Thursday, December 26, 2019

Relationship Between Celebrity Personality And Brand...

Marketers have the mission of finding the best way to sell their brand to consumers. They try different strategies and methods to get through to their target market. Of the many options they have using a celebrity endorser is a popular way to get consumers to notice the brand and to buy the product. However, finding the right celebrity to match with the brands personality is a matter of opinion, and finding the right match could also affect the consumers’ willingness to buy the brand. The current study will examine the relationship in celebrity personality and brand personality, and how they connect to buying behavior. A brand’s personality is what draws the customer in. A formal definition of brand personality is â€Å"the set of human characteristics associated with a brand† (Aaker, 1997, p. 347). The personality factors within brand personality include excitement, sincerity, ruggedness, competence, and sophistication. Aaker suggested that people want to connect with brands that project a personality that is similar to their own, as if they are connecting with someone they like. Companies achieve this by putting their brands alongside famous people. In doing so, companies are personifying their brand or product. Marketers use a celebrity’s personality in connection with their brand to connect with consumers. In using celebrities and other influential persons to make a connection with their target consumers, companies are able to make a profit. In a study conductedShow MoreRelatedMarketing Strategy : Celebrity Co Branding Essay1516 Words   |  7 PagesINTRODUCTION Under the context of globalization, the role of brands becomes increasingly important in both aspects of corporate and consumers. It is particularly significant in the sportswear industry worldwide that many companies not only have to compete with their products but more importantly on brand values to attract more consumers and sustain its competitive advantages. This means that corporate branding strategy, which is building branding architecture that associated their values to theRead MoreThe Role of Consumer Behavior and Products in Marketing Decisions1353 Words   |  5 PagesProducts in Marketing Decisions 1. What is the personality of the branded product? One way to answer this question is to ask, If this brand were a person what would it look like? Would it be a tall man in a conservative suit and tie? A young girl in a suggestive outfit? What music relates to your brand? Harley-Davidson is a brand predicated on freedom and a chance to define ones own identity and destiny, away from the status quo. It is also a brand rich with a legacy of providing exceptional customerRead MoreBrand Personality1340 Words   |  6 PagesBrand Personality Definition Have you recently come across statements like â€Å"Brand X is rugged and macho with a spirit of adventure and freedom† or â€Å"Brand Y is stylish, trendy, younger and competitively priced†? These are some statements that tell about what is the personality of the brand in the minds of the consumers. Aaker defines Brand personality as ‘a set of human characteristics associated with the brand’. Brand personality is formed when the brand is personified or given some human traitsRead MoreThe Wearing Celebrity s Transgression And If Any Negative Implications Allotted By Purchasers1333 Words   |  6 Pagesallotted by purchasers will stretch out to their brands. However this sample additionally demonstrates that those backers whose relationship with Woods was focused around his non-item characteristics, (for example, his uprightness, unwavering quality, trustworthiness and so on) were speedy to force their help, while those whose sponsorship is focused around the golfer’s item related traits (his playing golf achievement) have kept up their relationship. Whether these backers’ choices were focused aroundRead MoreWhat Is Self- Congruity And Consumer Behaviour?1406 Words   |  6 PagesLITERATURE REVIEW OF PUBLISHED JOURNAL ARTICLES Several journal articles have been published in relation to the concept of self- congruity and consumer behaviour. It is seen that different articles focus on developing brand personality and image, pertaining to a specific field. In case of tourism industries, it is seen that self- congruity plays a very major role, even though destination branding is different from that of any normal product or service (Usakli Ahmet, 2009,p.1). The research on destinationRead MoreImpact of Celebrity Endorsement on Overall Brand3390 Words   |  14 PagesImpact of Celebrity Endorsement on Overall Brand By Muneeb Ahmed Synopsis The general belief among advertisers is that brand communication messages delivered by celebrities and famous personalities generate a higher appeal, attention and recall than those executed by non-celebrities. The quick message-reach and impact are all too essential in today s highly competitive environment. |[| |p| |i| |c| |]| |[| |p| |i| |c| |]| |[| |p| |i| |c| |]| |[| |p| |i| |c| |]| |[| |p| |i| Read MoreBrand Identity Prism of Raymonds and Arrow1126 Words   |  5 PagesFashion Brand Management Topic: Comparative study of the Brand Identity of two Fashion Brands Arrow Raymond Premium Apparel Submitted to: Mrs. Bharti Moitra Submitted By: Nancy Mehta Roll no.27 MFM (Sem-II) Brand Identity Brand identity is a unique set of brand associations that the brand strategist applies to create or maintain. These associations represent what the brand stands for and imply a promise to the customers from the organization members. Modern theories say that a brand identityRead MoreChapter Two : Literature Review3209 Words   |  13 PagesOverview The term brand equity refers to the incremental value added by a brand name to a product (Pappu et al., 2011, cited in Farquhar, 1989). Celebrity Endorsements could be when there were consumer attachments to the popular figure who, which represented the products or services of the brands. Brands are popularised by different marketing techniques that navigate how the brand accumulates loyalty and trust amongst its consumer market (Chaudhuri Holbrook, 2001). Even though a brand has the possibilityRead MoreRole of the Brand Ambassadors in Marketing1060 Words   |  5 PagesROLE OF THE BRAND AMBASSADOR IN MARKETING Brand Ambassador‟ is one of the most commonly misunderstood and loosely used terms in the world of Branding. It is more commonly thought of as a celebrity endorser. Another common notion is the association of â€Å"brand ambassador‟ only to celebrities, while it can include employees of a company and, most importantly, the customers of a brand. If you remember MDH, its owner has been the brand ambassador for years.    It is true that there exist certain similaritiesRead MoreThe Impact Of Celebrity On Consumer Perception1881 Words   |  8 Pagesuse of innovative marketing tactics are often implemented to achieve success in the restaurant industry. Using celebrity endorsers as part of the promotion for the restaurant is one common practice. Using celebrities, a restaurant or restaurant chain can distinguish itself from its competitors by increasing the brands reputation and name. Developing positive attitudes towards the brand as well as maintaining loyal customers increases sales and allows the restaurant to gain a distinct advantage over

Tuesday, December 17, 2019

Essay On The Black Death - 924 Words

Because of the fact that many people in England did not know precisely what was causing the Black Death to transpire, they also did not know how to cure it. In â€Å"The Black Death†, many thought that they needed to be sin free or that God needed to forgive them for their sins. This was true for people who resided in England during the time of the Black Death as well. Because they believed that the Black Death was God’s punishment, the only way to cure them of the plague was through God’s forgiveness. The article â€Å"Black Death† states, â€Å"By this logic, the only way to overcome the plague was to win God’s forgiveness.† Nevertheless, doctors in England would try different procedures to cure victims of the plague as well. The doctors would use†¦show more content†¦Some victims would form rashes as well (Bubonic Plague). â€Å"The Black Death† does an amazing job of giving the viewer an accurate demonstration of what some one suffering from the Black Death would have looked like. This visualization helps someone wanting to learn more about the Black Death to understand it better. It also gives them a better picture of just how serious the Black Death was. Many of the people in the movie believed that the Black Death originated in France. Nevertheless, this was incorrect. Many of the people in Europe had heard of the â€Å"Great Pestilence† that was sweeping through the continent, even before it arrived in Europe (Black Death). The Black Death actually originated in China.† The plague first arrived in Europe in 1347 and came from the steppes area of Central Asia† (Bubonic Plague). The plague had been in Central China for a while before it began to spread elsewhere, but since Mongolians tend to live so close to their horses, the infected fleas did not even bother them (Bubonic Plague). However, eventually trading posts became spaces that had a ton of rats, and these rats brought the fleas that carried the disease with them, which is what caused the plague to spread all throughout Europe (Black Death). The movie did not necessarily get the origin of the Black Death wrong as people in England had only heard that there w as a great pestilence sweeping the continent until it arrived in England. The people in England did not know where theShow MoreRelatedThe Black Death Essay1196 Words   |  5 Pagessong little children sing while holding hands, walking around in a circle and then falling down. The nursery rhyme refers to the Black Death, one of the worst plagues of all time (Schladweller). Known as infectious diseases that spread quickly and kill countless people, plagues have had a tremendous affect on people around the world since the beginning of time. The Black Death, also known as the bubonic plague, is a contagious bacterial infection that has killed millions of people. With the bubonic plagueRead MoreThe Black Death. Essay936 Words   |  4 Pagesyou to a slow miserable death. In the 1300s people were struck with a great plague, which has now been named â€Å"The Black Death†. The Black Death killed off populations with just one sweep. Historians call this the biggest tragedy of all time. The question is what caused this plague and how does something like this happen? Overtime historians have boiled it down to 2 and some may say 3 explanations, which are religion, science, and humans. With the help of a book The Black Death by Rosemary Horrox I wasRead MoreBlack Death Essay1007 Words   |  5 Pageswas too bright to stand. Within a day or two, the swellings appeared. They were hard, painful, burning lumps on their neck, under their arms, on their inner thighs. Soon they turned black, split open, and began to ooze pus and blood. They may have grown to the size of an orange. These are the symptoms of the Black Death, one of the most devastating pandemics in human history, peaking in Europe between 1348 and 1350. It is widely thought to have been an outbreak of bubonic plague, and during thoseRead More Black Death Essays1319 Words   |  6 Pages The Black Death, also known as the Black Plague, or the Bubonic Plague killed one third of the population of Europe during its reign in the 13th and 14th centuries. The arrival of this plague set the scene for years of strife and heroism. Leaving the social and Economic aspect in a standstill. The phantom of death became a subject of art, music and folklore and it influenced the consciousness of the people. The impact of this mass killer caused enormous chaos and havoc to the medieval society becauseRead MoreThe Black Death Essay1018 Words   |  5 PagesThe Black Death took place in Europe during the fourteenth century. To the people of the time, facts about the disease were unknown until people started to notice problems that other people were having. The Black Death or â€Å"plague† that killed thousands in the fourteenth century may have evolved into a more modern version of itself. The â€Å"plague† is known as the â€Å"Yersinia pestis† bacteria, which is a rare zoonotic disease. These diseases are spread from animal to human (Newquist 239, Adamloakun MRead MoreEssay On The Black Death901 Words   |  4 PagesIn the middle of the fourteenth century, European experienced a disease called Black Death, which killed millions of people in six years. By spreading quickly, this disease affected not only on people’s lives but also on economic of many countries, especially those countries in Europe. Therefore, people found out some cures to end this nightmare disease. Ole J. Benedictow. â€Å"The Black Death: The Greatest Catastrophe Ever†. Published in History Today Volume 55 Issue 3 March 2005 Read MoreBlack Death Essay779 Words   |  4 PagesThe Black Death of 1347-1350 had one of the most dominate impacts on Latin Christendom and Islamic Worlds. The pandemic would have an economic, political and demographic change of these worlds for the next three centuries. These area’s impacted were already deeming an economic downfall. With the abrupt change of climate, the agricultural revenues were already suffering. The climate change had impacted mostly the poor people of these countries. The Black Death wasn’t having mercy on anyone that wasRead More Black Death Essay1184 Words   |  5 Pages Black Death, outbreak of bubonic plague that struck Europe and the Mediterranean area from 1347 through 1351. It was the first of a cycle of European plague epidemics that continued until the early 18th century. A cycle of ancient plagues had preceded these plagues between the 6th and 8th centuries AD; another cycle of modern followed them, but less deadly, plagues that began in the late 19th century and continue in the 20th century. The term quot;Black Deathquot; was not used to refer to theRead MoreEssay on The Black Death1474 Words   |  6 PagesThe Black Death was an extensive epidemic that spread across Europe from 1346 to 1353, killing over an estimated one-third of Europe’s entire population (Medieval World 56). Although historians are not entirely sure of its origin, the Black Death spread quickly across both Europe and Asia with a death toll that augmented rapidly. The plague also had unusual and deadly symptoms, causing â€Å"panic everywhere, with men and women knowing no way to stop death except to flee from it† (Kohn 28). The chaosRead More the black death Essay752 Words   |  4 Pages In â€Å"The Black Death† the author Phillip Ziegler attempts to fully describe the Plague that struck Europe in 1338 and remained until 1665. The year of the great Plague of London Ziegler tries to give an unbiased account of the Plague by compiling information from contradictory sources. Ziegler begins the book with the Tartans catapulting diseased corpses into Genoese as the Genoese escape back to Europe. Following this, the author provides some insight into the Plague in Italy, Germany, and France

Monday, December 9, 2019

Essay of University free essay sample

Nowadays with the rapid development of modern technology, a dramatic change has been appeared in our life. Recently, the issue of pollution has aroused public concern. Some people believe that we couldn’t indulge the environment gets worse and worse. But others hold that the development of economy is the primary goal. Somebody have the opinion that the development of economy can bring the higher technology level, which possibly is the key of the pollution problem. But the people who hold the opposite judgment hold that the environment can’t be repaired even though the new technology has been invented. They appeal to the government that the society should retarded the progress of economic development to protect the environment. As to me, the first view is preferable. The reasons are as follows. As far as I am concerned, the environment can’t be repairable, just like the animals that has be extinct can’t reappear. We will write a custom essay sample on Essay of University or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The environment must be protected before it become irredeemable. The public should pay more attention to the problem of pollution instead of the economy. Everybody should give his or her support to environment’s protection, such as try to have a low-carbon lifestyle, reject the product that has damaged the environment. To conclude, the development of modern society is just like a double-edged sword. With them we may have less trouble dealing with problems in life and enjoy a better-off life. However, one point should be kept in mind that we should take sensible use of them, always being the masters of them.

Monday, December 2, 2019

Technology Essays - Database, Pointer, Extensible Storage Engine

Technology Background The Technology Needs Survey (TNS) software program developed at HSC/XRE was originally intended to provide a convenient vehicle by which the office's engineers and scientists could enter and edit environmental, safety and occupational health (ESOH) needs data into a database. The program provided an interface that allowed the user to answer, or revise answers, to questions regarding the nature of the ESOH technology needs of the customer. The database was originally installed on a local area network (LAN) shared by the technical members of the HSC/XRE office. The data in the database was used, in part, to rank the severity, impact and importance of technology needs throughout the Air Force. HSC/XRE performed substantial analysis on the data prior to its presentation to the ESOH TPIPT, Air Staff and others. Consequently, the database itself became a dumping ground for temporary tables, queries and reports that were generated "on the fly" over time. The structure of the underlying database is simple, as shown in Figure 1. The numerous queries, reports and tables that are antidotal artifacts in the database are distractions to the underlying structure, and should be removed. Creation of the Tri-Service TNS Database for FY97 The source data for the FY97 Tri-Service TNS database came from four sources: ? US Navy, by way of four MS WORD documents (segmented by pillar) ? US Army, by way of a TNS database that had been exported from a version of the software modified by the US Army and/or their contractors ? USAF FY96 TNS database ? last year's USAF database, with needs updated as required ? USAF FY97 TNS database ? current year's new USAF technology, policy and training needs The tasking from the HSC/XRE office was to consolidate the four data sources into a single database and provide it to representatives of the Joint Engineering Management Panel (JEMP) on or before 31 Dec, 1996. Such a database would be known as the Tri-Service TNS Database for FY97. Technical Issues The USAF FY97 database was considered the target into which the other three data sets were to be consolidated. At this point in time (Dec, 1996), the FY97 database still contained "T-numbers", rather than Tag integers. It appeared that there were printing difficulties with T-numbers in the Tag field, so they were removed, and added as a prefix to the need Title. In their place, sequential integers, beginning with 3000, were placed in the Tag field. Next, the Navy needs, which consisted of 807 needs in four word documents, were manually added to the FY97 database using the TNS software. This was a two man-day effort by a program support individual. All attempts to successfully print all US Army needs failed. Most needs contained a data value that exceeded TNS's a single print page. A bug in TNS causes the first page to be printed OK; then, subsequent lines are printed, one per page. It was decided that the US Army database would be provided to the government as-is, with a suggestion that the government obtain the US Army's TNS version to see if the bug had been fixed by the Army. The final step was to export the USAF FY96 TNS database, and import it into the FY97 database. This presented something called the "Match Table Problem." The Match table in TNS contains three columns ? the need number, a category, and a pointer. Depending upon the category, the category would represent a unique primary POC, technical POC, potential user, regulation or contaminant. These pointers are not uniquely generated; therefore, a primary POC with a pointer of 4254 might point to Smith in the FY96 database, while a primary POC with a pointer of 4254 might point to Jones in the FY97 database. The same corruption was possible for regulations and contaminants, as well. To resolve this problem, it was determined that the set of pointers in the FY97 database did not exceed 5000 for POC, regulations and contaminants. Consequently, the pointers in the Match table of the FY96 database were incremented by 5000, as were their corresponding targets in the POC, Regulation and Contamination tables. This assured that there would be no overlap between the two databases. The FY96 database was imported successfully into the FY97 database.

Tuesday, November 26, 2019

Isolation within The Yellow Wallpaper, Miss Brill, and Once Upon a Time

Isolation within The Yellow Wallpaper, Miss Brill, and Once Upon a Time Free Online Research Papers The French artist Joseph Roux once said that Solitude vivifies, but isolation kills. Many things have a negative impact on society; one of these things is an individual being isolated. This will not only have a negative effect on society but also on the person being isolated. In three short stories; Miss Brill, Once Upon a Time, and The Yellow Wallpaper the three main characters are each isolated each one being isolated for different reasons. These isolations have a negative impact on the person directly and also the people around them. In Miss Brill the main character is isolated from society because no one seems to notice her, this drives her to live in her own little fantasy world and view the world as a giant play. In the story of Once Upon a Time the main characters isolate themselves from the outside world because they are afraid of what is going on around them, this inadvertently causes them to be killed by what they thought would be protecting them. The Yellow Wallpaper deals with a woman who seems to be suffering from post-partum depression and has been put on a rest cure that supposedly cures the patients of this depression but seems to have a negative effect on the person by causing them to go insane. In the story Miss Brill has a fur that she relates to as if it was a friend of hers Dear little thing! It was nice to feel it again. She had taken it out of its box that afternoon, shaken out the moth powder, given it a good brush, and rubbed the life back into the dim little eyes. This fur serves as a symbol of her inner child as well, when she places it back in the box its as if she hears a faint little cry. In Mansfields Miss Brill the main character copes with her isolation from the rest of the world by creating her own little fantasy world. And now Miss Brill reaches the top of the hierarchy of unrealities. She literally believes she is an actress, a not unimportant one, in a splendid play? Every Sunday, Miss Brill emerges from her home to involve herself in as many lives as she possibly can. Her day commonly involves her taking a walk through the Jardins Publiques, stopping to watch and listen to the band that plays under the gazebo, watch and eavesdrop on the people around her, and after the day has come to a close she stops off at a bakery to purchase an almond cake. Miss Brills most common activity consists of eavesdropping on the people around here attempting to view everything as a play, this eavesdropping is the only contact that Miss Brill has with people. We see the world through Miss Brills eyes and how she sees the world giving us a good insight on just how isolated she really is. Even though Miss Brill does not actually have a conversation with the people she watches she tries to convince herself that she has some minimal amount of meaning to them. To Miss Brill life was exactly like a play, everyone was on a giant stage. In the story Miss Brill has a fur that she relates to as if it was a friend of hers, This fur serves as a symbol of her inner child as well, when she places it back in the box its as if she hears a faint little cry. She saw everyone as actors. Miss Brill is always trying to find some way to keep herself entertained but some things seem extremely boring. Even her part was important to her so she made an appearance every Sunday. She thought for sure that someone would notice if she wasnt there. This is Miss Brills major flaw she tries to convince herself that she has some sort of actual meaning to the people around her when they, in reality, dont socialize with her and dont think any more of her then just a common elderly woman in the park. Miss Brill constantly attempts to raise herself to the standard of the people around her. She is constantly trying to make it seem she is just as important or even more important then the people around her. When she finally realizes that no one around her really cares for her and she just lives a dull little life her world comes crashing down around her. To the people that regularly attend the park Miss Brill might be considered an actress. Attempting to eavesd rop on there conversations while thinking she is un-noticed, could in fact be considered quite comical to the people that attend the park. She gives off many signals to the people around her when eavesdropping whether it is a rising of the head or a tearing of the eyes. It can almost be said that she is being watched by the people at the park just as much as she is watching them. In a lot of cases what is meant to help someone can actually turn out to hurt them, this is the case in The Yellow Wallpaper. When we have the intent to do something positive it will not always turn out a positive effect, just because the intention is positive does not mean the effect will be also. The Yellow Wallpaper is an example of such a situation. In The Yellow Wallpaper the narrator is locked up in a room which is covered in this hideous yellow wallpaper, this is supposed to be a cure for the woman, whom is suffering from post partum depression. The narrators husband, a physician believes that his tr eatment will help his wife and forces her into the room. This treatment, however, does not serve to help her but rather serves as another hindrance and only worsens her condition. Under the instruction of her husband, the narrator was moved to a house miles from civilization in the isolated country, where she is locked into the hideous room on the second floor. This room does not seem to freshen her mind but seems to dull it further and drive her further into a repressed state. During her stay in the room the door is locked and the windows where already barred upon arriving to the house. Being exposed to the rooms yellow wallpaper only serves to further her depressed state and drive her further and further into the depths of insanity. Throughout the story the hideous wallpaper acts as the antagonist of the story. There is nothing to do in the secluded room but stare at the wallpaper. The narrator tells of the scattered pattern as having no organization. Her constant examination and reflection of the wallpaper causes her to over think things and go further insane. This treatment calls for isolation has a repressive factor .The narrator did not believe isolation would cure her disorder. Social contact and outside stimulation was her desire. She was cut off from society and not allowed to see her baby. It is not natural nor is it recommended to be cut off from society for such a long period of time. Society provides an array of different sights, sounds, feelings and stimuli to the people who inhabit it. Going without human contact is not what is meant for people to be exposed to. To fulfill her need to be near people she invents a person she thinks lives inside the wallpaper. The image of a woman is clearly an effect of delirium on the narrator from prolonged isolation. Her psychosis becomes so in depth that she becomes involved with her imagined character. In a frantic action the now malfunctioning narrator began to try to free the women from behind the wallpapers pattern. She destroys yards of the wallpaper. The treatment contributes to her im pending mental demise she is first diagnosed with a minor nervous disorder. On her last day of treatment she is participating with hallucinations as if they are real. This obviously shows that the appointed cure only serves to fortify the minor illness. The negative qualities of the rehabilitation regimen cause her to go insane. Towards the end of the story, the narrator is delirious and constantly creeping around the room. Her husband goes into the room and upon seeing his wife in a deranged state creeping through the torn wallpaper falls on the floor and faints. Clearly this treatment is issued with good intentions, but fails to bring about positive results. The lack of social exposure, physical repression, and ugly wallpaper causes the treatment to be very ineffective and detrimental. The room is the main cause of her delirium with the psych ward like details. When Nadine Gordimer was asked to write a childrens story, she replied with a short story titled Once Upon A Time. Although the title is common of a fairy tale, the tale ends in something other then the common happily ever after. Gordimer distorts the fairy tale by dealing with certain issues in society rather than giving the reader the usual fairy tale characteristics. The first story seems to give insight to how the main story came about. Three of the more significant issues Gordimer likes to deal with in her story are racial discrimination and prejudice, societys insecurities, and the way isolation works on the human mind. Gordimers Once Upon A Time has the feeling of insecurity right away. In the first part of her story, Gordimer reminds us of our own insecurities. She brings up a familiar situation in which one is awakened by a bump in the night and cannot go back to sleep because of fear or their own insecurities. Gordimer writes that she has no burglar bars, no gun under the p illow, but I have the same fears as people who do take these precautions. So, to better convey this issue of societys insecurities, she tells herself a bedtime story. In the story, there is a family who is living happily ever after, yet is seems it is all that they can do to keep it that way. Rather than putting their insecurities aside and getting on with their lives, they feel that they must put their trust in security devices to protect their selves, thus isolating themselves from the outside world. For a short while, the family has a sense of security by posting a plaque stating YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED over the silhouette of a prospective intruder. After a short time the familys psychological need for more security calls for a number of new security devices in order to sustain the top level of security. It is in the familys pursuit of this security that they virtually imprison themselves. After the family has had burglar bars installed, Gordimer now describes the view from each window as looking at the sky and trees through the bars. The language Nadine Gordimer uses in her story is reminiscent of childrens stories and fairy tales. First of all, the title, Once Upon A Time, is the epitome of a fairy tale; it is the most familiar opening line. The language she uses is simplistic, the story is full of simple vocabulary, and has very simple sentence structure. The author also makes use of repetition. The phrases, HAVE BEEN WARNED, and living happily ever after are repeated several times throughout the story. This simplistic language is often seen in fairy tales because it makes them easy to understand. Gordimers story shows how foolish it is to isolate yourself based on just a fear of the outside world. Through these three stories we see how bad isolation can affect our everyday lives. The subject of isolation can cause us to suffer form an extreme delirium greater then any disease that it is trying to cure, it can serve to create a fantasy world in which someone can live until that world is brought down around them, and lastly it can serve as a destruction to someones life because they are afraid of what can happen to them in society. Isolation definitely has a negative effect on society and the people within it, the extent of this effect can depend on a number of factors such as the people the isolation is affecting, the situation under which the isolation is administered, and even the psychological stability of the person being isolated. People who are isolated can never benefit from this isolation but it can only serve as a hindrance to them. 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Saturday, November 23, 2019

Famous Doesnt Apply to Murderers or Gangsters

Famous Doesnt Apply to Murderers or Gangsters Famous Doesnt Apply to Murderers or Gangsters Famous Doesnt Apply to Murderers or Gangsters By Maeve Maddox The latest Mall Murderer left a note expressing the idea that now (i.e., after killing several inoffensive strangers at the local mall), he would be famous. It is to be hoped that writers wont make the mistake of applying that particular adjective to doers of evil deeds. The adjective famous has the meaning honored for achievement. To describe those who do evil attention-getting things, we have the words infamous and notorious. The word infamous expresses the idea that the person or incident described is one of a vicious, contemptible, or criminal nature. The word notorious once meant simply widely-known, but for many centuries has been used as a word of condemnation. For example, Albert Schweitzer was a famous medical missionary to Africa, but Al Capone was a notorious gangster. Each of these adjectives has a corresponding abstract noun: famous / fame infamous / infamy notorious / notoriety On this very day in 1941, President Roosevelt remarked that the date December 7, 1941 would live in infamy. Video Recap Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Misused Words category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:35 Synonyms for â€Å"Look†How to Punctuate Descriptions of ColorsPassed vs Past

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Urben design reflection paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Urben design reflection paper - Essay Example The actors in this case, are city dwellers and the stage provides room for acting scripts that make up their lives. The life in urban places usually affect people and their lives as they undertake their daily chores. People’s lives comprising of actions, relationships among city dwellers, and other activities are essential physical structures in any setting deemed to be a city Lewis Mumford’s point of view coincides with Louis Wirth’s stand that the city influences entire relationships among people living within it as well as their development activities. The author also decries the failure by city dwellers to comprehend and embrace the functional social setups of the city. Mumford expands the point of projection that people view the city from and delves into the analysis of the same a social institution instead of the traditional physical fact perspective. According to him, the city is a wholesome sense in itself, is a topographical plexus, an institutional proc ess, an economic organization, a platform for social action, and a hitherto artistic symbol of collective unity. Mumford moves away from the built environment while making analysis of a city. His viewpoint is rather broad and includes evaluation of the city as a centre of social set of connections and a theatre where people work out their definite activities by engaging in both cooperative and conflicting personalities, groups, and events to produce results that are more significant. The author appreciates the role of built environment as a natural habitat but he limits that role to a well-choreographed set stage. According to him, the built environment facilitates and in the process intensifies the performance of actors who are people in this case. The author explains that the primary character of a city is to create drama as much as all the basic structures of cities exist in other setups including suburbs as well. However, Mumford asserts the opportunity of engaging in social dis harmony and conflict only happens to those who access urban proximities and densities. In his words, a city is a special framework shaped towards the creation and development of differentiated chances for common life and an integral component of social drama. Lewis Mumford advanced the polynucleated ideology in the setup of contemporary cities. This idea proposes cities with various centres, which differs from mononucleated cities. These are cities with one centre. Mumford believes that his proposal comes with multiple benefits including the capacity to allow cities to expand constantly while the administration subdivides them into districts. This ideology would allow the expansion of emerging sprawls but with human considerations understanding aspects that are both manageable and practical. According to him, the practical factors should get the chance to determine the limiting factors including density, size, layout of the city, and area that deviate from the traditional technologi cal concerns and geographical reasons. Mumford highlights that limitations on size, area, and density are important to enhance effective social interactions bringing a better sociological understanding. Cities have the capacity to promote acceptable social values among the dwellers and increase the ability of human relationships and personalities. Mumford further defines a city as a space of societal culture and civilization. He holds this as the modern

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

Production Of A Klashnikov Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 2

Production Of A Klashnikov - Coursework Example The stock of the rifle in it is production is simply made out of wood, which is a non-strategic material, over time, AK-47, have been simplified through the use of spot welding, reducing the number of machined parts 2. One production method I would use to produce the riffle is Izhmash production method which produces around 95 units per hour which is an equal amount of over 1 million units per year. The process is rather cheap and cost effective both in the short run and long run. 3. The manufacturing methods used in mass production in comparison to those used in less developed regions is way very different, in mass production, the methods used are very advanced and fast to produce, new design are being tried and tested so as to improve the future designs while at the same time improve its accuracy and reliability. In less developed region, the manufacturing methods lack the new technology hand in it and thus are faced with the challenge of producing as many numbers as possible. For instance, in Russia the Izhevsk production method is the chief mass manufacture of the riffle, producing in mass numbers and has equally sold over 50 million units since its inception. Fackler M, L., Malinowski ,JA., Hoxie S,W., Jason, A. "Wounding Effects of the AK-47 Rifle Used by Patrick Purdy in the Stockton, California, Schoolyard Shooting of 17 January 1989". American Journal of Forensic Medicine and Pathology 11 (3): 185–9. (1990).

Sunday, November 17, 2019

The Fire in My Fathers Hands Essay Example for Free

The Fire in My Fathers Hands Essay When I was a kid, about 5 to 8 years old, my hands would always get cold whenever the surrounding air is chilly. My dad would always tell me to rub them together, like you would in order to make fire. And so I did it. I rubbed and rubbed and rubbed. My fingers grind against each other from the tips of my little fingers to the base of my palm, but none of this worked. My hands still are cold, stone cold. Then my dad said after watching me rub for a whole 3 minutes: You can stop rubbing your hands when they are warm again, as rubbing would make your skin raw. I replied: But theyre still cold. Then he told me to hold out my hand and he started rubbing warmth into my hands; his strong, rough hands massaging my palms, my fingers, then suddenly my hands are warm again. After a while, I wondered: will my hands ever become tough and strong like my fathers? Practice Till You Get Tired of It My Mom is my role model. I guess this is due to the fact that I used to scarcely see my Dad because he comes home really late; he still does, though not as late, while my Mother took care of me ever since she quit the job as the General Manager when I was in 2nd grade. She is the one who is there for me whenever I have a problem, like a robot on standby, but she is also a harsh whip with her discipline though she never hit me. My most notable memory of my Mom is when I sucked at math in 3rd grade. I dont know how to do a problem so naturally, I asked her. However, after she taught the same problem 4 times, I still didnt get it. I was afraid she would get mad, but she didnt and in the end when I finally got it, I asked her why she is so patient. She simply replied practice makes perfect, an old adage I hear very often to this day. The Playful Shadow Everyone in my family has different hair. My fathers, a hair like a bush or a vigilant meerkat or a comb. A comb with black and white bristles because my father is slowly aging. It stands tall and mighty nevertheless, and doesnt ever change no matter how many times you run your hand through the mass of black and white. Other times my father applies hair gel to his hair, though I dont see a point. After all, crew cuts dont have a lot of potential for shaping. In contrast though, my hair is like a playful shadow, flexible and could be shaped into anything. Its of medium length, though sometimes when I am too lazy or busy I dont pester my mother to take me to the hair salon in a nearby department store. Speaking of her, my mother has the smoothest hair in the family. Its silky and sleek almost all the time, and has a certain shine to it whenever light falls on her hair, like twinkling stars on a silent, dark night. Not The Usual It was around my mid-summer vacation. I went to my grandmothers in Taipei, but I stayed for a long time, about 2 weeks or so. I came back home eventually, but before the moment when I stepped through onto the white marble floor, I never realized the beautiful house that I considered as mundane was indeed quite nice. I immediately noticed the sunlight streaming through the tall windows that cover up a side of the spacious living room, as opposed to my grandmothers artificially lit house and the tiny space one is allowed to move in. You really have to pick your way carefully in order to not trip over something. Although this is mean for me to put it like this, especially since I have been accepting their hospitality for an extended period of time but after this time I learned to appreciate the place I live in. The next day, my mother started her usual sermons, Why dont you start doing your grammar workbook. Then I replied, But mother, its summer. Even if I finish it you wont give me any free time. Fine, you can have free time after you finish 5 pages in the workbook. Yes. I exclaimed. Then I thought to myself. Well, this is rare, mother is giving me free time. Home Ruler In German my name means home ruler. It means king. It is like the wind; strong, yet soothing. An energizing gust that one would welcome on a hot sunny day. It is like the symphonies that Beethoven conducted, vivid, strong symphonies. Henry was my fathers name and now I have it. Before that my fathers name is Eric, then he changed it to Chief during college years. But now he is Henry, and I am Henry Jr. On that lazy afternoon when he told me that he changed his name twice, I asked him why he wanted to be called Henry. He replied Because I like the sound of it. What?! You chose your name and my name only because you like the sound of it? Isnt there some kind of symbolism behind it like Chinese names do? I pressed. But he just simply said Nope. Personally though, I do not dislike my name. Its alright, though it could be confusing when people just say Henry when both Yu and I are present. Thats pretty much it, after all names arent good material for bullying anyways. All Alone On lazy days when Im bored, I daydream a lot. Just staring into space or look at the sky and the clouds or whatever that catches my intrest. I imagine various things, from the future, to the past. Sometimes I think of of the possibility of having a brother or sister since I am the only child in my house. I think of other people and their relationships with their siblings and sometimes I feel forlorn, because I never really had a person I can relate to at home. But other times when I see siblings fight I wonder if I would do the same. Chances are I would fight, be the peacemaker, or just let them go all over me. Perhaps I would try to maintain peace between me and my sibling. I suppose things get lively, crazy, and out of control sometimes when you have a sibling, but the more, the merrier right? Stop Judging! Shun is my old, old classmate, a classmate I had in 4th grade. He was a boy who had eyes that stare daggers and a posture or a physique that suggested he can fight well. I always took care to avoid him, for I am afraid of what he might do, especially since he got in a fight with my best friend, Kevin. The fight exploded suddenly with Kevin beaten down pretty badly. But in a strange twist of fate, I had to take the late bus with him, not to mention the small bus is very, very crowded. Time passed and passed, and eventually I had to go on the bus. It turns out that he isnt much of a bad person. I was apprehensive at first, but after a while I got the courage to ask him a few questions and we started talking. It was then I realized the true meaning of the saying dont judge a book by its cover. Party Pooper Rain, rain, go away. Go away so i can play I hate rainy days. The way it brings cool, humid air, and the way it forces me to stay indoors. The way it makes the skies dark, gloomy, and sometimes filled the air with static. It came when I went to Hualien the first time I went there. There wasnt much to do except to roam the department stores that was packed with refugees of the rain, just like my family and me. The rain prevented us from exploring Hualien Ocean Park, the amusement park I was so excited to go to, but the trip prematurely ended. We did stay in Hualien for an extra day though to compensate for the missing day, but that doesnt cover up the fact that the rain ruined half of my vacation. Just as it ruined the bicycling trip my dad and I planned to go on. And the trip to the Sun-Moon Lake. Oh, how I hate the rain. Different Things, Deep Meanings My mother tells me a lot of things. Family values, information, something about maintaing discipline, and many others. However, I find her small tales most intruguing. She once told me about a story about a kid and his mother. The story begins when the child was hit by his mother because he did something bad. Throughout his life, the child was always hit by his mother when he did something wrong. The strange thing is, the child never cried, not once when he was hit hard. He just held the tears in as the mother began her rentless attack, at least thats what I think she said, after all its been 3, 4 years. Anyway, the story goes on with the child finally reaches manhood, and the mother became an old lady, her hair streaked with dull gray, her hands and face wrinkly and her hands dont stop shaking. Then the child, now a man, did something to upset the mother again and of course the mother reaches to hit him as she did throughout her sons life. But this time when the blow landed, the son finally cried. Why? Because his mothers punch did not hurt, while in the past it hurt really bad. To this day, I still dont get the meaning of this little story. Work, Save, Relax I have a dream. A dream to be able to do anything i want. I feel tired studying for tests and doing homework all day. To go to school, back home like a an endless cycle which will likely change to go to company, return home when I get a job. Someday, Id like to travel to various countries, taste gorment food, and maybe even sip on wine. I want to see new things, experience them, and try them. Someday I will make this happen. When my dream turns to reality, this may be when my hair is all gone, streaked with whitish gray strands, and arms that are weakened by time, but I would be happy, happy that my dream is fulfilled. Being free of the bounds of duty, responsibility, and just be able to do anything I want is my lifetime goal. I have a dream. A dream to be able to do anything I want. I feel tired after studying and doing homework all day, and just doing work all day. Someday, Id like to just relax and enjoy, perhaps when I retire. I would travel to far-off coutries and taste gorment food.

Thursday, November 14, 2019

The Mind and Motivation of a Serial Killer Essay -- essays research pa

The mind and motivation of a serial killer Serial killers tend to be white heterosexual males in their twenties and thirties, who are sexually dysfunctional and have low self-esteem. Serial killers generally murder strangers with cooling off periods in between each murder. Serial killers are twisted in nature. Some return to the place the murder happened or the gravesite to fantasize about their deeds. Serial killers have made many excuses for their killings and behavior such as: Henry Lucas blamed his upbringing, Jeffrey Dahmer claims he was born with a à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“partà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? of him missing, Ted Bundy said porno made him do it and John Wayne Gacy turned the blame around and said the victims deserved to die. Many killers blame their families for their behavior, seeking sympathy. Forensic psychiatrists and FBI agents have tried to get inside the killerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s mind for many years. Traditional explanations include childhood abuse, genetics, chemical imbalances, brain injuries and exposure to traumatic events. In true psychopathic fashion, serial killers are blaming someone else for their actions. If their bad childhood is the primary reason for their homicidal tendencies, then why don't their siblings also become serial killers? Are serial killers insane? Not by legal standards. Always looking to manipulate, serial killers will do just about anything to convince the authorities of their insanity. Being declared "legally insane" means avoiding death row...

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

The Relationship Between Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Economic Development

Entrepreneurship firstly arise from Richard Cantillon’s Essai sur la Nature du Commerce en Gà ©nà ©ral, originally refers to the behavior people aim to become an entrepreneur. Currently, it is an increasingly heated issue worldwide because its power on driving innovation, productivity, job creation and economic development (Fisher, 2010). Schumpeter (1934) defined entrepreneurship as a creative response to potential opportunity and innovation means creating something original, innovative and significant that makes difference in a market or society (Frankelius, 2009).With respect to the relationship between entrepreneurship, innovation and economic development, Schumpeter (1934) highlights the role of entrepreneurship is the catalyst of economic development through innovation. However, recent research discovered that the level of economic development, in turn, has significant influence on entrepreneurship and innovation. Hence, in my opinion, entrepreneurship has important po sitive effects on economic development in terms of innovation, whereas economic development also affects entrepreneurship and innovation.At the same time, sustainability, which is always combined with entrepreneurship, innovation and economic development frequently arises in government policies or academic research, is another popular topic now. This essay will elaborate the relationship between entrepreneurship, innovation and economic development respectively with theoretic literature and business cases in section 2, and then in section 3, the role of sustainability in this relationship will be illustrated.2. The relationship between entrepreneurship, innovation and economic development.2.1 Entrepreneurship and innovation Numerous theses are put forth to clarify the relationship between  entrepreneurship and innovation. Shane (2003) claims that the primary issue for an entrepreneur is create new ventures while innovation is a secondary consideration. Hindle (2009) also views inn ovation as an entrepreneurial process to generate economic benefits. Both these two views reflect that entrepreneurship is the centre of the relationship and the role of innovation is limited.However, Drucker (1985 cited in Lumsdaine and Binks, 2007) points out a more reasonable relationship between innovation and entrepreneurship that innovation is a specific and unique tool of entrepreneurs. Schumpeter, as cited in Westhead, Wright and McElwee 2011, also explicitly concludes that innovation is a pre-requisite for genuine entrepreneurship. These two points clarify that individuals who can become entrepreneurs have the capacity to combine creative ideas in novel way and create something original, initiative and significant. Thus, in this way, innovation is a must for entrepreneurship. A suitable example of this is non-bag vacuum cleaner designed by James Dyson.Noticing a phenomenon that when the bag of vacuum is full, the suction became inefficient, Dyson devised the idea of produci ng a non-bag vacuum cleaner that promotes efficiency and convenience. He put this innovative idea into effect, established new business and launched the product in 1993, and eventually his product dominated the British vacuum cleaner market (Westhead, Wright and McElwee, 2011).In this example, it is evident innovative non-bag vacuum cleaner will not be obtainable in absence of innovation. In addition, Schumpeter (1936 cited in Lumsdaine and Binks, 2007) also emphasizes the issue that an entrepreneur cannot combine existed products and create new industry without innovation. For these reasons, innovation is the premise of entrepreneurship.2.2 Entrepreneurship and economic development. In current several decades, theoretical literature and empirical evidence have been put forth to illustrate the relationship between entrepreneurship and economic development. Among these various theories, the role of entrepreneurship is to recognize opportunities, ensure resources efficiently and event ually enhance economic development (Casson, 1982) has been widely accepted. Recent research conducted by Audretsch and Keilbach (2004)  demonstrates the vital factor accounting for the GDP variations between the former Soviet Union (USSR) and the USA.Even though these two countries have similar technological sophistication, USSR’s economic development significantly lagged behind the USA. With further research into it, they discover that the USA has a large number of entrepreneurs but it is not the same to USSR. This example highlights that negative effects on economic development in absence of entrepreneurs. Furthermore, Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (1998) points out that a country that has a large number of entrepreneurial activities is likely to constantly acquire original or advanced goods and experience considerable economic benefits. For these reasons, it is clear that entrepreneurship stimulates economic development.However, contemporary rese arch highlights the point that the level of economic development also influences entrepreneurship. That is the popularity of entrepreneurship varies at different economic development stages. First, in the early economic development stage, there is a negative correlation between economic development and entrepreneurship. Schuultz (1990) and Yamada (1996) based on their research proved that low level of economic development usually results low self-employment rate.This probably because manufacturing industry which takes advantage of economies of scale, standardization and massive production dominates the market and the cost for individuals to establish a new business is unaffordable. In addition, the will of individuals to take risk to be an entrepreneur is reduced because of the improvement of secured income (Iyigun and Owen, 1998). In other words, few people take entrepreneurship during this period. Nevertheless, with the further development of economies, service industry which need s little capital to start-up gradually takes the place of manufacturing industry and becomes the key component to boost economies and dominates the market, providing more opportunities to entrepreneurs.Simultaneously, advanced information and communication technologies and further process of globalization increased the economic uncertainties in turn offer an area for new enterprises founded (Acs, Audretsch and Evans, 1994) such as a large number of SMEs in IT industry arise and grow in a high speed. As a result, further economic development in this period promotes entrepreneurship. For  these reasons, economic development influences the popularity of entrepreneurship.2.3 Innovation and economic development Innovation is the action of putting creative ideas into effect, which involves introducing creative ideas and unique way to implement. Drucker (1957) views innovation as the purposeful search for changes and the opportunities that such changes might offer. Similarly, Schumpeter (1934) presents that innovation is the engine of change in economy. Furthermore, he raises the issue of creative destruction as a tool of entrepreneurship that discrete innovation destroys traditional market and rapidly replaces less competitive economic activities development.These suggest that innovation is the catalyst of economic development. For example, an iPod is derived from combing various technologies with unique design, which is an innovation in MP3 player industry. The production of an iPod included 41,000 jobs worldwide in 2006, creating job opportunities and boosting global trade (Linden, Kreamer and Dedrick, 2007). Furthermore, Boston Consulting Group (Collaborative Economics, 2008) also states that innovation is becoming an important economic motivator based on their research on the US Productivity Growth Outputs. For these reasons, innovation is the major force for economic development.Nevertheless, the level economic development affects the function of innovation. According to the Artadi and Xavier (2004), the stage of economic development of a country covers factor-driven stage, efficiency-driven stage and innovation driven stage. Innovation plays different roles in different development phases. In factor-driven stage, the economy of a country is primarily driven by abundant and low-cost labor and natural resources. The contribution from innovation is negligible that is not worth considering in this period. Then, in efficiency-driven stage, countries seek to improve procession efficiency and promote productivity with existed technologies. In this phase, innovation is a secondary consideration.Later, in innovation-driven stage, innovation is an essential element of economic development. Most sectors or industries are experiencing Schumpterian renaissance: innovation become the crucial engine boosting economic  development. Furthermore, Romer’s endogenous model also documents the diverse innovation performance in different levels of e conomic development (Romer, 1990). For these reasons, economic development has crucial impacts on innovation’s function.In summary, innovation is the pre-requisite for real entrepreneurship, which adapted by entrepreneurship to stimulate economic development. However, different level of economic development affects the popularity of entrepreneurship and the function of innovation. 3. The role of sustainabilitySustainability is the concept that â€Å"maintaining, or fostering the development of, the systematic contexts that produce the goods, services, and amenities that people need or value, at an acceptable cost, for as long as they are needed or valued† (Allen, Tainter and Hoekstra, 2003, P26).According to the definition, the objective of sustainability is to maintain an environment that assures to sustain the development of human beings. This issue is becoming popular in recent years because of its positive effects on entrepreneurship, innovation and economic develo pment.It is widely accepted that generating competitive advantages is crucial for entrepreneurs that own growing firms (Penrose, 1959 cited in Kor and Mahoney, 2004). Hart (1995 cited in Paton, 2000) points out that the goal of sustainability is entirely consistent with the profit motive competitive advantages. In other words, sustainability, as the vital process of generating competitive advantages, plays a significant role in entrepreneurship. Taking social responsibility is an important aspect of sustainability and helps enterprises generate competitive advantages. NIKE is a suitable example of this. NIKE was accused of using child labour in production of its sneakers in Pakistan in 1996.This unsustainable behaviour incurred criticisms from several society groups and damaged its brand image, resulted numerous people refused to purchase its products. In order to address this problem appropriately, NIKE formulated new policies and required its contractors must minimize potential ne gative environmental effects, offer a hygiene and comfortable work place and improve the health  conditions of all employees (Wright, 2013). These measures reflect NIKE’s behaviour of social responsibility that meets the society’s expectation for sustainable behaviour, which maintain a superior brand image and strengthen competitive position. In this case, NIKE derives competitive advantages from its sustainable management. This indicates sustainability enhances the development of entrepreneurship.It is mentioned in the Section 2 that entrepreneurship has positive effects on innovation and economic development. Kao (2010) states that entrepreneurship is a potential force for sustainability, which indicates it is likely that sustainability has important influence on innovation and economic development through enterprise performance. Haier’s success in Fluorine-Free Energy-Saving Air Conditioner is a suitable example of this. The process of producing new air con ditioner is similar to Schumpeter’s creative destruction. Haier developed and combined new Fluorine-Free and Energy-saving technologies and built new venues in order to produce this product (Yao, Pan and Yuan, 2010).In other words, it destroys the traditional Fluorine-added air conditioner industry and launched new air conditioners into the market. Through this case, the production of new air conditioner develops innovation and the new manufacture venues offer more job opportunities, which is beneficial to economic development. For these reasons, sustainability boosts innovation and economic development through enterprise performance.4. ConclusionIn conclusion, the relationship between entrepreneurship, innovation and economic development is complex. This essay illustrates that innovation is the premise of entrepreneurship. This paper also illustrates that entrepreneurship plays an important role in economic development. It is because that large number of entrepreneurial acti vities can constantly allocate resources efficiently and acquire original goods. At the same time, the popularity of entrepreneurship varies during different level of economic development.Similarly, innovation, serves as the engine of economic development, also behaves differently in different economic development  phases. In addition, the role of sustainability in innovation, entrepreneurship and economic development is vital. That is sustainability helps entrepreneurship generate competitive advantages and promotes innovation and economic development. Furthermore, it is suggested that an entrepreneur should concentrate on innovation and perform sustainably in order to generate competitive advantages and boost economic development.

Sunday, November 10, 2019

Marriage in Kate Chopin’s “Story of an Hour”

In Kate Chopping â€Å"The Story of an Hour, the author uses irony and symbolism in order to emphasize her argument: even the kindest and most loving of marriages can be oppressive. In this short story, Mrs.. Mallard, who Is the main character, is a middle-class woman who has just lost her husband In a terrible accident. Her sister and one of her late husband's friends are there, and It Is they who break the news to her, being careful about It since she has heart problems. â€Å"Knowing that Mrs.. Mallard was afflicted with a heart trouble, great care was taken to break to her as gently as possible the news of her husband's death. (p. L). Knowing about her husband's death, she (Mrs.. Mallard) locks herself in her room to apparently mourn and instead realizes that she has escaped from the grasps of marriage and is â€Å"free, free, free! † at last. She embraces her newly found freedom and triumphantly gazes at the life ahead. Near the end, she comes out of her room and walks arm In arm with her sister down the stairs to find her late husband at the door, which causes her heart to give way, in what the doctors proclaimed â€Å"of heart disease?of joy that kills. When she is first told of her husband's death, she retreats into her room and locks the door behind her, biding to be left alone. Once on her chair, she starts to let her feelings flow through her, at first, there is sadness and mourning, but later on she realizes that she doesn't feel all that bad about her husband passing away, Instead, she feels happy and rejoiced, and starts to look forwards to those days she had dreaded the day before. â€Å"She breathed a quick prayer that life might be long.It was only yesterday she had thought with a shudder that life might be long. † She looks out of the open window in her room and sees the permitting in its bloom, with birds flying about, sparrows singing softly, patches of clear blue sky showing here and there. All of these are symbols for hope and freedom. Birds are creatures without boundaries, without limits and unbound to the ground, which we could take to mean marriage. She now feels Like a bird, able to fly off into the sky, leaving her grounding marriage behind.It is basically a symbol of freedom and hope for the future. This also tells us that her marriage, even though it wasn't a violent and unloving marriage was an oppressive one. † She knew that she loud weep again when she saw the kind, tender hands folded in death; the face that had never looked save with love upon her, fixed and gray and dead. † And â€Å"And yet she had loved him?sometimes. Often she had not. What did It matter! † These unable to do as her heart desires, bound to an unloving marriage forever.Now, she has been given the chance to be free, to choose herself what she truly wants and the open window is the symbol for that. Outside of it lie all of her possible futures. Finally, she finishes by accepting her freedom and whispe rs the words she dreaded o much to say â€Å"free, free, free! † Finally, the cause of her death is her failing heart. She dies when she realizes that all of her dreams of freedom and independence have been shattered by the appearance of her undead husband. There is a kind of sick irony in this.First off, we thought it was he who had died, but at the end their roles are reversed and it is she who ends up dying. Next, the doctors assume that she died of â€Å"Joy that kills†, in other words, she was too happy of seeing her husband well and alive that is was too much of her heart. The reader, who has had access to ere thoughts and desires, knows that she dies of sadness of not being able to carry on living freely and independently without him. She dies because he shatters her dreams, not because he fulfills them.This takes us to Chopping second argument, that death is the only way out of the confinements of marriage. For all we know, Mrs.. Mallard stays at home quite a w hile, since her chair is â€Å"sunken in† which leads us to believe that it is frequently used and therefore she spends most of her time at home. This confinement is what she can't stand of marriage, unable of doing the thing she wants when she wants to do them. The only way she is able to escape this imprisonment is by the death of her husband, which sets her free.Chopin is basically arguing the old saying â€Å"The truth shall set you free†. Knowing that her husband has died, she lets the truth take hold of her, realizing that she's finally going to be happy. But when Mr.. Mallard strides unknowingly through the door, she collapses on the floor and dies. The truth, that he wasn't actually dead has set her free, has parted her from her oppressive marriage. At the very beginning of the story, in fact, the very first thing we know about Mrs.. Mallard is that she has heart problems â€Å"Knowing that Mrs.. Mallard was afflicted with a heart trouble†¦ In this short story, Mrs.. Mallard's heart disease is a symbol for her marriage and marriage in general in the technetium, in which marriage lies at the heart of society. Marriage is the beating heart of society, what binds it together, and is therefore an unbreakable bond, if you were to go against it you would go against society itself. This, from Chopping (Kate) point of view is unacceptable; marriage should be kept only if there is love, unlike Mrs.. Mallard and her husband. â€Å"And yet he had loved him?sometimes. Often she had not. What did it matter! The author makes the heart represent marriage, and to show that it is a broken institution she gives Mrs.. Mallard heart problems. This is a clear statement against marriage, telling us that it has lost its meaning and has become a sickly form of binding people together. In the story, it also foreshadows the events that happen later on, namely, her death due to a corrupt and broken marriage. In her short story, Kate Chopin tells us that wome n feel oppressed by marriage whether it is a loving marriage or not, and hey crave for freedom and independence.She does this with the help of symbols such as the open window, representing spring, freedom, hope, independence, and the possibilities of her new life and breaking the bonds of an oppressive marriage, the heart problem that afflicts Mrs.. Mallard which represents how marriage is â€Å"sick† only way a woman can escape marriage by having her die instead of him who supposedly died at the beginning of the story. All in all, she tells us that all marriages confine women and deprive them of their freedom and independence, that oppression is in the very nature of every marriage.

Thursday, November 7, 2019

Comparison of Psalms, Sermons, and Parables Essays

Comparison of Psalms, Sermons, and Parables Essays Comparison of Psalms, Sermons, and Parables Paper Comparison of Psalms, Sermons, and Parables Paper Europe centered on Christianity and the Bible for centuries, and the holy book shaped the lives in all living during those times. Although the Bible nearly governed the people of Europe, most of them were never able to have access to it. The Bible was originally only available in Latin, the language of the Church, but during the Reformation of the 1500s, the Bible was translated into the vernacular languages for the common people to read. The King James Bible was the official English translation, and it was created by the consent of King James himself. Throughout the generations, the King James Bible has become an important part of life for English-speakers, often lending hundreds of phrases to the English language. The passages in the Bible all convey themes of faith, and three examples of such passages are the psalms, sermons, and parables. Although they all appear within the Bible, there are significant differences between all three of these genres, including a distinct form for each, a unique use of literary techniques, and different ways of communicating deep messages about life. While sermons and parables are both spoken passages that praise God, psalms are poetic religious songs that are sung to praise God. To keep the audience interested, psalms sometimes feature vivid metaphors, or comparison of unlike things. For example, in Psalm 23, phrase 4, a metaphor is used to strengthen the image of the psalm: Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil. (p. 277) The speaker is not actually walking through a valley of death; it symbolizes the person going through hard and evil times, but he or she is not afraid because God is with him or her. Using inference, the reader can denote the meaning of the metaphor I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever as a way of saying that he will go to heaven. Another example of word usage that creates an image is in the opening phrase: The Lord is my shepherd; He maketh me to lie down in green pastures. (p. 277) This creates a sense of peace and comfort to the listener, which is what the psalm is known for. A more serious example of a passage from the Bible is the sermon, which are speeches that offer religious or moral instruction. The Sermon on the Mount, a speech given by Jesus in Galilee, contains the basic principles of Christianity. Since sermons are rather serious and harder to understand, they usually contain analogies, or explanations comparing unfamiliar relationships to familiar ones to help people understand them. For example, in the 28th phrase in The Sermon on the Mount, the narrator takes the concept of clothing and not to concentrate on apparel, and compares it to the lilies in the of the field, which do not wear clothes but flourish anyway. The speaker wants the audience to speculate life as a lily or the green field, where just the necessities are used: food, air, and water. The analogy about birds in this sermon also makes people realize what God has given them: Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not must better than they? (p. 278) This analogy compares the needs of the birds to the needs of the human, which is similar to the analogy of the lilies and the green field. Another element of the sermon is the rhetorical question, which are questions that are not meant to be answered. These kinds of questions are thought-provoking, and cause the audience to think about what the sermon is about on a deeper level: Is not the life more tan meat, and the body than raiment? (p. 278, 25) and Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, shall he not much more clothe you, o ye of little faith? (p. 278, 30) are examples of rhetorical questions used in The Sermon on the Mount. Both of these are also reprimand the audience and listeners in a way. They force the audience to think about what was said and realize what God really wants them to do. A parable also features religious or moral instruction, but unlike the sermon, they are lighter in tone and are told in the form of a simple story. Parables illustrate messages from which lesson can be drawn. The Parable of the Prodigal Son tells a tale about a man with two sons, the younger of them asks his father one day to go out into the world alone with a few possessions, but ends up wasting his substance with riotous living. p. 279, 13) After a while, a famine came upon the land, the younger son does not have enough to eat, and decides to return home. When he arrives, the father greets him like a king, and says to the servants to bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. (p. 279, 22) The older son, however, is not pleased with the manner of his return or the reaction of his brothers arrival from his father. The lesson learned from this narrative is that everyone is able to and has opportunities to make a change within themselves. We do not have to remain in a hopeless state. This parable also shows the attitude of the older son, who quarreled with his father that his brother messed up but was still given a fatted calf (p. 279, 23). The older son did not realize all the riches available to him in his fathers household. Instead, he chose to focus on the fact that he considers himself to be better than the younger son, and therefore could not share his fathers joy. The morale of this story is that both sin and self-righteousness (as shown by the older son) separate people from God, and that we all need Gods love and grace, no matter what state we are in. The metaphors used in the psalm, the analogy of the birds and lilies in the sermon, and the narrative used in the parable are all aimed at the original audience they were written for: the simple, rural folk. Although these three types of writings are quite different from each other, they all have a common purpose: to educate the people who choose Christianity as their religion about discipline, love, and Gods grace.

Tuesday, November 5, 2019

Use the French Verb Dire to Tell Someone Off

Use the French Verb Dire to Tell Someone Off The French verb dire  means to say or to tell and is used in many idiomatic expressions. Learn how to tell someone off, talk nonsense, be a yes-man and more using this list of expressions with dire. Dire is a widely used irregular verb, which means it follows the beat of its own drum regarding conjugations. This is one of those verbs whose forms you simply have to memorize. Formulas dont apply.   Common French Expressions With Dire dire quelquun ses quatre và ©rità ©sto give someone a piece of ones minddire quelquun son fait, dire son fait quelquunto tell someone offdire ce quon a sur le cÅ“urto get something off ones chestdire des sottises / bà ªtisesto talk nonsensedire queto say; to think thatdire toujours amento be a yes-man ce quil ditaccording to him qui le dis-tu  ?youre telling me! vrai direto tell you the truthAussità ´t dit, aussità ´t faitNo sooner said than doneautrement ditin other wordsÇa ne me dit pas grand-chose.I dont think much of that.Ça ne me dit rien.That does nothing for me; I dont feel like doing that.That means nothing to me; I dont remember that.Ça me dit quelque chose.That rings a bell.Ça te dit  ?Do you feel like doing that?   Does that sound good to you?Ceci/Cela ditThat said; Having said thatCela va sans dire.It goes without saying.cestdirethat is; i.e.; I meanCest beaucoup dire.Thats saying a lot.Cest moi qui te le dis.Take my word for it.Cest peu d ire.Thats an understatement. Cest plus facile dire qu faire.Easier said than done.Cest toi qui le dis.Thats what you say.Comment dirais-je  ?How shall I put it?  What can I say?comme on ditso to speak; as they sayDis donc / Dites doncWow; hey; listenentendre dire queto hear (it said) thatEst-ce dire que...?Does this mean that...?Il ny a pas direTheres no doubt about it.Je ne dis pas non.I wont say no.Je ne te le fais pas dire  !Im not putting words in your mouth!I didnt make you say it!Je te lavais dit.I told you so.Mon petit doigt ma ditA little birdie told mene pas se le faire dire deux foisnot to have to be told twiceon dirait que...youd think that...ou pour mieux direto put it another way; in other wordspour ainsi direso to speakpour tout direin factQue dites-vous  ?I beg your pardon? What did you say?Tu as beau dire, je ne te crois pas.It doesnt matter what you say, I dont believe youvouloir direto meanse direto say to oneself;  to think; to claim to be; to be saidCela ne se dit pas. (passive r eflexive)That (just) isnt said. Cela te dit de (sortir, manger)?How does (going out, eating) grab you? What do you think of (going out, eating)?On se dirait en France.Youd think you were in France.

Sunday, November 3, 2019

College Math Master Math Problem Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

College Master - Math Problem Example The difference in their weight, if any, is assumed to be insignificant enough not to contribute any significant difference in wearing out of the tires. We also know that tan(90) is undefined and so also tan((4n+1).90) where n is any positive integer. Therefore, tan(450) = tan((4X1+1)90) is undefined. Therefore, the right hand side of the above equation will be undefined and hence tan(x + 450) cannot be simplified using the tangent sum formula. But sin(x + 450) = cos(x) and cos(450 + x) = -sin(x) as x + 450 is located in second quadrant. Therefore tan(x + 450) = sin(x + 450) / cos(x + 450) = cos(x) / - sin(x) = -cot(x). since sin and cos are defined for all real numbers and the problem is only with tan as it is not defined for certain real numbers((4n+1)90, (4n-1)90, -(4n+1)90, -(4n-1)90) tan(x + 450) cannot be simplified using tangent sum formula but can be simplified using sin and cos formulas. We now attempt to differentiate between the trigonometric equation that is identity and the trigonometric equation that is not identity. We have from symbolic logic the definition of identity as x is said to be identical with y if x takes a value "u" implies y takes the value "u".

Friday, November 1, 2019

Answer the questions Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Answer the questions - Article Example Such is the case of Diane Amos, the African American comic who has been pitching Cloroxs Pine-Sol cleaner for eight years. While Amos is a straight-talking, working-class woman who sports dreadlocks and nondescript clothes and calls everybody "honey" while offering practical cleaning advice, she actually appeals to the consumer because of the credibility that she lends to the product. Answer: Agencies are now turning to formal or informal advisers for help in avoiding to offend customers. Some are also consulting with minority agencies and reaching out to recruit more minority staffers. Yes, I believe that these steps are helpful in reducing offensive stereotypes in advertisements because this kind of research will make agencies more aware of how typically stereotyped groups actually behave. 4) What information from this article (example of an advertisment, quote or statistic) do you feel could apply to the ad you have chosen? How and why? If it does NOT apply to your ad, how do you think such information will affect you as a conumer the next time you seen an advertisement? This particular quote is not applicable to the Diane Amos and the Pine Sol ad because even if Amos is made fun of, she is still an effective advertiser of the product. This information will make me more critical of the portrayal of stereotypes in advertisements and will most likely discourage me from purchasing insensitive stereotypical products. 5) The following is an "inference and conclusion" question: How can our societal myths be based on stereotypes? Choosing one of the ads analyzed in the article, which myths were being generated through the use of stereotype? Ans: One common societal myth based on stereotypes is that of gay men having a dark side and preying on straight strangers. This stereotype is commonly generated by â€Å"macho-istic† products who want to emphasize that their brands are for â€Å"real men.† An example of this kind of ad, as mentioned in the

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

Overloading Trucks 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Overloading Trucks 2 - Essay Example In this similar concern, one of the current systems of overloading trucks control in Saudi Arabia can be viewed as the ‘Weigh Station Management’. The prime function of this control system is to check the weight of the trucks. All the heavy vehicles need to pass through the weigh station in order to obtain the idea about the weight limits. The purpose of utilising this system control is to impose legal load limits and therefore avoiding trucks from damaging highways and bridges (AlGadhi, 2001). In New Zealand, the facet of The Weigh-In-Motion System is normally used as one of the effective current systems of overloading trucks control. This system fundamentally comprises sensors, electronics and software. This particular system is installed to gather traffic data (Dornier Consulting, 2011). The system is typically used to identify over load, over height of the trucks running in the highway and also to minimise the static weight as directed by the traffic. Also the  "Kistler Lineas quartz† sensors can be apparently observed in both Saudi Arabia and New Zealand as the other overloading trucks control system. It is worth mentioning that the sensors act as a controlling measure which helps in minimising road damages and accidents in the form of transmitting certain valuable information (Traffic Tech Group, 2010). It can be affirmed that the

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Personal Experience: A Caring Occurrence

Personal Experience: A Caring Occurrence The purpose of this reflective paper is to reflect on a personal experience in which you cared for someone. Using Johns model (Johns 2006), the reflection will explore how the personal experience reflected a caring occurrence. Reflection is the appearance of experiential knowledge and as nursing students; we should begin to use reflection as our experience in the nursing field accumulates. It is both justified and recommended that Carpers work be incorporated into reflective practice since it was a key figure in widening knowledge in nursing (Heath, 1998). Reflective practice incorporates Carpers (1978) ways of knowing personal, ethical, aesthetical and empirical knowing into an individuals reflection. Reflection is a personal understanding of self and in the development of self, reflecting on relationships and interactions between two or more people. As a nurse, the relationship is between the nurse and the client, and sometimes involves the clients family as well. The experience in which I cared for someone occurred in the fall of 2009. As part of my Gr. 12 Ethics and Morals Religion Class, it was required that for an eight week period, we spent a period of our time, once a week at a retirement home with our assigned adoptive grandparent. The purpose of this assignment was to spend time with an older adult, engage in communication, participation, and enjoy the time spent with the older generation and learn from them. So once a week, I made my way to the retirement home and spent an hour and a half with my adoptive grandparent Blanche. I planned ahead of time activities that she might like to take part in such as a puzzle, a walk, a craft, or baking. Once I got there, I would ask her what she would like to do and we would go from there. Each time I went there, she had a different story to tell me; her life as a young farm girl, her teenage years, and the love of her life, her career as a teacher, her family and journeys she had been on. Each st ory had its own personal meaning to her and I sat there attentively and listened, asked probing questions and comments. As her adopted grandchild, it was my duty to entertain her, keep her spirits up and encourage her. The one week when I went there, she had physiotherapy so I could not spend much time with her on a personal level, but more of a team of caring individuals to support her, and encourage her through her therapy. Although this situation does not exactly relate to a medical need for caring for someone, I still managed to care for an individual on a personal, face-to-face encounter. This experience also helped me to learn how important the elderly patients are. When I experienced this caring situation, I was feeling worried and nervous at first. I was unsure what to expect prior to meeting my adoptive grandparent. I was worried about the fact that my grandparent might not have liked me, or would be extremely quiet and held back. Since this was one of the first times I would be put in an experience like this, I just did not know what to expect. After the first two weeks, I became more comfortable in my surroundings and each week I would then look forward to my visits with Blanche. After I became comfortable, I was happy and opened up more towards Blanche. The purpose of this experience achieved a new found friendship with a member of the older generation. It gave me the opportunity to care for an individual at the retirement home who did not have many visitors, so I became her weekly visitor and spent quality time with her and card for her in a special way. This experience helped me achieve a better respect for the elderly and enhanced my ab ility to relate to them on a personal level. Knowledge that may have informed me would be the calling for a special person who cares for the spirituality of others. Nursing is a caring profession that is honoured as the spiritual, spirit-filled practice (Vance, 2003). A caring occasion becomes transpersonal when nurse and client together with their unique life histories and perception become a focal point, in which the moment is greater than the occasion itself (Watson, 2008). The experience shared between the two becomes a deeper pattern in life. The caring moment is being in the moment. Fully present, open to other people, compassion and connection. Reflection of practice allows the nurse to observe decisions made and bring to the open the knowledge that has formed from practicing skills. Nursing students can enhance multiple ways of knowing and their understanding of caring through the process of reflecting on caring encounters (Schaefer, 2002). The foundation of nurse care is the wisdom in knowing and understanding that les sons are learned by one another to become more human in learning the identity of ourselves with others. When I cared for Blanche on a weekly basis, I acted for the best with the values that I had at the time. Although I had not dealt with many elderly patients prior to this experience, I still knew the values I had and gave Blanche my utmost respect. I treated her with the same respect that I would have liked to be treated if the positions were opposite. Caring as a nurse means the innermost of nursing, without prejudice and aims at prioritizing the patients suffering and needs (Gustafsson et al., 2007). Nursing care is the process aimed at responding to patients needs without reasoning. Quality care is the element to caring. When a nurse is caring for someone, it is best that they are not bias towards the patient, nurses should treat all patients equally, meaning not giving certain patients more attention, unless their critical situation demands it of them. This situation connects with a previous experience in which I worked at a retirement home for a few weeks in the summer. This position mainly had me as house cleaning but in the evening when everything was done, it allowed me to interact with the residents. I talked to them, played games and took them for a stroll outside. The experience in which I cared for Blanche was more connected and personal in terms of the one-on-one time I was able to spend with her. The idea of reflection is caring science learning, learning and developing a personal knowledge of caring as an art (Gustafsson et al., 2007). This helps to establish the substance and quality of caring in regards to the patient. Factors that constrain my responding in new ways is my personal confidence level, with a variation of the knowledge of my experience, which I will hope to gain from working side-by-side with experience nurse practitioners. This also relates to my level of involvement, if I increase the questions I ask if I am in doubt, I will gain more knowledge of the situation. This will also offer clarification and a deeper level of thought in regards to the situation. When I was caring for Blanche, at first I was not very confident and a little hesitant to introducing myself to a complete stranger and spending time with her once a week. After participating in this learning of a life lesson, I gained so much from it. I have more confidence in my ability to communicate with strangers; I have stepped outside the box I built up around myself and have become a more confident, strong, communicative leader. Although I may still be a little hesitant about situations, that is normal. A fear of the unknown or hesitation is another constraint to responding in new ways. This unknowing is an awareness that as a nurse does not and cannot know or understand the client when they first meet (Heath, 1998). Knowing the clients information or background prior to meeting with the patient will help make the situation a little more comfortable. Mixed groups may possibly enhance the development of skills of reflection (Heath, 1998). Working together as a team will help form and ensure actions are for the best. As a team, all sides are valued and reflection is more in-depth and has different vantage points. As a student nurse, insights that I have gained from this reflection is that my experience will grow and I can begin to understand the details of what experienced nurses know. It may only be a small portion, but I can build an understanding for the knowledge expert nurses have and benefit from it. A powerful insight is recognizing the unknown, and as a nurse, I can learn to remain alert to the clients individual viewpoint of the situation. This can best be done by listening to the client and establishing a truthful, open, working relationship, without the state of unknowing. Nurses need to be aware of the lack of empirical knowledge (Heath, 1998). This will promote an awareness to learn, research and increase practical skills. Guided reflection is a journey of self-inquiry and transformation (Johns, 2006). Reflection helps one realize their ability to care, learn and gain experience on past situations, learn from mistakes so they do not happen again. Reflection is awakening of the se lf (Johns, 2006). Did I act or be the best I could be with Blanche? I personally feel that I did the best job I could with the knowledge I had at the time. After learning about nurse- client therapeutic communication, I feel that maybe now, if I were to go back and relive the experience, I would be have a better relationship with her and gain more knowledge and become an even better adopted grandchild. I would ensure that the relationship would be more purposeful and contain a position of trust and a unique responsibility to maintain a therapeutic relationship. What would I have done differently if I was able to relive this experience to improve and make the most of this experience for both myself and Blanche? If I were to relive this experience, I would change the direction of advancing the best outcome and interest for Blanche. I would give her more attention, make more time in my schedule to spend time with her and take pleasure in the time spent together. Just because I may understand something, d oes not mean that I could change the outcome, it just means I am on my way to changing and becoming a more determined nurse. Understanding something is the first step towards changing. As John (2006) states, usually negative feelings such as anger, guilt, frustration and sadness draw our attention to the experience. These negative feelings draw specific attention because they seem disturbed and usual taken-for-granted awareness for feelings. In my situation while I was caring for my adopted grandparent, this was not the case. If anything, it was the opposite. The feelings that drew my attention to this caring situation were happiness, thoughtfulness, joy, and understanding. The smile I saw every time I walked into Blanches room and glow in her eyes every time she saw us. Our weekly visits to her brightened her days and made her feel young again. I appreciated being with her, giving her my time, my attention and my skill as a person of todays generation. It takes practice first and then reflection (Johns, 2006). It is best to practice the skills needed first, make sure they are understood and demonstrated them properly and then reflect on the occasion and what went right and what went wrong and improve the situation for the next time.

Friday, October 25, 2019

The Value of Coffee Essay -- Personal Narrative Writing

The Value of Coffee I didn’t always enjoy the stuff. I would eat coffee-flavored yogurt and coffee-flavored ice cream, but the actual beverage tasted bitter and crude, and it had incurred my discontent since my first encounter with it at the age of six. An aunt would offer the family coffee every time we went to visit, and she would ask me, â€Å"Do you drink coffee yet?† as if to press me forward, to instill a desire to proceed toward my inevitable destiny of favoring coffee. I ignored her. â€Å"It’s an acquired taste,† some people told me. I saw no reason to force myself to acquire it. It was a July morning in 1999. I was at the University of Bucharest, Romania, for the International Mathematical Olympiad. I waited in line for breakfast, picking up the toast, the pastries, the beverage. What was the drink? There were few possibilities. The previous week, the US and Romanian teams had been training together in the town of Sinaia, and we got some evidence of what comprised the typical meal: cold cuts and cheeses, bread and patà ©s, an entrà ©e of meat, potatoes, perhaps a corn mush, and some boiled vegetables, and assorted desserts; breakfast would be lighter fare. The usual drink was mineral water, the quantity of which suffered a deficiency wholly inappropriate to the heat (my requests of â€Å"mai apa, va rog† were diplomatically ignored —the waiter in Sinaia perhaps thought I was only practicing my language skills); at breakfast, there might be juice, hot chocolate, or strawberry-flavored tea. Thus, when I picked up the glass of dark li quid in Bucharest, I imagined it was tea, or perhaps a thin chocolate. After sitting down in the stifling cafeteria, I naturally approached the drink. It was a shock, a fee... ...per-week quota always gets filled — not because I necessarily crave the drink, but because I periodically feel like I â€Å"should† be buying coffee now — a tradition that has become seamlessly enshrined in my identity. I have nearly mastered the art of drinking coffee precisely twice per week. The value of coffee is mainly symbolic — it serves as a liaison to my vocational and cultural community. People claim to drink coffee because it keeps them awake. That never works for me. If I am drowsy, caffeine makes me drowsy with a headache, at best. It has less consciousness-raising effect for me than does a breath of fresh air. The effect of this substance is not neurochemical; it is psychological. With each long swallow of a steaming brew, I savor the pungent, rich first flavor, the appealingly bitter aftertaste, and the feeling of knowing who and where I am.