Generational Poverty Essay - 1694 Words

Introduction This week in class the focus has been on generational poverty. There are a lot of key factors that lead to poverty. Poverty does not exist because people want it to. Poverty is a way of life for those who don’t know another way and feel that they don’t have a way out. Every day in society people turn their heads or frown up their nose at people who they see living in poverty because they think they are better than them and will not lift a hand to help them out. The big question is why do we do this? In most cases, the poverty line or clash of the classes are based on wealth and there is certainly a variation in the wealth among the population. But classism exists from the beginning of education to death.†¦show more content†¦The next factor is education. Education attainment is a major if not the most important key to breaking the cycle of generational poverty. Research has shown that growing up in a lower income family negatively impacts educational obt ainment needed to break the cycle of poverty. Learned behavior within peer groups, families and neighborhoods can also contribute to the cycle of poverty. Those with minimal education tend to find themselves employed at low paying jobs with little or no benefits. In addition, financial literacy and training is an important educational component that is needed to break the cycle of poverty. Employment is the third factor. There has been a significant decline in manufacturing jobs, which are typically high paying with good benefits. There is a growing mismatch with the skills of these displaced workers and available jobs. The loss of these manufacturing jobs has resulted in many folks going back to generational poverty. In a lot of cases, there are a growth of new jobs but these jobs tends to come with low pay and no benefits, which can further prevent breaking out of the cycle poverty. Also, multiple income based antipoverty programs can have a negative impact of work incentives. This is due to the fact these programs have to be funded with funds that could be used to pay workers to help them overcomeShow MoreRelatedReflective Paper/Generational Poverty2125 Words   |  9 PagesReflective Paper Nakia Larson BSHS 345 Diversity and Special Populations May 13, 2013 Princess Clarke Reflective Paper GENERATIONAL POVERTY Generational Poverty creates a strong family oriented environment that is a bond that most children refuse to want to break by leaving home. Most of the children that are raised in poverty have a lack of education resulting in a high dropout rate due to frustration in learning or teen pregnancy. Children become possessions to their parents instead ofRead MoreOvercoming The Silence of Generational Poverty1809 Words   |  8 PagesTheres a common myth that people are forced into poverty because they are simply lazy or inferior, the truth is it is harder to feed and clothe your family than ever before. Poverty in this country is not accidental, it is a direct result of funneling wealth upstream; the rich get richer and the poor suffer. The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want Mark 14:7. In America, you are considered to be in poverty if you have to grow your own food, or you have aRead MoreGenerational Poverty1683 Words   |  7 Pageson person or persons. This can consist of generation poverty, the aged or elderly, and women. These populations face complex challenges in their daily lives. Economic instability, lack of resources, lack of education and lack of unity from society keeps special population groups in hardships. Generational poverty involves special population of poor people. It is cycle of poverty wherein two to three generations were born and lived in poverty. Complex factors are involved that hinders them from strivingRead MoreOvercoming Silence Of Generational Poverty By Donna M. Beegle1044 Words   |  5 PagesIn the article â€Å"Overcoming the Silence of Generational Poverty† by Donna M. Beegle, various examples are given on the impact of generational poverty in student’s lives. Beegle starts by providing a brief narration of her life in poverty and the effects it had on her education. She also provides suggestions to educators on how to improve learning experience for those living in generational poverty. Beegle conducted a study using twenty-four college graduates of different cultural background butRead MoreA Single Mother Of Four Essay1603 Words   |  7 Pagesshe was told her income is above the poverty line and is not qualified for such program. Every year hund reds of people are granted SNAP under false pretenses, they lie and fabricate documents to be eligible; while honest hard working people who really need the help are being denied. This is an everyday problem in society. There are different techniques that can be taken to change the process of being qualified for SNAP to help people escape generational poverty, these include; doing random drug testsRead MoreCauses And Effects Of Poverty1511 Words   |  7 PagesPoverty is characterized by a specific dollar value for yearly income, and is used as a threshold for families of a given size in a given year, and if the family income falls below that line, the family is considered to be in poverty (Aber, Morris, Raver, 2012). The family self-sufficiency standard serves as an additional measure of poverty, considering what it would take to meet family’s basic needs, such as food, water, warmth, and rest, all without being dependent on external government or charitableRead MoreAnalys is Of Agora Cyber Charter School941 Words   |  4 PagesAccording to Feeding America (n.d.), 46.7 million American people live in poverty including 15.5 million children. The status of living in poverty often makes families experience food-insecurity, or the inability to provide substantial, nutritious food to their children (World Hunger Education Services, 2015). Unemployment and job uncertainty often lead to food insecurity and both have become a growing problem in America. As a teacher in a cyber- charter school who severs a cross section of childrenRead MoreEnrique s Ecological Analysis And Analysis1721 Words   |  7 PagesEnrique’s Ecological Analysis Poverty can be defined as the condition where people basic need for shelter, food, and clothing are not being met. Whereas Jensen (2009 ) define poverty as a chronic and debilitating condition that results from multiple adverse synergistic risk factors and affect the mind, body and soul. Jensen (2009) has identified six types of poverty. The six types of poverty are situational, generational, absolute, relative, urban and rural poverty. Situational is caused by a suddenRead MoreThe Reservation Land For Native Americans980 Words   |  4 PagesPoverty Imagine a life where the government legally owns all your assets, and you report to a special bureau set up to handle your affairs. The land you live on is held in trust, and each exhausting step you take to climb out of poverty is snagged in mountains of legal red tape. In 1831, Chief Justice John Marshall started Native Americans along the slippery slope to poverty when he established a federal doctrine that assigns the government as trustees of Indian affairs. The reservation landsRead MoreIn our world today there are a very large number of problems that human service client1123 Words   |  5 Pagespeople is at an all-time high as the economy continues to deteriorate and the number of social service and housing funding cuts increase so does the number of homeless clients. Understanding homelessness requires a grasp of several social issues: poverty, affordable housing, disabilities, and others. â€Å"According† to the national alliance to end homelessness the national rate of homelessness in America was 20 homeless people per every 10,000 people in the general population. The rate for veterans was

Sentencing Of A Jail Or Prison Sentence - 1598 Words

Determinate Sentence is a jail or prison sentence that you cannot change its definite. But offenders are allowed to be released after they have served their time. Determinate sentences were almost exclusively used throughout the eighteenth century and it was believed that judges were the best people to determine the amount of time needed to punish the offender and to deter them from further crimes. Judges were granted the power to determine sentencing also took much discretion away from the judges. Determinate sentencing takes any question of bias out of the sentencing portion of a trial. The standard sentence is handed down, no matter who that person is or what race they are. Because there are no variables that change the sentencing†¦show more content†¦Crimes usually carried a maximum sentence judges were free to choose among various options like imprisonment, probation, and fines. Behind it is the hope that prison will rehabilitate some offenders and that different people respond differently to punishment. But it puts too much power into the hands of the parole board leading to arbitrary and discriminatory results. They charge that too often, minorities and prisoners without connections receive overly harsh decisions from parole boards while less deserving offenders are released early. Factors considered in granting parole to an offender with an indeterminate sentence include: Some facts about determinate sentencing are: aggravating or mitigating factors or circumstances relative to the crime of conviction. The offender’s entire criminal history is all available information from the victim or the victim’s family, to include comment on the impact of the crime, concerns about the offender s potential release, and requests for conditions if the offender is released. Participation in or refusal to participate in available programs or resources designed to assist an offender in reducing the risk of re-offense. The risk to public safety. Serious and repetitive disciplinary infractions during incarceration. Evidence of an inmate s continuing intent or propensity to engage in illegal activity. Statements or declarations by the offender that he/she intends to reoffend or does not intend to comply with conditionsShow MoreRelatedState And Federal Objectives Of Punishment1040 Words   |  5 PagesAbstract In this paper I will go over state and federal objectives of punishment. How sentencing affects the state and federal corrections systems will also be discussed. There are two different types of sentencing which are determinate and indeterminate sentencing, and they will be defined in this paper. State and Federal Objectives of Punishment There are four different fundamental objectives of punishment. The four different faces of punishment are deterrence, retribution, rehabilitation, andRead MoreSentencing Of The Sentencing Hearing863 Words   |  4 PagesSENTENCING Once an individual has been found guilty of a crime, sentencing will take place within thirty to sixty days. The sentencing hearing is set far enough in advance that a presentence investigation can be held by the probation department (Aberle, 2014). During the presentencing investigation the probation department will assign members to look at the defendant’s prior criminal history, military history, work history, summary of the charges including mitigating and aggravating circumstancesRead MoreJails and Prisons Comparison Essay1064 Words   |  5 PagesPrisons and jails hold some similar characteristics but are completely different models in which they serve in the criminal justice system. Some of the types of crimes that America faces today are: violent crimes, property, white collar or organized crime, and public order crimes (Worrall, 2008). The criminal justice system sets the regulations and policies of how an offender will be held accountable for their inappropriate actions. The criminal justice system is a process that takes time and moneyRead MoreIt s Time For Re Think Mandatory Minimums1607 Words   |  7 Pagesswept the nation leaving many wondering what could be done to eliminate this problem that reached everywhere from small town middle America to the larger metropolitan areas. It has always been the common acceptance that by putting more offenders in jail, crime statistics will decrease. This belief led congress to enact the anti-drug abuse act of 1986. At first, it was believed that this seemed to work, due to there being a â€Å"5% drop in crime in the 1990’s† (Chettiar). While according to various newerRead MoreThe Drug Enforcement Agency ( Dea )1574 Words   |  7 Pagesin a U.S prison. The Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) makes over 30,000 arrests each year related to the sales and distribution of illegal narcotics. In 1986 the Anti-Drug Abuse act set the 5 and 50 gram quantities for crack cocaine which triggered the five and ten year mandatory minimum jail sentence for crack cocaine. This created a conflict with the ratio from crack to powder cocaine because it was 100:1 meaning a person caught with crack cocaine would be more likely to serve longer jail time thanRead MoreThe Effects Of Prison Overcrowding On The United States Essay1713 Words   |  7 Pageswhen the jail populace expanded from 300,000 to 1.6million detainees, and the imprisonment rate from 100 for each 100,000 to more than 500 for every 100,000. Nonetheless, there is by all accounts little relationship between the wrongdoing rate and the imprisonment rate (Clear et al., 2013). One of the causes of prison overcrowding comes about because of the expansion rate of arrest and more noteworthy utilization of detainment. The criminal justice system is detaining more individuals to prison for aRead MoreMandatory Minimum Sentencing On Violent Crimes Essay1492 Words   |  6 PagesJ’son West Nov. 12. 2016 CJ 202 Canon Mandatory Minimum Sentencing on Violent Crimes Crime in America is growing at a substantial rate and repeat offenders are playing a huge roll in this growth. Mandatory minimum sentences, first established in Connecticut in 1969 and expanded throughout the 1980s and 1990s, exemplify a shift in public policy to impose a specific amount of imprisonment based on the crime committed and the defendant’s criminal history, and away from other individual offender characteristicsRead MoreAbolishing Mandatory Minimum Sentencing On The United States1690 Words   |  7 PagesAbolishing Mandatory Minimum Sentencing in the United States EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The concept of mandatory minimum sentencing has been plaguing the justice system of the United States of America for too many years and therefore must be abolished. If mandatory minimum sentencing were to be done away with, then the criminal justice system could finally start to bring desperately needed change to itself and start to get back to where it needs to be; a system that takes people with a problem andRead MoreThe Economic Effects Of Overpopulated Prisons1500 Words   |  6 Pages The Economic Effects of Overpopulated Prisons in the United States: Christopher Polinsky, Ronald Stewart, Ryan Thornton, and Skipper Schuyler Southern Illinois University at Carbondale Prepared for Dr. Kasthuri Henry ESTIS Visiting Assistant Professor September 25, 2016 Of the nearly nine million people incarcerated worldwide, the United States houses over two million inmates in its federal, state, and local facilities. While the goal of the judicial system is to enforce the lawRead MorePros And Cons Of Mandatory Minimum Sentences1008 Words   |  5 PagesMandatory minimum sentences are court decisions where judicial discretion is limited by law. Usually when people are convicted of certain crimes they must be punished with at least a minimum number of years in prison. The article I picked to review is an article on mandatory minimum sentences. The article reviews the pros and cons of mandatory sentencing. I will go over the pros and cons described in the article and give my opinion on how I feel about them. Staring with the pros of mandatory

International Communication Free Essays

Declaration l, the undersigned, hereby declare that this is my own and personal work, except where the work(s) or publications of others have been acknowledged by means of reference techniques. I have read and understood Tutorial Letter CANALLED/301 regarding technical and presentation requirements, reference techniques and plagiarism. Table Of Contents Page Introduction Essay: Globalization South Africa Conclusion Sources 2 5 6 The term ‘globalization’ gives rise to a lot of different meanings and interpretations. We will write a custom essay sample on International Communication or any similar topic only for you Order Now Globalization has its own negative and positive effects on the world today. It has opened the free markets which enables trades between countries, and therefore increases the living standards in these particular countries. However, there are still some developing countries that have fallen behind and have not kept up with the pace of change of development. It has had many impacts both negative and positive on South Africa and its people. Globalization South Africa Page | 2 As an emerging democracy, in the past South Africa had to contend with the demands of both national and international issues. This included rising unemployment, poverty and inequality. At the same time, South Africa had to become a contender in the globalizes world of capital, trade and changes in technology. The free market that has been created by globalization has allowed for less developed countries to learn from more developed countries, therefore allowing people to advance and succeed economically. Globalization affects South Africans lives in so many ways. Most times it seems we are a land that is stuck between our interesting yet difficult past while trying to move forward to embrace all that the future could old. Often poorer countries that are not connected to people globally, are unskilled due to the lack of knowledge and equipment. They are also unable to trade with the other countries which are richer and larger as they are unable to meet the demand. Enabling people of one nation to communicate with those of other nations is the biggest achievement in terms of globalization. It has provided the production market with an improved access to a wide range of foreign products and as a result, globalization has increased and helped in the production of goods for import and export. By increasing production and lowering costs, South Africa is able to take advantage of access to these free markets and allow for more trading with international consumers. This will help the country to not only increase export profits but also employment. An important factor of globalization is that it is able to remove barriers and promote mobility. By opening borders it exposes people to opportunities for example – as established company like Macdonald is able to expand their countries like South Africa. Thus creating employment and strengthening the economy. This exposes young South African entrepreneurs to more advanced ways ND ‘know-how in running a business. The globalization of the economy and the demands on the workforce that goes with it, requires an education that allows learners to think independently, to exercise Judgment and teamwork to make sense of new situations. Education teaches how to learn, problem-solve and incorporate the old with the new in our ever changing society. Foreign interest and investment will be directly linked to education and training. Due to increased competition from globalization, companies are more willing to aid their employees with courses or financially with studies. This enables them to be more efficient and effective within the organization. â€Å"Standard of living refers to the level of wealth, comfort, material goods and necessities available to a certain socioeconomic class in a certain geographic area. The standard of living includes factors such as income, quality and availability of employment. † (www. Wisped. Org) According to this definition of standard of living, globalization has a positive influence on a developing country such as South Africa. It increases the availability of goods, opportunities and potential of income for South Africa. Poverty stricken countries are instantly playing ‘catch-up’ with the rest of the world in terms of technological advances. The standard of living is measured by the income per person which has increased in South Africa over time, thus provi ng that globalization has had a positive impact on the economy of South Africa. Page | 4 Due to globalization, South Africa has had the opportunity to ‘rub shoulders’ with economic giants such as the United States, Japan, United Kingdom and China. This enables our country to learn from other countries and stabilize our economic infrastructure. South Africa has been able to learn better methods of communication, rainspout and distribution networks that make business activity possible. With globalization we can learn to constantly improve and develop our economic infrastructure from power house economies. Government regulation is when the legislative and executive branches set and enact laws that determine how a specific task, business, or industry is supposed to run. † (wry. Answers. Ask. Com) For a developing country such as South Africa to gain knowledge on regulation regarding laws, ideas or patterns of behavior from across the globe, it is important to have good relations with first world leaders. The different levels and branches in govern ment are there to help deal with issues the country faces, but sometimes this inequality in power has devastating effects. State power and functions are sometimes abused and this has a direct impact on the citizens and development of the country. Information technology is a driving force of globalization and the advancement of video calling and teleconferencing making business that much more efficient, it increases the communication processes. Technology has something to do with change. Most of the innovations from the technological advances have very important effects on the lives of peoples of the world, which has witnessed radical changes. The use and production of CIT plays an important role in the ability of nations to participate in global economic activities. Conclusion Page I All sectors including economic, political, technological, cultural and environmental are directly affected by, and fall under the ‘umbrella’ of globalization. The term and definition of globalization shows us how we are all interconnected and interdependent in some way and how our lives have taken shape around the rapid and ongoing changes in the world. How to cite International Communication, Papers

Data Management of United Energy Distribution Pty †Free Samples

Question: Discuss about the Data Management of United Energy Distribution Pty. Answer: Introduction United Energy Distribution Pty is an energy distribution company that distributes electricity to residential and business customers in East and Southeast Melbourne. The company also distributes electric power in some areas in Mornington Peninsula. The company owns, operates and maintains its electricity networks meaning that it is vertically integrated. The company operates under this model to make operations efficient and to enjoy extra profits from every section of the business. United Energy Distribution Pty was previously named United Energy Limited before it was renamed in the year 2003. United Energy Distribution PTY was formed in the year 1994, and it's currently headquartered in Mount Waverley, in Australia ( Labiod Badra, 2007). In the year 2017, the company announced total revenue of $247.8 million compared to previous years record of $275.6million. The company is currently headed by Mr. Hugh B. Gleeson BE who is the Chief executive officer. The company aims at advancing t echnology in distribution and generation of electricity to increase efficiency and to offer customs electricity at low prices. United Energy seeks to achieve optimum safety by ensuring zero harm to the employees involved in the generation of electricity and among its customers. The company has been able to perform well in all the three sub-sectors of the industry which include electricity generation, distribution, and maintenance of the networks. Critical data, knowledge, and information on United Energy Distribution PTY United Energy is a privately owned company that operates in Australia. The companys three main stakeholders include AMP Group, Aquila Resources Limited and Power partnership Pty. In the year 2017, the companys revenues fell by $ 27.8m from $275.6m to $247 million. As at June 2017, the companys total debt stood at $795,990, and the interest was $52,556. The shared equity for the company stood at $865,178, and the percentage equity is 59% .The Company announced a profit of $43.6 million in the year 2017. The decrease in profits is due to increased fixed cost by the company and changes in weather conditions which have affected the distribution of electricity. The last available data on ASX website on the dividends announced by the company date back in the year 2003 when the company announced a final dividend of 10c per share. Currently, the company supplies electricity to more than 640,000 across different areas in Australia. It manages a network of more than 209,000 poles and more than 13,000 Km of wires (Mah, Hills Balme, n.d.).The company mostly focuses on the distribution of electricity to households since they do not require a high amount of electricity to run. It is not possible for UE to distribute electricity to large manufacturing companies since it cannot meet the demand. The company uses two different tariffs for electricity bills to its customers. They include the retail component to recover the cost of purchasing energy from the generator and the network component which recovers the network costs which includes both transmission and distribution costs. The network tariffs are regulated by the Australia Energy Regulator (AER) and it regulates the setting of electricity prices. Key stakeholders in the smart meter project A smart meter is a project by UE that is aimed at providing the customers in Victoria with an opportunity to manage their energy use. This is backed up with a home display also referred to as Easy energy portal which helps customers to continuously view their electricity bills and have control over them(Webber, 2016). For this project, it is easy to disconnect electricity at will and to switch to a new electricity retailer. The system also enables the customer to feed electricity from solar panels to their connection. The stakeholders in the smart meter project include the United energy company which is the developer and owner of the project. The other stakeholder in this project is the Australian Communication and Media Authority. The company is required to comply with the electromagnetic exposure limitations which were developed by the Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency (ARPANSA)(Moeller, 2013). The other stakeholders are the customers who are the intended be neficiary of the project. Customers need to fill a personal information request form for the company to create an online form for them where they can access their energy usage from the portal. The other shareholder in the smart meter project is the Australian energy regulatory authority. The authority regulates the distribution of electricity and ensures that it protects its customers from exploitation and over pricing. The agency ensures that the customers can enjoy the flexible pricing model as required by law using this smart meter project. Communication networks and associated data systems required for smart meter project to operate The smart meter project depends on the use of hardware components such as Smartphone or a computer that is capable of accessing the internet. There has also to be the presence of a network provider to help the hardware devices access the internet (Hakansson, Hjer, Howlett, Jain, n.d.). The internet could be WI-FI network or a hand gadget service provider internet. The company requires establishing as hierarchical data model to enable create a system where the customers can assess their usage of electricity from time to time. The company needs to set up a file server that should contain the portals` content directory and design communication between the server and the portal. The project needs load balancers if a web adaptor is used in setting up the network. A content directory needs to be set up and it Is to be shared by various machines used in the company. A load balancer is also required to support internal communication within the company and keep the administrators notified on anything unusual in the system. Two or more database machines are required to store information being relayed through the portal. The other communication networks needed in this system is the designing of software with specific definitions depending on the needs of consumers. Computers will be required to enable internal communication among the system administrators. A measuring and transmitting gadget needs to be installed at the meter to measure electricity usage and transmit the data to the servers of the company after which the customers can access the information in the portal. Coordination of mobile networks with oversight of internal data processing systems Coordination between the mobile networks and the internal data processing systems is important to ensure that the system works appropriately. The mobile networks used by the customers to access the data on electricity usage are very reliable and efficient. The meter reader has to record the usage every minute and remit the reading to the servers of the company. The data is then transferred to the file of each client since each of the smart meters has a unique identification number which is used to allocate numbers to the files in the database for each meter. The transformation of data from the meter to the servers of the company can be done through fixed wire connections or can be wireless, Cellular communication or use of WI-FI network, ad-hoc wireless network. Low power long-range networks and smart utility networks (Haes Van Grembergen, 2017). In the case of United Energy, the coordination between the meter and the main servers of the company is done through the smart utility netw ork. The data on the electricity used each day is transmitted automatically to the main system where billing is done. The data is then made available to the portal of every client and they can access it by accessing the internet and logging in using a unique password. Critique and Justified selection of database management system for the smart mater project The selection of a database management system for use in the smart meter project is very critical in determining the kind of transmission and the success of the whole project. The database system is very crucial in this project since storage of large and complex volumes of data is required. The system has to be of high quality and reliable to avoid transmission of the wrong data to the clients and to avoid constant breakdown (Khosrowpour, 2017). The database management system used by the company is easy to use. The system is user-friendly for the members of staff trained in the matters of technology and it is easy to understand even for a layman. The system uses drag and drops execution command to make initiative working methods. The system is secure since the system is protected from hacking and unintended corruption of data. However, the physical security of data is questionable since most of the employees are allowed to access the location of the systems and they may interfere wit h the hardware component and hence mess up with the data contained in it. The system is also highly functional since the software for analyzing and transmitting data meets the requirements of the company and has performed without any complications so far. The database system is also highly flexible, and it is easily integrated with other software such as CRM as the company may wish and hence making it very suitable for UE. Review of existing systems It is important to review the legacy databases which exist existed in the company before the new smart meter project. The review of the existing databases for the company is important to evaluate how they can be integrated with the new chosen database. The legacy database is the database which was used by the company before the new smart meter technology was introduced. The databases are important for this project since the historical data available in the legacy database may be of great use to the new system. The software of the new database needs to be flexible to ensure that its works well with the existing databases. The legacy database is modified to increase its storage capacity. The technology used in the new database also needs to be integrated into the existing database to make it easy for coordination and transmission of data to the portal. The reliability and good performance by the legacy databases make it attractive for UE to maintain the legacy database and modify it to meet the requirements of the business at this time. The cost of integrating the system with the new one is also not high, and hence it makes it very suitable for the company to integrate the system (Arcsoft (conference), Holzinger, Cardoso, Cordeiro, Libourel, Maciaszek Sinderen, 2015). The legacy database when integrated with the new database will make it easy and fast for the customers to communicate with the company seeking to know their energy usage and any other additional information on the services the company is offering. Potential implications of new technology New technology has major implications for the smart meter project. This is because the project is all about the use of the latest technology in reading meters and transmission of the data to the servers. The new technology has made it possible for two-way communication and hence the data can be quickly and securely be transmitted to a central server. Wireless mesh networks have also been used to communicate to various. The ANSI C12.18 protocol is used to communicate information collected from the meter to the servers of the company and hence making it possible for customers to get timely data on the electricity usage (Al-share Rahman, 2016). The technology is integrating the smart meter network with the utility applications like billing and CIS. The meter system of data management has made it easy for the company to store bulk data and arrange it automatically and hence the bills of each customer are transmitted independently. IT and data governance system The data governance system is essential in laying down policies and rules that are to be followed in data storage and IT programs of the company. IT governance helps in reducing failure in IT projects and therefore helps to reduce the risk of failure of the project. Accountability in the project is also improved through IT governance. The IT assets associated with the company are also managed appropriately through the IT governance policy. The IT governance structure gives specific people responsibility to be in charge of various aspects of the project. The smart meter is an expensive project for the company, and it is therefore very important to manage the project well to ensure the company attains a return on investment (Wunderlich, n.d.). The management of data and information technology is important to ensure that the company meets the needs of its customers. The IT governance establishes processes for identifying opportunities for extra value, decision making, and prioritization as well as continuous monitoring and evaluation. Conclusion The report analyzes and evaluates the smart meter project by United Energy. The paper begins with an evaluation of the companys background and its main business framework and activities. The report contains financial information on the company which includes the revenues and profits generated by the company over the last two years. The company's` revenue has decreased due to changes in weather conditions which has hampered the generation and distribution of electricity. The paper also analyzes the stakeholders in the smart meter project being undertaken by the United Energy Pty. The major shareholders include the technology provider, the company itself and the ARPANSA (Calder, 2005). The communication and mobile network system required to implement the project and the coordination of mobile networks with the existing IT systems and databases by the company. The existing systems are reviewed, and their compatibility and integration with the new system are evaluated to determine how th ey can fit into one another. The IT and data governance system used by United Energy in the project is also discussed together with its significance to the business. References Al-shaer, E. S., rahman, M. A. (2016). Security and resiliency analytics for smart grids: Static and dynamic approaches. Http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-32871-3. Calder, A. (2005). It governance today: A practitioner's handbook. Ely, cambs, it governance pub. Http://public.eblib.com/choice/publicfullrecord.aspx?P=480388. Icsoft (conference), holzinger, A., cardoso, J., cordeiro, J., libourel, T., maciaszek, L., sinderen, M. J. V. (2015). Software technologies: 9th international joint conference, icsoft 2014, vienna, austria, august 29-31, 2014, revised selected papers. Http://rave.ohiolink.edu/ebooks/ebc/9783319255798. Haes, S. D., Van Grembergen, W. (2017). Strategic it governance and alignment in business settings. Hakansson, A., hjer, M., Howlett, R. J., Jain, L. C. (n.d.). Sustainability in energy and buildings [recurso electrnico] proceedings of the 4th international conference in sustainability in energy and buildings (seb' 12). Khosrowpour, M. (2017). Encyclopedia of information science and technology. Labiod, H., badra, M. (2007). New technologies, mobility and security. Dordrecht, netherlands, springer. Http://public.eblib.com/choice/publicfullrecord.aspx?P=372386. Mah, D., Hills, P., Li, V. O. K., balme, R. (n.d.). Smart grid applications and developments [recurso electrnico]. Moeller, R. R. (2013). Executive's guide to it governance: Improving systems processes with service management, cobit, and itil. Http://www.123library.org/book_details/?Id=63923. Webber, M. (2016). It governance: Policies and procedures 2017 edition with cd. [place of publication not identified], wolters kluwer law bus. Wunderlich, P. (n.d.). Green information systems in the residential sector [recurso electrnico] an examination of the determinants of smart meter adoption.

Nature †Nurture in human developmental psychology Essay Example Essay Example

Nature – Nurture in human developmental psychology Essay Example Paper Nature – Nurture in human developmental psychology Essay Introduction Nature – Nurture in Human Developmental Psychology Nature – Nurture in Human Developmental Psychology Nature – Nurture in human developmental psychology Essay Body Paragraphs The nature versus nurture controversy is concerned with the comparative significance of an individual’s instinctive features (innatism) against individual experiences (nurture) in establishing or triggering individual dissimilarities in behavioral and physical attributes. The argument as to whether human beings obtain their behavioral characteristics from an inborn source or they are developed from the effects of the environment in which humans live, is not a simple matter. Both of these factors interactively contribute towards shaping the behavior of an individual. A key element in understanding this issue is first understanding the definitions of the terms nature and nurture. The nature aspect of this argument stresses on the extent to which an individual portrays biological predispositions. Conversely, nurture stresses on how much of an individual shows signs of being affected by environmental factors. In reality, a combination of the environment and the genes affects a per son’s development. A good illustration is a person inherits genes for being tall but because of poor nurturing, end up short or average height. Several considerations are present when considering the impasse that exists between nature and nurture such as moral considerations, personality misinterpretations and other complications. The analysis of these considerations will form the next section. There are consequences when taking either side in the debate on nature versus nurture. In arguing when inclined toward nature, most of the arguments are inclined towards scientific explanations. Scientists have placed a great amount of emphasis on racism as a major factor in the analysis of nature. They argue that the race of an individual, which is inherited, plays a crucial role in determining the nature of an individual (Stiles, 2008). Using this argument, scientists propose that the heredity of an individual is the only influencing factor in their nature. Arguing from this point of view is flawed because while heredity is a natural phenomenon, it cannot be said to be the only factor influencing an individual’s behavior. This is because while an individual will inherit certain behaviors from their biological parents, the environment in which they live or grow up will either accentuate or repress their inherent behavior. Scientists acknowledge this contribution by environmental factors but downplay it as being insignificant in a person’s life. In other words, despite the environment and experiences that an individual may encounter, their innate nature ultimately determines their behavior. This line of argument that is inclined towards nature is also flawed in that it crosses the gap between what is fact and what is ideal. By doing so, proponents of nature over nurture wrongly employ values to facts. The continuous subscription to this line of thinking ultimately convinces people that biological stereotypes and behaviors are part of human nature ma king for flawed reasoning. One of the methods of proving this phenomenon is through the IATs tests that illustrated that, despite the broad significance of stereotypes, they influence the decisions and conduct of al people equally (Stiles, 2008). Most scientists reach their conclusions on the nature and nurture issue by assessing the behavior of identical twins. These studies sets have provided a wealth of information on nature versus nurture. Scientists can assess how these subjects behave in different settings, behavior that was strikingly similar and any other elements that can assist in providing knowledge. The Springer and Lewis twins are the best examples of twins that have contributed tremendously in showing the influences of nurture and nature. The argument between nurture and nature could affect the human race in several ways. One of the contributions includes its influence on the health sector. Using conclusions from such studies on nature versus nurture, scientists can di scover new methods of treating critical diseases such as cancer. Solutions to such issues can be discovered using explanations on nature and nurture. From the information currently known by scientists, it can be said that these critical diseases are because of imbalanced nature and nurture and that by closely controlling the nurturing aspect while, at the infant stages, the occurrences of these diseases can be significantly reduced. Such studies could hold an extremely valuable potential for health and man’s lifespan (Lerner, 2002). Nurture over Nature Nurture is equally important in influencing human behavior by influencing the hormones, actions and condition of human beings. Numerous positive and negative environmental inputs influence how an individual will eventually turn out in the future. These factors include nutrition, health, education and other elements that are central in most people’s lives. Several studies on the effect of nurturing on intelligence and hea lth have revealed that it is highly significant in determining how the amounts of these two in different individuals (Clarsk Grunstein, 2010). While not discrediting that natural tendencies are highly significant factors, proponents of the nurture theory assume that these natural factors are non-influential. Conversely, they argue that the behavioral aspects among human beings come from the environmental factors during life experiences. Psychologists such as John Watson have conducted numerous investigations on children that yielded conclusions supporting the supremacy of nurture over nature. He is credited with the famous statement that proposed to bring up children in whatever way he wanted by influencing their environment and upbringing. Nurture theorists propose that an individual’s society is influenced largely by the manner in which they were reared and the environment they were exposed (Lerner, 2002). Nurture as understood by John B. Watson’s in his theory of b ehaviorism argued that human behavior was learned as opposed to being inborn. Humans teach themselves new things by observing and copying other people in their environment. Through these social relations, people construct their diverse characters and behavioral trends. Without social relations, characters usually fail to develop, and distinctive behavior is negligible. Social experiences and interactions build up over several periods and shape the behavior of people to act in certain ways. For instance, studies demonstrate that children who have guardians that take drugs also end up taking the same drugs themselves. Such children picked up and replicated the act of taking drugs from their guardians and through their peers and other means, learnt to accept that it was socially acceptable to take drugs (Witkowski, Inglis Davenport, 2008). A study done by North Carolina State University revealed that environmental factors, for example, lifestyle and locations play a large function whe n specific genes are assumed non-influential. The study analyzed a fixed population of Moroccans who provided results that proved that their environment influenced their behavior. Urban dwellers were found to have increasingly developed respiratory genes because of the congested, polluted air in the cities when compared to rural dwellers. Urban dwellers were also more conscious of polluting the air and engaged in several activities to reduce pollution. This was a classical example of how life in the city changed the behavior of city dwellers even though naturally they were born in a different way. The nurture theory asserts that hereditary influence over conceptual features may be present; however, the ecological factors are the real genesis of individual’s conduct. This includes using conditioning tactics in order to encourage different behaviors in human beings, or change an improbable behavior being displayed by the individual (Witkowski et al, 2008). Conclusion In my opin ion, neither nature nor nurture holds supremacy in determining the behavior of an individual. Nature is significant in an individual’s life because all human beings are born with certain traits within their genes. These traits are inborn and cannot be altered through any man made techniques. Conversely, nurturing introduces artificial behaviors and choices to people by exposing them to different environments. This exposure under different parentage, locations and conditions, teach people behave differently than they would otherwise have behaved. Nurturing in human beings affects many factors such as the intelligence levels and can sometimes override the inborn (natural) traits in an individual. However, despite compelling arguments from both parties, it is evident that neither nature nor nurture alone can satisfactorily influence an individuals’ behavior. Both nature and nurture combine to influence how an individual behaves (Lippa, 2005). The motive for taking such a stand is derived from the evidence provided by several behavioral scientists, and other scholars who have done research on the role of nurture and nature on an individual. Scholars such as John Watson who came up with behavioral theories have proved that even though nature or nurture may offer compelling evidence of its superiority, both of them play equally significant roles in shaping the lives of an individual. References Clark, W. R., Grunstein, M. (2010). Are we hardwired? The role of genes in human behavior. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Lerner, R. M. (2002). Concepts and theories of human development. Mahwah, N.J: Lawrence Erlbaum. Lippa, R. A. (2005). Gender, nature, and nurture. New York: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Stiles, J. (2008). The fundamentals of brain development: Integrating nature and nurture. Cambridge, Mass: Harvard University Press. Witkowski, J. A., Inglis, J. R., Davenport, C. B. (2008). Davenport‘s dream: 21st century reflections on heredity and eugenics. Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press. We will write a custom essay sample on Nature – Nurture in human developmental psychology Essay Example specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Nature – Nurture in human developmental psychology Essay Example specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Nature – Nurture in human developmental psychology Essay Example specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer

Ask Yourself Are You Happy In Your Current Job

Ask Yourself Are You Happy In Your Current Job You’re happy to have a job, of course. But are you really happy in your job? If you want the best of all worlds- i.e. to live to work rather than work to live, then maybe it’s time to ask yourself whether you are actually happy where you are- or whether you could be happier somewhere else, doing something else. Have no idea how to figure this one out? Try asking yourself the following questions.1. What do you care about?Step one is to identify your passion. Figure out what gets you really jazzed up. It might be in a whole different career field entirely- you’ll never know until you do the soul searching necessary to find out. What do you enjoy? Writing? Working as a group? Working with your hands? No idea is too stupid. Figure out what really makes you excited and then figure out how to pursue it as a second step.2. What do you do best?Identifying your strengths is a good next step. Can any of them work laterally? For example, can you move to a slightly different field or totally different position that’s more suited to what you really care about purely by repurposing the skills you already have? Think a bit differently about what you can actually do- not just what you’ve studies and what you’ve been doing.3. Are you proud of your company?Does the company culture make you feel great about working where you do? Is this a challenging environment that also offers rewards and some degree of fulfillment? If you can’t excel where you are, and are not empowered to achieve your very best, then you might consider moving around.4. How’s your boss?This actually makes a massive difference. If you have a good rapport and a relationship built on mutual respect and trust, that goes a very long way toward job satisfaction. If your boss isn’t helping you to grow, then perhaps your happiness will suffer.5. What’s your role?Are you part of the solution? In the challenges facing your company and the world, does your position matter? Does the work you do every day make active gains in working toward an answer? Or do you feel like you’re irrelevant- or just part of the problem? Look back at your job description. Is your role part of the company’s boarder mission? Are you doing work that includes what made you excited to work there in the first place? Or just pushing paper and twiddling your thumbs?6. Is your network growing?A good job is one that will help you to expand your network? If you’re constantly meeting new people and being inspired and challenged by what the other people in your industry are doing, you’ll be much less bored where you are. You might even have a great lead for where to end up next!7. How’s communication?Start paying attention to how your company communicates- with everyone. This includes the interview process. Are people personable? Professional? Punctual with responses to questions and their share of the work? Are the bosses totall y hands off, or does everyone feel like they have a stake in the mission at hand? How are you and others evaluated? Fairly? Constructively?8. How do your colleagues feel?If everyone else is wildly thrilled where they are at your company, and you’ve determined that you’re at least in the right field or job, then perhaps there are deeper problems with your lack of satisfaction than can be fixed by switching careers. But if you uncover a lot of similar gripes to yours? It might be time to go back to Step 1 and start thinking about where you might go next.

The Pantheon Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

The Pantheon - Essay Example The force of the presence of Pantheon as well as its environmental symbolism often works charismatically upon visitors who experience the beautiful reach of its canopied void while passing through its bronze door into the enclosing rotunda. The extensive and influential architectural effects of the Pantheon upon the subsequent buildings are incontrovertible, and documented widely for the design and various aspects of the architecture (Baker 30). The controversial designer of the architecture, Hadrian, had an in-depth architectural brilliance accompanied with deep interest in architecture. He demonstrated inexplicable impudence and superiority in his architectures. Literature reveals that the conception and design of the Pantheon was original. Notwithstanding the fair amount of data and information on the history of the building, the eventual meaning and impression of the building remains in its intricacy and mystery. The description of the Rome architecture, the Pantheon, is presente d with information on its history. The description will cover the interior and exterior descriptions. History of the Pantheon According to MacDonald, the architect of the Rome Pantheon is unidentified. MacDonald states that it is almost certain that Hadrian was not the architect of the Pantheon despite his name being widely suggested as the one. He argues that the construction of the building must have required a thorough going professional to create the drawings and models, calculate the design and construction details and supervise the complex and extracting work as it progressed. Whoever the architect of the Pantheon may have been, the architect stands in relation to the building of Hadrian as Justinian to the Hagia Sophia or Louis XIV to Versailles. Hadrian, the Pantheon as well as the cultural texture of the early second century are all interlinked inextricably. As a result, no doubt exists that Hadrian was the motivating personality behind the conception and design of the Pant heon (MacDonald 12). Hadrian was born in well established colonial family in Roman Spain during the reign of emperor Vespian in 76 A.D. Hadrian was made the emperor upon the death of Trajan who reigned between 98 and 117 A.D. Hadrian reigned between 117 and 138 A.D. The location where the Pantheon was built was earlier occupied by a rectangular sanctuary of similar dedication built by the great minister Agrippa of Augustus, and dedicated around 25 B.C. The building was burnt down twice prior to the accession of Hadrian, and replaced entirely by Hadrian with the current structure. Nevertheless, Hadrian reinstated the original inscriptions of Agrippa, â€Å"Marcus Agrippa the son of Lucius, three times consul, built this,† on his new building. This inscription has led to significant confusion. Up-to-date, the Pantheon is uncommonly said to have been constructed during the period of Augustus Caesar. This date is wide off the mark by approximately 150 years because the inscriptio n in bold bronze letters that spreads across the entablature of the great porch is modern (MacDonald 13). The appropriate date of building the Pantheon is approximated to be the first half of the reign of Hadrian. The architecture was not commenced prior to 117 A.D., and was most probably dedicated around 126 A.D. to 128 A.D. During the second century, the Roman brick makers stamped methodologically a

Why was Caesar assassinated Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Why was Caesar assassinated - Essay Example Rome was ruled by a triumvirate consisting of Julius Caesar, Pompey, and Crassus. However, with the death of Crassus, a conflict raised between Pompey and Caesar. Caesar whose continuous growth in power resulted in the conflict as Pompey saw Caesar as a threat to himself. In January of 49 BC Caesar crossed the Rubican River in Northern Italy while Pompey fled to Greece and within 3 months Caesar managed to control the entire Italian peninsula. Caesar then followed Pompey to Greece and then Egypt where he was presented with the head of Pompey as a gift (â€Å"The Assassination of Julius Caesar, 2004). Caesar thus became the sole ruler of the entire Roman Empire. In spite of support from common man Caesar’s growing ambitions and his growth in power were seen as a threat by many especially by the aristocrats and the members of his own senate decided that he had to be stopped. As Caesar continued to become powerful he declared himself dictator in February 44 BC (â€Å"The Assass ination of Julius Caesar, 2004). The senate thought that he would annul the senate rendering their position powerless and would become a tyrant with his decision being omnipotent. The fear for loss of power, the jealousy of seeing a colleague becoming more powerful, the annoyance at acceptance of people for Julius’s power and the arrogance of Julius led to his assassination. Caesar had always had been the one to show off his power, his arrogance and his lifestyle were a reflection of that. Suetonius and Dio write of how his gestures showed his arrogance. For instance when a senatorial delegate informed him about the honors that were being bestowed on him he received them while sitting at the temple of Venus Gittrix. Suetonius further mentions that he had no restrain over his thoughts and that showed when he spoke.(suetonius) "The republic is nothing but a name, without substance or reality. Sulla was stupid to abdicate the dictatorship. Men ought to consider what is becoming when they talk with me, and lookupon what I say as a law."(suetonius) Such arrogance created a negative image of Caesar and his conspirators believed that it was his power that had corrupted him and the only solution they thought was best for the situation was to assassinate Caesar. In spite of his arrogance common people supported him. They cheered him; they called him rex, Latin for king. They already thought of him as their king, their leader. During the crowning ceremony, when he was offered crown, he refused to accept it. People cheered him even then, they thought of this refusal to accept crown as his refusal to accept power. His conspirators on the other hand thought of this as a tactic to gather popular support and considered it as his arrogance and disregard for the general rules laid by senate. The senators who feared Caesar the most included Cassius, Decius, Cicero, Casca and others. However, their fear and hatred never gathered a concrete decision till Cassius realized t hat Brutus feared and disliked Caesar just as much as they did. It was with Brutus that the conspiracy materialized and led to the assassination of Caesar. Cassius was Brutus’s brother in law and they are considered the main conspirators. Cassius knew that Brutus was popular among common people and hence his involvement in the conspiracy was critical. The reason that he confirmed his involvement on various occasions. â€Å"Cassius, gripping Brutus tightly, asked him, â€Å"What will we do in the senate house if Caesar’

Strategic Plan and Power Point (Community Coffee) Research Paper

Strategic Plan and Power Point (Community Coffee) - Research Paper Example If the way we make the products will be unique, then it is likely to establish a presence in this competitive market. The next tactic will be making the products adopt to the market by ensuring we put into consideration the rules that exist in our area of operation. From this, we will position our brands in such a manner that they can be explained as one big idea, hence leaving an impact to the mind of the consumers (Nieuwenhuizen, 2007). The final steps will be the maintenance of the brand by making sure the consumers never lose interest in it. The second objective in place is to make community coffee go national in the shortest period possible. This might seem as a drawback since it will stress financially, but it is a tactic of its own, and might prove to be rather successful. However, before the business evolves to be national, we must first ensure that a good reputation has been built in the present area of operation. This will make it easier to capture the market as the business will have its own personality established. The third objective is dynamic modes of service provision, depending on the area of operation. In areas that the customer is rather busy and have less time, community coffee will adopt on-the-go service provision, while a slower pace for the rural coffee shops that require a friendlier and slower pace for everyone there is community (Nieuwenhuizen, 2007). The first marketing method is through the media. This involves both television and print media such as daily and weekly newspapers. Although they may be old school methods, they are the most widely used and the most effective tool. On the television, an advertisement that portray the new range of products, and dynamic modes of operation. The second method will be through the use of websites such as those of social media. This is because they are the most accessed websites by both teenagers and adults. An

Textual Analysis of Advertisement | Gender in Advertising

Textual Analysis of Advertisement | Gender in Advertising Liang Wang Perform a close, textual analysis of one of these advertisements. What does it imply about gender and/or sexuality? You should refer to concepts such as sexualisation, postfeminism, and/or stereotypes, and consider both femininities and masculinities. The advertising I choose to perform: In advertisements which targeted at men or women are always objectifies to sell objects. This can be seen in many advertisements like the Axe. Yet according to the codes of gender, men and women are always represented differently in advertising. Men are always shown vigilante and lucid of their surroundings, standing higher up then women, eye open, bodies under controlled as an â€Å"independent, purposeful and clear thinking†(Hodkinson, P 2013, Media, culture and society, Sage, Los Angeles, ch. 11, p223) object. On the other hand, women are frequently shown laying down, touching themselves, bending their knees, sitting in a bed or on a chair, eye close, confused, body contorted, dressed up as sexy or sexually available, â€Å"appears subordinate, dependent, emotional and absent- minded†(Hodkinson, P 2013, Media, culture and society, Sage, Los Angeles, ch. 11)object. The depiction of women in advertisement representations, at the same time, has been a sign as part of a spacious patriarchal system of male dominance. Indeed, in the mainstream advertisements depictions, which emphasis women on getting and keeping a man, especially whin the domestic roles of wife and mother. It has been focused on by many feminist commentators in order to achieve gender equality. However, in nowadays, both femininities and masculinities are represented in many advertisements, though femininities and masculinities do not map onto biological sex, but gender issue is still shown in many different ways. Throughout all forms of advertisements, it is obvious to see that we are live in a sexual world. Magazine advertisements, TV advertisements, commercials and ever internet advertisements are shown in a very sexual way and women are often been the objects of sexualization in the advertisements. â€Å"Sexualization is when a persons value comes only from his/her sexual appeal or behavior, to the exclusion of other characteristics and when a person is sexually objectified†(Media’s Portrayal in Women, Laura Russell, The Sexualization of Women in the Media). Through many advertisements, it is easy to find that women are very sexualized and they are often portrayed as objects that draw men’s attention, even belong to men. According to the AXE shower gel’s advertising, the right side woman is dressed up, wearing a sexy vest in a very sexual way, with her shoulder and arms nude, coiled hair and we can indistinct see her sexy hip shape, while the whole image are sho wn as shown to get â€Å"the dirtier†. The advertising is showing that the women â€Å"need to look good and the need to get male attention†(Hodkinson, P 2013, Media, culture and society, Sage, Los Angeles, ch. 11, p225)and the word â€Å"dirtier† is making her seems inferior to men. With advertising such as AXE one, women that choose that they should treat there bodies as sexual subjects, thus, it is lead women to believe that is important and lost their personality. Along with these type of advertisements represented, men start to believe that the sexual picture of women that is what makes them attractive. With this sexualized advertisements that is being depicted in the media is become difficult to women to be accept their own appearance, hence, constantly compare themselves to those sexually images and lost self-confidence. Therefore, many other advertisements and some women’s magazines are inclined to treat women in low-down way, depicting women as o bjects in inferiority, subordination and low social power positions.â€Å"Women’s physical appearances – especially their sexual attributes – are portrayed as their most important assets. This is presented as liberating and empowering†(Brumberg JJ (1997) The Body Project: An Intimate History of American Girls, Random House). While women’s sexual expression is important in some ways, nevertheless, a woman’s value is not only dependent on her sexual appeal, woman can also be successful and independent with femininities. During the 1970s and 80s second-wave feminism movement, the representation of woman have changed considerably. In the mass media, feminism has had strong criticism of the representations of women in visual world, particular advertising industry, along with the feminism movement, more then others, â€Å"the emphasis on domesticity, deference and traditional romance†(Hodkinson, P 2013, Media, culture and society, Sage, Los Angeles, ch. 11, p223) has been displaced by more independent, assertive depiction of femininity â€Å"something that can sometimes include a proud and explicit quest for sex†(Hodkinson, P 2013, Media, culture and society, Sage, Los Angeles, ch. 11, p224). Women can be successful and independent, go out and get what they want. Link to the AXE advertising, the feature objectifying image of the naked man with shower gel has referred to as â€Å"post-feminism† that women have the ability to have sexual relationship on their own wants. Moreover, the confidence, successful and independent female figure also continually showing in advertising in nowadays. Chanel’s campaign for its Coco Mademoiselle perfume adverting in 2011, for instance, shown on connotations of women independence, by featuring images with a successful woman with the background song’s lyric â€Å" this is a man’s world, this is a man’s world, but it would be nothing without women or girl† highlighted the independence and assertiveness of female â€Å" they consume autonomously, engage in relationships on their own terms and sometimes manipulate and exploit men†(Hodkinson, P 2013, Media, culture and society, Sage, Los Angeles, ch. 11, p224). However, back to the AXE advertisement, both femininities and masculinities are represented in this advertising but shown as different ways. On one hand, the man are presented as active, independent and all he do is cleaning and represented the product in a directly way in order to show his masculinities, on the other hand, the woman in this advertising was shown her femininities as well, but meanwhile, the way that the woman represented the product seems more metaphorically that the purpose of the woman use this product is all about get attention from male. This is against the center of the â€Å"post-feminism† and backword on gender stereotypes. Currently, when it comes to representations of gender, advertisements often fall behind on well established gender stereotypes. However, in particular these days, the media always represented images of women in power, attempted to reverse old established gender stereotypes, these images seems against the more objectification of the role women used to be, so-called ‘challenging’ and even ‘feminist’. In the old times, â€Å"female objectification to the most media depictions of female sexuality†(Dworkin, 1981;MacKinnon, 1988), according to the mainstream media depictions, woman are frequently presented as â€Å"subordinate to and dependent on men†(Hodkinson, P 2013, Media, culture and society, Sage, Los Angeles, ch. 11, p222). This phenomenon was also represented on the AXE advertisement, shower gel for men is for clean, yet for women, it is a way to make themself more sexy and attractive in order to catch men’s attention, getting and keep ing them, this advertisement seem to be reinforcing our stereotypical notions of femininities. In addition, commercials are one of the vast source of gender stereotyping that advertisers used in their work to targeted either male or female groups. While, woman are more often represented in commercials, because of they are seems seen as responsible for daily purchases as a householder, however, men always advertise things more masculinities, such as cars, computers or business products, otherwise women are represented femininities rather in the commercials with make-up, clothes and domestic products. And female are often shown in the home or inside environment, not the same as male, men are always shown outdoors. Moreover, the most popular that women presented in advertisements is the figure of housewife, their main problem in life is lack of ideas for housework or dinner, that is very stereotypical. The other stereotype for women is sexy seductresses, the desire of every man. They m ost advertise beauty products and fashion clothes, but they are also arise in the commercials directed to male. Furthermore, woman has been major care is to preserve her appearance, hence, this advertising image of â€Å"perfect femininity and heterosexual success is deemed to act as a ‘window to the future self’†of the audience. As a result, many women has been fall into the perplex with their appearance and body shape, which can have negative influences. Male stereotypes are also various and presented with masculinities as a ‘real man’, â€Å"athletic, successful, professional, seducer with a beautiful woman by his side†(). However, â€Å" the growth of female employment and changes in attitudes towards gender have also contributed to ambiguities in the status of masculinity†(Hodkinson, P 2013, Media, culture and society, Sage, Los Angeles, ch. 11, p235). In conclusion, gender issue has always been a controversial problem in advertisement industry, such as the AXE advertising, the concepts of sexualisation, postfeminism, and stereotypes are the main cores of the gender problem. However, along with the growth of feminism, female has been a large part of responsibility for the development of understanding of gender in media and advertisement. Female are should no longer been bounded in the tight ‘vest’, women should have the right to go out and do what they want, moreover, women should dress up for themselves instead of men’s attention. At the same time, the development of understandings of non-heterosexual gays, lesbian and bisexual representations in media or advertisements remind us, the most important link between the enhancement of dominant understandings of gender, sexuality and generally constructions of both femininity and masculinity. Eventually, â€Å" dominant representations of masculinity and femininit y in media tend to be those that are most effective when it comes to the selling of advertising space or, indeed, the selling of consumer goods themselves.†(Hodkinson, P 2013, Media, culture and society, Sage, Los Angeles, ch. 11, p241) Reference list Hodkinson, P 2013, Media, culture and society, Sage, Los Angeles, ch. 11, Media, Gender and Sexuality, patriarchal romance and domesticity, p223 Hodkinson, P 2013, Media, culture and society, Sage, Los Angeles, ch. 11, Media, Gender and Sexuality, patriarchal romance and domesticity, p223 Media’s Portrayal in Women, Laura Russell, The Sexualization of Women in the Media Hodkinson, P 2013, Media, culture and society, Sage, Los Angeles, ch. 11, Media, Gender and Sexuality, The enduring gaze, p225 Brumberg JJ (1997) The Body Project: An Intimate History of American Girls,   Random House, New York Levy, A (2005) Female Chauvinist Pigs: Women and the Rise of Raunch Culture, Schwartz Publishing, New York. Hodkinson, P 2013, Media, culture and society, Sage, Los Angeles, ch. 11, Post-feminism independence, p223 Hodkinson, P 2013, Media, culture and society, Sage, Los Angeles, ch. 11, Post-feminism independence, p224 Keira Knightley, Chanel Coco Mademoiselle perfume adverting, 2011, background song’s lyric Dworkin, A. (1981) Pornography: Men possessing women. London: Women’s Press MacKinnon, C. (1988) Feminism Unmodified: Discourses on life and law. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Hodkinson, P 2013, Media, culture and society, Sage, Los Angeles, ch. 11, Media, Gender and Sexually. Masculinity or masculinities? P235 Matthews, J. L., 2007 Hidden sexism: Facial prominence and its connections to gender and occupational status in popular print media. Sex Roles: A Journal of Research, 57, 515-525. Hodkinson, P 2013, Media, culture and society, Sage, Los Angeles, ch. 11, Media, Gender and Sexuality, a balanced approach, p241)

Israel and Terrorism Essay -- Threats to World Peace

Introduction: The Conflict, Cause for Optimism, and Skepticism Over the past 55 years conflict between Israelis and Palestinians has led to three wars, years of terrorism, and decades of poverty and displacement resulting in thousands upon thousands of deaths among both peoples. Despite the conflict, Israel has managed to develop its economy thanks in large part to generous foreign aid. Palestinians, however, have largely been living in poverty, under the rule of a corrupt government and in fear of Israeli strength. These harsh conditions have no doubt exacerbated the conflict sparked by the creation of the state of Israel in 1948. The establishment of a Palestinian state living side by side with Israel is supported by many world leaders today as the most feasible strategy for lifting the quality of life of the Palestinian people and thus cooling the conflict which has reached particularly tragic heights over the past 4 years. The death of Palestinian Authority (PA) President Yasser Arafat offers a new opportunity to advance toward this goal as Israel and the U.S. refused to negotiate with him due to his incitement of and support for terrorism, as well as the corruption within his government. The recent election of PA President Mahmoud Abbas, and his effort to fight terrorism and seek negotiations, has been viewed optimistically by much of the world as the first step toward beginning new efforts to move forward with the development of a Palestinian state. However, Abbas cannot negotiate a settlement unless his people support it. Despite views from foreign leaders and societies, and perhaps from Abbas, that a two-state solution is the best option, Palestinians have been taught by the PA for decades that a two-state solut... ...ry 2005. "Ask for Death The Indoctrination of Palestinian Children to Seek Death for Allah – Shahada.† www.pmw.org/il, 3 March 2005. http://www.jewishgrassroots.com/images/Shocking%20images%20of%20Palestinian%20toddlers_files/shocking%20images%20of%20Palestinian%20toddlers.htm, 3 March 2005. Sukhtian, Lara. â€Å"Palestinian Police Won’t Stop Militants.† Washington Post, 14 February, 2005. http://www.standwithus.com/news_post.asp?NPI=259, 4 March 2005. â€Å"Israel blames bombing on militants, Syria.† CNN World. 26 February 2005. http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/02/26/telaviv.explosion/index.html, 27 February 2005. Gilmore, Inigo. â€Å"Abbas orders Palestinian television to clean up its act.† Telegraph News, 6 February 2005. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2005/02/06/wmid06.xml&sSheet=/ news/2005/02/06/ixworld.html, 6 March 2005.

The Indigo Spell Chapter Nineteen

SOMEHOW, I STILL LOST. If Adrian were capable of on-the-fly calculations, I'd swear he was using his powers to affect the way the dice rolled. Most likely, he either had some innate and inexplicable Monopoly skills I just couldn't understand – or he was very, very lucky. But through it all, I had fun, and losing to him was a lot better than having Veronica haunt me in my sleep. He continued the dream visits for the next few days, and although I never felt completely safe from her, I at least didn't have her occupying the forefront of my mind at all times. That honor was saved for my weekend trip to St. Louis, which came around more quickly than I expected. Once I was on the plane, the reality of what I was about to attempt hit me. This was it, the point of no return. In the safety of Palm Springs, I'd been able to maintain a somewhat cool and collected attitude. St. Louis had seemed far away back then. Now the tasks ahead of me seemed daunting and kind of crazy. And dangerous. There was no part of this that wouldn't get me into serious trouble. Lying to Stanton. Breaking into top secret servers. Even charming information out of Ian could have repercussions. And really who was I to think I would have any ability to lure secrets from him? I wasn't like Rose or Julia. They had men fawning all over them. But me? I was socially awkward and pretty inept when it came to romance. Maybe Ian liked me, but that didn't mean I'd have some magical power over him. Of course, if that part of the plan with him failed, then I'd be free of my other tasks. Every single part of this was overwhelming, and as I stared out the plane's window, watching St. Louis grow closer and closer, my feelings of dread grew. My palms were too sweaty to hold a book, and when I refused food, it was because of the queasiness in my stomach, not some obsession with calories. I'd gone back and forth on whether to get a hotel room or stay at the facility itself, which provided guest housing for visiting Alchemists like me. In the end, I opted for the former. The less time I spent under the watchful eyes of my masters, the better. It also meant I didn't have to worry about my outfit attracting attention. I hadn't exactly followed all of Adrian's suggestions, but the dress I'd purchased for this trip was a bit racier than my normal business casual wardrobe. Okay, a lot racier. It would have been completely out of place among the modest and neutral-colored attire Alchemists usually wore. But when Ian met me in the hotel's lobby for dinner, I knew I'd made the right choice. â€Å"Wow,† he said, eyes widening. â€Å"You look amazing.† Apparently, his Alchemists sensibilities weren't offended by my outfit. It was a form-fitting minidress that went about to my mid-thigh, with an open back and a disconcertingly low V-neck that gave me cleavage I hadn't even known was possible. Any demureness the dress's long sleeves might have offered was undone by the fabric combination: a beige underdress covered in black and maroon lace. It gave the illusion that I was wearing lace with nothing underneath. The saleswoman had assured me that every part of the dress was supposed to fit that snugly (for once in my life, I'd actually suggested a larger size) and that I needed at least four-inch black heels to make it all work. With the help of a lot of hairpins, I'd even managed to pull my hair up into a bun, which wasn't easy with my layered haircut. I felt conspicuous walking through the lobby, but no one gave me any shocked looks. The few I did get were admiring ones. The hotel was pretty posh, and I was just one of a number of women dressed in holiday cocktail dresses. Nothing scandalous or out of the ordinary. You can do this, Sydney. And wearing a revealing dress wasn't nearly as difficult as breaking into a server, right? Right? I smiled as I approached Ian and gave him a quick hug, which was weird both because it was with Ian and because I felt naked in the dress. This femme fatale thing was harder than I'd thought it'd be. â€Å"I'm glad I got to see you again,† I said. â€Å"I know what an inconvenience this must be, with no notice.† Ian shook his head so adamantly that I almost expected to hear rattling. â€Å"N-no. No trouble at all.† Satisfied he'd gotten a look, I slipped on my coat, a mid-length black trench, and gestured toward the exit. â€Å"Time to brave the elements?† He hurried ahead of me to open the door. A scattering of snowflakes drifted down, resting on my coat and hair. My breath made a frosty cloud in the air, and I had a momentary flashback to traipsing across that field with Adrian. Little had I known that search for Marcus would lead to me running errands for him in a tight dress. Ian had parked in the hotel's front circle drive. He drove a Toyota Corolla, which was made even more boring by the fact that he'd chosen it in white. A little air freshener shaped like a tree hung from the rearview mirror, but rather than the usual pine scent, a small label declared it to be â€Å"New Car Scent.† Mostly it smelled like plastic. I put on a brave face. Marcus really owed me one. â€Å"I made us a reservation at this really great seafood place,† he told me. â€Å"It's close to the facility, so we can head on over to the service right away.† â€Å"Sounds great,† I said. I never ate seafood in any landlocked state. The restaurant was called Fresh Cache, which didn't improve my opinion of it. Still, I had to give it credit for attempts at a romantic atmosphere. Most of the lighting came from candles, and a pianist in the corner played covers of easy-listening songs. More well-dressed people filled the tables, laughing and chatting over wine and shrimp cocktails. The host showed us to a corner table, covered with burgundy linen and decorated with a scattering of green orchids. I'd never seen any up close and was actually quite taken with how exotic and sensual they were. If only I was here with anyone but Ian. I was hesitant to take my coat off. It made me feel exposed, and I had to remind myself of the consequences of Alchemists and Warriors working together. As soon as the dress was unleashed again, I had the satisfaction of seeing Ian melt once more. I remembered Adrian's advice about confidence and put on a smug smile, hoping I gave the impression that I was doing Ian a great favor by allowing him to be in my presence. And, to my complete and utter amazement, it seemed to work. I even allowed myself to indulge in a dangerous thought: maybe it wasn't the dress wielding such power here. Maybe it was me. Opening the menu, I began skimming for a beef or poultry option. â€Å"What do you recommend?† â€Å"The mahi mahi is great here,† he said. â€Å"So is the swordfish.† The waiter stopped by, and I ordered a chicken Caesar salad. I figured they couldn't really mess up the anchovies in the dressing. We were left alone to wait, with nothing to do now but move on to small talk. Ian picked up the ball. â€Å"I suppose you still can't tell me much about where you're at, huh?† â€Å"Afraid not. You know how it is.† I buttered a sourdough roll with what I was pretty sure was exactly half a tablespoon. I didn't want to go too crazy, but I could allow myself a little indulgence since I ordered a salad. â€Å"I can tell you I'm in the field. I just can't say much else.† Ian's attention shifted off my neckline as he stared into the candle's flame. â€Å"I miss that, you know. Being in the field.† â€Å"You used to be, right? What happened?† I hadn't thought much about it lately, but when Ian had accompanied Stanton and me to the Moroi court, he had been pulled from his post to make the trip. He'd been assigned somewhere in the south, Florida or Georgia, I thought. â€Å"Those Moroi holding us prisoner is what happened.† He shifted his gaze back to me, and I was startled at the fierceness I saw. â€Å"I didn't handle it very well.† â€Å"Well, none of us did.† He shook his head. â€Å"No, no. I really didn't handle it well. I kind of freaked out. They sent me to anger management training afterward.† I nearly dropped the roll. I had in no way expected that. If someone had asked me to name the top ten people who needed anger management, Ian wouldn't have even made the bottom of the list. My father, however, would have been near the top. â€Å"How – how long were you there?† I stammered. â€Å"Two weeks, and then I was good to go.† Admittedly, I didn't know the extent of the rage that had landed him in anger management, but I found it interesting that two weeks was good enough to deem him ready to work again. Meanwhile, Keith's scheme to use Moroi to make money had earned him at least two months in re-education – maybe more, since I hadn't heard any updates in a while. â€Å"But they wouldn't let me work in the field,† Ian added. â€Å"Figure I shouldn't be around Moroi for a while. So that's why I'm stuck here.† â€Å"In the archives.† â€Å"Yes.† â€Å"Doesn't sound so bad,† I told him. I wasn't entirely lying. â€Å"Lots of books.† â€Å"Don't fool yourself, Sydney.† He began tearing a pumpernickel roll into pieces. â€Å"I'm a glorified librarian.† Maybe so, but that wasn't my concern. What was my concern was Wade telling me that the archives were on a secure level, one floor up from the surveillance room that held security footage. He'd drawn me a map of each floor, making sure I memorized the layout and the best ways to get in and out. â€Å"I'd still love to see them,† I said. â€Å"I mean, the history they contain is amazing.† Again, not entirely a lie. I leaned forward, resting my elbows on the table, and had the satisfaction of seeing his eyes drop to my plunging neckline again. This wasn't that difficult! Really, I didn't know why I hadn't been using my â€Å"womanly charms† a long time ago. Actually, I never really knew I had any, until now. â€Å"Could you get me in for a tour? Of the archives specifically. You seem like the kind of guy who could get access to . . . a lot of places.† Ian choked on his roll. After a bout of coughing, he glanced up at my face, then my cleavage (again), and then back to my face. â€Å"I'd, um, love to, but it's not really open to the public – I mean, even the Alchemist public. Only those with special scholar access are allowed in. We could look at the general access parts of the building, though.† â€Å"Oh. I see.† I looked down at my plate, pouting slightly, but didn't say anything else. As the waiter arrived with our food, I hoped my silence was making him reconsider what he could be missing out on. Eventually, Ian couldn't take it anymore. He cleared his throat, maybe because there was still bread stuck in it. â€Å"Well, I might be able to . . . you see, the problem is just getting you down to the secure levels. Once you're through that checkpoint, it's not hard to get you into the archives – especially if I'm working.† â€Å"But you can't do anything about the main checkpoint?† I coaxed, as if all real men should be able to do that. â€Å"No, I mean . . . maybe. I've got a friend who works there. I don't know if he's got a shift tomorrow, but he still might be able to help. He owes me some money, so I can use this as a trade. I hope.† â€Å"Oh, Ian.† I flashed him a smile that I hoped rivaled one of Marcus's. â€Å"That's amazing.† I remembered what Adrian had said. â€Å"I'd be so, so grateful if you could pull it off.† My reaction clearly delighted Ian, and I wondered if Adrian had been right about how â€Å"so, so grateful† was translated. â€Å"I'll call him tonight after the service,† Ian said. He looked determined now. â€Å"Hopefully we can make it happen before your flight tomorrow.† I rewarded him by hanging on his every word for the rest of dinner, as though I'd never heard anything quite so fascinating. All the while, my heart raced with the knowledge that I was now one step closer to fulfilling Marcus's task, one step closer to potentially proving a connection to a bunch of gun-toting zealots and the organization I'd served my whole life. The salad was tiny, so I agreed to see the dessert menu after dinner. Ian suggested we share, but that was a little too intimate for me, not to mention unhygienic. So, I ate an entire lemon tart by myself, confident in the knowledge that I was still a long ways from the five-pound mark. When Adrian had told me I'd look healthier if I gained a little weight, he'd added that it would improve my bra size. I couldn't even imagine what that would do for this dress. The Alchemist center in St. Louis was contained inside a giant, industrial building that went undercover as a manufacturing plant. Moroi facilities – the court and their schools – usually posed as universities. How ironic that â€Å"creatures of the night† would live among beautifully landscaped gardens while â€Å"servants of the light† like us skulked in ugly buildings with no windows. Inside, however, everything was pristine, bright, and well-organized. A receptionist checked us in when we arrived at the main desk and buzzed us through, along with many others who arrived for the service. There were golden lilies everywhere. For many, this was a fun-filled family event, and lots of children trailed their Alchemist parents. It made me feel strange as I watched them, these kids who had been born into our profession. I wondered how they'd feel ten years from now. Would they be excited to step up to the plate? Or would they start questioning? The center had three floors aboveground and five underneath. People off the street could hardly just come wandering in, but we still took precautions by keeping the more benign offices on the main floor. As we all walked down the corridor to the auditorium, we passed Payroll, Travel, and Maintenance. All the offices had clear windows looking into them from the hall, maintaining the Alchemist ideal that we had nothing to hide. The secure offices belowground weren't quite so open, however. I'd been in this facility once before for a training seminar, and it had actually taken place in the auditorium we entered for the service. Despite the spiritual theme of tonight's event, the room bore little resemblance to a church. Someone had gone to the effort of decorating the walls with red-bowed evergreen garlands and setting pots of poinsettias on the stage. The room had a state-of-the-art audio-visual system, including a giant screen that gave a larger-than-life look at whatever was happening onstage. The auditorium's seating was so efficient that even those in the farthest corners had a pretty clear view, so I think the screen was just for emphasis. Ian and I found two seats near the middle of the auditorium. â€Å"Aren't you going to take off your coat?† he asked hopefully. No way was I going to unleash the dress in this den of taupe and high collars. Besides, if I kept the coat on, it would just give him something to keep looking forward to. Adrian would be proud of my ability to manipulate the opposite sex . . . and I couldn't help but wonder just how well Adrian would be able to stand up to this dress. Clearly, I was getting overly confident with this new power. â€Å"I'm cold,† I said, pulling the coat tighter. It was kind of ridiculous since the lights from the stage and high number of bodies had already made the room stifling, but I figured since it was so cold outside, I could get away with it. For someone who always seems to be so cold, you sure can warm up pretty fast. â€Å"Sydney? Is that you?† I froze, not from the shock of hearing my name, but from the voice that had said it. I'd know that voice anywhere. Slowly, I turned away from Ian and looked up into my father's face. He was standing in the aisle, wearing a heavy wool suit, with melted snowflakes in his graying dark blond hair. â€Å"Hi, Dad,† I said. Then I saw who was standing beside him. â€Å"Zoe?† It was all I could do not to jump up and hug her. I hadn't seen or spoken to my younger sister since that night I'd been pulled out of bed and sent on my Palm Springs mission. That was the mission she believed I'd stolen from her, no matter my protests. It was the mission that had driven her away from me. I eyed her now, trying to assess where we stood. She didn't wear the blatant hatred she had at our last meeting, which was a good sign. Unfortunately, she didn't look all that warm and friendly either. She was cautious, studying me carefully – almost warily. She did not, I noticed, have a golden lily on her cheek yet. â€Å"I'm surprised to see you here,† said my father. His parting words to me had been â€Å"Don't embarrass me,† so I wasn't really astonished by his low expectations. â€Å"It's the holidays,† I said. Forcing a smile now was far more difficult than it had been with Ian. â€Å"It's important to be here with the group. Do you know Ian Jansen?† Ian, wide-eyed, jumped up and shook my father's hand. Clearly, he hadn't expected a parental meeting so soon. â€Å"It's a pleasure to meet you, sir.† My father nodded gravely and looked back and forth between the two of us. Whatever surprise he'd had at seeing me here had just been trumped by me being here with a date. Glancing at Ian, I tried to guess how he'd appear to someone like my dad. Clean cut, respectful, an Alchemist. The fact that Ian tended to bore me was irrelevant. I doubted my father had ever thought much about me dating, but if so, he probably hadn't thought I'd get a catch like this. â€Å"Would you like to join us, sir?† asked Ian. I had to give him credit; he'd overcome his initial shock and was now in proper suitor mode. â€Å"It would be an honor.† At first, I thought Ian was just laying it on thick. Then I realized meeting my father might actually very well be an honor. Jared Sage wasn't a rock star, but he did have a reputation among the Alchemists that, by their standards, was outstanding. My father seemed to like the flattery and agreed. He took a seat beside Ian. â€Å"Sit by your sister,† he told Zoe, nodding in my direction. Zoe obeyed and stared straight ahead. She was nervous too, I realized. Looking her over, I felt an ache from how much I'd missed her. We'd inherited the same brown eyes from our father, but she'd gotten Mom's brown hair, which made me a little jealous. Zoe also looked a lot more put together than the last time I'd seen her. She wore a pretty dark brown cashmere dress and didn't have a single hair out of place. Something about her appearance bothered me, and I couldn't quite put my finger on it at first. It soon hit me. She looked older. She looked like a young lady, like my peer. I supposed it was silly of me to feel sad, since she was fifteen, but I kind of wished she could stay a little kid forever. â€Å"Zoe.† I kept my voice low, not that I needed to worry about the men overhearing. My dad was interrogating Ian. â€Å"I've been wanting to talk to you for so long.† She nodded. â€Å"I know. Mom tells me each time you call.† But there was no apology for dodging my calls. â€Å"I'm sorry about the way we left things. I never meant to hurt you or one-up you. I thought I was doing you a favor, saving you from getting involved.† Her mouth tightened, and something hard flashed in her eyes. â€Å"I don't mind being involved. I want to be involved, you know. And it would've been great! Being in the field at fifteen. I could have a stellar career. Dad would be so proud.† I chose my next words very carefully so that she wouldn't take offense. â€Å"Yeah, but another year with Dad will really be, um, stellar. He's got so much experience – and you want to get as much as you can, believe me. Even if you have to wait for an assignment at sixteen, you'll still be ahead of the rest of us.† Each word out of my mouth made me feel sick, but Zoe seemed to buy it. I wasn't bothered by her wanting to be part of the cause – but it killed me that she was clearly doing it to impress our dad. â€Å"I suppose. And I am learning a lot. I wish I could at least get some field experience – even if it's not my own post. It's all theory with Dad. I've never even seen a Moroi.† â€Å"I'm sure he'll fix that.† I didn't like encouraging this, but at least she was speaking to me. The lights dimmed, ending our conversation. Organ music filled the room, and the scent of frankincense drifted around us. Incense and resin were common components in magic, and my mind was instantly starting to make associations from the spell books I'd painstakingly copied. Frankincense is used to heal burns. It can also be used when casting divining or purifying spells – I immediately stopped that train of thought. Even if I was keeping it to myself, thinking about magic in the middle of an Alchemist church service was pretty sacrilegious. I shifted uncomfortably, wondering what all these people would think if they knew the truth about me: that I practiced magic and had kissed a vampire. . . . Alchemist priests were called hierophants. They performed blessings and offered moral advice, when needed. In day-to-day affairs, they wore suits, but for this occasion, the lead hierophant wore robes that reminded me uncomfortably of the robes some of the Warriors had donned. It was yet another reminder of our shared history – and maybe our shared future. Marcus had been right. This was a mystery I had to solve, regardless of where I stood on breaking the tattoo. I'd attended services like this off and on throughout my life and knew the Latin prayers by heart. I chanted along with the rest of the congregation and listened avidly as the hierophant reaffirmed our goals, his voice echoing through the sound system. Even though the Alchemists' religion had loose connections to Christianity there was very little mention of God or Jesus or even Christmas. Most of his sermon was about how we had to help protect humanity from the temptation of following Strigoi who offered unholy immortality. That warning, at least, wasn't exaggerated. I'd heard stories and even seen for myself what happened when humans decided to serve Strigoi. Those Strigoi promised to turn their servants as a reward. Those humans helped Strigoi spread their evil and became monsters themselves, no turning needed. Keeping those dark vampires hidden was for the good of weak humans who couldn't protect themselves. I paid especially close attention when the hierophant mentioned the Moroi offhandedly in his sermon, as a means to an end in defeating the Strigoi. He didn't exactly inspire warm and fuzzy feelings about them, but at least he wasn't calling for Moroi and dhampir destruction either. I agreed with a good part of the message, but it no longer filled me with the fire it once had. And when the hierophant started droning on and on about duty, obedience, and what was â€Å"natural,† I really began feeling disconnected. I almost wished there was more talk of the divine, like you'd find at a normal church service. With everything going on in my life, I wouldn't have minded a connection to a higher power. Sometimes, when I listened to the hierophant, I wondered if everything he was saying had just been made up by a bunch of people sitting around in the Middle Ages. No holy mandate required. I felt like a traitor when the service ended. Maybe Adrian's joke had been right: I didn't even need Marcus to break my tattoo and connection to the group. Glancing at my companions – and even the other Alchemists in the room – it was clear I was alone. All of them looked captivated by the sermon, devoted to the cause. I was again eerily reminded of the Warriors and their fanatical devotion. No, no, whatever else the Alchemists are guilty of, we have nothing to do with that kind of unhinged behavior. And yet . . . it was more complicated than that, I realized. The Alchemists didn't shoot first and ask questions later or make our members battle each other. We were civilized and logical, but we did have a tendency to just do what we were told. That was the similarity, one that could be dangerous. Zoe and my father walked out with Ian and me. â€Å"Isn't it amazing?† she asked. â€Å"Hearing that . . . well, it just makes me so glad Dad decided to raise another Alchemist in the family. It's good to boost our numbers.† Had that truly been his motivation? Or was it because he didn't trust me after I'd helped Rose? It was infuriating that the only conversation I could have with Zoe centered around Alchemist rhetoric, but I'd take it over the silence of the last few months. In my heart, I longed to talk the way we used to. I wanted it back. Even though she'd warmed up a little, that old familiarity that had once existed between us was gone. â€Å"I wish we had more time,† I told her once our groups were ready to part in the parking lot. â€Å"There's so much I want to talk to you about.† She smiled, and there was a genuineness in it that warmed me. Maybe the distance between us wasn't irreparable. â€Å"Me too. I'm sorry about . . . well, the way things were. I hope we get some time together soon. I . . . I've missed you.† That nearly broke me down, as did her hug. â€Å"We'll be together soon, I promise.† Ian – whom my father now seemed to regard as a future son-in-law – drove me back to my hotel and couldn't stop gushing about how awesome it had been to meet Jared Sage. As for me, I could still feel where Zoe had hugged me. Ian promised he'd get in touch with me in the morning about a tour of the archives. Then, weirdly, he closed his eyes and leaned forward. It took me a moment to realize that he expected a good-night kiss. Seriously? That was how he went about it? Had he ever even kissed anyone before? Even Brayden had displayed a little more passion. And, of course, neither guy measured up to Adrian. When I did nothing, Ian finally opened his eyes. I gave him another hug – with the coat on – and told him how happy I was that he'd met my dad. That seemed to satisfy him. Adrian made his nightly check-in with me once I was asleep later on. Naturally, he wanted to know about my dress. He also kept trying to find out how exactly I'd won Ian over and seemed amused at the few details I decided to give him. But mostly I couldn't stop talking about Zoe. Adrian soon gave up on the other topics and simply listened to me gush. â€Å"She spoke to me, Adrian!† I paced around the reception hall, clasping my hands in excitement. â€Å"And she wasn't mad. By the end, she was happy to see me. Do you know what that's like? I mean, I know you don't have any brothers or sisters, but to have someone you haven't seen in a while welcome you back?† â€Å"I don't know what it's like,† he said quietly. â€Å"But I can imagine.† I was too caught up in my own joy at the time, but later, I wondered if he was talking about his incarcerated mother. â€Å"It's nice to see you so happy,† he added. â€Å"Not that you've been miserable lately, but you've had a lot to worry about.† I couldn't help but laugh at that and came to a halt. â€Å"Are you saying evil witches and espionage are stressful?† â€Å"Nah.† He walked over to me. â€Å"All in a day's work for us. But I'm going to make my way to bed now. You seem like you can get by without me tonight.† He'd visited me every night since Veronica's dream. Most of the trips were short now, but I still knew it was a lot of effort and spirit for him. â€Å"Thank you. I feel like I can't say that to you enough.† â€Å"You don't have to say it at all, Sage. Good luck tomorrow.† Right. Stealing top secret info from a highly secure facility. â€Å"Thanks,† I said again. A little of my mood dimmed, but not all of it. â€Å"No matter what happens, though, patching things up with Zoe makes me feel like this mission is already a success.† â€Å"That's because you haven't been caught.† He cupped my face in his hands and leaned close. â€Å"See that you aren't. I don't want to have to dream visit you in prison . . . or wherever it is bad Alchemists go.† â€Å"Hey, at least I'd have you for company, right?† He gave me a rueful headshake, and the dream vanished around me.