Violence in America: Guns under Fire Essay

Guns are used for protection against mayhem when the unexpected happens. As the citizens of the United States of America, the amendments are there to protect the freedom of the people. The second amendment protects the right of each individual to keep, and bear arms, and to defend our property, and most importantly ourselves. In James Q. Wilson’s New York Times article, â€Å"Just Take Away Their Guns,† Wilson argues that restraining people from legally purchasing firearms do not have any effect on the illegal use of guns, and reducing the amount of people who are illegally carrying one. He adequately reasons how the eradication of illegal guns on the streets should be the main focus regarding toughening American gun control regulations, which are the most frequently debated topic in America. Wilson claims that frisks and stops will eliminate illegal guns, and not multiplying the forms one fills to purchase a gun. James Q. Wilson targeted legally gun owners as his audie nce, uses logos and ethos to his rhetorical approach, and an effective, but could have had an overall stronger argument. Law abiding citizens such as legally gun owners are the intended audience in his topic, because of the, â€Å"legal restraints on the lawful purchase of guns† (p.124). To eliminate illegal use of guns there must a compromise between the government, and the citizens of rightfully legal gun owners. Toughening gun control legislation will have little effect on the illegal use of guns, which essentially decrease the amount of citizens buying guns. Wilson claims that roughly 200 million guns are owned by law abiding citizens, although, these guns are not the ones that are generally used for illegal and unlawful acts. Illegal uses of guns are usually obtainable through stolen, borrowed, or privately purchased that are used for gang related activities, burglaries, and or violent crimes. Wilson then makes a point that an increase in gun control regulations would take a big hit on none other than those law abiding citizens. The main purpose of owning these guns is for self-defense and to protect their loved ones, and properties. Collins Professor of Management and Public Policy at the University of California, James Q Wilson noted that, â€Å"Many cities suffer from a shortage of officers† is the exact reason why the citizens of the United States of America cannot reply on the government officials, such as the law enforcement to protect  the people, and their properties (p.125). Even if the gun control legislation successfully reduce the amount of lawful citizens to own guns. How will the government reduce the amount of people who are illegally owning guns in the present as well as the future? Wilson stated in his story that, â€Å"The average police officer will make no weapons arrests and confiscate no guns during any given year† Which will result in more illegal guns out on the streets than the law abiding citizens with registered guns (p.125). That will definitely strikes fear into the people’s mind knowing they can’t protect themselves, and quite frankly, not enough police officers to protect each, and every individual people in America at any given point of time. Law abiding guns owners are the intended target audience because Wilson’s claim is â€Å"legal restraints on the lawful purchase of guns will have little effect on the illegal use of guns† (p.124). James Q. Wilson strengthens his argument through the use ethos and logos to elaborate and emphasizes his thesis and claims of â€Å"Our goal should not be the disarming of law-abiding citizens. It should be to reduce the number of people who carry guns unlawfully, especially in places- on streets, in taverns- . . . â€Å"(p.124). The use of ethos helps Wilson to reinforce his claims and establishes credibility in his essay by using the fourth amendment of the constitution, Mark Moore, who is a professor of public policy at Harvard University, Gary Kleck, who is a criminologist at Florida State University, and The National Rifle Association to back up his argument. The use of ethos is effective in this essay for this topic, because the topic requires valid examples, statements, and statistics to anchor Wilson’s claims of gun control legislation, and the reduction of illegal guns on the streets. James Q. Wilson points out; â€Å"The Fourth Amendment to the constitution bans à ¢â‚¬Ëœunreasonable searches and seizure.’†(p.125). The amendment caused, â€Å"ample law-enforcement personnel worry about having their cases thrown out for constitutional reasons or being accused of police harassment† which results in shortage of police officers throughout cities in America (p.125). Harvard University is one of the top colleges in America, and with Mark Moore, a professor of public policy at Harvard University stated, â€Å"found that most weapons arrests were made because of a citizen complained, not because the police were out  looking for gun.†(p.125). Wilson uses a professor from Harvard University is an exponential clever way of supporting his claim for the gun control legislation, and making his argument even more effective. Gary Kleck is a credible guy, because of his career as a criminologist at Florida State University, and he, â€Å"has estimated that every year, guns are used- that is, displayed or fired- for defensive purposes more than a million times, not counting their use by the poli ce†(p.124). This statement by Gary Kleck supported Wilson’s examples of guns that are used to defend ourselves, and our properties, and as well as the law enforcement usage of guns to protect the country. Finally, Wilson uses a quote from The National Rifle Association and its allies that, â€Å"’guns don’t kill people, people kill people’† to emphasize the importance of, â€Å"urge the government to punish more severely people who use guns to commit crimes† instead of worrying too much about how to ban guns from law abiding citizens (p.126). James Q. Wilson uses logos for logical argument about gun control legislation, and its restraint on guns purchase that fails to have great effect on the illegal use of guns. Most people would argued that less guns mean less violence, but what they don’t know is that most crimes committed by guns are illegal that was stolen, borrowed, or bought from the black market. Wilson uses logos in his essay with organized structure along with a clear and concise thesis created an effective argument that is easily understood and followed by his target audience that generated a well-planned essay. Wilson backed up his argument by giving facts such as, â€Å"In 1992 the police arrested about 240,000 people for illegally possessing or carry weapon. â€Å"This is only about one-fourth as many as were arrested for public drunkenness† (p.125). That number is considered low if it is divided by every state in America. Considering these illegal gun holders are protected under the fourth amendment of unreasonable searches and seizures, which most of them probably got away with. â€Å"The reasonable –suspicion test is much less stringent than the probable cause standard the police must meet in order to make an arrest . . . more than just a hunch; it must be supported with facts include someone acting in a way that leads an experienced officer to conclude criminal activity . . . someone fleeing at the approach . . . a person who fits a drug courier profile; a motorist stopped for a traffic  violation who has a suspicious bulge in his pocket . . . Supreme Court has also upheld frisking people on probation or parole† (125). A criminal who know how to use the law to their advantage could potentially get away for their crimes and wrongdoings, and it puts the people in danger by knowing these illegal gun users might n ot go to jail, but set freed on parole and/or probation. Wilson used logos to rationalize appeal to the reader by stating facts and statistics to prove his claim and blended it with ethos to establish credibility for his argument. James Q. Wilson effectively presents his argument in a persuasive approach that uses different techniques such as ethos, logos, and organization. Wilson makes his ideas easy to follow by making the flow more sinuous which results in the contribution of the cohesiveness of his overall argument. The structure is clearly well planned and constructed that consisted of claims followed by statistics, counterclaims, and rebuttals. Even though Wilson made his argument effective, he concluded his counterclaim with frisks and stops made by police officers by patting down individual that seems suspicious. â€Å"Innocent people will be stopped. Young black and Hispanic men will probably be stopped more often than older while Anglo males or women of any race† (p.127) However, When Wilson made this point; he alludes to the idea of racial profiling, and he loses credibility by such reasoning. James Q. Wilson argument in this essay presents claims that were debatable in an informative way, and his thesis suggested solutions to the central problem regarding gun control legislation, and its legal restraints on lawful purchase of guns. Through the use of many techniques, Wilson created a well-organized and effective argument. However, had he addressed the issue of racial profiling with evidence, then he could have had an improved and sturdier effective argument. Works Cited Wilson, James Q. â€Å"Just Take Away Their Guns.† Current Issues and Enduring Questions. By Sylvan Barnet and Hugo Bedau. 9th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2011. 124-27. Print.

Characters important in the novel? Essay

1. 2. Steinbeck uses Crooks to show the loneliness of itinerant workers and the power of ‘the dream’. The harsh way in which he is treated by other characters indicates a strong sense of racism in America in the 1930s. 3. 4. Racism is an important theme in the novel due to an excess of prejudice towards black men and women in America during the 1930s. Crooks is ostracised at the ranch and is a victim of extreme violence because of the colour of his skin, â€Å"Smitty says he would have killed the nigger†¦ He [Candy] paused in relish of the memory. † Candy, who is seemingly a harmless old man â€Å"relishes† the thought of the stable buck being harmed and smiles in delight over the memory. This depicts an America where racism is socially acceptable and is an everyday occurrence with casual degrading racism by referring to Crooks as a â€Å"nigger† whose opinion is deemed worthless, â€Å"If I say something, why its just a nigger sayin’ it†- the oppression has caused him to become angry and at the same time pity himself in the idea that his is regarded as inferior. The fact that he begins to pity himself accentuates the severity of the racism, as the effect is so detrimental to him (and all black people) that he loses hope of ever attaining freedom. Furthermore, when we are made aware of his possessions, we are told of his owning a shotgun, illustrating a scenario where he may be abused to the extent that he is forced to use it out of self-defence. 5. When Lennie inquires as to why Crooks â€Å"ain’t wanted†, he replies â€Å"cause I’m black†¦ They say I stink. † The white people act as though it is offensive to them to have the stable buck in the bunk house and is a disgrace for him to be in their presence. Lennie, who is unaware of racism, is Steinbeck’s way of displaying that is not necessary as a white and black man can get along well. However the author does this to show us that the racism is out of ignorance and out of a need for power as the depression has left them with nothing. There is an element of irony here as Crooks â€Å"has books† and a â€Å"tattered dictionary† which shows he regularly uses it to expand his vocabulary, indicating that he is better educated than the other workers. This is important as it displays that he is in fact not inferior and does not deserve to be treated as though he is. Steinbeck’s intention here is to show the reader that the prejudice is ignorant and even though he is more intelligent than the white men he is still mistreated, depicting a society where racism is integral. 6. 7. The treatment Crooks receives on a daily basis is one surrounded by racial prejudice and acts of violence towards him. Nonetheless, when Candy enters his room infatuated by the dream, his demeanor is significantly more friendly. This shows that ‘the dream’ is very powerful and is able to break the racial barriers between the men. The stable buck’s response however, is somewhat cynical- â€Å"you guys just kiddin’ yourself†, expressing his lack of belief due to futile attempts at realising his own dream and seeing â€Å"too many guys† suffer the same fate. 8. Although Crooks is mocking of their dream, when Candy notes they â€Å"got the money right now† he expresses his desire to â€Å"come an’ lend a hand†, even though he has reason to doubt their talk of a farm of their own. This conveys his yearning to belong and the fact that he is beginning to become accepted by other workers sees the start of his dream unfolding. 9. 10. 11. Crooks is used by Steinbeck to represent the extremity of loneliness of itinerant ranch life in America. Before encountering Crooks we are made aware that at Christmas â€Å"Smitty took after the nigger† showing how he is constantly living in fear of others and is forced into a life of loneliness and segregation. We see that this violence has led him to isolate himself and become an â€Å"aloof man†; for the most part he is left alone in the stable, however when Lennie enters the harness room, â€Å"Crooks said sharply, ‘You got no right to come into my room’ † He is instantly suspicious of any kindness and anyone, due to past experiences of prejudice, and the extent of this suspicion is seen through â€Å"Crooks said sharply† as though he is almost resentful of company as he is accustomed to being alone. 12. Steinbeck uses Crooks to bring into perspective the loneliness experienced by all ranch hands during the depression as they migrate to find work. â€Å"A guy needs someone – to be near him. A guy goes nuts if he ain’t got nobody†¦I tell ya, a guy gets too lonely, an’ he gets sick† He is telling Lennie of the need for human interaction and to have someone to care for you and provide security. Crooks is talking mainly of his own experience and how the oppression of living in the barn and not being allowed to â€Å"play rummy ‘cause you was black† has shaped his cynical character. The fact that he is disheartened by not being included in rummy games and decides not to discuss the violence against him shows his desperation to be realised as an equal within society. However this may also be interpreted as being a generalisation as he speaks of â€Å"a guy†, Steinbeck includes this to show how it can relate to everyone during this time. 13. 14. 15. Crooks is treated as inferior and this has led him to become an aloof character who isolates himself from others and is used by Steinbeck to represent the loneliness experienced by all itinerant ranch hands in America during the depression. The sense of the stable buck being inferior is shown when he is physically and verbally abused by being called â€Å"a nigger† indicating the prominence of racism in America, this is important as it allows Steinbeck to explore the paradox of America with the land of freedom and hope being stained with racism. Furthermore, the fact that Crooks is forced to live apart from the white workers accentuates the idea of racial segregation during the 1930s as he, and by extension all blacks are seen as a disgrace. Additionally, the change in attitude towards Crooks by Candy from â€Å"relishing† his pain to inviting him into the dream is used to show the power of the dream. Riken Shah 11S Show preview only The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our GCSE John Steinbeck section.

The Lost Symbol Chapter 16-18

CHAPTER 16 Security chief Trent Anderson stormed back toward the Capitol Rotunda, fuming at the failure of his security team. One of his men had just found a sling and an army-surplus jacket in an alcove near the east portico. The goddamn guy walked right out of here! Anderson had already assigned teams to start scanning exterior video, but by the time they found anything, this guy would be long gone. Now, as Anderson entered the Rotunda to survey the damage, he saw that the situation had been contained as well as could be expected. All four entrances to the Rotunda were closed with as inconspicuous a method of crowd control as Security had at its disposal–a velvet swag, an apologetic guard, and a sign that read THIS ROOM TEMPORARILY CLOSED FOR CLEANING. The dozen or so witnesses were all being herded into a group on the eastern perimeter of the room, where the guards were collecting cell phones and cameras; the last thing Anderson needed was for one of these people to send a cell-phone snapshot to CNN. One of the detained witnesses, a tall, dark-haired man in a tweed sport coat, was trying to break away from the group to speak to the chief. The man was currently in a heated discussion with the guards. â€Å"I'll speak to him in a moment,† Anderson called over to the guards. â€Å"For now, please hold everyone in the main lobby until we sort this out.† Anderson turned his eyes now to the hand, which stood at attention in the middle of the room. For the love of God. In fifteen years on security detail for the Capitol Building, he had seen some strange things. But nothing like this. Forensics had better get here fast and get this thing out of my building. Anderson moved closer, seeing that the bloody wrist had been skewered on a spiked wooden base to make the hand stand up. Wood and flesh, he thought. Invisible to metal detectors. The only metal was a large gold ring, which Anderson assumed had either been wanded or casually pulled off the dead finger by the suspect as if it were his own. Anderson crouched down to examine the hand. It looked as if it had belonged to a man of about sixty. The ring bore some kind of ornate seal with a two-headed bird and the number 33. Anderson didn't recognize it. What really caught his eye were the tiny tattoos on the tips of the thumb and index finger. A goddamn freak show. â€Å"Chief?† One of the guards hurried over, holding out a phone. â€Å"Personal call for you. Security switchboard just patched it through.† Anderson looked at him like he was insane. â€Å"I'm in the middle of something here,† he growled. The guard's face was pale. He covered the mouthpiece and whispered. â€Å"It's CIA.† Anderson did a double take. CIA heard about this already?! â€Å"It's their Office of Security.† Anderson stiffened. Holy shit. He glanced uneasily at the phone in the guard's hand. In Washington's vast ocean of intelligence agencies, the CIA's Office of Security was something of a Bermuda Triangle–a mysterious and treacherous region from which all who knew of it steered clear whenever possible. With a seemingly self-destructive mandate, the OS had been created by the CIA for one strange purpose–to spy on the CIA itself. Like a powerful internal- affairs office, the OS monitored all CIA employees for illicit behavior: misappropriation of funds, selling of secrets, stealing classified technologies, and use of illegal torture tactics, to name a few. They spy on America's spies. With investigative carte blanche in all matters of national security, the OS had a long and potent reach. Anderson could not fathom why they would be interested in this incident at the Capitol, or how they had found out so fast. Then again, the OS was rumored to have eyes everywhere. For all Anderson knew, they had a direct feed of U.S. Capitol security cameras. This incident did not match OS directives in any way, although the timing of the call seemed too coincidental to Anderson to be about anything other than this severed hand. â€Å"Chief?†The guard was holding the phone out to him like a hot potato. â€Å"You need to take this call right now. It's . . .† He paused and silently mouthed two syllables. â€Å"SA-TO.† Anderson squinted hard at the man. You've got to be kidding. He felt his palms begin to sweat. Sato is handling this personally? The overlord of the Office of Security–Director Inoue Sato–was a legend in the intelligence community. Born inside the fences of a Japanese internment camp in Manzanar, California, in the aftermath of Pearl Harbor, Sato was a toughened survivor who had never forgotten the horrors of war, or the perils of insufficient military intelligence. Now, having risen to one of the most secretive and potent posts in U.S. intelligence work, Sato had proven an uncompromising patriot as well as a terrifying enemy to any who stood in opposition. Seldom seen but universally feared, the OS director cruised the deep waters of the CIA like a leviathan who surfaced only to devour its prey. Anderson had met Sato face-to-face only once, and the memory of looking into those cold black eyes was enough to make him count his blessings that he would be having this conversation by telephone. Anderson took the phone and brought it to his lips. â€Å"Director Sato,† he said in as friendly a voice as possible. â€Å"This is Chief Anderson. How may I–â€Å" â€Å"There is a man in your building to whom I need to speak immediately.† The OS director's voice was unmistakable–like gravel grating on a chalkboard. Throat cancer surgery had left Sato with a profoundly unnerving intonation and a repulsive neck scar to match. â€Å"I want you to find him for me immediately.† That's all? You want me to page someone? Anderson felt suddenly hopeful that maybe the timing of this call was pure coincidence. â€Å"Who are you looking for?† â€Å"His name is Robert Langdon. I believe he is inside your building right now.† Langdon? The name sounded vaguely familiar, but Anderson couldn't quite place it. He was now wondering if Sato knew about the hand. â€Å"I'm in the Rotunda at the moment,† Anderson said, â€Å"but we've got some tourists here . . . hold on.† He lowered his phone and called out to the group, â€Å"Folks, is there anyone here by the name of Langdon?† After a short silence, a deep voice replied from the crowd of tourists. â€Å"Yes. I'm Robert Langdon.† Sato knows all. Anderson craned his neck, trying to see who had spoken up. The same man who had been trying to get to him earlier stepped away from the others. He looked distraught . . . but familiar somehow. Anderson raised the phone to his lips. â€Å"Yes, Mr. Langdon is here.† â€Å"Put him on,† Sato said coarsely. Anderson exhaled. Better him than me. â€Å"Hold on.† He waved Langdon over. As Langdon approached, Anderson suddenly realized why the name sounded familiar. I just read an article about this guy. What the hell is he doing here? Despite Langdon's six-foot frame and athletic build, Anderson saw none of the cold, hardened edge he expected from a man famous for surviving an explosion at the Vatican and a manhunt in Paris. This guy eluded the French police . . . in loafers? He looked more like someone Anderson would expect to find hearthside in some Ivy League library reading Dostoyevsky. â€Å"Mr. Langdon?†Anderson said, walking halfway to meet him. â€Å"I'm Chief Anderson. I handle security here. You have a phone call.† â€Å"For me?† Langdon's blue eyes looked anxious and uncertain. Anderson held out the phone. â€Å"It's the CIA's Office of Security.† â€Å"I've never heard of it.† Anderson smiled ominously. â€Å"Well, sir, it's heard of you.† Langdon put the phone to his ear. â€Å"Yes?† â€Å"Robert Langdon?† Director Sato's harsh voice blared in the tiny speaker, loud enough that Anderson could hear. â€Å"Yes?† Langdon replied. Anderson stepped closer to hear what Sato was saying. â€Å"This is Director Inoue Sato, Mr. Langdon. I am handling a crisis at the moment, and I believe you have information that can help me.† Langdon looked hopeful. â€Å"Is this about Peter Solomon? Do you know where he is?!† Peter Solomon? Anderson felt entirely out of the loop. â€Å"Professor,† Sato replied. â€Å"I am asking the questions at the moment.† â€Å"Peter Solomon is in very serious trouble,† Langdon exclaimed. â€Å"Some madman just–â€Å" â€Å"Excuse me,† Sato said, cutting him off. Anderson cringed. Bad move. Interrupting a top CIA official's line of questioning was a mistake only a civilian would make. I thought Langdon was supposed to be smart. â€Å"Listen carefully,† Sato said. â€Å"As we speak, this nation is facing a crisis. I have been advised that you have information that can help me avert it. Now, I am going to ask you again. What information do you possess?† Langdon looked lost. â€Å"Director, I have no idea what you're talking about. All I'm concerned with is finding Peter and–â€Å" â€Å"No idea?† Sato challenged. Anderson saw Langdon bristle. The professor now took a more aggressive tone. â€Å"No, sir. No damned idea at all.† Anderson winced. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. Robert Langdon had just made a very costly mistake in dealing with Director Sato. Incredibly, Anderson now realized it was too late. To his astonishment, Director Sato had just appeared on the far side of the Rotunda, and was approaching fast behind Langdon. Sato is in the building! Anderson held his breath and braced for impact. Langdon has no idea. The director's dark form drew closer, phone held to ear, black eyes locked like two lasers on Langdon's back. Langdon clutched the police chief's phone and felt a rising frustration as the OS director pressed him. â€Å"I'm sorry, sir,† Langdon said tersely, â€Å"but I can't read your mind. What do you want from me?† â€Å"What do I want from you?† The OS director's grating voice crackled through Langdon's phone, scraping and hollow, like that of a dying man with strep throat. As the man spoke, Langdon felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned and his eyes were drawn down . . . directly into the face of a tiny Japanese woman. She had a fierce expression, a mottled complexion, thinning hair, tobacco-stained teeth, and an unsettling white scar that sliced horizontally across her neck. The woman's gnarled hand held a cell phone to her ear, and when her lips moved, Langdon heard the familiar raspy voice through his cell phone. â€Å"What do I want from you, Professor?† She calmly closed her phone and glared at him. â€Å"For starters, you can stop calling me `sir.' â€Å" Langdon stared, mortified. â€Å"Ma'am, I . . . apologize. Our connection was poor and–â€Å" â€Å"Our connection was fine, Professor,† she said. â€Å"And I have an extremely low tolerance for bullshit.† CHAPTER 17 Director Inoue Sato was a fearsome specimen–a bristly tempest of a woman who stood a mere four feet ten inches. She was bone thin, with jagged features and a dermatological condition known as vitiligo, which gave her complexion the mottled look of coarse granite blotched with lichen. Her rumpled blue pantsuit hung on her emaciated frame like a loose sack, the open- necked blouse doing nothing to hide the scar across her neck. It had been noted by her coworkers that Sato's only acquiescence to physical vanity appeared to be that of plucking her substantial mustache. For over a decade, Inoue Sato had overseen the CIA's Office of Security. She possessed an off- the-chart IQ and chillingly accurate instincts, a combination which girded her with a self- confidence that made her terrifying to anyone who could not perform the impossible. Not even a terminal diagnosis of aggressive throat cancer had knocked her from her perch. The battle had cost her one month of work, half her voice box, and a third of her body weight, but she returned to the office as if nothing had happened. Inoue Sato appeared to be indestructible. Robert Langdon suspected he was probably not the first to mistake Sato for a man on the phone, but the director was still glaring at him with simmering black eyes. â€Å"Again, my apologies, ma'am,† Langdon said. â€Å"I'm still trying to get my bearings here–the person who claims to have Peter Solomon tricked me into coming to D.C. this evening.† He pulled the fax from his jacket. â€Å"This is what he sent me earlier. I wrote down the tail number of the plane he sent, so maybe if you call the FAA and track the–â€Å" Sato's tiny hand shot out and snatched the sheet of paper. She stuck it in her pocket without even opening it. â€Å"Professor, I am running this investigation, and until you start telling me what I want to know, I suggest you not speak unless spoken to.† Sato now spun to the police chief. â€Å"Chief Anderson,† she said, stepping entirely too close and staring up at him through tiny black eyes, â€Å"would you care to tell me what the hell is going on here? The guard at the east gate told me you found a human hand on the floor. Is that true?† Anderson stepped to the side and revealed the object in the center of the floor. â€Å"Yes, ma'am, only a few minutes ago.† She glanced at the hand as if it were nothing more than a misplaced piece of clothing. â€Å"And yet you didn't mention it to me when I called?† â€Å"I . . . I thought you knew.† â€Å"Do not lie to me.† Anderson wilted under her gaze, but his voice remained confident. â€Å"Ma'am, this situation is under control.† â€Å"I really doubt that,† Sato said, with equal confidence. â€Å"A forensics team is on the way. Whoever did this may have left fingerprints.† Sato looked skeptical. â€Å"I think someone clever enough to walk through your security checkpoint with a human hand is probably clever enough not to leave fingerprints.† â€Å"That may be true, but I have a responsibility to investigate.† â€Å"Actually, I am relieving you of your responsibility as of this moment. I'm taking over.† Anderson stiffened. â€Å"This is not exactly OS domain, is it?† â€Å"Absolutely. This is an issue of national security.† Peter's hand? Langdon wondered, watching their exchange in a daze. National security? Langdon was sensing that his own urgent goal of finding Peter was not Sato's. The OS director seemed to be on another page entirely. Anderson looked puzzled as well. â€Å"National security? With all due respect, ma'am–â€Å" â€Å"The last I checked,† she interrupted, â€Å"I outrank you. I suggest you do exactly as I say, and that you do it without question.† Anderson nodded and swallowed hard. â€Å"But shouldn't we at least print the fingers to confirm the hand belongs to Peter Solomon?† â€Å"I'll confirm it,† Langdon said, feeling a sickening certainty. â€Å"I recognize his ring . . . and his hand.† He paused. â€Å"The tattoos are new, though. Someone did that to him recently.† â€Å"I'm sorry?† Sato looked unnerved for the first time since arriving. â€Å"The hand is tattooed?† Langdon nodded. â€Å"The thumb has a crown. And the index finger a star.† Sato pulled out a pair of glasses and walked toward the hand, circling like a shark. â€Å"Also,† Langdon said, â€Å"although you can't see the other three fingers, I'm certain they will have tattoos on the fingertips as well.† Sato looked intrigued by the comment and motioned to Anderson. â€Å"Chief, can you look at the other fingertips for us, please?† Anderson crouched down beside the hand, being careful not to touch it. He put his cheek near the floor and looked up under the clenched fingertips. â€Å"He's right, ma'am. All of the fingertips have tattoos, although I can't quite see what the other–â€Å" â€Å"A sun, a lantern, and a key,† Langdon said flatly. Sato turned fully to Langdon now, her small eyes appraising him. â€Å"And how exactly would you know that?† Langdon stared back. â€Å"The image of a human hand, marked in this way on the fingertips, is a very old icon. It's known as `the Hand of the Mysteries.' â€Å" Anderson stood up abruptly. â€Å"This thing has a name?† Langdon nodded. â€Å"It's one of the most secretive icons of the ancient world.† Sato cocked her head. â€Å"Then might I ask what the hell it's doing in the middle of the U.S. Capitol?† Langdon wished he would wake up from this nightmare. â€Å"Traditionally, ma'am, it was used as an invitation.† â€Å"An invitation . . . to what?† she demanded. Langdon looked down at the symbols on his friend's severed hand. â€Å"For centuries, the Hand of the Mysteries served as a mystical summons. Basically, it's an invitation to receive secret knowledge–protected wisdom known only to an elite few.† Sato folded her thin arms and stared up at him with jet-black eyes. â€Å"Well, Professor, for someone who claims to have no clue why he's here . . . you're doing quite well so far.† CHAPTER 18 Katherine Solomon donned her white lab coat and began her usual arrival routine–her â€Å"rounds† as her brother called them. Like a nervous parent checking on a sleeping baby, Katherine poked her head into the mechanical room. The hydrogen fuel cell was running smoothly, its backup tanks all safely nestled in their racks. Katherine continued down the hall to the data-storage room. As always, the two redundant holographic backup units hummed safely within their temperature-controlled vault. All of my research, she thought, gazing in through the three-inch-thick shatterproof glass. Holographic data-storage devices, unlike their refrigerator-size ancestors, looked more like sleek stereo components, each perched atop a columnar pedestal. Both of her lab's holographic drives were synchronized and identical–serving as redundant backups to safeguard identical copies of her work. Most backup protocols advocated a secondary backup system off-site in case of earthquake, fire, or theft, but Katherine and her brother agreed that secrecy was paramount; once this data left the building to an off-site server, they could no longer be certain it would stay private. Content that everything was running smoothly here, she headed back down the hallway. As she rounded the corner, however, she spotted something unexpected across the lab. What in the world? A muted glow was glinting off all the equipment. She hurried in to have a look, surprised to see light emanating from behind the Plexiglas wall of the control room. He's here. Katherine flew across the lab, arriving at the control-room door and heaving it open. â€Å"Peter!† she said, running in. The plump woman seated at the control room's terminal jumped up. â€Å"Oh my God! Katherine! You scared me!† Trish Dunne–the only other person on earth allowed back here–was Katherine's metasystems analyst and seldom worked weekends. The twenty-six-year-old redhead was a genius data modeler and had signed a nondisclosure document worthy of the KGB. Tonight, she was apparently analyzing data on the control room's plasma wall–a huge flat-screen display that looked like something out of NASA mission control. â€Å"Sorry,† Trish said. â€Å"I didn't know you were here yet. I was trying to finish up before you and your brother arrived.† â€Å"Have you spoken to him? He's late and he's not answering his phone.† Trish shook her head. â€Å"I bet he's still trying to figure out how to use that new iPhone you gave him.† Katherine appreciated Trish's good humor, and Trish's presence here had just given her an idea. â€Å"Actually, I'm glad you're in tonight. You might be able to help me with something, if you don't mind?† â€Å"Whatever it is, I'm sure it beats football.† Katherine took a deep breath, calming her mind. â€Å"I'm not sure how to explain this, but earlier today, I heard an unusual story . . .† Trish Dunne didn't know what story Katherine Solomon had heard, but clearly it had her on edge. Her boss's usually calm gray eyes looked anxious, and she had tucked her hair behind her ears three times since entering the room–a nervous â€Å"tell,† as Trish called it. Brilliant scientist. Lousy poker player. â€Å"To me,† Katherine said, â€Å"this story sounds like fiction . . . an old legend. And yet . . .† She paused, tucking a wisp of hair behind her ears once again. â€Å"And yet?† Katherine sighed. â€Å"And yet I was told today by a trusted source that the legend is true.† â€Å"Okay . . .† Where is she going with this? â€Å"I'm going to talk to my brother about it, but it occurs to me that maybe you can help me shed some light on it before I do. I'd love to know if this legend has ever been corroborated anywhere else in history.† â€Å"In all of history?† Katherine nodded. â€Å"Anywhere in the world, in any language, at any point in history.† Strange request, Trish thought, but certainly feasible. Ten years ago, the task would have been impossible. Today, however, with the Internet, the World Wide Web, and the ongoing digitization of the great libraries and museums in the world, Katherine's goal could be achieved by using a relatively simple search engine equipped with an army of translation modules and some well-chosen keywords. â€Å"No problem,† Trish said. Many of the lab's research books contained passages in ancient languages, and so Trish was often asked to write specialized Optical Character Recognition translation modules to generate English text from obscure languages. She had to be the only metasystems specialist on earth who had built OCR translation modules in Old Frisian, Maek, and Akkadian. The modules would help, but the trick to building an effective search spider was all in choosing the right key words. Unique but not overly restrictive. Katherine looked to be a step ahead of Trish and was already jotting down possible keywords on a slip of paper. Katherine had written down several when she paused, thought a moment, and then wrote several more. â€Å"Okay,† she finally said, handing Trish the slip of paper. Trish perused the list of search strings, and her eyes grew wide. What kind of crazy legend is Katherine investigating? â€Å"You want me to search for all of these key phrases?† One of the words Trish didn't even recognize. Is that even English? â€Å"Do you really think we'll find all of these in one place? Verbatim?† â€Å"I'd like to try.† Trish would have said impossible, but the I-word was banned here. Katherine considered it a dangerous mind-set in a field that often transformed preconceived falsehoods into confirmed truths. Trish Dunne seriously doubted this key-phrase search would fall into that category. â€Å"How long for results?† Katherine asked. â€Å"A few minutes to write the spider and launch it. After that, maybe fifteen for the spider to exhaust itself.† â€Å"So fast?† Katherine looked encouraged. Trish nodded. Traditional search engines often required a full day to crawl across the entire online universe, find new documents, digest their content, and add it to their searchable database. But this was not the kind of search spider Trish would write. â€Å"I'll write a program called a delegator,† Trish explained. â€Å"It's not entirely kosher, but it's fast. Essentially, it's a program that orders other people's search engines to do our work. Most databases have a search function built in–libraries, museums, universities, governments. So I write a spider that finds their search engines, inputs your keywords, and asks them to search. This way, we harness the power of thousands of engines, working in unison.† Katherine looked impressed. â€Å"Parallel processing.† A kind of metasystem. â€Å"I'll call you if I get anything.† â€Å"I appreciate it,Trish.† Katherine patted her on the back and headed for the door. â€Å"I'll be in the library.† Trish settled in to write the program. Coding a search spider was a menial task far below her skill level, but Trish Dunne didn't care. She would do anything for Katherine Solomon. Sometimes Trish still couldn't believe the good fortune that had brought her here. You've come a long way, baby. Just over a year ago, Trish had quit her job as a metasystems analyst in one of the high-tech industry's many cubicle farms. In her off-hours, she did some freelance programming and started an industry blog–â€Å"Future Applications in Computational Metasystem Analysis†Ã¢â‚¬â€œalthough she doubted anyone read it. Then one evening her phone rang. â€Å"Trish Dunne?† a woman's voice asked politely. â€Å"Yes, who's calling, please?† â€Å"My name is Katherine Solomon.† Trish almost fainted on the spot. Katherine Solomon? â€Å"I just read your book–Noetic Science: Modern Gateway to Ancient Wisdom–and I wrote about it on my blog!† â€Å"Yes, I know,† the woman replied graciously. â€Å"That's why I'm calling.† Of course it is, Trish realized, feeling dumb. Even brilliant scientists Google themselves. â€Å"Your blog intrigues me,† Katherine told her. â€Å"I wasn't aware metasystems modeling had come so far.† â€Å"Yes, ma'am,† Trish managed, starstruck. â€Å"Data models are an exploding technology with far- reaching applications.† For several minutes, the two women chatted about Trish's work in metasystems, discussing her experience analyzing, modeling, and predicting the flow of massive data fields. â€Å"Obviously, your book is way over my head,† Trish said, â€Å"but I understood enough to see an intersection with my metasystems work.† â€Å"Your blog said you believe metasystems modeling can transform the study of Noetics?† â€Å"Absolutely. I believe metasystems could turn Noetics into real science.† â€Å"Real science?† Katherine's tone hardened slightly. â€Å"As opposed to . . . ?† Oh shit, that came out wrong. â€Å"Um, what I meant is that Noetics is more . . . esoteric.† Katherine laughed. â€Å"Relax, I'm kidding. I get that all the time.† I'm not surprised, Trish thought. Even the Institute of Noetic Sciences in California described the field in arcane and abstruse language, defining it as the study of mankind's â€Å"direct and immediate access to knowledge beyond what is available to our normal senses and the power of reason.† The word noetic, Trish had learned, derived from the ancient Greek nous–translating roughly to â€Å"inner knowledge† or â€Å"intuitive consciousness.† â€Å"I'm interested in your metasystems work,† Katherine said, â€Å"and how it might relate to a project I'm working on. Any chance you'd be willing to meet? I'd love to pick your brain.† Katherine Solomon wants to pick my brain? It felt like Maria Sharapova had called for tennis tips. The next day a white Volvo pulled into Trish's driveway and an attractive, willowy woman in blue jeans got out. Trish immediately felt two feet tall. Great, she groaned. Smart, rich, and thin–and I'm supposed to believe God is good? But Katherine's unassuming air set Trish instantly at ease. The two of them settled in on Trish's huge back porch overlooking an impressive piece of property. â€Å"Your house is amazing,† Katherine said. â€Å"Thanks. I got lucky in college and licensed some software I'd written.† â€Å"Metasystems stuff?† â€Å"A precursor to metasystems. Following 9/11, the government was intercepting and crunching enormous data fields–civilian e-mail, cell phone, fax, text, Web sites–sniffing for keywords associated with terrorist communications. So I wrote a piece of software that let them process their data field in a second way . . . pulling from it an additional intelligence product.† She smiled. â€Å"Essentially, my software let them take America's temperature.† â€Å"I'm sorry?† Trish laughed. â€Å"Yeah, sounds crazy, I know. What I mean is that it quantified the nation's emotional state. It offered a kind of cosmic consciousness barometer, if you will.† Trish explained how, using a data field of the nation's communications, one could assess the nation's mood based on the â€Å"occurrence density† of certain keywords and emotional indicators in the data field. Happier times had happier language, and stressful times vice versa. In the event, for example, of a terrorist attack, the government could use data fields to measure the shift in America's psyche and better advise the president on the emotional impact of the event. â€Å"Fascinating,† Katherine said, stroking her chin. â€Å"So essentially you're examining a population of individuals . . . as if it were a single organism.† â€Å"Exactly. A metasystem. A single entity defined by the sum of its parts. The human body, for example, consists of millions of individual cells, each with different attributes and different purposes, but it functions as a single entity.† Katherine nodded enthusiastically. â€Å"Like a flock of birds or a school of fish moving as one. We call it convergence or entanglement.† Trish sensed her famous guest was starting to see the potential of metasystem programming in her own field of Noetics. â€Å"My software,† Trish explained, â€Å"was designed to help government agencies better evaluate and respond appropriately to wide-scale crises–pandemic diseases, national tragedies, terrorism, that sort of thing.† She paused. â€Å"Of course, there's always the potential that it could be used in other directions . . . perhaps to take a snapshot of the national mind-set and predict the outcome of a national election or the direction the stock market will move at the opening bell.† â€Å"Sounds powerful.† Trish motioned to her big house. â€Å"The government thought so.† Katherine's gray eyes focused in on her now. â€Å"Trish, might I ask about the ethical dilemma posed by your work?† â€Å"What do you mean?† â€Å"I mean you created a piece of software that can easily be abused. Those who possess it have access to powerful information not available to everyone. You didn't feel any hesitation creating it?† Trish didn't blink. â€Å"Absolutely not. My software is no different than say . . . a flight simulator program. Some users will practice flying first-aid missions into underdeveloped countries. Some users will practice flying passenger jets into skyscrapers. Knowledge is a tool, and like all tools, its impact is in the hands of the user.† Katherine sat back, looking impressed. â€Å"So let me ask you a hypothetical question.† Trish suddenly sensed their conversation had just turned into a job interview. Katherine reached down and picked up a tiny speck of sand off the deck, holding it up for Trish to see. â€Å"It occurs to me,† she said, â€Å"that your metasystems work essentially lets you calculate the weight of an entire sandy beach . . . by weighing one grain at a time.† â€Å"Yes, basically that's right.† â€Å"As you know, this little grain of sand has mass. A very small mass, but mass nonetheless.† Trish nodded. â€Å"And because this grain of sand has mass, it therefore exerts gravity. Again, too small to feel, but there.† â€Å"Right.† â€Å"Now,† Katherine said, â€Å"if we take trillions of these sand grains and let them attract one another to form . . . say, the moon, then their combined gravity is enough to move entire oceans and drag the tides back and forth across our planet.† Trish had no idea where this was headed, but she liked what she was hearing. â€Å"So let's take a hypothetical,† Katherine said, discarding the sand grain. â€Å"What if I told you that a thought . . . any tiny idea that forms in your mind . . . actually has mass? What if I told you that a thought is an actual thing, a measurable entity, with a measurable mass? A minuscule mass, of course, but mass nonetheless. What are the implications?† â€Å"Hypothetically speaking? Well, the obvious implications are . . . if a thought has mass, then a thought exerts gravity and can pull things toward it.† Katherine smiled. â€Å"You're good. Now take it a step further. What happens if many people start focusing on the same thought? All the occurrences of that same thought begin to merge into one, and the cumulative mass of this thought begins to grow. And therefore, its gravity grows.† â€Å"Okay.† â€Å"Meaning . . . if enough people begin thinking the same thing, then the gravitational force of that thought becomes tangible . . . and it exerts actual force.† Katherine winked. â€Å"And it can have a measurable effect in our physical world.†

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One future change - Essay Example In this regard, a ‘many-to-many’ model of communication has replaced the latter, requiring organizations to implement multiple online communication strategies that can counter any challenges in the event of a crisis. In the words of Gonzalez & Smith (2010); â€Å"the new internet environment demands that organizations be cognizant of facts that; there is instant access to information by their audiences, stakeholders are today more scattered given the diversity of media available online, people with issues against organizations can with the help of the internet, quickly mobilize to protect their interests and the traditional role of mass media as a gatekeeper and disseminator of information does not exist anymore†. For these reasons, organizations have evolved in their communication to audiences by being more proactive online. Pro-activity in this context require them to engage their audience on all platforms and respond to their concerns so that in the event of a crisis, the mechanisms are already in place and good relationship with the online audience created. Even with many organizations having implemented online crisis management strategies, the next few years will see an acute improvement in how some of these organizations shape their existing frameworks. In this regard, the following can be picked out as the critical issues from Gonzalez & Smith’s (2010) article that will possible be expanded in the short term: Correctly understanding an organization’s audience: As explained by Gonzalez & Smith (2010), an organization in the building materials’ manufacturing industry does not have a savvy audience as a gaming software company. These two entities cannot, therefore, employ the same crisis management strategy in the online world. Most organizations engage in business- to- business and business- to- individual levels, and this calls for a proper understanding of the audience segments so that commensurate communication models are

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Negative views on a collges reputation - Research Paper Example The image that parents like of a college is that of well groomed, happy students who are academically focused and facing challenges that are no more difficult than the next exam. However, the exploration of self during the time period of college can lead to some risk behaviors that puts students in situations that threaten their safety. Most of the time, these situations are navigated and the parents have the illusion of a safe and secure child that is away at college. However, drinking statistics suggest that there is a better than 50% chance that their child is participating in heavy drinking once a week. The more terrifying survey result shows that college students don’t learn from the bad experiences they have while under the influence of alcohol and routinely underestimate that amount of alcohol they can drink before consequences are likely to occur (Knox and Schacht 475). When these behaviors lead to a situation that is beyond waking up with regret, an incident can occur that puts the university and the students at the center of the public stage, its reputation on the line and the safety of the students under its care in question. This happened to Duke University when members of the Lacrosse team held a party on March 13, 2006 which involved drinking and resulted in the decision to call an escort service to provide two Caucasian strippers. One African American arrived and one partial Asian woman arrived at the party, which caused some difficulties as they were not as ordered and in the end, the African American woman ended up accusing three of the members of the team, including the two captains of the team, with rape (Taylor and Johnson). The occasion of hiring strippers for athletic team parties was not uncommon on the campus and Taylor and Johnson report that as many as twenty parties that year had already occurred in which strippers had been

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The Present and Future Price of Money Essay Example for Free

The Present and Future Price of Money Essay One of the most important concepts about saving and investing is the time value of money. It can be used to compare investment alternatives and to solve problems involving loans, mortgages, leases, savings, and annuities. This means money paid out or received in the future is not equivalent to money paid out or received today because inflation erodes money’s buying power. Basically, the power of time is on a person’s side and the premise that cash in hand today is more valuable than the same amount in the future due to its capability of earning interest. There are three factors affecting how much an investment will grow: time, money, and interest rate. Time Value of Money is a concept that is very important in financial management. 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Generally, having a savings or investment plan with a fixed interest rate guarantees a specific return but can provide a moderate  risk. The last item to take into consideration with interest rates is ensuring the interest rate is h igher than the rate of inflation. Inflation is the steady rise in the general level of prices of a market basket of goods. If the average interest rates rise, the amount a person earns from this type of investment will not increase. Another consideration with interest rates is ensuring the interest rate is higher than the rate of inflation. Need for Financial Managers Anyone who manages finances in a company setting , deals with consumer finance or running their own business is a financial manager and needs to understand the concept of Time Value of Money. A financial manager’s job it to compare the cost and benefits of alternatives that occur at different times. This is done by restating money values through time in Time Value of Money calculations. These calculations estimate what effect time will have on money. For these professionals to make decisions that will assist a client in taking advantages of low interest rates or investing wisely a comprehensive knowledge and understanding of the Time Value of Money is needed. Understanding this concept allows them to make better decisions. If they don’t understand the concept then they could make an unfavorable decision resulting in loss of money for the client or their business (Time Value of Money, 2013) Future Value and Present Value As an investor, you cannot control the rate of return on an investment. The actual yield is determined by the market as a whole, in the form of people buying and selling the investments at a price that, coupled with the investment’s payouts, determines the yield. There are two fundamental formulas used to calculate the time value of money; the â€Å"future value† and the â€Å"present value† formulas. They’re basically the same formulas, but rearranged to solve for different values. The future value formula can answer the question, ‘how much money will I have if I invest a certain amount now, at a given rate of return†? The formula is FV=PV*(1+R)N, where FV is the future value (how much you’ll have later), PV is the present value (how much you’ll have now), R is the periodic rate of return or the  percentage that your money will grow in each unit period of time. N is the number of unit periods of time in the overall time span. T he following are examples of the calculation of future values: a) Solve for FV $150,537.19 invested for seven years at an interest rate of 5% will yield a future value of $211,820.94. FV = 150,537.19 (1+ .05)7 = 150,537.19 (1.05) 7 = 150,537.19 (1.40710042265625) = $211,820.94 b) Solve for FV $237,891.22 invested for eight years at an interest rate of 3% will yield a future value of $301.353.48. FV = 237,891.22 (1 + .03) 8 = 237,891.22 (1.03) 8 = 237,891.22 (1.266770081387616) = $301,353.48 c) Solve for FV $320,891.12 invested for 10 years at an interest rate of 11% will yield a future value of $911,144.98. FV = 320,891.12 (1 + .11) 10 = 320,891.12(1.11) 10 = 320,891.12 (2.839420986069016) = $911,144.98 d) Solve for FV $520,520.22 invested for 13 years at an interest rate of 13% will yield a future value of $2,549,513.82. FV = 520,520.22 (1 + .13) 13 =  520,520.22(1.13) 13 = 520,520.22(4.898011103216606) = $2,549,513.82 The present value formula is based on the same fundamental formula, but it’s â€Å"solved† for the PV term and assumes you will know the FV amount. The present value formula can answer the question, ‘how much money would I have to invest now in order to have X dollars at a specific future date?’. That formula is PV = FV/(1 + R) n where all the terms mean the same thing, except that R in this formula is typically referred to as the â€Å"discounted rate†, because its purpose is to lower a future amount of money to show what it is worth to you now (McCracken, 2014). The following are examples of the calculation of present value: a) If you receive a dividend of $562,126.17 in 7 years at an interest rate of 5%. You initial investment w ould have been $399,492.57. PV = 562,126.17/(1 + .05) 7 = 562,126.17 / (1.05) 7 = 562,126.17/1.40710042265625 = $299,492.57 b) If you receive a dividend of $225,003.21 in 6 years at an interest rate of 6%. Your initial investment would have been $158,618.38. PV = 225,003.21/(1 + .06) 6 = 225,003.21/(1.06) 6 = 225,003.21/1.418519112256 = $158,618.38 c) If you receive a dividend of $321,567.35 in 5 years at an interest rate of 18%. Your initial investment would have been $140,560.05. PV = 321,567.35/(1 + .18) 5 = $140,560.05/(1.18) 5 = 321,567.35/2.2877577568 = $140,560.05 d) If your receive a dividend of $63,000.05 in 12 years at an interest rate of 5%. Your initial investment would have been $35,080.75. PV = 63,000.05/(1 + .05) 12 = 63,000.05/ (1.05) 12 = 63,000.05/1.795856326022129 = $35,080.79 Annuity An annuity is a series of identical payments occurring at equal time intervals. When the payments appear at the end of each time period, the annuity is said to be an ordinary annuity or an annuity in arrears. Present value calculations allow us to determine the amount of the recurring payments in an ordinary annuity if we know the other components: present value, interest rate, and the length of the annuity. Present value calculations involve the compounding of interest. This means that any interest earned is invested and will earn interest at the same rate as the principal. So, you earn interest on your interest. The compounding of interest can be very significant when the interest rate and the number of years are sizable. The present value of an annuity, represented by a series of equal payments, receipts or rents involve five components: (1) Present Value (2) Amount of each identical cash payments (3) Time between the identical cash payments (4) Number of periods that the payments will occur, length of the annuity and, (5) Interest rate or target rate used for discounting the series of payments. If you have any 4 of the 5 components, you have the information you need to calculate the unknown component. Calculations of Annuity Suppose you are to receive a stream of annual payments of $325,891.12 every year for 12 years starting at the end of this year. The interest rate is 6%. What is the present value of these 12 payments. PVA =PMT [( 1- (1 /(1 + r) n )) /r ] = 325,891.22[(1- (1/(1 + .06) 12))/.06] = 325,891.22[(1- (1/(1 .06) 12))/.06] = 325,891.22[(1 – (1/20121964718355))/.06] = 325,891.22[(1-.496969363577001)/.06] = 325,891.22[.503030636422999/.06] = 325,891.22 x 8.383843940383317 = $2,732,221.13 is the present value of the 12 payments. Suppose you are to receive a payment of $437,891.24 at the end of each year for five years. You are depositing these payments in a bank account that pays 15% interest. Given these five payments and this interest rate, how much will be in your bank account in five years? FVA =PMT [((1 + r) n – 1) /r] = 437,891.24 [((1 + .15) 5 – 1)/.15] = 437,891.24 [((1.15) 5 – 1)/.15] = 437,891.24 [(2.0113571875 -1) /.15] = 437,891.24 [1.0113571875/.15] = 437,897.24 x 6.74238125 = $2,952,429.69 will be in your bank account at the end of 5 years. Conclusion Present Value and Future calculations seem to be a simple way to compare money at different periods of time. Utilizing the future value calculation a person is able to determine the estimated future value of investments based on periodic, constant payments and constant interest rate. It ca also be used to calculate the future of loans payments. Time Value Money is a basic tool in finance that is used every day. Utilizing this concept can help individuals and companies weight all the options so the best decision can be made to prosper in the future. Understanding and having the knowledge about saving and investing is very important to our generation, especially with the very bleak look of social security. References Biger, N. (2008). Explanation of present values and net present values. Harvey, C. R. (2012). Time Value of Money. Retrieved January 16, 2013, from The Free Dictionary: http://financial-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/Time+value+of+money McCracken, M., (n.d.) The time value of money. Retrieved January 2014 from http://www.teachmefinance.com/timevalueofmoney.html Time Value of Money Overview. (n.d.) Retrieved January 17, 2013, from University of West Florida: http://uwf.edu/rconstand/fin4424web/T2-TimeValue/T2-TimeValuePO1.htm

The Products Of Herbal Essences Marketing Essay

The Products Of Herbal Essences Marketing Essay Herbal Essences is a brand of hair product founded in 1971 by Clairol. In 2002, Procter and Gamble acquired Herbal Essences from Clairol, Inc. Herbal Essences is a global brand of hair-care products that distribute various different Shampoo, Conditioner, Hair Coloring, Mousse, Hairspray, and Gel products (Procter Gamble, 2012, p. 3). Procter and Gamble entered as a hair colorant and renovated the product of Herbal Essences (Matusow, 2008). In this section we will analyze the target market strategies, which Procter and Gamble used to help their product Herbal Essences grow more than 40 percent in sales globally (Procter Gamble, 2007, p. 12). According to McGreog (2008), since Procter and Gamble acquired Herbal Essences their main marketing objective was to change their product and to revive their failing brand within the shampoo industry. Hence, the company wanted to market towards a more youthful audience. The brand was originally focused on women who wanted natural hair care products. It dealt with ingredients such as herbal and organic aspect of the product. Procter and Gamble wanted to reposition their hair products by creating a fun and youthful appeal while having the natural ingredients. Procter and Gamble did this so they do not lose their brand loyalists. Herbal Essences target market consists of Generation Y female users ranging from the age of 14-30 (McGregor, 2008). Herbal Essences target markets are individuals who are going to school, entering college, and young moms. Consumers of Herbal Essencess products share more than a common hair-care product, they share common lifestyles. In order to understand the appeal of their products, Herbal Essences continues to research their cultural and social environment. They do this by learning more about the consumers psychographics and behavioral characteristics. The goal in doing so is to sell more hair products by understanding the changing wants and the needs of the market segment. The needs of this market segment According to MediaPost (2008), in recent efforts to better understand and attract the youthful audience towards Herbal Essences, Procter Gamble and the Beauty Business Chief, Susan Arnold had an idea to re-invent their products by completely re-branding Herbal Essences. In order to rebrand themselves they conducted their own research such as consumer surveys, market research and observing buying patterns of younger consumers. She took on the task of finding a way to build up the failing brand with a small group of people from research and development, marketing, and design. The small team worked together with branding agency Libby Perszyk Kathman (LPK) to target the market of Generation Y females (MediaPost, 2008). As Lukovitz (2007) states in her article Herbal Essence Snags 2007 Rebrand 100 Global Award the team instantly started on 18 months of extensive consumer research. During the time the team emerged in May 2006 with a new target market audience tailored towards the spontaneous, optimistic, altruistic, experiential Generation Y (Lukovitz, 2007). Herbal Essences changed the whole product from scratch which they referred to as the from-scratch strategy which included a new logo, adding several catchy new product names, and adding new packaging. Herbal Essences research discovered that women like to buy hair care products within the same brand. The packaging emphasizes the shape, the new shampoo and conditioner bottles where designed to fit together on the shelf, encouraging the youthful audience to buy the product as a whole and driving up sales (Lukovitz, 2007). In order for Herbal Essences to communicate their product to their new target market, they have used an innovative way to reflect their product upon the youthful generation. Herbal Essences uses this technique consistently throughout their product packaging and promotions. For example, the names of their products such as Hello Hydration, Drama Clean, and Tousle Me Softly (Herbal Essences, 2012). The name of these products reflects the tone and personality of the youthful audience which effectively appeals to their target market. Their target market likes to be aware of the latest trends in hairstyles and looks that could be obtained by using their products. Their target market wants a brand that focuses on their needs and is funky as them; a product which has an emotional connection, and makes them feel like the product is a part of their lifestyle. This market strategy also play a role into targeting the older part of the demographic, towards young mothers around the age of 30 who may look for hair care products for their daughters. They would be prone to buy the product since it gives a youthful and a modern vibe unlike other hair care product competitors. Herbal Essences indirectly cleverly uses the youthful appeal towards the older demographics that could also purchase their product, because they are tempted to feel younger (Lukovitz, 2007). Herbal Essences revolutionized the way companies target their market. It moved from a failing brand into a successful brand. The strategies they applied into targeting their market changes the way companies and their products speak to their consumers, appears to their customers, and how they might even position their products on the shelf to compete with their competitors (McGregor, 2008). Herbal Essences hair-care products stand out because it has been designed and formulated specifically for their target market needs. With the products of Herbal Essences, their target market can match their unique personality with their products.

Andy Warhols Rorschach Paintings

Andy Warhols Rorschach Paintings One of the most important and controversial Pop art icons in America and a major influence to artists around the world, known as The Prince of Pop, Andy Warhol brings an entirely new perspective to the art world. An initiator and leading exponent of the Pop art movement of the 1960s, Warhol achieved success as a commercial artist during the 1950s and steadily grew from their producing works from famous portraits to popular culture, shoes and advertising images (Artquotes.net). Born Andrew Warhola in 1928, Warhol lived and grew up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania during very hard times. Andy had contracted a rare disease at the age of 8 called chorea or St. Vitus dance, an illness of the nervous system that could have possibly proven fatal. He would later recover from the illness, but would gain a skin illness that would stay with him for the rest of his life. Son of a Slovakian immigrant, Warhols father was a construction worker who died in accident when Andy was only 13 years old (Artint hepicture.com). During the years following his fathers death his siblings and classmates started to notice an early talent in drawing and painting. After high school Warhol decided he would study commercial art at the Carnegie Institute of Technology in Pittsburgh and in 1949 graduated with a major in Pictorial Design (Artinthepicture.com). After graduating he decided to move to New York where he found temporary jobs as an illustrator for magazines and for commercial advertising. From then on his career as an artist excelled and he became one of New Yorks most sought after and successful artists. He held his first one-man show exhibition in 1952 at the Hugo Gallery in New York and soon after became a famous figure in the New York art scene. Starting in 1978, following his sixteen year reign as the Prince of Pop, Warhol made an unexpected decision and decided to try his hand at abstract painting. Abstract Expressionism would be defined as artists who applied paint rapidly with force onto their huge canvases in an effort to show feelings and emotions, the works would release the creativity of the unconscious mind (Artlex.com). The style of the late 1940s and early 1950s was predominantly American and was characterized by its rendering of expressive content by abstract or non-objective means (Sayre 516). Andy Warhols Rorschach,1984 paintings are one of the most intriguing and captivating works of the early 1980s, they display his abstract work in the best Warholian style and cause the viewer to create an image out of their own imagination ( Richard 88-90). The immense Rorschach paintings are massive in scale and required a crew to produce them, a staggering 2010 and were achieved by pouring paint onto one side of the canvas, then folding the canvas down the middle and pressing the two sides together. In all their emptiness and derangement the Rorschach paintings are psychologically and emotionally charged. Warhol had created the series specifically so that the paintings could be analyzed. The ink blot appearance was first produced by Hermann Rorschach, a Swiss Freudian psychiatrist who developed them as a test, which in fact would elicit disclosure of a persons innermost feelings (Newworldencyclopedia.org). It was mainly used on people suffering psychological instability or disorder and even diagnosed mental patients. Always on the prowl for inspiration Warhol used these ink blots in his own works creating the Rorschach series. Warhol was especially interested in mass production, his claim to fame was caused by the use of his rare crea tivity in the visual arts that would be used in mass produced commercial items. Often considered a cousin of avant-garde art, Andys commercial art such as the soapbox covers, soup cans, plastic packing would create and turn the industry into a respectable bona fide art form. The Rorschach series would be an outcome of his earlier work and would also be mass produced. The works are seemingly complex, replete with irony and ornament, history and psychology, intuition and a lot of misunderstanding. Although Warhol showed deliberate ignorance toward the standardized blots of the official Rorschach test, he was obviously intrigued by their serial repetitiveness and formulaic impersonality. With an estimated 38 paintings total in the Rorschach series the immense canvases where not at all produced only with the dark black paint that many remember it for. Warhol experimented with a variety of colors, thus he came to be known for using color field abstraction. Color field paintings, a type o f abstract expressionism, were used by artists who were interested in the lyrical or unique atmospheric effects of vast expanses of color, causing the viewer to be immersed in a color environment (Artlex.com). Many of the famous paintings were bright red, gold and pink; he even created a beautiful mixture of the colors, mixing purple, red and violet, and in another blue, purple and pink in an amazing array to create something extraordinary and abstract. Lusciously colorful or dull black, the works were appealing to a wide range of audiences and would catch the viewers eye immediately upon entering any gallery. Warhol used one major technique in creating his infamous works, an unpopular and rarely used pour and fold technique to conjure up the fleshy physicality of kidneys or lungs (Artnet.com).A particularly unique feature of the prints was that it contained no human touch, the paint was merely allowed to space and settle where ever on the canvas it pleased without any human interference or brushwork, this also would explain the variety of unique prints in the Rorschach series. The symmetrical networks of mainly thick Liquitex Acrylic paint distributed on silk screens created syrupy veins of paint that were easily identifiable and caused a unique distorted image each time. One arguable aspect of his work would also be that he never signed his work; out of all 38 paintings not one would contain his signature. One could say that Warhol was particularly fond of genital imagery, but others would argue that the Rorschach paintings not only represent Warhols demented mind, but contained images o f the devil and even death itself. Horrific atrocities from the gates of hell to a giant taunting mask, not all feedback was negative though, many saw completely opposite and positive imagery in the works, from royalty to giant vases, but no matter what the viewers imagination brought about, each canvas created a feeling that the work would engulf the spectator at any time (McShine 382-383). Warhol was said to have included iconography in his famous works such as the Rorschach series, some images might have been developed to represent something to him personally and to others something entirely different. Iconography would be defined as a pictorial representation of a subject, or the collection of images, or icons illustrating a subject (Artlex.com). He would mainly use it in his earlier works, self portraits of himself with skulls on his head as to depict his own death or murder. Warhols style of work in the Rorschach series was distinctly different from other great players of Pop Art during the era. Working on the subjects he loved and having a strict routine he would turn items of daily use into simplified yet intricate pieces of art. Warhol had worked on this series for a year, which gave him time and a chance to determine the end results. Most of his collection was never shown until after his death. Soon after the completion and major success of the Rorschach paintings, Warhol steadily moved on from his prized series and went on his final adventure in abstraction in 1986 (Glasstire.com). Warhol would play around with camouflage and stretch out the work on canvases as large as thirty feet. He was so fascinated with the endless possibilities and variations of camouflage iconography that he would eventually add it as an incongruous overlay to some of his other series. He then left his so fond abstraction series to continue on with his career with his already popular self portraits and later on The Last Supper series (Glasstire.com). From the day he left the calm environment of his normal work place and entered the very chaotic place of The Factory in 1962, he would mass produce silk screen prints and challenge the difference between high and low art to show the world that art can be found in everyday objects. Warhol would keep pushing the limits of art towards new boundaries that would drastically change the art we see around us today. Andy Warhol had made a permanent mark in the art world and had become a world renowned Pop Art icon. In 1987, the Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts was established in his honor and in May 1994, the Andy Warhol Museum opened in his home town Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (Artinthepicture.com). Being a controversial homosexual man that he was with a bizarre personality, he was obsessed by the ambition of getting rich and famous and he knew exactly how he would achieve this from the very first day he stepped into the art world.

Dropout Intervention Essay -- Education, Dropout Prevention Programmin

Outcomes In Relation to EBD The literature indicates that outcomes for students with EBD were, by and large, positive and indicated that dropout interventions geared toward students with behavioral issues show some potential success for students. Sinclair, Christenson, & Thurlow (2005) found 44% of students within the treatment group with EBD as the primary special education qualifier were more likely to persist in school, whereas only 33% of students with EBD in the control group had the same likelihood. Researcher Remorse Hindsight and seeming regret in regard to measurement and study design weren’t uncommon across the literature. A pervasive â€Å"should have, would have, could have† existed among certain of the studies. The Vannest et al. (2009) study concluded with researchers lamenting the lack of a â€Å"quality measurement† in regard to the mentor-mentee interactions. The writers also bemoaned the study’s reliance on time units (that were not described), components of mentor-mentee interactions at school and via email, and, puzzlingly, a reliance on â€Å"measurable and observable data†. Both Munoz (2002) and Franklin et al. (2007) determined that without a control or comparison group, validity is shaky. However, none of the examined dropout prevention researchers were remorseful that the current span of literature didn’t consider race or gender in program design or measurement (including research projects explicitly aimed at students upon the basis of t heir race and/or gender). Mobility and Attrition Throughout the literature, mobility and it’s effect on student success rates in dropout prevention programming is noted but not consistently considered in the intervention findings, which is curious considering the possible dynamics... ...about the students we are supposed to provide with individualized, differentiated programming. Ninth, program interventions should consider implementing student involvement with planning, intervention, progress review, and goal discussion. Students who are in control of their own educational process foster ownership and responsibility for their future. Measuring the efficacy of such an approach for our target population could prove extremely beneficial, definitely informative. Tenth, making the realistic consequences of dropping out of school versus staying in school and graduating a more tangible concept for our target population appears to be a worthwhile undertaking. Vocational training programs and career mentoring could prove valuable for increasing graduation for our target population, and should definitely be examined.

Beethoven Essay -- Biography

Introduction Like many people of this time period Beethoven was affected by the French Revolution, the enlightenment and romantic periods; in 1789 the French Revolution was raging and people were dying. The French general Napoleon defeated France’s enemies and inspired Beethoven with ideas of freedom and equality. It was because those inspirations that Beethoven was going to dedicated his Third Symphony, Erocia which means heroic to him, that was until Napoleon decided to declared himself emperor, which made him so angry that he viciously scratched out the dedication. (Alvarez 2006-2007) He was also influence by nature and especially the country side. This is evident by his sixth Symphony, Pastoral which means simple country, below are the titles for each movement of this Symphony â€Å"Awakening of Cheerful Feelings upon Arrival in the Country,† â€Å"Scene by the Brook,† Merrymaking of Country Folk,† â€Å"Thunder Storm,† and â€Å"Song of the Shepard’s, Joy and Gratitude after the Storm.† Along with other musical composition Beethoven was a man of head of his time. He was a classicalist but he should have been a romantic. In fact it is because of him that the Romantic period of music was started. Just like Frank Schubert he drew on poets like Goethe and Schiller for his songs. Just the stirring emotions of his compositions gets my vote for being a romantic. Most biographers tend to divide Beethoven life into three stages. I will continue with this practice event though this is just summarized version of events that took placed due Ludwig van Beethoven’s Life. His career is divided into Early, Middle and Late Periods. Early general is thought to be from birth to 1802, the middle from 1803 to 1814, and the late period from 1815... ...Alvarez 2006-2007) There is much debate about what has caused Beethoven’s hearing loss. Since there wasn’t any hearing specialist during that time period the real cause may never be known. I have listed one theory below. Beethoven may well have had the specific form of immunopathic disease known as Systemic Lupus Erythematosus, which typically commences in early adult life with a fever accompanied by mental confusion. Typical symptoms are destructive rash ('lupus') and redness ('erythema') of the butterfly area of the face. Any of the immunopathic disorders may occur, notably colitis. The excellent life-mask of 1812 shows an elongated atrophic scar particularly suggestive of Lupus. The portraits clearly show flushing of the cheekbones and nose. Beethoven's high color was frequently commented on and may have aroused suspicions of heavy drinking. (Lane 2005)

The Importance of Interpersonal Communications in a Friendship Essay

I don’t know where I would be without my best friend. The person who keeps me sane when my family is driving me crazy, or the person who will stay up with me all night to support me when I have a last minute paper due in a class; I don’t know where I would be without that support. I found this support in my best friend, my sister from another father, Regina. Regina is an eccentric, overbearing, lover of all things natural type of girl. She lives life to the fullest and never backs down from a challenge. She is funny, full of whit and sharper than a tack fresh out of the box. Although it hasn’t always been a smooth road for us we still remain friends to this day. Regina and I were neighbors for several years and in that time our friendship strengthened and didn’t seem like anything could break it. It was in our getting older and need for exploration that slowly initiated the fissure in our friendship. We began not seeing eye-to-eye on subjects that we used to agree on when we first met. I would find myself looking for companionship in other friends instead of relying on her for support; and that was wearing thin. It was in our return home that we really started to waiver and greatly changed our relationship to something that I could not recognize. When I began to comprehend the faults within our relationship, I knew it was time to act. Focusing on the Struggle Spectrum by the National Communication Association, I noticed that we were repeatedly climbing the struggle ladder and falling off the edge only to repeat it again. My younger, less educated version of myself would never have seen the problems but now, after years of college and my Interpersonal Communications class, I could see what needed to be done. I b... ...has changed me for the better and I now know that Regina is ready to complete this journey with me. â€Å"The friends that listen to us are the ones we move toward, and we want to sit in their radius† (Karl Meninger). I am greatly pleased with the outcome of this challenge and look forward to what comes next. The profound meaning of my friendship with Regina and what we’ve been through over the past 11 years constantly reminds me that of all the moments we’ve shared, arguments we’ve had, and time spent apart. I appreciate that nothing—absolutely nothing is more uplifting and inspiring than enduring the challenges of life with someone who knows you like the back of your hand. â€Å"It is by chance that we met, by choice that we became friends, Henri Nouwen. Works Cited Beebe S., Beebe S., Redmond M. (2011, 2008, 2005) Allyn & Bacon by Pearson Education, Inc.