Motorcycle Accidents

MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENTS ENGLISH 215 28 AUGUST 2011 Motorcyclists are more prone to die in accidents than those in automobiles. Accidents are caused by the motorcycle itself, the lack of experience, not wearing proper gear,  riding at excessive speeds, and inexperienced automobile drivers. The main reason for most motorcycle accidents are caused by motorcyclist that operate their vehicles without wearing the proper protection. A safe and secure cyclist wears a helmet if riding one mile or two hundred miles.Without a helmet, a person is leaving themselves open for the potential for many different types of injuries when riding a motorcycle, in particular injuries to the brain. There are many dangers which can be waiting on the highway for motorcyclists and many of these are preventable by being properly ready to ride and always being safe. Some believe that motorcycles are temptation for fate; unlike cars that have overhead covering, seatbelts, windshields, and two extra tires. Motorcycl es provide no safety features for the rider. This seems to be a good enough reason for most people to avoid riding motorcycles.A select few individuals are willing to take this chance at fate and enjoy the thrill and excitement of riding on the open road. There are many injuries and fatalities associated with motorcycles that cause most people to be against operating motorcycles. Some people have even lost love ones because of the love of motorcycles. Once the collision has occurred, or the rider has lost control through some other mishap, several common types of injury occur when the bike falls: * Collision with less forgiving protective barriers, or badly placed roadside â€Å"furniture† (lampposts, signs, fences etc. This is often simply a result of poor road design, and can be engineered out to a large degree. Note that when one falls off a motorcycle in the middle of a curve, lamps and signs create a â€Å"wall† of sorts with little chance to avoid slamming agains t a pole. * Concussion and brain damage, as the head violently contacts other vehicles or objects. Riders wearing an approved helmet reduce the risk of death by 37 percent. ( Wald, Matthew, 12September 2007, The New York Times) The Hurt Report also commented on injuries after an accident stating that the likelihood of injury is extremely high in these motorcycle accidents – 98% of the multiple vehicle collisions and 96% of the single vehicle accidents resulted in some kind of injury to the motorcycle rider; 45% resulted in more than a minor injury. ( U. S. Department of Transportation. ) People who ride motorcycles most realize that due to the extreme risk of riding, certain protective gear must be worn to help minimize injuries.The most important piece of equipment is the helmet. Operating a motorcycle without a helmet is just ludicrous. Riders should want to be highly visible at night. When a motorcyclist is not visible to others at night they become more susceptible to bei ng injured by other vehicles. The wearing of bright or reflective clothing helps other people notice you at night. Abrasion resistant clothing is a must. This material help protect against debris and major cuts. Wearing jackets and pants that have extra padding assists in protecting the motorcyclist from extreme impacts.Gloves are very important as well. Depending on the weather a riders hands may become moist or damp and could potentially cause the hands to slip of the throttle. The proper foot wear is very important because a rider most protect his ankles and have the necessary grip on the foot pegs to ensure a safe posture. Speeding also plays a part in the fatalities and injuries of motorcyclist. Motorcyclists tend to be very competitive when it comes to motorcycles. They often choose to speed but lack the experience to handle the speed.Inexperience motorcyclist and automobile drivers play a big part in most accidents. Most automobile operators lack the necessary skills to opera te a motor vehicle. The average person goes to the DMV and takes the written test and passes it. Then go straight to the driving portion without going through any type of driver’s training. Attending drivers safety courses can help reduce injuries and fatalities among motorcyclist and automobile operators. Most states highly encourage people to attend these classes but few actually attend.Even with over 1,500 locations in USA, and over 120,000 annual students, MSF only trains about 3% of the owners of 4,000,000 new motorcycles sold for highway use. (Motorcycle Safety Foundation. ) There are many reasons for motorcycle accidents and fatalities and some of them are unavoidable, but it is up to the individual to decide whether they want to operate the vehicle, regardless of the dangers. REFERENCES www. ct. gov/dot/LIB/dot/Documents/dhighwaysafety Department of Transportation. www. nytimes. com/2007/09/12/us/12helment. html New York Times. www. msf-usa. org/SafeCycling/Safe_Cycli ng Motorcycle Safety Foundation

Ben Sliney

Benedict Sliney was the National Operations Manager for the Federal Aviation Administration on the 11th September in the year 2001. On that day, he was working at the Command Center located in Herndon Virginia. This was his first day as the manager and the gentle man was on a promotion. He had previously worked at the Air Traffic Control since the year 1964. Ben Sliney is the lawyer who at one time in the place of the Air Traffic System had sued the FAA. On the 11th September, Ben was the one who primarily gave the order that all the planes stateside be grounded.Ben made this decision to have the United States air space closed. Private and commercial planes were forced by his orders to land or they would have to remain grounded. Ben did this on his own, even without the consent of President George W. Bush . Very few people could have had the competence and courage to take that bold step and make such an important decision on their own without anxiety and needing affirmation from thei r seniors or colleagues. On this day, Ben Sliney interrupted the daily meeting by the senior staff at the command center of FAA in Herndon, Virginia.The manager was giving a report that there could have been a possible planned hijacking that could have been progressing at that moment. The command center had come to learned that Flight 11 had been hijacked approximately two minutes prior. During this time that Ben Sliney was making his report, a certain supervisor interrupted the same meeting claiming that there was a chance or even a probability that one flight attendant on the allegedly hijacked plane could have been stabbed. This meeting was then spontaneously broken up a few minutes before the very first crash of the WTC.This happened at exactly forty six minutes after eight o’clock in the morning. At this time no one who had attended the meeting made the effort to contact NORAD. At 9:42, the center came to learn from the local television reports that a certain plane had j ust struck the United States Pentagon. During the next few minutes, at around 9:45 am, the FAA was given the final order by Ben to have all the civil aircraft land at any closest airport within the shortest time possible. It was reported that the approximate number of planes that were flying in US was 4; 452. This was the decision that carried the day.Ben Sliney, on his own and being his first day as manager made the decision to have all the planes land. This order was quite unprecedented. The traffic control system however managed to handle the order competently and with a lot of skill. All the 4,500 general aviation and commercial aircrafts landed moments latter without any reported incidents. I identify with Ben Sliney because he is a very experienced person who knows the requirements of his job as a manager. A manager is supposed to take charge of his department and give orders or advice to the juniors.Ben Sliney applied the principles of management effectively, a factor that co ntributed to the successful landing of all the 4,500 planed that were on air on that day in the US. He is a competent manager who is very decisive and accurate. Being the person in charge of traffic control, Ben within no time was able to plan for the emergency. On receiving the news of the hijacked plane, he did not hesitate but went strait to organize on the next step with the senior staff that was having the daily morning meeting at the command center.There was no time to sit down and strategize on the next course of action since the next piece of information suspecting that a staff member on the hijacked plane could have been stabbed. Despite the nature of information, which was rather intense, Ben calmly and urgently acted just like a manager should. He effectively and efficiently within no time directed the rest of the traffic control staff to make the necessary arrangements and urgently prepare for the emergency landing of the planes on board. The planes were meant to land at the nearest port possible.Ben was doing all this for the safety of the passengers on board as well as the crew. I am professionally aspired by the then FAA’s manager for National Operations. This is because on his very firs day as manager in a very sensitive department, he single mindedly managed to bring down all the planes on air at the time of the hijacking. Being his first day as manager, he was very confident and he knew exactly what to and when to do it and even how to do it. He aspires me because he turned out to be a very effective manager.In addition, Ben did not make any consultations because the time and the circumstances did not allow it. He used all the experience he had gained at his previous position before getting the promotion to bring order and avoid chaos. He successfully did this and all the staff at the FAA will never forget the toughest decision that one of their own had to take. Ben has inspired me to be confident in the strong professional decisions t hat I have to take and especially being in a senior management position. The following lessons have been learned from the Ben Sliney decision.†¢ Quickly plan for emergencies without having to get the rest of the people anxious, †¢ Organize all the necessary arrangements to ensure that the laid plans fall in place respectively. †¢ Direct the senior staff to carry out the plans collectively as a team †¢ Coordinate the activities of the people to ensure that within the shortest time possible, they are harmoniously working to the attainment of the objective within the shortest time possible. I agree with the decision and immediate actions taken by Ben Sliney on that material day.There was not enough time to make elaborate consultations and arrive at a unanimous decision from all the senior personnel. Ben quickly did what he could have done at that moment to save the situation. In my opinion, Ben took the best decision by not risking the lives of thousands of passenge rs who were on board alongside the cabin crew. By not taking time to consult, the operations manager saved time to handle the rest of the issues. He put plans in place to have all the planes land. This work well and demonstrated his efficiency since all the planes landed without any incidences.Being in his position, I would have done taken the same measures to bring calm to the Federal Aviation Administration in the midst of such an emergency that could have spread a panic arrest to the United States in general and FAA in particular. Conclusion In a nut shell, the decision taken by Ben Sliney on the 9/11 to bring down all the private as well as commercial planes flying above the United States was remarkable. It took a lot of courage to do what the manager did to save the situation. ReferencesRetrieved from, Ben Sliney, was the National Operations Manager for the FAA on September 11 http://baylink. pitas. com/ Accessed on 14th November, 2007. Retrieved from, Sept. 11 is Slineyâ€℠¢s first day on the job as national operations manager, http://my. metafilter. com/ Accessed on Accessed on 14th November, 2007. Retrieved from, Mr. Benedict Sliney, http://www. sfgate. com/ Accessed on Accessed on 14th November, 2007. Retrieved from, Ben Sliney, www. findarticles. com/ Accessed on Accessed on 14th November, 2007.

Assignment of Applied Linguistics

Teaching is that profession where the success of the teachers depends on the ability of the students. As we know that every good teacher knows that all students do not learn in the same way every student learns at different speed and reacts differently. So, teacher should be focused on, that every student gets a chance to learn and for that, teacher should be creative in using different kinds of teaching method. They have to choose a suitable method to convey the knowledge because they will find different situation and different students in the class. Generally, students would not be able to believe that they could be successful in learning language. This lack of motivation has made students do not have confidence to speak in the target language because they do not want to make any mistake. Moreover, they find difficulties to recollect the previous lesson, such us memorizing the new vocabularies. This situation encourages teacher to be creative and to use an effective method on teaching. In addition, students have different type of learning style. They learn through their own learning styles which are visual, auditory style. Those who are visual learn trough seeing and they need to see the teacher’s body language and learn best from visual displays. Then, those who are auditory learn through listening and they learn best through verbal lectures, discussions, talking things through, and listening to what others have to say Teacher should choose appropriate method of teaching different for types of students, to motivate students, and to increase students memorizing ability. Suggestopedia and Silent Way is one of those methods that can be used by teachers. Silent Way Method: The Silent Way is the name of a method of language teaching devised by Caleb Gattegno. The very name Silent Way highlights the fact that it is based on the idea that the teacher should be silent as much as possible in the classroom but the learner should be encouraged to produce as much language as possible. To let the teacher concentrate on what the students say and how they are saying it, drawing their attention to the differences in pronunciation and the flow of words. The significance of this method is that the learner eventually discovers what ability he has, which he has not yet had an opportunity to discover. The three basic tenets of the approach are Learning make possible if the learner discover rather than remembers or repeats In it the teacher and the learner work cooperatively to reach the educational desired goals. The learner is not a bench bound listener but an active contributor to the learning process. Learning is helped by physical objects The Silent Way uses colorful charts and rods (cuisinere rods) which are of varying length. They are used to introduce vocabulary (colors, numbers, adjectives, verbs) and syntax (tense, comparatives, plurals, word order). For example: teacher has introduced the idea of pronouns as in â€Å"Give me a green rod†. The class will then use this structure until it is clearly absorbed, using all the other colors. One member of the class would now like to ask another to pass a rod to a third student but she does not know the word â€Å"her†, only that it cannot be â€Å"me†. At this point the teacher would interfere and supply the new item: â€Å"Give her the green rod† and the learner will continue until the next new item is needed (probably â€Å"him†). Problem-solving is central to learning. This can be summarized by Benjamin Franklin’s words: Tell me and I forget Teach me and I remember Involve me and I learn† A good silent way learner is a good problem solver. The teacher’s role exist in only in giving minimum repetitions and correction, remaining silent most of the times, leaving the learner struggling to solve problems about the language and get a grasp of its mechanism. Suggestopedia Method: The term Suggestopedia, derived from suggestion and pedagogy. This term is developed in the 1970’s by Bulgarian psychologist and educator, George Lazanov. Suggestopedia is a teaching method which is based on a modern nderstanding of how the human brain works and how we learn most effectively. Lazanov argued that learners have difficulties in acquiring English as the second language because they do no want to make any mistake. When the learners are in this situation, their heart and blood pressure raise. He believes that there is a mental block in the learners’ brain. This filter blocks the input, so the learners have difficulties to acquire language caused by their fear. Music was central to his method. Music helps the students to reach a certain state of relaxation, in which the interest is increased. Moreover, it involves emotional meaning in given the lesson which help students better in memorizing. There are two types of suggestions first one is direct and second is indirect suggestion. The students learn English not only from direct instruction but also from indirect instruction. DIRECT: Direct suggestions are directed to conscious processes i. e. orally by the teacher, and/or by text materials. INDIRECT: Indirect suggestion is largely unconsciously perceived. In the teaching learning process, students who make mistakes are tolerated, for example in pronouncing the word. The stress is on the content not the structure. Grammar and vocabularies are presented and given treatment from the teachers, but not dwelt on. Homework is limited in this method Techniques: Suggestopedia: Classroom set-up, that is, the teacher provides as peaceful and relaxed an environment as possible. The classroom is provided with dim lights, soft music; soften armchairs, and walls decorated in order to make the students’ mind more relaxed. Silent Way In the class, the teacher uses rods which consist of ten brightly colored wooden blocks of different length, a word chart, a phonic chart, drawings, Worksheets and books. Colored charts are used in the first phase a practice pronouncing sounds and then the rods are used to practice saying words and numerals in the second phase. In the third phase, the rods are used to practice speaking. The teacher says as few words as possible, but uses more gesture and charts. The constant visual exposure to these rods and charts is the vital part of the techniques. The principle of the methods is that teaching should be subordinate to learning and the teacher’s role is to help the students to acquire the language more than just learning it. Advantages and Disadvantages of suggestopedia: -The first advantage of using suggestopedia for teaching English is that suggestopedia method use music during the process of learning. 2-The second advantage of using suggestopedia methods in teaching English is that suggestopedia methods have different class setting which make the students relax during the learning process. 3- Suggestopedia methods also decorate the class with posters or something which can make students’ mind relax, such as by putting flowers or aquarium in the corner of the class. By using poster, the students will always learn even when they just look around the classroom. -Beside the advantage, using music during the learning process also has disadvantages for some people who cannot study in the noisy class, it is difficult for them to divide their mind into two sides, to the music and to the lesson. 5-Another disadvantage is that suggestopedia method will be difficult to be practiced in the development country such as Indonesia. As we know that in Indonesia there are at least 30 – 40 students who fill in the one class. The teacher will be difficult to control them one by one. In conclusion, there are some advantages and disadvantages of using suggestopedia methods. As a good teacher we have to know what methods that appropriate for our students. Therefore before we choose a teaching method we have to consider its advantages and disadvantages. Suggestopedia is a good method for teaching, because the memorization can be done 25 times faster than the conventional method. But, there are also disadvantages of using it. So, we should be wise when we have to choose the method that we will use for our students. Advantages and Disadvantages of silent way: 1-This method foster cooperative learning between individuals. -It embodies a new approach to education in general, a respect for the individual and an awareness of the individual’s extraordinary cognitive powers. 3-This method can be benefited by the teacher only in small groups of students. The teacher can gain ability in this method by trying. The teacher is expected to enhance the materials on his/her own. 4-For some teachers the strictness of the system (no repetitions by the teacher, no an swers by the teacher etc. ) may be meaningless. 5-Language is separated from its social context and taught through artificial situations usually by rods. -How such a method would in the average classroom situation or how successfully it might be used at more advanced levels is a question mark left in our minds. 7- It would seem necessary for a teacher to gain a good deal of training and skill in order to apply the Silent Way to the teaching of a total grammar in all its complexity, if such a broad application is, in fact, possible 8-The Silent Way is often criticized of being a harsh method. The learner works in isolation and communication is lacking badly in a Silent Way classroom. 9-With minimum help on the part of the teacher, the Silent Way method may put the learning itself at risk. 0-The material (the rods and the charts) used in this method will certainly fail to introduce all aspects of language. Other materials will have to be introduced. Principles and Characteristic of silent way: 1. Errors: Are indispensable and natural part of the learning process. Self-correction and peer-correction are emphasized. The teacher corrects the language only as a last resort. 2. Repetition: Consumes time and encourages the scattered mind to remain scattered. If the teacher avoids repetition strictly, this will force alertness and concentration on the part of the learners. By this way the efficiency in learning will be increased and the time will be saved for further learning. This principle is against ALM. 3. Students native language: Native language can be used to give instructions when necessary. Also native language can be used during the feedback sessions (at least for beginner levels). If the native language is not very essential then it is avoided. 4. Evaluation: Although the teacher does not have to give a formal test, s/he assesses student learning all the time. One criterion of whether or not students have learned is their ability to transfer what they have been studying to new contexts. The principles of suggestopedia: 1. The first principle is that people are able to learn at rates many times greater that what we commonly assume to be limits of human performance. 2. The second principle is that learning is global; it involves the entire person. 3. The third principle is that people learn either consciously or unconsciously or both, either rationally or irrationally or both. Lazanov method is thought to be more concerned with irrational and unconscious processes. The concept of unconsciousness; comprises numerous unconscious forms such as associating and coding.

Fualole's Song Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Fualole's Song - Essay Example I joined the military at the age of eighteen and also had my first baby at that young age. These two events I think of as my first steps to growing up. Before then, I worked in McDonald's. Everybody sees the yellow arch, the red and yellow surroundings, the fast food and maybe the smile but not the person who works there. I might just have been anyone saying "Enjoy your meal" or "Have a nice day." I was, and still am, bubbly, friendly and outgoing, but wanted and needed more. My family could not afford to send me to college, but I wanted to extend myself, to learn more, to find out what I could achieve and who I was. But at that time, my life was fun, I was a kid. I saw the army as an opportunity to do something better. Early experiences of army life were a whole other world, one in which perfection and discipline ruled. Beds with sheets like fresh fallen snow, boots black and shining as tar. Obedience to rules, aching limbs and heavy backpacks, the tools that built physical and mental strength. Best of all was the sense of belonging, the teamwork and the realization that what I did mattered to others, my contribution was valued by my officers, company, division, regiment and country. In a short space of time, I was achieving a wider But even these exciting discoveries could not compare to giving birth to my beautiful baby. If blood, sweat and tears were put together, then that goes a little way to explaining the experience. The tears were of joy, at such an accomplishment, at creating a life. Labor was nothing anyone could have prepared me for - the pain, volcanic at times, pushing and forcing me towards the hope of a prize. At eighteen years old, I had my first understanding of the meaning of unconditional love, the beginning of mature responsibility. Nothing since has ever quite matched that experience, which made me more aware of the cycle of life and also, how important it was for me to try to be the best for somebody I loved, who depended on me. A squally scrap of humanity captured my heart and opened my mind. It was no longer just about me, I had to sing a different tune now. In reflecting on myself, I looked at how I was before I took steps to better myself. Even as a young person, I worked hard and did my best in my job. I saw that I also liked to play hard, have fun with my friends, maybe argue with my parents, and in truth, I did not care too much, so long as I had the money to enjoy myself and not to worry about responsibilities. I did not look further than having fun and getting along with everyone. At the same time, I was becoming more aware that I could maybe do better. I knew I was good with people, could always empathize and communicate and that I had a strong will and values around hard work and striving to improve. These parts of me made me search for a way to grow and better myself in life, while searching for independence. They are what made me join the military, which as I said earlier, moved me a little further along the road to becoming a mature and independent woman, not a thoughtless girl, just drifting through life. Now I believe, I have reached that maturity and independence. I think for myself, I

Regulations (Human Resource) Employee Labor and Relations Class Research Paper

Regulations (Human Resource) Employee Labor and Relations Class - Research Paper Example education, to extend the Commission on Civil Rights, to prevent discrimination in federally assisted programs, to establish a Commission on Equal Employment Opportunity, and for other purposes (Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, n.d.). The EEOC is created under Title VII of Civil Rights Act which enforces a range of federal statutes prohibiting employment discrimination. Thus any employer, employment agency or organization shall comply with all the rules and regulations in the act. EEOC stated that any individual who believes that his or her employment rights have been violated may file a charge of discrimination with EEOC and an individual, organization, or agency may file a charge on behalf of another person in order to protect the aggrieved person's identity (Federal Laws Prohibiting Job Discrimination Questions and Answers, 2009). Under the EEOC-enforced laws, compensatory and punitive damages may be available if intentional discrimination is found (Federal Laws Prohibiti ng Job Discrimination Questions and Answers, 2009). Sexual Harassment Law The case of Jenson v. Eveleth Taconite Company became the landmark case which led to the passing of the Sexual Harassment Law. In this case, Jenson filed a case to her employer because of the harassment they received while working in the mining company. They were harassed and abused and there were incidents of unwelcome touching, including kissing, pinching, and grabbing and offensive language directed at individuals as well as frequent â€Å"generic† comments that women did not belong in the mines, kept jobs from men, and belonged home with their children (Jenson v. Eveleth Taconite Company, 1997). Sexual harassment is a form of sex discrimination that violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Facts About Sexual Harassment, 2002). This discrimination includes unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature constitutes sexual haras sment when submission to or rejection of this conduct explicitly or implicitly affects an individual's employment, unreasonably interferes with an individual's work performance or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment (Facts About Sexual Harassment, 2002). For any federal complaint, a person can file an action for sexual harassment with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). The best way to get rid of any sexual harassment in the workplace is prevention, thus the EEOC encourages the employers are encouraged to take steps necessary to prevent sexual harassment from occurring by clearly informing their employees that sexual harassment will not be tolerated (Facts About Sexual Harassment, 2002). The employers should take an immediate and appropriate action when an employee complains through an established and effective complaint and grievance process (Facts about Sexual Harassment, 2002). American with Disabilities Act This act can be traced back t o the return of veterans of the World War I and an increase in industrial accidents

Qatar Balance of Payments Analysis Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Qatar Balance of Payments Analysis - Assignment Example The fact that Qatar relied to very solely on investments in the oil sector lead to very low investment inflows which then kept the income balance of Qatar very low. The income from foreign direct investment was generally low in comparison with that of other countries. The deficit in the income balance of Qatar in 1997-2007 estimated to have averagely $ 2 billion which is responsible for the deficit in balance of payment during that period. According to CIA World Factbook (2013), statistics on the economy of Qatar shows that the country imports more service than what they export. Since 1997 to 2007 the general amount of exports from Qatar were estimated to be about $12 billion while their imports were estimated to be about $38 billion. However, their major exports were goods while the service industry contributed small portion of their exports. This therefore led to more imports on the service which then amounted to deficit balance on the services. This then shows that the general services balance of Qatar had been in a deficit before the country took a step to diversify their economy in 2008. The external borrowings of Qatar have also been increasing between the years 1997 and 2007 which was an estimate of about $ 1 billion increase. The increase in the borrowings of Qatar was from both the private and foreign sources. These needed to develop the natural gas in Qatar. This therefore led to the increase in the current transfers of the country of Qatar between 1997 and 2007. With increased current transfers and unfavourable balance of trade on services and income, the country of Qatar has persistently registered a deficit in its balance of payment in

Marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 3

Marketing - Essay Example With time the bank has been able to establish a good market position in Europe, US and Asia. The products and services offered by the bank range from fund management, stocks and annuities to mutual funds, asset management and health & life insurance schemes. The bank has built its portfolio based on tradition and acquisitions pursued over the years. UBS has successfully entrenched itself in the various business segments and its wide range of customer services are highly valued by the global clients (Thirkell-White, 2004). Strengths Umbrella brand strategy- It has been observed that ‘umbrella brands’ used by the firms, with multi-business operations, foster improved market penetration. An umbrella brand refers to the use of a common brand for various businesses. UBS has also adopted this concept of a single brand across all its businesses by abolishing the local brands in order to form a â€Å"global umbrella brand†. By leveraging the reputation and trust effects a ssociated with a strong brand image a firm can make use of various growth opportunities. To make use of the growth synergies that comes along with it, Swiss based bank UBS recently moved towards an ‘umbrella brand’. ... UBS officials viewed that the adoption of ‘one brand for all its businesses could convey the bank’s core values to the clients more effectively and consistently. The bank seems to be reaping the benefits of this umbrella brand. The brand value of UBS has increased from US$6.5 billion in 2004 to US$8.7 billion in 2006. Besides this the customers increasingly affirm to the key attributes of the bank like â€Å"UBS is a global power-house†; â€Å"UBS takes time to understand us† and â€Å"UBS has superior expertise† (Knoll, 2008, p.164). The strength of UBS is reflected from the rise in its brand value over the years. As per the survey conducted by Business Week in 2007 the bank’s brand value is nearly $9.8 billion and it ranks among the top forty most valuable brands in the world. The brand value of the bank enhanced significantly by nearly 13% in the year 2007. This is very important in making customer recall and leads to improved market penetr ation. UBS has an international clientele base. The global nature of its business operations creates additional value for its customers by integrating the expertise and resources of its various business segments. Competitive advantages of UBS- The strength of a business strategy is based on the competitive advantages that it enjoys as compared to the rival firms. According to Porter competitive advantage lies at the centre of the performance delivered by a firm in a competitive market scenario. This means that competitive advantages imply product differentiation, low costs etc (University of Northern Iowa, n.d.). The present business mix of UBS is a by-product of many years of development, acquisitions and internal growth. UBS has consistently worked towards

Are They Partners Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Are They Partners - Essay Example This paper will review such a partnership, and also why it comes off as a partnership. In an example of a partnership, Deana and Eric come together to work on a criminal case. Deana involves Eric by making him co-counsel in the criminal case. Deana and Eric are partners in the criminal case. This is since, in all Deana is working on, there is a direct effect on Eric. Secondly, it is a partnership since Eric is receiving profits from the case equal to Deana. Such a partnership is evident as both these individuals gain something from such an arrangement (Link, 2006). Deana is gaining in the form of Eric’s skills. This is in the form of counsel. The losses and/or damages that Deana may suffer may pass on to Eric. This is if they agree to share everything from the first time they decide to make the union official. In conclusion, the most crucial thing is that both these individuals are aware of the existence of their relationship. If anyone should decide to back down from it before the agreement is honoured, he or she is liable for punishment (Glasbergen, 2007). However, all this is dependent on the agreement reached upon during the formation/onset of such a

Impact of Inflation in World Economics Dissertation

Impact of Inflation in World Economics - Dissertation Example Placing in the most generic term, inflation within an economy diminishes the value of money as a result of which the common people find it difficult to survive. Inflation and growth are such two terms of the economy that are comprehensively incompatible and can never be anticipated to meet (Economy Watch, 2011). The present research paper has been designed to critically evaluate the impact of inflation upon the Asian economies. The reason for selecting the Asian economies for study is the excessively elevating rate of inflation as compared to the rest of the world during the past a few years. The following demonstration of the inflation rate has led to the undertaking of present research. The rates of inflation depicted in the figure are those of the recent period. Source: (Trading Economics, 2011). The figure is a clear representation of the rate of inflation in various countries of the world inclusive of the western countries, European countries, Australia and the major Asian count ries in terms of economic growth and also population. It is evident from the figure that rate of inflation in India and China is the highest in the entire world in recent times. This is the basis of the present research that will be concerned with finding the causes of inflation along with its effects and most importantly finding an effective way of managing inflation. 2.0 Causes of Inflation in Asian Economies According to a special report from the Asian Development Bank (2008a), during the period from the year 2007 to 2008, both structural as well as cyclical factors have contributed towards the escalating prices of food products in Asia. Before that period, major cereal stocks in the global market were reducing radically. The harsh rate of failing stock was a clear indication that the world economy had been becoming incapable of meeting up the rate of consumption (ESCAP, 2011). As a result of this, the ratio of stock-to-use had been falling massively, before it reached one of its lowest rates during the same period of 2007-2008 as shown in the figure below: Source: (Asian Development Bank, 2011). The percentage figures in the above figure had been shown with respect to three important cereals: corn, wheat and rice. Various structural factors that have been influencing the increasing rate of food prices during the period 2007-2008 are observed to be continuing their impacts upon the present episode of ever increasing food prices within the Asian economies. The factors relevant on the demand-side of the economies are inclusive of huge rate of growth in population figures, sturdy rate of growth in people’s income within the emerging economies and varying diet habits of the people from staple items of food towards meat and several other processed foods. Increased consumption of processed food items requires huge amount of feedstock and raw materials. The factors in the supply side that contributes towards increased rate of inflation are the enhanced util isation of food grains, primarily rapeseed oil and corns for the purpose of producing biofuel; alteration of the agricultural lands in order to be utilised for business purposes; enhanced shortage of resources for irrigation; lower production of crops; increasing costs of raw materials; and

Implications Of Plastic Elimination For The Human Essay

Implications Of Plastic Elimination For The Human - Essay Example As such various environmental issues like pollution due to the accumulation of such waste in natural habitats occur. In addition, wild and domestic animals sometimes ingest these plastics or entangle in them causing a menace. Furthermore, the leaching of chemicals present in these plastics into the soil pollutes the terrestrial, marine, and freshwater habitats, which subsequently affects plants and animals. In the economic front, many losses have been incurred because of ghost fishing, which results from discarded fishing nets in water bodies (SEPDP, 2011). Plastics can be hazardous to human health as well, especially when its chemical constituents accumulate in human bodies. This process is referred to as bioaccumulation and causes a myriad of health problems in human bodies. A good example is the component phthalate that has been shown to affect the male reproductive system after exposure (Hu et. al., 2009). This is due to the effect of phthalates on hormones. Studies have shown that phthalates either mimic or interfere with actions of natural hormones like estrogen and androgens. In males, this plasticizer is associated with testicular dysgenesis syndrome, TDS (Hu et. al., 2009). This term refers to a number of disorders and abnormalities in the male reproductive system. Exposure to phthalates causes a condition referred to as cryptorchidism, which is characterized by undescended testes. Another condition, hypospadias, indicating abnormal urethral meatus is also caused by phthalate exposure in young males. In addition to these effect s, phthalate exposure also affects adult males, causing reduced fertility and cancer cases. This could affect the future population in terms of birth defects that could lead to abnormal or malformed reproductive organs. This coupled with reduced fertility and increased cancer threatens the existence and survival of future generations.

Surveyors & landscape Essay Example for Free

Surveyors landscape Essay

The Power of Observation Essay Example for Free

The Power of Observation Essay The power of sight and observation are two actions that are generally associated with one another. However, what we fail to acknowledge is that these two actions, although associated with the same sense, have different responsibilities to fulfill. Although seeing is a habitual act we perform the second we open our eyes to when we fall asleep, we are not always observing our surroundings. Observation differs from sight due to the fact that when we observe, we are vividly noticing aspects of something or someone in order to gain information whereas sight is simply the faculty, or driving force, of seeing. We are able to obtain more powerful knowledge if we go about our days observing rather than just living a life full of brief sights. Michel Foucault, a French philosopher explores several elements in the ways in which our humanity and social sciences work. In his work, Discipline and Punishment: The Birth of the Prison he uses Jeremy Bentham’s design for a panoptic prison in which prisoners are watched constantly to explore how observation can change an individual’s behavior. Similarly Foucault believed, observation works as a disciplinary tool that forces individuals to act a certain way under constant surveillance, creating permanent effects. Foucault was correct in the sense that surveillance works in the same manner continuously within our society however, although an individual’s behavior is altered by the observation of another person, he is wrong to believe that their actions remain static. An individual’s behavior can be altered in several different circumstances due to the type of audience and the fear of being misjudged. Foucault explores the concept of a prison imagined by Jeremy Bentham called the Panopticon. The Panopticon was initially created to establish discipline and â€Å"to induce in the inmate and state of conscious and permanent visibility that assures the automatic functioning of power. So to arrange things that the surveillance is permanent in its effects even if it is discontinuous in its action.† (288) The idea that the tower is located centrally is important in order to see all of the prisoners. However, what truly exercises the power of observation is that they feel they are constantly under surveillance even if no one is utilizing it in the panopticon. The prisoner is constantly â€Å"seen, but he does not see; he is the object of information, never the subject in communication.† (287) Foucault believed that anyone could obtain this power simply by remaining invisible in this tower and their â€Å"invisibility [was] a guarantee of order† and that this power could be mobilized in institutions such as schools, hospitals, and prisons as long as observation was intact. (287) Furthermore, what gives the observer absolute potency is the fear the prisoners have that they will be punished for acting incorrectly in the eyes of the observer as well as being mislabeled. Foucault extended his theory by observing that not only would the power of observation work inside the walls of the prison but that â€Å"on the whole, therefore, one can speak of the formation of a disciplinary society in this movement that stretched from the enclosed disciplines, a sort of social quarantine.† (300) By taking the idea of the Panopticon and stretching the power outwards, we would be creating â€Å"useful individuals† who ultimately mask themselves to behaving a certain way in public. While Foucault believed that our masked identities consisted of only one side, he failed to acknowledge that within society there are different views of what one considers to be a â€Å"useful individual.† There are several different groups within the community that we can be a part of, ultimately giving us several different masks we can put on. In order to be seen positively in the eyes of each individual group we must become that â€Å"useful individual† they believe in. As seen in Foucault’s Panopticism, the labels given to us by society automatically brand us and we are required to fulfill a type of role or expectation based on the title given to us. The labels given to us are assigned because of how an individual perceives us whether they are based off of appearance or our actions. Unlike the Panopticon, there is not just one central tower that has an observer watching us but rather the people we pass on the street have the power to observe as well. There is no longer just one observer who has the central power but several people who can watch our every move and perceive us in certain ways. As Foucault states the â€Å"power of spectacle† still maintains the same effect and â€Å"our society is one not of spectacle, but of surveillance.† (301) However with all this surveillance, â€Å"his ‘true’ name, his ‘true’ place, his ‘true’ body† starts to be defined; thus the formation of labels. (284) The pressure to behave accordingly has increased because we are constantly under the surveillance of society and having our every move be recorded and observed. Furthermore, while those surrounding us have the power to observe, as individuals we begin to take in those around us and begin to judge them as well. Nevertheless, it is not the label that first defines us, it is the observer. They are the ones who have the initial power to influence our actions simply by feeling as though those around us are judging us. Once we are branded into our label, we feel obligated to act these different roles and put on several different masks in order to please those around us who are associated in our group. As individuals we constantly feel the need to be accepted into a group and are highly concerned with how we are being perceived, especially if we do not know the people observing us. The gaze that has the strongest influence on our actions is the gaze of a stranger. Although we may not personally know those who pass us on the street and surround us a majority of the time, these are the observers we fear most because we worry about the way they are perceiving us. We constantly care about how we will be perceived even if we do not know those forming opinions on us because we were designed to feel the need to be socially accepted. The feeling that a strangers â€Å"gaze is everywhere† compels us to do what we feel those around us consider to be socially acceptable. We are most restricted in public places because as Foucault states the power of observation â€Å"reaches the threshold of a discipline when the relation of the one to the other becomes favorable.† (304) For instance, when I am in public I certainly do not sing songs that play on my iPod because I fear what those around me will think about what type of person I am; perhaps I will receive a reputation for being known as the weird girl who sings to herself. Once we start to care more about what those around us see in ourselves we become a prisoner of their examination, behaving in ways that those around us do. We never become comfortable when surrounded by several strangers because we will never know what their opinions of us are. Authority figures such as professors, officers and adults, also have a great deal of control over our actions. Unlike the stranger we encounter and never get to know, these authority figures are people we interact with on several occasions and generally reappear in our daily lives. When first interacting with these people who possess authority over ourselves, we generally want to make a good impression and desire to be in their good graces because we feel they have the power over us. Figures such as professors, adults and even the police officers Foucault addresses are members who are associated within this group. These authority figures work in the same manner as the traditional panoptic situation where we are constantly aware of how we are being observed and put on a lasting mask of how to behave in front of them. However, what alters our comfort between a stranger and an authority figures’ gaze is that we have the opportunity to become comfortable with those who have authority. As we encounter those authority figures on a daily basis, we begin to form a comfort with the assumed role we are required to fulfill. For instance, when first encountering my professors I felt that I needed to be depicted as the â€Å"perfect student† because I did not know them. Although they are figures where I am under my best behavior, a level of comfort is created as the semester progresses and an appropriate relationship begins to form between my professors and I. It ties together two important elements that while we become more comfortable with those around us, we start to become more of who we are and are able to unveil the many masks we must put on to those we feel most comfortable around. While Foucault argued that family was the first panoptic system we felt most pressured under, the observation of our family and friends are the ones we actually are most comfortable and acquainted with. He may have asserted that we have â€Å"made the family the privileged locus of emergence for the disciplinary question of the normal and the abnormal.† (300) However, while we generally are concerned with what those who are close to us believe, we are able to break the barrier of being a stranger because we know these are the people who are most accepting of the actions we take. These are the people who we in fact feel we can be ourselves around because we spend so much time with them and there is a comfort level within that relationship. These observations being made are so frequently that we are eventually able to take off our masks and be who we truly are. We simply have internalized our behavior, which forces us to be ourselves because we do not fear what judgment will be passed. Although Foucault discusses how institutions are able to exercise the power of observation and the effect on our behaviors, today those observations are beyond the walls of a prison, hospital or school. The eyes of observation follow us everywhere we go, and the most restraining observers are the ones we do not know. By being surrounded by those we are comfortable with, we are able to take off our several masks we are forced to put on while in the community or in front of those we do not know. Unlike Foucault, it is not a matter of surveillance but a matter of who we feel the most comfort with. Works Cited Foucault, Michel. â€Å"Panopticism.† Ways of Reading, 9th Edition. Eds. David Bartholomae and Anthony Petroski. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2011 282-309.

Speech Acts Politeness And Turn Taking

Speech Acts Politeness And Turn Taking Introduction When we communicate, we give a number of verbal and non verbal cues to the audience that we are referring or targeting to. These verbal or non verbal cues have a lot of impact on the way we keep the listener engaged in the dialogue that we are trying to put up for him and keeping the interest of the listener to actually understand our message the way we want it to be delivered. Until and unless the receiver or the audience gets the message in the way we want it to be delivered, the communication process will mostly fail unless there is a coincidence that the receiver understands what the message meant. Otherwise the receiver or listener of the message will not be able to understand what the important point or points in the whole message were, which part did the sender emphasize more upon, how polite the sender of the message was in the whole communication process and how much room did he give to the receiver to come up with any arguments, additions or suggestions to the message of th e sender as a feed back. Thus, with this introductory not, this paper will actually come up with a discussion in which three important elements of communication that are speech acts, politeness and turn taking will be discussed in order to see how they have an influence on the receiver and what problems do those people face with these concepts being second language English speakers. The paper will first explain all the three elements and then conduct an interview in which a second language English student and a native English speaker will have dialogue and will be observed and analyzed on the basis of the above mention elements. After the observations, the communication process of the second language English speakers and their behavior will be compared to the native English speaker and then recommendations will be advised accordingly. Speech Acts Starting with the discussion about speech acts, we need to take an aerial view of the communication process and the words we use for communicating our message to the target audience. The first question is that how are words related to the world? What is the process and what is the logic behind the entire communication process in which a speaker tries to explain something to a hearer by using a set of words and then delivering these words to the hearer and the hearer actually understands what the speaker wanted to say. For example, if a speaker makes a statement that Alan went home. What is it in the sentence which will distinguish it from being a question or from being a piece of information? The statement is very simple to understand if it is said in a simple monotonous tone. But, if we relate speech acts with the punctuation marks, we see that when we put a question mark at the end of the same question, the question mark transforms the statement into a question and if an exclamatio n mark is used, it transforms the same statement into a piece of information that is given in great surprise. Therefore, when understanding speech acts, we see that speech acts are more or less like punctuations. They are not written but, the way the words are uttered, the tone that has been used, the pause that is given between sentences and the feelings that have been added through specific emphasis actually add meaning to these set words and can change the meaning of a simple statement as well as it is described in the earlier discussion. According to Austins theory, speech acts can take over three different meanings Propositional Meaning Illocutionary meaning Perlocutionary meaning The propositional meaning is the literal meaning of what is being said. For example if one says it is hot in here, then in literal meaning the speaker wants to say that the temperature is high or hot at a certain place. But, the illocutionary meaning relates to the social function of what is being said or the actual meaning of the statement. Taking into consideration the same example, we see that the same sentence or statement can be used as a request so that someone might help to open a window, it can be an indirect refusal so as to expect the receiver to close the window as someone might be feeling cold and it can also serve as a complaint in which a speaker may try to register that the hearer should know it better then to keep the window shut. However, as far as Perlocutionary meaning is concerned, it is related to the understanding of the receiver to understand what does it means when someone something like that. Using the same example, we can see that the desired outcome could be of opening of windows. According to the same theory, speech acts have been classified into 5 categories according to the functions that are assigned to each category. Co missives Expressive Directives Representatives Declaratives Promises Apologies Requests Claims Declarations Threats/ offers Complaint/thanks Suggestions/commands Reports/assertions decrees Speech Act Theory The origins of speech acts theory can be extended to philosophy of language but now it is considered as a sub-discipline for cross cultural programmatic. This theory basically explains how human beings achieve and accomplish desired intentions and motives through the use of language by using words in a way that they actually highlight the meaning of the sentence in a manner that the hearer understands what they actually mean besides the literal meaning. Austin relates the performance of saying words with an act of locutionary and the study of how specific words are uttered and what impact does utterance have on the message that is being delivered  [1]  . According to the theory of Austin, every statement might be inferred in all the three meanings that have been discussed in the earlier part of the paper, but, it is up to the acts that make them specific in their meaning and how the hearer infers them. The speaker can use any of the meaning combined with proper speech act in orde r to give the same sentence a different meaning. A speaker can change the same question to a complaint by uttering in a specific manner that is associated with anger or with surprise  [2]  . There has been a lot of discussion going on relating to whether the speech acts are specific to certain languages or are they specific to different cultures. The reason of this discussion is quite relevant with the essence of our discussion on which the analysis will be framed. the paper will conduct an interview in which students will be observed that whether they use certain speech acts because they belong to different cultures or do they use the same speech acts as speaking the same language regardless of the fact that one of them is a native English speaking and the other one is second language English speaker  [3]  . As it is described in the theory many linguistic mechanisms that have been implemented are in lieu of the cultural differences which cause mis interpretation of messages that are sent from speakers of different cultures and thus they cause break downs and loop holes most of the times when ethnic communication is taking place. This will help us understand more why the two students who were observed behaved in a certain manner during the interview and how differently did the interpret each other  [4]  . As it is in phonology and morphology, we also see that the basic cultural instincts and traits also shape the way a person emphasizes on words and gets his message across to the other person. The fact is that in different culture, the level of emphasis that is put in different situations is different and the way a message is transformed from a question to a complaint is also different. Therefore, on the part of the speaker and the listener, misconception or misinterpretation can result in noise ultimately leading to the distortion of the message that has to be actually delivered. Politeness Politeness can be simply defined as implementing good manners and reasonably good etiquettes via verbal communication. However, the concept of politeness is a subjective term. The level of politeness in one culture might differ from the level of politeness in another culture. Although politeness, being a positive phenomenon means to impart good manners and make others feel relaxed and comfortable with whatever the speaker is saying, however, in different cultures and specific to situations, politeness can also be used as a tool to make the other person feel ashamed of some acts that may not be appreciated by others around him or her  [5]  . According to British Social anthropologists, politeness can also be categorized into two segments. Negative politeness Positive Politeness In negative politeness we basically try to make a request in a way that it minimizes all chances in which the other person might be hurt due to a certain act. For example, rather than going to colleague and ordering to return the pen, we can go and add a sentence which says if you dont mind or if it is not too much trouble can I take the pen back  [6]  . However, the positive politeness is when a speaker tries to come into a relationship with the hearer by highlighting and safeguarding his interests, ego and personality traits and manipulating sentences in such a way that the hearer feels good about it and tries to conform to what the speaker is saying. This is just like talking to a child where a parent or guardian does not uses negative politeness with the child but by showing the child and the importance that he deserves, the parent or guardian tries to make the child understand certain manners and etiquettes that he should show towards elders. When the child gets the polite behavior, he actually starts trusting the parent or guardian more and understands that whatever they have to say is for the childs own benefit and interest in the future so he automatically conforms to it  [7]  . There are several techniques to show politeness: When one has to express a situation of ambiguity or uncertainty, one can use politeness by making the point clear indirectly that he does not know about what is going to happen or by hedging the situation with ifs and buts to make the situation look less negative. Taking the example of a child once again, we see that when parents do not know about something, they do not clearly say no to the child to scare the child away, but, they try to explain the matter to the child in an indirect way and make a hypothetical situation in which the child understands that there is a lot that no one knows. This way the child is not discouraging for asking questions in the future and at the same time the parents show their politeness to the child as well. People also tend to lie politely in order to make it less hurting for the listener. For example, a stock broker may not leak his information to another competitor but he can actually use polite behavior to indirectly change the topic. Using questions instead of revealing the truth. For example, if a group member knows that the other group member has not started work, rather than simply saying you have not started work, the group member can also ask did you check the information that I mailed you for your part. Turn-Taking A study of ten major languages reveals that the concept of turn taking is basically guided by two simple rules. Avoid speaking when someone else is speaking Avoid silence and long pauses between discussion and communication process As it is meant by turn taking, every speaker must pause after he or she has made her message clear in one go and then give a chance to the other person to add value to the discussion. The reason why we call it adding value is the fact that when the hearer starts speaking, it is actually related to the statements that the speaker has made and it is more like a feedback rather than a literally giving a turn. Every speaker should expect a feed back and also give time for the feedback or response to the other person in order to see whether the hearer has got the message in the right context or not or what more information needs to be provided . A communication process cannot be complete if only one of the persons is constantly speaking unless it is a Debating competition where a speaker has to address a large audience, Moreover, it is also not advised to actually overlap anothers turn because of the fact that the concept of noise in the communication process comes into play at this point   [8]  . Furthermore, the research made it clear that every language follows the same rules of turn taking and a variation of just milliseconds was seen in some languages which were also influenced by the types of syllables that the other speaker had to utter. Otherwise, whether it is the second language English speaker or the native English speaker, both of the participants clearly know how to wait for their turn and then take turn automatically from where the other person leaves it. Interview Coming to the interview in which all the three elements of the communication process that have been discussed above will be integrated upon the observation, we see that all of them have some effect or the other in making communication slightly difficult or biased when a native English speaking boy and a second language English speaking boy communicate. The basic reason that was seen in politeness and the speech acts was actually the cultural difference that made it difficult for both the participants to get to the desired point of view off the other. however, as far as taking turn is concerned, it has more to do with the thinking process that both of the participants had to go through in their minds to actually give it a though to understand what the other person said especially in the case of the second language English speaker and then elaborate words to reply. This practice used to take a bit longer in which the native English speaking boy used to carry on the discussion or nod th e other boy for his thoughts and ideas about the situation. Starting with speech acts, following is a conversation that will serve as a good example how both the participants graded each other as rude. (Scarcely, 1990) Now in the above discussion, speaker A is the Second Language English Speaker and Speaker B is the native English language speaker. Speaker B, though incorrect in his conclusion, claimed that speaker B showed a rude behavior because in B culture, interruptions are looked upon as impolite. B thinks that any sort of an interruption in a communication process is rude, as an interrupted, thus, A is rude. However, if we say A is from Iran, and that in his society, interrupting can also be seen as a sign of friendliness, casualness and comfort between two speakers, then according to a he is not wrong. So this is one of the biggest problems that Second language English speakers face with Native English speakers. When speaking English they do not realize that they have to blend into the culture as well and try not to blend in their own culture in the second language that they are trying to learn. Moreover, it was obvious from the tones and speech acts of the second language English speaker that he had a company of people who also spoke English as a second language. The reason was the same that their style of communication could not blend it to the natives and thus they divided into their own groups. Resulting in communication gap and distances which did not enable the second language speakers to develop their language the way natives speak it. They seldom got a chance to infer and subconsciously grasp the rules of how the natives spoke their language. As far as turn taking is concerned, we can see the fact that the non native speaker often took some more time rather than interrupting all the time. the fact is that he used to take some time to actually think what was he had just heard, what is his response, translate into English and then select the suitable words to get the message across. In the mean time the native English speaking boy often nudged him to remind that he it was his turn to carry on the discussion or to ask if there is everything alright. This is not actually related to any culture or linguistic mechanism, but, it is actually related to the thought process through which this specific participant had to go through. It is not the case with all non native English speakers as there might be many who have a faster though process still, the problem is not that rare as well. Recommendations and Conclusions Here are a few recommendations that the non-native speakers may use in-order to come out of the linguistic deficiencies that often cost them decreasing self confidence and fear of competition. The first thing that teachers need to do with non-native speakers is to highlight the advantages of native English language. The advantages may not be only restricted to the way they will converse, but social advantages as well so as to enable them to mingle in the natives more easily and conversing on their level  [9]  . Moreover, the teachers should tell these students what difficulties they might be facing in using the second language and what are the general difficulties that everyone faces. These students might not be able to identify their difficulties on their own as better as the teacher can. Thus, the responsibility lies on the teacher to make them identify their difficulties and make them work on them only rather than perfecting the language by conversing more amongst them. Also, feedback is another way to keep the student in line with the learning process. Good or bad, it will serve as an asset for the student in the long run because of the fact that he would trust the teachers advice and feedback more then what his peers have to say about his communication skills. The more the teacher gives feedback, the better the student will show response and try to overcome the difficulties by developing interest and maintain the enthusiasm with which the student joined the English language class.

The Power and Genius of Alexander Pushkin’s The Queen of Spades Essay

The Power and Genius of Alexander Pushkin’s The Queen of Spades In Alexander Pushkin’s â€Å"The Queen of Spades,† many aspects of the short story have made for considerable debate among scholars.   Pushkin fills an integral role in Russian literary history, and there are abundant research sources to use in analyzing and interpreting his texts.   Pushkin is often referred to as the Father of Modern Russian Literature, but until just recently much of the criticism on Pushkin focused on Pushkin himself as the author, the innovative simplicity in his prose, or the political relationship between Pushkin and the Russian aristocracy.   Pushkin’s personal life was often the subject of public debate among his readers and the Russian aristocracy, forcing him into a some what reclusive state.  Ã‚   His prose was innovative, but, in the early research, very few bothered to interpret why the style was so effective.   What about the words made Pushkin different?   It did not seem to matter as long as the aristocracy was satisf ied. Finally, much of the early information available on Pushkin had nothing to do with his writing.   During Pushkin’s time, the domination of the Russian nobility over publications was so great, the ultimate beauty and depth to Pushkin’s writing was over looked in order to expose censorship and political manipulation.  Ã‚   These early attempts at criticism and investigation fall short of exposing the true power and genius in Pushkin’s writing. Another problem with much of the available literature on Pushkin and his texts is   inconsistency in interpretations.  Ã‚   Scholars do not research sufficiently and are often vague in communicating their ideas to the reader.   The purpose of the given work is often confusing enough to the aud... ...nleaf. Studies in Romanticism v 36 n 2 (Summer 1997): 292-299. Pushkin, Alexander.   â€Å"The Queen of Spades.† Alexander Pushkin: Complete Prose Fiction. Trans. Paul Debreczeny. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1983. 211- 233. Rosenshield, Gary. â€Å"Choosing the Right Card: Madness, Gambling, and the Imagination in Pushkin’s ‘The Queen of Spades.’† PMLA v 109 n 5 (October 1994): 995-1008. Rosenshield, Gary.   â€Å"Freud, Lacan, and Romantic Psychoanalysis: Three Psychoanalytic Approaches to Madness in Pushkin’s ‘The Queen of Spades.’† Slavic and East    European Journal v 40 n 1 (Spring 1996): 1-26. Shrayer, Maxim. Rev. of Pushkin’s â€Å"The Queen of Spades,† by Neil Cornwell. The Modern Language Review   v 90 n 4 (October 1995): 1051-1053. Terras, Victor. Rev. of Pushkin’s â€Å"The Queen of Spades,† by Neil Cornwell. The Russian    Review v 54 n 3 (July 1995): 453-454.

From Unilineal Cultural Evolution to Functionalism Essay examples -- e

From Unilineal Cultural Evolution to Functionalism Several anthropological theories emerged during the early twentieth century. Arguably, the most important of these was Functionalism. Bronislaw Malinowski was a prominent anthropologist in Britain during that time and had great influence on the development of this theory. Malinowski suggested that individuals have certain physiological needs and that cultures develop to meet those needs. Malinowski saw those needs as being nutrition, reproduction, shelter, and protection from enemies. He also proposed that there were other basic, culturally derived needs and he saw these as being economics, social control, education, and political organization Malinowski proposed that the culture of any people could be explained by the functions it performed. The functions of a culture were performed to meet the basic physiological and culturally derived needs of its individual constituents. A. R. Radcliff-Brown was a contemporary of Malinowski’s in Britain who also belonged to the Functionalist school of thought. Radcliff-Brown differed from Malinowski quite markedly though, in his approach to Functionalism. Malinowski’s emphasis was on the individuals within a culture and how their needs shaped that culture. Radcliff-Brown thought individuals unimportant, in anthropological study. He thought that the various aspects of a culture existed to keep that culture in a stable and constant state. Radcliff-Brown focused attention on social structure. He suggested that a society is a system of relationships maintaining itself through cybernetic feedback, while institutions are orderly sets of relationships whose function is to maintain the society as a system. Goldschmidt (1996): 510 At the same time as the theory of Functionalism was developing in Britain; the theory of Culture and Personality was being developed in America. The study of culture and personality seeks to understand the growth and development of personal or social identity as it relates to the surrounding social environment. Barnouw (1963): 5. In other words, the personality or psychology of individuals can be studied and conclusions can be drawn about the Culture of those individuals. This school of thought owes much to Freud for its emphasis on psychology (personality) and to an aversion to the racist theories that were popular within A... ...ture’, and as he reveals elsewhere, his conception of a social structure concentrates on ‘the political institutions, the economic institutions, the kinship organization, and the ritual life. Carrithers (1992): 12-33. However, Carrithers thought that Radcliff-Brown â€Å"displayed an orientation to diversity which in important respects is fundamentally similar to Benedict’s†. Carrithers (1992): 12-33. They both ‘took the natural sciences as a model of knowledge’ and thought that such knowledge could be applied to a culture occurring any place or any time in history. Carrithers goes on to note that Benedict, representing the school of Culture and Personality and Radcliff-Brown representing the Functionalists had their work criticized, and built upon by later generations of anthropologists. Eric Wolf’s criticisms of the functionalist approach can be seen as building upon the body of knowledge accumulated up to that time. References Anthropology 103 Text. 2000. Unpublished: University of Otago, Dunedin. Abbink, Jan & Hans Vermeulen eds. 1982 History and Culture: Essays on the Work of Eric R. Wolf. Amsterdam: Het Spinhuis. Barnouw, Victor (1963) Culture and Personality.

Essay example --

Folkers 1 Amanda Folkers October 25, 2013 Mr. Spencer Economics 1 Period: 3 Price Floor, Price ceilings, and inflation Folkers 2 The Price floors, Price ceilings, and the inflation of the government funds are increasing. The definition of price floors, â€Å"are prices even just below the point to which it is illegal to buy or sell goods. They can’t go lower than 7.25/ hr or they are breaking a federal law, this is to protect the producer.† A price floor can be set below/ above the market equilibrium price. If the free market price is set higher than the equilibrium, the price floor has a small to no direct change. It ensures prices stay high so that product can continue to be made. If the free market price is lower than the price floor, then a surplus; Consumers find they must now pay a higher price for the same product, then they reduce their purchases or switch to a substitute good. Meanwhile, suppliers find they are guaranteed a new, and higher prices, and so they produce more. There are a number of strategies that the government uses for setting a price floor and dealing with its consequen ces. They can set an easily understood price floor, for the citizens. This price support sets a minimum price, however, here the government buys up any extra supply, or surplus. This is even more inefficient and costly for the government and society. Production quotas usually raise the price by limiting production by giving businesses the opportunity to reduce their production. In America, this technique is used mostly with agriculture. The government pays farmers to keep a portion of their fields production, this leads to a raise in prices. Like price supports, the policy would be more efficient and le... ...instance, when gold was used as currency, the government could collect gold coins, melt them down, mix them with other metals such as silver, copper or lead, and reissue them at the same nominal value. By diluting the gold with other metals, the government could issue more coins without also needing to increase the amount of gold used to make them. When the cost of each coin is lowered in this way, the government profits from an increase in seignior age. This practice would increase the money supply but at the same time the relative value of each coin would be lowered. As the relative value of the coins becomes lower, consumers would need to give more coins and money, in exchange for the same goods and services as before. These goods and services would experience a price increase as the value of each coin is reduced. Therefor causing too much money into the economy.

Ragtime: Black People and E.l. Doctorow Essay

This novel written by the well-known novelist named E. L. Doctorow is about the race relations in turn-of-the-century America and reflects many of the changes the nation faced at that time. E. L. Doctorow addresses several major social changes in turn-of-the-century America in his novel Ragtime. Ragtime is centered around several very different people, from rich to poor. He conveys the effects of these changes through the reactions of the characters. Some characters welcome and accept change, while other reject and struggle with it. This novel is narrated in the third person and the tone of this extract is ironic, rhetorical. The plot of this extract revolves around Coalhouse Walker, the black musician from Harlem. He has incredible import to the main themes of the novel. His characterization provides insight into race relations in (Ð ½Ã °Ã'‡Ð °Ã »Ã ¾ Ð ²Ã'€Ð µÃ ¼Ã µÃ ½Ã ¸) turn-of-the-century America. Many characters react strongly to his mannerisms, as they believe his social position does not warrant such behavior. Because Coalhouse conducts himself with a sense of pride atypical of African Americans at this point in history, his expectations of how he should be treated repeatedly come into direct conflict with others’ expectations of how African Americans should be treated. Coalhouse Walker, then, represents all African Americans who challenge the expectations many whites have of them. In the exposition of this extract the author describes the scene when Coalhouse Walker arrived at Broadview Avenue – a district where rich and â€Å"white† people lived. Everything in that scene of arrival – beginning at his car â€Å"†¦a new model T-Ford†, his â€Å"gloved hand†, dressed â€Å"in the affection of wealth† and ending at the manner of his behavior (â€Å"†¦resolute†¦self-important in the way he asked†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ) – shows us how earth-shatteringly and improperly the â€Å"black man† conducted himself. Because in turn-of-the-century America black people had no rights and even more so had no right to â€Å"†¦presume to come in the door† in spite of standing â€Å"†¦at the back door†¦Ã¢â‚¬  – such behave of a Negro got Mother’s dander up. He came there to see a girl named Sarah. When she refused to meet Coalhose he left the house but not for a long time. In the complication of this extract we found out that Coalhouse beginning with that Sunday appeared every weak â€Å"†¦always knocking at the back door†¦Ã¢â‚¬ . The Father and the Mother – the representatives of the Old America – were disposed against him firstly. But when he left a bouquet of expensive flowers which had to have cost him â€Å"a pretty penny† – the Mother decided to give him chance. This extract is full of irony tone which describes the negative attitude towards Black’s at that time – Father’s consideration â€Å"a nuisance†, prevailing word combination â€Å"colored man† or â€Å"Negro†, Father’s irritation and abrupt questions – we can feel the negative atmosphere of this Avenue, of this Old World. In the climax of this story we see not a â€Å"Negro† – â€Å"White’s† slaves – but a cultured, self-conscious good musician playing the piano which â€Å"†¦had never made such sounds†¦Ã¢â‚¬  in spite of the fact â€Å"†¦this piano is badly in need of a tuning†. These words made Father’s face reddened – WHAT? A NEGRO DARED say such words? It was inconceivable for those period that such lowest society dared say such things. But manners of Coalhouse were full of elegancy – his way of pattering his lips with the napkin, placing the napkin beside his cup. The Ragtime – the music of nightlife New-York. This music in Coalhouse’s performance made all the Family gather in the room. In this extract we can see the personification of the end of emancipation from slavery – â€Å"†¦everyone applauded†¦Ã¢â‚¬  – the new time had come – the time of freedom and independence. How people can change (â€Å"†¦ Father noted that he suffered no embarrassment by being in the parlor†¦ on the contrary, he acted as if it was the most natural thing in the world†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ) and how this is all intertwined with the major events and people of this time in America is the main theme supplied by E. L. Doctorow.

A Game of Thrones Chapter Sixty-two

Tyrion On a hill overlooking the kingsroad, a long trestle table of rough-hewn pine had been erected beneath an elm tree and covered with a golden cloth. There, beside his pavilion, Lord Tywin took his evening meal with his chief knights and lords bannermen, his great crimson-and-gold standard waving overhead from a lofty pike. Tyrion arrived late, saddlesore, and sour, all too vividly aware of how amusing he must look as he waddled up the slope to his father. The day's march had been long and tiring. He thought he might get quite drunk tonight. It was twilight, and the air was alive with drifting fireflies. The cooks were serving the meat course: five suckling pigs, skin seared and crackling, a different fruit in every mouth. The smell made his mouth water. â€Å"My pardons,† he began, taking his place on the bench beside his uncle. â€Å"Perhaps I'd best charge you with burying our dead, Tyrion,† Lord Tywin said. â€Å"If you are as late to battle as you are to table, the fighting will all be done by the time you arrive.† â€Å"Oh, surely you can save me a peasant or two, Father,† Tyrion replied. â€Å"Not too many, I wouldn't want to be greedy.† He filled his wine cup and watched a serving man carve into the pig. The crisp skin crackled under his knife, and hot juice ran from the meat. It was the loveliest sight Tyrion had seen in ages. â€Å"Ser Addam's outriders say the Stark host has moved south from the Twins,† his father reported as his trencher was filled with slices of pork. â€Å"Lord Frey's levies have joined them. They are likely no more than a day's march north of us.† â€Å"Please, Father,† Tyrion said. â€Å"I'm about to eat.† â€Å"Does the thought of facing the Stark boy unman you, Tyrion? Your brother Jaime would be eager to come to grips with him.† â€Å"I'd sooner come to grips with that pig. Robb Stark is not half so tender, and he never smelled as good.† Lord Lefford, the sour bird who had charge of their stores and supplies, leaned forward. â€Å"I hope your savages do not share your reluctance, else we've wasted our good steel on them.† â€Å"My savages will put your steel to excellent use, my lord,† Tyrion replied. When he had told Lefford he needed arms and armor to equip the three hundred men Ulf had fetched down out of the foothills, you would have thought he'd asked the man to turn his virgin daughters over to their pleasure. Lord Lefford frowned. â€Å"I saw that great hairy one today, the one who insisted that he must have two battle-axes, the heavy black steel ones with twin crescent blades.† â€Å"Shagga likes to kill with either hand,† Tyrion said as a trencher of steaming pork was laid in front of him. â€Å"He still had that wood-axe of his strapped to his back.† â€Å"Shagga is of the opinion that three axes are even better than two.† Tyrion reached a thumb and forefinger into the salt dish, and sprinkled a healthy pinch over his meat. Ser Kevan leaned forward. â€Å"We had a thought to put you and your wildlings in the vanguard when we come to battle.† Ser Kevan seldom â€Å"had a thought† that Lord Tywin had not had first. Tyrion had skewered a chunk of meat on the point of his dagger and brought it to his mouth. Now he lowered it. â€Å"The vanguard?† he repeated dubiously. Either his lord father had a new respect for Tyrion's abilities, or he'd decided to rid himself of his embarrassing get for good. Tyrion had the gloomy feeling he knew which. â€Å"They seem ferocious enough,† Ser Kevan said. â€Å"Ferocious?† Tyrion realized he was echoing his uncle like a trained bird. His father watched, judging him, weighing every word. â€Å"Let me tell you how ferocious they are. Last night, a Moon Brother stabbed a Stone Crow over a sausage. So today as we made camp three Stone Crows seized the man and opened his throat for him. Perhaps they were hoping to get the sausage back, I couldn't say. Bronn managed to keep Shagga from chopping off the dead man's cock, which was fortunate, but even so Ulf is demanding blood money, which Conn and Shagga refuse to pay.† â€Å"When soldiers lack discipline, the fault lies with their lord commander,† his father said. His brother Jaime had always been able to make men follow him eagerly, and die for him if need be. Tyrion lacked that gift. He bought loyalty with gold, and compelled obedience with his name. â€Å"A bigger man would be able to put the fear in them, is that what you're saying, my lord?† Lord Tywin Lannister turned to his brother. â€Å"If my son's men will not obey his commands, perhaps the vanguard is not the place for him. No doubt he would be more comfortable in the rear, guarding our baggage train.† â€Å"Do me no kindnesses, Father,† he said angrily. â€Å"If you have no other command to offer me, I'll lead your van.† Lord Tywin studied his dwarf son. â€Å"I said nothing about command. You will serve under Ser Gregor.† Tyrion took one bite of pork, chewed a moment, and spit it out angrily. â€Å"I find I am not hungry after all,† he said, climbing awkwardly off the bench. â€Å"Pray excuse me, my lords.† Lord Tywin inclined his head, dismissing him. Tyrion turned and walked away. He was conscious of their eyes on his back as he waddled down the hill. A great gust of laughter went up from behind him, but he did not look back. He hoped they all choked on their suckling pigs. Dusk had settled, turning all the banners black. The Lannister camp sprawled for miles between the river and the kingsroad. In amongst the men and the horses and the trees, it was easy to get lost, and Tyrion did. He passed a dozen great pavilions and a hundred cookfires. Fireflies drifted amongst the tents like wandering stars. He caught the scent of garlic sausage, spiced and savory, so tempting it made his empty stomach growl. Away in the distance, he heard voices raised in some bawdy song. A giggling woman raced past him, naked beneath a dark cloak, her drunken pursuer stumbling over tree roots. Farther on, two spearmen faced each other across a little trickle of a stream, practicing their thrust-and-parry in the fading light, their chests bare and slick with sweat. No one looked at him. No one spoke to him. No one paid him any mind. He was surrounded by men sworn to House Lannister, a vast host twenty thousand strong, and yet he was alone. When he heard the deep rumble of Shagga's laughter booming through the dark, he followed it to the Stone Crows in their small corner of the night. Conn son of Coratt waved a tankard of ale. â€Å"Tyrion Halfman! Come, sit by our fire, share meat with the Stone Crows. We have an ox.† â€Å"I can see that, Conn son of Coratt.† The huge red carcass was suspended over a roaring fire, skewered on a spit the size of a small tree. No doubt it was a small tree. Blood and grease dripped down into the flames as two Stone Crows turned the meat. â€Å"I thank you. Send for me when the ox is cooked.† From the look of it, that might even be before the battle. He walked on. Each clan had its own cookfire; Black Ears did not eat with Stone Crows, Stone Crows did not eat with Moon Brothers, and no one ate with Burned Men. The modest tent he had coaxed out of Lord Lefford's stores had been erected in the center of the four fires. Tyrion found Bronn sharing a skin of wine with the new servants. Lord Tywin had sent him a groom and a body servant to see to his needs, and even insisted he take a squire. They were seated around the embers of a small cookfire. A girl was with them; slim, dark-haired, no more than eighteen by the look of her. Tyrion studied her face for a moment, before he spied fishbones in the ashes. â€Å"What did you eat?† â€Å"Trout, m'lord,† said his groom. â€Å"Bronn caught them.† Trout, he thought. Suckling pig. Damn my father. He stared mournfully at the bones, his belly rumbling. His squire, a boy with the unfortunate name of Podrick Payne, swallowed whatever he had been about to say. The lad was a distant cousin to Ser Ilyn Payne, the king's headsman . . . and almost as quiet, although not for want of a tongue. Tyrion had made him stick it out once, just to be certain. â€Å"Definitely a tongue,† he had said. â€Å"Someday you must learn to use it.† At the moment, he did not have the patience to try and coax a thought out of the lad, whom he suspected had been inflicted on him as a cruel jape. Tyrion turned his attention back to the girl. â€Å"Is this her?† he asked Bronn. She rose gracefully and looked down at him from the lofty height of five feet or more. â€Å"It is, m'lord, and she can speak for herself, if it please you.† He cocked his head to one side. â€Å"I am Tyrion, of House Lannister. Men call me the Imp.† â€Å"My mother named me Shae. Men call me . . . often.† Bronn laughed, and Tyrion had to smile. â€Å"Into the tent, Shae, if you would be so kind.† He lifted the flap and held it for her. Inside, he knelt to light a candle. The life of a soldier was not without certain compensations. Wherever you have a camp, you are certain to have camp followers. At the end of the day's march, Tyrion had sent Bronn back to find him a likely whore. â€Å"I would prefer one who is reasonably young, with as pretty a face as you can find,† he had said. â€Å"If she has washed sometime this year, I shall be glad. If she hasn't, wash her. Be certain that you tell her who I am, and warn her of what I am.† Jyck had not always troubled to do that. There was a look the girls got in their eyes sometimes when they first beheld the lordling they'd been hired to pleasure . . . a took that Tyrion Lannister did not ever care to see again. He lifted the candle and looked her over. Bronn had done well enough; she was doe-eyed and slim, with small firm breasts and a smile that was by turns shy, insolent, and wicked. He liked that. â€Å"Shall I take my gown off, m'lord?† she asked. â€Å"In good time. Are you a maiden, Shae?† â€Å"If it please you, m'lord,† she said demurely. â€Å"What would please me would be the truth of you, girl.† â€Å"Aye, but that will cost you double.† Tyrion decided they would get along splendidly. â€Å"I am a Lannister. Gold I have in plenty, and you'll find me generous . . . but I'll want more from you than what you've got between your legs, though I'll want that too. You'll share my tent, pour my wine, laugh at my jests, rub the ache from my legs after each day's ride . . . and whether I keep you a day or a year, for so long as we are together you will take no other men into your bed.† â€Å"Fair enough.† She reached down to the hem of her thin roughspun gown and pulled it up over her head in one smooth motion, tossing it aside. There was nothing underneath but Shae. â€Å"If he don't put down that candle, m'lord will burn his fingers.† Tyrion put down the candle, took her hand in his, and pulled her gently to him. She bent to kiss him. Her mouth tasted of honey and cloves, and her fingers were deft and practiced as they found the fastenings of his clothes. When he entered her, she welcomed him with whispered endearments and small, shuddering gasps of pleasure. Tyrion suspected her delight was feigned, but she did it so well that it did not matter. That much truth he did not crave. He had needed her, Tyrion realized afterward, as she lay quietly in his arms. Her or someone like her. It had been nigh on a year since he'd lain with a woman, since before he had set out for Winterfell in company with his brother and King Robert. He could well die on the morrow or the day after, and if he did, he would sooner go to his grave thinking of Shae than of his lord father, Lysa Arryn, or the Lady Catelyn Stark. He could feel the softness of her breasts pressed against his arm as she lay beside him. That was a good feeling. A song filled his head. Softly, quietly, he began to whistle. â€Å"What's that, m'lord?† Shae murmured against him. â€Å"Nothing,† he told her. â€Å"A song I learned as a boy, that's all. Go to sleep, sweetling.† When her eyes were closed and her breathing deep and steady, Tyrion slid out from beneath her, gently, so as not to disturb her sleep. Naked, he crawled outside, stepped over his squire, and walked around behind his tent to make water. Bronn was seated cross-legged under a chestnut tree, near where they'd tied the horses. He was honing the edge of his sword, wide awake; the sellsword did not seem to sleep like other men. â€Å"Where did you find her?† Tyrion asked him as he pissed. â€Å"I took her from a knight. The man was loath to give her up, but your name changed his thinking somewhat . . . that, and my dirk at his throat.† â€Å"Splendid,† Tyrion said dryly, shaking off the last drops. â€Å"I seem to recall saying find me a whore, not make me an enemy.† â€Å"The pretty ones were all claimed,† Bronn said. â€Å"I'll be pleased to take her back if you'd prefer a toothless drab.† Tyrion limped closer to where he sat. â€Å"My lord father would call that insolence, and send you to the mines for impertinence.† â€Å"Good for me you're not your father,† Bronn replied. â€Å"I saw one with boils all over her nose. Would you like her?† â€Å"What, and break your heart?† Tyrion shot back. â€Å"I shall keep Shae. Did you perchance note the name of this knight you took her from? I'd rather not have him beside me in the battle.† Bronn rose, cat-quick and cat-graceful, turning his sword in his hand. â€Å"You'll have me beside you in the battle, dwarf.† Tyrion nodded. The night air was warm on his bare skin. â€Å"See that I survive this battle, and you can name your reward.† Bronn tossed the longsword from his right hand to his left, and tried a cut. â€Å"Who'd want to kill the likes of you?† â€Å"My lord father, for one. He's put me in the van.† â€Å"I'd do the same. A small man with a big shield. You'll give the archers fits.† â€Å"I find you oddly cheering,† Tyrion said. â€Å"I must be mad.† Bronn sheathed his sword. â€Å"Beyond a doubt.† When Tyrion returned to his tent, Shae rolled onto her elbow and murmured sleepily, â€Å"I woke and m'lord was gone.† â€Å"M'lord is back now.† He slid in beside her. Her hand went between his stunted legs, and found him hard. â€Å"Yes he is,† she whispered, stroking him. He asked her about the man Bronn had taken her from, and she named the minor retainer of an insignificant lordling. â€Å"You need not fear his like, m'lord,† the girl said, her fingers busy at his cock. â€Å"He is a small man.† â€Å"And what am I, pray?† Tyrion asked her. â€Å"A giant?† â€Å"Oh, yes,† she purred, â€Å"my giant of Lannister.† She mounted him then, and for a time, she almost made him believe it. Tyrion went to sleep smiling . . . . . . and woke in darkness to the blare of trumpets. Shae was shaking him by the shoulder. â€Å"M'lord,† she whispered. â€Å"Wake up, m'lord. I'm frightened.† Groggy, he sat up and threw back the blanket. The horns called through the night, wild and urgent, a cry that said hurry hurry hurry. He heard shouts, the clatter of spears, the whicker of horses, though nothing yet that spoke to him of fighting. â€Å"My lord father's trumpets,† he said. â€Å"Battle assembly. I thought Stark was yet a day's march away.† Shae shook her head, lost. Her eyes were wide and white. Groaning, Tyrion lurched to his feet and pushed his way outside, shouting for his squire. Wisps of pale fog drifted through the night, long white fingers off the river. Men and horses blundered through the predawn chill; saddles were being cinched, wagons loaded, fires extinguished. The trumpets blew again: hurry hurry hurry. Knights vaulted onto snorting coursers while men-at-arms buckled their sword belts as they ran. When he found Pod, the boy was snoring softly. Tyrion gave him a sharp poke in the ribs with his toe. â€Å"My armor,† he said, â€Å"and be quick about it.† Bronn came trotting out of the mists, already armored and ahorse, wearing his battered halfhelm. â€Å"Do you know what's happened?† Tyrion asked him. â€Å"The Stark boy stole a march on us,† Bronn said. â€Å"He crept down the kingsroad in the night, and now his host is less than a mile north of here, forming up in battle array.† Hurry, the trumpets called, hurry hurry hurry. â€Å"See that the clansmen are ready to ride.† Tyrion ducked back inside his tent. â€Å"Where are my clothes?† he barked at Shae. â€Å"There. No, the leather, damn it. Yes. Bring me my boots.† By the time he was dressed, his squire had laid out his armor, such that it was. Tyrion owned a fine suit of heavy plate, expertly crafted to fit his misshapen body. Alas, it was safe at Casterly Rock, and he was not. He had to make do with oddments assembled from Lord Lefford's wagons: mail hauberk and coif, a dead knight's gorget, lobstered greaves and gauntlets and pointed steel boots. Some of it was ornate, some plain; not a bit of it matched, or fit as it should. His breastplate was meant for a bigger man; for his oversize head, they found a huge bucket-shaped greathelm topped with a foot-long triangular spike. Shae helped Pod with the buckles and clasps. â€Å"If I die, weep for me,† Tyrion told the whore. â€Å"How will you know? You'll be dead.† â€Å"I'll know.† â€Å"I believe you would.† Shae lowered the greathelm down over his head, and Pod fastened it to his gorget. Tyrion buckled on his belt, heavy with the weight of shortsword and dirk. By then his groom had brought up his mount, a formidable brown courser armored as heavily as he was. He needed help to mount; he felt as though he weighed a thousand stone. Pod handed him up his shield, a massive slab of heavy ironwood banded with steel. Lastly they gave him his battle-axe. Shae stepped back and looked him over. â€Å"M'lord looks fearsome.† â€Å"M'lord looks a dwarf in mismatched armor,† Tyrion answered sourly, â€Å"but I thank you for the kindness. Podrick, should the battle go against us, see the lady safely home.† He saluted her with his axe, wheeled his horse about, and trotted off. His stomach was a hard knot, so tight it pained him. Behind, his servants hurriedly began to strike his tent. Pale crimson fingers fanned out to the east as the first rays of the sun broke over the horizon. The western sky was a deep purple, speckled with stars. Tyrion wondered whether this was the last sunrise he would ever see . . . and whether wondering was a mark of cowardice. Did his brother Jaime ever contemplate death before a battle? A warhorn sounded in the far distance, a deep mournful note that chilled the soul. The clansmen climbed onto their scrawny mountain horses, shouting curses and rude jokes. Several appeared to be drunk. The rising sun was burning off the drifting tendrils of fog as Tyrion led them off. What grass the horses had left was heavy with dew, as if some passing god had scattered a bag of diamonds over the earth. The mountain men fell in behind him, each clan arrayed behind its own leaders. In the dawn light, the army of Lord Tywin Lannister unfolded like an iron rose, thorns gleaming. His uncle would lead the center. Ser Kevan had raised his standards above the kingsroad. Quivers hanging from their belts, the foot archers arrayed themselves into three long lines, to east and west of the road, and stood calmly stringing their bows. Between them, pikemen formed squares; behind were rank on rank of men-at-arms with spear and sword and axe. Three hundred heavy horse surrounded Ser Kevan and the lords bannermen Lefford, Lydden, and Serrett with all their sworn retainers. The right wing was all cavalry, some four thousand men, heavy with the weight of their armor. More than three quarters of the knights were there, massed together like a great steel fist. Ser Addam Marbrand had the command. Tyrion saw his banner unfurl as his standardbearer shook it out; a burning tree, orange and smoke. Behind him flew Ser Flement's purple unicorn, the brindled boar of Crakehall, the bantam rooster of Swyft, and more. His lord father took his place on the hill where he had slept. Around him, the reserve assembled; a huge force, half mounted and half foot, five thousand strong. Lord Tywin almost always chose to command the reserve; he would take the high ground and watch the battle unfold below him, committing his forces when and where they were needed most. Even from afar, his lord father was resplendent. Tywin Lannister's battle armor put his son Jaime's gilded suit to shame. His greatcloak was sewn from countless layers of cloth-of-gold, so heavy that it barely stirred even when he charged, so large that its drape covered most of his stallion's hindquarters when he took the saddle. No ordinary clasp would suffice for such a weight, so the greatcloak was held in place by a matched pair of miniature lionesses crouching on his shoulders, as if poised to spring. Their mate, a male with a magnificent mane, reclined atop Lord Tywin's greathelm, one paw raking the air as he roared. All three lions were wrought in gold, with ruby eyes. His armor was heavy steel plate, enameled in a dark crimson, greaves and gauntlets inlaid with ornate gold scrollwork. His rondels were golden sunbursts, all his fastenings were gilded, and the red steel was burnished to such a high sheen that it shone like fire in the light of the rising sun. Tyrion could hear the rumble of the foemen's drums now. He remembered Robb Stark as he had last seen him, in his father's high seat in the Great Hall of Winterfell, a sword naked and shining in his hands. He remembered how the direwolves had come at him out of the shadows, and suddenly he could see them again, snarling and snapping, teeth bared in his face. Would the boy bring his wolves to war with him? The thought made him uneasy. The northerners would be exhausted after their long sleepless march. Tyrion wondered what the boy had been thinking. Did he think to take them unawares while they slept? Small chance of that; whatever else might be said of him, Tywin Lannister was no man's fool. The van was massing on the left. He saw the standard first, three black dogs on a yellow field. Ser Gregor sat beneath it, mounted on the biggest horse Tyrion had ever seen. Bronn took one look at him and grinned. â€Å"Always follow a big man into battle.† Tyrion threw him a hard look. â€Å"And why is that?† â€Å"They make such splendid targets. That one, he'll draw the eyes of every bowman on the field.† Laughing, Tyrion regarded the Mountain with fresh eyes. â€Å"I confess, I had not considered it in that light.† Clegane had no splendor about him; his armor was steel plate, dull grey, scarred by hard use and showing neither sigil nor ornament. He was pointing men into position with his blade, a two-handed greatsword that Ser Gregor waved about with one hand as a lesser man might wave a dagger. â€Å"Any man runs, I'll cut him down myself,† he was roaring when he caught sight of Tyrion. â€Å"Imp! Take the left. Hold the river. If you can.† The left of the left. To turn their flank, the Starks would need horses that could run on water. Tyrion led his men toward the riverbank. â€Å"Look,† he shouted, pointing with his axe. â€Å"The river.† A blanket of pale mist still clung to the surface of the water, the murky green current swirling past underneath. The shallows were muddy and choked with reeds. â€Å"That river is ours. Whatever happens, keep close to the water. Never lose sight of it. Let no enemy come between us and our river. If they dirty our waters, hack off their cocks and feed them to the fishes.† Shagga had an axe in either hand. He smashed them together and made them ring. â€Å"Halfman!† he shouted. Other Stone Crows picked up the cry, and the Black Ears and Moon Brothers as well. The Burned Men did not shout, but they rattled their swords and spears. â€Å"Halfman! Halfman! Halfman!† Tyrion turned his courser in a circle to look over the field. The ground was rolling and uneven here; soft and muddy near the river, rising in a gentle slope toward the kingsroad, stony and broken beyond it, to the cast. A few trees spotted the hillsides, but most of the land had been cleared and planted. His heart pounded in his chest in time to the drums, and under his layers of leather and steel his brow was cold with sweat. He watched Ser Gregor as the Mountain rode up and down the line, shouting and gesticulating. This wing too was all cavalry, but where the right was a mailed fist of knights and heavy lancers, the vanguard was made up of the sweepings of the west: mounted archers in leather jerkins, a swarming mass of undisciplined freeriders and sellswords, fieldhands on plow horses armed with scythes and their fathers' rusted swords, half-trained boys from the stews of Lannisport . . . and Tyrion and his mountain clansmen. â€Å"Crow food,† Bronn muttered beside him, giving voice to what Tyrion had left unsaid. He could only nod. Had his lord father taken leave of his senses? No pikes, too few bowmen, a bare handful of knights, the ill-armed and unarmored, commanded by an unthinking brute who led with his rage . . . how could his father expect this travesty of a battle to hold his left? He had no time to think about it. The drums were so near that the beat crept under his skin and set his hands to twitching. Bronn drew his longsword, and suddenly the enemy was there before them, boiling over the tops of the hills, advancing with measured tread behind a wall of shields and pikes. Gods be damned, look at them all, Tyrion thought, though he knew his father had more men on the field. Their captains led them on armored warhorses, standard-bearers riding alongside with their banners. He glimpsed the bull moose of the Hornwoods, the Karstark sunburst, Lord Cerwyn's battle-axe, and the mailed fist of the Glovers . . . and the twin towers of Frey, blue on grey. So much for his father's certainty that Lord Walder would not bestir himself. The white of House Stark was seen everywhere, the grey direwolves seeming to run and leap as the banners swirled and streamed from the high staffs. Where is the boy? Tyrion wondered. A warhorn blew. Haroooooooooooooooooooooooo, it cried, its voice as long and low and chilling as a cold wind from the north. The Lannister trumpets answered, da-DA da-DA da-DAAAAAAAAA, brazen and defiant, yet it seemed to Tyrion that they sounded somehow smaller, more anxious. He could feel a fluttering in his bowels, a queasy liquid feeling; he hoped he was not going to die sick. As the horns died away, a hissing filled the air; a vast flight of arrows arched up from his right, where the archers stood flanking the road. The northerners broke into a run, shouting as they came, but the Lannister arrows fell on them like hail, hundreds of arrows, thousands, and shouts turned to screams as men stumbled and went down. By then a second flight was in the air, and the archers were fitting a third arrow to their bowstrings. The trumpets blared again, da-DAAA da-DAAA da-DA da-DA da-DAAAAAAA. Ser Gregor waved his huge sword and bellowed a command, and a thousand other voices screamed back at him. Tyrion put his spurs to his horse and added one more voice to the cacophony, and the van surged forward. â€Å"The river!† he shouted at his clansmen as they rode. â€Å"Remember, hew to the river.† He was still leading when they broke a canter, until Chella gave a bloodcurdling shriek and galloped past him, and Shagga howled and followed. The clansmen charged after them, leaving Tyrion in their dust. A crescent of enemy spearmen had formed ahead, a double hedgehog bristling with steel, waiting behind tall oaken shields marked with the sunburst of Karstark. Gregor Clegane was the first to reach them, leading a wedge of armored veterans. Half the horses shied at the last second, breaking their charge before the row of spears. The others died, sharp steel points ripping through their chests. Tyrion saw a dozen men go down. The Mountain's stallion reared, lashing out with iron-shod hooves as a barbed spearhead raked across his neck. Maddened, the beast lunged into the ranks. Spears thrust at him from every side, but the shield wall broke beneath his weight. The northerners stumbled away from the animal's death throes. As his horse fell, snorting blood and biting with his last red breath, the Mountain rose untouched, laying about him with his two-handed greatsword. Shagga went bursting through the gap before the shields could close, other Stone Crows hard behind him. Tyrion shouted, â€Å"Burned Men! Moon Brothers! After me!† but most of them were ahead of him. He glimpsed Timett son of Timett vault free as his mount died under him in full stride, saw a Moon Brother impaled on a Karstark spear, watched Conn's horse shatter a man's ribs with a kick. A flight of arrows descended on them; where they came from he could not say, but they fell on Stark and Lannister alike, rattling off armor or finding flesh. Tyrion lifted his shield and hid beneath it. The hedgehog was crumbling, the northerners reeling back under the impact of the mounted assault. Tyrion saw Shagga catch a spearman full in the chest as the fool came on at a run, saw his axe shear through mail and leather and muscle and lungs. The man was dead on his feet, the axehead lodged in his breast, yet Shagga rode on, cleaving a shield in two with his left-hand battle-axe while the corpse was bouncing and stumbling bonelessly along on his right. Finally the dead man slid off. Shagga smashed the two axes together and roared. By then the enemy was on him, and Tyrion's battle shrunk to the few feet of ground around his horse. A man-at-arms thrust at his chest and his axe lashed out, knocking the spear aside. The man danced back for another try, but Tyrion spurred his horse and rode right over him. Bronn was surrounded by three foes, but he lopped the head off the first spear that came at him, and raked his blade across a second man's face on his backslash. A thrown spear came hurtling at Tyrion from the left and lodged in his shield with a woody chunk. He wheeled and raced after the thrower, but the man raised his own shield over his head. Tyrion circled around him, raining axe blows down on the wood. Chips of oak went flying, until the northerner lost his feet and slipped, failing flat on his back with his shield on top of him. He was below the reach of Tyrion's axe and it was too much bother to dismount, so he left him there and rode after another man, taking him from behind with a sweeping downcut that sent a jolt of impact up his arm. That won him a moment's respite. Reining up, he looked for the river. There it was, off to the right. Somehow he had gotten turned around. A Burned Man rode past, slumped against his horse. A spear had entered his belly and come out through his back. He was past any help, but when Tyrion saw one of the northerners run up and make a grab for his reins, he charged. His quarry met him sword in hand. He was tall and spare, wearing a long chainmail hauberk and gauntlets of lobstered steel, but he'd lost his helm and blood ran down into his eyes from a gash across his forehead. Tyrion aimed a swipe at his face, but the tall man slammed it aside. â€Å"Dwarf,† he screamed. â€Å"Die.† He turned in a circle as Tyrion rode around him, hacking at his head and shoulders. Steel rang on steel, and Tyrion soon realized that the tall man was quicker and stronger than he was. Where in the seven hells was Bronn? â€Å"Die,† the man grunted, chopping at him savagely. Tyrion barely got his shield up in time, and the wood seemed to explode inward under the force of the blow. The shattered pieces fell away from his arm. â€Å"Die!† the swordsman bellowed, shoving in close and whanging Tyrion across the temple so hard his head rang. The blade made a hideous scraping sound as he drew it back over the steel. The tall man grinned . . . unt il Tyrion's destrier bit, quick as a snake, laying his cheek bare to the bone. Then he screamed. Tyrion buried his axe in his head. â€Å"You die,† he told him, and he did. As he wrenched the blade free, he heard a shout. ‘Eddard!† a voice rang out. â€Å"For Eddard and Winterfell!† The knight came thundering down on him, swinging the spiked ball of a morningstar around his head. Their warhorses slammed together before Tyrion could so much as open his mouth to shout for Bronn. His right elbow exploded with pain as the spikes punched through the thin metal around the joint. His axe was gone, as fast as that. He clawed for his sword, but the morningstar was circling again, coming at his face. A sickening crunch, and he was falling. He did not recall hitting the ground, but when he looked up there was only sky above him. He rolled onto his side and tried to find his feet, but pain shuddered through him and the world throbbed. The knight who had felled him drew up above him. â€Å"Tyrion the Imp,† he boomed down. â€Å"You are mine. Do you yield, Lannister?† Yes, Tyrion thought, but the word caught in his throat. He made a croaking sound and fought his way to his knees, fumbling for a weapon. His sword, his dirk, anything . . . â€Å"Do you yield?† The knight loomed overhead on his armored warhorse. Man and horse both seemed immense. The spiked ball swung in a lazy circle. Tyrion's hands were numb, his vision blurred, his scabbard empty. â€Å"Yield or die,† the knight declared, his flail whirling faster and faster. Tyrion lurched to his feet, driving his head into the horse's belly. The animal gave a hideous scream and reared. It tried to twist away from the agony, a shower of blood and viscera poured down over Tyrion's face, and the horse fell like an avalanche. The next he knew, his visor was packed with mud and something was crushing his foot. He wriggled free, his throat so tight he could scarce talk. † . . . yield . . . † he managed to croak faintly. â€Å"Yes,† a voice moaned, thick with pain. Tyrion scraped the mud off his helm so he could see again. The horse had fallen away from him, onto its rider. The knight's leg was trapped, the arm he'd used to break his fall twisted at a grotesque angle. â€Å"Yield,† he repeated. Fumbling at his belt with his good hand, he drew a sword and flung it at Tyrion's feet. â€Å"I yield, my lord.† Dazed, the dwarf knelt and lifted the blade. Pain hammered through his elbow when he moved his arm. The battle seemed to have moved beyond him. No one remained on his part of the field save a large number of corpses. Ravens were already circling and landing to feed. He saw that Ser Kevan had brought up his center in support of the van; his huge mass of pikemen had pushed the northerners back against the hills. They were struggling on the slopes, pikes thrusting against another wall of shields, these oval and reinforced with iron studs. As he watched, the air filled with arrows again, and the men behind the oak wall crumbled beneath the murderous fire. â€Å"I believe you are losing, ser,† he told the knight under the horse. The man made no reply. The sound of hooves coming up behind him made him whirl, though he could scarcely lift the sword he held for the agony in his elbow. Brorm reined up and looked down on him. â€Å"Small use you turned out to be,† Tyrion told him. â€Å"It would seem you did well enough on your own,† Bronn answered. â€Å"You've lost the spike off your helm, though.† Tyrion groped at the top of the greathelm. The spike had snapped off clean. â€Å"I haven't lost it. I know just where it is. Do you see my horse?† By the time they found it, the trumpets had sounded again and Lord Tywin's reserve came sweeping up along the river. Tyrion watched his father fly past, the crimson-and-gold banner of Lannister rippling over his head as he thundered across the field. Five hundred knights surrounded him, sunlight flashing off the points of their lances. The remnants of the Stark lines shattered like glass beneath the hammer of their charge. With his elbow swollen and throbbing inside his armor, Tyrion made no attempt to join the slaughter. He and Bronn went looking for his men. Many he found among the dead. Ulf son of Umar lay in a pool of congealing blood, his arm gone at the elbow, a dozen of his Moon Brothers sprawled around him. Shagga was slumped beneath a tree, riddled with arrows, Conn's head in his lap. Tyrion thought they were both dead, but as he dismounted, Shagga opened his eyes and said, â€Å"They have killed Conn son of Coratt.† Handsome Conn had no mark but for the red stain over his breast, where the spear thrust had killed him. When Bronn pulled Shagga to his feet, the big man seemed to notice the arrows for the first time. He plucked them out one by one, cursing the holes they had made in his layers of mail and leather, and yowling like a babe at the few that had buried themselves in his flesh. Chella daughter of Cheyk rode up as they were yanking arrows out of Shagga, and showed them four ears she had taken. Timett they discovered looting the bodies of the slain with his Burned Men. Of the three hundred clansmen who had ridden to battle behind Tyrion Lannister, perhaps half had survived. He left the living to look after the dead, sent Bronn to take charge of his captive knight, and went alone in search of his father. Lord Tywin was seated by the river, sipping wine from a jeweled cup as his squire undid the fastenings on his breastplate. â€Å"A fine victory,† Ser Kevan said when he saw Tyrion. â€Å"Your wild men fought well.† His father's eyes were on him, pale green flecked with gold, so cool they gave Tyrion a chill. â€Å"Did that surprise you, Father?† he asked. â€Å"Did it upset your plans? We were supposed to be butchered, were we not?† Lord Tywin drained his cup, his face expressionless. â€Å"I put the least disciplined men on the left, yes. I anticipated that they would break. Robb Stark is a green boy, more like to be brave than wise. I'd hoped that if he saw our left collapse, he might plunge into the gap, eager for a rout. Once he was fully committed, Ser Kevan's pikes would wheel and take him in the flank, driving him into the river while I brought up the reserve.† â€Å"And you thought it best to place me in the midst of this carnage, yet keep me ignorant of your plans.† â€Å"A feigned rout is less convincing,† his father said, â€Å"and I am not inclined to trust my plans to a man who consorts with sellswords and savages.† â€Å"A pity my savages ruined your dance.† Tyrion pulled off his steel gauntlet and let it fall to the ground, wincing at the pain that stabbed up his arm. â€Å"The Stark boy proved more cautious than I expected for one of his years,† Lord Tywin admitted, â€Å"but a victory is a victory. You appear to be wounded.† Tyrion's right arm was soaked with blood. â€Å"Good of you to notice, Father,† he said through clenched teeth. â€Å"Might I trouble you to send for your maesters? Unless you relish the notion of having a one-armed dwarf for a son . . . â€Å" An urgent shout of â€Å"Lord Tywin!† turned his father's head before he could reply. Tywin Lannister rose to his feet as Ser Addam Marbrand leapt down off his courser. The horse was lathered and bleeding from the mouth. Ser Addam dropped to one knee, a rangy man with dark copper hair that fell to his shoulders, armored in burnished bronzed steel with the fiery tree of his House etched black on his breastplate. â€Å"My liege, we have taken some of their commanders. Lord Cerwyn, Ser Wylis Manderly, Harrion Karstark, four Freys. Lord Hornwood is dead, and I fear Roose Bolton has escaped us.† â€Å"And the boy?† Lord Tywin asked. Ser Addam hesitated. â€Å"The Stark boy was not with them, my lord. They say he crossed at the Twins with the great part of his horse, riding hard for Riverrun.† A green boy, Tyrion remembered, more like to be brave than wise. He would have laughed, if he hadn't hurt so much.