The Implantation Genetic Diagnosis ( Pgd ) Using Vitro...

Pre- implantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD) using In Vitro fertilization is one of the many solutions for families to conceive children who cannot do so naturally. The term â€Å"In Vitro† is Latin, meaning â€Å"out of the body† (In Vitro Fertilization (IVF). Definition). The process begins with a woman taking fertility drugs in order to increase her egg count. The woman plays a physically and emotionally demanding role. She must take powerful hormones for ten days to produce multiple eggs. Every day during in vitro s early phases, she must give blood to be tested, and then undergoes ultrasound testing so physicians can monitor embryonic development both chemically and visually (International Political Science Review 8.2 (1987)). Afterward, the female’s egg, and the male’s sperm is removed in multiples with the use of a small surgery by the name of follicular aspiration, and placed in a laboratory dish where it is then fertilized for about five to six days. At this point in the process, the newly fertilized embryo is examined to determine whether or not the embryo(s) show(s) any sign of genetic disease or any other flaw that could be potentially passed down from one or both parents. From there, a successfully tested embryo will be placed into the uterus of the female three to five days after, in order to develop naturally. What classifies as a successful embryo would be one that either shows no sign of carrier genes from either parent, or one that shows signs of a recessive carrierShow MoreRelatedArgumentative +/- Pre-Implantation Genetic Diagnosis1001 Words   |  5 Pagesbecause of a genetic abnormality you never even knew you had. Your mind races and your heart sinks. How is this possible? You never thought you would have to deal with not being able to have a baby one day. There are several options you have to try and conceive without passing on the genetic abnormalityÂ… the doctor continues to explain, but the one I would reco mmend first is Pre Implantation Genetic Diagnosis. You and your wife finally decide on PGD, a type of in-vitro fertilization. But thereRead MorePGD Essay1127 Words   |  5 PagesWhat is PGD? The demand for Pre-implantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD) involves people that have genetic or chromosomal disorder, either personally or in their genetic makeup, who desire a healthy baby that doesn’t acquire the genetic or chromosomal disorder for example; Cystic Fibrosis and Huntington’s Disease. Preimplantation genetic diagnosis with assistants from IVF meets this demand. PGD is a reproductive option for those who do not want to pass on specific genetic disorders or chromosome imbalanceRead MoreVitro Fertilisation ( Ivf ) Essay1402 Words   |  6 PagesIn vitro fertilisation (IVF) is a form of assisted reproduction where the eggs from the woman are extracted under anaesthetic and placed in a culture dish with thousands of sperm, allowing the process of fertilisation to take place outside the body. The resulting embryos are grown in the laboratory over 2 – 5 days before being transferred back into the woman’s uterus increasing the chance that a pregnancy will occur. Pre-implantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) is a screening test used to determineRead MoreIVF and Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis: Essay1048 Words   |  5 Pagesinfertility (ASRM). In vitro fertilization (IVF) is one of the many assisted reproductive technologies used to help infertile couples achieve pregnancy. Since IVF is costly (the average cost is $12, 400. for one cycle), time consuming and a very emotional situation, many couples have a limited amount of opportunities to commit to the procedure and every step should be taken to maximize the chances of a successful healthy pregnancy. Preimplantation genetic diagnosis, or PGD, is a valuable tool forRead MoreThe Benefits of Human Genetic Engineering Essay1654 Words   |  7 PagesPre-implantation genetic diagnosis is a revolutionary procedure that utilizes in vitro fertilization to implant a healthy egg cell into the mother’s uterus after it is screened for mutations or other abnormalities. That way, only healthy eggs can develop to term and become beautiful, bouncing boys or girls. Designer babies have a bright future in the face of science because they are genetically engineered to be: disease free; viable donors for a sibling or parent; and with optional eliminationRead MoreCase Study Of Two Current Embryo Selection Methods1423 Words   |  6 Pages 2 Current Embryo Selection Methods 2.1 Pre-Implantation Genetic Diagnosis PGD or pre-implantation genetic diagnosis is possible for in vitro fertilization. Researchers use a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to test the sensitivity and can help diagnose any genetic disorders before the egg is implanted. PGD is a screening method of the current embryos before they are implanted back into the women’s uterus. This method was first utilized in 1990 and enabled couples to create and screen several embryosRead MoreUsing Ivf ( Vitro Fertilisation )1503 Words   |  7 Pagesx PDG stands for Pre Implementation Genetic diagnosis it is a technique used to help examine and recognise a specific genetic defect within embryos created using IVF (In-Vitro Fertilisation). This technology is performed to prevent disorders or diseases being passed on to the child. The ultimate aim for couples attempting to use PGD is to produce an offspring free of chromosomal genetic defects. In New Zealand this technology is very limited and every application must be sought through an d gain approvalRead MoreAn Immoral Injustice: Designer Babies702 Words   |  3 Pagesgene-enriched (Preface to Genetic Enhancement of Human Abilities n.p.). The gene-enriched refers to people with designer genes chosen by parents who have had the same done to them. This technology will first prevent birth defects and later diabetes and heart disease. As artificial genes develop to be common, the technology may be used to prevent drug and alcohol addictions, mental diseases, and eventually to create humans with synthetic characteristics (Preface to Genetic Enhancement of Human AbilitiesRead MoreAssisted Reproduction - 12056 Words   |  9 PagesHD is a genetic disorder that begins showing signs at anywhere from 35-45 years of age. Its symptoms begin with slow loss of muscle control and end in loss of speech, large muscle spasms, disorientation and emotional outbursts. After 15-20 years of symptoms HD ends in death. HD is a dominant disorder which means that her child will have a 5 0% chance of contracting the disorder. Feeling that risking their babys health would be irresponsible, the couple decides to use in vitro fertilization to fertilizeRead MorePreimplantation Genetic Diagnosis is Unethical and Immoral Essay816 Words   |  4 Pagessome of the genes of a baby to make a â€Å"perfect† child. A procedure called pre-implantation genetic diagnosis, or PGD, has been used for years by doctors who wanted to reduce the chance of women carrying babies infected with life-threatening diseases. PGD was first used to improve the likelihood of a successful pregnancy for couples suffering with recurring miscarriages and parents who had the chance of passing on genetic diseases to their offspring. Dr. Jeffrey Steinberg, a reproductive endocrinologist

How Does Nutrition And Exercise Affect Immunity - 1362 Words

How Does Nutrition and Exercise Affect Immunity? Page 1 Rebecca Massone Health 101-014 Nutrition is defined as the process of providing or obtaining the food essential for wellbeing and development. Immunity is the ability of a person to resist a specific infection or toxin by the action of particular antibodies or sensitized white blood cells. Both nutrition and exercise are key factors to a successful immune system. Additionally, the same type of relationship exists between the right amount of regular exercise and nutrition with a strong immune system. Although it is clear that nutrition and exercise positively impact one’s immune system, many do not know how and to what extremes. Each individual’s lifestyle should consist of†¦show more content†¦Minerals help cells work normally. Lastly, water transports nutrients to cells (Hernandez, 2010). The suggested amount of fruits, vegetables, and omega-3 fats support efforts of the immune system to prevent or limit How Does Nutrition and Exercise Affect Immunity? Page 2 infectious processes and manage immune disorders and diseases (Baham Rush, 2008). In a nutritional diet, the average amount of vegetables per day is 2.5 cups, 3 cups of fruit, and 5.5 ounces of meat or beans. A high amount of protein deficiency can actually delete immune cells and not allow the body to create antibodies, which decreases cell mediated immunity. This particular type of immunity does not involve antibodies, but involves antigen-specific T-lymphocytes and other white blood cells. Baham Rush wrote, â€Å"Vitamins, minerals, and trace elements provide coenzymes for metabolic reactions important to the immune system and promote optimal levels of immune system cells such as natural killer cells, which target and eliminate bacteria† (2008). An increase of understanding what a nutritional diet consists of and following these guidelines can help an individual’s immune system. Not having the right nutrition such as obesity and fasting immensely negatively aff ect immunity. Bacterium in an individual who is obese is over 50% more than in a non-obese, or healthy person. 38% of these obese individuals showed an impairment of cell-mediated immune

Healthcare Marketing Strategies Organizations Driving Free Sample

Question: Explain how your health care services marketing plan would help to promote positive social change. Answer: The healthcare programs and services provided by the organization can lead to position social changes through a number of events and camps, in which the healthcare practitioners serve the individuals who need help in the surroundings. These programs ensure that all the healthcare practitioners put their effort into making the world a better place, which in turn initiates a positive social change. For example, the Walden university in the US uses the program, Global days of service to make a positive impact on the community through various acts including the healthcare programs. These healthcare programs also inspire other institutions and organizations, which in turn leads to significantly positive social change (Jimenez, 2014). The marketing plan of the healthcare organization focuses on the promotion of the services provided by the organization along with the activities to initiate positive social changes. So the marketing plan for the organization involves spreading the news of the initiatives taken by the organization to bring about positive social changes. For example, the annual Scholars of change video contest in the Walden university allows the healthcare students to create inspirational videos to explain how the activities of the institution has led to the greater good along with the promotion of positive social change. The inclusion of these videos in the marketing strategies of the organization, in turn inspires others in the industry for positive social change. This results in the promotion of the positive social change through the marketing plan of the organization (Lefebvre, 2013). References Lefebvre, R. C., Bornkessel, A. S. (2013). Digital social networks and health. Circulation, 127(17), 1829-1836. Jimenez, J., Pasztor, E. M., Chambers, R. M., Fujii, C. P. (2014). Social policy and social change: Toward the creation of social and economic justice. Sage Publications.

Starbucks Marketing free essay sample

Also being able to customize your own drink was a big success in getting people to purchase the product. A high quality coffee was one key component to Starbucks value proposition. Another was service and getting to know your customer. Finally, the last key component was atmosphere. They wanted to create an ambience in their stores. When Starbucks started out, their key target market was female clients between the ages of 25 and 44. These female customers were well-educated, white collar patrons. They brought on patterns of purchasing specialty coffees and other drinks. Anything from cappuccino type drinks to frozen coffee drinks. Starbucks needed to provide a broad but unique type of product. During this period Starbucks didnt really have a brand image. They didnt really differentiate themselves from the smaller scale competition. In the customers eye Starbucks wasnt really any different from these other coffee shops except that it was a big brand name. We will write a custom essay sample on Starbucks Marketing or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The competition they faced included small scale coffee shops such as Caribou Coffee. They also faced competition on a big coffee distributors such as Maxwell Coffee. So What is the Problem? Even though Starbucks is the biggest coffee distributor out there they still face problems of declining customer satisfaction. They face the problem of brand image in society. A lot of people think Starbucks is just another big corporate bigwig trying to make more money to pay their executives more. Another problem they are facing is customers not being satisfied with the service. They have lost sight of the customer and has worried about other things too much. A lot of customers say the service time is too slow and making it more difficult to stop there and get to work on time. They would like faster service. Starbucks views customer service as an uplifting experience every time you walk through our door. They want you to feel like its another part of your everyday life. They do this by providing the customer with very happy employees. There outlook is a happy employee means a happy customer. They provide their employees with good benefits and high advancement opportunities. Also they strive to create customer satisfaction by remembering what a certain customer drinks and their name. Starbucks measures its customer satisfaction using a Customer Snapshot where a representative being a mystery shopper to measure certain criteria. However these dont always measure properly because they only visit three times a quarter and bad things could be going on different days. Customer Satisfaction is one of the most important aspects to Starbucks because they are what drives their company. They strive off of mouth to mouth advertising so they need their customers to be highly satisfied so they tell their friends to go there. A highly satisfied customer is the difference between telling a friend to go there and just being happy. How Could this Happen? Starbucks, one of the most successful consumer brands of the past decade lost its focus on customer satisfaction because it did not have a proper marketing department. They did not have anyone to do proper research and analysts to know that customers were not as satisfied as they thought they were. Their marketing teams only did things for the company and did not properly keep up with customer satisfaction. One of the things that has changed over the past decade is the type of customers. Starbucks did not realize they had expanded to other ethnic target markets or that younger people with less money was another big revenue intake. Starbucks had achieved its extraordinary growth by taking over the market by building a lot of sights which had a drawback of businesses cannibalizing each other. They also didnt spend much money on advertising or marketing which had the drawback of no product differentiation. Finally, they created a good experience for customers with complex customized drinks which had the rawback of slower service time. I believe that it is possible for a mega-brand to deliver customer intimacy. What does Starbucks Customer Base look like Today? The customer base is different than when Starbucks started up. The newer customers are younger, less well-educated lower income people. Also the target market has got more ethnic with more types of females. The customer service shoul d still be the same because the newer customers behaved in the same way. They acquire customers by expanding their product market and creating new products. Customer satisfaction usually is the deterministic factor if someone is to come back to the store or not. Also the quality of the product usually determines that also. The profitability of a customer is based on the amount of times they return to the store in a month. They should put a lot of emphasis on its regular customers for they provide 67% of the sales. However they need to make sure they make all of their customers happy because that is still 38% of the sales and can definitely help in the long run for profit margins. So How to Fix the Problem? Starbucks does have the capability of delivering the best of both worlds. They can do this by two different ways. First they do need to address the customer service problem. Polled Starbucks customers have said they would like a speedier service. This can be done with more labor hours and maybe some more extensive training of its employees. Also keep its employees happy like they are because it definitely helps to have happy employees. Another way to provide this is to create a better marketing department. They need to be able to collect data and analyze it to make a better customer experience. I believe that Starbucks needs to invest the $40 million, however not all of it in labor investments. I think they need to take some of that money and invest it in the marketing department. They should hire new people that are more qualified to analyze data collected. They should invest the rest into labor such as more workers during busier times and better training. Starbucks has a potential to be bigger than it is now but they need to make some changes and invest some money internally in order for it to be more effective externally.

Marlee Matlin Biography for Asl Essay Essays

Marlee Matlin Biography for Asl Essay Essays Marlee Matlin Biography for Asl Essay Paper Marlee Matlin Biography for Asl Essay Paper Marlee Matlin is an Academy Award winning American Actress and writer. She has been deaf since she was 18 months old. she is besides a outstanding member of the Deaf community and supports the usage of mark linguistic communication. closed captioning. and is an active member of the National Association of the Deaf. Marlee Beth Matlin was born on August 24. 1965. in Morton Grove. Illinois. Her female parent. Libby. was a jewellery gross revenues adult female and her male parent. Donald. operated a used auto franchise. Marlee is the youngest of three kids and is the lone member of her household who is Deaf. She is of Russian Jewish decent and was able to hold her Bat Mitzvah by larning Hebrew phonetically. As Matlin recounts in her autobiography. I’ll Scream Later. turning up. her parents expressed a concern that her hearing loss would be an indissoluble barrier in a hearing universe. But alternatively of agonising over this. her parents faced it caput on and embraced it. They sent Matlin to schools where she learned to both speak and mark. and encouraged her to do friends in the vicinity. With strong support from her household. Marlee’s childhood universe was limitless. Matlin made her phase introduction at the age of 7. as Dorothy in the ICODA ( International Center for Deafness and the Humanistic disciplines ) version of The Wizard of Oz. Matlin maintained a passion for moving throughout her childhood and while gaining her grade in Criminal Justice at Harper College. At the age of 20. during a public presentation in the Midwest. Matlin caught the oculus of American histrion. manager. and manufacturer Henry Winkler and was cast for the lead function in Children of a Lesser God ( 1986 ) . This movie brought her a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in Drama and an Academy Award for Best Actress. doing her both the youngest and the lone deaf actress to win the Academy Award for Best Actress in a Leading Function. She learned of her Oscar nomination while having intervention for a substance maltreatment job while in an opprobrious relationship. Matlin viewed this recognition as an chance to turn her life about and to switch her focal point onto her dr eam of moving. Since her Academy Award. Matlin has played a assortment of obliging functions and has since earned multiple Emmy Award nominations. She has appeared in the independent movie â€Å"What the Bleep Do You Know? † and has happening functions in hit telecasting series The L Word. The West Wing. Dancing with the Stars. and Switched at Birth. On the telecasting set of Reasonable Doubts. Marlee met her hubby. policeman Kevin Grandalski. She and her hubby have 4 kids: Sarah. 15. Brandon. 11. Tyler. 9. and Isabelle. 8. After the birth of her kids. Matlin branched out into a new way. carry throughing a longtime dream of composing a children’s book and stating the universe what it’s like being Deaf. In 2002. she published her immature grownup fresh Deaf Child Crossing. In 2009. she published her autobiography I’ll Scream Later. Marlee is frequently credited for presenting 1000000s of viewing audiences and readers to subscribe linguistic communication and issues affecting the Deaf community. Outside of moving and composing. Matlin is a strong protagonist of the Deaf Community. Matlin is peculiarly influencial because she has worked straight with policymakers. She was instrumental in estabilishing congressional legistlation that all telecasting sets manufactured in the USA be equipped with Closed Caption engineering. She besides serves on the boards of a figure of charitable organisations and is a outstanding member of the National Association of the Deaf. While turn toing favoritism and barriers during an interview with About. Marlee stated: â€Å"I expression at these state of affairss non as challenges. but as chances to demo how proud I am of my rich civilization - deaf civilization. Actually. I like the new manner of looking at Deaf civilization. It’s called Deafhood. It’s the thought that hearing loss has a positive value instead than as something that needs to be cured or is disputing. It’s all about doing noise and standing up for who we are. Being deaf agencies being anything but silent. On the reverse. when one accepts deaf people of all sorts and linguistic communication penchants as their civilization. one realizes that silence is the last thing one will of all time hear from them. † And Marlee Matlin. you are heard.

halie selassie i essays

halie selassie i essays Haile Selassie I was born on July 23,1892. His real name was Ras Tafari Makonnen. He was born into a royal family which he later took over the thrown as king. It has been said that Selassie I was a direct descendant of King Solomon of Israel and the Queen of Sheba. Haile Selassie I was one of greatness and importance. The names that he held and the power he had were uncanny. Selassie was referred to in many ways and had many names. But they were not just any names they were names that were written in the bible. Names such as King of Kings; Lord of Lords; Conquering Tribe of the Lion of Judah. These were very powerful names that Selassie held. Also written in the bible is that Jesus will come back in the flesh and we will be unaware of it. Many believed it was him, especially in Jamaica. His trip to Jamaica was very memorable. What took place when he arrived in Jamaica was phenomenal. Many knew of his coming and in light of that waited in the airport for his arrival. These people waited in the rain. It had been raining for the past couple of days. For hours they waited and come to find out the plane was running late. Then suddenly 7 pure white doves flew out of the stormy clouds and as they did so the rain stopped. Immediately after the rain stopped there was the plane, he finally arrived and the people rejoiced in his presence. Before he left Jamaica a type of religion was started called Rastafarianism. This is a belief in a god called Jah, which they believed to be Selassie I. People who practiced this belief wore their hair in dred lox to give themselves what they call a dred appearance ...

Mergers & Acquisitions (Big focus on AECOM acquisition of URS) Literature review

Mergers & Acquisitions (Big focus on AECOM acquisition of URS) - Literature review Example Due to the wake of economic reforms, entities are viewing it prudent to restructure their operations around their principal business activities strategically through acquisition because of their burgeoning exposure to competition from both domestic and international arena. According to the existing literature, companies engage in mergers and acquisitions for myriad reasons. Some of these motives are view as being good since they are aimed at maximizing the shareholders wealth while others merge or acquire others for questionable reasons (Ferris & Petitt 2013). In essence, companies should pursue mergers and acquisitions only if such actions create value. In other words, companies should merge if they are working as a single unit as opposed to working individually offers a greater value. Ferris and Petitt’s (2013) study established that synergies take three forms namely financial, managerial and operating synergies. Financial synergies arise from lower financing cost because big companies have access to a broader and cheaper pool of funds compared to small companies (Malik et al., 2014, p. 528; Koi-Akrofi, 2014, p. 1812). When companies that carry out unrelated businesses merge, there is the reduction in risk that makes them increase their debt capacity and enable them to lower their before-tax financing cost. In this context, there is also the aspect of improved financing in the sense that companies facing financial problems may be forced to look for others that are financially stable to acquire them instead of going out of busines s or taking bankruptcy. The merger causes the firm to expand which makes it easily get access to debt and equity financing which was initially beyond its reach. According to an analysis done by the New York University Stern School of Business (2015) and Malik et al. (2014, p. 528) mergers

HR Strategy Achieving Quality Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

HR Strategy Achieving Quality - Essay Example However, in order to make it more official, they will request the employers to consent to it in case of employee violation, or the labor unions could sue the employer. (Deming, 1986) In the event that the 14 principles are against the requirements of a given union, the unions can instigate the push for legal action in an area that concerns the interested parties. In the case of an employer, the trade union will not support that which is against the rights of the workers. Similarly, union can also hinder the principles if through them the employer will be violating the rights of the employee’s participation in a trade union. (Deming, 1986) To begin with, is if the union supports the principles intended to benefit both parties (employers and employees); second, are the principles opposed by the union positive or negative; third, are unions willing to deliberate on a matter to come to an agreement; fourth, does the union address the needs of the members; finally, does union negatively or positively affect the employers or employees. (Deming,

Novel Frankenstein Essay Example for Free

Novel Frankenstein Essay The Novel Frankenstein is as relevant and terrifying today as it was when it was first published Explain How Mary Shelley makes her narrative effective and why it has fascinated and shocked audiences for nearly 190 years. Frankenstein is one of the most well known gothic horror stories. Frankenstein is set in the seventeen hundreds and was written by Mary Shelley. Mary Shelley wrote the book in 1816 and Frankenstein was first published in 1818. Mary Shelley blends gothic horror and romance which makes this novel world-famous and so successful. The novel has also been so successful because of the effective narrative Mary Shelley uses to shock and fascinate her readers. Such as the use of a lot of very detailed descriptive language and the use of three narrators to get different emotions and feelings to the reader. During the nineteenth century, electricity was a relatively new invention. This meant that many scientists were testing the use of electricity with the body. Scientists thought that Electricity could bring a dead person back to life. Erasmus Darwin suggested that this was possible. Mary Shelley was aware of a process called galvanism and a scientist named Luigi Galvani who had discovered that electricity flowed through nerves meaning that when electricity was placed in certain places on a dead body or animal if would move and look like it was alive. Scientists were learning more and more about the human body and how it worked. The general public were very interested and fascinated by these discoveries. Mary Shelley was from the romantic period. The Romantics believed in the power of the imagination. They looked to nature for and saw awe and wonder in its majesty. They distanced themselves from the evils of capitalism and industrialism. This could have lead here to write this story to show people how messing with science could lead to disaster, as it was messing with nature which was the main inspiration for the romantics. Mary Shelley was from a very radical family with very strong beliefs. Her mother was a campaigner for women to have equal rights and her father was another political free-thinker. He said that as long as people acted sensibly, there would be no need for rules or laws. Her mother died 10 ten days after giving birth to her and Mary Shelley also lost her own daughter within 2 weeks of giving birth. The reader also experiences these feelings when Frankensteins mother dies, just like Mary Shelleys mother. This is a technique to get the reader to feel the same as Shelley did to make the novel seem more real. These could be the reasons why Mary Shelley was so obsessed with bringing the dead back to life and the inspiration behind her novel Frankenstein. Mary Shelley got the inspiration for the novel in the snowy summer of 1816. In 1815 there had been an eruption from Tambora which had set the world into a long volcanic winter meaning that the summer of 1816 was a dark and cold one. Mary Shelley and her husband Percy Shelley had visited Lord Byron at his villa by Lake Geneva in Switzerland. The weather was too cold to go outside and enjoy a normal summer, so Byron challenged Mary Shelley and his personal physician John Polidori to each compose a story of their own, and the winner would be whose story was the most terrifying. Mary Shelley got the idea for her novel when she had a half-waking nightmare, and then she wrote this down giving her the main inspiration for Frankenstein. Frankenstein is about a young student of natural philosophy called Victor Frankenstein. He is determined to find the secret of life, and when he does he creates a living creature. The monster is gentle and kind, but is abounded by Frankenstein because he looks too ugly; this means he has to hide away from society as all who meet him are afraid of him. As the monster is lonely and isolated, that causes him to take revenge on his creator. He does this by not killing him, but all the ones he loves and cares about. Frankenstein, having nothing worth living for, pursues his monster to the Artic in order to destroy him. This leads him to exhaustion and death, the monster then sees he is dead and then kills himself as it is the only place he can seek rest. The novel shows the horrible consequences of playing God and this is what makes the book fascinating, as it questions all the main beliefs of religion and the soul. The book is different as it has three narrators who are Frankenstein, Robert Walton and the monster. They all narrate and give the reader a different insight into the story, which makes the book very unique. This technique is very effective because as it gives a different insight into each character it can make the reader feel different emotions for each character. Such as when it is Victor Frankenstein telling us his own story, it makes the reader feel more sympathetic towards him because the reader experiences the tragedies and upsets that Frankenstein feels.

Essay --

I. GREEN FLOAT PROJECT The world’s first floating nation is set to be located in the islands of Kirabati. The islands are quickly sinking due to rising sea levels. Currently they are located only six feet above the sea level. Actions are being taken to save the islands by literally placing the current islands onto reconstructed man-made islands and building a city in the sky on top. Anote Tong, president of Kiribati, knows that this plan is drastic but he feels it is necessary to save the islands. Kiribati has invested in many other initiatives to stop the impending fate of the nation, though due to lack of funding he has not been able to implement them. He believes a project like this will attract international funding because it is a sustainable solution that will work not only for Kiribati but for other similarly situated areas. A cutting edge Japanese company called Shimuzu Corp. came up with this ambitious plan to prevent the impending loss of Kiribati. The project is being called the city in the sky as well as the green float project. The costs are estimated to be upwards of three hundred and seventeen billion dollars. Future units are going to become cheaper overtime. Each tower unit will be built to house thirty thousand people, and will also provide space for commercial activities. The units are going to be able to be connected to accommodate a combined one hundred thousand people. The base of the islands will be constructed with impenetrable materials that need little maintenance but are extremely costly. These man-made islands are referred to as lily pads. They will be three thousand meters wide and one thousand meters tall. The bases of the islands will be completely secured; they are set ... ...lar to receiving a reward for contributing green energy into the grid, the May initiative gives rewards for people who in their private property develop facilities and other means to accommodate excess water. Similar in certain respects to the LiFe project, this initiative is different in that property owners do it completely individually. The government would reward or compensate people for their capacity to control water on their property. Some examples of initiatives that will be rewarded will be homeowners with large areas of permeable land, reservoirs, and many more. This initiative will not only help with flood relief but also will result in education about climate change. It will give people a reason to become responsible for their actions and become conscious of their actions climatically. Monetary rewards will bring interest into joining the initiative.

Porter

Michael five forces model Rivalry among competing Firms: this is usually the most powerful of the five competitive forces. The strategies pursued by one firm can be successful only to the extent that they provide competitive advantage over the strategies of other firms (Grobler 2009) ? Due to China’s incredibly high FDI rate, more and more companies are investing into Chinese businesses and strengthening them in both their domestic markets and also on the global front. With the ever increasing growth of their domestic markets it will only be a short while before they become the dominant market leader, if in this span of 30 years they could rise from nothing to 4th largest in the world then it shows what impact they really had and still have on the global economy. Potential entry of new competitors: whenever new firms can easily enter a particular industry, the intensity of competitiveness among firm’s increases. ?When new firms become strengthened through investments, they become direct competitors of the leaders in that industry. . g. A new Chinese innovation in the television industry grows rapidly, they will be direct competitors against any television firms based in China, for example LG and Sony Bargaining power of consumers: when consumers are concentrated, large or buy in volume their bargaining power represents a major force affecting intensity of competition in an industry (Grobler 2009) ? This goes for actual customers(public) and b2b businesses, because those that buy the larger quantities would get the cheaper rates no doubt, however in China how will that be decided? Will it be their size, market share, sales or Return on capital employed. Potential development of substitute products: in many industries firms are in close competition with producers of substitute products in other industries. ?As mentioned throughout this article, the Chinese have the ability to imitate anything, this factor will never disappear especially if Chinese firms enter European or American markets, how those manufacturers would react to the Chinese developments are unimaginable. Bargaining power of suppliers: the bargaining power of suppliers affects the intensity of completion in an industry, especially when there are large number of suppliers, when there are only a few good substitutes’ raw materials or when cost of switching materials is especially costly (Grobler 2009) Porter’s five forces will only be effective if it is done in a stable environment, it is done to see how attractive the industry is and if it is worth starting a new venture in that environment. Porter’s generic strategies †¢Cost leadership †¢Differentiation †¢Focus Cost leadership: Cost leadership means having the lowest per-unit (i. . , average) cost in the industry that is, lowest cost relative to your rivals. This could mean having the lowest per unit cost among rivals in highly competitive industries, in which case returns or profits will be low but however higher than competitors Or, this could mean having lowest cost among a few rivals where each firm enjoys pricing power and high profits Notice that cost leadership is defined independently of market structure. Differentiation: Differentiating the product offering of a firm means creating something that is perceived industry wide as being unique. It is a means of creating your own market to some extent. There are several approaches to differentiation: †¢Different design †¢Brand image †¢Number of features †¢New technology A differentiation strategy may mean differentiating along 2 or more of these dimensions. Focus: Here we focus on a particular buyer group, product segment, or geographical market. while low cost and differentiation are aimed at achieving their objectives industry wide, the focus or niche strategy is built on serving a particular target (customer, product, or location) very well. Note, however, hat a focus strategy means achieving either a low cost advantage or differentiation in a narrow part of the market. For reasons discussed above, this creates a defendable position within that part of the market. Risks of doing generic strategies Cost leadership †¢Requires continual capital investment because newer innovations cause older creations to become obsolete. †¢When focusing solely on making affordable low cost products, it can cause firms to be blinded to product changes that are needed. Ie. Quantity over quality †¢When costs do begin to increase it narrows the differences between competitors and advantage is ultimately lost For China, the main risk that would affect them the most is when focusing solely on quantity, especially because of their expertise in manufacturing they could lose sight of changes that need to be done to better sales. However, China does have the leading number of R&D departments, even though they might not be as innovative as the Japanese or South Koreans, they have the ability to imitate anything they produce which is why they play a major role in globalization, they can imitate anything except fresh air as they say. Differentiation Customer loyalty becomes too large to hold because of the cost differentiation between low cost firms and differentiating firms. †¢The consumer or buyer’s need to differentiate falls away because of price increases. †¢Imitation decreases perceived differentiation This area is where China are dominant, because they have the influence of causing differentiation to fail, because if the product looks the same, and does the same thing, the n why would they ever go for the more expensive, and thus Chinese markets prosper because economies of scale have brought their price down dramatically. This is also when manufacturers have to start looking for alternative suppliers because they now have to compete with China which is not an easy task, and in doing so, it almost definitely forces them to go global. Focus †¢When companies market to niches only they already take the risk of not completely satisfying a demographic segment and with other companies finding alternatives ways to better their market share eg. FDI or R&D labs, they face the risk of dissolving. On its own focus strategy’s should not be attempted by almost any kind of company, its main purpose is to satisfy a small group of consumers at a time, and if this is not the aim of the business then they are going to fall extremely short on their company vision. Books Grobler, W. (2009) Business strategy, CTI Education Group, Johannesburg. Johnson, G. scholes, K. Whittington, R. (2008) Exploring corporate strategy, Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River.

Economics Paper Essay

1: Define the term ‘equilibrium price’: The price at which quantity demanded by consumers and the quantity of goods and services supplied by firms is the same. 3: With the help of an appropriate diagram and the information in extract B, explain why the world price of sugar changed in 2009: The price of sugar rose to $0.40 per kilo in 2009 – this is shown in the extract as it states that in 2009 prices in New York and London rose by 52% to its highest in almost three years. The diagram below shows how the inward shift of supply caused by poor crop harvests and India’s %40 fall in output of sugar affected the price of sugar due to its scarcity, leading to the %52 rise in price of sugar. Another factor that could have had an effect on the price of sugar would have been in 2008 there were poor crop harvests that year – this led to a low level of supply in 2008 which raised the price of sugar due to its scarcity. This poor harvest would have had something to do with the land quality –this may have affected the harvest in 2009. Supply constraints also had an effect, as due heavy rainfall the Columbian crop was damaged – the rain also washed away some of the roads used to transport the products from the field to the market. So whatever crop the farmers managed to save from the rain was then prevented from reaching market, this would have contributed to the price rise in a way similar to the diagram above. India is a main producer of sugar, so much so that its sugar output is a critical factor in determining the world price of sugar. India’s output was forecast to fall by %40 so only 15million tonnes of sugar would have been produced in the growing season – this is well below India’s sugar consumption of 23million tonnes a year. This would mean that India wouldn’t be inclined to export much of its sugar as there’s already a deficit of supply in its own country. Although, with this large fall in supply there’ll most likely be a rise in sugar price in India – the people may not be willing or able to pay the new price so whatever amount of sugar is leftover could be exported, at a price which would lead to the %52 rise in London and New York sugar prices.

buy custom Internal and External Stakeholders essay

buy custom Internal and External Stakeholders essay Stakeholders are individuals interested in the outcome of policies and the success of an organization. This drives them to influence the outcome of such results and accomplishment of financial obligations. In normal cases, there exist two groups of stakeholders: internal and external stakeholders, who exist within the organizations setting and those outside the organization respectively. For example, a stakeholder can be the owner of the business, employee, manager, customer, partner or even a supplier among others; and contributes to the business of an organization either directly or indirectly (Bernstein Bonafede, 2011). Additionally, either stakeholders, internal or external may involve themselves with the outcome of a project or activity other than business, but they often stand to lose or gain depending on the decisions made or policies implemented in the organization. This paper aims to analyze the influence that the internal and external stakeholders have on the homeland secu rity issues such as lack of communication and organization. In reference to the organization structure of the Homeland organization, jurisdiction and organization correlated and directly faced impact from the actions of both the internal stakeholders like the CIA and DOD and the external stakeholders (partners who have an interest in ensuring that homeland achieves the best in maintaining security in the United States). For instance, the internal stakeholders have considerable access to the administration and the structure of the Homeland organization, hence any decision that the organization makes they also have to go through first before implementation. This positively influences the decisions on the organizational structure in that they unbiasedly settle on the best model structure to implement in management and operations of homeland security. As a result, this has led to the advanced restructured arrangements of the departments in homeland security leading to easy communication, transparency and efficiency in homeland operations (Bernste in Bonafede, 2011). On the other hand, any changes in the jurisdiction of the homeland security organization, directly affects their respective stakeholders who in return have to source out alternative lines of access to the organizations successful operations. Hence, they end up persuading new partners into networking with the homeland security organization, which consequently changes the organization's structure entirely. Stakeholders especially, internal stakeholders normally prefer to have all the programs constituted under one cluster for easy management on the full range, therefore, this consolidation of programs sees that an organization consolidates its structure into one compact model for easy management. Evidently, the internal stakeholders have influenced the same on homeland security organization, hence the existence of the cabinet-level departments at the organization that promote specialization in dealing with security issues. This consolidation of programs has also positively impacted on the security issue on lack of communication; in that the organization now has advanced into a close need structure of communication that updates them with highly crucial details about security anytime, anywhere. On the contrary, the scatter of programs among the different partnering agencies (external stakeholders) has also negatively affected the communication channels that relay immediate feedback to the homeland security base in the United States. The scattered nature of the external stakeholders also negatively affected the communication of the homeland security; in that, the organization lacked proper consolidation of ideas and strategies to plan for any cases of terrorist attacks. Hence, t his subsequently led to their fragmentation following the terrorist attack in November 2001 (Sauter Carafano, 2005). Furthermore, the shared responsibility by the external stakeholders has seen the homeland security organization restructure its department to cover all sectors in ensuring a balance in the food, industry and agriculture security, which emerges as on the stakeholders leading positive effects. The external stakeholders such as the federal agencies involved in communication issues that deal with security, negatively affect the homeland organizations communication network due to their resistance in accepting the link between the local, federal and state partners in sharing critical information regarding matters of state in national security. Additionally, the lack of clarified roles and identification of external stakeholders has negatively influenced the effort of the Homeland security organization in implementing advanced model structures of the organization's management in order to increase their operations effectiveness. Nevertheless, other external partners or stakeholders of the homeland security organization such as FDA, DHS and USDA have facilitated better communication (Sauter Carafano, 2005). They did so through networking in an effort to obtain security clearances for some state personnel during critical, emergency operations in communication and sharing of sensitive security information. Since the rapidness in communication and notification systems used during incident reporting requires the careful merge of both the external and the internal stakeholders in decision-making, this has positively influenced the communication channels opening the organization to the world for easy communication and feedback on security related issues. This collaboration has also led to the strengthened ties between the organization and other scattered external stakeholders improving its operations and in return synchronizing its organizational structure for better management. Considering stakeholders in solving the problem linked to lack of communication and organization will come in handy because an organization without partners may likely fail or perform poorly, and since evidence exists that supports the positive benefits of the stakeholders contributions to the homeland security organization outweighing the negative, they hold an extremely vital position in the solution. The homeland security organization needs to increase and expand its link to external stakeholders because matters of state security need more networking from outside partners rather than the internal stakeholders. Conclusion In conclusion, individuals need to understand that, for effective performance and success in the functions of an organization, support from other extended and interested parties, like stakeholders emerges is extremely crucial and almost inevitable (Sauter Carafano, 2005). Evidence lies in the success of the homeland security through the strength and support of its stakeholder, who managed to ensure United States security by capturing Osama Bin Laden. It is essential to avoid bureaucracy in an organization. The stakeholders should be given an opportunity to take part in the decision making process of an organization. Stakeholders should get a chance to celebrate the victory of the organization as they played a role in meeting the objective. The stakeholders should also play a role in the growth of their positions in the organization. It is crucial to engage in one on one coaching of the stakeholders so as to inform them about the details of your solution and the reason why you chose it. When the stakeholders give their views, it is necessary to recognize their views. This recognition is a show of satisfaction for the task accomplished by the stakeholders. If the solution that you choose involves some form of technical knowhow, it is good to take the stakeholders on training over the implementation of the solution. This will ensure that all are aware of the implementation of the solution. Finally, give the stakeholders various leadership roles to take in the aim of implementing the solution. For example, if there is a visitor seeking information on a particular issue, give one stakeholder an opportunity to explain. Stakeholders are individuals interested in the outcome of policies and the success of an organization. This drives them to influence the outcome of such results and accomplishment of financial obligations. In normal cases, there exist two groups of stakeholders: internal and external stakeholders, who exist within the organizations setting and those outside the organization respectively. For example, a stakeholder can be the owner of the business, employee, manager, customer, partner or even a supplier among others; and contributes to the business of an organization either directly or indirectly (Bernstein Bonafede, 2011). Additionally, either stakeholders, internal or external may involve themselves with the outcome of a project or activity other than business, but they often stand to lose or gain depending on the decisions made or policies implemented in the organization. This paper aims to analyze the influence that the internal and external stakeholders have on the homeland secu rity issues such as lack of communication and organization. In reference to the organization structure of the Homeland organization, jurisdiction and organization correlated and directly faced impact from the actions of both the internal stakeholders like the CIA and DOD and the external stakeholders (partners who have an interest in ensuring that homeland achieves the best in maintaining security in the United States). For instance, the internal stakeholders have considerable access to the administration and the structure of the Homeland organization, hence any decision that the organization makes they aalso have to go through first before implementation. This positively influences the decisions on the organizational structure in that they unbiasedly settle on the best model structure to implement in management and operations of homeland security. As a result, this has led to the advanced restructured arrangements of the departments in homeland security leading to easy communication, transparency and efficiency in homeland operations (Bernst ein Bonafede, 2011). On the other hand, any changes in the jurisdiction of the homeland security organization, directly affects their respective stakeholders who in return have to source out alternative lines of access to the organizations successful operations. Hence, they end up persuading new partners into networking with the homeland security organization, which consequently changes the organization's structure entirely. Stakeholders especially, internal stakeholders normally prefer to have all the programs constituted under one cluster for easy management on the full range, therefore, this consolidation of programs sees that an organization consolidates its structure into one compact model for easy management. Evidently, the internal stakeholders have influenced the same on homeland security organization, hence the existence of the cabinet-level departments at the organization that promote specialization in dealing with security issues. This consolidation of programs has also positively impacted on the security issue on lack of communication; in that the organization now has advanced into a close need structure of communication that updates them with highly crucial details about security anytime, anywhere. On the contrary, the scatter of programs among the different partnering agencies (external stakeholders) has also negatively affected the communication channels that relay immediate feedback to the homeland security base in the United States. The scattered nature of the external stakeholders also negatively affected the communication of the homeland security; in that, the organization lacked proper consolidation of ideas and strategies to plan for any cases of terrorist attacks. Hence, t his subsequently led to their fragmentation following the terrorist attack in November 2001 (Sauter Carafano, 2005). Furthermore, the shared responsibility by the external stakeholders has seen the homeland security organization restructure its department to cover all sectors in ensuring a balance in the food, industry and agriculture security, which emerges as on the stakeholders leading positive effects. The external stakeholders such as the federal agencies involved in communication issues that deal with security, negatively affect the homeland organizations communication network due to their resistance in accepting the link between the local, federal and state partners in sharing critical information regarding matters of state in national security. Additionally, the lack of clarified roles and identification of external stakeholders has negatively influenced the effort of the Homeland security organization in implementing advanced model structures of the organization's management in order to increase their operations effectiveness. Nevertheless, other external partners or stakeholders of the homeland security organization such as FDA, DHS and USDA have facilitated better communication (Sauter Carafano, 2005). They did so through networking in an effort to obtain security clearances for some state personnel during critical, emergency operations in communication and sharing of sensitive security information. Since the rapidness in communication and notification systems used during incident reporting requires the careful merge of both the external and the internal stakeholders in decision-making, this has positively influenced the communication channels opening the organization to the world for easy communication and feedback on security related issues. This collaboration has also led to the strengthened ties between the organization and other scattered external stakeholders improving its operations and in return synchronizing its organizational structure for better management. Considering stakeholders in solving the problem linked to lack of communication and organization will come in handy because an organization without partners may likely fail or perform poorly, and since evidence exists that supports the positive benefits of the stakeholders contributions to the homeland security organization outweighing the negative, they hold an extremely vital position in the solution. The homeland security organization needs to increase and expand its link to external stakeholders because matters of state security need more networking from outside partners rather than the internal stakeholders. Buy custom Internal and External Stakeholders essay

Major General Oliver O. Howard in the Civil War

Major General Oliver O. Howard in the Civil War Oliver O. Howard - Early Life Career: The son of Rowland and Eliza Howard, Oliver Otis Howard was born at Leeds, ME on November 3, 1830. Losing his father at age nine, Howard received a strong education at series of academies in Maine before electing to attend Bowdoin College. Graduating in 1850, he decided to pursue a military career and sought an appointment to the US Military Academy. Entering West Point that year, he proved a superior student and graduated fourth in a class of forty-six in 1854. Among his classmates were J.E.B. Stuart and Dorsey Pender. Commissioned as a second lieutenant, Howard moved through a series of ordnance assignments including time at Watervliet and Kennebec Arsenals. Marrying Elizabeth Waite in 1855, he received orders to take part in a campaign against the Seminoles in Florida two years later. Oliver O. Howard – The Civil War Begins: Though a religious man, while in Florida Howard experienced a deep conversion to evangelical Christianity. Promoted to first lieutenant that July, he returned to West Point as a mathematics instructor that fall. While there, he frequently considered leaving the service to enter the ministry. This decision continued to weigh on him, however as sectional tensions built and the Civil War neared, he resolved to defend the Union. With the attack on Fort Sumter in April 1861, Howard prepared to go to war. The following month, he took command of the 3rd Maine Infantry Regiment with the rank of colonel of volunteers. As the spring progressed, he rose to command the Third Brigade in Colonel Samuel P. Heintzelman’s Third Division in the Army of Northeastern Virginia. Taking part in the First Battle of Bull Run on July 21, Howard’s brigade occupied Chinn Ridge but was driven off in confusion after being attacked by Confederate troops led by Colonels Jubal A. Early and Arnold Elzey . Oliver O. Howard – An Arm Lost: Promoted to brigadier general on September 3, Howard and his men joined Major General George B. McClellan’s newly-formed Army of the Potomac. Recognized for his devout religious beliefs, he soon earned the sobriquet â€Å"the Christian General† though this title was often used with a degree of sarcasm by his comrades. In the spring of 1862, his brigade moved south for the Peninsula Campaign. Serving in Brigadier General John Sedgwick’s division of Brigadier General Edwin Sumner’s II Corps, Howard joined McClellan’s slow advance towards Richmond. On June 1, he returned to combat when his men met the Confederates at the Battle of Seven Pines. As the fighting raged, Howard was hit twice in the right arm. Taken from the field, the injuries proved serious enough that the arm was amputated. Oliver O. Howard - A Rapid Rise: Recovering from his wounds, Howard missed the remainder of the fighting on the Peninsula as well as the defeat at Second Manassas. Returning to his brigade, he led it during the fighting at Antietam on September 17. Serving under Sedgwick, Howard took command of the division after his superior was badly wounded during an attack near the West Woods. In the fighting, the division sustained heavy losses as Sumner had ordered it into action without conducting proper reconnaissance. Promoted to major general in November, Howard retained command of the division. With Major General Ambrose Burnside’s ascent to command, the Army of the Potomac moved south to Fredericksburg. On December 13, Howard’s division took part in the Battle of Fredericksburg. A bloody disaster, the fighting saw the division make a failed assault on the Confederate defenses atop Marye’s Heights. Oliver O. Howard - XI Corps: In April 1863, Howard received an appointment to replace Major General Franz Sigel as commander of XI Corps. Largely comprised of German immigrants, the men of XI Corps immediately began lobbying for Sigel’s return as he too was an immigrant and had been a popular revolutionary in Germany. Imposing a high level of military and moral discipline, Howard quickly earned his new command’s resentment. In early May, Major General Joseph Hooker, who had replaced Burnside, attempted to swing around to the west of Confederate General Robert E. Lee’s position at Fredericksburg. In the resulting Battle of Chancellorsville, Howard’s corps occupied the right flank of the Union line. Though advised that his right flank was in the air by Hooker, he took no action to anchor it on a natural obstacle or construct substantial defenses. On the evening of May 2, Major General Thomas â€Å"Stonewall† Jackson mounted a devastating flank attack which routed XI Corps and des tabilized the Union position. Though shattered, XI Corps mounted a fighting retreat that saw it lose around a quarter of its strength and Howard was conspicuous in his attempts to rally his men. Effectively spent as a fighting force, XI Corps did not play a meaningful role in the rest of the battle. Recovering from Chancellorsville, the corps marched north the following month in pursuit of Lee who intended to invade Pennsylvania. On July 1, XI Corps moved to the aid of Brigadier General John Buford’s Union cavalry and Major General John Reynolds I Corps which had become engaged in the opening phases of the Battle of Gettysburg. Approaching on the Baltimore Pike and Taneytown Road, Howard detached a division to guard the key heights of Cemetery Hill to the south of Gettysburg before deploying the rest of his men on I Corps’ right north of town. Attacked by Lieutenant General Richard S. Ewell’s Second Corps, Howard’s men were overwhelmed and forced to fall back after one of his division commanders, Brigadier General Francis C. Barlow, blundered by moving his men out of position. As the Union line collapsed, XI Corps retreated back through town and assumed a defensive position on Cemetery Hill. As Reynolds had been killed early in the fighting, Howard served as the senior Union leader on the field until Major General Winfield S. Hancock arrived with orders from army commander Major General George G. Meade to take over. Despite Hancock’s written orders, Howard resisted ceding control of the battle. Remaining on the defensive for the remainder of the battle, XI Corps turned back Confederate attacks the next day. Though criticized for his corps’ performance, Howard later received the thanks of Congress for selected the ground on which the battle would be fought. Oliver O. Howard – Going West: On September 23, XI Corps and Major General Henry Slocum’s XII Corps were detached from the Army of the Potomac and set west to aid Major General Ulysses S. Grant’s efforts to relieve Major General William S. Rosecrans’ besieged Army of the Cumberland at Chattanooga. Collectively led by Hooker, the two corps aided Grant in opening a supply line to Rosecrans’ men. In late November, XI Corps took part in the fighting around the city which culminated with General Braxton Bragg’s Army of Tennessee being driven from Missionary Ridge and forced to retreat south. The following spring, Grant departed to take overall command of the Union war effort and leadership in the west passed to Major General William T. Sherman. Organizing his forces for a campaign against Atlanta, Sherman directed Howard to take over IV Corps in Major General George H. Thomas’ Army of the Cumberland. Moving south in May, Howard and his corps saw action at Picketts Mill on the 27th and Kennesaw Mountain a month later. As Shermans armies neared Atlanta, part of IV Corps took part in the Battle of Peachtree Creek on July 20. Two days later, Major General James B. McPherson, commander of the Army of the Tennessee, was killed at the Battle of Atlanta. With the loss of McPherson, Sherman directed Howard to take over the Army of the Tennessee. On July 28, he led his new command into battle at Ezra Church. In the fighting, his men turned back attacks by Lieutenant General John Bell Hood. In late August, Howard led the Army of the Tennessee at the Battle of Jonesboro which resulted in Hood being forced to abandon Atlanta. Reorganizing his forces that fall, Sherman retained Howard in his position and had the Army of the Tennessee serve as the right wing of his March to the Sea. Oliver O. Howard - Final Campaigns: Departing in mid-November, Shermans advance saw Howards men and Slocums Army of Georgia drive through the heart of Georgia, living off the land, and sweeping aside light enemy resistance. Reaching Savannah, Union forces captured the city on December 21. In the spring of 1865, Sherman pushed north into South Carolina with Slocum and Howards commands. After capturing Columbia, SC on February 17, the advance continued and Howard entered North Carolina in early March. On March 19, Slocum was attacked by General Joseph E. Johnston at the Battle of Bentonville. Turning, Howard brought his men to Slocums aid and the combined armies compelled Johnston to retreat. Pressing on, Howard and his men were present the following month when Sherman accepted Johnstons surrender at Bennett Place. Oliver O. Howard - Later Career: An ardent abolitionist before the war, Howard was appointed head of the Freedmens Bureau in May 1865. Charged with integrating freed slaves into society, he implemented a wide array of social programs including education, medical care, and food distribution. Backed by the Radical Republicans in Congress, he often clashed with President Andrew Johnson. During this time, he aided in the formation of Howard University in Washington, DC. In 1874, he assumed command of the Department of the Columbia with his headquarters in the Washington Territory. While out west, Howard took part in the Indian Wars and in 1877 mounted a campaign against the Nez Perce which resulted in the capture of Chief Joseph. Returning east in 1881, he briefly served as superintendent at West Point before taking command of the Department of the Platte in 1882. Belatedly presented with the Medal of Honor in 1893 for his actions at Seven Pines, Howard retired in 1894 after serving as commander of the Department of the East. Moving to Burlington, VT, he died on October 26, 1909 and was buried at Lake View Cemetery. Selected Sources Civil War Trust: Oliver O. HowardNNDB: Oliver O. Howard Civil War: Oliver O. Howard

Cross-cultural communication and classroom ecology Essay - 1

Cross-cultural communication and classroom ecology - Essay Example rÐ µligion, disÐ °bility Ð µtc Ð °s wÐ µll Ð °s bÐ µing mindful of thÐ µ difficultiÐ µs thÐ °t somÐ µ groups cÐ °n fÐ °cÐ µ Ð °nd Ð µnsuring thÐ °t Ð °ny obstÐ °clÐ µs to thÐ µm Ð °rÐ µ rÐ µmovÐ µd. PÐ µrhÐ °ps surprisingly, it doÐ µs not mÐ µÃ °n trÐ µÃ °ting Ð °ll Ð µquÐ °lly. For Ð µxÐ °mplÐ µ, Ð µquÐ °lity of opportunity will not nÐ µcÐ µssÐ °rily bÐ µ Ð µnsurÐ µd if thosÐ µ who spÐ µÃ °k Еnglish Ð °s thÐ µir sÐ µcond or third lÐ °nguÐ °gÐ µ Ð °rÐ µ Ð °ssÐ µssÐ µd Ð µquÐ °lly Ð °gÐ °inst thosÐ µ who spÐ µÃ °k it Ð °s thÐ µir first Ð °nd only lÐ °nguÐ °gÐ µ. ThÐ µ formÐ µr mÐ °y nÐ µÃ µd Ð °dditionÐ °l cÐ °rÐ µ Ð °nd tÐ µÃ °ching if Ð °ssÐ µssmÐ µnt Ð °gÐ °inst othÐ µrs in thÐ µir yÐ µÃ °r is to hold mÐ µÃ °ning. In this rÐ µspÐ µct, simply rÐ µmoving obstÐ °clÐ µs from thÐ µ pÐ °th of Ð °ll studÐ µnts mÐ °y not bÐ µ Ð µnough to providÐ µ Ð °ll with Ð µquÐ °lity of opportunity. PositivÐ µ Ð °ction (somÐ µtimÐ µs rÐ µfÐ µrrÐ µd to Ð °s positivÐ µ discriminÐ °tion) mÐ °y bÐ µ nÐ µcÐ µssÐ °ry. This involvÐ µs crÐ µÃ °ting thÐ µ circumstÐ °ncÐ µs in which Ð µquÐ °lit y of opportunity cÐ °n Ð µxist, rÐ °thÐ µr thÐ °n lÐ µÃ °ving it to chÐ °ncÐ µ. For Ð ° physicÐ °lly— disÐ °blÐ µd studÐ µnt, prÐ °cticÐ °l chÐ °ngÐ µs to thÐ µ school Ð µnvironmÐ µnt Ð °rÐ µ nÐ µÃ µdÐ µd (such Ð °s rÐ °mps instÐ µÃ °d of stÐ µps). Ð  pupil struggling with Ð °ttÐ µntion dÐ µficit disordÐ µr cÐ °n find this disÐ °dvÐ °ntÐ °gÐ µ diminishÐ µd or Ð µliminÐ °tÐ µd if thÐ µy Ð °rÐ µ sÐ µÃ °tÐ µd Ð °s closÐ µ to thÐ µ tÐ µÃ °chÐ µr Ð °s possiblÐ µ Ð °nd surroundÐ µd by positivÐ µ rolÐ µ modÐ µls. For clÐ °ssroom tÐ µÃ °chÐ µrs, thÐ µrÐ µ Ð °rÐ µ Ð ° fÐ µw quÐ µstions thÐ °t cÐ °n bÐ µ focusÐ µd on pÐ µriodicÐ °lly to bring Ð °ttÐ µntion to thÐ µ issuÐ µ of Ð µquÐ °l opportunitiÐ µs. ThÐ µ goÐ °l is not to work slÐ °vishly to thÐ µ nÐ µÃ µd for Ð µquÐ °lity of opportunity but to dÐ µvÐ µlop Ð ° nÐ °turÐ °l instinct for sussing out whÐ µn pupils mÐ °y bÐ µ inÐ °dvÐ µrtÐ µntly disÐ °dvÐ °ntÐ °gÐ µd. This might bÐ µ Ð ° rÐ µsult of thÐ µ work you hÐ °vÐ µ Ð °skÐ µd thÐ µm to do or of thÐ µir intÐ µrÐ °ctions in your clÐ °ssroom. WÐ µ Ð °ll hÐ °vÐ µ prÐ µjudicÐ µs – its pÐ °rt of intÐ µrÐ °cting with humÐ °ns. But bÐ µing Ð °wÐ °rÐ µ of your prÐ µjudicÐ µs

Black & Decker - Eastern Hemisphere and ADP Initiative Case Study - 1

Black & Decker - Eastern Hemisphere and ADP Initiative - Case Study Example His prime concern was the fact that he found significant disparity in the ‘management styles’ that existed in the region. He found that certain managerial styles emphasized on employee empowerment whereas, others belonged to old authoritarian method. From his observation he felt that a few managers were bad managers. The other aspect was related to the growth and development of the people as he felt that in this region quite a few people were stagnant in their position. The other crucial matter of concern was with regards to existing process of management assessment as well as development system. They followed MBO-type system which had been discarded in the US a few years before. Bill Lancaster observed that these concerns required immediate addressing in order to not only increase the organizational growth in the Eastern Hemisphere organization but also to instigate human resource growth and development. Appraisal Development Plan (ADP) was first introduced in the Black & Decker in 1992 as a replacement method of appraisal to the existing MBO (Management by Objective) plan. ADP method of appraisal was observed to be one of the best tools available to provide employees with set goals and career plans similar to MBO process. The added benefit that ADP provided was that it was Eastern Hemisphere organization undeniably superior to MBO in guiding people towards growth prospects. The ADP plan followed six steps appraisal process which was in line with the 3600 appraisal method.

Michale Jackson Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Michale Jackson - Research Paper Example But the most reputed African-American singer of all time is the man who was alive until less than six months ago – the legendary singer and songwriter, Michael Jackson. Michael Joseph Jackson was born in Gary {Indiana, United States} on 29 August 1958 to middle class African-American couple Joseph and Katherine Jackson. Michael was the couple’s eighth child {they had 10 children in all} (Campbell 9). Music was a regular feature in the Jackson home. Joseph was an accomplished guitarist who played in a band named The Falcons during the early stages of the couple’s marriage (Campbell 10). However, as his family grew in size, Joseph was forced to give less attention to his musical ambitions and take up a job as a crane operator (The Biography Channel). His wife Katherine too took up a part-time job at Sears to boost the family finances. The couple however made it a habit to indulge in sing-a-longs, especially on country and western songs, with their children at home (Campbell 10). This gave the Jackson children a solid platform from which they launched their famous musical careers, first embarking on their maiden venture – the Jackson Five. Formed in 1964, the Jackson Five comprised the three oldest children – Jackie, Tito and Jermaine – along with Marlon {aged 6} and Michael {aged 5}. Joseph, living out his dream of achieving fame through his children, made them rehearse for several hours daily while still finishing their school homework and maintaining reasonably good grades, but giving no time for play or other leisure activities (Campbell 10). The Jackson Five started joining local talent competitions where they enacted songs by artists like Gladys Knight and James Brown. They also recorded their maiden single entitled Big Boy/You’ve Changed, but it did not evoke much interest (The Biography

AA Meeting Review Essay Example for Free

AA Meeting Review Essay Walking into the AA meeting made me feel very awkward and out of place, but as the meeting began and everyone started sharing their stories I began to feel comfortable about being there. When I first went in the room the chairs were set up in a circle with some on the outside of it. I decided to take a seat on the outside so I wouldn’t be of focus during the meeting. They started the meeting off with reading some inspirational words and then reading the 12 steps. Their focus tonight was on a higher power and how believing in that higher power helps you stay sober. After brief introductions and stating their names, they began discussion and whoever wanted to speak had the opportunity to do so. Listening to all of their stories was really interesting. Almost all of the members have been sober for at least 30 days and more and about four people were just recently sober, with one being sober only three days now. One of the member’s stories really stood out to me. He said that he has been an alcoholic for years now, but always believed he can cure himself and control how many drinks he has. See more:Â  The Story of an Hour Literary Analysis Essay He mentioned that he went out last week with his buddies and wasn’t able to stop himself from going overboard with the drinking. He said he was in a blackout for four days and lost his job. That’s why he ended up at the treatment center; he said he realized that it isn’t possible to be a social drinker when you are an alcoholic. During his story he explained how he had the shakes and the classic withdrawal symptoms and I began to think about what I had learned in class and related it. Another member’s story was about social drinking. She said that her friend was coming home that she knew from college and wanted to get together. She thought about the friendship and realized that she wasn’t a friend and that she was just an old party buddy. She explained that she has a whole new group of sober friends that she hangs out with and that she can’t hang out with her old friends of whom she always went out and drank with. She started saying how she realized she doesn’t even like the sport of football and that she always went out to bars to watch it with friends because it was a time for social drinking. It brought to light that anything can become an excuse for people to partake in social drinking and too much social drinking can turn into alcoholism for some people. Another patient mentioned that she had her first drink at four years old and was in treatment by ten. I was really perplexed by that comment, thinking how could somebody even know what alcohol is at the age of four. She didn’t elaborate on what or how it happened, so I was just left in shock by that. There were many other stories told and I felt good after hearing all of them. It’s so nice to see everybody get close with each other and be there for one another when they’re having a bad day or week. They celebrate the landmarks of each other’s length of sobriety and that’s really heartwarming to see. They ended the meeting with the 12 promises and a prayer. Overall, after getting over the initial feeling of awkwardness, it was a successful experience and got to hear about the personal effects of alcohol on their lives.

John Dewey and His Impact on Society :: Pragmatism Essays

John Dewey was an American philosopher and teacher who, with Charles Peirce and William James, were the originators of the philosophy known as "pragmatism." Dewey had a long and distinguished career as a teacher, labor activist, and "public intellectual" who was not afraid to deal in his philosophical writings with real social issues. Dewey changed philosophy and its view forever and has made a large impact on the way modern philosophers look at things today. Dewey started off as a Hegelian idealist, but changed from idealism to experimentalism, which studied the human mind and real life issues, and which emphasized the ways in which human intelligence may be applied to the solution of real problems in real life. Dewey published over 100 books during his lifetime, dealing with topics such as education, ethics, logic, metaphysics, aesthetics, religious experience, war, politics, and economics. He was often scorned by other philosophers who thought his philosophy was too concerned with practice and not concerned enough with theory or with traditional philosophical issues like epistemology (or "how can we know"), ontology ("what is real"), or traditional logic ("what is truth"). Dewey was quite blunt in his claim that "Philosophy recovers itself when it ceases to be a device for dealing with the problems of philosophers and becomes a method, cultivated by philosophers, for dealing with the problems of men." (The Need for a Recovery in Philosophy, 1917) This set Dewy apart from the rest, and made his view on philosophy (Pragmatism) very unique and moving. His theories on human intelligence have helped numerous Universities, schools, and doctors help people learn. Dewey was one of the greatest minds to ever walk the face of America. Timeline and achievements of John Dewey  · Born Burlington, VT October 20, 1859  · 1875, attended University of Vermont major of philosophy  · 1879, taught high school in Oil City PA  · 1882, attended Johns Hopkins University- studied philosophy and psychology  · 1884, first job at University of Michigan  · 1886, married Alice Chipman  · 1888, worked at University of Minnesota as head of philosophy dept.  · 1889, worked back at U. Michigan as head of philosophy dept  · 1894, worked as head of philosophy and psychology departments at University of Chicago (1894 - 1904)  · 1894-6, founded University Elementary School, now the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools  · 1905, worked as professor of philosophy at Columbia University

Stakeholder Analysis on Bp

Assignment # 1 Stakeholder analysis on the British Petroleum oil spill disaster Stakeholder: UK and USA Government The British Petroleum (BP) oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico flowed unabated for three months in 2010. It is the largest accidental marine oil spill in the history of the petroleum industry. This event affected individuals and groups, know as stakeholders, in different ways according to the impact that the catastrophe meant to their situation.The stakeholders treated in this case are the U. S. and UK government, which first we would like to define their position on the disaster then to find the links with ethical traditions and finally to mention the positive aspects and limits of these two with three theoretical propositions (Stakeholder Theory, CSR & Ethics of discussion). The positions of the governments were on their own particular way to deal and manage the situation of the BP oil spill. The U. S. overnment took an offensive position against BP and made it responsible of the incurred damages as a result of the oil spill, likewise, indirectly blamed the UK government as the main regulator of the companies from their country. In response, the UK government took a defensive position about the responsibility of the damages and for the hostile side that U. S. took against. However UK government wanted to manage the situation by the side of the cocerns of their people interesr and BP involment to develop the best and fastest solution for the situation.The reason why the U. S. government took an aggressive position came from its role as representative of a nation that should give solutions to the problems and complaints of the individuals and groups (business, organizations, etc) concern of US nation. But seeing it on the other side, the same particular reason came with the UK government. Now, the question relies on: why they went on different sides? or more precisely, what made them to take a position different from each other? if their objectives wer e basically the same.The interest of both governments were mostly on the same page, but there were some differences. The U. S. government seek to be the victim of the incident with the reason of solidarity with those affected but also be the one to go forward in search of a solution and satisfaction of all involved as it? s leader role. As well, the U. S. government was responsible for establish appropriate regulations to prevent such damage. This put it on the exterior â€Å"inocent† role but indirect accomplice for the mistake done.Furthermore, the UK government seek not be involved in the incident, likewise even pretended to find a speedy solution to be the lowest impact to its stakeholders and its oil industry that implies BP mainly in the economial and relationships between nations. Its role was primarily mediator in the dispute of the guilt of the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico with the intention of the most healthy solution of all. References: Urbina, I. (2010, May 24 ). Inspector general’s inquiry faults regulators.The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www. nytimes. com/2010/05/25/us/25mms. html? pagewanted=all&_r=0 Thompson, P. (2010, June 7). Stop blaming uk for bp oil spill disaster: Cable hits out at america read more. Mail online. Retrieved from http://www. dailymail. co. uk/news/article-1284125/Stop-blaming-UK-BP-oil-spill-disaster-Cable-hits-America. html White House. (2010, August 14). Deepwater bp oil spill. Retrieved from http://www. whitehouse. gov/deepwater-bp-oil-spill Alfano, S. (2010, June 5).Bp oil spill not our fault, british government official says, calls criticism extreme and unhelpful'. Daily News. Retrieved from http://articles. nydailynews. com/2010-06-05/news/27066339_1_oil-spill-bp-rig Wray, R. (2010, July 27). Bp oil spill: Uk taxpayers face gulf clean-up loss. The Guardian. Retrieved from http://www. guardian. co. uk/business/2010/jul/27/bp-oil-spill-taxpayers-clean-up-costs Plante, B. (2010, May 23). Oil sp ill sparks call for aggressive gov't role. CBS News. Retrieved from http://www. cbsnews. com/8301-18563_162-6510144. html

Trends in Cad Industry

INTRODUCTION ABOUT THE INDUSTRY CAD SOFTWARE HISTORY CAD software, also referred to as Computer Aided Design software and in the past as computer aided drafting software, refers to software programs that assist engineers and designers in a wide variety of industries to design and manufacture physical products ranging from buildings, bridges, roads, aircraft and automobiles, large aerospace and automotive companies, ships and cars to digital CAD CAM software (‘CAM' is the acronym for Computer Aided Machining). Sketchpad was the world's first CAD software but the first commercial CAM software system, a Dr. Patrick J. Hanratty. For that reason it is Dr. Hanratty who is most often referred to as â€Å"the father First-generation CAD software systems were typically 2D drafting applications developed by a manufacturer's internal IT group (often collaborating with university researchers) and prim arily intended to automate repetitive drafting chores. The first CAD/CAM software tools emerged in the late 1950s and early 60s for use by automobile and airplane manufacturers with highly detailed McDonnell-Douglas (CADD released in 1966), Ford (PDGS released in 1967), Lockheed (CADAM AN INTRODUCTION TO THE CAD SOFTWARE INDUSTRY CAD software, or computer-aided design software, is used to expedite the process of 2-D and 3-D design and drafting. CAD software can be used on projects as small as a single room in a house, such as a kitchen or bathroom, or as large as a municipal master plan. CAD software also lets engineers and manufacturers design components such as car parts or circuit boards; this process is referred to as CAM, or computer-aided manufacturing. Computer-aided design (CAD) is the use of computer technology for the design of objects, real or virtual. CAD often involves more than just shapes. As in the manual drafting of technical and engineering drawings, the output of CAD often must convey also symbolic information such as materials, processes, dimensions, and tolerances, according to application-specific conventions. and technical manuals. The modern ubiquity and power of computers means that even perfume bottles and shampoo dispensers are designed using techniques unheard of by engineers of the 1960s. Because of its enormous economic importance, CAD has been a major driving force for research in computational geometry, computer graphics (both hardware and software), and discrete differential CAD enables designers to lay out and develop work on screen, print it out and save it for future modeling, in which case it may be marketed as CADD — computer-aided design and drafting Current Computer-Aided Design software packages range from 2D vector-based drafting systems to The CAD software industry can be used solely for creating 2-D and 3-D designs, other products can be linked to construction cost databases, thus giving users the option to click on a window and see data such as a model number and its cost. Finally, today's CAD systems also provide functionality for Web-based collaboration, for turning 3-D models into animations or videos for prospective clients, and for publishing designs onto surveying applications such as Google Earth. Computer-Aided Design is one part of the whole Digital Product Development (DPD) activity within the Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) process, and as such is used together with other tools, which are either integrated modules or stand-alone products, such as: Computer-aided engineering (CAE) and Finite element analysis (FEA) Computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) including instructions to Computer Numerical Control (CNC) machines Photo realistic rendering Document management and revision control using Product Data Management (PDM). CAD standards Comparison of CAD editors for AEC (architecture, engineering and construction) Comparison of CAD editors for CAM (computer-aided manufacturing) Comparison of CAD editors for CAE (Computer Aided Engineering) Comparison of Free EDA software (Electronic Design Automation) 3D computer graphics software Comparison of 3D computer graphics software Digital architecture Electronic design automation ISO 128 List of CAD companies Molecular design software INTRODUCTION ABOUT THE COMPANY EGS Computers India Private Limited, since inception in 1993, has been providing solutions in the areas of product design, Validation and Engineering Simulation for customers in India. EGS India is an authorized reseller of SolidWorks CAD/CAE/PDM Software Since 1999. EGS is a World-Wide consulting company in Product Design, Finite Element Analysis, Simulation and Development for Machinery, Automobile OEM's and their suppliers, Agriculture, Automotive, Process, Machine Tool, Material Handling Applications and Special Purpose Machines (SPM) SolidWorks Technical support team at EGS India has been delivering Engineering Design Solutions to demanding customers requirements in applications ranging from automotive, material handling, machinery development to power, process and allied industries world-wide for Services, Software and Training Requirements. EGS India has invested in latest engineering tools in the areas of CAD and FEA to augment the Design Capabilities and Complement Engineering Experience built over years of delivering successful customer-driven solutions. Activities at EGS India Array of Product Design activities ranging from concept design to engineering drawing release while focussing on Fit, Form and Function using SolidWorks for Customers in Chennai, Coimbatore, Bangalore, Pune, Mumbai and Rest of India Simulation and Validation using Finite Element Analysis techniques from Linear to Highly Non-Linear Domains Reseller SolidWorks CAD, SolidWorks Simulation ( Cosmos FEA ), PDMWorks Software Solutions, Chennai, Coimbatore, Trichy, Tamil Nadu, India in the areas of Computer Aided Engineering Customization using SolidWorks for Automation of Design functions including Modelling, Drawing Generation and Knowledge Based Engineering Functions ACADEMIX Training on Advanced Engineering functions to augment Design expertise and refine design procedures for accelerated product development using SolidWorks, Cosmos FEA, Nastran, Patran, LMS, Abaqus software. GD & T Training is conducted by EGS India for customers in Chennai, Coimbatore, Bangalore, Pune, Mumbai, New Delhi and other parts of India to help Indian Manufacturers deliver on High Quality Products ACADEMIX, technical training Division of EGS India has contributed to devolution of knowledge in the areas of Design, Validation, Drawing Development using GD&T concepts for numerous companies in India. Software Sales and Support EGS India has been associated with SolidWorks Corporation – USA, as a Value Added Reseller since 1999, delivering Design Solutions to customers in India. Commitment and Passion to help customers in their Design Functions has helped EGS India earn the trust of Companies, Large and Small, India-wide.

Tyler LeBlanc LeBlanc 1. Essays (1120 words) - Free Essays

Tyler LeBlanc LeBlanc 1. Essays (1120 words) - Free Essays Tyler LeBlanc LeBlanc 1. Prof. Horowitz Enl 110 10/2/2017 Practice #2 Narrative Who Am I ? Story Losing It All I look around the crowded hallways, posters and decorated banners cover the never ending line of lockers. Mature teens stand near the metal walling repping institutions that they would attend shortly after our graduation. I stand out amongst the crowd wearing my same bland clothing, as up to that point no college representative made any effort in reaching out to me let alone throwing their schools apparel at me. I keep my mind optimistic, as I uploaded my football film up to the internet last night so I expect someone to reach out to me soon. Opportunity has finally knocked on my door, as I received a email from two schools last week pertaining their hopes of me attending their institutions on academic and athletic purpose. I scheduled an appointment to meet with the coach from Bryant University within the next couple of minutes and kept in contact with Iowa Western via email. I walk down the hallway after getting the announcement over the loud en t ercomm to go down to the front office to meet with my visitor and my senior advisor. As my clammy hand swings the aged door, a plump giant stranger lunges at me for embrace. The large man introduces himself as Bryant university's offensive coordinator. The over excellous man and I take a seat. Before the older gentleman discussed anything he mentioned I must cut fifty pounds to gain a roster spot. Me being a large LeBlanc 2. E goe d teenage r I informed the coach that I realistically did not see that happening. As soon as the words uttered from my mouth the man without response spontaneously changed his demeanor and swiftly and abruptly walked out of the advisor's office. I sit in the wooden chair in disbelief, trying to comprehend the event that just took place. My approval to Iowa western grasped tight in my hand, I kick the tightly packed suit cases into the barre brick room. From what I seen on the car rid e from the airport to campus through the dull scratched windows of the musty taxi Iowa turns out to be exactly what I knew it would be, nothing but corn . As I roll on to campus grounds, Hours roll by and still no one arrives. Typically one would be content with absensce of their roommate, however lay on the cold plastic fabric bed shuddering from the cold air shooting from the air conditioner placed right above my head. I grow more and more upset at myself, as if I swallowed my pride I could be in a D1 program in a warm catered dorm room. I swore to myself from this moment on I will make best of every moment of my life so I would never hit bottom like this once more. My mind schemed on exactly what must improve and how will I implement those ideals into my everyday life. I will not let my short comings define m e. I kept optimism and "saw my new circumstances as an opportunity to change, to move in a new direction. My breaths grew shorter as my legs churned faster and harder down the heavily cracked cement. Repetitive acrid comments jutt at my mind like tiny daggers cutting shallow yet swift. Sweat, yes sweat is more over the most uncomfortable factor of all this unnecessary bullshit, as my drenched grey T- Shirt alludes onlookers in believing I might have been running LeBlanc 3. home distraught as I just came in second place in a wet T - shirt competition. My routine image of my final destination is slowly blurring into my congested mind as I continuously fight the urge of halting. Once again I ruffle into three layers of scratchy long sleeve thermal shirts, and jump into my oversized Black- Grey champion sweat pants. I now turn my attention to my abbist of a shoe container. My stubby fingers buckle under t he plastic lid as I lift to jar free the refreshing smell of a large arrangement of over worked sneakers. I pull out the

Talking Writing, Music and Editing with Tom Flood

Talking Writing, Music and Editing with Tom Flood Talking Writing, Music and Editing with Tom Flood Tom Flood helped us refine Reedsy from our earliest days. Now we want to share his amazing story. From songwriting to novels and finally manuscript editing, Tom has honed his knowledge of the writing craft over the years, and contributes today to our (aspirationally) literary blog.In one of our most in-depth interviews so far, what started as a conversation about Tom’s agency Flood Manuscripts moved on to cover his work as an editor, a writer, and an independent musician.Tom analyses the oft-invoked parallel between book and music publishing and what the future holds for both these industries. He also shares his own experience as a writer - he made this great observation about identifying oneself as a writer:â€Å"When people ask, ‘What do you do?’ and I answer, ‘Writer, editor, musician,’ the next question is invariably ‘Oh, what do you play?’ Writing is both less and more mysterious. Nearly everyone writes, so it engenders the second q uestion ‘What do you write?’ way less often. The more revealing ‘How do you write like that?’ comes rarely. People think skill in musicianship comes with practice and dexterity, but skill in creative writing? Like art, they believe it’s a gift. The reality is they’re the same.†His tripartite career gives Tom a unique lens through which to see what’s happening right now in the new world of publishing. His advice to writers is both practical / motivating - persevere, keep going - and informed by years of experience editing self-published authors.Hi Tom, you have an impressive portfolio and experience in writing, editing and proofreading. Which one came first in your career? In other words, what made you become an editor?Thanks, Ricardo. I came to editing via writing. I have always been a songwriter but in the 80s, buoyed by a boom of new Australian fiction engendered by the infrastructure built by the short-lived, ground-breaking Le ft government of the 70s, I began to try my pen at short stories, got one published in a short-lived journal, and finding that slow going, switched to the big picture of the novel. The success of that move (three national awards) led to connections in the world of publishing and I began occasional award judging, assessment through our major residential writers’ centre, and some editing for publishers throughout the 90s, also being commissioned to write a theatre piece and a feature film. That all petered out as I moved back towards music performance and had a stab at academia.In 2003, with a string of part-time jobs, and looking to find new income streams, I began working through the net for a few large assessment/appraisal services in other states, a relatively new industry, reading and advising across a wide range of prose writing. A year later my artist partner suggested I start my own to fund living through a PhD, and a writing client created the first Flood Manuscripts w ebsite. Within a year it was full-time assessment and clients began to ask if I would mentor them, act as agent, ghostwriter and all manner of services I had no intention of taking up. Dumping the doctorate to ride the growing self-pub wave with Flood Manuscripts, the next step was mentoring, structural editing and copy editing, and finally proofreading, as Aussie writers began to become impatient with the trade publishers and adept at dealing with the digital, their needs evolving. I keep the service personal, despite many suggestions to expand into an agency, because I like to be at the coalface.You have also both won and been a judge to major writing awards in Australia, how did that start, and what do these awards represent for you as an author? (Is that just a nice acknowledgement of your craft or something you’re genuinely proud of?)Awards! Without them Flood Manuscripts wouldn’t exist. Despite both parents writing pretty successfully (my mother, Dorothy Hewett, was a well-known poet and playwright), neither had published with a mainstream press. I made my name in fiction by winning our premier manuscript award, the prize including publication by Allen Unwin, and that novel then took out more awards, including our oldest and best known fiction prize, the Miles Franklin Award. Everything else I have been lucky enough to be involved with has stemmed from those awards. Flood Manuscripts’ clients have since taken out even more awards, mostly international, and yes, I’m very proud to be a small part of that.We are in London, and most of our audience is in the US. But you live in Australia, so can you tell us how the publishing landscape looks like over there? How â€Å"big† are ebooks and self-publishing?I think we’re trailing a decade behind USA in some aspects, particularly genre, as we are a small market and still retain a certain English literariness in our publishing landscape, largely fed by our tertiary educat ion system. That said, we were and still are ahead in acceptance of manuscript assessment /appraisal as an essential part of that landscape. Once convinced, Australians do have a fast technology take-up and self-pub is really developing into a snowball.Has the â€Å"digital revolution† truly changed your career, or do you feel you continue working with authors more or less like you did before?Flood Manuscripts is a child of the digital ‘revolution’. 98% of my work is sourced, contracted, paid and completed via the net. That has grown from about 70% over a decade. I’m receiving around one paper manuscript a year. I prefer to read and edit digitally for work, although I still like to read paper for pleasure. I like the ancient craft of bookbinding. It will be a shame if we lose that art form to the economics of the trade.Songwriting, though, has not changed for me. The pen is still mighty, the pencil mightier, and scraps of waste paper litter the study on ev ery surface. With the novel, I began handwriting it in ‘85, moved to a borrowed typewriter, then a borrowed word processor, and finally finished the last drafts on a redundant computer with bootlegged software (WordStar) from my partner’s work place. I was over 30, on the dole, and on the rebound from an art pop band in Sydney. I don’t think I actually got on the net until 2003.This is a traditional question in our interviews: does working directly with an author (indie or hybrid) make it easier or harder for you? Does the absence of a traditional publishing structure change the way you communicate with the author?Except in the early days before Flood Manuscripts, I’ve almost always worked directly with authors. I don’t court the trade publishers because there are so few here and they don’t outsource much anyway. How it continues to change is in the speed, volume and creativity of new digital ventures and what they offer to litworkers. As an assessor, keeping up with even a small part of that change is a challenge.You are also a musician, singer and songwriter in the acoustic trio Blues Angels. The music industry and the publishing one are often compared, many people proclaiming that what happened in music will happen to books. What’s your opinion on that?Conventional wisdom has had the popular music evolution in four phases: 1) sign with a big label; 2) music publishers make big money from big musicians and use some of those profits to develop new talent; 3) big musicians realise they’re leaving money on the table and set up their own labels (self-publishing), resulting in music publishers dwindling and new musicians having no corporate sponsorship; 4) digi-platforms like iTunes do the same as Amazon/KDP/Kindle and new musicians go direct to consumers (less 30%), but there is new pressure to discount or give away material for free; and we can now add phase 5) big musicians realise how much money they are leaving on the distributors’ table and abandon digital platforms (Taylor Swift/Spotify, Radiohead /iTunes). New musicians have no sponsor, make no money from Spotify and can’t sell on iTunes without a massive marketing spend.The book trade significantly differs to music in that it doesn’t have a regular large performance aspect, although writers are often performers at festivals, schools, readings, etc., and libraries aren’t really a power in the same way in the music trade, although ideas like Self-E and the digital library may significantly endanger lending rights payments in the pursuit of ‘going viral’. It’s not a matter of ‘will happen’; it already has, at least to level 4. Writing, like music, has gone digital and that digital product is being given away in the millions to create traction towards a fame of sorts and is being streamed, not quite like Spotify et al, through Kindle Owners Lending Library, but podcasting and YouTube are pushing text more into performance re audiobooks, book trailers, and even as the music industry has been digitally driven back towards the single as its principal product, so Kindle Shorts, blogging, social media publishing and other developments continue to drive fiction back towards the heyday of shorter forms. Will this be a boon to poetry? It should be, but I haven’t seen a Shorts- or YouTube-based boom in verse, though it’s early days yet. I do see bundling going on in either form by both indies and trade, both live and product-based, and I expect we’ll see even more specific-subject social media appearing, like mootis, a Twitter for legals, and new models for crowdfunding, like Patreon.This is the big picture, but as with BluesAngels, who don’t operate in the world of popular music, we do our gigs and small festivals, make our recordings and sell our music at those live gigs, then rinse and repeat. Sure, we’ve put it up digit ally on iTunes and Spotify, but we don’t expect to compete with the pop forms; we don’t have that kind of money. So far we’ve made eight cents from streaming. Indie authors can and do still exist at this same level. I have a long term client with Flood Manuscripts who self-pubbed a hardback verse novel, offset printed, and took it on the road to sell – door to door! He’s sold 15,000 over a number of years, making him a best seller in Australian poetry, and funded an audio CD, but he doesn’t register on Bookscan, nor have the poetry awards or Amazon ever heard of him.A hard question now: do you prefer being an author, and editor or a musician? Where do you feel you have more creative freedom?The last one was hard. Creative freedom might just be a curse to some. Many artists prefer a given structure within which to work, although I’m not one of them. Some like to push the boundaries of form, others to innovate within those boundaries, a nd others prefer to capitalise on proven market structures. Creative freedom is not a term I think about or relate to, perhaps because I have it? Perhaps not: like writers’ block, I don’t think you can pin down what it is. As to author, editor, musician, all three can be personally satisfying.Some say that certain media are better than others to express a particular message. Do you think music allows you to express some things that you cannot in writing, and vice-versa?As an aural form based on sound, not words, and not limited by language, only taste, music is probably capable of appealing more indefinably to the emotions, but I’m a songster, so for me it’s a vehicle to carry fewer words more urgently to the audience, kinda like poetry, but it can and does operate differently. Unlike writing, there are also visible tools, and people do appreciate visible, live craft. When people ask, ‘What do you do?’ and I answer, ‘Writer, editor, mus ician,’ the next question is invariably ‘Oh, what do you play?’ Writing is both less and more mysterious. Nearly everyone writes, so it engenders the second question ‘What do you write?’ way less often. The more revealing ‘How do you write like that?’ comes rarely. People think skill in musicianship comes with practice and dexterity, but skill in creative writing? Like art, they believe it’s a gift. The reality is they’re the same.Finally, if you had one word of advice for authors (mainstream, indie, hybrid) in 2015, what would it be?I’m a novelist! Even tweets give us more than one word, but when it comes to publishing, I shuffle between ‘Persevere’ and ‘Quit’, but ‘Time Management’ may be two words worth contemplating. Things are both worse and better for authors than at any time in the history of printing, but the history of authors is millennia older. What we’re seein g today is the very rapid furthering of the democratisation of publishing. Making money is a relatively new notion in that history. What is an author? A writer: or a writer who is published? With the rise of self-pub, ‘is published’ is changing to ‘has published’, from passive to active, but an author is simply an originator. So my advice to authors, as always, is mundane; if you enjoy writing, keep learning by reading and doing, and you will be constantly challenged to go further. It is principally a vocation. If you want to become a publisher, you’re back to square one – an ingà ©nue - set out to learn your new set of jobs thoroughly, and keep learning and doing.Thanks a lot for your time, Tom, and for sharing these fantastic insights with us.Thanks, Ricardo, for this opportunity, and thanks to the Reedsy crew for authoring this quality new service.Follow Flood Manuscripts and Reedsy on Facebook!What do you think about Tom’s story? A re we right in drawing parallels between the book and music industries? What fundamental differences do you see, and what’s the future going to look like? Leave us your thoughts, along with any question for Tom, in the comments below.