Genre fiction

Subsets of genres, known as common genres, have developed from the archetypes of genres in written expression. The common genres included in recommended Literature from kindergarten through Grade Twelve by the CaliforniaDepartment of Education are defined as:[1] * Drama – stories composed in verse or prose, usually for theatrical performance, where conflicts and emotion are expressed through dialogue and action * Fable – narration demonstrating a useful truth, especially in which animals speak as humans; legendary, supernatural tale * Fairy tale – story about fairies or other magical creatures, usually for children * Fantasy – fiction with strange or other worldly settings or characters; fiction which invites suspension of reality * Fiction narrative – literary works whose content is produced by the imagination and is not necessarily based on fact * Fiction in verse – full-length novels with plot, subplot(s), theme(s), major and minor charact ers, in which the narrative is presented in (usually blank) verse form * Folklore – the songs, stories, myths, and proverbs of a people or â€Å"folk† as handed down by word of mouth.Historical fiction – story with fictional characters and events in a historical setting * Horror – fiction in which events evoke a feeling of dread and sometimes fear in both the characters and the reader * Humor – Usually a fiction full of fun, fancy, and excitement, meant to entertain and sometimes cause intended laughter; but can be contained in all genres * Legend – story, sometimes of a national or folk hero, that has a basis in fact but also includes imaginative material * Mystery – fiction dealing with the solution of a crime or the unraveling of secrets * Mythology – legend or traditional narrative, often based in part on historical events, that reveals human behavior and natural phenomena by its symbolism; often pertaining to the actions o f the gods * Poetry – verse and rhythmic writing with imagery that creates emotional responses * Realistic fiction – story that is true to life * Science fiction – story based on impact of actual, imagined, or potential science, usually set in the future or on other planets * Short story – fiction of such brevity that it supports no subplots * Tall tale – humorous story with blatant exaggerations, swaggering heroes who do the impossible with nonchalance Common genres: nonfiction* Biography/Autobiography – Narrative of a person's life. A true story about a real person. * Essay – A short literary composition that reflects the author's outlook or point. * Narrative nonfiction – Factual information presented in a format which tells a story. * Speech – Public address or discourse. * Textbook – Authoritative and detailed factual description of a topic. Literary fiction vs. genre fiction Literary fiction is a term used t o distinguish certain fictional works that possess commonly held qualities that constitute literary merit. Genre works are written with the intent of fitting into a specific literary genre in order to appeal to readers and fans already familiar with that genre.Literary fiction may fit within a classification of market fiction, but also possesses generally agreed upon qualities such as â€Å"elegantly written, lyrical, and †¦ layered† that appeals to readers outside genre fiction. Literary fiction has been defined as any fiction that attempts to engage with one or more truths or questions, hence relevant to a broad scope of humanity as a form of expression. There are many sources that help readers find and define literary fiction and genre fiction. Literary element A literary element is an element found in the whole works of literature. Literary elements are not â€Å"used† by all authors; instead, they exist inherently in forms of literature and are derived by the readers of a work in question.[1] This distinguishes them from literary techniques, which are less universal and are used intentionally rather than being emergent characteristics of a literary work. For example, characterization, conflict, setting, and point of view would be considered literary elements, whereas irony or foreshadowing are considered literary techniques. Literary elements are most frequently used to help discussion on a work or better understand a work of literature. For instance, the New York State Comprehensive English Regents Exam requires that students utilize and discuss literary elements relating to specific works in each of the two essays,[2] much like many other state-level high school exams nationwide.

The Development of the Western Frontier between 1866 and 1890

The Trans-Mississipi west comprises the region that spans from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains (Client file, n. pag. ). It is estimated to be 1,000 miles long from east to west and is about 1,500 miles from north to south (Client file, n. pag. ). The Trans-Mississippi west (also known as the Great Plains, the Western Frontier or the prairie) was inhabited by more than 300,000 Native Americans, collectively referred to as the Plains Indians (Client file, n. pag. ). Prior to the Civil War, the Western Frontier was largely unpopulated by pioneers (although it was under the control of the United States government through the Louisiana Purchase in 1803) (Client file, n. pag. ). Some wagon trains did pass through the area en route to Oregon or California, but these were able to do so unmolested (in sharp contrast to Hollywood films) (Client file, n. pag. ). In return, the payment of tributes in the form of clothing, jewelry, metal utensils or other items desired by the tribes was required (Client file, n. ag. ). However, the Homestead Act of 1862 (passed during the Civil War) encouraged emigration to the Western Frontier (Client file, n. pag. ). Under the act, settlers can avail of a 160-acre parcel of land for a small filing fee worth $10 (Client file, n. pag. ). In addition, they can obtain the full title to the land within five years if they were able to make significant improvements on it (planting crops, building houses, raising livestock, etc. ) (Client file, n. pag. ). As a result, homesteaders, miners and ranchers trespassed on Indian lands and threatened the Plains Indians' hunting and way of life (Client file, n. pag. ). This left the Plains Indians with no other choice but to use armed resistance (Client file, n. pag. ). The hostilities between the Plains Indians and the US Cavalry (called on by the settlers to crush Indian opposition and to confine tribes in government-controlled reservations) that ensued were eventually called the Western Indian Wars (1866-1890) (Client file, n. ag. ). Despite the attractive terms of the Homestead Act of 1862, around 60% of emigrants gave up on their homesteads before the end of the five-year period (Client file, n. pag. ). Reasons for doing so included lack of water supply, Indian attacks, harsh winters, soil that was unfit for planting and sometimes-deadly conflicts with ranchers, who saw homesteads as a hindrance to cattle grazing (Client file, n. pag. ). On the other hand, those who remained endured extre me hardships just to survive. They worked very hard under sub-zero winters and summers that often reached more than a hundred degrees Fahrenheit (Client file, n. pag. ). Unable to afford houses made of wood, they lived in houses built of sod and dirt (Client file, n. pag. ). They also experienced infestations of locusts, which would eat their crops, as well as the drapes of their houses and their clothing (Client file, n. pag. ). Adding to their list of burdends were natural disasters such as storms and tornadoes (Client file, n. pag. ). The homesteaders' privations were so great that History professor Frederick Jackson Turner hypothesized in his thesis in 1890 that â€Å"much of America's free and democratic spirit was forged by the existence of an open frontier to the west† (Client file, n. pag. ). Another important advancement in the Western Frontier was the Transcontinental Railroad. The absence of a railway system in the region isolated Oregon and California (already states) from the rest of the US – they stood alone at the edge of the country and were accessible only by wagon train, ship or boat (Client file, n. ag. ). President Abraham Lincoln and the US Congress backed a railroad act which authorized the presence of a railroad across the continent, but it was not implemented until the end of the Civil War (Client file, n. pag. ). The construction of the railroad started in 1864 – the Union Pacific was built westward from Omaha, Nebraska, while the Central Pacific was erected eastward from Sacramento, California (Client file, n. pag. ). Even if only 40 miles of track were laid by 1865, the pace of the assembly increased at the end of war (Client file, n. ag. ). Majority of the workers that were recruited for the building of the railroad were from minority groups such as blacks, Mexicans, Asians and Irish (Client file, n. pag. ). Despite delays in construction (storms, harsh winters, occasional Indian attacks, migration of large buffalo herds, etc. ), the Transcontinental Railroad was finally completed at Promontory Point, Utah on May 10, 1869 (Client file, n. pag. ). The Transcontinental Railroad boosted commerce in the Western Frontier, particularly the cattle industry (Client file, n. pag. ). Even though the cattle industry was already a major part of the western economy, the lack of transportation hindered its expansion into the eastern part of the US (Client file, n. pag. ). Hence, the development of railroads in the Western Frontier (along with entrepreneurs such as Joseph McCoy, who promoted beef as tasty and healthy) increased the demand for beef in the east (Client file, n. pag. ). Cowboys would drive large herds of cows from Texas and New Mexico to â€Å"railheads† – towns on or near the rail line, such as Dodge City, Abilene, Wichita and Colorado Springs (Client file, n. ag. ). Once in the â€Å"railheads,† the cattle would be kept in large pens or yards, where they would be fattened for market in the east (Client file, n. pag. ). During this time, a cowboy was paid usually around $25-$30 per month (Client file, n. pag. ). â€Å"Railheads† (also known as â€Å"railhead towns† or â€Å"cow towns†) became prosperous not only because of the cattle industry, but also because of saloons or â€Å"dance halls,† where cowboys spent their money on liqour, gambling and women (Client file, n. pag. ). It is likewise the saloon that gave â€Å"railheads† their reputation for lawlessness (Client file, n. pag. ). But it must be noted that this image was largely seen only in Hollywood films (Client file, n. pag. ). For one, most â€Å"railheads† were strict when it comes to gun control (Client file, n. pag. ). Gun control laws in â€Å"railheads† were enforced by tough sheriffs or marshalls with shotgun-toting deputies – one gun control law that they strictly implemented was that cowboys should surrender their guns to them while they were in town (Client file, n. pag. ). In addition, the saloon area in a â€Å"railhead† was usually located in the opposite direction of the â€Å"respectable† side of the town to minimize the possibility of untoward incidents (Client file, n. pag. ). Lastly, contrary to Hollywood films, cowboys were not hardened criminals but â€Å"just regular and adventurous young men letting off steam after several months of hard work† (Client file, n. pag. ). Most gunfights â€Å"were spontaenous events in a saloon or in the street between angry or drunken men who had not been relieved of their guns† (Client file, n. pag. ). They usually fought over â€Å"poker-related disputes, a woman, a perceived insult or some ongoing enmity between long-time adversaries† (Client file, n. pag. ). In most â€Å"railheads,† the murder rate was â€Å"acutally lower than the murder rate of many large American cities in the latter half of the twentieth century† (Client file, n. pag. ). Furthermore, extensive research has proven that in the period between 1870-1900, only five gun duels occurred in the entire Western Frontier (Client file, n. pag. ). It is true that emigration led to the development of the Trans-Mississipi west. However, it must be kept in mind that this progress did not come without a price – the Western Indian Wars killed around 1,000 US Cavalry soldiers and led to the death and enslavement of millions of Plains Indians (McConnell, n. pag. ). It would be fair to say that the circumstances surrounding the expansion of the Trans-Mississipi west became one of the precursors for future instances of US political, economic and military aggression abroad. The strategy remains the same – plunder the country (or in this case, region) as much as you can, fill the people's minds with deceiving propaganda and chop off a few thousand heads when necessary.

Live by the foma (harmless untruths) that make you brave and kind and healthy and happy

Foma, are an everyday part of life. No one knows if there truly was a person who created the earth and all its inhabitants, or if one person can start a whole new way of life with just one idea. One must live by certain foma, but at the same time a person must know which ones not to live by. America itself is one giant foma. There are untruths about religion, family life, war, and society in general spread all across America today. Religions are foma in themselves, for it is not certain what a religion is based on, or if the stories of that religion are even true. People, not just in America, but all around the world believe in something that has not been proved. The family lives in America are also foma. There has not been an American family found in any historical account, in which the children were perfect. Humans are, and will never be perfect. The next major crisis in America is war. Terrorists are trying to attack the country, and they expect to do so just because the country is distracted by a few anti-war protests. No matter how hard people try to argue against war, it always happens, just like no matter how hard soldiers train, they will never be fully prepared for war. Lastly, society is one large foma. Social classes seem to be taking over America. The more money a person has, the more money that person will get. However, if another person has very little money, then his or her amounts of money will just keep decreasing. The way a person walks, talks and acts all contribute to the social status of that person, therefore determining his or her own destiny. Everyone lives by at least one foma, and family life is the most important one. Families all over the world have struggled to be the â€Å"perfect† family seen on television. But no matter how hard they try, it won't happen. The trouble with the world being all lies, is that it is hard to find a truth to live by. However, there is one: all religions are lies. People do not go to church to make themselves better in the eyes of the Lord, God, etc. Today, prayer is used for the greed of society and not for how it was originally used, to cleanse society. Religion is not worth anything to a person who sees and understands how much of religion is a foma- all of it. No one can tell you what is a truth and what is a foma. People must decide for themselves, or their whole lives will turn into lies. There is a world full of lies, all because people do what others want them to do, just so they can fit into society. A society full of lies is not a society at all, but merely one large foma.

Analysis of previously gathered individual presentation data Statistics Project

Analysis of previously gathered individual presentation data - Statistics Project Example Part of the test statistics were to compare the performance of females versus males, the correlations amongst different types of presentation. Another test of interest was to ascertain whether the score in body language and voice of presenters displayed a difference in their mean. Generally, with regard to the performance of presenters in scope and Research of presentation, there was no much difference as displayed in Figure 2. However, female presenters registered poor performance (below a score of 2) in the scope presentation. From Table 1 and Figure 3, mean scores for presentation with regard to body language, visual aids and timing parameters were 6.8, 7.1 and 7.1 respectively across gender. There were little deviations from the mean performance across the board with the highest deviation from the mean being 1.62 for the â€Å"timing† parameter. As an assessor, I registered a mean score of 6.22 on body language and 6.45, my highest mean score, on the scope of presentation. My minimum score and maximum score, as reveled in table 2 and Figure 4, on scope and research were 4 and 8 respectively. Looking at Figure 5, my performance as a presenter was not that good compared to my performance as an assessor. This because I only scored 8 points, a presenter, on the scope of presentation compared to as an assessor where I scored 8 points on several occasions: both in scope and research. With regard to the different presentations, representation on technical literature review was on the lead with 58%. It was followed closely by presentation on international business at 41%. The least presentation was on any other test presentation that come a distance at 1%. Borrowing from Boslaugh (2012), we needed to test whether there was mean difference between body language (coded as sample b) and voice (coded as sample v) across gender. As such, we needed to formulate our

Within the Context of the Boundaryless Career Critically Analyse the Coursework

Within the Context of the Boundaryless Career Critically Analyse the Challenges Faced by Graduates in a Volatile Global Economy - Coursework Example 1 1 Table of Contents 2 Introduction 3 Boundary less Careers 3 Challenges Faced by Graduates 4 Conclusions 6 References 7 Introduction The recent economic downturn had a deep impact on the job market as companies went overdrive to cut jobs in the backdrop of a severe financial crisis. The period of economic recession saw many individuals being handed pink slips (Tuppen, 1988, p.54). It also meant that fresh graduates even from reputed institutions could not find a job of their choice. This has led to emergence of certain very critical aspects with regards to career growth and development of individuals (Roberts, 2009). The present study would analyze the career aspects of a graduate in the recessionary environment in the backdrop of a boundary less career for an individual. Boundary less Careers The definition of boundary less career itself is a matter of research with varied version of the definition of the term across academic circles. Among the most accepted of the definition is t he one given by Arthur and Rousseau (1996) that defines boundary less careers as the complete opposite of organizational career that span across various organizations against traditional assumptions of employment. The definition given above was challenged by Eby (2001) who defined boundary less careers as a connecting sequence of expertise across jobs and companies (Barling & Cooper, 2008, p.279). Greenhaus, Callanan & Godshalk (2009) Conducted a research into the aspect of boundary less careers and concluded that the aspect was majorly due to the inter organizational mobility and a change in attitude among the employees to look for greener pastures in their careers. This trend is particularly been observed in the capitalist economies of USA, UK and other developed nations as there are large number of business organizations that are ever in need of good professionals for their company. There are many perspectives on this approach firstly, certain researchers propose that boundary fe wer careers involve increased mobility towards better opportunities and rewards. Another contradictory school of thought states that aspects like mentality, identity and psychological aspects that defines the aspect of boundary less careers. Networking and connections also play a major role in the mobility of individuals across organizations (Greenhaus, Callanan & Godshalk, 2009, p.23-24). The aspect of boundary less careers has also been debated with regards to the aspect of commitment and loyalty. On one hand some individuals feel that the aspect of boundary less careers has reduced the loyalty and commitment aspects. The protagonists of this theory feel that boundary less carers have increased and improved individual performance in the quest for greater improvements in the careers due to which individuals resort to job hopping across organizations and business verticals in an attempt to better influence the careers (Purcell & Wright, 2007, p.133-134). Guest & Conway (2004) stated that there was a contrasting view in boundary fewer careers as it led to development of loyalty towards an individual’s own career and personal interests. Academic and research professionals have often critiqued this aspect and stated that this was detrimental to the organizational interests as individuals in boundary less careers often put themselves and their personal ambitions before the organizational interests (Guest & Conway, 2004, p.51). Challenges Faced by Graduates The recent market recession has led to a serious job cuts within economies. According to the data released by OECD USA alone reported a major job cut that is evident from the fact that there were 145362000 employed civilians in 2008 as compared to 139877000 individuals in the following year. The statistics reveal a clear

The Euro Zone Economic Crisis Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Euro Zone Economic Crisis - Article Example Companies affected by the crisis have had to lay off workers, reduce their productivity, foreclose, or wind up. One of the countries that have seriously been affected by the crises in Greece. The crisis in Greece was prompted by an unreasonably high wage bill and pension commitment that saw the European country amass great debt. To save the situation in the countries affected by the crisis, bailouts have been issued and government bonds released. There are several long-term measures that have been proposed to avoid a similar situation in the future including the write off of debts (Steinhauser par. 10), reviewing the European fiscal union, and establishing a European Monetary Fund. Despite the economic crisis that threatens business in Europe a few companies have found their ways to weather the storm and come up on top. In days that Greece is ravaged by civil conflict, companies are cutting down on workforce and economic times are definitely hard, nobody would expect anyone to do it like they are doing it on both domestic and the global arena to even prompt the European Business Awards to cite them as examples. Mega disposables S.A, Lamda Hellix and Gaea have succeeded where their peers would fear to venture. Lamda Hellix a data centre service provider is spread out across South Eastern Europe, backed up by a team that works relentlessly to achieve success in providing the best customer service in the industry. Their main focus is integration and consultant services, besides they also maintain data for their party data service centres. The company boasts of winning several awards in the past 10 years that includes Best European Data Center Facilities Management Award (2011), Best European Green Initiative Award (2010), Best Regional Data Centre Operator in Europe (2009), Best Workplace in Greece in 2012.  The latter award is not just a confirmation that employees work in a safer place but that they share goals that are common enabling them to be excellent in their personal and cooperate levels; an adventure of success that has seen it being cited on the Wall Street Journal (Lamda Hellix, 2012).  Ã‚  

Principles of Finance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Principles of Finance - Essay Example When tax is reduced by some percentage it increases companys income by certain multiplier effect since tax is a leakage on income. When tax is reduced to 18%, the taxation will be 90.16pounds (Adams & Von, 2007). b) The assumption is subject to discussion in such a way that each of these methods has their strengths and weaknesses. Taking a case of dividend growth rate, empirical evidence shows that a company, which pays more dividends, has low growth rate. The main reason behind this is that most of its profits go to individual shareholders instead of being ploughed back to the business. This is practical evidence. However, most of the methods are theoretical and lack practicality (Halsey, R. F, 2012). Considering the case of net asset valuation, the method does not consider the future prospects of the company. In fact, these valuation methods depend on historical data, but in a business environment, different environmental factors lead to different outcomes. This is a limitation that begs the question whether the methods are practical because the business environment changes every day and cannot rely on historical data (Halsey, 2000). The book value approach in asset based method is practically unrealistic because the values of the fixed assets depend on sunk costs and relative depreciation. These values are of no relevance to any purchaser or seller (Von, et al., 2004). In considering replacement value, it is also of no practicality. This shows what it might cost to start a business, but this could be lower than the true value for successful business unless the estimation is also made for the value of goodwill and other current assets. In considering the P/E approach, it is not somehow practical. When you are buying a company it is for the entitlement of its future earnings not past earnings. This approach does not take into account turbulent economic times which make them very

A critical review of Delayed Auditory Feedback as a means of managing Essay - 1

A critical review of Delayed Auditory Feedback as a means of managing a speech dysfluency - Essay Example (Craig et al., 2002) Approximately 80% adult stutterers are men. Only 20% are women. (Yairi, 2005) The goal of DAF therapy is to increase the length and complexity of utterance with the use of the device. As soon as there is a sign of improvement in the patient’s stuttering of speech, the patient will then be advice to limit the need for speech therapy sessions. In line with this study, the general facts about stuttering, how Delayed Auditory Feedback (DAF) works, the effectiveness of DAF devices, long-term effects of the using DAF devices, and the advantages of using DAF devices will be discussed thoroughly. Stuttering is a speech fluency disorder that is normally characterized by prolonged frequent repetitions, and pauses that could interfere with the normal flow of speech. When a stutterer speaks, his/her speech is usually broken down by repetition of words (th-th-that way), prolongations (llllike this), or abnormal stoppage (no sound) of sounds and syllables. Unusual facial and body movements could also be associated with the person’s effort to speak. Several theories with regards to the causes of stuttering have been developed in the past. Some people view stuttering as a syndrome of neurological disturbances even though there are times that stuttering can be triggered by our emotions or by an emotional and/or situational events. (Braun et al., 1997) For this reason, stuttering can be related to both neurological and physiological by nature. Other people view it as a learned behavior wherein a child is in the middle of learning and developing his/her speech. In rare cases, stuttering has been suspected to have a connection with psychological problems. These theories have never been scientifically proven. In the past, stuttering has been widely related to genetic factors. (Cummings et al., 1996) However, the degree to which stuttering is related to genetic factors, environmental factors, or both still remains to be unknown. Due to

Culture and purchase intention for luxury consumption Literature review

Culture and purchase intention for luxury consumption - Literature review Example ect of culture has become more relevant in the globalized world where organizations are targeting the international market in a strategy to increase their revenue. Cultural aspects such as attitude, religions, behavior and information-access influence the consumer decision making process. The hospitality and tourism industry have faced a big challenge while targeting this portion of the customer profile as they enter new markets (Truong, McColl & Kitchen, 2009). Understanding the intention of consumers as they buy luxury products is a priority if such companies have to suit the needs of their target market. The purpose of this review is to establish cultural influence within the luxury market and how this may impact a tourism and hospitality industry. While there is a concession that different countries have different luxury consumption patterns, the influence of culture in this market still remains a contentious issue (Blevis et al., 2007). Secondly, the review seeks to analyze the customer intention and the way culture impacts on this intention within the luxury market. The priority of any managers is to satisfy customers, which can only be accomplished when companies understand customers’ purchase intentions. Through a critical review, the article will analyze the impact of culture and customer intention in the purchase of luxury brands and provide conclusions and implications for the analysis. Therefore, the article will provide a platform through which luxury companies can launch successful brands that satisfy the global luxury market. The luxury market has become one of the potential investment markets in the 21 century. Currently, the luxury market is estimated to have a value of over 300 billion Euros and statistic projections shows that the market is rapidly growing. The luxury market is expected to grow by more than 7% percent each year, which promises high revenue in the future of the market. Besides, countries such as Middle East that have shown

Individual project Essay Example for Free

Individual project Essay Andy Rexford has started a cottage industry in his garage for catering for the niche market. Soon that market grows and so does his business. With this fast pace growth in the business Andy has expanded his business from one stitch machine to six stitch machine in the short period of time. Recently, Andy has developed a business plan which clearly states the good future growth and lots of financing required. Andy does not have much money of his own to invest in the business, so he is looking for the external financing sources. In this report, I will be discussing the different sources of external financing along with their advantages and drawbacks, and then I will be decided which source is the best for the Andy’s business. Sources of financing: There are various sources of financing the business but the most critical aspect is to understand which sources are appropriate for that particular business and how much finances do we needed. The assessment of sources is totally judgmental. Along with the judgment, it is also dependent on how willing he is to share the information about his business and ownership with others. Sources of finances are divided into 2 broad categories: -Internal financing -External financing. Andy’s savings and income are already been exhausted in the process of growth, and he requires more financing. To help Andy to take the decision wisely I will be discussing few external financing sources. External sources: External financing includes ownership capital and non-ownership capital. These two categories are divided into other several categories. For the business like Andy’s following three non-ownership capital financing is suitable. †¢ Banks †¢ Venture investors †¢ Small business association (SBA) Banks: They are the financial institution who lends the money to the businesses and individuals and charges an amount of interest against it. They are the hardest place to find the finances as the bank does not grant the loan very easily but the time is been changing now bank has come up many different loan schemes against which people are been given loans. A bank loan is considered as most desired mode of financing. People considered it as the most desirable because it is at times very speedy if you have good credit standing in the market you can get a loan in no time. Moreover, you can use that money in various ways and accountable for none. Although there are some advantages in getting a loan from the bank but there are some disadvantages as well. Disadvantages like, some loans carry a prepayment plenty so the borrower could not pay the amount early (Scarborough, 2006). Venture investors: Venture investors are those people who wealthy individuals, corporate and formal institutions who are willing to invest in the new business and growing businesses. In return for providing the capital to the businesses, they usually require a percentage of ownership in the company along with control over the strategic direction and payment assorted fees. Private equity provides capital and access to a network that can transform a company into an industry player, Karen E. Klein noted in Business Week. But the price is high: a chunk of your business. Like every other financing source, there are some advantages and disadvantages as well. The main advantage for the start-up business is that they are not obligated to repay the money. And the involvement of the high profile businessmen can also increase the credibility of new business. The main disadvantage an entrepreneur can have from the venture investor is that they become the part owners of the business, and thus they have the rights have a say in the decisions. The business owner faces a dilution of their position as owners and possible loss of power of controlling the business (Scarborough, 2006). Small business association: Small business association is the organizations in United States formed by the government that helps the entrepreneurs to start up their business. Small business association acts as the guarantor of loans for the people who do not qualify for the commercial loans. The advantages related to the small business association are that since it’s a government formed organization to encourage the businessman, they are charging very low interest rate as in comparison to the commercial banks. SBA takes a very quick decision regarding the approvals of loans to the people. There are many advantages attached to the SBA that makes it is desirable for the businessman but there is a gloomy side of this loan as well. Since its government loan no matter what happens to your business you have to pay off this loan before any other debt. Moreover, there is more paper work required than in commercial bank. The government wants to make sure that you are truly eligible for this particular loan or not. Andy’s source of financing: Andy should opt for the bank loan as it suits to the requirements of his business. Future of his business is very bright and there is a guarantee that his business will get double the size within next two years. So giving the ownership in his business would not be advisable if he wants to have all the profit, and he can have them as the matter of fact. As for the SBA, they have very long repayment schedule though the rate is a low but 20-30 years time period does not worth for that kind of loan. Since Andy only needs $700,000, which can be repaid within 2 years because the annual profit of Andy is 750,000. He can easily pay off this loan with 2 years. Hence it is suitable for Andy to take the bank loan. Conclusion: There are various sources of finances. Some financing can be done internally while some can be borrowed from others. In the case of Andy his earning is already been consumed in the expansion of the business. So it is suggested to him that he should take the bank loan because he does not need to give the ownership to the venture investors and does not need to give whole life to pay that loan. Bank loan will be the most desirable suggestion as Andy can pay this loan payoff this loan within two years. Moreover, he does not need to give any ownership to anyone.

Islamophobia in the Media

Islamophobia in the Media The media is a means of communication which is usually made through television, radio, newspapers and other outlets that influence a wide amount of people. Moreover, the media causes moral panics of crime and fear of crime, this including the media’s role in the social construction of crime and media amplification of crime. The relationship between crime and the media has been debated historically particularly in relation to public fears about the harmful effects of the media. It is common observation that crisis such as wars, share markets, scandals often drive the public policy making process. Crisis reveals the problems and public consensus emerges that policymakers must do something about it. These crisis reveal broadcasters important role in community crisis information Saider 2006:1) choosing negative names for people or groups that powerful policymakers dislikes using positive names for describing wildly acts are part of media tricks. Numerous media campaigns are going on against Islam and Muslims. Multiple channels trying to show a rough picture of Islam to their public. At the same time muslims groups through various media are trying to convey their messages but in comparison to the global dominance of the western media their effects are somehow in vain. The media has responsibility of reporting fair and unbiased news stories. However, media are now blamed for overlooking the ethical issues when it comes to Islam. Although Islam is the fastest growing religion in the west, the west has many stereotypes and misconceptions about Islam that are due to the media, prejudice and ignorance. Islam is often looked upon the extremist terrorist fundamental religion. In contrast to what many westerners think of Islam is a peaceful religion, which does not promote any forms of uncalled violence or terrorist actions. A major factor which contributes to Islamic stereotyping in the west due to the medias selection of their words that describe Muslims. Some common name heard or seen in the news about Muslims are extremist or terrorist. These words are misleading any mainly are anti-Islamic. The media rarely use more words such as revivalist or progressive. Media reports about Muslims and Islam negatively. A great misconception that exists the truth about Jihad which means â€Å"the struggle in the path of God†. However, the media abuses the meaning of Jihad by referring to it as a war in which Muslims unreasonably kill non-believers. But the fact is that Jihad can mean a numbers of things that a Muslims does for the sake of God. The media used this kind of a definition in their reports. The media often takes the word Jihad out of context to propagate negative views on Muslims. Media using the most relevant example of the 9/11 event was to capitalise its political gain. The media depicts Islam as fundamentalism, extremist and radicalised religion. In a world were the role of the media is control; the image of reality can be manipulated by the author. The media tried to represent Muslims as terrorists posing a threat to security of countries. The way the media writes about Muslims being terrorists and the way they portray them on TV, documentaries and many others it raises many questions for policy-makers and for general public like, what the cause of global terrorism is, whether all the Muslims are terrorists including children, women and why all Muslim people hate British people and many others. These types of questions create public panic around the Muslim communities and terrorist threats. However, a research by Whitaker (2002) suggested that Muslims are intolerant, violent and cruel. It also suggested that Muslims are reported mainly when they cause a t rouble though negative stories that often come from other countries. They obviously have some effect on readers perceptions of Muslims in Britain. By doing so they try to justify the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. This led to the emergence of Islamophobia. However, little effort has been made to respond to their negative campaigns. On the contrary the act of terrorist groups who kill people especially western hostages help their media to show that they are collectively victims of terrorism. The medias poor representations of Islam are due to poor language translations, the absence of developed news agencies which interactional networks and native reporters and biased reporting by reporters. The public is often misinformed about the Muslims through the images on television, radio, comic stories in newspapers which promote strong message to the public. Reporters often say Muslims are terrorist. This becomes the common image to the general persons that all the Muslims are terrorists (Edwards Saids book, covering Islam 1997). The representation of muslims in the media relate to the lack of acceptances of differences. Media creates moral panics around terrorist threat. As one scholar said the war on terrorism is a war of images and the most effective images are those of terrorists victims. But other side we see discrimination associated with Islamophobia. This represents that the muslims are threat to security. Negative coverage of muslims has led to the production of anti-Islamic films like â€Å"Fitna† by Dutch parliamentarian Geert Wilders. After 9/11 attacks most experts has talked about security issues but everyone sees to forget the other causes of attacks such as social and political. In Iraq war economic, social and political causes were forgotten. The representations on muslims in the media has to change. To improve the image of Islam and muslims it requires a strong effort from muslim communities. These efforts should include a comprehensive process of reforms. Muslims will never be able t o improve their image in the world if they fail to appear as a nation of culture and civilisation. Some other alternatives should be undertaken to educate other people about Islam, peace and tolerance and to clarify the incorrect views of Islam held by some people. Dr. Mona Amer, a psychologist conducted a research about the mental health of Muslims and Arab Americans in 2006, it shows us that after 9/11 attacks many Muslims and Arabs suffer from anxiety, depression and even post-traumatic stress disorder. Although the majority of participants in the study reported feeling safe to extremely safe to pre 9/11, more than 82% reported feeling unsafe post 9/11. Dr Amer noted that feeling unsafe is a predictor of post traumatic stress disorder. However this study ended up as a target of hate and discrimination after Dr. Amer research was reported in USA Today. Dr. Amer received death threats from strangers this also was mentioned in an article â€Å"Muslims in America, post 9/11†, by Rebecca Clay whose research shows that the negative attitude towards Muslims has not decreased. Muslims receive constant negative messages through media about their religion and culture. Clearly it shows that Muslims often treated really badly even though its been 13 years of 9/11 attacks. On the other hand, sometimes the media seems to be biased against Muslim communities. When the media distorts the image of Islam and Muslims, the general public tend to believe it because the media is a major source of information that the public gets about Islam and Muslims. Whereas, it can be argued that Muslims in Britain and across the western sphere, have voiced their worries about the way Islam is portrayed in the media. Aside from the action in accuracies and negativity prevented in media discourse they feel that people and their perceptions of faith and beliefs are adversely affected by such representation. Ahmed, (1992) conducted a study which highlighted that the way some people see Islam and Muslims through media is one of the factors potentially contributing to social discrimination and disadvantage amongst Muslim minorities. A report by the Guardian suggested that Muslim people in western media is typically stereotypical and negative. The report also suggested that the way the media talks and writes about Muslims would not be acceptable if the reference were to other minorities such as Jewish, Black and others. These studies showed that media shapes public opinion and covers reality by their censorship. It also demonstrated that TV, News, documentaries have the strongest influence on people’s views of Islam. Based on these arguments it could be argued that the way media covers terrorist attacks, the way portray the image of a Muslim who has been arrested or seen as suspected or general newspaper articles might have interpreted wrongly so it can increase the tension within Muslims and non-Muslims. Effect of these types of media Britain might feel threatened as they can believe that all the terrorist incidents happened they are all planned and conducted by Muslim people, in future they can plan othe r attacks on Britain to take revenge. Thus creating create moral panics as they misinformed the public which then result in Muslim communities being seen as terrorists and a threat to the UK. However, these reports could raise an awareness for general public to not to believe every news has been reported as the editor or author of that news coverage might have interpreted differently to exactly what happened to sell the copies of their newspapers, raise awareness of TV channels in order to make money. An internet survey of 1,360 people was carried out by global market insight, Muslims voice UK Queens University of Liverpool UK Muslims blame Islamphobia on the portrayal of their religion in media. Survey revealed that 40% Muslims blamed ant6i-Islamic feelings on Media, 74% non-Muslims blamed on 9/11 attacks. Non-Muslims are concerned about extremism, the lack of integration Muslims not being proud to be British and the lack oft tolerance by Muslims. However, the biggest threat to good Muslims and non-slip community is the misinformation on Islam in the media. The one of the most surprising media stories to come out after the years of 9/11 attack was â€Å"international Burn a Quran Day†, which was organised by Pastor Terry Joneson in Florida. This event on social media sites such as Facebook, twitter received thousands of likes and was covered greatly across the United States with Pastor was involved onto on CNN for an interview. However, muslims were rarely offered air time to express their opinions on the matters of how majority of the society is evidently anti-muslim. On the other hands, an news article by Akbar Ahmed (Burn Quran Day, an outrage to muslims, August, 20, 2010) suggests that burning a Quran has caused alarm in the muslim world and burning will have symbolic significance to the muslim world already feeling under attack by US. It also suggest that Gen.David Petraeus, the head of American forces in Afghanistan, has repeatedly expressed the need for winning the hearts of local people by treating them with dignity and r espect. So when muslims will see their holy Quran book being burned it will create riots and that will put US troops at further risk. There will be similar riots in Pakistan and Iran. It will inflame the entire Muslim world and fuel the acts of terrorism. Therefore, it can be argued that media only fuelled the hatred that Americans felt towards all muslims which then leads them to burn the Holy Quran book. Only small number of people was responsible for 9/11 so we cant blame on all muslims but due to media representations all muslims gets the blame for 9/11. An article in magazine (muslims life in united states , post 9/11 portrayal and representation, 8/12,2014) shows us that 9/11 attacks was not start of negative portrayals on Muslims in West. A paper published in 2010 by a sociology professor Nurrullah of Alberta University analyses the Hollywood series â€Å"24†. the analyses suggest that show portrays stereotypical images of muslims which led to increase in discrimination towards muslims. This paper also suggest that tensions between the West and Muslims are not new its phenomenon. Islam and Muslims are historically look down upon the west. The negative portrays of muslims in the media it began after the second world war with the development of technology. There is no doubt that negative media influence by the West after 9/11attacks were portrayed worldwide muslims and Islam in an even darker picture but 9/11 aside, the negative portrayal of muslims were already set in stone with some westerners. To conclude, in the media Muslims are often portrayed through stereotypical representations and discourses in which they have no voice. Basically the media is the main reason of enlarging the gap between west and east. It keeps on pressing on the west and filling their minds with pictures, movies, news against Muslims which arent true. Since 9/11 attacks media keep portraying Muslim in negative way such as terrorists and killer who attack innocent people without any reason and posing a threat to the security of countries. This creating a moral panic as they misinform the public by reporting that Muslims are intolerant, violent and cruel which then result in Muslim communities being seen as terrorists and a threat to the UK.

New Business Report On Nail Salon

New Business Report On Nail Salon In October 2004, Nails magazine conduct a survey and learnt that 87% of women have had their nails done at a salon (2). The magazine also stated that 42 % of the respondents have their nails done at least once a month and Nail-only salons are the preferred choice over full- service salons or spas for nail care (1). Almost all women go to nail salons in order to look good. Nicer Nails salon is a beauty service establishment that supply a personal service to predominantly female clientele. The salon offer nail care like pedicures, manicures as well as nail enhancements which involve applying false nails, nail extensions, and decorating fingernails according to requirements including nail parties. We are knowledgeable about hygiene and health issues relating to their profession. The desire to have beautiful nails first began during the Ming Dynasty of China, long artificial nails were worn by noblewomen as a status symbol indicating that, unlike commoners, and they did not do manual labour. In the early 19th century in Greece, the upper class women wore empty pistachio shells over their nails, then slowly spreading the artificial nails trend across Europe. In the late 20th century, artificial nails for women became widely popular all over the world (4). The fascination with beautiful nails has grown over the centuries and become a multi-billion pound industry. Extension nail is now a thriving market. Exploiting the development of technological and procedural advancements, Nicer Nail salon will provide a full-service nail technician with high customer satisfaction by delivering speedy, excellent service, an enjoyable atmosphere at an acceptable price. The demand for nail technician service is growing since women have increasing the disposable income which they are keen to spend on treatments that will reduce the stress of everyday life. At Nicer Nail salon, our high qualified technicians will offer a comfortable and relaxed environment. We are the true cut above other nail shops. Our mission is to supply services that enhance our clients physical appearance and mental relaxation. The timing is right for starting new venture; one perfect location was found in Kingston shopping centre. To achieve our objectives, Nicer Nail salon is seeking  £40,000 in loan financing. This loan will be paid from the cash flow from the business and will be secured by the assets of the company. 1.0 Introduction Beauty industry in the U.K is booming, there is a lot of money to be made in this industry more than ever, making today a great time to join the industry. Salons and spas have become a cure to the fast-paced lifestyles nowadays. It has been estimated that the average person spends one third of her cosmetic budget on nail care. Because todays fashion regards professional nail care services increasingly important. However, this billion pound industry can be influenced by changing in politics and economic. The report will show how important it is for business to react with the change of environment. This report is not only an environmental analysis that supports the nail salon but also a financial plan to help the prospect of opening Nicer Nail Salon. Product service: 2.1 Target customer: female over 16 year olds. According to the Nail magazine, nail salon patrons begins their habit early. 55% were under 25s when they first starting having their nails done professionally (1). Moreover, result from 2010 Survey of Hours and Earnings show Women salary is highest in the age group within 30-39 (12). On the other hand, nails art parties are on the rise in popularity, particularly for hen nights and teenage parties. Therefore, the need to offer an array of services to attract clienteles of all different age and income groups is necessary. For example, high-end clients are looking to be pampered. Although we cannot ignore the segment of customers, who would still want to have their nails done, dont want to spend out of their comfort areas. Services: Principally, the salon will generate revenues from the direct nail technician services. A nail technician provides painting, nail filing, manicure, pedicure and artificial nails services including acrylics, airbrush nails and nail jewelry. The most popular new foot service which is gel toenails also be provided. To a lesser extent, the salon generates revenue from sale of nail care and hand cream products. Furthermore, a deluxe service involves playing around with colored gels and dabbling in 3-D art will also be offered. Location: the salon will be located on Fife Road, Kingston -upon-Thames, U.K. the location is strategically situated on one of the busiest street in Kingston next to a hairdresser; importantly, there is a big car park nearby the salon. This is a high profile area and easy access from all parts of the town. It is also very convenience for clienteles to locate our salon. Pricing: According to nail magazine survey, 11% of respondents have stopped having their nails done at a salon due to the expense (3). Thus it is important to offer service that available for customers who cant quite afford high-end luxury salons. After sales service: our customers will leave with tips on how to make their nails healthier. To gain the clienteles trust, clean and safe quality products are used. In addition, clients are always welcome to question about our products. We are confident that word-of-mouth about such a salon would be the best advertising for this type of business, it is not only attract local clienteles but also reach customers far outside the boundaries of Kingston. A creative and innovative fashion always applies to generate very high levels of customer satisfaction. Providing customers with the option of booking appointments and consultations online. 3.0 The Business environment (PESTLE analysis): Like any other business, the Nail salon has to act and react to external factors influences it. Since markets are changing all the time. Customer develops new needs and wants, new competitors enter a market, new technology means that new product can be made. Government introduces new legislation e.g. increase minimum wage means that the disposable income increase it may lead to higher level professional service. Therefore, it is essential to know the influence of external factors include political, economical, socio-cultural, technological, legal and ethical environment is (13). The political environment: is one of the most important factors affecting the operation of a business. It is part of the macro-environment which is external to an organisation and completely beyond its control. The effect of political on business in general: Politic affect business in varieties of levels. Business is affected directly by tax policy; high tax rate will attract less investor (chart 8 in appendix1). Policies of government are very important. For example UK is the democratic country, people have full voting authority; they would be able to choose government that would work for the betterment of the country. It helps businesses to thrive because of the good policies of the government. In contrast, if there is no democracy, there is no respect for the chosen government. Instability and uncertainty in the country arise, government comes and goes and so will their respective decisions and policies. Business will suffer in such case as they do not know what will be their future. An example of instability political causes negatively influencing is the effects of anti-government protestors on hotel operators in Thailand in December 2008. Chart 9 (Appendix1) shows a loss of room revenue during period of peak tourist season. It is clear that the political instability is negatively influences travelers decision making (7). Furthermore, a stable political situation will attract more and more investors from other nations. The effect of the political environment on nail salon: Tax policy: as a sole trader Nicer Nail salon owner has responsibility to pay for local business tax, VAT, corporation capital income tax for business and national insurance for employees. Because by doing so the government know the presence of the business. The conservative government recently announced a new austerity plan. It causes higher interest rates, more business failures, lead to shaper rise in unemployment, directly affect the bank and national disposable income. As a result, the salon revenue may reduce significantly. Economical environment : It is believed that the level of demand for nail treatments can change depending on consumers level of disposable income. Businesses are in areas hard-hit economically will suffer because people lost jobs they have to tighten their belts and take control of their spending habits. Since many people are of the opinion that having nails done is not a necessitate thing. As a service industry, many beauty salons are being hit severely. Retail Sale is another example of industry that suffers when the surrounding economy turns down. Chart 11 (appendix 1) shows a lot of retailers report losses and in fact go out of business. Fortunately, the economy in the UK is in fast recovery (Chart 5 appendix 1). Additionally, chart 6 (Appendix 1) show household expenditure and total employment rose (5). Increasing in disposable income means that people can spend on luxuries like nail treatments. Furthermore, The British Lifestyles report by research group Mintel found that in the last decade we have spent 50% more on trips to hairdressing and beauty salons. This proves that the beauty market increases continuously despite the fact that the economic market condition in the UK is still in recession. Regardless of the recession, there are still people who enjoy being pampered. It makes professional nail care is a business with many good advantages. Socio-cultural environment: Every business works in society and consequently is subject to a variety of social influences. These influences include demography, social class and culture (13). For example, result from 2010 Survey of Hours and Earnings (chart 10 appendix 1) show that median earning of female employees grew. Increasing number of career women trends developing a high maintenance notion towards beauty regimes. This is reflected in the increasing amount of nail bars and services available. Nicer Nail Salon is the place where hard working people can come to get away from their daily stresses and be truly spoilt, a place that had the look and feel of a posh city salon. Nail arts can be a fashion statement and express individual for young clienteles who follow the latest trends and styles with a desire to be fashionable. Other services such as ear piercing, facial, and waxing eyelashes treatments are also offered to attract new clients. On the other hand, UK population is ageing (chart 4 Appendix I), ageing population means that the need to provide for a wider age range of clients is essential. Nodaway, Women earn more they will spend more money to look good. Plus the influence of fashion and changes in attitude toward health make professional nail care become booming industry. Technological environment: Advances in technology can have a major impact on business success. For example, one of the easiest and quickest way to let high-end class clienteles know that the salon are dedicated to serving them with luxurious pampering is creating a website that speaks to their needs and wants. Since, today the internet has major influence on the way consumers research and purchase products. By registering the nail salon with online portals the potential customers can easily reach the salon website which provide company name and contact information with online directories. Furthermore, option of consultants online 24/7 shows the salon is dedicated to deliver professional service. Moreover, electric nail file, unlike manual tool, enables a nail technician to filling acrylic nails much easier since the areas that were once hard to reach when filing manually such as cuticle areas and undersides of nails are now easily accessible. The electric nail drill is a time saver; it allows the salon to serve more clients in a day and this should increase profit. In 2010, 19.2 million households had an Internet connection in the U.K. This represented 73 per cent of households and an increase of 0.9 million since 2009 (15) an enormous increase in the number of home computer. This makes internet becomes one of the best ways to advertise the salon. On the other hand, improvements in technology will reduce the costs of nails equipment and products for example nail varnishes, jewellery. This should increase salon revenue. The legal environment Health and safety is important when working as a nail technician. Health and safety legislation is part of criminal law. Failure to comply with the law has serious consequence for example if there is a severe risk to health and safety, the salon will be closed down until improvements have been made. The salon has to work within the legal and professional frameworks that set the standards for employment. The law demands that every place of work is a healthy and safe for clients, workers, and other visitors. For example, potentially hazardous substances like glues or acetones should be carefully handle. The salon must follow the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 (COSHH) (10). My salon also looks forward to Legal requirement such as accident insurance and safety disposable products. The salon will keep to the Health and Safety guidance produced by Habia for nail technicians (9). This involves controlling and minimizing skin exposure to nail products, disinfecting equipment for manicuring, cleaning and minimizing inhalation exposure to nail products A nail technician should provide a service with reasonable care and skill, within a reasonable space of time and at a reasonable charge (The Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982). The nail technician will commit a criminal offence if published misleading advertising that deceives another trader (The Business Protection from Misleading Regulations 2008). Hence, it is crucial to know about the laws. Ethnical environment: Methyl methacrylate (MMA) is a monomer used in nail enhancement application but it should not be used in the salon due to its dangerous effect such as blister and nail loss for natural nails or respiration problem and asthma for some people even though it is still legal to use in the UK. Acrylic contaminated materials should be sealed in a bag before disposal in the bin reducing the amount of chemicals in the air. Gauze pads, cotton wool etc. that have been soaked in chemical should be disposed of in a sealed bag. The intended legal entity for my company: The salon operates as sole trader. I have look and found that being a sole trader is the easiest way to start a small business like a nail spa. Accounting is much easier hence bills for accountants are lower. Plus no complicated paperwork is required. Importantly, decision can be make quickly and close contact can be kept with clients and employees. However, you have to make decisions and provide all finance by yourself. The business income is the owner income therefore it is harder to reduce tax bill. Registration and regulation: Nail technicians are required to register their business and apply for a license to trade. The licence is known as a special treatment licence. The fee to register will depend on each local authority. As a Sole Trader, the salon owner needs to register with Her Majestys Revenue and Custom (HMRC) as self-employed at the moment the business has started otherwise the financial penalty will be charged. Financial plan The startup capital of  £45,000 (appendix II for details) is required to use for the design, leasehold improvement, and equipment of the salon. There are many ways to raise finance for examples borrow from family, get a bank loan or from outside investors. I did research and found that the best way to raise capital for Nicer Nail Salon is borrowing from my parent because they provide with better terms than the bank or private loan guarantees. In order to have successful business with family an agreement letter (Appendix II for details) between me and my parent is necessary in case thing dont go as planned. This also helps to protect everyone from each other and eliminate all conversations that start with you never said that. This note emphasizes that my parent lend me  £45,000 as a debt loan rather than equity. The interest will be paid quarterly to my parent account. Borrowing from parent is better than borrowing from private loan guarantees as the limit time frame stems is much longer. Compare to bank term loans, the interest rate is also much lower. Conclusion: Based on the result from 2010 Survey of Hours and Earnings and British lifestyles I can conclude that Nicer Nail Salon is a necessary service nowadays. Owning a nail salon is promising as little start-up cost is needed and importantly, it is never out of season. , it will be a good start of going somewhere with nail business. Explain in greater details of executive summary how and why the conclusions were reached. This is based on result of findings Appendix I: Table 1: shows the places where customers have their nails done. Table 2 shows how often they have their nails done Table 3: show the main reason stop customers having their nails done at a salon Chart 4: Estimated and projected population and percentage of population by age group, UK, 1984, 2009 and 2034 (3) Chart 5: show the economy from 2006 to 2010 (2) Economy grows by 0.7% in Q3 2010 Chart 6:show consumer Spending trend from 2006 to 2010 Household expenditure grows by 0.3% in Q3 2010 Household final consumption expenditure percentage change, quarter on previous quarter Chart 7: GDP and the Labour Market (5) From recession to recovery The labour market in recession and recovery The UK continues its path of recovery from recession(5) The UK economy over the past three recessions According to the latest figures, UK GDP grew by 0.7 per cent in quarter three 2010. GDP grew by 0.7 per cent in quarter three 2010. This was the fourth consecutive increase since the end of the recent recession. The 0.7 per cent growth stemmed from: Service sector (0.4 per cent) Construction sector (0.2 per cent) Production sector (0.1 per cent) Growth in the Service sector was driven by the government and other services, transport storage and communication and distribution hotels and restaurants Chart 8: Higher tax rates discourage investment by lowering investments return (6) Chart 9: Daily hotel reservation requests in Thailand from 16/10/2008 to 16/12/2008(7) Chart10: Earnings 2010 survey of Hours and earnings (12) Chart 11:UK Retail Sales during recession Appendix II: Below is the summary of money needed to start up Nicer Nail Salon Start-up Expenses Rent deposit  £1,500 Legal  £500 Brochures  £500 Stationery  £1,000 Sundry salon equipment  £2,500 Total Start-up Expenses  £6,000 Start-up Assets Needed Cash Balance on Starting Date  £15,000 Other Current Assets  £24,000 Total Assets  £39,000 Total Requirements  £45,000 This is an installment promissory note between me and my parent Instalment Promissory Note (17) Full Names ____Kim Anh Tran_____ Address___Kingston -upon- Thames , UK, KT2 7SB (Hereinafter referred to as the Borrower/s) Full Names ____Kim Pham____________________________ Address: Kingston -upon- Thames , UK, KT2 7SB (Hereinafter referred to as the Lender) For value received, the Borrower hereby unconditionally promises to pay to the order of Lender the sum of __ £45,000 together with interest accrued at the rate of __ten six_percent (_6%) per year on any unpaid balance. Payment Terms Borrower will pay ______one__payment of __ £2,000___each at uninterrupted quarterly intervals on the __first day of each month, starting on the 11/01/2011 until the Principal amount and accrued interest is paid in full. All payments shall first be applied to outstanding late fees, then to interest and the balance to the Principal amount. Prepayment The Borrower may prepay this Note in full or in part at any time without premium or penalty. All prepayments shall first be applied to outstanding late fees, then to accrued interest and thereafter to the principal loan amount. Place of Payment Payment shall be made at the above stated address of the Lender or at such place as may be designated from time to time in writing by the Lender or holder of this Note. For ease of payment the Borrower may exercise the option to effect payment by direct deposit or electronic transfer of funds into the account of Lender as specified in writing. Late Payment Fees If payment is not made within _10___ days as stipulated in the payment terms the Borrower shall pay an additional late fee in the amount of  £__500. Acceleration of Debt upon Default If the Borrower fails to make any payment when due for whatever reason and the Lender provides notice of such failure, the Borrower must effect payment of the amount due within __30__ days, failing which the Lender can demand immediate payment of the entire outstanding Principal amount and accrued interest. Collection Fees In the event of default this Note may be turned over for collection and the Borrower agrees to pay all reasonable legal fees, collection and enforcement charges to the extent permissible by law, in addition to other amounts due. Security This Note is secured by a Security Agreement which will remain in full force and effect until this Note and the Security Agreement are released in writing by the Lender. Transfer The Lender may transfer this Note to another holder without notice to the Borrower and the Borrower agrees to remain bound to any subsequent holder of this Note under the terms of this Note. Replacement of Note The Borrower agrees to execute a new Note with the same terms and conditions and remaining value in the event that this Note is lost, stolen or mutilated. The Lender shall release the Borrower of all obligations under the lost, stolen or mutilated Note in lieu of a replacement new Note. Joint and Several Liability All Borrowers or Co-signors identified in this Note shall be equally liable for the repayment of the debt described in this Note. Borrowers Waiver The Borrower waives demand and presentment for payment, notice of non-payment, off-set, protest and notice of protest and agrees to remain fully bound until this Note is paid in full. Lenders Indulgence No relaxation, indulgence, waiver, release or concession of any terms of this Note by the Lender on one occasion shall be binding unless in writing and if granted shall not be applicable to any other or future occasion. Binding Effect The terms of this Note shall be binding upon the Borrowers successors and shall accrue to the benefit and be enforceable by the Lender and his/her successors, legal representatives and assigns. Jurisdiction This Note shall be construed, interpreted and governed in accordance with the laws of the U.K and should any provision of this Note be judged by an appropriate court of law as invalid, it shall not affect any of the remaining provisions whatsoever. General Where appropriate words signifying one gender shall include the others and words signifying the singular shall include the plural and vice versa. Paragraph headings are for convenience of reference only and are not intended to have any effect in the interpretation or determining of rights or obligations under this Note. Signed on 10/01/2011 (1) Borrowers Name ___Kim Anh Tran__________________________ (2) Lender Name _____Kim Pham________________________

Nazi Propaganda Essay -- World War II WWII

Nazi Propaganda "Propaganda attempts to force a doctrine on the whole people... Propaganda works on the general public from the standpoint of an idea and makes them ripe for the victory of this idea." These words of Adolf Hitler are taken from his book Mien Kampf (My Struggle) published in 1926. Propaganda was an elaborate and essential tool used extensively by Hitler and the Nazi's during their terrorizing reign of Germany and throughout Europe. Not only was it used to promote and endorse the party and its leader's extreme anti-Semitic values, but also to mask the horrifying truths of what was to become known as the Holocaust. Anti-Jewish measures and programs have taken place numerous times throughout history, but never to the extent and successfulness attained by the Third Reich. A clear reason for this level of success can be attributed significantly to the abundant amounts of misinformation released by the Nazis prior to and during World War II. The degree of importance these public-swaying devices were to Hitler became particularly evident when he created the Reich Ministry of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda, announcing a man by the name of Joseph Goebbels as the head. This was a section of his fascist regime devoted solely to spreading lies. The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum's websites describes, "The Ministry's aim was to ensure that the Nazi's message was successfully communicated through art, music, theater, films, books, radio, education and press." The measures that were taken to spread these hateful ideas and values are quite astonishing. Anti-Jewish books were even brought into classrooms, one famously called "Der Gifpiltz" meaning "The Poisonous Mushroom." The book contained differe... ...nd heartbreaking. While, fortunately their complete goal was never reached, it is alarming and shocking how successful and influential these campaigns were. Hitler's fervent hate of the Jews and passion for power mixed with intelligence and great oratory skills illustrates the power of persuasion and authority of propaganda in modern societies. Ultimately, the massive use of videotaped lies and printed fabrication non-directly aided in killing an estimated 6 million Jewish persons during World War II. Works Cited Giesen, Rolf. Nazi Propoganda Films: A History and Filmography. McFarland and Company, 2003. Hiemer, Ernst. The Poisonous Mushroom. Der Stà ¼rmer-Nurnberg, 1938. Powell, Lawrence N. Troubled Memory: Anne Levy, the Holocaust and David Duke's Louisiana. The University of North Carolina Press, 2000. www.holocaust-history.org www.ushmm.org

Shuffling in the Age of Computers :: Technology Electronics Essays

Shuffling in the Age of Computers Whether learnt from a Hollywood movie or some crude rendition of â€Å"Dogs Playing Poker" everyone has some mental picture of the American card-playing experience: the hazy cloud of cigar smoke hovering just above the table; the half-empty bottle of whiskey lying conspicuously closest to the smallest stack of money; the grizzled middle-aged man struggling to intermix a deck of cards. And yet despite this universal imagery, nothing could be further from the truth. I recently spent a weekend at Canterbury Park in Minnesota, a card-club just south of the Twin Cities. Having arrived there at around three in the morning, I became aware that smoking was not allowed at the tables, that drinks were no longer being served, and that even the once immutable middle-aged man had been replaced by an electronic shuffling machine. Of course I realize the hazards of second-hand smoke; I can even find compromise with temperance; however, to replace the shuffle, the game's manifestation of trust and mistrust, was to me unacceptable. Realizing immediately that poker was forever ruined, I returned to Iowa distraught and inconsolable. Why would a card-room want to use a machine to sort cards in a deck? Could the benefits of such a machine really be worth the costs? Is it possible to find happiness in the sullen world of mechanized random? Presently there are three prevailing technologies for card-shuffling: the cutting-edge computerized shufflers used in casinos, the battery-operated home game models, and the archaic, yet ever popular, human hand. Shuffling, of course, is the process of randomizing a deck of cards so that order is unknown. This sounds pretty straight-forward, but considering there are over 8.06x10^67 permutations of a 52-card deck the task of finding a good method becomes slightly more daunting. For example, in hand shuffling, mathematicians question the reliability of common methods to produce all of these known combinations. Two of the most common hand shuffling techniques are the riffle shuffle (mixing two halves of a deck; the standard bridge shuffle) and Monge’s shuffle (moving cards from one half alternatively to the top and bottom of the other half; see picture above). Although superficially a deck may appear to be rearranged using these shuffles, close examination of the deck tends to show high serial correlation—simply a large probability that patterns exist and can be detected.

How My Personal Values Influence My Way of Teaching

Relating philosophy to pedagogy – how my personal values influence my way of teaching Within any early childhood education (ECE) setting the pedagogy of the educators will have great impact on the programmes and philosophies which the children within that setting will be influenced by. Teachers have a responsibility to build and maintain authentic, open, reciprocal relationships with children, families and the community (Gailer, 2010).This is not only an integral part of the early childhood curriculum Te Whariki which has relationships as one of its four foundation principles (Ministry of Education [MoE], 1996) but also part of the teaching standards and ethics. As a teacher I relish in the chance to build relationships with many different children, all unique in their culture, strengths, ideas and way of being. The importance I place on relationships sits well with both Vygotsky’s and Bronfenbrenner’s sociocultural theories. Vygotsky emphasised the importance of the people surrounding a child, seeing them crucial for supporting and enhancing the child’s development.Bronfenbrenner extended this into a model of contextual factors, using ideas about five kinds of contexts surrounding the individual child including their micro- and meso-systems where the interactions of their day-to-day realities occur (Drewery & Bird, 2004). These theories have been vital in the development of New Zealand’s early childhood curriculum, Te Whariki, and so my understandings of these and with my personal philosophy I hope to have the skills to be able to build respectful reciprocal relationships with all learners. Building these relationships however is not as easy as people outside of the profession often assume.Appendix 2 shows Suzie Gailer’s (2010) article on being professional, the article discusses how professional integrity of practice is reliant on teachers having a particular set of values, respect, authenticity, empowerment and trans parency. The image of the child is culturally constructed and linked to our time and place in history, the image I have as a teacher today of children is very different to that of which I was viewed as a child. My image of the child has altered as I have gained both practical and theoretical teaching experience.In my first practicums I did not necessarily know what to expect about building initial relationships with children but as I have gained knowledge I now know that children can be trusted to build these relationships in timeframes which are right for them. Te Whariki (MoE, 1996) presents the image of children as competent learners and communicators and I now uphold this image in my teaching practice and as a parent (Appendices 3, 4 & 5), along with the values of respect which I have articulated through the following of Magda Gerber’s work.From my own relatively limited practical experience and theoretical knowledge I can relate to the notion of Edwards & Nuttall (2005) where â€Å"the pedagogy, or ‘the act of teaching’, is not only mediated by educators’ understandings about the children, learning, and the curriculum; their understandings about the social settings in which they work, their personal experiences beyond the workplace and their engagement with the centre’s wider community all have a role in determining the educator’s actions† (p. 36).My own underlying beliefs, values and philosophies all impact on my teaching style and, although often unconsciously, on the way I relate to individuals. Commitment to reflective practice, the personal philosophy I have articulated and the desire for professional development will aid me in holding true to a pedagogy which is responsive in time as well as to individuals. This pedagogy with its identified aspects of assessment, planning, implementation and evaluation is influenced by my values and experiences and I attempt to explain and reflect upon these in this es say.The main assessment process I use is ‘Learning Stories’, an approach developed by Dr. Margaret Carr. Learning stories show a snapshot of a learning experience which has been shared with the child or children involved and are a record of the interests and strengths of the child. Research shows that learning is more effective when it is derived from interests, encouraging motivation and the sense of confidence that comes from working within one’s own strengths.The learning story framework is based on the belief that developing good learning dispositions is the most important skill in early childhood and this fits well with my values of respect and having the Te Whariki image of the child, a confident, competent learner and communicator. The foundations of learning stories are the dispositions found in Te Whariki and in my own learning stories these are highlighted, showing fellow educators, parents and whanau how I work to support children’s learning in all aspects of the programme and curriculum (Appendices 4, 6 & 7).Upholding this image of children in practice is however met with challenges. Woodrow (1999) describes how there are resulting constructions of childhood based on how individuals experienced childhood, on cultural artefacts and on professional knowledge, Ellen Pifer (2000) also describes these conflicting images in her book Demon or Doll (Appendix 8) which has truly opened my mind to ways of seeing individuals. Other teaching professionals may hold different images of children such as the child as innocent or as an embryo adult and this will impact on the way they act around and towards children.Having a commitment towards reflective practice and regularly evaluating my personal pedagogy will allow me to deal with these challenges, giving me the skills to explain my viewpoint and understand that of others so that the best possible outcome is achieved. To undertake such assessment it is important to build a relationship with the children and these reciprocal relationships are another key part of my philosophy.This value has changed with my experience and theoretical knowledge, in my initial practicum I was unsure about how to go about building relationships that are both respectful and reciprocal (Appendices 9 & 10) but my confidence in this has, and will continue, to grow (Appendix 11). I believe that building a reciprocal relationship means sharing aspects of my life with children and not expecting them to reveal themselves without the favour being returned. I have a huge passion towards animals and I have shared this with the children on my last two practicums by taking along my guinea pigs (Appendix 12).The children feel aspects of empowerment and trust as I allow them to be intimately involved with a very important part of my personal life. Building such relationships prior to undertaking assessment highlights the spiral nature of teaching and the aspects of pedagogies. Taking the guinea pigs to the centre required planning and careful implementation, including discussion with staff and families to ensure cultural needs were met. Some cultures do not agree with the keeping of animals as pets and in order to uphold the respectful image of the child and relationships with the family and community I needed to accept and respect this belief.The centre policies and legislation also play a role in planning and implementation, health and hygiene regulations needed to be considered for this activity and for others many different policies will come into play. For further assessment and planning the involvement of colleagues and whanau in the learning stories and other documentation would play a vital role in the continuation of the interest but unfortunately the short nature of the practicum did not allow for this.Cultural needs and matches weight heavily in the planning and implementation stages of my pedagogy. This is linked to all the values in my philosophy; relationships, r espect and equity. These values mean that I believe in focussing on skills and talents rather than on deficiencies to create learning environments, for example respecting that crying is a valid attempt at communication and can be a qualified learning experience (Appendix 11). Nyland (2004) describes how the participation rights and contexts of infants’ knowledge can be overlooked in childcare settings.On-line discussions with fellow students regarding this reading give support to the idea that disrespectful environments adversely affect the identity and participation of children. What happens in an environment when an identity is missing altogether and children are faced with images of white middle class able bodied members of society? What message is that giving to these children and their families? You don’t belong? You are not a real member of our society? We don’t value you? The environments we plan for the children speak volumes about how we view society an d the people we respect and value (Ellis, R. , Fuamatu, P. Perry Smith, A. M. Moodle; September 2011). During planning I therefore need to think ahead about resources which reflect the cultures within the setting and the community. This can be achieved through communication with other educators in the setting, parents, and other members of the community such as kaumatua or the local priest. Planning for social occasions is also important to me as I feel they link the ECE setting with the wider community and social values. This includes events such as Mother’s and Father’s day (Appendix 13) as well as cultural occasions such as the Lantern Festival, Diwali and Pasifika events.Although during such planning I am mindful of the goals and learning outcomes which Te Whariki and the teaching standards present I also constantly remind myself of the holistic nature in which the learning will occur. Lawrence (2004) describes the shift in thinking and programme planning in ECE se ttings over the past two decades, from keeping children busy to planning cycles and then Te Whariki. Lawrence clarifies that although the word planning is still used; it is not in the traditional sense of the word but rather can be seen as â€Å"reflectively responding to children’s thinking (p. 16). † An example in her rticle shows how the learning experience of children can be very different to that pre-planned or expected by the teacher (Appendix 14). A challenge presents itself where teachers have been trained and had experience in times where different planning programmes were utilised, disagreeing views and beliefs can lead to conflict within teaching teams and a dedication to reflective practice is required by all parties if favourable outcomes are to be reached. This reflective practice is a vital part of the evaluation process of my pedagogy. What worked? What didn’t work? Where do I go from here?Schon (2002) described how the entire process of reflecti on-in-action, where our knowing is in our action, is central to the skill practitioners have in dealing with situations of uncertainty, instability and uniqueness as well as valuing conflict. Holding true to a value where children are respected as individuals and valued for their own unique set of skills, uncertain and unique situations are inevitable in the day-to-day practice of an ECE setting. With the set of reflective skills I now possess I hope to be able to turn these situations of uncertainty into ones of learning, for both myself and children involved.With continuing professional development and an ever increasing amount of practical experience I feel I am in good stead to continue my career as an early childhood educator and support the children within my influence to grow up in line with the aspirations of Te Whariki, â€Å"competent and confident learners and communicators †¦ a valued contribution to society† (MoE, 1996, p. 9). References Drewery, W. & Bird, L. (2004). Human Development in Aotearoa: A journey through life. (2nd ed. ). Sydney, Australia: McGraw-Hill. Edwards, S. & Nuttall, J. (2005).Getting beyond the ‘what’ and the ‘how’; Problematising pedagogy in early childhood education. Early Childhood Folio, 9, 34-38. Gailer, S. (2010). Being professional: First, do no harm! The First Years: Nga Tau Tuatahi. New Zealand Journal of Infant and Toddler Education, 12(2), 19-24. Lawrence, R. (2004). Making sense of planning – A teacher’s story. Early Education, 36, 15-19. Ministry of Education. (1996). Te Whariki: Early Childhood Curriculum / He Whariki Matauranga mo nga Mokopuna o Aotearoa. Wellington, New Zealand: Learning Media. Nyland, B. (2004).Infants, context and participation rights: An Australian image. The First Years: Nga Tau Tuatahi. New Zealand Journal of Infant and Toddler Education, 6(1), 19-22. Pifer, E. (2000). Demon or doll: Images of the child in contemporary writing and cultur e. Virginia, USA: University of Virginia Press. Schon, D. (2002). Reflection-in-action. In A. Pollard (Ed. ). Readings in reflective teaching (pp. 5-7). London, England: Continuum. Woodrow, C. (1999). Revisiting images of the child in early childhood education: Reflections and considerations. Australian Journal of Early Childhood, 24(4), 7-12.

Forward the Foundation Chapter 19

17 The General had had a bad night and so, out of apprehension, had the colonel. They faced each other now-each at a loss. The General said, â€Å"Tell me again what this woman did.† Linn seemed to have a heavy weight on his shoulders. â€Å"She's The Tiger Woman. That's what they call her. She doesn't seem to be quite human, somehow. She's some sort of impossibly trained athlete, full of self-confidence, and, General, she's quite frightening.† â€Å"Did she frighten you? A single woman?† â€Å"Let me tell you exactly what she did and let me tell you a few other things about her. I don't know how true all the stories about her are, but what happened yesterday evening is true enough.† He told the story again and the General listened, puffing out his cheeks. â€Å"Bad,† he said. â€Å"What do we do?† â€Å"I think our course is plain before us. We want psychohistory-â€Å" â€Å"Yes, we do,† said the General. â€Å"Seldon told me something about taxation that-But never mind. That is beside the point at the moment. Go on.† Linn, who, in his troubled state of mind, had allowed a small fragment of impatience to show on his face, continued, â€Å"As I say, we want psychohistory without Seldon. He is, in any case, a used-up man. The more I study him, the more I see an elderly scholar who is living on his past deeds. He has had nearly thirty years to make a success of psychohistory and he has failed. Without him, with new men at the helm, psychohistory may advance more rapidly.† â€Å"Yes, I agree. Now what about the woman?† â€Å"Well, there you are. We haven't taken her into consideration because she has been careful to remain in the background. But I strongly suspect now that it will be difficult, perhaps impossible, to remove Seldon quietly and without implicating the government, as long as the woman remains alive.† â€Å"Do you really believe that she will mangle you and me-if she thinks we have harmed her man?† said the General, his mouth twisting in contempt. â€Å"I really think she will and that she will start a rebellion as well. It will he exactly as she promised.† â€Å"You are turning into a coward.† â€Å"General, please. I am trying to be sensible. I'm not backing off. We must take care of this Tiger Woman.† He paused thoughtfully. â€Å"As a matter of fact, my sources have told me this and I admit to having paid far too little attention to the matter.† â€Å"And how do you think we can get rid of her?† Linn said, â€Å"I don't know.† Then, more slowly, â€Å"But someone else might.† 18 Seldon had had a bad night also, nor was the new day promising to be much better. There weren't too many times when Hari felt annoyed with Dors. But this time, he was very annoyed. He said, â€Å"What a foolish thing to do! Wasn't it enough that we were all staying at the Dome's Edge Hotel? That alone would have been sufficient to drive a paranoid ruler into thoughts of some sort of conspiracy.† â€Å"How? We were unarmed, Hari. It was a holiday affair, the final touch of your birthday celebration. We posed no threat.† â€Å"Yes, but then you carried out your invasion of the Palace grounds. It was unforgivable. You raced to the Palace to interfere with my session with the General, when I had specifically-and several times-made it plain that I didn't want you there. I had my own plans, you know.† Dors said, â€Å"Your desires and your orders and your plans all take second place to your safety. I was primarily concerned about that.† â€Å"I was in no danger.† â€Å"That is not something I can carelessly assume. There have been two attempts on your life. What makes you think there won't be a third?† â€Å"The two attempts were made when I was First Minister. I was probably worth killing then. Who would want to kill an elderly mathematician?† Dors said, â€Å"That's exactly what I want to find out and that's what I want to stop. I must begin by doing some questioning right here at the Project.† â€Å"No. You will simply be upsetting my people. Leave them alone.† â€Å"That's exactly what I can't do. Hari, my job is to protect you and for twenty-eight years I've been working at that. You cannot stop me now.† Something in the blaze of her eyes made it quite clear that, whatever Seldon's desires or orders might be, Dors intended to do as she pleased. Seldon's safety came first. 19 â€Å"May I interrupt you, Yugo?† â€Å"Of course, Dors,† said Yugo Amaryl with a large smile. â€Å"You are never an interruption. What can I do for you?† â€Å"I am trying to find out a few things, Yugo, and I wonder if you would humor me in this.† â€Å"If I can.† â€Å"You have something in the Project called the Prime Radiant. I hear it now and then. Hari speaks of it, so I imagine I know what it looks like when it is activated, but I have never actually seen it in operation. I would like to.† Amaryl looked uncomfortable. â€Å"Actually the Prime Radiant is just about the most closely guarded part of the Project and you aren't on the list of the members who have access.† â€Å"I know that, but we've known each other for twenty-eight years-â€Å" â€Å"And you're Hari's wife. I suppose we can stretch a point. We only have two full Prime Radiants. There's one in Hari's office and one here. Right there, in fact.† Dors looked at the squat black cube on the central desk. It looked utterly undistinguished. â€Å"Is that it?† â€Å"That's it. It stores the equations that describe the future.† â€Å"How do you get at those equations?† Amaryl moved a contact and at once the room darkened and then came to life in a variegated glow. All around Dors were symbols, arrows, mathematical signs of one sort or another. They seemed to be moving, spiraling, but when she focused her eyes on any particular portion, it seemed to be standing still. She said, â€Å"Is that the future, then?† â€Å"It may be,† said Amaryl, turning off the instrument. â€Å"I had it at full expansion so you could see the symbols. Without expansion, nothing is visible but patterns of light and dark.† â€Å"And by studying those equations, you are able to judge what the future holds in store for us?† â€Å"In theory.† The room was now back to its mundane appearance. â€Å"But there are two difficulties.† â€Å"Oh? What are they?† â€Å"To begin with, no human mind has created those equations directly. We have merely spent decades programming more powerful computers and they have devised and stored the equations, but, of course, we don't know if they are valid and have meaning. It depends entirely on how valid and meaningful the programming is in the first place.† â€Å"They could be all wrong, then?† â€Å"They could be.† Amaryl rubbed his eyes and Dors could not help thinking how old and tired he seemed to have grown in the last couple of years. He was younger than Hari by nearly a dozen years, but he seemed much older. â€Å"Of course,† Amaryl went on in a rather weary voice, â€Å"we hope that they aren't all wrong, but that's where the second difficulty comes in. Although Hari and I have been testing and modifying them for decades, we can never be sure what the equations mean. The computer has constructed them, so it is to be presumed they must mean something-but what? There are portions that we think we have worked out. In fact, right now, I'm working on what we call Section A-23, a particularly knotty system of relationships. We have not yet been able to match it with anything in the real Universe. Still, each year sees us further advanced and I look forward confidently to the establishment of psychohistory as a legitimate and useful technique for dealing with the future.† â€Å"How many people have access to these Prime Radiants?† â€Å"Every mathematician in the Project has access but not at will. There have to be applications and time allotted and the Prime Radiant has to be adjusted to the portion of the equations a mathematician wishes to refer to. It gets a little complicated when everyone wants to use the Prime Radiant at the same time. Right now, things are slow, possibly because we're still in the aftermath of Hari's birthday celebration.† â€Å"Is there any plan for constructing additional Prime Radiants?† Amaryl thrust out his lips. â€Å"Yes and no. It would be very helpful if we had a third, but someone would have to be in charge of it. It can't just be a community possession. I have suggested to Hari that Tamwile Elar-you know him, I think- â€Å" â€Å"Yes, I do.† â€Å"That Elar have a third Prime Radiant. His achaotic equations and the Electro-Clarifier he thought up make him clearly the third man in the Project after Hari and myself. Hari hesitates, however.† â€Å"Why? Do you know?† â€Å"If Elar gets one, he is openly recognized as the third man, over the Head of other mathematicians who are older and who have more senior status in the Project. There might be some political difficulties, so to speak. I think that we can't waste time in worrying about internal politics, but Hari-Well, you know Hari.† â€Å"Yes, I know Hari. Suppose I tell you that Linn has seen the Prime Radiant.† â€Å"Linn?† â€Å"Colonel Hender Linn of the junta. Tennar's lackey.† â€Å"I doubt that very much, Dors.† â€Å"He has spoken of spiraling equations and I have just seen them produced by the Prime Radiant. I can't help but think he's been here and seen it working.† Amaryl shook his head, â€Å"I can't imagine anyone bringing a member of the junta into Hari's office-or mine.† â€Å"Tell me, who in the Project do you think is capable of working with the junta in this fashion?† â€Å"No one,† said Amaryl flatly and with clearly unlimited faith. â€Å"That would be unthinkable. Perhaps Linn never saw the Prime Radiant but was merely told about it.† â€Å"Who would tell him about it?† Amaryl thought a moment and said, â€Å"No one.† â€Å"Well now, you talked about internal politics a while ago in connection with the possibility of Elar having a third Prime Radiant. I suppose in a Project such as this one with hundreds of people, there are little feuds going on all the time-frictions-quarrels.† â€Å"Oh yes. Poor Hari talks to me about it every once in a while. He has to deal with them in one way or another and I can well imagine what a headache it must be for him.† â€Å"Are these feuds so bad that they interfere with the working of the Project?† â€Å"Not seriously.† â€Å"Are there any people who are more quarrelsome than others or any duo draw more resentment than others? In short, are there people you can get rid of and perhaps remove 90 percent of the friction at the cost of 5 or 6 percent of the personnel?† Amaryl raised his eyebrows. â€Å"It sounds like a good idea, but I don't know whom to get rid of. I don't really participate in all the minutiae of internal politics. There's no way of stopping it, so for my part, I merely avoid it.† â€Å"That's strange,† said Dors. â€Å"Aren't you in this way denying any credibility to psychohistory?† â€Å"In what way?† â€Å"How can you pretend to reach a point where you can predict and guide the future, when you cannot analyze and correct something as homegrown as personal frictions in the very Project that promises so much?† Amaryl chuckled softly. It was unusual, for he was not a man who was given to humor and laughter. â€Å"I'm sorry, Dors, but you picked on the one problem that we have solved, after a manner of speaking. Hari himself identified the equations that represented the difficulties of personal friction years ago and I myself then added the final touch last year. â€Å"I found that there were ways in which the equations could be changed so as to indicate a reduction in friction. In every such case, however, a reduction in friction here meant an increase in friction there. Never at any time was there a total decrease or, for that matter, a total increase in the friction within a closed group-that is, one in which no old members leave and no new members come in. What I proved, with the help of Elar's achaotic equations, was that this was true despite any conceivable action anyone could take. Hari calls it ‘the law of conservation of personal problems.' â€Å"It gave rise to the notion that social dynamics has its conservation laws as physics does and that, in fact, it is these laws that offer us the best possible tools for solving the truly troublesome aspects of psychohistory.† Dors said, â€Å"Rather impressive, but what if you end up finding that nothing at all can be changed, that everything that is bad is conserved, and that to save the Empire from destruction is merely to increase destruction of another kind?† â€Å"Actually some have suggested that, but I don't believe it.† â€Å"Very well. Back to reality. Is there anything in the frictional problems within the Project that threaten Hari? I mean, with physical harm.† â€Å"Harm Hari? Of course not. How can you suggest such a thing?† â€Å"Might there not be some who resent Hari, for being too arrogant, too pushy, too self-absorbed, too eager to grab all the credit? Or, if none of these things apply, might they not resent him simply because he has run the Project for so long a time?† â€Å"I never heard anyone say such a thing about Hari.† Dors seemed dissatisfied. â€Å"I doubt that anyone would say such things in your hearing, of course. But thank you, Yugo, for being so helpful and for giving me so much of your time.† Amaryl stared after her as she left. He felt vaguely troubled, but then returned to his work and let other matters drift away. 20 One way Hari Seldon had (out of not too many ways) for pulling away from his work for a time was to visit Raych's apartment, just outside the university grounds. To do this invariably filled him with love for his foster son. There were ample grounds. Raych had been good, capable, and loyal-but besides that was the strange quality Raych had of inspiring trust and love in others. Hari had observed it when Raych was a twelve-year-old street boy, who somehow pulled at his own and at Dors's heartstrings. He remembered how Raych had affected Rashelle, the onetime Mayor of Wye. Hari remembered how Joranum had trusted Raych, which led to his own destruction. Raych had even managed to win the heart of the beautiful Manella. Hari did not completely understand this particular quality that Raych embodied, but he enjoyed whatever contact he had with his foster son. He entered the apartment with his usual â€Å"All well here?† Raych put aside the holographic material he was working with and rose to greet him, â€Å"All well, Dad.† â€Å"I don't hear Wanda.† â€Å"For good reason. She's out shopping with her mother.† Seldon seated himself and looked good-humoredly at the chaos of reference material. â€Å"How's the book coming?† â€Å"It's doing fine. It's me who might not survive.† He sighed. â€Å"But for once, we'll get the straight poop on Dahl. Nobody's ever written a book devoted to that section, wouldja believe?† Seldon had always noted that, whenever Raych talked of his home sector, his Dahlite accent always strengthened. Raych said, â€Å"And how are you, Dad? Glad the festivities are over?† â€Å"Enormously. I hated just about every minute of it.† â€Å"Not so anyone could notice.† â€Å"Listen, I had to wear a mask of sorts. I didn't want to spoil the celebration for everyone else.† â€Å"You must have hated it when Mom chased after you onto the Palace grounds. Everyone I know has been talking about that.† â€Å"I certainly did hate it. Your mother, Raych, is the most wonderful person in the world, but she is very difficult to handle. She might have spoiled my plans.† â€Å"What plans are those, Dad?† Seldon settled back. It was always pleasant to speak to someone in whom he had total trust and who knew nothing about psychohistory. More than once he had bounced thoughts off Raych and had worked them out into more sensible forms than would have been the case if those same thoughts had been mulled over in his mind. He said, â€Å"Are we shielded?† â€Å"Always.† â€Å"Good. What I did was to set General Tennar thinking along curious lines.† â€Å"What lines?† â€Å"Well, I discussed taxation a bit and pointed out that, in the effort to make taxation rest evenly on the population, it grew more and more complex, unwieldy, and costly. The obvious implication was that the tax system must be simplified.† â€Å"That seems to make sense.† â€Å"Up to a point, but it is possible that, as a result of our little discussion, Tennar may oversimplify. You see, taxation loses effectiveness at both extremes. Overcomplicate it and people cannot understand it and pay for an overgrown and expensive tax organization. Oversimplify it and people consider it unfair and grow bitterly resentful. The simplest tax is a poll tax, in which every individual pays the same amount, but the unfairness of treating rich and poor alike in this way is too evident to overlook.† â€Å"And you didn't explain this to the General?† â€Å"Somehow, I didn't get a chance.† â€Å"Do you think the General will try a poll tax?† â€Å"I think he will plan one. If he does, the news is bound to leak out and that alone would suffice to set off riots and possibly upset the government.† â€Å"And you've done this on purpose, Dad?† â€Å"Of course.† Raych shook his head. â€Å"I don't quite understand you, Dad. In your personal life, you're as sweet and gentle as any person in the Empire. Yet you can deliberately set up a situation in which there will be riots, suppression, deaths. There'll be a lot of damage done, Dad. Have you thought of that?† Seldon leaned back in his chair and said sadly, â€Å"I think of nothing else, Raych. When I first began my work on psychohistory, it seemed a purely academic piece of research to me. It was something that could not he worked out at all, in all likelihood, and, if it was, it would not be something that could be practically applied. But the decades pass and we know more and more and then comes the terrible urge to apply it.† â€Å"So that people can die?† â€Å"No, so that fewer people can die. If our psychohistorical analyses are correct now, then the junta cannot survive for more than a few years and there are various alternative ways in which it can collapse. They will all he fairly bloody and desperate. This method-the taxation gimmick- should do it more smoothly and gently than any other if-I repeat-our analyses are correct.† â€Å"If they're not correct, what then?† â€Å"In that case, we don't know what might happen. Still, psychohistory must reach the point where it can be used and we've been searching for years for something in which we have worked out the consequences with a certain assuredness and can find those consequences tolerable as compared with alternatives. In a way, this taxation gimmick is the first great psychohistoric experiment.† â€Å"I must admit, it sounds like a simple one.† â€Å"It isn't. You have no idea how complex psychohistory is. Nothing is simple. The poll tax has been tried now and then throughout history. It is never popular and it invariably gives rise to resistance of one form or another, but it almost never results in the violent overthrow of a government. After all, the powers of governmental oppression may be too strong or there may be methods whereby the people can bring to bear their opposition in a peaceful manner and achieve redress. If a poll tax were invariably or even just sometimes fatal, then no government would ever try it. It is only because it isn't fatal that it is tried repeatedly. The situation on Trantor is, however, not exactly normal. There are certain instabilities that seem clear in psychohistorical analysis, which make it seem that resentment will be particularly strong and repression particularly weak.† Raych sounded dubious. â€Å"I hope it works, Dad, but don't you think that the General will say that he was working under psychohistorical advice and bring you down with him?† â€Å"I suppose he recorded our little session together, but if he publicizes that, it will show clearly that I urged him to wait till I could analyze the situation properly and prepare a report-and he refused to wait.† â€Å"And what does Mom think of all this?† Seldon said, â€Å"I haven't discussed it with her. She's off on another tangent altogether.† â€Å"Really?† â€Å"Yes. She's trying to sniff out some deep conspiracy in the Project-aimed at me! I imagine she thinks there are many people in the Project who would like to get rid of me.† Seldon sighed. â€Å"I'm one of them, I think. I would like to get rid of me as director of the Project and leave the gathering responsibilities of psychohistory to others.† Raych said, â€Å"What's bugging Mom is Wanda's dream. You know how Mom feels about protecting you. I'll bet even a dream about your dying would be enough to make her think of a murder conspiracy against you.† â€Å"I certainly hope there isn't one.† And at the idea of it both men laughed. 21 The small Electro-Clarification Laboratory was, for some reason, maintained at a temperature somewhat lower than normal and Dors Venabili wondered idly why that might be. She sat quietly, waiting for the one occupant of the lab to finish whatever it was she was doing. Dors eyed the woman carefully. Slim, with a long face. Not exactly attractive, with her thin lips and receding jawline, but a look of intelligence shone in her dark brown eyes. The glowing nameplate on her desk said: CINDA MONAY. She turned to Dors at last and said, â€Å"My apologies, Dr. Venabili, but there are some procedures that can't be interrupted even for the wife of the director.† â€Å"I would have been disappointed in you if you had neglected the procedure on my behalf. I have been told some excellent things about you.† â€Å"That's always nice to hear. Who's been praising me?† â€Å"Quite a few,† said Dors. â€Å"I gather that you are one of the most prominent nonmathematicians in the Project.† Monay winced. â€Å"There's a certain tendency to divide the rest of us from the aristocracy of mathematics. My own feeling is that, if I'm prominent, then I'm a prominent member of the Project. It makes no difference that I'm a nonmathematician.† â€Å"That certainly sounds reasonable to me. How long have you been with the Project?† â€Å"Two and a half years. Before that I was a graduate student in radiational physics at Streeling and, while I was doing that, I served a couple of years with the Project as an intern.† â€Å"You've done well at the Project, I understand.† â€Å"I've been promoted twice, Dr. Venabili.† â€Å"Have you encountered any difficulties here, Dr. Monay? Whatever you say will be held confidential.† â€Å"The work is difficult, of course, but if you mean, have I run into any social difficulties, the answer is no. At least not any more than one would expect in any large and complex project, I imagine.† â€Å"And by that you mean?† â€Å"Occasional spats and quarrels. We're all human.† â€Å"But nothing serious?† Monay shook her head. â€Å"Nothing serious.† â€Å"My understanding, Dr. Monay,† said Dors, â€Å"is that you have been responsible for the development of a device important to the use of the Prime Radiant. It makes it possible to cram much more information into the Prime Radiant.† Monay broke into a radiant smile. â€Å"Do you know about that? Yes, the Electro-Clarifier. After that was developed, Professor Seldon established this small laboratory and put me in charge of other work in that direction.† â€Å"I'm amazed that such an important advance did not bring you up into the higher echelons of the Project.† â€Å"Oh well,† said Monay, looking a trifle embarrassed. â€Å"I don't want to take all the credit. Actually my work was only that of a technician-a very skilled and creative technician, I like to think-but there you are.† â€Å"And who worked with you?† â€Å"Didn't you know? It was Tamwile Elar. He worked out the theory that made the device possible and I designed and built the actual instrument.† â€Å"Does that mean he took the credit, Dr. Monay?† â€Å"No no. You mustn't think that. Dr. Elar is not that kind of man. He gave me full credit for my share of the work. In fact, it was his idea to call the device by our names-both our names-but he couldn't.† â€Å"Why not?† â€Å"Well, that's Professor Seldon's rule, you know. All devices and equations are to be given functional names and not personal ones-to avoid resentment. So the device is just the Electro-Clarifier. When we're working together, however, he gives the device our names and, I tell you, Dr. Venabili, it sounds grand. Perhaps someday, all of the Project personnel will use the personal name. I hope so.† â€Å"I hope so, too,† said Dors politely. â€Å"You make Elar sound like a very decent individual.† â€Å"He is. He is,† said Monay earnestly. â€Å"He is a delight to work for. Right now, I'm working on a new version of the device, which is more powerful and which I don't quite understand. I mean, what it's to be used for. However, he's directing me there.† â€Å"And are you making progress?† â€Å"Indeed. In fact, I've given Dr. Elar a prototype, which he plans to test. If it works out, we can proceed further.† â€Å"It sounds good,† agreed Dors. â€Å"What do you think would happen if Professor Seldon were to resign as director of the Project? If he were to retire?† Monay looked surprised. â€Å"Is the professor planning to retire?† â€Å"Not that I know of. I'm presenting you with a hypothetical case. Suppose he retires. Who do you think would be a natural successor? I think from what you have said that you would favor Professor Elar as the new director.† â€Å"Yes, I would,† responded Monay after a trifling hesitation. â€Å"He's far and away the most brilliant of the new people and I think he could run the Project in the best possible way. Still, he's rather young. There are a considerable number of old fossils-well, you know what I mean-who would resent being passed over by a young squirt.† â€Å"Is there any old fossil you're thinking of in particular? Remember, this is confidential.† â€Å"Quite a few of them, but there's Dr. Amaryl. He's the heir apparent.† â€Å"Yes, I see what you mean.† Dors rose. â€Å"Well, thank you so much for your help. I'll let you return to your work now.† She left, thinking about the Electro-Clarifier. And about Amaryl.