Blood Promise Chapter Twenty-One

Dimitri didn't elaborate. I was too startled by his words and the rest of the night's events to even know how to begin to address them. He took me back inside, past the Strigoi on guard duty, and upstairs to my suite. Nathan was no longer outside. For a few brief moments, that nagging voice in my head spoke loudly enough to break through my addled thoughts. If I had no guard in the hall and Inna returned soon, I had a very good chance of threatening her enough to get out of here. Admittedly, that would mean I'd have to deal with a house of God only knew how many Strigoi, but my escape odds were better in the house than in this room. Then, almost as soon as those thoughts appeared, they vanished. Dimitri snaked his arm around me and pulled me to him. It had been chilly outside, and even if his body was cold, his clothes and jacket provided some warmth. I snuggled closer to him as his hands ran all over me. I thought he was going to bite me, but it was our mouths that met, hard and furious. I wrapped my fingers in his hair, trying to pull him closer to me. Meanwhile, his fingers were running against my bare leg, pushing my skirt up almost to my hip. Anticipation and eagerness lit every part of my body. I had dreamed about the cabin for so long, remembering it with so much longing. I'd never expected anything like that to happen again, but now it could, and I was astonished at how badly I wanted it. My hands moved down to his shirt, undoing all the buttons so that I could touch his chest. His skin still felt like ice, a startling contrast to the burning within me. He moved his lips from mine, down to my neck and shoulder, pushing down the dress's strap as he covered my flesh with hungry kisses. His hand was still on the side of my bare hip, and I frantically tried to pull his shirt off altogether. Suddenly, with a surprising abruptness, he jerked away and shoved me down. At first, I thought it was just more of the foreplay between us, until I realized he was purposely pushing me away. â€Å"No,† he said, voice hard. â€Å"Not yet. Not until you're awakened.† â€Å"Why?† I asked desperately. I couldn't think of anything except him touching me-and, well, another bite. â€Å"Why does it matter? Is there†¦ is there a reason we can't?† Until I'd come here, sex with a Strigoi had never occurred to me†¦maybe it just wasn't possible. He leaned toward me, putting his lips near my ear. â€Å"No, but it'll be so much better if you're awakened. Let me do it†¦ let me do it, and then we can do anything we want†¦Ã¢â‚¬  It was a bargaining chip, I realized vaguely. He wanted me-it was written all over him-but he was using the lure of sex to get me to give in. And honestly? I was this close to accepting. My body was overriding my mind-nearly. â€Å"No,† I whimpered. â€Å"I†¦ I'm scared†¦Ã¢â‚¬  That dangerous look softened, and while he didn't exactly look like the Dimitri from before, there was something a little less Strigoi about him. â€Å"Rose, do you think I'd do anything that would hurt you?† Somewhere, hadn't there been a discussion about how my options were to turn or die? The latter seemed like it might hurt, but I didn't mention that just now. â€Å"The bite†¦ the turning would hurt†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"I told you: It'll be just like what we've already done. You'll enjoy it. It won't hurt, I swear it.† I looked away. Damn it. Why couldn't he still be sinister and scary? It was so much easier to put my foot down and resist. Even in the heat of passion, I was able to resist. But somehow†¦ seeing him like this, calm and reasonable†¦ well, it was too close to the Dimitri I'd loved. And that was hard to turn away from. For the first time, it made turning Strigoi seem†¦ not so bad. â€Å"I don't know,† I said lamely. He released me and sat up, frustration filling his features. It was almost a relief. â€Å"Galina's patience is running out. So is mine.† â€Å"You said we still have time†¦ I just need to think more†¦Ã¢â‚¬  How long could I use that excuse? The narrowing of his eyes told me not much longer. â€Å"I have to go,† he said harshly. There would be no more touching or kissing, I could tell. â€Å"I need to deal with some things.† â€Å"I'm sorry,† I said, both confused and afraid. I didn't know which Dimitri I wanted. The terrifying one, the sensual one, or the almost-but still not quite-gentle one. He said nothing. Without any other warning, he leaned down and bit into the tender skin of my throat. Whatever feeble escape strategies I had were gone. I closed my eyes, nearly falling over, and only his arm wrapped firmly around me kept me upright. Just like when we kissed, his mouth was warm against my flesh, and the feel of his tongue and teeth sent electricity through me. And like that, it was over. He pulled away, licking his lips as he still continued to hold onto me. The fog was back. The world was wonderful and happy and I was without any cares. Whatever he'd been worrying about with Nathan and Galina meant nothing to me. The fear I'd felt moments ago†¦ my disappointment over sex†¦ my confusion-I didn't have time to worry about any of that, not when life was so beautiful and I loved Dimitri so much. I smiled up at him and tried to hug him again, but he was already leading me to the couch. â€Å"I'll see you later.† In a flash, he was at the door, which saddened me. I wanted him to stay. Stay forever. â€Å"Remember, I want you-and I would never let anything bad happen to you. I'll protect you. But†¦ I can't wait much longer.† With that, he left. His words made me smile more broadly. Dimitri wanted me. Vaguely, I recalled asking him outside why he wanted me. Why on earth had I asked? What answer had I wanted? Why did it matter? He wanted me. That was what counted. That thought and the wonderful endorphin rush enveloped me as I lay on the couch, and I felt drowsiness overtaking me. Walking over to the bed seemed like too much work, so I stayed where I was and just let sleep come. And, unexpectedly, I found myself in one of Adrian's dreams. I'd pretty much given up on him. After my first desperate attempts at escape in the suite, I'd finally convinced myself that Adrian wasn't coming back, that I'd sent him away for good. Yet here he was, standing right in front of me-or, well, at least his dream version was. Often we were in the woods or a garden, but today we stood where we'd first met, on the porch of an Idaho ski lodge. Sun shone down, and mountains soared off to the side of us. I grinned broadly. â€Å"Adrian!† I didn't think I'd ever seen him look as surprised as he did just then. Considering how mean I usually was to him, I could understand his feelings. â€Å"Hello, Rose,† he said. His voice sounded uncertain, like he was worried I might be playing a trick on him. â€Å"You look good today,† I told him. It was true. He wore dark jeans and a printed button-down shirt in shades of navy and turquoise that looked fantastic with his dark green eyes. Those eyes, however, looked weary. Worn. That was a little odd. In these dreams, he could shape the world and even our appearances to what he wanted, with only a little effort. He could have looked perfect but instead appeared to be reflecting real-world fatigue. â€Å"So do you.† His voice was still wary, as he eyed me from head to toe. I was still in the clingy sundress, my hair down and loose, the sapphires around my neck. â€Å"That looks like something I'd normally dress you in. Are you asleep in that?† â€Å"Yup.† I smoothed down the dress's skirt, thinking how pretty it looked. I wondered if Dimitri had liked it. He hadn't said so specifically, but he had kept telling me I was beautiful. â€Å"I didn't think you'd come back.† â€Å"I didn't think I would either.† I looked back up at him. He wasn't like his usual self at all. â€Å"Are you trying to figure out where I am again?† â€Å"No, I don't care about that anymore.† He sighed. â€Å"The only thing I care about is that you aren't here. You have to come back, Rose.† I crossed my arms and flounced onto the porch's railing. â€Å"Adrian, I'm not ready for anything romant-â€Å" â€Å"Not for me,† he exclaimed. â€Å"For her. You have to come back for Lissa. That's why I'm here.† â€Å"Lissa†¦Ã¢â‚¬  My waking self was pumped full of endorphins, and it carried over here. I tried to remember why I should be so worried about Lissa. Adrian took a step forward and studied me carefully. â€Å"Yeah, you know, Lissa? Your best friend? The one you're bonded to and sworn to protect?† I swung my legs back and forth. â€Å"I never made any vows.† â€Å"What the hell's the matter with you?† I didn't like his agitated tone. It was ruining my good mood. â€Å"What's the matter with you?† â€Å"You aren't acting like yourself. Your aura†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He frowned, unable to continue. I laughed. â€Å"Oh yes. Here it comes. The magical, mystical aura. Let me guess. It's black, right?† â€Å"No†¦ it†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He continued scrutinizing me for several heavy seconds. â€Å"I can barely get a fix on it. It's all over the place. What's going on, Rose? What's happening in the waking world?† â€Å"Nothing's happening,† I said. â€Å"Nothing except me being happy for the first time in my life. Why are you acting weird all of a sudden? You used to be fun. Figures the first time I'm finally having a good time, you go all boring and strange.† He knelt down in front of me, no trace of humor anywhere. â€Å"There's something wrong with you. I can't tell what-â€Å" â€Å"I told you, I'm fine. Why do you have to keep coming and trying to ruin things for me?† True, I'd desperately wanted him to come a little while ago, but now†¦ well, that wasn't so important. I had a good thing with Dimitri here, if only I could figure out how to solve all the not-so-good parts. â€Å"I told you, I'm not here for me. I'm here for Lissa.† He looked up at me, wide-eyed and earnest. â€Å"Rose, I am begging you to come home. Lissa needs you. I don't know what's wrong, and I don't know how to help her. No one else does either. I think†¦ I think only you can. Maybe being apart is what's hurting her. Maybe that's what's wrong with you now, why you're acting so weird. Come home. Please. We'll heal both of you. We'll all figure it out together. She's acting so strange. She's reckless and doesn't care about anything.† I shook my head. â€Å"Being away isn't what's wrong with me. Probably not what's wrong with her, either. If she's really worried about spirit, she should go back on her meds.† â€Å"She's not worried; that's the problem. Damn it.† He stood up and began pacing. â€Å"What's wrong with you two? Why can't either of you see there's something the matter?† â€Å"Maybe it's not us,† I said. â€Å"Maybe it's you imagining things.† Adrian turned back toward me and looked me over again. â€Å"No. It's not me.† I didn't like any of this-not his tone, expression, or words. I'd been excited to see him, but now I resented him ruining my good mood. I didn't want to think about any of this. It was too hard. â€Å"Look,† I said. â€Å"I was happy to see you tonight but not anymore, not if you're going to sit and accuse me and make demands.† â€Å"I'm not trying to do that.† His voice was gentle-the anger was gone. â€Å"The last thing I want is to make you unhappy. I care about you. I care about Lissa, too. I want you both to be happy and live your lives like you want†¦ but not when you're both heading down destructive paths.† He almost made sense. Almost seemed reasonable and sincere. I shook my head. â€Å"Stay out of it. I'm where I want to be, and I'm not coming back. Lissa's on her own.† I jumped off the rail. The world swirled a little, and I stumbled. Adrian caught my hand, and I jerked away. â€Å"I'm fine.† â€Å"You are not. Jesus Christ. I'd swear you're drunk, except†¦ the aura's still not right for that. What is it?† He ran his hands through his dark hair. It was his typical sign of agitation. â€Å"I'm done here,† I said, trying to be as polite as possible. Why on earth had I wanted to see him again? It had seemed so important when I first arrived. â€Å"Send me back, please.† He opened his mouth to say something, then froze a few moments. â€Å"What's on your neck?† He reached forward, and addled or no, I managed to dodge pretty efficiently. I had no idea what he saw on my neck, and I had no interest in finding out. â€Å"Don't touch me.† â€Å"Rose, that looks like-â€Å" â€Å"Send me back, Adrian!† So much for my politeness. â€Å"Rose, let me help-â€Å" â€Å"Send. Me. Back!† I shouted the words, and then, for the first time, I managed to pull myself out of Adrian's dream. I left sleep altogether and woke up on the couch. The room was still and silent, the only sound my rapid breathing. I felt all tangled up inside. Usually, so fresh from a bite, I would be floating and gleeful. Yet, the encounter with Adrian had left part of me troubled and sad. Standing up, I managed to make my way to the bathroom. I flicked on the light and winced. It hadn't been very bright in the other room. Once my eyes adjusted, I leaned toward the mirror and pushed my hair out of the way. I gasped at what I saw. There were bruises all over my neck, as well as signs of fresher wounds. Around where Dimitri had just bitten me, I could see dried blood. I looked†¦ like a blood whore. How had I never noticed this before? I wet a washcloth and scrubbed at my neck, trying to get the blood off. I rubbed and rubbed until the skin turned pink. Was that it? Were there more? That looked like the worst of it. I wondered how much Adrian had seen. My hair had been down, and I was pretty sure most of it had covered my neck. A rebellious thought came to my head. What did it matter if Adrian saw or not? He didn't understand. There was no way he could even come close. I was with Dimitri. Yeah, he was different†¦ but not that much different. And I was sure I could find a way to make this work without becoming a Strigoi. I just didn't know how yet. I tried to reassure myself over and over, but those bruises kept staring back at me. I left the bathroom and returned to the couch. I turned on the TV without really watching, and after a while, the happy fog rolled over me again. I soon tuned out the TV and returned to sleep. This time, my dreams were my own. It took a while for Dimitri to come again. And by â€Å"a while,† I mean almost an entire day. I was getting twitchy by that point, both because I missed him and because I missed the bite. He usually visited twice a day, so this was the longest I'd gone without the endorphins. Needing something to do, I preoccupied myself with making myself as beautiful as possible. I sorted through the dresses in my closet, choosing a long ivory silk one that had purple flowers delicately painted into the fabric. It fit like a glove. I wanted to wear my hair up, but after looking at the bruises again, I decided to wear it down. I'd been provided with a curling iron and makeup recently, so I worked my hair over carefully, turning the ends up in perfect little curls. Once made up, I stared happily at my reflection, certain Dimitri would be happy too. All I needed now was to put on some of the exquisite jewelry he'd given me. But when I turned to leave, I caught a glimpse of my back from the side and saw I'd missed fastening a clasp. I reached around to do it but couldn't get a hold of it. It was in that perfect spot just out of my reach. â€Å"Damn,† I muttered, still grappling with the hook. The flaw in my perfection. Just then, I heard the door open in the other room, followed by the telltale sound of a tray being set on the coffee table. A stroke of luck. â€Å"Inna!† I called, walking out of the bathroom. â€Å"I need you to-â€Å" Nausea rolled through me, and as I stepped into the living room, I saw that Dimitri wasn't the source. Nathan was. My jaw dropped open. Inna stood near him, waiting patiently by the tray, eyes downcast as always. I immediately ignored her and then looked back at Nathan. Presumably, he was still on guard duty, but that had never actually included him coming inside. For the first time in a while, some of my battle instincts kicked in, assessing escape options. My fear urged me to back away, but that would trap me in the bathroom. Best to stay where I was. Even if I couldn't leave the room, this gave me the most space to maneuver. â€Å"What are you doing here?† I asked, surprised at how calm I sounded. â€Å"Taking care of a problem.† I didn't really need any pointers to figure out the subtext here. I was the problem. Again, I fought the urge to back up. â€Å"I've never done anything to you.† It was faulty logic to a Strigoi. None of their victims ever did anything to them. â€Å"You exist,† he said. â€Å"You're taking up space here, wasting everyone's time. You know how to find her-the Dragomir girl-yet you'll offer nothing remotely useful until Belikov gets off his ass and awakens you. And in the meantime, Galina forces me to waste time watching you and keeps promoting him because he's convinced her that you're going to be some amazing asset to us.† It was an interesting set of grievances. â€Å"So†¦ um, what are you going to do?† In a flash, he stood in front of me. Seeing him so close triggered that memory in my mind's eye-him biting Dimitri and starting all of this. A spark of anger kindled in me but didn't do much in the way of development. â€Å"I'm getting the information one way or another,† he hissed. â€Å"Tell me where she is.† â€Å"You know where she is. She's at the school.† There was nothing useful in giving up that news. He knew she was there. He knew where the school was. The look he gave me showed he was not happy about me providing knowledge he already had. Reaching out, he gripped my hair and jerked my head painfully back. Wearing my hair down maybe hadn't been so useful after all. â€Å"Where is she going? She won't stay there forever. Is she going to college? The Royal Court ? They must have made plans for her.† â€Å"I don't know what they are. I've been away for a while.† â€Å"I don't believe you,† he snarled. â€Å"She's too valuable. Her future would have been planned out a while ago.† â€Å"If it is, no one's shared it with me. I left too soon.† I shrugged by way of answer. Rage filled his eyes, and I swear, they grew redder. â€Å"You're bonded! You know. Tell me now, and I'll kill you quickly. If you don't, I'll awaken you to get the information, and then I'll kill you. I'll light you up like a bonfire.† â€Å"You†¦ you'd kill me once I was one of you?† Foolish question. Strigoi felt no loyalty to each other. â€Å"Yes. It'll destroy him, and once Galina sees how unhinged he is, I will return to my original place by her side-especially after I stamp out the Dragomir line.† â€Å"The hell you will.† He smiled and touched my face, running his fingers along my neck and the bruises all over it. â€Å"Oh, I will. It really will make things easier if you just tell me now. You'll die in ecstasy rather than being burned alive. We'll both enjoy it.† He wrapped his hand delicately around my throat. â€Å"You're definitely a problem, but you are beautiful-especially your throat. I can see why he wants you†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Warring emotions played within me. Logically, I knew this was Nathan-Nathan, whom I hated for having turned Dimitri in the first place. Yet my body's need for Strigoi endorphins was raising its head too, and it barely mattered that it was Nathan. What mattered was that his teeth were only a breath away from my neck, promising that sweet, sweet delirium. And while one hand held my throat, the other ran down my waist, down to the curve of my hip. There had been a sultry edge to Nathan's voice, like he wanted to do more than just bite me. And after so many sexually charged encounters with Dimitri-encounters that never resulted in anything-my body almost didn't care who touched it. I could close my eyes, and it wouldn't matter whose teeth bit into me or whose hands peeled off my clothes. Only the next fix would matter. I could close my eyes and pretend it was Dimitri, lost in it all as Nathan's lips brushed my skin†¦ Except, as some small reasonable part of me recalled, Nathan didn't just want sex and blood. He eventually wanted to kill me. Which was kind of ironic. I'd been dead set-no pun intended-on killing myself when I got here, lest I become a Strigoi. Nathan was offering me that now. Even if he turned me first, he planned on killing me immediately afterward. Either way, I wouldn't have to spend eternity as a Strigoi. I should have welcomed this. But just then, as my body's addiction screamed for his bite and that bliss, I realized something with startling clarity: I didn't want to die. Maybe it was because I'd gone almost a day without a bite, but something small and rebellious woke up in me. I would not let him do this to me. I would not let him go after Dimitri. And I sure as hell wasn't going to let him hunt down Lissa. Pushing through that endorphin cloud that still hung around me, I summoned up as much willpower as I could. I dug deep, remembering my years of training and all the lessons Dimitri had given me. It was hard to access those memories, and I only touched a few. Still, enough came to spur me to action. I lunged forward and punched Nathan. And accomplished nothing. He didn't budge. Hell, I don't even know if he felt it. The surprise on his face promptly turned to mirth, and he laughed in that horrible way Strigoi did-cruelly and without any real joy. Then, with the greatest of ease, he slapped me and knocked me across the room. Dimitri had done nearly the same thing when I'd arrived and attacked him. Only I hadn't flown quite as far or had so miniscule an effect on him. I slammed into the back of the couch, and good God, did it hurt. A wave of dizziness washed over me, and I realized the idiocy of fighting someone vastly stronger than me when I'd been losing blood all week. I managed to straighten up and desperately sought my next course of action. Nathan, for his part, seemed in no hurry to respond to my attack. In fact, he was still laughing. Glancing around, I latched onto a truly pitiful course of action. Inna stood near me. Moving with a speed that was painfully slow-but better than I expected myself to manage-I reached for her and wrapped my arm around her neck. She yelped in surprise, and I jerked her harder against me. â€Å"Get out of here,† I said to Nathan. â€Å"Get out of here, or I'll kill her.† He stopped laughing, stared at me for a moment, and then laughed even harder. â€Å"Are you serious? Do you honestly think I couldn't stop you if I wanted? And do you honestly think I care? Go ahead. Kill her. There are dozens more just like her.† Yeah, that really shouldn't have been a surprise either, but even I was a bit taken aback by how easily he could throw away a faithful servant's life. Okay. Time to go to Plan B. Or maybe it was Plan J? Frankly, I was losing track, and none of them were very good anyway â€Å"Ow!† Inna suddenly elbowed me in the stomach. I released her in my surprise. She spun around with a strangled scream and socked me in the face. The blow wasn't as hard as Nathan's had been, but it still knocked me over. I tried to catch a hold of something-anything-as I fell but failed. I hit the floor, my back slamming against the door. I expected her to come right back at me, but instead, she darted across the room and-God help us all threw herself into a defensive posture in front of Nathan. Before I could fully process the weirdness of her trying to protect someone who was willing to let her die, the door suddenly opened. â€Å"Ow!† I said again, as it hit me and pushed me aside. Dimitri swiftly entered. He looked from face to face, and I had no doubt mine showed signs of both Nathan's and Inna's attacks. Dimitri's fists clenched, and he turned toward Nathan. It reminded me of their scuffle in the hallway, all rage and malice and bloodlust. I cringed, bracing myself for another horrible confrontation. â€Å"Don't,† warned Nathan, face smug. â€Å"You know what Galina said. Touch me and you're out of here.† Dimitri strode across the room and came to stand in front of Nathan, knocking Inna aside like a rag doll. â€Å"It'll be worth facing her wrath, particularly when I tell her you attacked first. Rose certainly bears the marks of it.† â€Å"You wouldn't.† He pointed at Inna, who was sitting dazed on the floor from where Dimitri had knocked her over. Despite my own injuries, I began crawling over to her. I had to know if she was all right. â€Å"She'll tell the truth.† Now Dimitri looked smug. â€Å"You really think Galina will believe a human? No. When I tell her how you attacked me and Rose out of jealousy, she'll let me off. The fact that you'll be so easily defeated will be proof of your weakness. I'll slice your head off and get Rose's stake from the vault. With your last breath, you can watch her drive it through your heart.† Holy crap. That was a little worse than Nathan threatening to burn me-wait. My stake? Nathan's face still bore haughty arrogance-at least to me. But I think Dimitri must have seen something that satisfied him, something that made him think he'd gotten the upper hand. He visibly relaxed, his smirk growing larger. â€Å"Twice,† Dimitri said softly. â€Å"Twice I've let you go. Next time†¦ next time, you're gone.† I reached Inna and gently held out my hand. â€Å"Are you okay?† I murmured. With a look of hate, she recoiled and scooted away. Nathan's eyes fell on me, and he began backing toward the door. â€Å"No,† he said. â€Å"Twice I've let her live. Next time she's gone. I'm the one in control here, not you.† Nathan opened the door and Inna stood up, stumbling after him. I stared, mouth agape at the events that had just taken place. I didn't know which of them I found more disturbing. Looking up at Dimitri, I grappled with what to ask him first. What were we going to do? Why had Inna defended Nathan? Why had Dimitri let him go? None of those defiant questions came to my lips, though. Instead, I burst into tears.

Reconciliation †Polly Clark Essay

Separation is one of the main themes in the short story. Marriage is very valuable and precious, because it is a promise of an everlasting love between a man and woman. People getting married, but people are also getting divorced as well. A marriage does not always turn out the way people had hoped for, and sometimes they will have to separate. A separation is usually a very emotional phase, especially after a divorce. Separation is a contrast to the title of the short story – reconciliation. Moving on, is also one of the main themes in the text. The husband Vernon have moved on, beside that Laura haven’t. In the text, Vernon seems to be the one, who have the most control over himself and his life. Whereas Laura seems to have mental issues and she isen’t thinking clear. In the short story Reconciliation, written by Polly Clark in 2006, we meet Laura who is floating between marriage and divorce. She is first-person narrator, because we are able to know how she is thinking and feeling, even when she dosen’t know it. Laura had a relationship to Vernon for half of her life. It appears, when Laura knows how her husband used to walk â€Å"His walk, just as I remember, is heavier on the left than the right†. Laura and her husband’s relationship are falling apart. For months she and her husband haven’t spoke a word. There have been months of â€Å"†¦Frozen silence.† When Laura dosen’t knows how to resume their contact, she applies for a job at her husband’s office. Laura is very nervous, and she seems doubtful around her husband Vernon, or Mr. Pringle as he is called in the text, by his employer Janny. This is expressed in her following quotes in the start: â€Å"†¦I have forgotten my shoes†, â€Å"I don’t know if I reply, if I do it is in a whisper†, â€Å"I bite my lip as I reach the desk†. The fact that Laura has forgotten her shoes and wearing the clothes, the clothes she have been sleeping with, shows that she’s not able to think clearly and the fact that she can’t speak clearly, but only whisper when Vernon is around, shows that she’s nervous. It makes her look like she has some smaller mental issues, which is caused because she is losing her husband. Laura feels like she is nothing without her husband. It seems like Laura is more interested of getting her husband back, than he is. She still got feelings for him. â€Å"We began our relationship – half my life ago – in a bar, and those were our best times, telling each other the truths of our lives in the warm light.† And later Laura tells Vernon she have grown some onions and had an interview. â€Å"These are both, technically, lies, but could be true†. Laura misses the times, when she and Vernon told each other the truth. But now, when their relationship is falling apart, she starts to lie. Laura wants her husband back. She can’t recognize Vernon anymore, and it seems that her husband has moved on and dosen’t fell the same way as she does. This is expressed in the text: â€Å"How has he managed to remain himself, to become – dare I say it – even more himself, with not even a scar and even a brand new blue shirt†, â€Å"What do you think about this then? You and me, you and me in a place like this†, â€Å"I hope he realizes how much planning, thought, how much normality it took for me to be here today†. Blue is also a color for wisdom and confidence, in contrast to Laura, who dosen’t have confidence, and dosen’t seem wise. When the narrator, Laura, introduce us to her husband Vernon, she describe him as a turtle without its carapace, which is an example of imagery. The way Vernon looks around the room is described as the way a chameleon look around. â€Å"His eyes flick about the room, an alarmed chameleon.†Another example of imagery in the text is when Laura is going to find matching numbers on the sheet with Janny. There is two numbers or two times, called 22.48 and 22.49. Laura is wondering if they are matching together, because they are â€Å"nearly the same. But still they are so different, they present them self. This can be put into perspective to Laura and Vernon. Laura sees herself, as one individual, but still she is wondering if she matching to Vernon. Laura does still wonder why 22.48 are so narrowly missed being 22.49. Laura asks Janny what if she can’t find the reconciliation on the sheet. Janny tells that they remain unreconciled. Sometimes everything isn’t going to work out the way you wanted it to be. But we have to move on, so everything can be reconciled.

International Marketing Notes Essay

I. Chapter Summary * Due to the high time and cost investment in entering a new market, companies must be very sure that the market they are entering will be successful. Thus, they either conduct marketing research themselves, or hire secondary companies to research the market and possible outcomes for them. * Decisions of whether or not to conduct marketing research based on: time constraint, availability of data, and value for the company (benefits vs. costs) * In-Depth Marketing Research Process http://microlinks.kdid.org/good-practice-center/value-chain-wiki/backward-market-research-process * Problems researchers face in different countries: availability of research infrastructure, availability and quality of secondary data, comparability of data, language barriers, and culture specifics of consumers * Decisions between big international research agencies and local agencies: international agencies have standardized results across many countries, but local agencies can provide more relevant data * Types of Primary Research: * Quantitative: collection and analysis of quantifiable categories and questions; describes current market situation (i.e. multiple choice questions) * Qualitative: analyzes the background of the issue in more detail; explains motivation by using open-ended questions (i.e. focus groups) * Questionnaires: can be quantitative (ordinal and nominal scales) or qualitative (free answer) * Longitudinal Studies: respondent surveys conducted at various points in time, allowing analysis in changes over time (i.e. consumer scan) II. Key Terms and Concepts * Marketing Research: systematic and objective process of generating information to aid in making marketing decisions; concentrates on general characteristics of target market, specifics of marketing environment, analysis of competitors, and tests of marketing strategy * Stages of a Research Process: Problem definition Research designCollection of informationData processing and analysisPresentation of research report * Primary data: new data that must be collected during the process of marketing research; more costly yet more specific to topic of interest * Secondary data: data collected and published before, most often for other purposes than the current research objective; less costly, easier to obtain; (i.e. census) * Consumer scan: study of consumer purchasing behavior conducted continuously on the same sample of responding households * Retail panel: longitudinal research conducted in retail stores; data about changes in store layout, product placement, prices, and other relevant topics III. Discussion Topics 1. What are some advantages and disadvantages of conducting marketing research? 2. Provide a specific example of problems researchers face when they conduct marketing research outside their own country 3. Compare and classify the following questionnaire questions: * How frequently do you go to the grocery store per week? * Why do you go to Walmart? 4. What are the characteristics of a good interviewer? IV. Industry Examples and Questions 1. Example of bad questionnaire: Sociology Research Methods Questionnaire from Wisconsin University http://www.ssc.wisc.edu/~jpiliavi/357/neuman.pdf * What makes these questions â€Å"bad†? * How can they be improved? 2. Case Study; JD (part of JD Sports Fashion PLC) Market Research Methods: * Exit surveys – carried out face-to-face with consumers as they leave the storepurpose of the survey is primarily to understand the reasons for visit, frequency of visit/purchase and reasons for and against purchase * â€Å"Shopping bag† survey – the JD research team monitors what carrier bags customers entering JD stores are carrying. This helps identify what other stores JD customers use and are spending money in; provides competitor insight and an idea of which retailers attract a similar customer profile to JD * On-site fieldwork – JD’s dedicated Site Research team invests significant time researching new locations. This involves defining the extent of a location’s catchment area, reviewing the presence and quality of the competition and assessing the pitch and visibility (i.e. how busy the area is) of a unit http://businesscasestudies.co.uk/jd-sports/using-market -research-to-support-decision-making/what-is-market-research.html 3. Coca Cola Great Britain’s Market Research Process: * Identify opportunityDoes it fit into existing product category? For what target? desk research * Explore solutionNew product? New design? Product extension? qualitative research using focus groups and in-depth interviews * Measure suitability/effectivenessEvaluate the relative appeal of alternative solutions in terms of meeting consumer requirementsQuantitative research through face-to-face, telephone/internet interviews * Test MarketTry out new product ideas in a â€Å"test† marketQuantitative research from participants in a test sample of consumers who physically live with the test product for a period of days; there are three stages: concept research, product attributes, and volume assessment * Track market performanceTracking the product’s success once it has been launched (i.e. by recording sales figures, numbers of people familiar with the product, etc)Quantified continuous rolling study with consumers and/or analysis of Electronic Point of Sale data http://businesscasestudies.co.uk/coca-cola-great-britain/using-market-research-to-develop-a-product-range/market-research.html * Compare and contrast the marketing research methods of JD and Coca Cola * Can any of the methods work for the other company? For example, Electronic Point of Sale for JD Sports Fashion?

Growth of Bacteria in Solutions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Growth of Bacteria in Solutions - Essay Example According to Levinson (2015), the scientific findings imply that the growth of both Staphylococcus epidermises and Saccharomyces cerevisiae is favored by low concentrations of NaCl. At 1% NaCl, moderate and high growth rates were observed for Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Staphylococcus epidermises respectively. Therefore, it means that even at hypotonic solutions, the growth rate of Staphylococcus epidermises faster than that of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. A similarity in growth behavior of the two bacteria was noted in 1% NaCl whereby both solutions turned cloudy. As the concentration of NaCl continued to increase, the growth of both bacteria decreased. According to Queck and Otto (2014), the growth of Staphylococcus epidermis can be experienced in NaCl concentrations of up to 10% but no growth can be experienced in 15% NaCl. On the hand, Saccharomyces cerevisiae showed scant growth in 15% NaCl. Scientific findings on the ability of bacteria to grow in solutions of different concentrations provide facts about the growth of Staphylococcus epidermis and Saccharomyces cerevisiae in 1%, 7% and 15% NaCl.It was noted that growth of the two bacteria decreased as the NaCl concentration increased.These findings support the argument that both Staphylococcus epidermis and Saccharomyces cerevisiae thrive in low concentrations of NaCl. The study showed that it was only Saccharomyces cerevisiae able to survive in 15% NaCl while the growth of Staphylococcus epidermis was limited to 10% NaCl.

Reflective Practice Research Proposal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Reflective Practice - Research Proposal Example A brief survey of the literature shows that the methodology, results and reportage of reflective practices vary and are highly interdependent. This project will survey the available literature as extensively as possible, categorize the different aspects of the practices, methodologies, and reported outcomes and attempt to extract a general understanding of what works and what does not work and why. From the results of this intensive survey of the literature we should be able to come to some conclusions concerning reflective practices. From these conclusions we can identify any elements which may be missing in the body of literature which might suggest directions for future study. In addition, we expect to be able to create a template of sorts to aid teachers in developing and documenting reflective practice in order to make this process easier and more useful. This will include a synthesized description of the role of the reflective practitioner in education, an informative chart showing reflective practice strategies, the benefits and problems or disadvantages of each plus an analysis of various instruments/tools used to exercise reflective practice. Many textbooks have described and analyzed reflective practices, and there have been some influential texts which concentrated only upon this subject, such as those of Osterman, K., & Kottkamp, R. (2004) and York-Barr, J., Sommers, W., Ghere, G., & Montie, J. (2005). However, there needs to be ongoing study of these practices in order to have continuous evaluation and ongoing availability of current information. One major purpose projects like this can serve is to filter the available literature and offer some guidance to those who wish to read more about reflective practices. An initial search on survey overview of reflective practice in education resulted in, at the least with the exclusion

The First Principles Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

The First Principles - Essay Example By stating different people in trade, I. e butcher, brewer, and baker, smith was expressing principles of division of labor and specialization in trade. All the mentioned personnel’s play a role in production that ends up satisfying the consumers’ needs of their products. Smith was sensitive of the mutual gains expected by both the producer and the consumer. He expresses the gains obtained by both parties when he considered that the produces has own interest in the trade that lead them to produce their products regardless of who will purchase their goods. This in return helps in solving the consumers’ needs of supply. The consumer on the other hand has little regard to whom produced the product, to them availability of supplies take centre of interest. Thus, both the producer and the consumer benefit in the end. The producer is at will to produce their products based on their area of interest. This is influenced by the advantages one gets from trade rather than on what the other person does. The producer thus enjoys freedom of trade even in the congested market since they do not produce out of compassion but out of gains obtained from

Cutco Case Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Cutco Case - Essay Example We recommend the mentioned regions because Cutco Company was started in Olean, NY and most people are aware of the quality of its commodities thus attracting a large group of customers. Another advantage of distributing the brands to the mention regions is that the company will incur less shipping cost compared to distributing to all regions of U.S (25). This is because the regions are near the manufacturing centers in Olean, instead of distributing to all regions. Apart from cutting down the number of Oreck stores, it is also recommended that the corporation makes use of other home appliance and high-end kitchenware stores. The target stores should be Sur La Table, Sonoma, Crate & Barrel, and Restoration Hardware. These retail stores specialize mainly in home furniture, kitchenware, kitchen appliances, and bathroom, bedroom, and lighting appliances. Therefore, distributing the products to these stores means that the products will be well-known by customers who do shopping in these stores. These stores have customer market that already exists only that they are not aware of Cutco brands and this will increase the company’s brand awareness. This is the phase 1 of the implementation plan and phase 2 will be distributing products to larger stores, which include Dillard’s, Bloomingdale’s, and Macy’s because they are within the company’s target price. Distribution to these stores will also increase the awareness of Cutco brand and the sales

Compare and contrast business systems in Japan and China. Answer with Essay

Compare and contrast business systems in Japan and China. Answer with reference to relevant theories and use comparative country - Essay Example The similarity between the political systems in the countries is that both are state capitalist countries; a system which incorporates both free enterprise and government control to generate rapid or unmatched development and growth of their economies as well as the industrial sector. This system was used in Japan to instigate rapid economic growth and development but later resulted in huge economic dangers for the country. The system that brought Japan to proximity to the world’s largest economy also almost led its economy into turmoil. Hence, many may ask themselves, is China on the right path with the use of a business or market system that once proved a failure and a danger in its rival country Japan? Can the same fate that took Japan come China’s way? Japan instigated the capitalist form of governance in Asia during the 1950s and 1970s when it produced similar trends in economic growth and development as that produced by China in the current economic market (Yiping and Kunyu, 2011). ... Huge savings domestically were forcefully invested in these industries. The system enabled Japan to generate large cash surpluses due to export promotion instead of domestic consumption leading to Japan being accused of intentionally lowering the value of the yen so that its exports could be competitive in the global market. This period did not only see Japan’s capitalism produce enormous development and economic growth in the country but it also promoted the emergence of new industries that are globally competitive such as semiconductor and steel industries. This success led to some advocates from the US and other nations relishing the business system of Japan to an extent of some suggesting the system be implemented in nations such as the US so as to emulate Japan’s economic growth and development. Apparently, China has taken the same path as that which Japan took during its brighter economic days. Japan’s crisis began with the increase in oil prices that had a considerable effect on the Japan’s critical manufacturing industries. This had adverse financial impacts on Japan’s economic system. Japan was quick to notice this trend and instead, changed its development and growth strategies from manufacturing based industries to production based on knowledge i.e. the service industry. The service industry accounts for about 65% of employees in Japan whereas the same is only but 26% in China, indicating that China is more dependent on manufacturing industry than the service industry. The government of China controls the lending practices via a banking system that is state-owned and directs the funds to pillar industries, mostly steel and automobile manufacturing industries. Through provision

PRICING STRATEGIES Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

PRICING STRATEGIES - Case Study Example roximately $5, it means that the employer can save (8*5=40 each year, 40*5,000= $200,000 by all the 5,000 employees) $50,000 per year in case two of each prescription is inappropriate (200,000-50,000= 150,000). This strategy will help employers save money and also improve the outcomes of patients as the quality of prescriptions will get better. This sort of strategy helps to cut the costs by providing the patients with the medication they require and not the prescription drugs, which will help the organizations efficiently utilizing the prescription drugs. This strategy will be undertaken by the help of the pharmacy claims that will pinpoint the high costs specified by the sponsors, diseases such as high cholesterol, cardiac diseases and asthma must be treated and medicated with the specific medication that will help the employers to slash the cost. These pharmacy claims will then be used for the identification of different patients and the medication they require. This strategy will also help in providing awareness and education to medical doctors in helping them improve the behavior related to their prescriptions that will result in better health care outcomes, as it will help the patients live an improved life as their needless health care costs are cut down, and better treatments are provided to them in accordance with their diagnosis. The use of the first line agents is essential in this program so that the awareness is spread about the use of â€Å"first line drug therapy† and offering samples to the prescription providers. The easy accessibility should be made possible by placing the first line agents at the pharmacies, so that the users should come to know about these agents and they can utilize these instead of branded medicines that are too expensive. It will help cut the cost of pharmacy but also it provides with the potential improvements in quality of care. This program has been followed by several organizations, and it made them cut their costs by

American literature Essay Example for Free

American literature Essay Instructor Information Instructor: Mrs. Katy Kownacki Office: Online! Office Hours: immediately following class sessions. Office Telephone: (571)344-3234 E-mail: [emailprotected] edu Course Description The eleventh-grade student will be able to make and analyze informative and persuasive oral presentations, with attention to the accuracy of evidence and the effectiveness of delivery. An examination of how media influences beliefs and behaviors will be introduced. The student will continue to develop and expand vocabulary. The study of both classic and contemporary American literature will enhance the student’s appreciation for literature. The student will be able to identify the prevalent themes and characterizations present in American literature, which are reflective of history and culture. Students will also use nonfiction texts to draw conclusions and make inferences citing textual support. The student will be able to write clear and accurate personal, professional, and informational correspondence and reports for research and other applications. Grammar development will continue through the application of rules for sentence formation, usage, spelling, and mechanics. The student will develop informative and persuasive writings by  locating, evaluating, synthesizing, and documenting information following ethical and legal guidelines. Students are required to take the English 11Standards of Learning End of Course Test. Prerequisite/Co-requisite: English 10 Textbook Course Materials Required Texts †¢Elements of Literature, Fifth Course Enhanced  ©2007 (http://my. hrw. com) †¢Elements of Language, Fifth Course  ©2004 (http://my. hrw. com) †¢The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. http://ebooks. adelaide. edu. au/f/fitzgerald/f_scott/gatsby/ Other Readings oThe Crucible is found in the online textbook oOther readings will be made available in the FCPS Online Campus Learning  Modules. Page 1 English 11 Summer Syllabus Fairfax County Public Schools— Online Campus Course Requirements †¢Computer with Internet connection (DSL, LAN, or cable connection desirable) †¢Headphones and microphone †¢Word processing program (Microsoft Word recommended) †¢Account access to FCPS 24/7 Course Structure This course will be delivered entirely online through the FCPS 24/7 and Elluminate. You will use your student account to login to the course from FCPS 24/7 (http://fcps. blackboard. com). In your FCPS Online Campus course, you will access online lessons, course materials, and resources. At a designated time during the week, we will participate in a synchronous activity using our virtual classroom, Elluminate. In addition to traditional writing and vocabulary assignments, activities will consist of chats, blogs, discussion forums, emails, journaling, and wikis. FCPS Online Campus Access To access this course within FCPS 24/7, you will need access to the Internet and a supported Web browser (Internet Explorer, Firefox). To ensure that you are using a supported browser and have required plug-ins, you must finish the prerequisite technology mini-course before starting the online English 11 course. Refer to the FCPS Online Campus welcome letter for instructions. Technical Assistance If you need technical assistance at any time during the course, call Presidium 1-866-434-8880. Also email your instructor about the problem. You will need to find an alternate means to access the course (a friend’s computer, a parent’s computer, the library, etc). Important Note: This syllabus, along with course assignments and due dates, are subject to change. It is the student’s responsibility to check FCPS 24/7 for corrections or updates to the syllabus. Any changes will be clearly noted in course announcement or through instructor’s email. English 11 Summer Syllabus Fairfax County Public Schools— Online Campus PART 2: COURSE OBJECTIVES †¢COMMUNICATION: SPEAKING, LISTENING, MEDIA LITERACY oUse a variety of oral-communication skills and provide accurate evidence to give informative and persuasive oral presentations. oCritique and assess the effectiveness of persuasive presentations by others. oExamine how persuasive media messages influence audiences’ beliefs and behaviors. †¢READING oApply knowledge of word origins, derivations, and figurative language to extend vocabulary development in authentic texts. oEnhance appreciation for literature by studying both classic and  contemporary American literature. oRead a variety of literary genres and informational texts to identify the prevalent themes in American literature that are reflective of American history and culture. oDevelop vocabulary and reading comprehension skills and apply those skills in other content areas, including history and social science, science, and mathematics. oIdentify the contributions of other cultures to the development of American literature. †¢WRITING oWrite in a variety of forms with an emphasis on persuasion. oProduce arguments in writing that demonstrate knowledgeable judgments and address counterclaims. oUse knowledge of genres, formats, purposes, audiences, and situations to produce clear and effective products that reflect use of all stages of a writing process. †¢RESEARCH oEngage in research that requires the selection, evaluation, use, and documentation of a variety of sources. oVerify the validity of all information and follow ethical and legal guidelines for using and gathering information. oPresent a research product that is clearly written and accurately documented according to Modern Language Association (MLA) standards. Page 3 English 11 Summer Syllabus Fairfax County Public Schools— Online Campus. PART 3: TOPIC OUTLINE/SCHEDULE Important Note: Refer to the course calendar for specific meeting dates and times. Activity and assignment details will be explained in detail within each weeks corresponding learning module. If you have any questions, please contact your instructor. †¢Poetry and Short Stories oIntroduction/ Review of Literary Elements oVariety of short stories and poems by American authors †¢Drama oThe Crucible †¢Fiction oThe Great Gatsby †¢Non-Fiction oThe Autobiography of Ben Franklin oNarrative of Frederick Douglass oAutobiographical Notes essay by James Baldwin oLetter from a Birmingham Jail by M. L. King, Jr. oFrom Resistance to Civil Government by Henry David Thoreau †¢Research oBackground information on F. Scott Fitzgerald and The Great Gatsby. †¢Writing oThesis-driven writing (claim, assertion, commentary) oJournals oPoetry oLiterary Analysis Page 4 English 11 Summer Syllabus Fairfax County Public Schools— Online Campus PART 4: GRADING POLICIES Graded Course Activities Visit the Eng 11 Units button in your FCPS Online Campus course for instructions and information about assignments. Students will submit work through the Assignments button, through the Discussion Board button, or via email. Click on the Assessments button to access quizzes and exams. Submitted work is available for view through the student gradebook in FCPS 24/7. Procedures for Submitting Work You use the Assignment Button to submit assignments. Name the document correctly by using the file naming convention: lastname_assignmentname_date. doc. Please add a header at the top of the document containing your name, the date, and assignment title. If I receive a document without a name, it will be returned (and then you run the risk of turning in a late assignment). When you email me, please type your name in the subject line and sign your emails with your first and last names. Save (and backup) all of your submitted work. You are advised to keep copies of everything, including emails that show the date and time that you’ve submitted your assignments. Late work must be emailed to teacher with an explanation. Late Work Policy ALL WORK IS DUE BY MIDNIGHT ON THE DAY IT IS ASSIGNED. Work received between midnight and 8:00 am the next day will be accepted, but with a ten percent reduction in the grade earned. Work received between 8:00 am and 11:59 pm that same day will be accepted, but with a twenty percent reduction in the grade earned. After 11:59 pm on the day after the work was originally due, no late work will be accepted. Discussion boards are NOT accepted late. Viewing Grades in FCPS Online Campus Instructor will update the online grades each week—typically 2-3 days after each due date. Grade Reports will be emailed to parents, students and counselors every week. Grade Reports will reflect the student’s quality of work by the scores on the assignments but will also contain missing assignment if the student is behind schedule to finish the class. Page 5 English 11 Summer Syllabus Fairfax County Public Schools— Online Campus. *during summer school this is expedited since a single summer day is 8 academic days The grade percentage chart will be used to convert to letter grade reporting (chart below). Final Mark Each quarter will count as 20% of the final grade. The final exam will count as 1/5 of the final grade. Letter Grade Percentage Definition A 93-100% Designates the status of a student who consistently demonstrates accurate and complete knowledge of content and skills specified in the FCPS Program of Studies (POS), and applies that knowledge to solve problems in a variety of settings A- 90-92% B+ 87-89% Designates the status of a student who demonstrates knowledge of content and skills specified in the FCPS Program of Studies (POS), with some improvement needed in accuracy and/or consistency in performance, applying that knowledge to solve problems in a variety of settings B 83-86% B- 80-82% C+ 77-79% Designates the status of a student who demonstrates knowledge of basic content and skills specified in the FCPS Program of Studies (POS), but requires additional practice and instructional experiences to acquire skills necessary to solve problems C 73-76% C- 70-72% D+ 67-69% Designates the status of a student who needs significant practice and instructional experiences to acquire the  knowledge of basic content and skills specified in the FCPS Program of Studies (POS) necessary to solve problems. As a final mark, it is not necessarily sufficient to meet the prerequisite requirements for the next level in a sequence of courses. D 64-66% F 0-63% Designates the status of a student who has not demonstrated the basic knowledge of content and/or skills specified in the FCPS Program of Studies (POS) and requires additional practice and instructional experiences in order to succeed. I * Designates the status of a student who has not been able to complete tasks that are major components of the quarter  grade for reasons considered appropriate by the teacher or team or by the principal or his or her designee. The student is required to make up work within a specified time period in order to convert this incomplete to a grade by the next quarterly progress report. *I (Incomplete) = May not be given as a permanent final grade. Page 6 English 11 Summer Syllabus Fairfax County Public Schools— Online Campus Important note: For more information about grading, visit the grading and reporting policies at the FCPS website. Page 7 English 11 Summer Syllabus Fairfax County Public Schools— Online Campus COURSE POLICIES Participation. Students are expected to participate in all online activities as listed on the course calendar. Consistent participation is required and submission of work is the evidence of that participation. Communicate If you find that you have any trouble keeping up with assignments or other aspects of the course, make sure you let your instructor know as early as possible. As you will find, building rapport and effective relationships are key to becoming an effective person. Make sure that you are proactive in informing your instructor when difficulties arise during the year so that we can help you find a solution. Complete Assignments. All assignments for this course will be submitted electronically through FCPS 24/7 unless otherwise instructed. Assignments must be submitted by the given deadline or special permission must be requested from instructor. Extensions will not be given beyond the next assignment. Late or missing discussion assignments will affect the student’s grade. Understand When You will be Removed from This Course It is state law that a student will no miss 15 days of class. The instructor will notify parents and counselor at 5 and 10 days of no work submitted. At 15 days the student is removed from the course and returned to the counselor  for appropriate placement. Our goal is to get students to receive credit for graduation, and if online is not an appropriate environment, a return to face to face instruction is necessary. During summer school three days of non-activity will warrant dismissal from the course; your teacher will evaluate this after Sunday night. Inform Your Instructor of Any Accommodations Needed If you have a documented disability and IEP, and you wish to discuss academic accommodations, please contact your instructor as soon as possible. IEP and 504 accommodations must be submitted to the Online Campus before the class starts. The Online Campus can be contacted by phone at (703) 503-7781 (Voice) or via email at [emailprotected] edu . Commit to Ethical Conduct As a student in this course, you are expected to maintain high degrees of professionalism, commitment to active learning and participation in this class Page 8 English 11 Syllabus Fairfax County Public Schools— Online Campus and also integrity in your behavior in and out of the classroom. Page 9 English 11 Syllabus Fairfax County Public Schools— Online Campus FCPS Ethical Conduct for Users (SRR regulation 2601) It is the responsibility of the student to: †¢Use only his or her account or password. It is a violation to give access to an account to any other user. †¢Recognize and honor the intellectual property of others; comply with legal restrictions regarding plagiarism and the use and citation of information resources. †¢Not read, modify, or remove files owned by other users. †¢Restrict the use of the FCPS network and resources to the mission or function of the school system. The use of the FCPS network for personal use or for private gain is prohibited. †¢Help maintain the integrity of the school information system. Deliberate tampering or experimentation is not allowed; this includes the use of FCPS network and resources to illicitly access, tamper with, or experiment with systems outside FCPS. The information systems and Internet access available through FCPS are available to support learning, enhance instruction, and support school business practices. †¢Refrain from using offensive, obscene, or harassing language when using FCPS network systems. †¢Abstain from accessing, changing, or deleting files belonging to others. Important Note: Any form of academic dishonesty, including cheating and plagiarism, will be reported to the administration office. Page 10

Von Neumann Computer Architecture Information Technology Essay

Von Neumann Computer Architecture Information Technology Essay The Von Neumann Computer is a digital pc that storing the data in a single separate way and it use a processing unit. A digital computer keeps its program in instruction with its data as well. The Von Neumann Computer named after name of computer scientist John von Neumann. 5 Internal Components: Description of each components, how they are connected to Mother Board, Diagram. Hard Disk: Hard disk is a magnetic disk that allows you to store your computer data, a hard disk consist of several platters, which every individual platter is able to read and write. The hard disk is connected to the motherboard by ribbon cable (ATA66/100). Random Access Memory (RAM: It is type of computer memory but it can be accessed randomly, RAM is very fast to read than any storage device in a PC. As long as your computer is running the data store in a RAM but when the computer turns off, Ram will lose its data. The Ram connected to the motherboard by small circuit, in the motherboard there is two circuit places which is one for inline memory and the second is duel inline memory. Processor: Processor or Central Processing Unit (CPU) it is part of computer system and in easy way it is a brain of computer the job of CPU in a computer is to give a instruction for any computer program the processor is connected to the motherboard directly. Graphic Card: It is a bridge between processor and other devices to send command and gets back the signal, the Graphic Card is connected throw the expansion slot which is in the Motherboard. 5 External Components: Description, how are they connected? Eg Ports, USB, etc. Diagram. Key Board: keyboard is primary way to communicate with input; you can use the keyboard to input text and data. When we press a key, it presses a button, completing the circuit and allowing an amount of current to run through and keyboards are connected by USB cable or PS2. Mouse: mouse is device which lets you work with graphical objects that the computer displays on the screen. Mouse has one button or sometimes three buttons and it have scroll wheel that enable user to scrolling long document or webpage. The Mouse is connected by USB cable or PS2. Printer: It is a device that can print text or graphic that stored in a electronic form, and it connect to the PC by USB Port. Scanner: It is a device that scans data or any text, printed page or photo you scan it to the computer and it connected to the computer by USB Port. Monitor: A Monitor is like a television but the difference is that monitor display the information produced by a computer, basically it is a screen display of a computer and it connect VGA port in a PC or in some PC by the Video card. Task 2 Describe the characteristics of the various types of internal memory of computer: What is internal memory of computer? The internal memory of computer is also part of computer devices that recoding media that keep digital data used for computing for some interval of time. What are the major types of internal memory of computer? For each type of internal memory, explain how it works and what are its major characteristics There are types of computer internal memory which is Random Access Memory (RAM) and Read Only Memory (ROM). Random Access Memory (RAM): It is a temporary computer internal memory and it is a space that allows us to temporarily store data when a program is running. The contents are being lost when the computer is switched off it only holds data while power is on. There are some major types of RAM which are : Rambus DRAM (RDRAM): is a serial memory technology that arrived in three flavours, PC600, PC700, and PC800. PC800 DRAM has doubled the maximum throughput of old, but a higher speed and it use small capacitors to store each bit of memory in an addressable format that consists of rows and columns, DRAM designs with multiple channels. SIMM chips: Single in-line memory modules (SIMMs) it is a type of solid state computer memory which is used particular for the processor cache memory. The 72-pin SIMM has a notch among the contacts in the middle. An important characteristic of RAM is that the entire memory place can be accessed at almost the same speed. Read Only Memory (ROM): Is a kind of memory that store the data permanently and it cannot be removed, eventually every computer is coming with a small amount of ROM which recorded of boot firmware, when we start our computer the ROM chips will running hardware diagnostics that will loading the operating system into RAM. Cache: The cache will make our computer more skilled and better, your computer memory, cache is extremely fast memory that store data and the data is accessible quickly and it gives quickest response to the CPU. Virtual Memory: The virtual memory task was to enable a process to operate or establish the status of pages in its virtual address space. Task 3 Explain the purpose and functions of the system busses of a computer: Explain how the internal subsystems are linked through buses and where these buses could be found inside a computer. The computer internal subsystems are connect to the busses through wire inside the computer and the data transfer throw these from one part to the another part of computer. Busses connect the entire computer component with the main memory and processor. Explain the functions of control, data, and address busses. What is bus width and what is the effect of the bus width on the bus performance? The architecture of buses is a wire inside a computer which data is transfer from one part to another part inside the computer, the purpose of buses is to connect the entire computer component to the processor and to the central memory. Busses are dividing into two parts the Data busses and Address busses. The function of data busses is to transfer the data and the function of address busses is to give direction to data where to go. Bus width is a canal that information is flowing; when the bus width is wider it is beneficial for busses because more information can flow in more speedy time. What is a motherboard chip set? With use of a diagram, explain what is the role and characteristics of the North and South Bridge of a motherboard. It is a specific chip in a computer that calls motherboard chipset. The Northbridge is core logical in a computer motherboard and its role is to hold communication with RAM, BIOS ROM, PCI and CPU. The South Bridge job is to manage the basic of input/output These include all hard drive and expansion slots, USB, FireWire, RAID, audio codes, real-time system clock, system power management, interrupt controller, direct memory access (DMA) controller, and non-volatile BIOS memory. Task 4 Describe, with the aid of diagrams, what are the components and the structure of CPU and how CPU works: What is the CPU of a modern computer and what are the CPU components? The Central Processing Unit (CPU) is the brain of a computer that gives function to a computer programme. Every time when CPU doing a job there is a stored code in the computers memory that instructs the CPU what to do. CPU needs to decode the instruction code to find what it needs to do finish the task. After the CPU solve the code, the CPU will start to perform calculation and the result whether it store the result back in memory, to hard drive, or the computer display. The way that we can understand how powerful a process is by the number of instruction that a CPU can execute per second. The CPU components are: Logic or Arithmetic unit (ALU) it performs calculations, there are four types of function that ALU do and it depends on these to perform and they are addition, subtraction, multiplication and division even registering and instruction. Register or the memory which stores the data, it tell CPU where the information is located, also its a temporary storage areas for instructions or data and they are not part of the memory. Register hold and transfer instructions. Register operate faster than a Ram, normally register assess by bit like 32 bits. Control unit which give direction to the data around the CPU by sending control signals and its job is to control the data that executed by the ALU, also the Control Unit keeping communicate with ALU and system memory. Use a diagram to explain the components of CPU CPU Components Diagram Arithmetic Logic Unit (ALU) Registers Control Unit Input Device Secondary Storage Output Device Explain shortly the Fetch Execute Cycle of CPU referring to its components and RAM. Fetch Execute Cycle of CPU it is an order of actions that the central processing unit (CPU) perform to execute each machine code instruction in a program. There are five register in the Fetch Execute Cycle which are: The Instruction Register that hold the solved and executed last instruction. The memory buffer register that use to get data from memory. The memory address registers that to be use when a word is transferred between memory and MBR. The accumulator job is to hold the result of ALU for the time being and the programme counter that hold the address of the next instruction to be fetched from memory.

A Comparison of Healthcare in Canada and the United States Essay

Canada’s healthcare system started in 1946 and is made up of a group of socialized health insurance plans that provides coverage to all Canadian citizens. It is publicly funded and administered on a provincial or territorial basis with in the rules set by their federal government. Since the late 1960’s Canada essential has had a universal health insurance system covering all services provided by physicians and hospitals. In 1966 Lester B Pearson’s government subsequently expanded a policy of the universal healthcare with the medical care act. Canada’s healthcare system is the subject of political controversy and debate in the country. While healthcare in America began in the late 1800’s but was truly born in 1929 when Justin Kimball introduced low cost healthcare to teachers in Dallas. Healthcare in the US is mostly privately funded but we do have a few publicly funded entities, such as Medicare and Medicaid. By 1971, all Canadians were guaranteed access important medical services regardless of income, employment, or health. Canada has one of the highest life expectancies and he lowest infant mortality rates of industrialized countries, which many attribute to Canada’s health care system. In 1984, the Canada Health Act was passed. This act added provisions that prohibited extra billing and user fees for covered services. To support the ten year plan, the federal government increased health care to the Canada Health Transfer from 2006-2007 until 2013-2014 to provide growth in federal funding. On the other end the United states private for profit insurers based our premiums on age, gender, health status, and pre-existing conditions only covering the healthiest people and avoiding the sickest individuals which in turn e... ... a lot of criticism about the wait times; some have been known to wait in the emergency room for four hours. Although on the other hand, there is an upside to having to wait. By prioritizing the high risk patients verses the lower risk patients, help to eliminate patient mortality rates. The government has since stepped in to help alleviate the long wait times. Unfortunately, the wait times on average are just as bad, if not worse here in the states, with one important difference. In Canada no one gets turned away, while in the states, if you do not have the proper documentation according to your plan, you may end up waiting double the amount of time. Works Cited †¢ G.G. Frasier, â€Å"An Audit of Surgical Waiting List,† New Zealand Medical Journal (1991) †¢ www.snopes.com †¢ www.canadianhealthcare.org †¢ www.hc-sc.ca †¢ www.huffingtonpost.com

The Critical Period Hypothesis of Language Acquisition Essay -- Neurol

The Critical Period Hypothesis of Language Acquisition "Ahhhhh!" I yell in frustration. "I've been studying Spanish for seven years, and I still can't speak it fluently." "Well, honey, it's not your fault. You didn't start young enough," my mom says, trying to comfort me. Although she doesn't know it, she is basing her statement on the Critical Period Hypothesis. The Critical Period Hypothesis proposes that the human brain is only malleable, in terms of language, for a limited time. This can be compared to the critical period referred to in to the imprinting seen in some species, such as geese. During a short period of time after a gosling hatches, it begins to follow the first moving object that it sees. This is its critical period for imprinting. (1) The theory of a critical period of language acquisition is influenced by this phenomenon. This hypothetical period is thought to last from birth to puberty. During this time, the brain is receptive to language, learning rules of grammar quickly through a relatively small number of examples. After puberty, language learning becomes more difficult. The Critical Period Hypothesis attributes this difficulty to a drastic change in the way that the brain processes language after puberty. This makes reaching fluency during adulthood much more difficult than it is in childhood. The field of language acquisition is very experimental because scientists still do not completely understand how the brain deals with language. Broca's area and Wernicke's area are two parts of the brain that have long been identified as areas important for language. Broca's area is the left frontal cortex, while Wernicke's area is the left posterior temporal lobe. These areas are co... ...ar [Part 1] Forum area of Gene Expression websight. http://www.gnxp.com/ 5) The Biological Foundations of Language, Does Empirical Evidence Support Innateness of Language? by Bora Lee. http://www.duke.edu/~pk10/language/neuro.htm 6) Evolution of Universal Grammar by Martin A. Nowak, Natalia L. Komarova, and Partha Niyogi. http://www.ptb.ias.edu/nowak/pdf/Science01.pdf 7) Universal Grammar by Charles Henry. http://www.ptb.ias.edu/nowak/pdf/Science01.pdf 8) A concept of 'critical period' for language acquisition, Its implication for adult language learning by Katsumi Nagai. http://www.tsuyama-ct.ac.jp/kats/papers/kn7/kn7.htm 9) Brain signatures of artificial language processing: Evidence challenging the critical language hypothesis by Angela Friederici, Karsten Steinhauer, and Erdmut Pfeifer. http://www.giccs.georgetown.edu/~steinhau/pnas2002.pdf

The Greatest Medical Breakthrough?the use of Pluripotent Stem Cells Ess

An Assessment of The Greatest Medical Breakthrough the use of Pluripotent Stem Cells A critical review of the pro and con analysis, of arguably, the most controversial issue of the 21st century—the use of pluripotent stems cells. In addition, the ensuing synthesis and prescription based upon empirical data and critical thinking. Given the enormous promise of pluripotent stem cells to the development of new treatments for the most devastating diseases, we believe our scientific researchers and medical professionals should be permitted and encouraged to simultaneously pursue pluripotent stem cell research. Further, the ban on federal funding of research on new stem cell lines should be overturn, allowing doctors and scientists to explore their full potential with the appropriate ethical oversight. An Assessment of The Greatest Medical Breakthrough—the use of Pluripotent Stem Cells   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Thesis: The greatest medical breakthrough in any lifetime—the use of pluripotent stems cells.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Background: Stem cell research continues to be a controversial issue. Stem cells are cells that have a particular function, like blood stem cells whose function is to make different types of blood cells or skin stem cells whose function is to make various types of skin cells. Stem cells evolve from pluripotent stem cells, cells that makeup the inner cell mass of the embryonic blastocell. As the pluripotent stem cells specialize, they form stem cells with the specific kinds of purposes mentioned above. Stem cells are controversial because the most useful variety of stem cells comes from embryos at the blastocyst stage, meaning the cells are taken from embryos of aborted fetuses or from surplus embryos left over from In Vitro Fertilization (IVF). Despite such controversy, many researchers and medical professionals argue that pluripotent embryos have â€Å"the potential to revolutionize the practice of medicine and improve the quality and length of life† for m illions of individuals (NIH, 2002, p. 1). For these reasons, the use of pluripotent stem cells potentially represent the greatest medical breakthrough of any era in history and federal funding for such research must be approved.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Pro Analysis: The unique ability of embryonic pluripotent stem cells shows tremendous medical prom... ...al, critical and necessary. Grigg, W. N. (2002). Embryonic stem cell research could have dangerous   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  consequences. Medicine. Retrieved Aug 13, 2004, from Opposing   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Viewpoints Resource Center, 1-4. Discusses the nuances, implications and basis for President Bush’s position on harvesting of organs and tissues. Explains President Bush’s cautionary approach to stem cell research and the use of federal funding. Confirms that there is no proven, scientific advantage of using embryonic stem cells instead of pluripotent adult cells. National Institutes of Health (NIH). (2002). Embryonic stem cell research is beneficial. Human Embryonic Experimentation. Retrieved Aug 13, 2004, from Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center, 1-6. Discusses the importance of pluripotent stem cells and how they are derived. Analyzes how pluripotent stem cells can be potentially applied. Evaluates the inherent limitations associated with adult stem cells. Explains how isolating pluripotent cells offer useful insight into cell processes, such as cancer and birth defects and will lead to the fundamental errors that cause debilitating illnesses.

The Medicine Wheel (Lakota Sioux)

Symbols, such as the medicine wheel, are common among Sioux Indians, especially the Lakota Sioux. The Lakota Sioux believed each section of the medicine wheel had some spiritual significance. To them, the medicine wheel represents enlightenment, growth, strength and knowledge. Each color on the medicine wheel signifies a different season and lifestyle. Inside the circle is a cross shape. The cross symbolizes the four directions, and also the Four Lakota Virtues. The shape of the wheel represents the never ending circle of life and death.It means the Alpha and the Omega, Beginning and End, and to the Lakota Sioux, represents unity in the Great Spirit. One of the four sacred colors found on the medicine wheel is red. It is located at the top left hand side of the four corners. Red symbolizes several things, including north; this (north) symbolizes the passing of the ancient and ancestors. â€Å"North brings cold harsh winds of the winter season† ( ). This cleansing wind causes t he leaves to fall and buries the earth underneath a blanket of snow. Lakota Sioux believed â€Å"..If someone had the ability to face these harsh winds, like the buffalo, they have learned patience and endurance† ( ). The element of the North is Air. Air is movement and†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ freedom – the clearing of thoughts and the carrier that allows us to manifest our dreams† ( ). Air represents the mind. The color red and that section of the wheel also symbolize wisdom. They believed wisdom to be of one of the best qualities, and is usually met in or after death. Red also represents the last part of the lie cycle: afterlifeWhite is the second of the four sacred colors found on the medicine wheel of the Lakota Sioux. It is located at the bottom left corner on the medicine wheel. â€Å"White stands for youth and friendship† ( ). It represents the south. This direction is for warmth and growth since the sun is at its highest peak in the southern sky. â€Å"The sun’s rays are powerful in drawing life from the earth† ( ). The Lakota Sioux believed life of all things come from the south, so this section also represents the second phase of the llie cycle. † The South is where our journey through life begins – with the knowing of self† ( )Yellow is the third of all the sacred colors found on the medicine wheel. Yellow signifies the east where the sun rises. This brings us the energy of adventure. The Lakota Sioux believed this to symbolize family and newborns. This is also the beginning of a new day and a new understanding of life and people. â€Å"On a deeper level, east stands for the wisdom in helping people live good lives† ( ). This section is located at the bottom right corner of the medicine wheel. The element of the East is Fire. Fire is the radiant energy of transformation. Fire contains the great power of expansion† ( ). They believed this section of life is to help us find innocence and p urity. It is a great path among the rode to spirituality. Black is the last color section in the medicine wheel. It is located in the top left hand corner.Black signifies the west, where the sun sets and the day ends. The color is black, not in nothingness, â€Å".. but the black of â€Å"all things†Ã¢â‚¬ ( ). It is the color of mystery and of the unconscious. The Lakota Sioux believed the west the be the source of all water, so this section is vital. The great thunderbird lives in the west and sends thunder and rain from this direction† ( ). Back represents solitude, reflection and growing old. The direction of South was our beginning of knowing who the â€Å"self† is. â€Å"The direction of the West deepens this knowing through dreams and visions of the future† ( ). They believed the element of the West is earth. Earth is passive, receptive and nurturing. A deep connection with earth is needed to bring ourselves into balance with Universe. Black is the second to last part of the life cycle: death.

Public Schools Segregation Essay

I was recently struck by one of the political cartoons in the SacramentoBee newspaper, which presented an image comparison of drinking fountains in two schools. It quickly reminded me of the racist Jim Crow laws from the 1880s-1960s and how racial segregation existed almost everywhere in the United States at that time. However, I realize that this cartoon doesn’t portray the concept of racial segregation with a Jim Crow joke, but it makes a commentary on social segregation among public schools in the United States today. I slowly realized that all American public schools are not the same due to funding. The huge difference exists in the public school system because their funding is associated with local property taxes. If a school is located in an affluent area with wealthier residents who pay high property taxes, schools will receive more funding (School Funding 1). Do you think this system is fair? If I ask affluent parents, they probably would answer that they pay high property taxes, so their money should go straight to nourish public schools in their areas. Meanwhile, if I were to ask parents in low socioeconomic areas, they would say that funds should be distributed from the state and not by the county, which would help in reducing the inequality between schools. Although sharing funds is not fair for many affluent people who pay more taxes, we should encourage state governments to aid the poorer schools more because it helps to reduce poverty and prevent crimes in lower income neighborhoods. The first reason that poorer schools should get more funds is to reduce poverty. People in low-income areas might not get the direct effect from school funding, but in the future, their kids will be benefited greatly. For those in the low income bracket, education can be a legitimate way to help them climb out of poverty. However, in reality, most of these poorer schools today are still not treated equally as their richer counterparts. Lisa Black, Chicago Tribune reporter reviewed the vast difference between two public schools in the Chicago area to illustrate this point. The first school, Taft Elementary School in Lockport can’t offer students any arts, language or technology classes because of the limited budget available. Meanwhile, Rondout Elementary School, near Lake Forest, offers language programs such as Spanish in every grade including kindergarten. Most students use laptops in the class, and they can enjoy band and chorus classes. They can choose to study various art, drama and dance as well (Black 1). If poor children had the same opportunity as their counterparts, imagine the growth it could represent to them educational. If they enjoyed studying, they could move on to obtain higher education by attending to colleges, meaning better-paying jobs. Therefore, funds should be available for all people. Young minds deserve the opportunity to choose the programs that they want to study. They should be able to study art and any other subject, as they desire to, regardless of how much property tax their parents pay. In general, I believe that a good education is the foundation that can pave the way to a better quality of life. Aside from reducing poverty, preventing crimes is another reason that poorer schools should receive more funds. Crimes in lower income areas derive from being unable to sustain a decent living. These types of crimes can be directly connected to a lack of education and opportunity. Geoffrey Wodtke, a sociologist at the University of Michigan, mentions in his article that kids in poor neighborhood have less chance to graduate from high school (Wodtke 1). He also states: Poor neighborhoods are isolated and racially segregated, with none of the quality schools, day care, grocery stores, pharmacies, and parks that can help promote a child’s development and academic achievement; and they are disproportionately smoggy, crime-ridden and dilapidated. All of these factors, the researchers note, have been linked to poor performance in school, often culminating in dropouts. (1) Wodtke claims that poor neighborhoods affect school performance, and this can impact a child’s learning directly. Some children quit the schools because they have no interest in schooling. Dropping out is and having no high school diploma will limit a job opportunities. When they are not qualified for many jobs, they can’t escape the pitfalls of poverty. Therefore, some of them end up finding illegal ways to make money while others affiliate themselves with gangs (Wodtke 2). This is the reason why school is so important, because it is a good place to start children on equal footing educationally with the chance to better themselves in the future. However, schools in low-income areas still need more funds to afford having a variety of programs such as language, art and sports. Schools also need to be able to hire and retain qualified teachers. Moreover, every school should be able to afford sport programs, which is a good physical outlet for youthful energy and encourages good health and teamwork. Art programs should also be available because they provide an outlet to express creativity. A wider variety of activities and educational alternatives can create brighter and more promising futures if given the opportunities. These children can become doctors, football players or artists in the future as long as they get a fair amount of support from the beginning. It’s difficult to change the living environment in poorer neighborhoods, but we can start by improving the school system to reshape the future of that community. Some people think that pouring money into poor schools is wasteful. They believe the reason schools become poorly performing ones is because they are full of under-achieving students who lack interest in the curriculum. Even if some schools get more funds, it will not change anything. It’s like treating symptoms, but not starting at the root of the problem. They believe that the government should provide more funding to schools with higher achieving students who potentially will become successful contributing members of the community. In other words, the state government should invest in the right schools and students. However, I believe this thought to be completely wrong. People who believe this will never know the potential of students in lower-income schools unless they are given a fair and equal opportunity to succeed. If poorer schools receive more funding, they will be able to provide better facilities and a stronger variety in the curriculum. These factors would increase the chances that we see more students grow into productive and successful adults despite coming from lower class surroundings. When every school has the same resources and variety of programs available to their youths, political cartoons like this one will be a thing of the past because the educational system’s inequalities will no longer be a joke. We should call for action on the funding to reform poorer schools because education can help in reducing poverty and crimes in these neighborhoods. Although affluent parents who work harder and pay more property taxes might oppose an idea of distributed funding to poor schools, they should think about economic consequences. If a gap between rich schools and poor schools is still expanding, how can the children of today become responsible adults in the future? If this country is the land of freedom and opportunity for everyone, I should hope that schools would be the first place to start by giving equal opportunities to all children. Poorer schools should receive equal opportunities like those of the children in wealthier communities. Schools should be a sacred place where all children of any social standing are afforded the same opportunities of unlimited educational growth. The more we see children shine in their youth, the more likely they will rise up to become successful in the future and this will help strengthen the future of the United States’ socially and economically.

Can We Know When to Trust Our Emotions in the Pursuit of Knowledge? Essay

The question advocates that we can from time to time trust our emotions in the pursuit of knowledge. And generally we presume that it may be possible to know when to trust emotions and that emotions can help us in the acquisition of knowledge. And you may challenge these presumptions. Maybe it is not possible to know when to trust our emotions, and maybe our emotions have a limited value in the pursuit of knowledge, but to what I aim to analyse is to what extent do our emotions play a role in the pursuit of knowledge. After being elected as the captain of my house, a post which came armed with heavy responsibilities, my luck struck out in getting the ideal vice captain to assist me. Hence, I was forced to consider replacing my vice captain. Be that as it may, it just so happened that this replacement happens to be a good friend of mine, which led me to question whether or not I was doing the right thing. Am I choosing to replace my current vice captain out of whats best for my house or am I simply replacing him out of the emotional attachment for my good friend. Taking my emotions into consideration, my judgment is affected to some extent, but at the same time it doesn’t mean that it prevents me form making the right decision. While I did want my friend as my new vice captain, there were also facts to support the way I felt about why my current vice captain had to be replaced. Having said that even if my friend turned out to be even worse than his predecessor then I would on some level act rationally and replace my friend as well with someone else. Maybe that someone else might be chosen on the basis of my liking of that person but nevertheless the fact that I was willing to strip that post from him for the good of my house shows that it isn’t always down to our emotions which affect our judgement and how that judgement affects our pursuit of knowledge. The pursuit of knowledge in this case discusses knowing what is truly fair and right, and while I did what I thought was best for my house, I was also simultaneously fulfilling my own personal 1interests by choosing a close friend. The way I look at it, there is no harm in killing two birds with one stone. Then again when I say I did what I did because it was best for my house then the only reason I did what was best for my house was because of the emotional attachment I had towards my house itself and if changing my house captain was what I had to do then either way which ever decision I took was because my of emotions. So how do our emotions pave our path in our understanding of the decisions we make and weather those decisions are ethical or not? And how do those decisions in turn affect the way we pursue knowledge? Decision making requires a very cognitive thinking and conditional to the situation we are in we can classify our decisions as emotional or logical decisions. Making a logical decision requires us to exclude our emotions and seek to use only rational methods in arriving at a resolution. Such a situation could involve solving a simple maths problem. Considering my real life situation where is was supposed reach a verdict by using my emotional and logical thinking, making a choice in my houses best interest was on the basis of my logical thinking which was fueled my emotional attachment towards my house. Essentially to a large extent reason and emotions do go in conjunction with each other. Its been widely proven that the reasoning and emotional centers of our brains are inclined to work together in many situations from choosing which movie to watch to solving mathematical equations, to making ethical choices. In an experiment conducted by Neuroscientist Antonio Damasio, a group of subjects who had sustained brain injuries in the part of the brain where emotions were generated were studied. Everything about them remained the same except for the fact that they lost the ability to feel emotions. In his observations he found that their ability to make decisions was severely impaired. They could logically illustrate what they were doing but in practice found it very difficult to make decisions about what to eat, where to live, etc. Subjects like mathematics through which we use deductive logic to gain certain knowledge and state a valid argument on the basis of a true axiom or premise might seem rather emotionless compared to subjects to like the arts which involve terms like inspiration and expression of oneself through his/her emotions but as different as they seem, they both go hand in hand. When you tell a person he/she is horrible at a particular subject, he/she looses the motivation to push himself/herself to excel in that subject, however if you told that same person that he/she has a lot of potential to transcend in a certain subject, he/she feels obligated to unlock this talent he/she has for this subject that other people claim he/she has. By simply manipulating that persons emotions, you can essentially affect the way that person pursues that particular subject. An ground breaking event in history which incorporates biology and religion would be the time when Charles Darwin came up with the theory of evolution. While various religions have to come to reconcile their beliefs in this theory, there are religions that raise various objections to the concept of evolution. The religion of Christianity for example talks about how the world was created by its god in seven days, and this ideology had stayed strong and had been passed down generations for thousands of years. Even till today young children are acquainted with this story until the eight grade when they learn of Darwin’s theory of evolution. This sudden revelation of the truth can instigate people to deeply question their faith and its teachings which can deeply affect them on an emotional platform. Christianity like all religions give its followers a sense of belonging. They take pride in being a Christian and strictly follow its principals and values which were imbibed into them by their parents and their church, and to a large extent their faith plays a big role in defining their integrity and character. That being the case when they learn that all those years being followers of Christianity could well be a lie, it can cause them to fear and question their values and virtues. Due to the fact that their religion gave them so much happiness and joy, they would come to blindly accept it without casting any aspersions about it. As a result those positive emotions led them to could their reasoning and prevented them from thinking clearly therefore predominantly affecting their way of learning and how they accepted different truths. From the above example people are now forced to fight emotions with reasoning, and instead of blindly accepting any theories or prophecies told to them, people take a larger initiative to believe in these unknown theories only after personally witnessing it or understanding that respective phenomenon from studying rational facts. And yet from this whole phenomenon of evolution which changed the face of the world, millions of people are still strong believers of Christianity. And while they have simultaneously come to terms with the numerous theories which defy their religion, they continue living life by balancing their beliefs with what science throws at them. The fact of the matter is that believing in a greater power gives people a sense of comfort during a time of difficulty, it gives them this sense of safety that they have something or someone they can turn to, to help keep themselves and their emotions sound and under control. And maybe at the cost of escaping the actual truth they may give into their emotions to keep themselves convinced and satisfied in the fantasies which they feel protect them from the harshness of reality. And for that reason yes I do feel that our emotions affect our pursuit of knowledge and not in a way that we can trust them for the fact that our emotions strongly dilute reality to help us humans cope with life’s obstacles. 2 Emotions play a big role in the one of the ways of knowing. In fact emotions can be so powerful that it can sometime change our other ways of knowing, such as the way we perceive the world. It can drive us away from logic and even change the way we use language. In the end I have analysed how our emotions can give rise to us escaping the truth, and notwithstanding the fact that at the same time our emotions are also key to helping us make logical decisions.