Information Systems Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Information Systems Management - Essay Example In the nineties, Wal-Mart invested in computer technology, in which their employees use bar code readers in all their stores and distribution outlets (Richmond, 2003). These bar code readers make tracking of goods in stores and also stock management efficient, as different products and shelves have different bar codes which provide real time information on the products. Employees in Wal-Mart use hand held computer systems linked with bar code readers, and this makes the stock management of products easier and economical, as it relieves them from massive paperwork for all orders in place. Moreover, these hand held computers enable the packaging department to get accurate information such as packaging, location, quantity and shipping information on orders. Wal-Mart prides itself for providing customers with the lowest prices available, thus, it embarks on eliminating middlemen from their supply chain and sells directly to their customers from their stores. In order to achieve this, Wal -Mart has embarked to developing a satellite communication system which tracks sales and inventory for all their stores (Richmond, 2003). Thus, it can track credit sales on each department in the supply chain as well as control orders made using this system. The satellite system also assists to transmit important communications across the entire supply chain stores and distribution centres (Cisco, n.d.). Furthermore, with the aid of Cisco systems Wal-Mart has developed a comprehensive network system for its supply chain outlets all over the world. In connection to the satellite system, the network provides an overview of the operations in the whole supply chain outlets. This network allows the Wal-Mart keep track of all the orders and stock levels for each system, hence, suppliers can know the products in stock, ones in high demand and consequently they can supply them efficiently. Cisco has also enabled Wal-Mart to collaborate electronically with suppliers all over the world, as co mpared to the early nineties when Wal-Mart provided suppliers with modems which they used to dial up the Wal-Mart system database. In accessing the database, they can access relevant information on stock levels and inventory work required to place any order (Richmond, 2003). Wal-Mart pays for this service, hence making it reliable and cost effective for the suppliers. Suppliers situated in areas where there is slow internet connectivity, dial up connection which is still available to them for accessing Wal-Mart database. The intranet allows Wal-Mart to deliver company news, new information and policies to all of its stores all over the world and its 950,000 associates (Cisco, n.d.). Wal-Mart has a comprehensive directory of all the suppliers and outlet stores all over the continent, and it is a managerial policy that all employees should be able to communicate with any store at any time. Thus, with this directory, Wal-Mart can contact any store and make orders or take supplies from suppliers, hence it increases the efficiency levels of the store as compared to other suppliers. Wal-Mart has a point of sale system from which they monitor and trail sales and products inventory levels on their shelves in the stores. This POS combined with an algorithm system enables Wal-Mart to forecast and predict market trends and demand for their products. The comprehensive net

Corporate Restructuring and Administrative Rescue Essay

Corporate Restructuring and Administrative Rescue - Essay Example On the other hand, Town and Country Flooring (Norfolk) Limited (TFCN) was incorporated in the year 1984 and was traded as a small contract flooring provider who services the local market place in Norfolk. TCFN has been a stand alone business in complementing Town and Country Flooring Limited. In the year 2005, TCFN was sold to John Maidment, Robin Eglen, Brian Pestana and Jean L Hicks, who acquired TCFL at the same time (Report and Proposals [2], 2008). Pursuing this acquisition, there was an incessant drive to apply further development strategies for both TCFL and TCFN, which was inclusive of increasing the geographical coverage of the group with branches introduced in diversified cities. An armor service series was introduced to TCFN which involved the supply and installation of hygienic wall armor surfaces (Report and Proposals [2], 2008). TCFL grew gradually for many years whilst supplying as well as installing floor coverings, such as carpets and carpet tiles, along with dcor flooring, vinyl as well as wood floor coverings. It served four key markets, developing a powerful stand within the public sector, chief building contractors, new house builders as well as the management of facilities (Report and Proposals [1], 2008). The company has carried out several contracts by purchase order, framework type as well as standard construction industry sub-contracts. As a result, by the year 2002, the business had been performing well and has significantly incremented in infrastructure, both in the turn-over as well as the size of its work-force. This incessant growth strategy generated prosperous results, with turn-over incrementing year on year. However, unfortunately, whilst the turn-over was improvising, the directors were experiencing other problems in the management of expansion program. Overheads, which had incremented across the group so as to provide the continuing drive in order to increase volumes, were influencing on the productivity as well as the cash-flow restrictions were becoming more recurrent. In accordance with some more facts from the Directors' report, the company increased turn-over by 31 per cent during the year it gave rise to a new business unit in the Southern England are (Annual Report, 2006). Nonetheless, with the ending of the year, the Southern Office was shut and the business from there was merged in to another branch. Moreover, in addition to this, the group also experienced intricacies in the recruitment and retaining of a powerful and strong financial director. Currently, within the last six to eight months, many officials quit the business for some personal reasons, which contributed to the factors, together with a general worsening in the market place, meticulously in the construction sector, which construed to the fact that TFCL was facing a challenging period (Report and Pr

Business Plan For Sandton Fitness Centre Marketing Essay

Business Plan For Sandton Fitness Centre Marketing Essay Sandton fitness centre and beauty spa is a new gym that is for everyone (male and female) that creates a comfortable environment for everyone to pursue their fitness goals. It is situation in Sandton at Johannesburg. Sandton fitness centre and beauty spa have the most satisfactory/best equipment, best personal trainers, dietician, special classes and psychologists. Sandton fitness centre and beauty spa is located in the urban where people have a very active life and very little time to spend on fitness and healthy life. Heart disease and obesity are on record high causing increase in health club demand. Low income market segment is ignored by key competitors in the market Club memberships in South Africa have increased every year since 1994 and a strong market makes a strong business. We are a solid investment because start-up sports gyms on average take in 1,000 new members per year. This will allow our business to break even in less than five years. Our club, Sandton Fitness Center will offer its members quality services and benefits that no other club can offer. We want to take investments and use them wisely in order to create a sports facility that pleases customers. In sports clubs, the top five most profitable programs/services are personal training, massage therapy, food/beverages, an aquatics program, and a tennis program. Our gym will provide all of these services and thus increase our productivity. We will build a large complex that will include a pool, personal training facilities, basketball courts, a day spa, tennis courts, and many other features to attract clientele. In Sandton were our fitness center will be situated has 20 to 64 year old population. This means not only that our clientele pools is large but that these people are experienced and have attained the socioeconomic status that will be needed in order to attain and maintain our service. In conclusion, our profitable new gym will be a coordinated effort among four aspiring entrepreneurs to create the ultimate in sports and leisure fitness. Company Description Sandton Fitness Centre and Beauty Spa are focused on teenagers (13+), young adults and adults. Sandton Fitness Centre has its different programs for different age groups. Sandton Fitness Centre is 55,000 square feet. It is located in 1560 Grayston Street, in Sandton. Sandton Fitness Centre and Beauty spa also have a childcare centre, where they look after children while their parents are busy with their workouts. The childcare centre can currently care for 40 children but only 10 infants. Sandton Beauty Spa is a new destination offering customers the combination of full body massage, waxing, body treatments, facials, manicures, pedicures, anti- aging treatments and lasers. Company history Fitness Centre and Beauty spa was created on 14 February 2007, to provide busy and working people with a fitness centre and a beauty spa. Fit centre and a beauty spa all combined surprised and made people excited. Fitness centre is privately financed by businessman and investors. More than 80,000 was invested into the company. The money covered equipments, advertising campaigns, flyers, posters, advertising an internet and to create a domain name. the company struggled for long, most people preferred the gym not the beauty spa, because they were complaining and worried about the costs. So the centre had to lower them a little bit. Sales were also less. So Fitness centre decided to make specials every after two months and on special occasions like Valentines Day and birthdays, but only on the beauty spas side. The gym price remains the same. At the end things got better. Mission statements Create members workout environment that promoters confidence in our clients. Fitness centre and beauty spa provides our members with beauty treatment at a fair price and competitive price, while providing with the high level of customers service and satisfaction. Our business is focused on everyone most especially celebrities who care a lot about fitness and looking good. Product and Services Fitness Centre and Beauty Spa Services are the following: Fitness centre has a professional personal trainer who will assist everyone in the gym. Our personal trainers assist you with a exercise program. Fitness Centre also has a qualified dietician who will help each member on his/her best and healthy food to eat. Inside the gym there are paramedics who are there to help people if may be a member gets injured or collapses, or any other sickness, they are there full time. Fitness Centre has also hired a qualified psychologist, who will help with lots of stress and encouraging them for a way forward to live a healthy life. Beauty Spa Services Full body massage Waxing Manicure Pedicure Anti ageing treatments Facials Lasers Offer creams and beauty product on sale Industry analysis Size The health and fitness market is very large and still growing more and more because of the health revolution people have become more health conscious in an effort to preserve and prolong their lives due to the fast pace living style of today. The fitness and health industry is a 40 billion dollar that is fast paced and innovative and highly competitive. In South Africa the market is not matured yet it is still in its infancy at the moment. Growth The international health and fitness industry has grown approximately 12% for the past decade with the exception with 2009 it decreased 3 % due to the slow down of consumer spending because of the global credit crisis. Locally the health and fitness industry has also grown especially because of the performance of one the leaders of the local health and fitness industry Planet fitness was voted the best performing companies of 2010 despite the slow down of the economy. Sales projection The over all industry is expected to only grow 10% because of the high unemployment and poor consumer spending meaning that people are reluctant to spend their money spending only on absolute necessities. Industry structure The South African health and fitness industry is dominated by a handful of large firms being Virgin Active, Planet fitness and Smart Gym. However these large health and fitness service providers are not exploring the entire market and meeting the specific needs that we have been able to identify in the market. They are to large to satisfy the distinctive needs of the entire market in terms of innovation and creativity and personalised serviced as well as the simplification of services. They are also slow to react to changes in the business environment as well as the new trends and developments in the world of health and fitness .For example the trend now is the simplification and ease of anything and everything that would complicate our life making use of creative and innovative ideas to increase life quality and prolong lives as long as possible. Critical Success Factors 1. Commitment At the Top. 2. Qualified Professional Staff. 3. Plan Then Proceed. 4. Location, Location, Location. 5. Right Size Right Cost. 6. Program to Match Needs 7. Effective Integration. 8. Right Price Minimal Discounts. 9. Commitment to Marketing and Sales. 10. Commitment to Outstanding Customer Service. 11. Measure, Manage and Measure Again. 12. Effective Communications with Members. Management Team and Company Structure The management team is comprised of all the founders of The Santon Health and Fitness Center Keleabetswe Sepengused, Marcelino Maliti Moises, Gonste Bokaba and Kgabo Lucia Mathibe. Director of Marketing and sales The director of marketing and sales is responsible for all the marketing of the company needs for example promotion, advertising, market research and sales Mrs. Keleabetswe Sepeng used to be the marketing and sales manager for Virgin Active from 2005 -2011 she will take charge of the same post in the new company. Mrs Sepeng is highly recognized in the industry and has a masters degree in marketing Chief Financial Officer The chief financial officer is responsible for the over all financial control and management of the company. The duties and responsibility involve creating control, managerial and evaluating measures for proper, ethical and legal financial control Mr. Marcelino M Moises will take the position of CFO Chief Financial Officer since he has the most qualified and has the most experience in the field after having worked for Planet fitness for over 10 years Mr. Marcelino has a Bachelor of Accounting Sciences and BA degree in Business Administrations Chief Executive Officer The chief executive officer is the highest position in the company, the duties and responsibilities of the CEO is the overall running of the entire organization, make decisions for the entire organizations .planning ,leading, organize ,controlling Mr. Gontse Bokaba will take the position of CEO Chief Executive Officer of the organization. Mr. Gontse Bokaba has worked for SAA South African Air Lines for more than 5 as the chief operations manager. Mr. Gontse Bokaba has a Master degree in Business Management Chief Operations Officer The chief operations officer is responsible planning, coordinating and managing the operations of the company theses include office administrations, overseeing that both products and services are Mrs. Kgabo Lucia Mathibe will exercise the position of COO Chief Operations officer or Managing Director because she has been the manager at a day Spar for many years so she has both insight and knows the beauty industry in and out. Mrs. Kgabo Lucia has a degree in Business Administrations and a master in Human resource management. As well as head the human resources department seeing as he has experience in recruiting and staffing. CEO Gontse DOM Keleabetswe CFO Marcelino COO Lucia Industry structure The South African health and fitness industry is dominated by a handful of large firms being Virgin Active, Planet fitness and Smart Gym. However these large health and fitness service providers are not exploring the entire market and meeting the specific needs that we have been able to identify in the market. They are to large to satisfy the distinctive needs of the entire market in terms of innovation and creativity and personalised serviced as well as the simplification of life. They are also slow to react to changes in the business environment as well as the new trends and developments in the world of health and fitness. Industry Trends Individual usage of fitness and health care training equipment has increased. Body work out and exercise has become a daily life routine of many people around the world in the last decade. Fitness memberships are increasingly getting popular in office environment around the world Companies are including health memberships as part of employee remuneration package. Long- Term Prospectus To ensure a continual development of the health and fitness industry in the country. To raise awareness of the increase of obesity and heart deceases in the country and to promote healthy living Market analysis Johannesburg is a capital city of Gauteng. It is the major harbor of South African business. All the major companies of business are based in Joburg. The current population of Johannesburg is 11million. All types of professions are found in Johannesburg. So, it is a competitive advantage to make business in Johannesburg. Market segmentation It focuses on fitness, health and beauty. Our target market when it comes to the gym, is for everyone especially families and for the beauty spa, our target market are young adults, male and female from the ages of 13-55 years. They have to earn a minimum of R3000 and more. For children between 13 and 20, parents have to be responsible for their membership. The money is going to be deducted every month in the parents accounts, for their childrens membership. The centre and beauty Spa would work very hard to see consumers being satisfied about what the centre delivers. Customers perceive more value from a good or service that seems to deliver more benefits for money. Market research will cover the following: customer needs, cultural elements, social connections, where family members, friends or associates can influence how, what, and when consumers buy, personnel elements, marketers for the fitness centre and beauty Spa. See opportunity in reaching young girls who are concentrating on their career and looking good when going to work and going out with friends, older women and men who are taking care of their health because of many diseases like obesity, high blood etc. Target market selection Target customers: the primary customer is children, young adults and adults. These customers are ages 12-65 years There approximately 3000 customers: 15% children, 50% young adults and 35 adults. 70%percent of young adults and adults are celebrities who spent most of their time at Sandton. Some of them homes are there. Competitors Analysis Our main competitors are Virgin Active, Planet Fitness and Smart gym Sandton Fitness Centre and Beauty Spa is the environment that is created in the facility. Our customers feel more relaxed and comfortable in a program that is focused on them. We have designed the childcare center to be visible from the main workout floor. Young mothers can oversee the child play while working out. Our main concern is to provide our customer with a direction who will organize each of our members healthy eating program and providing our members with a personal trainer who will ensure that a member do right exercise all the time according to his/her workout plan Marketing plan Sandton Fitness Center will focus on creating a brand image in the Johannesburg and Sandton area. We will Participate in the major events of health care awareness and education programs. Sandton Fitness Center will start by targeting low income segment of market downtown Sandton and Johannesburg area. We will convince people about the benefits and needs of wellness programs. This will be accomplished by aggressively pursuing interaction and relationships with peoples in public health awareness programs and by sending newsletters and emails through Social interactive websites like Face book, Twitter and Msn and Google messenger. Pricing Our prices and promotions are always subject to change especially when we take into account the fluctuating membership enrollments; however, for the most part our initial fees for our services will be R300 and R80 monthly for a general membership. We will also offer to customers the option of paying daily fees. This fee will be R50 charge for a days use of any service that our business provides. In addition we can offer to individuals the option of using exclusively our day spa for just one day. To use this option we will charge a standard fee of R25. For another pricing option we will give customers the option of paying an annual fee up front for R1, 100, this would be a saving of over R150. This move would benefit us as well considering we will see an immediate return on our investments allowing us to re-pay our debt quickly. This type of pricing will set us over many of our competitors rates; however the most important opponent will be outbid. Planet fitness, which comes closest t o what we provide, will be outbid by over R600 and other competitors do not offer the level of resources that we will sell to our customers. In this way we feel that the service we sell and the price we offer can overcome or compete heavily with every competitor in the market. PromotionPlan   We will attempt to use a variety of strategies in order to make contact with potential members. A fairly cheap and easily accessible form of advertisement will be the Internet. By running our own website, www.SandtonFitnessCenter.com we can reach a wide variety of customers. This is also a fairly cheap way in which to get our name out since it will only cost our company $9.95 to launch and run the site annually. Another cost effective way to market our name will be to have various sales promotions and use flyers to get the word out. By making use of the following mediums of communication newspapers, magazines, television and radio as the medium of advertisement. In addition they will print 5,000 brochures for creating awareness in the market about their health care services; they will be distributed in major health care seminars and events where officials from Fitness Plus will participate. Operational plan Service Execution Timeline: Sandton Fitness Center will follow this service execution model to enter in the health club market. General trainer payroll and even provide our members with online scheduling, registration, bill payment and more. Establishing and maintaining membership opportunities is essential to owning successful business and our business may have monthly specials or different membership level in order to maximize sales. Our online registration system allows families to complete registration 34/7 from any internet connected computer. We created custom club sign-up forms and website., process most types of payment, manage room to block and reservations, create name badges, auto sent reminder e-mails and mange our members over complete reports. Business Location Sandton Fitness Centre and Beauty Spar is located in Nelson Mandela Square at Sandton city, is only 25km from Johannesburg international airport Task February March April May June July August Choosing location Website development Hiring, training and admin staff Advertising Opening of health club Location: Sandton Fitness Center will start its business in main street area of Coral Gables; there is presence of already established health clubs such as Golds Gym and Coral Gables Adventure Boot camp. Legal Environment: There are no current legal obligations for Fitness Plus health club. Personnel: Fitness Plus will start with a total of 10 initial staff members that includes owners as well. Facilities and Equipment Fitness Centre offers a large selection of equipment: Treadmills (20) Bicycles (10) Steppers Stairmaster Body trek Cross aerobic trainer Weights Services: Sandton Fitness Center will provide following health related services: Aerobics Cycling Boxing Yoga Pilates Muscle Training Diabetes Obesity Control Beauty treatments eg. massages, pedicures, manicures, facials Benefits and Features: State of the art facility with latest equipment from quality manufacturers Low cost with monthly, quarterly and annual subscription plans. Personal qualified trainers to help our members achieving results without wasting much time Why people need this service? Health care and fitness club market in around South Africa have been serving to a high income segment of late. Average income of health club member is R 50000 as of 2006 survey. This leaves a large segment of low-income customers with unmet needs. Fitness Plus will primarily exist to provide health care facility to the lower income class without compromising on quality of service. Challenges: Fitness Plus will face a challenging situation in creating its brand image and attracting customers towards their services due to presence of already established players in the local market such as: Virgin Active Planet Fitness SmartGym Financial Plan Sources of Capital Investment requirement R5, 000,000 Total Investment R5, 000,000 Startup Expenses Health club development R1, 000, 000 Personnel R290, 000 Capital Expenditures R500, 000 Consulting Services R100, 000 Promotion R60, 000 Total Start-up Expenses R1, 950, 000 Our company, Sandton Fitness Center will meet capital needs by talking to various money sources. These sources will include family members, banks, venture capitalist, and personal savings. We hope to receive R5 million before we even begin our venture. By the first year we will be losing R2.4 million with an expected 1,000 members. By the second year we will have double our member to 2,000 and have a combined loss of R25 around 2.4 million including the first years losses. By the third year with 3,000 members, we will show a profit of R1 million. We hope by explaining this outlook to investors they will be convinced of our legitimate venture. Also by showing our belief in the company we each will invest R250,000. We project getting R3 million from venture capitalist and the rest of the money from a bank loan that would be paid off by the fifth year of operation. Pro forma Income Stament Projected Income Sandton Fitness Center Income Statement YEAR1 YEAR2 YEAR3 YEAR4 Sales R1,260,000.00 R 2,520.000 R3,780,000 R3,970,000 Net sales R1,260,000.00 R2,520,000 R3,780,000 R3,970,000 Gross Profit 0 R 1,077,520 R 1,267,521 Operating Expenses Payroll expense R551, 000.00 R551, 000 R 551,000 R 551,000 Payroll tax expense R38, 570.00 R38,570 R 38,570, R 38,570 Bad debts expense R194, 500.00 R194, 500.00 R194, 500.00 R194, 500.00 Promotional Expense R62, 009.95 R62, 009.95 R62, 009.95 R62, 009.95 Office supplies expense R220, 000.00 R220, 000.00 R220, 000.00 R220, 000.00 Utilities expense R120, 000.00 R120, 000.00 R120, 000.00 R120, 000.00 Insurance expense R200, 000.00 R200, 000.00 R200, 000.00 R200, 000.00 In-club entertainment R1, 000.00 R1, 000.00 R1, 000.00 R1, 000.00 Lease costs for building R1, 200,000.00 R1, 200,000.00 R1, 200,000.00 R1, 200,000.00 Depreciation expense, office equipment R15, 400.00 R15, 400.00 R15, 400.00 R15, 400.00 Maintenance and repairs expense R50, 000.00 R50, 000.00 R50, 000.00 R50, 000.00 Miscellaneous selling expense R50, 000.00 R50, 000.00 R50, 000.00 R50, 000.00 R2,702,479.95 R2,702,479.95 R2,702,479.95 R2,702,479.95 Other Expenses Building of pool R110, 000.00 Building of basketball courts R350, 000.00 Building of tennis courts R75, 000.00 Building of track and indoor soccer field R370, 000.00 Spa features R120, 000.00 R1,025,000.00 Net Income R 2,467,479.95 Projected Balance sheet Year 2009 Year 2010 Rm Rm Non-current assets Intangible assets Tangible assets Investments Taxation recoverable 237.6 121.9 2.0 4.9 366.4 260.3 137.5 2.8 5.9 406.5 Current Assets Inventories Amount receivable (debtors) Six-month deposits Cash and cash equivalents 24.3 134.7 90.5 249.5 26.6 146.9 2.0 105.3 280.8 Current liabilities Amount payable(creditors) Bank overdraft Net current assets Total assets less current liabilities (157.5) (62.6) (220.1) 29.4 395.8 (159.8) (40.1) (199.9) 80.9 487.4 Non-current liabilities Amount payable (creditors) Bank and other borrowings Provisions Net assets (2.6) 0.6 (22.2) 370.4 (2.7) (0.7) (20.2) 464.3 Capital and reserves Shareholders funds 370.4 464.3 Pro forma Cash Flows (3-Year) Sandton Fitness Center Plus Year 1 Year 2 Year3 Cash Received Cash from Operations Cash Sales R1, 230,000 R4, 940,000 R14,751,000 Cash from Receivables R0 R0 R0 Subtotal Cash from Operations R1,230,000 R4,940,000 R14,751,000 Additional Cash Received New Borrowing R1,000,000 R0 R0 New Other Liabilities (interest-free) $ 0 R0 R0 New Long-term Liabilities R0 R0 R0 Sales of Other Current Assets R0 R0 R0 Sales of Long-term Assets $ 0 R0 R0 New Investment Received R0 R0 R0 Subtotal Cash Received R2,230,000 R4,940,000 R14,751,000 Expenditures Expenditures from Operations Personnel R290, 000 R840,000 R940,000 Consulting Services R90, 000 R480,000 R480,000 Promotion R5,000 R6,000 R6,000 Subtotal Spent on Operations R385,000 R1,326,000 R1,426,000 Additional Cash Spent Taxes R32,290 R338,580 R1,302,500 Principal Repayment of Current Borrowing R0 R0 R0 Other Liabilities Principal Repayment R0 R0 R0 Long-term Liabilities Principal Repayment R0 R0 R0 Purchase Other Current Assets R0 R0 R0 Purchase Long-term Assets R810,000 R810,000 R1,345,000 Dividends R0 R0 R0 Subtotal Cash Spent R1,227,290 R2,474,580 R4,073,500 Net Cash Flow R1,002,710 R2,465,420 R10,677,500 Cash Balance R1,012,710 R3,478,130 R14,155,630 CONCLUSION Through the plan that we have outlined we feel confident that although a very intricate and complex process to start and run such a company, we can accomplish such an ambitious endeavor. We have analyzed the market, covered expenses, visualized a goal, and planned accordingly. Our company would be a sound investment because assets and collateral would insure re-payment and realistic projections allow for error if they are needed. To be realistic, we cannot guarantee a success, but as the proverb goes, A hero is one who knows how to hang on one minute longer and this is the entrepreneurial spirit that we will carry throughout the life of our fitness center.

The Dangers Of Diet Aids :: essays research papers fc

THE DANGERS OF DIET AIDS   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  About a month ago, I stepped onto my bathroom scales. When I looked down at the numbers, my fears were confirmed: I had gained 5 pounds. Overcome with a desire to shed this unwanted extra weight, I decided to join millions of Americans just like me, and buy some sort of diet aid to help me along. I had no idea what to look for, what to avoid, and possible side effects, so I began to research the different types of diet aids, both chemical and herbal, and was hit with some very disturbing facts.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  It has been estimated that nearly 10 million women in the U.S. buy over-the-counter diet aids.(Cottrell, 99) Diet aids come in the form of pills, tablets, capsules, powders, milkshakes, herbal teas, and candies. They work in one of two ways, either by suppressing the appetite or by producing a feeling of fullness that encourages the eater to limit her food consumption.(Cottrell, 99) This feeling of fullness is often brought about by the ingredient guar gum, which forms a gel in the stomach. It has not been proven, though, that guar gum has a benefit for weight reduction.(Cottrell, 99)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Amphetamines, which suppress the appetite, are a common ingredient in many over-the-counter diet aids. They are also commonly found in other drugs such as Speed, Crystal, White Crosses, 357 Magnums, Black Beauties, Crank, Ice, and Meth, most of which are illegal.(Cottrell, 99) Amphetamines increase heart and breathing rates and blood pressure, and dilate pupils. Users can also experience a dry mouth, sweating, headache, blurred vision, dizziness, sleeplessness, and anxiety.(Cottrell, 100) Extremely high doses can cause usersto flush or become pale; they can cause a rapid or irregular heartbeat, tremors, loss of coordination and even physical collapse.(Cottrell, 101) Toxic psychosis, delusional thinking and even death can also occur. Long-term heavy use of amphetamines can lead to malnutrition, skin disorders, ulcers, and various diseases that come from vitamin deficiencies.(Cottrell, 101) Lack of sleep, weight loss, and depression also result from regular use. When people stop using amphetamines abruptly, they may experience fatigue, long periods of sleep, irritability, extreme hunger and depression.(Cottrell, 101) The length and severity of the depression seems to be related to how much and how often the amphetamines were used.(Cottrell, 101)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Another common ingredient that is chemically related to the amphetamine, is Phenylpropanolamine (PPA), the only FDA-approved over-the-counter weight loss drug.(Cottrell, 100) PPA, the active ingredient in Dexatrim, Acutrim, and most other diet aids, acts on the appetite center in the brain, the hypothalamus, reducing the desire to eat.

Health and Social Care Essay

P1. EXPLAIN THE STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION OF A HEALTH OR SOCIAL CARE ORGANISATION. The aim of the organization (red hut day nursery) was to carry out high standards of care from children age from 3 months to 5 yrs old. Whilst following the curriculum guidelines of early years foundation. The role of the organization was to care for children within their responsibilities whilst the Childs parents or carer has left them in the organization care. Policies such as ensure every child is treated fairly and equally depending on that Childs needs in order for their needs to be meet , was expected of all staff members to conduct themselves in such away . the role of each staff member was to ensure that health and safety measure where up to scratch for instant making sure sharp , hot , dangerous objects where out of reach of the children , picking objects off the floor to avoid any one tripping over , cleaning spillages up etc . the procedures of the organization ( red hut day nursery ) was that all staff members interact and conduct themselves in a friendly manor so the children would feel relaxed and not intimidated without their parents present, making the nursery a pleasant place to be for the children My roles and responsibilities within the organization was to interact with the children to making the Childs time whilst in care of the organization pleasant and of high quality of care assisting the child to the toilet if needed , changing nappies , whipping the Childs nose if needed etc , maintaining health and safety measures to minimize the risk of any incidents occurring. my other responsibilities where to help the children prepare for meal times by occupying a number of children at a time on the carpet with a game or activity whilst a few children at a time take it in turns to wash their hands before eating . log any incidents that occur. Description of services users Services users such as parents who both work and need some one to look after their child professionally whilst they work, or a parent who wishes for their child to further their development by enrolling them to the organization which will help them to learn new skills whilst interacting with other children and building up their independence. Links with other organizations/services Link services available through the organization is after school club which takes on children of school age up until the age of 8 this services provides parents extra time to work or carry out every day needs to support their families . The services runs from 3pm to 6.30pm where a member of the team will collect pupils from school and bring them into the care of the organization where they will be given a meal and after interact in activities until their parents collect them. the organization also has a breakfast class which runs of the same basis as the after school club but instead of picking up the child the parents drop the child off between 8am and 9pm where the child will receive a breakfast cereal or toast and once it is time for their school to start they are escorted to the school. P2/M1.report on own contributions to a specific team activity relating to health and social care . Following policies and procedures the children’s toys and equipment must be regularly cleaned to maintain hygiene, therefore in a team we had to gather all the children’s toys that were outside in the garden whilst at the same time watch over the children as they played in the garden we took it in turns to watch the children and clean the toys. I help to assist the children as they played in the garden ensuring that they wasn’t interfering with the toys as they being cleaned and staying within the play area and not at harm , then rotated with other team member to wash the toys and put them back into place . My contributions to the team whilst conducting the activity was using my skills as working as a team player to complete a task and taking it in turns to keep watch on the children as well as help to clean toys. My contribution help to minimize risk of children interfering with the toys as they were being washed which could of lead to a child slipping in the water and . Overall My contributions to the team on a whole enable the task to be completed smoothly without any complications as I interacted with children in playing games helping the on the slides ect to avoid any accidents whilst playing or the children interfering with the toys as they where being washed which as a result could lead to an accident . my contributions help team sprit as we took it in turns at both interacting with the children and cleaning the toys to ensure fairness in the task as well as team work which help us to complete the task successfully without any problems . My contribution to the team also enables the task to be completed quicker than if a single person was to complete the task. D1. Make recommendations as to how you could have adapted your own contribution to the team to enhance the success of the activit y .

Shadow Kiss Chapter 11

Eleven WE STEPPED OFF THE plane and were immediately hit with wet, blustery weather. Sleet cracked into us, far worse than the flaky white stuff falling back in Montana. We were on the East Coast now, or well, close to it. The queen's court was in Pennsylvania, near the Pocono Mountains, a range I had only a vague idea about. I knew we weren't too close to any major cities, like Philadelphia or Pittsburgh, which were the only ones I knew in the state. The runway we'd landed on was part of the Court's property, so we were already behind wards. It was just like the Academy's small landing strip. In fact, in many ways, the Royal Court was laid out exactly like the school. It was what they told humans the compound was, actually. The Court was a collection of buildings, beautiful and ornate, spreading across well-tended grounds adorned with trees and flowers. At least, the land would be adorned with them when spring came. Just like in Montana, the vegetation was bleak and leafless. We were met by a group of five guardians, all dressed in black pants and matching coats, with white shirts underneath. They weren't uniforms exactly, but custom usually dictated that for formal occasions, guardians wear some sort of nice ensemble. By comparison, in our jeans and T-shirts, our group looked like somebody's poor relations. Yet I couldn't help but think we'd be a lot more comfortable if it came to a fight with Strigoi. The guardians knew Alberta and Dimitri – honestly, those two knew everybody – and after some formalities, everyone relaxed and became friendly. We were all eager to get in out of the cold, and our escorts led us toward the buildings. I knew enough about the Court to know that the largest and most elaborate of the buildings was where all official Moroi business was conducted. It resembled some sort of gothic palace on the outside, but inside, I suspected it probably looked like any set of modern government offices you'd find among humans. We weren't taken there, however. We were led to an adjacent building, just as exquisite on the outside, but half the size. One of the guardians explained that this was where all guests and dignitaries traveling in and out of the Court stayed. To my surprise, we each got our own room. Eddie started to protest this, adamantly saying he needed to stay with Lissa. Dimitri smiled and told him it wasn't necessary. In a place like this, guardians didn't need to stay as close to their Moroi. In fact, they often separated to do their own things. The Court was as heavily warded as the Academy. And really, Moroi visitors at the Academy were rarely trailed so closely by their guardians either. It was only for the sake of the field experience that it was being done with us. Eddie agreed with some reluctance, and again, I was amazed at his dedication. Alberta spoke briefly and then turned to the rest of us. â€Å"Decompress for a bit and be ready for dinner in four hours. Lissa, the queen wants to see you in an hour.† A jolt of surprise ran through Lissa, and she and I exchanged brief, puzzled looks. The last time Lissa had seen the queen, Tatiana had snubbed her and embarrassed her in front of the school for having running away with me. Both of us wondered what she'd want to see Lissa about now. â€Å"Sure,† said Lissa. â€Å"Rose and I'll be ready.† Alberta shook her head. â€Å"Rose isn't going. The queen specifically asked for you alone.† Of course she had. What interest would the queen have in Vasilisa Dragomir's shadow? A nasty voice whispered in my head, Expendable, expendable†¦. The dark sentiment startled me, and I shoved it aside. I went to my room, relieved to see it had a TV. The thought of vegging for the next four hours sounded fantastic. The rest of the room was pretty fancy, very modern looking, with sleek black tables and white leather furniture. I was kind of afraid to sit on it. Ironically, despite how nice it all was, the place wasn't as decked out as the ski resort that we'd stay in over the holidays. I guessed when you came to the Royal Court, you came for business, not a vacation. I had just sprawled on the leather couch and turned on the TV when I felt Lissa in my mind. Come talk, she said. I sat up, surprised by the message itself and the content. Usually our bond was all about feelings and impressions. Specific requests like this were rare. I got up and left the room, going to the one next door. Lissa opened the door. â€Å"What, you couldn't have come to me?† I asked. â€Å"Sorry,† she said, looking like she genuinely meant it. It was hard to be grouchy around someone so nice. â€Å"I just didn't have the time. I'm trying to decide what to wear.† Her suitcase was already open on the bed, with things hung up in the closet. Unlike me, she'd come prepared for every occasion, formal and casual alike. I lay down on the couch. Hers was plush velvet, not leather. â€Å"Wear the print blouse with the black slacks,† I told her. â€Å"Not a dress.† â€Å"Why not a dress?† â€Å"Because you don't want to look like you're groveling.† â€Å"This is the queen, Rose. Dressing up is showing respect, not groveling.† â€Å"If you say so.† But Lissa wore the outfit I suggested anyway. She talked to me as she finished getting ready, and I watched with envy as she applied makeup. I hadn't realized how much I'd missed cosmetics myself. When she and I had lived with humans, I'd been pretty diligent about primping every day. Now, there never seemed to be enough time – or any reason. I was always in some kind of scuffle that made makeup pointless and ruined it anyway. The most I could do was to slather my face with moisturizer. It seemed excessive in the mornings – like I was putting on a mask – yet by the time I faced the cold weather and other harsh conditions, I was always surprised to see my skin had sucked all the moisture up. The smallest pang of regret shot through me that I'd rarely have any opportunities to do this for the rest of my life. Lissa would spend most of her days dressed up, out at royal functions. No one would notice me. It was weird, considering that until this last year, I'd always been the one who was always noticed. â€Å"Why do you think she wants to see me?† Lissa asked. â€Å"Maybe to explain why we're here.† â€Å"Maybe.† Unease filled Lissa, despite her calm exterior. She still hadn't entirely recovered from the queen's brutal humiliation last fall. My own petty jealousy and moping suddenly seemed stupid when compared with what she had to go through. I mentally slapped myself, reminding myself that I wasn't just her unseen guardian. I was also her best friend, and we hadn't talked very much lately. â€Å"You have nothing to be afraid of, Liss. You haven't done anything wrong. And really, you've been doing everything right. Your grades are perfect. Your behavior's perfect. Remember all those people you impressed on the ski trip? That bitch has nothing to get on you about.† â€Å"You shouldn't say that,† said Lissa automatically. She applied mascara to her eyelashes, studied them, and then added another coat. â€Å"Just call 'em like I see 'em. If she gives you any grief, then it's just going to be because she's afraid of you.† Lissa laughed. â€Å"Why would she be afraid of me?† â€Å"Because people are drawn to you, and people like her don't like it when others steal all the attention.† I was a bit astonished at how wise I sounded. â€Å"Plus, you're the last Dragomir. You're always going to be in the spotlight. Who's she? Just another Ivashkov. There are a ton of them. Probably because all the guys are like Adrian and have all sorts of illegitimate children.† â€Å"Adrian doesn't have any children.† â€Å"That we know of,† I said mysteriously. She snickered and stepped back from the mirror, pleased with her face. â€Å"Why are you always so mean to Adrian?† I gave her a look of mock astonishment. â€Å"You're standing up for Adrian now? Whatever happened to you warning me to stay away from him? You practically bit my head off the first time I hung out with him – and that wasn't even by my choice.† She took a thin golden chain out of her suitcase and tried to fasten it around her neck. â€Å"Well, yeah †¦ I didn't really know him then. He's not so bad. And it's true I mean, he's not a great role model or anything, but I also think some of those stories about him and other girls are exaggerated.† â€Å"I don't,† I said, jumping up. She still hadn't managed to fasten the chain, so I took it and put the clasp together for her. â€Å"Thanks,† she said, running her hands over the necklace. â€Å"I think Adrian really likes you. Like, in a wanting-to-be-serious way.† I shook my head and stepped back. â€Å"Nope. He likes me in a wanting-to-get-the-clothes-off-the-cute-dhampir way.† â€Å"I don't believe that.† â€Å"That's because you believe the best about everyone.† She looked skeptical as she began brushing her hair smooth over her shoulders. â€Å"I don't know about that either. But I do think he's not as bad as you think. I know it hasn't been that long since Mason, but you should think about going out with someone else†¦.† â€Å"Wear your hair up.† I handed her a barrette from her suitcase. â€Å"Mason and I were never really going out. You know that.† â€Å"Yeah. Well, I guess that's more reason to start thinking about dating someone. High school's not over yet. Seems like you should be doing something fun.† Fun. It was ironic. Months ago, I'd argued with Dimitri about how it wasn't fair that, as a guardian-in-training, I had to watch my reputation and not act too crazy. He'd agreed it wasn't fair that I couldn't do the kinds of things other girls my age could, but that that was the price I paid for my future. I'd been upset, but after Victor's meddling, I started to see Dimitri's point – to such an extent that he'd actually hinted I shouldn't try to limit myself that much. Now, after Spokane, I felt like a completely different girl from the one who'd talked to Dimitri last fall about having fun. I was only a couple months from graduation. High school things†¦dances†¦boyfriends†¦what did they matter in the grand scheme of things? Everything at the Academy seemed so trivial – unless it was making me a better guardian. â€Å"I don't really think I need a boyfriend to complete my high school experience,† I told her. â€Å"I don't think you do either,† she agreed, tugging her ponytail straight. â€Å"But you used to flirt and go out sometimes. I feel like it'd just be nice for you to do a little of that. It's not like you'd have to have anything serious with Adrian.† â€Å"Well, you won't get any arguments from him on that. I think the last thing he wants is anything serious, that's the problem.† â€Å"Well, according to some of the stories, he's very serious. I heard the other day that you were engaged. Someone else said that he'd been disowned because he told his dad he'd never love anyone else.† â€Å"Ahhhh.† There was really no other adequate response to all these silly rumors. â€Å"The creepy thing is that the same stories are all over the place at the elementary campus too.† I stared at the ceiling. â€Å"Why does this stuff keep happening to me?† She walked over to the couch and looked down at me. â€Å"Because you're awesome, and everyone loves you.† â€Å"Nah. You're the one everyone loves.† â€Å"Well, then, I guess we're both awesome and loveable. And one of these days† – a mischievous sparkle danced in her eyes – â€Å"we'll find a guy you love back.† â€Å"Don't hold your breath. None of that matters. Not right now. You're the one I've got to worry about. We're going to graduate, and you'll go off to college, and it'll be great. No more rules, just us on our own.† â€Å"It's a little scary,† she mused. â€Å"Thinking about being on my own. But you'll be with me. And Dimitri too.† She sighed. â€Å"I can't imagine not having you around. I can't even really remember when you weren't around.† I sat up and gave her a light punch in her arm. â€Å"Hey, be careful. You're going to make Christian jealous. Oh crap. I suppose he's going to be around too, huh? No matter where we end up going?† â€Å"Probably. You, me, him, Dimitri, and any guardians Christian gets. One big happy family.† I scoffed, but inside of me, there was a warm fuzzy feeling building. Things were crazy in our world right now, but I had all these great people in my life. As long as we were all together, everything would be okay. She looked at the clock, and her fear returned. â€Å"I've gotta go. Will you †¦ will you go with me?† â€Å"You know I can't.† â€Å"I know†¦ not in body†¦ but like, will you do that thing? Where you're watching in my head? It'll make me feel like I'm not alone.† It was the first time Lissa had ever asked me to purposely do that. Normally, she hated the thought of me seeing through her eyes. It was a sign of how nervous she really was. â€Å"Sure,† I said. â€Å"It's probably better than anything on TV anyway.† I returned to my own room, taking up an identical position on the couch. Clearing my thoughts, I opened myself up to Lissa's mind, going beyond simply knowing her feelings. It was something the shadow-kissed bond allowed me to do and was the most intense part of our connection. It wasn't just feeling her thoughts – it was actually being inside of her, looking through her eyes and sharing her experiences. I'd learned to control it only recently. I used to slip in without wanting to, much as I sometimes couldn't keep her feelings out. I could control my out-of-body experiences now and even summon up the phenomenon at will – just like I was about to do. Lissa had just reached the parlor the queen was waiting in. Moroi might use terms like â€Å"royal† and even kneel sometimes, but there were no thrones or anything like that here. Tatiana sat in an ordinary armchair, dressed in a navy blue skirt and blazer, looking more like a corporate businesswoman than any sort of monarch. She wasn't alone, either. A tall, stately Moroi whose blond hair was laced with silver sat near her. I recognized her: Priscilla Voda, the queen's friend and adviser. We'd met her on the ski trip, and she'd been impressed with Lissa. I took her presence as a good sign. Silent guardians, dressed in black and white, stood along the wall. To my astonishment, Adrian was there too. He reclined on a small love seat, seeming completely oblivious to the fact that he was hanging out with the Moroi's ultimate leader. The guardian with Lissa announced her. â€Å"Princess Vasilisa Dragomir.† Tatiana nodded in acknowledgment. â€Å"Welcome, Vasilisa. Please sit down.† Lissa sat down near Adrian, her apprehension growing by leaps and bounds. A Moroi servant came by and offered tea or coffee, but Lissa declined. Tatiana meanwhile sipped from a teacup and scrutinized Lissa from head to toe. Priscilla Voda broke the awkward silence. â€Å"Remember what I said about her?† Priscilla asked cheerfully. â€Å"She was very impressive at our state dinner in Idaho. Settled a huge spat over Moroi fighting with guardians. She even managed to calm Adrian's father down.† A frosty smile crossed Tatiana's cold features. â€Å"That is impressive. Half the time, I still feel like Nathan is twelve years old.† â€Å"Me too,† said Adrian, drinking from a wine glass. Tatiana ignored him and again focused on Lissa. â€Å"Everyone seems impressed with you, really. I hear nothing but good things about you, in spite of your past transgressions †¦ which I'm given to understand weren't entirely without their reasons.† Lissa's look of surprise actually made the queen laugh. There wasn't much warmth or humor in the laugh, though. â€Å"Yes, yes †¦ I know all about your powers, and of course I know what happened with Victor. Adrian's been filling me in about spirit as well. It's so strange. Tell me †¦ can you†¦Ã¢â‚¬  She glanced to a nearby table. A flowerpot sat on it, dark green shoots sticking through the soil. It was some kind of bulb-based plant that someone was growing indoors. Like its outside counterparts, it was waiting for spring. Lissa hesitated. Using her powers in front of others was a strange thing for her. But, Tatiana was watching expectantly. After only a few moments more, Lissa leaned over and touched the shoots. The stems shot up through the dirt, growing taller – almost a foot high. Huge pods formed along the sides as it grew, bursting open to reveal fragrant white flowers. Easter lilies. Lissa withdrew her hand. Wonder showed on Tatiana's face, and she muttered something in a language I didn't understand. She hadn't been born in the United States but had chosen to hold her Court here. She spoke with no accent, but, as they did for Dimitri, moments of surprise apparently brought out her native tongue. Within seconds, she put her stately mask back on. â€Å"Hmm. Interesting,† she said. Talk about an understatement. â€Å"It could be very useful,† said Priscilla. â€Å"Vasilisa and Adrian can't be the only two out there with it. If we could find others, so much could be learned. The healing itself is a gift, let alone anything else they can conjure. Just think what we could do with it.† Lissa turned optimistic. For a while, she'd been going out of her way to find others like her. Adrian had been the only one she'd discovered, and that had been through sheer luck. If the queen and Moroi council put their resources into it, there was no telling what they might find. Yet something about Priscilla's words troubled Lissa. â€Å"Begging your pardon, Princess Voda†¦I'm not sure we should be so eager to use my – or others' – healing powers as much as you might want to.† â€Å"Why not?† asked Tatiana. â€Å"From what I understand, you can heal almost anything.† â€Å"I can†¦Ã¢â‚¬  said Lissa slowly. â€Å"And I want to. I wish I could help everybody, but I can't. I mean, don't get me wrong, I'll definitely help some people. But I know we'd run into other people like Victor, who want to abuse it. And after a while †¦ I mean, how do you choose? Who gets to live? Part of life is that†¦well, some people have to die. My powers aren't a prescription you can get filled as needed, and honestly, I'm afraid they would only be used for, uh, certain kinds of people. Just like the guardians are.† A slight tension built in the room. What Lissa had insinuated was rarely ever mentioned in public. â€Å"What are you talking about?† asked Tatiana with narrowed eyes. I could tell she already knew. Lissa was scared to say her next words, but she did it anyway. â€Å"Everyone knows that there's a certain, um, method to how guardians are distributed. Only the elite get them. Royals. Rich people. People in power.† A chill fell over the room. Tatiana's mouth settled into a straight line. She didn't speak for several moments, and I had a feeling everyone else was holding their breath. I certainly was. â€Å"You don't think our royals deserve special protection?† she asked finally. â€Å"You don't think you do – the last of the Dragomirs?† â€Å"I think keeping our leaders safe is important, yeah. But I also think we need to stop sometimes and look at what we're doing. It could be time to reconsider the way we've always done things.† Lissa sounded so wise and so self-assured. I was proud of her. Watching Priscilla Voda, I could see that she was proud too. She'd liked Lissa from the beginning. But I could also tell that Priscilla was nervous. She answered to the queen and knew that Lissa was swimming in dangerous waters. Tatiana sipped her tea. I think it was an excuse to gather her thoughts. â€Å"I understand,† she said, â€Å"that you're also in favor of Moroi fighting with the guardians and attacking Strigoi?† Another dangerous topic, one Lissa pushed forward into. â€Å"I think if there are Moroi who want to, they shouldn't be denied the chance.† Jill suddenly popped into my head. â€Å"Moroi lives are precious,† said the queen. â€Å"They shouldn't be risked.† â€Å"Dhampir lives are precious too,† Lissa countered. â€Å"If they fight with Moroi, it could save everybody. And again, if Moroi are willing, why deny them? They deserve to know how to defend themselves. And people like Tasha Ozera have developed ways of fighting with magic.† The mention of Christian's aunt brought a frown to the queen's face. Tasha had been attacked by Strigoi when younger and had spent the rest of her life learning to fight back. â€Å"Tasha Ozera †¦ she's a troublemaker. She's starting to gather a lot of other troublemakers.† â€Å"She's trying to introduce new ideas.† I noticed then that Lissa wasn't afraid any longer. She was confident in her beliefs and wanted them expressed. â€Å"Throughout history, people with new ideas – who think differently and try to change things – have always been called troublemakers. But seriously? Do you want the truth?† A wry look crossed Tatiana's face, almost a smile. â€Å"Always.† â€Å"We need change. I mean, our traditions are important. We shouldn't give up on those. But sometimes, I think we're misguided.† â€Å"Misguided?† â€Å"As time's gone on, we've gone along with other changes. We've evolved. Computers. Electricity. Technology in general. We all agree those make our lives better. Why can't we be the same in the way we act? Why are we still clinging to the past when there are better ways to do things?† Lissa was breathless, worked up and excited. Her cheeks felt warm, and her heart raced. All of us were watching Tatiana, searching for any clue in that stony face. â€Å"You're very interesting to talk to,† she finally said. She made interesting sound like a dirty word. â€Å"But I have things I must do now.† She stood up, and everyone hastily followed suit, even Adrian. â€Å"I won't be joining you for dinner, but you and your companions will have everything you need. I'll see you tomorrow at the trial. No matter how radical and naively idealistic your ideas are, I'm glad you'll be there to complete his sentencing. His imprisonment, at least, is something we can all agree on.† Tatiana swept out, two guardians immediately following. Priscilla followed too, leaving Lissa and Adrian alone. â€Å"Well done, cousin. Aren't many people who can throw the old lady off-balance like that.† â€Å"She didn't seem very off-balance.† â€Å"Oh, she was. Believe me. Most of the people she deals with every day wouldn't talk to her like that, let alone someone your age.† He stood up and extended a hand to Lissa. â€Å"Come on. I'll show you around this place. Take your mind off things.† â€Å"I've been here before,† she said. â€Å"When I was younger.† â€Å"Yeah, well, the things we get to see when we're young are different than the things we get to see when we're older. Did you know there's a twenty-four-hour bar in here? We'll get you a drink.† â€Å"I don't want a drink.† â€Å"You will before this trip's over.† I left Lissa's head and returned to my room. The meeting with the queen was over, and Lissa didn't need my unseen support. Besides, I really didn't want to hang out with Adrian right now. Sitting up, I discovered I felt surprisingly alert. Being in her head had kind of been like taking a nap. I decided to do a little exploring of my own. I'd never been to the Royal Court. It really was supposed to be like a mini-town, and I wondered what other things there were to see, aside from the bar that Adrian probably lived in while visiting. I headed downstairs, figuring I'd have to go outside. As far as I knew, this building only held guestrooms. It was kind of like the palace's hotel. When I got to the entryway, however, I saw Christian and Eddie standing and talking with someone I couldn't see. Eddie, ever vigilant, saw me and grinned. â€Å"Hey, Rose. Look who we found.† As I approached, Christian stepped aside, revealing the mystery person. I came to a halt, and she grinned at me. â€Å"Hi, Rose.† A moment later, I felt a smile slowly creep over my face. â€Å"Hello, Mia.†

5 Things You Need to Know About IEEE Referencing

5 Things You Need to Know About IEEE Referencing 5 Things You Need to Know About IEEE Referencing If you’re studying engineering, you will almost certainly need to use IEEE referencing at some point. But what exactly is this? And how do you use it in your own writing? Read on, and we’ll run you through all the basics of IEEE referencing and citations. 1. What Is IEEE Referencing? As the name suggests, IEEE referencing is the referencing system recommended by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. It is used in all of the IEEE’s own journals, but many colleges and schools that focus on engineering or computing subjects also use it. If you have an interest in these subjects, you may therefore need to understand IEEE referencing. 2. Basic IEEE Citations IEEE citations involve giving a number in square brackets within the text of your document, typically at the end of the sentence, when you want to cite a source. For example: The chance of killer robots conquering humanity is very high [1]. These numbered citations point to an entry in a reference list at the end of your document, where you should provide full source information. Sources are numbered in the order they are cited in your work, so the example above is a citation for the first source in the reference list. If you need to cite the same source more than once, moreover, simply use the same number as on the first citation. 3. Quoting Sources To quote a source in IEEE referencing, place the quoted text within quote marks and make sure to give a page number in the citation as well as a source number. For instance: The robots are said to â€Å"harbor a terrible thirst for vengeance† [2, p. 86]. Here, the citation shows that we’re quoting page 86 of the second source in the reference list. 4. Citations and Author Names When the author of a source is named in the text, give the citation immediately afterwards: Dr. Banks [3] believes that the robots will inevitably win. IEEE is also unusual in that you can use a citation in place of an author’s name. For example, here we use the citation number as if it were a pronoun: According to [3], the robots will inevitably win. 5. IEEE Reference Lists Finally, every source in your document must also appear in the reference list. This is where you give full publication information for everything you have cited. The rules here are as follows: Sources should be listed in the order they are first cited in your writing Titles of books and journals should be italicized and use title case capitalization (i.e., with the first letters of all major words, as well as the first word in titles and subtitles, capitalized) Titles of articles, book chapters, and other shorter documents should be placed in quotation marks and use sentence case capitalization (i.e., only capitalizing the first letter of the first words of title and subtitles, plus any proper nouns that would usually take a capital letter) Use a hanging indent (roughly a quarter inch) for each line after the first The exact format for an entry in an IEEE reference list depends on the source type. However, we’ll include the basic format for a book below to give you a sense of what an entry should look like: [#] INITIAL(S) Surname, Title. Place of publication: Publisher, year. In practice, then, you would list a book like this: [1] K. Capek, Why Killer Robots Will Consume Us All: An Optimistic Look at Future Engineering Challenges. New York, NY: Penguin Books, 2002.

Case study of bipolar disorder sufferer Essays

Case study of bipolar disorder sufferer Essays Case study of bipolar disorder sufferer Essay Case study of bipolar disorder sufferer Essay Peoples with bipolar upset have extreme temper swings ( symptoms ) . They can travel from feeling as if they are on top of the universe, overactive, originative, and grandiose- passion to experiencing really sad, despairing, helpless, worthless, and hopeless -depression. This disease is called bipolar upset because the temper of a individual with bipolar upset can jump between two wholly opposite poles, euphoric felicity and utmost unhappiness. The extremes of temper normally occur in rhythms, in between these temper swings, people with bipolar upset are able to work usually, keep a occupation, and have a normal household life. The episodes of temper swings tend to go closer together with age. When a individual is in the clasp of this disease, pandemonium can happen. Bipolar upset can do major break of household and fundss, loss of occupation, and matrimonial jobs. In Jim s instance he becomes wholly dependent of his parents. Because of the extreme and hazardous behavior that goes with bipolar upset, it is really of import that the upset be identified. With proper and early diagnosing, this mental status can be treated. Bipolar upset is a long-run unwellness that will necessitate proper direction for the continuance of a individual s life. Jim is in his mid fifths and he still live with his parents, whose are in their late 1970ss. He is the lone kid and his parents overprotect him over the old ages owing to that he became wholly de-skilled, dis-empowered and entire dependent. He is non able to negociate and he was non included in household treatments to demo his sentiment. The lone manner that he has to demo that he is non happy is by shouting and shouting. Jim decidedly besides suffers from Eternal kid syndrome, besides know as Peter Pan syndrome, and is to fault his parents who been treated him like a kid all his life. Psychologists warn that overprotective parents can be responsible for this upset as this prevents them from developing necessary accomplishments to face life. Jim chronologically grows older but in truth he has non grown up. Like Peter Pan he breaks social norms to function their ain intents and do non care much for the feelings and rights of his parents. He wants all the power but is non willing to portion the duties, non ready to give and reject moral constructions which are portion of mature maturity. As the World Health Organization has non yet recognized Peter Pan Syndrome as a psychological upset, the syndrome is non presently considered a abnormal psychology. Psychologists make a clear differentiation between Peter Pan Syndrome and other, more serious, mental conditions affecting grownups who behave as kids both emotionally and mentally. This is because it is frequently found that people enduring from Peter Pan Syndrome are mentally to the full developed grownups who frequently carry professional activities necessitating strong rational accomplishments. This syndrome is frequently associated with self-love, although non in a negative manner, egoistic sense. They are attracted to self-contemplation in an effort to happen that inventive comfort inside their ain heads. On a positive sense this feature is seen as being in touch with the unchecked imaginational freedom of childhood. While yielding to the prescribed order of things, most people forget all that they knew as an idealistic kid, the ageless kid is able to pull from their ain altogether, originative energy to remind us of how colourful life truly is. Work forces enduring from the Peter Pan Syndrome display the undermentioned traits in their relationship with parents: Are obsessed with their female parents Have estranged relationship with the male parent They believe that it is non possible to obtain the male parent s love and blessing They have trouble interacting with figures of authorization Are non mature emotionally Exhibit silly behavior Hide their interior insecurity with butch attitude Males diagnosed with holding this syndrome were found to exhibit the undermentioned psychological traits: Either exaggerated or paralytic emotions Anger taking utmost signifier of fury Joy turning into craze Disappointment grows and develops into depression or self-pity As a consequence males diagnosed with this syndrome find it hard to show love, garbage to portion feelings, experience guilty and have trouble relaxing. Work force with Peter Pan Syndrome find it hard to do echt friends and as a consequence feel urgently entirely. They do nt experience regretful for inappropriate actions but blame others for their defect. Males diagnosed with holding this syndrome were found to exhibit the undermentioned psychological traits: Either exaggerated or paralytic emotions Anger taking utmost signifier of fury Joy turning into craze Disappointment grows and develops into depression or self-pity As a consequence males diagnosed with this syndrome find it hard to show love, garbage to portion feelings, experience guilty and have trouble relaxing and happen hard to do echt friends and as a consequence feel urgently entirely. This has a immense impact in Jim s parents who are happening hard to get by with all this affairs, particularly in during the winter. They are bit by bit worried about their ability to get by and what will go on with Jim when they die. They might experience a host of emotions: hurt, exposure, choler, guilt and, certainly they likely are exhausted. As an informal carer for several old ages, Jim s parents revolved all their life on him, they devoted all their unrecorded to him. Like Jim who does non has friends ( apart organize his parent s friends ) , some people that experienced the same status as him by and large have a really limited societal web every bit good, and usually the people that they interact are chiefly informal callings . 4 First of all Jim s parents have take him to GP and if he is diagnosed with bipolar upset, the GP will mention him to a head-shrinker ( a medically qualified mental wellness specializer ) , clinical psychologist and /or CPN. At his assignment he will be given an appraisal. The head-shrinker will inquire him a figure of inquiries to find whether or non he has bipolar upset and, if he has, what interventions will be most suited for you. He will be asked about his symptoms and when he foremost experienced them. The head-shrinker will besides inquire him, approximately how he, normally feel taking up to, and during, an episode of passion, or depression, and whether he has had ideas about harming yourself or others. The head-shrinker will besides desire to happen out about his medical background and his household history in order to find whether any of your relations has had bipolar upset. If person else in his household had the status, the head-shrinker may wish to speak to them. After the appraisal the head-shrinker will order the right drugs and refer him to a clinical psychologist. Psychotherapists work with persons, twosomes, households and groups to assist them get the better of a scope of psychological and emotional issues. With the client as an active participant, clinical psychologists use personal intervention programs and a assortment of non-medical-based interventions to: address the client s thought procedures, feelings and behavior ; understand inner struggles ; happen new ways to cover with, and alleviate, hurt They take a assortment of attacks harmonizing to the theoretical theoretical accounts they adopt and the therapy they pattern. These talking therapies include: cognitive behavioral therapies ; psychoanalytic and psychodynamic therapies ; humanistic and integrative psychotherapeuticss ; systemic therapies ; hypno-psychotherapy ; experiential constructivist therapies. Community Psychiatric nurses ( CPNs ) would be helpful to Jim as they can see him in his new house and supply him back up through the hard periods of his unwellness, they besides will see him when is good to look into that everything is all right and be the first point of contact if he becomes unwell once more. The CPN will assist Jim with his medicine and do certain that he understands what he should be taking and when. They besides help patient s household ( in this instance Jim s parents ) and callings understand and cope with the unwellness. Jim and his parents would profit of Occupational healers ( OTs ) every bit good. An occupational healer can hold many different functions. They will assist Jim and his parents ( when he moves out of his parents house ) to accommodate to the new environment and to get by with their day-to-day life.OTs may work in infirmaries or in the community. They supervise and assess a individual s ability to look after themselves, e.g. self-care, cookery and housekeeping, I would wish point out that Jim does non cognize how to cook, clean or make his wash. . OTs work with both persons and groups. They can put ends for persons with depression to promote them to accomplish more than they have been able to make while ailment. They might acquire patients involved in specific job-related preparation strategies to better their determination devising and planning about the hereafter. Group work is frequently aimed at increasing people s societal interactions. OTs may utilize many different types of ther apy on an person or group footing, including cognitive behavioral therapy and art and music therapy. They may besides be involved in supplying relaxation preparation to patients referred to them by the mental wellness squad or GPs. Social workers are employed by societal services instead than the wellness service. However, most mental wellness societal workers are based in multidisciplinary community mental wellness squads. Social workers may see patients referred to the squad by GPs. They are likely to be involved if patients have societal jobs, such as lodging, money and work. They may supply reding and advice or more specific therapies. They may command entree to some services such as twenty-four hours Centres, reprieve attention, residential attention and other community support services, eg place aid. A societal worker will besides supply Jim a supported occupancy service which will assist and learn him how to derive his independency and better his quality of life.

Expert Guide How Many Times Should You Take the SAT

Expert Guide How Many Times Should You Take the SAT SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips How many times can you take the SAT? Is there a limit if you're retaking it to achieveyour ideal score? Why would you want to keep sitting through this high stakestest, anyway? There are several compelling reasons to take the SAT more than once, but you also shouldn't go totally overboard. Let's go overwhen you should retake the SAT, and when it might be time to move on. Reasons to Take the SAT More Than Once Students almost always improve when they retake the SAT.When you take the SAT,you gain valuablereal test experience that helps youfigure out how to manage your time and deal with pressure. Youmight encounter certain problems that stump youand learn the concepts youmissed out on for next time. Because theycan take time to study and improve, lots of students choose to take the SAT more than once to improve the scores they'll ultimately add to their college applications. Some students strategically build up their SAT score section by section. If your college superscores your test resultsor takes the highest scores by section across all the timeyou sat for the test, then you could theoretically focus on Math for one test date, Reading for another date, and Writing and Language for the third. While you shouldn't treat any section as a throwaway section, since a major discrepancy in scores could raise red flags both to your colleges and the College Board, this approach is one way to really hone your knowledge in one area and potentially achieve near-perfect section scores one test date at a time. If you scoreworse than you expected to on the SAT, you might have had a fluke test. There could have been a major passage that just didn't make sense to you, or maybe you were tired, sick, or distracted that day. If this is the case, you should schedule for the next test as soon as possible. So if you're likely to improve your SAT scores every time you take the test, should you just keep taking it over and over again until you hit perfection? Can You Take the SAT an Unlimited Number of Times? How many times can you take the SAT? Technically, you can take the SAT as many times as you want! There are no restrictions for registering for and taking the test. There are 7 test dates throughout the year, so the only limit that stands in your wayis time. Many schools allow you to use Score Choice, or to pick and choose which scores from which test dates you want to send as part of your college application. Not all schools support the use of Score Choice, however, and they take it on good faith that you'll send all your scores. Some notable schools with a "send all scores" policy include Yale, Stanford, Cornell, Carnegie Mellon, and the University of California. So if you can use Score Choice to send only some scores and keep the rest private, and you have the time and money to keep retesting, then technically you could take the SAT as many times as you want. But if your schools don't use Score Choice and you are expected to send all your test scores along with your application, how many times retaking the SAT is too many? How Many SAT Tests Is Too Many? If you're applying to schools that require all scores, like the ones mentioned above, I would recommend not taking the SAT more than six times. If you take the SAT this many or more times, you might be sending the signal that you're not taking the test seriously enough to prep each time or that you have a lot of trouble improving your scores. The SAT is meant to test all students on a level playing field and determine their readiness for college, so it wouldn't look all thatstrong to have to take the testmore than six times to perform well. While real test experience is valuable, you also will gaina lot from focused and purposeful test prep. Perhapsyou keep retaking the SAT and your scores are not improving as much as you'd like. Rather than asking, "How many times can I take the SAT?" you should reconsideryour test prep approach. Are you really uncovering and targeting your weak spots and filling in your knowledge gaps? Are you timing yourself when you take practice tests to practice your pacing? Are you familiar with the best strategies for analyzing the Reading passages or writing the essay? By honing your approach to test prep and really putting in the time and effort to study, you should be able to achieve your target scores within a few administrations of the SAT. Besides what excessive retesting indicates about how you're prepping for the SAT, it also might not be the best idea for a few other reasons. Planning your SAT testing schedule is all about balance. Reasons Not to Overtake the SAT First, it's important to take control of your test prep, diagnose your strengths and weaknesses, and figure out what you need to do to improve your scores. Apart from this, you're probably also taking other tests, like finals or the SAT Subject Tests, along with all your schoolwork, community service, and clubs or sports that require your attention. You wouldn't want to drop the ball at this point in your high school career by diverting attention away from these other pursuits, as these are also all key parts of your college application. Plus, unless you're superhuman or highly skilled at meditating, sitting for the SATtends to involve stress and anxiety.Getting real test experience is helpful in teaching you to regulate your nerves, calm yourself down, and focus, but you also don't need to put yourself through this too many times. Taking the SAT more than six times could potentially become a waste of time, money, and energy. Again, while you can definitely have a fluke testing experience and score much lower than you should, you also don't want to treat any tests as throwaway tests. It's important to take every test seriously so you can get a real sense of your skills and scoring capacity. You can use this same mindsetwith practice tests - by simulating testing conditions and timing yourself, you can build on your testing experience and figure out what you need to learn and practice to boost your scores. Like with everything else you're involved in through school and outside of school, taking the SAT is all about balance. If you set and stick to a study plan and testing schedule, then you'll be able to find the happy medium between testing too often andtesting too little. Belowis one common guide that works for a lot of high school students. SAT Study Plan and Testing Schedule Guide This timeline is effective for a lot of students and gives you time to prep and retake the SAT a few times to hit your target scores. Rather than scouring for test dates to figure out how many times can you take the SAT, you can have everything planned out in advance. 1.Study for the SAT the summer before junior year. You can use online prep, answer SAT Questions of the Day, print official practice tests, try sample questions, and study from books. 2. Register for and take your first real SAT test in the fall of junior year. Depending on how you do, you can later register for the test again. 3. If you're retaking the SAT, you can prep during the winter of junior year and take the SAT again in the spring. You might also be taking SAT Subject Tests at the end of the school year. If you still aren't scoring where you want to score, then you can sign up to take the SAT in the fall of your senior year. 4. Put a lot of effort into test prep the summer between junior and senior year. Figure out what you were missing on the first two administrations of the test, learn the concepts, and apply them through practice problems. You want to do everything you can to prepare, as this test in the fall will likely be your last chance. 5. Take the first available test senior year, before you get too busy with schoolwork and your summer studying is fresh in your mind. This would be in October for the SAT. If you feel this test did not go well, you might be able to retake it one more time, depending on your college deadlines. This is also not an ideal time to take the SAT, as you'll be busy finishing up and sending off the rest of your application. If you're not sure if your scores will be sent to your colleges in time, definitely call or email the admissions office and ask if they'll accept these scores.They might wait for your scoreseven if they arrive after the stated deadline, but you can't bank on this unless they've told you this explicitly. Ambitious students who feel they can achieve a high score even earlier in their high school career might choose to push this schedule forward a year.You could start prepping as a 9th or 10th grader, take the SAT throughout sophomore year, and be all set with yourscores before youeven start the rest of the application process. If you're a strong, academically achieving student, you might already have the math, reading, and writing skills you need to score highly on the SAT before you even reach junior year. Just like with your test prep, it's important to reflect on what works best for you. As everyone has different preferences, strengths, and weaknesses, there's no one size fits all approach to studying for and taking the SAT. This testing schedule works for a lot of students, but ultimately it's up to you to decide on and stick to the schedule that will allow you to perform your best. To Sum Up: How Many Times Should You Take the SAT? Around four times of sitting for the SAT (sometimes more, sometimes less) should likely be enough for you to reach your target scores, along with many more practice tests and effective test prep on your own. Don't underestimate the power of prep in helping you master the SAT. In the end though, you shouldn't be afraid to take real tests, as they are valuable training experiences and you can almost always improve your scores or make up for an off day. Give yourself enough test dates so you don't run out of opportunities to take the test, and find the balance between retesting, studying, and accomplishing your goals in time for your college deadlines. What's Next? What's a good SAT score for 10th grade? 9th grade? What about overall for your college applications? These articles explore this topic of when to take the SAT even further, revealing what your early test scores indicate about your future performance. Are you aiming for a perfect 1600? This full scorer shares his strategies for scoring an 800on both Math and Reading and Writing. While most schools place a great deal of importance on the SAT or ACT, there are actually some schools now that have test optional or test flexible policies. Before you design your plan, make sure you understand the requirements of your colleges. Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points? Check out our best-in-class online SAT prep classes. We guarantee your money back if you don't improve your SAT score by 160 points or more. Our classes are entirely online, and they're taught by SAT experts. If you liked this article, you'll love our classes. Along with expert-led classes, you'll get personalized homework with thousands of practice problems organized by individual skills so you learn most effectively. We'll also give you a step-by-step, custom program to follow so you'll never be confused about what to study next. Try it risk-free today:

What Competitive Strategy Coca Cola Should Adopt to Develop Business Dissertation

What Competitive Strategy Coca Cola Should Adopt to Develop Business Expansion in China - Dissertation Example This fact helps the company in glocalising its products with also reducing its operational costs. In the light of the above fact the paper focuses on evaluating the region of China as a feasible market for beverage and soft drink products rendered by Coca-Cola. China seems to be a growing market for beverage and soft drinks where a larger chunk of the population still depend on the increased consumption of tea as the most liked and supported beverage. However with the development of the economic and social situation of several regions in China there has been growth of middle class consumers demanding westernised products. Thus several soft drink and beverage companies like Coca-Cola are eying China as a potential marketing development zone for their products. The paper in this account tends to conduct a research based on the use of several strategic models to evaluate the marketing position for beverages in China. In addition the paper also focuses on conducting analysis based on interview of both targeted consumers and managers of Coca-Cola to enhance the level of understanding of the parameters through which Coca-Cola can effectively succeed in the Chinese soil. Introduction About Coca-Cola Coca-Cola listed in the New York Stock Exchange stands as the largest beverage producer in the world. The company works on rendering a number of branded drinks that in total amounts to consolidated revenue of around $15 billion. Coca-Cola ranks as number one in the field of beverage and juice production and also ready-to-drink coffee products. The company through its extensive distribution network endeavours to serve consumers along 200 countries thereby gaining the potential to render around 1.8 billion servings on an average basis. Further, the com pany works to enhance on its environment sustainability and social responsibility paradigm to gain an enhanced space in the consumer markets. The company also acts as a significant global employer ranking 10 in the

Emergency Leave Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Emergency Leave - Assignment Example On the other hand, the HRD requires much formality through written documentations. Clarke will definitely feel bad because his request for leave was not granted. The HRD though, will feel that upper level manager is just following the policies of the hotel in denying the request of Clarke, through a memo addressed to him. Obviously, Clarke values family over work. More specifically, he is very much concerned with his grandmother’s health that he is willing to sacrifice his work just to take care of her. The HRD values the strict implementation of company policies. After reading this message, one wants Clarke to realize that it is important that he gives importance to his work. It is also essential that he realizes that written requests for leaves is part of the policy of the hotel. Clarke must recognize that the hotel does not tolerate frequent absences. The HRD must think that the denial of the request for emergency leave is justified. The information that must be included for the secondary audience is the problem of Clarke about his sick grandmother. The HRD should also be informed that Clarke is frequently absent because of this problem. The most appropriate medium for both audiences is a memo addressed to Clarke, copy furnished the HRD. This will effectively document and convey to Clarke the denial of his request for leave and it will communicate the current situation of Clarke to the HRD. I received your voice mail message last (state date of message) requesting for an emergency leave for the upcoming holiday weekend. I fully understand that your grandmother’s health is one of your priorities. Taking care of a loved one is a commendable virtue and I admire you for that. As you are fully aware of, there is a conference of electrical engineers this weekend at a nearby convention center and for the first time, our hotel will be host to its attendees. This is a welcome

Basquiat Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Basquiat - Essay Example Though there were trying situations from his early childhood onward, he managed to find the most appropriate ways to counter them and to be exact in his road to fame. He painted as an artist who never bothered of restrictions and he had nothing to lose. Basquiat fought against many distressing situations in his life and rose to attain recognition by the year 1980 through 'The Times Square Show'. He collaborated with many artists of his time, including art-writers, curators, and collectors, to form a group which later came to be called as the Neo-expressionist movement. Though the painter developed to be one of the most realized artists of his time, his friends were worried about his extreme drug consumption, unpredictable behavior etc. Before he died at his 27 due to mixed-drug toxicity, he had achieved significant recognition. For a complete understanding of the life and artistic works of Basquiat, it is pivotal to depend on the authentic bibliography on him. However, the value of t he visual means along with the written word cannot be overlooked. In fact, the visual media has been able to offer a greater awareness of Basquiat's life. Therefore, though Basquiat has been memorialized through the biopic in 1996 by Julian Schnabel as well as the best selling biography of Basquiat by Phoebe Hoban in 1998, the former has a greater value to the audience as it offers a complete picture of the life of the artist through various aspects such as music and the sound effects, the effect of acting, and the other visual effects. This paper deals with a comparison between the reading and the film in order to suggest why the visual representation has a superior validity in understanding the life of Basquiat. Through his biography of Basquiat, Phoebe Hoban was able to create a true picture of the artist's life, but it was never a complete picture to the readers, as many often he failed to relate to the powerful emotion of the readers. Basquiat is represented as the most notorious artist who failed to accomplish his goals. Hoban presents the life of this great artist as cashed in on both fame and greed which were the characteristics of the 1980s. "Basquiat's life spanned an historic shift in the art world, from Pop to Neo-Expressionism, from hip to hype." (Hoban) To the biographer, graffiti was only the beginning for the painter and he soon involved with a New York scene which considered art as an element of the whole array of media. "'Artists were mixing up their media,' Phoebe Hoban suggests, and 'music film, painting and fashion were recombining in innovative ways' at the end of 1970s and early 1980s." (Thompson, 68) According to Hoban, Basquiat's stylistic qualities are part of establi shed African-American aesthetic traditions. The biography of Basquiat suggests why the artist was able to accomplish as a great painter. Accordingly, his contemporary world as well as the subsequent periods failed to recognize the "qualities in Basquiat's paintings and to concentrate instead'on his celebrity lifestyle'" (Thompson, 69) Similarly, the art movement of the time also failed to achieve a significant impact on the scenario. The biography Basquiat by Hoban,

Westward Expansion Paper Research Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Westward Expansion - Research Paper Example It is vital to note that manifest destiny was not an official government policy but it led to enactment and passage of policies such as the Homestead Act, which in turn motivated colonization of the West and acquisition of territories. More so, it played a vital part in the American thought of 1800s. An American newspaper editor known as John O’Sullivan was the first person to use the term manifest destiny when he was writing about the proposed annexation of Texas. It was stated that the American manifest destiny was to dominate and over-spread the continent in that via this expansion, America could be recognized economically, socially and politically superpower. In sum, O’Sullivan stated that American was chosen to play the role of expanding westward and establishing civilization (Woodworth 33). It was argued that it was the role of America to spread democratic institutions and liberty to other parts of the world. The main underlying aspect of this American mission was a strong feeling of racial and cultural superiority. Additionally, the Anglo-Saxon America stressed that they had the right to spread to the west while bringing them ideas of Protestantism and self-government. The American conflict with Mexico coincided with American’s desire for expansion. Mexico that had attained independence from Spain had initially accepted and encouraged U.S settlers in Texas but its ruler Santa Anna banned further U.S immigration. However, when Texas announced its own independence from Mexico, Santa opposed the move and vowed to put down the insurrection. This led to annexation of Texas was very controversial due to the issue of slavery. It was believed that Texas was going to add another slave state thus its bid to join the Union was threatened by the issue of slavery as it was believed that it would divide the Democratic Party. Polk encouraged and supported annexation of Texas because of the Country’s compromise on expansion. The Oregon trial was part of the concept of manifest destiny because manifest destiny was the concept that required America to expand into the western territory. Therefore, the Oregon Trail was the people who were moving or travelling from East to the West. This illustrated manifest Destiny because people on the Oregon trial were travelling and spreading out to the West, which was the central concept of manifest destiny (Rick 41-42). The idea of manifest destiny is well demonstrated in the California gold rush where gold mining led to influx of Chinese immigrants in California. This development was criticized by the Americans who lived in California because they believed that no person from other continent cold conduct business in their territory. The idea of manifest destiny was well illustrated in 1845 when James K. Polk became the president in that he initiated an aggressive expansionist plan. At this time, most of Mexican territories had been inhabited but America ignored this development and di smissed as baseless. More so, many people believed that English speaking Americans, protestant were better prepared and equipped to rule Mexican territories than Spanish speaking Mexicans or American Indians (Anders 64). The United States of America tried to purchase California and New Mexico in 1835. However, the U.S battled in the Mexican-American war, which enabled it to acquire the territories of New Mexico and California. The Missouri Compromise of 1820 During the early 1800s, slavery was the most divisive issue in the United States of America. After the revolution, most States in North of Maryland started programs of slowly outlawing slavery, and in the early years of 1800s, the States that still practiced Slavery were in the South. The Missouri compromise in 1820 was a