Creative writing skills used by Silvia Plath in her work Essay

Creative writing skills used by Silvia Plath in her work - Essay Example From then, she exuded creativity that she blended with her writing skills, a rare gift she maximizes that gave forth the coveted write-ups that still flood the literary arena to date. However, her early and entire life is blanketed by sorrow and misery. A psychological problem eventually compels her to commit suicide. This essay will tackle some of the skills she managed to use as a writer in the process of doing her work. The bell- jar, one of Plath’s novel to a large extent is autobiographical. The tribulations that Plath goes through in life are chronologies reflected in this novel. By tactfully changing the identity of the characters and places in the novel, she skillfully takes care of the message she wanted to pass across as it unfolded. Her creativity and Witt comes out very clearly in the manner in which she uses Ester, the protagonist in the story to speak about herself indirectly (Karen 130). In her story, Ester becomes mentally ill after going through a thorny life. This compelled her to commit suicide when she sees no hope a head of her. .We are not surprised later, when Plath commits suicide because of the twin reasons that are similar to those that pushed Ester to cut short her life. We therefore conclude that, Plath wrote her life in the novel and she was able to lead her readers to knowing the reasons she finally took her life. In addition, the novel contains many people and events in Plaths’ real life all being a product of her fiction. ... She writes this poem as the only way of â€Å"vomiting† the bad past encounters her life had just gone through. She used a third party narration to distance herself to avoid being associated to the circumstance that had unfolded (Rebecca79). Plath portrays herself as strong-hearted and ready to bury the bygones of her life and move on. She uses poetry as the only mouthpiece to pour her personal issues without the slightest fear and in the process, alleviate her emotions. The tone she used in this poem is reminiscent of her depressive episodes and indeed, Plath takes her audience in her poem through her the painful wounds in life. The aggressive tone she used in the short stanzas of her the poem â€Å"Mystic† leaves the readers with feelings of physical pain as they read her poem â€Å"Mystic†, which is climaxed by the wise use of imagery, like hooks that are sharp and a stinging kiss makes the readers traumatized. Plaths’ selective use of rhetorical questi ons, â€Å"Where is remedy† is intentional, as she inwardly knows the answer is death (Edward 116). Plath also uses satire in her poem to mirror the rot in the society. Plath’s poem â€Å"The applicant,† which is a complete satire surrounding marriage and domestic- related issues. She carefully uses dramatic monologue and third person narration as a powerful tool in manipulating language and in this regard, critically exposes events bedeviling women in the society. Plath’s two poems â€Å"Ariel† and â€Å"Daddy† are autobiography in nature. She intentionally used details of her everyday life as a raw material for her art. She skillfully twisted real references and images within her footsteps in writing her poems. This created an avenue for her fans to

Literature Review About Meter Reading Techniques Computer Science Essay

Literature Review About Meter Reading Techniques Computer Science Essay In this chapter we will explore more about how meter reading is done, the different type of techniques that exist to read meters, and automatic meter reading; specially the use of Bluetooth technology for automatic meter reading. A world wide view will be explored before we look to the context of Mauritius. Meters A meter is a device that can detects and displays the exact quantity of an element, substance or any quantifiable matter, may it be electrons, water, gas, glucose and many others. There are many uses of meters and in many different sectors of our world. For example, in health sector; meters are used to measure the level of glucose in the blood, to measure pulse rate, and many others. The utility sector, like gas, water or electricity companies, uses a very large numbers of meters. These companies have to monitor the usage of the resources used by their customers so that they can be charged for the amount they have used. There are also other meters like: gauss meters, geomagnetic meters, microwave meters, and many more. As we have seen, there are many sectors in which meters are being used; we cannot focus our attention in all of them. So, we will concentrate our effort in the utility sector, more specifically the one for electricity companies. Why this choice? Because Energy sector is a driving force in our world and that many developments and advances are thanks to electricity. So from here on we will focus our attention on that specific domain. Types of meters There are many types of meters depending on the area of use. The main types of electric meters are: Electromechanical Induction Meter (Standard Meter): It is a meter which counts the number of turns an aluminium disc does. The amount of electricity used is directly proportional to the number of revolutions of the aluminium disc. The electricity is measured in kilowatt-hours and the rate of charge remains constant all over the day. These types of meters are commonly used on single phase alternating current supply. Electronic Meters: These meters have an electronic display and make use of wireless technologies like Bluetooth, GSM and GPRS to transfer information about electrical consumption. They have inbuilt automatic sensors which helps to detect electrical energy theft or meter tampering. Prepaid meters: are like the standard meters; the only difference is that, instead getting a bill at the end of the month, it is a pay as you use service. I.e. the consumer pays in advance for the electricity consumption. Smart meter: These meters record the amount of electricity consumption for a certain period of time. The recorded data is then sent to the utility company for monitoring and billing purposes. Smart meters can transfer data from and to the meter, i.e. it is a two way communication. Meter reading Electric meters measure electricity mostly in kilowatt hour (kWh). One kilowatt hour is equal to the amount of energy used by a load of one kilowatt over a period of one hour, or 3,600,000 joules. The meter reading process is done periodically, so that consumers can be billed for that period of time. There are different methods used by different companies for metering. There are two ways that can be identified. Namely: the traditional way and new techniques. The traditional way, which uses the standard meter, can be described as: The meter reader goes to the consumers place. There, the meter reader reads the current value on the meter and note it down on the bill for the previous electricity consumption period. The bill is then given to the consumer. The meter reader will then enter the current value in the companys system, so that the consumer can be billed for that current period. The new techniques, which uses, electronic and smart meter are as follows: The meter reader makes use of new technologies to read the meter value, and meters have an electronic display. There are many different new techniques used for meter reading, and they will be further elaborated below. Automatic meter reading (AMR) Automatic meter reading (AMR), is the technology where data about consumption and the status of the meter device is collected automatically. The data is sent to a central database for it to be analysed and billing purpose. Meters for water, gas, and electricity can use the AMR technique. With the uses of AMR, there can be one way or two-way communication. In the one way communication, query is done only to know the reading value from the meter. Whereas in the two way communication; functions can also be implemented to the meter. Techniques for automatic meter reading There are several techniques for automatic meter reading; some of them are listed below. Touch Technology In the touch technology, a meter reader have a device, it may be a handheld computer or specialised data collection device. When the meter reader in close range to the meter; the latter press a button. A signal is sent firm the device to the meter and the reading of the meter is saved on the device. That saved data is downloaded to a data collection computer for billing purpose. This technique is also referred as on-site AMR, as the meter reader needs to go on site to read the meter reading. Radio Frequency Network As its name suggest, the network uses radio wave to communicate with the meters. There are automatic reading systems which uses the radio based technology such Wi-Fi, ZigBee, Bluetooth and many others. Some of them are listed below. Handheld: a meter reader collects meter reading from meters which support AMR system. The meter reader carries a portable computer with a radio frequency receiver and transceiver which reads the meter readings value. [2] Mobile: it is also referred to as drive-by is a technique where the meter reading device is installed in a vehicle. The meter reader needs only to drive the vehicle along the path where the meters are found and the meter reading value is read automatically by the device installed in the vehicle. [2] Fixed network: it is a method where there is a network which is installed permanently to read meter reading. The network consists of many repeaters, collectors and a lot of other equipments so that values read are transferred to a central database. This method does not need the intervention of any human to read the metering value. Some time a hybrid AMR system is implemented so that when the fixed network goes down, the mobile system come into action. [2] Assessing the traditional meter reading and AMR The advantage and disadvantage of both traditional meter reading and AMR techniques are listed in the table below. Traditional Meter Reading Advantage Disadvantage Creation of job, as more people are needed to perform meter reading Social contact with consumers There can be error when reading the value. Difficult to detect fraud on meters. Some people consider the meter reader as an intruder in their privacy. Security of the person performing the reading the person may be attacked by dogs Table 2à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ1: Traditional Meter Reading Automatic meter reading Advantage Disadvantage Enable theft detection. More accurate meter reading. Reduce operating cost. There is no need to enter consumers property (except for exceptional cases). If the system is down, billing will be affected. The use of radio waves can be a source of concern to a minority of people Table 2à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ2: AMR Existing system using Automatic Meter reading There are many AMR systems implemented in many in different countries and using many of the different techniques listed above. Some of the existing AMR systems are listed: New Mexico Gas Company is using the AMR service. This has greatly helped to improve the working of the company. [4] The Ontario government introduced legislation on Nov. 3, 2005 to start the process of getting smart meters into every home and small business in the province by 2010. [5] Meridian Energy has started replacing traditional electricity meters with new smart electricity meters which will set a new benchmark for electricity retailing in New Zealand [6] Existing system of Bluetooth enable meter reading There are some companies which are using Bluetooth enabled meter for the reading of their meters, and there are some supplies of Bluetooth enabled meters. The topic is further developed below. Existing system Cambridge Consultants has delivered a prototype design of a Bluetooth-based radio module to the leading utility metering company, Actaris. Based on a single-chip Bluetooth device, the module provides new opportunities to drive down the cost of remote metering, allowing meters to be wireless-enabled at very low cost and opening the door to high-integrity consumer-activated schemes. Consumers with Bluetooth mobile phones, laptops or PDAs would have the option of taking meter readings themselves and communicating them to the utility company over the internet or GSM. [7] Bluetooth enabled meters suppliers There are many suppliers of Bluetooth enabled meters. Some of the suppliers are listed below. Landis+Gyr, is a company which design and manufactures electricity meters. This company have also design a Bluetooth reading system where they can read meters using Bluetooth. [8] Figure 2à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ1: Bluetooth reader [8] Metex Corporation limited is a company which is manufacture meter readers, and the company has meters with Bluetooth technology. These meters can be used in an AMR system. [9] Current situation in Mauritius In Mauritius, we have the Central Electricity Board (CEB), Central Water Authority (CWA) and Waste Water Authority (WMA) as the main utilities companies. All these utilities companies are using the traditional way for their billing purposes. .I.e. a meter reader will go home by home and read their respective standard meter. The CEB is doing research on how to implement automatic meter reading and they have some electronic meters for testing purposes. CEB has also intention to implement prepaid meters. The AMR system on which CEB is experimenting consist of meter which has a modem. Then a communication is set with the modem and concerned data is read. That data is used for the billing purpose. As mentioned, the system is still at a testing phase, so a lot are still need to be done. To be able to implement AMR system all standard meters need to be changed to AMR supported meters, and meter readers need to be trained to be able to use the new system. Bluetooth Technology What is  Bluetooth? Bluetooth  is a wireless technology for short range communications which was developed to replace the cables connecting devices, may it be fixed or portable ones. Such devices are; mobile phones, printers, cameras, desktop computer, and many others. The Bluetooth  technology is a low power, low cost and maintains high levels of security. Bluetooth technology operates in the unlicensed industrial, scientific and medical (ISM) band at 2.4 to 2.485 GHz, using a spread spectrum, frequency hopping, full-duplex signal at a nominal rate of 1600 hops/sec. [10] The Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG), an organization of several companies work together to maintain and develop the Bluetooth technology. [10] The name Bluetooth comes from Danish King Harold Bluetooth. He was influential in uniting warring factions in parts of what is now Norway, Sweden and Denmark. [11] Bluetooth technology can withstand interference from wireless technologies which uses the 2.4 GHz spectrum. Adaptive frequency hopping (AFH) of Bluetooth technology detects other devices in the spectrum and avoid the frequency they are using. [11] According to Martin Reynolds, an analyst with Gartner Groups Dataquest, The thing about Bluetooth is that it really will ship in the billions of units once it gains momentum. Its really a multibillion-dollar market. [12] Bluetooth Logo Figure 2à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ2: Bluetooth logo [13] Bluetooth range Bluetooth radio waves use certain amount of energy and can goes up to a maximum of certain diameter. The table below show Bluetooth class and its limit up to where it can go. Class Power use (mW) Range (approximate) in meters 1 100 100 2 2.5 10 3 1 1 Table 2à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ3: Bluetooth class range BLUETOOTH Network There are two type of network: Piconet: is made up of one master and one or more slaves but only up to a maximum of seven active slaves at a time. The device initiating the connection automatically becomes the master and is the master of the piconet. Slaves may not communicate directly with each other; they can only communicate with the master and transfer data when they are granted transmission time by the latter. Slaves synchronize their frequency hopping with the master using the masters clock and Bluetooth address. Figure 2à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ3: Typical piconet [14] Scatternet: Multiple piconets with overlapping coverage areas form a scatternet. Each piconet may have only one master, but slaves may participate in different piconets on a time-division multiplex basis. A device may be a master in one piconet and a slave in another or a slave in more than one piconet. Figure 2à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ4: Typical scatternet [15] Bluetooth protocol stacks The Bluetooth protocol stack allows Bluetooth devices from different manufactures to work with one another. Some of Bluetooth protocol stacks   LMP (Link Management Protocol); configure and control links to other devices.   L2CAP (Logical Link Control Adaptation Protocol); links upper layer protocols over the Baseband and the passing on of quality of service information. RFCOMM (Cable replacement protocol): protocol provides emulation of serial ports over the L2CAP protocol.   Service Discovery Protocol; provide a way for discovering services provided by or available through a Bluetooth device. It also allows applications to know about the characteristics of the services which are available.   HCI (Host/Controller Interface); access the hardware status and control register. It also provides a command interface to the Link Manager and Baseband Link Controller. Bluetooth radio is a transceiver which transmits and receives modulated Bluetooth radio waves for the devices. Figure 2à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ5: Bluetooth protocol stacks [15] Bluetooth profiles Bluetooth profiles help two devices which have the same profile to communicate with each other. Each Bluetooth device must support at least one profile. There are a wide range of Bluetooth profiles that explain many different types of applications. Generic Access Profile (GAP): Provides the basis Bluetooth functionality for all profiles. Some of the functionalities are like setting up L2CAP links, handling security modes and discoverable modes. Serial Port Profile (SPP): Provides serial port (RS-232) emulation based on the RFCOMM part of the Bluetooth stack. Dial Up Networking Profile (DUNP): Defines how to a Bluetooth device can be used as a Dial Up Networking gateway FAX Profile: Defines how a Bluetooth device can be used as a FAX gateway Headset Profile: Defines what is required to transfer audio e.g. a wireless Bluetooth headset LAN Access Point Profile: Defines how a Bluetooth device can be used as a LAN access point Generic Object Exchange Profile (GOEP): Provides support for the OBjext EXchange (OBEX) protocol over Bluetooth links Object Push Profile: Defines how to exchange vCard and vCalendar objects, based on the GOEP File Transfer Profile: Defines functionality of how to navigate through folders and copying, deleting or creating a file or folder on a Bluetooth device, based on the GOEP. Figure 2à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ6 : Bluetooth Profiles [16] THE ADVANTAGES OF BLUETOOTH Short transmission range up to a maximum of 100 meters with class 1. Low Power: Bluetooth takes relatively low power, thus it is suitable for devices with restricted battery capacity. Interoperability: as it have standardised protocols. Robustness: capable of operating in an environment strongly where there are many other radio waves Technologies for developing the system There are many phase for the development of a system and there are many tools available for their development. Two categories can be identified for a system; hardware and software. The hardware part is the part that can be hold by hands and move if it is portable. The software part can be seen as the one who make the hardware works correctly. Without the software, the hardware cannot be used fully. Programming language There are a series of programming languages that are available to programmers to code systems. Each programming language has an area of application where it is better. Some of the programming languages are listed below. Java Java is cross platform and GNU General Public License  programming language. Java is an object-oriented, class-based, general-purpose, and concurrent language. It is intended to let application developers write once, run anywhere. Java programming languages is used in many systems ranging from applications software to web applications. Java can be use for Bluetooth programming. Java Communication Process (JCP) developed JSR 82, Java API for Bluetooth, so that Bluetooth enabled devices can be code easily using J2ME. Integrated development environment (IDE) help to code with java, some examples are: NetBeans The NetBeans IDE is written in Java and needs JVM run. It can run on different operating system like Windows, Mac OS, Linux, and Solaris. A JDK is required for the functionality of Java development. Netbeans also has a GUI design tool that help developers to design GUIs. Eclipse Eclipse was mostly written in java and can be used to develop java application. There are a lot of plug-in which helps to for development. J2ME J2ME is Java platform used to code embedded devices, like mobile phones. Java ME source code is licensed under the GNU General Public License. J2ME can be use to code systems with wireless connection. C programming language C is a general-purpose computer programming language that can run on many platforms. C can be use for developing portable application software. Python Python is a multi-paradigm programming language and it is cross platform, i.e. it can work on different operation systems. Python can be use for Bluetooth programming. Visual Basic.Net (VB.Net) Visual basic is implemented on .Net framework. VB.Net was designed by Microsoft and it is an object oriented language. Relational Database Management System (RDMS) Some of RDMS are listed below: MySQL MySQL is a relational database management system which is released under the GNU General Public License. It offers multi-user access to databases and it is cross platform software. PostgreSQL PostgreSQL is an object-relational database management system (ORDBMS) and it is released under PostgreSQL License. Thus it can be modified and distributed in any form desired. Web Server A Web server is responsible to process users request and reply back. The replies are mainly HyperText Markup Language (HTML) documents. Web servers are mainly used t host Web sites. Apache HTTP Server Apache HTTP Server is a Web server which is licensed under Apache License 2.0, which means that it is an open source HTTP server. It is platform independent, highly secure and efficient. Internet Information Server (IIS) IIS was created and is owned by Microsoft. There is need to buy it license to use it. Web Development Tools There are many server side scripting languages that are used. Some of them are listed below: PHP PHP (Hypertext Preprocessor) is a general-purpose scripting language that was designed for web development so as to have dynamic web pages. PHP can work on most servers and operating system. ASP.NET ASP.NET allows programmers to build dynamic web pages, web services and web application. It is a web application framework developed and marketed by Microsoft. Hardware Some of the hardware that can be used is listed below. Mobile phone Mobiles phones have become a common electronic device. It offers many options than just make call and send messages. Nowadays we can access the Internet via mobile phones, and there are many applications that where developed on mobile phone. New generation mobile phones are equipped with camera and Bluetooth. Laptop/ Computers Computer is like the tool that enables programmers to work. All most all programming languages, not to say all, can work on computers. They are also equipped with many wireless devices like Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. Embedded devices There are embedded devices that are designed specifically to do certain things. Some examples are: MP3 player, washing machines, Bluetooth meter reader, and many others. Evaluation of Tools Programming language The programming language is what will help to make the software. Each programming language has positive and negative points depending on the type of software that need to be developed. The pros and cons of certain programming languages are listed below. J2ME Pros Cons Offer better networking capability Available on various platforms J2ME applications are portable Rich user interface Robust security features. There is a wide range of mobiles which support Java, thus having wide range of mobile phone that can be used. Midlet cannot access all native resources without authorization. Application need to adapt for phones which have different CLDC, MIDP, JSR and Bluetooth. Table 3à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ4: J2ME Java Pros Cons Java code can work on many different platforms. Java is secure, robust and reliable. Java provides use of multithreading. Java is object oriented and allows creation of modular programs and reusable code. Java have an API for Bluetooth programming Java is slower and consumes more memory when compared to languages such as C or C++. Table 3à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ5: Java Web Servers Web servers are what will enable the data to be access over a network in a convenient way. There are a lot of web servers, some of them are described below. Apache Pros Cons Apache is open and thus can be customised easily according to requirements Multi-platform. It runs on a wide variety of operating systems, including all variants of UNIX, Windows 9x/NT, and Mac OS Apache is not regularly updated Requires more technical knowledge to install and configure Table 3à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ6: Apache IIS Pros Cons GUI mode installation. Works with a wide range of operating systems and browsers. Source code is proprietary. Can only work within Windows environment. Table 3à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ7: IIS Web Development Languages Web development language will be used to code for application at server side. There is a wide pool of language that is available. Some of them are listed below with their some of their pros and cons. PHP Pros Cons PHP is free and easy to use. PHP help to interact with database easily. Can support many operating systems, like Windows, Linux and Mac OS. PHP engine need to be installed on server to use PHP. Debugging can be lengthy for complex program. Table 3à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ8: PHP ASP.NET Pros Cons ASP.NET code is compiled at server before being sent to the browser; thus faster. ASP.NET pages are simple to write and can cope with heavy traffic without affecting performance adversely ASP.NET runs on only windows platform. ActiveX objects are platform specific, thus it will not work easily on many Web servers. Table 3à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ9: ASP.Net RDBMS Relational Database Management System (RDMS) will be used to store all data. It is very important as all sensitive data will be there and data will be used to do billing purpose. MySQL Pros Cons Easy to use. Free and Open source system. Runs on a range of different platforms. Can handle large sets of data. It is secure. Passwords are encrypted Recovery of database is not guaranteed in case of a power cut. Operates over known IP ports which facilitate the task of intruders Table 3à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ10: MySQL PostgreSQL Pros Cons It is a free and Open source software PostgreSQL can work on different platform PostgreSQL is very scalable and extensible It is slow compared to MySQL Lacks binary distribution for all the supported platforms. Table 3à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ11: PostgresSQL Choice of Final Tools Java is appropriate for the desktop application as it can work on many different platforms and have an API for Bluetooth. J2ME is used for the mobile application development as many mobile phones can support java and have an API for Bluetooth. Bluecove API for Bluetooth programming as it is open source and support java. PHP will be used for the web application as it is free and easy to interact with database. MySQL is more suitable for database system as it is free and work well with Web servers. Design The design section gives an overview of the structure of the software and architecture of the system. It also includes the data involved, the interfaces between system components, algorithm and protocol to be used for the system implementation. System Design Issues Several system design issues like performance, quality of service, fault tolerance, and security, which are important in the design of a system, are discussed below. Performance Issues The performance issues are concerned with the limitation of computers in term of processing power and communication capacities. These issues can be described in the followings ways: Responsiveness: It is how fast the system processes given input to give an output. The use of threading allows multiple tasks to process simultaneously. Threads can be used for processor intensive process. Threads can be implemented in Java Environment. Applications running on networks depend greatly on the load and performance of servers and also the network load itself. Server and network load balancing can be used to prevent them from being overloaded. Such technique is beyond the scope of this project. When using the Internet, there is a probability of communication delays and data being corrupted, this beyond of ones control. Throughput: It is of the system corresponds to the amount of data transmitted between the client and server in a given time interval. On a wireless network is takes a long time to establish connection between the server and the client and the latency time of HTTP is significantly high. So, the number of HTTP round trips in the application must be kept to the strict minimum. Robustness Robustness is the ability of the system to operate in the presence of incorrect input or cope with errors when the system is running. Validations check like length check and data type check can be used to prevent wrong input and catch errors where shared resources are being accessed. Interactivity Interaction with the system can be in many different ways. Data or command input to the system will make it produce certain result. Some of the ways that can interact with the system are listed below. The use of graphical user interface (GUI) to facilitate user to communicate with the system. Providing options and menus where possible instead of typing data. Users using the mobile application need to enter data via phone keypad. Use of meaningful icons, so that user can interact quickly with the system. Flexibility The web application can support multiple users at a time and can receive and process multiple requests a time. The system must be able to cope if there is significant increase in the number of users and additional resources can be added if needed to. Portability The mobile application can be run on Java enabled mobiles phones which support MIDP 2.0. The web application can run on multiples types of servers. Limit size of JAR file The mobile application has limited resources to use. So the application is obfuscated to reduce its size. The obfuscation process helps to remove unused classes and libraries. Error, Exception Handling and Fault Tolerance The application should continue to work correctly in presence of software, hardware and network faults. Errors will be caught in try-catch blocks to alert user of the error. Security Security is one of the focal point of a system. There is no system on earth which can be tagged as impenetrable. What can be done is, to make the system less vulnerable to attacks. The system needs to protect data from unauthorized users. The ways to protect the system is listed below. Users need a username and password to be able to access the system. User will be identified and authenticated before they can use the system. The database will be protected with password. Architectural Design In this section, the different components of the system are illustrated and how they interact between them. Overall Architecture The system is made up of three main components: the meter, the mobile application and the server application. The mobile application will be used to read a value via Bluetooth from the meter and will send that value via mobile network operator to the server. The connection between the mobile and the server is done via wireless connection such as GPRS, WAP, EDGE or Wi-Fi. The meter will be a simulated meter on a laptop that will be accessed via Bluetooth by a mobile application. The server will be used to host the web site and connect to the database. That database will be used to store all information needed. The figure below shows the overall architecture. Figure 4à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ7: Overall architecture Detailed architecture Figure 4à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ8: Component diagram <

Free Essays - Im the King of the Castle :: Kafka Castle Essays

I'm the King of the Castle While reading I'm the King of the Castle, I noticed that Susan Hill used many different techniques to put a point across, the most important being her use of imagery. However her writing also has many other qualities such as good structure and her ability to think like her characters. In addition she manages to build up tension and uses different ways of emphasising words or phrases. All of these factors contribute to her unique evocative style and add to her reputation of being a very talented writer. In chapter Eleven, paragraph thirty-eight, she describes vividly how Kingshaw feels sick with fright when Hooper locks him in the shed. "He retched, and then began to vomit, all over the sacks, the sick coming down his nose and choking him. It tasted bitter. He bent forwards, holding his stomach. When it finished he wiped his mouth on the sleeve of his shirt. He was shivering again." This passage is an example of her excellent use of imagery. She conjures up a picture of the scene as well as expressing Kingshaw's fears and senses in an evocative style by using a scene that we can all relate to and understand. An example of Susan Hill's good structure is at the very beginning of the novel, when Hooper and Kingshaw first meet, Hooper sends Kingshaw a note saying 'I didn't want you to come here'. This sets up the story line from the beginning, leading us to expect events to come. Then at the very end of the novel before Kingshaw commits suicide, Hopper sends him a final note saying ' Something will happen to you Kingshaw'. She shows the ability to be able to think like a child, which adds to the overall affect of the book because the main character is Kingshaw who is a child. This process of her thoughts gives us a wider understanding of Kingshaw's character and his thoughts. Examples of her thinking like a child appear in many forms in the novel. One of them is her use of childish language and grammar. "Now, he thought, I know what Hooper is really like. He's a baby.

The Bra Boys

Bra Boys From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search The Bra Boys is an Australian gang founded and based in Maroubra, an eastern suburb of Sydney, New South Wales. Dating back to the 1990s, the gang has gained notoriety through violent clashes with members of the public and police. The gang achieved national and international attention in 2007[1] with the release of a feature-length documentary entitled Bra Boys: Blood is Thicker than Water, written and directed by members of the gang. Contents 1 Origins Notoriety and violence 2. 1 Criminal matters 2. 2 General community activism 2. 3 Art imitating life 3 Documentary 4 References 5 Further reading 6 External links Origins The Bra Boys are held together by surfing as well as community ties. [2] The group is often linked with the Maroubra Surfers Association, with which a number of its members are associated. [citation needed] In an interview on Triple J radio, Koby Abberton pointed out the â€Å"Bra† is a reference to the gang's suburb, Maroubra,[3] and partly after the street slang for brother. 1] Some members of the gang tattoo â€Å"My Brother's Keeper† across the front of their chest,[4] â€Å"Bra Boys† and Maroubra's postcode â€Å"2035† on their backs. [citation needed] With a reputation of being territorial,[1] the group is known to have taken control of a Sydney reef break, known as ‘Cape Solander', located in Kurnell, and renaming the break ‘Ours'. In July 2007, The Sydney Morning Herald reported an altercation that took place between professional bodyboarder Mitch Rawlins and a group of several Bra Boys members, including Koby Abberton.Rawlins was allegedly approached by a Bra Boy member and told to â€Å"fuck off†. It is believed an argument broke out and then turned physical with Rawlins being punched in the head. A spokesman for the Bra Boys confirmed there had been â€Å"some sort of small incident† but denied any major vi olence. [5] Notoriety and violence Prominent Bra Boys members include rugby league players Reni Maitua, John Sutton, as well as the Abberton brothers, Sunny, Jai, Dakota, and Koby, with the latter being the most notorious of the brothers. 6] Criminal matters A syndicate with alleged links to members of the Bra Boys were caught smuggling cocaine following interceptions of conversations dating back to 1997. It was alleged that the syndicate was granted security passes to restricted areas within Sydney Airport, by-passing Australian Customs, enabling the prohibited narcotics to be smuggled from Los Angeles by being concealed in on-board catering refuse. [7] In 2005, Jai Abberton was acquitted of the 2003 murder of stand-over man Anthony ‘Tony' Hines. 8] However, his brother Koby was handed a suspended nine-month jail sentence after being found guilty of perverting the course of justice in the same matter. [9][10] In November 2008, Koby Abberton was jailed for three days by a US c ourt after being found guilty of assaulting an off-duty police officer in a fight outside a nightclub in Honolulu, Hawaii. [6] In November 2009 Jai Abberton was jailed for eight months for breaching a good behaviour bond. [11] General community activismIn late 2002, around 160 members of the gang attending a birthday party at the Coogee-Randwick RSL Club were involved in a brawl with off-duty Waverley police officers leaving a Christmas party on the same premises. News reports numbered the combatants in the incident at around 120, with 30 police officers left injured after the event. [12] In August 2005, the Bra Boys led a 100-person non-violent protest against plans by Randwick Council to introduce parking meters near the local beaches. [13]In the lead up to the 2005 Cronulla riots in Cronulla, Koby Abberton spoke to The Daily Telegraph about the assault of a lifeguard that sparked the incident, claiming: â€Å"The reason why it's not happening at Maroubra is because of the Bra Bo ys. Girls go to Cronulla, Bondi, everywhere else in Sydney and get harassed, but they come to Maroubra and nothing happens to them. I read all this stuff about kids getting harassed because they want to have a surf and I say ‘are you kidding? ‘ The beach should be for Aussie kids. But if you want to go to beaches and act tough in groups you better be able to back it up.If these fellas come out to Maroubra and start something they know it's going to be on, so they stay away. â€Å"[14] Following the riots, in which the Bra Boys did not claim any involvement, Maroubra was the target of retaliation by Middle Eastern gangs. The Abberton brothers then held well-publicised meetings with other groups to help ease tensions. [15] â€Å"I think that this is the start, the boys have agreed to come down and talk to us, to start some dialogue between the groups, you know, to try and ease some tension†, said Sunny Abberton in a group interview on The 7. 30 Report. [16] Art imi tating lifeThe Bra Boys were made the subject of satire by The Chaser's War on Everything, episode 29, aired on 11 April 2007. [17] In the skit Julian Morrow approached gang members while wearing a pill-filled brassiere and sporting a tattoo similar to Koby Abberton's saying â€Å"mybrothersalibi†. A gang member responded by slipping off one of his thongs and flinging it at Morrow. Long-running Australian television soap opera, Home and Away has produced a thinly veiled reference to the Bra Boys in the fictional storyline of the River Boys that was broadcast in Australia commencing 16 February 2011. 18] Inspired by the friendship and brotherhood codes instilled by the Bra Boys, the Abberton brothers created a clothing line to reflect the importance of solid bonds between friends and family entitled MyBrothersKeeper Clothing, sometimes referred to as MBK Clothing. MyBrothersKeeper is a reference to the unspoken motto of the Bra Boys and can be somewhat translated as the uncond itional love, respect and support of those close to you regardless of race, gender and age. [4] DocumentaryA 90 minute documentary film about the surf gang, entitled Bra Boys: Blood is Thicker than Water premiered in Sydney on 7 March 2007 and was released on 15 March 2007. The film details a story of the Bra Boys from the viewpoint of the gang, particularly the Abbertons. Sunny Abberton wrote and co-directed the film with Macario De Souza. Actor Russell Crowe provided narration. The film's official cast included 49 well known surfers from Bra Boys members Evan Faulks and Richie ‘Vas' Vaculik to ten-time world champion, Kelly Slater,[19] and surfing legends including Mark Occhilupo, Bruce Irons, and Laird Hamilton. 20] Australian reviewer Margaret Pomeranz gave the movie an overall positive review, while her At the Movies co-host David Stratton criticised Sunny's amateurish direction and questioned how objective a documentary can be when it is directed by its subject. [21] The documentary became Australia's highest-grossing non-IMAX documentary film[22] and won the Best Documentary at the 2008 Movie EXTRA Filmink Awards. [23] The movie saw a limited release in the United States that began on 11 April 2008, in 23 select locations in Southern California, New York and Hawaii. 20] The film was distributed in Australia by Hopscotch Films and internationally by boutique distributor, Berkela Films. [24] The film was released on DVD on 16 August 2007 with extras including the documentary, The Making of Bra Boys, extended surfing footage, coverage of the film's premiere, history of Australian surf culture, a fitness program presented by one of the Bra Boys, and music videos. [25] References ^ a b c Marks, Kathy (19 March 2007). â€Å"Sydney's notorious surf gang turns tide of violence into big-screen adulation†. The Independent (United Kingdom).Retrieved 16 November 2008. ^ Carroll, Nick (9 March 2007). â€Å"Bra Boys World Film Premier in Sydney, Austral ia – Movie review†. Surfing Magazine. Retrieved 6 February 2011. ^ Warhurst, Myf; Whalley, Jason; McDougall, Lindsay (7 May 2007). â€Å"Myf, Jay and the Doctor: Interview with Koby Abberton† (radio). Triple J (Australia). ^ a b Minion, Lynne (8 August 2009). â€Å"Brothers in Arms†. Canberra Times. Retrieved 6 February 2011. ^ Gilmore, Heath (15 July 2007). â€Å"Bra Boys say it's Ours and we'll fight for it†. The Sydney Morning Herald. ^ a b Hellard, Peta (21 November 2008). Guilty Bra Boy Koby Abberton in Honolulu jail for three days†. The Daily Telegraph (Australia). ^ McKenzie, Nick (24 September 2009). â€Å"Cocaine gang had security clearance†. The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 6 February 2011. ^ Wallace, Natasha (6 May 2005). â€Å"Surf gang member cleared of standover man's murder†. The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 6 February 2011. ^ â€Å"Bra Boys: The often maligned surf brotherhood's new movie†. Surfer M agazine. 22 July 2010. ^ Jones, Caroline (7 November 2005). â€Å"Sons of beaches† (transcript). Australian Story (Australia). Retrieved 6 February 2011. â€Å"Jail for Bra Boy Jai Abberton, Pussycat Doll Melody Jail for Bra Boy Jai Abberton, Pussycat Doll Melody Thornton dines with Sonny and Koby Abberton†. The Daily Telegraph (Australia). 12 November 2009. Retrieved 1 December 2011. ^ Kennedy, Les (24 December 2002). â€Å"Night the thin blue line ran into the Maroubra stomp†. The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 6 February 2011. ^ Cuming, Angela; Munro, Catharine (7 August 2005). â€Å"Rage over 7000 meters for beaches†. The Sun-Herald (Australia). Retrieved 6 February 2011. ^ McIlveen, Luke (9 December 2005). â€Å"A beast surfaces†. The Daily Telegraph (Australia). Silkstone, Dan (14 December 2005). â€Å"When two tribes go to war: a culture clash†. The Age (Australia). Retrieved 6 February 2011. ^ â€Å"Emergency powers to crack down on riots† (transcript). The 7. 30 Report (Australia). 13 December 2005. Retrieved 6 February 2011. ^ â€Å"The Chaser vs. The Bra Boys – Hilarious Gags† (video). The Chaser. Australia. 11 April 2007. Retrieved 6 February 2011. ^ Casamento, Jo (6 February 2011). â€Å"Bra Boys amused by Home and Away homage†. The Sun-Herald (Australia). Retrieved 6 February 2011. ^ Howard, Jake. â€Å"Kelly Slater wins his 10th world title†. ESPN Action Sports (United States). Retrieved 6 November 2010. a b â€Å"Bra Boys†. Internet Movie Database. Amazon. com. 2007. Retrieved 2 February 2011. ^ Pomeranz, Margaret; Stratton, David (14 March 2007). â€Å"Bra Boys†. At the Movies (Australia). Retrieved 6 February 2011. ^ â€Å"Bra Boys breaks box office record†. ABC News (Australia). 27 March 2007. ^ â€Å"‘Bra Boys:’ Best Documentary at Movie EXTRA Awards†. Transworld Skateboarding (United States). 17 March 2008. Retrieved 6 Fe bruary 2011. ^ â€Å"Bra Boys: Blood is Thicker than Water†. Berkela Films. Retrieved 6 February 2011. ^ Idato, Michael (27 August 2007). â€Å"Bra Boys – DVD review†. The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 6 February 2011.

Georgia’s Water Supply Essay

Over the years, Georgia’s water resources have been abundant. Without appropriate foresight, there is now a serious water crisis that Georgians are facing. Coming up with solid solutions is urgently needed and are being discussed. One of these is desalination — process of taking salt water and converting it to fresh water. There are several problems with this. One is that since the ocean’s supply is tremendous, it could discourage water conservation. Also, this could tremendously hurt coastal habitats. Another dilemma is that it is expensive. It costs $3 to produce 1,000 gallons of desalinated water, compared to $1. 25 for surface water and $. 50 for groundwater. A big budget would be needed and where it will come from is also a determining factor. Another solution currently in use on a much smaller scale during drought seasons, is interbasin water transfers — removal of water from a plentiful river basin and releasing it into a basin in need. A highly emotional solution since every city/county wants to maintain control over its own natural water supply. For example: when Augusta was asked about sharing its water with Atlanta, the answer was â€Å"no way. † If Augusta is unwilling to help Atlanta, then it will be a challenge to work out a solution with Tennessee, Alabama or Florida. Without the cooperation of needed parties, this would not be feasible and would not serve its main goal in the long run. A third solution is conservation. Its implementation is the main problem of not being embraced by many local jurisdictions, like in North Georgia’s water planning district. Also, Atlanta has relied on interbasin transfers. Not only is the survival during Georgia’s water crisis dependent on solutions, but implementation of them and adherence with complete participation by every community member is badly required.

The Puritans (AP History Essay essays

The Puritans (AP History Essay essays The Puritans dream was to create a model society for the rest of Christendom. Their goal was to make a society in every way connected to god. Every aspect of their lives, from political status and employment to even recreation and dress, was taken into account in order to live a more pious life. But to really understand what the aspirations of the puritans were, we must first understand their beliefs. Their goal was absolute purity; to live with out sin in a sinful world was to them the supreme challenge in life. They were derisively called Puritans because they sought to purify the Church of England of the popish and antichristian stuff with which they believed the simplicity of the primitive Christian church had been encrusted. The Puritans believed that mans only purpose in life was to glorify God on earth and, if he were especially fortunate, to continue the good work in Heaven. For the puritans, to glorify god meant keeping him in mind at all times, working to the best of their ability at whatever job god had fated them to do, and following a strict moral code based on the bible. Every act and thought was either a glorification of god or its opposite. Thus, leading a pious life in the form of working hard, praying, and churchgoing, was considered paying homage to God. Through all of these things, the most important was to be mindful of God at all times. Pride, complacency, and gratification of the senses could not be permitted if they captured the place in the mind reserved for the Almighty. This does not mean, however, (as many people have believed) that the Puritans did not allow themselves to be comfortable and happy. First of all, the Puritans took happiness in the knowledge that they were living a pure life the way God had intended it to be. Second they believed in working hard, and if one acquired wealth by working hard, saving, and staying sober, than that was evidence of...

Drop Down List Inside a DBGrid

Drop Down List Inside a DBGrid Heres how to place a drop-down pick list into a DBGrid. Create visually more attractive user interfaces for editing lookup fields inside a DBGrid - using the PickList property of a DBGrid column. Now, that you know what are  lookup fields, and what are the options of displaying a lookup field in Delphis DBGrid, its time to see how to use the PickList property of a DGBrid column to enable a user to pick a value for a lookup field from a drop-down list box. A Quick Info on DBGrid Columns Property A DBGrid control has a Columns property - a collection of TColumn objects representing all of the columns in a grid control. Columns can be set at design time through the Columns editor, or programmatically at runtime. Youll usually add Columns to a DBGird when you want to define how a column appears, how the data in the column is displayed and to access the properties, events, and methods of TDBGridColumns at runtime. A customized grid enables you to configure multiple columns to present different views of the same dataset (different column orders, different field choices, and different column colors and fonts, for example). Now, each Column in a grid is linked to a field from a dataset displayed in the grid. Whats more, each column has a PickList property. The PickList property lists values that the user can select for the columns linked field value. Filling the PickList What you will learn here is how to fill that String List with values from another dataset at run time.Recall, that we are editing the Articles table and that a Subject field can only accept values from the Subjects table: the ideal situation for the PickList! Heres how to set up the PickList property. First, we add a call to the SetupGridPickList procedure in the Forms OnCreate event handler. procedure TForm1.FormCreate(Sender: TObject);begin SetupGridPickList(Subject, SELECT Name FROM Subjects);end; The easiest way to create the SetupGridPickList procedure is to go to the private part of the form declaration, add the declaration there and hit the CTRL SHIFT C key combination - Delphis  code completion  will do the rest: ...type TForm1 class(TForm)... privateprocedure SetupGridPickList( const FieldName : string; const sql : string); public... Note: the SetupGridPickList procedure takes two parameters. The first parameter, FieldName, is the name of the field we want to act like a lookup field; the second parameter, SQL, is the SQL expression we use to populate the PickList with possible values - in general, the SQL expression should return a dataset with only one field. Heres how the SetupGridPickList looks like: procedure TForm1.SetupGridPickList(const FieldName, sql: string);var slPickList:TStringList; Query : TADOQuery; i : integer;begin slPickList:TStringList.Create; Query : TADOQuery.Create(self); try Query.Connection : ADOConnection1; Query.SQL.Text : sql; Query.Open; //Fill the string listwhile not Query.EOF dobegin slPickList.Add(Query.Fields[0].AsString); Query.Next; end; //while //place the list it the correct columnfor i:0 to DBGrid1.Columns.Count-1 do if DBGrid1.Columns[i].FieldName FieldName thenbegin DBGrid1.Columns[i].PickList:slPickList; Break; end; finally slPickList.Free; Query.Free; end; end; (*SetupGridPickList*) Thats it. Now, when you click the Subject column (to enter into edit mode). Note 1: by default, the drop-down list displays 7 values. You can change the length of this list by setting the DropDownRows property. Note 2: nothing stops you from filling up the PickList from a list of values not coming from a database table. If, for example, you have a field that only accepts weekday names (Monday, ..., Sunday) you can build a hard-coded PickList. Uh, I need to click the PickList 4 times... Note that when you want to edit the field displaying a drop-down list, youll need to click the cell 4 times in order to actually pick a value from a list. The next code snippet, added to the DBGrids OnCellClick event handler, mimics a hit to the F2 key followed by Alt DownArrow. procedure TForm1.DBGrid1CellClick(Column: TColumn);begin//Making the drop-down pick list appear fasterif Column.PickList.Count 0 thenbegin keybd_event(VK_F2,0,0,0); keybd_event(VK_F2,0,KEYEVENTF_KEYUP,0); keybd_event(VK_MENU,0,0,0); keybd_event(VK_DOWN,0,0,0); keybd_event(VK_DOWN,0,KEYEVENTF_KEYUP,0); keybd_event(VK_MENU,0,KEYEVENTF_KEYUP,0); end;end;

Three Different Elements of a Crime

Three Different Elements of a Crime In the United States, there are specific elements of a crime that the prosecution must prove beyond a reasonable doubt in order to obtain a conviction. The  three specific elements (with exception) that define a crime which the prosecution must prove beyond a reasonable doubt in order to obtain a conviction: (1) that a crime has actually occurred  (actus reus), (2) that the accused intended the crime to happen (mens rea)  and (3) and concurrence of the two meaning there is a timely relationship between the first two factors. Example of the Three Elements in Context Jeff is upset with his ex-girlfriend, Mary, for ending their relationship. He goes to look for her and spots her having dinner with another man named Bill. He decides to get even with Mary by setting her apartment on fire. Jeff goes to Marys apartment and lets himself in, using a key that Mary has asked for him to give back on several occasions. He then places several newspapers on the kitchen floor and sets them on fire. Just as he is leaving, Mary and Bill enter the apartment. Jeff runs off and Mary and Bill are able to quickly put out the fire. The fire did not cause any real damage, however Jeff is arrested and charged with attempted arson. The prosecution must prove that a crime occurred, that Jeff intended for the crime to occur, and concurrence for attempted arson. Understanding Actus Reus Criminal act, or actus reus, is generally defined as a criminal act that was the result of voluntary bodily movement. A criminal act can also occur when a defendant fails to act (also known as omission). A criminal act must occur because people cannot be legally punished because of their thoughts or intentions. Also, referencing the Eighth Amendment Ban on Cruel and Unusual Punishment, crimes cannot be defined by status.   Examples of involuntary acts, as described by the Model Penal Code, include: A reflex or convulsion;A bodily movement during unconsciousness or sleep;Conduct during hypnosis or resulting from hypnotic suggestion;A bodily movement that otherwise is not a product of the effort or determination of the actor, either conscious or habitual.   Example of an Involuntary Act Jules Lowe of Manchester, England, was arrested and charged with the murder of his 83-year-old father Edward Lowe was brutally beaten and found dead in his driveway. During the trial, Lowe admitted to killing his father, but because he suffered from sleepwalking (also known as automatism), he did not remember committing the act.   Lowe, who shared a house with his father, had a history of sleepwalking, had never been known to show any violence towards his father and had an excellent relationship with his father. Defense lawyers also had Lowe tested by sleep experts who provided testimony at his trial that, based on the tests, Lowe suffered from sleepwalking. The defense concluded that the murder of his father was a result of insane automatism, and that he could no be held legally responsible for the murder. The jury agreed and Lowe was sent to a psychiatric hospital where he was treated for 10 months and then released. Example of a Voluntary Act Resulting in a Non-Voluntary Act Melinda decided to celebrate after receiving a promotion at work. She went to her friends house where she spent several hours drinking wine and smoking synthetic marijuana. When it is time to go home, Melinda, despite protests from friends, decided she was okay to drive herself home. During the drive home she passed out at the wheel. While passed out, her car collided with an oncoming car, resulting in the death of the driver.   Melinda voluntarily drank, smoked the synthetic marijuana, and then decided to drive her car. The collision that resulted in the death of the other driver occurred when Melinda was passed out, but she was passed out due to decisions she voluntarily made before passing out and would therefore be found culpable for the death of the person driving the car she collided with while passed out. Omission Omission is another form of actus reus and is the act of failing to take action that would have prevented injury to another person. Criminal negligence is also a form of actus reus.   An omission could be failing to warn others that they could be in danger because of something that you did, failure to a person left in your care, or not failure to complete your work properly which resulted in an accident.   (Source: U.S.Courts - District of Idaho)

New drug that significantly improved performance on a learning task in Essay

New drug that significantly improved performance on a learning task in human - Essay Example This electrical impulse is one unit of neural information. An electrical impulse flowing along the length of a neuron is called nerve impulse. Nerve impulses are unidirectional within a neuron – from the dendrite through the cell body and axon, to the axon terminals. In addition, neurons produce nerve impulses in an all-or-nothing way. For example, if the stimulus that a neuron receives is too weak to trigger a nerve impulse, nothing happens – the neuron does not initiate an impulse. However, if the stimulus is strong enough, the neuron does initiate an impulse. What happens when an impulse reaches the end of one neuron and move to another neuron? The junction between two neurons or between a neuron and a muscle is called a synapse. The two cells involved in a synapse do not physically touch each other instead they are separated by a small space. The cell that carries the impulse to the synapse is the synaptic cell and the cell that receives the impulse is the postsynaptic cell. When an impulse that is travelling along the postsynaptic cell reaches the end of the axon, it causes the cell to release molecules known as neurotransmitters. These molecules are released into the synapse and diffuse approximately 20 millionths of a millimetre to where they bind with receptors on the dendrites of the postsynaptic cell. When neurotransmitters bind to the receptors, the charge across the postsynaptic membrane changes and if the change is great enough, it triggers a nerve impulse, the nerve impulse then travels along the postsynaptic cell. Dopamine (DA) is a predominant catecholamine neurotransmitter in the mammalian brain where it controls a variety of functions including locomotor activity, cognition, emotion, positive reinforcement, etc. The chemical is naturally produced in the body (brain region). Dopamine, the neurotransmitter activates dopamine receptors. In addition,

Philo 110 2nd midterm Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Philo 110 2nd midterm - Essay Example Most motorists believe that the majority of speed limits set by the Congress are usually below the average speed of traffic. The Congress usually set recommendable speed limits, on the federal highways, in order to protect innocent people from perishing in road accidents since every highway death is a regrettable death. Therefore, the key purpose of setting higher speed limits of 55 miles per hour is not to kill innocent citizens, but to provide a reasonable balance between convenience and safety. However, even with the set speed limits, people usually fall victims of highway accidents on a daily basis. Therefore, if Congress is aware that its set speed limits still leads to increased highway accidents and death, then it should be considered as a murder. Likewise, there is no need, for the Congress, to set speed limit at 45 miles per hour since it will not reduce road accidents with any significant amount, but it will only increase a driver’s violation of speed limit. I, there fore, agree with Lackey that such an action should be perceived as murder, and Congress should adopt more comprehensive actions to address this problem effectively. In defending and understanding of Preferential Treatment Programs, Wasserstrom bases his arguments on a statement â€Å"We are still living in a society in which a person’s race, his or her blackness rather than whiteness, is a socially significant and important category† (Shaw 350). Wasserstrom argues that preferential treatment programs are necessities in any society because they help in making the social condition of life less racially oppressive and unjust, and it also help in the equal distribution of national resources and opportunities. Additionally, such programs help people to realize their desirable aims and objectives without violating an individual’s rights, taking an impermissible character into account, denying other people what they deserve, and treating other people fairly. I agree wi th Wasserstrom’s perception because racism is one form of social discriminations that most societies are currently fighting to abolish. Preferential treatments are presumptively acceptable in any society because they work to fight the system of racial oppression, which is still in place, but it should not be, and their significance can only be relevant once they are fully adopted and integrated, in the society. I, therefore, agree with Wasserstrom that the preferential treatment programs should only be perceived as unjust if the constitute part of the larger system of racial oppression. John Isbister is determined to establish the meaning of justice in relation to economic and social fairness, in the context of boundaries of capitalism. He takes a practical approach about some significant questions about social and economic justice. For example, he argues â€Å"The greatest injustice of unregulated, free-market capitalism is that it provides for only some of the people and e xcludes others† (Shaw 386). I agree with Isbister that free-market capitalism is a means of benefiting the developed countries and exploiting the developing countries. Free-market capitalism has accumulated global wealth into one market, which has sent different nations to fight for their share. This implies that in order to obtain a significant share, a country has to have a significant amount of resources and

Circumstantial Evidence Within The Casey Anthony Trial Research Paper

Circumstantial Evidence Within The Casey Anthony Trial - Research Paper Example did not merit proving the case of intended murder of Caylee beyond reasonable doubt, it is evident that the prosecutors had adduced evidence that had sufficiently served the principle of ‘reasonable doubt’ as a requirement of the law (Sarokin, 2011). Circumstantial Evidence is the important piece of evidence in criminal cases prosecution, owing to the fact that only a small percentage of crimes would be executed out of existing direct evidence. If all cases were to depend on direct evidence where a witness was present when the accused committed a crime, only a meager criminal file cases would even pass for trial (Fanning, 2009). After all, what would hinder the defendant denying being involved even when the witness still witnessed the crime being committed? In this respect, Circumstantial Evidence is vital for criminal trial, since it provides for the relevant pathway through which reasoning can be applied, so at to reach to a conclusion regarding how the crime was committed. The Casey Anthony Trial appears to have deduced sufficient circumstantial evidence, only that it was not executed properly. First, false testimony that Casey gave to the law enforcement officers when they set on investigating the case is sufficient to indicate that the defendant was determined to obstruct the course of justice (Ashton & Pulitzer, 2012). Despite the fact that reasonable doubt as a basis of determining the guilty or not guilty verdict for the accused is a necessity, nothing could be more indicative of the fact that the defendant must have known something about the death of Caylee than the false statements. Therefore, Casey was lying so that she could obstruct the law enforcement officers from being able to conduct a fruitful investigation. Casey had lied to her mother that Caylee was either with a nanny, in the beach, in the house and a host of other places for the whole time that her grandmother was asking for whereabouts (Russell & Cohn, 2013). Additionally, Casey lied

Paper on Financial Monitoring and Control Essay

Paper on Financial Monitoring and Control - Essay Example According to Nikolai et al (2009), efficient monitoring and control of cash ensure that there is adequate cash to undertake important activities in organizations. Cash control systems need internal control measures that are adequate and effective, which must comply with laws and regulations of any given jurisdiction where the business or project is carried out. Kutz (2003) asserts that error and lack of control over organizations assets and cash lead to business or project failure. Components of financial monitoring and control system First, roles and responsibilities form part of the components of financial monitoring and control system. Every financial or accounting officer has a role to play regarding cash receipts and disbursement as well as towards financial records. Access to cash of the organization should be limited to few authorized personnel and duties performed by different accounting and finance officers should be separated. Cash should be controlled from the time it is r eceived from customers (at the point of sale) to the point it is deposited in the bank. Point of sales terminals or cash registers need to be used. This is because point of sales terminals and cash registers allow for monitoring cash inflow. Second, financial records are components of monitoring and controlling finances. All expenses and revenue (income) transactions are recorded in general ledger. General ledgers form the foundation for generating reports and financial statements of each project. Revenue, cost and managerial accounting are used for internal purposes for planning, monitoring and controlling organization’s monies. Financial records are evidences that financial transactions took place. Financial records assist project managers to determine how much they have spent, how much they have and how much they need to spent in future (Garman and Forgue, 2007). Gross et al (2005) asserts that well kept financial records enables managers and interested parties to review r esult of financial transactions. Cash shortages and excess will be easily identified and remedial measures taken to correct the situation when proper records are kept. List of all checks received must be recorded and forwarded to the appropriate department. Cashiers must prepare daily bank deposits. Records of all billings, payables, accruals, receivables, invoices, contracts and suppliers must be kept appropriately. Third, disbursements thresholds also form part of financial monitoring and control system. Procedures that allow payments of actual expenditures must be complied with accordingly. The organization must create ceilings above which payments shall only be made through checks. For example, an organization ensures that payments above $200 must be made using checks. Furthermore, large amounts of cash to be disbursed must be authorized and approved by people who are in higher positions. For example, any expenditure above $5,000 must only be approved and authorized by the proje ct director or managing director. The organization should properly utilize petty cash systems and payments should only be made upon verification of all supporting documents. Fourth, a budget forms a component of financial monitoring and control system. Budgets reflect financial goals and objectives of a project covering a specific period of time. During budgeting, technological trends, resource pricing, employee relations, raw materials cycles, inventory levels, financial needs and seasonality should be taken into considerations (Shim and Siegel 2008). Donovan (2005) explained that before a person or organization spend what they have earned, it is important to prepare budgets to be able to focus on priorities. Therefore, every

Gun Control Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Gun Control Paper - Essay Example Gun ownership has remained a controversial issue in American politics. The controversy stems from the right to bear arms as outlined by the US constitution and the deliberate efforts and responsibility of the federal government to control gun related crimes (Valdez, 2003). Gun control laws exist almost at every government level since the federal government taxes the automatic weapons and the short barrel rifles which should be registered according to National Firearms Act of 1934. In addition, the Gun Control Act of 1968 prohibits the transfer of guns to minors and also mail-order sales of guns in America. Although the 1968 Act required all guns to have serial numbers and prohibition of guns to individuals who have been convicted of felonies, the act has done minimal in controlling gun-related violence. The Gun Free School Zones Act of 1995 limited ability to carry guns near K-12 school, but different States have permitted full access of schools while armed (Valdez, 2003). On January 16, 2013, President Obama outlined several steps in gun control and access to mental health services. The proposals include background checks for all gun related transactions, stronger bans on assault rifles, and emergence response funds for shootings in schools. The proposals also include enhancing mental health services access among the young people and providing the law enforcement agencies more powers to investigate and prosecute citizens involved in gun related crimes (Valdez, 2003). The process policy model is the best model in legislating gun control laws. The focal point of the model is the political processes that involve all concerned stakeholders through changing the perception of the citizens and allowing public participation (Ginsberg & Miller-Cribbs, 2005). The process model starts with problem identification and the need of government action towards solving the problem (Fox, Bayat & Ferreira, 2006). The second step will include policy formulation and development of p roposals through the input of congressional committees and other interest groups. The third step should entail legitimization of the policy which will entail making the policy as law by the actions of the Congress and the President. The fourth step will entail implementation of the policy as law across the country through preparation of budgets and measures of the law enforcement agencies (Ginsberg & Miller-Cribbs, 2005). The final step will entail evaluation of the policy by the government agencies in order to ascertain whether the policy and laws have been able to deter gun related violence across the country (Fox, Bayat & Ferreira, 2006). Agenda setting/ identification of the gun violence problem The initial step in gun control policy will be outlining the need to legislate on gun control. The President will outline the societal need of protection from gun violence and escalating gun related deaths in the country (Fox, Bayat & Ferreira, 2006). The President must make the citizens also understand the Second Amendment of the constitution did not grant citizens the individual right to gun ownership. The President should create awareness that the United States is the leading country in gun ownership and has the highest rate of gun crime across the world. For instance,

Policemen of the World Pper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Policemen of the World Pper - Essay Example This operation is somewhat controversial in both America and Guatemala. Guatemalan citizens are anxious about the fact that their soldiers, who have engaged in human rights abuses in the past, are now being given more in depth training on how best to confront drug traffickers. The American public, on the other hand, is concerned about spending on such foreign missions while the American nation itself is plagued with drug abuse (hotdogfish, 2012). In 2011, America also committed troops to Africa. President Obama sanctioned the operation of 100 troops to assist in the Ugandan government in its objective to capture, Joseph Kony, the head of the Lord’s Resistance Army- an outlawed resistance group that is responsible for the death of more than 30,000 Ugandans, and which uses drugged child soldiers to murder and brutalize others. The LRA has been functional in the northern part of Uganda for approximately two decades and has resulted in the massive displacement of more than one mil lion people. Joseph Kony is wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) and refuses to sign any agreements to surrender until the warrant for his arrest is disqualified. This operation is controversial among Ugandans because the LRA has been functional for 20 years with no forthcoming help. There are concerns that the choice to send help recently was tied to other desires to take advantage of Ugandans natural resources such as newly discovered and unmanned oil deposits. Two (2) factors that propelled America into a dominant military and diplomatic force after World War II Immediately after the Second World War there was a power vacuum on the world stage because the formerly powerful British Empire had been brought to its knees. Britain was almost financially destroyed by the effects of fighting two World Wars within two decades. Other European nations such as France, Germany, and Spain had all but been decimated financially (Huchthausen, 2003). The only nation in the world that had not suffered extremely in the Second World War was the United States. Even though America lost millions of soldiers in the war, the only time when its mainland was attacked by the enemy was at Pearl Harbor. The fact that it survived with a relatively healthy economy at a time when the other formerly powerful nations were financially crippled allowed it to presume the mantle of world leadership. During the war, America’s economy was actually strengthened. Before its entry into the war, America sold arms and weapons to European nations involved in the war. After its entry into the war, the production of ammunition and weapons increased drastically. By the end of the war, the American economy was healthy enough for its government to bail out the economies of numerous European nations through the Marshal Plan. America had the most powerful economy in the world at the end of the Second World War. Differences in American foreign policy before and after World War II. Explain th e main reasons why the differences in pre- and post-war policy occurred Before WW II, America embraced isolationist principles and refused to be a part of any organizations which were created to maintain peace between the world’s nations. The League of nations was signed by numerous Western nations with the exception of the USA. This is because America’

Gun Control Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Gun Control Paper - Essay Example Gun ownership has remained a controversial issue in American politics. The controversy stems from the right to bear arms as outlined by the US constitution and the deliberate efforts and responsibility of the federal government to control gun related crimes (Valdez, 2003). Gun control laws exist almost at every government level since the federal government taxes the automatic weapons and the short barrel rifles which should be registered according to National Firearms Act of 1934. In addition, the Gun Control Act of 1968 prohibits the transfer of guns to minors and also mail-order sales of guns in America. Although the 1968 Act required all guns to have serial numbers and prohibition of guns to individuals who have been convicted of felonies, the act has done minimal in controlling gun-related violence. The Gun Free School Zones Act of 1995 limited ability to carry guns near K-12 school, but different States have permitted full access of schools while armed (Valdez, 2003). On January 16, 2013, President Obama outlined several steps in gun control and access to mental health services. The proposals include background checks for all gun related transactions, stronger bans on assault rifles, and emergence response funds for shootings in schools. The proposals also include enhancing mental health services access among the young people and providing the law enforcement agencies more powers to investigate and prosecute citizens involved in gun related crimes (Valdez, 2003). The process policy model is the best model in legislating gun control laws. The focal point of the model is the political processes that involve all concerned stakeholders through changing the perception of the citizens and allowing public participation (Ginsberg & Miller-Cribbs, 2005). The process model starts with problem identification and the need of government action towards solving the problem (Fox, Bayat & Ferreira, 2006). The second step will include policy formulation and development of p roposals through the input of congressional committees and other interest groups. The third step should entail legitimization of the policy which will entail making the policy as law by the actions of the Congress and the President. The fourth step will entail implementation of the policy as law across the country through preparation of budgets and measures of the law enforcement agencies (Ginsberg & Miller-Cribbs, 2005). The final step will entail evaluation of the policy by the government agencies in order to ascertain whether the policy and laws have been able to deter gun related violence across the country (Fox, Bayat & Ferreira, 2006). Agenda setting/ identification of the gun violence problem The initial step in gun control policy will be outlining the need to legislate on gun control. The President will outline the societal need of protection from gun violence and escalating gun related deaths in the country (Fox, Bayat & Ferreira, 2006). The President must make the citizens also understand the Second Amendment of the constitution did not grant citizens the individual right to gun ownership. The President should create awareness that the United States is the leading country in gun ownership and has the highest rate of gun crime across the world. For instance,

How Can You Become an Authentic Leader and Be Successful Essay

How Can You Become an Authentic Leader and Be Successful - Essay Example Authentic leadership focuses on whether leadership is genuine; indeed, â€Å"from an intrapersonal perspective, authentic leadership incorporates the leader’s self knowledge, self regulation, and self conceptâ€Å"(Northouse, 2009, p.206). Therefore, authentic leaders lead from conviction, as they base their actions on their values; they are also original and do not imitate other individuals, and their leadership is genuine as well. Northouse (2009, p.207) adds that, from a developmental approach, authentic leaders can be viewed as nurtured, whereby, authenticity develops in form of a behavior pattern in an individual over a life time. In addition, there are five dimensions involved in authentic leadership: values, purpose, self-discipline, and heart, inclusive of several characteristics - behavior, compassion, consistency, passion, and connectedness. Authentic leaders have a sense of purpose, such that, they are aware of where they are going, since they are inspired by thei r goals (Northouse, 2009, p.212). They are also passionate about their job and have self-discipline, which assists them in achieving their goals, as it acts as a source of determination and accountability. Such leaders are compassionate, and are sensitive towards other’s feelings, having a will to assist them. ... Benefits of authentic leadership According to Avolio et al (2005, p.802), due to the many crisis facing modern organizations, unique leaders are required in order to restore hope, optimism, resiliency, and confidence. Authentic leaders are capable of enhancing motivation, commitment, and satisfaction in their organizations. Building enduring organizations is not an easy task. Therefore, authentic leaders assist in building sustainable organizations, and they are capable of motivating their employees and maintaining a long-term value for the shareholders. Another benefit of authentic leaders is that they walk their talk; such leaders say what they mean, and therefore, they are ethically sound in their organizations. Due to their compassionate natures, they develop a special relationship with their followers based on mutual respect, trust, and support. These leaders are able to attain the best from their followers, since the subordinates are influenced by such leaders. In challenging t imes, they continue operating with humility, which inspires their juniors (The Cognitive Fitness Consultancy, 2009, p.4). Needless to say, the chances of continuous growth as an authentic leader are high, as individuals are capable of adjusting to the changing conditions. Authentic leadership fosters honesty and trust within the organization, and such leaders appreciate differences in opinions, leading to innovation enhancement. Bryman (2011, p.355) adds that authentic leadership mainly benefits the followers, who are said to increase their efforts in organizational activities, leading to better work performance. The followers also improve on their attitudes and mindset, such that, there is increased level of trust because of change in leadership. In addition, followers attain greater

Factors Affecting Organogenesis in Plant Tissue Culture

Factors Affecting Organogenesis in Plant Tissue Culture Organogenesis is the process of forming a specific organ from non-specific mass of meristem or parenchyma cell known as callus. In this experiment, auxin and cytokinin are used to determine the effect of PGR, auxin and cytokinin on the organogenesis in carrots and petunia leaves, in which auxin hormones responsible for growth of roots, phototropism and gravitropism, while, cytokinin helps in inducing the growth of shoots and regulates auxin action. Theoretically, the presence of high cytokinin and low auxin in the media, the shoots will form, meanwhile, in low level of cytokinin and high level of auxin in the media, roots will form. Meanwhile, in the presence of high concentration of both cytokinin and auxin, callus formation will be induced. However, in this experiment, production of the shoots and roots are not compatible with the theory due to improper ratio of auxin and cytokinin and the high toxicity of synthetic cytokinin, kinetin. Introduction Plant tissue culture (PTC) is the techniques used to grow plant from any of the plant segment, tissues or cell in a contaminated free environment media such as MS media (Singh Kumar, 2009). PTC techniques is important plant biotechnology aspect in which it facilitates the production of genetically modified plants and induced rapid multiplication of difficult-to-propagate plant species. Besides that, the ability to produce totipotent plant cell using PTC techniques has significant impact on crop improvement via genetic engineering (Radzan, 2003). There are two different processes, which involve explant differentiation and growth in PTC, which are organogenesis growth and adventititous roots or shoots growth directly from the explants. Organogenesis is the process of forming a specific organ from non-specific mass of meristem or parenchyma cell known as callus. Meanwhile, for formation of adventitious roots or shoots means the roots or shoots structure arise from the explants that have been excised (Pernisova et al., 2009). This situation does not usually happen if the plant sample are cultured in a medium with the same ratio of auxin and cytokinin. The presence of plant growth regulators (PGR) such as auxin, cytokinin, gibberellins, abscisic acid and ethylene has significant impact in the process of plant growth and differentiation. Gibberellins responsible for growth, seed germination and promote fruits growth. As for ethylene helps in controlling of fruit ripening as well as controlling cell division and cell elongation. Meanwhile, abscisic acid act on seed maturation and give the ability to the seeds to response during stress in undergoing dormancy period (Davies, 2010). However, in this experiment only, auxin and cytokinin are involve, in which auxin hormones responsible for growth of roots, phototropism and gravitropism, while, cytokinin helps in inducing the growth of shoots and regulates auxin action (Davies, 2010). In this experiment, NAA will be used as synthetic auxin and kinetin and BAP as synthetic cytokinin. This experiment was conducted in order to determine the effect of PGR, auxin and cytokinin on the organogenesis in carrots and petunia leaves. Materials and methods Plant materials For petunia leaves samples, the leaves were provided by lab technician in Monash University Sunway Campus. Firstly, 18 petunia leaves were collected from the petunia leaves petri dish. Then, the petunia leaves were soaked using 10% (v/v) of sodium hypochlorite for not more than 5 minutes. The leaves were then rinsed using sterile water in a laminar flow cabinet. Then, 2 petunia leaves were added in each petri dish with different ratios of NAA:BAP and NAA:Kinetin. The same methods were implied to the carrot. However, the carrot sample was cut into 27 pieces about 0.5cm thick on the surface of sterile ceramic tile. After soaking the carrot samples in sodium hypochlorite and rinsed for three times, 3 carrot pieces was transferred into petri dish with different ratios of NAA:BAP and NAA:Kinetin. The result recorded based on table 1 and table 2. Tissue culture media MS media supplemented with combination of high cytokinin to low auxin were prepared by the lab technician as follows: NAA:Kinetin ratios (2:0, 0.5:1, 1:0.5, and 0:2) and NAA:BAP ratios (2:0, 0.5:1, 1:0.5, and 0:2). Additional of two control plate with MS media that supplemented with same ratio of auxin and cytokinin were also prepared by the lab technician. Culture condition The transferred petunia leaves and carrot pieces in the 18 petri dishes were incubated for 28days in 25ÂÂÂ ±2ÂÂÂ °C temperature, and photoperiod of 16hours in light 8hours in dark as provided in plant culturing room in Monash University Sunway Campus. In addition, for every 4 days, the tissue cultured was checked to whether there are presents of contamination and to transfer the samples into new MS plates. Results and discussion Effect on carrot slices Based on the result obtained in table 1, it shows that for carrot samples, the formation of callus can be seen all of petri dish with various ratios of either BAP:NAA or Kinetin:NAA. Theoretically, the formation of callus is due to the high concentration of both the cytokinin and auxin in a growth media (Duncan et al., 1985). Since all the plates are containing callus, it can be deduced that the growth of callus can be formed by excision of the plant cell. Meanwhile, for formation of roots, only carrot samples from MS media supplemented with BAP:NAA with ratio of 0.0:2.0 which also shows formation of roots. This is because, according to the theory, in the presence of high cytokinin and low auxin in the media, the shoots will form, meanwhile, in low level of cytokinin and high level of auxin in the media, roots will form. However, in the presence of high concentration of both cytokinin and auxin, callus formation will be induced (Chawla, 2002). However, it can be seen that there is no production of shoots in other plates except in MS media containing 0.0BAP:2.0NAA. This may occur due to unsuitable ratios of cytokinin and auxin in MS media that may not favorable for carrot species to induce formation of shoots. Effect on petunia leaves By referring to table 2, it shows that petunia leaves sample that shows formation of callus, roots and shoots is the MS media supplemented with BAP:NAA with ratio of 0.5:1.0 and the control plate. This occur due to suitable ratio of cytokinin and auxin suplemeted in the MS media. Furthermore, only MS media supplemented with BAP:NAA with ratio of 0.0:2.0 shows the growth of shoots excluding the MS media supplemented with BAP:NAA with ratio of 0.5:1.0 and the control plate. Theoretically, the productions of shoots are triggered by high concentration of cytokinin and low concentration of auxin. However, in the ratio of 0.0BAP:2.0NAA, it is predicted that formation of roots will be induced, instead, shoots are forming. This occur due to presence of zeatin in petunia leaves. Zeatin is a natural cytokinin presence in the most green leaves that undergoing senescence (Singh et al., 1992). The presence of cytokinin in the media may mask the reaction of auxin hormone on the explants presence i n the media (Nakagawa et al., 2006). Therefore, the production shoots are triggered instead of roots. Based on the result in table 2, the production of roots and shoots are low due to due to the excessive amount of alcohol used during the sterilization process. Besides that, shoots and roots only produce in MS media supplemented with BAP:NAA and not in MS plate with Kinetin:NAA. This may occur due to the toxicity of the synthetic kinetin, that are not suitable for the growth of either shoots or roots on petunia leaves. There were also presence of contamination in the cultured plate of carrot sample, which involve MS media supplemented with BAP:NAA with ratio of 2.0:0.0 and MS media supplemented with Kinetin:NAA with ratio of 2.0:0.0. Meanwhile, for petunia leaves sample, the cultured plate that have been contaminated by fungal infection are MS media supplemented with BAP:NAA with ratio of 0.0:2.0 and ratio of 2.0:0.0 as well as MS media supplemented with Kinetin:NAA with ratio of 0.0:2.0 and ratio of 0.5:1.0. This may occur due to experimental error, in which contamination may occur due to improper techniques while doing PTC such as lack of using aseptic techniques to make sure sterile condition during transferring the samples into the MS plate. Conclusion In conclusion, suitable medium supplemented with correct ratio of cytokinin and auxin are the most important key in order to get successful induction of organogenesis in vitro. Besides that, sterile environment is also one of the important factors in determining the successfulness of PTC and in order to obtain expected

Essay --

The term forensic is used often among television crime dramas but what is it? Forensic, as defined by Oxford Dictionary of English, is â€Å"relating to or denoting the application of scientific methods and techniques to the investigation of crime (Stevenson). This science has led to the capture of many criminals. DNA testing has been a large part of this forensic science, however forensics played a large role prior to DNA testing being developed. Fingerprinting, blood typing, and trace evidence were three of the forensic tests in use before DNA testing that helped identify a suspect. Fingerprinting is a technique that has been in use for a long time. In 1880, a Scottish doctor, Henry Faulds, first suggested to the British that fingerprints could be used in criminal investigations. This suggestion had merit because every person has a unique set of fingerprints. The concept was then incorporated into the law system. Fingerprints are, in fact, most often used in prosecutions. They are to help the prosecutors identify a suspect and to place them at the scene of a crime (â€Å"Fingerprints† 410-411). Fingerprints can be left on almost any surface, including smooth ones. The combination of the friction ridges, or the raised grooves on the fingertips, and sweat that gathers there is what causes the fingerprint to leave a trace (Bergman and Berman-Barrett). Fingerprinting is widely used today and I believe it still plays a large and crucial role in criminal investigations. Blood Typing, or Serology, is another method of identification used in forensics. This type of science is focused on the study of Antigens in the blood and how specific antibodies places blood into separate groups. The blood groups most commonly used in this scie... ...croscopically match fibers from carpet to a specific car is fascinating and intriguing. Trace evidence also seems to be easily left behind, where as fingerprints can be concealed with rubber gloves and blood is not always left at crime scenes. Forensic science consists of many different components that have helped solve many crimes. Fingerprinting can be used to place criminals at scenes and to identify suspects. Serology is a science that has become outdated but helped prosecutors narrow down suspects. It ultimately led to the development of DNA testing, the culprit for its demise. Edmund Locard was the innovator behind the concept of trace evidence and how particles can be compared microscopically to help in crime solving. All of these aspects of forensics potentially led to the development of DNA testing and laid the groundwork for future expansion.

The Revolutionary Aftermath of the Civil War Essay -- Racism Discrimin

The Revolutionary Aftermath of the Civil War Despite many hardships that remained from the antebellum state of the union, reconstruction was a socially and constitutionally revolutionary period. The attempts to deter black voters were greatly outweighed by the numbers of blacks voting, as well as the laws that were passed to protect the rights of American citizens, black and white alike. The years after the war saw a rise in the number of human rights laws that were passed, most of which were primarily focused on blacks, but included whites as well. In document D, Gideon Welles stated that the national government didn’t hold the power to grant suffrage to anyone, nor had it shown any interest in the matter. Because of this, the state governments were able to enact black codes which restrained citizens, both black and white, from voting because they were illiterate or because they weren’t of a high enough economic status. This later changed as blacks became more active in government and voiced their upset to the national government, as shown by Document C. B...

Kitchen Best Essay

Individual case study: Kitchen Best Kitchen Best is the typical family owned SME, specialized in the Kitchen appliance production, with Headquarter in Hong Kong and manufacturing plant based in China, in the Guandong province. The main problems concerning the company, are all related with its managing and governance system. The company has been run for years by its founder, Cha Dong, who managed it in a paternalistic way, establishing very strong relationships with most of its senior Staff. His management style reflected the old business culture, characterized by high sense of belonging to the â€Å"family† and an high degree of acceptance of the practice of kickbacks, considered the normal way to run business in China. When Cha Dong, at the end off its career, left the management to its son, Henry Chan, all the governance shortcomings came to light. Henry Chan, who received a Western education, had a more international approach, less involved than its father in the operationa l activities of the company and more focused on its ambitious targets. He prospected to double the revenues of the company entering the US and EU market directly, while continuing to serve the Asian market, where its father focused until that day. Its expertise in the Western culture would have helped the enter in such markets, making the project ambitious but feasible, on the other side focusing in such a target would have meant ignoring the management aspects of its role, who are the basis for the success of a company. Furthermore Henry Chan lack of operational expertise, so he completely relies on Ma Luk, the company’s operations Director, to whom his father delegated the entire operational activities of the factory, during its lasts years of management. He had in that way a great independence and power, given by its expertise and close connection with clients and suppliers. He had also a low level of coordination with Henry Chan, to whom he formally reported, but still su bstantially referred to Chang Dong for important issues. In fact the Kitchen Best founder had still a strong managerial presence in the company, as all its employees trusted him completely, we can asses that the managerial transition did not happened in substantial terms. The company’s culture reflects the old managerial style of the founder: the selection and training of employees is done on a familiar contact base, not relying on impartial standards of efficiency. The lack of standards in training and  recruitment, the high degree of toleration of kickbacks, together with the high independence in the operational decisions, are all factors that contributed to the bad management of the Staff. To Ma Luk, too much power was delegated, with no substantial control, due to the lack of technical skills of Henry Chan. Moreover his strong ties with clients and suppliers were created through kickbacks, tolerated by the father and after by his son, partially to provide a certain continuation in management and partially for fear of losing most of the crucial contacts. Sze, on the other side, trained Macy Wei, Quality Control Manager, affecting so the impartiality required by her role. Looking at the Trust and Advice Network inside the company, we will s urely underline a strong connection between Sze and Macy Wei, as between Ma Luk and Cha Dong, while the actual manager of the company will result isolated and not connected to the main key figures of Kitchen Best. The communication Network will also reveal important managerial considerations. The communication is formal, non effective and one-way: from the bottom to the top, with a total absence of feedback from Henry Chan. A radical change is so necessary in the company’s culture and governance system, starting with a zero tolerance approach toward facilitating payments. Kickbacks are reducing the competitiveness of the company and is severely punished by criminal laws both in China and Macao, where the company operates. This corruptive system is also exposing the company to many problems: one of its key customers, Honghua, has adopted a zero tolerance policy to kickbacks and the company is re-evaluating all its suppliers under standards of competitiveness. To cope with these issues, Henry Chan should concentrate more in the operational part of the company, gaining expertise and position himself strongly at the head of the company. First of all, he should establish a code of ethics, as a first step to change the old and paternalistic company’s culture, by inserting Western elements such as standards and ethics principles. The Code of Ethics should be a formal statement, containing ethical principles related with employees responsibilities and Business integrity. On the other side, Standards should be settled and implemented, with a zero toleration of sub-standards, especially when Selecting, Hiring, Training and Promoting employees. Promotions should be based on performance and compliance with the Codes. Moreover an External Independent Auditor should be hired to control that all  the members of the company, and also its suppliers are complying with standards and Codes. After all, Henry Chan should communicate in an effective w ay the radical measures adopted, explaining to the Stuff how fundamental is for the company to meet the standards established, to enhance its competitiveness in order to better serve its actual Asian clients and to enter the US and EU market. Repeating past errors, such as the Shago or Haus de Metro Incidents, will be fatal for the future of the company: suppliers will be chosen according to their competitiveness and no more on family or friendship relationship base. For that reason a specific Code of behavior for Suppliers has to be implemented too. In conclusion, to make the corporate governance transformation of Kitchen Best feasible, Henry Chan should definitely strengthen its position and impose a more ethic behavior inside the company. To do so, he should enter into the Trust Network, establishing a trust relationship with its Stuff, not being afraid of scolding them when necessary and partially divesting their strength in the customer and suppliers relationships. He should Invest much more time in operational and managerial tasks, as the growth and success of the company depend on them. He should also implement a bi-side communication with its employees, reporting periodically their performances through Feedbacks. When Henry Chan will have adopted all these measures and implemented all the Standards and Codes, his father will be divested from its role, reducing so its influence in the company’s decisions, who reflected the old paternalistic culture, favorable to the unethical practice of facilitating payments.