Prom Nights from Hell Chapter Ten

It worked perfectly. Almost. There were six guards blocking the exits and another four at the door, checking everyone as they left. Ten total. All in body armor and masks, explaining patiently that there had been a bomb threat and it was important to evacuate as quickly as possible. No one questioned why they were armed with the automatic weapons they kept using to push the crowd along. No one except Dr. Trope, who went up to one of them and said, â€Å"Young man, I ask you to keep your weapons away from my students,† distracting him just long enough for Miranda and Sibby to get swallowed into the middle of the crowd. They'd navigated by the first two storm troopers, with only two left when Ariel yelled, â€Å"Dr. Trope? Dr. Trope? Look, there she is, Miranda Kiss. I told you she crashed the prom. She's right there in the middle. You have to-â€Å" Four men with automatic weapons suddenly swiveled and waded into the mass of students. Miranda whispered, â€Å"Duck,† to Sibby and the two of them bobbed beneath the surface of the crowd, crawling back into the Great Hall. Behind her she heard Dr. Trope saying, â€Å"Where is she? Where did she go? I'm not leaving one of my pupils in there.† And the storm trooper saying, â€Å"Please, sir, you need to evacuate. We'll find her. Rest assured.† Miranda decided that if she got out of this alive, she'd be a lot nicer to Dr. Trope. If. She dragged Sibby over to Old Faithful and said, â€Å"In there. Now.† â€Å"Why can't I hide in the White House? Why does it have to be in the volcano?† â€Å"I might need part of the White House. Please, just do it. They won't be able to make you out if they have night goggles.† â€Å"What about you? You're wearing white.† â€Å"I match the decorations.† â€Å"Wow, you're really good at this. This planning stuff. How'd you learn how to-â€Å" Miranda was wondering the same thing. Wondering why as soon as she'd heard the announcement some part of her brain had started measuring her distance to the exits, looking around for weapons, watching the door. Her senses going into overdrive was a relief; it meant some of her powers were cooperating. But did she have the strength to take on ten armed men? The most she'd ever taken on at one time before was three, and they hadn't been toting machine guns. She'd have to be crafty rather than direct. She said to Sibby, â€Å"Give me your boots.† â€Å"For what?† â€Å"To get rid of some of our competition so we can get out of here.† â€Å"But I really like these-â€Å" â€Å"Give them to me. And also a rubber bracelet.† Miranda set her trap, then held her breath as a guard approached. She heard him say into the walkie-talkie, â€Å"Southwest pillar. I've got one,† and saw the ribbons stir as he used the butt of his gun to push them aside. Heard him say, â€Å"What the-â€Å" And fired George Washington's sugar nose at him with the slingshot she'd made out of Sibby's rubber bracelet and a fork. All her target work paid off because it hit him at exactly the right point to send him plunging forward. He went down headfirst just hard enough to be disoriented and docile while she tied his hands and feet with the ribbons from the pillar. â€Å"I'm really sorry,† she said, flipping him over to gag him with a piece of dinner roll, then smiled. â€Å"Oh, hi, Craig. Not your day, is it? I hope your head's feeling better. What? It's not? It will. Try rubbing some insta-hot on your wrists and ankles when they untie you. Bye.† She'd just grabbed the boots she'd used at the base of the column as a decoy when she heard another guard coming fast from her left. She threw a boot at him Frisbee style and heard a satisfying swack as he fell down, too. Two down, eight to go. She was apologizing to the one she'd hit with the shoe, who was out cold-it was nice to know ankle boots were good for something-when the walkie-talkie on his belt came to life. â€Å"Leon, this is the Gardener. Where are you? State your position. Copy?† Miranda picked up the unconscious guard's walkie-talkie and said into it, â€Å"I thought your name was Caleb Reynolds, Deputy. Why the Gardener stuff? Or, as my friend likes to call you, Plant Boy.† A crackle. Then Deputy Reynolds's voice through the walkie-talkie. â€Å"Miranda? Is that you? Where are you? Miranda?† â€Å"Right here,† she whispered in his ear. She'd snuck up behind him, and now as he turned, her arm came around his neck with the heel of the boot pointed at his throat. â€Å"What are you stabbing me with?† he asked. â€Å"All you need to know is that it's going to cause you a lot of pain and probably a bad infection if you don't start telling me how many people there are here and what their plan is.† â€Å"There are ten in here, five more watching the exits outside. But I'm on your side.† â€Å"Really, Gardener? That's not how it looked at the house.† â€Å"You didn't give me a chance to talk to the girl.† â€Å"You're going to have to do better than that. I'm not a mix tape, you can't play me.† â€Å"Do you have any idea what she is?† † What she is? Not really.† His heart rate sped up now. â€Å"She's a real-life flesh-and-blood prophet. The Cumean Sibyl. She's one of ten people who between them supposedly know and can control the whole future of the world.† â€Å"Wow. I thought she was just an annoying fourteen-year-old with wild hormones.† â€Å"The Sibyl operates through different bodies. Or that's what they think. These people I'm working with. Wack jobs. They pretend they want to protect her, keep her prophecies from being exploited by the unscrupulous, but I think they're actually into extortion. I heard one of them say they could ransom the girl for eight figures.† His heart rate slowed as he talked. â€Å"My job was to find out where she was supposed to be picked up, so they could send someone there with some trinket of hers to show we had her, and get the Overseer to pay up.† Miranda didn't like the sound of the word trinket at all. â€Å"But you weren't going to?† â€Å"They're just using this religion stuff as a cover for their greed. It's disgusting. I'm all set to stop them, and then you†-getting agitated, his heartbeat spiking-â€Å"you come along in the middle and mess it up.† Miranda knew he was genuinely angry. â€Å"Stop them how?† â€Å"I was supposed to be getting the location of her pickup place from her, right? When you crashed in, I was going to tell her what to say, a place I'd picked out with the task force, then when the wackos went there, they'd be picked up by the police. Meanwhile I'd get the Sibyl safely to the real rendezvous. But you come in and blow it. Months of police work down the tubes.† His heartbeat was slow and even again. Miranda let him go. â€Å"I'm so sorry,† she said. He turned to scowl at her, changing it to a half smile when he saw what she was wearing. â€Å"Nice look on you.† He paused for a second, then said, â€Å"You know, there's a way we could still make this work. Do you have another outfit like that?† â€Å"My skating uniform? Yeah. But it's not the same color. It's more blue.† â€Å"That doesn't matter as long as it's close. With you two dressed as twins we'll be able to fool them into thinking that you're the Sibyl, use you as a decoy while we sneak her out to safety.† Talking quickly, he outlined the rest of his plan. Miranda said, â€Å"It would be better if we wore the wigs and masks, too. To complete the disguise.† â€Å"That's right. Perfect. Go toward the employee entrance, the one you used to sneak in. There's someone guarding the outer door but there's a door on the left that is clear. It goes to an office. I'll deal with these guys and then come-â€Å" He stopped talking, lifted his gun, and fired behind her. Turning, Miranda saw he'd shot one of the guards. â€Å"He saw us together,† he told her. â€Å"I couldn't let one of those bastards get you or tell the others. I'll distract them, keep them over here. You get the Sibyl, change, and wait for me in the office.† She was already moving away when she paused and said, â€Å"How did you find us?† His heartbeat slowed. â€Å"Put out a bulletin on your car.† â€Å"I should have thought of that,† Miranda said, then took off as he radioed, â€Å"Man down-man down.† Sibby was frantic when Miranda got back to her. â€Å"What happened? Did you get shot?† â€Å"No. I got us a ride out of here.† â€Å"How?† Miranda explained as they changed, then skirted the edges of the Great Hall toward the director's office. As they moved, she heard Deputy Reynolds barking orders to the guards, keeping them busy in other parts of the room, saying at one point, â€Å"No, don't turn on the lights-that will give them an advantage!† At another, heard a grunt of pain that sounded like someone being knocked out. She was impressed. They reached the director's office without running into anyone. Sibby sat in the desk chair. Miranda was pacing, walking back and forth to the ticktock of the big clock on the director's mantelpiece, picking up and putting down objects, a crystal bowl, a box of stationery, weighing them in her hand. A family picture of a man, woman, two small boys, a dog sitting together at the edge of a pier with the sun setting behind them. The dog was wearing someone's hat, a real full member of the family. A hand came down in front of the picture. â€Å"Hello, Miranda? I was asking you something?† Miranda put the picture down. â€Å"Sorry. What?† â€Å"How do you know you're right about him?† â€Å"I just do. Trust me.† â€Å"But if you're wrong-â€Å" â€Å"I'm not.† The clock ticked. Miranda paced. Sibby said, â€Å"I hate that clock.† Tick. Pace. Sibby: â€Å"I'm not sure I can do this.† Miranda stopped and looked at her. â€Å"Of course you can.† â€Å"I'm not brave like you.† â€Å"Excuse me? The girl who got-how many guys is it now? Twenty-three?† â€Å"Twenty-four.† â€Å"Twenty-four guys to kiss her? You're brave.† Miranda hesitated. â€Å"Know how many guys I've kissed?† â€Å"How many?† â€Å"Three.† Sibby gaped at her, burst out laughing. â€Å"Gods, no wonder you're so repressed. This had better work or you'll have had one seriously sad life.† â€Å"Thanks.†

Mother/Daughter Relationship in “I Stand Here Ironing”

There are numerous reasons why a child behaves in a certain way or why he or she grew up to be the person they are now.   Experts say that how a mother brings up her kid greatly affects the psychological thinking of her child.   Well, besides the other factors like race, environment, health, and education, they say that mothers have a great role in the nurturing of their child.   This is shown in the works, â€Å"I Stand Here Ironing† by Tillie Olsen and â€Å"Two Kinds† by Amy Tan.   However, it was mother-daughter relationship shown in these emotion-steering novels. In the first novel mentioned, â€Å"I Stand Here Ironing†, this featured a mother who let the so-called experts take care of her child.   She thinks that the experts know what is best for her child (http://litsum.com/i-stand-here-ironing/analysis001.php).   Although she does want to follow the rules of these experts but she was forced to do so because she does not have any other choice (http://litsum.com/i-stand-here-ironing/). However, the environment also plays a large role why she was forced to follow the experts in sending her child, Emily, to nursery at a very early age, and sending her to a recuperative home where she moves by numbers, where she was not free to do what she wants and Emily was not even allowed to have physical contact with her parents.   And during this time, America was experiencing the Great Depression.   It was hard for the mother to manage their home, take care of young Emily, and it was most difficult to work. And because she had to work, she did not have ample time to spend with Emily.   It even got to a point where she had to let her parents-in-law to take care of Emily.   It was also a huge adjustment when her mother remarried but things got worse when she had four younger siblings.   There was also a time when the mother was pregnant with her second daughter and Emily got measles.   She was not permitted to come close her mother for the safety of not only her mother but also the baby.   As for school, Emily performed not at all satisfactory. Having four siblings to take care of, she can only study at night when all of them are already asleep.   Not to mention that her brothers and sisters were the culprit for scribbles on important material and missing books.   Emily was not at all close to her mother no matter how her mother tried to be close to her.   Her mother was too busy doing other things that she had not been really in touch with her daughter. Emily was always left alone.   On the contrary, she had a knack for arts and comedy.   Though her childhood can be classified as bleak, she can be found shining through the art of comedy.   It is quite remarkable that Emily had made it through it all without the actual help and guidance of her mother.   Unexpectedly, she found her real self, what her passion was without the supervision of her mother. The latter novel, â€Å"Two Kinds†, was presented as a mother prompting her child to excel in all fields especially in the field where the mother thinks that the child has a lot of potential at.   It was a novel wherein the child was forced to follow what her mother wants her to be.   It was a novel wherein the mother takes control of the life of the child.   She will determine the future of the child.   And great depression and misery await if their wants are not obeyed.   It involves kids prodded to be stars and geniuses. Well, it is usual for mothers to want the best for their children.   Although, sometimes, it gets worse that the children are not allowed to make their own choices.   Why do mothers, not only mothers but the same goes for both parents, behave this way?   This may be due to competition with other parents that they have produced a genius.   Or it may be due to their wants as kids that they did not achieve, so they want their children to be what they want to be.   Sometimes, the child becomes a rebel due to this kind of bearing. The child rearing style of the two novels are not exactly correct but it was the best they can think of.   The first was too lenient while the latter, too strict.   Although both mothers idolize the famous Shirley Temple, the first mother let he child be what she wants to be, while the other wanted her child to be a star.   Furthermore, both daughters achieved what they want to be in the end, but in different ways.   One was hiding from her mother and the other, from rebellion.   It is queer enough to think that no matter how a mother brings up her child, it would be the child’s decision who she wants to be and how she is going to make it there. REFERENCES BookRags Student Essays on â€Å"Two Kinds† by Amy Tan. 2000-2006. http://www.bookrags.com/essay-2005/11/10/16231/007. I Stand Here Ironing Summary, Detailed Analysis. http://litsum.com/i-stand-here-ironing/analysis001.php I Stand Here Ironing Summary, Detailed Summary. http://litsum.com/i-stand-here-ironing/ http://www.angelfire.com/ma/MyGuardianangels/index9.html http://www.angelfire.com/ma/MyGuardianangels/index10.html http://www.angelfire.com/ma/MyGuardianangels/index11.html http://www.angelfire.com/ma/MyGuardianangels/index12.html      

Human Resources Management World Wide Fund For Nature ( WWF) Essay

Human Resources Management World Wide Fund For Nature ( WWF) - Essay Example As the essay declares the process of hiring and sourcing the right balance in an organisation is a continuous one that involves regular adjustments in the employee mix. The WWF pools together people of different talent and the grouping of these people is essential in the organisation realising its overall goals and objectives. According to the report findings the human resource through the monetary gains. The positions in these organisations can be filled with people who are able and willing to take the available positions. Most charitable organisations provide accurate and realistic skill specifications for the particular positions advertised. The job expectations for specific opportunities are essentially communicated through job descriptions. Oxfam for instance, attaches the job description in the call for vacancies. The emphasis on the right candidates is because of the risk that charitable organisations undergo in fulfilling their duties. The approach in most charitable organisations is inclined towards selecting candidates that are best suited for the specific job. Performance appraisals are also a preferred way of boosting the performance of employees. Most charitable organisations prefer internal recruitments that are based on the organisation’s recruitment policies. Save the Children for in stance, gives preference to internal appraisals before they consider hiring externally. Many not for profit organisations have realized that recruitment success is achieved through incisive analysis of the potential of prospective employees must be done.

Introduction Development Economies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Introduction Development Economies - Essay Example Inequality in Human Development Index (HDI) is masked in the human development distribution across the population at the country level. The HDI value of Senegal is 0.470. However, when discounted for inequality, the value reduces to 0.315. This equals a loss of 33% as a result of inequality in distribution of indices of dimension. Uganda and Senegal indicate loses as a result of inequality of 34.2% and 33.9% respectively. The average loss resulting from inequality for Sub-Sahara Africa is 35% and 35% for low HDI countries. ii) Over the last two decades, the GII of Senegal has resulted to a loss in human development following the inequality between achievements made by males and females in the three dimensions of GII. Question 2 i) Poverty level in Senegal is high. Over the past 25 years, the GDP per capita has been declining. Citizens of Senegal spent lots of their money on necessities of life, such as food. The UNDP, an organization which classifies countries according to their scor e in the HDI, estimated that 52% of Senegalese household consumption is food unlike in the U.S, where food averages to 8% of household consumption. ... Due to poor land management, Senegal has experienced and degradation, which has been worsening in the recent years. This has, in turn, increased poverty levels in the country. Education, drinking water, medicine, transport and energy are also major problems in some parts of Senegal. Diseases like malaria, AIDS and cholera are widespread in Senegal thus increasing the cost used on medicine. This raises poverty levels of the country. With regard to human resources, Senegal has a high rate of unemployment and under-employment. The ratio of the employed and the unemployed people is one to five. This suggests that there is high dependency rate, which is one of the issues that impact pressure on working individuals whose chances of falling into monetary poverty becomes high. Highest percentage of unemployment is experienced in rural areas which make the youths and active women to migrate to towns. Since illiteracy levels are high in rural areas, people largely rely on Agriculture as their main economic activity which is, unfortunately, prone to natural hazards like drought. Highest rates of unemployment are found among young graduates. Compared to Senegal, poverty levels in Cote d’Ivoire and Uganda are higher. ii) In the recent 20 years, there has been poverty evolution in Senegal whereby the country has been involved in war against poverty. Over the years, the social and economic policies were prepared to put lots of strain in the labor market, education and health structures, urbanization and low and erratic economic growth. The state has been ensuring that the microeconomic framework is stable by reducing external imbalance and containing public deficit with the aim of raising the living standards of the citizens. There has been trade

Tort Coursework Resit Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Tort Coursework Resit - Case Study Example Derek dismissed them. The Court of Appeal the decisions and reasons for the same were upheld. The court did not disturb the findings of fact as the same were admitted. The importance of the decision lies in the court's statement of principle may be stated as the coastguards were under no enforceable private law duty of care to respond to an emergency call and under no duty of care. Although the issue is expressed in this general way, the specific right in question in these appeals, is whether an action for breach of legal duty to take care while performing duties by coastguard can be brought against the Secretary who is responsible for Coastguard. law as to what is the duty to take care. Professor Sir Percy Winfield (1933) (1) defined a tort as 'the breach of a duty primarily fixed by the law, where the duty is one towards persons generally and its breach is redressible by an action for damages.' This necessarily implies that to succeed in an action the plaintiff must prove that In the absence of such legal duty negligence has no legal consequence. In Brett M.R. in Heaven v. Pender (2) it was established that under certain circumstances, one man may owe a duty to another, even though there is no privity of contract between them. Dicta of Brett M.R. in Heaven v. Pender as considered in 1932 by Lord Atkins J. in Donoghue v. Stevenson (3) laid down a very important principle of determining a duty. He held that "The liability for negligence, whet... Dicta of Brett M.R. in Heaven v. Pender as considered in 1932 by Lord Atkins J. in Donoghue v. Stevenson (3) laid down a very important principle of determining a duty. He held that "The liability for negligence, whether you style it such or treat it as in other systems as a species of "culpa," is no doubt based upon a general public sentiment of moral wrongdoing for which the offender must pay. But acts or omissions which any moral code would censure cannot in a practical world be treated so as to give a right to every person injured by them to demand relief. In this way rules of law arise which limit the range of complainants and the extent of their remedy. The rule that you are to love your neighbour becomes in law, you must not injure your neighbour; and the lawyer's question, Who is my neighbour receives a restricted reply. You must take reasonable care to avoid acts or omissions which you can reasonably foresee would be likely to injure your neighbour. Who, then, in law is my neighbour The answer seems 1. Winfield on Tort, 8th Ed. (1967) 2. (1883) 11 Q.B.D. 509; see also, Thomas v. Quartermaine, (1887) Q.B.D.685, Le Leiver v. Gould (1893) 1 Q.B. 491; Mogul Steamship Co. v. Mcgregor, Gow and Co.Ltd. (1889) 28 ABD 598; Mcrone v. Riding (1938) 1 E.R. 157; Heley v. London Electricity Board (1965) A.C. 778; Phillips v. William Whitely (1938) 1 A.E.R. 566 3. [1932] A.C. 562 to be - persons who are so closely and directly affected by my act that I ought reasonably to have them in contemplation as being so affected when I am directing my mind to the acts or omissions which are called in question. This appears to me to be the doctrine of Heaven v. Pender (11

Business report on Tesco Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Business report on Tesco - Essay Example Tesco Bank is a wholly owned subsidiary of Tesco that was established in 2008. The chief executive officer (CEO) of Tesco is Dave Lewis. Including franchises the firm has 6,814 stores across the globe. The firm also has six online stores. Tesco is a publicly traded company whose stocks are openly sold in the London Stock Exchange (LSE) under the symbol TSCO. As of November 28, 2015 the price of TSCO stocks was $169.15 (Yahoo, 2015). The market capitalization of the company is $13.67 billion. The accounting of the company is based on a fiscal year instead of the natural year. The 2015 fiscal year started on March 1, 2014 and it ended on February 28, 2015. The independent auditor of the company is PricewaterhouseCoopers.  Tesco Bank is a wholly owned subsidiary of Tesco that was established in 2008. The chief executive officer (CEO) of Tesco is Dave Lewis. Including franchises the firm has 6,814 stores across the globe. The firm also has six online stores. Tesco is a publicly traded company whose stocks are openly sold in the London Stock Exchange (LSE) under the symbol TSCO. As of November 28, 2015 the price of TSCO stocks was $169.15 (Yahoo, 2015). The market capitalization of the company is $13.67 billion. The accounting of the company is based on a fiscal year instead of the natural year. The 2015 fiscal year started on March 1, 2014 and it ended on February 28, 2015. The independent auditor of the company is PricewaterhouseCoopers.   In fiscal year 2015 Tesco generated sales of  £62,284 million. The sales of the company decrease by 2% in comparison with the previous year. The net income of the firm in 2015 was a loss of  £5,766 million. In 2014 the firm was able to achieve a profit of  £970 million. The total assets of the firm as of February 28, 2015 were  £44,214 million, while the total equity of the firm at the same date was  £7,071 million. The cash reserve of Tesco at the end of fiscal year 2015 was  £11,819 million. The bad financial p erformance of the firm in 2015 caused the cash reserve of the company to go down by 9.68%. In terms of total liabilities the company owes  £37,143 million. The net margin shows the absolute profitability of a company, while the gross margin is a measure of broad profitability.  

Intellectual Property Rights Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Intellectual Property Rights - Essay Example (Drucker). Again, other eminent writers also speak about entrepreneurship, in terms of its wealth creation abilities. Through innovation, the business creates demand for its products or services, which meets customer or market acceptance and satisfaction. This market acceptance is translated into greater demand for goods, which in turn, over a period of time, results in profits for the entrepreneurs. Thus, as the noted economist, Joseph Schumpeter has said, "from a steady economy, a technical innovation by a single entrepreneur opens up new profitable avenues - therefore, more entrepreneurs are induced to innovate, thereby increasing the profits in the economy as a whole, thereby driving growth." (After Marx: Structural Change and Steady States). This process has to be strategically dealt with, since it has serious market ramifications and could affect market positioning of competitive products, and is of importance in the ultimate success or failure of the product. The legal aspects notwithstanding, it is imperative that innovation to market creates value addition to products/services and delivers aspects or improvements on contemporary products or services. This is important, since new product should justify their position in the market and should consider issues and provide solutions that may not have been addressed by other products. Nobel laureate in economics, Ronald Coase had said that the boundaries of the firm are defined by its transaction costs. It sometimes happens that abstruse information contributes to high track costs, which in turn, leads in many instances of vertically integration. (Davenport et al 2006). Question 2: What forms of protection are available for innovation through Intellectual Property Rights. The forms of protection that are available through intellectual property Rights is in terms of the fact that the patentee enjoys exclusive rights over the patented product(s) and nobody else could seek use of such products without the prior consent of the registered patentee for a period of 20 years. However, the discretion for granting of patent lies with the Patent Office, and it is quite likely that grant of the patent could be delayed , or refused, if the concerned department is of the considered opinion that it could be detrimental to competitive products or could be perceived to enhance monopolistic trends. Financial implications of Patent registry: It needs to be said that patent registration is a financially challenging one, especially in EU countries: (McGinness 2001, P.13). From the table above it is manifest that while the total costs (excluding renewals) are a whooping 49,900 in EU countries, it is just a modest 16,450 in

Choice one of the topic Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Choice one of the topic - Essay Example Generally, quality can be managed by clearly defining quality characteristics, considering how it can be measured, setting quality standards and lastly, monitoring and improving standards (Kelemen, 2002, p.29). Some of the problems in managing quality of service include measurements because it is very difficult to measure something that is not tangible. Another problem is setting or meeting the required standards since it is not easy to meet diverse expectations of different customers. In addition, monitoring and improving quality service is also a challenge because it is extremely difficult to monitor something that cannot be observed. Some scholars equate the concept service quality to satisfaction (Hernon and Whitman 2000, p.14) claiming that service quality is concerned with satisfaction and meeting individuals’ expectations. Agreeably, service managers face different challenges as opposed to production managers and some of these challenges include answering customer call, satisfying customers by providing timely service, ensuring quality service, and time factors among others. This paper presents a discussion on quality, challenges that service managers face as opposed to product managers especially when trying to manage quality. Feigenbaum not only focuses on manufacturing but he also covers various departments which contribute to the quality of the product and services that an organizations offer to satisfy customer’s needs (Knowles, n.d, p.10). Managing quality is one big challenge to many managers in an organization. Product quality covers features, performance and defects among others whereas service quality incorporates time delivery and knowledge of delivery personnel among others. Product features is one way in which quality can be measured in that customers focus on the features of the product as the most important factor in meeting their expectations (Juran, 1989, p.19). Product quality and service quality differ in

Design Activities and Environments Essay Example for Free

Design Activities and Environments Essay 1. Review the definitions of architectural and detailed design and the brief descriptions of high-level design activities at the beginning of the chapter. Which activities are clearly architectural? Which are clearly detailed? Which can be architectural or detailed? Designing the support services architecture and deployment environment and designing the software architecture are clearly architectural. Designing use case realizations and designing the database are clearly detailed. Designing the system and user interfaces and designing the system security and controls can be architectural or detailed. 2. Discuss the evolution of client-server computing from file server to multilayer applications to Web-based applications. What has been the driving force causing this evolution? Where do you think network computing will be in the next five years? Ten years? Cheaper computers, and networks, ubiquitous networking, and the desire of companies to increase the accessibility of their systems to increase the customer base/satisfaction, gain efficiencies from greater inter- and intraorganization coordination, and greater flexibility to reorganize people, processes, and systems. 3. Assume that the deployment environment for a high-volume payment processing system consists of the following: †¢ DB2 DBMS running under the OS/390 operating system on an IBM S/390 mainframe †¢ WebSphere application server running under the Z/OS operating system on an IBM zSeries 900 mainframe †¢ CORBA-compliant component-based application software written in Java that will be executed by other internal and external systems What are the key architectural design decisions that must be made for the system? When should the decisions be made and who should make them? Outline the subsequent design tasks that should occur after the key architectural design decisions are made. To what extent can the subsequent steps be performed in parallel? Some key architectural decisions to explore include: the key components and subsystems, where each component will execute and how will all of the pieces interoperate (which requires nailing down how the network, CORBA, and database infrastructure will be configured)? Many of the decisions depend on whether the supporting infrastructure is already in place. If it is, then many of the architectural decisions can be delayed until much code has been written and tested. If not, then the required infrastructure and tools will have to be acquired and configured. Developers will have to be trained, and architectural design will need to occur early to ensure that the developers don’t make any â€Å"mistakes† due to lack of fit with the development or deployment environment. Note that an OO development approach is assumed given the nature of the infrastructure and tools 4. Develop a network diagram that supports the architectural design decisions in your answer to number 2. Answers will vary. Some important points that should be included are: File servers just sent the data across the network. They tended to use lots of bandwidth, because the entire file was sent. Also, since the applications that processed the data were on all the different workstations, deployment and maintenance of these applications was expensive. Application servers moved the applications from the workstations (clients) to the server. This made it easier to maintain a consistent set of applications and to upgrade the applications. This movement was influenced by the appearance of â€Å"thin clients† that had very little storage, but good processing capability. However, due to the drastic reduction in storage costs, thin clients have not caught on. Multi-tier networks are where multiple servers and clients work together to provide the complete functionality of a system. Some processing will be on the clients. Servers such as database servers and application servers provide additional capability. The driving force behind much of this is the rapid growth and capability of the Internet and languages such as JAVA with protocols such as J2EE. Microsoft’s .NET also provides capabilities to have distributed systems. Answers for the future will vary.

Finance Essays Financial Management

Finance Essays Financial Management Role of financial management in Wolfson Microelectronics plc. TASK 1: Financial management is related to the acquisition, financing and management of assets with a future goal and planning. Efficient financial management requires the laying down an objective or goal, because judgement whether a financial decision has been rightly taken or not must be in light of some standard. The most important goal of a firm in financial context is to maximize the value (wealth) of firm and of the shares holders’ wealth. Maximizing the wealth of share holders (owners) of the firm is judged by the effect of share price which is the result of business decisions. Thus we define role of financial management into three areas: Investments: Investment decisions for an investor are based on historical prices and security analysis of financial assets such as stocks and bonds. However from company’s point of view investment is all about finding out new feasible ways to manage the business mainly in area of production, distribution and marketing. Further more, company also considers which portfolio of the different types of financial assets to hold. A common example could be common stocks, preferred stocks, bonds and debentures etc. With regard of Wolfson Microelectronics, it made investments in Research and Development of capital equipment and soft wares to $10.6 m alone in 2004. Furthermore, company has intentions to significant contributions to research in the future. As a result value of fixed assets rose to $ 29,680k in the year 2004. Wolfson unveiled two main ideas behind putting capital expenditure (long-term investments):   to time the market requirement decrease production cost by constant research and design Wolfson clearly showed its intention not to distribute retained earnings among its shareholders due to the need of capital expenditure in future projects. The future electronics market belongs to consumer’s digital portable stuff. Wolfson’s management is planning to contribute in this huge market share around the world, making it sure they keep alive with the high demanding consumer market in the future, though they are newly born public listed company in the London Stock exchange. 1. Refer: Balance sheet figures (Pg. 53) of Wolfson Microelectronics plc. Annual  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Report and Accounts 2004 2) Financing: This is the second major issue of the firm as the management needs to ascertain How much money could be available by floating stocks in the market? Based on both factors, a company forms its capital structure. This is also referenced as ‘finance mix’. How much money they could borrow to run their business with getting in trouble of getting default or excess borrowings. Wolfson raised investment money to meet their requirements by issuing stocks (an increase of $ 9105 k) and increasing debt by $ 8273 k. In other words, it financed its projects by issuing stocks and bonds to its stakeholders. Wolfson plc. also mentioned financing of $1204 K as negative-inflow stream as compare to   $39,364 K   in year 2003 in the form of share capital issues and bank term loan. (3.) 3) Dividend policy:   In addition to two important decisions, dividend policy must be viewed as an integral part of the firm’s financing decision. The dividend payout ratio determines the amount of earnings that can be retained in the firm. Dividend payout ratio = Annual Cash dividends Annual earnings Wolfson paid equity dividends of $ 407 K in year 2003 but no dividends were paid in year 2004, but on non-dividend equity, company did not pay dividends to its shareholders. So the dividend payout ratio is Zero for year 2004. As described earlier, it has been clearly mentioned in the annual report to retain all future earnings for investment in development and expansion of business and the management does not expect to pay dividend at least for some years in future. (2.)   However, this is not an encouraging sign for shareholders of Wolfson because stock investors often judge performance of the company stocks by their growth which is possible by declaration of dividends. 2.Refer consolidated cash flow statement (Pg.54) of Wolfson Microelectronics plc. Annual Report and Accounts 2004 3. Notes to Cash flow statement (Pg. 72) of Wolfson Microelectronics plc. Annual Report and Accounts 2004 If we combine the effects of the financing, investment with dividend policy, the relation could be in a shape of three schools of thought: Some argue that Dividend policy is irrelevant because for a company investment and debt decisions are not relevant by the amount of dividend payments. This is also due to the fact when we say that capital markets are perfect and complete and all information is available regarding market conditions and its constituents (companies). Some say that High dividends increase Stock value. They provide the reason that dividends are more certain than capital gains (price growth of the securities), so a firm which is paying less returns but sticks with the dividends is more attractive for the share holders.   Thirdly, low dividends increase stock value because some argue that dividends actually hurt the investors in shape of taxes, so less dividend income means less tax deduction for the shareholder. TASK 2: Is Wolfson successful to satisfy needs of Shareholders? Certainly not according to the annual report 2004. As we discuss earlier, stock investors are not impressed at all knowing the fact company is not paying dividends, but one has to consider that Wolfson is a new public listed company in London Stock Exchange which has a great impact of its group directors holdings. If we look at the current price trend of Wolfson Micro Electronics plc. (source: uk.finance.yahoo.com), we find that there is good improvement in market price as it is trading above 200p per share from Sept, 2005 to date. The volume of the stock traders is also increased from July onwards, although in odd days there are sudden fall in price and volume which is bit worrying for shareholders. Chart 2.1 But the good aspect is Wolfson stock is performing above average as compare to FTSE index. If we see the chart 2.2, creating good price increase from beginning of this year. Chart 2.2 Let’s talk about the expectation of shareholder and growth rate of stock price in absence of dividends (as in the case of Wolfson). As shown in chart 2.3, if there is a decline in dividends, as a result the expectation level will also be decreasing and so as the price of the stock. A rise in the dividend growth then put the expectation of the investors at increasing level as well as the growth in stock price occur. Chart 2.3 Would it be better if Remuneration package for a Director is based on Shareholders wealth? The concept of shareholder’s wealth arises from the theory that a company should only work solely for the benefit of these people and has responsibilities to its owners. That could be an effective style in management and it sounds very good for the investors. Following points should be observed in this regard: If company is giving dividends to its share holders from the reserves allocated in the company retained earnings then there is a secure feeling for stockholders that they will not lose all of their money if company goes bankrupt. Management if decides to use dividends for increasing future value of the firm by utilizing them in capital expenditures, then this also makes sense for a firm like Wolfson that is involved in digital technology. We know that innovations and inventions are constantly taking place in this industry which means high proportion of firm’s money is spent on RD of new products. We have to bear in mind that distribution of dividends also require transaction cost for a firm to pay in the shareholders account plus dividend   income is taxable for shareholders. Knowing these facts, if were a Director of Wolfson I would not decide in company’s meetings not to distribute dividends to our shareholders at all for number of years. Rather than I would continue to give shareholders at least some amount of returns in form of dividends. Why I should go for the decision, this is because of following reasons Directors and top management are bound by fiduciary duties to act in the good interest of shareholders. Value of my firm will increase if shareholders have more trust in our performance. If we allocate a portion of profit towards them that means that as Directors of Wolfson, we give respect to our shareholders even in tough period of our business cycle (we know our company is new to the stock market but has opportunities to capture its share in the market). Moreover, total shareholder return of Wolfson would be lower than its competitors in the market because when stock investor compares the performance of different companies for his investment, it would be inevitable that share price appreciation and dividends paid are not in a row in our company. The reference group of companies (having similar business) in same sector would also pose threat for us when a shareholder takes investment decision.

Four Conditions for Knowledge Essay -- Essays Papers

Four Conditions for Knowledge I. In this paper, I offer a solution to the Gettier problem by adding a fourth condition to the justified true belief analysis of knowledge. First though, a brief review. Traditionally, knowledge had been accounted for with the justified true belief analysis. To know something, three conditions had to be met: first, you had to have a belief; second, the belief had to be justified; third, this justified belief had to be true. So a justified true belief counts as knowledge. Gettier however showed this analysis to be inadequate as one can have a justified true belief that no one would want to count as knowledge. In the first Gettier counterexample, Smith is justified in believing that Jones is the man who will get the job. Smith’s also justified in believing that Jones has ten coins in his pocket. From that he infers and has a justified belief that the man who will get the job has ten coins in his pocket. It turns out that the man who gets the job is not Jones but Smith, and Smith does in fact have ten coins in his pocket. Smith has a justified true belief that the man who will get the job has ten coins in his pocket. However, this shouldn’t count as knowledge. In the second Gettier counterexample, Smith is justified in believing Jones owns a Ford. Therefore, he’s justified in believing Jones owns a Ford or Brown is in Barcelona. Turns out, Jones doesn’t own a Ford but Brown is in fact in Barcelona. Once again, we have an example of a justified true belief that shouldn’t count as knowledge. ... ...eliefs: (a) I’m in a community of barn facades. (b) That looks like a barn (q), his belief that he sees a barn, isn’t justified, though. Therefore, Dom cannot know (q). The internalism of my account is obvious. What’s required for justification of (q) is different for Henry and Dom because of each’s belief about the kind of environment he is in. It is the belief about the environment and not the environment that matters. In other words, two people could be in the exact same circumstances but what required for justification would be different because of the beliefs they have. Causal accounts of knowledge can’t account for why Henry is justified for (q), but Dom is not. My account is not a causal account; as is shown in the Dom variation above, my account has no problem accounting for the different justifications required for Dom and for Henry.

Chanda’s Secret- Stigma

Sang 1 Sang To Meeraal Shafaat Interpreting Texts 20th December 2012 Final draft AIDS- The stigma of life Since the invention of medicine, never have human beings needed to face as a big challenge as the present: The AIDS epidemic! When people have HIV virus and it continues to develop seriously, the HIV virus badly damages their bodies’ immune systems, which leads them to the risk for opportunistic infections, meaning they easily get sickness without any protection. In this period, their disease will turn into AIDS, which has taken countless lives of people and left the pain for many families in society.Surrounding this incurable disease, there are plenty of intractable problems. Especially the perceptions about AIDS of community and even the patients are not enough to rescue the patient from improper judgments of society. To bear resentment against society for having boycotted the patients, Allan Stratton wrote Chanda’s Secrets. Through this novel, he shows us the rea l lives of AIDS patients, the loss, the loneliness and their tragic fates while facing death in the contemporary society. Not only Africa but also all over the world there is a lot of prejudice and misunderstanding in society about AIDS and the people who get this disease.AIDS is the most horrible disease that everyone fears whether they suffer from it or not. Despite the reason leading to their diseases, they are shunned and despised by community. As Stratton describes Jonah, â€Å"Jonah liked to party† and after Sara was born â€Å"he just stayed at the shebeen getting drunk on shake-shake. † (21) At that time, he usually goes out with Mary and probably that is the reason Sang 2 why he gets AIDS. Until the disease is evidently shown on his body, â€Å"He’s a skeleton. The flesh has been sucked out from under his skin.The skin’s dried so tight to his skull that the bridge of his nose has ripped through. † (106) he is outcast and his sister- Ruth i s the first one to detect his symptoms of disease. She left him because she has to protect herself and her family from being infected. Everyone keeps at a distance from him. He is immediately kicked out of that society and seen as a disgusting creature. This time, he really needs someone to stay with him and protect him from being alienated and folks’ disdain. Occasionally, he sees Mary, the one he used to be close with when he was healthy, in the crowd.He is so happy and he believes that only she can save him this moment- when everyone stays away from him, looks him as an alien, a monster. However, life is not as expected, â€Å"Mary tries to keep behind the Sibandas, but they grab her by the elbows and push her into the front. † (107) Mary is also really scared of his illness so that she pretend not to know him; she callously abandons his honor to protect her identity and prevents from being implicated. Jonah just likes other AIDS patients are seen as a tumor of soci ety that must be eliminated or at least they are isolated from the community.Despite being tired of the disease attacking their health every day, infected persons have to overcome it in loneliness and unhappiness. Infected persons may be rejected even from the people closest to them. They may lose their jobs, their homes or important relationships as a result of people’s negative attitudes about AIDS. Because of the stigma attached to AIDS, people may find it difficult to tell others about their disease. Stratton shows Jonah’s emotions when he asks Mary for help; Mary warns him not to come towards her â€Å"But Jonah does not listen.He staggers forward,† (108) because he really wants someone cares about him. Until Mary throws the stones through Jonah’s face, he puts off catching her. During this time, he is in shock and panic; he cannot believe his sight because the last one he could trust is also leaving him. His Sang 3 desire to escape from this hell is broken. How poor he is now when seeing people turning away without mercy, perhaps he feels mortified and solitary, this place is a proper hell for Jonah and other infected persons.Instead of encouraging AIDS patients, people disdain, avoid meeting them and put contempt into them. These patients not only have to fight against the disease that is taking their lives day by day, but they also have to fight back the community’s prejudices of their unwanted diseases. Victims of AIDS have to face the death without anyone standing by such as Jonah after being abandoned, he just receives an excuse from Mary, â€Å"Sorry, old friend. † (108) Actually, no one can understand the death in the coldness, loneliness, and shame they are suffering.Because of having a disease that people fear and see them as stigmas that need to be prevented from their lives, they are shunned by relatives and all people around them. They feel empty. They are humiliated. There is only a world that is ind icative of their own to cope with illness; they crave the voice, laughter and someone’s care more than ever, but it is just their dreams. The patients know that living with a serious, stigmatized and potentially life-threatening illness can be extremely stressful and difficult, they also scare that society will alienate their family.To avoid the bad reputation of the family being involved infected patients, whether voluntary or forced, most of them have to leave their family. Jonah’s death is probably caused by his pessimistic thoughts about life, no one even look at him and his life means nothing. As a result, not until the disease kills him, his survival ends in the bottom of an abandoned well. In contrast, Chanda’s mother does not die in loneliness but at first, she chooses to leave her children because she wants to protect them. She is smart enough to realize her illness â€Å"Mama’s headaches. Her weariness. Her joints.The way she’s gotten so thin. † (109) so that she pretends to believe in superior that her house has devil and she has to come back Tiro to solve it. Her Sang 4 intention is to die in Tiro and will not come back. The folks will not know about her death and that is the last thing she can do to avoid damaging her children’s lives because of her. She does not want her children live the rest of life with scary and hiding. She makes her children believe that she stays in Tiro or if they know she dies by hearing anyone says, they will not be hurt as much as directly seeing their mother dies.It is true that not every infected person is bad; there are those who have their own problems need to be solved but the reality does not allow them. Hence, the patients’ families will be underestimated. However, the most pitiful victims are still the children. The children may be infected or not, but if they instantly have any of their relatives gets AIDS, they have to endure the fierce wave of public opi nion. The early deep hurt and the loss in life makes children have no fun and opportunities in studying. AIDS brings bad reputations, and then it breaks up many families by carrying away the patients’ lives.As a result, these shocks cause a huge impact on the change of children, which leads to their mental problems or their lives. Stratton also mentions Esther’s parents die because of AIDS. Then no one can take care all of her siblings, they are separated to other relatives’ home (75, 76). Due to being sad and miss her siblings, Esther says â€Å"Well, things are going to change. I have a plan. This time next year we’ll all be together. † (80) This is also the turning point of her life, the way she chooses to earn money in order to bring her siblings back, make her become infected.It can be said that the environment also has an impact on children’s growing up; they easily step into the path of sin. That is why Chanda’s mother decides to sacrifice herself dying in the dark instead of making her children’s lives become dark. Only Jonah is enough, she does not want her children sustain the bad reputation anymore. Stigma and discrimination will kill AIDS patients before the disease kills them. In such a rigorous society, patients are more likely prone in complex, lose their faith and live without Sang 5 responsibility for community.By verbal gestures, people’s contempt can severely affect the psychology of patients and their families. The folks deprive the right to live and social integration of the patients. AIDS takes happiness away, breaks up many hearts. Why don’t people help infected persons get through adversity? If they continue to discriminate with AIDS patients, it will be hard to decrease the number of infected persons. Through Chanda’s Secrets, Stratton wants to show the hardships, consequences and implications of AIDS, which can be decreased or increased, still bases on the to tal awareness.

Hypocritical Holden Essay

Hypocrisy is found in all of us. Many of us have things about ourselves that we don’t want to share with others, and try to hide; perhaps we are trying to hide our hypocrisy. In The Catcher in the Rye, J. D. Salinger expresses through Holden Caulfield that hypocrisy results from not being able to connect with others. Although Holden accuses others of being phony, in reality, Holden is a phony himself and as a result of his hypocrisy, he is unable to connect with others, suggesting that to connect with others one must be able to accept other people’s flaws. Holden defines others as phonies because he is critical and has a negative utlook on the world and the people in it. When Holden makes observations of other people he often defines them as phony. For example, when Holden goes to the movies he observes a lady sitting next to him who is crying during the movie, â€Å"The part that got me was, there was a lady sitting next to me that cried all through the goddam picture. The phonier it got, the more she cried†¦ she had this little kid with her that was bored as hell and had to go to the bathroom but she wouldn’t take him†¦ You take somebody that cries their goddam eyes out over phony stuff in the movies, and nine times out of ten they’re mean bastards at heart.  I’m not kidding† (181). Holden thinks that the woman crying is a phony because she is emotional about a movie which is fake, yet she does not feel bad for the kid who is sitting next to her in real life, who has to go to the bathroom. A woman crying at a movie is what Holden observes and defines as phony behavior. Holden’s negative outlook on the world and the people in it just pushes Holden farther and farther away from people. He is isolating himself. In addition, Holden thinks some words or phrases are phony. When Holden is talking on the phone with a girl he knows, Sally, who says something that Holden thinks is phony. â€Å"I’d love to. Grand. † Grand. If there’s one word I hate, it’s grand. It’s so phony†(106). Holden thinks that the word grand is phony, which may be true to Holden; although the more energy he spends on pointing out â€Å"phonies† the more isolated and unhappy he becomes. Holden is a hypocrite because he is sometimes aware that he is being a phony himself. Holden thinks that he needs to hide his true self from people in order to â€Å"survive†. When Holden is out at Ernie’s and meets up with a girl he knows, Lillian, Holden says something to the Navy guy who was with Lillian that Holden considers phony. Holden addresses the reader, â€Å"I’m always saying â€Å"Glad to’ve met you† to somebody I’m not at all glad I met. If you want to stay alive, you have to say that stuff, though† (87). Holden lies to the navy guy, and also says that he lies to other people when saying this phrase. Although Holden is acting phony, and therefore hypocritical, he is aware of it. He acts phony because he is afraid that sharing his true self with others will interfere with him connecting with others; Holden thinks that he will turn people away because he is different. Holden is different because he is critical, and also eeply caring and emotional. Holden is trying to act like a regular guy so people will like him and be willing to talk with him. Holden is striving to make a connection with someone; anyone. He is just looking for anyone to talk to and make a connection with, but he is afraid to open up to them. Holden tries to fit in with others by being phony when in reality, he hates how most people act. Holden tries not to show his hatred of phonies because then, people would soon realize that Holden is a phony himself. At Ernie’s when Holden meets up with the navy guy, introduced to him by Lillian, Holden hares his true thoughts about the navy guy’s actions with the reader. Holden says, â€Å"He was one of those guys that think they’re being a pansy if they don’t break around forty of your fingers when they shake hands with you. God, I hate that stuff† (86-87). Holden doesn’t like the expectations put on men to act tough; this makes Holden feel insecure. Holden feels that he must hide that he is caring and emotional by being phony. In addition, Holden is sometimes unaware that he is being phony. For example, when he asks his taxi driver Horwitz a question, Holden is unaware that he is being phony. â€Å"Hey, Horwitz,† I said. â€Å"You ever pass by the lagoon in central park? Down by central park south? †Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ â€Å"Well, you know the ducks that swim around in it? In the springtime and all? Do you happen to know where they go in the wintertime, by any chance (81)? †Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ Holden asks Horwitz where the ducks go in the winter time because he is unknowingly comparing his situation to the ducks in the lagoon; Holden wants to know where he goes now that it is â€Å"winter time† and his lagoon, Pencey prep, has frozen. Throughout the book, Holden struggles to find a place where he belongs. He also strives to connect with people. Holden is reluctant to share his true self with people. Asking Horwitz where the ducks go is one of Holden’s â€Å"phony† attempts at making a connection with someone. When Holden acts phony, he shields his true self from people which keeps him from connecting with others. Holden dislikes phonies, and he often criticizes people for being phony, although Holden acts phony himself because he is insecure about himself, which leads to Holden acting phony. J. D. Salinger expresses through Holden that when trying to connect with others, one must act like themselves. Hypocrisy is often inevitable; all of us exhibit hypocrisy.