Atlantic Computers Case Analysis Essay

1. Stick with company tradition by charging only for hardware and give the PESA software tool away for free. As can be seen in Exhibit 2, there is a noticeable difference between basic servers running with and without the PESA software. This difference would cater directly to those customers in the file-sharing application and web-server segments of the market. Currently, as the Tronn would be competing directly with the rival company’s Zink server, which is priced at $1,700 as opposed to the Tronn’s $2,000, customer’s would assume that the Zink is better value as it costs less, despite the fact that the price shows a 40% mark-up over Tronn’s 30% mark-up. By offering the PESA software tool as part of the overall package, Tronn could add a value advantage over Zink, as they do not offer a software tool which enhances the performance of the server. However, as aforementioned, the customers using the basic servers would benefit most from the PESA software, rather than the high-performance servers. According to Exhibit 1, the majority of units sold are those of the high-performance servers. 2. Charge a price equal to what the customer would pay for four Ontario Zink servers. The case states that Ontario’s Zink servers dominate the basic server segment, and therefore the introduction of the Tronn server would mean that the two companies would be competing directly against one another. Further, Ontario holds a supply-chain advantage over Atlantic, in that they ensure that their products are widely available to all consumers, e.g. the majority of their sales are generated online. However, when loaded with the PESA software, Tronn’s servers run at an efficiency of 4 times faster than their standard speed. The option suggests that the Tronn, when loaded with the PESA software, should be valued at four times as much as the Zink server, as it would be performing at the same standard. This would price the Tronn at $6,800. While a price this high would indeed generate revenue, it must be considered that the Tronn is a new product entering the market. Without appropriate marketing, the consumer would be unaware of the benefits of using the Tronn and thus would opt for the much cheaper option, Zink. This strategy is called skimming. In order to be successful, Atlantic would have to ensure that consumers are aware of the significant product differentiation between the Tronn and the Zink servers (i.e. The PESA software). 3. Charge a price based on a cost-plus approach to pricing PESA (based on software tool’s development costs). As stated above, the cost-plus approach is Atlantic’s standard pricing strategy. In the case, Atlantic is said to have production restraints and therefore will only be able to produce a certain number of Tronn servers in the near term. For example, if Atlantic can sell all of its projected units in the first three years, they are looking at selling 212,000 units in total. In the first year, the percentage of market share rises by 4%, meaning that the total number of Tronn servers sold was 2,000. In the second year, the percentage rises by 9%, giving a total of 6,300 servers sold. In the third year, this raises to 14% and 12,880 servers sold. Of these 21,180 servers, assume that only half are loaded with PESA software, giving us 10,590 servers with the software in total over the three years. The development costs of the PESA software totalled $2,000,000,000. In order to cover the development costs of the software in the first three years, Atlantic would have to price the software at $189. If we assume the Tronn server without the software costs $1,538 to produce, and the PESA is to be included in the sales price, we are looking at a $1,727 production cost. Adding a mark-up of 30%, the sales price of the Tronn and PESA (Atlantic bundle) would be $2,245.10. 4. Charge a price based on value-in-pricing. In order to calculate a total savings price, it is necessary to determine the calculations of a few other items. Also, in these calculations, we will assume that the Tronn server is valued at $2,000. Firstly, considering that one Tronn server loaded with the PESA software is performs to the same standard as four Zink servers, it can be said that a saving of $1,600 per annum can be had by purchasing just one Tronn as opposed to 4 Zink servers. Secondly, annual electricity savings are equal to $250. Third, the cost of application software licenses is equal to $750 per year. Finally, if a server administrator earns $80,000 per year and the number of servers one can manage is 40, labour cost savings are $2,000 per year. The total savings can be added to achieve $4,600 per year. In a quick summary of the above, the following can be noted: * In Option 1, the price of the Tronn and PESA software tool would be $2,000. * In Option 2, the price of the Tronn and PESA software tool would be $6,800. * In Option 3, the price of the Tronn and PESA software tool would be $2,245.10. * In Option 4, the savings of purchasing the Tronn and PESA software tool would be $4,600. I believe that Option 1 would not be an intelligent strategy for Jowers to use. Without charging for the PESA software, the company will find themselves struggling to pay off the costs of developing the tool in the first place. This means they would have to sell more units in the first three years than what they originally projected, giving the company unrealistic sales assumptions and in my opinion, they would ultimately suffer profit losses. I also consider Option 2 to be a bad choice of strategy. While one Tronn server, in conjunction with the PESA tool can indeed perform to the power of four Zink servers, it would be foolish to price the Tronn at the equivalent of this. A price of $6,800 for just one server is too much for a consumer to consider paying, especially for a product that is new into an already established market. Serious marketing and clear differentiation would be required to ensure the success of this strategy, both of which can be very time-consuming and costly. While Option 4 shows a significant number in savings, I would recommend that Option 3, the cost-plus pricing strategy be used in launching the Atlantic Bundle into the basic-server consumer market. As stated in the case, Atlantic Computers is already a strong player in the high performance servers segment, but due to the consistent growth of the internet, the new market of basic servers is emerging. Jowers discovered that one of the main reasons that Atlantic succeeded in the high performance severs market was by product differentiation. This is a large factor in the Tronn’s appeal to the basic server segment, as it also comes with the PESA software tool, something that Zink computers does not have. However, Ontario Computers competes mainly on price, due to the fact that they are able to sell their products online and therefore cut costs in other areas. Despite this, I believe that with Atlantic emerging into the market with a superior product, they will be able to compete successfully. According to Atlantic Computers general consensus, they do not usually charge extra for software tools. However, the importance of the PESA tool must be made known to the sales force. Firstly, without charging extra for the tool, the company will struggle to generate enough revenue in the first three years to pay of the development costs of the product. Furthermore, Jowers followed the status quo and used cost-plus pricing to determine the value of the software, and after adding that cost onto the production costs of the Tronn itself and also adding a 30% mark-up, the total bundle only cost $245.10 more than the Tronn would cost on its own. Emphasis should also be put on the fact that one Tronn server loaded with the PESA software tool, which was valued at $2,245.10, performed to the equivalency of four basic Zink servers, which in total would be valued at $6,800. This shows a $4554.90 saving for customers who choose to purchase the Atlantic Bundle over the required four Zink servers for the same performance. With Jowers given the opportunity to talk with prospective buyers at the trade show, he will also have the chance to explain the features and benefits of purchasing the Atlantic Bundle himself as well as obtaining firsthand consumer feedback on the products. According to the case, the CEO of Ontario Computers states, â€Å"Our business model is not to be the leading innovator on product technology. Rather, our business model is to provide leading technology to customers via the most flexible and innovative supply chain strategy possible†. The company achieved this by managing to cut their costs through distributing their products online and thus were able to offer their product for a much cheaper price than Atlantic Computers. In retaliation to the introduction of the Tronn in the market, Ontario Computer will most likely continue to base their business model on operational excellence and continue to search for ways to compete on price. Another consequence could be the company developing a software tool of their own to compete directly with the PESA tool. If this was to happen, it could pose a threat to Atlantic Computers in that Ontario would still most likely be capable of competing on price, giving them the competitive advantage. However, if Atlantic manages to establish their brand before their competition gets a chance to retaliate, they should have no problem holding onto their market share and consumer segment.

Airport Security Essay

Every upstanding individual who lays a foot onto the airport floor wants to remain safe. Consequently, that devastating day of September 11, 2001 instilled the fear of flying in many Americans. This gave our nation the need to reevaluate airport checkpoints in order to secure the safety of the people of our country from those who are not sympathetic to our American ways. Some find that the measures the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has taken in the recent years are unjust and a violation of many rights that we have by living in our free country. The reason that some of these rights have been taken away is only beneficial to the protection of our homeland. I propose that in order to give passengers a better experience, the up and coming technologies such as Thermal Lie Detection and â€Å"all in one screening† need to be implemented as soon as they become available. With these new methods, passengers will become more understanding of the safety the government is providing rather than viewing it as a violation of privacy. The sole purpose of this writing is to persuade and inform the society on the necessity of the security equipment, despite the hassle, and to educate those about the rising developments. Presently, high tech x- ray machines, metal detectors, body scanners, and pat downs are the methods implemented in order to greatly decrease the possibility of anything catastrophic happening within the airports or on board the aircraft. I have personally had to partake in this bothersome process, and I’m going to have to deal with the annoyance more often after I graduate as a Hospitality Management major. The annoyance of the current process is not only cumbersome to me but especially to frequent flyers, nonetheless it remains extremely necessary. The aim of my extended argument examines the possible changes within airports so they can further protect us, the people, and lead to a more satisfactory client base. My proposition will mainly be directed towards my ENC1102 professor and my fellow classmates, as well as other common travelers, school teachers, adults, and our upcoming generation. After extensive research for my exploration of both sides of the argument, I have found many reasons as to why we must partake in the elongated processes of airport check-ins, however, I foresee more effective, simpler, less violating new systems that are currently birthing. An airline officials reveals that â€Å"prior to 9/11, an average of 350 people would normally go through a checkpoint in an hour. Now the number is down to about 150 in one hour† (Jim Barnett). This background knowledge shows how evident of a change that needs to be instilled in the TSA’s methods. The up and coming technology on the horizon is thermal lie detection which has the ability to detect different facial temperatures towards those who seem suspicious. Another enhancement is the â€Å"all in one† screening, a series of detectors equipped with eye-scanners, x-ray machines, metal and liquid detectors, which will surely speed up the process. These innovations will further be explained in detail in my upcoming extended writings. My further works will start off with explaining the controversy over airport security and its benefits and disadvantages. First, there will be brief overview of the entire subject and an explanation as to why people are angered by this subject. Then, I will lead into further investigation on the topic and go into detail about the two different advances that will better help our airports. I will use research articles and descriptions of the product to better inform my reader. Finally, I will persuade readers that with less compromising systems travelers will soon turn understanding and be thankful towards the officials trying to keep them safe. This brings me to the conclusion of this plan leading to a better-rounded more satisfied consumer base. This paper encumbers a full understanding of why a percentage of the population feel like their civil rights are being stripped away. In the past I would have agreed with them, but our world is a dangerous, frightening place, and all citizens must stand up to the plate and understand the actions taken by our government, like our parents, they do whatever they must do to protect us, their children. This act actually ensures us our freedom, to cross boarders freely with piece of mind; it definitely doesn’t take away our freedom or take away our civil rights. One must get off their high horse and face reality. If we can implement this technology to make our processing time through the airport, more convenient, less harassing, less time consuming, and less degrading, most individuals will not feel so violated anymore. Eventually the process will be so simplistic and common that the negative feelings towards the TSA and our government will disappear and travelers will soon accept that the extensiveness of security and come to the realization that it’s only for their own good. With these security measures just on the horizon, we will no longer feel compromised and therefore become more comfortable and accustomed with the measures that need to be taken in today’s world to continue living in the land of the free. The goal is to work towards a safer tomorrow for us and generations to come yet still maintaining the integrity given to us by our forefathers. Works Cited â€Å"American Civil Liberties Union. † American Civil Liberties Union. N. p. , n. d. Web. 14 July 2013. Bajoria, Jayshree. â€Å"The Debate Over Airport Security. † Council on Foreign Relations. Council †¦.. on Foreign Relations, 28 Dec. 2010. Web. 16 July 2013. â€Å"BalancedPolitics. org. † – Civil Liberties/Patriot Act in Wartime (Pros & Cons, Arguments For †¦.. and Against, Advantages & Disadvantages). N. p. , n. d. Web. 11 July 2013. Barnett, Jim. â€Å"A Speedier Trip through Airport Security Could Come within a Decade. â€Å"CNN. †¦.. Cable News Network, 01 Jan. 1970. Web. 22 July 2013. â€Å"Flying With Fish The Blog for Those Who Fly & Those Who Want to Fly Smarter. â€Å"Flying With †¦.. Fish RSS. N. p. , n. d. Web. 22 July 2013. PBS. Drastic Changes in Airport Security After 9/11 Stir Controversy. PBS, n. d. Web. 11 July †¦.. 2013 Shachtman, Noah. â€Å"Passenger Screening Policies Violate Privacy and Do Not Ensure †¦.. Security. † US Airport Security. Ed. Margaret Haerens and Lynn M. Zott. Detroit: †¦.. Greenhaven Press, 2013. Opposing Viewpoints. Rpt. from â€Å"Has Airport Security Gone Too †¦.. Far? † Wall Street Journal 17 Nov. 2010. Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 10 July †¦.. 2013. â€Å"The Patriot Act: Security Tool or Big Brother 2011. † Berkeley Political Review. N. p. , n. d. Web. †¦.. 14 July 2013. â€Å"The Usa Patriot Act, a Controversial Public Policy, Julius Taka. † – Term Papers. N. p. , n. d. †¦.. Web. 16 July 2013. Webster, George. â€Å"The Future of Airport Security: Thermal Lie-detectors and Cloned Sniffer †¦.. Dogs. † CNN. Cable News Network, 25 Nov. 2011. Web. 22 July 2013 â€Å"Where Do You Stand on the Usa Patriot Act? † – Essay. N. p. , n. d. Web. 16 July 2013.

Elder Abuse Essay

The Seriousness of Elder Abuse in Hong Kong Families To let older adults enjoy a sense of security and a sense of belonging is a time-honoured tradition in the Chinese society. Unfortunately, elder abuse has risen as a serious social problem in Hong Kong. An organization called â€Å"The Against Elderly Abuse of Hong Kong† has received 2212 requests for assistance related to elder abuse in 2011, which has doubled the number of requests received in 2006 (â€Å"Cases of elder abuse,† 2012). Besides, several pieces of news about elder abuse in Hong Kong families have been reported, for example, a 90-year old woman was forced to leave home by her unfilial son and daughter-in-law (Li, 2012). To analyze, the main root causes of elder abuse can be induced to the stress of family caregivers due to the dependence of the elderly as well as the financial dependence of family caregivers on the elderly. In addition to physical and psychological injury, the abused elder people have a higher mortality rate than those not being abused. T o ease the elder abuse problem, enhancement of the capacity of elder care services and education on the public about elder abuse have been suggested by the experts. First and foremost, according to the National Research Council (2003), the definition of elder abuse is defined as â€Å"Intentional actions that cause harm or create a serious risk of harm (whether or not harm is intended) to a vulnerable elder by a caregiver or other person who stands in a trusting relationship to the elder or failure by a caregiver to satisfy the elder’s basic needs or to protect the elder from harm† (p. 40). There are 5 categories of elder abuse, including physical, psychological, financial, sexual, and neglect (Harris, 2006). Physical abuse, psychological abuse, and financial abuse are what this essay will emphasize on. To start with, studying the causes of elder abuse is essential. Among many risk factors of elder abuse, stress of family caregivers due to the  dependence of the elderly is one of the  main root causes of elder abuse. As the body functions of the elder people are declining, the elderly, especially those suffering from Dementia, may behave like children who depend on the family caregivers in physical, financial and emotional aspects, resulting in exerting a great pressure to the responsible family caregivers (Pillemer, 1989). A study conducted by Lachs, Williams, O’Brien, Hurst, and Horwitz (1997) discovered that the elder people who have impairments in daily physical activities, such as cooking, and need to be taken care of by family caregivers have double chance of being abused than those without impairments. Once the stress on the family caregivers exceeds what they can withstand, elder abuse will probably occur. Apart from the stress of family caregivers due to the dependence of the elderly, family caregivers depending on the elderly financially is another common cause of the elder abuse. A study conducted by Pillemer (1985) found that â€Å"64% of the abusers in his sample were financially dependent on their victims, and 55% were dependent for housing† (p. 152). The same phenomenon can be applied to Hong Kong. As the price of flats in Hong Kong is very high, many Hong Kong citizens cannot afford it. However, some adults still want to have their own flat. Therefore, some of them will force their old parents to pay for them. In some serious cases, an adult son defrauds the money or the ownership of the flat of their old parents by inveigling them to sign the money withdrawal banking slip or the contract of the change of the ownership of their flat (Lee, 2011). Moreover, due to the underreported crime nature of the financial abuse on the elderly and family caregivers accounting for 60% to 90% of the abusers, financial exploitation on the elder people by family caregivers has become a serious social problem which is difficult to be discovered (Blackburn & Dulmus, 2007). After realizing the causes, understanding the impact of the elder abuse is also significant. The elder people being abused would suffer from both physical and psychological injuries which  lead to a higher mortality rate. According to a study in America, 40% of the non-abused elderly group were still living after a nine-year experimental period; however, only 9% of the abused elderly were still alive (Wolf, 2000). The reasons behind are due to the physical injury, such as cuts, burns, and fractures, caused by infliction of physical violence on the elderly; as well as psychological injury, such as depression, fear and anxiety, generated by verbal aggression and insulting action on the elderly (Blackburn & Dulmus, 2007; Yan & Tang, 2004). Some elder people suffering from abuse would commit suicide so as to avoid being abused continually (Blackburn & Dulmus, 2007). After understanding the root causes and the impact of elder abuse, some solutions are suggested by the experts and related organizations to ease the problem. Enhancement of the quantity of elderly services could help relieve the family caregiver stress by increasing the capacity of the Day Care Centers and Home Care Services for the elderly. However, the current quota of elder care services is seriously inadequate. According to the press release of the Hong Kong Council of Social Services (2011), there are 26,776 elder people on the waiting list of elder care centers and the average waiting time is 3 years, resulting in lots of elder people on the waiting list die before they can get a ticket to the center. Therefore, by increasing the quota of elderly services, family members can transfer the elderly to Day Care Centers if family members are not convenient to do so, for example, working in day  time. In addition, by doing so, the family caregivers can spare time to have their social and outdoor activities to relieve their stress (Chow, 1999). Moreover, home care services, such as personal care helpers or general household helpers, can also reduce the workload and stress of the family caregivers. However, on the other hand, it may perhaps lead to elder abuse by the staff or nurses in the service centers. There are some news reports about the elder abuse by staff of elder care centers; for example, a 65-year old woman  suffering from Alzheimer’s disease was forced to eat her own faeces by a management staff of a home care center for the aged (Man, 2009). Despite the few reported cases, it cannot conclude that the quality of staff in the services units for the elderly is declining. In most cases, it is safe for the elder people to live in the elder care centers. . Besides increasing the quota of elderly services, detection of elder abuse is also important. As the elder abuse cases are underreported, it is crucial to find them out so as to avoid the elderly suffering from abuse continually. Health visitors who have been trained to identify the suspected abuse cases can be introduced to visit the elder people regularly, observe the elderly to see whether he or she has been abused, and report suspected abuse cases to the Social Welfare Department (Roe, 2002; Strasser & Fulmer, 2007). Ultimately, educating the public about the official definitions and consequences of different kinds of elder abuse is a long term measure to ease the elder abuse problem as it can reduce the misunderstanding of elder abuse and raise the public awareness towards the problem (Chan, Chun, & Chung, 2008). According to the Political Declaration and Madrid International Plan of Action on Aging (2003) of the United Nations, one of  the objectives of policy change is stated as â€Å"†¦ encouraging health and social services professionals, and the general public, to report suspected elder abuse; including training on elder abuse for the caring professionals; and establishing information programs to educate older persons about financial abuse, including fraud† (p. 5). This policy reflects that educating the public and the elderly to detect and prevent elder abuse is an effective measure (Blackburn & Dulmus, 2007). Organizing exhibitions in shopping malls, holding seminars in comm unity halls, and making advertisements on television are the measures that can be considered by the Hong Kong government in order to educate the public about the seriousness of elder abuse. Despite low efficiency and time consuming, in long-term, educating the public to help report the  suspected cases of elder abuse can deter the abusers from hurting the elder people. It can be seen from the above that elder abuse is a serious social problem with low public awareness. It leads to many harmful consequences to the elder people who, however, usually hide the case to protect the abuser who may be their family member (Blackburn & Dulmus, 2007). To tackle the problem, enhancing the capacity of elder care services, introducing health care visitors, and educating the public about elder abuse could be the possible solutions. Despite some weaknesses of the solutions, they can boost the public awareness after all. If more citizens in Hong Kong realize the impact of elder abuse, less elder people will be abused and the problem of elder abuse can be relieved. The elder people in Hong Kong can really enjoy a sense of security and a sense of belonging. References Blackburn, J. A., Dulmus, C. N. (2007). Handbook of gerontology – Evidence-based approaches to theory, practice, and policy. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons. Cases of elder abuse rises significantly – Organizations urge for legislation of elder abuse as criminal charge. (2012, June 11). Ming Pao, p. A14. Retrieved from http://wisenews.wisers.net/ Chan, Y. C., Chun, P. K., & Chung, K. W. (2008). Public perception and reporting of different kinds of family abuse in Hong Kong. Journal of Family Violence, 23, 253–263. doi: 10.1007/s10896-007-9149-0 Chow, T. (1999). What can We do about elder abuse? Policy Watch, 3(7), 14–20. Harris, G. (2006). Domestic violence and abuse: Elder abuse. Practice Nurse, 31(8), 59–70. Lachs, M. S., Williams, C., O’Brien, S., Hurst, L., & Horwitz, R. (1997). Risk factors for reported elder abuse and neglect: A nine-year observational cohort study. The Gerontologist, 37, 469–474. Lee, S. (2011, June 13). Financial abuse of aged surges. The Standard, Local, p.11. Retrieved from http://wisenews.wisers.net/ Li, O. K. (2012, May 17). Unfilial son and daughter in law force 90-year old mother away from home. Hong Kong Economic Times, p. A24. Retrieved from http://wisenews.wisers.net/ Man, J. (2009, December 8). Carer at home for elderly forced woman to eat faeces, court told. South China Morning Post, p. C3. Retrieved from http://wisenews.wisers.net/ National Research Council. (2003). Elder mistreatment: Abuse, neglect, and exploitation in an aging America. Panel to Review Risk and Prevalence of Elder Abuse and Neglect. In R. J. Bonnie & R. B. Wallace (Eds.), Committee on National Statistics and Committee on Law and Justice, Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. Pillemer, K. (1985). The dangers of dependency: New findings on domestic violence against the elderly. Social Problems, 33(2), 146–158. Pillemer, K., & Finkelhor, D. (1989). Causes of elder abuse: Caregiver stress versus problem relatives. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 59(2), 179–187. doi: 10.1111/j.1939-0025.1989.tb01649.x Roe, B. (2002). Protecting older people from abuse. Nursing Older People, 14(9), 14–18. Retrieved from http://nursingolderpeople.rcnpublishing.co.uk/archive/article-protecting-older-peoplefrom-abuse. Strasser, S. M., & Fulmer, T. (2007). The clinical presentation of elder neglect: What we know and what we can do. Journal of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association, 12(6), 340–349. doi: 10.1177/1078390306298879 United Nations. (2003). Political declaration and Madrid International Plan of Action on Aging (DPI/2271—February 2003-20M). New York: United Nations Department of Public Information. The Hong Kong Council of Social Service. (2011, March). Use the hundred billion reserves well – Take the long term responsibility [Press release]. Retrieved from http://2011.hkcss.org.hk/channel/detail.asp?issueID=95 Wolf, R. S. (2000). The nature and scope of elder abuse. Generations, 24(2), 6–12. Yan, C. W., & Tang, S. K. (2004). Elder abuse by caregivers: A study of prevalence and risk factors in Hong Kong Chinese families. Journal of Family Violence, 19(5), 269–277.

The Economy and the Impact on Students, Parents and Colleges Coursework

The Economy and the Impact on Students, Parents and Colleges - Coursework Example education and training of the country’s workers. The wage rate of a particular country is affected by the education as well as training of a particular worker. It is a well known fact that a well-trained as well as educated worker is found to be more prolific and tends to earn more money in comparison to illiterate workers. It is the difference in the level of the training that has a propensity to separate the rich as well as poor nations. Most of the employers prefer staffs who tend to be efficient and productive as well as necessitate minimal management. There are various factors that need to be considered by the employer when making plan whether to pay for the employees training or not such as the enhancement of the productivity of the employees, loyalty of the employees and employees commanding a higher wage among others (Sturm, 2012). Most of the workers are found to be enhancing their earning capacity by emphasizing upon their capabilities about a particular job. The emp loyees are found to be interested in learning to operate the new technologies in order to compete for high wages. The employees are supposed to consider numerous factors when taking training. They need to consider the extra productivity that they expect to attain, the cost of training program and the trends in labor market for trained professionals. Most of the countries focus upon the creation of the education system so that they can attain skilled workers. The economy of the country is found to be flourishing with the increment in the number of the educated personnel (Sturm, 2012). Education and Its Impact upon Economy of New Jersey The impact of the recent economic downturn has been hard-hitting in New Jersey. This downturn has compelled the... This essay approves that two factors tend to determine how well a country’s economy will do i.e. education and training of the country’s workers. The wage rate of a particular country is affected by the education as well as training of a particular worker. It is a well known fact that a well-trained as well as educated worker is found to be more prolific and tends to earn more money in comparison to illiterate workers. It is the difference in the level of the training that has a propensity to separate the rich as well as poor nations. Most of the employers prefer staffs who tend to be efficient and productive as well as necessitate minimal management. Most of the workers are found to be enhancing their earning capacity by emphasizing upon their capabilities about a particular job. This report makes a conclusion that there is a considerable impact of education on the economy. With the increase in the number of the educated personnel in a particular economy, there is rise in the economy as well. It is the knowledge as well as the dexterity of the workers accessible in the labor market that determine the growth of the businesses as well as the economy. The economies possessing supply of skilled personnel brought up by means of school and college education and training is capable of capitalizing on this through creation of value added industries. The workers with high college degrees earn relatively high wages in comparison to the ones without college degrees. Hence, it is significant for the economy to place greater emphasis upon the training and education of the citizens.

Compare and contrast individualism and individuality Essay

Compare and contrast individualism and individuality - Essay Example Here, the aggregate of properties are peculiar to an individual, where the sum of the attributes distinguish an object from others of the same kind (Oxford English Dictionary). Essentially, the root for 'individualism' and 'individuality' is individual, which indicates an entity or idea that is not divisible. Although both terms embrace the idea of inseparability, the intentions for both behaviors are very different. While the doctrine of 'individualism' may be tied to the thought of 'egoism' (Wikipedia) which suggests self-serving tendencies, the principle of 'individuality' does not require the sacrifice of self-interest for any other causes. In summary, it can be argued that 'individualism' is more about an approach to life where individual benefits are paramount and it opposes collectivism where no sacrifice is made. On the other hand, 'individuality' is geared more towards a quality of life which values individual choice and may not entirely be self-serving or self-sacrificing which then creates a certain degree of identity.

Success in Social Commerce Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words - 1

Success in Social Commerce - Essay Example It is a fact well known around the world that social networking has accrued a large scale acceptance and usage amongst the contemporary consumers. Yet, there is no dearth of businesses that have failed to exploit the full potential of the opportunities available at the social networking sites like Facebook and to be able to use them as viable channels to engage customers. However, on the other side there is no dearth of companies that prove beyond doubt that social commerce holds an immense potential for the companies that know how to milk the business potential inherent in the social networking sites. It is a fact that the businesses that know as to how to exploit the large volumes of freely available data at the social networking sites that is self maintained on a continual basis by the potential consumers and are able to personalize that data and the associated portals to enhance the overall consumer experience could accrue much in terms of business success (Shen, 2012, p. 198). T he Future of Social Commerce Though, the skeptics tend to bemoan the fact that social commerce constitutes a mere fraction of the total retail business, yet if one goes by the ongoing trends, it would not be wrong to say that the social commerce is expanding at a pace that is much fast as compared to the offline retail (Griffiths & Howard, 2008, p. 70). Social commerce is bound to expand and could be expected to appropriate a major chunk of the retail business, considering the fact that the contemporary consumers are not only spending a greater time on the mobile devices and social networking sites, but the proactive and innovative companies are enhancing the opportunities whereby the consumers could make purchase on the social networking sites (Griffiths & Howard, 2008). The social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook are making it much easier for the consumer to engage in one-stop-shop experience. Right from the job of purchasing and getting delivered the gifts for the loved ones to buying branded products from a brand’s Twitters hashtag post or its Facebook page, social commerce is extending such opportunities to the conventional consumers that are not only hassle free and easy to use, but are also accompanied by readily available customer reviews, pre purchase assistance and after sale services. Social commerce has the potential to fuel consumer sales by molding and channelizing their shared interest and propensities. It is not a wonder that irrespective of the fact that though the social commerce today is being dominated by the online businesses like Amazon, Macy’s, Target and Apple, the online shopping businesses like Beyond the Rack, HauteLook, and ShoeDazzle are increasing and enhancing their social commerce presence. These companies retain a very strong and engaging presence at Twitter and Facebook. No wonder engaging in social commerce is a potent and viable way not only to enhance a businesses’ online presence, but also to translate into viable online sales. Besides, social commerce could also be adapted and manipulated to accrue much word of mouth publicity. For instance there is no dearth of the consumers who are willing to post a review about a particular business, provide they are offered a lucrative and attractive deal. Social commerce is a double edged sword with innate possibilities and opportunities. By helping the consumers the businesses could help themselves grow and by enervating the consumers

Strategic project management case study Assignment

Strategic project management case study - Assignment Example The country depicts human resource weaknesses in the health, education, and adult literacy sectors. The country has the right atmosphere of establishing measures that would help it to catch up with the developed nations in terms of education, technology, economic development, and adult literacy. As such, I present a project that will ensure that every student joining a public college accesses a laptop with a view of updating the technology of the nation. The project dubbed â€Å"One Laptop one Student Campaign† will seek to bridge the digital gap between Kenya and the developed countries. This will enhance technological development in Kenya. After doing a pilot project on the country, the project will aim at providing a reliable, low power, and cost effective laptops to all students in public colleges free of charge. Just like the "One laptop per child" project (Beaumont 2010, p. 1), the â€Å"One Laptop one Student Campaign† will adopt the principle that giving computers to students will consequently enhance educational progress in Kenya. The project will require the support of sponsors, the government, academicians, parents, and students. In ensuring the sustainability of the project, I will address myself to electricity shortages, cultural restrictions, low internet network, adequate equipment, and training, usability, and government restrictions. Ultimately, I will consider the merits and demerits of the project an d its probable impact on the education sector. This will determine the sustainability of the project. It is arguably true that in developing countries like Kenya, public college students belong to the low economic class compared to the private college students who belong to the wealth class where they can easily access laptops. The â€Å"One Laptop one Student Campaign† seeks to ensure the availability of laptops at home and in school for all students entering college education. The implementation of this project will

Slumdog Millionaire Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Slumdog Millionaire - Essay Example Destiny shows them many different colors of life. Winner of four Golden Globe awards, eight Oscars and many more awards like the Baftas, Sulmdog Millionaire is not only a critically acclaimed film, but also a hardcore entertainer. The movie has an interesting plot and reveals a lot about the diverse Indian lifestyles. Director Danny Boyle does a good job in capturing the good, the bad, and the ugly parts of the slums in Mumbai. Boyle is successful in making each scene very real, from capturing a short-lived moment of happiness to the pain and struggle of poverty and homelessness. The director has been successful in making you feel for the characters of the story. He has brought out the beauty of India, whether it’s the Taj Mahal or the slums of Mumbai, or the Indian trains or even the community toilets of the urban Indian slum. Apart from the scenes Boyle has brought out the best in the cast, whether it’s Anil Kapoor, from Indian mainstream cinema or Dev Patel, or the children who come from the Indian slums. The cast of the movie includes actors from mainstream Indian cinema, like Anil Kapoor and Irfan Khan, Dev Patel and Frieda Pinto, and Azharuddin, who plays the role of the child Salim from the slums of Mumbai. All the actors in the movie have given it their best shot. Though the cast involves actors coming from various areas and lifestyles, they all have contributed their best and given the film critical acclaim. The child actors bring out true colors of life in the slums. The expressions, the speech, the style, and the emotion used by the actors are very authentic and captivating. The performance by all the actors has been excellent and they have given their roles a touch of reality.

Business ethic cases Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

Business ethic cases - Essay Example At which point, he reveals his own convictions on the matter. Maitland begins by presenting the case made by the critics against the corporations. As stated in the article companies have been accused of pursuing cheap labor all over the world to: get away with paying workers less than living wages; take advantage of child labor; avoid human rights abuse issues; indirectly supporting repressive regimes that denying workers the right to join unions and do not enforce minimum labor standards in the workplace, etc. He describes how the campaign against international sweatshops was exposed on the television, forcing the publicity- shy retail giants to take the defensive1. For example Maitland explains how Charles Kernaghan, who runs the National Labor Coalition (NLC), brought attention to the fact that Kathie Lee Giffords clothing line was being made by 13- and 14- year- olds working 20- hour days in factories in Honduras, and also arranged for teenage workers from Central American sweatshops to testify before Congressional committees about abusive labor practices. Kernaghan, went on to deliver a masterstroke, when one of the workers held up a Liz Claiborne cotton sweater identical to ones she had sewn since she was a 13- year- old working 12 hours days, during one of these hearings.2 Maitland notes that this incident had an extremely damaging effect on the companies that held their public images to be sacred. The media had a field day withimage of young exploited girl displaying the Claiborne logo and making accusations of oppressive conditions at the factory.3 Consequently, the companies for whom their image was sacrosanct and meant everything to them, petitioned for peace to protect their image, which they deem to be their most valuable asset.4 The companies adopted certain codes of conduct on human and labor rights in their international operations to ensure appropriate levels of pay and safety standards in sweatshops operated by them.

Arbitration Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Arbitration - Coursework Example hen a law doctrine does not adequately serve the purpose of complementing the intended Act and the law keepers are unwilling to enforce the law contract as it is due to the jurisdiction nature: the doctrine can be said to be unfair due to creation of more ambiguity rather than providing an amicable solution. In the case of Hamlyn Versus Talisker, during the late 19th Century there was a burst of enthusiasm over a ruling that had been made through the separability notion in Germany. Scholars having gone through different types of contracts feel that the arbitral clause was contained in a broader agreement that was a procedural contract. With the law procedure being governed by the law forum, in the case of a contract, the contract ought to have been governed by another law in another part of the agreement1. Hence, in the case of Hamlyn Versus Talisker should have been enforcement of arbitration clause instead of the contract that had taken the center stage of the case. With the cited cases and other similar cases in France it can be concluded that the doctrine of separability is essential in guiding rulings based on main contract but in some cases it offers guidance that can be subject to criticism. In addition, there are some instances that the doctrine is void due to illegality that can be evidenced in the case of Harbor Assurance Versus Kansa. Therefore, separability doctrine should be rejected because it is not dependable unanimously, and it is

Accounting and Finance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Accounting and Finance - Essay Example business functions in the value chain as an essential and valued contributor and integrating and co-coordinating the efforts of all business functions in addition to developing the capabilities of each individual business function. For effectively administering the foregoing themes and to provide the most value in performing their problem-solving, scorekeeping, and attention-directing roles employ a cost benefit approach, the managers should give full recognition to behavioral as well as technical considerations and use different costs for different purposes. Modern day management accountants are faced with the problem of inadequacies in the traditional costing systems and are constantly on the lookout for newer methods of collecting and allocating costs to different products/services. For enabling the management accountant to take a stand on the various assumptions in the process of decision making, the cost of the product or service is a key element. Traditionally there are various methods of ascertaining the cost of a particular product or service. One of such methods is collecting the various cost elements and allocating them to the particular product or service is known as unit costing. A UNIT COST also called AVERAGE COST is computed by dividing some amount of total costs by the related number of units. The units might be expressed as hours worked, packages delivered or automobiles assembled. A plant manager who used the 2004 cost of $ 80 per unit would underestimate actual total costs, if for year 2005 the total output is below the year 2004 level of 500,000 units. If the actual volume in 2005 is only 200,000 units due to some factors on which the company has no control, actual costs would be $ 22,000,000. Using the unit cost of $ 80 times 200,000 units predicts $ 16,000,000 which underestimates the actual total costs by $ 600,000 ($ 22,000,000 actual cost minus $ 16,000,000). An over reliance on unit cost in this situation could lead the plant

Euro Crisis Essay Example for Free

Euro Crisis Essay The ability of Euro zone countries (countries in Europe that use the common currency called the Euro) to borrow in a common currency poses free-rider problems because there may be an incentive to bailout countries that borrow excessively. How does the original design of the Euro attempt to address this incentive to over-borrow by some countries? The free rider problem refers to when someone is capturing the full benefit of an action while shifting the cost to others. The free-rider problem built into the euro lies into the fiscal structure, since the countries were fiscally undisciplined and also governments were gaining political gain running deficits supported by their euro partner nations. Over borrowing occurred due to the incentive of governments to borrow in a common currency; to address this issue the original design had to solutions. One was the Stability and Growth Pact (SGP) which limited budget deficit to up to 3% of GDP and 60% of stock of public debt, aiming to ensure fiscal discipline; where if a member state was in an excessive deficit situation then the council could impose sanctions. The Second rule is a â€Å"no bailout† clause stating that community shall not be liable for the debt of governments (with some exceptions) The original design of the euro sought to address the over-borrowing. Why were the measures in the original Euro design insufficient in preventing the Euro sovereign debt problems? First it is important to point out that the sovereign debt crisis is significantly tied to the banking crisis and macroeconomic crisis through the entire euro area. The original measure was insufficient because in a way these measures actually worsen the crisis. The sovereign debt crisis can be divided in three phases: pre-crisis period, the financial and sovereign debt crisis and post-crisis recovery. The initial design affected the pre-crisis since in reality it increased fiscal risk due to the increased in the current account imbalances across the euro area and also the dispersion in credit boom, housing prices and sectorial debt levels. Then, during the crisis 2007-2008 the original design actually augmented the fiscal impact since the global financial shock had diverse impacts across the euro area and policies were focus on European Central Bank to address the financial shock, not accounting these policies prompted a worse euro sovereign debt crisis (Especially countries with macro-imbalances). Thirdly, the original measures slowed down the post-crisis recovery period because the stated estrictions of deficit and debt made the recovery stretched, along with the poor political management of countries’ institutions to solve factors involving the crisis. What are the new reforms to address sovereign debt concerns? What makes the new measures superior to the original ones? The new reforms to address the sovereign debt is compounded on a treaty called â€Å" Fiscal Compact Treaty† which requires new fiscal principles to be pose in each country (Jan 2013). These fiscal reforms are based on two principles: a void high public debt since it’s a threat to fiscal stability. Second, the fiscal balance has to be close to zero. The improvement is a structural budget balance less than 1% of GDP when debt is below 60%. Also the country that has higher public debt (off the limit) will have to correct the issue with a timeline. Though this reform is a little more efficient than the original, it still has major implementation problems since it requires adjustments on forecast errors for the structural budget balance. Also it’s difficult to accurately trust the ability of governments to identify and tackle down excessive imbalances.

Shostakovichs Chamber Music and Musical Tradition

Shostakovichs Chamber Music and Musical Tradition To what extent does Shostakovich draw on musical tradition in his chamber music? Your answer must be supported by a discussion of two or three appropriate pieces of chamber music by Shostakovich that you have studied in the module materials. Musical tradition has been part of our cultural heritage for as long as we can remember. Still it is not that simple to define. One can say that traditional music are songs and tunes which have been passed down orally for generations, and are often folk songs, country dance and similar, but it can also be pieces of written music from early composers etc. We are going to look at three compositions of chamber music written by the Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-75). String Quartet No.2: first movement String Quartet No. 7: second movement Piano Trio No. 2: last movement The discussion is whether these are more of a traditional Classical musical structure, or an expression of a musical artist, that uses different elements to dissent from prevailing political ideologies at a time when the Communist Soviet Union restricted an artists freedom of speech. Originally, chamber music was written with the intention for small groups to play for private functions, and as the number of instrument were so few, there was no need of a conductor. That is one of the reasons that chamber music by its nature is so intimate. They have to learn how to communicate with each other with eye-contact and signs between themselves. String Quartet is a genre of chamber music which originated around 1760-1820, the Classical period of western music. The traditional ensemble is made up of two violins, a viola and a cello, sitting in a slightly curved line to be able to see each other. There are four movements in a Classical string quartet. One of the significant differences of this Shostakovich string quartet is, that in the first movement, it is actually written in a typically classical sonata form. (Samson Diamond, speaking in Shostakovich, scene 5). The first movement of String Quartet No. 2 is divided into three parts: Exposition Development Recapitulation. In the exposition, where the theme is, are two melodic ideas presented, traditionally played by the first violinist. Dominantly and energetic, he is accompanied by the other three. Then, the second violinist is getting more purposeful and intense with her bow strokes, following by the viola. The cello is playing contrasting and forceful in a lower pitch. The second melody coming up, is lacking the forceful strong moves from the previous section, but expresses more intense winding. At this point, Shostakovich decides not to follow the traditional structure, of continuing straight to the development. Instead he dissents from this by showing a hint to repeat the exposition instead of moving on to the development, although he does not. In the development, the melodies changes, and the first violinist becomes again more dominant, and the music becomes more intense and pulsating with a different tone colour to the exposition. Then, after the development, the sonatas recapitulation restates the theme, more intense and reversed. Shostakovich wrote fifteen string quartets, which are highly expressive and very personal. many composers used chamber music to give us the truest portraits of themselves, their most intimate thoughts and feelings. (Reading 6.1 in Richards, 2008, p. 223). Which explains why the quartets he decided to dedicate, were to family and close friends only, unlike his symphonies that were tributes to national events. The String Quartet no. 7, is in F sharp minor, a musical key, which is traditionally associated with pain and suffering. This quartet was written in memory to his wife Nina, whose sudden death affected Shostakovich profoundly, which clearly mirrored the choice of key for this piece. The second movement of a quartet (Lento), is traditionally the most expressive and personal of the four movements, where the music is transmitting the meaning, and that is definitely the case here. In a classical string quartet, there are usually four movements, but for some reason, Shostakovich breaks away from the traditional structure, and uses only three linked movements: Allegretto Lento Allegro The Heath Quartet, which are playing the second movement on the DVD (Shostakovich, 2008, scene 7) opens first with the second violin playing a seductive and controlled melody, which continues throughout the movement. Then the first violinist enters, playing a pitch higher, and the effect is almost hypnotic with the winding melody from the second violin. Both of violins are muted with an object that restricts the vibrations and changes the sound. Shostakovich uses the mute quite often in his work to gain the desired intensity of the movement. I think it adds to the stifled expression, the kind of emotion that is under the surface, that never really shows itself in the slow movement. (Oliver Heath, speaking in Shostakovich, 2008, scene 7) Piano Trio No.2 is another chamber work where Shostakovich expresses his grief and despair. It is a different type of chamber work to Quartet No. 7, for the reason that here there are three solo instruments: violin, cello and piano, and it is made up of four movements. Initially, in the 17th century, the piano trio was in a three movement form, but with the early 19th century, some composers like Beethoven for example, preferred to cast in the four movement form. Shostakovich was the one composer that definitely looked back at other composers. He is very often avant-garde on certain things. But he studied the compositions of great masters like Beethoven. (Michael Gurevich, speaking in Shostakovich, 2008, Scene 1). It was both national and personal tragedy that drove him to write this piece of music. It was finished in the spring of 1944, after WWII. Russia was in a state of exhaustion and the facts of the horrifying death camps and the fate of the Jews had started to unravel. Shostakovich had also lost his closest friend and mentor, Ivan Sollertinsky, when he was composing the Piano Trio. Shortly after, when Shostakovich had finished the trio, he decided to dedicate it in memory of his friend, following in a tradition of Russian elegiac piano trios, similar to Tchaikovsky, who had dedicated his trio to Nicholas Rubinstein. The final movement of Piano Trio No.2 (Shostakovich, 2008, Track 19), brings together many of the various elements being used until now; the ghostly opening, the frenzy crash of chords in a furious pace. Glee and madness following the anguish in the final movement. The whole piece of the fourth movement is under shadow of death and frustration, and it evoked controversial reactions from the critiques. This movement is nothing less than a gruesome dance of death; its quiet ending is the stillness of the mass grave. (Huth, 2005, in Richards, 2008, in Richards, p. 220). The Soviet Communist ideology was idealism, and therefore it expected Shostakovich finales to finish on a high spirit. However, Shostakovich choses to express dissent by showing the truest portrait of reality through his music. The Jewishness in Shostakovichs music was another factor that provoked dissent under the Stalin regime, because; distinctive Jewish culture was anti-Soviet, and therefore undesirable. (Richards, 2008, p.195). Nevertheless, Shostakovich kept making use of Jewish elements in his music, like Jewish folk poetry and melodies. One critique writes, after hearing Piano Trio No. 2; This is Klezmer, the wild music of Jewish celebration,à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ (Philip, 2005, in Richards, p. 221). Shostakovich says in Testimony: Jews were tormented for so long that they have learned to hide their despair. They express despair in dance music. and he adds; Jews became a symbol for meà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ I tried to convey that feeling in my music. (Reading 6.2 in Richards, 2008, p.224). Many of his works were forbidden because of the anti-Semitism, and his use of musical material that provoked dissent. Despite his efforts to hide the real meaning, some of his music could not be performed until long after Stalins death in 1953. Much of Shostakovichs music follows the traditional Classical musical structures, and as any musical tradition that is still alive, it is destined to become tradition. (1317 words) Bibliography Richards, F. (2008) Dmitri Shostakovich, AA 100 Book 2, Chapter 6. Shostakovich (2008) AA 100 Audio CD. Shostakovich (2008) AA 100 DVD Video. The Open University (2014) Exploring Music, https://learn2.open.ac.uk/mod/oucontent/view.php?id=855780section=5.4 (Accessed 29 January 2017).

Waste allowance of muna building

Waste allowance of muna building Introduction Waste is any substance or object(s) the holder discards or intends to discard. Any material which is perceived to have no further use is waste.Waste becomes more a product because of the cost and location of aggregates and other new materials and also because of the cost of disposal. These two factors drive the definition of waste. If you have easy availability of landfill and large quantities of aggregate close at hand you will not get a premium on the use of recycled materials. Concept of construction waste Construction waste consists of unwanted material produced directly or incidentally by the construction or industries. This includes building materials such as insulation, nails, electrical wiring, and rebar. Much building waste is made up of materials such as bricks, concrete and wood damaged or unused for various reasons during construction. Observational research has shown that this can be as high as 10 to 15% of the materials that go into a building, a much higher percentage than the 2.5-5% usually assumed by quantity surveyors. Efficacy of waste allowance The following benefits can be achieved if estimators use waste allowance while pricing:- Ø Cost savings Ø Financial benefits Ø Financial benefits Ø Identify the actual cost. Ø Uses materials efficiently Ø Uses materials efficiently Ø Ensure that waste issues are considered and addressed Ø Comparing against estimates and targets (Reducing_Material_Wastage_in_Construction.3b4442f9.4711.pdf,http://www. longworthconsulting.co.uk ) Encouraging Prevention of Construction Waste In general the environmental advantages of using reclaimed or recycled materials are greatest if the material or product is used in the highest grade application possible. For example one should process demolition rubble and use it as aggregate for a new concrete rather than just using it for fill. Waste arriving methods in construction materials Flooring:- cutting of floor tiles to fit room layouts Ceilings:- cutting of ceiling tiles and fixing to fit room layouts Insulations: -cutting of insulation boards to fit openings Tiling: -cutting of floor and wall tiles to suit design and rooms shapes Paving::-cutting of paving slabs to fit layout To reduce waste on construction sites certain general recommendations may be made, e.g. Ø Need to critically assess the quantities ordered Ø Review the ordering procedures Ø Manage deliveries Ø Protect materials during storage Ø Only take the material that is needed Ø Return surplus materials to stores Ø Protect materials at the work-site The Different Waste Types Visible Waste What you see in the skip. Process Waste Badly designed procedures or working practices that lead to inefficiency, ineffectiveness and errors. Waiting and searching for someone/something/information is a big invisible waste. Transaction Waste Transactions are people-to-people activities such as communications, excessive planning/discussions and delayed project handovers. The idea of lost time is an invisible waste. The waste produced by the construction industry is not just a burden on the environment and the ecological system, but it is also a huge cost to the industry itself. For example: Ø Transport cost of excess material to site Ø Cleaning and collection of excess material and waste Ø Transport of waste from the building site Ø Waste disposal costs Ø Better project planning: planning of material requirements (exact quantities), planning of material deliveries to site and planning of material usage Ø Organized waste disposal Ø Increasing the level of recycling of construction waste Solving the problems of waste disposaltouches many vendors involved in the construction project: the owner, designers, contractors, etc. It starts from making it a concern already at initial stages of the project planning and continuing it through the design phase. Contractors and sub-contractors can play their part by better project planning which will also reduce their material and waste disposal costs bringing them a direct financial benefit. Reduce Ø Reduce the amount of money spent on waste. Ø Reduce waste disposal costs, e.g. handling charges, transport and taxes/levies. Ø Reduce the amount of raw material used. Ø Reduce the amount of waste on site. Ø Reduce transport of waste movements to recycling centres or landfill. Ø Reduce the amount of effort used to do a repetitive job. Improve Ø Improves efficiency on-site. Ø Influence worker habits while a relative degree of choice exists for disposal costs/options. Ø Better jobsite tidiness = improved health and safety. Ø Improves the site image. Ø Improves site management processes. (Construction_waste,) Table 1 Compare The West Allowance For Three Published Sources WORKS WESSEX PRICE BOOK(%) LAXTONS PRICE BOOK(%) SPONS PRICE BOOK(%) D Groundwork 5-10 % 5 40 % Add in to total E In situ concrete/Large precast concrete 2-12.5 % 2.5 15 % Add in to total F Masonry 1.5-5 % 2.5 15 % Add in to total G Structural/Carcassing Metal/Timber 2.5-5 % 2.5 10 % Add in to total H Cladding/Covering 2.5-10% 2.5 10 % Add in to total J Waterproofing 2-10 % 2.5 20 % Add in to total K Linings/Sheathing/Dry partitioning 2-10 % 2.5 20 % Add in to total L Windows/Doors/Stairs 2.5-10 % 2.5 10 % Add in to total M Surface finishes 2.5-10 % 5 50 % Add in to total N Furniture/Equipment 2.5-10 % 2.5 25 % Add in to total P Building fabric sundries 2.5-10 % 2.5 20 % Add in to total Q Paving/Planting/Fencing/Site furniture 2.5-10 % 2.5 40 % Add in to total R Disposal systems 2.5-10 % 1 15 % Add in to total S Piped supply systems 2.5-10% 2 10 % Add in to total T Mechanical heating/Cooling/Refrigeration systems 2-10 % 1 5 % Add in to total U Ventilation/Air-conditioning systems 5 % 2.5 % Add in to total V Electrical systems 5% 2.5 15 % Add in to total W Security systems 2.5-5% 2.5 % Add in to total Conclusion Waste allowance, the third essential element of a bill of materials, is important because during construction a certain amount of material is wasted due to cutting, fitting, and handling. For example, lumber comes in standard lengths which seldom can be used without cutting and fitting. Sometimes the piece of lumber cut off is used, but more often it goes into the scrap heap. Another example is mortar sand which is normally stored at the job site. The sand on the bottom of the pile cannot be picked up without some earth getting in it. This generally makes the sand unusable and therefore wasted. Waste allowance must be included in a bill of material to cover unavoidable losses. Allowance percentage is based on the function of the items, when developing waste allowance multiply the total quantity of any one particular part. Here spons price book didnt mention waste allowance separately Because that s included in total all in rate. Here my comparing purpose i used three published sources (Spons Architects And Builders Price Book, Laxtons building price book, Wessex price book) for finished this task, If we consider all works there is slide different for all three sources. So I recommended percentage waste allowance is most reliable for building works. Construction Industry Joint Council (CIJC) Working Rule Agreement The Working Rules Agreement (WRA) is published by the Joint Council for the Building Civil Engineering Industry (NI). The WRA contains the promulgated wages, allowances, holiday pay and pension entitlements together with a variety of other basic terms and conditions of employment. It forms the basic contract of employment for the industry. The WRA is incorporated by express reference in the standard Statement of Main Terms and Conditions of Employment. The working rules Part of the cost of labour is naturally the actual wages paid to the workers carrying out the productive work. The workers are generally referred to as operatives and we will return to the idea of productive work later in the chapter. The remainder of the cost of labour is made up of a number of payments which the builder must make and which are a direct result of employing operatives. Table -2 -Type of works relevant rules Type Rule Work in difficult conditions WR1 Bonus WR2 Working hours WR3 Overtime WR4 Daily fare and travel allowance WR5 Rotary shift working WR6 Night work WR7 Continuous working WR8 Tide work WR9 Tunnel work WR 10 Refuelling,servicingmaintenance WR 11 Storage of tools WR12 Loss of clothing WR 13 Transfer arrangements WR14 Subsistence allowance WR15 Period leave WR16 Guaranteed miniweekly earnings WR17 Annual holidays WR18 Sick pay WR20 Benefit schemes WR21 For my comparing purpose here also i take three public sources (Spons Architects And Builders Price Book, Laxtons building price book, Wessex price book).Here i mention Wessex price book example calculation ( under Construction Industry Joint Council (CIJC) Working Rule Agreement)- Table 3 Calculation of labour cost CIJC award Annual Cost of wages Craftsman Labourer Flat time 1893,8hrs,at 9.00 17044.20 at 6.77 12821.03 Non- productive overtime 65.5 hrs at 9.00 589.50 at 6.77 443.44 Public holidays 63.0 hrs at 9.00 567.00 at 6.77 426.51 Holiday pay allowance 176.0 hrs at 9.00 1584.00 at 6.77 1191.52 Sick pay 5 days at 18.72 93.60 at 18.72 93.60 Plus rate 2022.3 hrs at 9.83 - At- 19878.30 14976.09 Employes national insurance 12.80% 2544.42 12.80% 1916.94 Training allowance 0.50% of paye 99.39 At 0.50% 74.88 22522.11 16967.91 Severance pay other statutory costs 2.00% 450.44 2.00% 339.36 22972.56 17307.27 Total cost of productive hours 2.00% 459.45 2.00% 346.15 23432.01 17653.41 Total labour cost per hour 12.625 9.512 Effect of 10p/h pls rate on total cost pr hr 0.1284 0.1284 Wessex price book: 23rd edition (2006), Wessex Electronic Publishing Limited Conclusion The CIJC Working Rule Agreement will be recognized as Public Holidays for the purposes of the employees Employer. WRA provide flexible working hrs ,over time bonus.If we calculating all in rate (plant, material labour) we must follow the working rule agreement.

What Being An American Menas To Me :: essays research papers

What Being An American Means to Me I believe the term American applies to the entire hemisphere, from Alaska to Chile and Argentina, assuming that all people fall under the same culture as the conventional United States. Basically I feel like it means being a small part of a huge diversity of people. As an infant, like all other infants, I started with no culture and slowly learned the cultural values of the United States of America. These cultural values seem almost oblivious as I look back on it now, but as I have matured I have come to understand what it means to be an American. If I have the chance to travel some I believe I will have a stronger sense of what being American means to me. I think this is because it would give me a more realistic view of the world with regards to other countries. With diversity comes learning, understanding the differences between people and myself. It often seems that people simply think that their values are the right ones, but I would like to think that it is within the potential of every person to go beyond this. I believe that there is probably always a better way, we just have to find it. I think it is important to learn not to attach a good or bad label on a culture, but to realize that life is not that simple. Being American is a privile ge and there are many connotations to being American. I also think it is important to stand for what you believe in, but also be accepting of other possibilities without judgement. We all have to realize that there are differences and that is what makes this world such a great place to live in. Sometimes I believe that Americans feel they are so powerful and elitist and do not appreciate the wonder of other cultures in the world. I think being an American means the right to have rights, the freedom to be different. I would also say it means having the ability to control your own life, your destiny.

Krispy Kreme :: essays research papers fc

Case Discussion Reflection 1 KKD seeks to appeal to everyone in their mission to slowly take on the fresh pastry market. Krispy Kreme is not one to limit a target of the public. According to Holland (2003), the company is equally loved by 5-year-olds and 75-year-olds alike. They are also enjoyed by whites, blacks, Asians, and Hispanics. New Englanders and Southerners love them as well as Californians and New Yorkers. Race is definitely not an issue. Only three types of people claim that they do not like Krispy Kreme: nutritionists, Dunkin’ Donuts franchisees, and compulsive liars. Stan Parker, senior VP-marketing, says â€Å"no one looks at Krispy Kreme as a replacement for lunch or dinner. It’s a complement† (MacArthur, 2003). Krispy Kreme wishes not to be a fast food business or another doughnut store. President and Chief Executive of KremeKo, insures the public that they think long and hard before the considering expansion. He said, â€Å"Krispy Kreme doughnuts won’t suddenly become available everywhere because we don’t think that’s appropriate for the brand at this juncture in its evolution in the marketplace† (Krispy Kreme Steps up Wholesale Business in Canada, 2003,) Reflection 2 KKD openly shows it audit procedure online in a PDF. Form which shows great ethical poise. No company is void of legal woes whether casualty or accused. According to a Forbes Magazine article, KKD has been cleared in any wrong doings in regards to engaging in intentional misconduct related to the company's acquisition of a Michigan franchise. Krispy Kreme did not wait to get independent legal parties involved with the issue and allowed the SEC to review any sought impropriety. According to the Forbes report, KKB halted turning in its Q10 statement until all is settled but had to close a $4.6 million doughnut plant in northeast Ohio due to oversupply problems. Socially, KKB has done its part to open a store or fill a convenience store with its product which appeals to all who seek a tasty pastry. They have offered free donuts to masses of people including EMS, police personnel, military troops overseas which I would bet boosts morale. On there website, they support the Children’s Miracle Network which is a great benefit to society. Reflection 3 Taking into consideration all KKD's publics, it is no shocker that Krispy Kreme continues to grow. For the first time, it successfully expanded nationally during the late 1990s in California (Saltzman). A main point of Krispy Kreme’s continued financial success has been their expansion into international markets.

A Journey into the Heart of American Adolescence

Teenagers will be teenagers.   Perhaps this is the best way to understand the lives of eight teenagers in Hersch’s (1999) book, A Tribe Apart: A Journey into the Heart of American Adolescence.   Although Hersch only writes about American teenagers, adolescents around the world may be able to relate to the eight kids interviewed by the author.They are naughty, to say the least, and their parents seem to have little or no interest in how they are leading or in fact ruining their lives.   The teenagers use illegal drugs, enjoy premarital sex, steal, get into trouble, and essentially do everything that they are most likely to do in the absence of adults from their lives.Adults have abused them through neglect or other means.   Hence, the young people do not have real models to follow.   Instead, they experiment with life so as to learn their own lessons before adulthood strikes.   Many of the lessons that such teenagers may learn will undoubtedly be painful if not plai n sad.It is clear to the reader of A Tribe Apart that these teenagers could have been saved from the difficulties they may inevitably face by following models of propriety.All the same, it is impossible to find such models when their parents are missing from home and out at work.   Teachers may not be able to fill in the gap seeing as it is the parents’ responsibility to teach morality to their kids for the latter to consider it believable.   After all, children are meant to spend more time with their parents than with their teachers.The teenagers of A Tribe Apart do not belong to poor families.   Researchers have often described adolescents from poor families who are neglected or abused by other means before they turn into drug addicts or thieves.Teenagers belonging to poor families are therefore believed by the masses to be morally degraded.   The unique fact about Hersch’s book is that all of the teenagers she has interviewed for her research belong to the h ealthy middle class.   Perhaps this makes it easier for adolescents around the globe to relate to the eight teenagers in her book.Most if not all teenagers may be considered ‘a tribe apart’ as the reader contemplates the fact that both the haves and the have-nots behave in similar ways through adolescence.   Indeed, teenagers belonging to poor families appear to be destroying their lives just like the adolescents interviewed by Hersch for her study.The good news is, however, that Hersch’s book could serve as a warning signal for parents who have neglected or abused their growing kids in other ways.   If parents do not take heed, their growing kids may very well shape themselves as adults that behave like their own parents.   Wealth does not matter in this case.   Rather, teenagers would remain as stereotypical teenagers – experimenting with adulthood in their youth.   They know no boundaries.They are always crossing their limits.   Most impor tantly, there is nobody to guide them out of their troubled existence.   Drugs and sex become the sole source of joy for them.   Thus, Hersch’s book is a wake up call that all parents must give serious thought to.   The fact that eight teenagers confided in Hersch must also be taken seriously.   It is possible for parents to honestly understand their kids.   Hersch has proved this with her research.

In Broad Daylgith Essay

â€Å"In Broad Daylight† is about Mu Ying, nicknamed Old Whore. She has affairs with different men and is publicly denounced and paraded before the community by the Red Guards who travel from another city and happen to know her bad name. Her dwarf peddler husband Meng Su tries to rescue her from the public humiliation, only to be humiliated himself by the Red Guards, the spectators and his wife as well. Finally, he is found crushed by a train, and Mu Ying lies alone at bus stop, deranged. Written from the point view of a naive boy, nicknamed White Cat, Ha Jin intends to portray through untainted and authentic lens a Chinese woman with a self-awakening feminist consciousness who stands up for her sexuality. Turning point number one in the story is when the questioning of Mu Ying has started and has to confess her crimes of adultery with three other men. She then comes to the point where she explains the feeling of wanting a man holding her with his strong arms very detailed. After Mu Ying describes this feeling of sexual need, a woman who is the mother of Bare Hips speaks from the front of the crowd and says â€Å"You have your own man, who doesn’t lack an arm or a leg. It’s wrong to have others’ men and more wrong to pocket their money† (Jin 156). And on this moment Mu Ying is still recovering from a punch of the Red Guards and still replies with a smirk on her face looking down on her husband â€Å"I have my own man? † (Jin 156). â€Å"My man is nothing. He is no good, I mean in bed. He always comes before I feel anything† (Jin 156). As a central focus of the public denunciation, Mu appeared to be rather calm when she was caught at home. She neither protested nor said a word, but followed the Red Guards quietly. In her eyes, these Red Guards were only a group of children. She did not expect that the join forces of the Red Guards and the revolutionary masses in the town would be tremendous enough to put her in destruction; more importantly, she did not think that her behavior had violated any rule or law. When her husband appealed to the Red Guards, she stared at him without a word, and a faint smile passed the corners of her mouth. In her yes, the behavior of her impotent husband is pedantic and ridiculous. When the Red Guard asked her why she â€Å"seduced men and paralyze heir revolutionary will with your bourgeois poison† (156), she responded rather calmly with a rhetorical question, â€Å"I’ve never invited any man to my home, have I? † (Jin 156). When several women hissed in the crowd, she even tried to persuade them by citing her own experience: â€Å"Sisters,† she spoke aloud. â€Å"All right, it was wrong to sleep with them. But you all know what it feels like when you want a man, don’t you? Don’t you once in a while have that feeling in your bones? Contemptuously, she looked at the few withered middle-aged women standing in the front row, then closed her eyes. â€Å"Oh, you want that real man to have you in his arms and let him touch every part of your body. For that man alone you want to blossom into a woman, a real woman—† (Jin 156). As a group of juveniles, White Cat and his companions know little about the adult life. This limitation makes their participation a journey of discovery. When adults burst out laughing at Mu Ying’s assertion of her husband’s impotence, the teenagers appeared to be puzzled. The dialogue between them shows this point clearly: â€Å"What’s that? What’s so funny? † Big Shrimp asked Bare Hips. â€Å"You didn’t get it? † Bare Hips said impatiently. â€Å"You don’t know anything about what happens between a man and a woman. It means that whenever she doesn’t want him to come close to her he comes. Bad timing. † â€Å"It doesn’t sound like that,† I said (Jin 157). Obviously, Bare Hips does not know any more than Big Shrimp though his impatient tone tries to conceal this ignorance. Ignorant as he is, Bare Hips makes so bold as to cry at Mu Ying, â€Å"Shameless Old Whore! † (Jin 154). Impossible to perceive, the innocent children are acting the role of accomplice in the public denunciation against Mu. Their thoughts and behaviors manifest the influence they have taken from their parents. In this sense, the innocent teenagers have degenerated from lovely angels to dreadful demons. This is a turning point because when the red guards pulled Mu Ying out of her house and started patrolling her through the city streets to get her to the school yard to sentence her, her husband came running from a street corner begging to let Mu Ying go â€Å"Please don’t take her away. It’s my fault. I haven’t disciplined her well. Please give her a change to be a new person. I promise, she won’t do it again† (Jin 155). And even though I have a feeling Mu Ying does not take the Red guard’s judging protocol as a serious punishment at that point, once she has confessed everything it all gets to her. That is when she gets the feeling that she really has humiliated and hurt her husband, because she is looking for him after she got hit with an ink bottle, only to find that he suddenly left the scene. That is the point she says she does not want to be punished after all and promises to better herself. What I saw as turning point number two becomes clear in the last paragraph, which means I did not see that really as the conclusion. It is the scene where Mu Ying is lying alone at the bus stop, saying: â€Å"Take me home. Oh, help me. Who can help me? Where are you? Why don’t you come and carry me home† (Jin 156). It is a perfect example of â€Å"You don’t know what you have until it is gone. † The second train that used its steam horn killed the husband of Mu Ying and made her a widow and truly alone. What I mean with that is that Mu Ying already felt alone because her man was not good enough for her. This feeling of loneliness combined with her husband’s underachieving partly lead to her committing adultery. Now with her husband dead, she finally exactly knows what it actually means to be alone. But moreover the story clearly shows that her husband saved her live once, after she was raped and now he again tries to get her â€Å"off the hook,† by taking the blame. Her grudge against men because of this rape is probably the other part of why she turned to adultery. It is almost shocking to observe that Mu Ying herself is not punished as the â€Å"Old Whore,† where Meng Su did not only try to take the blame, but also gets himself punished like in Old China. While the Red Guards only make her walk down every street saying the words â€Å"I am an evil monster† (Jin 160), instead of burning her alive, Meng Su is beheaded like in the old days. I strongly felt a parallel between the â€Å"blare of horns† announcing the beheading of Mu Ying’s husband. In Ha Jin’s story, the rough death of Meng Su, the husband, constitutes an â€Å"unscheduled event,† which brings White Cat and his companions to the violence of the adult world. The public denunciation of Mu Ying was no longer a thrilling scene, but something that touched them to their souls, evoking their introspection or maybe disillusion about the world. Bare Hips’s vomiting is a strong signal, indicating the shocking effect that the violence may have brought to him. After the shocking experience, they are no longer innocent adolescences, but adults struggling at the verge of understanding. This whole story turned out like a gruesome, tragic circle of misery and unanswered love to me. I think Meng Su loved Mu Ying dearly, but couldn’t take her grudge against men away that she got from the rape by the Russians. Imaginably, as a victim of the gang rape, she must have experienced a hard time of being treated with disdain. Instead of being hit to death by the accident, she has walked out of the shadow of the concept of chastity, and began to enjoy the pleasure of the flesh as well as economic benefits brought about by men, the invader of her virginity. The bitter time she has experienced has actually hardened her heart and paved the way for her further self-liberation, both physically and spiritually. Meng Su couldn’t cope with not saving her from the shame that the Red Guard trial put on her and killed himself, leaving his beloved Mu Ying really alone and helpless at the bus stop.

The Importance of Setting

The path to becoming an adult is lined with a variety of childhood and adolescent experiences, some more painful than others. In T. Coraghessen Boyle’s short story, â€Å"Greasy Lake,† Boyle masterfully uses the setting and the protagonist’s experience to teach us an old but vital lesson: those who choose not to learn and grow from their past mistakes are destined to repeat them, and thus will never mature and realize their true potential.At the beginning of the story, the main character (who also happens to be the narrator) depicts his adolescence as â€Å"a time when courtesy†¦went out of style, when it was good to be bad, when you cultivated decadence like a taste† (621). The three thought of themselves as dangerous characters, riding around town wreaking havoc. However, it seems unclear to the main character and his two friends that in reality, they are not actually bad characters. Really bad characters don’t drive their â€Å"parents†™ whining station wagons† (621) or read intellectual French novels by Andre Gide.Boyle gives us a general thought that these three boys are just your ordinary, everyday, misguided juvenile delinquents with an unclear view of what it really means to be a man. Later in the story, the narrator depicts a scene at the main setting of â€Å"Greasy Lake. † There, the three boys provoke who is described as the â€Å"very bad character† (623). The events that took place led the three to realize the ugly truth: they are nothing more than just three kids on an adventure for the night; little did they know what was in store for them.After a lengthy description of the fight that took place between the four characters, the three boys find themselves attempting to rape the girl that was accompanying the â€Å"very bad character. † Luckily, before they can go any farther, another vehicle pulls into the scene, scaring the boys as the flee away. They all run in different directions, leaving them all separated from each other. The main character, with no place else to hide, plunges into the greasy lake.The water is completely contaminated; â€Å"it was fetid and murky, the mud banks glittering with broken glass and strewn with beer cans and the charred remains of bonfires† (622). The setting of â€Å"Greasy Lake† contributes to the plot in a sense of the troubles of the three teenage boys. Much of the story takes place at Greasy Lake, which is not an ordinary, everyday, swimming with the family type of lake. There are crowded trees, which draws a picture of a dark forest with very little light seeping through. The island in the middle of the lake has little or no vegetation, giving the reader a feeling of death.It is also littered with things such as beer cans, broken glass, and bonfire remains. These are items that make you think of loss of control, violence, or even destruction. These ideas could surely lead to something bad happening . The water itself is described as â€Å"fetid and murky† (622). There are two different aspects of time to consider when looking at â€Å"Greasy Lake. † First of all, there is the fact that it is 2 a. m. The middle of the night is commonly a time of day when bad things occur. It is probably considered that the good, peaceful people are at home in bed.Therefore, if someone is up and about they are most likely wreaking havoc. Secondly, there is the year that the story takes place. It was written in the eighties, and it takes place in a time when â€Å"it was good to be bad† (621). Therefore, it is likely that something bad is sure to occur. The setting also serves a very important purpose to most stories by evoking a certain atmosphere. Work Cited Boyle, T. Coraghessan. â€Å"Greasy Lake. † 621 Kirszner, Laurie G. , and Stephen R. Mandell, eds. Literature: Reading, Writing. 8th ed. Boston: Wadsworth, 2013 Print.

Vampire Academy Chapter 2

TWO MY HATRED NOTWITHSTANDING, I HAD to admit Dimitri Beli-whatever was pretty smart. After they'd carted us off to the airport to and onto the Academy's private jet, he'd taken one look at the two of us whispering and ordered us separated. â€Å"Don't let them talk to each other,† he warned the guardian who escorted me to the back of the plane. â€Å"Five minutes together, and they'll come up with an escape plan.† I shot him a haughty look and stormed off down the aisle. Never mind the fact we had been planning escape. As it was, things didn't look good for our heroes – or heroines, rather. Once we were in the air, our odds of escape dropped further. Even supposing a miracle occurred and I did manage to take out all ten guardians, we'd sort of have a problem in getting off the plane. I figured they might have parachutes aboard somewhere, but in the unlikely event I'd be able to operate one, there was still that little issue of survival, seeing as we'd probably land somewhere in the Rocky Mountains. No, we weren't getting off this plane until it landed in backwoods Montana. I'd have to think of something then, something that involved getting past the Academy's magical wards and ten times as many guardians. Yeah. No problem. Although Lissa sat at the front with the Russian guy, her fear sang back to me, pounding inside my head like a hammer. My concern for her cut into my fury. They couldn't take her back there, not to that place. I wondered if Dimitri might have hesitated if he could feel what I did and if he knew what I knew. Probably not. He didn't care. As it was, her emotions grew so strong that for a moment, I had the disorienting sensation of sitting in her seat – in her skin even. It happened sometimes, and without much warning, she'd pull me right into her head. Dimitri's tall frame sat beside me, and my hand – her hand – gripped a bottle of water. He leaned forward to pick up something, revealing six tiny symbols tattooed on the back of his neck: molnija marks. They looked like two streaks of jagged lightning crossing in an X symbol. One for each Strigoi he'd killed. Above them was a twisting line, sort of like a snake, that marked him as a guardian. The promise mark. Blinking, I fought against her and shifted back into my own head with a grimace. I hated when that happened. Feeling Lissa's emotions was one thing, but slipping into her was something we both despised. She saw it as an invasion of privacy, so I usually didn't tell her when it happened. Neither of us could control it. It was another effect of the bond, a bond neither of us fully understood. Legends existed about psychic links between guardians and their Moroi, but the stories had never mentioned anything like this. We fumbled through it as best we could. Near the end of the flight, Dimitri walked back to where I sat and traded places with the guardian beside me. I pointedly turned away, staring out the window absentmindedly Several moments of silence passed. Finally, he said, â€Å"Were you really going to attack all of us?† I didn't answer. â€Å"Doing that? ­protecting her like that – it was very brave.† He paused. â€Å"Stupid, but still brave. Why did you even try it?† I glanced over at him, brushing my hair out of my face so I could look him levelly in the eye. â€Å"Because I'm her guardian.† I turned back toward the window. After another quiet moment, he stood up and returned to the front of the jet. When we landed, Lissa and I had no choice but to let the commandos drive us out to the Academy. Our car stopped at the gate, and our driver spoke with guards who verified we weren't Strigoi about to go off on a killing spree. After a minute, they let us pass on through the wards and up to the Academy itself. It was around sunset – the start of the vampiric day – and the campus lay wrapped in shadows. It probably looked the same, sprawling and gothic. The Moroi were big on tradition; nothing ever changed with them. This school wasn't as old as the ones back in Europe, but it had been built in the same style. The buildings boasted elaborate, almost churchlike architecture, with high peaks and stone carvings. Wrought iron gates enclosed small gardens and doorways here and there. After living on a college campus, I had a new appreciation for just how much this place resembled a university more than a typical high school. We were on the secondary campus, which was divided into lower and upper schools. Each was built around a large open quadrangle decorated with stone paths and enormous, century-old trees. We were going toward the upper school's quad, which had academic buildings on one side, while dhampir dormitories and the gym sat opposite. Moroi dorms sat on one of the other ends, and opposite them were the administrative buildings that also served the lower school. Younger students lived on the primary campus, farther to the west. Around all the campuses was space, space, and more space. We were in Montana, after all, miles away from any real city. The air felt cool in my lungs and smelled of pine and wet, decaying leaves. Overgrown forests ringed the perimeters of the Academy, and during the day, you could see mountains rising up in the distance. As we walked into the main part of the upper school, I broke from my guardian and ran up to Dimitri. â€Å"Hey, Comrade.† He kept walking and wouldn't look at me. â€Å"You want to talk now? â€Å"Are you taking us to Kirova?† â€Å"Headmistress Kirova,† he corrected. On the other side of him, Lissa shot me a look that said, Don't start something. â€Å"Headmistress. Whatever. She's still a self-righteous old bit – â€Å" My words faded as the guardians led us through a set of doors-straight into the commons. I sighed. Were these people really so cruel? There had to be at least a dozen ways to get to Kirova's office, and they were taking us right through the center of the commons. And it was breakfast time. Novice guardians – dhampirs like me – and Moroi sat together, eating and socializing, faces alight with whatever current gossip held the Academy's attention. When we entered, the loud buzz of conversation stopped instantly, like someone had flipped a switch. Hundreds of sets of eyes swiveled toward us. I returned the stares of my former classmates with a lazy grin, trying to get a sense as to whether things had changed. Nope. Didn't seem like it. Camille Conta still looked like the prim, perfectly groomed bitch I remembered, still the self-appointed leader of the Academy's royal Moroi cliques. Off to the side, Lissa's gawky near-cousin Natalie watched with wide eyes, as innocent and na?ve as before. And on the other side of the room? ­well, that was interesting. Aaron. Poor, poor Aaron, who'd no doubt had his heart broken when Lissa left. He still looked as cute as ever – maybe more so now – with those same golden looks that complemented hers so well. His eyes followed her every move. Yes. Definitely not over her. It was sad, really, because Lissa had never really been all that into him. I think she'd gone out with him simply because it seemed like the expected thing to do. But what I found most interesting was that Aaron had apparently found a way to pass the time without her. Beside him, holding his hand, was a Moroi girl who looked about eleven but had to be older, unless he'd become a pedophile during our absence. With plump little cheeks and blond ringlets, she looked like a porcelain doll. A very pissed off and evil porcelain doll. She gripped his hand tightly and shot Lissa a look of such burning hatred that it stunned me. What the hell was that all about? She was no one I knew. Just a jealous girlfriend, I guessed. I'd be pissed too if my guy was watching someone else like that. Our walk of shame mercifully ended, though our new setting – Headmistress Kirova's office – didn't really improve things. The old hag looked exactly like I remembered, sharp-nosed and gray-haired. She was tall and slim, like most Moroi, and had always reminded me of a vulture. I knew her well because I'd spent a lot of time in her office. Most of our escorts left us once Lissa and I were seated, and I felt a little less like a prisoner. Only Alberta, the captain of the school's guardians, and Dimitri stayed. They took up positions along the wall, looking stoic and terrifying, just as their job description required. Kirova fixed her angry eyes on us and opened her mouth to begin what would no doubt be a major bitch session. A deep, gentle voice stopped her. â€Å"Vasilisa.† Startled, I realized there was someone else in the room. I hadn't noticed. Careless for a guardian, even a novice one. With a great deal of effort, Victor Dashkov rose from a corner chair. Prince Victor Dashkov. Lissa sprang up and ran to him, throwing her arms around his frail body. â€Å"Uncle,† she whispered. She sounded on the verge of tears as she tightened her grip. With a small smile, he gently patted her back. â€Å"You have no idea how glad I am to see you safe, Vasilisa.† He looked toward me. â€Å"And you too, Rose.† I nodded back, trying to hide how shocked I was. He'd been sick when we left, but this – this was horrible. He was Natalie's father, only about forty or so, but he looked twice that age. Pale. Withered. Hands shaking. My heart broke watching him. With all the horrible people in the world, it didn't seem fair that this guy should get a disease that was going to kill him young and ultimately keep him from becoming king. Although not technically her uncle – the Moroi used family terms very loosely, especially the royals – Victor was a close friend of Lissa's family and had gone out of his way to help her after her parents had died. I liked him; he was the first person I was happy to see here. Kirova let them have a few more moments and then stiffly drew Lissa back to her seat. Time for the lecture. It was a good one – one of Kirova's best, which was saying something. She was a master at them. I swear that was the only reason she'd gone into school administration, because I had yet to see any evidence of her actually liking kids. The rant covered the usual topics: responsibility reckless behavior, self-centeredness? ­Bleh. I immediately found myself spacing out, alternatively pondering the logistics of escaping through the window in her office. But when the tirade shifted to me – well, that was when I tuned back in. â€Å"You, Miss Hathaway, broke the most sacred promise among our kind: the promise of a guardian to protect a Moroi. It is a great trust. A trust that you violated by selfishly taking the princess away from here. The Strigoi would love to finish off the Dragomirs; you nearly enabled them to do it.† â€Å"Rose didn't kidnap me.† Lissa spoke before I could, her voice and face calm, despite her uneasy feelings. â€Å"I wanted to go. Don't blame her.† Ms. Kirova tsked at us both and paced the office, hands folded behind her narrow back. â€Å"Miss Dragomir, you could have been the one who orchestrated the entire plan for all I know, but it was still her responsibility to make sure you didn't carry it out. If she'd done her duty, she would have notified someone. If she'd done her duty, she would have kept you safe.† I snapped. â€Å"I did do my duty!† I shouted, jumping up from my chair. Dimitri and Alberta both flinched but left me alone since I wasn't trying to hit anyone. Yet. â€Å"I did keep her safe! I kept her safe when none of you† – I made a sweeping gesture around the room – â€Å"could do it. I took her away to protect her. I did what I had to do. You certainly weren't going to.† Through the bond, I felt Lissa trying to send me calming messages, again urging me not to let anger get the best of me. Too late. Kirova stared at me, her face blank. â€Å"Miss Hathaway, forgive me if I fail to see the logic of how taking her out of a heavily guarded, magically secured environment is protecting her. Unless there's something you aren't telling us?† I bit my lip. â€Å"I see. Well, then. By my estimation, the only reason you left – aside from the novelty of it, no doubt – was to avoid the consequences of that horrible, destructive stunt you pulled just before your disappearance.† â€Å"No, that's not – â€Å" â€Å"And that only makes my decision that much easier. As a Moroi, the princess must continue on here at the Academy for her own safety, but we have no such obligations to you. You will be sent away as soon as possible.† My cockiness dried up. â€Å"I? ­what?† Lissa stood up beside me. â€Å"You can't do that! She's my guardian.† â€Å"She is no such thing, particularly since she isn't even a guardian at all. She's still a novice.† â€Å"But my parents – â€Å" â€Å"I know what your parents wanted, God rest their souls, but things have changed. Miss Hathaway is expendable. She doesn't deserve to be a guardian, and she will leave.† I stared at Kirova, unable to believe what I was hearing. â€Å"Where are you going to send me? To my mom in Nepal? Did she even know I was gone? Or maybe you'll send me off to my father?† Her eyes narrowed at the bite in that last word. When I spoke again, my voice was so cold, I barely recognized it. â€Å"Or maybe you're going to try to send me off to be a blood whore. Try that, and we'll be gone by the end of the day.† â€Å"Miss Hathaway,† she hissed, â€Å"you are out of line.† â€Å"They have a bond.† Dimitri's low, accented voice broke the heavy tension, and we all turned toward him. I think Kirova had forgotten he was there, but I hadn't. His presence was way too powerful to ignore. He still stood against the wall, looking like some sort of cowboy sentry in that ridiculous long coat of his. He looked at me, not Lissa, his dark eyes staring straight through me. â€Å"Rose knows what Vasilisa is feeling. Don't you?† I at least had the satisfaction of seeing Kirova caught off guard as she glanced between us and Dimitri. â€Å"No? ­that's impossible. That hasn't happened in centuries.† â€Å"It's obvious,† he said. â€Å"I suspected as soon as I started watching them.† Neither Lissa nor I responded, and I averted my eyes from his. â€Å"That is a gift,† murmured Victor from his corner. â€Å"A rare and wonderful thing.† â€Å"The best guardians always had that bond,† added Dimitri. â€Å"In the stories.† Kirova's outrage returned. â€Å"Stories that are centuries old,† she exclaimed. â€Å"Surely you aren't suggesting we let her stay at the Academy after everything she's done?† He shrugged. â€Å"She might be wild and disrespectful, but if she has potential – â€Å" â€Å"Wild and disrespectful?† I interrupted. â€Å"Who the hell are you anyway? Outsourced help?† â€Å"Guardian Belikov is the princess's guardian now,† said Kirova. â€Å"Her sanctioned guardian.† â€Å"You got cheap foreign labor to protect Lissa?† That was pretty mean of me to say – particularly since most Moroi and their guardians were of Russian or Romanian descent – but the comment seemed cleverer at the time than it really was. And it wasn't like I was one to talk. I might have been raised in the U.S., but my parents were foreign-born. My dhampir mother was Scottish – red-haired, with a ridiculous accent – and I'd been told my Moroi dad was Turkish. That genetic combination had given me skin the same color as the inside of an almond, along with what I liked to think were semi-exotic desert-princess features: big dark eyes and hair so deep brown that it usually looked black. I wouldn't have minded inheriting the red hair, but we take what we get. Kirova threw her hands up in exasperation and turned to him. â€Å"You see? Completely undisciplined! All the psychic bonds and very raw potential in the world can't make up for that. A guardian without discipline is worse than no guardian.† â€Å"So teach her discipline. Classes just started. Put her back in and get her training again.† â€Å"Impossible. She'll still be hopelessly behind her peers.† â€Å"No, I won't,† I argued. No one listened to me. â€Å"Then give her extra training sessions,† he said. They continued on while the rest of us watched the exchange like it was a Ping-Pong game. My pride was still hurt over the ease with which Dimitri had tricked us, but it occurred to me that he might very well keep me here with Lissa. Better to stay at this hellhole than be without her. Through our bond, I could feel her trickle of hope. â€Å"Who's going to put in the extra time?† demanded Kirova. â€Å"You?† Dimitri's argument came to an abrupt stop. â€Å"Well, that's not what I – â€Å" Kirova crossed her arms with satisfaction. â€Å"Yes. That's what I thought.† Clearly at a loss, he frowned. His eyes flicked toward Lissa and me, and I wondered what he saw. Two pathetic girls, looking at him with big, pleading eyes? Or two runaways who'd broken out of a high-security school and swiped half of Lissa's inheritance? â€Å"Yes,† he said finally. â€Å"I can mentor Rose. I'll give her extra sessions along with her normal ones.† â€Å"And then what?† retorted Kirova angrily. â€Å"She goes unpunished?† â€Å"Find some other way to punish her,† answered Dimitri. â€Å"Guardian numbers have gone down too much to risk losing another. A girl, in particular.† His unspoken words made me shudder, reminding me of my earlier statement about â€Å"blood whores.† Few dhampir girls became guardians anymore. Victor suddenly spoke up from his corner. â€Å"I'm inclined to agree with Guardian Belikov. Sending Rose away would be a shame, a waste of talent.† Ms. Kirova stared out her window. It was completely black outside. With the Academy's nocturnal schedule, morning and afternoon were relative terms. That, and they kept the windows tinted to block out excess light. When she turned back around, Lissa met her eyes. â€Å"Please, Ms. Kirova. Let Rose stay.† Oh, Lissa, I thought. Be careful. Using compulsion on another Moroi was dangerous – particularly in front of witnesses. But Lissa was only using a tiny bit, and we needed all the help we could get. Fortunately, no one seemed to realize what was happening. I don't even know if the compulsion made a difference, but finally, Kirova sighed. â€Å"If Miss Hathaway stays, here's how it will be.† She turned to me. â€Å"Your continued enrollment at St. Vladimir's is strictly probationary. Step out of line once, and you're gone. You will attend all classes and required trainings for novices your age. You will also train with Guardian Belikov in every spare moment you have – before and after classes. Other than that, you are banned from all social activities, except meals, and will stay in your dorm. Fail to comply with any of this, and you will be sent? ­away.† I gave a harsh laugh. â€Å"Banned from all social activities? Are you trying to keep us apart?† I nodded toward Lissa. â€Å"Afraid we'll run away again?† â€Å"I'm taking precautions. As I'm sure you recall, you were never properly punished for destroying school property. You have a lot to make up for.† Her thin lips tightened into a straight line. â€Å"You are being offered a very generous deal. I suggest you don't let your attitude endanger it.† I started to say it wasn't generous at all, but then I caught Dimitri's gaze. It was hard to read. He might have been telling me he believed in me. He might have been telling me I was an idiot to keep fighting with Kirova. I didn't know. Looking away from him for the second time during the meeting, I stared at the floor, conscious of Lissa beside me and her own encouragement burning in our bond. At long last, I exhaled and glanced back up at the headmistress. â€Å"Fine. I accept.†