to my room, I had to wake up Jill, who was sound asleep after her exhausting day. â€Å"Good news,† I told her as she blinked at me with sleepy eyes. â€Å"It's feeding day.† Definitely words I never thought I'd say. I also didn't think I'd be excited for it. And sure, I certainly wasn't thrilled about the idea of Jill biting into Dorothy's neck. I was, however, feeling pretty bad for Jill and was glad she'd get some nourishment. Being on such a limited supply of blood had to make things doubly hard for her. We met up with Eddie downstairs when it was time to go. He looked Jill over worriedly. â€Å"Are you okay?† â€Å"I'm fine,† she said with a smile. She looked nowhere near as bad as she had earlier. I shuddered to think what Eddie would've done if he'd actually been in our class and seen her at her worst. â€Å"Why is this still going on?† he asked me. â€Å"Weren't you going to talk to Keith?† â€Å"We're a little delayed,† I said evasively, leading them to where Latte was parked in the student lot. â€Å"We'll make it happen.† If the Alchemists didn't come through with the note, I was going to try to act on Micah's suggestion and get her switched into morning PE. â€Å"We know you will,† said Jill. I could just barely pick out the sympathy in her voice, reminding me that she knew about my fight with Keith yesterday. I hoped she wouldn't mention it in front of Eddie and was saved when she switched to a more random and surprising topic. â€Å"Do you think we can pick up some pizza along the way? Adrian doesn't want any more of Dorothy's cooking.† â€Å"How terrible for him,† remarked Eddie, getting into the backseat and letting Jill ride shotgun. â€Å"Having a personal chef on hand to make him whatever he wants. I don't know how he gets by.† I laughed, but Jill seemed outraged on Adrian's behalf. â€Å"It's not the same! She cooks really super-gourmet stuff.† â€Å"Still waiting for the problem,† said Eddie. â€Å"She tries to also make it really healthy. She says it's better for Clarence. So, there's never any salt and pepper or butter.† Jeez, how often did she and Adrian talk? â€Å"There's no flavor or anything. It's driving him crazy.† â€Å"Everything seems to be driving him crazy,† I remarked, remembering his plea for new lodging. â€Å"And he can't have it too bad. Didn't he go to LA last night?† Jill's only answer was a frown. Nonetheless, I had a feeling we'd be hanging out at Clarence's for a while, and I personally didn't want to eat anything prepared in that house. So, it was more for selfish reasons that I agreed to stop at a takeout place en route and buy a few pizzas. Adrian's face was radiant when we entered the sitting room, which – pool games aside – seemed to be his primary hangout at Clarence's. â€Å"Jailbait,† he declared, leaping up. â€Å"You're a saint. A goddess, even.† â€Å"Hey,† I said, â€Å"I'm the one who paid for them.† Adrian carried off one of the boxes to the couch, much to Dorothy's dismay. She hurried off muttering about plates and napkins. Adrian gave me a conciliatory nod. â€Å"You're okay too, Sage,† he said. â€Å"Well, well, what have we here?† Clarence came tottering into the room. I hadn't noticed before, but he used a cane to get around. It had a crystal snake head on top, which was both impressive and scary. Just the kind of thing you'd picture for an old vampire. â€Å"Looks like a party.† Lee was with him, greeting us with smiles and nods. His eyes lingered briefly on Jill, and he made a point of sitting near her – but not too near. Jill perked up more than she had in days. Everyone was just starting to dive into the pizza when Dorothy appeared in the doorway with a new guest. I felt my eyes widen. It was Keith. â€Å"What are you doing here?† I asked, keeping my voice neutral. He winked. â€Å"Came to check in on everybody and make sure all's well. That's my job – to look after everyone.† Keith was chipper and friendly as he helped himself to the pizza, with no indication of the fight we'd gotten into last time. He smiled and talked to everyone as though they were all best friends, leaving me totally bewildered. No one else seemed to think anything odd about his behavior – but then, why would they? None of them had my history with Keith. No – that wasn't quite true. Despite being deep in conversation with Eddie, Adrian paused to give me a curious look, silently asking about yesterday's fight. He glanced at Keith and then back to me. I shrugged helplessly, letting him know I was just as confused by the change of heart. Maybe Keith regretted his outburst from yesterday. Of course, that would've been much easier to accept if it had come with, oh, an apology. I nibbled on a piece of cheese pizza, but mostly I observed the others. Jill was animatedly recounting her first couple of days to Adrian, noticeably leaving out any of the negative parts. He listened to her indulgently, nodding and interjecting with occasional witty quips. Some of the stuff she told him was pretty basic, and I was surprised it hadn't come up in their phone conversations. Maybe he just had so much to say at those times that there'd been no chance for her. As it was, he made no mention of his boredom or other grievances. Clarence occasionally chatted with Eddie and Lee, but his eyes constantly strayed to Jill. There was a wistful look in his gaze, and I remembered that his niece had only been a little older than Jill. I wondered if perhaps part of the reason he'd been so willing to take us all on was in an effort to reclaim some part of the family life that had been lost to him. Keith had sat down near me, at first making me uncomfortable but then later giving me a reason to pick his brain. Seeing the others engaged in conversation, I asked him softly, â€Å"Have you ever heard of knockoff Alchemist tattoos making it into the general population?† He gave me a startled look in return. â€Å"I don't even know what that means.† â€Å"At Amberwood, there's this trend. There's apparently someplace in town that gives metallic tattoos, and they have special properties – kind of like ours. Some just kind of give off a high. Others kind of have a steroid effect.† He frowned. â€Å"They're not bound with gold, are they?† â€Å"No. Silver and copper. So, they don't last. Probably so the people giving them can make more money.† â€Å"But they can't be ours, then,† he argued. â€Å"We haven't used those metals for tattoos in centuries.† â€Å"Yeah, but someone may be using Alchemist technology to create these.† â€Å"Just to get people high?† he asked. â€Å"I wouldn't even know how you'd go about that with metallic agents.† â€Å"I have some ideas,† I said. â€Å"And let me guess. They involve narcotic mixtures.† When I nodded, he sighed and gave me a look like I was ten years old. â€Å"Sydney, it's most likely someone's found a crude tattooing method that's like ours but has no connection. If so, there's nothing we can do about it. Drugs happen. Bad things happen. If it isn't mixed with Alchemist business, then it isn't our business.† â€Å"But what if it is connected to Alchemist business?† I asked. He groaned. â€Å"See? This is why I was worried about you coming, this tendency you have of running off with tangents and wild theories.† â€Å"I don't – â€Å" â€Å"Please don't embarrass me,† he hissed, casting a glance at the others. â€Å"Not with them, not with our superiors.† His rebuke silenced me, mostly from surprise. What did he mean about this â€Å"tendency† I had? Was he actually suggesting he had made some deep psychological analysis of me years ago? The idea that I would embarrass him was ludicrous†¦ and yet his words planted a seed of doubt in me. Maybe the tattoos at Amberwood were just an unrelated fad. â€Å"How's PE?† Adrian's words dragged me from my own thoughts. He was still getting the summary of school from Jill. She made a face at the question. â€Å"Not great,† she admitted, giving a recap of some of the worse moments. Eddie shot me a meaningful look, similar to the one from earlier. â€Å"You can't go on like that,† exclaimed Lee. â€Å"The sun around here's brutal.† â€Å"I agree,† said Keith, of all people. â€Å"Sydney, why didn't you tell me how bad it was?† I think my jaw hit the floor. â€Å"I did! That's why I was trying to get you to contact the school.† â€Å"You didn't really give me the whole story.† He flashed one of his sugary smiles at Jill. â€Å"Don't worry. I'll take care of this for you. I'll get in touch with school officials – and the Alchemists.† â€Å"I already talked to them,† I argued. But I might as well have not said anything. Keith had already switched topics and was talking to Clarence about something irrelevant. Where had this about-face come from? Yesterday, Jill's discomfort had been low priority. Today, Keith was her knight in shining armor. And in the process, he was suggesting that I was the one who'd screwed up. That's his plan, I realized. He doesn't want me here. He never has. And then something even worse occurred to me. He's going to use this to start building a case against me. Across the room, Adrian caught my eye again. He knew. He'd been eavesdropping when I talked to Keith in the driveway. Adrian started to speak, and I knew he was going to call Keith out on his lie. It was gallant but not what I wanted. I would deal with Keith myself. â€Å"How was LA?† I asked quickly before Adrian had a chance to say anything. He looked at me curiously, no doubt wondering why I wouldn't let him be a witness to my case. â€Å"You went there with Lee last night, right?† Adrian looked confused, but a grin smoothed over his face. â€Å"Yeah,† he said at last. â€Å"It was great. Lee showed me college life.† Lee laughed. â€Å"I wouldn't go that far. I don't know where you were half the night.† Adrian got this look on his face that was somehow charming but made me want to slap him at the same time. â€Å"We parted ways. I was getting to know some of the other Moroi in the area.† Even Eddie couldn't stay silent at that. â€Å"Oh, is that what you call it?† Jill abruptly stood up. â€Å"I'm going to get my blood now. Is that okay?† There was a moment of awkward silence, largely because I don't think anyone really knew who she was asking permission from. â€Å"Of course, my dear,† said Clarence, stepping into his role as host. â€Å"I believe Dorothy's in the kitchen.† Jill gave a curt nod and hurried out of the room. The rest of us exchanged puzzled glances. â€Å"Is something wrong?† asked Lee, looking worried. â€Å"Should I†¦ should I go talk to her?† â€Å"She's still just stressed,† I said, not daring to mention the screaming or crying episodes. â€Å"I thought of something that might be fun for her†¦ for all of us to do,† he said tentatively. He glanced around and then settled his gaze on me. I guess I was the designated mother here. â€Å"If you think it's okay. I mean†¦ it's kind of silly, but I thought we could go mini-golfing in the evening. They've got all these fountains and pools on the course. She's a water user, right? She must be missing it out here.† â€Å"She does,† said Eddie, frowning. â€Å"She mentioned it yesterday.† I shivered. Keith had been texting on his phone and froze. No matter our differences, we still shared a core of similar training, and both of us were uneasy with the idea of Moroi magic. â€Å"She'd probably like that a lot,† said Adrian. He sounded reluctant to admit it. I think he was still uneasy with the idea of Lee being interested in Jill, no matter how friendly the two guys were. Lee's idea was both innocent and conscientious. Hard to find fault with. Lee tilted his head thoughtfully. â€Å"You have a later curfew on the weekends, right? Do you want to go tonight?† It was Friday, granting us an extra hour extension at our dorm. â€Å"I'm game,† said Adrian. â€Å"Literally and figuratively.† â€Å"If Jill's there, I'm there,† said Eddie. They looked at me. I was trapped. I wanted to go back and catch up on homework. Saying that sounded pathetic, though, and I supposed I had to represent as Jill's only female chaperone. Besides, I reminded myself, this assignment wasn't about me and my academics, no matter how much I pretended it was. It was about Jill. â€Å"I can go,† I said slowly. Thinking that this sounded very much like fraternizing with vampires, I glanced uneasily at Keith. He'd gone back to texting now that magic wasn't being discussed. â€Å"Keith?† I asked by way of permission. He looked up. â€Å"Huh? Oh, I can't go. I have to be somewhere.† I tried not to grimace. He'd misread me and thought I was inviting him. On the bright side, he also wasn't objecting to the rest of us going. â€Å"Ah, how nice,† said Clarence. â€Å"An outing for you young people. Perhaps you'll share a glass of wine with me first?† Dorothy was just entering with a bottle of red wine, Jill trailing behind her. Clarence smiled at Adrian. â€Å"I know you'd like a glass.† Adrian's expression said he most definitely would. Instead, Adrian took a deep breath and shook his head. â€Å"I'd better not.† â€Å"You should,† said Jill gently. Even after a short drink of blood, she looked full of life and energy. â€Å"Can't,† he said. â€Å"It's the weekend,† she told him. â€Å"It's not that big of a deal. Especially if you're careful.† The two locked gazes and then at last, he said, â€Å"All right. Pour me a glass.† â€Å"Pour me one too, please,† said Keith. â€Å"Really?† I asked him. â€Å"I didn't know you drank.† â€Å"I'm twenty-one,† he countered. Adrian accepted his from Dorothy. â€Å"Somehow, I'm thinking that's not Sage's concern. I thought Alchemists avoided alcohol the same way they do primary colors.† I glanced down. I was wearing gray. Keith was wearing brown. â€Å"One glass won't hurt,† said Keith. I didn't argue with him. It wasn't my place to babysit Keith. And the Alchemists didn't have rules against drinking per se. We had strong religious beliefs about what it meant to live a good and pure lifestyle, and drinking was generally looked down upon. Was it forbidden? No. It was a custom, one I considered important. If he didn't, I guessed that was his choice. Keith was just bringing the glass to his lips when Adrian said, â€Å"Mmm. O positive, my favorite.† Keith sprayed out the wine he'd just drunk and promptly started coughing. I was relieved that none got on me. Jill burst into giggles, and Clarence stared at his glass wonderingly. â€Å"Is it? I thought it was a cabernet sauvignon.† â€Å"So it is,† said Adrian, straight-faced. â€Å"My mistake.† Keith gave Adrian a tight smile, like he too thought it was a funny joke, but I wasn't fooled. Keith was mad at having been mocked, and no matter how friendly he pretended to be with everyone, his views against vampires and dhampirs were as harsh as they'd ever been. Of course, Adrian probably wasn't helping matters any. I thought it was pretty funny, honestly, and worked to hide my smile so that Keith wouldn't get mad at me again. It was hard to do because shortly thereafter, Adrian flashed me a secret, knowing smile that seemed to say, That's payback for earlier. Eddie glanced at Jill. â€Å"I'm glad you got your blood today. I know you've been wanting to learn some defense moves, but I wanted to wait until you were back up to strength.† Jill lit up. â€Å"Can we do it tomorrow?† â€Å"Of course,† he said, looking nearly as delighted by this as she did. Keith frowned. â€Å"Why should she learn to fight when she's got you around?† Eddie shrugged. â€Å"Because she wants to, and she should have every edge she can get.† He didn't specifically mention the attempts on her life – not in front of Lee and Clarence – but the rest of us understood. â€Å"I thought Moroi weren't good at fighting, though,† said Keith. â€Å"Mostly because they haven't trained for it. They aren't as strong as us, sure, but their reflexes are better than yours,† explained Eddie. â€Å"It's just a matter of learning the skills and having a good teacher.† â€Å"Like you?† I teased. â€Å"I'm not bad,† he said modestly. â€Å"I can train anyone who wants to learn.† He elbowed Adrian, who was reaching for the wine and a refill. â€Å"Even this guy.† â€Å"No, thank you,† said Adrian. â€Å"These hands don't sully themselves with fighting.† â€Å"Or with manual labor,† I remarked, recalling past comments of his. â€Å"Exactly,† he said. â€Å"But maybe you should have Castile show you how to throw a punch, Sage. It might come in handy. Seems like a skill a plucky young woman like yourself should possess.† â€Å"Well, thanks for the vote of confidence, but I'm not really sure when I'd need it,† I said. â€Å"Of course she needs to learn!† Clarence's exclamation caught all of us by surprise. I'd actually thought he was dozing off since he'd had his eyes closed moments ago. But now, he was leaning forward with a zealous expression. I cringed under the intensity of his stare. â€Å"You must learn to protect yourself!† He pointed at me, then moved on to Jill. â€Å"And you. Promise me you'll learn to defend yourself. Promise me.† Jill's light green eyes went wide with shock. She tried to give him a reassuring smile, though it was tinged with uneasiness. â€Å"Of course, Mr. Donahue. I'm trying to. And until then, I've got Eddie to protect me from Strigoi.† â€Å"Not Strigoi!† His voice dropped to a whisper. â€Å"The vampire hunters.† None of us said anything. Lee looked mortified. Clarence squeezed his wineglass so tightly that I worried it would break. â€Å"No one talked about this back then – about defending ourselves. Maybe if Tamara had learned something, she wouldn't have been killed. It's not too late for you – for either of you.† â€Å"Dad, we've been over this,† said Lee. Clarence ignored him. The old man's gaze flicked between me and Jill, and I wondered if he even knew I was human. Or maybe it didn't matter. Maybe he just had a slightly deranged protective instinct toward all girls the same age as Tamara. I kind of expected Keith to tactlessly point out that there were no such things as vampire hunters, but he was uncharacteristically quiet. Eddie was the one who finally spoke, his words soothing and kind. He so often gave off the impression of a do-or-die warrior that it was surprising to realize he was actually very compassionate. â€Å"Don't worry,† said Eddie. â€Å"I'll help them. I'll keep them safe and make sure nothing bad happens to them, okay?† Clarence still looked agitated but focused on Eddie hopefully. â€Å"You promise? You won't let them kill Tamara again?† â€Å"I promise,† said Eddie, in no way indicating how weird the request was. Clarence studied Eddie a few more seconds and then nodded. â€Å"You're a good boy.† He reached for the wine bottle and topped off his glass. â€Å"More?† he asked Adrian, as though nothing had happened. â€Å"Yes, please,† said Adrian, holding out his glass. We continued the conversation as though nothing had happened, but the shadow of Clarence's words continued to hang over me.

Blogs and communication Essay

Corporate blogging is a new method of communication in which employees of different firms and corporations are allowed to express themselves in the current trend in media communications. Several studies suggest that corporate blogs should be limited to only conveying of information beneficial for the company or firm, and thus there is the need to create a strategic management scheme for blogging. As a form of communication, blogs can certainly evolve into a more powerful means of communication. This power entailed in written texts of blogs shall be seen as a tool in encompassing more productive results of the business sector. According to Business Week Online issued in 2006, â€Å"A Weblog (or blog) can be a powerful marketing tool, but it can also expose a business to a legal minefield† as reported by Jacqueline Klosek. â€Å"Blogs can be used to market a company’s products and services, facilitate communications with clients, and even counter negative publicity. † (Klosek, 2006). From the research, many benefits of corporate blogging have been found: it is a tool for search engine marketing, an aide in building the company’s reputation as a thought leader, a good support in crisis management, tool for building relationships with customers, used as a human voice to a company, illustrates transparency, immediate customer service and feedback, acts as differentiator, and tool to find out what others think about you and your company. Presently, corporations are now much more concerned about their reputations. The vigilant companies realize that knowledge is power in cyberspace. They are trolling chat rooms, discussion boards, online news media and Web sites run by their competitors and critics to detect rumblings that could end up making headlines if a reporter or financial analyst discovers them first (Alsop 2004, 21). The existence of cyberspace, wherein the transfer of information is relatively faster than it was ten years ago has just become a threat to the reputations of corporations which are forced to enter cyberspace for more exposure. Corporate blogging is one dependable medium which corporations may pursue in order to protect their reputations and cut of their costs in terms of crises scenarios which could have been avoided. Although, the most of the companies set up corporate blogs for the purpose of promoting their services, building their good image or gaining any other befits. There is however a limitation in blogging, since legal problems may arise in the process. â€Å"Careless statements posted on a company-sanctioned blog can come back to haunt the company through litigation and other avenues† Klosek stresses. Blogs can cause violations on intellectual-property rights since most corporate blogs do not have specific rules that can be followed by the employees. Trade secrets may be revealed accidentally risking the protected status of company information. Disclosure of trade secrets can jeopardize the blogger’s career since this problem may cause his suspension or termination from his position. From many studies and articles written about corporate blogs, the question has been raised on insufficient management. The integrity rules for protection and management of blogs are expected to be established immediately. This research proposal aims to determine that how does corporate blog as a kind of new innovation be widely adopted and used by the both of the individual blogger and various organizations? What are the benefits of the corporate blogs bring to the organizations? How the public perceives corporate blogging as a kind of new innovation? What are the perceived relative advantages of corporate blogging according to the bloggers? Why is it to be welcome and popular as a successful new innovation? Is corporate blogging compatible with the existing values and practices of the bloggers? 1. 2 Overview of the Structure This proposal is structured into several sections. This section provides the audience with the motivations, objectives and a brief introduction to the research proposal. In the following sections, it includes the Literature review concerning blogging phenomenon and the process of this successful innovation, the benefits and limitation will be critically reviewed to provide a background for the research theme. In order to further understand real world practices, a theoretical framework is introduced. In section 3, known as Diffusion of innovation theory will be applied in the analysis part. The DIO theory is also used in combination with literature review to analyze and illuminate primary data, which will be used to answer the research question and the respective supporting the arguments. Section 4 describes the research methodology and various techniques which the author used to collate empirical data. In this section, the case research has been choosing to track and understand the history of the perception and adoption of blogs as a new innovation by the successful corporation in the business industry. An interview will also be carried out in the research process. The interview will help to find out the relationship between the employer and internal blogger, and further testify, discover and summarize the effects and benefits of the corporate blog as a new innovation. Finally, the discussion and the conclusion sections will be given to summarize of the expectation of findings, contributions, limitations of the research and points in which the research could further be improved or developed. 2 Literature review 2. 1 Understanding of blogs A weblog or blog is a form of an online journal. Schiano, Nardi, Gumbrecht, and Swartz (2004) defined blogs as â€Å"frequently updated web pages with a series of archived posts, typically in reverse chronological order†. According to Gordon (2006), blogs use â€Å"straightforward content management tool, allowing web pages and entries to be created and updated easily, without the need to worry about design or architecture issues† (Gordon, 2006). Although blog posts are primarily textual, authors may also include photos or other multimedia content in their posts. The blog is the fourth biggest communication tool after the e-mail, BBS and ICQ. According to Cooke (2005), about 70 million blogs exist and over 75,000 blogs are being created each day. Blogs is indeed increasingly becoming popular. Sprague (2007) traced the growth and evolution of blogs. He also discussed how businesses use blogs to communicate with customers. There are different kinds of blogs present today at cyberspace. The most popular ones are personal blogs, service, and corporate blogs (Geerts and Kim 2005, 12). Personal Blogs provide information about the thoughts, interests and activities of different people whether they are individuals or are blogging by groups or affiliations. Service blogs are often topic oriented and they are context specific and much informative than personal blogs. Some groups use service blogs to introduce new technologies and recent development regarding the corresponding technologies which they present. Finally, the corporate blog which is created and maintained by a business entity, and is used to provide information about the company’s products and services and to interact with clients and customers. (Geers and Kim 2005, 12). Since most scholars who work in the area of life writing have chosen to see blogs as a development of the handwritten diary (Rak 2005, 166) more and more people engage in writing in blogspots or blogsites. There are both threats and advantages which corporate blogging gives to the corporations. At some point, corporate blogging has strengthened the transparency and corporate communications. Since at present, Corporate communication channels include not only printed materials but also information posted on a company’s Web sites and blogs (Argenti 2006, 358). However, some corporations fail to further improve their corporate communications because they limit their corporation’s blogspots only to their employees and their advertisers. It is highly doubtful whether they have fully utilized the capabilities of new two-way communication tools because more corporate home pages have been primarily used as a platform to push mundane advertising messages (Liu et al. , 1997; Salam et. al. 1998; Young and Benamati, 2000). Another point presents the fact that, there might be leaks in confidential corporate information which might be given out through the engagement to blogs of employees. Cases of such has led to the termination of employees active in Web blogs, which gives a corporate disadvantage as it losses some of its quality workforce due to the lack of policies and rules which apply to blogs. A good example would be the Delta Air Lines flight attendant who lost her job after she posted photos of herself in uniform on her blog. Delta stated that those photos, in which she is wearing Delta uniform with the blouse partly unbuttoned, were â€Å"inappropriate and unauthorized use of Delta branding† (USA Today, 2005). Web blogs is a critical accessory in information dissemination, yet at the same time, it might cause some corporate failures, as although the Internet allows companies to present their viewpoints directly to key constituents, control over information dissemination is lost (Ihator 2001). There are several studies that investigate the nature of blogs and bloggers. Schiano et. al. (2004) interviewed 23 bloggers between the ages 19 and 60. The interviews included questions about the participant’s blogs, blogging habits, thoughts on blogging, and use of other communication media such as e-mails, instant messaging, phone, and web pages. They found out that blogging is becoming increasingly popular because it serves as an easy-to-use personal journal in which he can express his thoughts and opinions. Nardi, Schiano and Gumbrecht (2004) describe blogs as a social activity. They interviewed the same population and questions as with their study entitled â€Å"Blogging by the Rest of Us†. After the interviews, the authors continued to read their participants’ blogs and communicate with some of them through email. The participants reported the reasons they started blogging, the reasons they continue blogging, and the changes in their blogging habits as time pass by. A variety or reasons emerge: readers inform bloggers they need the new posts; the friends influence their friend to blog. Due to these responses, Nardi et. al. (2004) conclude that blogs are â€Å"a form of social communication in which blogger and audience are intimately related through the writing, posting and commenting of blogs† . (Nardi, 2004) These studies give us an idea on the perceptions of bloggers about blogs in general. 2. 2 Corporate blogs and applications in the real world Different types of blogs have been posted in the internet ever since the adoption of different corporations in the late 1990’s. Corporate blogs however have different types in which each is branded according to the specific user or blogger. Dearstyne (2005) cites five different types of corporate blogs as: employee blog, group blog, executive blog, promotional blog, and newsletter blog. Employee blogs are blogs which are much like personal blogs and are maintained by a single rank-and-file employee. They vary in their content and are sometimes managed by different hosts which the corporations recognize. Although, often times, corporations gather all the blogs their employees post. Majority of employee blogs are still hosted independently of the Web site, employee blogs are increasingly being hosted independently of the company Web sit, employee blogs are increasingly being hosted on company-owned domains as more and more companies are officially sponsoring employee blogging. (Lee et. al. 2006, 319). Group Blogs are blogs which are written by several people or groups. Employees collaborate and write on a specific topic or different topics pertaining to a certain theme; they are made by those who are experts on the certain topics. Group blogs are sometimes made through the initiatives of employees themselves and self-hosted. Though, many group blogs are driven by strategic plans crafted by management and hosted by companies own Web sites (Lee et. al. 2006, 320). Executive Blogs, coming from the name itself, executive blogs are blogs which are written by various corporations’ executives. Corporations and consumers have been keener on what position blog writers are on as awareness about corporate standing is widespread. People have become more interested in top executives who run companies than in individual companies (Gaines-Ross 2000). Promotional blogs are those which primary purpose is to create a buzz about products and events of corporations. This blog however sparks controversy as most of the blogs which are promotional blogs are often times computer generated and is largely called as fake by some bloggers who remain critical about using blogspots as advertising media. The blogging community severely criticized this strategy as deceptive and bloggers even proposed product boycotts (Gallagher 2003). This case suggests that, marketing in the blogsphere is often times discouraged due to the lack of human voice in the ads which are placed in the blogsphere. Some corporations have moved from the traditional type of blog with a domain, and instead created a newsletter type of blog wherein opinions, thoughts, and positions of different corporate or organizational members are voiced out. They carry different information about the corporation, the people inside the corporation, and the corporation’s products which are widely discussed by members of the organization through the electronic newsletter. Sprague (2007) further explains the influence of blogs to the American society. There is an increasing number of both bloggers and blog readers each day. At present, the blog has already extended its influence to the business society. Blogs are reported to influence what people think, do and buy. By the summer 2005, it is estimated that there are nearly 5,000 corporate blogs. Nowadays, there are a number of companies who have already set up their own corporate blogs. Aside from the influx of bloggers, talking about anything and practically everything under the sun, in some countries wherein political turmoil is prominent and shouting against a regime could practically lose you your head. Blogspheres are considered as sanctuaries wherein anyone could voice off their thoughts. In Iran, the Blogsphere is one of the major mediums wherein the populace could voice out their political positions freely with minimal risk of persecution. Any foreigner who visits Iran is struck by the gap between the image projected by the regime to the outside world and the reality of Iranian society. The blogs quoted here vividly convey the bitter disillusionment many Iranians feel not just towards the hard-line mullahs, but toward the failed reformist project and its erstwhile leader (Berkeley 2006, 73). The safeness and freedom of the blogosphere from any political and other accusations which may arise from its use due to the arbitrariness of the policies governing the blogosphere may be seen as an advantage of corporate personalities in advertising and the diffusion of their advocacy especially in corporate social responsibility.