The Impact on Americanization Process

The impact on Americanization process involves enormous movements of people across oceans and continents bringing different cultures into contact and sometimes into conflict (DuBois & Dumenil, 2009 p. 391). They all searched for better lives and more freedom. Native Americans and poor immigrants were pushed aside by continuing the westward expansion (DuBois & Dumenil, 2009 p. 391). Parents and tribal leaders protested the brutality of this coercive Americanization but they were no way to stop it (DuBois & Dumenil, 2009 p. 394). Some Native American women earned English and other skills in the boarding school programs they had. Some got jobs and worked for reservation agencies and became teachers. For example, Susan la Flesche became the first white trained Native woman physician. She was also the first person to receive federal aid for education. Sussette la Flesche was a writer and speaker on behalf of Indian causes (DuBoise & Dumenil, 2009 p. 395). Americanization program became harsher especially during WWI. I believe this is why some women resisted and other supported. Immigrant mothers and daughters confronted America very differently (DuBois & Dumenil, 2009 p. 408). Young immigrant women did domestic labor and factory work. Mexicans, Germans, Polish met the demand for servants. Most of these young workers lived with parents or relatives and had to give the earnings to them. Immigrant mothers had responsibility to preserve the way to become Americanize themselves and their families. They cooked traditional foods and followed religious beliefs while the husbands made a family living (DuBois & Dumenil, 2009 p. 410). The immigrant’s journey women had many obstacles during their journey. It took ten to twenty days to cross and it was in unhealthy conditions as well. I could imagine women that were pregnant or with little ones and how hard it was. I am Hispanic I have seen many immigrants’ women trying to cross and some don’t even survive now days. It is hard and some get abused on the way in crossing. I guess many things haven’t changed but it is better than before. In conclusion Native American women had it hard. I believe African American women had it the worse. Boarding schools helped many along the way.

Compare and Contrast Luther and Calvin Essay

Compare and Contrast Martin Luther and John Calvin. Martin Luther and John Calvin were both very important leaders of the Protestant Reformation. Although they were both against the Roman Catholic Church, they brought about very different ideas in religion. Martin Luther founded the group that are today known as Lutherans. He was ordained a priest in 1507. He dealt with questions dealing with the structure of the church and with its moral values. These questions were important in Luther’s eyes, but the most important was how to find favor with God. Luther tried to pray, fast, and repent, but he never felt self-satisfaction. He eventually concluded that God’s love was not a prize or a reward to be earned or won, but a gift to be accepted. Luther further concluded that until man stops trying to achieve God’s favor through his own achievements he cannot truly understand God’s grace. Luther also had the idea that one did not need a priest to talk to God, he believed that one could pray and repent without the help of anyone else. This was the idea for which Luther became famous. In 1517, Luther was involved in a controversy which involved indulgences. Indulgences were the idea that a person could donate money to a worthy cause in exchange for forgiveness of their sins. Luther opposed this idea and stated his beliefs in his Ninety-Five Thesis, which he posted on the castle door in Wittenberg, Germany. In 1519, Luther had a debate in Leipzig with Johann Eck, a Roman Catholic theologian. During this debate, Luther denied the supremacy of the Pope and stated that church councils could make mistakes. In 1521, Luther was excommunicated by Pope Leo X. Luther was then ordered to appear before a council which demanded that he retract his teachings. Luther intern stated that unless he was inspired to do so by scripture he would not since it is neither safe nor right to go against conscience. Possible the most important contribution of Luther to society was his translation of the Bible into German. This made it possible for those who were not fluent in Greek to study the Word of God. Luther also wrote another influential work, Small Catechism of 1529, which was also known as the layman’s Bible. It summarized Christian beliefs into clear, simple language and told how they should live. During the Reformation, Luther discovered that he had founded a new church. He complained that his name should not be given to a group whose name should only be taken from Christ; but Lutherans still believe in the doctrines he originated. John Calvin teachings were especially influential inSwitzerland, England, Scotland, and colonial North America. Calvin’s followers in France were known as the Huguenots, and in England they were know as the Puritans. During the Reformation, the people were insisting that anyone, not just the hierarchy, be involved in political and religious policy making. This inspired Calvin’s teachings. The Calvinists developed political theories that supported constitutional government, representative government, the right of people to change their government, and the separation of civil and church government. The Calvanists originally intended these ideas to apply to the aristocracy, but democracy eventually arose in England and America. Calvinâ⠂¬â„¢s basic religious beliefs were the superiority of faith over good works, universal priesthood of all believers, and the Bible as the basis of all Christian teachings. The concept of universal priesthood was that all believers were considered priests. This was unlike the Roman Catholic Church which had various ranks of priests. Calvin also believed that men could only be saved by the grace of God. He believed that only the Elect would be saved and that no one knew who the Elect were. He also believed in Predestination, which is the idea that your entire life is already planned for you. Many of Calvin’s ideas were controversial, but he improved the morals of the Church drastically. Calvin developed the pattern of church government that is today known as Presbyterian. Martin Luther and John Calvin achieved great results, but went about it in different ways. Luther was more concerned with his own spirituality, and therefore set an example by changing himself. Calvin on the other hand, was more concerned with changing society and the government. They both believed in being saved through God’s grace, but Calvin believed in Predestination a nd the Elect. Martin Luther and John Calvin were both key assets Protestant Reformation.

An Analysis of Dark Nights Harvey Dent

The Two Faces of Harvey Dent Just like the proverbial adage of love and hate, superheroes and villains have a very thin line that separates the two. The I Ch’ing offers the Yin and Yang arguing that good cannot exist without evil. The question arises to try to determine what exactly makes someone a villain or a superhero. There is often a personal or emotional connection that the authors and film directors tries to convey so the audience can identify with the characters. Sometimes, fictional characters are made to seem obviously one-sided. Shakespeare wrote, â€Å"Villains that were plainly evil without any explanation which then made it clear who the protagonists were. † This kind of character does not satisfy human curiosity and reasoning. The question still remains at the end which continues to gnaw at our intellect. In the film, Dark Knight directed by Christopher Nolan, the writer tries to answer this question with the character of Harvey Dent, otherwise known as the villain Two-Face. Harvey Dent comes out in the second film of a grittier and darker version of the legendary comic superhero Batman series. Much of the audience is well-versed in the Batman villains so the character Harvey Dent comes out as the morally incorruptible, by-the-book District Attorney of Gotham city; the revelation of his duplicitous nature is inevitable because of how principled he is when it comes to fighting crime. Usually, those people who are so polarized on one side tend to fall the hardest to the other side. Nolan uses the character of Rachel, Dent’s love interest, a sort of love triangle with Bruce Wayne (Batman’s alter ego) to explain his true emotions. Using the different personality theories, the question can be answered with more satisfaction. Myers-Briggs has a dichotomous scheme of how people are configured while Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs sets up stages of a person’s life. Ultimately, Freud’s Superego, ego, and Id identify the level of maturity that a person demonstrates. These theories expose the character of Harvey Dent and how a hero can become a villain because of his inherent traits, life experiences, and bad choices. The inherent traits that lead Harvey Dent into a spiral of shame can be explained by Myers-Briggs dichotomous chart of personality types. Harvey Dent starts out in the film in the spotlight, brand new leader of Gotham City as the prosecutor. He is a role model of principles and law. He is unflinching and unwavering in his ambition and fight against crime. Dent tends be extraverted in his personality. He likes being in the spotlight. He likes things to be black and white because he is a very principled man. Dent does not like to make deals with criminals and he makes it very clear to everyone that he will not be bribed in any way. He will not bargain which seems like a characteristic that he was born with. He is very straight forward with people. If he does not like someone, he will make it known to that person right away. On the other side, his affections for Rachel, the deputy district attorney, are apparent as well as the audience sees them out together besides their professional relationship. (Dark Knight) The audience can tell that Dent is very meticulous and logical sometimes appearing cold but his internal passion for what he believes drive him to do the things he does. The law is his guide and he does not let emotion get the best of him until the Rachel dies because of the choices of others. Dent is an easy target because of these traits. He is very predictable. â€Å"Live to see yourself become the villain, or die a hero,† says Dent after he lives. Dark Knight) Only he lives by principle while others live on emotion. He makes it very clear after Rachel that he will no longer be controlled by his principles. This inherent disillusionment alters his outlook on life and he becomes the other extreme. By the time, he dies in the movie; he abandons all reason and goes with his emotions of apa thy and revenge. Harvey Dent’s struggle with dealing with Rachel’s death can be further explained by Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. He begins as the highest level with self-actualization where he can truly serve the will of the people and the law. But, the experience ultimately is too much for him to deal with. Above all, he has fought for the safety of himself and the people, but since he could not protect the one he loved, he cannot face losing anyone else thus his revenge leads to blood. The ideals he stood for go out the window and he punishes the wrong people. He is blind to morality after this tragedy. He has no distinction between right and wrong, a good person and an evil person. In this sense, Nolan wanted to show the audience how certain experiences affect people and no one can control every situation or circumstance. It all becomes luck and fortune which somebody like Harvey Dent cannot accept. Thus, because of these experiences of pain and regret, he cannot move on in his life and make the proper decisions of his rank and person. He falls and ultimately pays his own price by his flip of the coin. Freud’s theory of subconscious levels seems to depict the choices that Harvey Dent makes that lead him to become a villain rather than stay a hero. After the death of Rachel, Dent could have mourned and moved on in his life, but his selfish desires of revenge compel him to make bad choices that harm innocent people like the Gordon’s family. In a sense, his altruistic nature at first seemed all too clean and perfect. The audience all knows no one can be that perfect and be a human being. His true selfish nature comes out that it was really all for his egotistical gratification and when he was hurt, then everyone should also suffer. Nolan tries to reach the audience with Dent’s emotional pain. Most people are not sure whether to like and support Dent or hate him for being so weak and selfish. He is actually dishonoring the memory of Rachel by being a villain. In the end, he could have done the right things but he chose to take the darker path. This then shows how the line is not a very wide line between good and evil. It is all the choices that people make that make them good or evil. Harvey Dent is a character that is a facade of good and evil. Everyone has a choice to be good or evil throughout their lives. All human beings go through difficult times; it is how we deal with it that makes us who we are. Nolan tries to capture that theme with Harvey Dent. The different personality theories help explain the fictional character to better understand ourselves.

Communication Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Communication - Essay Example Time of communication is also a very important factor. Distortion of facts and information can be a huge deterrent to effective communication. Eye contact, gestures, movement, posture, and written communication all comprise effective non verbal communication. Good eye contact helps credibility of the message. People rely on visual clues to help them decide on whether to attend to a message or not. If they find that someone isnt looking at them when they are being spoken to, they feel uneasy. This can be achieved by slowly scanning the entire audience, focusing on particular areas of the audience and looking at individual members of the audience for about five seconds per person. Breaking eye-to-eye contact down to four or five second chunks often aids effective communication. Most of people when talking, use hands and face to help describe an event or object—powerful nonverbal aids. It should be ensured that any movement made is meaningful. Body posture also aids or mars communication. A strong, upright, positive body posture not only helps breathing easier (good for helping to calm nerves!) but also transmits a message of authority, confidence, trust and power. One can achieve great body posture but without internal mental and emotional posture the words will sound hollow to your audience. Nowadays email has become an effective way of communicating but one has to remember certain unwritten rules. Emails without subjects or irrelevant subjects seem to be about nothing and will naturally hamper communication without even beginning it. Incorrect grammar and spellings will also severely hamper communication since people will question the caliber of the communicator. E-mail makes everything easier and faster including making a powerful business impression and establishing positive professional

Police Policy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Police Policy - Essay Example How or when to apply force has been a long standing debate for at least a few decades, and there is still a whole lot that needs to be worked out in this regard. There have been many conflicts as to how this should be done because there is a major lack of agreement as to how situations such as these should be handled. As a result of the lack of agreement on how force should be applied, there are still no solid resolutions that are in place to benefit both police officers and civilians. Liberal individuals favor seeing to it that even the criminals have all of their civil rights and liberties, even though these criminals may have committed a brutal crime. These liberal individuals also favor the use of restrictions on when police officers should be allowed to shoot to kill, as well as when to use violent weapons to apply force. Then, there are those who are all for traditional police policies as it pertains to force. Individuals who support tradition in this regard favor tactics that may almost border police brutality. These individuals feel that police officers must do whatever they need to in order to maintain control, even if it may violate the right of an individual who does not deserve such treatment. Then, there are those individuals who are in the middle with these issues, and thee individuals are neither liberal nor traditional. They feel that the police should use whatever method of force that is necessary to control criminals, but a level of respect should be given to those who deserve it. These individuals feel that such a thing should be a balancing act and that policies should be made to enforce this. Some things have been discussed in regards to finding a happy medium for all, and some policies have even been implemented in some areas with a great deal of success; however, there is still a lack of uniformity in that these policies are not applied all over. There are five major issues that are in relation to police force policies that really need to be addressed for the safety of both police officers and civilians. One very major issue that is in relation to police force policies is that sometimes, police make severe errors in judgment in situations where one's life is taken for the sake of self defense. In some cases, a criminal may become so unmanageable that it is necessary for the police officers to shoot to kill to keep from getting severely injured themselves. Sometimes, however, wrong judgments are made, and officers become quick to use their guns, and lives are taken unnecessarily. This especially happens if officers are abusing their power or may make a judgment based on a bias of race or gender, which happens all too often. Concerning the errors of judgment on the part of police officers when it comes to situations where a life must be taken for the sake of self defense, an article titled "Personality and Cognitive Processes in Life and Death Decision Making: An Exploration into the Source of Judgment Errors by Police Special Squads" states that errors in judgment can be made as a res ult of personality traits, as they can sometimes get in the way and influence decisions. In addition to this, more may be expected of officers than the experience they may actually have. For instance, an officer may be asked to perform a

National Identification System in the United States Essay

National Identification System in the United States - Essay Example National Identification System In The United States Firstly, it is national because it is used throughout the country having nationally uniform identifiers and formats. Secondly, the system is for practical and legal use only. Cards like credit cards can also be used to identify a person, but they are not national identity cards. People can have a number of such cards or no cards at all and still roam about in the country without any problems. However, if the law makes it mandatory for everyone to have such cards for identification purposes, it then comes in the category of national identity cards. Last but not the least; the system is used for the identification of an individual. It is different from a social security number. A social security number attaches a number to the name of a person and is just a national identifier. A national identity card actually proves the identity of a person. It shows that a person, previously known to the system, has once again presented himself or herself. It involves a biometric tie between the num ber and the person. The card would not only have the name and address of the person, but it also involves a compulsory facial image of a person on the card. The chip inside the card will help the law officials in identifying whether a person is on government’s watch list or not. Finger prints or retinal images on the card will also help in the identification of a person. This will help in retrieving information about the person from the government databases and immigration agencies as well. Many people are of the view that had such a system been implemented earlier, it would have probably helped in averting the 9/11 tragedy. The issue is still unclear whether everyone or a section of society should have such cards or where to use them such as at the airports or when accessing government buildings etc (Wang, pg, 1. 2002). Here it would be pertinent to discuss the National Identification Legislation in detail: NATIONAL IDENTIFICATION LEGISLATION: 9/11 COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION: Evaluating the 9/11 terrorist

Euro-Mediterranean Partnership Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Euro-Mediterranean Partnership - Essay Example 3. The rapprochement between peoples through a social, cultural and human partnership aimed at encouraging understanding between cultures and exchanges between civil societies (Social, Cultural and Human Chapter)." http://europa.eu.int/comm/external_relations/euromed/index.htm It is an ambitious initiative with bilateral and regional dimensions and multilateral dimension supports, in the increasingly globalised world. Under MEDA programme, they are creating partnerships in all aspects like regional integration, socio-economic balance and financial and technical assistance. Despite these, in 2005 convention, it is noted MEDA was "created at the initiative of the European Parliament in 1996, the program grants aids to no-profit associations, Universities, Research Centres and public Bodies in order to realize projects aimed at promoting democracy, freedom of expression and association, and safeguarding specific groups, such as women, young people and minorities. The granted funds for this kind of projects can total a maximum of 80%" http://www.euromedi.org/inglese/home/partenariato/partenariato.asp). Despite these, in 2005 convention, it is noted that MEDA had very slow advancement. ... in the partnership are peace, security, stability, good governance and democracy, sustainable economic development and reform, education and socio-cultural exchanges, justice, migration and social integration, human rights and democratisation, political and security cooperation, information and communication technology, trade, financial cooperation, dialogues between two or more cultures, and the visibility of the process. It has announced that heredity sites would be maintained and safeguarded, 'Creating a future that care for the past'. "Its aim was to conserve and inventory manuscripts held in small libraries dotted throughout North Africa and the Near East, thus preserving the books and the wisdom they contain," Euro Mediterranean Partnership (2002, p.14). Main topics that would be investigated in the Research are as follows: 1. Illegal immigration into prosperous countries, an annoying issue that has to be controlled and guided in a proper way. Most of the European countries are facing problems due to illegal immigration and are trying to find ways and means of curbing them, while legal immigration would be encouraged. EU is facing extensive confusion as a result of illegal immigration. Research would probe into this matter and would try to present a clearer picture. 2. Security and Terrorism are the two issues that have been haunting every country today, and more so, the Western powers. After the fanatic Muslim movement lifted its ugly head in certain regions, curbing it has become the priority issue to all affected countries. Research would investigate these issues with other connected problems like fanaticism in European countries, growth of terrorist activities, help from Middle East countries in controlling training camps for potential terrorists and

Take your own moral values on abortion (pro-life) and compare them to Assignment

Take your own moral values on abortion (pro-life) and compare them to the social work ethics and core values - Assignment Example It is interesting in this situation to look at a person’s own biases and prejudices while dealing with this issue. Since every person is situated in a society and can be looked at as a product of the history of that society, it is safe to assume that prejudices would be a part of every person. There needs to thus, be a conscious effort to rid oneself of the prejudices that are a part of one’s mind. It is here that one sees the importance of a code of ethics as laid down by the National Association of Social Workers. This paper shall look at the articles of this code and how it helps one to rid oneself of many a prejudice and work towards a more harmonious society. The code of ethics according to the NASW demands that people who are social workers accept the cultural changes that are a part of today’s society and learn to live in harmony without intentionally or otherwise, causing any damage to the sentiments of others. It is in this context that the issue of abortion becomes a huge issue that becomes difficult for people to grapple with. Any stand that is taken at present seems to be in violation of the beliefs of certain groups, as far as abortion is concerned. This is however, applicable only for those groups that advocate a complete ban on abortion or complete freedom. As in most issues of a multicultural society, the middle path would be the intelligent route to take in this matter. This is especially so since it tends to divide people into watertight compartments even at a political level where it becomes a major issue in pre-electoral times. This lack of discrimination is exhorted to be practiced as can be seen in this part of th e code of ethics- â€Å"Social workers should obtain education about and seek to understand the nature of social diversity and oppression with respect to race, ethnicity, national origin, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression,

Sub-Prime Mortgage Crisis and the East Asia Research Paper

Sub-Prime Mortgage Crisis and the East Asia - Research Paper Example The subprime mortgage crisis in the United State was more severe than the great depression because several assets and derivatives had been purchased and sold in the unstable market. Moreover, the subprime mortgage crisis had several liquidity risks compared with that of the exchange traded products. According to Justin and Boris (2011), commercial banks finance in the East Asia asks for the mortgages without considering the credit evaluation of the borrowers. Thus, the paper will evaluate the financial crisis issues that were triggered from the U.S sub-prime mortgage crisis, and affected the East Asian economy. The sub-prime mortgage crisis The sub-prime mortgage crisis was a result of the speculative issues in the housing market that commenced in the United State in 2006. It has caused severe impact across the East Asia countries in the form of financial crisis and the country’s credit crisis. Justin and Boris (2011) indicate that the forces caused by the sub-prime mortgage c risis will probably run out of control for years, causing the collateral damage. The disruption in the East Asia countries credit market is of historic proportions and will have significant economic impacts. Moreover, the crisis has caused essential societal changes that affect the consumer habits and the values. Justin and Boris (2011) indicate that the East Asia economy was affected where the GDP was recorded 4.2, 4.8, 5.7 and 1.9 per cent from 2005 to 2008. This led to the ever recorded a decrease in GDP in 2009 that amounted to -4.0 since 1980. Therefore, this crisis has significantly affected the Europe and Asian countries, and most of the Asian countries have rearranged their financial and banking industry. Delgado and Burge (2009) claim that the proximate cause of the sub-prime mortgage crisis was the busting of the housing issues in the East Asia during the summer of 2007 when subprime defaults commenced to rise and foreclosures increased. It then spread to prime loans and o ther types of consumer credit, and the financial institutions with the subprime related products were severely affected. The Asian countries were severely affected by the sub-prime mortgage crisis during the early stage of the crisis because the banks were not exposed to the dangerous assets that were engineered and crafted in the United State. According to Delgado and Burge (2009), the data gathered in the Economist and Financial Times, the $500 billion was written off by banks globally in the 2008. The financial institutions in Japan accounted for only five percent, and its sectors were relatively resilient. The global financial crisis has affected the China and Japan very strongly as they stand among the most opens in the world. Foreign capital inflows declined significantly as commercial banks and foreign institutional investors withdrew funds to meet redemptions in their countries. According to Delgado and Burge (2009), private capital flows in China slowed from $516.7 billion to 2007 to an estimated $134.4 billion in 2008. Table of the GDP of the East Asia countries 2007 2008 2009 China 11.9 9.7 8.5 Japan 2.1 0.5 -0.2 Korea 5.6 3 3.9 2.1 Modified from: IMF (2008a) According to Ghon (2008), the Banking leading declined that was as a result of the direct and indirect equities. During 2009, the capital flows were estimated to be only $44.1 billion, and in the beginning of 2008, stock markets declined by about 62 percent in China (Ghon, 2008). Thus, the Chinese stocks markets had been the worst performer in

American English Essay Example for Free

American English Essay Ebonics has been an issue in the field of sociolinguistics for quite a long time. It was previously labeled as Negro-standard English, Black English, Black English Vernacular, and African American English Vernacular. It is known to have historical influences from West African and Niger-Congo languages. Researches focused on its similarities and differences with that of the Standard American English to provide explanations to whether it is should be considered as a separate language or at least a dialect of standard American English (Blommeart, 1999). The term Ebonics was coined by Robert Williams in 1973. It referred to the unique variety of language used by African Americans. However, it was not widely used until the proposal of Oakland Schools in 1996. yet, up to this day, experts prefer the term African American to make it consistent with that of other varieties of English like British English, Southern English and among others (http://www. cal. org/topics/dialects/aae. html). One of the differences pointed by Collins (1999) are the phonological processes like consonant cluster simplification and word-final position. For example, words like cold, test, and desk are spelled as col’, tess, and deks in Ebonics. The habitual BE verb of Ebonics may also be confused if will be read as standard English. The debate mainly focused on the issue as whether Ebonics should be a separate language or at least a dialect. It was not a major issue until Ebonics was proposed as a medium for instruction. The sociolinguistic debate was replaced by a more encompassing issue of education, language, culture, and perhaps, politics too. The Ebonics Controversy In December 18, 1996, the Oakland School Board proposed to recognize Ebonics as â€Å"primary language of African American children† and be treated as a subject for Language Art apart from the standard American English (Rickford, 1999). More specifically, the proposal claimed, â€Å"Ebonics was a language that should be recognized, tolerated, and accounted for is instruction of the district’s predominantly African-American student body† (Blommeart, 1999). It would have affected more than 52, 000 students in the district. The aim of this proposed project was improve the educational performance of the urban student body (Blommeart, 1999). The proposal started a debate not just among sociolinguists, but also among educators and politicians. Many of the critics of the proposal argued that the real cause of poor performance of the students was not a question of language but rather the â€Å"lack of effort, motivation, and commitment on the part of the students and their families. † (Blommeart, 1999).

Origins Of Economic Order Quantity Formula Engineering Essay

Origins Of Economic Order Quantity Formula Engineering Essay The Economic Order Quantity (EOQ) is the amount of units that a business should put in to the inventory to reduce the total costs of inventory. For instance, ordering costs, holding costs and shortage costs. The model was developed by F. W. Harris in 1913, but R. H. Wilson, a consultant who applied it extensively, is given credit for his early in-depth analysis of it. The outline used to determine EOQ is known as the Wilson Formula or the Wilson EOQ Model. The EOQ is used to monitor the level of inventory at all times; it can be called as an inventory review system. In addition, a fixed quantity of units is ordered each time the level of inventory gets to a specific reorder point. The EOQ is a model of evaluating the suitable reorder point and the most favorable reorder quantity to ensure the immediate refilling of stock without any shortages. This model is important for small company owners who need to know how much stock to keep, how many units to order when ordering parts, the amo unt of units to order each time, and frequently to reorder to get the lowest costs. Moreover, ordering a big amount of units a time will increase the holding costs of a small business, while making more often orders of smaller amount of units will decrease the holding costs and increase the order costs. The EOQ model will find the amount to be ordered to minimize these costs and ordering the most cost effective quantity. The EOQ model takes the demand as constant, and the stock is decreased at a fixed rate to reach zero. When the level gets to zero, a particular amount of units and bring the stock level to its initial level. Other reviews have been discussed in early EOQ papers but much of the history of this model has been left untouched. For example, Raymond 1931, Whitin 1954 and Mennell 1961. All the citations given to Harriss paper was incorrect, it seems that nobody has been able to find the paper. The inaccurate citation given by Raymond 1931 shows the misplacement of the original model. The first proper citation of Harriss model was by Whitin 1954 who references Harris via a citation given in Raymonds work. A search of the Social Sciences Citation Index from 1966 through 1987 yielded 15 references to Harriss paper, and every citation resembled that given by Raymond. The variables used in the EOQ formula analysis The costs of inventory Reorder cost (RC) Unit cost (UC) Holding cost (HC) Shortage cost (SC) Demand (D) Order quantity (Q) Cycle time (T) The three steps taken in the derivation of EOQ formula: First evaluate the total cost of a stock cycle Then divide the value by the cycle length which will result in cost per unit time. Minimizing the cost per unit time Derivation of EOQ formula Amount of stock entering the cycle = amount of stock leaving the cycle à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ Q = D ÃÆ'- T Total cost per cycle = unit cost + reorder cost + holding cost (component) Total cost per cycle = UC + RC + HC (component) Now calculate each element of the total cost separately Unit cost component = Unit cost (UC) ÃÆ'- Number of parts ordered (Q) Unit cost component = UC ÃÆ'- Q Reorder cost component = Reorder cost (RC) ÃÆ'- Number of orders made (1) Reorder cost component = RC Holding cost component = Holding cost (HC) ÃÆ'- Average inventory () ÃÆ'- Time taken (T) Holding cost component = Now add these components together to get the total cost per cycle: Total cost per cycle = UC + RC + HC (component) Total cost per cycle = + RC + Finding the total cost per cycle is the first step of the derivation. Now divide the total cost by the cycle time (T) to get the total cost per unit time (TC). Total cost per unit time (TC) = + + But Q = D ÃÆ'- T à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ D = or T = Substituting this in the total cost per unit time (TC) Total cost per unit time (TC) = UC ÃÆ'- D + + The third step is to minimize the total cost per unit time. The derivative of the total cost per unit time (TC) with respect to Q and make the result equal to zero. = + = 0 à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ = à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ = à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ EOQ = Limitations to EOQ Formula Assumes that ordering and carrying costs are accurately known. It takes the Storage space as unlimited. Ignores the delivery quantities and discounts given. Assumes that the seller controls the delivery scheduling. The results are always carrying a number of stocks. Cost structures have changed. For instance, the ordering costs have been decreased by e-commerce. Part b The literature on using economic order quantity (EOQ) and just-in-time (JIT) purchasing have chosen JIT in the last few years, in particular when companies are purchasing to meet high and constant levels of demand, where the JIT method have the advantage of reducing the inventory space (Per square meter) of the firm. On the other hand, even if JIT method can reduce the inventory space of the company, EOQ can be more cost effective. Mainly, JIT is used when the ratio of holding costs to ordering costs becomes so high that it becomes valuable to order as needed. This happens if the holding costs of inventory are high (Computer industry) that the ratio becomes high which leads to the use of JIT. In addition, when the ordering costs is cheap which results in high ratio and the use of JIT is more efficient. In both cases the EOQ makes companies use JIT since the quantity that is most cost-effective is so little that money savings can be achieved by ordering small batches using JIT method. The implementation of JIT method have improved many firms that still use EOQ purchasing system to consider switching to JIT purchasing method. Just-in-time method JIT (also known as stockless production or lean production) means producing only what is needed, when is needed and in the amount is needed. JIT companies store only enough stock to manufacture the goods they want to produce in the near future. Units are ordered on a continuous basis, which are transferred straight into the assembly line. The benefits of JIT method is to reduce inventory levels, reduced leadtime, improve quality and reduced waste and rework. The main objective of this method is to eliminate waste and continuous improvement of productivity. Waste outcome as a result from any activity which adds cost without increasing value. JIT purchasing of parts is completely different than traditional purchasing of parts. Traditional purchasing is by spreading purchases around and trying to maintain a high level of inventory in case of any rise in demand or quality of supplier decreased unexpectedly. However, JIT purchasing enables the supplier to deliver high quality products dep ending on demand and in a timely fashion. Quality is hardest standard for suppliers to meet, where the JIT purchaser should deal with companies that give statistical analysis to confirm the high quality of products. On the other hand, for the supplier to produce on-time deliveries, it is easier for the supplier to be in the same geographic region as the customer. In this way the supplier can easily react to any unexpected change in demand and it costs less to make frequent deliveries if required. JIT operates on 3 things: Continuous flow Takt time Pull system Takt time is the time to produce a single component or entire product, based on sales. In other words it sets the speed of production to meet the speed of sales. The kanban or pull system is a method to manage the just-in-time production process. The just-in-time method is achieved using kanban system. It is an information system to control the production amount in each process. The following processes go to preceding processes and take what is needed. However, preceding processes must restock what is taken away. Figure 2 (Kanban system) There are 2 main types of kanban system (shown in figure 2): Production kanban: Signals to produce more components. Withdrawal kanban (move kanban): Signals to take components from one work center and send them to the next work center. Advantages of JIT method The quality of products is improved. Quality is the responsibility of all the staff not only the quality control workers. Cycle times are reduced. Scrap and rework are reduced. Set up times are decreased. Cost savings. Less inventory level of raw materials and finished goods which decrease cost of holding them. More skilled workers who are able to switch tasks. Productivity is increased. Higher workers involvement Less space requirements Smoother production flow Better relationships with suppliers. Benefits of using the kanban system: Better managed inventory levels: Having too much inventory levels can cause cash flow problems by increasing the expenses on insurance, storage and security. The kanban system eliminates all these costs by lowering the level of inventory. Smoother manufacturing flow: The kanban system focuses on the current condition of the system. The production levels are determined to take into account scrap, downtime and the change of equipment overtime to make sure that the production schedule is achieved. Overproduction elimination: kanban is less expected to cause overproduction this because the need to make buffer inventory to address unexpected delays. Decreasing the risk of Inventory obsolescence: Products have a shelf life where it can expire if it is not delivered on time. Responsiveness to demand: One of the main advantages of kanban system is that it improves responsiveness in relationship to change in demand. Empowerment: Another advantage of kanban system that it places the control in the hands of workers that can view the production process. Empowerment is an efficient managerial tool which reinforces training and education among employees. Quality control and self discipline: The last advantage to kanban system is its purpose to create an environment with quality management. Kanban system uses small lot sizes which allow quality control issues to be pointed at the source. All in all, the concept of JIT is not only everything must be done fast, but the most significant thing is that the company have an organized resource allocation. It is true that the implementation on JIT is expensive process, but the company can solve its problems and difficulties to achieve high levels of workflow. EOQ system is better for larger companies where the inventory ordering cost cant be split. However, smaller and medium size companies it is better to use JIT system. In other words, JIT system is more advantageous than EOQ for companies whose annual demand levels are low. EOQ can be one of the tools used to achieve JIT method. EOQ is used to find out which elements fit into JIT model and which level of JIT is economically beneficial for the company. Question 2 Introduction It is quite exceptional for an accident to be related to one single cause. Almost every disaster is the consequence of a chain of events and accident reports usually make a distinction between the main cause and a number of contributing factors. The main root cause is human factors. In order to prevent this source of accidents, the workers are requested to regularly train. Next comes the aircraft failures, but this cause is less likely to happen with modern aircrafts. Human factors included 12 as the most critical factors leading to accidents: Lack of communication Complacency Lack of knowledge Lack of assertiveness Lack of team work Distractions Fatigue Lack of resources Pressure Stress Lack of awareness Norms The circumstances of the accident discussed are caused by plenty of the human factors mentioned above. Brief of the accident The March 27, 1977, a disaster happened at Tenerife were two 747s were destroyed leaving the highest number of airliner passenger fatalities. The accident killed 583 people when a KLM Boeing 747 was trying to take-off which collided with another 747 for the Pan Am airlines at the Los Rodeos airport. This accident remains the deadliest disaster in aviation history with 583 fatalities. The KLM Flight 4805 was fully-fuelled and had 248 aboard who were all killed in this accident. On the other hand, the Pan Am Flight 1736 had 335 deaths and 61 survivors, which was hit along its backbone by the KLMs landing gear, 4 engines and the under belly of the aircraft. Because of the heavy fog and the division of the damaged aircraft after collision, the rescue crew didnt know over 20 minutes that the Pan Am aircraft was involved in the collision. Later investigations show that there were many factors lead to this disaster: Pilot error Air Traffic Control error Communications difficulty Fog, and airfield obstruction where diversion of air traffic to Los Rodeos airport because of a bombing and a threat for another bomb in another airport which lead to shut the airport. All of the mentioned reasons or can be called as the key factors contributed to this catastrophe. Disaster Events and Related Human Factors For both planes, Tenerife was an unscheduled stop, and the whole events started with a terrorist bomb planted at Las Palmas airport. Bombing at Las Palmas (Caused distraction and pressure) All the occasions of both planes was routine until they reached the islands, where the civil aviation authorities shut the airport because of a bomb explosion and diverted all the flights to Los Rodeos airport, as well as the 2 Boeing 747 aircraft which took part in this accident. When the Pan Am Flight contacted the Gran Canaria airport, it was notified of the temporary closure. Even though the Pam Am aircrafts crew said that they would like to move around the airport in a holding pattern until the airport give them the landing clearance, the aircraft was ordered to switch to Los Rodeos airport, the same as the KLM aircraft. The bomb explosion at the airport caused distraction and pressure and this is concluded because the air traffic controllers were forcing the Pan AM crew to divert to Los Rodeos airport without realizing that there will be two large B747 together with some other aircrafts at a small airport having small and close taxi ways and this lead to the second event. Congestion at Los Rodeos (lack of resources) It was known that Los Rodeos airport is small to accommodate large aircrafts and even though the air traffic controllers were forcing all the aircrafts to divert there. At least five large aircrafts changed direction to Los Rodeos airport. The airport had one runway and one taxiway which are parallel to each other; also it has few taxiways which connect the runway with the main taxiway. During the period of waiting for the Gran Canaria airport to open, the aircrafts occupied so much space which were parked on the main taxiway, which means that the taxiway cant be used for taxiing anymore. Instead, all the departing aircrafts would taxi on the runway and position themselves for takeoff, which is known as runway backtrack. Refuelling (Lack of Knowledge from the KLM Captain) The Pan Am Captain had decided to fully refuel at Los Rodeos instead of Las Palmas, apparently to save time, but by doing so he added extra weight, greatly retarding liftoff (and accident escape) ability, which proved fatal. After the bomb threat at Gran Canaria Airport had been controlled, civil aviation authorities reopened the airport. The Pan Am aircraft was all set for take-off, but it was obstructed by the KLM aircraft and a refuelling vehicle and couldnt reach the runway. Due to lack of clearance, the Pan Am couldnt maneuver around the KLM aircraft to each the runway and take-off. Taxiing and weather conditions In this event there were more than one factor involved. Started with complacency from the KLM crew concluded from the following events. Subsequent to the towers instructions, the KLM aircraft was cleared to backtaxi and prepare the aircraft for take-off position; which was a hard maneuver to complete with a small runway. During the backtaxiing of the KLM aircraft, the ATC controller asked the aircrafts crew to report when it was all set to copy the ATC clearance. Since the crew was completing the checklist, copying of the ATC clearance delayed until the aircraft was already in take-off position. During taxiing, the weather conditions got worse where low clouds and fog limited the visual range. Lack of communication The lack of communication occurred between the Pan Am crew and the ATC to start taxiing and this showed when the Pan Am aircraft was instructed to also backtaxi, to follow the KLM aircraft down the same runway, and then leave the runway by taking the third exit on the left of the aircraft and then using the main taxiway parallel to the runway. Firstly, the Pan Am aircraft crew was unclear as to whether the controller had told them to leave from the first or third exit. For this reason, the crew requested for clarification where the controller replied by saying: The third one, sir; one, two, three; third, third one. The aircraft started to taxi and carried on to recognize the unmarked taxiways using an airport diagram as they reached them. Based on the use of the cockpit voice recorder and the space between the taxiways and the position of the aircraft at the moment of collision, the crew successfully identified taxiways number 1 and 2, but according to the discussion in the cockpit they had not seen the third taxiway, which they had been told to take, and this is obvious that there were again a lack of resources inside the airport because it appears that there were no markings or signs to identify the runway exits. And this is followed by another factor which is lack of awareness from the Pan Am crew who were taxiing at a very slow speed because they were appeared to remain unsure of their position on the runway until the collision. Based on an official report from the Spanish authorities appears that there was a lack of knowledge from the ATC who could not explain why the controller had instructed the Pan Am aircraft to use the third taxiway, rather than the sensible and easier fourth taxiway. Communication misunderstandings (lack of communication) The event briefed below shows a lack of communication between the KLM crew and the ATC and this was almost the turn point of the accident. Straight away after lining up, the KLM captain advanced the throttles which is known as spin-up, this is done to confirm that the engines are functioning correctly for takeoff. The co-pilot was shocked by the maneuver, rapidly advised the captain that ATC clearance was not given it. Captain responded, I know that. Go ahead, ask.After that the co-pilot then contacted the tower that the aircraft is ready for takeoff and waiting for our ATC clearance. Due to this, the KLM crew then got instructions which stated the route that the aircraft was to take after takeoff. The instructions given used the word takeoff, but did not contain a clear statement saying that the aircraft is clear to take off. The co-pilot read the flight clearance back to the controller, finishing the readback with a statement saying were now at takeoff, showing the controller that the aircraft was beginning the takeoff roll. The captain disrupted the co-pilots readback with the comment Were going. As seen here, the co-pilot chose not to embarrass his superior (the pilot) a second time by saying that the aircraft did not have the proper clearance to take off, which created a new factor which is a lack of assertiveness, since the co-pilot failed to express his opinion and failed to take a forceful stand on the issue. The Collision After spotting the landing gear lights of the KLM aircraft, the Pan Am crew applied full power and took a sharp turn to the left towards the exit to avoid the collision. The KLM captain also attempted to avoid collision by climbing away which scrapped the tail along the runway for 20 meters. As the KLM aircraft left the ground, its steep angle of attack allowed the nose gear not to hit the Pan Am aircraft. But the lower fuselage and the main landing gear of KLMs aircraft hit the upper side of the Pan Ams fuselage which ripped it apart directly above the wing. In addition, the right engines of KLMs aircraft hit the Pan AMS passenger cabin behind the cockpit. Due to the thick fog, the firefighters were unaware of the 2 aircrafts involved in this accident focusing on the KLM wreck. Conclusion The culture of the organization can be described as the things we do things here. It is a group or company norm. Ultimately, safety culture is an amalgamation of the attitude, beliefs and actions of all the individuals working for the organization and each person should take responsibility for their own contribution towards this culture, ensuring that it is a positive contribution rather than a negative one. Avoiding such an accident in the future can be done by avoiding human factors and this will require a lot of cautious and following of procedures under the flag of safety first. Suggestions to avoid accidents or any type of incidents can be given based on the human factors mentioned before: Discuss work before and after completion. Use effective communication. Never work from memory, use procedures no matter how often you performed the task. Understand what are you doing and use updated references. Express your opinion and disagree with opposite. Take a forceful stand on an issue without being abusive. Dont compromise your standards and when in doubt ask questions. Function smoothly and have a good relation with your team. Do not work under fatigue and have another colleague to check your work. Use the right references, equipments and tools. Know your limits and be assertive. Learn when to say NO. Exercise and sleep regularly.

Pornography Causes Desensitization, Aggression, and Alienation Essay

Pornography Causes Desensitization, Aggression, and Alienation A pair of long luscious, shapely legs extend upward until they join in perfect harmony. Colorful panties cover what seem to be the smallest area possible as a slim torso with shapely breasts and a slender neck lead to a perfect face. There she is, the perfect woman, the perfect picture of lust. Yet, she is only a picture, but what unbelievable power she possesses. Any man who looks her way will question his desires and himself. Who will resist her temptation and who will give in is the only question left without an answer. Pornography. Everyone seems to know what the word means, but does anyone know its etymology? The graphic images associated with pornography distract from any exploration of the term, but just like anything else pornography does have a history. The word "pornography" is derived from the Greek word pornographos, meaning "writing of harlots". Despite its Greek origins, the word pornography did not show up in the English language until somewhere between 1755 and 1857. Even then its meaning referred to prostitutes and prostitution. So, when did pornography switch from prostitution to materials that depict erotic behavior? Around the year 1975, pornography took on the meaning we accept today. Therefore, it is a fairly young phenomena, but it has spread like wildfire through its secrecy and silence (Kendrick 1). Many find pornography harmless, a step toward a greater sexual liberation, a way to set free the secret parts of the soul (Griffin 1). If only they knew the secret they would discover would be an addiction that has the power to last forever! Pornography grows into people's lives leading to destruction of their marriages, families, and se... ... may be sexual freedom, but they will never truly be free. They will be a slave to their desires, their own self-satisfaction, and the tragedy of it all is that they will never be satisfied. Works Cited Bush, Rosaline. "Pornography Harms Society." Pornography: Opposing View Points. Ed. Carol Wekesser. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, Inc. 1997. 17-27. Donnerstein, Edward, Linz, Daniel, and Penrod, Steven. The Question of Pornography. New York: The Free Press, 1987. 40-50. ""Expression." Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary. 1974. Griffin, Susan. Pornography and Silence: Culture's Revenge Against Nature. New York: Harper & Row, 1981. 1-20. Kendrick, Walter. The Secret Museum: Pornography in Modern Culture. New York: Viking, 1987. 1-10. Reisman, Judith A. "Soft Porn" Plays Hard Ball.: Its Tragic Effects of Women, Children, & The Family. Louisiana

Philosophy of Education Essay -- Philosophy of Education Statement Tea

Philosophy of Education I am twenty-eight years old, and have only decided to become a teacher within the past two years. I have always wanted to help people in some way, yet I was not sure of what area or angle to go with my humanitarian instincts. While at University, two of my professors would continually express their feelings on what an impact I would make as a teacher. This planted the seed. I later became pregnant with and gave birth to my daughter. When you are pregnant and have children you have many worries and anxieties, including the stress of who will be caring for and teaching your child. I then examined the public school systems, for it is very difficult to ignore the negative media it has received in just the past few years. Something inside of me has told me that this is where I want to be. Somehow I want to make a difference in that child’s life by showing the child that someone does care and that they do have a positive place in the world. Hopefully this can open the c hild up to the realization that knowledge is the power and the key to a successful and productive life. The more experiences that I acquire in the development of children, the better I understand the nature of the child. I reject Hobbes’ theory of the nasty brute, for I do not view children as being born inherently evil. My views of the nature of children also differ from that of Rousseau, for I do not view children as noble savages being born inherently good. I do advocate the theory of John Locke, the tabula rasa, stating that the mind of a child is born with a blank slate. Marx also plays a key role in my theory of the nature of children. Like Marx, I view human nature as dynamic and changing. In part, I feel ... ...ities out in order to properly to these students. I finally realized that I want to be in a special education setting, for this is my passion. I feel as if I am in a point in my life to begin teaching. Upon completion of my education degree at Concord College, I plan to begin my life as an educator. Not only do I plan to educate my students, but I also plan to further educate myself by obtaining my Masters Degree. My education will not stop at merely obtaining another degree. The world is in constant change, and to effectively teach my students I need to not only be aware of the change, yet I need to be knowledgeable of and interactive with the change. Empowering myself enables me to empower my students. Not only do I desire to obtain my goals as a teacher, yet I also want to assist in the formation of the goals of those who inherit the world.

Antitrust Summary :: Film Review

Antitrust   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The movie Antitrust is a movie that does what many technology based movies do today. It exposes the truth about what we can really do with our increasingly advancing technology and how it can affect our lives immensely. In the story of Antitrust the plot evolves around what is called S.Y.N.A.P.S.E., which represents what will â€Å"Transform the way people communicate.† This new form of communication, due to S.Y.N.A.P.S.E., will be the first satellite delivered global communications system that links simultaneously every communication device in the world. The film addresses various sociological issues and deals with topics relevant to today’s society. The main character, Milo, is an idealistic young computer genius with an artist girlfriend and a bright future. He and his friend, Teddy fantasize about launching a start-up company when he’s recruited by NURV (Never Underestimate Radical Vision), a multi-billion dollar corporation, run by his professional hero, Gary Winston. Winston takes a personal interest in Milo. Little to Milo’s knowledge, Winston has ulterior motives. He needs his brilliance to stay ahead of the field in the race for convergence. â€Å"There is no second place,† Winston implants in his employees as a motivator. For Milo it’s a dream come true, a chance to become a legend in his own right. It’s hard to disappoint Teddy, but their offer is too good to refuse. With a talented new colleague, Milo is soon caught up in the exciting challenge of realizing Winston’s vision. Winston is an inspired mentor and no problem remains unsolved for long, but new developments are brought to Milo with such speed and frequency, he begins to doubt their source.

Irc, Cva and Var †New Methods in Basel Essay

I. Introduction Last financial crisis was seen as a strong slap on the global economy. It has awakened Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS) about the importance of an aggregation between market and credit risks that banks have to cope with. In accordance with Saunders and Cornett (2011), definition of market risk is â€Å"the risk related to the uncertainty of an FI’s (financial institution) earnings on its trading portfolio caused by changes, and particularly extreme changes, in market conditions†. Interest rate risk and foreign exchange risk are some typical example for market risks (Saunders and Cornett, 2011). Meanwhile, credit risk is defined as risk increased when borrowers, bond issuers and counterparties in derivatives transaction may default (Hull, 2010). According to Madigan (2010), it would be greater risks when credit and market risks associated than the sum of individual factors. Therefore, it might lead to worse impacts to banks’ operations. From the crisis’s consequences, Nout Wellink – chairman of the Basel Committee believes that it is necessary for supervisors to learn experiences from recent events, thus set up new methods for banks to cope with fore problems (Ferry, 2008). These new rules which are reflected in Basel III support each other to efficiently measure and manage correlated risks, thus calculate capital requirement to cover these risks. A report by Goeth (2010) defines Basel III as an extensive set of measures reformed in order to enhance the regulation, supervision and risk management in terms of banking. This report mentions new methods with their strengths, weaknesses and effectiveness to help banks control and measure risks effectively, especially combination of credit and market risks. They are incremental risk charge (IRC), credit valuation adjustment (CVA) and stresses value at risk (VAR) model. II. Incremental Risk Charge – IRC 1. Strengths of Incremental Risk Charge Model In order to avoid crisis, banks must satisfy capital requirement demanded by Basel Committee to cover individual as well as correlated risks. IRC is a method which helps banks to estimate minimum capital needed to cover risks from unsecuritised credit instruments caused by default and migration events (BCBS, 2009b). It means IRC model calculates the maximum risks in the worst case when banks cannot securitise any products. As a result, banks have to set up the suitable capital for their own business and make sure that they can overcome difficulties even in the worst situation. In other words, banks will be safe from default and migration events, and more importantly, they can avoid crisis by using IRC model. In Basel III, with IRC model, risks can be measured for a one-year capital horizon at 99.9% confidence level, instead of a 10-day VAR at the 99% confidence level as in Basel II (Davidson, 2009). The extension of capital horizon is one of IRC’s strengths because it can evaluate and calculate  banks’ risks more effectively and accurately than 10-day VAR. The reason is one-day or 10-day VAR cannot comprise completely large cumulative price variation occurring several weeks or months as well as large daily losses which only happen two or three times per year (BCBS, 2009b). As a result, one-year horizon is the optimal time for banks to rebalance their capital. 2. Weaknesses of Incremental Risk Charge Model Under BCBS’s approval, banks are expected to improve their own IRC models to calculate risks for individual positions or sets of positions (BCBS, 2009b). It means the Committee hopes banks will have their own choice of liquidity horizon which is appropriate with their business without any issued industry benchmarks or standards (Stretton, 2011). However, it leads to inconsistence within banking system. Furthermore, supervisors have to face with more difficulties in process of evaluating banks’ IRC model. Although IRC helps bank to capture risks more effectively, especially when market and credit risks collide, there is a significant weakness still be existing. It is the overlap of counterparty credit risk cooperated with over the counters (OTC) and repo-style transactions between IRC and CVA (Stretton, 2011). As a consequence, it will lead to duplicate capital charge for the banks. Suggested by Linsz (2010) – the corporate Treasurer of Bank of America, the Committee should apply an integrated approach to combine the overlapping risks by deleting the risk above in IRC model, hence build up more accurate capital charge for banks. In fact, Bank of America thinks duplicated capital charge is inappropriate with risk management practices (Linsz, 2010). 3. Effectiveness of Incremental Risk Charge Model According to BCBS (2009b), IRC model mainly compounds two types of risks: default risk and credit migration risk. The origin of default risks can be obligors’ default and/or default events. As a result, it may lead to direct losses and/or indirect losses respectively. Meanwhile, credit migration risks may come from internal or external rating downgrade or upgrade as well as credit migration events (BCBS, 2009b). A study by Kealhofer et al. (1998) and Kealhofer (2003) (cited in Varotto,  2011), there are two main methods applied to rate company’s performance which are Through The Cycle (TTC) rating and Point In Time (PIT) rating. Both two rating methods are used to evaluate repay ability of a business, thus bank sets up its own capital to cover risks in case of the business’s default. Nevertheless, there are several differences between TTC and PIT ratings are as follows. While TTC rating tries to achieve stable rating which is not influenced by economic variation over mid-term or long-term, PIT rating reflects changes of the market as well as credit migration through the credit rating in a short-term. A study by Benford and Nier (2007) found that banks prefer to use PIT rating because it can update market variations and reflect them through enterprise’s credit rating downgrade or upgrade more effectively. In other words, IRC model which is used to estimate capital requi rement for banks based on their risks is influenced by both credit and market risks. III. Credit Valuation Adjustment (CVA) 1. Strengths of Credit Valuation Adjustment A capital charge for credit valuation adjustment (CVA) is a procedure used to calculate capital requirement for mark to market losses associated with counterparties’ decreased creditworthiness (BCBS, 2011b). Compare with the traditional method, CVA is more dynamic because it allows a bank or a financial institution to have trading opportunities with large exposures that excel limits set up to oppose future risks – the thing that the traditional method does not permit (Algorithmics, 2009). In fact, based on high risk, high return theory, banks have chance to increase their profit by the trading opportunities as above. Therefore, applying CVA approach instead of the traditional one may help banks achieve much profit. 2. Weaknesses of Credit Valuation Adjustment When banks apply CVA approach, they have to face with a difficulty which is seen as weakness of CVA. It is banks cannot identify and evaluate counterparty’s credit rating accurately (Cameron, 2011). One of the reasons of this disadvantage is derivatives which are originally purchased between bank and counterparty can be transferred to the third party, then fourth party and so on†¦ As a consequence, the bank cannot control its  counterparties effectively, thus it will lead to bank’s incorrect rating counterparty. Another reason might be mistakes of rating agencies because they do not have enough information about banks’ counterparty. Therefore, it will cause inaccurate risk measure when applying CVA approach. In addition, a report undertaken in this area (Cameron, 2011) shows that there are some participants found CVA’s structuring is sophisticated to apply in several real situations. The dealer proves that there still be existing a lot of pitfalls and problems through the calculating risk process. As a consequence, it might lead to many difficulties for banks in using CVA. 3. Effectiveness of Credit Valuation Adjustment A study by Barus et al. (2010) found that CVA approach uses one-year market risk horizon instead of 10-day. It is the same horizon with model as well as VAR models; therefore it helps banks manage risks easier based on integrated time horizon between risks controlling models. In addition, BCBS (2011b) states that CVA capital charge includes charge for mark to market losses and counterparty’s devaluation in creditworthiness. If banks purchase securities at current time, then their market price decreases, banks will take an expenditure called mark to market losses. CVA captures these risks above means it covers market risk might occur to the banks. In fact, within the last crisis, only one-third of counterparty credit risks were due to actual defaults while the remaining two-thirds caused by CVA losses, especially mark-to-market losses (Goeth, 2010). As mentioned above, CVA also captures risk of counterparty’s devaluation in creditworthiness. According to BCBS (2011a), creditworthiness mentions ability to repay or meet debt obligation of an individual or an enterprise. Therefore, when the counterparty’s repay ability deteriorates, it will lead to increasing of CVA capital charge for banks (Bushnell, 2007) in order to help banks prepare an adequate capital. Put differently, CVA not only captures market risks but also cover credit risks that banks have to face with. As a result, CVA and IRC model associate and support each other to help banks measure and manage combination of market and credit risks more  completely effectively. IV. Stressed VAR 1. Strengths of Stressed VAR Model According to Butler (1999), VAR is defined as calculation used to measure â€Å"the worst expected loss that an institution can suffer over a given time interval under normal market conditions at a given confidence level.† After the crisis in the year 2007, Basel Committee realised that market condition is not always consistent. Therefore, stressed VAR was created to compute VAR which would be performed on the present portfolio of a bank in case that the related market elements were going through a stressed period (BCBS, 2009a). Based on VAR calculated, banks are required to have an appropriate amount of capital to cover their worst expected loss. One of VAR charge’s strengths is it reduces the pro-cyclical capital which are disadvantages for the banks. As stated by Christopher Finger (cited in Pengelly, 2011), recent data used for calculating VAR moved around and around, and it might lead to bad aggregation of more volatile markets, dealers’ losses and enlarged capital. 2. Weaknesses of Stressed VAR Model The weaknesses that can be easily seen in stressed VAR model is stressed VAR cannot capture migration and default risks of banks. That is the reason why banks also have to apply IRC model to capture these risks. Furthermore, stressed VAR also cannot cover mark-to-market losses which need to be measured by CVA approach. Therefore, banks have to cope with more complexity in risk measure; as a consequence, banks can make more mistakes in calculating risk process. One more important point is stressed VAR is not able to measure risk in a normal market condition, thus banks need to use one more different model – normal VAR calculation to measure this type of risk. Consequently, it will require really careful and complicated risk management system in order to measure risk accurately. 3. Effectiveness of Stressed VAR Model In accordance with BCBS (2011c), the effectiveness of stressed VAR model is performed through it can include all risks, for instance interest rate risk,  commodity risk, etc. over a period of stressed market that banks recently experienced. In other words, the more types of risks stressed VAR can cover, the more accurately banks can measure and manage risks. From the stressed VAR’s definition mentioned above, BCBS suggested that â€Å"it should be based on the 10-day, 99th percentile, one-tailed confidence interval VAR measure of the current portfolio, with model inputs calibrated to historical data from a continuous 12-month period of significant financial stress relevant to the bank’s portfolio.† It means stressed VAR uses the same time horizon with IRC and CVA in order to help banks reduce mistakes in risk calculating process due to united horizon. Concurrently, the same time horizon also assists supervisors to revise banks’ risks more effectively. Besides, in order to set up an effective risk management method, banks have to use time-series data of 12-continuous-month for stressed VAR model that includes financial stress event which is relevant to banks’ portfolio (BCBS, 2011c). As a result, the financial crisis from 2007 to 2009 is the time period suggested by the Committee to banks to be used for building stressed VAR model. V. Conclusion In Basel III, three new methods above – Incremental Risk Charge, Capital Valuation Adjustment and Stressed Value at Risk – are concurrently used by the banks and they support each other to measure and manage risks more effectively. Strengths of one method are supplementary for others’ weaknesses. That is the reason why banks are required by Basel Committee to add both of three methods into their risk management. With normal VAR model, IRC, CVA and stressed VAR approaches help banks not only control risks as individual factors but also measure and manage risks as a combination, especially the aggregation of credit and market risks more efficiently. From that, banks need to set up their own capital which is appropriate with their financial situation in order to face with difficulties that the financial crisis 2007-2009 was the typical example. Besides undeniable advantages of three new rules, the largest banks in the world, such as Bank of America, UBS, Royal Bank of Scotland, still found  significant weaknesses and gave comment on the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision’s consultative documents. Basel Committee should concern about these recommendations to readjust Basel III in order to set up an accurate and effective regulation documents for international banks to help banks in particular as well as financial institutions in general avoid disasters as the financial crisis happened in 2007 to 2009. VI. References Algorithmics, (2009) Credit Value Adjustment and the changing environment for pricing and managing counterparty risk. [Online]. Available at: http://www.algorithmics.com/EN/media/pdfs/Algo-WP1209-CVASurvey.pdf (Accessed: 02 January 2012) Barus, R., Battaglia, F., Jagannathan, R., Mendis, J., and Onorato, M., (2010) Basel III: What’s new? Business and technological challenges. [Online]. Available at: http://www.algorithmics.com/en/media/pdfs/algo-wp0910-lr-basel3-exd.pdf (Accessed: 02 January 2012) Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, (2009a) Analysis of the trading book quantitative impact study. Bank for International Settlements. Basel. Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, (2009b) Guidelines for computing capital for incremental risk in the trading book. Bank for International Settlements. Basel. Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, (2011a) Application of own credit risk adjustments to derivatives. Bank for International Settlements. Basel. Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, (2011b) Basel III: A global regulatory framework for more resilient banks and banking systems. Bank for International Settlements. Basel. Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, (2011c) Interpretive issues with respect to the revisions to the market risk framework. Bank for International Settlements. Basel. Benford, J. & Nier, E. (2007) Monitoring cyclicality of Basel II capital requirements. [Online]. Available at: http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/publications/fsr/fs_paper03.pdf (Accessed: 28 December 2011) Bushnell, C. D. (2007) Detailed Comments on Market Risk NPR’. [Online]. Available at: http://www.federalreserve.gov/SECRS/2007/February/20070213/R-1266/R-1266_17_1.pdf (Accessed: 06 January 2012) Butler, C. (1999) Mastering value at risk: a step-by-step guide to understanding and applying VAR. London: Financial Times/Prentice Hall. Cameron, M. (2011) ‘Securitising CVA’, Risk, 24(2), p. 29. Davidson, C. (2009) ‘Urgency and uncertainty’, Risk, 22(4), p. 72. Ferry, J. (2008) ‘Wary of the IRC’, Risk, 21(9), p. 26. Goeth, P. (2010) Basel III – Design and Potential Impact. [Online]. Available at: http://www.garp.org/media/529782/basel%20iii_goeth112410.pdf (Accessed: 28 December 2011) Hull, C. J. (2010) Risk management and financial institutions. Boston, MA Harlow: Pearson Education. Linsz, D. M. (2010) Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, Consultative Document â€Å"Strengthening the Resilient of Banking Sector†. [Online]. Available at: http://www.bis.org/publ/bcbs165/boac.pdf (Accessed: 28 December 2011) Madigan, P. (2010) When market and credit risk collide. [Online]. Available at: Available at: http://www.risk.net/risk-magazine/feature/1652766/when-market-credit-risk-collide (Accessed: 03 January 2012) Pengelly, M. (2011) Stressed VAR questioned by risk managers. [Online]. Available at: http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:8Hl5fareW-UJ:www.risk.net/risk-magazine/news/2024562/stressed-var-questioned-risk-managers+Stressed+VAR+questioned+by+risk+managers&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=uk (Accessed: 28 December 2011)

In writing a narrative essay Essay

Include sensory and emotional details, so the reader will experience the story, not just read about it Have the story support the point you are making, and make reference to that point in the first sentence. Write in the first or third person Descriptive Descriptive essays have text which describes traits and characteristics of people, objects, events, feelings, etc in intricate detail. Whatever is being described will be thoroughly examined. For example, if you were describing roses, you would explain: Where they come from What they look like What colors they are How they grow and smell When you write a descriptive essay, you want to involve the reader’s senses and emotions. For example, you could say, â€Å"I got sleepy† or describe it like this, â€Å"As I was waiting for Santa, my eyelids began to get heavy, the lights on the tree began to blur with the green branches, and my head started to drop.† The second sentence gives vivid details to make the reader feel like he is there. Exposition See more: how to start a personal narrative essay examples Expository essays can compare, explore and discuss problems, or tell a story. An exposition essay gives information about various topics to the reader. It: Informs Describes Explains In writing an exposition, the text needs to: Be concise and easy to understand Give different views on a subject or report on a situation or event Explain something that may be difficult to understand as you write your essay. Remember that your purpose is to explain. Argumentative In an argumentative essay the writer is trying to convince the reader by demonstrating the truth or falsity of a topic. The writer’s position will be backed up with certain kinds of evidence, like statistics or opinions of experts. The writer is not just giving an opinion, but making an argument for or against something and supporting that argument with data. To know how to write an essay in an argumentative way, you have to research and backup what you say in the text. Learn by Example When learning how to write an essay, sometimes the best way to learn is to look and analyze essay examples. Following are excerpts from narrative essays: â€Å"Looking back on a childhood filled with events and memories, I find it rather difficult to pick on that leaves me with the fabled â€Å"warm and fuzzy feelings.† As the daughter of an Air Force Major, I had the pleasure of traveling across America in many moving trips. I have visited the monstrous trees of the Sequoia National Forest, stood on the edge of the Grande Canyon and have jumped on the beds at Caesar’s Palace in Lake Tahoe.† â€Å"The day I picked my dog up from the pound was one of the happiest days of both of our lives. I had gone to the pound just a week earlier with the idea that I would just â€Å"look† at a puppy. Of course, you can no more just look at those squiggling little faces so filled with hope and joy than you can stop the sun from setting in the morning. I knew within minutes of walking in the door that I would get a puppy†¦ but it wasn’t until I saw him that I knew I had found my puppy.† â€Å"Looking for houses was supposed to be a fun and exciting process. Unfortunately, none of the ones that we saw seemed to match the specifications that we had established. They were too small, too impersonal, too close to the neighbors. After days of finding nothing even close, we began to wonder: was there really a perfect house out there for us?† The following is an example of a famous narrative written by John Updike, â€Å"Hub Fans Bid Kid Adieu†: â€Å"The afternoon grew so glowering that in the sixth inning the arc lights were turned on–always a wan sight in the daytime, like the burning headlights of a funeral procession. Aided by the gloom, Fisher was slicing through the Sox rookies, and Williams did not come to bat in the seventh. He was second up in the eighth. This was almost certainly his last time to come to the plate in Fenway Park, and instead of merely cheering, as we had at his three previous appearances, we stood, all of us, and applauded.† Following are excerpts from descriptive essays: â€Å"Like his twisted feathers, his many scars, the reliable old owl chose the gnarled, weather-beaten, but solid branch often—it being a companion to the wise alone with the night and the last branch to creak in the heaviest wind. He often came to survey the fields and the clouds before his hunt, to listen to the steady sound of the stream passing through reeds under the bridge, while combing his feathers for the unwanteds—whatever they might be.† Here is a descriptive essay about a first visit to a favorite diner written by a student at Roane State Community College:†When entering the door at Lou’s, two things are immediately noticeable: the place is rarely empty and seems to consist of a maze of rooms. The first room, through the door, is the main part of the restaurant. There is another, rarely used, dining room off to the right. It was added during the oil well boom of the seventies. Through the main dining room is yet another room; it guards the door leading into the kitchen. This room contains the most coveted table in the place. The highest tribute Lou can bestow on anyone is to allow them access to seats at this table. This table is the family table; it is reserved for Lou’s, and her daughter Karen’s, immediate family and treasured friends.† Here is an example of a descriptive essay from St. Cloud State:†Billy Ray’s Pawn Shop and Lawn Mower Repair looked like a burial ground for country auction rejects. The blazing, red, diesel fuel tanks beamed in front of the station, looking like cheap lipstick against the pallid, wrinkled texture of the parking lot sand. The yard, not much larger than the end zone at General G. Patton High School on the north end of town, was framed with a rusted metallic hedge of lawn mowers, banana seat bicycles, and corroded oil drums. It wasn’t a calico frame of rusted parts, but rather an orchestra of unwanted machinery that Billy Ray had arranged into sections. The yellow-tanked mowers rested silently at the right of the diesel fuel. Once red, now faded orange, mowers stood at attention to the left. The oil barrels, jaded and pierced with holes, bellared like chimes when the wind was right. The bikes rested sporadically throughout the lot. In the middle of it all was the office, a faded, steel roof supported by cheap two-by-fours and zebra paneling. Billy Ray was at home, usually, five blocks east of town on Kennel Road.† Following are excerpts from exposition essays: â€Å"This family was a victim of a problem they could have avoided-a problem that, according to Florida park rangers, hundreds of visitors suffer each year.† Several times a month,† ranger Rod Torres of O’Leno State Park said, â€Å"people get scared and leave the park in the middle of the night.† Those people picked the wrong kind of park to visit. Not that there was anything wrong with the park: The hikers camped next to them loved the wild isolation of it. But it just wasn’t the kind of place the couple from New Jersey had in mind when they decided to camp out on this trip through Florida.† Here is an example of a student model answer of an Expository Essay from The Write Source:†Did you know that 7 out of 10 students have cheated at least once in the past year? Did you know that 50 percent of those students have cheated more than twice? These shocking statistics are from a survey of 9,000 U.S. high school students.Incredibly, teachers may even be encouraging their students to cheat! Last year at a school in Detroit, teachers allegedly provided their students with answers to statewide standard tests.†Here is an another example of an expository essay. This example comes from Essay Start:†Throughout history and through a cross-section of cultures, women have transformed their appearance to conform to a beauty ideal. Ancient Chinese aristocrats bound their feet as a show of femininity; American and European women in the 1800s cinched in their waists so tightly, some suffered internal damage; in some African cultures women continue to wear plates in their lower lips, continually stretching the skin to receive plates of larger size. The North American ideal of beauty has continually focussed on women’s bodies: the tiny waist of the Victorian period, the boyish figure in vogue during the flapper era, and the voluptuous curves that were the measure of beauty between the 1930s and 1950s. Current standards emphasize a toned, slender look, one that exudes fitness, youth, and health. According to psychologist Eva Szekely, â€Å"Having to be attractive at this time . . . means unequivocally having to be thin. In North America today, thinness is a precondition for being perceived by others and oneself as healthy† (19). However, this relentless pursuit of thinness is not just an example of women trying to look their best, it is also a struggle for control, acceptance and success.† Finally, here are excerpts from argumentative essays: â€Å"Gun control has been a controversial issue for years. A vast majority of citizens believe that if gun control is strictly enforced it would quickly reduce the threat of crime. Many innocent people feel they have the right to bear arms for protection, or even for the pleasure of hunting. These people are penalized for protecting their lives, or even for enjoying a common, innocent sport. To enforce gun control throughout the nation means violating a persons Constitutional rights. Although some people feel that the issue of gun control will limit crime, the issue should not exist due to the fact that guns are necessary for self defense against crime, and by enforcing gun control is violating a citizen’s second amendment right to bear arms.† Another examples of an argumentative essay comes from Bogazici University:†Throw out the bottles and boxes of drugs in your house. A new theory suggests that medicine could be bad for your health, which should at leastcome as good news to people who cannot afford to buy expensive medicine. However, it is a blow to the medicine industry, and an evenbigger blow to our confidence in the progress of science. This new theory argues that healing is at our fingertips: we can be healthy by doing Reikion on a regular basis.† On Essay By Example, on the other hand, the sample argumentative essay addresses online games and socialization:

Forward the Foundation Chapter 25

12 Las Zenow said with a certain trace of awe in his voice, â€Å"I didn't know you were so friendly with the Emperor, Professor Seldon.† â€Å"Why not? He's a very democratic fellow for an Emperor and he was interested in my experiences as a First Minister in Cleon's time.† â€Å"It made a deep impression on us all. We haven't had an Emperor in our halls for many years. Generally, when the Emperor needs something from the Library-â€Å" â€Å"I can imagine. He calls for it and it is brought to him as a matter of courtesy.† â€Å"There was once a suggestion,† said Zenow chattily, â€Å"that the Emperor be outfitted with a complete set of computerized equipment in his palace, hooked directly into the Library system, so that he would not need to wait for service. This was in the old days when credits were plentiful, but, you know, it was voted down.† â€Å"Was it?† â€Å"Oh yes, almost the entire Board agreed that it would make the Emperor too much a part of the Library and that this would threaten our independence from the government.† â€Å"And does this Board, which will not bend to honor an Emperor, consent to let me remain at the Library?† â€Å"At the present moment, yes. There is a feeling-and I've done my best to encourage it-that if we are not polite to a personal friend of the Emperor, the chance of a rise in appropriations will be gone altogether, so-â€Å" â€Å"So credits-or even the dim prospect of credits-talk.† â€Å"I'm afraid so.† â€Å"And can I bring in my colleagues?† Zenow looked embarrassed. â€Å"I'm afraid not. The Emperor was seen walking only with you-not with your colleagues. I'm sorry, Professor.† Seldon shrugged and a mood of deep melancholy swept over him. He had no colleague to bring in, anyhow. For some time he had hoped to locate others like Wanda and he had failed. He, too, would need funding to mount an adequate search. And he, too, had nothing. 13 Trantor, the capital world-city of the Galactic Empire, had changed considerably since the day Hari first stepped off the hypership from his native Helicon thirty-eight years ago. Was it the pearly haze of an old man's memory that made the Trantor of old shine so brightly in his mind's eye, Hari wondered. Or perhaps it had been the exuberance of youth-how could a young man from a provincial Outer World such as Helicon not be impressed by the gleaming towers, sparkling domes, the colorful, rushing masses of people that had seemed to swirl through Trantor, day and night. Now, Hari thought sadly, the walkways are nearly deserted, even in the full light of day. Roving gangs of thugs controlled various areas of the city, competing among themselves for territory. The security establishment had dwindled; those who were left had their hands full processing complaints at the central office. Of course, security officers were dispatched as emergency calls came through, but they made it to the scene only after a crime was committed-they no longer made even a pretense of protecting the citizens of Trantor. A person went out at his own risk-and a great risk it was. And yet Hari Seldon still took that risk, in the form of a daily walk, as if defying the forces that were destroying his beloved Empire to destroy him as well. And so Hari Seldon walked along, limping-and thoughtful. Nothing worked. Nothing. He had been unable to isolate the genetic pattern that set Wanda apart-and without that, he was unable to locate others like her. Wanda's ability to read minds had sharpened considerably in the six years since she had identified the flaw in Yugo Amaryl's Prime Radiant. Wanda was special in more ways than one. It was as if, once she realized that her mental ability set her apart from other people, she was determined to understand it, to harness its energy, to direct it. As she had progressed through her teen years, she had matured, throwing off the girlish giggles that had so endeared her to Hari, at the same time becoming even dearer to him in her determination to help him in his work with the powers of her â€Å"gift.† For Hari Seldon had told Wanda about his plan for a Second Foundation and she had committed herself to realizing that goal with him. Today, though, Seldon was in a dark mood. He was coming to the conclusion that Wanda's mentalic ability would get him nowhere. He had no credits to continue his work-no credits to locate others like Wanda, no credits to pay his workers on the Psychohistory Project at Streeling, no credits to set up his all-important Encyclopedia Project at the Galactic Library. Now what? He continued to walk toward the Galactic Library. He would have been better off taking a gravicab, but he wanted to walk-limp or not. He needed time to think. He heard a cry-â€Å"There he is!†-but paid no attention. It came again. â€Å"There he is! Psychohistory!† The word forced him to look up. Psychohistory. A group of young men was closing in around him. Automatically Seldon placed his back against the wall and raised his cane. â€Å"What is it you want?† They laughed. â€Å"Credits, old man. Do you have any credits?† â€Å"Maybe, but why do you want them from me? You said, ‘Psychohistory!' Do you know who I am?† â€Å"Sure, you're Raven Seldon† said the young man in the lead. He seemed both comfortable and pleased. â€Å"You're a creep,† shouted another. â€Å"What are you going to do if I don't give you any credits?† â€Å"We'll beat you up,† said the leader, â€Å"and we'll take them.† â€Å"And if I give you my credits?† â€Å"We'll beat you up anyway!† They all laughed. Hari Seldon raised his cane higher. â€Å"Stay away. All of you.† By now he had managed to count them. There were eight. He felt himself choking slightly. Once he and Dors and Raych had been attacked by ten and they had had no trouble. He had been only thirty-two at the time and Dors-was Dors. Now it was different. He waved his cane. The leader of the hoodlums said, â€Å"Hey, the old man is going to attack us. What are we going to do?† Seldon looked around swiftly. There were no security officers around. Another indication of the deterioration of society. An occasional person or two passed by, but there was no use calling for help. Their footsteps increased in speed and made a wide detour. No one was going to run any risks of getting involved in an imbroglio. Seldon said, â€Å"The first one of you who approaches gets a cracked head.† â€Å"Yeah?† And the leader stepped forward rapidly and seized the cane. There was a short sharp struggle and the cane was wrested from Seldon's grip. The leader tossed it to one side. â€Å"Now what, old man?† Seldon shrunk back. He could only wait for the blows. They crowded around him, each eager to land a blow or two. Seldon lifted his arms to try to ward them off. He could still Twist-after a fashion. If he were facing only one or two, he might be able to Twist his body, avoid their blows, strike back. But not against eight-surely not against eight. He tried, at any rate, moving quickly to one side to avoid the blows and his right leg, with its sciatica, doubled under him. He fell and knew himself to be utterly helpless. Then he heard a stentorian voice shouting, â€Å"What's going on here? Get back, you thugs! Back or I'll kill you all!† The leader said, â€Å"Well, another old man.† â€Å"Not that old,† said the newcomer. With the back of one hand, he struck the leader's face, turning it an ugly red. Seldon said in surprise, â€Å"Raych, it's you.† Raych's hand swept back. â€Å"Stay out of this, Dad. Just get up and move away.† The leader, rubbing his cheek, said, â€Å"We'll get you for that.† â€Å"No, you won't,† said Raych, drawing out a knife of Dahlite manufacture, long and gleaming. A second knife was withdrawn and he now held one in each hand. Seldon said weakly, â€Å"Still carrying knives, Raych?† â€Å"Always,† said Raych. â€Å"Nothing will ever make me stop.† â€Å"I'll stop you,† said the leader, drawing out a blaster. Faster than the eye could follow, one of Raych's knives went sailing through the air and struck the leader's throat. He made a loud gasp, then a gurgling sound, and fell, while the other seven stared. Raych approached and said, â€Å"I want my knife back.† He drew it out of the hoodlum's throat and wiped it on the man's shirtfront. In doing so, he stepped on the man's hand, bent down, and picked up his blaster. Raych dropped the blaster into one of his capacious pockets. He said, â€Å"I don't like to use a blaster, you bunch of good-for-nothings, because sometimes I miss. I never miss with a knife, however. Never! That man is dead. There are seven of you standing. Do you intend to stay standing or will you leave?† â€Å"Get him!† shouted one of the hoodlums and the seven made a concerted rush. Raych took a backward step. One knife flashed and then the other and two of the hoodlums stopped with, in each case, a knife buried in his abdomen. â€Å"Give me back my knives,† said Raych, pulling each out with a cutting motion and wiping them. â€Å"These two are still alive, but not for long. That leaves five of you on your feet. Are you going to attack again or are you going to leave?† They turned and Raych called out, â€Å"Pick up your dead and dying. I don't want them.† Hastily they flung the three bodies over their shoulders, then they turned tail and ran. Raych bent to pick up Seldon's cane. â€Å"Can you walk, Dad?† â€Å"Not very well,† said Seldon. â€Å"I twisted my leg.† â€Å"Well then, get into my car. What were you doing walking, anyway?† â€Å"Why not? Nothing's ever happened to me.† â€Å"So you waited till something did. Get into my car and I'll give you a lift back to Streeling.† He programmed the ground-car quietly, then said, â€Å"What a shame we didn't have Dors with us. Mom would have attacked them with her bare lands and left all eight dead in five minutes.† Seldon felt tears stinging his eyelids. â€Å"I know, Raych, I know. Do you think I don't miss her every day?† â€Å"I'm sorry,† said Raych in a low voice. Seldon asked, â€Å"How did you know I was in trouble?† â€Å"Wanda told me. She said there were evil people lying in wait for you, she told me where they were and I took right off.† â€Å"Didn't you doubt that she knew what she was talking about?† â€Å"Not at all. We know enough about her now to know that she has some sort of contact with your mind and with the things around you.† â€Å"Did she tell you how many people were attacking me?† â€Å"No. She just said, ‘Quite a few.'† â€Å"So you came out all by yourself, did you, Raych?† â€Å"I had no time to put together a posse, Dad. Besides, one of me was enough.† â€Å"Yes, it was. Thank you, Raych.† 14 They were back at Streeling now and Seldon's leg was stretched out on a hassock. Raych looked at him somberly. â€Å"Dad,† he began, â€Å"you're not to go walking around Trantor on your own from now on.† Seldon frowned. â€Å"Why, because of one incident?† â€Å"It was enough of an incident. You can't take care of yourself any longer. You're seventy years old and your right leg will not support you in an emergency. And you have enemies-â€Å" â€Å"Enemies!† â€Å"Yes, indeed. And you know it. Those sewer rats were not after simply anyone. They were not looking for just any unwary person to rip off. They identified you by calling out, ‘Psychohistory!' And they called you a creep. Why do you suppose that was?† â€Å"I don't know why.† â€Å"That's because you live in a world all your own, Dad, and you don't know what's going on on Trantor. Don't you suppose the Trantorians know that their world is going downhill at a rapid rate? Don't you suppose they know that your psychohistory has been predicting this for years? Doesn't it occur to you that they may blame the messenger for the message? If things go bad-and they are going bad-there are many who think that you are responsible for it.† â€Å"I can't believe that.† â€Å"Why do you suppose there's a faction at the Galactic Library that wants you out of there? They don't want to be in the way when you are mobbed. So-you've got to take care of yourself. You can't go out alone. I'll have to be with you or you will have to have bodyguards. That's the way it's going to be, Dad.† Seldon looked dreadfully unhappy. Raych softened and said, â€Å"But not for long, Dad. I've got a new job.' Seldon looked up. â€Å"A new job. What kind?† â€Å"Teaching. At a University.† â€Å"Which University?† â€Å"Santanni.† Seldon's lips trembled. â€Å"Santanni! That's nine thousand parsecs away from Trantor. It's a provincial world on the other side of the Galaxy.† â€Å"Exactly. That's why I want to go there. I've been on Trantor all my life, Dad, and I'm tired of it. There's no world in all the Empire that's deteriorating the way Trantor is. It's become a haunt of crime with no one to protect us. The economy is limping, the technology is failing. Santanni, on the other hand, is a decent world, still humming along, and I want to be there to build a new life, along with Manella and Wanda and Bellis. We're all going there in two months.† â€Å"All of you!† â€Å"And you, Dad. And you. We wouldn't leave you behind on Trantor. You're coming with us to Santanni.† Seldon shook his head. â€Å"Impossible, Raych. You know that.† â€Å"Why impossible?† â€Å"You know why. The Project. My psychohistory. Are you asking me to abandon my life's work?† â€Å"Why not? It's abandoned you.† â€Å"You're mad.† â€Å"No, I'm not. Where are you going with it? You have no credits. You can't get any. There's no one left on Trantor who's willing to support you.† â€Å"For nearly forty year-â€Å" â€Å"Yes, I admit that. But after all that time, you've failed Dad. There's no crime in failing. You've tried so hard and you've gone so far, but you've run into a deteriorating economy, a falling Empire. It's the very thing you've been predicting for so long that's stopping you at last. So-â€Å" â€Å"No. I will not stop. Somehow or other, I will keep going.† â€Å"I tell you what, Dad. If you're really going to be so stubborn, then take psychohistory with you. Start it again on Santanni. There may be enough credits-and enthusiasm-to support it there.† â€Å"And the men and women who have been working for me so faithfully?† â€Å"Oh bull, Dad. They've been leaving you because you can't pay them. You hang around here for the rest of your life and you'll be alone. Oh, come on, Dad. Do you think I like to talk to you this way? It's because no one has wanted to-because no one has had the heart to-that you're in your present predicament. Let's be honest with each other now. When you walk the streets of Trantor and you're attacked for no reason other than that you're Hari Seldon, don't you think it's time for a little bit of truth?† â€Å"Never mind the truth. I have no intention of leaving Trantor.† Raych shook his head. â€Å"I was sure you'd be stubborn, Dad. You've got two months to change your mind. Think about it, will you?† 15 It had been a long time since Hari Seldon had smiled. He had conducted the Project in the same fashion that he always did: pushing always forward in the development of psychohistory, making plans for the Foundation, studying the Prime Radiant. But he did not smile. All he did was to force himself through his work without any feeling of impending success. Rather, there was a feeling of impending failure about everything. And now, as he sat in his office at Streeling University, Wanda entered. He looked up at her and his heart lifted. Wanda had always been special. Seldon couldn't put his finger on just when he and the others had started accepting her pronouncements with more than the usual enthusiasm; it just seemed always to have been that way. As a little girl, she had saved his life with her uncanny knowledge of â€Å"lemonade death† and all through her childhood she had somehow just known things. Although Dr. Endelecki had asserted that Wanda's genome was perfectly normal in every way, Seldon was still positive that his granddaughter possessed mental abilities far beyond those of average humans. And he was just as sure that there were others like her in the Galaxy-on Trantor, even. If only he could find them, these mentalics, what a great contribution they could make to the Foundation. The potential for such greatness all centered in his beautiful granddaughter. Seldon gazed at her, framed in his office doorway, and he felt as if his heart would break. In a few days, she would be gone. How could he bear it? She was such a beautiful girl-eighteen. Long blond hair, face a little broad but with a tendency to smile. She was even smiling now and Seldon thought, Why not? She's heading for Santanni and for a new life. He said, â€Å"Well, Wanda, just a few more days.† â€Å"No. I don't think so, Grandpa.† He stared at her. â€Å"What?† Wanda approached him and put her arms around him. â€Å"I'm not going to Santanni.† â€Å"Have your father and mother changed their minds?† â€Å"No, they're going.† â€Å"And you're not? Why? Where are you going?† â€Å"I'm going to stay here, Grandpa. With you.† She hugged him. â€Å"Poor Grandpa!† â€Å"But I don't understand. Why? Are they allowing this?† â€Å"You mean Mom and Dad. Not really. We've been arguing over this for weeks, but I've won out. Why not, Grandpa? They'll go to Santanni and they'll have each other-and they'll have little Bellis, too. But if I go with them and leave you here, you'll have no one. I don't think I could stand that.† â€Å"But how did you get them to agree?† â€Å"Well, you know-I pushed.† â€Å"What does that mean?† â€Å"It's my mind. I can see what you have in yours and in theirs and, as time goes on, I can see more clearly. And I can push them to do what I want.† â€Å"How do you do that?† â€Å"I don't know. But after a while, they get tired of being pushed and they're willing to let me have my way. So I'm going to stay with you.† Seldon looked up at her with helpless love. â€Å"This is wonderful, Wanda. But Bellis-â€Å" â€Å"Don't worry about Bellis. She doesn't have a mind like mine.† â€Å"Are you certain?† Seldon chewed at his lower lip. â€Å"Quite certain. Besides, Mom and Dad have to have someone, too.† Seldon wanted to rejoice, but he couldn't do so openly. There were Raych and Manella. What of them? He said, â€Å"Wanda, what about your parents? Can you be so cold-blooded about them?† â€Å"I'm not cold-blooded. They understand. They realize I must be with you.† â€Å"How did you manage that?† â€Å"I pushed,† said Wanda simply, â€Å"and eventually they came to see it my way. â€Å"You can do that?† â€Å"It wasn't easy.† â€Å"And you did it because-† Seldon paused. Wanda said, â€Å"Because I love you. Of course. And because-â€Å" â€Å"Yes?† â€Å"I must learn psychohistory. I know quite a bit of it already.† â€Å"How?† â€Å"From your mind. From the minds of others at the Project, especially from Uncle Yugo before he died. But it's in rags and tatters, so far. I want the real thing. Grandpa, I want a Prime Radiant of my own.† Her face lit up and her words came quickly, with passion. â€Å"I want to study psychohistory in great detail. Grandpa, you're quite old and quite tired. I'm young and eager. I want to learn all I can, so I can carry on when-â€Å" Seldon said, â€Å"Well, that would be wonderful-if you could do it-but there is no funding anymore. I'll teach you all I can, but-we can't do anything.† â€Å"We'll see, Grandpa. We'll see.†