Pretty Babies, Child Beauty Pageants Essay

Many of us first learned about the world of child beauty pageants when a 5  ½ year old beauty queen named JonBenet Ramsey was found murdered the day after Christmas in 1996. The child was murdered in her Boulder Colorado home and found in the basement with her hands tied, her mouth duct taped, and her throat garroted. Her death was ruled strangulation but there was also blunt force trauma to her head as well as vaginal injury (Auge, Karen, par. 13-15). Her death brought these pageants into our minds, conversations and living rooms and many people were shocked to see a child of that age made up like an adult woman, some even said like a prostitute and accused the pageants of sexualizing her and the other children. Images and videos of JonBenet with her hair curled, teased, and sprayed, wearing heavy make-up and glamorous outfits were splattered across the newsstands and she pranced across our televisions winking, flirting and dancing. Any link of her death to the pageants is speculative since the murder remains unsolved, but many people could not help but wonder how safe it was for a child to be made a spectacle of in such a fashion. This past Monday would have been JonBenets 22nd birthday. Perhaps it is time that we as a society take a good look at child beauty pageants and decide what place if any they have in the future for our daughters. JonBenet was the daughter of a wealthy businessman named John Ramsey and his wife, a former Miss West Virginia 1977, Patsy. Patsy has since passed away but John Ramsey has written a book titled â€Å"The Other Side of Suffering† and in an interview with Nightline, John has expressed his regret that JonBenet participated in the pageants. He states in the interview â€Å"Only because- that possibly (the pageants) might have drawn attention to us. † â€Å"I don’t know. But- I think for- for advice to parents is just recognize that- regardless of where you live, there could be evil around you. And don’t be naive about it. And keep your kids protected† (Chang, par. 0). He wonders now about some of the public appearances JonBenet made and if the murderer was maybe in the audience. He says â€Å"Patsy had her sitting atop a friend’s convertible in the Christmas parade waving at people lining the streets. † â€Å"Patsy’s mother later told me that a strange man approached the car during the parade and it made her uncomfortable. I think about these things now and it makes me cringe. We were so naive. I now believe with all my heart that it is not a good idea to put your child on public display. (Chang, par. 7). His words give weight to the issue at hand and initially, it seems, many people felt the same way as child pageants took a financial hit as less people wanted to be associated with the â€Å"publicly tainted industry† (Friedman, par. 5). Fifteen years after the tragic death of JonBenet the pageants have enjoyed a resurgence in popularity (Friedman, par. 6) thanks in large part to the hit show on The Learning Channel, Toddlers & Tiaras. The show is immensely popular and is now in its fourth season (IMDB, 2012). Understanding, of course that this is a television show and not a documentary, that it has been edited for drama and to create what is commonly called â€Å"good television†, the show nonetheless gives a viewer a look inside this somewhat alien world. In his interview John Ramsey stated that he had never watched the show but had caught snippets that he finds disturbing. â€Å"It is very bizarre† he states â€Å"And, it certainly- Patsy and JonBenet didn’t approach it that way. We-they just did it for fun. †(Chang, par. 5). Will the parents or the pageant officials take heed? Or will the allure of glamour and profit make them justify their actions? Watching the television show you are immediately struck by one fact; this is a southern thing. To the people who do this, none of it is strange. In fact many of the parents were overjoyed to learn they were pregnant with girls and began to buy gowns before their babies were even born. One mother who has a boy and a girl stated that she had been very upset when she found out that she was pregnant with the boy until she found out that boys could participate in pageants as well. She even stated, on television, that she had only had children so she could put them in pageants. This would seem very strange to many people, but if you watch the show you will hear statements like this over and over, often in front of the children and always on camera (Toddlers & Tiaras, 2009-2012). What is apparent is that this is truly a culture. They call themselves â€Å"Pageant People† (Toddlers & Tiaras, 2009-2012) and this encompasses not only the contestants and their families but also the judges, pageant directors and announcers and the many, many service people used by the contestants from dress designers to make-up artists and hairstylists to spray tanners and waxers and many of the girls even get facials before a pageants even though their skin cannot possibly look much younger. The popularity of this television show is evident, anyone using a search engine that types in the name of the show will be directed to literally thousands of articles, opinion pieces and fan based websites as well as many spoofs of the show starring big names like Ashley Tisdale and Tom Hanks and has enjoyed the pinnacle of success in the eyes of many, satire on Saturday Night Live. But what about the tiny stars of the show? How safe are they? Is all of this good for them? Watching the show you will see a few kids and moms that seem almost normal, of course these people never get to be the stars. The stars are the children who are bratty, who throw temper tantrums, hit their parents, try to bite other kids and just generally misbehave. The mothers who get the most airtime are of course the ones who say the meanest and most bizarre things. Who treat their children like performing monkeys and seemingly will do anything to get their small progeny to perform on stage. It is remarkable to watch a child transform in just moments from a sparkling banshee into a sweetly smiling and composed young lady, or gentleman on stage. The majority of the children featured on Toddlers & Tiaras are little girls but there are a few boys featured as well. It seems unfortunate that the more poorly behaved the people on the show are the more they are rewarded with fame. One strange family has even got their own spin-off show called, Here Comes Honey Boo-Boo (IMDB, 2012). The children often throw fits because they are being forced to do something they do not want to do. Over and over, in almost every episode the children state that they hate doing the beauty portion of the competition. For those unfamiliar with how things work it important to know that the beauty portion is the most important piece of the pageant where girls are judged on their poise, their attire, hair and make-up, and most of all their facial beauty. They are not really expected to perform at this stage of the pageant but only to walk slowly from mark to mark on the stage stopping briefly at each mark to spin and smile sweetly at the judges and the audience and slowly turn from side to side so that all spectators can take in their appearance. One little girl who was seven was criticized by a female judge for â€Å"having too much personality for beauty† although of the same girl a male judge stated that he â€Å"could not take my eyes off her†( Toddlers & Tiaras, season 4, 2012). The girl went on to win the biggest crown in the pageant and a contract with an agent. The judges of the pageants can often seem harsh and mark the children down for seemingly acceptable things for the contestants to do, given that most of the girls featured on the show are only between the ages of four and nine. A six year old was marked down because her ankle rolled. She was wearing high heels. A four year old was marked down because her fake teeth or â€Å"flipper† fell out during the beauty portion. Another girl was marked down for being too â€Å"fake†(?! ). And in one episode the little girls were competing for ten thousand dollars and some former contestants came out of retirement to compete. They were as old as twenty-one and some were doing very sexy dances; the male judge was obviously captivated and would not stop talking about the older contestants. A 20 year old won. Against little girls. (Toddlers & Tiaras, 2009-2012) You will see some moments on the show where the parents are caring and the children seem to be keeping the whole thing in perspective. One of the fathers, who has 3 children in the pageants does not allow his kids to be tanned or wear fake teeth and lashes and says some of it is â€Å"too far†. He also keeps the bills for the pageants a little lower by renting the dresses and says he preferred the natural pageants. Another one of the parents, this one a mother, laughed when her nine year old daughter’s hair fell down during the pageant, she told her she did â€Å"so good† and reassured her when she began to cry that it was okay. Then said she was just glad she got a crown (in many of the pageants every contestant gets some type of crown) and that she did not need to win the ultimate title and the little girl stated after she calmed down â€Å"win graciously, lose humbly†. Another little girl who won a high title stated that the title she had gotten was really good because â€Å"There’s a lot of girls here†¦ and they tried hard too†. One mother who had seemed very extreme during the beginning of the pageant seemed to have an epiphany at some point during the pageant and said that this would be her seven year old daughter’s last pageant and that her daughter was â€Å"beautiful on her own†. (Toddlers & Tiaras, 2009-2012). In one touching episode, a mother had only boys and it seemed that her six year old son and her had a very special relationship based on the pageants. The father, in spite of being supportive, was done with his son being in the pageants and wanted this to be his last one. The boy seemed happy to do the pageants and seemed to have a very special relationship with his mother. At the end of the show they were crying and hugging each other and it was actually hard not to be sad for them (Toddlers & Tiaras, 2009-2012) Most of the other parents are not like those ones and the majority of the scenes shown depict these women as bitter and jealous. The way they speak of the other children is disgraceful. They say mean things in front of their own kids about the other children, especially if the other children win and their daughter did not, like that the girl who won did not deserve it and often say that the pageant was unfair or rigged. One mom on the sidelines said about a girl on the stage â€Å"If she wins, she better go get some cellulite treatment done†(Toddlers & Tiaras, 2009-2012). The little girls definitely pick up this cattiness from their mothers. Many times over these children say that they are better or prettier than the other girls. One six year old girl knew from her mother that one of the other girls was her biggest competition at the pageant. The other girl was well known for her continuing pacifier dependency and first girl said that she had a secret weapon for her opponent so she could beat her and held up a gag pacifier that had funny looking teeth on the front of it and then snickered. In one sad scene there were sister aged ten and eight who were competing in the same pageant, the eight year old stated that she was going to beat her sister and if her sister started crying she would â€Å"beat her to he ground†. When the older sister started to cry and said that it was because she was being mean the younger one told her to â€Å"Stop crying, you’re embarrassing me! † (Toddlers & Tiaras, 2009-2012). If you think the â€Å"tiger moms† would be less cruel to their own offspring you would learn that often that is not the case. Over and over when the children cry because they are hungry, tired, something being done to them hurts or they lost they are told not to cry because they are on camera or that the pageant is not over and their make-up will be ruined. One mom talking about her daughter said that she, the mom, had been better at cheerleading and that her daughter just can’t â€Å"get it† like her. Her daughter was nine. One child was forced to stop doing gymnastics because it was making her muscles too big for her costumes and her mother told her â€Å"that was sucky† when she came off stage. Over and over the children are cruelly disregarded or ignored when they state that they are in pain, feeling sick, hungry or tired. In a heart stopping scene a nine year old girl went missing in full hair and make-up and was no longer in the hotel. In every scene shown by the television show the mom was worried about her being late for her age line up and not concerned for her safety. Luckily, she was found in time, and her standing in the pageant was unaffected. That the girls often cry when they lose is no surprise when you take in that the mothers often cry or state they are going to throw up and berate their daughters for blowing on stage by forgetting to smile at the judges or forgetting part of their routine. The moms let their daughters know that they lost too if their crown is not big enough and does not come with a high title attached to it. The moms will tell their daughters who are smiling and holding a crown that they lost and the crown they have is for losers. One mom while sitting in the audience was â€Å"pissed† and going to cry and listed what the other little girls got and that her daughter didn’t get anything. No wonder the little girl had a tantrum and screamed that she wanted a crown (Toddlers & Tiaras, 2009-2012) Many of these mothers are, like Patsy Ramsey, former beauty queens themselves and will stop and nothing to ensure their daughters success in the pageant world. Sometimes it becomes so extreme that it makes the news. In 2011 ABC News did a story on a mom who gave her 8 year old daughter Botox injections because she had wrinkles (Hagan, Kunin and Ghebremedhin, par. 5). The mother was not a doctor but an esthetician, which is basically a beautician for the skin. She claims her daughter wanted to try it herself because her wrinkles bothered her. This is hopefully a rare case but more commonly these young children have their eyebrows waxed, they receive spray tans, even if they are African American or bi-racial. They have acrylic nails put on, they are fitted for fake teeth to go over their own teeth called flippers, they have hair extensions put in because often their baby fine hair either is not thick enough for the large hair-dos or not strong enough to take the heat and styling. Some of the girls have their hair bleached before a pageant. Sometimes these things hurt or are uncomfortable and the children complain. There seems to be a particular hatred amongst the little girls for the false eyelashes. Many of the girls scream and cry and beg to not have to wear them to no avail. These are typically services reserved for very high maintenance women and many adult women would not have the patience for them. The FDA has not done studies on the safety of these chemicals for use on children either. How does it feel to sit in make-up and hair for two hours for a child of say four? On pageant day the real magic begins. The girls are up early in the morning in their hotel rooms. They are fed breakfast and then the beauty regime begins. The pageants last all day and usually include several outfit changes and the performance of practiced routines. The girls, some very young, are not allowed to eat or nap so their hair and make-up do not become ruined. To make up for this, the moms have found some magic. On pageant day the girls have sugar cubes and Pixie Stix poured into their mouths all day long and are fed through a straw high caffeine and sugar drinks like Mountain Dew and some†¦ Red Bull energy drinks. There is some serious concern over the safety of these drinks (Ostrow, 2011). One mother asked her daughter before the pageant if she wanted to quit doing them. The girl nodded yes and the mom said â€Å" Let’s look at your crowns! Doesn’t that make you feel better? † (Toddlers & Tiaras, 2009-2012). One of the reasons many of the parents say they do it is often for the prizes, money, bonds and scholarships. Indeed, some of the pageants featured on the television show do boast some large prizes. But most of the parents admit that they have spent many times over what their child has received. Several of the moms admit to lying to their husbands about how much they spend and one single mom has moved in with her parents so they could continue to pay for pageants and it is common for the mothers to take a â€Å"pageant job† (Toddlers & Tiaras, 2009-2012) to cover some of the expenses. Some of the parents spend lavishly on the pageants. Many of the pageants have a top prize of only several hundred dollars yet the girls will show up in 2500$ dresses. In one episode two sisters have their very own trailer for pageant accessories that have their pictures emblazoned on the sides. One very enterprising mother has published a pageant book about her daughter, recorded a song and had a doll made in her daughters image. In an episode where they went to the Tonight Show she was saying how she was planning to get her daughter and agent and a two million dollar contract so she could quit her job and move to Hollywood. It seems as if the parents either have delusions about some pay off that will eventually come if they keep plugging away or they really have just found a very expensive habit that they justify for other reasons.

Microbiology Bacteria Paper

I would not say science is storybook fun, but who knew it become a mystery. Trying to find out what was in our number seven vial would become a battle we were willing to take on. As I began the test of deciding if our little bacteria friend was gram positive or negative, Jordan my science teammate, was putting together a smear plate. In as little as ten minutes we had discovered by the pink oval shapes we were observing, our microbe friend was a gram negative rod. We had narrowed our search down to five! We decided next we would do oxygen along with a motility test. Along with those, we did a fermentation investigation. These tests would narrow our pursuit down even further. Unfortunately these tests take time. The following day, we curiously went to our ‘stash’ of experiments. As we observed we soon realized our little bacteria was a non-motile, facultative anaerobe. With the observation of acid and gas formation, this microorganism was able to catabolize glucose, lactose and fructose. Our smear plate, with white convex muciod looking colonies confirmed our suspicion. We were now looking at vial number seven with anew respect, he now had a name, and that name was Klebsiella pneumonia. Read also Lab 2 Biology Now that our mystery microbe had a proper name, where would we find it? This bacterium, I found out is ubiquitous in nature, meaning it seems to be present, everywhere at the same time. Just about anywhere you would step, touch or see in nature you could bet this little guy is there. Its family is abundant in soil, water and vegetables. But they have cousins, uncles, second cousins etc. just about everywhere else. â€Å"Wow†, was all I could muster. But our friend not only had a large family in nature, this microbe also found residence inside the human body. The respiratory, intestinal, and urogenital tracts are a favored neighborhood for this microscopic organism. This tiny microbe seems to find just about any region environmentally friendly. Not only is it very versatile in were it lives, I would soon learn it was also just as versatile in what is able to do. This small bacterium could devastate the human body if allowed to. Our secret microbe was considered to be an opportunistic human pathogen, meaning that under certain conditions it may cause disease. All this little guy needed was the perfect scenario and he could ‘thrive’ in only a way harmful bacterium could. Read Chapter 8 Microbial Genetics Persons with underlying diseases such as alcoholism or lung infections were some of their favorite captives. Along with people who are hospitalized and receive invasive procedures, being their other prime hostages. These guys are on the top ten most known list of nosocomial infection pathogens. Trying to get rid of this pathogen is no easy feat either! Once this type is let in he really does not want to leave. Of course, the first attack to rid the body of this pathogen is to use a timely and aggressive treatment of antibiotics. Even that though, can prove to not be beneficial. Since these little critters are proven to be resistant, meaning, they develop ways to inactivate or neutralize the antibiotic. Many cases have to be treated with cephalosporin’s and aminoglycosides to give the bacteria a two-pronged attack. This bacterium certainly has a powerful army when dispersed. But how does this little fella do this? Well, the pathology for it to become Pneumonia develops when the bacilli invade and multiply within the alveolar spaces.General Biology Ii Study Guide (Online Class) The pulmonary parenchyma becomes consolidated, and the mucoid exudates that fill the alveoli is controlled by macrophages, fibrin, and edema fluid. Neutrophils, our bodies own fighting soldiers are inhibited by a neutral polysaccharide in the capsule of this bacterium. Numerous encapsulated gram-negative bacilli appear free in the exudates and in alveolar macrophages. Then exudates accumulate and the alveolar wall becomes compacted and healthy tissue starts to degrade. This area, where the microbe does its best work, is the area of gas exchange with the blood, a vital part of the human anatomy/physiology. So when this microbe is able to take over, a hefty defense force of antibacterial agents have to come to the battle. Antibiotics themselves though have a become an overused tool. This has become a growing problem and many actions have now come into play to stop the abuse of these products. Some would argue a little too late. This lapse of poor judgment has led to the numerous strains of antibiotic resistant infections. Klebsiella pneumonia is one of the leading culprits. The thing is though, bacteria does not know its playing a dangerous game with us, all bacteria is trying to do is win.References Klebsiella pneumonia . Retrieved from: http://www.klebsiellapneumoniae.org/ (Klebsiella pneumoniae ,† 2011) Klebasiella pneumonia. Retrieved from http://www.histopathology-india.net/Klebsiella_pneumoniae.htm (Dr. Sampuna Roy, 2011)

Is Ethics Natural or Learned Behavior?

Human beings have an innate ethical sense that urges them to make predictable choices. Although most people believe their actions are guided by logic and reason, reason often acts only as a way to justify these choices. Ethics is a learned behavior, a behavior that starts from childhood. Every individual has choices in life. And everyone’s perception of right and wrong may not be the same. This discussion will be based on is ethics natural or learned behavior? The ability to speak allows people to come up with rationales which support what are genetically driven decisions. Even though genetics may play a part, I believe ethics is a learned behavior. In understanding ethics, we must first realize that pretense and dissimulation are rooted in our genes. As part of the prehistoric mechanism for survival, human beings unfortunately identify with lying and manipulating. Lying and cheating are believed by too many to be legitimate tools in the quest to achieve selfish ends (www. ethicseducation. com). Despite this truth, as we learned as children, cooperation is actually the better way to achieve individual success therefore ethics can definitely be learned. The history of ethical thought is in this regard a record of attempts to promote communal behavior in order to ensure stability within a group. Many middle and high school students today will tell you that they themselves determine, as does every other individual, the standards of right and wrong. Students will resist the notion that they owe anything to anyone, or that they have any absolute obligation toward society. They recognize that wrongs can be done, but have a very difficult time judging their own actions to be wrong. There is an underlying attitude of: nothing I do can be truly wrong because I am ultimately the final judge of what is right and wrong for me. Ethics is about the individual. The fact that students can be taught to be tolerant of different opinions and see that a variance of viewpoints can be legitimate contradicts the belief that ethics is a natural occurrence. In some instances moral behavior can be natural. Recent studies have shown that dolphins and other marine mammals, chimpanzees, apes, monkeys and even dogs possess a moral sense, and display many of the behaviors considered basic to most normative human ethical standards. Equality, reciprocity, even altruism, have been detected and recorded among these animals, as well as treachery, deceit and manipulation. In fact, a kind of what goes around comes around golden rule is fundamental to the social relationships of most primates. This being said, there must be some sort of social instinct rooted in our genes. Man is driven by innate genetic forces and is capable of making thoughtful assessments of what is happening. Ethics investigates how we can evaluate our behavior in terms of right and wrong, good and bad.

Is cloud computing beneficial to organizations Annotated Bibliography

Is cloud computing beneficial to organizations - Annotated Bibliography Example It also compiles information on software as a service, platform as a service and infrastructure as service styles of its architecture. The paper carries useful information to beginners. 3. Matt Goldner (2010). Winds of Change: Libraries and Cloud Computing. [Online]: OCLC Online Computer Library Center, Inc.. 3. Available at [https://docs.google.com/viewer] Last Accessed on 24th Sep 2012 This early article contains definition for cloud computing and its characteristically high benefits compared to old systems. Author then describes improvement of technology, data and community of libraries using cloud computing. This is a case study based article focusing the financial aspects of cloud computing in businesses. Author describes changing production architecture as the main source of reducing cost. He also explains balancing risks between customer and service provider. Paper employs a simple approach to introduce cloud computing to readers by describing its characteristics compared to old systems. Uses are broadly described in the next section. Focus of the paper narrows down to application in academic institutions in the final section. Using cloud computing to solve specific problems in academic institutions is described in this paper. Authors recommend integrating industrial IT resources with academic institutions in order to use resources economically. Importance of facilitating student researches in software engineering is also highlighted. 7. Wardley, S, Goyer E, and Barcet N, "Ubuntu Enterprise Cloud Architecture," 2009, [Online]: Available at [http://www.canonical.com/sites/default/files/active/Whitepaper-UbuntuEnterpriseCloudArchitecture-v1.pdf.] Last Accessed on 24th Sep 2012 This paper focuses on Ubuntu Enterprise Cloud (UEC). The chapters discuss its internal architecture and characteristic advantages over security, networking and scalability in cloud computing. These are presented in detail with related technical

St. Augustine' Art of Rhetoric Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

St. Augustine' Art of Rhetoric - Essay Example years. I have gone through his works and heard one of his quotes that I really enjoyed because it explained very eloquently one of my main pursuits in life. The quote goes "The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page." (Saint Augustine). Hearing that quote got me interested in learning more about this Saint and his life and rhetoric works. St. Augustine was an extremely intelligent man. He was born at Tagaste in proconsul Numidia in 354, to pagan father and a Christian mother. After his first studies in his native city, he went to Carthage, with the financial aid of Romanians, to complete his studies in rhetoric. At the same time, however, he fell a slave to his youthful passions and even became connected with the Manichaean religious sect. After completing his studies, he first established his school at Tagaste, and later at Carthage, where he taught rhetoric for eight years, at the same time studying philosophy and the natural sciences. Augustine was greatly influenced during his education and in his adolescence byCicero, a Roman rhetorician, a great master of Latin rhetoric and composition and especially one of his works in particular,Hortensius. Augustine stated that rhetoric is neither good nor bad in it self, but can be used to effectively defend both what is true and what is false.

Intercultural Communication Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Intercultural Communication - Essay Example Sometimes innocuous blunder may occur through minor mistake causing insult and hurt and for the perpetrator may result in shame and embarrassment. Normally respect and approach will follow where there is understanding, but the way understanding takes place is complex (Pettigres, 2000). Studies have shown that in many cases the awareness, that understanding is needed, is often lacking, which unfortunately forms the route cause of misunderstanding. In this globalized economy where the boundaries of countries are disappearing, the intercultural communication is finding its importance. We take example of this business meeting between a Vietnamese business team with US business team. Let us assume that each team is reasonably well prepared for the meeting. The language is not the problem, members of both the teams are well conversed with English. However to iron out minor language hiccups, each team also included a good translator. The members of both the team comprises men and women, all are meticulously dressed in business dress. Both the teams are punctual and the meeting starts on time. The meeting being a daylong affair, the lunch has been arranged at a local restaurant. Proper planning is made in advance in choosing the menu beforehand so that potential cultural issues on food habits can be prevented. The organizer expected all to go well as the perceived threat from lack of communication have been taken care of. However there arose problems. Initial shaking of hands went well as this has become universal custom for English knowing people to shake hands. The problem started with greeting; both the parties did manage to greet the other in a wrong way. In UK the family name is given at the end of the name. For example Peter Smith is known as Mr. Smith, not other way round as Mr. Peter, whereas in Vietnamese the family name comes first thus making Mguyen Van Khai, Madame Nguyen. But in the meeting Mr. Smith was greeted as Mr. Peter whereas Madame Nguyen was greeted as Madame Khai. The Vietnamese delegation took more offence than their counterpart, the UK delegation, as they perceived it as disrespect. However the meeting continued with the initial hiccup starting with a sore note. The second misunderstanding occurred, this time around with the UK delegates, when one of their team members was referred by someone as his sister. The UK delegates took the meaning literally, but actually it was meant to denote close friendship. The main problem started with the way the Vietnamese men were interacting with their female counterpart of UK delegation. They expected the women delegates would prefer to mix with other women of Vietnamese delegation and left them, which was perceived as disrespect by the female members of UK team. There was another major goof up when during lunch break one of the Vietnamese delegate placed his hand on the elbow of a lady UK delegate to show her the way, when they were leaving for lunch. In Vietnamese culture this is seen as sign of respect and as non-sexual, undertaken between members of the same as well as opposite sex.

Reflection on Sound and Fury Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Reflection on Sound and Fury - Essay Example It is a bond that unites them to others with hearing disability. The story revolves around two families and their views on deafness and a cochlear implant that can help deaf people hear. Its characters are powerful, the emotions overwhelming and an ending that I found thought provoking and disturbing at the same time. Deaf characters in the movie viewed deafness as something sacred and did not consider it a disability. The threat posed by the new device is thus too overwhelming and they unite to protect their culture and their sign language. Peter and Nina are parents of Heather 6, and while they are all deaf, Peter is a strong advocate of sign language and an active member of anti-implant community. However they are shocked when Heather decides she wants an implant so she can talk to hearing people. She wants to hear the sounds around her especially of animals and lion in particular. The reaction of Heather’s mother Nina is of particular interest since she goes against the decision simply because she feels that if Heather starts hearing, she wont be communicating in sign language anymore. I may sound politically incorrect when I say this but the truth is that I did not like Nina’s reaction or their decision not to let Heather get implants. It is very difficult for a hearing person to understand why Nina behaved this way because anyone would want what’s best for his or her children. If you had a disability why would you want your children to go through the same problems? Any hearing or non-hearing person would obviously try to minimize the problems in their child’s life so why would Nina behave like an enemy. I couldn’t understand that and while I wanted to view things from a deaf person’s situation, I still couldn’t bring myself to accept Nina and Peter’s reaction. Interesting they decide that Heather could have implants

Personal statement Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 16

Personal statement - Essay Example I posses the ability to work well in both independent and team work environments. My work at Travelex has enabled me gain the confidence to deal with people face to face, working with team and managing workloads, this among others are the qualities that will enable me succeed in establishing a PGCE teachers training course in the UK. I am a very social person and enjoy interacting with people and especially students and children. I am an excellent team leader, and always try to lead my team diligently. I find it fulfilling and rewarding working with children and being able to guide them in their growing. I know that the primary teacher teaches across the curriculum and it necessary to be proficient in all areas. I believe that it is not only knowing the subject that is important as a teacher, but also knowing a child’s other needs individually. I have learnt that a teachers approach to a class can have great effects on the ability of the students to learn effectively. I intend on changing the way i teach often in order to maintain interest and focus in the students. Encouraging and praising students who are performing poorly is one of my strategies, this will in turn encourage them and eventually they will be able to achieve their desired goals. I intend on encouraging the use of verbal skills. This is very important for both children and adults and helps in clearer understanding and interpretation of information. I will also concentrate on visiting other schools in order to interact with other teachers. This will help me get more exposure, which will increase my knowledge an d enable me teach new things to my students. My exposure has enabled me acquire good ICT skills, this will enable handle any technical work that would arise in the institution. My outspoken grammar and ability to read well and write in English will help me in my teaching course. English is the major learning language in the UK thus this is an

Starbucks Case Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Starbucks Case Analysis - Essay Example The firm that is analyzed in the paper is Starbucks coffee company that ventured into the market in 1971 because of three business people who had love for coffee and tea. They felt it was important for the people of Seattle, Washington to have access to their coffee. They organized themselves, and ten years later this company had four retail stores and a roasting plant selling genuine bean coffee within Seattle only. As time went by, this company expanded to other cities like Vancouver, Portland, and Chicago, and by 1991 Starbucks had more openings within airports. It had also expanded into the mail-order catalogue, then further to the state of California. Having grown this far, the company initiated distribution of successful products and brand extensions that included offering coffee to passengers on United Airlines flights. This boosted their potential that later witnessed them start offering people the option to purchase the company’s products at the comfort of their homes through Starbucks’ online services. Currently, Starbucks strategic position is to provide premier purveyor of the finest coffee around the world while at the same time maintaining its uncompromising principles as the company continues to grow. Its efforts generated by sound decision-making are helping the company attain the best quality of the products. Their main product, which is coffee, has always been of the best quality and above all made by employees who are passionate about coffee. They maintain ethical standards as they source for the finest coffee beans that are they then roast it with great care2. Regarding their market, this company has a great strategic position when dealing with their clients as they promise a perfectly made beverage that they deliver at a human connection level. Starbucks treats its stakeholders with respect and dignity hence creates a profitable place for each other. External Analysis Starbucks is facing challenges just like any other company. The most of all challenges that this company is battling now is the current financial crisis that is affecting America. Due to funds turmoil that the current state of economy is posing to companies, Starbucks has not only reduced its total expenditure, but also forced to close most of its stores. In 2008, the company announced that it was going to close six hundred stores in different parts of United States of America3. Financial based reasons like income tax, risks related to third party finalization agreements, and benefits associated with the closure of stores within the anticipated period as well as cost of saving expected led to this fatal draw to the company’s expansion plans. Additional challenges facing Starbucks comprise of dealing with competitors. Currently, there are numerous coffee shops within major cities across around the globe and are posing total threats to Starbucks, as they are all competing for the same customers. 2. Flamholtz, E. & Randle, Y. Corporate Culture: The Ultimate Strategic Asset, (California:Stanford University Press), 20. 3. Thompson, J., et. al., Strategic Management 6th. (California:Cengage Learning EMEA, 2010), 382. Some of these competitors include: Nestle, McDonalds, and Dunkin Donuts. Standing out to generate customers is important yet a hard task to perform. Therefore, in order for Starbucks to alleviate competition wisely, it is of great importance for this company to identify their competitors and know what they are currently doing and how they can be at the top of the game despite stiff competition. Internal Analysis Starbucks has internal capabilities that make its operations smooth. For instance, due to Howard Schultz’s efforts to make Starbucks a better working place, Starbucks now has knowledgeable employees who are conversant with the company’s products, prepare the company’s espresso drinks without missing any detail, motivated, skilled, deliver consistent and

In each case below, identify the effect on the market for coal Essay

In each case below, identify the effect on the market for coal - Essay Example Equilibrium quantity supplied and demanded will increase from QE to QE*. Therefore, for the market to clear, a new, lower cost mining technic will lead to a lower equilibrium price and a higher equilibrium demand quantity for the coal market to clear An increase in wages paid to coal miner’s increases cost of mining and thus leads to an increase in cost of production. This is because raw materials’ cost will increase as a result of the high costs of wages to coal miners. When the cost of inputs increases due to increased wages, the process of production becomes more costly (McEachern, 2010, p. 51). The graph below shows how these dynamics affect the mining market. As shown in the graph above, an increase in the cost of production associated by increased wage cost to firms will result to a shift of the supply function from S to S*. Firms in the coal market will be willing supply relatively less quantities of coal at the previous price (PE). A shift of the supply function to the left leads to an increase in the equilibrium price from PE to PE*. Equilibrium quantity supplied and demanded will decrease from QE to QE*. Therefore, for the market to clear, increase in wages paid to coal miners will lead to a higher equilibrium price and a lower equilibrium demand quantity for the coal market to clear (Mansfield, 1979, p. 29). An imposition of a $2 per ton tax on coal results to heavier costs burdens to producers of coal. Due to rational self-interest, the producers will try to shift this burden to consumers of coal (Krugman & Wells, 2010, p. 52). This is done by increasing the price by $2 for every tone sold. The effect of this tax can be shown in the graph below. Before implementation of the tax, the equilibrium supply curve was S. After the implementation of the tax, the new supply curve becomes St increasing the price from P to Pt. However, the producer receives Pt’. The amount of tax

How Europeans Affected the Indians Essay Example for Free

How Europeans Affected the Indians Essay The arrival of the Europeans affected the Indians in several different ways. The Indians were exposed to new experiences such as diseases, religion, racism, land ownership, and trade to name a few. The Indians way of life changed forever with the arrival of the European colonists. Diseases were introduced to them as early as 1550 by European fisherman who stayed on the New England shores during the winter. The fisherman brought devastating illnesses which the Indians had little resistance to such as diphtheria, cholera, typhus, measles, and small pox. The coastal Indians were the first infected by these aliments and in turn, they spread them to the inland Indians. These diseases were ruinous and cost many Indians their lives. The Indians had their own customs and religions. They were introduced to the colonist’s religion, Protestant Christianity. They did not immediately take to the Puritan religion as the Indians took to Catholicism brought in by the Spaniards. They found it difficult to embrace a religion that taught that all but a few of them were damned to hellfire. Also, the Puritan or Anglican religion was complicated with English ways of eating, dressing, working, and looking at the world. The Indians that did embrace the Protestant religion were forced to adhere to the Protestant ways and abandoned their own. The Indian men were to farm and the women to weave, they lived in English houses and not wigwams, they were to barber their hair as the Puritans, and they were to stop using bear grease toward off mosquitoes. Racism was introduced to the Indians by the English colonists. Before the colonist’s arrival, they knew nothing of prejudice. Captives were adopted into the tribe, white prisoners as well as Indians born into another tribe. They were fully accepted as their brothers and sisters. Tribes would even raid other tribes and white settlements in order to increase their numbers. Extramarital miscegenation produced â€Å"half-breeds† which were consigned to the Indians. This was done in part because they were illegitimate, but mostly because of the consciousness of race that steadily grew in intensity in the colonial societies. The English referred to the Indians as savages because they were racially inferior. They abhorred their culture, morals, manners, and religion. They thought of all Indians as enemies. The Indians  were exposed to this narrow mindedness and bigotry which had been made by the colonist and so they learned of racism. The colonists assumed possession of lands that were vacated, like the site of Plymouth, on the justification of ancient legal principle that unoccupied land is anybody’s picking. The colonists did acknowledge the legal and moral rights of the tribes to own land they occupied and purchased what they could of it. The problem was that when the Indians sold land to the colonists, their understanding was that they were then willing to share their hunting grounds with them, just as they would with other tribes. They did not understand the concept of ownership. This was not a practice in which they had ever been exposed. This misunderstanding between the Indians and colonists caused wars between them which were inevitably won by the colonists. The Indians way of life was not suitable to live where the English lived due to the colonist’s agricultural ways. The Indians farmed by borrowing fields from the forest. They cultivated the soil for a few years and then moved elsewhere. The fields then reverted to hunting grounds. But the colonists did not allow this to happen. They destroyed the forests for hundreds of acres. They farmed these fields until the soil was depleted. Then they would turn the fields into pastures for their livestock. The livestock would renew the soil after several years. But during this time, the colonists would clear more hundreds of acres for their farming. This caused the flight of wildlife and game, which was vital to the Indians way of life. The Indians were anxious to trade with the colonists. They would trade furs for such things as beef, baubles, vessels, tools, iron tomahawks, woven wool blankets, liquor, and muskets. In order to trade with the Europeans, the Indians hunted and trapped for the hides of deer and the furs of other animals which the colonists wanted. Competition for furs between the tribes introduced a vicious kind of war between the Indians. The fur trade also resulted in the destruction of the ecological system of the area. Before fur trading with the Europeans, the tribes killed only moose, deer, beaver, and the other animals which were necessary and they had an immediate need. But with the need for more hides and furs, the Indians hunted until they had extinguished all the animals in their hunting grounds. The Indians then went into other tribes’ territories to hunt which in turn caused warfare between them. Another problem with trading with the colonists arose out of the Indians want of the liquor which the colonists provided. They took to the intoxicating effects of the liquor which in turn caused new problems within the tribes and with the people of the tribes. The colonist’s actions also caused another first for the Indians. The hanging of three Wampanoag’s at Plymouth for murdering Sassamon, a â€Å"praying Indian† caused the first pan-Indian attempt to preserve traditional culture. Metacomet, called King Phillip by the New Englanders, was the one to convince the other tribes to work together as he saw that the colonists with their ever increasing numbers were destroying the Indians way of life. Slavery was the involuntary capture of human beings who were sold and then owned by their masters. They were forced to work for their entire lives. Slaves had no personal rights and no hope of freedom. Slavery was first notable in the southern colonies. At first, colonists saw the indentured servants as better investments than spending money on the slaves. Later, they realized that the slaves seem to have a built up immunity to certain diseases such as malaria, which often killed the indentured servants in their care. The colonists came to see the slaves as an investment, worth the money for the outcome of a lifelong worker who could do manual labor, did not have to be replaced after a specific number of years of service, and also could assist in bearing children born into slavery which only would increase the master’s workforce. Eventually, all of the colonies became involved in owning slaves. Indentured servitude was an adaptation of the well established English means of training boys to be artisans and caring for orphans. Fathers would sign an indenture with a master of a craft. This bound the boy to the master for a period of years, usually seven years. In return for his labor, the master agreed to shelter, clothe, and feed his apprentice and teach him the craft. This institution of indentured servitude was also used to provide for orphans. Indentured servants were well suited for farmers who needed  laborers. People were recruited in England to sign indentures to work in the colonies as servants for an agreed number of years. In return for signing the indentures, the servant’s passage across the Atlantic was paid. Some servant’s were forced by English courts which sentenced convicts to transportation to the colonies. There they served out their sentences as bound servants. Unlike slaves, the indentured servants had personal rights. The term of the servitude was written down which varied from three to seven years. At the end of the agreed time, they were freed. They were given clothing, tools, a little money, and sometimes land.

Synchronization Of Federal And Dod Procurement Policies And Ethical Standards Essay Example for Free

Synchronization Of Federal And Dod Procurement Policies And Ethical Standards Essay The United States is not just admired of its technological advancement, its economic status and its military power but also of its sound and tight laws including its internal rules and regulations covering government agencies. In the case of the Department of Defense, Federal Laws and rules were kept updated as much as possible in the sense that revisions of internal policies were carried out. New versions of rules and regulations kept on coming in with reference to new laws or executive orders being approved and released. The biggest problem however, as it has also been with other agencies is that there is indeed a lack of strict implementation of such rules and regulations. This problem is proven by the increasing number of fraud cases in the procurement transactions undergone by the DOD. In order for us to find the flaw on the implementation system, let us evaluate the performance of the agencies wherein policy implementation on DOD were being delegated and entrusted. These agencies were not merely responsible for the implementation of the policies and procedures, specifically on procurement process but also for its monitoring. Let us closely look into the Office of the Government Ethics which is, according to Executive Order 12731, will be responsible for the administration of Principles Of Ethical Conduct For Government Officers And Employees. Specifically, EO 12731 (Section 201) should be administered by: (a) Promulgating, in consultation with the Attorney General and the Office of Personnel Management, regulations that establish a single, comprehensive, and clear set of executive-branch standards of conduct that shall be objective, reasonable, and enforceable. b) Developing, disseminating, and periodically updating an ethics manual for employees of the executive branch describing the applicable statutes, rules, decisions, and policies. (c) Promulgating, with the concurrence of the Attorney General, regulations interpreting the provisions of the post-employment statute, section 207 of title 18, United States Code; the general conflict-of-interest statute, section 208 of title 18, United States Code; and the statute prohibiting supplementation of salaries, section 209 of title 18, United States Code. d) Promulgating, in consultation with the Attorney General and the Office of Personnel Management, the regulations establishing a system of nonpublic (confidential) financial disclosure by executive branch employees to complement the system of public disclosure under the Ethics in Government Act of 1978. Such regulations shall include criteria to guide agencies in determining which employees shall submit these reports. (e) Ensuring that any implementing regulations issued by agencies under this order are consistent with and promulgated in accordance with this order.  The main point of determining the responsibilities of the Office of the Government Ethics is to have a clear basis of determining who is supposed to be overseeing the ethical policies and the implementation thereof. Since this office has been specially designated for such a responsibility, it is expected that it should have specially designed delegation and communication tools of coordinating such policies to other agencies under it. The methods are clear: promulgation, delegation, consultation and dissemination of the policies and procedures with other agencies and of course DOD is not an exemption. It is therefore but fair to conclude that communication tools and the power to use them are available at anytime for the Office of the Government of Ethics to use for synchronizing policies throughout all agencies. Section 301 of Executive Order 12731 specifies how synchronization of ethical policies and standards should be done through the specifications of the responsibilities of the Office of the Government of Ethics. This section directs the agency to : a) Supplement, as necessary and appropriate, the comprehensive executive branch-wide regulations of the Office of Government Ethics, with regulations of special applicability to the particular functions and activities of that agency. Any supplementary agency regulations shall be prepared as addenda to the branch-wide regulations and promulgated jointly with the Office of Government Ethics, at the agencys expense, for inclusion in Title 5 of the Code of Federal Regulations. (b) Ensure the review by all employees of this order and regulations promulgated pursuant to the order. c) Coordinate with the Office of Government Ethics in developing annual agency ethics training plans. Such training shall include mandatory annual briefings on ethics and standards of conduct for all employees appointed by the President, all employees in the Executive Office of the President, all officials required to file public or nonpublic financial disclosure reports, all employees who are contracting officers and procurement officials, and any other employees designated by the agency head. d) Where practicable, consult formally or informally with the Office of Government Ethics prior to granting any exemption under section 208 of title 18, United States Code, and provide the Director of the Office of Government Ethics a copy of any exemption granted. (e) Ensure that the rank, responsibilities, authority, staffing, and resources of the Designated Agency Ethics Official are sufficient to ensure the effectiveness of the agency ethics program. Support should include the provision of a separate budget line item for ethics activities, where practicable. The enumeration of such responsibilities appears to be just a matter of written rules for federal agencies. This is especially in the procurement process where more and more people are getting involved in procurement fraud. Every year, millions and millions of dollars are being recovered by the Department of Justice for running after the contractors and DOD personnel who acted in bad faith. Looking at the brighter side of things however, it can be stipulated that such events can be considered an indicator that these policies and rules on ethical standards are now being implemented quite well. Either way, we cannot consider each effort to be successful not until we have the occurrences of fraud lessen to a considerable amount. What should always be the goal is zero tolerance of any type of fraud. The synchronization efforts of the federal government must go beyond the circle of agencies. It is always recommended that the lawmakers be vigilant enough in evaluating every policy and laws governing the federal procurement process. It is their job to look into the flaws in the laws and recommend better and more efficient laws to be implemented. To be fair with enforcement agencies, policies are now in the process of strict implementation as more and more efforts are being done to revise and tighten procurement rules especially in contracting data. The government’s central repository of contracting data has long been criticized for being incomplete and inaccurate. Last year, the Office of Management and Budget launched an effort to clean up what gets fed into the Federal Procurement Data System (FPDS) by directing agencies to sample their data for accuracy. The Defense Department is still working on validating its data. Depending on the agency, data is accurately entered into FPDS between 85 percent and 100 percent of the time. Automated reporting has made it easier for agencies to load data into the system and reduced the errors associated with manual entry under the old system. But the volume of contracts has grown, making the issue of validating data more important and more challenging. While the quality of the data in the database is improving, there are still problems, say some critics who use FPDS regularly. Even with automated reporting and validation steps, people entering data still make mistakes the current software can’t catch. The rate the accuracy of the data is a seven out of 10. The new certification requirement has raised the importance of data accuracy to the highest levels of management. Agencies are much more focused on getting data right than they have been in the past. With more than $400 billion spent through procurements each year, the data is critical to managing functions and determining the type of staffing needed, OMB procurement policy chief, in a March memo to agencies. The launch of the federal spending Web site, USASpending. gov, in December has given new insight into the accuracy concerns with FPDS. As of Jan. 31, 6 percent, or $23 billion, of the 2007 contract dollars reported in the system had an unknown level of competition, which means a box in FPDS didn’t get checked. The inaccuracies found in FPDS come from the push to be current, which meant GSA had to relax some of the verification rules. The government had the option of waiting months for perfect data or entering data as contracts were awarded to provide transparency. GSA is seeking smarter validation technologies when it upgrades to the next generation of FPDS in 2010. Instead of simply telling users which fields in their system are missing, GSA hopes to create a system where fields can be compared to make sure the data makes sense, Fornecker said. For example, the system would be able to flag a $6 billion award to a small business or question conflicting information, such as when a contract award is labeled as â€Å"not competed† even though two or more bids were received. The Defense Department won’t have an assessment of the accuracy of its data until spring, said Shay Assad, the department’s procurement policy chief. Software bugs and missing data fields in FPDS were causing some inaccuracies, and those are being fixed, Assad said. The biggest cause for inaccurate data is human error, but system errors also play a role. For example, the Energy Department reported that between 8 percent and 17 percent of its errors came from how FPDS interpreted the data sent by its contract writing system. The remaining errors were human errors, according to the Energy report. The ever-popular multiple-award contracts — long praised by acquisition professionals and contractors as a speedy way to get competitively priced goods and services without threat of protest — are about to get a makeover. The conference report for the Defense authorization bill includes a new rule that would give contractors who are eligible to bid on a multiple-award contract order the right to protest an order worth more than $10 million. The White House and industry have opposed this provision, claiming it would promote unnecessary litigation. Contracting officers would also be prohibited from awarding a task order worth more than $100 million to a single contractor without written justification, further limiting how the contracts are used. The conference report also includes another controversial provision that would require agencies to report all critical inspector general audit findings, including questioned costs, to Congress. Industry groups have opposed this provision saying it could misrepresent routine audit questions and misunderstandings as major contracting irregularities. Other contracting provisions in the bill include: new associate administrator position within the Office of Management and Budget’s procurement policy office that will be dedicated to acquisition work force programs, permanent acquisition work force training fund, and contingency contracting training for people outside the acquisition profession including whistleblower rights for contractor employees. One more thing to reconsider in the policies synchronization is training needs. A yet-unreleased survey of government acquisition employees shows the work force needs more training in contract negotiations, program management and performance-based contracting, a White House official said today. OMB is working with Federal Acquisition Institute and the Defense Acquisition Institute to craft training that targets these and other areas identified in the survey, he said. OMB has approached Congress to renew procurement offices’ direct hire authority, which expired on Sept. 30, to allow agencies to quickly fill these critical positions, he said. OMB is also encouraging agencies to rehire retirees to train and mentor new workers and fill openings. Apart from training rules synchronization, the Department of Defense is also accused of discrimination is hiring or employment procedures including contract awarding against minorities and women. Still, this issue is an important consideration in ethical rules and standards set by the Federal Government. There are critics in an online publication that pinpoints the following areas of improvement in relation to ethical rules synchronization: Reorganization: Some observers emphasize the need to rationalize and coordinate the web of federal programs serving minority- and women-owned firms. For example, in 1992 the U. S. Commission on Minority Business recommended the creation within the Commerce Department of an Administration for the Development of Historically Underutilized Businesses which would assume SBAs responsibilities. Graduation: The program now requires graduation after nine years, and has phased requirements of non-8(a) and non-federal business mix designed to wean firms from sheltered competition and dependency on federal contracting. In February 1995, of the 1,038 firms in the fifth through ninth year of  §8(a) participation, nearly two-thirds met or exceeded the minimum non-8(a) business levels. Some observers have emphasized the need for analogous graduation and business-mix requirements in the DOD and DOT programs. Regional/Sectoral Concentration: Our analysis found SDB contracts and limited competition concentrated in certain industries and regions, which is undesirable for minority and non-minority firms alike. For example, while DODs overall goal for SDBs was only 5 percent, more than 35 percent of all DOD construction awards went to SDBs, and more than two-thirds of these were awarded under sheltered competition. Moreover, in ten States, more than 40 percent of all construction contracts awarded to small business was awarded to SDBs. This concentration occurs at particular sites as well, where in rare instances virtually all small business contracting is with SDBs. On the other hand, some degree of sectoral concentration in SDB procurements is inevitable to balance the many sites and sub-industries with virtually no SDB participation, and huge procurements for weapons systems and the like, for which no SDBs are available as prime contractors, and still too few as major subcontractors. Additional efforts are clearly needed to expand SDB opportunities more broadly. Self-Certification: Because DODs program is based on self-certification by SDBs, it may be prone to abuse, particularly through front companies. For example, DODs IG investigated Tyco Manufacturing and referred the case to the US Attorney. The companys owner pled guilty to charges that he falsely represented his firm as Hispanic-owned and controlled. Top officials of Automated Data Management, Inc. were convicted of conspiracy to defraud the government for concealing the firms ownership structure to participate in the  §8(a) program. Self-certification has obvious advantages in terms of reduced administrative expense and regulatory intrusion. Nevertheless, this must be balanced with the importance of ensuring that affirmative action measures are fair, which means as free of abuses as can reasonably be achieved. Subcontracting: In FY 1993, the most recent data available, small businesses received about $63 billion of federal contract dollars, out of roughly $180 billion in total. About one-third of that amount was from subcontracting. SDBs, on the other hand, received a little over $13 billion in federal contract dollars, but only one-sixth of that was through subcontracting. These figures are consistent with the widely held view that SDBs face greater obstacles to subcontracting participation than do other small firms. The SBA and other agencies believe that expanding the use of SDBs in subcontracting is both feasible and desirable as a strategy for creating more SDB opportunities. Other Program Changes: Several earlier analyses by the GAO, the SBA Inspector General and commentators have raised criticisms of the  §8(a) program, several of which SBA is moving to address by aggressively implementing recent statutory amendments which had languished under the prior Administration. These are reviewed more specifically immediately below. Past criticisms are that too many  §8(a) contracts were awarded on a sole-source basis, i. e. , without competition of any kind. This criticism has largely been addressed by recent and pending reforms. The 1988 law reforming the  §8(a) program requires that companies in the program compete among themselves for contracts valued at $3 million or more. (There is a higher competition threshold of $5 million for manufactured goods. Currently, however, many of the larger  §8(a) contracts are open-ended agreements that started out as small contracts and grew well beyond the competition threshold when a contracting officer renewed the order. To increase the number of contracts available for competition, SBA has proposed regulations to change this procedure so that an estimated value will be set on these open-ended contracts, which probably will be higher than the initial value. This means more  §8(a) contracts will be subject to competitive bidding among participating firms. In all these cases, the Office of Federal Procurement Policy must now especially tighten its implementation techniques. This office does have around $350 billion annual spending (Office of the Federal Procurement Policy, Whitehouse, 2008). According to their website, The Office of Federal Procurement Policy (OFPP) in the Office of Management and Budget â€Å"plays a central role in shaping the policies and practices federal agencies use to acquire the goods and services they need to carry out their responsibilities. Established by Congress in 1974, OFPP is designed to provide overall direction for government-wide procurement policies, regulations and procedures. Given special authority for the procurement policy administration and implementation, OFPP is expected to find the means of having such procurement policies implemented in accordance with the Federal Ethical Standards. OFPP’s statutory authorities and responsibilities are set forth in the Office of Federal Procurement Policy Act, 41 U. S. C. 401, et seq. OFPP’s primary responsibilities. First, it is appointed to oversee the development of acquisition regulations. The Office’s primary focus is on the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), the government-wide regulation governing agency acquisitions of goods and services. OFPP staffs are to review and coordinate such changes with the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs. It is also its responsibility to formulate and coordinate acquisition legislation. OFPP oversees the formulation of the executive branch position on all legislation relating to procurement. In close consultation with the major procuring agencies, OFPP develops legislative proposals for the Administration and formulates positions on congressional bills addressing acquisition issues. OFPP staff works with OMB’s Legislative Reference Division, Office of Legislative Affairs, and congressional committees to explain and refine legislation as it proceeds through hearings, markups and conference to final passage. Apart from this, OFPP is required to lead the activities of the Chief Acquisition Officers Council (CAOC). The OFPP Administrator leads the Council’s activities on behalf of OMB’s Deputy Director for Management, who officially serves as the Chair. OFPP staff provides support to each of the Council’s working groups, which currently are focusing on competitive sourcing, contracting with small businesses, human capital, electronic government, performance management, and contingency contracting. The office also is responsible for collecting, developing, and disseminating procurement data. This responsibility is accomplished through several government-wide data collection tools, the most significant being the Federal Procurement Data System (FPDS). OFPP directs the Federal Acquisition Institute to improve the caliber and professionalism of the acquisition workforce. For example, FAI provides core acquisition training and workforce support to the civilian acquisition community and actively partners with the Defense Acquisition University to leverage workforce development opportunities. In 2004, OFPP chartered a Board of Directors, which reports to the OFPP Administrator, and ensures that FAI’s focus is synchronized with government-wide policy priorities. OFPP is responsible for developing policies, in consultation with SBA, that promote maximum participation of small businesses in government contracts. Lastly, it serves as Chair of the Cost Accounting Standards Board (CASB), an independent board which has exclusive authority to establish standards for use by contractors and subcontractors to achieve uniformity and consistency in the measurement, assignment and allocation of costs to government contracts. The CASB’s cost accounting standards are promulgated as regulations. OFPP provides staff support to the CASB. It is now but fair enough to say that Federal Laws on Ethical Standards relative to procurement policies are well defined, clear and tight enough. The problem arises on the implementation of such rules. It is therefore a strong recommendation to begin the strict implementation of such policies as soon as possible. The step can rightfully begins with appointing or hiring able, dedicated people to oversee the agency and those people whose morality and principle cannot be bought by material things, especially with money where the Federal government and the Department of Defense are undeniably abundant of.

Discourse of Language in Our Lives

Discourse of Language in Our Lives Discourse of Language in Our Lives Introduction When a human start living in this world, then he adopts set of rules and properties that become his identity and sometimes there are certain traits that will define live and become our identification. The way which we adopt in our lives and the method that we use become the part of our identity and we are then recognized and known on terms of those traits and qualities. Even the simple tasks like walking, talking, reading and writing set us in a certain box and our social status and the role is decided on the basis of it. A number of tools are used to define a discourse in life and among that tools language is the most important one being the social animal, we have to communicate with people and to make relations with them. While living among the group of people, it becomes essential to communicate with them on daily basis and this communication process may change from people to people. Moreover, a single people may communicate with different people differently depending on the socia l status and the role of that person in our lives. Here, use of language as the identity of the person and the role of language in our lives, while we communicate with people. Investigation Being a single person we adopt different roles in our lives and then these roles give us the identification and determine our role in the lives of the others. Our communication and use of language is dependent on the person we are talking to, the gathering in which we are, the current environment or the background of the communication. All these factors affect how we use language and how we interact with people. We adopt different discourses with parents, friends, teachers, siblings, bosses, acquaintances and relatives. We will discuss discourses of parents, friends and teachers. Our first communication and interaction is always with our parents. The relationship that we have with our parents cannot be developed with any other person in the world. Since we are in the habit of watching our parents taking care of them and providing us all we need, so we feel indebted to them, all through our lives. In the type of environment where I grew up, there was never option of calling parents with their first or Last name and it is considered a serious disrespect of the parents. It is even considered disrespect to lie down or sit, when they are standing. In order to address my parents I call them by saying dear mother or dear father. No matter how much friendship we have with our parents, it is obligatory to give respect to them and to use the tone that shows respect for them. When I will need to go out of house, instead of informing them I would ask, may I go out for an outing with my friends or can I go to the birthday part of my friend. If I am hungry I will ask, mom can I have something to eat please? While communicating with parents, it is essential to take care of the fact that they are the ones who guided us throughout our lives and have the right to make decisions for us. Even in opting for a career I did ask that what do you suggest is this decision right for me or should I think about something else. My relationship with friends is completely different than what is with the parents. Usually we have to pay no such attention to the selection of language. We may use slangs and the vernacular speech while talking with the friends. In the environment, where I grew up, the last name of the friends is taken and we call them with their last names only if we feel more association and love towards them. If I have a real close friend by the name of Thomas Butler, then I will call him like Hey Butler, how you doing and usually the first name are is taken for the friends with whom we are not very friendly or in the beginning of our relationship. If I am together with my friends, I would say, hey I am becoming a bear (used instead of hungry as a bear), do you want me to eat you or will you give me something to eat? If one of the friends fall down and hurt himself, them friends first laugh at him and then ask, Hey clumsy, are you alive? Similarly, if someone is I trouble it feel easier and comf orting to say to him look before you shoot than saying that don’t worry this will be over soon. In short, the language that is used with the friends is informal and colloquial. The place from where I came, teachers are considered spiritual parents. We are not supposed to give them nicknames or to even argue with them. I used to talk to my teachers with same respect that I gave to my parents, but the more formal one. But, since we have a professional relationship with the teachers, so, we have to use more formal and professional language. If I have to seek guidance regarding my career, then I would ask, ma’am /sir can you please guide me on the choice I have made and can you mention what difficulties I might feel in this career. We may ask our parents directly to our parents that we need your help in some matter, but, from teacher we used to ask that can you excuse me and spare some time for me, so I can discuss my issue with you. In the current setting in which I am getting education, we are more informal with teachers that I used to be with my previous teachers. When we are formal with the teachers, we address them from their last name and we do mak e an appointment with them, but, now the conversation is more informal and here the teachers treat students are the researchers and also the member of their own community, as the students who will join them after completing their studies. Looking Forward In university the language that we use is more formal than what we have used throughout our lives. In the beginning of university life, the academic writing that we are taught to do are in accordance with the future needs i.e. the writing we should learn, in order to become a successful researcher and the writer. Academic writing is more formal because most of the work that is done in academics is research related and the information that we have to present to the people, needs to be accurate and while presenting that information and the language that we use needs t be the technical one because the use of technical language reduces complications and the length of the writing. Since the people are working at the same level, in university, so we don’t need to add unnecessary details and informal language, to make it understandable for people. When before writing this piece, I went through a series of steps, like how to read the material that is provided to use, before writing the paper and how to present ideas formally and with a pattern that they seem easily understandable, it is also expected that the information that we present is complete and answer all the questions, that might come in the minds of the people. In academic writing, it is expected that the person should use formal language, technical details professional style and the accurate information. This information and style is necessary in academic writing because, the information that is present by one researcher serves as the source of information and detail, for the other, so the information that is presented, should be accurate and presented in a manner that it is easily readable and understandable. Such expectations from academic writing are due to the need that one person. In order to become a good academic writer, it is essential to have the attributes of good writer, but, in addition, it is mended to have the knowledge of the particular field, in which we are working so that our academic writing can become the actual source of knowledge for the others. It is expected for us to present new ideas related to our field and to present them in most accurate and professional manner. It is certainly needed to become a good writer because if we know how to share information in a proper manner then we can become true successful writer and these are the same things that I also expect from me to be the professional academic writer because they can ensure my success and will help me in becoming the writer who can present ideas in most understandable manner. Reflection We may adopt different roles in life and may communicate differently with people on the basis of that role, but, there are certain terms that do not change and never leave our site, no matter, in which environment we are in and these attributes remain with us all the time. while I was young, I was taught that we have different relations with different people, but, the thing that need to be remembered that all relations demand respect and a relation becomes stronger if we give people their space and never be offensive in the use of language. I believe that this lecture of my parents never left my side. Irrespective of the fact that what type of people I am communicating with, parents teachers, friends, siblings, acquaintances, people of other social class or other religion or culture, I never use offensive language or tone. I do not do it intentionally, but it has become the part of my personality and never leaves me. But, we certainly change our selves while being with other people. It can be well explained by Howard Giles Communication Accommodation theory. We generally want to be appreciated by the people and want to be felt as the part of community or group we are talking with and sometimes we want to separate ourselves from the group. In this case we unconsciously adopt different tones and styles of the people with which we are communicating. When we are among the group of people, we do not want to feel that we are left alone and are not part of that group, that why we tend to change our selves and we tend to communicate differently with different types of people and this thing has become the essential art of our personalities and we now keep on doing it, without giving it much thought. After joining the university we are taught thorough to become a successful academic wrier and in order to succeed in this field, we are taught different techniques and styles and these determine and guarantee our success. If we learn to use the essential parts of becoming the successful writer, we can also develop our own special identity. The shifts in our common languages are due to the unconscious reasons, but, in university, we put conscious effort in becoming a good academic writer because it is the part of our learning process and it can benefit all throughout professional lives we may be the good researcher, but, if we are not good academic writers, then we cannot present our research to the people. We can establish our distinct identity by being more informative, readable and effective writers and our choice of words and the style we use can provide us the distinction among the other academic writers. After earning to become a good academic writer, it is completely on the wri ter to present his ideas effectively. Conclusion Use of language, in a proper way is important and it is also essential to use language in accordance with the environment and the surrounding in which we are in. also, when we reach university, research work and academic writing become essential part of our daily lives. It is essential to learn to become successful academic writer and also to become the most effective one by choosing to write in a manner that is understandable for other researchers.

The Southern Social Themes of Barn Burning :: Barn Burning Essays

Written as it was, at the ebb of the 1930s, a decade of social, economic, and cultural tumult, the decade of the Great Depression, William Faulkner's short story "Barn Burning" may be read and discussed in our classrooms as just that--a story of the '30s, for "Barn Burning" offers students insights into these years as they were lived by the nation and the South and captured by our artists. This story was first published in June of 1939 in Harper's Magazine and later awarded the 0. Henry Memorial Award for the best short story of the year. Whether read alone, as part of a thematic unit on the Depression era, or as an element of an interdisciplinary course of the Depression '30s, "Barn Burning" can be used to awaken students to the race, class, and economic turmoil of the decade. During the 1930s, the Sartoris and Snopes families were overlapping entities in Faulkner's imagination. These families with their opposing social values spurred his imagination at a time when he wrote about the passing of a conservative, agricultural South and the opening up of the South to a new era of modernization. This depiction of the agrarian society of the Sartoris family connects Faulkner to the nostalgic yearnings for a past expressed in I'll Take My Stand, the Fugitives' manifesto of 1930, a book opening the decade yet echoing sentiments of past decades. At the start of our classroom discussion of "Barn Burning," we can explain the tenets of the Fugitives, their traditional, aristocratic attitudes, and their reverence for the landed gentry life style. We can focus on the description of the de Spain home and property, with its opulence and privilege, as representative of the Agrarians' version of "the good life." Early we need to emphasize and discuss the attraction of the y oung boy Colonel Sartoris Snopes to the security and comfort of this style, his attraction to his namesake's heritage. In his rendition of the Sartoris-like agrarian society, Faulkner acknowledges its dichotomy: the injustice, the lack of fair play, the blacks' subservience, and the divisiveness within the community which empire builders like the Sartorises and the de Spains wrought. It is, of course, this very social inequity, the class distinction, and the economic inequality against which Sarty's father Ab Snopes' barn burning rails. We now can lead our students to the evidence of these social injustices within the story by identifying exemplary moments and scenes.

Jim Morrison Essay -- Biography

Hopkins and Sugerman (2006) and Stone (1991) developed the image of Morrison as a shaman and as Lizard King based on the development, by Morrison, of his role as a shaman and the image of the Lizard King. This image was the â€Å"existing value structure† of Morrison at the time of his death, despite attempts made by Morrison to change this image. As the â€Å"the way in which the total image grows determines or at least limits the direction of future growth,† Hopkins and Sugerman (2006) and Stone (1991) were working within the parameters of Morrison's image. Thus, the image of Morrison as a shaman and Lizard King became internally coherent and consistent through repetition and served to organize both historical and posthumous ideas about Morrison, superseding reality. Peter Jan Margry (2008, 145), in â€Å"The Pilgrimage to Jim Morrison's Grave at Pà ¨re Lachaise Cemetery: the Social Construction of Sacred Space,† writes of Stone (1991) â€Å"[giving] a whole new impetus to this mythologizing [of Morrison].† â€Å"The film† writes Margry (2008, 145), â€Å"partly confirmed the existing image but added new, powerful iconographies and narratives.† Popular biographies of Morrison, published since Hopkins and Sugerman (2006), have emphasized the mythic implications of Morrison's life story, such as the development of mythos surrounding Morrison during his life, his mysterious death and the development of a cult following, involving pilgrimage to his grave in Paris (see Davis 2005; Densmore 1990; Henke 2007; Hopkins 2010; Mazerak 1999; Riordan and Prochnicky 2006). The significance of understanding Morrison as a shaman relates to the origins of attribution. Morrison, through self-characterization as a shaman, instigated the assignment of a religious aura sur... ...onal autonomy and archetypal rock star decadence. As Morrison has not been subject to a study of commodification, as has Presley, then the study of Morrison as a commodity, and its religion to consideration of him as a â€Å"religious figure,† warrants future study. Ultimately, to understand the development of a religious aura, surrounding Morrison, and Morrison as a â€Å"religious figure,† all aspects of his life and image must be accounted for. Historically, his life, self-propagated myth, image, death and potential as a commodity. Posthumously, his popular myth, pilgrimage to his gravesite and commodification of his image. Morrison as a shaman and Lizard King is only one reason for his religious aura; its contribution to the development of the popular myth, along with the central values contained in his image, contributed to the idea of Morrison as a â€Å"religious figure.†

Why Do Labor Unions Matter? Essay -- Why Unions Matter

Introduction The labor union movement over the years has shaped the way individuals work and live for both the nicest and unpleasant. Some would think the unions influence has created a power struggle between management and union leaders. In today’s time, some citizens insist the existence of unions are a must to aid in employee freedom, while others view the labor unions as just another problem in the line of progress. The purpose of labor unions was for employed workers to come together and collectively agree on fundamental workplace objectives. The rise of the union came about after the Civil War- responding to the industrial economy. Surprisingly at the least unions became popular within the 1930-50’s and began to slowly decrease, starting in the 1960’s on to today. Although, the popularity of labor unions has decreased, its importance remains to be evident with politics, journalism, auto, and the public education industries. The objective of this paper is to shine light upon labor unions, taking a closer look at the disputed issues of union ethics, concerns of union diversity, and the opposing viewpoints of labor unions. Why Do Labor Unions Matter? Unions have an extensive history of standing up for workers. They have advocated rights of steelworkers, coal miners, clothing factory employees, teachers, health care workers, and many others. The labor movement is based on the idea that organized workers as a group have more power than individuals would have on their own. The key purpose of any union is to negotiate contracts, making sure workers are respected and fairly compensated for their work. â€Å"In theory† unions are democratic organizations, resulting in varying inner authority. Workers look for security within a job a... ...d from http://data.bls.gov/pdq/SurveyOutputServlet (accessed May 5, 2012). Wagner, V. (2008). Labor Unions opposing viewpoints. Farmington Hills, MI: Greenhaven Press. Gould, W. (1977). Black workers in white unions: Job discrimination in the United States. London: Cornell University Press. Dine, P. (2008). State of the Unions. New York. NY: McGraw-Hill. Zieger, R. (2007). For jobs and freedom: Race and Labor in America since 1865. Lexington, KY: The University Press of Kentucky. McNeese, T. (2008). The Labor Movement: Unionizing America. New York. NY: InfoBase Publishing. SOLIDARITY FOR SALE - LABORERS: LIUNA-An Unofficial Look At ... (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.laborers.org/SOLIDARITYFORSALE.html Ethics and the Unions - Part 1. Industrial Workers of the World. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.iww.org/en/history/library/Dolgoff/newbeginning/1

Case Study of Architect Laurence Loh

THEORIES OF ARCHITECTURE AND URBANISM Behind every good designer lies beds upon beds of abstract idea, critical thought and determination devising in which determines his architectural sentiments and determinations ; that said is axiomatic, but one can chew over and be intrigued by the impressions of what lies beyond those beds of ideas, the concluding behind ground. In other words, do we non all experience both internal and external influences in our lives that cast and determine our worldview which in bend influences the manner we wish to ‘deal’ with the universe? That I think could be said for anyone, including designers and how life’s experiences determine their making of architecture. The Hagiographas in this essay intent to neither self-praise nor knock about an designer and their edifices, but instead to speculate or propose certain thoughts about an architect’s making of architecture. More specifically, what is analyzed and discussed in the essay are what are termed ‘internal†™ and ‘external’ influences on an designers design, that is the ego of the designer which includes the architect’s childhood, instruction and working experiences, and other external lending factors such as clime, theoretical discourses of architecture, clients, political relations, etc. Through the survey and review of these factors could we undercover or detect an implicit in subject, form or impression in the architect’s creative activity of architecture. The designer to be analysed in this essay is the well-respected Ar Laurence Loh. Born in Penang in the 1950’s, Ar Laurence is known worldwide of one of the taking innovators in architectural preservation and saving of heritage. Graduate of the besides world-famous Architectural Association in London, Ar Laurence is most celebrated for the Restoration of the Cheong Fatt Tze Mansion in Penang. A member of assorted societies and public capacities for architectural heritage and preservation, Ar Laurence besides presently runs a pattern in Penang registered as LLA Arkitek Sdn Bhd which engages in both preservation and modern-day plants. The undertaking to be discussed here is the modern extension to the historical Penang Hill Lower Station at Air Itam. Ar Laurence was engaged to plan an extension to the historical colonial edifice of the lower train station which serves as the chief entry point to the popular and historically of import countries of Penang Hill, which was established as a colonial hill station by the British decennaries ago. What resulted was a modern construction of steel and cloth which replaced the old frontage of doric columns and arches. The two images below show the drastic alteration in character and sense of topographic point before and after the modern extension was finished. Before the construct of this essay, a thorough and full probe into the internal factors of the ego, as described in the paragraphs before, was already carried out in the classs of Ar Laurence’s childhood, instruction and working experience. Therefore, the chief purpose of the subdivision here is to research, describe and analyse the 2nd half of influences that is the external factors on an architect’s making of architecture. Three separate factors were selected, viz. the reinforced signifier of the undertaking, the influence of clime on the design and eventually guess on architectural theory that could hold informed the development of the extension. Built signifier, in the definition of this analysis, includes all bing edifices, new and old, that can be found on site at the minute. Therefore, as we can see in the analysis diagrams, it is cardinal to indicate out that the historical constructions of colonial architecture were really much preserved in their original province ; stuffs, placement of structural elements like columns, programme of infinites, etc. all seemed to hold been maintained absolutely in topographic point and no via media was given in aftermath of the building of the extension. Rather, it could be asserted that the extension was designed to concentrate on continuity of infinites, adding on extra room to infinites that originally existed in the station, and to besides add on new programmatic and experiential infinites to rejuvenate the energy of the lower station, perchance to pull a greater figure of tourer and visitants to come to Penang Hill. This could be seen in the infinites that were extended and the infinites that were introduced to the site. For illustration, the old ticketing counter and waiting room was given a much larger infinite under the shadiness of the new steel construction, likely to suit a greater sum of people that were anticipated to see the site. Besides, being the cardinal experiential infinite that drives the new energy of the station is the recreational country with the big volume of infinite as created by the attention-getting retractable canopy roof. The ample shadiness provided by the canopy and monumental sense of graduated table generated when standing under the roof construction helps to bring forth that new attraction that draws people to the site, a new character that didn’t exist before on site, in blunt contrast to the unfastened infinite typology of the old frontage of the lower station. Materiality in the modern extension besides plays a important portion in the coevals of renewed involvement in the site. The combination of steel and cloth in its construction and materiality greatly contrasts with the brick and concrete frame construction of the original lower station, making an inherit attention-grabbing factor. Traveling on, we now turn our attending towards the clime factor, and how it has affected the design of the extension. As mentioned before, the original construction consisted of a big unfastened infinite or garnering country in the Centre that was unfastened to and exposed to the elements. It is normally known to all that Malaysia is a tropical clime with many yearss of sun exposure and sometimes it could acquire highly hot and the heat could go intolerable. The big canopy roof construction added provides that much needed shadiness from the scorching beams of the Sun and besides from bad conditions. However, other than that, the design doesn’t seems to hold much more consideration towards clime, due to the glowering fact as exposed in the analysis diagrams of a deficiency of good cross airing in the side. Though there is proviso for hot air to get away through the stack airing consequence, there isn’t good cross airing through the edifice, due to a deficiency of gaps o n both windward and leeward faces. The modern extension does nil to work out this issue ; it doesn’t let for new gaps, nor does it build architectural elements like air current walls to catch predominating zephyrs into the infinite. Predominating air currents from the nor'-east hold a much more di ­fficult clip acquiring into the infinite, obstructed by solid concrete walls with really small gaps for natural airing. Third, in the concluding factor of the three external influences, the architectural theory will be discussed. It mentions about three different architectural discourses, viz. retinal architecture, the acquisitions from Las Vegas, and capitalist economy in architecture. As implied in the context of the reinforced signifier influence, the architecture of the modern extension has a certain capitalist spirit to it, in that it generates a new energy of topographic point to pull the attending of people to the old site of Penang Hill, conveying in concern and an economic encouragement to the topographic point. At first glimpse, it could be said that the clients have the say in the determination devising of the design phase, and as Michael Sorkin mentioned so truthfully, designers are typically bound to the caprices of their clients. Is this so in Ar Laurence’s instance? If one looked at the instance from the surface, it would be a sensible decision to come to. So far, we have explored some external factors that could hold affected the design of the extension to the lower station of Penang Hill. Some of these logical thinkings may hold implied the impression that Ar Laurence may hold sold out to capital greed and instead than continue his ain rules of keeping a scruples in architecture, he was to yield to the demands of the client over keeping a quality of architecture that matches his criterions. Others point in the opposite way, demoing the quality of Ar Laurence and what he is known for, that is the saving of heritage, seen in how the extension does non overpower and steep the historical colonial edifice, but to a good grade built in harmoniousness with the site and its milieus. Such contradictions exist in the same design, but could it be that these contradictions were made consciously? As he has mentioned before, Ar Laurence does non sell out for the interest of money in his architecture, for he does non see architecture as a agency of going rich. However, if such is true, so why would he hold to planing a modern extension at a historical topographic point that is non merely so out of context for the site, but which is designed with a commercial oculus to it, that is to plan something brassy in order to pull more concern? Why non make what he does best and continue the original historical construction or reconstruct it to its former glorification alternatively of simply keeping its physical signifier for the interest of sentimentalism? What does it intend to purposefully belie oneself, and what how does it play out in the populace oculus? What could be the effects of that, particularly since Ar Laurence is an established and respected public figure? Covering with the populace is something Laurence has ever had a aberrant manner of covering with. As with some of his other preservation undertakings, he has mentioned that he conserves non to simply protect the memory of the topographic point and of its history, but in saving comes moving ridges of alteration. Now, he defines ‘waves of change’ as alteration in idea, alteration in sentiment, alteration in the heads of people in how they perceive and value their heritage and traditional values. Here once more we see the contradiction that so glaringly purports to inform the design of the extension to the lower station. How can preservation lead to alter? It could be interpreted that Laurence utilizes the modern extension as an attractive force of the ocular sense to capture attending and draw people to the infinite, due to the suppressing oculus playing the hegemonic function in architectural pattern above all other senses. The extension contrasts and stands out in the or iginally historical and natural context, emulating the symbolism and decorated caducous consequence as talked about in Venturi’s Learning from Las Vegas. This could reply for the logical thinking behind the commerciality of the infinite. It’s non that Laurence got muscled out by the client or fell to his ain greed for money, it is that he utilized looking contradictory patterns to acquire people to see the infinite. This leads us to our following point, in that the topographic point that Ar Laurence is seeking to take people to is one that is strongly related to the spirit of topographic point, the history of Penang. Possibly, in my sentiment, continuing the original construction in the aftermath of a modern extension leaves a wonder in people, it creates an internal duologue from which inquiries of chew overing are born, invariably inquiring what made the historical construction such an of import consideration to hold been preserved? This relates back to Ar Laurence’s statement of saving for alteration, in that the creative activity of duologue in the public kingdom brings more attending towards architectural heritage. But in our modern twenty-four hours and age, that is a difficult thing to accomplish. Ar Laurence’s solution? Insurgent methods of utilizing brassy architecture to convey focal point to the history and values of topographic point. In the terminal, it is theorized that Ar Laurence, through apparently contradictory and insurgent methods, purposes to bring forth a public sentiment on his attractive and out of context modern extension of the colonial edifices found at the lower station of Penang Hill, in order to convey attending towards the historical values of topographic point. In the terminal nevertheless, what matters is that the extension acts as a super ­cial method of pulling people to the topographic point ; the original edifice is still to the full experienced one time the users go past the forepart frontage and initial infinites, pulling more people to see history and their heritage. Reference list Arkitek LLA. ( 2008 ) .LLA. 1sterectile dysfunction. Malaya: Arkitek LLA Sdn Bhd. ARKITEK LLA. ( 2010 ) . Penang Hill Lower Station Modern Extension. Retrieved 15 June 2014, from hypertext transfer protocol: //www.lla.com.my/ Davies, C. ( 2011 ) . Thinking About Architecture: An debut to architectural theory. City Road, London: Laurence King Printing Hong Kong University. ( 2011 ) .Curriculum Vitae: Laurence Loh Kwong Yu.Retrieved 23 May 2014, from hypertext transfer protocol: //acp.arch.hku.hk/people/Laurence % 20CV.htm Pallasma, J. ( 2005 ) .Eyess of the Skin.Ontario, Canada: John Wiley & A ; Sons.