Avoiding Groupthink Essay

The case study we are addressing this week involves how a team and Project Manager avoid Groupthink and its pitfalls. In order to understand what group think is you have to refer to Irving Janus who coined the phrase back in 1972. He related that Group Think is when a group makes a decision based on group pressure; it can lead to faulty decisions. Janus, 1972) Some of the symptoms that Irving Janus documented of group think are Illusion of invulnerability, Collective rationalization, Belief in inherent morality, Stereotyped views of out-groups, Direct pressure on dissenters, Self-censorship, Illusion of unanimity, and Self-appointed ‘mind guards’. (Janus, 1972) In our book, Making the Team: A Guide for Managers states that there are three (3) key symptoms that take root and they are Over Estimation of the Group, Closed Mindedness and Pressure towards Uniformity. These will be the 3 areas I am going to focus on. Over Estimation of the Group Now that we know what group think is we can move on to how a team and Project Manager might avoid the mistakes and downfalls of Group Think situations. (Thompson, 2008) When a team is falling into a group think methodology a Project Manager must be able to recognize the signs before any decisions are made and set in motion. If the group is making statements that start with we feel, we think, or we suspect it is a good indicator that they just don’t know or are just following along with the consensus of the group. Group think can cause problems when everyone goes with the flow especially on a wrong decision. In using group think methodology management has to weigh the pros and cons of the group’s decision from all sides. Sometimes a little more research prior to implementing a group think decisions should be done or a devil’s advocate should be assigned into the group think matrix in order to prevent team members from being led down a garden path. The one thing I have noticed when in a group think situation, the group always looks for someone to be the mouthpiece for the group, this person usually has strong leadership skills but can be short sited and very opinionated which rubs off on the group as a whole. Some team members tend to have difficulty explaining or relating what is on their mind in a group setting, they rather tell their ideas one on one because they are an introvert by nature! They would rather have the extrovert take charge and be the one who voices the opinions or decisions of the group. They tend to stay out of the lime light. Project Managers should encourage team members to bring out concerns or objections to issues that are being discussed and/or considered, he/she should not influence the team with his or her own preferences to the issue, he/she should play the devil’s advocate and guide conflict in a positive manner, the group should be allowed to be evaluated by other groups and critiqued in an unbiased manner, splitting the group into different sub groups to bring out and investigate different alternative solutions or methods that could be used, call meetings with the group to discuss and evaluate any decisions prior to instituting them and develop alternatives for each methodology prior to giving final approvals. (Thompson, 2008) A good Project Manager should keep his group focused on the project at hand, have weekly meetings to check progress of his team to ensure that discussions are being conducted that is giving the group the necessary conflict for them to evaluate potential risks and dangers involved with the decisions they are recommending. The Project Manager should make the team aware that they can bring up ideas or doubts about any issue without the fear of being ridiculed or rejected by other team members. The ultimate goal is for the Project Manager to make his team work as a team through having all members contributing their knowledge and skills in making the project a success.

The Socio-Cultural Impact on Love, Marriage, and Kinship

Carine Garcon ANT 3212 Wayne A. Abrahamson Spring 2013 The Socio-Cultural Impact on Love, Marriage, and Kinship One’s perspective of the world is consistently altered by our surroundings and influenced by the events that take place. In the past approximately 50 years divorce rates have risen a significant incredibly high. Many researchers have associated this phenomena the contemporary society marriage symbolizes and values. This idea and representation of love have conversely affected and impacted relationships. Thus, the topic that will be investigated is how society and cultural has affected our notion of love, marriage, and kinship.One of the ways society has impacted the notion of marriage is that fact that the government attempts to regulate marriages. â€Å"A few states realize the importance of marriage, and they have taken action to try to change our notion on marriage. Louisiana, Arizona, and Arkansas they believed in covenant marriages. According to the journal cov enant marriage required the following†¦ This movement set out to promote and strengthen marriages, reduce divorce rates, lessen the number of children born out of wedlock, discourages cohabitation, and frame marriage as an honorable and desirable institution. † (Hawkins et al. 002:166) Because of the fact that the contemporary culture has lost sight of the significance of marriage, the government attempted to regulate the marriages within certain states. Furthermore, the state of Florida has made it harder for couples to get married and also get a divorce. The state has now implemented a 3- day waiting period for marriage licenses if couples do not seek premarital education, hoping to reduce impulsive, ill-advised unions. (Hawkins et al. 2002:166) It is clear why the government has attempted to regulate and restrict the amount of marriages that potentially can happen.Years ago marriage was considered to be a divine, sacred union shared between two people before God. This union was intended to be a union that lasted a lifetime and previously the option to dissipate the marriage did not exist. In the current state of marriage, people get married they do not see it as something that is supposed to be forever, but instead as something temporarily. Divorce has become too easy and feasible for people to obtain. I personally believe this current generation people confuse lust for love. Most people would tell someone that they love them, but instead it is really lust.It seems that no one really knows the differences between lust and love, so the two words are commonly mistaken and used in the wrong way. Even in movies and mass entertainment, love and relationships are portrayed negatively with glamour. The typical story begins with a man who convinces a girl with the idea and possibility of love. Once she is vulnerable the couple would most likely indulge in sexual intercourse. When this happens the man then leaves, the woman regrets the decision. These thi ngs are glamourized and popularized by the mass media and a result, the youth is then influenced to mimic the same.The psychological effects of the mass media are subtle, but long-term. (Galician 2004) As a child coming from a Christian background I read the bible very often. The bible is a great source to view and analyze the changes that have happened throughout the last 5 decades, because much of the ideals were based upon its contents. In the book of Matthew chapter 22:36-44 it states, â€Å"Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law? † Jesus replied: â€Å"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with your mind.This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second command is similar stating, â€Å"Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments. † (Matthew 22:36-44) Out of all the Ten Commandments these two were considered to be the most coveted and highly regarded. This emph asis on the idea that love should be a highly heralded and powerful word in is uses and approach. The order in which these commandments are given, also place emphasis and attention towards how one who is reading the text should perceive it.In the journal, On A Paradox Of Christian Love Liu exclaimed that these two commandments direct ones love to distinct objects. (Liu 2007:681) The commandments were placed in a certain order as â€Å"first† and â€Å"second† to illustrate importance and respect. By putting these commandments in an order it is assumed that the one must achieve a spiritual love with everything in your body and mind, and only after can you love can love someone else (neighbor). The bible has influenced a large amount of the Western society and culture. From a biblical stand point you cannot love anyone else unless your love is rooted with a divine spirit.I believe that if it has to do with our culture then inversely it pertains to love, thus as a society we are blinded by what we want to see. It is critical that one see’s the need to learn to take time and careful thought into deciding whether or not we’re in love. Love is patient, so it’s okay to take your time to fall for someone because if it is true love than it will reveal itself in its own right. Also, the stress placed upon by people on love results in the spending of time and hours wondering if there is true love in their relationship.The impact that culture has had on the social relations of love have led to the belief that love is based off of what one can do for the other, while in its essence and purity love isn’t based on that logic and reasoning but emotion and feeling. In the textbook it explains how a man spent most of his time away from his home, so the child grew up under the influence of their mothers and matrilineal relatives. If praise or shame failed to control the behavior of children, the withdrawal of maternal affection had a pow erful effect. King 2003) In today’s culture and society the result adverse conditions and occurrences are happening. By contemporary society, men are supposed to be considered as the primary provider for their families. Women are widely considered to be the ones that bear the responsibility of child bearing and maintaining the stability and homeostasis of the home. Though the effect is not the extent and extreme of a mother taking away her affection from a child, but the equivalent in terms of linearity would be a mother in this day and age placing the child in time out as a form of punishment.This idea also delves a deeper in the explanation of adolescent girls who become â€Å"quickly incorporated into the highly organized female kinship group, and boys [who] sought out special friendships with each other to provide mutual support in adulthood. † (King 2003) In analyzation how love is specially affected by the socio-cultural factors of today, the analysis of the term ‘kinship’ can be addressed to further the discussion. Kinship isn’t just considered to be relationship through blood, but it also means relation by marriage, or adoption.Again television and mass has led us to believe that most families are generally tight knit and very close, but in reality most families are seriously dysfunctional. (Galician 2004) Throughout all of this dysfunction, families still manage to find some form of stability amongst them. Overall kin generally stick together, and maintain a decent relationship with each other. In the textbook King explains how marriages takes place in the Ancient areas towards the east (Massachusett, Iroquois, Cherokee). He explained that if a man had a bride in mind he would have two options.Ask a family to propose a match to the other family, or to attract the girl himself. If the guy proved himself to be worthy the family would accept the couples sexual relationship, and if it eventually at the end of the process a wedding would take place. (King 2003) The family tests the couple’s relationship based upon the sex and essentially, if the sex was proven adequate, then the couple would then get married. King further explained that an ordinary man would take extra wives to help around with their community duties or ambitions.Furthermore, in this time period bride service was very common. A new husband would go live with his in-laws to perform these duties. (King 2003) These days, a new husband would not go live with his in- laws and he most certainly wouldn’t be performing bride services. This is one example of the extreme changes that have occurred socially and culturally in regards to marriage. Conclusively, culture and media has had an impact on how we view marriage, love, and kinship. Most people no longer view marriage as being permanent, but instead as being temporary.They no longer believe in fighting to make their relationship work, they’d much rather divorce or sepa rate and prevent and reconciliation in their differences. It is worldwide postulation that love is difficult, but our culture has misled us to believe that love is effortlessly attainable. Even in regards to kinship, part of love and relationships with anyone is to maintain ties with your family. Overall, because of the socio-cultural conditions the ideas of relationships are ever changing and thus complex in its nature.References Cited Galician, M. (2004). Sex, love & romance in the mass media analysis & criticism of unrealistic portrayals & their influence. Mahwah, N. J. : Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. King, Glenn. Traditional Cultures: A Survey of Nonwestern Experience and Achievement. (2003). Waveland Press, Long Grove, IL. Hawkins, Alan J. , Steven L. Nock, Julia C. Wilson, Laura Sanchez, and James D. Wright. â€Å"Attitudes About Covenant Marriage and Divorce: Policy Implications From a Three-State Comparison*. † Family Relations 51. (2002): 166-175. Web. Huston, Ted L. â€Å"The Social Ecology of Marriage and Other Intimate Unions. † Journal of Marriage and Family 62. 2 (2000): 298-320. Web. 05 Feb. 2013. Liu, Qingping. â€Å"On A Paradox Of Christian Love. † Journal of Religious Ethics 35. 4 (2007): 681-94. Print. â€Å"Matthew 22:36-44. † The Holy Bible: Containing the Old and New Testaments Translated out of the Original Tongues and with the Former Translations Diligently Compared and Revised by His Majesty's Special Command. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1979. N. Print.

The Origins Of Supply Chain Management Commerce Essay

Harmonizing to, Mentzer et Al. SCM is concerned to convey profitableness and competitory advantage through bettering the efficiency and effectivity in a strategic context. Thomas and Griffin ( 1996 ) , argued that supply concatenation can assist the organisation to minimise their operational cost and supply better client services, through coordinated planning and they found cognition is critical point for organizing and be aftering between the supply concatenation spouses.The Origins of Supply Chain Management:Supply concatenation direction started to emerged in the 80s 0f the last century, nevertheless, in the last 10 old ages supply concatenation direction has become really celebrated in direction literature ( Cooper et al. , 1997 ) . Supply concatenation direction started to emerged at first through constructing a partnership and coaction between the industrial and service company and their providers, by integrated all the histrions procedures and maps, which create the buying att ack of the supply concatenation direction, the chief thoughts of supply concatenation direction are just-in-time, zero stock list, uninterrupted refilling, and cut costs through extinguishing extra clip, excess attempts and buffer stock list, secondly these organisations besides built a strong integrating with their jobbers and retail merchants, which the research workers name it the logistic attack of the supply concatenation direction, and the chief end was to better client service through supplying options, visibleness and fast bringing, thirdly the integrating attack of supply concatenation direction which demonstrate all of the value adding procedures from traveling the row stuffs from providers through fabrication or service suppliers company until the terminal users, and the critical end is to derive a new competitory advantages, ( Thomas and Griffin,1996, Tan, 2001 ) Furthermore, supply concatenation direction aimed to bettering concern public presentation and competitory advantage through integrating several procedures such as planning, planing, logistic, production, and merchandising ( Lambert & A ; Cooper, 2000 ; Lim, 2007 ) , Supply concatenation direction coordinates the procedure of mutualist decision-making, organizes several supply concatenation spouses and manages information and stuffs flow ( Chandra & A ; Kumar, 2001 ) . In fact, many research workers and practicians have position SCM as an of import topic in their research country ( Li, 2002 ) . Presently, supply concatenation direction has become an of import modern concern constructs. aa‚ ¬Aâ€Å"SCM is a system that contains multiple entities, procedures and activities from providers to clients. The basic construct behind SCM is how the natural stuffs and information flow from the provider to the maker, before concluding distributions to clients as finished merchandises or services. In add-on, functional countries within the organisation besides need information that flows through the SCM in order for them to do a determination to bring forth merchandises. The capableness of sharing and interchanging information is indispensable to better the effectivity of the SCMaa‚ ¬A? ( Udin et al. , 2006 ) . Supply concatenation can be viewed as a web incorporating providers, makers, distributers, retail merchants, and clients. Concisely, a supply concatenation is the rhythm of buy-make-move-store-sell ( Akkermans et al. , 2000 ; Sheikh, 2003 ) . Based on the above, we emphasis that such this integrating includes, the row stuffs and money as a touchable resources, and the cognition and information as an intangible resources which the supply concatenation by pull offing these resources in efficient and effectual manner will derive a competitory advantages which can better the supply concatenation public presentation. Harmonizing to Schroeder ( 2000 ) , Supply concatenation is a series of concern procedures and information that assist the organisation to supply goods and services in the supply concatenation which comes through providers, makers, distributers, retail merchants and eventually end-customer, Throughout the supply concatenation the concern environment alterations and the supply concatenation design as opposed to provide concatenation coordination is going a nucleus competitory advantage which force organisations to pull off and incorporate their supply concatenation efficaciously ( Fine, 1998 ) . The above Figure shows the supply concatenation web supports three sorts of flows at the operational degree which requires careful planning and strong coordination, these flows presented as the followers: Material flows: including the flow of physical merchandises from providers to clients and besides the opposite flow of returning, having, and recycling merchandises. Information flows: affecting the flow of information sing order trailing and transmittal. This information coordinates the physical flow of merchandises. Fiscal flows: which encompass the flow of recognition footings, payment agenda, cargo, and title ownership understanding. The same Figure ( 1 ) besides explains that, supply concatenation web is supported by three props as follows: Procedures, consisting merchandise development, cognition direction and logistics. Organizational constructions, dwelling of relationship, integrating, webs, direction attacks, public presentation measuring, and reward strategies. Enabling engineering, consisting procedure and information engineering. Supply concatenation direction aa‚ ¬Aâ€Å"is the integrating of cardinal concern procedures from terminal user through original providers that provides merchandises, services, and information that add value for clients and other stakeholdersaa‚ ¬A? ( Lambert & A ; Cooper, 2000 ) . Based on the above conceptualisation, it is clear that supply concatenation direction is all about integrating, in other words, integrating is an of import portion in SCM. Therefore, efficient integrating in the supply concatenation could take to successful and effectual SCM public presentation. Therefore, in order to accomplish efficient integrating and so successful SCM, companies need to implement cognition direction processes because these procedures such as cognition sharing, creative activity and protection provide effectual integrating among several supply concatenation spouses.

Assignment 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Assignment 2 - Essay Example There are different types of e-business methods. The most famous ones are Business-to-Business (B2B), Business-to-Consumer (B2C), Mobile or m-Commerce and Consumer-to-Consumer (C2C) business. The B2B model is the most famous amongst all the e-business models (Rahulshams, 2011). Effects of E-Business on Project Management Business to Business or B2B has changed the entire project management strategies. Earlier a company has to manufacture products and sell them. They have to come up with efficient marketing plans to sell their products and a detailed project management report. But, e-business eliminated such needs completely. Websites providing B2B and B2C services like the Elance.com and Ebay.com influenced the way business was done like never before. The importance of project management got reduced greatly because of e-business. Positive effects: E-business reduced the dependability on project management saving billions of dollars spent on planning and executing a core plan. Negativ e effects: E-business paved way for any person to become a master with some software. Those who just preferred e-commerce without giving importance to core e-business strategies failed drastically leading to the burst of the dotcom bubble very soon. Huge companies like Ebay.com and Amazon succeeded mainly because they were able to integrate all core process related to their business starting from inventory to customer details and the products stock details together in a secure way using various e-business features. Small companies which failed to provide such e-infrastructure failed mainly because of information mismanagement and the inability to gain customer satisfaction. Effects of E-Business on Supply Chain Management Traditional way of doing business involved purchasing goods from suppliers, storing them in a warehouse, transporting them to the shops where it will be sold to the customers. E-business eliminated the need to maintain separate warehouses. Huge companies like Wal-M art switched to e-business many years before they established a website for themselves and entered e-commerce. They started by automating the inventory and supply chain process. The suppliers bought in packed products directly to the stores, eliminating the need for a separate warehouse and the transporting necessities. Their supply chain management underwent major changes under the influence of the IT sector. Positive effects: Changes made by Wal-Mart in their supply chain management influenced many other industries to follow the same. The traditional way of storing goods in warehouses started to dwindle slowly. Many industries like healthcare started to invest millions in training their suppliers to follow a uniform standard. More value was given to adding value to the goods rather than labelling it or sticking to the process. For example, consider the logistics industry. Earlier companies like Blue Dart and Fed Ex used to transport goods directly with their label. Nowadays they u se the services of various freight forwarding agencies to transport goods as fast as possible. Speed is the added value here and importance given to transport goods under a particular label is reduced. The supply chain management process is changed using advanced technologies to make the procedure much easier to manage and provide a better service to the customer. IBM conducted a detailed research on how

Cash Flows of Multinational Corporations Assignment

Cash Flows of Multinational Corporations - Assignment Example Forward contracts are very helpful if a party is looking for hedging. A party can also make currency option contracts to protect itself from fluctuating rates. A country has the option to adopt an exchange rate system of its choice. It looks to adopt the system that works best in achieving current account equilibrium. Exchange rates also influence inflation and interest rates of a country which is why the central banks seek some involvement to control the exchange rates. Q2 In the context of international trade, absolute advantage is the ability of a country to use a similar amount of resources as other countries and produce more of a product. On the other hand, comparative advantage is a country’s ability to produce more of a product than other countries at a lower opportunity cost. (Findlay, 1987) Suppose that there are two countries A and B. Country A produces the amount of wheat in 10 hours which is produced by country B in 15 hours. Also, country A produces that much rice in 10 hours which is produced in 15 hours in country B.  Now it is supposed that country B can produce one bushel of wheat in 5 hours and 1kg of rice in 10 hours. On the other hand, country A produces 1 bushel of wheat in 3 hours and 1kg of rice in 1 hour. Once again, country A is more productive than country B. However, for country B, the cost of producing one bushel of wheat is half kg of rice. For country A, the cost of producing one bushel of wheat is 3kg of rice. It means that the opportunity cost of the production of wheat is lower for country B than country A in terms of the kilograms of rice that are to be given up. Therefore, country B has a comparative advantage in producing wheat. Similarly, for country B, the cost of producing 1kg of rice is two bushels of wheat. For country A, the cost of producing 1kg of rice is one-third of a bushel of wheat. Hence, country A has a comparative advantage in the production of rice. Now, if the two countries decide to trade one bushel of wheat with 1kg of rice, country B can specialize in the production of wheat, while trading some with country A, and country A can specialize in the production of rice trading some of it to country B. Now, country B can shift the hours of producing rice to wheat which would result in the production of 2 bushels of wheat which can be exchanged for 2kg of rice. Similarly, country A can reallocate the hours used in the production of wheat to the production of rice hence resulting in the production of 3kg of rice which can be exchanged for 3 bushels of wheat. Therefore, both countries gain from trade where there is a comparative advantage. (Ricardo, 1821)

Is mobile marketing the future of advertising Case Study

Is mobile marketing the future of advertising - Case Study Example By definition, Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC) is a new competitive weapon and way of companies to draw maximum benefits from one shot. In other words, it is a concept designed to give users of the marketing mix an opportunity to make use of all aspects of marketing communication such as advertising, sales promotion, public relations, and direct marketing a unified force, rather than permitting each to work in isolation (Kortler 2002). Varey (2001) considers integrated marketing as a paradigm shift towards more personalise, customer-oriented, technology-supported marketing systems. Under this new approach, it is recommended that different communications channels used by the company to communicate with prospective customers and customers be integrated. Such an action will result to a clear, consistent and compelling message about the company's product and services. The effect of which will be glaringly reflected on the sales record subsequently (Kotler. 2005). Integration of a company's marketing communication activities can avoid confusion and disaffection in the minds of consumers and buyers, offering a comfortable identity to customers and staff (Kotler. 2005). As marketing has shifted to a more one to one direction, marketers have employed different methods to get to their target markets. Mobile advertising is fast becoming the order of the day (Baker 2007). The current revolution of information and communication technologies is changing our business environment drastically: new technologies influence the way we organize our work and the environment in whic h we compete, introducing new rules and new relative powers among incumbents, newcomers and even entire markets. This complex, evolving environments are referred to as New Technology Playgrounds (Ace 2001). Against this background, this paper seeks to answer the following questions Is mobile marketing the future of advertising' What are the variables that motivate companies to use mobile advertising' How do mobile marketing differs from the other advertising methods' What has been the trend in mobile marketing in the last five years' What proportion of the advertisement budget is allocated to mobile marketing' 1.1 Objectives and Purpose of Study This paper focuses on the growing trend of mobile marketing as a new way of advertisement. In particular, the paper seeks to analyse and evaluate if mobile marketing represents the future direction of advertisement. Other objectives include To examine the salient features of mobile marketing as compared to the other advertisement method. The paper also aims at analysing mobile marketing trend in the last five years through an examination of the budget allocated towards mobile marketing. 1.2 Importance and Significance of Study This study aims at delineating the use of mobile marketi

Legalizing Marijuana Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Legalizing Marijuana - Essay Example ers of marijuana will accost only its users, the truth has it that marijuana use readily and inevitably attracts crime, violence and social disintegration. The government will also incur unforeseen expenses as it disburses more funds to the healthcare sector, for the treatment of marijuana-triggered conditions. The cause of these problems is the very nature of marijuana itself. Marijuana smoke contains 50- 70% more carcinogenic hydrocarbons, compared to tobacco smoke. Similarly, the fact that a single puff of marijuana smoke significantly alters chemical composition of the brain is a matter that is amenable to psychological complications and poor health. For the most part, the party that is culpable for blame is the people who voted for the decriminalization of marijuana. Given that the majority voted in favor of the legislation of marijuana as is disclosed by the BBC, there was nothing much policy makers and legislators could do. Partly, human rights caucuses such as ACLU are guilty of championing for the legislation of marijuana without sincerely informing the public about the dangers of the unprescribed use of marijuana. Likewise, other research organizations that falsely assert that there are no side effects of marijuana are to blame for the failure to be truthful (BBC, 1). To address this problem, it will be important to conscientize the public towards the pitfalls that come with the use of marijuana. It is from this juncture that the public can make informed decision on the matter. This idea is tenable because positive change emanates from a point of knowledge and self-resolution. Self-resolution will be important for all stakeholders herein. For instance, while parents will see the need to reinforce positive influence on their children concerning this problem, legislators may see the need to push for abrogation of the clause that legalized marijuana. From this point, the conscientized public may vote wisely. Others may propose the maintenance of status

An Introduction to STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT AND THE ROLES OF THE GENERAL Essay

An Introduction to STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT AND THE ROLES OF THE GENERAL MANAGER - Essay Example Strategic management takes account of the strengths and weaknesses of the organizations and prepares itself best in competitive arena by minimizing weaknesses and maximizing strengths. The human resource of the company is structured and inspired to achieve the objectives of the company. The role of the General Manager is that of a leader of human resources who guides and allocates the usage of other resources. Thus the role of the General Manager assumes critical importance in implementing the company’s objectives across various functional departments, and integrating the workforce to achieve the stated goals of the company by reining wayward behaviour and ‘self-direction’ to ‘shared beliefs’. This is achieved through development of communication channels, smooth flow of information across company’s structures, conflict resolution, and provision of creative latitude and development of a sound organizational culture. The General Manager keeps th e Board and the CEO informed about the progress and performance of the company. He/she is the vital link in vertical and horizontal communication amongst company’s stakeholders. Due to its strategic importance, sometimes the job of General Manager becomes extremely stressful. We are dedicated to development of innovative Information Technology solutions. Our products meet the customer expectations and provide quality products that give maximum value for money. We are committed to create ever higher levels of customer satisfaction in order to have a sustained competitive advantage in the market. We achieve this by putting in our best efforts in a creative environment; where our work is a pleasurable activity that gives us a tremendous sense of fulfilment. We are a well-knitted team of exemplary and dignified individuals. Meeting ever higher levels of customer satisfaction: The road to perfection is an unending journey. Our customers seek better and better and products. We focus on innovation and quality to

Law and Policy Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Law and Policy - Case Study Example These strategies promote integrity, availability and confidentially of information by defining security procedures, guiding their implementation and outlining wide array of measures. This proposal looks the impact of organization laws, regulations, and policies in maintaining confidentiality, integrity, and availability. Legal environment and its impact on information security The legal environment provides an indispensable framework that guides organization on how to achieve various goals such as information security. In many organization, the triad of factors—rules, regulations and policies constitute the entire framework the promote information security (Martin, & Khazanchi, 2006). These factors, however, differ on their scope and impact on information security matters within an organization. In many organizations, policies remain the first strategy of ensuring the organization information systems are secure. Regardless of the type of organization, whether business, nonprof it or federal, policies stipulate guidelines that promote information security. Policies in general, guide information security governance within an organization and this help maintain information security within an organization. ... For instance, the United States Federal government publishes a minimum-security requirement that its agencies must adapt to secure data and information technologies (Martin, & Khazanchi, 2006). On the other hand, organization can develop policies that guide how their employees interact and use information system to protect data and promote confidentiality, integrity, and availability. In many cases, government policies guide how government entities structure their policies and implement security apparatus. However, organization policies direct the conduct and use of information system among the organizations personnel, administrators, and clients. Despite their difference, these policies provide a baseline that helps define access rules and develop mitigation effect should there be any security breach. For instance, government and organization polices provide employees with guidelines on how to secure systems. For instance, the Federal guidelines stipulate the minimum encryption that federal entities must adapt to secure the system from threats that can influence (Martin, & Khazanchi, 2006). In addition, an organization can develop policies that outline how its users can secure their information when using information system. For instance, a banking institution can set policies that require customers to change users’ passwords after the lapse of a certain period. These policies reduce the risk that can breach security measures not to mention promoting responsibility over information security. Rules on information security define the legal environment of an organization. Regulations refer to orders that define what users of information can perform and what they user should not. This aspect of the legal environment is critical in

How History Influenced the Emergence And Development of International Essay

How History Influenced the Emergence And Development of International Organizations - Essay Example This essay stresses that there are many international organizations, which are operating as state members or independently making them have diverse function. Every organization has a purpose and mandate, which it seeks to fulfill. Similarly, there are factors that contributed to their formations, which it considers as a primary goal. Therefore, the subsequent section will highlights different international organizations and indicate ways history influenced their formation as well as their function and development over the years. Since the inception of the organization years back, it has succeeded in developing member states and offering new admission to other nations. This report makes a conclusion that international organizations were for different purposes in different times of the century. Some were formed because of joint efforts between various governments or states as other were formed for humanitarian purposes. Despite their differences in formation, most of the international organizations were formed to bring normalcy after WW II. UN is one of the active international organizations formed to ensure peace prevails in the world and to prevent the occurrence of another world war. Since its inception, no major has taken place making it successful in its mission. Similarly, ICRC is committed in ensuring all victims of war including soldiers and civilians receive a medical care, which ensures their wellbeing. They have proved successful in offering medical attention to most vulnerable in war torn areas.

Summary and strong respond Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Summary and strong respond - Essay Example Several states have been on the move to completely do away with the use of the death penalty while in other states actions have been taken to limit its use. For example, The United States is one country where use of the death penalty has been highly controversial and greatly debated (Walker 10). Capital punishment has no confirmable preventive effect but in real sense, it has caused loss of life, and this may contribute to a cycle of violence that raises murder rates. This loss is brought about when a person kills another, the convicted person is killed, and this shows how the death penalty is costly more than keeping convicted murderers in prison for life. There has been a number of cases where innocent people have been condemned wrongfully due to lack of enough evidence. This has led to several innocent people being executed because there has been no standard guidelines regarding which criminal would receive a death sentence. Defendants who were poor, a member of a minority group, uneducated, or mentally ill received the death penalty more often than those who did not fit these characteristics (Walker 12). In the past, some states allowed the capital punishment for crimes such as rape, criminal assault, kidnapping, forgery, concealing the death or birth of an infant, and arson. Each state has the death penalty that is used in cases of the first murder degree. This system of capital punishment entrenches different states to be obsessed with killing people. It teaches the lesson that some people may kill others willfully, deliberately, and with premeditation as long as they are the right people doing it for the right reasons in the rig ht manner ( Bedau 10). It is true that such killings as a punishment are not necessary, since there are several well established alternative methods of punishment including long-term imprisonment that is used by most states worldwide. Those who argue for the capital

Medmira Case Essay Example for Free

Medmira Case Essay MedMira Case Course: Marketing Planning What changes in the environment made it possible to consider the launch of an OTC Aids Test? Be specific. MedMira is known by developing and manufacturing quality diagnostics to prevent and control the spread of infectious diseases. All tests used a flow-through membrane technology and were fast and easy to use. Medmira was distributing rapid HIV tests in Canada, United States, South Africa, Latin America and China, and selling them to hospitals, pharmacies and aid groups. One of the focuses of MedMira was to expand to Over-the-Counter market as there happened some changes that made it possible to consider this attempt: New infections were happening and about 3.1 million people were dying from HIV. This adds a higher preoccupation to the government and specialists on the health sector and pressure to arrange a solution. During the 80’s, there were few available treatment and when people knew they had the virus they would see it as a death sentence. Nowadays this idea is disappearing as technology is more advanced, it is a â€Å"more manageable illness† and there is an increase of information available about HIV. Due to legal approval of the tests, MedMira was able to distribute rapid HIV tests in Canada, United States, China and European Union. This is a step closer of entering the OTC market. Rapid testing was expected to grow between 20 to 30 per cent of the market. This expected growth was also related to a higher approval by governments as there were changes in the society acceptance and technological improvements on this area. Comparison factor as Medmira’s first rapid HIV test for OTC, Miracare, had a big success in China and this could happen in the rest of the world. Due to this accomplishment, international demand for this product has increased. Prepare a SWOT analysis for MedMira Aids Test. The following SWOT analysis contains the most significant and strategically important internal and external conditions that MedMira faces. The Internal is divided into strengths and weakness and the external is divided into opportunities and threats: Internal Strengths: -HIV test market leader -Easy use Weakness: -Ethical concerns -Cannibalization of revealing G2 External Opportunities: -Partnership with HA -Open door for testing other diseases -Growing rapid test market Threats: -Ethical concerns -Possible partnership of HA with competitors -Entry costs MedMira has some internal strengths by being a HIV test market leader, specially selling to hospitals, and suitable for at-home use. The Aids test is also easier to use and faster on getting the results relative to the competition, result of this was a higher international recognition. Relative to weakness aspects, there are some ethical concerns such as the possibility of testing without another person’s authorization that is a negative aspect. Apart from this, in case MedMira is able to enter the OTC market, there is a possibility of cannibalizing the sales of Reveal G2 to laboratories and hospitals, as the products would be considered as â€Å"substitutes† as they practically have the same objective. One of the opportunities is the partnership with Home Access and develop a revised  version of HA’s Consumer Advocate System. This partnership would eliminate the ethical concerns MedMira couldn’t address and would also help to remain competitiveness, build a barrier to entry of other firms on the phone support system and reduce courier costs. Another opportunity is if MedMira could enter the OTC market, it would be an open door for rapid tests of other infectious diseases that are worth millions. For last, the development of the rapid test market is a favorable trend to higher sales and profits, which is seen as a good opportunity. If Home Access, which possesses a patent on phone support system, joins with one of the competitors, MedMira will eventually lose competitiveness with this partnership, being one of the main threats. For last, entry costs on the OTC market are high and it is not clear if the company could afford the expansion at this moment. To conclude this analysis, the partnership would have a positive impact in the society. Because if consumers are able to buy rapid tests, this could prompt people to be tested earlier in a faster, easier and more accessible way, which would reduce the instances of transmission.

About Leadership In Sport And Leisure Sport Essay

About Leadership In Sport And Leisure Sport Essay Do not forget that you are required to keep a copy of all of your submitted work. I certify that this assignment is my own work and that all sources of information have been acknowledged. This report critically analyses the role of leadership to managing people in sport and leisure organisations. It uses critical thinking methods to demonstrate the definition of leadership, the human resource management in sport leisure organisation, the difference between management and leadership and some key theories of leadership. Finally, it analyses to analysis a case studies through one practical sports organisation as example. The purpose is to make logical recommendations for improving the fitness club management ideas to build a strong cohesion and loyalty of staff ranks high. The Definition of Leadership Leadership was defined by Parry (1996: 2) who stated that â€Å"Leadership is the presentation by a person of some identifiable goal or vision or future state that people can desire; and the generation of a willingness within those people to follow the leader along a socially responsible and mutually beneficial course of action, toward thatgoal.† This concept of leadership seemed ambiguous; it did not emphasis the effectiveness of leadership and major characteristics. Leadership probably means having a long term vision and to stimulate the people follow he or she to achieve their common goal for the companys future development. Strange and Munford (2002) believed that the direct leadership comes from the personal charismatic leadership; this could be the best way to influence and motivate people. Therefore, Wunderer and Grunwald (1980: 232) defined â€Å"leadership as a goal-oriented and social impact to fulfill common tasks in a structured work environment.† Because of many kinds of notions about leadership, it always led to confusion between leadership and management. As far as this point is concerned, the following essay will research the role of leadership in an essential position in the management environment. Simultaneously, it will evaluate the process of human resource management. Human Resource Management Human Resource Management system plays a significant role in a company or organization. It directly impacts on this organizations strategic implementation in each step and controls the speed of development with their competitors in the same sphere. Heathfield (2010) proposed that â€Å"Human Resource Management (HRM) is the function within an organization that focuses on recruitment of, management of, and providing direction for the people who work in the organization. Human Resource Management can also be performed by line managers.† Moreover, in the past in USA, HRM concentrated on the human relations in the enterprise management and employees relations in the working environment; Due to industrial psychology, it applies consolidated systems and strategies commonly, HRM was also considered as personnel management (PM) in the UK (Chadwick and Beech, 2004). According to the above statements, it was obviously seen that a manager was set in a core position in the HRM system. The mangers main responsibility was to deal with issues related to people, such as recruitment, to choose who the most appropriate person for this vacancy is. As Taylor et al (2008) said the HRM system was the first level of administration in people management system, while encouraging more organizational activities. How can we evaluate the organization owns a good HRM system or not? It focuses on the Strategic Human Resource Management (SHRM) system. Operational effectiveness and strategic positioning were two fundamental methods to support the organization in outperforming their rivals in an industry (Porter, 1979). These two points could stimulate the organization have to perform better activities than other competitors and create some unique advantages in the same industry. However, Taylor et al (2008:128) commented that â€Å"a focused strategy requires a competitive position based on cost leadership or differentiation†. Wright and McMahon (1992: 295) gave a definition of SHRM as, â€Å"the pattern of planned human resource deployments and activities intended to enable an organization to achieve its goals†. The purpose of SHRM was to choose the best appropriate candidate take part in their own organization whilst increase the organization marketing segment in the industry. Sport organization was a good example, each sport clubs would like to attract a famous coach or athlete, like in National Basketball Association (NBA). There was no doubt that NBA draft was the best opportunity to provide for each team to choose a potential player in every year. However, in the practice of organization, SHRM system did not only focus on some basic HRM skills, but also extended the range of relevant management techniques, for instance, high-commitment work system, the process of recruitment, leadership philosophy and the development of process of the organization (Taylor et al, 2008). In brief, the present approach of SHRM still in the traditional HRM scope; it lacked practical circumstance for an organization to operate their performance in different situations. Particularly in a sport organization, if it could combine the HRM rational theory and operate the SHRM in a practical process of organization, it would bring more outcomes for the organizations long term development. In addition, managerial leadership was an indispensable part in the SHRM. Hence, the next part of the essay will look at the differences between management and leadership. Differences of Management and Leadership Regarding the issue about relationship and the distinction between management and leadership, different people will have their different perspectives. In the early stage, a professor named John Adair (1988) made use of etymological origins to explain the difference in a magazine interview; Adair revealed that â€Å"leadership† stems from an Anglo-Saxon word; it means that a road, a way, the path of a ship at sea, a common sense of direction, whereas â€Å"management† was from a Latin word â€Å"manus†, it means a hand and it has to do with handling a sword, a ship, a horse. It is easy to remind people what entrepreneurial engineers and accountants were doing when starting and administration businesses and how they gained the currency in the 19th century. Nevertheless, since the leadership development in recent years, more functions have been appeared, such as planning, organizing and controlling work. These functions are similar to the functions of management in my view. Managers always make a plan, organize the activity and administrate the limit resources to realize some common objectives (Gill, 1997). Meanwhile, managers could communicate with his or her employees, but leaders usually influence and inspire his or her employees. Behind each leader there is a support team and followers, however, managers just have their subordinates. In my opinion, management focuses on implementing the whole plan through the managers ability and making the utmost of the managing resources, whereas leadership emphases the individual persons idea and imbues with the main spirit to their employees. In brief, the final goal for good management or leadership is to win the hearts and minds of their people. Leadership Theory Leadership was deemed as a process of a leader to impart unique ideas to other people through his or her individual managing strategy. Popper and Zakkai (1994:3) believed that â€Å"the essence of leadership is to make people do what you want them to with as much will, determination and enthusiasm as if they had decided for themselves.† From the past several years research, leadership literature mainly focuses on: which types of leadership theory is close and more appropriate for present leader to exert their leadership function. Lewin et al (1939) implied that the subordinates performance decides which kind of flavor of leadership theory fits this organization; furthermore, different kinds of training programmes related with leadership have emerged. Notably in the current situation, outward bound development plan is the most popular approach was adopted in most organizations. The rest of this report will review some major theories of leadership and the purpose is to analyses of the real case in the last part then to propose some recommendations for improvement. l Trait Theory Leadership traits theory is the original theory and it concentrate on the leaders characteristics. Cartwright and Zander (1968) stated that an effective leader should possess the following certain qualities: intelligence, reliability, sense of responsibility, greater energy and social activity. Regarding these qualities; it is easy to find that most of them require the leader to keep on cultivating himself in the future not are inborn. The ‘Personality Era of ‘Great Man theories were proposed by Van Sters and Field (1990:29) who said that â€Å"effective leaders at one time were believed to show common characteristics that cause them to behave in certain ways.† However, this theory was challenged in the 2000 World Economic Forum report. The report indicated that many successful companies always change their Chief Executive Officer (CEO) to ensure that their business prospers. Whereas most CEOs succeed in their first organization, they often fail when enter for a ne w organization. This point demonstrates that in fact the leaders have not acquired all the leadership traits and that is little connection between CEO style and organizational performance. Also the trait theory was not to judge the leadership situation. l Situational Leadership and Contingency Theory Situational theory is more focused on the situation and the group of followers. This way is more practical and good for the leader to acknowledge their followers and situations. This approach does not consider the whole organization or the current requirements of the individual leaders group. Contingency theory of leadership mainly analyses three factors between leaders and followers. The first one is Fiedler (1968), who proposed the extending definition of the followers and of the work structure of the subordinate. The second one is how the leader uses his or her authority and depends on his or her subordinates. The third one is the existing relationship between the leader and followers. The leaders charisma attracts the followers and the followers reverence for the leader. l Leadership Style Theories Leadership style theories are concerned with the leaders behaviour and do not pay attention to the individual characteristics of the leader. Through these theories, some researchers discovered that the manager who considers the employee as the centre may gain more results and effects than the manager who focuses on tasks. This point is evaluated by the leaders performance value. If the leader views the situation from the perspective of a boss, he or she priorities the tasks above the employees. However, if he takes the employees view into consideration, he or she values both the task and the employee. So the later approach is more encompassing. Of course, as a leader, pay more attentions on the employee behaviour can bring his or her work more benefits than only concern with the task as a centre. l Transactional Leadership This kind of leadership turns out to be more popular in most organizations. Popper and Zakkai (1994:6) accepted that â€Å"transactional leadership contains a basic mechanism of exchange relations which becomes possible when there is no outstanding sense of impending threat or anxiety†. Transactional leaders shall use management-by-exception, actively or with contingent rewards (Gill, 1997). Generally, the management-by-exception includes making objectives and regulations, taking charge of the progress and discovering mistakes and then enhancing the effectiveness of leadership. However, transactional leadership ignores the employees desires and motivation; it focuses on how to achieve the goal through the followers. Many empirical examples prove that transactional leadership might cause performance that meets expectations (Gill, 2003). l Transformational Leadership This pattern of leadership is a good approach in order to stimulate the followers and subordinates interested in accomplishing the goal and enhance their self-development. Alderder (1972) agreed that transformational leadership should pay more attention to the leaders developmental requirement. Furthermore, Bass (1991) revealed that there exist the following four aspects of transformational leadership behaviours. Individualised consideration Intellectual stimulation Inspirational motivation Idealised influence (charm) Analysis of a Practical Sports Organisation Example During a period as a sports trainee in Beijing, an example of a process of leadership change was witnessed by the author. This fitness club was set up in 2003 and it was been open for 5 years. In the early period, the former fitness club managers original plan was run a small business and serve whiter collar workers and students around the university. Hence, his focus point is how to attract more customers and increase sale volume rather than make an integrated management system for his subordinates to enhance the whole level of this fitness club service. He is a typical laissez-faire leader in the hearts of his employee. Popper and Zakkai (1994:3) claimed that â€Å"an effective leader, according to the criteria of this approach, is a sensitive psychological diagnostician who accurately discerns subordinates needs and expectations and responds to them accordingly.† In addition, his behaviour assesses the various theories. When the employee proposes their suggestions or questions during each weekly meeting, the leader always says these opinions were correct but never realizes it. In terms of this point, several senior level coaches began to leave whilst some old cus tomers also followed by their coach left this club. These results led to the club faceing bankrupt and merger by other large fitness corporation. In 2005, this fitness club was taken over by the Bally Total Fitness Corporation. As the new leader was transferred to this club, he brought a totally new management system. He used transformational leadership theory, through exploiting subordinates intellectual stimulation and inspirational motivation to improve employee vision. Transformational leadership is more important when the company faces uncertain markets. A new recombination has to be innovated to remain in the competitive environment (Gill, 1997). First of all, he reformulated the current staff while reducing the number of staff. Second, he advised each coach to take ACE (America Certificate Exercise) certificate to make use of their personal time. Third, he added some new reward regulations, such as providing a free nutritional breakfast for early morning shift employees. Furthermore, the company will organize one outside sports event consisting of employees and their family members to join in each year on anniversary da y. Apart from these, to keep more regular customers and attract more potential customers, he adopted some kinds of exercise classes especially arranged different coaches for different ages. Another side is, he is a patient person who can listen to each employees suggestions about the club development and communicate with his employees frequently. For instance, one employee proposed that the club could publish their own health tips each month focus on their current membership. After one month, this was realized and clubs first month health tip flyer was put up in the club information bar. The theory of motivation, Horner (1997) stated that the degree of satisfaction of employees could be thought of as motivators; only one motivation the employee could achieve the goal. Others motivation theories were concerned with what behaviour the leader needs to influence their subordinates. Apart from that, Alderfer (1969:142) proposed that â€Å"there may be only three needs: existence needs, relatedness needs and growth needs in a hierarchy of concreteness, and people may be motivated by multiple needs at any one time.† Since this new manager uses a logical leadership management method, it results in revenue fitness club turn flourishing and the scale began to extend. Of course, the marketing share also rank at the top compared with other competitors. However, the most essential reason is the new manager used a correct leadership theory and rationally applied the realization. Conclusion To sum up the role of leadership in a sport and leisure organizations, the leaders behaviour could influence each subordinates psychology, the leaders management method decides the companys development trend to success or failure. Through the authors experience of two leaders behaviour in a real sport and leisure organization, how to create more motivations for their employees, how to encourage their employees are more important and practical than only depend on some formal traditional leadership theories. The significant value for the leader is to let the subordinate follow your path of company development. Consequently, discovering more new management techniques from experience are the most effective ways to manage modern organizations. Reference: Alderfer,C.P. (1972). Existence, Relatedness and Growth, Human Needs in Organizational Settings, New York, The Free Press. Cartwright,D.C. and Zander, A., (1968). Group Dynamics. The 3rd edition., London, Tavistock. Chadwick, S and Beech, J. (2004). The Business of Sport Management. Harlow, Prentice Hall. Fiedler, F.E., (1968). Group Dynamics. 3rd edition., London, Tavistock. Parry, K. (1996). Transformational Leadership. Melbourne, Pitman Publishing. Taylor et al. (2008). Managing people in sport organizations: A strategic human resource management perspective. Oxford, Butter worth- Heinemann. Wunderer, R. and Grunwald, W. (1980). Fuhrungslehre: Grundlagen der Fuhrung. Berlin, Walter de Gruyter. Alderfer, C.P. (1969). A new theory of human needs. Organizational Behavior and Human Performance, 4, 142-175. D.A. Van Sters and R.H.G.Field (1990). The evoluation of leadership theory. Journal of Organizational Change Management, 3(3), 29-45. Grill, R. (1997). New Directions in Leadership. Leadership Trust Foundation, 16 March, 1994. Grill, R. (2003). Towards a General Theory of Leadership. Leadership Trust, 31 January, 2003. Horner, M. (1997). Leadership theory: past, present and future. Team Performance Management, 3(4), 270-287. Lewin, K et al. (1939). Patterns of aggressive behaviour in experimentally created social climates. Journal of Social Psychology, 10, 271-301. Popper, M. and Zakkai, E. (1994). Transactional, Charismatic and Transformational Leadership: Conditions Conducive to their Predominance. Leadership and Organization Development Journal, 15 (6), 3-7. Poter, M.E. (1979). How competitive forces shape strategy. Harvard Business Review, 57(2), 137-145. Strange, J.M. and Mumford, M.D. (2002). The origin of vision: charismatic versus ideological leadership. The Leadership Quarterly, 13, 343-77. Wright, P.M. and McMahon, G.C. (1992). Theoretical perspective for strategic human resource management. Journal of Management, 18 (2), 295-320. Heathfield, S.M. (2010). [online]. Last accessed 23 March 2010 at: http://human resources.about.com/od/glossary/f/hr_management.htm.

Studying and Treating the Communicative Dyad Essay -- Medical Conditio

Aphasia is a communication disorder that affects not only the communication of the individual but also the communication of the people who interact with the individual on a regular basis. Language intervention, therefore, should include a component of training and educating the caregivers as well as the person with aphasia (Purdy & Hindenlang, 2005). In recent years, speech-language pathologists (SLPs) have begun to take more of a social context approach to aphasia intervention, making it more functional for the client and including the caregivers through training (Turner & Whitworth, 2006). Many studies have investigated different types of caregiver training programs and their effectiveness on improved communication between the person with aphasia (PWA) and his or her caregiver (Hopper, Holland, & Rewega, 2002; Purdy & Hindenlang, 2005; Turner & Whitworth, 2006). While these studies suggest that caregiver training programs improve the communication dyad, there is little existing evi dence to suggest that skills learned through these programs generalize to settings outside of the therapy room. The types of caregiver training programs, the programs’ effectiveness, and their long-term outcomes have been reviewed by Turner and Whitworth (2006). There were three major types of conversation partner training (CPT) programs that the researchers identified in the available literature. One type was Conversation Analysis motivated therapy, which encourages collaborative conversation, and the communication partners shape their responses based on the previous conversational turn. In this manner, both conversational partners have a responsibility to do their part in achieving a successful interaction. Another type of CPT examined in the rev... ...econd, this study may provide further support for the benefits of actively including the spouse or caregiver in therapy. Finally, it may provide a detailed training program that SLPs can use when training caregivers and loved ones of people with aphasia that could be used as part of the therapeutic process in addition to traditional therapy aimed at improving the communication of the person with aphasia. Works Cited Hopper, T., Holland, A., & Rewega, M. (2002). Conversational coaching: Treatment outcomes and future directions. Aphasiology, 16(7), 745-761. Purdy, M., & Hindenlang, J. (2005). Educating and training caregivers of persons with aphasia. Aphasiology, 19, 377-388. Turner, S., & Whitworth, A. (2006). Conversational partner training programmes in aphasia: A review of key themes and participants’ roles. Aphasiology, 20(6), 483-510.

The Causes of Teen Pregnancy, Violence, and Drug Abuse Essay -- Exposi

The Causes of Teen Pregnancy, Violence, and Drug Abuse The headlines proclaimed the controversial news: race, poverty, and single-parents were NOT the irrevocable harbingers of drug abuse, teen pregnancy, and violence. Instead, researchers were claiming that behaviors that parents and teens could influence -- such as problems at school and the amount of time spent "hanging out with friends" and the type of friends they chose -- could predict trouble. Some cynics speculated that this was a right-wing conspiracy to justify abolishing federal programs for the poor. Some assumed that the media, always keen for a "dog bites man" story, had oversimplified research results to get a newsworthy sound bite. On the other hand, some youth advocates welcomed the idea that impoverished minority youth with single parents didn't necessarily have three strikes against them. This study, "The Effects of Race/Ethnicity, Income, and Family Structure on Adolescent Risk Behaviors", by Robert Blum, MD. has important implications for all parents and adults who work with youth. The study examines the extent to which race and ethnicity (white, black, or Hispanics), income (6 categories, ranging from $10,000 or less to $61,000 or more), and single-parent homes (i.e., family structure) predict several specific problem behaviors among middle school students and among high school students: - Smoking - Alcohol consumption - Suicidal thoughts or attempts - Weapon-related violence - Ever had sexual intercourse (yes/no) These were measured as a continuous range of behaviors, except for sexual intercourse. The results show that race, income, and family structure each influence many of these problem behaviors. I... ... statistics, you will realize that a white teen from a middle-class two-parent family is almost as likely to get into trouble (or stay out of trouble) as a Black or Hispanic teen from a poor single-parent home. This report should encourage parents of disadvantaged minority students, and the teachers and other adults who work with them, because it indicates some important influences that can be modified to help these children. On the other hand, it provides a real wake-up call for white, suburban families who think their children are immune from serious problems. And, it helps explain why substance abuse and tragic violence can occur even in seemingly safe, middle class communities. Source Cited Blum, Robert, MD. "The Effects of Race/Ethnicity, Income, and Family Structure on Adolescent Risk Behaviors" American Journal of Public Health December 2000.

The Affirmative Action Debate Essay example -- affirmative action argu

The Affirmative Action Debate    Most Americans desire a colorblind society. A society where individuals are judged upon merit, as opposed to the color of their skin. That is the reason Affirmative Action was birthed by Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964. That is also the reason that Proposition 209 was voted for in 1996.   These two historical events are driven by the desire of equality.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   What is Affirmative Action?   According to Geraldine Leshin, it is "Taking positive or active steps to accomplish the public policy goal of equal employment opportunity."  Ã‚   What is Proposition 209?   Its a new law that has been passed that "prohibits the state of California and local governments from discriminating against or granting preferential treatment to any individual or group on the basis of race,   sex, color, ethnicity or national origin in public employment, public education or public contracting (San Jose Mercury News)."   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Affirmative action was implemented for important reasons.   "Broadly defined, affirmative action refers to efforts to increase educational and employment opportunities for minorities and women.   More specifically, it applies to various programs and policies designed to increase the number of minorities and women hired by government and industry and admitted into colleges and universities."(Faundez, 213)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Affirmative action is important especially in the work force. Before affirmative action, minorities and women felt, and seemed to be, discriminated against being chosen for the job.   Affirmative action was to help with the "increasing of opportunities for those that were previously discriminated against"(Lemann, 145).   Affirmative action   was created to not only help Black-Amer... ....    Leshin, Geraldine (1979).   Equal Employment Opportunity an Affirmative Action in Labor-Management Relations A PRIMER.   Institute of Industrial Relations:   Los Angeles, Tab H.    Mendoza, Ryan (1996).   Affirmative Action remains the American compromise. The Yale Daily News, Internet.   Available: http://www.townhall.com/columnists.duplantier/dul112195.html (1996, October 4).    Mills, Nicolaus, ed.   Debating Affirmative Action:   Race, Gender, Ethnicity, and the Politics of Inclusion.   New York:   Delta trade Paper-backs, 1994.    Proposition 209 and Affirmative Action (1996).  Ã‚   San Jose Mercury News. Available: http://www.sjercruy.com/news/breaknws.htm    Rockwell, Paul (1996).   Angry White Guys For Affirmative Action. Available:   http://www.dnai.com/~awgfaa/html/angry.html (1996, October 4).

Proble Solution Essay

Problem/Solution Essay Procrastination The biggest problem that has always given me trouble is procrastination. Though I’m not the only student that suffers from this problem, it is one of the most common occurrences among teenagers. How procrastination is detected is shown by people doing their work at the last second and rushing to get it done. Ways I procrastinate it by getting side tracked by something usually more entertaining; for instance TV, radio, or even video games.When I start to do my work I always get bored with a silent room, so I happen to turn on the TV and listen to it. Instead of listening to the TV I turn around and start to watch it. Before I realize what I am doing I turn to the clock and thirty minutes have already passed. Another problem that I have is being too lazy to make the effort to get the work done, or just even start it. I am lazy because I work and go to school so when I get home from work I don’t want to even do anything beside just si t there and watch TV or something.Being forgetful is a big problem I also have, when I go to school and a teacher gives me home work I don’t write it down or anything, then by the time I get home I don’t remember to do it. This is bad because not doing my home work gets me in trouble with school and my parents. As I have gotten older I procrastinate less but it is still bad, but not as bad as when I was younger. When I was younger I would almost never turn in my work either because I forgot to do it or I wanted to go hang out with friends instead of taking the time to sit down and do it.When I procrastinate work does not get done. I also forget when important date’s things are due. Forgetting important date’s is bad because when a big project is due and you don’t have any work done it makes my grades suffer a lot. For example last year I forgot a 100 point project was due. My grade was a 78% and when I didn’t turn that project in it really h urt my grade. It dropped me down to a 60%. Thanks to that happening I almost didn’t pass that class. Thankfully I did well on the finals and it put my grade to a higher D. hat is when I realized I had a big problem, through out my senior year I have been trying to fix this terrible. I have been doing really well on making sure all my work is getting done and saying no to friends that want to hang out. I just simply tell them that I have home work to do and it’s important because it is my last year in school and I want to pass with good grades. Ways I can approach this issue is start paying close attention to when dates are due and when assignments need to get done. This will better me in school and also life.Some other ways I can get pass this issue is just focus on the main goal no matter how boring it might be, and how much more something else might be more exciting. In life one mistake on a assignment might cost me my job so I have to really pay attention to detail and just kick the lazy habit and put my best foot forward and try my hardest to make sure I succeed in life and in school. Another way I can also approach this problem is by making a schedule and write down when the assignments are due and when and where I need to turn them in at, doing this will help me a great deal in college and also in the work force.Making sure I use time management will be very effective with me handling my work. If a teenage like me has this issue the best way to confront it is to sit down and think of ways they can get past it. I know that with me sitting down and thinking of ways of beating this problem it has helped me a lot in the long run. I have been getting better grades and all my work has been getting turned in. I know that if I can do it then so can anybody else that has this same problem.

Strengths Paper

â€Å" A good objective of leadership is to help those who are doing poorly to do well and to help those who are doing well to do even better. †~ Jim Rohn Throughout history, people have needed leaders to help them handle certain situations and work through problems. Anybody can become a leader, but first they must determine what their strengths are. There is now a test that one can take online that outlines their five top strengths and explains in detail what each one means. It varies for each person that takes it, but my top five strengths are achiever, adaptability, strategic, restorative, and relator.The first of my strengths is achiever. This means that whenever I start something, I like to finish it and generally do whatever it takes to reach that goal. My second strength, adaptability, in a way, ties into the first one. Adaptability means being able to approach problems from different angles and finding new ways to complete things when one idea doesn't work. I feel like these two strengths relate to me pretty well. I do not like to leave projects open ended whenever I start them and I'm usually pretty good at ‘rolling with the punches. These two allow me to tackle situations in a variety of ways and leave me with plenty of the proverbial â€Å"plan B's† in case any of the first attempts do not work properly. My third strength, strategic, also aids my ability to work through problems. This particular strength allows me to think about the situation fully before jumping into it. Once I figure out what's happening, I can come up with a plan that best suites the circumstances and work on accomplishing it. By nature, I have found out that I more of a planner.I like to lay things out in my head before I start so things run more smoothly once I begin, which works well with my strategic strength. The last two strengths, restorative and relator, confused me for a little bit. I can put myself into other people's shoes easily and I would much rat her mend my broken relationships than burn those bridges, but I wouldn't necessarily put them into my top five. It's not a bad thing by any means, though! As a whole, these five strengths work well together nicely and, in a certain situation, could play off of each other in a very effective way!For example, let's say that I worked at a burger joint downtown. Well, everyone gets hungry and the need to eat usually overwhelms any other feeling that one could have. So, here's the scene: it's a hot summer day and after classes, I decide that I'm going to go get some free food at the restaurant that I work at. Walking in, I know what I want to achieve: I want a big, juicy burger with mustard, ketchup, tomatoes, pickles, onions, and cheese with a side of fresh onion rings. I grill the burger, pull out the buns, and head to the fridge to grab all the condiments.I generally only like to make one trip, so I carry all the items to the table where my burger is waiting. Little did I know that so meone had spilled Coke earlier in the day! As I slip on the spill, the pickles and ketchup fall to the tile in the kitchen and shatter. I have to adapt to the new situation, so I come up with a new strategy. Banana peppers and a little bit of mayo would fill in for the dropped items nicely! I bring all the items over to the table and restore what could have been a disaster.I can now take my delicious lunch outside, find someone that I can relate to, and have a conversation over fresh burgers and crispy onion rings. Everybody has the potential to be a leader. Before they assume this responsibility though, it is best that they find out what their top strengths are so that they can benefit a larger amount of people more effectively through their actions. For me, my top strengths are achiever, adaptability, strategic, restorative, and relator. With these, I can figure out problems, find out ways to solve them, get others input on the subject, and come out of the situation intact.

How to Write a Book Review

How to Write a Book Review A book review is a description, critical analysis, and an evaluation on the quality, meaning, and significance of a book, not a retelling. It should focus on the book's purpose, content, and authority. A critical book review is not a book report or a summary. It is a reaction paper in which strengths and weaknesses of the material are analyzed. It should include a statement of what the author has tried to do, evaluates how well (in the opinion of the reviewer) the author has succeeded, and presents evidence to support this evaluation. There is no right way to write a book review. Book reviews are highly personal and reflect the opinions of the reviewer. A review can be as short as 50-100 words, or as long as 1500 words, depending on the purpose of the review. The following are standard procedures for writing book reviews; they are suggestions, not formulae that must be used. 1. Write a statement giving essential information about the book: title, author, first copyright date, type of book, general subject matter, special features (maps, color plates, etc. ), price and ISBN. 2. State the author’s purpose in writing the book. Sometimes authors state their purpose in the preface or the first chapter. When they do not, you may arrive at an understanding of the book’s purpose by asking yourself these questions: a. Why did the author write on this subject rather than on some other subject? b. From what point of view is the work written? c. Was the author trying to give information, to explain something technical, to convince the reader of a belief’s validity by dramatizing it in action? d. What is the general field or genre, and how does the book fit into it? (Use outside sources to familiarize yourself with the field, if necessary. Knowledge of the genre means understanding the art form. and how it functions. e. Who is the intended audience? f. What is the author's style? Is it formal or informal? Evaluate the quality of the writing style by using some of the following standards: coherence, clarity, originality, forcefulness, correct use of technical words, conciseness, fullness of development, fluidity. Does it suit the intended audience? g. Scan the Table of Contents, it can help understand how the book is organized and will aid in determining the author's main ideas and how they are developed – chronologically, topically, etc. . How did the book affect you? Were any previous ideas you had on the subject changed, abandoned, or reinforced due to this book? How is the book related to your own course or personal agenda? What personal experiences you've had relate to the subject? h. How well has the book achieved its goal? i. Would you recommend this book or article to others? Why? 3. State the theme and the thesis of the book. a. Theme: The theme is the subject or topic. It is not necessarily the title, and it is usually not expressed in a complete sentence. It expresses a specific phase of the general subject matter. . Thesis: The thesis is an author’s generalization about the theme, the author’s beliefs about something important, the book’s ph ilosophical conclusion, or the proposition the author means to prove. Express it without metaphor or other figurative language, in one declarative sentence. Example Title: We Had it Made General Subject Matter:  Religious Intolerance Theme: The effects of religious intolerance on a small town Thesis: Religious intolerance, a sickness of individuals, contaminates an entire social group 4. Explain the method of development-the way the author supports the thesis. Illustrate your remarks with specific references and quotations. In general, authors tend to use the following methods, exclusively or in combination. a. Description:  The author presents word-pictures of scenes and events by giving specific details that appeal to the five senses, or to the reader’s imagination. Description presents background and setting. Its primary purpose is to help the reader realize, through as many sensuous details as possible, the way things (and people) are, in the episodes being described. b. Narration: The author tells the story of a series of events, usually presented in chronological order. In a novel however, chronological order may be violated for the sake of the plot. The emphasis in narration, in both fiction and non-fiction, is on the events. Narration tells what has happened. Its primary purpose is to tell a story. c. Exposition: The author uses explanation and analysis to present a subject or to clarify an idea. Exposition presents the facts about a subject or an issue as clearly and impartially as possible. Its primary purpose is to explain. d. Argument: The author uses the techniques of persuasion to establish the truth of a statement or to convince the reader of its falsity. The purpose is to persuade the reader to believe something and perhaps to act on that belief. Argument takes sides on an issue. Its primary purpose is to convince. 5. Evaluate the book for interest, accuracy, objectivity, importance, thoroughness, and usefulness to its intended audience. Show whether the author's main arguments are true. Respond to the author's opinions. What do you agree or disagree with? And why? Illustrate whether or not any conclusions drawn are derived logically from the evidence. Explore issues the book raises. What possibilities does the book suggest? What has the author omitted or what problems were left unsolved? What specific points are not convincing? Compare it with other books on similar subjects or other books by the same as well as different authors. Is it only a reworking of earlier books; a refutation of previous positions? Have newly uncovered sources justified a new approach by the author? Comment on parts of particular interest, and point out anything that seems to give the book literary merit. Relate the book to larger issues. 6. Try to find further information about the author – reputation, qualifications, influences, biographical, etc. any information that is relevant to the book being reviewed and that would help to establish the author's authority. Can you discern any connections between the author's philosophy, life experience and the reviewed book? 7. If relevant, make note of the book's format – layout, binding, typography, etc. Are there maps, illustrations? Do they aid understanding? 8. Check t he back matter. Is the index accurate? Check any end notes or footnotes as you read from chapter to chapter. Do they provide important additional information? Do they clarify or extend points made in the body of the text? Check any bibliography the author may provide. What kinds of sources, primary or secondary, appear in the bibliography? How does the author make use of them? Make note of important omissions. 9. Summarize (briefly), analyze, and comment on the book’s content. State your general conclusions. Pay particular attention to the author's concluding chapter. Is the summary convincing? List the principal topics, and briefly summarize the author’s ideas about these topics, main points, and conclusions. Use specific references and quotations to support your statements. If your thesis has been well argued, the conclusion should follow naturally. It can include a final assessment or simply restate your thesis. Do not introduce new material at this point. Some Considerations When Reviewing specific genres: Fiction  (above all, do not give away the story) Character 1. From what sources are the characters drawn? 2. What is the author's attitude toward his characters? 3. Are the characters flat or three-dimensional? 4. Does character development occur? 5. Is character delineation direct or indirect? Theme 1. What is/are the major theme(s)? 2. How are they revealed and developed? 3. Is the theme traditional and familiar, or new and original? 4. Is the theme didactic, psychological, social, entertaining, escapist, etc. in purpose or intent? Plot 1. How are the various elements of plot (eg, introduction, suspense, climax, conclusion) handled? 2. What is the relationship of plot to character delineation? 3. To what extent, and how, is accident employed as a complicating and/or resolving force? 4. What are the elements of mystery and suspense? 5. What other devices of plot complication and resolution are employed? 6. Is there a sub-plot and how is it related to the main plot? 7. Is the plot rimary or secondary to some of the other essential elements of the story (character, setting, style, etc. )? Style 1. What are the â€Å"intellectual qualities† of the writing (e. g. , simplicity, clarity)? 2. What are the â€Å"emotional qualities† of the writing (e. g. , humour, wit, satire)? 3.. What are the â€Å"aesthetic qualities† of the writing (e. g. , harmony, rhythm)? 4. What stylistic devices are employed (e. g. , symbolism, motifs, parody, allegory)? 5. How effective is dialogue? Setting 1. What is the setting and does it play a significant role in the work? 2. Is a sense of atmosphere evoked, and how? . What scenic effects are used and how important and effective are they? 4. Does the setting influence or impinge on the characters and/or plot? Biography 1. Does the book give a â€Å"full-length† picture of the subject? 2. What phases of the subject's life receive greatest treatment and is this treatment justified? 3. What is the point of view of the author? 4. How is the subject matter organized: chronologically, retrospectively, etc.? 5. Is the treatment superficial or does the author show extensive study into the subject's life? 6. What source materials were used in the preparation of the biography? . Is the work documented? 8. Does the author attempt to get at the subject's hidden motives? 9. What important new f acts about the subject's life are revealed in the book? 10. What is the relationship of the subject's career to contemporary history? 11. How does the biography compare with others about the same person? 12. How does it compare with other works by the same author? History and other Nonfiction 1. With what particular subject or period does the book deal? 2. How thorough is the treatment? 3. What were the sources used? 4. Is the account given in broad outline or in detail? 5. Is the style that of reportorial writing, or is there an effort at interpretive writing? 6. What is the point of view or thesis of the author? 7. Is the treatment superficial or profound? 8. For what group is the book intended (textbook, popular, scholarly, etc. )? 9. What part does biographical writing play in the book? 10. Is social history or political history emphasized? 11. Are dates used extensively, and if so, are they used intelligently? 12. Is the book a revision? How does it compare with earlier editions? 13. Are maps, illustrations, charts, etc. used and how are these to be evaluated? Poetry 1. Is this a work of power, originality, individuality? 2. What kind of poetry is under review (epic, lyrical, elegiac, etc. )? 3. What poetical devices have been used (rhyme, rhythm, figures of speech, imagery, etc. ), and to what effect? 4. What is the central concern of the poem and is it effectively expressed? Subject headings used in the catalog: Book reviewing  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Criticism Related books: Book reviewing : a guide to writing book reviews for newspapers, magazines, radio, and television. Boston. The Writer, 1978 PN98. B7 B6 Drewry, John. Writing Book Reviews. Boston: The Writer, 1974. PN98. B7 D7 1974 Teitelbaum, Harry. How to Write Book Reports. New York: Monarch Press, 1975. LB2369 . T4 Miller, Walter James. How to write book reports : — analyzing and evaluating fiction, drama, poetry, and non-fiction  New York. Arco Pub. , 1984. LB2369 . M46 1984 Sources of Book Reviews Book Review Digest  1985+ INDEX Z1219 . C96 Book Review Index  1965+ INDEX Z1035. A1 B6 Contemporary Authors  REFERENCE Z1224 . C5 Related Websites: How to Write a Book Review. Stauffer Library. http://library. queensu. ca/inforef/bookreview/wri. htm Writing Book Reviews. University of Waterloo Library. http://library. uwaterloo. a/libguides/1-12. html ————————————————- How to Write a Book Review. Dalhousie University Libraries. http://www. library. dal. ca/How/Guides/BookReview/ How to Write a Book Review chillibreeze writer  Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã‚  Amy Sengupta A book review is a critical summary of a book. It is an open forum where one analyses and forms an opinion of the writers work. This critical evaluation is not only a useful source of information for the reader, but for those who intend to read the book. The essential step for writing a book review is to read it thoroughly and understand the contents of the book. One has to understand that it is simply not a summary but a critique. The three important steps in writing a book review are: Step 1: Introduction Start by mentioning the essentials like the title of the book, author’s name and relevant publishing information. You should also specify what type of literature it. For example it could be a sociological analysis, a historical book, a purely academic one or a lighter piece of work. Normally, the background about the writer is not required but one should not omit it if it’s of special relevance – for example a refugee writing on refugees. This helps to put the text in a specific context. Step 2: Main Section – Description and Summary The main section ideally consists of two sections – the description and the summary. The description can have excerpts from the book that give valuable insight into the work. However, while reviewing the storyline one has to make sure that the suspense of the story is not given away. Step 3: The Critical Analysis In this section, one has to remember not to critically analyze the entire book but take out those points which are intriguing. For example, if the book is on the urban poor, one can perhaps focus on their politics and culture. Your opinion on the book is crucial here as it shapes your analysis. It helps to provide an insight into the attributes of the book – Is it worth reading, is it interesting and so on. This section should also talk about one’s learning’s from the book and whether it holds an important or interesting message that caught your attention. Chillibreeze's disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not reflect the views of Chillibreeze as a company. Chillibreeze has a strict anti-plagiarism policy. Please contact us to report any copyright issues related to this article.

Stefan’s Diaries: Origins Chapter 23

That night, though, the embrace did end, and I fell into a black, dreamless sleep. But my mind and body jerked into sudden wakefulness when I heard a sharp clanging sound that seemed to reverberate through my limbs. â€Å"Murderers!† â€Å"Killers!† â€Å"Demons!† The words floated through the open window, chant-like. I crept to the window and creaked open the shutter. Outside, across the pond, there were flashes of fire, and I even heard the sound of rifles firing. Dark bodies moved en masse, like a swarm of locusts descending upon a cotton field. â€Å"Vampires! Killers!† I began to make out more and more words from the angry roar of the crowd. There had to be at least fifty men in attendance. Fifty drunken, angry, murderous men. I grabbed Katherine's shoulder and began shaking her hard. â€Å"Wake up!† I whispered urgently. She sat up with a start. The whites of her eyes looked huge, and there were shadows beneath her eye sockets. â€Å"What is it? Is everything okay?† Her fingers fluttered to her necklace. â€Å"No, it's not okay,† I whispered. â€Å"The brigade is out. They're searching for vampires. They're on the main road right now.† I pointed out the window. The yelling and shouts were getting closer. The fire blazed in the night, flames reaching toward the night sky like red daggers. Fear shot through me. This wasn't supposed to be happening–not yet. Katherine slipped out of bed, tucking the white quilt around her body, and closed the shutters with a bang. â€Å"Y father,† she said, her voice hard. our I shook my head. It couldn't be. â€Å"The siege is set for next week, and Father is not the type to deviate from an established plan.† â€Å"Stefan!† Katherine said sharply. â€Å"Y ou promised you would do something. Y have to ou stop this. These men don't know what they're fighting, and they don't know how dangerous this is. If they keep doing this, people will get hurt.† â€Å"Dangerous?† I asked, rubbing my temple. I suddenly had a pounding headache. The shouting grew quieter now; it seemed the mob was pressing forward–or perhaps dispersing. I wondered if this was more a protest spurred by liquid courage than an actual siege. â€Å"Not from me, but from whoever has launched these attacks.† Katherine's eyes met mine. â€Å"If the townspeople know what's safe for them, what's best for them, they'd stop the hunt. They'd allow us to resolve things. They'd allow us to find the source of the attacks.† I sat on the edge of the bed and rested my elbows against my knees, staring down at the worn wooden floorboards in dismay, as if I could find some sort of answer, some sort of way to stop what already seemed to be happening. Katherine took my face in her hands. â€Å"I am entirely at your mercy. I need you to protect me. Please, Stefan.† â€Å"I know, Katherine!† I said half-hysterically. â€Å"But what if it's too late? They have the brigade, they have their suspicions, they even have an invention designed to find vampires.† â€Å"What?† Katherine reared back. â€Å"An invention? Y didn't tell me that,† she said, her voice taking ou on a note of accusation. A hard lump settled in my chest as I explained Jonathan's device. How had I failed to mention it to Katherine? Would she ever forgive me? â€Å"Jonathan Gilbert.† Katherine's face twisted in contempt. â€Å"So that fool thinks he can just hunt us down? Like animals?† I recoiled. I'd never heard Katherine use that harsh tone. â€Å"I'm sorry,† Katherine said in a more composed voice, as if she'd sensed the flicker of fear in my heart. â€Å"I'm sorry. It's just †¦ you simply can't imagine what it's like to be hunted.† â€Å"The voices seem to be quieting.† I peeked through the shutters. The mob was indeed beginning to disperse, the flames becoming shaky dots in the inky black night. The danger was seemingly gone. For now at least. But by next week, they'd have Jonathan's invention. They'd have a list of vampires. And they'd find every single last one of them. â€Å"Thank goodness.† Katherine sank down onto the bed, pale as I'd ever seen her. A lone tear fell from her eye and trickled down her alabaster skin. I reached to wipe it away with my index finger, then gently touched my tongue to my skin, an echo of what I'd done at the Founders Ball. I sucked my finger, finding that her tears tasted salty. Human. I pulled her to me, wrapping her in a tight embrace. I'm not sure how long we sat there, together. But as the faint light of the morning came through the windows, I stood up. â€Å"I will stop it, Katherine. I will protect you to the death. I swear it.†