Contempory social care Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Contempory social care - Essay Example more major life activities including self-care, language, learning, mobility, self-direction, capacity for independent living, and/or economic self-sufficiency â€Å" (Federal Developmental Disabilities Act of 1984). Professionals from a wide variety of fields and disciplines devote much time and energy in helping these children live comfortable and fulfilling lives with the end view of mainstreaming them into society and the real world. Educators, therapists, psychologists, speech pathologists, physicians, social workers and even government officials join hands in the care and education of these children to ensure their optimum growth and development. â€Å"When a child/adolescent with a preexisting disability is separated from the parent/family and enters the child welfare system, already established medical and educational services for the child are often put on hold until placement is secured, records are gathered, and services with new providers are initiated in the geographical area of the placement. The child welfare worker, therefore, has a key role in identifying and accessing appropriate services for children/adolescents with disabilities and their families (biological and foster) within the child welfare system and in the medical and educational systems. To maintain children with disabilities in family and community settings, supportive, developmental, and therapeutic services must be provided to this population of children and to their biological, foster, and adoptive families† (Hughes & Rycus, 1998). Children with disabilities often need medical attention. Hospitals offer multidisciplinary approaches to therapy. Aside from the usual pediatric consultation for the disability, a host of therapists – physiotherapists, occupational therapists, speech pathologists, etc. are also available to help out. For a significant number of disabled children, â€Å"hospital admissions can be frequent and prolonged. Their needs bring many additional challenges to the

Information Use Essay Example for Free

Information Use Essay Information can be used in an assortment of ways in today’s business world. Companies can use it to track profits and losses while others use it to forecast future industry trends so they can make informed decisions about what markets they should focus on. According to Opara (2003) â€Å"Information is the life blood of modern organizations. † Without this information, organizations would be making uninformed decisions. Information flows in a circular motion in today’s organizations. An example would be how a car dealership uses the information it gathers. A customer that is in the market for a new vehicle enters a car dealership unsure of what kind of vehicle he or she is interested in. An associate greets the potential customer and asks a few questions to ascertain what the customer is looking for. This information would be what the associate would enter into an information system (IS). From this system the associate can give the customer a listing of vehicles to choose from. The selection of vehicles is presented to the customer and after looking at all the information the customer chooses the vehicle he or she potentially wants to purchase. The associate inputs the customer’s personal information into an IS to qualify them for financing for the vehicle. The personal information is then used by the finance department to set up the financial terms that the customer will have to abide by. Once the financial terms are determined, the information is cycled back to the customer for his or her input. After the sale of the vehicle, the customer information is stored into a database so that the customer can be contacted their experience and also used for future sales. When the vehicle is sold it will need to be removed from the dealerships inventory using another IS program. This program will generate a report for inventory control and future ordering. The data that was collected through the sales process is extremely important to the sale of new vehicles. Not having this data would make it impossible to forecast future sales and inventory requirements. Larger businesses need to keep this type of information on hand for future data mining where â€Å"customer databases are unnecessary for small business. Most small businesses keep track on order-by-order basis† (Types of Information Systems in a Business Organization, 2012). An IS that enables the dealership to maintain correct inventory counts for its customers is a vital part in a profitable business. Maintaining an unobstructed flow of information is crucial to the life of a company. Without this flow of information companies could not maintain profits, and without profits there would be no business. If this data is not controlled a business could find itself in a crisis. If the IS fails in the finance department, the business would not be able to complete a transaction. The same holds true for the inventory control systems. If any of the systems in the cycle were to fail it would put every other system in the cycle in danger. Decision making processes are dependent on the systems working and communicating properly and the information flowing correctly throughout the system. With the collecting of information, organizations have to be aware of the sensitive nature of certain customer information that is inputted. Personal information (PII) has to be protected and stored in a manner that it cannot be accessed by individuals who do not have the authority to view it. Keeping this information secure can be a huge undertaking for any IT department when establishments are faced with situations like car dealerships. There are many individuals who need access to the information in the system at different times. Some information need only be viewable by one department while other departments will need full access to the entire file. This makes creating a secure environment challenging. Securing PII is probably one of the most vital tasks when dealing with data storage. If data is corrupted it is useless to the establishment, and if it is ever misused or stolen it then becomes a potential legal hazard. I am self employed and don’t see the correlation to my work, but I am familiar with Bi-Lo. Customers who sign up for the Bi-Lo Bonus Card fill out the application with their personal information. This includes their name, address, email, and phone numbers. This information is stored in Bi-Lo’s database system. Bi-Lo uses this data to track customer purchases. The store’s system also uses the card data to issue discounts on sale items and email coupons to customer emails. Bi-Lo keeps track of customer orders, types of items ordered, customer spending, and use this information to issue coupons after transactions. Observing the different ways information flows through an enterprise will give incite to how to control and protect it. Every organization has a unique circumstance nd with those circumstances come different ways of controlling the flow of information and its security. No matter which method is chosen, there are a few things that do not change and those things are system reliability and security. If companies do not have a reliable IS, their data becomes useless and if those ISs are not secured from unauthorized access or use, organizations are opening the door to potential lawsuits and stiff fines. Either situations could be costly and end their businesses.

The Course of The Great Depression Essay -- Great Depression American

The Course of The Great Depression The October 1987 collapse in stock prices conjured visions of 1929 and the Great Depression. Focus on this period is natural because the 32 percent decline in stock values between the market closes of October 13 and 19, 1987, was of the magnitude of--indeed, it actually exceeded--the October 1929 debacle. Focus on this period is also appropriate because, despite all that has been learned since to help assure economic stability, we cannot be completely confident that history will not repeat itself. Consequently, this first section reviews events of the Depression era. The stock market Crash of October 1929 is frequently credited with triggering the Depression. The decline was severe and extended; from their peak in September 1929, stock prices declined by 87 percent to their trough in 1932. The performance of the economy over this period was equally disheartening. Real economic activity declined by about one-third between 1929 and 1933; unemployment climbed to 25 percent of the labor force; prices in the aggregate dropped by more than 25 percent; the money supply contracted by over 30 percent; and close to 10,000 banks suspended operations. Given this performance, it is not surprising that many consider these years the worst economic trauma in the nation's history. Policy makers did not stand idly by as the financial markets and the economy unraveled. There are questions, though, about the appropriateness and magnitude of their responses. Monetary policy, determined and conducted then, as now, by the Federal Reserve, became restrictive early in 1928, as Federal Reserve officials grew increasingly concerned about the rapid pace of credit expansion, some of which was fueling stock market speculation. This policy stance essentially was maintained until the stock market Crash. While there has been much criticism of Federal Reserve policy in the Depression, its initial reaction to the October 1929 drop in stock values appears fully appropriate. Between October 1929 and February 1930, the discount rate was reduced from 6 to 4 percent. The money supply jumped in the immediate aftermath of the Crash, as commercial banks in New York made loans to securities brokers and dealers in volume. Such funding satisfied the heightened liquidity demands of nonfinancial corporations and others that had been financing broker-dealers... ...tivity was under way prior to the market debacle of October 1929. In contrast, the cyclical expansion in business that followed the recession of 1981-1982 remains intact today. Moreover, examination of the Depression years can help us to identify policies that minimize the risk of a slowdown in economic activity and to avoid the major errors of the past. In this regard, the principal recommendations that emerge from our admittedly subjective review of history are: -- maintain our commitment to the stability of the banking system through judicious use of the federal safety net of deposit insurance and the discount window; -- support normal credit extension by banks and, more generally, smoothly functioning financial institutions and markets through stable and credible macroeconomic policies; -- provide adequate growth in the money supply consistent with prevailing economic circumstances worldwide; and -- promote open markets for the international trade of goods and services. Such a list of policy recommendations may seem unremarkable, in part because the lessons of the past already have been taken to heart. Achievement, however, is likely to prove a challenge.

Power of Wind

Power of Wind Jason A. Jennings Principles of Marketing (BUS 330) Instructor: Debra McCoskey-Reisert January 28, 2012 Power of Wind There is a large sector in the United States that believes wind energy is an excellent alternative resource. There is also a group of people that believe that the wind turbines that are used to generate wind energy is a bad idea because they obstruct the natural view, causes death to birds, and generates noise pollution. They also argue that wind energy is not a dependable source of energy because the wind does not blow continually.Wind as a viable source of energy will be evaluated from a positive and negative perspective. Wind energy has long history of being used as a power source (Berry, History of Windmills, 2011). Considering the current issues that the global community faces concerning green house gases and pollution alternative energy sources must be evaluated. As of 2010 the United States Energy Information Administration listed Saudi Arabia, Ru ssia, and the United States as being the top three world oil producers (U. S. Department of Energy). The top three oil consumers are the United States, China, and Japan.As of 2009 the United States Energy Information Administration listed Saudi Arabia, Canada, Iran, Iraq, and Kuwait as having the highest level of proven world oil reserves (U. S. Department of Energy). In 2010 the United States Imported close to forty nine percent of the petroleum products that it consumed in that same year (U. S. Department of Energy). About half of those imports came from nations located in the Western Hemisphere. The world currently faces a shrinking petroleum based energy supply and a rapidly growing pollution problem as a result of the dependency on petroleum.Countries around the world increasingly have to compete with each other in order to secure petroleum based energy resources. China and India continue to place a higher demand on the worlds petroleum supply because of their rapidly growing e conomies. High gasoline prices, global warming concerns, and fears that fossil fuel resources are likely hitting peak supply while global demand is surging demands the modern world’s undivided attention. Oil producing countries in the Middle East currently hold a forty percent share of the world’s oil market.Wind energy has the ability to market itself. There is a large sector around the world with a belief that wind energy is an excellent alternative resource. Wind farms are also one of the emerging green technologies that are beginning to show their true value. Between the year 2000 and 2010 the wind power capacity of the United States jumped exponentially (see page 6). That is a direct result of the hundreds of new wind farms that came on line in the American power grid. In 2010 global wind installation hit 196,000 gigawatts.In a recent study conducted by the United Nations said renewable energy accounted for sixty percent of new electricity generation capacity in E urope and more than half in the United States of America. The human relationship with the wind has been a long one with the use of sailing ships and windmills. For centuries past the wind was used as the main power source for sailing ships. The use of windmills seems to have started with the Persians for grinding grain (between 500 and 900 A. D. ). Windmills started appearing in Europe around the time of the Crusades (1096 -1270).The European design is very different from the Persian one and there is an ongoing debate whether the Europeans developed the windmill themselves or the Crusaders had taken the idea back to Europe (Berry, History of Windmills, 2011). The earliest windmills found in Europe were a post mill construction. The main structure of the windmill sits on top of a post and could be rotated to face the wind. Human power was needed to rotate the windmill to face the direction of the prevailing winds. The windmill was turned by a long beam that was attached horizontally to the body of the mill.The mills sat upon a tripod structure that consisted of two crossed beams resting on the ground with four angled beams coming up to support the post in the center. These windmills used a horizontal axis allowing the sails of the windmill to take better advantage of the wind. The power was then transferred to machines by cogs and gears. In 1650 smock mills were developed with just the top part of the windmill being turned to face the wind. This was a huge improvement to the windmill because the sail structure was much lighter and easier to turn.Permanent structures could be built to house the mill. Brick and stone tower mills were built using the new smock mill method. Smock mills received that name because they resembled a nineteenth century countryman’s smock. They were built in a tapered, boarded, Octagonal shaped tower form. The Chinese built their first documented windmill in 1219 A. D. and was used to grind grain. In the late 1300’s the Dut ch developed a new sail design that increased efficiency. The sail was constructed with a leading edge that created aerodynamic lift.Windmill sails were made of cloth stretched over a wooden frame. Some windmill designs incorporated trimmed sails allowing them to take better advantage of the variable wind conditions. The English used a fantail on their windmills that allowed them to be turned by the wind. The large Dutch designed windmills continued to be used all across Europe until the development of the steam engine in the 1880’s. The use of steam power caused a decline in the use of large tower windmills. In the United States windmills were used in the west for pumping water to the ranchers live stock.In the mid 1900’s Charles Brush developed a huge wind dynamo that generated electricity and became fascinated with the possibility of producing free energy for the general public. Beginning in the 1930’s a group of disgruntled ranchers got together and started the development of wind energy. The ranchers were facing rising prices, power outages and poor customer service. Robert Righter is a historian that has done extensive research on wind energy in the United States. The first wind farms were built in the state of California in the 1980’s.The Altamont Pass, located near the San Francisco Bay area there are still some of the older and much smaller turbines. They only had a rotor diameter of 15 meters and a capacity of tens of kilowatts. The new turbines being manufactured today have a capacity of 1. 5 – 2. 5 megawatts (MW), rotor diameters as great as 100 meters allowing the blades to sweep an area the size of a football field. Wind power is on the rise in the United States with capacity jumping by 45 percent at the end of 2007 and capacity reaching to 17 gigawatts (GW).Wind power is an attractive alternative to fossil fuels such as coal and oil because it is an energy source that does not produce pollution or climate alter ing greenhouse gases. When the massive turbines have been installed the only fuel that is needed to run them is the wind. Wind resources found around the world are so massive that they could easily meet the worlds current energy needs. A study that was conducted by researchers at Stanford University found that global wind energy potential in the year 2000 was about 72,000 gigawatts (GW), almost five times the world’s total energy demand at that time.The technology used to tap into the wind energy resources is getting much cheaper. In the early 1980’s electricity produced by the wind cost as much as 30 cents per kilowatt hour. In 2007 the cost had fallen to 10 cents per kilowatt hour. There are various incentives in the form of tax credits and feed in tariffs that make electricity generated from the wind cost competitive with electricity generated from natural gas and coal. Maria Sicilia of the International Energy Agency (IEA) has stated that a $30. 0 dollar tax per to n of carbon dioxide emitted would allow electricity produced on wind farms could compete in most markets without subsidies [ (International Energy Agency, 2009) ]. Even with no tax being placed on carbon emissions the growth of wind power is very likely to continue. The European Union has set a goal of getting 20% of its energy from renewable resources by 2020, with a large portion of it coming from wind power. The United States Department of Energy has laid out a plan to get 20% of the energy needed in the United States from wind power by 2030 [ (U. S.Department of Energy, 2008) ]. Asia may become the biggest market for new wind installations over the next five years. The wind does not blow all of the time and wind farms cannot be placed in some areas of the United States. For wind to stay on the path of expansion the industry will have to build new transmission lines and improve the integration of electricity produced by the wind into the power grid [ (IBM) ]. The industry is also vulnerable financially if subsidies are suddenly phased out. Some groups will say that the massive wind turbines cause the needless deaths of birds.The effect that the wind farms have on the view is one reason that has been cited for saying no to wind power. There have been issues concerning the noise that the turbines create. Wind energy is an excellent and valuable resource that can be used as a replacement for dirty fossil fuels and the dangers of nuclear power. It cannot be the only replacement for those energy sources but it can be used in conjunction with solar power, geothermal, and hydroelectric to fulfill our nation’s energy requirements.The use of coal as an energy source for the generation of electricity can gradually be scaled down. Mankind has had a long relationship with the wind as an energy source and should continue to use it well into the future. Pollution has become a major problem that is affecting the climate and that problem should be resolved on a glob al scale with all nations working together for the common good. A comparison of year end wind capacity in the United States between 2000 – 2010 (U. S. Department of Energy, 2011) References Berry, M. (2011, May 24). History of Windmills.Retrieved January 28, 2012, from Windmill World: http://www. windmillworld. com/windmills/history. htm GWEC. (2011). GWEC. Retrieved January 5, 2012, from Global Wind Energy Council: http://www. gwec. net/http://www. gwec. net/index. php? id=28 IBM. (n. d. ). Wind power is the fastest growing source of electricity. Retrieved December 26, 2011, from IBM – Greener Energy – Smarter Planet: http://www. ibm. com/smarterplanet/us/en/smart_grid/article/wind_power. html International Energy Agency. (2009, October 1). Renewable Energy Essentials: Wind.Retrieved January 5, 2012, from iea. org: http://www. iea. org/Papers/2008/Wind_Brochure. pdf Kotler, P. , & Armstrong, G. (2010). Principles of Marketing. Upper Saddle River: Pearson Prenti ce Hall. National Renewable Energy Laboratory. (2011, July 22). Wind Research. Retrieved December 28, 2011, from NREL: http://www. nrel. gov/wind/ U. S. Department of Energy. (2008, May). 20% Wind Energy by 2030. Retrieved January 1, 2012, from Increasing Wind Energy's Contribution to U. S. Electricity Supply: http://www. 20percentwind. org/default. aspx U.S. Department of Energy. (n. d. ). Oil Production. Retrieved January 28, 2012, from Independent Staistics ; Analysis: http://38. 96. 246. 204/countries/index. cfm? view=production U. S. Department of Energy. (2010, September 1). Wind ; Water Program. Retrieved December 26, 2011, from Technologies: http://www1. eere. energy. gov/windandhydro/wind_how. html U. S. Department of Energy. (2011, September). Wind Powering America. Retrieved January 7, 2012, from Energy Efficency ; Renewable Energy: http://www. windpoweringamerica. gov/

Nomadic Societies

They developed by adapting to the ecological conditions of their arid lands. Due to the lack of rain in central Asia they are not able to support large scale agriculture. The Nomadic people would bring their herds of animals to lands that actually had large amounts of grass, and stubs so that they could graze. They lived off of only meat, milk, and the hides of their animals. They used animal bones for tools and animal feces for fuel. Classify their interaction with the sedentary states. Their interaction with the sedentary states was mostly throughout trade and â€Å"they sometimes even adopted aspects of secondary cultures, and acted as intermediaries between settled worlds. † (Sanders, Nelson, Morillo, & Ellenberger, 2006, p. 181) Was it always hostile? No, they were not always hostile while interacting with others and they had a very strong military. Because they had such a strong worriers they were able to seize the wealth of settled societies they then were able to build imperial states in the regions surrounding central Asia. How were they viewed differently? * A first century BCE description of the Xiongnu, the archetypal nomadic peoples of the Chinese world. * A late fourth century Roman view of the Huns. * One of the barbarian groups that invaded the Roman Empire. description of the steppe nomads by the tenth-century Byzantine emperor Constantine Porphyrogenitus that reflects both Byzantine experience and the classical legacy of Greek and Roman views and terms * Ibn-Al-Athir gives us an early –thirteenth-century Muslim view of the Mongol attacks on the Islamic World, and Marco Polo, a European who lived for years at the Mongol court, gives us something of an â€Å"outside insiders† view of Mongol life. (Sanders, Nelson, Morillo, & Ellenberger, 2006, p. 181) They also normally did little governing seeing how clans and tribes pretty uch looked out for themselves. And they were known to have a very strong military. Analyze the Mongol empire. The nomadic Mongols lived on the high steppe lands of eastern central Asia they displayed deep loyalty to kin groups organized into families, clans, and tribes. They were allies with Turkish people who had built empires on the steppes. They were unable to establish strong stable society on a large scale due to their loyalties to kinship groups. What kind of a leader was Chinggis (Ghenghis) Khan? He mastered the art of steppe diplomacy which called for displays of personal courage in battle, combined with intense loyalty to allies, a willingness to betray others to improve one’s position, and the ability to entice other tribes into cooperative relationships. In 1206 a group of Mongol leaders recognized Temujin supremacy by proclaiming him Chinggis was known as a universal leader. † (Bentley, Ziegler, & Streets, 2008, p. 272) Why did the empire decline? The empire then declined due to serious difficulties governing Persia and China. In Persia they had cases of excessive spending which strained the treasury, and overexploitation of the peasantry led to reduced revenues. They tried to fix their mess by creating paper money in the 1290’s but the merchants refused to accept paper, they thought it was worthless. Then when the last Mongol ruler pasted away in 1335 there was no heir the ilkhanate collapsed. What overall effect did the Mongols have on the eastern world? Even though the Mongols came to an end it was not the end of the nomadic peoples influence on Eurasia. The Turkish people resumed the expansive campaigns that the Mongols had interrupted.

Free Essays on School Violence In America

Factors contributing to school violence are complex and numerous. America’s children are exposed to a steady diet of physical and verbal violence that begins early and continues on throughout their lives. For example, children watch an average of 8,000 murders and 100,000 other violent acts on television before finishing high school. Violent acts do not just start happening in high school. Nearly eight percent of elementary schools have reported discipline problems. Drugs and alcohol are also a major contributor to school violence. Although reports do indicate that the use of heroin, cocaine, marijuana, and crack is down among students, the consumption of alcohol is not. Alcohol is the number one drug used by teenagers and young adults. Bad parenting practices are also a major contributor to school violence. In 1992, nearly 1.9 million cases of child abuse were reported. It is found that children who are abused are more likely to be violent to themselves and other people. Bad parenting practices do not only mean child abuse. The simple fact that is that more and more parents are working outside of their homes. Nearly thirty-six percent of students say lack of parental supervision contributes to violence in schools. Students are now aware of this and know it is hard for school officials to contact their parents. Although when parents are contacted, they often refuse to respond, often blaming the school or the teachers. When a violent act in a school occurs, there is most likely a victim. Every hour of each day of a school year, nine hundred teachers are threatened, and nearly forty percent of teachers are physically attacked on school grounds. Students most likely to be victims are students who have just recently moved to a new school, or students from racial or ethnic groups that are minorities within the school are most likely to be physically assaulted. About twenty-eight percent of school violence is of racial... Free Essays on School Violence In America Free Essays on School Violence In America Factors contributing to school violence are complex and numerous. America’s children are exposed to a steady diet of physical and verbal violence that begins early and continues on throughout their lives. For example, children watch an average of 8,000 murders and 100,000 other violent acts on television before finishing high school. Violent acts do not just start happening in high school. Nearly eight percent of elementary schools have reported discipline problems. Drugs and alcohol are also a major contributor to school violence. Although reports do indicate that the use of heroin, cocaine, marijuana, and crack is down among students, the consumption of alcohol is not. Alcohol is the number one drug used by teenagers and young adults. Bad parenting practices are also a major contributor to school violence. In 1992, nearly 1.9 million cases of child abuse were reported. It is found that children who are abused are more likely to be violent to themselves and other people. Bad parenting practices do not only mean child abuse. The simple fact that is that more and more parents are working outside of their homes. Nearly thirty-six percent of students say lack of parental supervision contributes to violence in schools. Students are now aware of this and know it is hard for school officials to contact their parents. Although when parents are contacted, they often refuse to respond, often blaming the school or the teachers. When a violent act in a school occurs, there is most likely a victim. Every hour of each day of a school year, nine hundred teachers are threatened, and nearly forty percent of teachers are physically attacked on school grounds. Students most likely to be victims are students who have just recently moved to a new school, or students from racial or ethnic groups that are minorities within the school are most likely to be physically assaulted. About twenty-eight percent of school violence is of racial...

The structure of personality Essays

The structure of personality Essays The structure of personality Paper The structure of personality Paper Sport psychologists have been interested in whether athletic success in an individual can be predicted by measuring personality for a number of years. During the 1960s and 70s there was a wealth of research being undertaken with regards to this subject. This essay shall attempt to understand the development and structure of personality, then take a look at different methods of personality assessment and finally try to understand the extent to which athletic success can be predicted by personality. Firstly, it is required that we should try to understand what personality is before trying to understand whether athletic success can be predicted by measuring it. Actually defining personality can be very difficult as it is so broad. In 1971, Edwin Hollander described personality as a structure with a core, middle and an outer layer that is affected by the social environment around it. This can be seen in figure 1 below. The core (or centre of ones personality) is protected from the social environment and so is usually unchanging. This core can be described as a persons morals or basic beliefs. The middle section is the way in which we usually respond to different situations, these responses give suggestions about the persons core, as it is what usually happens. The outer layer is the part that relies on the circumstances we are in. As the environments we find ourselves in are constantly changing then this is the most changeable part of our personality; therefore it may bear little resemblance to our central core (Horn, 1992). Hollander (1971) then went on to define personality as the sum total of the individuals characteristics which make him unique. This view looks at one aspect of personality that most psychologists would agree with, that it is unique to the individual. However there are those psychologists who see personality as a set of traits possessed by an individual and therefore enable this individual to act in a certain, consistent and predictable way (trait theorists). On the other hand there are those who believe that a persons behaviour is determined by the situation they find themselves in, therefore we would need to understand the situation before trying to predict the behaviour (state theorists). There are also those who believe that personality is a combination of both these two approaches and so depends on the persons core and also on the situation (interactional approach) (Woods, 1998). Firstly the trait theory implies that personality can be described as different traits belonging to individuals. These traits are frequently visible in an individuals behaviour so therefore knowing these traits can help to predict a persons behaviour. The most famous patrons of this theory are Eysenck and Cattell. Cattell identified 35 different traits that he believed described personality. Eysenck concentrated on related traits and grouped them together in two ways. He called these, two dimensions of personality and suggested that they had a biological basis. These dimensional traits were split into neuroticism-stability and intraversion-extraversion (Woods, 1998). The state approach or situational approach contends that personality is not a stable core but that it is built up out of our influences and experiences in society. Walter Mischel (1968) has done some research on personality and has found that individuals behaviour cannot be predicted through knowledge of their core traits. He believes that it is the environment or situation that can influence or dictate a persons behaviour. The basis for this argument is that we learn and so develop our personality through modelling and reinforcement. The third approach, interactional, takes into account a lot more than just situations or the core personality traits. This approach anticipates that when situational factors are strong then they are more likely to affect an individuals behaviour than any personal factors will. Likewise, when situational factors are not strong then personality is more likely to play an important role in influencing a persons behaviour. There are various methods of personality assessment such as rating scales, unstructured projective tests and questionnaires. A lot of these, however do not specifically concentrate on measuring personality traits in athletes and are more often used in clinical psychology (Cox, 2002). Firstly, rating scales require the use of a judge who observes an individual in a particular situation. The judge would use a checklist in order to record information relevant to assess the persons personality. These results can be quite reliable providing the judge has been well trained. There are essentially two ways in which the judge can assess personality using rating scales, these are during an interview, or with the observation of performance. Projective procedures may also be used to identify traits and reveal information about underlying motives in an individual. This procedure allows the subject to reveal their inner feelings through unstructured tasks. The main assumption when conducting these tasks is that if the individual being questioned does not think that there are any right or wrong answers then they are more likely to answer them truthfully and openly. Among these tests are the Rorschach Test, and the Thematic Apperception Test. There are other tests within this method of testing, however these are the most commonly used projective tests. Within the group of questionnaire tests there are two which have been used by sports psychologists in sports related research with athletes, these are the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) and Cattells Sixteen Factor Personality Inventory (Cattell 16 PF). The MMPI uses a series of true-false questions in order to measure certain personality traits and conditions such as depression. The 16 PF measures 16 factors (traits), and how much of each, that Cattell though were descriptive of personality (Horn, 1992). Other methods of measuring personality include, the Test of Attentional and Interpersonal Style and the Profile of Mood States, however these tests do not directly relate to sport or physical activity and are more general, covering attentional styles and moods (Weinberg Gould, 1995). There are, however, sport related personality / psychological inventories such as the Athletic Motivation Inventory (AMI), the Winning Profile Athletic Instrument (WPAI) and the Troutwine Athletic Profile (TAP) (Cox, 2002). Other examples include, the Sport Competition Anxiety Test that measures competitive trait anxiety, the competitive State Anxiety Inventory-2 to measure precompetitive state anxiety and finally, the Trait-State Confidence Inventory to measure sport confidence (Weinberg Gould, 1995). So, using these methods of personality assessment is it possible to predict athletic success in individuals? Cox (2002, p163), states that no scientific study to date has shown a strong statistical relationship between personality variables and athletic ability. Weinberg Gould (1995) suggest that it would be misleading and unethical to make predictions about an individuals behaviour based on these tests. Even valid tests may still have misleading errors when looking at results. These could be caused by individuals not understanding questions properly or perhaps the subject wants to appear calm and cool before a match to impress the coach and so in her precompetitive anxiety test she may answer the quest ions in a more desirable way (Weinberg Gould, 1995). Morgan (1980) published an article explaining that many sports psychologists are in debate over the credibility of personality research. Some believe that positive and accurate predictions can be made about sport performance from the personality tests. Believers of this view are said to be credulous, and may well use this information to predict athletic ability. On the other side of the argument are those who tend to be sceptical, brushing aside the idea that athletic ability can be predicted by personality tests (Morris Summers, 1995). Horn (1992) explains that there are no consistent findings in the research conducted on personality to show that athletes possess a general personality and that this differs from that of non-athletes. However, Vealey (1986) notes that personality differences between successful athletes and less successful athletes have been found in mood states, cognitions and coping abilities, as opposed to more enduring personality traits (Morris Summers, 1995). In conclusion, it can be seen that the structure of personality is so broad that it can be difficult to define but that there are theories that have been agreed upon by numerous psychologists and sports psychologists alike. There are also a wide variety of methods of personality assessment that can be used in sports related settings and also in sport specific settings. Finally, these tests cannot discover champions, however it is possible to use them as a tool in which to help the athlete become more successful, by finding weaknesses and working on them in practice.

How to Criticize Your Boss Without Losing Your Job

How to Criticize Your Boss Without Losing Your Job Feedback, as any good professional understands, is critically important. There’s nothing like a little constructive criticism to put the fire under your tail feathers and help you to understand and grow past your own limitations. But it isn’t just a one-way street. From time to time, it will be important- even necessary- to give your boss a little feedback too. You should want the kind of employee/boss relationship where that is possible- and work to cultivate it. Here are a few strategies for when you need to offer a little good-natured criticism to your boss without offending him or her or risking your good rapport.1. Pick your moment.If your boss is in the middle of a particularly stressful project or a bad week, you might want to wait until she’s not stomping around fuming with the shortest possible fuse. Let things die down a bit and pick a more peaceful, low-key moment to broach the subject. But do make sure to do it face-to-face. Meeting in person is a muc h better way to make the kind of connection you need for this to work.2. Ask permission.Particularly if you have a more formal relationship with your boss, or you’re nervous about how to broach the subject, it’s always a good idea to ask first. A simple, â€Å"Would you be willing to hear a different perspective on the situation?† or â€Å"Could I offer my two cents?† will work wonders and set the conversation up nicely.3. Keep it light.In this and all office interactions, stay positive. If humor is in your wheelhouse, try a humorous tone if appropriate. Avoid profanity and offensive jokes though; keep it professional. Be playful and as gracious and appreciative as possible. And try to limit your use of the word â€Å"but.† As in: â€Å"I really enjoy working with you but†¦Ã¢â‚¬ 4. Back it up.Don’t just assume your ideas are great and worth sharing- better than your boss’s. Support your ideas with facts about production or prod uctivity. And then make sure that your feedback will genuinely help the person. The more you can make it valuable to your boss, the better.5. Make it about you.â€Å"You† statements tend to make people extra defensive. Try to frame everything through your point of view. â€Å"I notice this†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"It affected me when†¦Ã¢â‚¬  And try not to generalize with words like â€Å"always† or â€Å"never.† Think about how an improved relationship would make you a better worker, and explain this, point-by-point, to your boss. If you frame it as â€Å"for the good of the company,† you’re more likely to get a positive response.6. Go in with a game plan.Think through what you’re going to say in advance. The more you plan it out, the better. And find a friend or family member to rehearse it with beforehand. The cooler and more prepared you are going in, the better it will go. If you storm in right on the heels of an annoying email inter action, you’re bound to say something you will later regret.7. Know when to stop.Say what you have to say as quickly, gracefully, and succinctly as you can- then stop. It can be hard, once you get started, to turn the faucet off- particularly if this is the first time you’ve tried giving feedback to your boss. But you’ll need to make sure to quit while you’re ahead and give room for your boss to respond. And try to listen with an open mind! The communication lines, at last, are open.

Hamiltons Views on Judicial Power Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Hamiltons Views on Judicial Power - Essay Example The concept is enshrined in the constitution of the United States and in the various states that expressly forbids each branch of government to usurp the power of any other branch. Hamilton gives the anxiety of their time that because the legislature holds the purse strings and the executive the sword of society, the impartiality of the courts can be undermined, that it is the weakest branch of government with neither will nor force to enforce its judgement. Considering the fact that the the constitution provides for certain limitations which the legislature is proscribed from enacting such as bill of attainder, ex-post facto law, the question arosed on how the courts may declare such unconstitutional law null and void with impartiality and justice. Hamilton rationalized that the two non-judicial branches must not take offense for the declaration of their acts as unconstitutional as one of interference because the court is only declaring the letter of the constitution and did not do so as one superior to them, that the act does not constitute a substitution of their will or pleasure. The constitution, in order to assure the independence of judges, declares their tenure of service as permanent based pm good behavior. The periodic appointment of judges would likely indebt them to either executive or legislative branch responsible for their appointment. The independence of the judiciary is essential to the enforcement of the constitution because it is an aspect, like that of separation of powers, of the concept of "checks and balance" and ultimately of governance. Judicial independence is not only a normative ideal but an institutional virtue as well. And in the said virtue and ideal lies the capacity of the courts to protect individual rights, to police the structural limits of governmental power and to decide individual disputes based on the applicable law and the factual records of each case without regard to intimidation or other impermissible influences, if any. Judge Learned Hand (1958) urged caution in the exercise of judicial power. He considered the source and nature of the power of judicial constitutional review as necessary to prevent the failure of the government created by the constitution. He also proposed judicial restraint, saying that the power should be "confined to the need that evoked it" meaning, as a check on the usurpation of power by the other branches. For him the judiciary plays the necessary role in maintaining a government "between absolutism and the kind of democracy that so often prevailed in Greek cities during the sixth to fourth centuries before our era." Like Hamilton and Montesquieu, Hand believes that no single branch should have absolute power, especially not the judiciary. Modern thinkers (Shane, 1998) proffer that the paradigm of judicial restraint may often be misleading, unhelpful and even counter-productive. They propose another paradigm, that of "inter-branch accountability." They admit that "every branch has the power to make life more difficult for

MCA Mouth Full Of Smoke Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

MCA Mouth Full Of Smoke - Essay Example The piece has made use of process to confront deep, personal memories. He wanted to portray the history of paint in a very physical and materialistic process. Through the approach, the piece gives a big hint of painting history. So many artists have used oil paints over so many centuries. He also felt that oil painting artworks are a challenged medium in the modern times. Additionally, the artist used oil paint to bring out the physicality of the piece and to portray the human body. The artwork piece evoked a strong feeling of abstract expressionism since it transits from representational to unrecognizable abstractions. The unique process of painting that Otero used conspicuously brought out materiality. I could not clearly figure out the subject matter of the painting since it is totally abstract. It is full of different colors and lines that do not convey any clear image. However, what attracted me most to this painting is the contrasting colors that the artist has used in this composition. Bright colors such as yellow and white are used to create a contrast with dark colors consisting of black and other dull colors. The use of this technique evokes a feeling of conflicts such as a conflicting idea or a particular struggle. I could deduce that the author meant to portray the personal conflicts that individuals such as smokers sometimes encounter in the social sphere. Looking at the image, I also felt that it is absolutely a unique composition, which has used elements of art tactfully for a full composition. The author has employed elements such as depth, space, shape, line, and texture. Texture, for instance, stands out, as the image appears rough to the touch and this made me rethink the message Otero wishes to portray with this painting. The roughness perhaps is an indication of tough experiences. When I see a painting of such a texture, what comes to mind is

How banks work Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

How banks work - Coursework Example A banks operations are optimal when it has sufficient reserves to contain any shocks in the business. The government and credit agencies should also enforce banking regulation since the failure is partly attributed to laxity in regulation. Banks generate revenues through lending. The financial crisis of 2009 affected most financial institutions. Most mortgages given by the financial institution prior to that period did not consider the borrower’s ability to pay and thus default was imminent. The result was heavy loss and thus reduction of bank reserves and deposits. As such, the banks were wary of lending more funds to individuals and businesses. The result was that banks revenue declined as well as the growth of businesses. The risks involved in lending at the time was the main reason for the slow recovery. An example to illustrate this is that the Bank of America reduced its mortgages portfolio and invested more in investment loans. In the period 2010-2012, mortgages reduced from $450 billion to $310 billion (Forbes, 2015) Forbes. (2015, March 11). U.S. Banks Witness Highest Post-Recession Growth in Loans Over 2014 - Forbes. Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/sites/greatspeculations/2015/03/11/u-s-banks-witness-highest-post-recession-growth-in-loans-over-2014/ The Economist. (2013, September 7). The origins of the financial crisis: Crash course. Retrieved  April  29, 2015, from

Apoptosis Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Apoptosis - Research Paper Example In an average human being almost 50 to 70 billion cells and in a child about 20 billion to 30 billion are damaged and they die due to apoptosis in a single day. It is not just a biological phenomena , all the defective apoptotic processes are linked with a lot of other diseases and also an excess of apoptosis can lead to atrophy and if the amount is less or insufficient , it can cause cancer which is due to cell proliferation (Al-Rubeai, Mohamed, and Martin Fussenegger,2004). Discovery and Etymology The process was initially described in 1842 by Carl Vogt and during the year 1885 Walther Flemming was the person who in more detail described this programmed cell death process. The difference between other traumatic cell deaths and apoptosis was identified by John Foxton Ross who was with University of Queensland at that time. There is a lot of work done by various people from Sydney Bernner, John E Sulston and even Horvitz who received Nobel prize during the year 2000 for their own apo ptosis. Apoptosis is basically a multi path and multi step death program of the cells which is inherited in all the cells of the body. During the process of cancer, the cell division ratio is altered. The word apoptosis is taken from a Greek word which means the â€Å"dropping off† of the leaves and petals from the trees and also plants. The term was reintroduced by Professor Cormack of Greek language for medical usage. Process Different range and variety of cell signals control the process of apoptosis which originates intracellular and sometimes even extracellular signals. The extracellular signals include hormones, nitric oxide, hormones, cytokines and also various growth factors which are transduced through the effect of a response and sometimes crossed through the plasma membrane. These signals can have negative and also positive impact on the apoptosis. There are positive and also negative inductions, when the active repression and also inhibition of apoptosis occurs th rough a molecule that is negative induction; where as the triggering and binding of the apoptosis through molecule is the positive induction. Stress is the major factor which makes the cell initiate intracellular apoptotic signaling which causes cell suicide. Various factors results in regulating apoptosis, which include poly ADP ribose polymerase. The cell death is caused through the enzymes and before that there are apoptotic signals which enable the regulatory proteins to instigate the pathway of apoptosis. Mitochondrial regulation Mitochondria are important and crucial factor linked with the multi cellular life because in its absence the cell is ceased and thus it will not be able to respire aerobically and it will quickly die. This is the major cause of the apoptotic pathways. Mitochondria is targeted by the apoptotic proteins in various ways which can cause the swelling of mitochondria which causes the formation of the membrane pores and they also increase the mitochondrial me mbrane permeability and it can also be a major reason of leaking out of the apoptotic factors. Apoptosis is activated through the nitric oxide which initiates the possible action of a signal molecule linked with the succeeding pathway.

Conservation tasks used by Piaget, James Mc Garrigle and Margaret Essay

Conservation tasks used by Piaget, James Mc Garrigle and Margaret Donaldson - Essay Example The results suggest that whether children conserve or not does not depend on either of the two tasks used but rather on their mastery of identity. This study aims at exploring Piaget's Task on conservation in children and critically evaluating it in the light of the more recent procedure described by (McGarrigle and Donaldson, 1975). Conservation is defined as the realization that number of items, measure or length is not related to arrangement or look of the objects or items. An examle is when a child is presented with a glass full of water, will they be able to deduct that if that same water is transferred to a broader but plumper cup, then will it conserve the quantity and be the same Piaget argues that during the early childhood stage (below 6 years), children's ability to perform logical mental operations is inadequate. In his research, Piaget identified four stages in cognitive development namely; Sensorimotor stage (Infancy), Pre-operational stage(2-7 years), Concrete operational stage (7-11 years) and Formal operational stage (Adolescence through adulthood). ... Children in pre operational stage fail the the test of conservation because their thinking process does not comprehend the three principles of reversibility, compensation and identity. This has been interpreted to mean that before certain ages children are not able to perceive things in certain ways. The theories have found wide usage especially in developing school curricula, however other psychologists have disagreed with them. They have argued that conservation tasks do not necessarily reveal an essential limitation in the child's appreciation of quantity. Below are some of the arguments as to why children may fail to conserve: That the subjects may be distracted by the procedure. They may think that the experimenter wants them to answer in a certain way especially if the question is repeated. That the child may forget if the experimenter interfered with the information stored in Short Term Memory. Porpodas (1987). The children may not understand the relational terms. That the conservation task being artificial would normally make no sense to a child. Lenz (2003) argues that Piaget does not take into account matters of simplicity or complexity of the task and that if a task is simple enough the child may perform correctly but if complex, even an older child may make pre-operational mistakes. Indeed, in an effort to illustrate that children younger than in Piaget's typical age can conserve, many researchers have modified Piaget's original procedure. For instance McGarrigle and Donaldson (1975) assert that if the transformation is bought about accidentally then the number of 5-6 year olds conserving will go up. This study is to

Apoptosis Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Apoptosis - Research Paper Example In an average human being almost 50 to 70 billion cells and in a child about 20 billion to 30 billion are damaged and they die due to apoptosis in a single day. It is not just a biological phenomena , all the defective apoptotic processes are linked with a lot of other diseases and also an excess of apoptosis can lead to atrophy and if the amount is less or insufficient , it can cause cancer which is due to cell proliferation (Al-Rubeai, Mohamed, and Martin Fussenegger,2004). Discovery and Etymology The process was initially described in 1842 by Carl Vogt and during the year 1885 Walther Flemming was the person who in more detail described this programmed cell death process. The difference between other traumatic cell deaths and apoptosis was identified by John Foxton Ross who was with University of Queensland at that time. There is a lot of work done by various people from Sydney Bernner, John E Sulston and even Horvitz who received Nobel prize during the year 2000 for their own apo ptosis. Apoptosis is basically a multi path and multi step death program of the cells which is inherited in all the cells of the body. During the process of cancer, the cell division ratio is altered. The word apoptosis is taken from a Greek word which means the â€Å"dropping off† of the leaves and petals from the trees and also plants. The term was reintroduced by Professor Cormack of Greek language for medical usage. Process Different range and variety of cell signals control the process of apoptosis which originates intracellular and sometimes even extracellular signals. The extracellular signals include hormones, nitric oxide, hormones, cytokines and also various growth factors which are transduced through the effect of a response and sometimes crossed through the plasma membrane. These signals can have negative and also positive impact on the apoptosis. There are positive and also negative inductions, when the active repression and also inhibition of apoptosis occurs th rough a molecule that is negative induction; where as the triggering and binding of the apoptosis through molecule is the positive induction. Stress is the major factor which makes the cell initiate intracellular apoptotic signaling which causes cell suicide. Various factors results in regulating apoptosis, which include poly ADP ribose polymerase. The cell death is caused through the enzymes and before that there are apoptotic signals which enable the regulatory proteins to instigate the pathway of apoptosis. Mitochondrial regulation Mitochondria are important and crucial factor linked with the multi cellular life because in its absence the cell is ceased and thus it will not be able to respire aerobically and it will quickly die. This is the major cause of the apoptotic pathways. Mitochondria is targeted by the apoptotic proteins in various ways which can cause the swelling of mitochondria which causes the formation of the membrane pores and they also increase the mitochondrial me mbrane permeability and it can also be a major reason of leaking out of the apoptotic factors. Apoptosis is activated through the nitric oxide which initiates the possible action of a signal molecule linked with the succeeding pathway.

Project 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Project 2 - Essay Example Yourprops was working needs to be informed of the search for them to make the necessary arrangement and final approval. Documentation of the permission is critical since it will help inform the subjects about the authority (Vacca, 2005). The documentation should be done in a manner that is transparent in term of the needed elements such as the date and signatories. There should be no cases of impersonation. The documented authority should be genuine and just. The reason for these virtues on the document is to facilitate a smooth search process void of suspicions. This case scenario will provide the requisite material evidence that can be trusted in the process of investigation. From the photo of Mr. Yourprops, the primary items that are attributed to the digital evidence include the thumb drive USB, the western digital hard disk, and a voice recorder. These items are used for storage of digital information and it implies that the investigation process will rely on the content in these items. Forensic investigation of digital information is a complex process; however, with the presence of the listed items, the requisite information will be retrieved. In the case of the USB, the information continued in it might be of that extracted from either the laptop or the disk. In essence, the USB acts as a secondary storage. There is a possibility that the information that is needed is in the disk and deleted from the primary storage, which is the laptop or the thumb disk. In the event that the files that are in the USB are not found in either of the primary sources, it will imply that, the information had been deleted. The fact that the information will be missing i n the primary source and found in the secondary source, it will provide a lead in the investigation process. The process of collecting the items needs to be procedural in the

Sakuntala India Essay Example for Free

Sakuntala India Essay Kalidasas Sakuntala is the best-known Sanskrit drama, and widely considered a masterpiece. It is based on an episode from the Mahabharata (book 1, ch. 62-69), though Kalidasa takes significant liberties in his version. Widely translated there were no fewer than forty-six translations in twelve different languages in the century after Sir William Jones groundbreaking first translation (1789) alone, Dorothy Matilda Figueira notes in Translating the Orient new editions continue to appear regularly. Barbara Stoler Millers, published along with translations of Kalidasas two other dramas (and three explanatory essays) as Theater of Memory, appears to have become a standard version, and certainly the classroom text of choice (at least in the US); it also has the advantage of being relatively easy to find (which is not the case with most of the other translations). The eighty pages of essays, covering three different aspects of Kalidasa and Sanskrit drama, and the solid critical apparatus (though the actual notes are a bit thin), as well the fact that it makes the other two Kalidasa plays easily available, does make this an appealing edition. It is not, however, ideal. Millers translation is solid, with a few inspired touches, but it does not stand out among the competition. In addition, more supporting material, and more extensive notes focussed specifically on the play would have been welcome. Sakuntala is a play in seven acts. It begins with a remarkable Prologue, in which the director of the play briefly discusses the planned nights entertainment with the lead actress. Hes worried about impressing his learned audience, and tells her: I find no performance perfect until the critics are pleased; the better trained we are the more we doubt ourselves. (Critics with its newspaper-reviewer connotations is an unfortunate choice here; Kalidasa clearly only means hes worried about the opinion of this generally well-informed audience.) The actress manages to reassure him with a brief song: she is so utterly convincing and enrapturing that he forgets what play he wanted to put on (after just having  mentioned it moments before). Its a hard scene to pull of on the stage, but on the page it can convince, and its a stunning start to the play (and also sets the bar very high). The play proper then begins, with King Dusyanta on a hunting expedition. Hes going after an antelope, but a monk stops him, telling him the antelope belongs to the local hermitage: Your weapon should rescue victims, not destroy the innocent ! The king does as he is asked. Invited to the hermitage he looks around the grove, and comes across Sakuntala and two friends but he hides before they see him. Sakuntala is the daughter of the head sage, Kanva (who is away at the time), or so the king has been told. In fact, she is only the adopted daughter, and is actually the daughter of a royal sage and a celestial nymph (which is important, as the it wouldnt be appropriate for the king to be involved with a commoner). Sakuntala is coming into her own, and one of the first things the king sees is Sakuntala asking one of her friends to loosen the no longer quite form-fitting bark dress she is wearing. As the friend says: Blame your youth for swelling your breasts. (Ryder translates this much more successfully: You had better blame your own budding charms for that.) The king finally shows himself, but hes uncertain whether to reveal his true identity and pretends to be someone else. He finds out that Sakuntala would be an appropriate mate, but theres still a bit of romancing to do. He does, however, give her the ring of the title an embellishment of Kalidasas that isnt found in the original source-material, but that will allow the king to come of looking better than he originally did. The second act begins with a Shakespearean buffoons monologue: the character of the fool transposed to India. The king is by now completely smitten. As the buffoon notes: She must be delectable if youre so enticed. The king is indeed filled with enthusiasm but by the end of the act realises that the buffoon may let something about his passion slip back home at the palace, which might not go over so well, and so he tells him: I really feel no desire for the young ascetic Sakuntala. What do I share with a rustic girl reared among fawns, unskilled in love ? Dont mistake what I muttered in jest for the real truth, my friend ! The audience knows better, and in the third act their true feelings cant be hidden any longer though both the king and Sakuntala suffer for their passion before they can embrace each other: SAKUNTALA: I dont know your heart, but day and night for wanting you, love violently tortures my limbs, cruel man. KING: Love torments you, slender girl, but he completely consumes me daylight spares the lotus pond while it destroys the moon. The king wants to marry Sakuntala, but she is worried that the proposed rushed and secret marriage wouldnt be appropriate. Fulfillment of desire is fraught with obstacles, the king sighs. Sakuntala gives in but only off stage, in between scenes. When the fourth act opens the king has returned home, promising to send for Sakuntala later. Still enraptured, Sakuntala neglects her duties and is cursed by the angry sage Durvasas: the king wont remember who she is at least until he sees the ring of recollection. (In the original version of the story in the Mahabharata there is no curse or ring: the king is simply a cad: he remembers her well enough, but pretends not to.) But Sakuntala is sp swept away she doesnt even realise whats happened. Much of the fourth act is filled with the sweet sorrow of parting, as Sakuntala prepares to  leave the idyllic grove and the hermitage. Its all the more poignant because she is not aware of the terrible fate shes facing (while the audience knows exactly whats coming). In act five Sakuntala arrives at the kings court and doesnt get quite the welcome she expected. It should all be easy enough to clear up, even Sakuntala realises: this ring will revive your memory and remove your doubt. But, alas theres no ring on her finger ! It must have fallen off .. Sakuntala has other evidence, describing their meetings, but that isnt enough to convince the cursed king, and he continues to worry: Since its unclear whether Im deluded or she is speaking falsely should I risk abandoning a wife or being tainted by another mans ? Act six begins with more comic relief, as a fisherman is interrogated by the police about a ring he found the missing royal ring of recollection, of course. Now, finally, the king remembers. and he sets off to regain her. Sakuntala has by now given birth to a child, a boy who looks much like the king (and who should so the kings promise to Sakuntala long ago be his successor). But the king can barely believe that there is any hope left for him: learning the boys mothers name is Sakuntala he moans: But names can be the same. Even a name is a mirage a false hope to herald despair. But, finally, there is the happy reunion and ending. Much of the power of the play is as a character study of Sakuntala, as Kalidasa shows her in these different circumstances. Her love, her despair, her anger are all impressively displayed. Much of this and, indeed, the success of much of the rest of the play depends on the poetry of the play, and while there are some very successful bits, Millers translation does fall short. Sanskrit is a difficult language to translate in any case. The nominal compounds (similar to the German, except that they can be much more elaborate) pose a particular problem, and the Sanskrit verses with their own complex rules are also very difficult to convey. Miller knows her stuff, and the substance of the play is well-conveyed. But much goes  missing especially that sense of poetry. Some of the problems can be guessed at from the explanation she offers of the plays title in the notes (one of the few terms she explains at greater length): Sakuntala and the Ring of Recollection This is not a literal rendering of the Sanskrit compound Abhijnanasakuntala, whose exact form and meaning are controversial even among Sanskrit critics and commentators. The word abhijnana means recognition or recollection; it is used in the play to refer to the ring Dusyanta gives as a token to Sakuntala () A more exact translation of the title might be [The drama of] Sakuntala [remembered] through the ring of recollection, where the entire compound refers to the implied word nataka (drama),and a word like smrta (remembered) may be supplied according to a rule of Sanskrit grammar governing elision in compound verbs. Unfortunately, there are probably few words (and verses) in the text that dont warrant as much or more explanation. Miller goes for the grounded, straightforward approach, not rhyming the verses, for example (Ryder, on the other hand, imposes a rhyme on all the verses). Enough of the original comes through to get a decent sense of the plays qualities, but it rarely reaches the transcendent heights the original is reputed to have. A useful edition, with some decent supporting material (though more would have been welcome), it nevertheless isnt entirely satisfying. Return to top of the page

Requirements Engineering and the Agile Approach

Requirements Engineering and the Agile Approach Yangqing Lu   Ã‚   With the evolution of Project Management (PM) methodology, Requirements Engineering (PE) has experienced huge change, especially when Agile is adopted by projects increasingly. However, no matter how the PM approach develops, the importance of PE is unshakable. Based on the Qualitative Research Approach, three articles has been viewed to introduce requirements issues regarding requirement elicitation,   consensus, prioritization, user story. In the first article, the author introduced concepts of traditional RE and some changes in Agile approach.   The second article demonstrates criteria of how to build qualified user stories. Ten requirement prioritization methods are compared in the third paper. These three articles are sound fundamentals for readers to gain basic skill for requirement management. Requirements Engineering and Agile Software Development This article discusses the difference and similarities between traditional Requirements Engineering (RE) and agile approaches. RE is a process comprising Requirements Elicitation, Requirements Analysis, Requirements Documentation, Requirements Validation, and Requirements Management. RE have a high dependency on documents for communications and the manner of prediction of future needs often leads to over documentation. (Paetsch F., Eberlein A., Maurer F., 2003) During Requirements Elicitation, approaches concerning the closed or open interviews of stakeholders, use cases and scenarios, observation and social analysis, focus group, brainstorming, and prototyping are often conducted during the period of the Requirement Elicitations. Based on this phase, in phase Requirements Analysis, information gathered is checked prioritized regarding necessity, consensus, completeness, consistency, and feasibility. Requirements are discussed by stakeholders and developers before write them down in requirement documents which are verified to be acceptable to organizational standards and organizational knowledge. (Paetsch F., Eberlein A., Maurer F., 2003) By contrast, the Agile approach is preparing to cater to continuous requirement changing and close collaboration so much that it has been adjusted to deliver upgraded products frequently. The mission of Agile determines that it cannot precisely follow the standards of RE. In fact, Agile never prepare to include a formal RE process: people cannot clearly separate a phase regarding Requirements Elicitation or Requirements Analysis from Agile process. Whereas, most RM methodologies are embedded into the Agile process: such as elicitation methods concerning interviews, brainstorming, and prioritization are also adopted in Planning Game a phase designed in Extreme Programming(XP). (Paetsch F., Eberlein A., Maurer F., 2003) It is highlighted that requirement document is both essential for RE and Agile. However, Agile, as the lazy approach, do only the right thing by eliciting, analyzing, validating, and documenting only when needed (Paetsch F., Eberlein A., Maurer F., 2003). Improving Agile requirements: the Quality User Story framework and tool This article introduces the concept of User Story and thirteen items of criteria towards creating Quality User Stories (QUS). Basing on the introduction, a software tool called Automatic Quality User Story Artisan (AQUSA) is introduced and its function has been assessed too. According to (Lucassen, G., Dalpiaz, F., van der Werf, Jan Martijn, E. M., Brinkkemper, S., 2016), User stories are a concise notation for expressing requirements that are increasingly employed n agile requirements engineering and in agile development. As explanations of requirements, user stories are used to discuss ideas with stakeholders and also act as criteria for acceptance. A user story should be able to state who it is for, what it does, and optionally why does that. Thus, an accepted user story format is As a, , I want , [so that, some reason/end]. Whereas in Scrum a specific Agile pattern, Epic and Themes also involved into user story design with the former one identifies a list of smaller, implementable user stories and the later one defines a set of user stories who are in the same criterion such as authorization. To qualify a user story, thirteen criteria are separated into three categories regarding Syntactic, Semantic, and Pragmatic. Those standards are used to guideline the creation of user stories and aim to make user stories clearly defined, focus on a single feature, able to be estimated, etc. The article also gives out a table of ill-defined user stories to explain what regulation is broken. Such as I want to see an error when I cannot see recommendations after I upload an article, this user story breaks the law of well-formed since the role is missing in the story. (Lucassen, G., Dalpiaz, F., van der Werf, Jan Martijn, E. M., Brinkkemper, S., 2016) User stories inside a specific user story set must be unique without confliction (no similar stories can exist in one set, the scope of work items must be consistent), uniform (most stories in the set use same format), independent (stories must not rely on the implementation of another case), and complete (a story cannot use an undefined term without reference. the undefined term or dependency should be stated in terms of relationship). (Lucassen, G., Dalpiaz, F., van der Werf, Jan Martijn, E. M., Brinkkemper, S., 2016) Both those 13 single-user-story criteria and four user-story-set criteria are guideline for agile project engineer to follow when they want to create agile requirements in high quality. Comparison of Requirement Prioritization Techniques to Find Best Prioritization Technique This article introduces ten techniques for requirement prioritization and compares them to find the best method. Some methods are using grouping approach by assign requirements with different group level then those requirements in the same group will be in the same priority. One of the famous grouping methodologies is Museum of Soviet Calculators on the Web (MoScoW) who provides four prioritization groups concerning MUST have, SHOULD have, COULD have, and WONT have. Based on the research result demonstrated in this article, grouping approaches feature low effort, low difficulty, consistent, and high confidence from the users. Especially, MoScoW can help to handle a large number of changes. (Javed, A. K., Rehman, I. U., Yawar, H. K., Iftikhar, J. K., Rashid, S., 2015) Bubble Sort, Minimal Spanning Tree, and Binary Search Tree provide methods for sorting requirements into a requirements list from the most important requirement down to the least important one. When these approaches are adopted, stakeholders and software engineers should be able to compare requirements pair by pair then adjust the location of their importance one by one until all requirement have been put into the correct position. The sorting approach needs the most number of decisions although this method is easy to use. (Javed, A. K., Rehman, I. U., Yawar, H. K., Iftikhar, J. K., Rashid, S., 2015) Hundred Dollar Method and Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) are typical methods using ratio to identify priorities of requirements. During these processes, stakeholders should either balance importance among several requirements or mark out between requirements to what extent one is important than the other. AHP is considered to be the most reliable approach for its fault tolerance, consistency, ratio feature. However, to get the final results, AHP needs the most effort regarding decision making and time-consuming. (Javed, A. K., Rehman, I. U., Yawar, H. K., Iftikhar, J. K., Rashid, S., 2015) Requirements are the baseline for specific IT product or service since they define what the product/service is, regulate development scope, provide background for discussion and negotiation between stakeholders and project engineers, and most importantly, act as a guideline for newly hired engineers to understand the product/service. Thus, requirements management are essential for all kind of IT project. To elicit requirements, interview, brainstorming, and observation is often adopted. While to reach consensus, negotiation and team-decision are often valuable to be considered. (Paetsch F., Eberlein A., Maurer F., 2003) However, Traditional RE approaches cannot fulfill the current project management approaches. With more and more project adopt Agile methodology, engineers use user stories to replace traditional requirement document, and the way they elicit requirement has also changed: they document what exactly needed only when needed; more collaborations are involved whenever they need, but they only discuss what are needed; traditional requirements tend to explain what customer need or want while user story focuses on interaction between role and object user to machine, user to user, machine to user, machine to machine. (Paetsch F., Eberlein A., Maurer F., 2003) Since user stories are as important as traditional requirement document, the quality of user stories become equally important. To define high qualifies user stories, a set of guideline consisting of 13 criteria concerning syntactic, semantic, and pragmatic are required to adopt. (Lucassen, G., Dalpiaz, F., van der Werf, Jan Martijn, E. M., Brinkkemper, S., 2016) Before start iterations or springs, choosing specific requirements or user stories out of the whole repository on the basis of requirement prioritization technology is a must. To mark priority of each requirement or just sort them in order, the customers must make most of the decisions such as a case is a must or just what they want. Project engineers also need to estimate time effort and provide to what extent they think the estimation is accurate or not (risk aspect). Sometimes, stakeholders are asked to group these requirements (grouping requirements) or to vote 100 dollars to several requirements(buy requirements).   Some prioritization methods are easy to use and reasonably accurate (MoScoW) while some are the most reliable but very difficult to use regarding (AHP). (Javed, A. K., Rehman, I. U., Yawar, H. K., Iftikhar, J. K., Rashid, S., 2015) Requirements: conditions or capabilities that must be met by the project or present in the product, service, or result to satisfy an agreement or other formally imposed specification Requirements engineering (RE): is a traditional software engineering process with the goal to identify, analyze, document and validate requirements for the system to be developed. Requirements Prioritization: to deliver the most valuable feathers as early as possible under a tight schedule, limited resources, and high customer expectations, the customer should decide which requirements are more urgent than others to be implemented. Javed, A. K., Rehman, I. U., Yawar, H. K., Iftikhar, J. K., Rashid, S. (2015). Comparison of requirement prioritization techniques to find best prioritization technique. International Journal of Modern Education and Computer Science,7(11), 53-59. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.5815/ijmecs.2015.11.06 Abstract: This paper describes an assessment of different requirement prioritization techniques (binary search tree, AHP, hierarchy AHP, spanning tree matrix, priority group/Numerical Analysis, bubble sort, MoSoW, simple ranking and Planning Game) on the basis of previous literature. Five research papers and thesis are critically reviewed, in order to select best requirement prioritization method. The study of literature shows that AHP is the best requirements prioritization technique amongst all the requirements prioritization techniques. It provides the most efficient and reliable results which are on ratio scale. It is fault- tolerant and provides a consistency check. Lucassen, G., Dalpiaz, F., van der Werf, Jan Martijn, E. M., Brinkkemper, S. (2016). Improving agile requirements: The quality user story framework and tool. Requirements Engineering. 21(3), 383-403. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00766-016-0250-x Abstract: User stories are a widely adopted requirements notation in agile development. Yet, user stories are too often poorly written in practice and exhibit inherent quality defects. Triggered by this observation, we propose the Quality User Story (QUS) framework, a set of 13 quality criteria that user story writers should strive to conform to. Based on QUS, we present the Automatic Quality User Story Artisan (AQUSA) software tool. Relying on natural language processing (NLP) techniques, AQUSA detects quality defects and suggest possible remedies. We describe the architecture of AQUSA, its implementation, and we report on an evaluation that analyzes 1023 user stories obtained from 18 software companies. Our tool does not yet reach the ambitious 100 % recall that Daniel Berry and colleagues require NLP tools for RE to achieve. However, we obtain promising results and we identify some improvements that will substantially improve recall and precision. Paetsch F., Eberlein A., Maurer F. (2003). Requirements engineering and agile software development. International workshop on enabling technologies: infrastructure for collaborative enterprises,IEEE.308-313. doi: 10.1109/ENABL.2003.1231428 Abstract: This article compares traditional requirements engineering approaches and agile software development. Our paper analyzes commonalities and differences of both approaches and determines possible ways how agile software development can benefit from requirements engineering methods.

A Good Samaritan Law is Never a Good Idea Essay -- Argumentative Persu

A Good Samaritan Law is Never a Good Idea Less than one year ago, the largest television audience since the series finale of M*A *S*H tuned in to watch the last episode of Seinfeld As the nation watched, Jerry, Elaine, George, and Kramer said farewell with the arrest, trial, and conviction of violating a Good Samaritan law. While this made for a hilarious television show, this law itself seems to both contradict its essence as well as violate the right to freedom of choice of a citizen. The Good Samaritan law, which requires a bystander to provide aid to those who are in harm’s way if there is no apparent immediate danger to the bystander, encroaches upon the rights of a citizen. This law is an inexcusable violation of American civil liberties and should be stricken from the records, leaving only people’s moral compasses as their guide. The morality of this law is relatively simple: help those in trouble. Generally society seems to consider it a moral obligation to prevent the injury of another person, sometimes even at risk to one’s self. People who do not help others in need are frequently bad examples for the rest of the world. For example, in Charles Dickens’s classic A Christmas Carol, Ebeneezer Scrooge is infamous for his selfishness and disregard for the well-being of others such as Bob Cratchett and his family (barely paying him and not allowing him more than a day for Christmas). Scrooge’s partner, Jacob Marley, is damned for the same type of crimes. The only path to redemption for Ebeneezer is through helping others who are in need: giving food to the Cratchetts and caring for a sickly Tiny Tim. While Scrooge had a moral reason to help others, there was no Constitutional burden to do so. If the federal... ...ce call buttons more accessible to the public since many are willing to contact the law enforcement officials. Although Jerry and Elaine can not seem to provide more than a few jokes when seeing their fellow man in trouble, the majority of Americans seem to be willing to help. Despite several incidents to the contrary, the morals of most people will guide them. These less-talked-about occasions in which people called the police, yelled for help, or even tried to physically stop attackers outweigh the apathetic few. With these facts in mind, this law presents unacceptable violations of the freedom of liberty. Ultimately, then, Good Samaritan laws are both unnecessary and dangerous. Bibliography â€Å"Good Samaritan Laws are Questionable.† alt.politics.lawenforcenieflt.Ca.Com (12 October 1998) â€Å"Rapist-Murderer Case.† alt.adoption.com (03 September 1998).

Canterville Ghost Summary Essay

The next morning, when the Otis family met at breakfast, they discussed the ghost at some length. The United States Minister was naturally a little annoyed to find that his present had not been accepted. â€Å"I have no wish,† he said, â€Å"to do the ghost any personal injury, and I must say that, considering the length of time he has been in the house, I don’t think it is at all polite to throw pillows at him,†Ã¢â‚¬â€œa very just remark, at which, I am sorry to say, the twins burst into shouts of laughter. â€Å"Upon the other hand,† he continued, â€Å"if he really declines to use the Rising Sun Lubricator, we shall have to take his chains from him. It would be quite impossible to sleep, with such a noise going on outside the bedrooms.† For the rest of the week, however, they were undisturbed, the only thing that excited any attention being the continual renewal of the blood-stain on the library floor. This certainly was very strange, as the door was always locked at night by Mr. Otis, and the windows kept closely barred. The chameleon-like colour, also, of the stain excited a good deal of comment. Some mornings it was a dull (almost Indian) red, then it would be vermilion, then a rich purple, and once when they came down for family prayers, according to the simple rites of the Free American Reformed Episcopalian Church, they found it a bright emerald-green. These kaleidoscopic changes naturally amused the party very much, and bets on the subject were freely made every evening. The only person who did not enter into the joke was little Virginia, who, for some unexplained reason, was always a good deal distressed at the sight of the blood-stain, and very nearly cried the morning it was emerald-green. The second appearance of the ghost was on Sunday night. Shortly after they had gone to bed they were suddenly alarmed by a fearful crash in the hall. Rushing down-stairs, they found that a large suit of old armour had become detached from its stand, and had fallen on the stone floor, while seated in a high-backed chair was the Canterville ghost, rubbing his knees with an expression of acute agony on his face. The twins, having brought their pea-shooters with them, at once discharged two pellets on him, with that accuracy of aim which can only be attained by long and careful practice on a writing-master, while the United States Minister covered him with his revolver, and called upon him, in accordance with Californian etiquette, to hold up his hands! The ghost started up with a wild shriek of rage, and swept through them like a mist, extinguishing Washington Otis’s candle as he passed, and so leaving them all in total darkness. On reaching the top of the staircase he recovered himself, and determined to give his celebrated peal of demoniac laughter. This he had on more than one occasion found extremely useful. It was said to have turned Lord Raker’s wig grey in a single night, and had certainly made three of Lady Canterville’s French governesses give warning before their month was up. He accordingly laughed his most horrible laugh, till the old vaulted roof rang and rang again, but hardly had the fearful echo died away when a door opened, and Mrs. Otis came out in a light blue dressing-gown. â€Å"I am afraid you are far from well,† she said, â€Å"and have brought you a bottle of Doctor Dobell’s tincture. If it is indigestion, you will find it a most excellent remedy.† The ghost glared at her in fury, and began at once to make preparations for turning himself into a large black dog, an accomplishment for which he was justly renowned, and to which the family doctor always attributed the permanent idiocy of Lord Canterville’s uncle, the Hon. Thomas Horton. The sound of approaching footsteps, however, made him hesitate in his fell purpose, so he contented himself with becoming faintly phosphorescent, and vanished with a deep churchyard groan, just as the twins had come up to him. On reaching his room he entirely broke down, and became a prey to the most violent agitation. The vulgarity of the twins, and the gross materialism of Mrs. Otis, were naturally extremely annoying, but what really distressed him most was that he had been unable to wear the suit of mail. He had hoped that even modern Americans would be thrilled by the sight of a Spectre in armour, if for no more sensible reason, at least out of respect for their natural poet Longfellow, over whose graceful and attractive poetry he himself had whiled away many a weary hour when the Cantervilles were up in town. Besides it was his own suit. He had worn it with great success at the Kenilworth tournament, and had been highly complimented on it by no less a person than the Virgin Queen herself. Yet when he had put it on, he had been completely overpowered by the weight of the huge breastplate and steel casque, and had fallen heavily on the stone pavement, barking both his knees severely, and bruising the kn uckles of his right hand. For some days after this he was extremely ill, and hardly stirred out of his room at all, except to keep the blood-stain in proper repair. However, by taking great care of himself, he recovered, and resolved to make a third attempt to frighten the United States Minister and his family. He selected Friday, August 17th, for his appearance, and spent most of that day in looking over his wardrobe, ultimately deciding in favour of a large slouched hat with a red feather, a winding-sheet frilled at the wrists and neck, and a rusty dagger. Towards evening a violent storm of rain came on, and the wind was so high that all the windows and doors in the old house shook and rattled. In fact, it was just such weather as he loved. His plan of action was this. He was to make his way quietly to Washington Otis’s room, gibber at him from the foot of the bed, and stab himself three times in the throat to the sound of low music. He bore Washington a special grudge, being quite aware that it was he who was in the habit of removing the famous Canterville blood-stain by means of Pinkerton’s Paragon Detergent. Having reduced the reckless and foolhardy youth to a condition of abject terror, he was then to proceed to the room occupied by the United States Minister and his wife, and there to place a clammy hand on Mrs. Otis’s forehead, while he hissed into her trembling husband’s ear the awful secrets of the charnel-house. With regard to little Virginia, he had not quite made up his mind. She had never insulted him in any way, and was pretty and gentle. A few hollow groans from the wardrobe, he thought, would be more than sufficient, or, if that failed to wake her, he might grabble at the counterpane with palsy-twitching fingers. As for the twins, he was quite determined to teach them a lesson. The first thing to be done was, of course, to sit upon their chests, so as to produce the stifling sensation of nightmare. Then, as their beds were quite close to each other, to stand between them in the form of a green, icy-cold corpse, till they became paralyzed with fear, and finally, to throw off the winding-sheet, and crawl round the room, with white, bleached bones and one rolling eyeball, in the character of â€Å"Dumb Daniel, or the Suicide’s Skeleton,† a _rà ´le_ in which he had on more than one occasion produced a great effect, and which he considered quite equal to his famous part of â€Å"Martin the Maniac, or the Masked Mystery.† At half-past ten he heard the family going to bed. For some time he was disturbed by wild shrieks of laughter from the twins, who, with the light-hearted gaiety of schoolboys, were evidently amusing themselves before they retired to rest, but at a quarter-past eleven all was still, and, as midnight sounded, he sallied forth. The owl beat against the window-panes, the raven croaked from the old yew-tree, and the wind wandered moaning round the house like a lost soul; but the Otis family slept unconscious of their doom, and high above the rain and storm he could hear the steady snoring of the Minister for the United States. He stepped stealthily out of the wainscoting, with an evil smile on his cruel, wrinkled mouth, and the moon hid her face in a cloud as he stole past the great oriel window, where his own arms and those of his murdered wife were blazoned in azure and gold. On and on he glided, like an evil shadow, the very darkness seeming to loathe him as he passed. Once he thought he heard something call, and stopped; but it was only the baying of a dog from the Red Farm, and he went on, muttering strange sixteenth-century curses, and ever and anon brandishing the rusty dagger in the midnight air. Finally he reached the corner of the passage that led to luckless Washington’s room. For a moment he paused there, the wind blowing his long grey locks about his head, and twisting into grotesque and fantastic folds the nameless horror of the dead man’s shroud. Then the clock struck the quarter, and he felt the time was come. He chuckled to himself, and turned the corner; but no sooner had he done so than, with a piteous wail of terror, he fell back, and hid his blanched face in his long, bony hands. Right in front of him was standing a horrible spectre, motionless as a carven image, and monstrous as a madman’s dream! Its head was bald and burnished; its face round, and fat, and white; and hideous laughter seemed to have writhed i ts features into an eternal grin. From the eyes streamed rays of scarlet light, the mouth was a wide well of fire, and a hideous garment, like to his own, swathed with its silent snows the Titan form. On its breast was a placard with strange writing in antique characters, some scroll of shame it seemed, some record of wild sins, some awful calendar of crime, and, with its right hand, it bore aloft a falchion of gleaming steel. Never having seen a ghost before, he naturally was terribly frightened, and, after a second hasty glance at the awful phantom, he fled back to his room, tripping up in his long winding-sheet as he sped down the corridor, and finally dropping the rusty dagger into the Minister’s jack-boots, where it was found in the morning by the butler. Once in the privacy of his own apartment, he flung himself down on a small pallet-bed, and hid his face under the clothes. After a time, however, the brave old Canterville spirit asserted itself, and he determined to go and speak to the other ghost as so on as it was daylight. Accordingly, just as the dawn was touching the hills with silver, he returned towards the spot where he had first laid eyes on the grisly phantom, feeling that, after all, two ghosts were better than one, and that, by the aid of his new friend, he might safely grapple with the twins. On reaching the spot, however, a terrible sight met his gaze. Something had evidently happened to the spectre, for the light had entirely faded from its hollow eyes, the gleaming falchion had fallen from its hand, and it was leaning up against the wall in a strained and uncomfortable attitude. He rushed forward and seized it in his arms, when, to his horror, the head slipped off and rolled on the floor, the body assumed a recumbent posture, and he found himself clasping a white dimity bed-curtain, with a sweeping-brush, a kitchen cleaver, and a hollow turnip lying at his feet! Unable to understand this curious The whole thing flashed across him. He had been tricked, foiled, and out-witted! The old Canterville look came into his eyes; he ground his toothless gums together; and, raising his withered hands high above his head, swore according to the picturesque phraseology of the antique school, that, when Chanticleer had sounded twice his merry horn, deeds of blood would be wrought, and murder walk abroad with silent feet. Hardly had he finished this awful oath when, from the red-tiled roof of a distant homestead, a cock crew. He laughed a long, low, bitter laugh, and waited. Hour after hour he waited, but the cock, for some strange reason, did not crow again. Finally, at half-past seven, the arrival of the housemaids made him give up his fearful vigil, and he stalked back to his room, thinking of his vain oath and baffled purpose. There he consulted several books of ancient chivalry, of which he was exceedingly fond, and found that, on every occasion on which this oath had been used, Chanticleer had always crowed a second time. â€Å"Perdition seize the naughty fowl,† he muttered, â€Å"I have seen the day when, with my stout spear, I would have run him through the gorge, and made him crow for me an ’twere in death!† He then retired to a comfortable lead coffin, and stayed there till evening.